Newsmax Columnist Clings To Conspiracy Theory Of Coronavirus As Chinese Bioweapon Topic: Newsmax
The idea that coronavirus is a Chinese-made bioweapon is one that has been longdiscredited. Still, it's one that some conspiracy theorists cling to. One of them is Clare Lopez, a right-wing activist whom we saw last among other biased right-wingers (and discredited fraud Wayne Simmons) on Accuracy in Media's "Citizens' Commission on Benghazi." for some reason, Newsmax gave Lopez a May 11 column to pursue her new conspiracy theory.
Lopez ranted that "With CCP ["Commuinist Chinese Party"] propaganda efforts in full overdrive, it is important that USG [could be "U.S. government," but Lopez never explains the acronym] leadership speak openly and clearly about Beijing's advanced Biological Weapons Program (BWP). This particular coronavirus may have escaped a CCP lab accidentally, but its creation was anything but unintentional." She went on to quote speculation that a biology lab in Wuhan, China, where the coronavirus first appeared, "is linked to China's covert bio-weapons program," then concluded with more speculation and conspiracy theorizing:
To put this in perspective, it is important to understand how Xi Jinping and the CCP's top leadership think. They are steeped in thousands of years of Chinese history and warfare. Sun Tzu's 500 B.C "Art of War" is studied alongside the 1999 "Unrestricted Warfare." Let's conclude here with the secret speech of Chi Haotian, who was China's Defense Minister from 1993 to 2003 and also Vice Chairman of the CCP's Central Military Commission. In this chilling speech, translated into English in 2005, Gen. Chi openly referred to the CCP's intention to militarily defeat, occupy, and colonize the U.S. And what of 330 million Americans? The CCP will be "using special means to 'clean up' America", i.e., "new bio-weapons."
No, thanks, we'll just stick with actual, authoritataive sources who aren't so much into baseless, discredited speculation.
Award-winning journalist, syndicated columnist, and best-selling author Michelle Malkin has joined Newsmax TV.
The outspoken media entrepreneur will be a prime-time Newsmax contributor and host a weekend show offering her commentary and analysis of the news.
“Newsmax TV is America’s must-watch news network and I’m absolutely thrilled to be a part of it,’’ Malkin said.
“Michelle is a true conservative, a respected media personality and a powerful voice for of millions Americans that the big media ignore,” Christopher Ruddy, CEO of Newsmax Media, Inc., said.
Malkin will join Newsmax’s growing list of media heavyweights and commentators where she will deliver her fiercely independent reporting and no-nonsense commentary.
Hoffman, of course, didn't tell his readers that his employer's latest hire has been leaning hard lately into white nationalism and anti-Semitism. Or that she's a conspiracy theory-prone anti-vaxxer. Just two weeks ago, Malkin used her column to tout the notoriously misinformation-laden film "Plandemic" and conspiratorially accused infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci of being a liar.
Newsmax, apparently, doesn't want its readers to know all about this craziness. Newsmax chief Christopher Ruddy seems weirdly proud of hiring Malkin.
This is likely to end badly with Malkin embracing some even-more-fringe view that will damage the Newsmax brand.
(And, no, we haven't forgotten that CNSNews.com still runs Malkin's column, including the above-mentioned one in which she endorsed "Plandemic." WorldNetDaily runs her column as well, but her white nationalism and conspiracy theories are more on brand for WND.)
Newsmax's Hirsen Joins Bad-Take Brigade On Religion And Coronavirus Topic: Newsmax
We'vedocumented how CNSNews.com editor in chief Terry Jeffrey so embraced his bad take that stopping large crowds of worshippers to slow the spread of coronavirus was an issue of religious freedom rather that the public health issue it actually is that he turned it into his "news" operation's editorial agenda. Another ConWeb member has decided to echo that bad take.
James Hirsen wrote in his April 13 Newsmax column:
At a time when folks are struggling to come to grips with grave illnesses, economic hardships, logistic challenges, and imposed isolation, faith has become an "essential" in the battle against the "invisible enemy."
But worship communities trying to follow government regulations and guidelines have suddenly found themselves under attack in several parts of the country.
It appears as though various state and local officials, who may or may not hold a different view of religious worship than their fervent faith counterparts, are using current coronavirus-related circumstances to target people who are participating in worship in safe and responsible ways.
The free exercise of religion is an absolute fundamental right endowed by the same Creator to whom the aforementioned worship is directed.
This free exercise of religion is enshrined in the First Amendment of the Constitution.
In simple yet eloquent words, the text of the First Amendment declares , "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
Recently, however, just prior to the pinnacle Christian celebration of Easter, several state and local officials took some aggressive steps in which they attempted to limit — and in some cases even ban — people from engaging in worship.
Thankfully, U.S. Attorney General William Barr has been paying close attention to the issue.
He is poised to intervene.
Needless to say, Hirsen is making things up when he accuses state and local officials of having hostility toward religion -- he offers no evidence to back that up. Further, contrary to his claim that freedom of religion is an "absolute" right, no right is absolute, even those cited in the First Amendment. Just as one's right to free speech does not extend to libel or falsely shoting "fire" in a crowded theater, one's freedom of religion does not supercede public health or safety. Hirsen claims to be a lawyer, so you'd think he would know that.
And like Jeffrey did, he cites only examples of Christians whose religious freedom is purportedly being infringed upon -- which it's not; only mass gatherings are, of any kind -- which tells us he really doesn't care if non-Christians have their freedom of religion infringed upon.
Bad Coronavirus Takes: Three Cheers For Price-Gouging! Topic: Newsmax
So-called "price gouging" is a gimmick used by politicians and the media to rally supporters and viewers. It's almost never about predatory business practices, and it's always the people who end up paying the cost of price control laws.
Governments can't alter the laws of economics any easier than they can the laws of physics. Yet, they seemingly never cease trying, either under some private or public pressure to skew economic outcomes.
Particularly in vogue these days is outrage over "price gouging." In this way, the political and media response to COVID-19 is the same as it always is during hurricanes or other natural disasters.
Now, there's no telling how extreme anti-price gouging policies will get, considering the economic lockdown continues unabated even as a record shattering 6.6 million jobless claims are filed as a result.
[...]
Low prices may normally be preferable for consumers, but high prices help keep masks, hand sanitizer, food, and other high demand products on shelves longer.
Instead of the first guy in line buying up 300 rolls of toilet paper at the normal price, a "gouged" price would leave enough for the last shopper, or even eliminate the tight-windowed long line altogether.
Additionally, "gouged" prices rarely last, as they encourage more production, because there is greater potential profit. As more producers rush to meet the high demand, competition drives prices down once again.
[...]
Although basic economic laws and principles can be understood without a Ph.D. or even a high school diploma, they are often eschewed by the elites in politics, academia and media. Unfortunately, too many Americans follow these so-called leaders.
What should always be kept in mind is that the size and scope of this COVID-19 pandemic is largely unknown.
Some precautions are undoubtedly in order, but government intervention is at least on the verge of overreach and overreaction.
Newsmax TV White House Reporter Pushes Coronavirus Conspiracy Theory Topic: Newsmax
In February, Newsmax TV hired Emerald Robinson as its White House correspondent. Her resume is scant, with her most recent job being White House correspondent for the even-farther-right-and-even-more-pro-Trump One America News Network. That OAN experience is showing, for Robinson has embraced a far-right coronavirus conspiracy theory.
In a series of tweets on April 6, Robinson ranted that Bill Gates "basically controls global health policy' and that his "plan" is "Using vaccines to track people" using a "quantum dot-tattoo." The goal, Robinson insists, is to "leverage immunization as an opportunity to establish digital identity worldwide," declaring: "He just bought off relevant orgs & did it. It’s not just incompatible with democracy. It’s the end of it."
This claim comes from right-wing fever swamps, which extrapolated Gates' claim to want to create trackable data for who has received a possible future coronavirus vaccine as a means to control its spread into a full-blown sinister conspiracy.
Robinson, meanwhile, can't handle criticism of her conspiracy theory. In a response to a commenter who rightly criticized her, Robinson huffed: "Why was Jeffery Epstein donating Gates's cash to MIT anonymously?" In another response to a different critic -- in this case, Atlantic writer Conor Friersdorg -- Robinson sneered: "You've never written a single thing of the slightest interest. You're unable to get 12 people to like any of your posts on Twitter and you write for the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. So, who cares what you think?"
Hiring a conspiracy-mongering reporter from an outlet known for both pro-Trump sycophancy and conspirach-mongering is not a good look for Newsmax if it's seeking to build credibility for its TV operation -- which, by the way, just got rid of Wayne Allyn Root for his shady coronavirus shenanigans.
Pro-Trump Sycophancy, Christopher Ruddy Division Topic: Newsmax
Throughout this national emergency President Donald Trump has repeatedly demonstrated that he’s the right person to lead the nation.
From the beginning we have seen Trump’s best attributes.
Some time ago, the Quinnipiac poll asked Americans about the president’s best attributes.
The public said he was a “strong person” (62%) and that he “is intelligent” (58%).
Both of those attributes of his have been on display during this crisis.
Trump has other arrows in his quiver: He’s calm and doesn’t panic, decisive, and follows the evidence, not the hype.
[...]
Trump has been chided for not taking the threat seriously.
But as his congressional opponents focused on a very flimsy impeachment inquiry, he was busy convening a coronavirus task force. And that was back in January.
[...]
Throughout the crisis, Trump has remained focused and level-headed.
He defers to the experts at his task force’s daily press briefings, and has kept the nation informed without being panicked.
Is Wayne Allyn Root Disappearing From Newsmax? Topic: Newsmax
It's been a bad month for Newsmax TV host and columnist Wayne Allyn Root.
He started relatively strong with a couple of attacks on Joe Biden, the latter pushing the right-wing smear that Biden has purportedly "suffered possible diminished mental capacity and cognitive decline," not to mention "senility, or early onset dementia." He wrote another column that began, "I’m the ultimate positive thinker. I’m also very cynical. You can be both. My favorite saying is, 'Expect the best, prepare for the worst.'"
But Root may not have prepared for what happened to him over the past couple weeks.
Media Matters caught Root downplaying coronavirus as "no different than the flu" on his Newsmax TV show, and he has used his TV and radio platforms to promote a scammy "therapeutic silver solution" that he and its manufacturer have suggested cures coronavirus.A few days after that revelation, the newspaper in his hometown of Las Vegas dropped his column, and the New York attorney general ordered Root to cease and desist from making misleading medical claims.
It appears he has lost his Newsmax platform as well. Media Matters' Eric Hananoki reported that Root's show had disappeared from the Newsmax TV scheduled; since then, the Newsmax TV page on Root's show has gone blank. Root hasn't published a column at Newsmax since March 20, despite articles continuing to appear on his personal website. (A post-Newsmax column appeared at the Gateway Pundit, illustrating how far he's falling.) He appears to still have his radio show as of this writing, syndicated by USA Radio Networks.
Neither Root nor Newsmax appear to have made a public statement about the apparent dissoluton of their relationship, but all evidence so far indicates it's over between them.
We've noted his aggressive Trump-o-phila, as well as his extreme hatred of President Obama, in his work at Newsmax.
Trump-O-Philia Watch, Wayne Allyn Root Division Topic: Newsmax
It was Trump's moment in time. Long ago, before Trump even won the presidency, I called him "the new Ronald Reagan." Just like Reagan, I knew he'd turn around the country, straighten out the mess left by a Democrat president and make the economy roar.
And I knew Trump’s energy and bigger-than-life personality would re-energize my beloved GOP.
Tuesday night, Trump officially became Reagan.
Trump's State of the Union was a combination of a Reagan-like celebration of the greatness of America and a joy ride through Trump's economic mega success, his achievements for the American people, and specifically, his achievements for black and Hispanic Americans.
Instead of partisan vitriol, Trump showcased guests who represented America’s greatness. Trump showcased stories that made us cheer and cry.
[...]
Trump is now playing on the Democrats' home turf. Trump has now secured all 63 million Trump voters from 2016. He's secured the entire white middle class. Now, he's going after Democrat voters. Now he's going after black, Hispanic and female voters. Now he's playing on the Democrats' home field.
Trump is Reagan. He’s aiming for a Reagan/Mondale-like landslide.
I hope you all had a fantastic Valentine's Day. This year, Valentine's Day had a different vibe. Did you feel it?
There was a political and patriotic twist to Valentine's Day. Because President Trump is making us all fall in love with America again.
Sure, President Trump has made America great again. The economy is booming. Jobs are plentiful. Wages are way up. The stock market is perhaps the best of all time. But it's more than that.
For Valentine’s Day 2020, President Trump made it fashionable to love America again. It's hip to be American. It's cool to celebrate America’s greatness. It's politically correct to put America first. We're encouraged to stand for the national anthem and to chant, "USA, USA."
And the result of all of this is that Americans who actually love America are happy again. We're feeling the most satisfied of our lives. We are free to be ourselves. We don’t have to be silent anymore. We're no longer frustrated and angry. It's our turn to come out of the closet.
We're no longer "the Silent Majority." Now we're the ones who are loud and proud.
[...]
To paraphrase James Carville, "It's all about the happiness, stupid." Trump is making us happy again. We feel good about ourselves again. Love is in the air.
This Valentine's Day was special. Because we are all in love with America again.
Alveda King Descends Even Further Into Pro-Trump Sycophancy Topic: Newsmax
Alveda King's descent into pro-Trumpsycophancy has continued apace with her recent Newsmax columns.
In her Jan. 24 column, King gushed over President Trump speaking at the annual March for Life anti-abortion rally -- or as she put it, "we top the whole week off with the president of United States of America, Donald John Trump, in a historic event, addressing the crowd at the March for Life Rally under the authority and in the presence of God Almighty. Who could ask for anything more?" In her "llinks of interest" at the end of her column, she included someone talking on grifter evangelist Jim Bakker's show offering "Three Reasons Who [sic] God Chose Donald Trump."
King slobbered even more over Trump for his appearance at the National Prayer Breakfast in her Feb. 7 column:
[I]n a moment of heart-wrenching transparency, President Trump revealed the challenges of embracing agape love, by declaring "I’m trying."
For a brief political hiatus, all were prayerful. What a blessing.
My February week of prayer in Washington, D.C. ended at The Museum of The Bible with a delightful and uplifting oasis experience at An Evening to Inspire," an event taking place in the midst of this phenomenal week. Pray for America everyone.
Amidst skipped handshakes and emotional speech rip-ups, America experienced a week of prayer; spearheaded by non-other than our nation's 45th president.
To be honest, while President Trump chose to avoid shaking hands with his adversaries during the week of the impeachment saga, I must admit that I agree with his wisdom.
There is actually scripture covering that:
"Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men's sins: keep thyself pure." (1 Timothy 5:22)
King took Trump's "I'm trying" out of context -- he was making meaningless blather pandering to the NPB audience for "the love they show to religion," adding, "They like people. And sometimes they hate people. I’m sorry. I apologize. I’m trying to learn." After that, he immediately ranted, "When they impeach you for nothing, then you’re supposed to like them? It’s not easy, folks." If King thinks Trump is showing "heart-wrenching transparency" or expressing any kind of genuine agape love by pandering to his audience, she is apparently very easily fooled.
King is so in thrall to Trump that not only did she rewrite his words to make him more honest than he is, she found a Bible verse to justify his petulant refusal to shake hands during his State of the Union address.
That's the very definition of a Trump sycophant.
(Oh, and Newsmax is still letting Trump call herself "Dr." even though her doctoral degree is honorary.)
Newsmax Columnist Laughably Claims Trump Ushered In 'Age Of Truth' Topic: Newsmax
Michael Dorstewitz wrote in his Jan. 17 Newsmax column:
One refreshing result of the age of Trump is the sudden emphasis of truth over propriety that even lawmakers have now adopted. Although CNN is having a hard time dealing with it, the network may want to simply sit this one out and accept reality.
When CNN’s Manu Raju requested a quote Thursday from Sen. Martha McSally on the upcoming Senate impeachment trial, the Arizona Republican and former combat fighter pilot clearly had other things on her mind.
“You’re a liberal hack,” she answered. “I’m not talking to you.”
When Raju again asked if she would comment, she repeated, “You’re a liberal hack.”
In recounting the incident, Raju claimed that McSally “lashed out” to him. Former Obama administration senior advisor she had “a meltdown.” But no, she was merely dismissive and said it matter-of-factly.
Needless to say, Dorstewitz offered no evidence to back up McSally's claim that Raju was a "liberal hack," instead attacking CNN as a whole with the usual right-wing anti-media attacks.
But back up a bit and note that Dorstewitz began his column by celebrating the "emphasis of truth over propriety" that has come with the age of Trump." By the end of his column, he's in full-blown denialthat Trump even tells falsehoods and is celebrating an "age of truth" under Trump:
As for Trump, liberal pundits and Democratic politicians often accuse members of the administration, and especially the president, of repeatedly lying. What the administration has actually done is to usher in an age of truth over decorum. It just takes a while getting used to it.
Here’s an example of the process of accepting the new White House rules in the age of Trump:
2016: “Did you hear what Trump said this time? Unbelievable!”
2019: “Trump called her ‘Hatchet Face?’ ... Yeah, I can see that.”
New times, new rules. Get used to them. Trump’s going to be around for another five years, and yes, Raju can be “a liberal hack.”
Since Dorstewitz is a sudden fan over "truth over decorum," he shouldn't be offended by us pointing out that Trump does, in fact, lie repeatedly, and his portrayal of lies as truth is laughable at best and Orwellian at worst.
Newsmax Columnist Rants About Purported Poll Bias Topic: Newsmax
In his Jan. 6 Newsmax column, John Tantillo complains about "Democratic party bias in polls of how Americans view the impeachment issue, and Donald Trump" in an October Fox News poll showing a 52 percent of Americans favor President Trump's impeachment:
The poll cited that 48% of the sample were Democrats. But the electorate, according to Gallup, consists of 31% Democrats, 29% Republicans and 38% Independents.
[...]
It appears, that all — that’s right, all — of the polls cited in the venerable Real Clear Politics Poll (RCP) average have a bias of at least six points toward Democrats with Independents being underrepresented by at least two percentage points and always leaning more Democratic.
How can this be?
Well, it’s rather simple:
It appears that these esteemed pollsters may be basing their stratified poll sample on this Dec. 4, 2017, Gallup column "Democratic Party Maintains Edge in Party affiliation."
The only problem is that this is no longer the case.
In December’s Gallup Political Party Affiliation poll 28 percent are Democrats; 28 percent Republicans and 41 percent Independents.
TRantillo invoked a New York Post "analysis" of the Fox News poll that Newsmax itself devoted a "news" article to at the same time. But Tantillo linked to Gallup's affiliation poll history, which hasn't shown much change between 2017 and now. And contrary to Tantillo's claim and the Gallup affiliation polling, registered Democrats consistently outnumber registered Republicans, as the Pew Research Center points out:
Gold-standard, nonpartisan surveys have found for decades that more U.S. adults identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party than the Republican Party – whether these surveys take place under GOP or Democratic presidential administrations. That is the finding of two of the highest-quality surveys that use nationally representative data collected through in-person interviews: the General Social Survey and the American National Election Studies. It’s also the result obtained by numerous other reputable surveys that poll Americans by telephone or online using randomly selected samples of adults, including those done by us here at Pew Research Center, as well as those done by Gallup, Fox News, Kaiser Family Foundation and The Associated Press-NORC.
Because Tantillo doesn't understand how polls work, he decides to try and "unskew" the Fox poll results:
For those of us more conservatively analytical, a better metric to use describing public sentiment regarding impeachment is 46% (Take the poll’s 52% response and subtract from it the 6% Democratic oversampling error into account.) A more aggressive investigator would also consider the independent bias as well and then use a 40 percent benchmark — (46 percent minus the 6 percent oversampling against independents.)
In either case, both the 46 and 40 percentages are significantly different from the poll’s major headline of 52% favoring the removal of the president from office.
It seems that "all" those pollsters are correct and not their politically motivated critics.
Newsmax Lamely Attacks Christianity Today Over Editorial Critical of Trump Topic: Newsmax
Newsmax has been a loyal Trump-supporting outlet, so it has unsurprisingly joinedothers in the ConWeb in attacking Christianity Today editor Mark Galli's editorial advocating President Trump's impeachment.
A Dec. 20 article by David Patten tried to make the case that Christianity Today is a liberal publication though it was founded by Billy Graham, insisting that "A survey of the magazine’s Twitter posts suggest its opposition to Trump is hardly new" -- but he cited only four posts over a six-month span that offered criticism of Trump -- hardly evidence of aggressive "opposition." Patten went on to tout how "Responses from the Christian right are unwavering in their criticism of CT and their support for Trump," putting their names in boldface, though none of their criticisms addressed Galli's point that Trump has behaved in a "profoundly immoral" manner and has a "blackened moral record."
James Hirsen similarly failed to examine Galli's arguments with any kind of seriousness in his Dec. 23 column and instead labored to portray Galli and his publication as a liberal tool:
Galli penned a column that appeared to be written with the goal in mind of putting grins on the faces of leftists and garnering gobs of attention from the Trump-hating faction of the media.
Whether the above stated goal was mapped out or not, the end result was the same. The magazine’s image took a hit, the president was unfairly maligned, and the liberal media ate it all up.
[...]
When they found out that an ostensible spokesperson for evangelical Christians essentially used Democratic Party talking points to go after the president, the left-leaning media were filled with delight. Galli was predictably offered numerous media spots.
Guesting on NPR’s "Morning Edition" turned out to be a perfect venue in which to double down on his attacks on the president while letting loose with some additional jabs that seemed tailor-made for a CNN audition.
Galli, of course, repeated his call to negate the choice of America’s voters, but this time came up with other justifications, claiming that the president is in "psychological and moral confusion."
As propagandists are prone to do, Galli used highly manipulative and corrosive language that is designed to plant negative seeds and is deliberately crafted to poison the minds of potential voters. He compared the president to a physically abusive husband and then left the notion there to lie.
During his appearance, Galli denied that his publication is left-leaning. But the truth is, he and his magazine don’t even come close to being objective.
Of course, neither is Hirsen -- he's clearly too much of a pro-Trump propagandist to admit that his idol can do no wrong, hence his partisan attack on a publication he can't even prove is partisan (and, no, James, supporting immigration reform is not the hallmark of a partisan publication). He even sneered that the publication should change its name to "Un-Christianity Today." even as he failed to identify anything un-Christian about anything Galli wrote.
Image Rehab: Newsmax Tries To Insert Dershowitz Into Impeachment Debate Topic: Newsmax
Newsmax is so dedicated to the rehabilitation of Alan Dershowitz's image in the wake of his links to Jeffrey Epstein that it's trying to insert him as a forgotten legal expert -- not to mention an aggressively pro-Trump voice -- in the Trump impeachment debate.
Newsmax chief Christopher Ruddy complained in a Dec. 5 column:
The House Judiciary Committee heard testimony all day Wednesday from four legal scholars who were called to explain to the members what acts would be considered impeachable offenses under the U.S. Constitution.
Three were called by Democratic committee members and just one, Prof. Jonathan Turley, was called by Republicans.
But noticeably missing was arguably the most famous constitutional lawyer and acclaimed civil libertarian in the nation: Alan Dershowitz.
In 1967, he became the youngest full professor in the history of Harvard Law School and has made waves, big ones, ever since.
Like Dershowitz, all four testifying were politically liberal to far-left Democrats, who did not vote for President Donald Trump in 2016.
Why was Dershowitz not invited then?
The simple answer is House Democrats do not like his views.
Ruddy did not mention the fact that Dershowitz is a former lawyer for notorious teen sex trafficker Epstein, or that he has been accused of having sex with one of Epstein's trafficking victims.
Newsmax also published a Dec. 11 article by Solange Reyner stating that "Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., thinks President Donald Trump should add Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz to his impeachment defense team." Reyner also failed to mention Dershowitz's ties to Epstein.
In between, Dershowitz was given a platform to complain about being excluded due to his Epstein links in a Dec. 8 article by Eric Mack:
Accusations emanating from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal railroaded civil liberties legal expert Alan Dershowitz from testifying before the House Judiciary Committee on the constitutional grounds for presidential impeachment.
"Just because there is an accusation out there, the decision was made not to use me," Dershowitz, who testified against former President Bill Clinton's impeachment before Congress, told Sunday's "The Cats Roundtable" on 970 AM-N.Y. "Also, because the Republicans are only given one witness. If they had been given two witnesses, probably I would've been used along with Turley. Jonathan Turley did a good job."
Weirdly, Mack did not detail what exactly those "accusations emanating from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal" were that have kept him from being involved.
Newsmax has also been publishing columns by Dershowitz himself. In a Nov. 15 column, he groused that "the 92nd Street Y would not allow me to speak this year because I had been accused of having sex with a woman associated with Jeffrey Epstein, who I represented 13 years ago," accusing the facility of "McCarthyism" in doing so.
In his Dec. 4 column, Dershowitz again attacked his accuser, Virginia Giuffre, who has also accused Prince Andrew of sexual improprieties, complaining that a BBC interview of the prince "does not focus on the credibility of his accuser — a woman with a long history of making up provably false stories about prominent men." He even attacked her claim to have been underage while involved with Epstein, claiming that "her own employment records prove that she was well over 17, which is the age of consent in most jurisdictions where she said she had sex."
The next day, Dershowitz offered up his impeachment goods, in which he sounds more like a pro-Trump partisan than a legal scholar in bashing the legal experts House Democrats selected to testify:"The three Democratic experts would place congress over the constitution. They would effectively “amend” the words of the Constitution to make them mean what these experts believe would be “better” criteria for impeachment. But the Constitution cannot be amended through stretched academic interpretation. ... All presidents are accused by the opposing party of abusing the office, and many have. The remedy for such perceived abuse is not impeachment. It is election."
Newsmax has touted Dershowitz's pro-Trump, anti-impeachment arguments in otherarticles as well.
That, it seems, is the real reason Ruddy and Newsmax are working so hard to rehab Dershowitz.
Alveda King Now Shilling for Trump Over Impeachment Topic: Newsmax
We'vedetailed how anti-abortion activist Alveda King is desending into pro-Trump worship and outright shilling. She went further down that path in her recent Newsmax columns. On Oct. 25, she wrote:
Blessings to Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina for his stand for justice in the case of the current unfair impeachment efforts against President Trump.
Yesterday, Senator Graham introduced a resolution denouncing the current impeachment inquiry into President Trump. He said impeachment is "very dangerous to the country," and that is true.
Please join the battle for justice in support of this effort. Support Sen. Lindsey Graham’s resolution by doing three things:
First, pray that what is being done in secret will be exposed in the light.
Next, get on all your social media platforms and post your support of the resolution and for your support of due process for President Trump.
And, put a call in to your Senators and Representatives, let them know they must honor the rule of law, to put the impeachment proceedings to a vote and for your support of SR 378. Assure them of your support.
She repeated more pro-Trump talking points: "The illegitimate impeachment proceedings lack due process for the president and transparency, as standing members of Congress have been shut out of the hearings, and U.S. citizens are being denied facts while POTUS is denied due process.
I am in Atlanta today with President Trump and it’s been a great day for the president.
There is a lot of support for Trump in Atlanta. We all need to love, forgive, and support our leaders. Through loving our enemies we can all get along. We can have the greatest nation on the planet.
Today we rolled out the “Black Voices for Trump” coalition. There is a lot of energy and excitement in the air. President Trump spoke to a large crowd of supporters along with Vice President Mike Pence and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson.
In his run for the presidency in 2016, in asking for the Black vote — "What do you have to lose?" Since that day, with many promises kept, POTUS has consistently shown us what we have to gain. Now, 3 years later, not only did Blacks not lose anything but we have gained a lot with the unemployment rate being at historic lows and the establishment of opportunity zones to help revitalize struggling neighborhoods. He has also been the most prolife president we have ever had, protecting all life from the womb to the tomb. With Blacks accounting for about a third of all abortions, that’s a lot of Black babies our president is protecting.
So, please pray for us! God is good.
King's prayer for Trump included this bit of worship: "God bless humanity and America with four more years with Donald J. Trump in your hands as our president."
In her Nov. 14 column, King bizarrely framed the impeachment in biblical terms:
This most recent bloodthirsty demand for impeachment, a drive based on lies, secrecy, and hearsay reminds one of a passage in 1 Kings 18.
Let’s examine the passage through 21st century “woke” lenses.
“Then the Truth-seekers said: Let the haters seek impeachment. Let them lay it out on their altar — but don’t ignite it. We will take the truth, lay it before the people. And wait; neither will we light the fire. Now you do your worst; we will do our best. You fan the media furor, we will pray to GOD.
The one who answers with fire will prove to be, in fact, God.
[...]
A Challenge from Truth Seekers to America:
“How long are we going to sit on the fence? If GOD is the real God, follow GOD; if it’s the politicians, follow them. Make up your minds!”
Immediately the fire of GOD fell upon the altar of the truth seekers and burned up the offering, the wood, the stones, the dirt, and even the water in the trench. All the people saw it happen and fell on their faces in awed worship, exclaiming, “GOD is the true God! GOD is the true God!
Truth seekers arise. We don’t worship government, we worship God. Overcome impeachment with truth. Pray for America.
It's almost cute how King thinks that an inveterate liar like Trump is a "Truth Seeker."
Newsmax's Ruddy Defends His Buddy Trump on Impeachment Topic: Newsmax
Twenty years ago, Christopher Ruddy and his Newsmax operation were rabidly anti-Clinton and supported his impeachment. Now, he's trying to save his buddy, Donald Trump, from the same impeachment fate. Ruddy declared in his Oct. 20 column:
If you can’t beat him, destroy him.
That’s the Democrats' game plan when it comes to the impeachment of President Donald Trump.
I spoke with the president shortly after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s nonsensical impeachment announcement.
To me, it was so clear this was nothing more than a political act, not motivated by constitutional or legal matters.
[...]
Almost from the hours after his stunning election in 2016, the far left went into attack mode, launching protests that very night.
Calls for impeachment began at the time of his inauguration.
The president has been hindered by these actions, and his approval ratings, which should have been sky high, have been dented.
The country has no history of impeaching and removing popular presidents.
The key for Trump, as he faces impeachment, is to use the same playbook he’s employed since he started as a rising business, entertainment and political star: just remain popular.
Unmentioned by Ruddy: Bill Clinton was a popular president at the time he was impeached.
On Nov. 1, Ruddy took a different defense approach: Trump is being impeached for being too good of a president:
Donald Trump may make history once again.
He is on track to become the first U.S. President to be impeached for being too successful.
Yesterday’s House vote, along party lines, is setting in motion a plan to impeach the President because his record is so strong the Democrats can’t beat him at the ballot box.
Unable to deal with the President’s A-plus performance managing the country, the Democrats have launched yet another “allegation in search of a crime” probe. (A phrase I coined to describe the Mueller investigation.)
Again, Ruddy did not mention Clinton, who presided over significant economic growth during his presidency. He did, however, weirdly try to throw President Reagan under the bus, claiming Trump "pales in comparison" to the Iran-contra scandal, adding that "Donald Trump’s involvement in the Ukrainian matter looks like small potatoes compared to Iran Contra, where laws were clearly broken."
Then, in an italic-laden Nov. 15 column in which every sentence is its own paragraph, Ruddy does his best to spin away the impeachment hearings:
Hey, are you seeing these hearings?
They don't have anything.
It's come down to someone hearing the president on the phone with Sondland.
In a crowded Kyiv restaurant. But still hearing every word.
Then there is another person who amazingly heard Trump too.
Heard what?
Trump wanted "investigations."
Trump always wanted investigations.
Long before his "call" with Zelensky, he openly and publicly complained about the Bidens' role in the Ukraine.
[...]
Almost two months since the impeachment inquiry, we're just discovering this is "bribery."
But a quid pro quo, per se, is not bribery.
[...]
Finally, two things resonate with me.
First, Steve Bannon is looking like a prophet.
At the White House, all he talked about was cycling out the Obama holdovers from the NSC.
“We're going to have big problems," he would warn, seeing danger if Trump staffers were not brought into the NSC.
I heard it myself.
And then there's Trump.
The legendary Ben Hogan said a great golfer isn't defined by his best shots, but by his best "bad shots."
That's Trump.
He always makes the best bad shots.
He has a track record of making miracles out of messes.
The idea that coronavirus is a Chinese-made bioweapon is one that has been long discredited. Still, it's one that some conspiracy theorists cling to. One of them is Clare Lopez, a right-wing activist whom we saw last among other biased right-wingers (and discredited fraud Wayne Simmons) on Accuracy in Media's "Citizens' Commission on Benghazi." for some reason, Newsmax gave Lopez a May 11 column to pursue her new conspiracy theory.
Bill Hoffman gushed in a May 21 Newsmax 
We've
So-called "price gouging" is a gimmick used by politicians and the media to rally supporters and viewers. It's almost never about predatory business practices, and it's always the people who end up paying the cost of price control laws.
In February, Newsmax TV 
Throughout this national emergency President Donald Trump has repeatedly demonstrated that he’s the right person to lead the nation.
It's been a bad month for Newsmax TV host and columnist Wayne Allyn Root.
It was Trump's moment in time. Long ago, before Trump even won the presidency, I called him "the new Ronald Reagan." Just like Reagan, I knew he'd turn around the country, straighten out the mess left by a Democrat president and make the economy roar.
Alveda King's descent into 
Michael Dorstewitz wrote in his Jan. 17 Newsmax 
In his Jan. 6 Newsmax 
Newsmax has been a loyal Trump-supporting outlet, so it has unsurprisingly 
Newsmax is 
