Countdown with Keith Olbermann

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MSNBC FIRES TIFFANY CROSS. RACHEL MADDOW IS SILENT. 11.7.22 Nov 07, 2022

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EPISODE 71: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:45) On the Friday before an election crucial to democracy, MSNBC fired its most outspoken host because Fox News complained about her. Where is the protest by Lawrence O'Donnell? By Chris Hayes? By Alex Wagner? Where is the threat to walk out, to boycott, to stand on principle, by Rachel Maddow? (3:10) NBC had to retract a fabricated Today Show story that reignited the fascists' homophobic conspiracy theory about Paul Pelosi. The correspondent was not fired. The Today Show executive was not fired. The head of news was not fired. Tiffany Cross? She was fired. (7:33) Cross joked about "castrating Florida," rightly savaged Alyssa Farah, Megyn Kelly, and Clarence Thomas - and her ratings were growing. But when Tucker Carlson devoted a segment to actually suggesting she was fomenting a Rwanda-style genocide of white Americans, NBC and MSNBC went crazy. (10:10) Joy Reid said something, more personal than professional (10:30) O'Donnell said nothing; then again when he filled in for me while my father was dying in 2010 he tried to replace me as Countdown host and then stole a group of producers from me for his new show (11:36) Chris Hayes, silent now, once stood up and refused to substitute for me when I had been improperly suspended (13:30) And Maddow, who in 2009 stood up and told the president of NBC News and all the executives and talent at MSNBC that if anybody interfered with the content of her show, she would walk out because "I cannot have the audience wondering what else I have not told them" (18:41) But now Maddow is making $30 million a year and the courage to walk out when it could cost you that much, is lacking. Rachel? Will you pretend the firing of Tiffany Cross is not your problem? Or will you stand up for what is right? You know - like you used to.

B-Block (23:40) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Ace in New York desperately needs a foster or adopter, anywhere from Virginia to Maine (24:30) POSTSCRIPTS TO THE NEWS: DeSantis shocked head of The Leopards Eating People's Faces Party ate his face; Musk "likes" meme with quote from American neo-nazi pedophile, and that was the BEST thing he did to Twitter over the weekend (30:19) IN SPORTS: Astros get a World Series Parade; Phillies set World Series futility records; Boston Bruins destroy reputation by signing, then dumping, bully (32:45) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Mark Levin admits his side consists of "White Supremacists" and competes with Jim Jordan and Matt Gaetz padding a 50-page report to 1,050 pages, and former journalist Jason Whitlock going misogynistic, homophobic AND racist all in the same sentence.

C-Block (37:30) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: In memory of Vinny Vassallo, or as a few SportsCenter viewers will remember him: Vinny The Stat Man.

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DOJ MAY APPOINT SPECIAL COUNSEL TO PROSECUTE TRUMP 11.4.22 Nov 04, 2022

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EPISODE 70: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:45) SPECIAL COMMENT: It goes without saying Trump should not merely already be under indictment - he should be under 24/7 guard in a SuperMax Prison. But he's not. So we have to view last night's leak about the Department of Justice considering a Special Trump Counsel as "good news." (2:45) CNN's report says the Special Counsel would be appointed as soon as Trump officially declares he's running (he came close last night at one of his Cult Rallies) (3:53) CNN also reported something strange: that DOJ has hired two high-priced prosecutors in advance, just in case they do decide to prosecute. Are you kidding? Who does this? You don't hire guys away from Law Firm Partnerships 'just in case' (5:55) Plus CNN discovered one of the hirings because the guy UPDATED HIS LINKED-IN PROFILE! (8:23) In actual stuff that's happened, CREW, which got a New Mexico County Commissioner removed from office for insurrection based on the 14th Amendment, says it will sue to get Trump similarly barred from serving (11:00) All of which leads me to invoke 19th Century British Prime Minister William E. Gladstone and an immortal quote about him supplied by one of his fiercest critics, Henry Labouchere.

B-Block (14:25) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Calto, in New York (15:17) POSTSCRIPTS TO THE NEWS: Golly, I guessed right: Elon Musk IS willing to sell YOUR Twitter identity to somebody else. I think we call this "blackmail." Plus CNBC fires Shepard "I Come From A Town Full Of Secrets" Smith. (17:54) IN SPORTS: World Series Game 5 Nailbiter; maybe those Phillies Powder Blue unis aren't good luck; and an imperfection in Don Larsen's 1956 Perfect Game you may not know about. Finally, Kyrie Irving is suspended. (24:37) WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: A lawyer age-shaming the victim in an indecent exposure case and a medical school that played with the 1918 Influenza vie with Laura Ingraham for the honors

C-Block (29:57) FRIDAYS WITH THURBER: "The Luck Of Jad Peters."

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PATEL IMMUNITY MEANS TRUMP INDICTMENT IS THISCLOSE 11.3.22 Nov 03, 2022

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EPISODE 69: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:45) It's hard to believe a Presidential speech about domestic threats to democracy would have to take a back seat to another story (2:20) But the Department of Justice has given "Use Immunity" to Trump flunky Kash Patel so he can be brought back before the Documents Grand Jury and tell the truth about whether or not he witnessed Trump verbally declassifying all the stolen documents (Spoiler alert: he didn't) (5:40) Patel's testimony suggests DOJ is still on a timeline towards indicting Trump in the first week of January (6:02) There was nothing WRONG with Biden's Democracy-In-Danger speech but it lacked the controlled rage he mastered in his speech in Philadelphia in September. Thus, the advice he asked me for 15 years ago about channeling anger into righteous indignation was either too good or not good enough (7:52) Unless this was some kind of "this is the last time I say it nicely" speech, Biden's call to the better angels of our nature will completely elude those who disagree with him and believe America IS a zero-sum game, like Stewart Rhodes, whose terrifying manifesto for Trump was released (9:30) And there's no use throwing the new facts in the DePape/Pelosis case at the Right Wing. It's case closed for them and any new facts can be dismissed as Cover-ups or Conspiracies (11:55) IN SPORTS: What if they gave a World Series no-hitter and nobody cared?

B-Block (17:45) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Lia in Staten Island (18:40) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Elon Musk not knowing that +$8 and -$8 are different things fights Captain Obvious from The New York Times and Kyrie Irving and the NBA trying to fight their way out of the antisemitism mess, for the honors (22:15) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: It's 22 years ago now when Roger Clemens of the Yankees threw part of the broken bat of Mike Piazza of the Mets - threw it either AT him or inadvertently NEAR him. I had to do the first interview with Clemens, and then I asked a question that has haunted me for 22 years - what happened to the shattered bat?

C-Block 41:09 THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: The Piazza Bat saga continues through the present day, and includes everybody from John Henry, owner of the Boston Red Sox, to Vin Scully, to Jay of Chez Jay restaurant in Santa Monica, California.

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PELOSI ATTACKER'S DEFENSE: MAGA MADE ME DO IT 11.2.22 Nov 02, 2022

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EPISODE 68: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:45) "He was completely caught up in the fantasy. He really believed in the whole MAGA, stolen election. If you go to Fox News, if you look at QAnon - you know." David DePape's employer of six years makes it Case Closed: the would-be assassin of Nancy Pelosi was energized stochastically by every weapon the GOP can muster (2:24) And it appears that DePape's defense will be a claim of "vulnerability" to the MAGA/Fox News/Trump misinformation machine (3:24) Yet the GOP continues in full denial, to the extent that a Washington Examiner columnist insists the assassination attempt never happened (5:04) How does the GOP maintain this astonishing and apparently heartfelt hypocrisy? Their party DEPENDS on it. Let me review a couple dozen Herschel Walker/Peter Navarro/Samuel Alito cases (10:30) And finally we have the explanation of "Every Republican Accusation Is A Confession" from a psychology professional: it's not projection, it's not compensation.

B-Block (20:04) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Hex, in Devore CA (21:00) POSTSCRIPTS TO THE NEWS: Graham has to testify, Wisconsin fascist gubernatorial candidate says the quiet fascist part out loud, and Elon Musk's tries to make selling Verification into a populist issue when he's really just blackmailing the blue checks: pay me $96/year or I'll shadow-ban you, and maybe sell your identity to somebody else. Plus late word that the Treasury Department isn't happy with all those Saudi, Qatari, and Chinese investors and may try to hold up his purchase! (26:16) IN SPORTS: Even MORE home runs, yet another A's franchise shift, and the NBA screws up the Kyrie Irving disaster yet again (29:40) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLDS: Mehmet Oz, Jim "Yes MASA" Jordan and Andrea "Bothsidesism" Mitchell compete for the honors.

C-Block (34:02) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: You know how I know CNN is trying to swing to the right to protect its profits in case the country goes fascist? Because MSNBC tried it in 2003. The harrowing story of the day they tried to make me run a commentary by Michael Savage - literally dressed as a brownshirt - in the middle of Countdown and what I had to do to stop them.

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GOP SPENT $227 MILLION TO GET SOMEBODY TO TRY TO KILL PELOSI 11.1.22 Nov 01, 2022

Show notes

EPISODE 67: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:44) Since 2018 Republicans have spent at least $227 Million on TV advertising to get somebody to try to kill Nancy Pelosi and now we know how they finally got their money's worth with David DePape (2:15) They're not calling it a confession, but that's what it is (3:44) A confession to political terrorism versus the Democratic Party, engineered stochastically by the Republican Party. And every Democrat and every news organization that does not say that is an accessory after the fact (5:13) And this has all be inevitable since January 21, 2010 - since "Citizens United" when the Roberts Court ruled all curbs on how much money corporations could spend on political advertising illegal (10:33) What INFINITY MONEY would do to American politics, and America, was so obvious that night that even I was able to predict much of it on Countdown. If anything, I understated the impact (12:38) Which leaves us this question: if the corporations and the men who run them want more attacks on more Nancy Pelosis - who's going to stop them?

B-Block (20:41) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Pearl in Nashville (21:25) POSTSCRIPTS TO THE NEWS: On top of everything else, Clarence Thomas is an idiot, and the producers of "2000 Mules" have been jailed! (23:49) IN SPORTS: It's simple. The NBA is going to have to ban Kyrie Irving, We've had the traditional Philadelphia World Series rainout. And I called Hoberg Hoiberg but not Zoidberg (26:16) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Tara Reid can't tell hearts from diamonds. She and Anti-Vax Nut Sherri Tenpenny compete with Don Bolduc - who actually NAMED a school where he thinks this "Litter Box" nonsense is happening - for the honors. But Bolduc is the only one likely to be sued.

C-Block (30:48) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: I thought I had met Bill Maher 22 years ago this month. Turns out the date was much, much earlier. But it took 31 years and two near-fistfights to figure it all out.

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ARREST MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE FOR THREATENING PELOSI 10.31.22 Oct 31, 2022

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A-Block (1:45) SPECIAL COMMENT: Arrest the stochastic terrorists who instigated the attempted assassination of Nancy Pelosi on Friday. 18 USC 871, punishing threats against those in the presidential success, will suffice for Marjorie Taylor Greene, on video from 2019 (5:41) And Republican Congressional Committee chair Tom Emmer, who tweeted video of himself firing a weapon, with the hashtag "#FirePelosi (6:49) The GOP has been encouraging violence against Pelosi since 2010 (8:00) It got a gift to help satisfy its own adherents and gaslight others when Bay Area TV reporter Evan Sernoffsky falsely reported the assailant was wearing only underwear. All references to this stem from this terrible journalism, and none carry Sernoffsky's retraction (9:15) And then came the Elon Musk tweet spreading a nonsensical conspiracy theory from a pretend news outlet around the world (10:30) The GOP's effort to work the refs has produced results, especially in convincing media to pretend the party's use of the threat of violence is something new (11:00) Just my own experience, as a victim of four fake anthrax mailings in 2006 because I criticized Bush, and being on the second wave list of the "MAGA-Bomber" in 2018 for criticizing Trump, underscores how widespread this tactic has been. (15:15) And then there is the last component. How can the Marjorie Taylor Greenes of this world be sure that everybody they encourage to use violence is a Republican, and every one of the victims will be a Democrat - and not the other way around?

B-Block (19:20) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Droolius Caesar, in New York (20:22) POSTSCRIPTS TO THE NEWS: Lula wins, why did the DOJ add a Terror prosecutor to the Trump Documents team, the Mastriano confession, Musk charging for blue checks? (23:55) IN SPORTS: Did you see the perfect game in the World Series Saturday? And the Qataris celebrating the LGBTQ boycott of the World Cup (28:28) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: The new UK PM gets roasted by a patient at a hospital photo op. He and Tom Cotton compete with the Kansas candidate who implied Tiger Woods killed a cop for the "honors."

C-Block (33:36) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: The day Brian Williams lied about Iraq but I thought I was the one going crazy, then the day I tried to save Brian Williams; then the day the president of NBC News explained why they didn't - and couldn't - fire him.

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IT WAS AN ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT. CALL IT THAT! 10.29.22 Oct 29, 2022

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SPECIAL EPISODE 65: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:45) SPECIAL COMMENT: This was an assassination attempt. It was meant to be the execution of the Speaker of the House, 11 days before the midterms. It was a political crime, an act of domestic terrorism, an extension of the January 6th coup, the full expression of a new mantra of a political party gone insane, the culmination of the cult of Donald Trump (3:18) And THIS MUST BE SAID NOW by the Democratic leaders and media now cowering behind bothsidesism and electoral mediocrity (4:23) And it must be said by President Biden: that the attempted assassination of Nancy Pelosi was an attack on the government of the United States, inspired by the GOP, MAGA, and Trump. And Biden must also say: IT STOPS HERE. (7:25) Democrats must also push back on the GOP filth who actually tried to dismiss this as a random break-in, like Ronna McDaniel, Glenn Youngkin, and the journalistic whores of Fox News, Newsmax, and others (11:53) And I want to have the conversation about POTUS' emergency powers - big and small (12:42) Because after a week in which Trump threatened to have reporters raped, thugs maced students, militia stalked ballot drop boxes, antisemitism and pro-Putin propaganda was rewarded, and now an assassination attempt - this country is under attack. Friday it was life and death for the Pelosis. Now, it is life and death for the rest of us.

B-Block (17:38) FRIDAY'S SPECIAL COMMENT: 90 months for a 1/6 Insurrectionist and 1/6 Committee pursuit of Secret Service turncoats. But two years after the coup and not one insurrectionist politician, stochastic terrorist, or Trump is in jail (18:45) As the midterms loom we must act as if democracy is already lost and we are trying to fire up an electorate - and candidates - who might get it back (22:25) We are betrayed by two supposedly liberal institutions: the political infrastructure and the media, yet CBS, CNN, New York Times, others, are still hedging their bets, ready to protect their profits in case Full Fascism comes to this country (28:00) Instead of making a plain case: Republicans = Fascists, Democrats = Destroyers of Fascism, we are trying to hide under euphemisms and appeasement and fear. (33:40) We have nothing to fear but fear itself. But to paraphrase to FDR but my late friend Bill Hurt in "Body Heat," "Sometimes the fear comes down so heavy I feel like I should wear a hat."

C-Block (36:47) FRIDAYS WITH JAMES THURBER: Dog lover Thurber’s lovable dog story about an unlovable dog that if you’re a dog lover, you’ll just love. It's "The Dog That Bit People."

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WE HAVE TWELVE DAYS 10.28.22 Oct 28, 2022

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EPISODE 64: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:45) SPECIAL COMMENT: 90 months for a 1/6 Insurrectionist and 1/6 Committee pursuit of Secret Service turncoats. But two years after the coup and not one insurrectionist politician, stochastic terrorist, or Trump is in jail (2:55) As the midterms loom we must act as if democracy is already lost and we are trying to fire up an electorate - and candidates - who might get it back (6:30) We are betrayed by two supposedly liberal institutions: the political infrastructure and the media, yet CBS, CNN, New York Times, others, are still hedging their bets, ready to protect their profits in case Full Fascism comes to this country (12:08) Instead of making a plain case: Republicans = Fascists, Democrats = Destroyers of Fascism, we are trying to hide under euphemisms and appeasement and fear. (17:47) We have nothing to fear but fear itself. But to paraphrase to FDR but my late friend Bill Hurt in "Body Heat," "Sometimes the fear comes down so heavy I feel like I should wear a hat."

B-Block (21:51) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Yofiel, in the Bahamas (23:54) POSTSCRIPTS TO THE NEWS: Zeldin under unexpected investigation; Why does the Omaha PD need a tank?; New York Post hacked - nobody notices the difference; Lucianne Goldberg dies. Thoughts and prayers. (27:17) In sports: Britain's Foreign Secretary actually tells LGBTQ soccer fans to "flex and compromise" at the anti-gay Qatar World Cup, plus the World Series preview from a guy who may have checked out on the World Series after 55 years. (29:42) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: GOP Chair Ronna McDaniel attacks Biden's stutter and Fetterman's stroke but sucked up to Trump's brain damage and insanity. She competes with Elon Musk and Tudor Dixon - who may be the dumbest person in America - for the honors.

C-Block (34:30) FRIDAYS WITH JAMES THURBER: Dog lover Thurber’s lovable dog story about an unlovable dog that if you’re a dog lover, you’ll just love. It's "The Dog That Bit People."

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SCARBOROUGH'S SCUMBAG ATTACK ON FETTERMAN 10.27.22 Oct 27, 2022

Show notes

EPISODE 63: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:46) I cannot be certain which scumbag I hate more today: Joe Scarborough or Samuel Alito. It's amazing that a shameless venomous opportunist, whose behavior for 30 years implies a damaged psyche, has the nerve to attack and not celebrate the recovery from stroke of an honest politician (5:30) Scarborough is the political whore who tried to mainstream Trump on MSNBC yet never once asked him "Why do you say things that make no sense?" or "Have you had an aneurysm or concussion?" or "Have you used drugs that can interfere with or damage your cognitive ability?" (7:27) His attack on Fetterman is worse than it seems because for every American recovering from injury or illness, it is a slap in their face from a creature not worthy of any position of influence in this business or this society (10:30) And "Justice" Samuel Alito, who has now failed mathematics, history, and ethics, may still be worse after his self-martyring speech to a fascist group (15:20) Perhaps Alito can resign and be replaced by an attorney who once defended the murderer of an abortion doctor. The attorney was named Joe Scarborough.

B-Block (18:15) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Kodah, in New York (19:00) POSTSCRIPTS TO THE NEWS: Surprisingly good news for Dems in early voting numbers and the generic Congressional Ballot; the implication Kash Patel is willing to testify against Trump; Kanye crashes Skechers and gets shown out by security; Musk tries to float a joke only to see it sink; Another Herschel Walker abortion story (23:00) IN SPORTS: Boone stays, the new NYC Marathon chief may have togo, and they're not booing, they're chanting "Potvin Socks" (26:07) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: NewsNation TV and Louis DeJoy compete with National Review Online publishing the rants of a Pennsylvania Republican who wants genocide against Democrats for the honors.

C-Block (30:33) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: Back 43 years ago today, they actually banned Willie Mays for promoting gambling (rather than give him a big paycheck). At age 20 I had to interview him, and the bizarre way he answered his phone still resonates me - as does the bizarre way he was drafted by the army right after his big league debut and how that might have cost him the all-time Home Run Record.

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BUT WHY DO THINGS KEEP GETTING WORSE? 10.26.22 Oct 26, 2022

Show notes

EPISODE 62: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN

A-Block (1:44) SPECIAL COMMENT: Voters would rather have cheap gas than the right to vote. Herschel Walker, lying abortion-funder and out-of-wedlock absentee father is the Man of God, not a pastor at Martin Luther King's church. The Congressional Progressive Caucus undermines the Democrats on Ukraine two weeks to the election. We know things ARE getting worse - but WHY are they getting worse? (2:40) Four answers: 1) 40+ years of Rush Limbaugh and imitators (4:00) 2) Individual moral turpitude, and blackmail (5:15) 3) The incompetence of the news media and the shortage of qualified reporters and analysts (9:15) 4) The ubiquity of platforms for anyone and everyone to become a political commentator and a political combatant when 30 years ago if you weren't in "the media" your choices were calling in to a talk show or writing a letter to the editor.

B-Block (16:40) EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY: Blaze in New York (17:50) POSTSCRIPTS TO THE NEWS: Debate-a-palooza. Never give them a viral moment, like Oz on abortion or Oz on the debate being just a "television show" or Zeldin and Dixon appearing soft on crime; Saudis reneged on an oil deal; we must make Prince Mohammed bin Bonesaw pay. (23:35) IN SPORTS: Retired Serena Williams says "I am not retired." For the first time since 1950 - 1950! - there will be NO African-American players in the World Series. (27:40) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Marco Rubio rushing to the aid of an injured...Charlottesville white nationalist buddy to Proud Boys? Doug Mastriano extolling the virtues of moving to Russia? They compete with the would-be Oklahoma Superintendent of Schools who wants to impose 'Christian Patriotic Education Training' on the state's public teachers.

C-Block (32:39) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: It's 42 years ago this month when, as the Jimmy Carter-Ronald Reagan presidential election loomed, control of the 1,000-station radio network owned by the world's second largest news organization was left for eight hours entirely in the hands of a 21-year old sportscaster pressed into service because of a flu wave: ME. And that's when our chief Washington correspondent phoned in from the campaign trail, thoroughly blitzed and thoroughly articulate!

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