Ingrid Newkirk Is a Liar and Bill Press Is an Idiot

Ingrid Newkirk appeared on CNN’s Crossfire last week, and she was in a neck-and-neck competition with cohost Bill Press to see who could make the most outlandish statement.

Newkirk outright lied about People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals’ tactics. Here’s a partial transcript of an exchange between Newkirk and cohost Tucker Carlson,

CARLSON: Actually, I don’t. I’ll save that for later. You call meat-eaters bullies. The rest of us are bullies. You say you’re pro- animal. It strikes me that you are anti-human. Let me give you an example and I want an explanation and I want an apology for this.

Last spring, I took my children to the circus here in Washington. I had my four-year-old son, very nice boy, in my arms walking up to go into the circus. And some monster from PETA leans forward and shoves in his face a photograph of a wounded elephant, and says, “This is what the circus is,” to my four-year-old son.

NEWKIRK: I doubt it very much.

CARLSON: I watched it. He was in my arms. And I want you to apologize for that.

NEWKIRK: If anyone did that, I absolutely apologize.

CARLSON: Well, good.

NEWKIRK: Because everything we do is based at adults. We’re asking adults be responsible. You were telling me about giving your children meat and milk. They’re going to be to grow up to be tubs of lard. They’re getting heart attacks.

This is an outright lie. PETA has had an open practice of targeting children with their message, including numerous demonstrations outside of schools. In fact, PETA has in the past sued schools that tried to limit their ability to protest.

Newkirk is apparently so used to habitually lying, she cannot even tell the truth about PETA’s own practices.

But Press managed to make a statement about animal rights so idiotic that it almost upstaged Newkirk’s lie. Explaining to Newkirk that he sympathizes with her cause, Press said,

Let me get to the American Meat-out. Okay? And what bothers me about it is that you connect animal rights to the American Meat-out.

I am an animal lover. I’ve received awards from animal rights groups for my commentaries on animal rights. I really believe in it. I wouldn’t go duck hunting. I wouldn’t go deer hunting. I’m against animal testing unless somebody tells me it’s absolutely necessary to save a life. I think I qualify as an animal rights person, but I eat steak and I’ll eat chicken.

He wouldn’t go duck hunting or deer hunting but he eats steak and chicken. Does Press think that chickens and cows just show up outside of supermarkets and volunteer for the opportunity to become sandwich meat and steak? What a maroon!

Source:

Is It Time to Investigate Investigator?; PETA Celebrates American Meat-Out Day. Crossfire, Transcript, March 21, 2002.