The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur, known for his far-left commentary, surprised many by coming to former President Donald Trump’s defense following backlash over his comments about former Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney. Trump’s remarks during a fireside chat with Tucker Carlson stirred controversy, with some media outlets interpreting his words as a call for violence against Cheney. Uygur, however, stepped in to clarify what he saw as an exaggerated response, arguing that Trump’s words were taken out of context and did not constitute a threat.
During the chat, Trump took aim at Cheney, labeling her a “radical war hawk” who, in his view, would advocate for sending American troops into conflicts without personally facing the dangers of combat. Trump remarked, “Let’s put her with a rifle standing there with nine barrels shooting at her, OK. Let’s see how she feels about it, you know, when the guns are trained on her face,” Trump said during a fireside chat with Tucker Carlson. “You know, they’re all war hawks when they’re sitting in Washington in a nice building saying, ‘oh, gee, we’ll, let’s send — let’s send 10,000 troops right into the mouth of the enemy.’”
He framed his comments as hypothetical, questioning how advocates of military intervention, like Cheney, would feel if they were the ones on the front lines. According to Trump, Cheney represents an elite class of politicians willing to send others into conflict but unwilling to face those risks themselves.
The backlash from the left was swift, with pundits and social media users accusing Trump of inciting violence. Several commentators suggested that Trump’s words implied a firing squad, stoking fears that he was calling for Cheney to face violent retribution.
Political figures and media outlets criticized his remarks as inflammatory and potentially dangerous, leading to a flurry of op-eds and social media posts condemning Trump’s rhetoric. Amidst this response, Uygur’s intervention was unexpected, as he argued that the outrage misrepresented Trump’s intentions.
Cenk Uygur, who has frequently criticized Trump in the past, took to social media to challenge the interpretation that Trump was encouraging violence against Cheney. Uygur stated, “Trump did not call for the execution of Liz Cheney.”
He clarified that Trump was making a rhetorical point about Cheney’s hawkish stance on foreign policy, arguing that the former president was using hyperbole to criticize her advocacy for military interventions. Uygur’s remarks were met with mixed reactions from his followers, many of whom were surprised to see him defend Trump on this issue.
Donald Trump did not call for the execution of Liz Cheney. That is a bald-faced lie. He was making a point about how she is a chickenhawk. But also, Trump shouldn’t talk about guns being “trained on her face,” especially in a time where we’re worried about political violence.
— Cenk Uygur (@cenkuygur) November 1, 2024
According to Uygur, Trump’s comments highlight the contradiction he sees in politicians like Cheney, who support military action but do not face the consequences of those decisions themselves. Uygur emphasized that while he disagrees with Trump on most issues, he believes the media’s portrayal of Trump’s remarks missed the point. Uygur argued that Trump’s words were aimed at Cheney’s stance on foreign policy, not at calling for physical harm.
The incident underscores a broader conversation about media interpretation and the use of rhetoric in political discourse. While some view Trump’s remarks as dangerous, others, like Uygur, see the backlash as part of a trend where Trump’s words are often framed in the worst possible light, fueling polarization. Uygur’s defense highlights the divide between political criticism and direct incitement, a line he believes Trump did not cross in this case.
Uygur’s commentary reflects a frustration with what he views as sensationalized media responses to Trump’s statements, arguing that this pattern distracts from real policy debates. Uygur pointed out that hyperbole and exaggerated statements are common in politics and that while Trump’s rhetoric may be inflammatory, it does not always equate to a literal call to action. In defending Trump’s comments, Uygur positioned himself as critical of both the former president’s style and the media’s reaction, which he feels often misses the underlying issue at hand.
Trump’s comments on Cheney, particularly in the context of her advocacy for military interventions, touch on a longstanding critique within the conservative base against “neoconservatives” like Cheney, who have supported aggressive foreign policies.
Cheney, a prominent critic of Trump and supporter of U.S. military involvement abroad, has become a symbolic figure for Trump’s base, representing what they see as the “Washington elite” out of touch with ordinary Americans. By challenging Cheney’s willingness to send troops into danger without facing similar risks, Trump tapped into an anti-establishment sentiment among his supporters.
This is a classic case of Trump saying something outrageous and the press bailing him out by being purposely misleading. You didn’t have to lie about it for the comment to be totally irresponsible. And when you do, you lose all credibility and no one believes anything you say.
— Cenk Uygur (@cenkuygur) November 1, 2024
Despite the left-leaning politics of The Young Turks, Uygur’s defense of Trump on this issue highlights a potential overlap between anti-war sentiments on the left and right. Both sides have factions critical of foreign interventions, though their criticisms often stem from different philosophical backgrounds.
For Trump, the critique of Cheney is part of a broader populist message that challenges traditional conservative hawks in the Republican Party. For Uygur, defending Trump in this instance was less about supporting the former president’s ideology and more about pointing out what he perceived as a media overreaction.
The controversy surrounding Trump’s remarks is emblematic of a polarized media landscape, where statements are often framed to fit specific narratives. Uygur’s defense suggests a desire to refocus political discussions on substantive policy critiques rather than sensational interpretations of rhetoric. By speaking out, Uygur highlighted the difficulty of navigating political discourse in an era where inflammatory language and quick condemnations dominate.
Ultimately, the backlash to Trump’s Cheney comments and Uygur’s defense speak to broader tensions in American political discourse. Trump’s supporters argue that his comments are frequently misconstrued by a media unwilling to give him the benefit of the doubt, while his critics contend that his rhetoric is often reckless and irresponsible.
Uygur’s defense adds nuance to this conversation, suggesting that even staunch critics of Trump can recognize when media portrayals veer into exaggeration. For Uygur, pushing back against what he sees as a “fake outrage” allows for a more grounded debate on the issues at stake, particularly the critique of foreign policy hawks like Cheney.
Speaking to Michigan voters on November 1, Trump doubled down on his criticism of Cheney’s foreign policy views.
TRUMP: “It’s easy for Liz Cheney to say she wants to start wars from the comfort of her nice home or her father’s lavish home that he got from killing a big portion of the Middle East… They want to draft your kids but will never fight themselves.”pic.twitter.com/wcFamvGE2H
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) November 1, 2024
I do believe that the commentator of this article is right when he says that those war hawks who wish to send OUR TROOPS into the mouth of danger should put on the uniform and face the enemy and see how it feels when they get no support from their own government These elected officials who wish this on OUR TROOPS should be charged with sedition and/or treason. Wake up PEOPLE and realize that this election will either break US or unite US to make this country better than what Biden has been doing to destroy this NATION with communistic and socialistic program’s to enslave US and make US compliant to their rules and demands by taking away OUR GOD given rights that no government can take away. WE must fight these evil demonic democrats who do not even like US and want to take OUR rights away from US!!!
Reginald, very well stated.
And they do want to enslave us or kills us all off, and to give the Illegals room to push for the complete destruction of America.
The Communist Democrats are definitely in the pockets of the CCP and do the biding of destroying the economy of America.
Their the most Evil Son’s of Bitches and Bastards that’s hated America and the Citizens in History.
The Constitution and the Rule of law has been ignored and the Cowardly Republicans hasn’t gone after them even when they were the majority in the Senate or Congress.
Reginald P Zenkewich; this is saying like it is! These traitorous enemies from within have proved by a shadow of a doubt that all they seek is more “mega-dollars” in their own pockets and “absolute power” to control everything in America, especially “We the People!” They basically have made it know this is not a Nation ruled by the People but rather to be totally ruled by them, these “elitist evil power mongers” who are “absolutely in bed with the CCP and all globalist tyrants!” Let’s pray sincerely to our God in heaven in Jesus’ name will bring in the big win for President Trump which these evil demonic souls have done everything they can to stop; so “it won’t be curtains for all of us,” as Biden came right out and called us “garbage Citizens,” and the quiet part of his slip meaning all “Citizens!”
Brother Michael that is exactly been the problem with the limp noodle Republicans infested with far too many Rino’s!
“The Constitution and the Rule of law have been ignored and the Cowardly Republicans” have gone along step by step. Absolutely the hinge-pin by which these low-life’s of the demonic Demoncrap Party have been able to push their diabolical Agenda for so long, bringing “We the People and our Wonderful Nation under God” to the edge of the “Precipice” to utterly destroy it and then “raise it up as a full communist totalitarian state not different than North Korea or China, in union with the CCP and Satan himself!”
This would allow the entire human race to be subjugated to “global slavery” and usher in the antichrist to rule the planet and bring it all to hell while exterminating billions of people!
Look what they have gotten away with already pushing in grade schools with that “demonic transgender abomination” to alter little children’s genders, which is not even possible, yet they butcher their bodies and pump them up with medications without any parental consent as well; and if they object they get locked up most likely in an internment camp or basically a gulag which is the complete plan if this continues. That was what they were planning during the Plan-demic that got halted with “operation warp speed” that caused there to be no need for locking away any resisting Citizens that would not comply with lock-downs and mandates. Basically they would kick the Constitution to the curb and say that “emergency government control” just like the EUA for vaccines being quickly approved, and how all of it is necessary to protect US All, when it’s just the opposite.
Some points to consider that George Orwell thought about long before things got this insane and evil!
“In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
‘If liberty means anything at all it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.’
“Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four.”
“You are free to be a drunkard, an idler, a coward, a backbiter, a fornicator; but you are not free to think for yourself.”
“Political language – and with variations, this is true of all political parties, from Conservatives to Anarchists – is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.”
“Sometimes the first duty of intelligent men is the restatement of the obvious.”
“Political language has to consist largely of euphemism, question-begging, and sheer cloudy vagueness.”
“The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.”
“Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing.”
All God fearing and even awakening Americans need to fear God and pray like never before for deliverance from the clutches of this diabolical evil that has infested our Nation under God!
James 4:6-8 “But He gives us more grace. This is why it says: “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
“Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.”
Exodus 20:12
An older musical tune that seems to fit the times and is at heart inspirational.
Mike + The Mechanics – Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground) (Official Video)
://youtu.be/i17mgRK3GX8