# SHOCKING NEWS: Sean Hannity is a Lying Douchebag! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 10, 2009, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594 "2009-07-10T18:55:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![Frostillicus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Frostillicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frostillicus)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/201 "2009-07-18T16:56:39Z")
This just in: Sean Hannity and Karl Rove and both lying douchebags. [http://mediamatters.org/research/200907170017](http://mediamatters.org/research/200907170017) ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/202 "2009-07-21T23:25:34Z")
Semi-related, some fox news retardation. I was watching CNN as I was going to sleep - I think it was Sunday morning. As they went to commercial, I flipped it one channel up to Fox News. There was a newscaster interviewing [Don McLeroy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_McLeroy), the a member of the Texas State board of Education. He’s a young Earth creationist and, in debates on the use of evolution in Texas biology books, has said “someone needs to stand up to all these experts!”. By the way - if your state school board is half-full of young earth creationists, shouldn’t your state be committing mass suicide in embarassment and shame? I mean… for fucks sake, these people are at the highest level of educational control. What the fuck? I wish I could find you the clip online somewhere (I searched, but couldn’t - anyone know if Fox archives their video somewhere?) because I can’t even describe how little sense the interview made. It was about how public schools downplay the role of the Bible in their history books. I couldn’t exactly make sense of what was going on, but it sounded like they (both the interviewer and Don McElroy) thought there was a librul conspiracy to keep the Bible out of history textbooks even though it was related to everything about American history. At one point, Mr. McElroy explained that the founding fathers based our government around Christianity, because there were 3 branches of government. … That’s about as clear as he was on that. No elaboration. At some later point he mentioned something like “three branches of government, checks and balances, show that man is imperfect”… I suppose that was his attempt at justification. And when he said this, the newscaster nodded and said “right… right” Okay, I get it - Fox News tries to cater to people who lean conservative. Does that mean you have to be fucking batshit crazy and retarded and cater to every crackpot idea that anyone on the right wing has? Aren’t there reasonable republicans out there who aren’t fucking batshit crazy young earth creationist idiots who view this sort of pandering to the retarded as insulting to them? ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/203 "2009-07-21T23:52:19Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > By the way - if your state school board is half-full of young earth creationists, shouldn’t your state be committing mass suicide in embarassment and shame? I mean.. for fucks sake, these people are at the highest level of educational control. What the fuck? Problem is that in many states, including Texas, member of those school boards are elected. Plenty of Americans can barely drag their fat lazy asses to the ballot box when the Presidency of the nation is at stake. What percentage do you think vote in school board elections? These poorly-attended, downballot elections are often decided by very small numbers of voters, so any candidate that can marshall a devoted following of nutcases has a really good shot at election. And finding nutcases in Texas is no needle-in-a-haystack assignment. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/204 "2009-07-22T00:16:20Z")
More batshit crazy pandering: Hannity does not point out that the Obama birth certificate conspiracies were debunked already. [http://www.newshounds.us/2009/07/16/fox\_continues\_promoting\_birther\_lawsuit\_while\_ignoring\_red\_flags\_indicating\_its\_a\_hoax.php](http://www.newshounds.us/2009/07/16/fox_continues_promoting_birther_lawsuit_while_ignoring_red_flags_indicating_its_a_hoax.php) > [@](#): > > On Tuesday (7/14/09), I posted about several instances in which Fox News had added legitimacy to the irrational and baseless conspiracy-theorist “birthers” who continue to insist, despite evidence to the contrary, that Barack Obama was not born in the United States and thus an illegitimate president. One such effort came from Sean Hannity, reporting on a soldier challenging his deployment to Afghanistan on the grounds that Obama is not eligible to be president. Hannity had failed to note in his report the availability of Obama’s birth certificate and how the birther claims have been completely investigated and debunked. Hannity gave an update to the Afghanistan story last night (7/15/09) and took it a step further by suggesting, along with the plaintiff, that the subsequent revocation of the soldiers deployment orders indicated that his allegations were proved true. But Hannity omitted key details that point to a scam by the soldier. With video. > > At about 40 seconds into the video below, Hannity says, “We told you yesterday about an Army Reserve soldier who challenged his deployment orders on the grounds that President Obama HAS NOT PROVEN (Hannity’s emphasis) that he is a U.S. citizen. Now that soldier, Maj. Stefan Frederick Cook, who was supposed to deploy to Afghanistan in coming days, has now had his order revoked. According to his lawyer, ‘They just said, ‘Order revoked.’ No explanation, no reasons – just revoked.’ Now Major Cook and his lawyer expressed joy at this outcome and they took it as an admission on the part of the military that the president is not, in fact, a legitimate citizen by birth.” > > A Fox News producer similarly suggested that the Obama administration was trying to sweep the matter under the rug by posting the banner: After claiming Obama not U.S. Born soldier has his order revoked. > > Once again Hannity failed to point out that Obama’s birth certificate has been produced, that [FactCheck.org](http://FactCheck.org), (hardly a liberal or Democratic organization) has concluded that Obama was “Born in the U.S.A.” Even the GOP leaders know it is batshit crazy pandering, but they still continue to pander these yahoos. > **[GOP congressman has birther meltdown on Hardball](https://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/7/21/756073/-GOP-congressman-has-birther-meltdown-on-Hardball)** > > It takes Chris Matthews two full minutes to finally get Congressman John Campbell (R-CA) to definitively admit that he believes President Obama was born in the United States: They even admit that! Has their base shrunk so much that they have to depend on these yahoos now and in the future? Is there something in the water? Even Lou Downs on CNN has gone batshit crazy! > **[After (R) Mike Castle Shoots Down Birther, Lou Dobbs Raises Questions About...](https://crooksandliars.com/heather/lou-dobbs-raises-questions-about-obamas-bi)** > > Lou Dobbs uses the example of some crazy birthers out there screaming at Congressman Mike Castle to claim that there are still some questions that hav “Seemingly the questions won’t go away”? Of course not, not if conservative talking heads continue to fear telling their viewers the whole truth. ---
**Author:** ![Frostillicus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Frostillicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frostillicus)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/205 "2009-07-22T03:34:50Z")
In that vein, Chris Matthews rips a new one into a Republican congressman whackjob about Obama’s citizenship. Enjoy. (I especially like the part where said whackjob gets one of the three constitutional requirements for the presidency wrong.) > **[GOP congressman has birther meltdown on Hardball](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2009/7/21/756073/-GOP-congressman-has-birther-meltdown-on-Hardball)** > > It takes Chris Matthews two full minutes to finally get Congressman John Campbell (R-CA) to definitively admit that he believes President Obama was born in the United States: ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/206 "2009-07-22T17:31:24Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > Is there something in the water? Even Lou Downs on CNN has gone batshit crazy! > > [After (R) Mike Castle Shoots Down Birther, Lou Dobbs Raises Questions About Obama's Birth Certificate | Crooks and Liars](http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/lou-dobbs-raises-questions-about-obamas-bi) > > “Seemingly the questions won’t go away”? Of course not, not if conservative talking heads continue to fear telling their viewers the whole truth. **Even Lou Dobbs on CNN has gone batshit crazy**??? You obviously haven’t been paying attention, he has been batshit crazy for a ocuple of years now. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/207 "2009-07-22T17:39:20Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > **Even Lou Dobbs on CNN has gone batshit crazy**??? > > You obviously haven’t been paying attention, he has been batshit crazy for a ocuple of years now. I did pay attention. My impression was that he was just crazy. Now I see that he is batshit crazy, head trauma crazy; he is just a tight-ass, tossbag, tosspot, twerp, twit, troll of a tool. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/208 "2009-07-22T18:20:00Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > I did pay attention. > > My impression was that he was just crazy. > > Now I see that he is batshit crazy, head trauma crazy; he is just a tight-ass, tossbag, tosspot, twerp, twit, troll of a tool. Ah, so he has taken it to 11. You see most people can only go to 10, but when Dobbs needs just a bit more he can turn the crazy up to 11. ---
**Author:** ![Hung\_Mung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hung\_Mung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hung_Mung)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/209 "2009-07-22T19:34:46Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > Ah, so he has taken it to 11. You see most people can only go to 10, but when Dobbs needs just a bit more he can turn the crazy up to 11. Why wouldn’t you just make 10 crazier? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/210 "2009-07-22T19:38:06Z")
…but his crazy goes up to 11! ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/211 "2009-07-22T19:39:28Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > …but his crazy goes up to 11! Over 9000!!! ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/212 "2009-07-22T20:38:56Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > Even the GOP leaders know it is batshit crazy pandering, but they still continue to pander these yahoos. It seems others got the Memo too. Even [Liz Cheney](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/22/liz-cheney-defends-birthe_n_242555.html) is getting on the Birther train. What’s fun is that the Birthers think they’re getting ever-so-closer to “The Truth” coming out, when nothing of the kind will happen, thus keeping their anticipation simmering/boiling. Multiple aneurysms may result. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/213 "2009-07-22T22:02:21Z")
> [@Equipoise](#): > > What’s fun is that the Birthers think they’re getting ever-so-closer to “The Truth” coming out, when nothing of the kind will happen, thus keeping their anticipation simmering/boiling. That’s the problem. It’s like a TV show with a simmering, will-they-or-won’t-they thing between the two leads. You can draw people in with that tension. The payoff is seldom worth it, but for someone whose job is to attract attention and loyalty, that doesn’t matter. The longer they can push back the resolution, the more they’ve done their job. “What is he hiding?” is a compelling question, they’ll probably still be asking it after Obama is out of office. “Whose side would you be on if the chips were down?” “It is my job to see that the chips stay up.” ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/214 "2009-07-24T01:35:53Z")
Jon Stewart massacred Lou Dobbs, the Republican congress critter and the nuts still making a lawsuit about Obama’s birth certificate. > **[The Daily Show with Trevor Noah | Comedy Central](https://www.cc.com/shows/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah)** > > The Daily Show is an Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning program that looks at the day’s top headlines through a sharp, reality-based lens. ---
**Author:** ![Purd\_Werfect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47c2d/32.png) [@Purd\_Werfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purd_Werfect)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/215 "2009-07-24T02:47:14Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Are you suggesting that a sitting president should ostracize certain duly accredited news organizations based on their political orientation? > > But, but what about, like, freedom of the press and all that? You guys are usually in favor of a contentious press when a Republican is in office. While I agree with freedom of the press, I disagree that Fox is a news organization in anything but name. They are an editorial organization. As a cite, I remind you of the very heavy advertising they did before the April 15th tea party. Such promotion is not reporting news, but rather making news. There’s also the 100 or so screen shots floating around that show their bottom of the screen crawl identifying convicted republicans as democrats. Once is a mistake, but a regular re-occurrence is hard to swallow, especially in light of the fact that other news organs manage to make such mistakes much less frequently. > [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > And by the way,\*\* EP\*\*, I don’t rail against every point made by the opposition, just the ones that are wrong…you know, like the OP’s. To let them stand is how the lie becomes the truth. (Yes, I may be suffering Michael Jackson overload, why do you ask?) How can you say this with a straight face? Plenty of examples exist of Hannity baldly lying through omission, of which this is just the latest example. I have no problem with conservatives. But the hypocrisy of people like Hannity, who is actively trying to tear the government down while all the while suggesting it’s the left doing the destroying, give popularized conservatism a terrible name and image. For you to defend him, or at least Fox news in this matter, is ludicrous. And your defense of that edited “interview” in this thread appears like nothing so much disingenuous weaseling. Man, defend your viewpoints, but be grown up enough to realize that your own proclaimed side has some serious flaws. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/216 "2009-07-24T07:32:26Z")
> [@Purd\_Werfect](#): > > While I agree with freedom of the press, I disagree that Fox is a news organization in anything but name. They are an editorial organization. As a cite, I remind you of the very heavy advertising they did before the April 15th tea party. Such promotion is not reporting news, but rather making news. I agree, but given Brian Williams’ recent slavering, bowing reportage on Obama or ABC’s virtual infomercial on Obama’s healthcare plan, I find it hard to single out Fox, who is the only right-wing voice to counter the decades of pro-Democratic, pro-liberal reportage of ABC, NBC, CBS, Time, Newsweek, CNN, USA Today, etc., etc., virtually ad infinitum, for such ideological promotion. > [@Purd\_Werfect](#): > > There’s also the 100 or so screen shots floating around that show their bottom of the screen crawl identifying convicted republicans as democrats. Once is a mistake, but a regular re-occurrence is hard to swallow, especially in light of the fact that other news organs manage to make such mistakes much less frequently. Has this truly happened a hundred or more times, or even on a regular basis? I’m only aware of one time, but then I don’t watch Fox or follow what goes on there. > [@Purd\_Werfect](#): > > How can you say this with a straight face? Plenty of examples exist of Hannity baldly lying through omission, of which this is just the latest example. I’ll say the same thing again…does this really happen regularly? As I said upthread, I don’t watch Hannity so I honestly don’t know. But I do know that the clips which were omitted that the OP refers to don’t seem to be of particular importance from my perspective, and I can easily see how they might have been omitted for several legitimate reasons. > [@Purd\_Werfect](#): > > I have no problem with conservatives. But the hypocrisy of people like Hannity, who is actively trying to tear the government down while all the while suggesting it’s the left doing the destroying, give popularized conservatism a terrible name and image. You are aware, of course, that to many of us on the right it’s you guys who are trying to tear the government down (or at least recast it in a much different way) and we who are trying to save the things that have made this country great and which have been under attack by the left for decades? What we have here, you and I, are ideological viewpoints and goals that are pretty much at complete loggerheads, and as a result we find ourselves, almost amusingly, accusing each other of the same things. > [@Purd\_Werfect](#): > > For you to defend him, or at least Fox news in this matter, is ludicrous. And your defense of that edited “interview” in this thread appears like nothing so much disingenuous weaseling. Man, defend your viewpoints, but be grown up enough to realize that your own proclaimed side has some serious flaws. As I thought I said quite clearly upthread, I’m not defending Hannity (or Fox) so much as I’m challenging erroneous charges leveled in the OP. Would you seriously have me sit by and allow false and scurrilous accusations such as those in the OP simply because the subject of them “deserves” it in a big-picture sense? If Hannity, et al. are so wrong so often it shouldn’t be hard to condemn them legitimately. The fact of the matter, again, is that Obama didn’t answer the Major Garrett’s question well; Hannity didn’t “lie” by virtue of “chopping up the interview” (and for that matter, we don’t even know who omitted the clips, much less their motivation); Hannity didn’t “lie” when he said that Obama needed to study history (this is clearly just an opinion); and Hannity most certainly did not “cast aspersions on the President that he HATES AMERICA!!!” So the OP is either lying or in error. I have no doubt that at the time he posted the OP he genuinely believed what he was saying, but the fact of the matter is that what he said was wrong, and I don’t happen to believe that his false claims should be allowed to stand simply because they were aimed at someone (Hannity) or something (Fox) that you feel has been unfair in other ways and therefore deserves it. Simply put, things are what they are – and what the OP is, is wrong. Period. End of story. I said upthread that I don’t even particularly care for or even like Sean Hannity, but again if his behavior is so egregious, so often, why is it necessary to exaggerate or make things up? If honest examples of him behaving dishonestly were posted, I wouldn’t contest them. ---
**Author:** ![Purd\_Werfect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47c2d/32.png) [@Purd\_Werfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purd_Werfect)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/217 "2009-07-24T11:25:49Z")
Just as a clarification, I didn’t say that conservatives were trying to tear this government down, but rather that people like Hannity were. I see a difference. Having said that, you and I may indeed be philosophically at odds. As for mainstream new orgs, I agree that they all exhibit bias to some degree. For me anyway, the tea parties and thefoxnation forums really pushed Fox far beyond the others. Plenty of examples of Hannity’s work - [http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/sean\_hannity](http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/sean_hannity) Plenty of examples of Fox acting questionable - [http://mediamatters.org/topic/onlyonfox/](http://mediamatters.org/topic/onlyonfox/) In the interest of fairness, other news orgs get called out there as well, but seem to cross the line far less often. [http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/nbc](http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/nbc) [http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/abc](http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/abc) [http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/cnn](http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/cnn) As for the OP, Obama’s answer was nothing to write home about, but as presented by Fox and Hannity, it seemed recast in a worse light. Fox cuts out Obama’s acknowledgment of Lech Walesa and Václav Havel, and then Hannity himself invokes Walesa as a defense of Reagan. Obama answered the reporter’s question and acknowledged both Republican and Democratic presidents as material to ending the Cold War, but somehow that’s not enough for Hannity. Instead, since Obama didn’t lionize Reagan in his answer, he’s cast as an historically unaware idiot. I’d say that Hannity showed a much narrower view of history, then did our President. No, Hannity didn’t say, in this instance, that Obama hated America. But it is hard not to hear it in his words as he’s spent so much sustained energy in pushing just that view. And, in this instance, both Fox and Hannity acted dishonest, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/218 "2009-07-24T13:25:15Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > I find it hard to single out Fox, who is the only right-wing voice to counter the decades of pro-Democratic, pro-liberal reportage of ABC, NBC, CBS, Time, Newsweek, CNN, USA Today, etc., etc., virtually ad infinitum, for such ideological promotion. I just feel the need, for about the billionth time, to point out how much bullshit this is. Just because something isn’t right-wing, doesn’t make it left-wing. Fox “News” is nothing but a shill for the right wing. You just don’t like the fact that the mainstream news sources aren’t. Tough shit for you. ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2009, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/219 "2009-07-25T14:24:42Z")
ETA: nvm ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2010, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594/220 "2010-03-19T17:52:07Z")
Apparently, the dishonesty extends to his “charity” [bilking war orphans and injured service vets](http://www.debbieschlussel.com/6938/sean-hannitys-freedom-concert-scam-only-7-of-charitys-money-went-to-injured-troops-kids-of-fallen-troops-g5s-g6s-for-vannity/): > [@](#): > > That year, while fat-cat consultants and expenses took millions of Freedom Alliance’s money, seriously wounded troops to whom Freedom Alliance donated received a pathetic average of $785 each and the college student kids of the fallen got a paltry average of $2,943 toward tuition. Yes, out of millions raised that year by Sean Hannity at his Freedom Concerts, only $309,000 was given out in scholarships to 105 students, and only $110,703.82 was given to the wounded soldiers. > > Freedom Alliance’s 2007 tax returns aren’t much better. Out of $12,459,317 it raised that year, only $895,347–or just 7%–went to seriously wounded troops and scholarships for fallen troops. 53% went to expenses, including $1,464,627 in postage and $1,151,428 in printing. $604,995 went to “professional fees” and “consultants.” Out of millions paid for Freedom Concert tickets and raised in fundraisers by Hannity listeners, only $596,500 went to college scholarships for soldiers who died in battle, and only $299,897 went to horribly injured troops. 208 student children of the fallen got an average of $2,868 apiece for tuition, though many got only $1,000 or less. 382 soldiers with serious injuries got an average of $785 each. > > … > > And then, there are the 2008 Freedom Alliance tax forms, which were signed in November 2009 and filed only recently. That year, Freedom Alliance took in $8,781,431 in revenue and gave $1,060,275.57 total–or just 12%–to seriously wounded soldiers and for scholarships to kids of the fallen. Remember, this is well below the 75% required to be considered a legitimate charity. And after claiming in written letters to donors that 100% of the money donated, via the Freedom Concerts or otherwise, to the scholarships would go directly to the scholarships and not to expenses, the Freedom Alliance decided to do the contrary and charge expenses anyway–charging a whopping $436,386 to give out $802,250 in scholarships. That means that 35% of the $1,238,636–all of which was supposed to go to scholarships for these kids of the fallen–went to Freedom Alliance. > > Freedom Alliance spent $5,375,654–or 61% of its total revenue earned in 2008–on expenses, but actually 80% of the total revenue spent and given out for that year. That includes $1,055,791 spent on postage and $925,392 on printing. It spent $157,041 on travel. Is this the item that includes the money for the alleged Sean Hannity Gulfstream flights? Like I said, neither the charity nor Hannity will answer questions. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-news-sean-hannity-is-a-lying-douchebag/502594.md?page=12)