It’s become more or less an article of faith among some elements of the right that the sexual harassment scandal at Fox News Channel is nothing more than a liberal-inspired witch hunt. To hear some of them talk, liberals and Democrats are so determined to gag the fair and balanced network that they dredged up accusations dating back several years.
Some, like Jesse Lee Peterson, claim that the numerous accounts of boorish behavior by the likes of Roger Ailes, Bill O’Reilly, Eric Bolling, and others are nothing more than an attempt to destroy men with a history of doing good. Others, like Lance Wallnau and Pat Robertson, think that the whole thing is demonically driven.
But one right-wing radio host may have outdone them all. He actually said–with a straight face–that liberals bear part of the blame for the death of Bolling’s son just hours after Bolling was fired from Fox News for a long history of lewd and harassing behavior.
On Friday afternoon, while much of the Southeast was battening down the hatches in anticipation of Hurricane Irma, Fox News announced that Bolling would not return to the network. He had been suspended last month after reports surfaced that he had sent lewd text messages to a number of his female colleagues, and also made inappropriate advances toward others.
The following afternoon, Yashar Ali of HuffPost, whose exclusive story triggered the chain of events that led to Bolling’s ouster, tweeted that Bolling’s only son, Eric Chase Bolling, had been found dead shortly after the formal announcement that his father had gotten the boot.
Very sad news, Eric Bolling's son, who was only 19, died last night. By all accounts, Eric was incredibly devoted to his son. Heartbreaking.
— Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) September 9, 2017
Eric + his son. You can just tell from this pic that he adored him. The one thing I heard from people consistently: he was a devoted dad. https://t.co/S8Dhgp6bH7
— Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) September 9, 2017
The younger Bolling was an economics major at the University of Colorado. Despite initial suggestions that it was a suicide, Bolling took to Twitter to deny this was the case.
Authorities have informed us there is no sign of self harm at this point. Autopsy will be next week. Please respect our grieving period.
— Eric Bolling?? (@ericbolling) September 9, 2017
Well, apparently right-wing pundit Wayne Allyn Root didn’t get the memo. Near the tail end of the Monday edition of his radio show, Root claimed that those big, bad libruls helped send Eric Chase to an early grave. People for the American Way’s Right Wing Watch got a clip.
Root claimed that liberals were hellbent on bringing down anyone who was an ardent Donald Trump supporter. He claimed Bolling was a textbook example of this; among Fox News’ more prominent personalities, only Sean Hannity was considered a stronger supporter of the Donald.
After musing that Eric Chase may have been overwhelmed by “the emotional embarrassment and disturbance” of the allegations against his father, he asked if liberals “bear some responsibility” for Eric Chase’s death. He then answered his own question–“You’re darn right they do!”
As Root saw it, the investigation into Bolling’s alleged debauchery “led to the death of this man’s beautiful son.” He then went into a maudlin rant about how Bolling and his wife, Adrienne, no longer have a chance at being grandparents because of “charges from before he was ever an anchorman”–conveniently leaving out that a number of those charges date to his Fox News tenure. As far as he was concerned, “certainly liberals bear some responsibility” because they dredged up these allegations “to destroy a man’s career.”
And this, ladies and gentlemen, is exactly why victims of sexual assault and sexual harassment don’t come forward. They get bombarded with accusations that they’re being used, and that they’re just out to wreck someone’s good name. And now Root has taken this to a new and disgusting level. For all intents and purposes, he is saying, “Oh my God! You liberals helped kill Bolling’s son! You bastards!”
Root doesn’t appear to be the least bit repentant about his disgusting sentiment, based on his Twitter feed.
Thank u @RightWingWatch I'm just the only one with the balls to state the truth out loud. https://t.co/3bu05HmnQZ
— Wayne Allyn Root (@RealWayneRoot) September 12, 2017
63 MM Trump voters know what vicious scum of left are doing on daily basis try to destroy every conservative icon. https://t.co/3bu05HmnQZ
— Wayne Allyn Root (@RealWayneRoot) September 12, 2017
Riddle me this, Wayne. Are you willing to tell the women who came forward that they were being played by the left? And are you willing to do so to their faces, rather than from the comfort of your home studio in Las Vegas? If not, sir, then here’s a friendly piece of advice–JUST SHUT UP!
The only thing we need to hear from Root on this matter is an apology to the women who have come forward. Let him know what you think on Facebook and on Twitter.
(featured image courtesy Gage Skidmore, available under a Creative Commons BY-SA license)