Penn Jillette Makes Hillary "White B*tch" Joke On MSNBC, Joe & Mika Condemn Him

This morning on MSNBC, magician Penn Jillette repeated an admittedly "cheesy" joke that performed really well on a recent tour — that Barack Obama did well in February because it was Black History Month and Hillary Clinton did well in March because it was "White Bitch Month."

Jillette used the joke to underscore his point that there is a huge reserve of hatred out there for Hillary, but anchors Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough were not amused and did not appreciate his comment. Watch as he repeats the joke and then is condemned by Mika and Joe, with Mika saying, "I didn't think it was funny, and I gotta tell you, with all the work Hillary Clinton is doing, I'm insulted, actually."

From MSNBC, 5/6

Comments

[Moarku]

I'm amazed that so few people actually considered WHY he was telling this joke. It's not like he just got up there are started smart-assing. It was in the context of a larger story about the mood of people. And he himself said it wasn't even a particularly funny joke, which is why it was surprising that it got such a big reaction from the crowd. Unfortunately, that story wouldn't have meant anything without repeating the joke itself - with the explanation that it was lame to begin with. There's a whoooole lot of overreaction here, from Scarborough to a lot of the comments below.

Getting pissed at someone for telling a bad joke when they say, "Hey, this is a really bad joke, but I have to tell you in order to tell this OTHER story, which is actually meaningful..." is a little bit off.

[SaraPulis]

This is Penn Jillette - what did they expect? If he were truly so erudite as he wishes to be seen, I doubt he'd have used the joke in question to begin with. I kind of wonder whether Teller was flipping off the crowd as Penn told this joke in the first place.

[CammyV]

I hope I didn't miss "Asshole Illusionists" month. It's the happiest time of the year.

[dadw5boys]

IT IS TOO LATE FOR MSNBC TO START ACTING LIKE THEY HAVE ETHIC'S THEY HELPED PUSH THE USA INTO AN ILLEGAL WAR AND DESERVE NO RESPECT.

[Pressmatters]

Go Ahead! Not with the hiring of Pat "Racial Arsonist # 1" Buchanan, and the tongue and cheek response to the chauvanism of the other talking heads.....

[Zanti]

Immature Jerk History Month is coming up, so Penn's probably practicing.

The guy's an egoist of the worst order, and women are standard targets in our society. You think someone like Penn is going to do or say something brave or original? We may as well expect a dog to play Chopin Etudes....

[Justtellthetruth]

Penn ought to open his own polling company. He seems right on in the way his joke reaction predicted Hillary's lame showing in the last primaries.

Of course, it's easier if the person your making fun of is already literally despised by a majority of the nation, but it was HILLaroiusly funny nonetheless

Thanks for Sharing, Penn.

[Zanti]

"Of course, it's easier if the person your making fun of is already literally despised by a majority of the nation...."

You're not suggesting that, behind his blowhard persona, Penn is a calculating wimp?

[Harrier]

In appropriate for TV. An exaggerated response from the female

[HarrietandBlahBlahNyborg]

OMG! What complete douche bags these MSNBC talking heads are! Penn retells a little joke he made and now all women in America are hurt??? Jesus Christ, the media sucks.

[davvid]

MSNBC sucks

[Syco]

I think the black history month part is what should offend us considering Tina Fey called Hillary a bitch not to long ago.

[brokenarrow]

The FCC caters to one particular affiliation, and ONLY THAT ONE. One must follow the money only as far as the big corporations who OWN THE MEDIA, and DONATE to that certain affiliation.

LISTEN: This tactic is obvious to any person who can add two and two and get four. HAVE A BOBBLEHEAD SAY IT, AND THEN A HUGE SUPER STAR (smile) like JS, and whomever that sidekick was, CONDEMN................SHEESH, HOW OBVIOUS CAN YOU GET???

My country tis of thee, sweet land of media maggots..................HAD ENOUGH YET, AMERICA????

ALL OF OUR BASTIONS OF FREEDOM HAVE ERODED...........FCC= FLAMING CORPORATE CORRUPTION. Almost as bad as the SCOTUS.................GOT HOPE???

[gevan]

It is obvious that Joe and Mika(?) missed the point of Penn's little story; which only further highlights the point he was trying to make.

[Hagrid]

Joe is an idiot.
He looked scared this morning when he realised that the next president of this country will be a Black Man!

Mika (daddy's little shame) is another brain dead blond that belongs on Fox News, with all the other puff-lipped, short-skirted pole dancers that they call anchors

[truthyguy]

They are insulted because like good little republicans they see a Clinton candidacy as the only chance McCain has to win the general. I stopped watching the MSNBC morning show after a few viewings of Scarborough and his stooges. They are awful. Not even a veiled attempt to be non-partisan. If I wanted the republican talking points I would go to the GOP homepage or listen to a White House (so-called) news conference.

[drtwo25]

typical for the media, even when the person is speaking right in from of them they only hear a soundbite and just stop listening to Penn explaining how he himself doesn't like the joke and tries to make a point about how the reaction to it worries him. sad reporting

[FarOutFish]

Jillette made a dumb joke. An equally dumb audience laughed. Penn then leaped off the cliff of conclusion and reached the obvious Politically Correct and banal analysis. One of America"s Prigs and a national scold, Joe Scarborough and his female sidekick had a cow. Big Deal. Why should anyone care? If The Huffington Post were a printed rag this would be a waste of a good tree.

[clintfatigue]

Joe Scarborough looks like he is going to pop from the pressure of his own pomposity.

How many times is he going to remind us that he campaigned for office. Hey Joe. Who gives a f***!

[izAriver]

What self-righteous pap! The right-wing mass media is becoming intolerable. Penn was there for "campaign comedy" according to the tag and his comments were, as usual, considered out of context. Do any of these people have the cognitive capacity to grasp an idea in it's entirety or track a line of thought? Calling people "bitches" is insulting, whether they be male or female, but I hear people and comedians do it all the time. It's time all of us stopped calling each other names. (That's a joke. People are always calling each other names and I don't see an end to it.) Maybe they just didn't want to deal with the relevant point he made; this campaign (and the right-wing mass media) has really polarized the electorate.

[yoyo1959]

Once again, an article has unearthed and unleashed all the vitriol, hatred, irrational outpouring of its readers spouting about how evil Hilary Clinton is. I never cease to be amazed at the small-minded, low-brow commentary of Obama supporters. I have written before that if these same people had multiplied by the millions and actually DONE something to protest and effect real change, we never would had to deal with the criminal Bush administration. Where were you all these years, eh?

[Zanti]

Waiting for the Chosen One, I guess....

[unclesmedley]

silliness... remember "Shame on you Barrack Obama!" and "Change you can Xerox" and McCain and I have crossed the threshold" and "I've got experience and he's got a speech" and on and on and on...

She lost. She and her supporters never imagined such a thing was possible, but it has happened, and now she is left to rely on the kindness of a man who she tried to destroy in order to retain what little dignity she has left. If the table's were turned she'd be grinding his face into the dirt. That's why she lost. We're tired of the scorched-earth bullshit that has permeated our politics for too long now.

THe nomination was never her's, and now it never will be. It's morning in America.

[Zanti]

Other than all that, you have no problem with assertive women, I'm betting.

[Tommygun264]

Joe Scarborough standing up for Hillary Clinton is like John McCain standing up for the VC. While I don't think the joke was funny, I think the word "bitch" can't be declared off limits after Tina Fey's "Bitch is the New Black" speech. You can't have it both ways.

[Zanti]

I won't try to explain the context of Fey's joke--I doubt you'd get it. However, there's a vast difference between a woman using a female-unfriendly term for the sake of humor and a man copping an excuse to use it. Fey's use of the word had satirical impact because she's a member of the targeted group. Penn, unless he's a she, is not a member of the targeted group.

Yes, I know--"You can't have it both ways." In other words, someone stepped out of line and we've got to punish her for it. Meanwhile, Penn is off the hook.

[4wehttam]

Talks like a bitch, walks like a bitch............IT IS A BITCH.

She's an embarassment to me as a woman, she's proving that women need to act like aggressive bitches with cojones, testicular fortitude and not be pansies to be taken seriously.

SHE MAKES ME SICK TO MY STOMACH.

[Zanti]

Um.... If any or all of your second paragraph is true, then how is that Hillary's fault? She didn't make things that way.

And I don't suppose any of this involves your PERCEPTION of Hillary's behavior? I mean, there could be a subjective component here. Just sayin'.

[yoyo1959]

You have your right to freedom of speech, but you're language and thinking are one of the problems not the solutions. You obviously have deep issues.

[carefulcautious]

No, she doesn't have a "right" to free speech. The point of progressivism is to protect the public from liars who pretend to have the truth. This is why we have to shut down certain political "speakers" (like FAUX NEWS) who lie to the public. Dean boycotting FAUX NEWS was a good start. Once Obama wins, it's time for FCC to step in and regulate their asses out of business. Leave us balanced truth-tellers: CNN, MSNBC, NBC, ABC, CBS, HDNet, Nation Magazine, New Republic...

Obama/Edwards 08! See? Su pueda! Yes, he did!

[Serena67]

Obama/Edwards 08!

I second that.

[tryharder2think]

These news people are pathetic and lie to themselves.

They don't know the truth if it were to bite them in the ass.

try hader

[TheAdviceWeAllNeed]

Mika your opinion is irrelevant. You"re nothing more than a pathetic weakling

[aceholiday]

penn is a true american. thanks

[jplass]

i love how these two numbskulls don't even get Penn's point, they just circumvent it in the name of appearing "politically correct"

[Zanti]

Penn had a point? Alert the press! Declare a holiday!

End Times must be near or something....

[mlaiuppa]

While the joke is offensive, they missed the point.

Jillette said it was a bad joke and it should have bombed. The reaction he got indicted to him that Hillary was losing. *That's* the point. The reaction was a barometer to him of how Hillary is doing.

[yoyo1959]

It was a cheap shot, wasn't funny as he told it; if he wanted to make his point he could have done it without insulting the white woman sitting next to him. Jerk.

[nathangimpel]

She's a bitch BECAUSE of the work she's doing. When you play the political game like Hillary does, you need to expect some name calling.

[yoyo1959]

Only from simpletons like yourself.

[MrClean]

And over half of the U.S.!