Ed Schultz attacks Hugh Hewitt and the Salem Radio network

In the early days of this blog I featured a feud between Liberal talker Ed Schultz and fellow liberal Sam Seder and network Air America. It was a heated affair, most notable as they were ideological familiars arguing mostly over business and aesthetic. Started because Sam Seder had lobbied for friend Thom Hartmann to replace Al Franken's newly vacated spot on the Air America programming at the expense of Ed Schultz.

Ed Schultz is the number #1 rated Liberal talker, granted a new show on MSNBC recently which is still finding its audience. The feud with Sam Seder demonstrated Schultz combustible personality and one wonders how he would treat a conservative rival or network. Wonder no more. PunditFight presents Ed Schultz' feuding with conservative talker Hugh Hewitt and the Salem network

Liberal talker cuts a vicious wrestling-style promo on Hugh Hewitt and the Salem Network

VIDEO: Liberal talker Ed Schultz calls out the Salem Network and Hugh Hewitt

Ed Schulzt's promo in a conversation with guest Virg Bernero, Lansing Michigan Mayor who made quite an impression of his own with his impassioned promo on the state of the car companies.

ED SCHULTZ: Hugh Hewitt. He‘s writing in "The Washington Examiner." He tells readers, don‘t buy GM or Chrysler cars. That‘s right. He says there‘s only one answer for conservatives angry at President Obama and the government for getting involved in the automobile industry. He says boycott...

Buy Ford, buy Toyota, buy anything. Conservatives, are you folks out of your mind? Do you know how many Americans have lost their jobs in manufacturing?...

And what do they do? They push back on the American families that are doing the absolute best they can to build a great product. And you conservative talkers, and I mean there's a collection of them on the Salem Radio Network. I mean there's Hugh Hewitt, there's Prager, Medved is in this crowd as well...

You know I‘m going to ask the listeners across the country to the Salem Radio Network, why don‘t you just boycott them? Prove to me that you‘re an American...

And by the way, they're advertising to American listeners, don't buy it. What do you say we just kick the American worker in the teeth?... Let's just genuflect to the Hugh Hewitts of the world.

This is what we voted against. These psycho talkers that are out there.

Read the offending Hugh Hewitt op-ed in the Washington Examiner - Just say no to Government Motors and Obamacars

Hugh Hewitt offers his rebuttal in a discussion with callers and Conservative author Jonah Goldberg
- Listen to the audio between Hugh Hewitt with callers and Jonah Goldberg on Ed Schultz

Conversing with a caller Hugh Hewitt takes a dig at Schultz' former incarnations (as a sportscaster and conservative) and includes his MSNBC counterpart Keith Olbermann in the mix

H2: Jonah Goldberg (Tuesday June 9, 2009)
HUGH HEWITT: I'm not going to call him an idiot, he's a sportscaster like Olbermann. They do not understand economics, they do not understand politics. They do not understand my arguments so I can't expect them to...

Again there are a lot of these guys, Olbermann used to be somewhat normal, they'll do anything or say anything for ratings and they'll scream and attribute to people positions they don't hold. This whole hate stuff. Its disingenuous, I don't think its very effective. I think they're stuck because when they had Bush to beat up they had a built in marketplace and now they're playing defense on Obama and it just doesn't work...

Ed Schultz offers his counter to Hugh Hewitt, courtesy of RadioEqualizer

VIDEO: Ed Schultz says he would pee on Hugh Hewitt

"MSNBC's Schultz Wants To Pee On Political Foe"
ED SCHULTZ: They worship money. They don't value human life the way they claim they do. That's a hoodwink.

So I guess Hugh Hewitt has never taken out a loan in his life. He's never had to depend on anybody else. He's probably the worst neighbor in the neighborhood. That's just a guess, I don't know that.

But I'd bring him over for a cocktail party. Sure, then I'd urinate on him, 'cause that's all he's worth.

Anybody who talks like that about the American worker is not an American, is anti-American and wants to see this country fail

The Ed Show on MSNBC: Keith Olbermann welcomes Ed Schultz to MSNBC

MSNBC has added veteran radio host Ed Schultz on their roster with a new show for the 6pm timeslot currently occupied by David Shuster. Keith Olbermann made a 'Special announcement' welcoming Ed:

VIDEO: Keith Olbermann's Big Announcement  - Ed Schultz Comes To MSNBC!

KEITH OLBERMANN: You've got the conundrum all of us have as this thing gets more and more successful, the show's got to look like a relative of all the other shows. Right before it, right afterwards but not too much. I mean Chris is the political inside baseball guy. Rachel is the affable, charming, policy wonk. I'm the a**hole. What are you gonna be?

ED SCHULTZ: I'm gonna be the guy who represents people who take a shower after work. I'm gonna be that guy who is gonna be there for the working folk of America. I'm a staunch supporter of Unions. I do believe that the American people can pull out of this. We have the heart, we have the desire...

Read reactions on the Ed Schultz MSNBC signing:
Sam Seder who famously sparred with fellow liberal Talker Ed Schultz had this to say

Memories
Just for the record- Red knew I never even mentioned him on air, all I suggested was listeners should support Thom Hartmann on the then Air America channel on XM.

VIDEO: Ed Schultz VS Sam Seder and Air America (1 of 2)

Ed Morrissey of HotAir on Ed Schultz's new show on MSBC

Video: Schultz dishes on his sponsors
I got a lot of e-mail when MS-NBC announced its deal with Ed Schultz, wondering how he got a TV gig, but it was really not that big of a story. Successful libtalkers are pretty rare — which is why the Left wants the Fairness Doctrine returned. It’s basically a subsidy for libtalkers who can’t compete. Schultz has hit the top of that segment, though, showing significant commercial success. He’s probably the most successful libtalker in the business, and it makes sense for a TV network deliberately and explicitly positioning themselves as the Progressive Channel to eventually give him his shot.

No word yet on how this affects the much talked about 10pm slot contested by Pete Dominick, Cenk Uygur and Sam Seder.

Liberal Royal Rumble: Sam Seder VS Ed Schultz

WOW! American Pundit Fighting has been around for just over a month and this confrontation would have to be the biggest news to hit the federation. It is a showdown between Ed Schultz and Sam Seder. More accurately it is a matchup between Air America and other Liberal talkers- collectively Ed Schultz, Stephanie Miller and Bill Press. There's been a lot of buzz recently in Liberal talk circles with Al Franken's departure from Air America to run for Senate in his hometown Minnesota. Al's absence created an opening on XM Satellite radio which was reported to be filled by Ed Schultz. Sam Seder softly encouraged his listeners to support Thom Hartmann occupying that XM slot (Thom was already filling Al Franken's old Air America timeslot) enraging Ed Schultz and his supporters seeing it as a personal affront. Sam Seder, as evidenced by the time he called out Bob Woodward is known for not sugarcoating how he feels about people. In this instance I would argue Sam was not being malicious in his campaign.
- Listen and judge for yourself.

It's definitely an eye-opener which will only get more interesting as the battle rages. As of this writing, Ed Schultz delivered a passionate and lively attack of Air America. You can see for yourself in glorious video here then here.

It is an ugly episode, which is fracturing the fledgling and heavily scrutinized Liberal Talk market. If there is anything positive to be gleaned from this, it is that there is passion and vitality in liberal Talk. There are people fighting for its success as a business, as entertainment and as a political force. The blue team APF radio pundits will need to overcome their differences if they are to take care of the real business- to seriously challenge and act as a counterweight to their Red Team APF counterparts. Stay tuned.

Ed Schultz

Sam Seder

Update: Listen to Sam's rebuttal

Ed Schultz on Air America
ED SCHULTZ: I just think from time to time I need to clear the deck on this, I'm beyond the point of pussy footing around this stuff. Nobody buys their crap. There not making money, they've never made any money. They can't run a business, all they can do is hate people. Even me!... my stuff sells yours doesn't

Who the hell is Air America? They have never sold anything or done anything positive that for anybody except tear people down. No wonder O'Reilly makes fun of them...

And you know what? We're gonna pay our bills this month and we're not in front of any judge. And I'm sick and tired of pussyfooting around Air America. They can eat me. They suck! They don't know how to run radio and I don't like 'em anymore. I don't, because they undercut everybody who does something positive and its about time somebody calls them on it.