Edwards On O’Reilly: 'He Has No Idea What He’s Talking About'

Source: ABC News

ABC News' Raelyn Johnson reports: In a campaign stop in Las Vegas, Nev., Democratic hopeful John Edwards defended himself against Bill O’Reilly’s slamming a regular part of his stump speech that thousands of homeless vets are sleeping under bridges.

“In a country with as much wealth as America has, for us to have as many as 200,000 veterans who go to bed under bridges, go to sleep under bridges, or on grates, and who are homeless... This is immoral, and it’s wrong. And we, America, we have a responsibility to do something about it,” Edwards repeated tonight, speaking at US Veterans, a non profit organization that reintegrates homeless vets back into society.

...

O'REILLY: Well, we're still looking for all the veterans sleeping under the bridges, Ed. So, if you find anybody, let us know. Because that's all the guy said for the last...
SCHULTZ: Well, they're out there, Bill, don't kid yourself.
O'REILLY: They may be out there, but there are not many of them out there, OK. So, if you know where there is a veteran sleeping under a bridge, you call me immediately, and we will make sure that man does not do it.

Tonight, speaking in front of a roomful of homeless vets, Edwards responded, “I heard that, last night, Bill O'Reilly, who's a talk show host, who's heard that I have said this about hundreds of thousands of veterans who don't have a place to live, and were homeless. And he challenged me about whether that's true or not, whether, in fact, we have that many veterans who don't have a place to live, and some of them are sleeping under bridges. Well, he ought to start by coming to Las Vegas, if he wants to know what's going on.

“America has the responsibility to do something about this. We do. And the fact that this talk show host, Bill O’Reilly, is willing to speak out that blatantly, when he has no idea what he’s talking about, is an example of how America doesn’t understand the problem, doesn’t understand how serious this issue is.”

Read more: http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/01/edwards-on-orei.html#comments

Asshat.

I saw where there are about 25 million vets as of the 2005 census. There can't be over 6 million homeless vets, can there?

Not 25% of vets are homeless. Apologies.

Here from a quick google:

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/11/08/homeless.veterans/

Veterans More Likely to Be Homeless Than Other Adults
By Carolyn Bolls
CNSNews.com Correspondent
June 17, 2005

(CNSNews.com) - Government figures show that former members of the U.S. military comprise less than 13 percent of the American adult population, yet veterans account for roughly 33 percent of the nation's homeless adult population.

But those figures, obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Veterans Affairs, yield different explanations for the causes related to the high number of homeless veterans.

The National Coalition for Homeless Veterans charges that the government is not providing enough help to ex-servicemen and women transitioning to civilian life. But the government denies that there is a "causal relationship" between military service and homeless veterans.

"On any given day, as many as 200,000 veterans (male and female) are living on the streets or in shelters, and perhaps twice as many experience homelessness at some point during the course of a year," according to the Department of Veterans Affairs website. The Interagency Council on Homelessness estimates that about 47 percent of the homeless veterans served in Vietnam.

http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=%5CNation%5Carchive%5C200506%5CNAT20050617a.html

Viet Nam! Why? Because back then we had a Congress who DID want to help out! Still they didn't do all that much! Today, because of medical technology, more vets are coming home with very serious injuries that they would have died of back during Viet Nam.

Just wait... the medical attention they WON'T be getting is going to be a MAJOR issue, and very very big in less than a year!! It's already started, I know people who can't even get VA care!!

I just can't UNDERSTAND WHY people won't WAKE UP!!!!

That makes a bit more sense. Thanks!

:rofl:

numbers are very tricky, but the veteran component is impossible to deny.
What I want to know is what is Edwards doing to bring the boys home before the situation expodes?
Persian Gulf vets are swelling the ranks, and this go round is going to break the bank altogether.
So many victims, so many repercussions.
But hey, they DID have WMD'S!
We sold them to Iraq ourselves.

190,000 homeless vets.

1/4 of all homeless are vets, not 1/4 of all vets are homeless.

-Hoot

a parking lot was holding up a sign that said "Please help a homeless Navy vet." Too bad O'Reilly wasn't around to help him out. He has millions.

getting thousands of vets (who are willing to be videotaped) asking for O'Rielly to come and help them.

homeless veterans just to slam a liberal Democrat.

I'm not getting any other way of interpreting O'Reilly's propaganda.

helpless because he just doesn't want to get a job.

We have to remember that Republicans have many hates -

the first three are"

Muslims
Mexicans (includes Guatemalans, Hondurians, etc. - they don't know geography).
The underprivileged in America

They want to kill the Muslems, kick out the Mexicans, and deny social programs from the underprivileged, deny their existence - in addition to throwing them in jail.

They spend plenty of money on their hates. And they take money from one hate to attack another hate.

Your poor because God is punishing you for some kind of transgression. These right wing butt plugs need a good beating.

- women
- minorities
- foreigners
- atheists
- agnostics
- intellectuals
- artists
- well, almost everyone, when you get right down to it.

subscribe to sounds more like:

"fudge-packing faggots"
"bra-burning b*t**es"
"uppity nig**rs", "wetbacks" and "slant-eyes"
"furriners and other terrorist muslim-types"
"godless Christian-hating hippies"
"eggheads" and "limousine liberals" AND
"finger-painting druggies"

Don't you realize how much Faux "News" and Billo LOVE the veterans? You know they must, because they say so all the time! What more do you people want?!

:sarcasm:

Bill'O shouts down REALITY when he don't want to acknowledge logic or reason,. the BIG 5 fascist/corporate media monopolistic owners all do this,. if a FACT is unwelcome to their control ideology, they like to pretend it is not a real fact,. and they LIE about it on their media. BILL is just doing what he always does and they all do,. he is just such a brainless puppet that he don't even realize that some of the real people that don't become zombies to the control structured reality will actually check a FACT.

Willfully lying in the media should be punishable offense (hanging public square?!?) to the 'talking head' what read the lie and the corporatist that engineered it. It likely already is a law although since we never see it enforced it don't really mater,. do it.

to say:

Although accurate numbers are impossible to come by -- no one keeps national records on homeless veterans -- the VA estimates that nearly 200,000 veterans are homeless on any given night. And nearly 400,000 experience homelessness over the course of a year. Conservatively, one out of every three homeless men who is sleeping in a doorway, alley or box in our cities and rural communities has put on a uniform and served this country. According to the National Survey of Homeless Assistance Providers and Clients (U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness and the Urban Institute, 1999), veterans account for 23% of all homeless people in America.

http://www.nchv.org/background.cfm

WASHINGTON -- Veterans make up one in four homeless people in the United States, though they are only 11 percent of the general adult population, according to a report to be released Thursday.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/08/AR2007110800234.html

About one-third of the adult homeless population have served their country in the Armed Services. Current population estimates suggest that about 195,000 veterans (male and female) are homeless on any given night and perhaps twice as many experience homelessness at some point during the course of a year. Many other veterans are considered near homeless or at risk because of their poverty, lack of support from family and friends, and dismal living conditions in cheap hotels or in overcrowded or substandard housing.
http://www1.va.gov/homeless/page.cfm?pg=1

Here's the one we all should look at: http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/436/t/26/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=884

Sign the open letter to Bill O'Reilly, and urge him to set the record straight.

for adhering to a code of ethics that won't let you lie for a living.

Joined the online Army, too.

just to repeat this point from your post...

"...about 195,000 veterans (male and female) are homeless on any given night

and perhaps twice as many experience homelessness at some point during the course of a year.

Many other veterans are considered near homeless or at risk because of their poverty, lack of support from family and friends, and dismal living conditions in cheap hotels or in overcrowded or substandard housing."

straight from the VA web site
http://www1.va.gov/homeless/page.cfm?pg=1

How many is "Many other"?

If this one statement can get national coverage......Edwards will go up in the polls..Knocking O Reilly on an obvious untrue statement, and the fight that Bilbo will put up..could catapult Edwards...We will see.

I'm glad that Edwards thinks this is a serious problem, but what is he going to do about it? Is he going to work to make housing a right? What is his solution?

Here's a link to his in-depth analysis and plan to fix it:

http://www.johnedwards.com/issues/veterans/

There's a lot of information there, too much to post...

I'll try to take the time to read through the whole thing - I just gave it a skim now. It would be nice if homelessness could be addressed as a broader issue than just as it applies to veterans though - not that I have a solution, or have heard anyone who does.

but when I hit your post, I thought the SAME thing.

Dumbass O'Leilly could not only bring attention to an issue which needs attention through his arrogance and stupidity, but he may have given Edwards some media time in the process.

Good for John.

And Billo acted like the strutting, preening asswipe he really is.

Billo's more worried about a vet's cluttering up his bridges than getting the vet the help he or she needs.

Despicable.

It really sounded like that's what he was saying.

Kill someone live on air?

He could kill someone live on the air. believe you me, after the Cable TV InfoPravda got through with squirting their squid-ink, combined with the fear of the Democrats to antagonize The Mighty Wurlitzer, BillO certainly could kill someone on the air.

Not only wouldn't he be fired, after a little hullaballoo, like Limpballs, he wouldn't even be charged.

And I no longer believe that's hyperbole in the least.

He is a "Peabody Award Winning" Bushie-Nazi Propogandist.

:sarcasm:

say that he's been spewing Nazi propaganda for big money and he can no longer sleep. He might add that George Bush and Don King are his gay lovers. That ought to do it.

Bill could appear on camera completely naked, wearing a bloody goat head as a hat and masturbating with a cheese sandwich and his loyal cadres of wrinkled up old white men would STILL rally 'round to defend him.


If you'll excuse me; I must now go boil my brain in Clorox.... :puke:

:spray: :puke:

All he has to do to get fired is bring up Bush's military service AWOL.

They are going to post video about homeless veterans.

Captain Phonesex is a total tool.

Sock it to O'Lielly. That moron has *never* known what he's talking about!

And so Pervert Boy Bill O. bloviates & propagandizes as a DENIER of the harsh realities his chieckenhawk republicon paymasters have created for veterans...

It's all a scam ya know. There is a lot of money in phony soldier/homeless vet gig.

truth to power

are a disgrace to this country. In fact I consider that kind of talk as traitorous. This man and the machine that has him spitting out this venom to America should be removed from the airwaves and replaced with true journalists who have the capacity to investigate and discuss the problems that face us all, not deny, distort and hide these truths.

They must know they are a compromised bunch. Its only obvious and when they continue to give these nazis the time of day and it just makes me wonder what their motive really is.

Is this just a huge TV show ?
Puppets going through the motions ?
Is the game rigged ?
Things that make me wonder.

Ed stuck Billo with that albatross, and now he's going to have to defend his words. Billo just got his dumb ass stuck in the middle of a very resonant issue and he's going to have a hard time running away from it. I give Big Eddie big kudos for showing the world what a first-class douche Bill Orally truly is.

Keith Olberman did a long segment showing Shultz on Orally's train-wreck, and called Billo out, reminding him he said he would house any homeless vets that Eddie could find.

You kicked his ass, rhetorically speaking.

This is why I am so dead set on doing everything I can to help make Edwards our next president. The man is the ONLY major candidate who speaks out regularly and forcefully on these issues. I'm disappointed that Clinton and Obama have not more aggressively followed his lead. It will only help them in the general if either wins the nomination.

and I am so pissed off right now after reading this.

He's so fucking full of shit; but I guess when people live in neo-conservative bubbles, we should expect these types of misinformed, ignorant statements.

You know what, Billyboy? Have your chauffer drive you down to the Ben Franklin Bridge or Tacony-Palmyra Bridge here in NJ. Take a look around. Get a head count, if you can. Then take one of those bridges into Philly - take a walk down South Street or Front Street, or hell - even Market Street. Be careful, though, and watch your step - because you may trip over a lump on the sidewalk grate. Then for further confirmation, drop by any of the soup kitchens. Or shelters - where you will find the lucky ones who managed to find a spare bed, if only for one night.

God - but you're an asshole. What is wrong with you?

DUers - he told us to call him if we see one. Shouldn't we do as we asked? If he wants to be informed, let's inform him. Bastard.

I think K.O. should call him too!

homeless people in this country. It's all a scam. So of course they don't believe there are any vets who are homeless.

but face it, you could drop oliely in the middle of a homeless area and ask how many vets there were and he would say they were all lying, lazy criminals not vets because oliely would sooner eat ground glass than admit he was wrong about anything, let alone anything as important as this.

the lack of any compassion in republicans. That seems to be the main difference between those who call themselves republicans and those who call themselves democrats. Republicans by and large seem incapable of compassion. Sadly America as a nation seems to reflect this attitude since the repubs have hijacked the media and made compassion something to be laughed at and ridiculed.

The guy down the street, who cares? Then when their ox is gored they go straight into crybaby mode.

It becomes a problem only when it affects them. They lack any type of empathy toward others.

how the man, B.O. keeps his job. Fox likes them stupid and lying!

Go, John go!!!

Billo's been doing crazier things all the time.............What's funny is...as things get worse for them ( and all of us ), they get louder and more moronic in their attacks..........I love it when they show their ass !!

Present anything that points out the way our government is neglecting veterans as swipes at the veterans (when, in reality, they're aim is to protect the (non-existent) reputation that Bush is taking care of them). I also heard that O'Reilly took issue with the NY Times feature on veterans committing violent crimes. Instead of understanding the article was an indictment against our poor mental health services and support for veterans, he played it as anti-military, and therefore, the work of a liberal, unpatriotic media.

He was surprised to find that Black people use silverware, order from menus, and don't preface every noun with the adjective "motherfuckin'" (e.g., "Bring me some motherfuckin' prime rib, medium rare.")

He thinks there are no homeless vets.

Does O'Reilly ever get out of the house?

I have no reason to listen to anything this bull-shit artist says. He's not even good at bull-shitting. A good bull-shit artist at least has some shred of credibility, this ass-clown has none.

What O'Liely is, is a shit-stirrer. Someone that just throws shit out there whether it's true or not just to get a rise out of someone. A man of this caliber plays to the lowest common denominator and neither deserves attention nor respect of any kind.

a nice little operetta about the Mackris telephone call...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wxc8ZY0plM4&eurl=http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/12/15/the-bill-oreilly-opera-mackris-v-oreilly/

John, go to a major city, talk with them, and tell them to get all their friends. Call the media and talk to us on their behalf.

he sleeps out on the dirt and leads a shitty life. I think I'll contact Billo so he can give him a home. :eyes:

All it takes is a little drive or better yet a walk through nearly any city and they are filled with homeless people.

O'lie-ly can find a Vietnam Vet living under there (warning: Vet is drunk and won't want to go to the homeless shelter, hospital, or rehab). Perhaps the O man doesn't count vets like "Turtle" (the vets nickname on the street).

Now I guess it's safe for the other candidates to bring it up.

Let him lead with an issue and, if it gets good feedback, they pick up on it.

by this waste of a person. He is one of the main reasons that Faux Noise has turned into a laughing stock for the majority of Americans that know they're a celeb gossip, truth twisting, and O'lielly adoring 'news' network. The problem is, a huge chunk of the people that believe Faux is a real news network, actually watch it. It's like they're addicted and don't know how to get off it.

He stated that O'Reilly's studio is only two blocks from his and Bill-o has to be blind not to see the homeless on the street in front of his studio. I say someone should organize homeless vets in NYC to cluster around Bill-o's studio every evening for a week or so since Bill-o has offered to take care of them, if even one can be found. Make the jerk put his money where his mouth is.

LOVED that.

Paul Reickoff of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America was on discussing this issue with him, confirming the statistics from the VA regarding veteran issues, including homelessness.

I'm a little in lust with this Paul guy. I was trying to find his name and came upon the following media matters link - seems O'Leilly was already in trouble with this group for a lie last year.

http://mediamatters.org/items/200606060010

His whole approach is to keep touting his bullshit lies loudly until his faux viwers accept them as truth.

he's speaking at a local union hall here in LA. i am outraged at O'Reilly and think this couldn't have been better planned - what an OBNOXIOUS, LYING PIG, and now exposed for all to see. i know veterans organizations have just signed on board the EDWARDS JUGGERNAUT and it hopefully has officially become SILLY for supporters of other candidates to urge US to drop out - they should be demanding that their candidates take similar progressive stands. O'REILLY IS SLIME !!!

when his head is so far up his - well, you get the idea.

Veteran treatment is a serious issue...

Please read my thread at http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x4095151

It's about the USFSPA, if you want to help our Vets...
Write, write and write some more!

ON HIS LIMOUSINE!!! What an a-hole that man is. May he rot in hell.

I'm so glad one of our candidates is standing up to O'Reilly. And I am absolutely thrilled that it is MY candidate doing it.

O'Reilly is a pig. Go John!

last night.

if i were o'reilly after being sued and what came out all over the "internets" of what he said to that woman, i would have resigned and hid in shame". yet this egotistical asshole rants on night after night and some people believe what he says.

check out the camps near bridges and near the Mississippi. Folks that work on homeless issues do a masterful job here, but there are still folks sleeping out. Edwards is right on.

Ex-Forest Biologist. Severe PTSD.

It was 14 degrees out last night.

I posted in GDP after the NH debate that I hope Edwards has his facts correct. Not because I want to see people homeless, instead he was setting himself up for an attack like this.

in the right places. Try a Salvation Army or church sponsored
shelter at sundown on a cold night. Look for makeshift
shelters/tent cites in wooded areas near convenience stores and yes,
under bridges after sundown.
I'm in a rather affluent University area of 100K+- and
we have plenty of homeless. During the day they sit in fast food / cheap
restaurants nursing 1 cup of coffee for hours. Look in the libraries
and other public spaces where they can get warm for a while.

The homeless don't wear signs. They try to blend in because the police hassle
them for being "homeless".

I'm a VN Vet who's only a few paychecks away from being there myself.

Most people don't have any reason to.

I deal with the homeless here. They say that under a bridge is an excellent place to sleep because it's out of the weather, sheltered from the wind, and there's often a closed-off area to make it look pretty you can break into or crawl under.

that honors the veterans they might be there too. Also check around the V.A. hospitals. Please take a bag lunch there, because you will most likely find them there.

rabid dog of the Right. I'd suggest we deep six him, Lush, Beck and the rest of the sickies at Faux. On second thought, if we'd cause ecological ruin at Yucca Mountain with spent fuel rods - what sort of earth trauma would we incite if we buried all that festering rot in one place???

This is just ONE of the reason's why.

K&R!

I'd set up a hotline, ask homeless vets to call it, and have one of O'Reilly's staffer's be there to record the calls and the stories.

And then ask O'Reilly to put his money where his mouth is and do what he can to get these men a place to sleep indoors.

Is it just me...or doesn't Oreilly seem to be like the "Voice of London" in V for Vendetta? A fat, heartless pig bastard.

I instantly thought:That's O'Reilly.What a scumbag!

giving him the locations of homeless vets.

He who knows not, and knows not that he knows not, is a fool...shun him.
He who knows not, and knows that he knows not, is willing...teach him.
He who knows, and knows not that he knows, is asleep...awaken him.
He who knows, and knows that he knows, is wise...follow him. – Chinese?/Persian? proverb

doesn't Mr. Loofah support the troops?

Those peoples are not the troops.They're trash.That's compassionate conservatism at its best isn't it?

But then, Schultz is all about... Schultz.

Rule #1 - don't piss off the sponsors. And if those 'sponsors' are GOP-backed, then go along to get along.

will put them up for as long as it takes for them to get the help they deserve.

O'REILLY: ... if you know where there is a veteran sleeping under a bridge, you call me immediately, and we will make sure that man does not do it.

Huh???

a. send them back to "mess-a-pot-a-mia"
b. throw them in jail
c. "blackwater" them
d. all of the above

bor is such a piece of trash. As stated, he'll do anything for attention, even make an ass out of himself begging Obama to come on his show. What a disgrace of a human.

Finally, someone with the balls to smack that prick in the mouth. It's amazing that more pro vet citizens aren't striking back at Fox in general for minimizing troop sacrifice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcgolZDoybQ">My "Special" Holiday Message to Grandpa Bill O'Reilly