How long will it take for Fox News to admit that Leland Vittert is a loud-mouthed, snickering, sniveling know-it-all who embodies all the worst elements of Fake News inside his well-coiffed head?
It would be a shame to see this once estimable news operation brought to its knees by one preening peacock, but it is hard to take Fox News seriously as long as Vittert remains on the payroll.
Vittert is a weekend morning host on Fox News and has been taking shifts on the holidays the past two weeks. Maybe no Fox executives watch their channel during those off hours, but they should! They would see Vittert regularly interrupting his guests, laughing at them, and suggesting at every turn that he is smarter not just than them but than the 63 million people who voted for Donald Trump.
This morning (Jan.1, 2020) was a typical scenario. After a lengthy report on the status of the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Vittert introduced his guest Morgan Ortagus, a State Department spokeswoman. It started out simply enough as Ortagus said of the attack, “This was not protesters; these were terrorists that are organized, trained and equipped by the Iranian regime.”
This set off Vittert, who wanted to talk about the “Iranian playbook” of repeated attacks on U.S. and Western interests in the region. After running through the list of attacks, Vittert said there was “no strong military response by the United States” and asked “Are the Iranians under the impression right now that they can do whatever they want?”
It was obvious that he was baiting Ortagus with a “When did you stop beating your wife” type of question, but Ortagus tried to answer him seriously. She said that the “maximum economic pressure campaign is working,” and then made the following statement:
“We have told the Iranian regime countless times, ‘Do not confuse President Trump’s strategic patience with weakness.'”
While the camera was on her at the State Department, we heard Vittert snickering in the studio. When the camera came back to him on the split screen, Vittert was smirking and laughing at his guest.
His next question confirmed that Vittert is not just a liberal tool as I have written about on several occasions (here and here and here) but also (and more dangerously) a neocon warmonger who thinks the appropriate response to every provocation is a full-out war.
“When is the hand of diplomacy the iron fist of U.S. air strikes against Iran, targeted attacks on the IRGC [Iranian Revolutionary Guard], actually not making their militias pay a price but actually making them pay a price in a language they understand?”
In other words, when do we start yet another war in the Middle East. Is this guy for real? If he wants to create policy that will lead to World War III, let him run for President and see how popular his ideas are with the American people.
When Ortagus tries to explain to Vittert that economic sanctions are devastating the Iranian economy, he interrupts her and says “I don’t understand.” Those three words should be his epitaph because they truly capture the essence of his being.
Ortagus seizes the opportunity and treats Vittert like a doltish student: “I’ll explain it to you then. Let me clarify it for you. The reason why our policy is working is because the Iranian regime is out of money. Their militias are out of money. We are extending the hand of diplomacy while simultaneously pursuing our maximum economic pressure campaign. … We’re not seeking another war in the Middle East. That’s not what we’re doing here. But we are holding the Iranian regime accountable.”
Vittert interrupts Ortagus again, and this time HER patience is wearing thin.
“You’re going to have to let me finish, Leland, if we’re going to finish this interview, OK?”
She didn’t walk out of the interview, but she probably should have. Indeed, no member of the Trump administration should ever agree to appear on any show hosted by this self-important nitwit.
But Ortagus stood her ground and got in the last word to put Vittert in his place.
“To say that our policy isn’t working is just absent of any facts and any reality. … To say that the choice is a war with Iran or nothing is just a fundamental misunderstanding of how foreign policy actually works.”
Ooh! Burn!!!!
Vittert thanked Ortagus “very much” at the end of the interview, but all he got back was dead silence, a raised brow and an icy stare. Translation? You go to hell, Leland Vittert, and take your neocon Never Trumpers with you!
Let’s send a message to a Fox News: Either Leland Vittert goes, or we go. Call Fox News customer service at 1 (888) 369-4762 or use the email form here.
if you need them, here are more examples of Vittert’s left-wing biased approach to “journalism”:
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I have never before commented on a news station story, however I spent some time looking for a spot to post after watching the exact interview listed above. I found Vittert to have been completely lacking in any degree of professional behavior while Morgan Ortagus tried to answer his smart ass questions amid his continual interruptions. I was surprised that she was able to remain calm during his incredibly rude ranting. He certainly does not belong in his position and gives a black eye to the network.
Vittert is a pompas piece of cap. Fox better straighten out the ship before everyone leaves. I understand that GS bought out Fox. Now In understand why everyone is switching to Newsmax!
Very sad to see Fox sellout this country.
re: “Let’s send a message to a Fox News: Either Leland Vittert goes, or we go.”
The one missing piece in this story is a link for contacting Fox News executives.
Adding it, Ed. Thanks!
Thanks, much. I just left my two cents there. He belongs on MSNBC with Roswell Rachel Maddow.
Why is Leland Vittert allowed on Fox? I have Fox on nearly 24/7, but when he comes on I get Super Angry! He is so rude! Does not conduct an interivew! It’s more an interrogation! He will not let a guest answer a question! Constantly interrupts everyone before they can respond! He makes me scream at him from my living room and I want to throw a shoe at him! Only good part is when the guests yells back at him! Why do they even agree to appear on his show knowing they will recieve certain ridicule? Get this guy under control or get rid of this jerk! He doesn’t deserve to be on an otherwise stellar news network.
He’s a rude, self impressed pretty boy. Get rid of him. Where is Bill Hemmer??
I heard Hemmer will be taking over Shep Smith’s hour, but I haven’t been able to confirm it.
I have told Fox every chance I get that Leland is not someone that I enjoy listening to. When he interviews staff, cabinet, and anyone in Trump’s administration, I fast forward. I think he’s looking for the Brett Baier fair and balanced schtik which they both think means attacking staff, cabinet, and anyone in Trump’s administration. That’s not truthful. It’s “his” truth. We have 100 media outlets saying garbage about Trump 24/7 and 2 outlets speaking positively about Trump and Trump’s staff. So really. With so few people speaking on behalf of my world view, all the public hears are the people who use the liberal press and liberal air waves and the many microphones to malign President Trump. Every day, there are so many voices pounding away at impeaching the President and anyone in his cabinet.
All day, people are inundated with the voice of Trump’s opposition. Leland is not someone I look forward to hearing. No more than I would intentionally listen to Rachel, Anderson, Maxine, and all their really bias and hateful world view. We are different and Paul Ryan is not a mystery. He hates Trump and wants fox to be less republican establishment unless he is President. Then fix can go back to being supportive of a conservative or republican president. Paul Ryan, Napolitano, and Leland, named after a town in Michigan, should work somewhere that would appreciate their snarkiness toward Trump. I don’t.
Joe Morrisco
MY FAMILY DOESN’T WATCH FOX NEWS TO SEE TWITS LIKE ” NEVER TRUMP, NEOCON LIBERAL” LELAND VITTERT!!!!! IF WE WANTED TO WATCH LIBERAL TRASH, WE WOULD WATCH CNN, MSNBC/NBC, ABC, CBS, OR PBS!!!!! GET WITH IT FOX!!!
I just listened to Leland Vittert ATTACKING Mark Smith, Kings College Scholar, about President Trumps’
decision on Roger Stone. TALK about an ignorant, stupid, know it all NEVER letting Mark finish ANYTHING
Where is leadership in the FOX leadership. It is continually becoming like all the other media. Sickening and prejudice know it all when it comes to Saturday host and too many on M- F as well.
Leland needs to go This is not new. This is constant and disgusting AND every time when it is about Trump he is a moron He thinks he knows it all but is actually an ignorant THINKS HE KNOWS IT ALL!!
Vittert was just interviewing a pollster, and Vittert expressed arrogant elitist disbelief that polls could be wrong. He should have asked for percentages of people who did not answer the phone, and percentages who hung up on a pollster. What demographic has unlimited plans, and does not pay by the minute and has nothing better to do with their time than answer intrusive questions? Pollsters do not have a right to a private person’s data. Anyone answering a pollster is a product, and is unpaid… in fact many people actually pay (the phone company) in order to give private data to the pollster. Smart people don’t speak on a recorded line to pollsters and bots. And never say Yes or No on a recording!
Thanks for the heads-up. I’ll watch it on tape. You can add to your list of polling flaws the typical ploy of “over sampling” Democrats. Plus there are many Trump supporters who lie to pollsters intentionally.
how the hell do you know if a Trump supporter or supporters are lying. Another lie
I know because I’ve talked to them
??
Leland is basically and pussy ass little maggot that needs his teeth handed to him . He reminds me of Lou from the Mary Tyler Moore show that played the role of this asshole news commentator who thought he was hot shit but the world saw him as cold piss ! Get rid of that scumbag !
Joe I agree 100% with you he is pompous ass and should be fired, shame on FOX FOR KEEPING LELAND I can’t even watch him cause I want to slap his pompous face!