Bill O’Reilly drew parallels between Nazis and protesters opposed to Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh on the heels of demonstrators nearly derailing the judge’s confirmation to the United States Supreme Court.
The disgraced former Fox News host made the comparison Thursday while discussing the role of left-wing organizations, and particularly groups funded by liberal megadonor George Soros, in leading efforts protesting President Trump’s most recent high court pick.
“This Kavanaugh thing was not accidental, and it wasn’t caused by one woman stepping forth. This was an organized thing, that if they couldn’t get him before the confirmation on merit, they’re going to destroy him personally,” Mr. O’Reilly told fellow conservative commentator Sean Hannity.
“It was organized. You have seen it, and I have seen it. We’ve seen boycotts spreading up, we’ve seen demonstrations spontaneous, we’ve seen a woman in an elevator with a CNN camera browbeat Sen. [Jeff] Flake. Who is that woman? She’s working for a Soros organization making $175,000 a year,” he claimed during an interview aired on Mr. Hannity’s syndicated radio program.
Asked whether organized protesters could impact the Nov. 6 midterm elections, Mr. O’Reilly said he believed the eventual outcome depends on Americans being aware of their activities.
“If you look back into 1930, to 1936, this is very similar to what happened in Germany. Good people in Germany, good Germans, looked away. They did not confront the evil that was coming at them. And I put forth to you and America, we have a lot of evil coming at us right now and I don’t know how many people are looking away,” Mr. O’Reilly said.
Mr. O’Reilly’s comments were first reported by Media Matters for America, a watchdog group founded by Democratic activist David Brock and financed in part by Mr. Soros.
Multiple women accused Judge Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct after he was nominated in July to replace retired Justice Anthony Kennedy, prompting protesters to flood Capitol Hill in hopes of convincing lawmakers in the Republican-controlled Senate to vote against confirmation.
Sen. Jeff Flake, Arizona Republican, was confronted in an elevator by emotional protesters amid the allegations, and he subsequently moved to postpone confirmation proceedings for a week prior to ultimately voting in support of the president’s Supreme Court pick.
Ana Maria Archila, one of at least three women who confronted Mr. Flake in the elevator, was later identified as the co-executive director of the Center for Popular Democracy, an advocacy group that receives funding from Mr. Soros’ Open Society Foundations, among others.
Mr. O’Reilly was employed at Fox News for two decades prior to parting ways with the network last year after it emerged that he spent millions of dollars settling multiple claims of sexual harassment
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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