'POP' Goes Art Robinson (Maddow 10/07)

Politics & Elections
1

I will confess to knowing next to nothing about the race for an Oregon Congressional seat between multi-term Democrat Peter DeFazio and Republican, Tea-partiesque challenger Art Robinson, but based on Mr. Robinson’s utter train wreck of an appearance on Rachel Maddow’s show tonight, DeFazio looks to be a lock for another term. Video’s not up yet, but it’s can’t miss, riveting stuff.

The interview began with Maddow vainly attempting to ask questions about source of funds for a campaign ad for Robinson, partially funded by an anonymous $150,000 contribution, while Robinson filbustered about supposed special-interest funding of his opponent. The discussion, such as it was, then segued to Robinson’s peculiar ideas concerning government-led inflation of AIDS statistics, the non-existence of anthropogenic global warming and the health benefits of exposure to low-level radiation. Of greatest hilarity were his repeated accusations that Maddow was ‘lying’ and conducting a smear job, as she read excerpts from newsletter articles that he himself had written and attempted (without notable success) to ask whether he stood by any of his own statements. The rest of the discussion alternated between Mr. Robinson making supercilious demands to “discuss the issues”, accusing Maddow of being excessively sarcastic and (after referring to himself as “a scientist, and a very good one”) seeming completely confused as to why there might be a built-in transmission delay in a interview conducted by satellite link.

Anyway, just wanted to alert y’all to a bit of cheap entertainment, once the video hits the net, as I’m sure it shortly will.

2

Wow! I think Sharron Angle has found her VP pick for 2012!

That linked article has some, uh, interesting quotes.

3

Train wreck is an understatement for that display. He is a total loon.

And here is a link to the video.

4

I sat there for the entire interview with my mouth hanging open in disbelief, then looked at my friend watching with me, and we both collapsed into howls of laughter.

That guy is more than a loon, he seriously needs medication or something.

It was awesome to watch Rachel bang her head on the desk :smiley:

5

How do Tea partiers expect anyone to take them seriously when they keep nominating people like this?

6

I usually only get to listen to Maddow on podcast, which sucks since you miss all the video nuances of interviews like this.

7

In the interview they saw, he kicked her ass. He not only won’t be hiding it, he’ll be flaunting it, because anyone who agrees with him will see it that way, too.

8

I think that Robinson may have had a point or two to make[sup]*[/sup], but that he didn’t even try to make them. He looked like someone who came into it spoiling for a fight. He had plenty of opportunities to answer questions (in a simplified fashion, at least), but chose instead to attack her for having asked them.

  • She asked him is he was concerned about the anonymous spending on his campaign. Should he be? The whole issue with campaign financing is the potential for a candidate to grant favors to those who give him money. If he truly doesn’t know who the money came from, it can’t be infuencing his decisions. He didn’t give that answer, though.

If he does know who the money comes from, and is just failing to disclose it, that’s another thing entirely.

9

Was anyone else thinking of Repo Man?

10

Maddow didn’t exactly do a bang-up job herself. She was being condescending and interrupted him almost as much as he interrupted her. She also should’ve disclosed right up front that the AIDS document was 15 years old. The fact that he knew right away how old it was suggests to me that he probably doesn’t believe it anymore (if he did he probably would’ve said it again more recently.) She should’ve let him finish his answer about hormesis (not saying I agree with that idea but I don’t think it is nearly as fringe as Rachel was making it out to be), and the question about “do you wanna nuke America because radiation is good for people” was absolutely ridiculous and below a dignified journalist.

I’m taking it as obvious here that he’s an asshat, and just pointing out that Ms. Maddow didn’t look much better.

11

538 gives him a 0.0% chance of winning. He is not worth even discussing.

12

The interruptions, in my view, were perfectly justified as Robinson repeatedly tried to ignore the questions and/or talk over them. As for the AIDS question, if he doesn’t happen to believe that the government was overstating the number of AIDS cases anymore, he could have simply said so; instead he tried to claim simultaneously that he couldn’t remember whether he had ever said anything like that and that Maddow was lying to claim that he had.

Nothing particularly unfair on Maddow’s part that I could see, and frankly she came off as more patient with him than I might have been. Mr. Robinson clearly came in expecting to make a few negative talking points about his opponent, while maybe working in a spot of media bashing, and by pretty much any measure had his ass handed to him.

13

MSNBC does release a video podcast of both Countdown and Maddow, and they generally are available fairly soon after the initial broadcasts. Just a heads-up in case you have the bandwidth to download 250 megs or so for each podcast.

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Maddow: You said this thing.
Robinson: I never!
Maddow: Sir, I’m quoting you.
Robinson: That was fifteen years ago!
Maddow: Do you still believe this thing?
Robinson: I don’t trust your quote!
Maddow: I’m reading from your newsletter.
Robinson: My opponent is evil!
Maddow: I’d like to know where you stand.
Robinson: You’re smearing me!
Maddow: No, I’m asking you questions about you.
Robinson: You’re a sarcastic bitch!
Maddow: For asking you questions?
Robinson: You interrupted me!
Maddow: Sorry. It’s the satellite link delay.
Robinson: Bullshit!
Maddow: No, really.
Robinson: I’m a scientist dammit! Speed of light!
Maddow: Can I get even one answer from you?
Robinson: Lies! Lies I tell you!
Maddow: No, I’m asking if you still believe this thing you said.
Robinson: You suck, madam!
Maddow: Thank you for your time.

I gotta say, that was the finest half-hour of Maddow I’ve ever seen, watching her chest get all flush like that, waiting, wondering if she could possibly maintain her composure in the face of this spectacularly stupid man who willingly appeared on her show ostensibly to promote his suitability for I don’t even know what office right now like it really matters but holy cow it was breathtaking!

15

Link the the interview, and the newsletters Maddow was quoting from.
http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/10/07/5254452-if-it-were-possible-to-smear-a-person-by-quoting-to-him-things-that-he-has-published-in-his-own-newsletter

I’m watching it now.

5 minutes in, Art’s using a standard technique of talkingtalkingtalking, going over the material he wants to, getting the message out that he wants, while making the host look bad by needing to interrupt him to ask questions or get him back on subject. Interviewers need to be aware of this and be ready to combat it. Maddow’s seen it before.

He’s spending minutes claiming that Maddow is misrepresenting what he has said, while ignoring the opportunity to EXPLAIN what he believes.

Maddow quotes from his newsletter about statements he made about AIDS in 1995. I do not believe there was much debate over the cause of AIDS in 1995. If there were a debate, what he wrote would still sound half-assed and unscientific, if we can believe Maddow’s reading of his newsletter. I expect she’s fully able to prove her source(after watching the video, I checked. She is.)

11 minutes in. Now he’s rattling off attacks on his opponent, rather than respond to anything Maddow’s asked. He’s repeating, “Your viewers know what you are.” to Maddow. Now he’s saying, “You could not understand it” if he explained ‘hormesis’.

He’s complaining that she’s sarcastic, apparently having never been asked a question before. Now she’s explaining how satellite interviews work, and he says there is no delay, that it’s speed-of-light. I know there’s a delay, how does the ‘scientist’ not know it?

Now he is once again calling her a liar as she quotes from his newsletter.

Anyone saying Maddow comes off ‘not much better’ is not watching what I watched. She was confronted with a belligerent man with a chip on his shoulder who wanted to use her show as a soapbox, rather than engage in a give-and-take discussion, and who would rather bitch and moan FOR MINUTES than use that time to refute whatever the hell he thought she was saying. Now I see why some interviewers will cut off their guests.

If he gets elected, the state deserves him. I actually think Alvin Greene from S. Carolina is a better Senate candidate, and Greene is probably mentally handicapped.

I gotta stop following politics. I’m losing what little faith in ppl I ever had.

16

Why is Maddow even bothering with this idiot? Arguing with him his beneath her.

17

I agree, and yet she kept stooping to his level. I don’t know much about her, but my opinion of her always been very high. It’s a little bit lower now.

18

You’re aware that this man has pretty much a 0% chance of winning, right?

19

Apparently he was the only Republican candidate willing to go on her show.

20

The Tea Baggers keep pushing loons for office and expect America and the world to take them seriously. They are the party of Palin, Angle, Paul, O’Donnell and now Robinson. Their selection of pols will make the party stillborn.