A Must Read For You Lou Dobbs Apologists

[matcom]

courtesy of The Nation magazine

<snip>

Nightly Nativism
by DAPHNE EVIATAR



On May 1 the nationwide boycott billed as "A Day Without Immigrants" was all over the evening news. ABC's World News Tonight reported that "more than a million people took to the streets in thirty cities," part of "a new wave of protests against legislation that would increase the penalties for being in the US illegally." On CBS, "they left their jobs and took to the streets to show us what America would be like without millions of immigrant workers." On Fox, "illegal immigrants and their allies took to streets across America...in an effort to show their economic importance to the country."

But on CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight, it was a different story. "Hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens and their supporters today failed in their attempt to shut down most of our cities to support amnesty for all illegal aliens," the network's 6 pm news anchor reported that evening. Dobbs elaborated in his online column: "It is no accident that they chose May 1 as their day of demonstration and boycott. It is the worldwide day of commemorative demonstrations by various socialist, communist and even anarchic organizations.... No matter which flag demonstrators and protesters carry today, their leadership is showing its true colors to all who will see."

You might expect that sort of McCarthyesque description from Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh or some other famously right-wing provocateur on Fox or talk-radio. But Lou Dobbs, on CNN? These days, the network once pilloried by conservatives as a leading voice of the "liberal media" is offering an expansive platform to the nation's leading spokesman for anti-immigration hardliners. Night after night, under the rousing headline "Broken Borders," the distinguished-looking 61-year-old instructs his growing audience that illegal immigrants import deadly diseases, rampant crime and international terrorism; they live off welfare, destroy public schools and burden hospitals; what's more, most haven't even learned to speak English. Add that they're foot soldiers sent by the Mexican government to "reconquer" the Southwest, and by the end of the hour, we have seen the enemy--and he's a Spanish-speaking immigrant. Despite the grave threat, Dobbs declares, our lawmakers are doing nothing about it. Thus Dobbs branded the recent bipartisan Senate reform bill, designed to allow more immigrants to work here legally while also securing the borders, "The Amnesty Agenda"--a "pathetic sham" that would make a "mockery" of the American people.

Dobbs's hysteria and jingoism are now notorious. He's been ridiculed by Jon Stewart on The Daily Show for calling for the abolition of "ethnocentric" holidays that involve waving other nations' flags (thus eliminating St. Patrick's Day); by Andy Borowitz, who wrote in Newsweek that President Bush had decided to move Dobbs to the Mexican border instead of 6,000 National Guard troops; and by the hosts of a Los Angeles radio show, who recently offered a cash prize to the first illegal immigrant mother to name her baby Lou Dobbs.

<snip>

As if to underscore that influence, Dobbs conducts a poll that works something like a viewer comprehension test. During one "Broken Borders" segment in May, for example, Dobbs reported on the Senate's immigration reform bill, part of what Dobbs later called "the absolute abdication of responsibility by this government to provide for the safety of the American people." He then reported on a rally in Washington of "illegal aliens and their supporters again trying to pressure Congress into granting amnesty to millions of illegal aliens in this country." That led into the evening's poll question: "Do you believe US senators and representatives are more concerned with meeting the demands of illegal aliens marching in the streets than they are with their constituents?" The results? Surprise! 96 percent of viewers said yes. (As reported on the show, Dobbs's viewers generally back him up in his polls between 95 and 99 percent of the time.)


MUCH MUCH more....

http://www.thenation.com/docprint.mhtml?i=20060828&s=eviatar

[vi5]

1. I'm really damn sick and tired....

..of people on here and on our side in general taking a "I'll forgive anyone any sin as long as they criticized Bush about something!" approach to public figures. Whether it's Lou Dobbs, or Pat Buchanan, or Mel Gibson, or who the hell ever. Sometimes this site seems overrun by people who will fall all over themselves to justify praising someone who says something negative about Bush no matter how much of a clown that person is every other time and in every other aspect of their personality. I'm all for people saying negative things about Bush but I'm not going to overlook their inherent shittiness in 98% of every other area of their lives.

[NNN0LHI]

5. You said it brother n/t

[ComerPerro]

20. you got that right

[skids]

2. Lou is a total tool. I like Lou.

No question about it, Lou is a flawed person.

The reason I say I like Lou is because he's also a flawed person with a depth of character and cantankerous nature that prevents him from being just another lackey in the unending sea of parrots. He also fills a useful niche, reaching a demographic that won't listen to "lefties" with some rather rabid populist rhetoric which can serve as seed for the development of a better world view. If all the Rushes and O'Reilly's were Lous, the backwash figure would be more like 5%, not 30.

Barring a way to get different tools, you work with the tools you have available.

[ComerPerro]

21. but he still preaches conservatism

[cboy4]

3. I cannot watch Dobbs exactly because of the Broken Borders hysteria.

It is nothing short of hyperbole night after night, and everything else gets lost in that mix.

Do we need to see it night after night?

How about sometimes?

Nothing else important going on? :shrug:

[earthside]

4. But He is correct

Well, in general, Lou Dobbs is correct on the immigration issue.

No, I wouldn't necessarily use the same sources he does, or interview the same people he talks to ... but it is TV.

In the end though, in the case of Mexican illegal immigration, we need to protect our own working-class Americans from the downward pressure on wages and benefits that comes from illegal, cheap, exploitable labor.

We need to stop being so arrogant that the only lifestylse worth having is 'American' as in here in the U.S.

Mexico is a great nation with a rich culture and traditions, progressives and liberals should be encouraging Mexicans to stay in their own country and support the kind of political and economic reform that Obrador is proposing.

Finally, this planet just cannot support anymore 'Americans' and our harmful consumptive behavior. Every illegal immigrant comes here with the hope of becoming part of the U.S. lifestyle -- and that lifestyle is killing the Earth.

So, the Nation may resort to calling Lou Dobbs a 'nativist' and implying that anyone who opposes increasing the population in this country by stopping illegal immigration is 'xenophobic' -- but that is finger pointing from the left that is intellectual dishonest and malicious.

If we think it through, the most progressive, liberal, environmental, respectful of other counties and cultures position is to oppose anymore illegal immigration into the United States.

[EFerrari]

8. No one favors illegal immigration. Undocumented workers

don't favor illegal immigration. So, claiming that progressives should oppose it is just silliness.

And, you're conflating immigration with racism. Mr. Dobbs is a racist. Immigration is just the vehicle that made that clear.

[RebelOne]

13. I do not believe Lou Dobbs is a racist.

I oppose illegal immigration. Does that make me a racist?

[EFerrari]

16. Either you didn't read my post or you didn't understand it. n/t

[RebelOne]

22. Posted in wrong place. Meant to reply to OP.

[BeFree]

19. No, he's not correct

And you are inconsistent. One the one hand you say that our lifestyle is not sustainable and on the other you claim that downward pressure on that lifestyle is not acceptable.

But the whole immigration issue is based on that lifestyle desire. The immigrants want more so they migrate here, and we already here who have more want the migrants here so we can get cheap labor so we can keep 'more'.

What you and Dobbs offer is a continuing conundrum in which those of us who have more spend more time keeping it away from those who want what we have, whilst using migrants to support our unsastainable lifestyle which they want a piece of.

The problem is that greed is rampant and will be the downfall of our lifestyles. But were we to share our wealth the resultant lifestyle changes would ensure more sustainability for everyone.

All Dobbs offers is more division and greed.

[Pawel K]

6. But you are taking one issue and using that to discredit everything else

There is a lot of things he does that are for the good of this nation. He fights against exporting american jobs, he is the only person on national news right now to be exposing the electronic voting scandals, he is against the Iraq war, he is for rasing the minimum wage, I believe he is for a universal health care system, and a host of other issues we passionately care about. The only thing he is wrong on from what I've seen of him is the immigration issue. And even there, as wrong as he is, I feel he is speaking from his heart and not from some talking points handed to him. He is also for same-sex marriage and he called for another investigation into the 9/11 attacks. We need more of his kind on TV.

[NNN0LHI]

7. Dobbs is against exporting american jobs, eh?

Yea, sure. Explain this then. I have asked others to explain this conflict here before but their answers were so lame they were not even worth responding to. Give it your best shot once.

Don

The Two Faces of Lou Dobbs

http://www.cjrdaily.org/behind_the_news/the_two_faces_of_lou_dobbs.php

<snip>Dobbs devoted a column in the March issue to touting the prospects of the Minnesota-based Toro Company, which makes outdoor landscaping-maintenance equipment. He told subscribers that Toro was a "long-term wealth-builder," and praised Toro's "formal code of ethics, something I think is sorely needed at more of America's companies," and its "...exemplary corporate governance structure, which aligns the interests of shareholders, employees, and customers." He concluded his interview with Toro CEO Kendrick Melrose by frankly telling him, "I like the way you treat your shareholders, employees, and customers."

One wonders whether Dobbs' admiration extends to Toro's 2002 decision to move 15% of its workforce -- about 800 jobs -- to Juarez, Mexico. Indeed, CEO Kendrick Melrose might be interested to know that Toro appears on Dobbs' own list of companies that are "exporting America."

And Toro is not alone. Of the 14 companies Dobbs has highlighted for investors since starting his newsletter last year, eight appear on his CNN website as companies that outsource jobs.

Greenpoint Financial is another company that's received conflicting treatment from Dobbs. CEO Tom Johnson enjoyed the Dobbs interview treatment in June 2003. Dobbs promised readers, "I think you'll find Tom's comments and the way he runs his business thought-provoking and insightful."

Apparently one of the "thought-provoking and insightful" methods that Dobbs was referring to was not the 2002 decision by Greenpoint to export much of its mortgage and customer-service operations to Bangalore, India, a move that produced significant savings, but that cost 150 U.S. workers their jobs. Greenpoint Mortgage, a subsidiary of Greenpoint Financial, appears on Dobbs' list of outsourcers.

[Pawel K]

14. Ok, so he thinks in his MONEY newsletter this would be a good company to

make you MONEY.

What do you propose? Get the only voice that fights against outsourcing, for the minimum wage, against electronic voting, for same-sex marriage, against the war, for universal health care off the air because its bad that he said invstors reading his newsletters for financial advise should invest in a company that outsoruces?

[matcom]

10. from the article

<snip>

Dobbs began turning his longtime financial-news show, CNN's Moneyline, into an opinion rant about five years ago, capitalizing on the issue of outsourcing. Attacking free-trade policies and the companies that take advantage of them in a series of segments called "Exporting America," Dobbs increasingly cast himself as a quixotic champion of an American middle class ignored by politicians in the interests of big business. Although his privately sold newsletter still recommended investing in some of the companies outsourcing the most jobs, as reported by the Columbia Journalism Review, publicly Dobbs became the Harvard-educated spokesman for the little guy. The little American, that is. Over time, Dobbs's anger that foreigners overseas were getting formerly American jobs was transformed into fury at the foreigners taking the low-paid jobs that are still here. "Broken Borders" was born.

By vilifying immigrants, Dobbs is following in a long line of illustrious, and notorious, Americans who have played pivotal roles in the nation's periodic outbreaks of nativism . "Whenever we've had a great wave of immigration, there's been a backlash," says Wayne Cornelius. But there's a difference this time. "In previous waves, the reaction can be attributed in part to economics. Now, unemployment is down to 4 percent; there's no reason to target them."

Still, Dobbs, who abandoned the financial-news pretense when he renamed his show Lou Dobbs Tonight in 2003, has taken an increasingly hard-line, restrictionist view. He champions Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner's bill in the US House (HR 4437), which would make assisting any undocumented immigrant a felony. He supports sending tens of thousands of troops to militarize the US-Mexico border, and favors building a fence along its entire length. And although he's never acknowledged it, his constant call for enforcing US immigration law would mean deporting some 12 million people.

As the stakes grow higher and Dobbs's tone more shrill, his popularity has soared. In the second quarter of this year his show had the largest total viewer growth of any on CNN, with more than 800,000 viewers each night. While that's still only half of O'Reilly's top-rated cable-news audience, Dobbs is catching up, and CNN is giving its star more and more airtime. Now, in addition to five hours a week on his own show, Dobbs is regularly featured as an immigration expert on CNN's other evening news programs. (CNN says Dobbs is a legitimate immigration specialist deserving of extra airtime: "Anytime you can have somebody bring that level of expertise to a subject, you'd want to have that knowledge on the air," says network spokeswoman Christa Robinson.)

Not everyone inside CNN feels that way. Although the network keeps a tight rein on what even former staff can say (former anchor Aaron Brown, for example, needed permission from CNN to speak to me, which was denied), one senior former Dobbs staffer told me, on condition of anonymity: "Lou went from straddling the line between journalist and pundit to becoming a full-blown pundit, shifting the debate very, very far to the right. People don't get it. They trust that CNN is a reputable organization, so they trust that he's a respected journalist. They think he won't put anyone on who's a right-wing nut. But he does."

[ComerPerro]

23. He blames Democrats before blaiming Republicans

and talks about conservatism like it is some sacred institution.

His only concern about voting machines is the very small number made in other countries. He is disturbingly silent on voting machines made in the US by Republican-backing companies.

And I find it very hard to believe that he would be for national health care or gay marriage.

[Pawel K]

25. I got the gay marriage from wikipedia

I'm not positive on the health care but I believe he had a segment on about that before.

[ComerPerro]

28. Why would a conservative like Dobbs want National Health Care?

If you got it on Wiki, it could just be some Dobbs fan, projecting their beliefs onto his.

[w8liftinglady]

30. because he is a conservative,not a right-wing shill

I watch Dobbs a lot,and even a conservative can see the healthcare system collapsing.When hospitals close in rural areas because they can't afford to stay open,you have a problem,whether you are a liberal or conservative.That's what's happening here in texas-a Red state-Republicans and democrats both have to travel over an hour in some areas to get medical care-a long way when you are having a heart attack.

[ComerPerro]

31. but, lets not forget, being conservative

means you want small government, and you want people to pay their own way.

So, national, taxpayer-funded health care is the last thing they want.

[izzybeans]

9. I've come to the belief that Dobbs is a reflection of the average American

Containing counterproductive contradictions, he/her pulls him/herself in two directions. Xenophobia divides the working class of the global economy; nationalism is the new tool of worker supression, and asking for more nationalist labor policies will invite more of the same. Yet he pushes for common sense reform on voting, healthcare, and wages. This is laudable, but his solution is self-defeating so long as it upholds nationalist distinctions between workers.

I posted this when it came out. It turned into a semi-flame fest, which to me is explainable by what I said above. The "They tuk ur JOBS!" mentality is counterproductive and overlooks the fundamental flow of capital in the economy; worldwide. Alliances need to be formed between workers beyond national boundaries. Otherwise they will use the workers fears of each other against each other. We already saw this with the race/ethnic and regional tensions in the labor movement. This immigration issue is another chapter in a politically weak labor force, so weak in fact many workers have no citizenship rights; rights that their fellow workers would deny them. Rights that would level the playing field because their employment would be subject to the same laws.

[Armstead]

17. We need both nationalism and international solidarity

IMO a balance is necessary to "lift all boats" rather than having a "race to the bottom.".

On one hand all nations need a degree of nationalism to develop and maintain a healthy well-balanced economy. In the US we need a degree of priortectionism to avoiis bleeding our economy dry to outsourcing and exporting of productive capacity.

The undertderveloped nations need to have a degree of natonalism to build a well balanced economy too. They have to protect their own domestic industries, and not merely become export plantations.

[w4rma]

11. America cannot support open borders just as we cannot support "free" trade

It's not racist to know how folks' salaries will be affected with unlimited cheap labor.

A Ronald Reagan-like amnesty for illegals is NOT popular with Americans. And is also *bad* for America.

Btw, the Republican leadership wants *more* cheap labor, not less. So you are supporting the Republican leadership on this issue rather than regular folks.

[genieroze]

27. Lets call it for what it is

Racist pukes hate illegal immigration because they hate Mexicans, even though many illegals aren't Mexican. Greedy pukes like * are for it because they want to destroy the middle class and turn us into cheap labor for their rich fascist corporations.

[w4rma]

29. Agreed. (nt)

[clydefrand]

12. Why corporations want the illegals:

I think they have found that is costs them zero dollars since the illegals come here on their own. This is probably cheaper than actually moving the jobs out of the country. Why move for cheap labor when you can get it even cheaper here?
And Dobbs only talks about the illegal ones. Do people think he is talking about a sick bird by any chance?(as in ill eagle?)

[UTUSN]

15. Southern Poverty Law Center has been on to him for a long time

The Search link on the SPLC site for "Lou Dobbs": http://www.splcenter.org/search/s-query.html?tx0=Lou+Dobbs&op0=%2B&fl0=&ty0=w&col=splcall&ht=0&qp=&qt=&qs=&qc=&pw=100%25&la=en&qm=0&st=1&oq=&rq=0&ql=a&si=0&x=11&y=7
*******QUOTE*******
http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=589

Broken Record
Lou Dobbs' daily 'Broken Borders' CNN segment has focused on immigration for years.

But there's one issue Dobbs just won't take on.

By Heidi Beirich and Mark Potok

.... For more than two years now, Dobbs has served up a populist approach to immigration on nightly segments of his newscast entitled "Broken Borders." He has relentlessly covered the issue, although hardly from a traditional news perspective -- Dobbs favors clamping down on illegal immigration, and his "reporting" never fails to make that clear. He has covered the same issues, and the same anti-immigration leaders, time after time after time. In recent months, Dobbs has run countless upbeat reports on the "citizen border patrols" that have sprung up around the country since last April's Minuteman Project, a paramilitary effort to seal the Arizona border.

But there's one thing Lou Dobbs won't do. No matter what others report about the movement, Dobbs has failed to present mounting and persistent evidence of anti-Hispanic racism in anti-immigration groups and citizen border patrols. ....

********UNQUOTE*******

[Armstead]

18. Dobbs is both good and bad

Here's my take on Dobs.

In the 80's and 90's Dobbs was, unfortunately, typical of the whole mindset that has gotten us into such a mess over the last 30 years. He was the mouthpiece for the "Greed is Good" mentality and his show epitomized the worst aspects of blind subservience to the interests of the Corporate Elite. It was the mentality that CONvinced average Americans that what was good for the elite was in their interests too, despite all evidence to the contrary.

His show was a platform for the CEO's and financial experts and their political lackeys (both Democratic and Republican) to spout Orwellian logic and praise monopolistic mergers, "free trade" globalization, widespreaD layoffs and outsourcing bu profitable companies, etc.

Over tjhe last fuive years, Dobbs has done a 180 on that. He is now one of the few voices in the mainstream media who consistently highlights and criticizes the fundamental lies that existed below the Corporate CON job. He's been tirelessly pointing out how lack of concern for workers has put the middle class in jeopardy, decimated the lower classes, and weakened America.

Is he perfect? Obviously not. he's still conservative -- or "libertarian." But he does reflect how people who are not politically "liberal" or "progressive" are at least waking up to the Big Lies of the last 30 years. That's important, if we are ever to get a larger critical mass of opinion against the Attack on the Middle Class and "free market" orthodoxy.

I always switch the channel when he gets onto his Xenophobic crusades asgainst illegal immigration. He is probaly a hypocrite by praising companies that outsourtce in his newsletter....I dislike the fact that he lumps all politicians together, and fails to recognize the gallant efforts by progressives and liberal Democrats to protect average Americans.

But bottom line is that despite his faults, Dobbs is more relevant and constructive than people than the so-called MSM pundits and hosts who stick to the corporate CONventional wisdom, abnd who totally ignore the bread-and-butter issues facing America today.

[graywarrior]

24. I caught on to his little act awhile ago. I can't take him serious.

[w8liftinglady]

26. Dobbs isn't perfect,but...

He does the best job of representing OUR platform than anyone else on TV...and he appeals to moderate republicans,which will be critical in the upcoming elections.We will all disagree on immigration.As a nurse in a border state,I have seen firsthand the overwhelming burden that illegal immigration has placed on the healthcare system.I agree 100% with Dobbs' view on minimum wage,outsourcing,voting reform.

[The Backlash Cometh]

32. I'm no fan of Lou Dobbs and have been trying to point out how

he's a little schizophrenic in what he believes in because a free-market libertarian wouldn't have a problem with open borders nor outsourcing. However, putting aside the obvious contradictions, there is one point I agree with him on and that's that we can't have open borders for illegal immigrants. I just don't care for the way he's trying to go about making his point.

There is one invariable weakness to open borders. That weakness is that too many who support it have a romanticized notion that everybody who does cross the border wants to get nationalized and become an American. That isn't necessarily true. Some intend to keep their own national identity. I'm not talking about the normal American way of respecting your roots, I'm talking about openly resisting America's sovereignty. With numbers, this could cause problems in local areas and will only make things harder for those immigrants who do come here to become Americans. So you need to have a system in place to screen these people, and if the agency that does it deems that a person should be sent back to their own country, we should support that agency as long as their decision is reasonible.