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The Chief Executive Officer of NPR, Vivian Schiller, resigned yesterday in the wake of a scandal sparked by conservative activist and auteur James O’Keefe. O’Keefe secretly videotaped a meeting between NPR fundraiser Ron Schiller (no relation to Vivian Schiller) and men pretending to be from a Muslim group with a donation offer of $5 million. During the meeting NPR’s Schiller said Tea Party members were, “white, gun-toting, middle Americans”, “seriously seriously racist”, “Islamophobic” and “xenophobic.” Ron Schiller also said, “Frankly, it is very clear that [NPR] would be better off in the long run without Federal funding.” His comments have drawn widespread criticism and he also resigned on Tuesday. Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn, who introduced the House bill that eliminated federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting said Schiller’s statements validated slashing the budget. At the same time that some are deeply offended by Schiller’s assertions that the Tea Party is racist, a video has gone viral that many are pointing to as proof of extreme bigotry within the GOP off-shoot. On February 13th a gaggle of conservative groups, including a self-described Tea Party chapter, staged a protest outside of a Yorba Linda fund-raising event held by a Muslim charity group to benefit homeless shelters and food banks. Caught on tape were livid protesters yelling vicious insults at Muslims as people entered the fundraiser. The crowd was whipped up earlier in the day by a rally that included lengthy speeches by elected officials. Some of the most shocking statements came from Villa Park Councilwoman, Republican Deborah Pauly, who called the philanthropic event a ruse to disguise “evil.” And today, Congressman Peter King of New York is beginning a series of controversial hearings under the heading “The Extent of Radicalization in the American Muslim Community and That Community’s Response.” The hearings are being compared to Senator Joseph McCarthy’s obsessive investigations into Communist activity in the 1950s. Shahid Buttar, executive director of the Bill of Rights Defense Committee, has said King’s hearings compromise, “The Freedom to belief, to speech, [and] to associate” that are fundamental to the U.S.

GUESTS: Max Blumenthal, journalist, columnist, documentary filmmaker, and blogger, author of the acclaimed book “Republican Gomorrah: Inside the Movement that Shattered the Party,” and Shakeel Syed, Executive Director of the Islamic Shura Council

Read Max Blumenthal’s blog at www.maxblumenthal.com.

Watch the video, Hate Comes to Orange County:

Hate Comes to Orange County from CAIR LA on Vimeo.