Jerry Springer Likens Tea Party To Osama Bin Laden & Dictators, Denounces 'Loonies'

Jerry Springer likened the Tea Party to dictators and Osama bin Laden in an interview with Current TV's Cenk Uygur on Friday.

"You want to have a new conspiracy?" Springer asked (video available above). "These people that want to do away with our government — how is that different that all these dictators? Osama bin Laden wanted to do away with our government. What’s wrong with us?"

The Tea Party wasn't the only target of Springer's ire. He also expressed his dismay at the "fringe elements," which he said have taken over the Republican Party. He blamed redistricting for creating a country that is too fiercely partisan.

"So, now, if you’re a Republican, you’re afraid to even have your picture taken with Obama and you can never talk with the other side," Springer said. "That is why we’ve become so polarized and why we get these loonies in office."

Though he's best known as the longtime host of "The Jerry Springer Show," Springer was once the mayor of Cincinnati. The outspoken Democrat recently called President Obama "truly exceptional" after making the president's acquaintance in a meeting that Springer described as "substantive."

The TV host has also been critical of Fox News, citing the network as "ridiculously to the right" in an interview with The Huffington Post. Springer said he spends a good amount of time canvassing for liberal causes, including fighting voter suppression bills in Ohio. He also competed on Season 3 of "Dancing With the Stars."