I usually try to keep my personal politics out of this blog. That I am a Jewish, liberal-leaning Democrat is no secret, but I usually don’t rant about politics or religion here. This time, however, I just can’t help myself. I apologize for doing so.
I heard about Ann Coulter’s anti-Semitic rant on Donny Deutsch’s CNBC program today for the first time. When I read it, I was absolutely horrified:
NEW YORK Appearing on Donny Deutsch’s CNBC show, “The Big Idea,” on Monday night, columnist/author Ann Coulter suggested that the U.S. would be a better place if there weren’t any Jewish people and that they needed to “perfect” themselves into — Christians.
It led Deutsch to suggest that surely she couldn’t mean that, and when she insisted she did, he said this sounded “anti-Semitic.”
Asked by Deutsch whether she wanted to be like “the head of Iran” and “wipe Israel off the Earth,” Coulter stated: “No, we just want Jews to be perfected, as they say. … That’s what Christianity is. We believe the Old Testament.”
Deutsch told E&P’s sibling magazine, Adweek, today, “I was offended. And then, and this was interesting, she started to back off and seemed a little upset.”
Asked to gauge her reaction, Deutsch said, “I think she got frightened that maybe she had crossed a line, that this was maybe a faux pas of great proportions. I mean, did it show ignorance? Anti-Semitism? It wasn’t just one of those silly things.”
A transcript, provided by Media Matters, follows.
*
DEUTSCH: Christian — so we should be Christian? It would be better if we were all Christian?
COULTER: Yes.
DEUTSCH: We should all be Christian?
COULTER: Yes. Would you like to come to church with me, Donny?
DEUTSCH: So I should not be a Jew, I should be a Christian, and this would be a better place?
COULTER: Well, you could be a practicing Jew, but you’re not.
DEUTSCH: I actually am. That’s not true. I really am. But — so we would be better if we were – if people — if there were no Jews, no Buddhists —
COULTER: Whenever I’m harangued by —
DEUTSCH: — in this country? You can’t believe that.
COULTER: — you know, liberals on diversity —
DEUTSCH: Here you go again.
COULTER: No, it’s true. I give all of these speeches at megachurches across America, and the one thing that’s really striking about it is how utterly, completely diverse they are, and completely unself-consciously. You walk past a mixed-race couple in New York, and it’s like they have a chip on their shoulder. They’re just waiting for somebody to say something, as if anybody would. And —
DEUTSCH: I don’t agree with that. I don’t agree with that at all. Maybe you have the chip looking at them. I see a lot of interracial couples, and I don’t see any more or less chips there either way. That’s erroneous.
COULTER: No. In fact, there was an entire Seinfeld episode about Elaine and her boyfriend dating because they wanted to be a mixed-race couple, so you’re lying.
DEUTSCH: Oh, because of some Seinfeld episode? OK.
COULTER: But yeah, I think that’s reflective of what’s going on in the culture, but it is completely striking that at these huge megachurches — the idea that, you know, the more Christian you are, the less tolerant you would be is preposterous.
DEUTSCH: That isn’t what I said, but you said I should not — we should just throw Judaism away and we should all be Christians, then, or —
COULTER: Yeah.
DEUTSCH: Really?
COULTER: Well, it’s a lot easier. It’s kind of a fast track.
DEUTSCH: Really?
COULTER: Yeah. You have to obey.
DEUTSCH: You can’t possibly believe that.
COULTER: Yes.
DEUTSCH: You can’t possibly — you’re too educated, you can’t — you’re like my friend in —
COULTER: Do you know what Christianity is? We believe your religion, but you have to obey.
DEUTSCH: No, no, no, but I mean —
COULTER: We have the fast-track program.
DEUTSCH: Why don’t I put you with the head of Iran? I mean, come on. You can’t believe that.
COULTER: The head of Iran is not a Christian.
DEUTSCH: No, but in fact, “Let’s wipe Israel” —
COULTER: I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention.
DEUTSCH: “Let’s wipe Israel off the earth.” I mean, what, no Jews?
COULTER: No, we think — we just want Jews to be perfected, as they say.
DEUTSCH: Wow, you didn’t really say that, did you?
COULTER: Yes. That is what Christianity is. We believe the Old Testament, but ours is more like Federal Express. You have to obey laws. We know we’re all sinners —
DEUTSCH: In my old days, I would have argued — when you say something absurd like that, there’s no —
COULTER: What’s absurd?
DEUTSCH: Jews are going to be perfected. I’m going to go off and try to perfect myself —
COULTER: Well, that’s what the New Testament says.
DEUTSCH: Ann Coulter, author of If Democrats Had Any Brains, They’d Be Republicans, and if Ann Coulter had any brains, she would not say Jews need to be perfected. I’m offended by that personally. And we’ll have more Big Idea when we come back.
[…]
DEUTSCH: Welcome back to The Big Idea. During the break, Ann said she wanted to explain her last comment. So I’m going to give her a chance. So you don’t think that was offensive?
COULTER: No. I’m sorry. It is not intended to be. I don’t think you should take it that way, but that is what Christians consider themselves: perfected Jews. We believe the Old Testament. As you know from the Old Testament, God was constantly getting fed up with humans for not being able to, you know, live up to all the laws. What Christians believe — this is just a statement of what the New Testament is — is that that’s why Christ came and died for our sins. Christians believe the Old Testament. You don’t believe our testament.
DEUTSCH: You said — your exact words were, “Jews need to be perfected.” Those are the words out of your mouth.
COULTER: No, I’m saying that’s what a Christian is.
DEUTSCH: But that’s what you said — don’t you see how hateful, how anti-Semitic —
COULTER: No!
DEUTSCH: How do you not see? You’re an educated woman. How do you not see that?
COULTER: That isn’t hateful at all.
DEUTSCH: But that’s even a scarier thought.
That this intolerant bitch doesn’t get that she’s bigoted, hateful, and thoroughly anti-Semitic is absolutely flabbergasting to me. I can’t begin to imagine that she doesn’t see anything wrong with her comments. I think that the thing that bothers me the most is the incredibly condescending tone she adopts. For an educated person, it’s astonishing. She needs a .45 caliber bullet to the brain.
Maybe–and I can only hope so–this time she’s gone too far. I can only hope that this will be what it takes to cause people to FINALLY disregard what this bitch says. Why people think she has anything worthwhile to say–let alone to listen to–stupefies me. I don’t get it.
Perhaps she needs to spend some time as Osama bin Laden’s whore. That’s about all she’s good for.
Again, I apologize for allowing my personal politics to creep into this blog, but I just couldn’t sit back and let this pass without saying something about it.
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1. The Nazi epithet is really beneath you sir, no matter how riled up you are. I had some modicum of respect for you because of your Civil War postings are excellent, but really….there is no comparison between Ann Coulter and Reinhard Heidrich.
2. Calling for the assassination of another person? As a lawyer, I am sure you know the ramifications of that asinine plea.
3. Because one believes in the fulfilment of Biblical Messianic prophecy in the person of Christ and calls for the conversion of the Jews does not make one anti-Semitic. There is anti-Semitism in the world…let’s keep it where it should be focused…on the murderous thugs using car bombs in Jerusalem and the idjits calling for the destruction of Jews and Israel.
4. Don’t get me wrong…I am no Ann Coulter fan.
The usual left-wing tyranny of tolerance. “You must be tolerant or we will kill you.”
Reminds me of an old C.S. Lewis quote:
Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.
Eric,
She can’t cross a line. Not when she mocked families of 9/11 victims, not when she calls people faggots, not when she devoutly wishes that the Jews would stop being Jews. There is no line for Ann Coulter.
On one level I want to say she’s a nasty clown that isn’t worth the emotion you put into your contempt.
However, she also speaks for a strain in our political scene that any real American should reject.
PHW,
Obviously, you are ntitled to your opinion, which I respect.
However, I respectfully disagree with you about whether there are comparisons between the Nazis and Ann Coulter. She demonstrates precisely the same level of intolerance demonstrated by the Nazis. It’s her way or it’s beneath contempt.
Eric
Eric, you know me… as a devout, Christian conservative, evangelical, protestant, bible-thumbing, old-fashioned, backward thinking, right-wing kind of guy… this woman DOES NOT speak for any of ‘my’ people. I think she REALLY dug a hole (with her mouth) this time. The one factor that I always love to point out in theology discussions is that our Christian religion was founded on the teachings of Judaism and our Savior is a Jew. Some people forget that. 🙂
As both a Christian and a conservative, let me say that those of both my persuasions DO NOT claim Coulter as one of our own, to be sure. She’s not in our right field… she’s definitely over the fence playing her own ball game 🙂
Like Eric, I find her comments to definitely be anti-Semitic, and they make me sick. Instead of a bullet, perhaps it’s better to keep her around to show us just what stupidity personified is.
Whever I see her mug on TV, I flip the channel. I’ve had quite enough of her.
J.D. Petruzzi
At the risk of turning this into a religious flame war, this is the last thing I will say on the matter. As a conservative, I find that Ann Coulter drives me nuts. She needs to shut the pie hole because he continually rams her foot in it, making her, and Conservatives look stupid.
As a Christian, she needs to shut it because the way she discusses theology, frankly sucks. I will say however, that Christ didn’t leave an escape clause for any faith or race. Per the great commission itself, all need to be made disciples, baptised in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Christ, the Son, the Second Person, Ha Meshiach (the Saviour). It’s not “anti-Semitic” to call for the conversion of Jews, it’s not “anti-Muslim” to call for the conversion of Islamists…ad infinitum. If it is, I call myself “anti-Earth” because I call for all the world to be converted!
The fraudulent “I’m ok, you’re ok” type of Christianity that exists in this country would make the apostles, the early fathers, the Reformers, and the Inquisitors unite against us if they weren’t already spinning in their graves.
Frankly, I’m tired of the entire “anti-X” craze that has exploded in this farcical politically-correct world and age fueled by ignorant leftists and aging hippies.
Again…let’s leave the Nazi words behind…one thing I can’t stand is calling someone you disagree with a Nazi…all it tells me is that YOU have no argument or basis from which to discuss…only ad hominem. Weak people try to end debate that way. And again, calling for the killing of a commentator smacks of conspiracy to commit murder and incitement to violence. I also hope it’s beneath our esteemed host.
Can we get back to the Civil War now?
She is an idiot. I am glad to see that people of her faith are ashamed of her. People don’t understand that these passing comments are very damaging. Conversion or Perfecting any religion other then christianity is a slap in the face. To say that one’s religious beliefs is wrong and the only way to salvation is to convert to the one true religion is absurd. Her next step is forced perfection. Ah, everything that is old is new again.
I’m glad we’re staying on the high road with this discussion – as it should be.
PHW, I would submit that her comments go beyond calling for conversion, and are indeed anti-Semitic. She implies that Jews are imperfect until they become Christians, and that’s flat-out hate speech. As a Catholic, yes, I participate in Masses where we call for the conversion of all other faiths… but at the same time there is absolute tolerance of everyone and their faith, no matter what it is. And if other faiths call for my conversion, that’s absolutely fine too.
But it’s when Coulter makes the descriminatory comments that she does – that it goes way beyond a call for conversion, and certainly tolerance. Her comments are not representative of any Christian religion I’m aware of, and in fact they are distasteful to all. She is a shining example of the gum-flapping idiots that stand at the extreme of either the left or the right, both of which have their flaming boneheads.
J.D.
As another very conservative Christian (Church of the Nazarene), I find her remarks quite offensive onto themselves. She certainly is not “letting her light shine.” Her remarks set legitimate evangelism and witnessing back 100 years.
What is this…a bar room in Cambridge?
Freedom of speech regardless of how offending as long as it does not involve those who can not protect themselves like children of the retarded, etc.
I am not going to run out and break windows because some talk show type tells me that is what she thinks. This is hype, does she have a book coming out soon?
The Nazi thing, whatever, I agree that that has been overplayed, but I am not Jewish so I really do not get the whole thing, I have an idea.
Growing up a protestant with a Irish mother I have dealt with people’s opinions before. Any group that has to convert you with violence to see their messege of peace…well I think says it.
Ann Coulter is an embarrassment to the University of Michigan Law School (where, I am sorry to say, she got her degree) and the legal profession in general. That’s all I’ll say about it.
JFE
This, gentleman, is why I’m not religious, and why I don’t miss it.
Best
Rob
I think the point some of us are making is that her remarks are inflammatory and descriminatory – and it doesn’t matter whether it’s against a group based on their religion or their hair color. Hate is hate.
Coulter is a nutroll with extra nuts. She is often seen as representative of the right, but she is no more representative of conservatives than any of your wacked-out, garden variety flaming left-wingers are of liberals. Both sides have their insane extremes, and Ann is one of them. She should be seen as nothing more than a crank (an incredibly annoying one at that) and held up as an example of the incredibly stupid.
J.D.
I am reminded of a conversation I had years ago with a weeping student who was literally thrown out of his college’s Baptist Student Union at lunch one day because he was a Democrat “and Democrats can’t be Christians.” As a former Baptist, I was stunned but not surprised. Say all you want about the secularists, but like Dietrich Bonhoeffer I see nothing more dangerous to individual faith today than a watered down civic-party religion that equates a party’s platform with a creed and willingly becomes a political tool, as Bonhoeffer’s Lutherans did in 1930s Germany. Only in such an environment could an Ann Coulter, apparently not a member of any church and indeed someone who refuses to discuss what denomination she favors, not only pretend to be a spokesperson for American Christianity but pick up support from her legion of fans. And for the record I say that as the great grandson of a rabbi, the son of a Baptist preacher, and a current member of the Grace United Methodist Church council.
Ken
The Ann Coulter ‘modus operandi’ is to irritate or infuriate in order to sell her books. She’ll say the most outlandish things to get attention and to provoke a response. She’s not a serious person on any subject, so don’t let her get in your head.
Dear Sir ,
Where is Christopher Hitchens now that he is needed most ?
cordially,
David Corbett
Just for the record, I neglected to mention something. Whoever the woman is, men shouldn’t call them “the b-word.” Even that woman. I understand your anger, Eric, but that’s not a line to cross. Ultimately it’s no different than what she said about John Edwards. We shouldn’t let these people sucker us in to being like them.–Ken
Ken,
I actually had edited myself to remove a certain four-letter word that begins with the letter “c” in favor of the b-word.
Eric
Ann Coulter is a cretin who has established a predictable pattern. With each successive book tour, she says something so outrageous that it will generate free publicity for her book in a broad spectrum of venues. When liberals take the bait, expressing anger and lowering themselves to the level of her discourse (even, here, advocating her assassination), it just makes her all the more relevant to her base. If liberals are flipping out, then she must be on to something.
Personally I think it’s primitive and idiotic when one person claims their superstitions supercede the superstitions of another, but I don’t take it personally (or seriously) when either of those people condemn me for failing to subscribe to their beliefs.
…as my 13 year old son would say, “Lets all just Chill-Lax” …
Oh good grief, gentleman. Let’s get a grip here. Coulter, like lots of political talking heads, uses hyperbole all the time to make her points. She’s strident and she likes being strident because it generates publicity. Nothing unique about that.
In any case, she was not exactly calling for a pogrom and the whole Nazi thing is a bit much. She was saying (however indelicately) nothing more than that Christianity sees itself as the fulfillment of the Jewish promise. And it does. It always has. That’s the very point of Christianity. There’s nothing – absolutely nothing – anti-Semitic about that.
For the record, I’ve always believed that, were I not a Catholic, I’d have to be a Jew. Absent the fullness of Christianity (which, IMO, is Catholicism), there’s no place to go but back to the source of the promise.
Dominus vobiscum and Shalom.
Jim Morgan
Hi Eric
I agree that Ann Coulter is outside the realm of normalty ,however,when you find a proper assassin for her -pass the name along. There is a bitch named Nancy Pelosi who needs the same for her act of treason relative to her Armenia “genocide” bill. Her support is eroding so I am sure she will “tuck tail and run” as with all cowards.
Harold
Eric,
Speaking as a life-long Gentile, I must admit, there is no perfection in it.
Mannie Gentile