Wingnut welfare

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Wingnut welfare refers to jobs or deals offered to conservatives on the basis of ideological purity rather than talent or experience. The term was coined in 2005 by blogger Jane Hamsher, who used it in reference to Pajamas Media.[1] It has since become a popular term among left-wing bloggers.

Wingnut welfare typically describes positions at conservative publishing houses, opinion journals and websites. However, not all such positions are considered wingnut welfare. The term is generally applied to those positions or deals which are divorced from free market business principles. Put simply, wingnut welfare recipients are not expected to generate profit or even make any money at all. Such operations are heavily subsidized by wealthy benefactors such as William Regnery Jr. and Richard Mellon Scaife and organizations such as the John M. Olin Foundation.

Contents

[edit] Notable recipients

  • Jonah Goldberg - One of the most successful recipients of wingnut welfare, and one of the few to have broad visibility.[2]
  • Bill Kristol - A textbook case, Kristol manages to find consistent employment in spite of the fact that he's been wrong about virtually every claim he's ever made.
  • Ross Douthat - The man hired to replace Bill Kristol at the New York Times. After Kristol left, the Times felt obliged to hire a conservative to replace him.
  • Megan McArdle - A blogger employed at The Atlantic. Managed to get hired as an economics writer in spite of the fact that she has no expertise in economics.
  • Bruce Tinsley - Creator of "Mallard Fillmore", the primal scream in comic strip form. His strip is put on Opinion pages as a balance to "Doonesbury" in some papers.
  • Star Parker - Switched from actual welfare to wingnut welfare after realizing it paid better.

[edit] Notable sources

  • Regnery Publishing - Once the publisher of choice for conservative intellectuals, Regnery Publishing has become a clearing house for every right-wing commentator with a pulse and a dream. Among the authors published by Regnery are Newt Gingrich, Michelle Malkin, Dinesh D'Souza, Steve Milloy and Chuck Norris. Regnery is known for poor production values, selling books to affiliated book clubs to artificially inflate sales, and less-than-friendly contracts.[3]
  • National Review Online - The online branch of the National Review (arguably a source of wingnut welfare itself) is home to many hack writers. While Jonah Goldberg is the most notorious, a far more egregious example can be found in Kathryn Jean Lopez, who was made an editor despite the frequent spelling and grammar errors present in her own posts.
  • WorldNetDaily - While definitely low on the totem pole, WND does provide sinecures for many bad writers.

[edit] Wingnut welfare and the Bush II administration

Most wingnut welfare comes from the private sector. However, during the Bush administration there were numerous high-profile cases of individuals receiving money or public sector positions on the basis of their beliefs. Here are a few of the more notable cases:

[edit] Armstrong Williams

In 2005, the Department of Education signed a contract with PR firm Ketchum to promote No Child Left Behind. As part of their campaign, Ketchum paid $240,000 to commentator Armstrong Williams to promote NCLB on his television and radio programs.[4] In the wake of the scandal, the White House disavowed any knowledge of the payoff, and Williams was released from his contract with Tribune Media Services. While Williams apologized, he also claimed that the only reason his conflict of interest was controversial was because he was black.[5]

[edit] George Deutsch

Deutsch, who worked on Bush's reelection campaign, was appointed to NASA's press office. A creationist, Deutsch attempted to have the word "theory" added to every instance of the phrase "Big Bang" on NASA's website. He also allegedly kept the press from talking to Dr. James Hansen, an expert on global warming.[6] He was released from his position in 2006 after blogger Nick Anthis discovered that Deutsch had lied on his résumé and had never actually graduated college.[7] He later claimed that the only reason his appointment was controversial was because he was a Christian.[8] (Noticing a pattern here?)

[edit] Maggie Gallagher

The noted homophobe Maggie Gallagher received a $21,500 grant from the Department of Health and Human Services to push Bush's marriage initiative.[9]. She also steals mermaid's voices in her spare time.

[edit] In Iraq

Perhaps the most disastrous examples of wingnut welfare occurred in the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq. The problems stemmed from James O'Beirne, the White House liason to the Pentagon.[10] O'Beirne's interviews of prospective CPA staffers included questions about their political beliefs and voting records. As a result, the CPA was largely staffed by loyal Republicans with little or no relevant experience. Among the more egregious appointments was Jay Hallen, a 24 year-old who was placed in charge of reopening the Iraqi stock market despite having no financial experience whatsoever.[11]

[edit] Footnotes

  1. Wingnut Welfare, Firedoglake, 12/26/05
  2. This editor would like to note that he could have made a fat joke here, but didn't.
  3. Conservative Authors Sue Publisher, The New York Times, 11/07/07
  4. Education Dept. paid commentator to promote law, USA Today, 1/7/2005
  5. Commentator Caught Up in Controversy Tries to Move On, The New York Times, 02/17/05
  6. [1]
  7. BREAKING NEWS: George Deutsch Did Not Graduate From Texas A & M University, The Scientific Activist, 02/06/06
  8. Censorship Is Alleged at NOAA, The Washington Post, 02/11/06
  9. Writer Backing Bush Plan Had Gotten Federal Contract, Washington Post
  10. James is married to Kate O'Beirne, the Washington editor of the National Review. Just sayin'.
  11. Ties to GOP Trumped Know-How Among Staff Sent to Rebuild Iraq, The Washington Post, 09/17/06
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