{"product_id":"lies-isbn-9780452285217","title":"Lies","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestseller by Senator Al Franken, author of \u003ci\u003eGiant of the Senate\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAl Franken, one of our “savviest satirists” (\u003ci\u003ePeople\u003c\/i\u003e), has been studying the rhetoric of the Right. He has listened to their cries of “slander,” “bias,” and even “treason.” He has examined the GOP's policies of squandering our surplus, ravaging the environment, and alienating the rest of the world. He’s even watched Fox News. A lot.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd, in this fair and balanced report, Al bravely and candidly exposes them all for what they are: liars. Lying, lying liars. Al destroys the liberal media bias myth by doing what his targets seem incapable of: getting his facts straight. Using the Right’s own words against them, he takes on the pundits, the politicians, and the issues, in the most talked about book of the year.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTimely, provocative, unfailingly honest, and always funny, \u003ci\u003eLies \u003c\/i\u003esticks it to the most right-wing administration in memory, and to the right-wing media hacks who do its bidding.\u003c\/p\u003eA Note from the Author  xiIntroduction xv\u003cb\u003e1 Hummus\u003c\/b\u003e 1\u003cb\u003e2  Ann Coulter: Nutcase \u003c\/b\u003e 5\u003cb\u003e3 You Know Who I Don't Like? Ann Coulter \u003c\/b\u003e 17\u003cb\u003e4 Liberals Who Hate America\u003c\/b\u003e   21\u003cb\u003e5 Loving America the Al Franken Way \u003c\/b\u003e 24\u003cb\u003e6 I Bitch-Slap Bernie Goldberg\u003c\/b\u003e 28\u003cb\u003e7 The 2000 Presidential Election: How It Disproved the Hypothetical Liberal Media Paradigm Matrix\u003c\/b\u003e 37\u003cb\u003e8 Conclusion: A Lesson Learned\u003c\/b\u003e 51\u003cb\u003e9 Five Get-Rich-Quick Tips the Wall Street  Fat Cats Don't Want You to Know\u003c\/b\u003e 52\u003cb\u003e10 Chapter for American Book by Kharap Juta\u003c\/b\u003e 56\u003cb\u003e11 I'm Funnier than Kharap Juta\u003c\/b\u003e 57\u003cb\u003e12 The Chapter on Fox\u003c\/b\u003e 58\u003cb\u003e13 Bill O'Reilly: Lying, Splotchy Bully\u003c\/b\u003e 65\u003cb\u003e14 Hannity and Comes\u003c\/b\u003e 83\u003cb\u003e15 The Blame-America's Ex-President-First Crowd\u003c\/b\u003e 104\u003cb\u003e16 Operation Ignore\u003c\/b\u003e 115\u003cb\u003e17 Our National Dialogue on Terrorism\u003c\/b\u003e 123\u003cb\u003e18 Humor in Uniform\u003c\/b\u003e 124\u003cb\u003e19 Who Created the Tone?\u003c\/b\u003e 132\u003cb\u003e20 Did the tone Change?\u003c\/b\u003e 142\u003cb\u003e21 Why Did Anyone Think It Would Change?\u003c\/b\u003e 143 \u003cb\u003e22 I Grow Discouraged About the Tone\u003c\/b\u003e 152\u003cb\u003e23 I'm Prudenized\u003c\/b\u003e 165\u003cb\u003e24 Paul Gigot Is Unable to Defend an Incredibly Stupid Wall Street Journal Editorial\u003c\/b\u003e 170\u003cb\u003e25 \"This Was Not a Memorial to Paul Wellstone\": A Case Study in Right-Wing Lies\u003c\/b\u003e 177\u003cb\u003e26 I Attend the White House Correspondents Dinner and Annoy Karl Rove, Richard Perle, Paul Wolfowitz, and the Entire Fox News Team \u003c\/b\u003e 206\u003cb\u003e27 The Lying Years\u003c\/b\u003e 217\u003cb\u003e28 Bush\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003eCan't Lose With Clinton's Military\u003c\/b\u003e 220\u003cb\u003e29 Operation Chickenhawk: Episode One\u003c\/b\u003e 226\u003cb\u003e30 Fun with Racism\u003c\/b\u003e 252\u003cb\u003e31 I'm a Bad Liar\u003c\/b\u003e 261\u003cb\u003e32 Thank God for Jerry Falwell\u003c\/b\u003e 277\u003cb\u003e33 Abstinence Heroes\u003c\/b\u003e 283\u003cb\u003e34 Abstinence Heroes II\u003c\/b\u003e 287\u003cb\u003e35 \"By Far the Vast Majority of My Tax Cuts Go to Those at the Bottom\" \u003c\/b\u003e 288\u003cb\u003e36 The Waitress and the Lawyer: A One-Act Play\u003c\/b\u003e 304\u003cb\u003e37 The Gospel of Supply Side Jesus\u003c\/b\u003e 313\u003cb\u003e38 I Challenge Rich Lowry to a Fight\u003c\/b\u003e 324\u003cb\u003e39 Vast Lagoons of Pig Feces: The Bush Environmental Record\u003c\/b\u003e 328\u003cb\u003e40 I Meet Former First Lady Barbara Bush and It Doesn't Go Well!\u003c\/b\u003e 336\u003cb\u003e41 My Personal Search for Weapons of Mass Destruction\u003c\/b\u003e 342\u003cb\u003e42 The No Child Left Behind Standardized Test\u003c\/b\u003e 349\u003cb\u003e43 What is a Lie?\u003c\/b\u003e 352    Sources and Notes 355   Meet TeamFranken 369   Acknowledgments 373   Endnotes 379\"Laugh-out-loud funny.\"—\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Washington Post\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"Rings with the moral clarity of an angel’s trumpet... Although Franken is a self-proclaimed liberal, his work differs in that it presents well-substantiated arguments and damning examples of false accusations that conservatives have effectively used against Democrats... sharp analysis and humor.\"—\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eAssociated Press\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A typically unabashed blend of razor-witted denunciation and old-fashioned gumshoe detective work directed at right-wing crazies both in and out of government... [An] exquisitely irritating new book.\"—\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Independent \u003c\/i\u003e(London)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"[A] heady mixture of scathing humor and righteous indignation.\"—\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Onion\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“In the kicking, spitting spirit of current all-star political discourse, Al Franken gives as good as he gets.”—\u003cb\u003eJanet Maslin, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePraise for \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eOh, the Things I Know!\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“With a nod to Dr. Seuss and his popular tome for graduates of all ages, Franken offers his own advice guide, which covers pretty much anything anyone wants to understand about life… This laugh-aloud take on advice books—it is dedicated simply 'For Oprah'—is Stuart Smiley with an edge.”—\u003cb\u003eIlene Cooper, \u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Easy-to-follow guide to success and, failing that, happiness.”—\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eUSA Today\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eThe Truth (with jokes)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Devastating... \u003ci\u003eThe Truth\u003c\/i\u003e keeps its promise to be funny about extremely unfunny matters. It matches \u003ci\u003eLies \u003c\/i\u003ein wit, and its subjects are tougher. The gags have bite. . . . And it is effectively leavened with bits of dialogue, many of them all too real.”—\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“Subtle, laugh-or-cry-out-loud and ultimately devastating . . . \u003ci\u003eThe Truth (with jokes)\u003c\/i\u003e is guaranteed to rile the right again with its forensic lasering of Republican skullduggery and media mendacity, laced with sharp humor. . . . [Franken] is the voice the American left has been waiting for.”—\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Guardian \u003c\/i\u003e(London)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eU.S. Senator \u003cb\u003eAl Franken\u003c\/b\u003e grew up in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. Before running for the Senate, Al spent 37 years as an Emmy award-winning comedy writer; author of \u003ci\u003eI'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eRush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLies (and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them)\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eGiant of the Senate\u003c\/i\u003e; and radio talk show host. He has taken part in seven USO tours, visiting our troops overseas in Germany, Bosnia, Kosovo, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kuwait.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst elected to the Senate in 2008, and re-elected in 2014, he currently sits on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee; the Judiciary Committee; the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and the Committee on Indian Affairs. He has been married to his wife, Franni, for 40 years.\u003c\/p\u003eAn excerpt from\u003cp\u003eLIES: And the Lying Liars Who Them--A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eby Al Franken\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGod chose me to write this book.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eJust the fact that you are reading this is proof not just of God’s existence, but also of His\/Her\/Its beneficence. That’s right. I am not certain of God’s precise gender. But I am certain that He\/She\/It chose me to write this book.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis isn’t hubris. I’m not saying this in an egotistical way. God didn’t choose me because I’m the greatest writer who ever lived. That was William Shakespeare, whose work I have a passing familiarity with. No. I just happened to be the right vessel at the right time. If something in this book makes you laugh, it was God’s joke. If something makes you think, it’s because God had a good point to make.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe reason I know God chose me is because God spoke to me personally.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGod began our conversation by clearing something up. Some of George W. Bush’s friends say that Bush believes God called him to be president during these times of trial. But God told me that He\/She\/It had actually chosen Al Gore by making sure that Gore won the popular vote and, God thought, the electoral college. “THAT WORKED FOR EVERYONE ELSE,” God said.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“What about Tilden?” I asked, referring to the 1876 debacle.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“QUIET!” God snapped. God was angry.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGod said that after 9\/11, George W. Bush squandered a unique moment of national unity. That instead of rallying the country around a program of mutual purpose and sacrifice, Bush cynically used the tragedy to solidify his political power and pursue an agenda that panders to his base and serves the interests of his corporate backers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGod told me that Bush squandered a $4.6 trillion surplus and is plunging us into deficits as far as God can see. And that Bush squandered another surplus. The surplus of goodwill from the rest of the world that he had inherited from Bill Clinton.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd this was pissing God off.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHe\/She\/It was right. But it sounded like a lot of work.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Look, God, I’m flattered, but I think you got the wrong guy. The kind of book you’re talking about would require months of research.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd God said, “LET THERE BE GOOGLE. AND LET THERE BE LEXISNEXIS.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Very funny, God. I use Google all the time.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“YES, I KNOW,” God said. “FOR HOT ASIAN TEENS.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“You must be thinking of my son, Joe.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“AL? I'M OMNISCIENT.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Okay, okay.” I changed the subject. “It’s just that I can’t do this book myself.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“LEAVE THAT TO ME,” God boomed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd that’s when Harvard called.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e***\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHarvard’s Kennedy School of Government asked me to serve as a fellow at its Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics, and Public Policy. After my varied and celebrated career in television, movies, publishing, and the lucrative world of corporate speaking, being a fellow at Harvard seemed, frankly, like a step down.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI couldn’t think of anything less appealing than molding the minds of tomorrow’s leaders, unless it was spending fireside evenings sipping sherry with great minds at the Faculty Club. Yawn.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTo my surprise and delight, though, all Harvard wanted me to do was show up every once in a while and write something about something. That gave me an idea.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Would it be okay if I wrote a scathingly partisan attack on the rightwing media and the Bush administration?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“No problem,” Harvard said absentmindedly.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Count me in,” I replied. “From now on call me ‘Professor Franken.’”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“No,” Harvard said, “you’re not a professor. But you can run a study group on the topic of your choosing.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Great,” I said. “I’ve got the perfect topic: Write My Son’s Harvard College Application Essay.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“No,” they said. “Harvard students already know how to write successful Harvard applications, Al. We want you to teach them something new.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHarvard was right where I wanted it. “How about if the topic is: How to Research My Book?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Sure,” Harvard said. “Most of our professors teach that course. Why, in the Biochemistry department, most of the graduate level courses are-”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHarvard was boring me. “I gotta run, Harvard. Thanks.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e***\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI had my Nexis, I had my Google, I had my Harvard fellowship, and I had my fourteen research assistants. I sat down to write. Nothing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSo I got on my knees and prayed for guidance. “How, God, can I best do Your work through this book? Who, dear Lord, is the audience for a book like this? And what’s a good title?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGod answered, “YOU KNOW THOSE SHITTY BOOKS BY ANN COULTER AND BERNIE GOLDBERG?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“The best-sellers that claim there’s a liberal bias in the media?” I asked.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“TOTAL BULLSHIT,” God said. “START BY ATTACKING THEM. HE'S CLEARLY A DISGRUNTLED FORMER EMPLOYEE, AND SHE JUST LIES. BY THE WAY, THERE'S SOMETHING SERIOUSLY WRONG WITH HER.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“That’s pretty obvious.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“SO GO AFTER THEM, THE WHOLE LIBERAL BIAS MYTH, AND THEN GO AFTER THE RIGHT-WING MEDIA. ESPECIALLY FOX.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Okay, God, I’m writing this down.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“THEN USE THEM AS A JUMPING-OFF POINT TO GO AFTER BUSH. YOU KNOW, BIG TAX CUTS FOR THE RICH, SURGING UNEMPLOYMENT, IGNORING EVERYONE BUT HIS CORPORATE BUDDIES, SCREWING THE ENVIRONMENT, PISSING OFF THE REST OF THE WORLD. THAT STUFF. AND THAT'S YOUR BOOK.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Got it. One last thing. Title.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“HOW ABOUT BEARERS OF FALSE WITNESS AND THE FALSE WITNESS THAT THEY BEAR?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Hmm. I, uh, I’ll work with that.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Plume","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46302852251877,"sku":"NP9780452285217","price":24.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780452285217.jpg?v=1767731412","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/lies-isbn-9780452285217","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}