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In case you missed it, Fox and the right-wing have their knickers in a twist over Columbia University’s hiring of former 60s radical Kathy Boudin as a professor of social work. Never mind that Boudin has served more than two decades in jail for her involvement with the notorious Brinks robbery by the Weather Underground. Never mind that she has been rehabilitated and dedicated herself to social issues surrounding women and incarceration. And never mind what her current views, activities or teachings have been. Fox has seized on this issue and used it to paint Columbia as an incubator of radical liberalism and terrorism.

The Columbia Spectator wrote in 2003, when Boudin was asked to establish a women's HIV/AIDS program at New York's St. Luke's Hospital:

As a member of various radical militant groups during the 1960s and 1970s, Boudin advocated extreme measures to combat what she saw as racism, sexism, and American imperialism. And then, in 1981, she participated in the armed robbery of a Brinks security truck--and although she carried no weapon nor directly caused any injuries, she was, in her own words, "morally responsible for all the tragic consequences that resulted." Nobody pretends to justify Boudin's actions--they were repugnant.

However, in the years that followed, Boudin tried to make amends. At Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, where she was incarcerated, Boudin founded AIDS Counseling and Education, a women's group that provided support for HIV-infected women, combated stigmatism and harassment in the prison, and made sure that women had access to needed medication. She organized programs for teenagers with incarcerated mothers, taught classes on parenting, and helped Columbia Law School teach inmates about the rights and responsibilities of incarcerated parents. She published scholarship about her work in--among other places--the Harvard Educational Review.

The Spectator goes on to note, “Although Boudin destroyed lives 22 years ago, she has since made many others better.”

None of that was discussed this morning on “fair and balanced” Fox & Friends as they trotted out the son of someone killed in a completely different incident – the bombing of New York City’s Fraunces Tavern by the FALN, a Puerto Rican separatist group. Sadly, Mr. Connor also lost a godson in the World Trade Center on 9/11 and was there when the planes hit. Connor is certainly an expert on personal tragedy and the impact of extrremism on everyday lives. But on radicals and terror in general? Not so much. His bio in a 2009 editorial in the Los Angeles Times merely reads, “Joseph F. Connor works in finance in New York.” Still, Connor has made a name for himself in right-wing circles. He has testified and written against the confirmation of Eric Holder (as he did in the LA Times), appeared on right-wing radio and blogged for RedState.

But Connor had something better than credentials for Fox News: a willingness to suggest that Columbia is in bed with radical liberalism and Islamic terrorism. Tying Boudin to Bill Ayers at another academic institution, Connor indicated he had no knowledge of either of their curricula when he said:

There’s no doubt about it, there’s a connection between (Boudin’s) left-wing background, her radicalism, and the people at Columbia wanted that kind of celebrity, that kind of person in their school.

...(Boudin and Ayers) moved from an active terrorist role to the academic world to politics and even into the media. …It’s a dangerous involvement of these people to mold people’s minds and whitewash their background, really. And it’s a trend. It’s undeniable.

...Some of the same things that went on in the 70s are happening now with the Islamic terrorists, CAIR and all these other groups are becoming respected parts of our society. But you’re never quite sure where they’re going with this.

Any smart Fox-watcher knows where they’re going with this. It’s nothing more than their latest attempt to undermine universities. Because if Fox really cared about not presenting former criminals as experts, they wouldn’t have the likes of Oliver North and Mark Fuhrman on their payroll as credible news sources.

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Michelle Malkin and her Fox News Friends demonstrated a stunning hostility to democracy as they didn't just whine about legally-mandated voter registration opportunities in Obamacare applications but thought there should be a lawsuit to prevent them.

Malkin and her Fox Friends joined in Republican outrage over a provision in Obamacare application that allows an applicant to register to vote. There is nothing in the application that suggests people should register as Democrats or vote Democratically and a similar provision has existed for years on federal Medicare applications. In fact, it’s part of the so-called “Motor Voter Law” which requires public agencies that provide public assistance to offer voter registration opportunities.

But to Malkin and her like-minded Fox friends this is an effort to buy or coerce votes.

STEVE DOOCY: You think, “OK, If I want Obamacare, I’m going to have to register to vote,” right?

MICHELLE MALKIN: The new Hippocratic oath is no longer “First do no harm,” it’s “First get them registered to vote.” …We all knew that it was transparent that Obamacare was just another vehicle to recruit the next generation of Democrats. Now that has been confirmed.

GRETCHEN CARLSON: Is that legal for them to put it in there?

MALKIN: It sounds like a potential lawsuit or certainly a question that should be raised by some public interest law firm.

BRIAN KILMEADE: If Punxsutawney Phil can get sued for not having spring start on time, why not sue them for putting this voting thing in there?

For most people, passing legislation designed to be popular with the electorate and then encouraging them to vote would be considered the American way of governing. Laudable even. Only on Fox News – which embraces GOP voter suppression efforts - would such activity be presented as something evil that must be prevented.

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Fox News continued its war on poor people today when it hyped Herman Cain’s highly dubious claim that people are using food stamps to pay for "fitness training," which he “learned” via a caller to his radio show.

It was not very surprising that Cain would repeat a thing like this without bothering to verify it. He isn’t exactly known for having a thirst for knowledge. But what’s Fox's excuse? Apparently, the “fair and balanced” network was so eager to re-air Cain’s characterization of food stamp recipients as moochers being exploited by a government that wants to make them dependent that nobody cared enough to verify whether Cain was telling the truth.

As banners on the screen screamed ON THE DOLE and then FOOD STAMP NATION, Steve Doocy announced that on Friday, “a document dump” from the federal government revealed a rise in Americans’ use of food stamps, the “biggest number in history,” he said. “47,791,996 Americans had to get these SNAP cards to put food on their table – they say," he said with a sneer.

Gretchen Carlson added, “So some people are concerned at the fact that this number has continued to escalate dramatically over the last couple of years.”

The concern was not that people are hungry or are not earning enough money to feed their families adequately. For example, as the Working Poor Families Project reported, "the number of low-income working families is increasing and nearly one third of all working families—32 percent—may not have enough money to meet basic needs." Also not mentioned: 55% of all food stamp recipients are children under 18 or the elderly, over 65.

And speaking of the working poor, let’s not forget that Cain bears a hefty chunk of responsibility for their plight:

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Fox & Friends hosts developed a serious case of amnesia this morning as they helped Jeb Bush promote his new book about immigration – yet forgot, as Sean Hannity did the night before - that Bush was for a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants before he turned against it in his book. They also forgot the pro-pathway results in Fox’s newly-released poll on the subject – even as they hyped other results from the same poll.

Steve Doocy opened the segment by announcing, “A brand new Fox poll out overnight is showing us where Americans stand on immigration reform.” A graphic on the screen trumpeted the news that 69% of the respondents favor completing new border security before changing immigration policies.

But he somehow failed to point out that another question in the poll found that 72% favor “allowing illegal immigrants to remain in the country and eventually qualify for U.S. citizenship, as long as they meet certain requirements like paying back taxes, learning English, and passing a background check.”

That’s a rather curious omission, given that it’s been big news that Bush has backtracked on his support for a pathway to citizenship. Especially when Gretchen Carlson noted in her first question for Bush, “You’ve been talking about (immigration) for a long time.” She later “wondered” whether members of Congress should use his book “as their primer to learning how to get the job done.”

Even worse, Doocy noted that Jeb’s brother, George W. Bush, had proposed a “guest worker program” even as it must have slipped Doocy's mind that W. had also proposed a pathway to citizenship.

Meanwhile, Bush has flip-flopped again. He was also on Morning Joe yesterday (not sure which appearance came first) where he said, “I don’t have a problem” with a pathway to citizenship. He told MSNBC viewers that if a law is crafted “where you can have a path to citizenship where there isn't an incentive for people to come illegally, I'm for it," But on Fox, he had no need to clarify what they didn't bring up in the first place.

At the end of the lapdog interview, which also included chirpy, chummy talk about 2016, Bush said, “It’s cozy here.”

Oh yes, as always.

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Fox has been fanning the flames of fear lately that dangerous criminal immigrants have been let loose by the Obama administration as a response to pending sequester spending cuts. But the propaganda took a new turn for the worse as Fox & Friends presented anti-immigrant extremist Lou Barletta (R-PA) as an unquestioned authority to discuss what is in reality ICE's supervised release of some undocumented immigrants. As he made the McCarthy-esque warning that he had "been told" dangerous criminals were now on the loose, he also accused the Obama administration of preferring to endanger Americans rather than to lay off any federal employees.

It started with Steve Doocy making the unsubstantiated announcement in his introduction, “Hundreds of illegal immigrants charged with big crimes freed from jail.”

After playing a clip of Jay Carney saying the decision to release the detainees was made by “career officials at ICE without any input from the White House,” Gretchen Carlson asked, “So are we to believe the White House now?” For the answer, she brought on Barletta who, she said, “I know is skeptical.” She forgot to tell her viewers that Barletta, was described by Right Wing Watch as a “one-issue firebrand,” a “hero to anti-immigrant and nativist groups,” and one of the Ten Scariest Republicans Heading To Congress in 2010.

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Ladies, forget about transvaginal ultrasounds or contraception coverage or any other concerns about a war on women. The real issue for Fox-lovin’, rootin’ tootin’ American women is packing heat. At least, that’s what the “fair and balanced” network would have you believe as Laura Ingraham and her like-minded pals on Fox & Friends ridiculed Colorado State Rep. Joe Salazar as a Democratic Todd Akin after he inartfully voiced concerns about allowing concealed weapons on college campuses.

I’ll agree that Salazar’s words were ill-chosen and perhaps insensitive. But it’s clear he was worried about Trayvon Martin-like situations and not being heedless of sexual assault.

That’s why we have call boxes, it’s why we have safe zones, that’s why we have the whistles. Because you just don’t know who you’re gonna be shooting at. And you don’t know if you feel like you’re gonna be raped, or if you feel like someone’s been following you around or if you feel like you’re in trouble and when you may actually not be, that you pop out that gun and you pop … pop a round at somebody.

Akin, on the other hand, is a staunch abortion opponent who was questioning whether claims of rape were “legitimate,” suggesting that women who said they got pregnant as a result of a rape were lying and, therefore, should not allow their fetuses to be “punished” with an abortion.

But while Fox spent a lot of time trying to ignore Akin’s comments, it loves comparing Salazar to Akin – and holding itself out as some kind of champion of women’s rights.

Carlson eventually got around to pointing out that Salazar has apologized for his remarks, though she “forgot” to mention that Salazar is a former civil rights attorney who has defended women’s rights. She also “forgot” to point out that Salazar was talking about students on college campuses, not women walking down dark alleys or home alone with children. Nor did anyone note that Salazar comes from a state that has suffered horrifically from gun tragedies. Instead, Carlson distorted Salazar's comments as, “Call boxes and whistles are the best way for women to protect themselves against an attacker.”

Ingraham wasted no time getting with the Fox News program of comparing Salazar to Akin. "Let's think back to the Richard Murdouck scandal, the Todd Akin, Murdouck - all the outrage about they said, OK? Fine. But what about this? What’s he going to shoot the attacker with, a squirt gun buried in that bow tie?” she sneered. Then she held up guns as the real empowerment for women:

He’s channeling what might happen during an attack of a 200-pound man vs. 110-pound woman. … When he’s attacked by someone, probably, 400 pounds, going up against him …Let’s see him crawl to a call box. That’s one of the most absurd things I’ve ever heard.

…The greatest equalizer is a gun in the hands of a woman who is well trained in its use. That’s the greatest equalizer out there when it comes to crime against women.

Nobody pointed out that what Salazar was really talking about was unnecessary gunfire nor that his worries are well-founded given the increased homicides in “stand your ground” states, e.g. – which Colorado is, by the way. Nor that women are five times more likely to be murdered by a gun in states with higher gun ownerships.

But they were ready to use their “sensitivity” to women to attack feminists for not attacking Salazar and/or not being more pro-gun. “Where are all the feminists, that’s what I say,” Ingraham sniped.

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You'd think that since the “47%” meme hasn't worked out so well, Fox would have dropped it by now. But, like that old definition of insanity, they keep doing the same thing and expecting new results. Only now it's the 60% of Americans who approve of President Obama's job performance, despite the “dismal” economy, who are the “takers.”

On Fox & Friends this morning, the Curvy Couch Crew gnashed their teeth over the the fact that President Obama is riding high in popularity even as the economy shrank in the last quarter for the first time since 2009.

Steve Doocy said about the economic news:

How could it be unexpected? All you've gotta do is look at what's about to happen. We're about to decimate the national security. There's a possibility the 1.2 million security jobs could be lost in this country, plus all the regulations placed on businesses with the Affordable Care Act. It's shocking that the number isn't worse.

Then with his clown face, Doocy sneered that White House spokesman Jay Carney isn't blaming George Bush now. “He just blames the Republicans in general.”

Brian Kilmeade, noting that the stock market is up, but consumer confidence down, cried out, “But the president's approval rating is 60%! It's like he's impervious to numbers!"

Doocy made sure to throw cold water on the stock market rise. He said the market is up because “the Fed is pumping all this dough every month, billions and billions of dollars into the economy. And the unemployment number – you know, it's just under 8% but it would be much higher if you factored in all the people who simply said, 'I can't find a job. We give up!'”

Having established the economic gloom and doom, they then turned to the question of why President Obama is so popular. Of course, they could have done a teensy bit of research and discovered that the country received his second inaugural address very favorably. Despite Fox News' best efforts. Or that, as Nate Silver recently pointed out, Obama “has at least a slim majority of Americans in his corner” on most of the issues he raised, including guns, climate change and immigration. Also despite Fox's best efforts.

Instead of facts, Doocy opined that the “mainstream media” is responsible for Obama's popularity because it has not reported enough about how “dismal” the economy is. He added, “It's the same thing in the run up to the election. The number one story affecting the most Americans: the economy. But instead, what do we get? We got the 47%, war on women. We got the binders, we got everything except what really matters.”

You mean like Benghazi? Or birtherism? You didn't build that? Or how the polling was not accurately predicting Romney's victory?

Gretchen Carlson wasn't convinced. She said, “People will write books about this for years on end how the popularity of this president remained so high and yet the economy remains relatively dismal.”

So, without bothering to lift a finger to come up with any actual data, they turned to their audience for “answers.” Previously Carlson had said they had received “different thoughts” from viewers as to why the president is still so popular. First, Carlson summarized by saying, “Some people said that it's because, you know, a lot of people now are in situations where they're receiving government handouts and so they like to see a president in power who believes in continuing to do those types of programs.”

Then they posted some individual emails and/or tweets reinforcing that view:

• Ever heard the saying, 'Don't shoot Santa Clause?” If you do not work, you had no increase in payroll deductions. If you're here illegally, you have the same rights as legal citizens and now everyone is going to be granted legal status.” (from “Charley”)
• That's easy, It is because he hands out welfare like we hand out candy to kids at Halloween. Groceries, cell phone, gas, house, TV and any other thing you can think of... without having to put an effort to get off the couch and get a job. Why not like that person? (from “Scott”)

However, Carlson did dig up a tweet from Republican Senator John Thune responding to Jay Carney's remarks and asking, “What planet do these guys live on?"

Um, maybe the one where S&P downgraded the U.S. credit rating because of Republican "brinksmanship." But you probably won't hear much about that on Planet Fox News.

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Fox & Friends teamed up with Laura Ingraham this morning to pretend that Planned Parenthood’s annual report shows a huge “growth industry” in abortions because they got an increased amount of government money. They blatantly disregarded the fact that abortion services account for about 3 percent of Planned Parenthood’s activities and that 96% for such medical services as STI/STD testing and treatment, cancer screening and prevention, prenatal services and contraception. The Friends also blindly accused the organization of ignoring restrictions on using federal funds for abortion. Instead, Ingraham cried, without challenge from any of the three hosts, “This is carnage!”

Steve Doocy started off by giving the false impression that at least a substantial portion of the money Planned Parenthood receives from the government goes to abortions. He said at the beginning of the discussion that Planned Parenthood received “more government money this past year than ever before… $542 million. That is a lot of abortions!” Given that Planned Parenthood is forbidden from using federal funds for abortion and that only 3% of its services are for abortions, Doocy almost surely knew he was promoting a distorted picture of the situation.

Not that anyone else cared to correct the record. Ingraham said,

“It’s a growth industry, right?...It is a heartbreaking and searing problem we have in this country where tax dollars are going to an organization that makes about, I believe $400 million-something off of the abortion procedure… We talk about big oil? This is big abortion. And they make big money off of it.”

Wrong. As Media Matters pointed out:

Ingraham's claim that Planned Parenthood makes $400 million from abortions is completely incorrect. According to its annual report, the organization actually received $311.5 million from non-governmental sources for the health care services it provided in 2011-12. According to Politifact, anti-abortion activists generally claim that Planned Parenthood receives far less than $400 million for abortion services, and even if their claims are correct, Planned Parenthood receives only 13 percent of its total revenue from abortion services.

But instead of balancing the falsehood with truth, Doocy, along with Ingraham, went on to accuse the organization of circumventing the restrictions on federal funds. “It all is movable money,” Ingraham alleged off-handedly. Nobody asked for nor provided evidence for such an accusation.

Meanwhile, Gretchen Carlson piled on by suggesting that abortion is the real business of Planned Parenthood. She said, “Remember, that was a big fight as to why they should… get this funding, was because they offer other services. Well, apparently, those other services are – as cancer prevention – have gone down.”

But they weren’t done with the misinformation. Ingraham said, “Remember, they don’t do mammograms at Planned Parenthood. That’s not a service they provide.” Well, not directly. But Planned Parenthood does provide access to mammograms as well as provide other breast cancer screening services. Another fact nobody provided.

Then, to add inflammatory rhetoric to distortions and smears, Ingraham concluded by saying:

And one of the grossest things about this report is that (Planned Parenthood president) Cecile Richards said, ‘We’re very proud of the work we’ve done.’ Think of those children, the smiles, the laughs, the lives they might have led. This is carnage.

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With controversy and protests swirling around Michigan’s anti-union legislation, Governor Rick Snyder paid a visit to Fox & Friends this morning where he surely knew he’d receive a friendly welcome. But the Curvy Couch Crew went beyond “hospitable” to outright approval. They also accepted without question his repeated assertions that the legislation – which he previously said was “not on his agenda” – is now “all about being pro worker.” Even more laughably, he pretended the legislation is not anti union.

Snyder said, with a straight face:

I actually don’t view this as anti-union, because it really gives the unions an opportunity to better present their value case. And if people see value, they should join and if they don’t, why should their resources go there?

Steve Doocy nodded along enthusiastically. Gretchen Carlson used the opportunity to take a shot at teachers and their union for taking the day off to go protest.

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Fox News blatantly conflated the anti-union legislation just rammed through the Michigan legislature - and now facing massive protests - with the case of 13 Detroit autoworkers who were just reinstated after being caught drinking and getting high on the job. Without bothering to do any research into why an arbitrator found the workers should be reinstated, Fox & Friends this morning suggested that unionized auto workers are a bunch of boozers and stoners with cushy contracts that prevent them from getting fired no matter what.

After discussing President Obama’s objections to the right-to-work legislation, Steve Doocy brought up the reinstated workers. You may recall that the story of the autoworkers was originally broken by local Fox reporters following them to a park during their break. Fox just happened to develop an interest in the workers’ behavior not long after the auto bailout.

Guest host Eric Bolling started the demonizing. “Probably any other job on the planet, if you were caught in the parking lot drinking… or smoking pot… you’d be fired in the afternoon. …Forget buying the car, how’d you like to be driving your kids to school in the car that was built that afternoon after those guys were smoking pot and drinking the beer? …That’s why it’s so bad. Because it’s so hard to fire these people.”

Guest Laura Ingraham agreed. “Next time, like something falls off your Chrysler, like your steering wheel cover kind of slips off? Well, now we know why.” She started laughing.

Doocy chimed in, “It was made after lunch.”

Ingraham continued, “Stuff… knobs always fall off because, oh man, ‘Let’s get another nickel bag before I go back to work.’ It’s ridiculous.”

Gretchen Carlson said, “It speaks to the power of the union. You know, it really does. And whatever they had in the language of the contract, the arbitrator sided with them. So they must have this sort of iron-clad language.”

Apparently, that “iron-clad language” is that sufficient and conclusive evidence is needed before a worker can be fired. But Carlson made it sound as though enforcing a contract that protects workers is a bad thing.

There was also the unmistakeable suggestion that only union workers get high on the job and avoid getting fired. As though the two go hand in hand and the union is to blame for the entire thing.

Ingraham added, “Maybe Chrysler will rue the day" that they were "so lax and tolerant of, you know, union power.”