Jesse Ventura: Coleman A "Hypocrite," I Would Waterboard Cheney (VIDEO)

Former Minnesota Governor and one-time professional wrestler Jesse Ventura went public on Larry King Live yesterday with some harsh criticisms of the Bush administration, as well as Senator Norm Coleman.

...Coleman's always been a hypocrite. He never does what he says. He said election night, when he won, that [Al] Franken should drop out, and he should be the senator. Well, then the same should hold true after the recount.

Ventura, who beat out Coleman in the 1998 Minnesota gubernatorial race, said that any federal appeal by the senator should be thrown out.

Ventura also came out against the Bush administration, calling George Bush the "worst president in my lifetime" and saying he has "no respect for Dick Cheney."

Claiming that he was water-boarded as part of Navy Seal training he received during the Vietnam War era, Ventura says:

[Water-boarding] is torture... It's drowning. It gives you the complete sensation that you are drowning. It is no good, because you -- I'll put it to you this way, you give me a water board, Dick Cheney and one hour, and I'll have him confess to the Sharon Tate murders.

Watch:

Get HuffPost Politics On Facebook and Twitter!

Comments

[igmond50]

He's absolutely right in characterizing Cheney as a coward and chicken hawk. Great point about how people who have been trained to use weapons correctly don't shoot accidentally other people in the face.

[JISantiago]

What I like about Gov Ventura is that he speaks from his heart and soul. He will not hesitate to call a spade a spade. Unlike Cheney, Jesse is a straight shooter!

Who could argue with his rationality about waterboarding and marriage. He has thrown the gauntlet. Is Cheney prepared to get waterboarded to prove his point? I bet my last penny this coward will not.

This guy who once said his family is out of bounds as far as politics was concerned is now using his daughter to shield himself from the public outcry!

[jbs902]

Me too Jessie...M­e too! When can we start? And by the way we need some more descriptive language for Coleman...­how about "pathetic loser?"

[TruthmongerII]

Thanks, Jessie. I see it too & I'm leaving the U.S. again. Sounds great, off the grid, hanging at the beach, not participating in a torture state.

[ninomalo88]

Am I going to pay attention to a guy who when he had the chance to enlist and serve his country DID NOT of couse not.. Just like his boss... Jesse Ventura may be out there but he enlisted and served a better man for that in my book .. Bush and his people are a JOKE !!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS for reading

[zakwouldhave]

Jesse was very thin skinned in his role as Governor, especially for a ex-Seal, ex-Wrestler. Having said that he sure ticked off many thin-skinned right wingers by not abiding by their ideology.

[brandalucia]

Poor Jesse. No one pays any attention to Jesse unless he says something outrageous and the lib press comes running...­HA Steroid abuse has taken away his ability to reason. He's such a joke; a liberal Democrat joke.

[LREKing]

Wow! How many errors can you fit into one post?

[cinesimon]

Come on now - errors are unintentional.

[amaboss52]

Double dare you to say that to his face. My brother went thru SEAL training with Jesse, he is not only tough he is also very nice. Big cuddly teddybear (if he likes you).

[PoliticalAmazon]

My midwestern mother had a lot of midwestern sayings. When I was a teenager, they irritated me beyond belief. Now, I am amazed how pertinent they are.

This is one she used when discussing politics:

"Cowards do under the cover of darkness what they are afraid to do in the light of day."

Keyboard Commandos are a dime a dozen on the internet. If they were that brave in real life, they wouldn't need to spout off here on the interent.

[UnfairAndImbalanced]

i love how whenever someone says something conservatives disagree with, they attack him/her as an attention hound and somehow manage to work the liberal press in... every single time.... by the way just as an aside, the press that you found this from? yeah, this is the huffingtonpost. founded by ariana huffington. what did you expect, ads for Hannity on the sides?

[JackWilson]

Those who voluntarily get waterboarded are actually proving that it's not torture. I haven't seen anyone volunteer to subject themselves to real torture - the kind that ends up in broken bones, missing limbs and other permanent damage.
Here's the challenge I suggest - I will submit to any of the 'tortures' in the 'torture'' memo if a prominent liberal will submit to a real torture, as done by radical Islam or WWII Japanese.

[postman66]

If you stop and listen to anyone who has gone through SERE training you would know it is only a facsimile of real waterboarding.

[Jahbundance]

Postman, how you can "know" stuff without experiencing it shows your ignorance of reality. I went through SERE in '68 and lost consciousness when waterboarded. I was drowning! That's why we had a medic there. At least chickenhawk Cheney admits it's torture. He's not as ignorant as you and the other posters who say it's no big deal.

[bobm0001]

You first..

[gconners]

A couple of points if I may: 1. I haven't heard anything about "radical Islam" waterboarding anyone. 2. WWII Japanese were convicted of war crimes for waterboarding. 3. The SERE waterboarding simulation is done under controlled circumstances by fellow soldiers with "stop" signals. I don't think what you have said proves the point that it is not torture.

[tnlcallen]

Yeah, radical Islam wouldn't bother with waterboarding. They don't perform their torture for the sake of getting information, they do it for fun. Also, I believe the offhanded claim that WWII japanese were convicted of war crimes for waterboarding has been debunked. I think your 3rd point is a good one. I'm not convinced that it is torture, but you do make a good point.

[LREKing]

Apparently they use sand instead. Check out that video at abc.com if you can sit through it.

[PhilipTaylor]

Why are we hearing so much from Chainy (sic) and his kin folks?

Could it be because he does not have his f!nger p_pp_t to spread the word anymore?

He said, "no one else will defend .....!" Not one other politician!

This is not about our security! It is about his paran0ia and the many other distortions he pushed on the American People!

[speckitis]

Right on Jesse!

I went through SERE as well. Loved you SEALs. I'll never forget, when that darn loud-speaker started having an effect, that the SEAL in the "facility" across from me mouthed, "I have to get this sound-trac­k." I laughed so hard a "guard" caught me and bounced me off the wall a few times.

And he's right, water-boarding is torture. Especially when you're held in a foreign land, sleep deprived, hungry, and your interrogators are of a percieved hostile culture. I'd admit to anything in that situation.

[Chip W]

Jesse is so refreshing.
What's struck me most about him is his clarity on the role of government, and distinguishing between what's the government's choice and what's the individual's choice.
More than anyone else in government I think.

[brandalucia]

Jesse knows ACORN vote fraud has brought about Franken's having more Democrat votes than voters in the state...HA­...give em credit...t­hose ACORN workers steal votes very, very well. Jess just hopes that latching onto this bunch ...maybe they'll give him a job. LOL

[LREKing]

There sure are a lot of trolls here today. Did the bars close early?

[macohmz]

"Alright already with Bush okay"? Said King. Like the horrors of the last 8 years just stopped. Another example of how the MSM still protects the Bush administration.

[11907281]

Is the MSM government funded or do they have customers who willingly spend money on their services and advertisers products? This is the problem, this is what allowed the last 8 years to happen.

[Hemkit]

I thought they were the liberal, elite MSM, in the tank for Obama?

[TimberGhost]

That's our Jesse!

He'd be a welcome replacement for the loser Pawlenty that we have now.

And pay-per-view for watching cheney get waterboarded - definitely a money maker.

[lemonyashes]

I'd pay to watch it so I'd know what Cheney was promoting.

[realpolitic]

As a man who took five deferments because he had "other priorities" at the time of the Vietnam War Cheney would not have to be punished to confess. If he was denied a soft pillow or missed a meal, I am sure Cheney would tell anybody what they wanted to hear.

[LarBear]

Jesse Ventura, meet Chris Matthews..­. Mr Wimpy (Chris) says water boarding is NOT Torture and is only a denial of oxygen when done... Please give Chris the experience of being water boarded, for experience is a great teacher... Chris also says in emergency conditions the President has a right to break the Law... Sigh.... Another MSM/ MSNBC purveyor of Anti - Americanis­m... Stay strong Keith and Rachel!

[11907281]

If emergency circumstances give the President the right to break the law,then human nature dictates that eventually one will help create an emergency in order to gain these "rights". Or, I am wrong and every American President is all sunshine and lollipops.

[Ajoyshop]

When did he says this? I have never heard Chris speak so aggregiously. I think you might be mixing his appetite for playing devil's advocate with what he really believes. Chris is center left and indignant of the Bush Administration.

[amaboss52]

He said it last night, I heard him. I like him but that statement was out of line.

[tnlcallen]

Other than his creepy love affair with Obama (My leg is tingling), Chris is the best thing on MSNBC. I just can't watch Olbermann. He is the Left's version of Bill O, just not as popular.