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Exclusive: Beck’s Blunt Response to Invitation From WWE to Appear on ‘Raw’

Feb. 22, 2013 11:46pm Christopher Santarelli

Glenn Beck Responds to WWE Raw Invitation

Glenn Beck addressed the WWE on his radio show this week (TheBlaze)

Glenn Beck has given TheBlaze his response to an invitation from World Wrestling Entertainment to appear on Monday Night Raw live in Dallas next week: “Unfortunately, I am currently booked doing anything else.”

Beck and the WWE have directed comments at each other over the past week after the wrestling organization introduced two Tea Party-inspired characters, “Jack Swagger” and “Zeb Colter.”

The WWE first extended an invitation to Beck through a statement Friday after the radio host criticized the new characters on his show Wednesday for depicting tea partiers as racially insensitive villains, in turn “demonizing the Tea Party.” Beck went on to question the WWE’s motives when portraying the Tea Party this way, noting his belief that most wrestling fans are likely not progressives.

“Maybe that’s the way WWE people view the Tea Party. And maybe they love to hate the Tea Party. But I have to tell you, I expect that from Hollywood, but I don’t expect ‑‑ if I’m getting my entertainment from somebody that I think is on my side ‑‑ and I’m sorry, I just don’t see a bunch of progressives going and buying their tickets to the WWE. Do you?” Beck posited Wednesday.

“I mean, and maybe there are. I tend to notice that the progressives are not as popular in the South unless they’ve moved from the North. So I’m just trying to figure out exactly who they’re trying to appeal here, who they’re appealing to.”

WWE Performers Address Glenn Beck in New Video (YouTube)

In a video released on the official WWE YouTube page Friday evening, the wrestlers broke character to address Beck and his comments. After first calling out Swagger’s upcoming WrestleMania opponent in a cartoonish minute-and-a-half promo, performers Wayne Keown (Colter) and Jake Hager (Swagger) address Beck directly to clarify that they are not political commentators, rather entertainers.

“We aren’t in the political business, or the immigration business. We are in the entertainment business,” Keown says. He goes on to list the size and demographics of the WWE audience, and the reasoning behind the storylines of characters like Colter and Swagger.

“We have about 60 characters on our show — a lot more than say NCIS or Glee — but we’re not that much different. Some of our characters are really likable and some are detestable — good guys and bad guys,” Keown says. “We don’t use guns, and we don’t depict murder or rape, typically seen on primetime dramas. Our program is PG.”

“Many of your followers are WWE fans and they understand the difference between reality and entertainment,” Keown adds.

“Are you out of touch with your audience Glenn? Or are you just a ‘stupid political commentator?’”

At the end of the video, Keown invites Beck once again to appear on Raw in Dallas Monday, and after Friday’s video, says the radio host can deliver a five-minute, unedited rebuttal to their global television audience and a sold-out crowd.

Watch the video message from Keown/Colter and Hager/Swagger to Glenn Beck below:

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Comments (238)

tropolis
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 7:33am
Wow. Glenn Beck is demeaning his base, which he even admitted are a prime demo for this crap. Doesn’t say much for blaze posters.

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NEOBIO
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 7:20am
Glean, go on and invite Linda on the Blaze TV and let her check out your Dream Lab.

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dancing bear
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 7:17am
these boys like to intimidate that’s how they make a living. I my self stay away from people like that If I want to see something powerful I would go to the zoo.

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Willik
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 7:16am
I gave up on wrestling back when Gorgeous George retired back in the early ’60s.

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Junter
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 6:55am
Silly Jack and Zeb are willing to portray themselves as racists along with the Tea Party. They don’t realize the long term implications of their actions. Many of their “intelligent” viewers have a hard to distinguishing facts from wwe fiction.

The fake wood paneling (often found in mobile homes) with only decor a Gadsden flag are nice touches they must be so proud.

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Kerstile
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 6:49am
“Unfortunately, I am currently booked doing anything else.” Glenn misstated. It should be “Fortunately.”

If Glenn would appear, he would become Donald Trump. Good grief.

All we can hope for is for these two characters to be schooled by the Latin opponent in what a “real” American/TEA Party member is: simply a person who believes in The Constitution with its limited Federal authority, States Rights, and the majority of power invested in the individual, alternately know as “The People” (I prefer the term American Person). Race, Religion and national origin are irrelevant. We know that progressive forces have tried and tried to infiltrate the TEA Party. We know that these infiltrators have behaved badly to FALSELY show how evil and racist TEA Party members are. I hope to see these two “entertainers” lying pretend-battered and pretend-broken (they’re entertainers dontcha know) on the mat while Latin, White, Black, Asian, etc., “entertainers”, hoist the Gadsden flag aloft and declare, “We are all Americans. Don’t tread on us”!!! If this does not happen, then we know that Linda M. is directly writing this script to show the Republican RINO leadership that she can toe the RINO line. Just “entertainment”? Pah!!! There is a message being sent to someone.

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- BehindBlueEyes
  Posted on February 23, 2013 at 9:56am
  @KERSTILE
  Exactly. There is an effort on both side to discredit and smear the Tea Party. The Tea Party is the antithesis of what progressives are.
  Progressivism is nothing more than code speak for new world order and new world order is code for communism. Progressives/communists are control freaks on steroids.
  
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RichEG
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 6:48am
Robert Loggia played an FBI agent in a made for TV movie in the 1980′s.
When he confronted a Senator about a conspiracy he uncovered he said to the Senator,
“What will the American people do when they are informed of this?”
The Senator responded “As long as we provide the American people with the wherewithal
to buy a case of beer and watch Monday night football, we can do what ever we want”.

Same thing ….. different century.

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BehindBlueEyes
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 6:37am
I still don’t understand entertainment. I could never watch the WWE and feel entertained. Its just too fake. I walk out of most movies either because the acting is bad or the characters and script are cheesy and full of holes. I don’t know the intelligence level of the audience at the WWE and it doesn’t matter. What matters to me is- Are they American patriots?

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- Kerstile
  Posted on February 23, 2013 at 7:35am
  The fans I know are pretty much a-political. Wouldn’t know an Amendment from an apple. I can’t watch it. The bad acting, bad writing, and mindlessness is overwhelming.
  
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fsudenny
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 6:30am
McMahon’s wife lost two Senate races in Connecticut. Is there a TEA Party there? Did illegal immigrants build this country like the left-wing revisionists claim or was it legal immigrants? OH…that’s right…the legal immigrants were white so they built an evil country that the non-white illegal immigrants need to repair. Like P.T. Barnum said…There is a sucker born every minute.

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ellietoo
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 5:34am
The WWE claims not be “political” but the people who watch it also are not political. Wrestling fans are usually uneducated and not involved in the political process. Since they are not really aware of all the complexities of life they are very susceptible to whatever these wrestling organizations present to them. Honestly, I have met many people who believe this stuff is real.
The WWE could have had these “actors” present the Tea Part characters as hero type characters but instead have made them out to be the stereotypical beings that the mainstream media created. Guess we can tell who owns this “entertainment” association.

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PoliticalSmackdown {Subscribe & Friend me on YouTube}
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 4:25am
as a fan ow WWE and a big patriot and TEA arty member ALLOW ME TO SAY I find it in really bad form that you use the tea party movement to push a negative Character. you have reenforced the incorrect Stereotype that tea party people are a bunch of racist rednecks. and sadly this could not be further from the truth. like i said i enjoy the WWE but when i saw CM punk wearing the Gaston flag shirt after becoming a heel i was not happy. this is even worse. I totally get what you do but the reality is so many lies have been said about the tea party movement we do not need you making the lies bigger. as a long time Fan i ask that you suspend this act it is not funny or okay with your fan base. my co worker has a house full of WWE Belts and just about every other type of WWE product you can think of he is a huge fan and he is also deeply offended by this. as a long time fan i am asking you to simply STOP!

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Lion420
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 4:20am
I think Zeb hit the nail on the head. Are you that out of touch Glenn? I’m one of those “stupid wrestling people”. So stupid in fact, that I’m considering canceling my BlazeTV subscription. Are you one of those “stupid political commentators”? Maybe…

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- PoliticalSmackdown {Subscribe & Friend me on YouTube}
  Posted on February 23, 2013 at 4:49am
  bro let me tell you if the media at large spend billions of bucks vilifying you this would not be okay. the tea party has been lied about for ever. to make the new Heel a tea party member is was off base. Tea party is an American hero!
  
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PAUL GULLO
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 4:18am
See what happens if they make an Obama communist character .
But there not political.

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Allseasonangler
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 4:17am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etzJ1Oy_1n0

Oh the irony.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Beck staged this like his Agenda 21 infomercial and shows up to the WWE event as a surprise cameo. In fact, I would be shocked if Beck doesn’t show up.

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- PoliticalSmackdown {Subscribe & Friend me on YouTube}
  Posted on February 23, 2013 at 4:52am
  posting a vid by the young turks is about as credible as posting a pro Jewish vid by Hitler.
  
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arc_angel
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 3:56am
The only thing I hate more than the entitled, ignorant, socialist masses are the dumber than cow $hit fake wrestling fans. I could be the most prejudice ******* on the planet, but there is nothing I detest, no abhor, more than a pig stupid fake wrestling fan. Good job Glen…These people would not be worth pi$$ing on if they were on fire, and they certainly have no place in any kind of intelligent debate. By the way pig stupid wrestling fans…why the ***** would you follow pig stupid fake wrestling, when you can have the real thing through MMA??? Useless waste’s of human skin.

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Keep Your Skepticals On
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 3:44am
What a bunch of WWE silly gooses. Thier “rebuttal” is that they are entertainers, when it was acknowledged from the start WWE is, obviously, just a dog & pony show. The issues was that when these entertainers created this villain they specifically and deliberately associate that dispicable character with the Tea Party – and in a way that presents those values as the root of his evil.

It is exactly the type of thing progressives do – when somebody becomes rich through What a bunch of WWE silly gooses. Thier “rebuttal” is that they are entertainers, when it was acknowledged from the start WWE is, obviously, just a dog & pony show. The issues was that when these entertainers created this villain they specifically and deliberately associate that dispicable character with the Tea Party – and in a way that presents those values as the root of his evil.

It is exactly what progressives do – when somebody becomes rich through fraud or other shady practices they blame capitalism as the cause when, no, the problem was greed, corruption and unlawfulness within a system that is inherently neutral.

Tea Party, capitalism, religion, guns… all tools. Whether they are good or bad depends completely on the values of the person(s) using those tools. And I’d say WWE is using the tool that is “entertianment” in a very malicious way.

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Kalidor835
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 3:26am
I don’t see these characters as a shot at the Tea Party or the Minutemen but at the extreme fringe who say all immigrants, whether legal or illegal, have to go. To prove my point last night’s episode of Smackdown had them verbally confront fellow heel Wade Barrett, who is from England and legally in the U.S., as “part of the problem” when he tried to lend support to their crusade against Del Rio. Take it for what it is, a piece of theater designed to entertain and not as legitimate political commentary. Legit commentary is what we have the likes of Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Sean Hannity for not the WWE.

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- Keep Your Skepticals On
  Posted on February 23, 2013 at 3:55am
  The problem is that they have this fringe character, then plaster him with every single positive logo and image that is icon, specifically, to the Tea Party. If he is to represent “fringe”, why did they intentionally stick him in the Tea Party?
  
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- Kalidor835
  Posted on February 23, 2013 at 6:44am
  I don’t recall in the short skits either character stating they we’re affiliated with the Tea Party just that they we’re anti-immigrant. The Tea Party angle was inferred by the media and so it’s stuck. BTW, this isn’t the worst the WWE has done on this front. I found the angle where Sgt. Slaughter turned traitor during Desert Shield\Storm more offensive especially since he was still being marketed as a G.I. Joe at the time.
  
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LeadNotFollow
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 3:25am
I would lose a great deal of respect for Glenn Beck, had he accepted their invitation.

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Hawaii_Conservative
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 3:22am
Having grown up in the South I want to say, “Welcome to the SOUTH” … “Entertainment” wrestling is part of “Southern” young people’s culture … but being a “DAMN” Yankee, you wouldn’t understand. With the South, you have to take good, meaning “freedom” with the bad, meaning WWE wrestling. Hope you can adjust without becoming arrogant, condescending toward Southerners or their “ENTERTAINMENT” or you may start drinking out of a red “SOLO” cup to calm your nerves.

Jack Swagger has been part of the WWE for a couple years and I think they are creating a new hero/villain story line for him. Have one of your staffer continue to follow him to see what direction they take Jack’s character. I think you will be surprise. Continue your great work … Thanks again … ALOHA

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DEFCON4
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 3:05am
How about ‘Occupy Guy’ – “The Man of Steal”
*dirtier than a stray ‘dog’.
*more ungrateful than ‘spoiled’ children.
*able to fling ‘poo’ on the ‘high’est buildings..

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alecj
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 2:59am
Ignore them Glenn. They are looking for relevance in a every shrinking pro wrestling market. Vince McMahon is obviously desperate and hoping a bit of Glenn Beck PR will help buoy the sinking brand that is the WWE.

Its transparent, pathetic, and lazy.

Then again, when your wife takes beating after beating in elections while proudly running her RINO flag up the pole to give her “moderate” cred…..you probably have a petty chip on your shoulder, too.

Maybe the McMahons and SE Cupp can run over to the NY Times and whine about Glenn, or another true conservative so that the left will give them some media love….

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KyleD
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 2:39am
They never actually address Beck’s question, they’re dodging it by insulting him.

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Rayblue
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 2:19am
Nacho Umbrage.

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Saving_the_Republic.com
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 2:16am
Thats all fun and great but fact of the matter is a large percentage of their audience will take this political angle they are taking seriously. Keown & Colter can talk all they want but fact of the matter is the WWE is painting the TEA party in a bad light.

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media-bias-steals-elections
Posted on February 23, 2013 at 2:08am
Continued…

so hey yo, just back that thang,
hook it up, watch us sing,
like a conservative hip hop,
sweeter than a lolly pop,
mix it up with a little rock,
for the kids on the block,
and the big boys at the top,
we got a show yeah,
going to back that whack up,
providing the facts,
we all mellow,
we like the Sugar Hill Gang,
Who dress to the T,
and Back to reality,
Back to life,
till you are ready,
we been silent too long,
so we gonna write song,
like a Debonaire,
we might listen to the Dope or the Pope,
or the Soulja boyz, Cranking it up,
or ACDC and TNT,
get this party started if you know what I mean,
Michelle Malkin to the left of us,
Anne Coulter to the right,
got no racism, no respite,
so don’t you buy the tripe,
teach the US Constition,
good as gold,
be so bold,
the man wants your guns in town,
so that they can’t be found,
Domestic enemy number one,
of the Constitution, that’s
profound?
See and Read, its a gosh golly good show,
See and Read, its where all can go,
Come join us, come join and grow,
be more than a show,
and if you don’t want to be all you can be,
maybe your theme song should be,
may I plead,
like the Musical Youth,
Do you feel lucky and sing,
Pass the Dutchie?
Where its at?
That Fishing Hat?
Where its at?
Listen to Beck’s he’s where its at,
hes got a tv station and a microphone,
I wonder if Clint Eastwood would he cry,
if he sees that empty chair,
and hears Sheila Jackson Lee, say, must I di

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