Think Progress

Inhofe defends calling Franken a ‘clown’: ‘He kind of looked like a clown when I was talking to him.’

Sen. Inhofe Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) extended a nasty welcome to his newest Senate colleague, Al Franken, last week, telling the Tulsa World, “I’ll tell you what a lot of people are thinking, and that is it looks like things are going to be over and we are going to get the clown from Minnesota. … I don’t know the guy, but…for a living he is a clown.” Inhofe is now rushing to defend himself, pointing out that he and Franken “physically embraced” when they ran into each other on Tuesday. However, he still insists that Franken is a “clown”:

On Tuesday, Inhofe again insisted his comments last week were not meant to be derogatory.

He said the “clown comment” did come up during the chance meeting.

“But believe me, he knew. He kind of looked like a clown when I was talking to him,” Inhofe said.

Asked by Bill Press to respond to Inhofe last week, Franken simply replied, “I don’t know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment.”



96 Responses to “Inhofe defends calling Franken a ‘clown’: ‘He kind of looked like a clown when I was talking to him.’”

  1. evangenital says:

    Inhofe is a pompous moron who carries water for the Dominionist Evangelical theocrats. These crazy people want to establish a holy roller dictatorship in this nation. They have already taken over the Air Force Academy, and they have their tentacles into virtually every suburban police department and school board.


  2. dbadass says:

    “Can’t sleep. Senate Clown will eat me”
    What are they so afraid of? I don’t think Frankin will do any better or any worse than average…


  3. Mr.Bungle says:

    As Mel Brooks famously said “Well you look like a pile of s**t!”


  4. dbadass says:

    Frankin? I must have ment Franklin that little kid turtle… Franken


  5. A Patriotic Anopheles Acting says:

    from “History of the World Part 1″

    Monet: “You look like the p1ss boy!”
    King: “…and you look like a bucket of shit!”

    The regressives sure are scared of the new Senator from Minnesota aren’t they?


  6. penalcolony says:

    Inhofe dwells in a world beyond satire.


  7. Hardy Haberman says:

    Remember Inhofe is one of those clowns who denies global warming. Such a funny guy!


  8. kali90 says:

    I don’t know why TP even dignifies moronic comments like this on the part of idiotic, backward-thinking right-wingers by reporting them.. what this idiot thinks about Sen. Franken is totally irrelevant.. well, I guess a pretext to once again showcase how stupid these bozos are never hurts….:)


  9. paleolib says:

    Look in a mirror Jim. You don’t often see that kind of face outside of the big top.


  10. BuckarooBanzai says:

    Senator Al should have gone into the Goodfellas “You think I’m a Clown” riff.


  11. shoeless says:

    I’m surprised Inhofe can even see out of those tiny little piggy eyes.


  12. CheeseFlap says:

    Wick in top of head
    Childish insults light the fire
    Waxy puddle spot


  13. Dharma says:

    A clown? Is he kidding? Look at the size of Inhofe’s ears!


  14. spencers mom says:

    He kind of looked like a clown when I was talking to him,” Inhofe said.

    And Inhofe looks like a Nazi to me.

    PEACE


  15. tom says:

    On the last thread, I suggested that republicans only value politicians who are lying pot-shot artists. Inhofe is the perfect example!


  16. ralph the wonder locust says:

    Let me get this straight… Inhofe? Inhofe is saying someone “looks like a clown”?

    Was his nose as red as it usually is when he said it?

    Inhofe saying someone else looks like a clown is like Maynard G. Krebs derisively describing a colleague as looking like a beatnik.


  17. katy says:

    i’m not familiar enough with horror movies – have enough demons in my own head – but i’ve seen that face before, in previews or something…


  18. lvdragonlady says:

    Beats looking like an elf and a fool, a clown can take off the makeup.


  19. evangenital says:

    Inhofe is the true face of the repiggies.

    Please don’t kid yourselves about your local repiggies. They are on exactly the same page as he is, even if they won’t publicly admit to it.


  20. katy says:

    curious – were there ANY upstanding republicans in the chamber yesterday when SANATOR AL FRANKEN was sworn in? or were they ALL chumps?


  21. katy says:

    Franken simply replied, “I don’t know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment.”

    wow.

    see? smart, very smart.


  22. tom says:

    Great picture of Little Jimmy Inhofe, there.

    Botox much?


  23. Morse Gist says:

    Inhofe is the guy that ran Quaker Life Insurance Co. into the ground. How he ever got elected to the U.S. Senate must be one of life’s great mysteries.


  24. raynman says:

    Franken simply replied, “I don’t know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment.”

    Farmboys shouldn’t get into gunfights with gunslingers…


  25. Tired of being lied to says:

    When I was a teenager, I knew a guy who looked just like Inhofe. Could be his twin brother.

    He was a drunk, and a really irrational and unpleasant fellow, and looked just like Inhofe. Just like him.

    Ergo, I must now know Inhofe.


  26. PatrioticLiberalChristian says:

    Franken simply replied, “I don’t know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment.”

    Franken’s wit will disarm the half-wits like Inhofe every time.


  27. shoeless says:

    Are all of the Republicans in the Senate drunks?


  28. ralph the wonder locust says:

    shoeless Says:
    Are all of the Republicans in the Senate drunks?

    Wouldn’t you be, if you were born a Republican?


  29. kasinca says:

  30. barracks9 says:

    shoeless Says:

    Are all of the Republicans in the Senate drunks?

    Nah…just the ones who were elected.


  31. barracks9 says:

    katy Says:

    Franken simply replied, “I don’t know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment.”

    wow.

    see? smart, very smart.

    In time Senator Franken will disarm so many of these rubes so deftly, they will be thanking him for handing them their behinds, and still be none the wiser.


  32. texasrick says:

    No surprise here. Typical remark being made by a self righteous idiot.

    I’d be willing to bet that Franken has a keener intellect than this crotchety, pompous, right wing jerk.


  33. PatrioticLiberalChristian says:

    It seems to me that Franken and others only have two options when dealing with Inhofe and his ilk: be a clown and laugh at them or be criminal and punch the living sh*t out of them. I respect Franken’s choice.


  34. angels81 says:

    This comming from a guy who thinks the world is only 6000 years old, and humans walked with dinosaurs. Now I ask you…Who’s the real clown in the room?


  35. Helen Rainier says:

    There are people you think are classless loudmouth morons and then there are those who open their mouth and remove all doubt. Inhofe is one of the latter.


  36. RantingTommy says:

    damned holy rollers


  37. evangenital says:

    Everytime the holy rollers start in on the Adam and Eve crap, I ask them how the human race could have been started, given that Adam and Eve only had two sons, Cain and Abel.

    Was incest somehow involved?

    The holy rollers never answer my question. They just threaten me with eternal hellfire, the prime motivator for their cult.


  38. mild_bill says:

    Franken’s comments showed he has Class (with the
    capital C)..

    And Inhofe is a classless moron.. so typical of
    the GNOP lately.


  39. RantingTommy says:

    evangenital Says:

    Everytime the holy rollers start in on the Adam and Eve crap, I ask them how the human race could have been started, given that Adam and Eve only had two sons, Cain and Abel.

    Was incest somehow involved?

    The holy rollers never answer my question. They just threaten me with eternal hellfire, the prime motivator for their cult.

    People get mad when you point out that their delusions are delusional.


  40. HomerSexual says:

    “It looks like those clowns in Washington have done it again. What a bunch of clowns.” DJ 2000, “The Simpsons”


  41. dbadass says:

    I prefer the can a dude really live in a cetacean’s stomach gambit…


  42. tombaker says:

    whatever, senator corn-pone, who looks like a 70-year-old Eddie Haskell.

    enjoy the irrelevance, Jimmy.


  43. LibertyLover says:

    Maybe Inhofe has clownaphobia. We shouldn’t mock the afflicted. :)


  44. Wayne says:

    LibertyLover Says:

    Maybe Inhofe has clownaphobia. We shouldn’t mock the afflicted. :)

    Coulrophobia is the fear of clowns. =)

    “Can’t sleep, the clowns will eat me!!”


  45. angels81 says:

    Inhofe talks about clowns…The way the repug party is going, you’ll be able to fit the whole party in one of those little clown cars.


  46. ElBruce says:

    Remember when the Senate had a tradition of respect among colleagues? You know, before Gingrich happened to it?


  47. labman57 says:

    Inhofe no doubt suffers from coulrophobia.


  48. jrzguy says:

    He doesn’t look like a clown? This guy doesn’t even need makeup. I was just looking at the NRSC’s new ad with Franken(stein).
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI3QM_p73oI&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Ftheplumline.whorunsgov.com%2Fcampaigns%2Fgop-ad-paints-franken-as-angry-maniac-using-footage-of-him-talking-about-paul-wellst&feature=player_embedded

    I think I would have done it different. Maybe sped it up with the theme music of Benny Hill. He looks like he’s throwing fits! Or……hey wait a second…..I think I’ve seen those types of gestures before…..but where?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Q-6H4xOUrs&feature=related


  49. Zooey says:

    Asked by Bill Press to respond to Inhofe last week, Franken simply replied, “I don’t know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment.”

    Priceless.

    Welcome to Washington, Senator Franken!


  50. labman57 says:

    Jrzguy, you no not of what you speak.
    The clip is from a comedy routine in which Franken is doing a caricature of another person.


  51. Leftside Annie says:

    *This* – coming from a pathetic homeskooled moron who believes that Adam and Eve rode around on dinosaurs….?

    OK. Whatever.

    *eyes rolling*


  52. Bill-SOCAL says:

    What needs to be kept in mind here is that the good people of Oklahoma return the Honorable Senator Inhofe to office. And THAT is what should have people worried.

    It is not that there is a intellectually challenged Senator, but that there is such a person who is repeatedly elected by his constituents.

    6 years as the mayor of Tulsa, 7 years in the House and now 15 years in the Senate. Perhaps Oklahoma should consider a change in their motto from the “Sooner State” to the Moron State.


  53. LividLib says:

    “Franken simply replied, “I don’t know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment.””

    You can be sure Sen. OnOffe is still scratching his head over that remark. “Just what is that supposed to mean?”

    Way over that cretin’s head!


  54. misscoleopteramolly says:

    evangenital Says
    July 8th, 2009 at 11:21 am

    Everytime the holy rollers start in on the Adam and Eve crap, I ask them how the human race could have been started, given that Adam and Eve only had two sons, Cain and Abel.

    Was incest somehow involved?

    The holy rollers never answer my question. They just threaten me with eternal hellfire, the prime motivator for their cult.
    _____________________________________________________________

    You need to talk to some holy rollers who read their bible a bit more. Most can give you more information (including correcting the erroneous assumption that Adam and Eve only had two offspring) before threatening you with hellfire and damnation.

    According to bible scholars, Adam and Eve had many sons and daughters, who married each other and bore future generations (yes, there was incest involved — they didn’t have much choice, you know).

    The most significant of Adam and Eve’s offspring was their third son, Seth. He was the ancestor of Noah, and as all other lines of Adam and Eve died out in the Great Flood, Seth is the common ancestor of all of us.

    After you’ve gotten this information from them, you can ask about carbon dating and the true age of the earth. For good measure, you can ask why God created plant life on the third day, but didn’t create the sun until the fourth day. THEN they’ll threaten you with eternal hellfire.


  55. Tawdry says:

    Jrzyguy – (TP) The NRSC has a new ad out today trying to make Franken look crazy and angry. As Dave Weigel notes, the footage is distorted. Franken was actually telling a touching anecdote about the late senator Paul Wellstone. To justify the ad, the NRSC pointed to the diaper photo and said, “We’ll certainly consider substituting it for this one if they would prefer though.” When journalists pointed out that the photo was doctored, the NRSC simply replied, “You’ll note the link is to the Los Angeles Times, one of the largest newspapers in the country – if there’s a question about the authenticity of the photo, you should direct your question to the LA Times.”
    ————————————
    Whose the clown now, idiot.


  56. howdynellie says:

    Fish eyes , red face. Inhofe looks like a full blown alcoholic . Acts like one too! Can spot one from a country mile.


  57. LizCoro says:

    Actually if you look at Inhofe’s face, he’s the one who looks like a clown . .

    Just imagine the white paint and red painted smile on the pointy head . .

    Ringling Bros. would hire Inhofe on the spot!


  58. ralph the wonder locust says:

    labman57 Says:
    Jrzguy, you no not of what you speak.
    The clip is from a comedy routine in which Franken is doing a caricature of another person.

    ctually, it’s from a campaign rally in which Al was joined by the son of the late Sen. Paul Wellstone.

    The gestures that the RNC (and now jrzguy) sought to use to portray Al franken as a maniac are actually from a part of Al’s speech in which he relates a story about Sen. Wellstone running alongside his son at a cross-country meet, urging him to pass the runner ahead of him.

    Isn’t creative editing fun, jrzguy?

    Of course, no one with any smarts accepts it as a reflection of reality…


  59. ralph the wonder locust says:

    Bill-SOCAL Says:

    Perhaps Oklahoma should consider a change in their motto from the “Sooner State” to the Moron State.

    You mean, they should make it official?


  60. Par4 says:

  61. DeanOR says:

    I really don’t think Inhofe is wise to draw attention to how any Senator earned a living, since he was a “land developer” and president of an insurance company, i.e. anti-environmental, greedy, rip-off jerk. If any Senator is a clown, in the derogatory sense, it is James Inhofe.


  62. linkwray says:

    Historically speaking clowns evolved from court jesters who evolved (rather quickly) from those who actually told morons like Inhofe and other powerful figures how stupid they actually were. Inhofe proves that J.S. Mill was correct when he said ” While not all conservatives are stupid, most stupid people are conservative.”


  63. jkrog says:

    Franken’s wry comment about Sen. Inhofe promises more of the same. Franken deflected the attack with an apt joke.

    Do morons dare to attack Franken’s character, or what?

    What a delight to have more intelligence on the Washington scene!


  64. TXProgressive says:

    To comment in terms that Mr. Infhofe might be able to comprehend… it takes one to know one.


  65. ralph the wonder locust says:

    So did our friend jrzguy cut and run after getting spanked on his RNC vid?


  66. dbadass says:

    ROTFL, look at that picutre! Who is he to talk! LOL


    Another great nonpost. Still the ROTFL opening is really summed up with the LOL closing. Really pulls this piece together sort of the way Lebowski’s rug did…


  67. Daddy-O says:

    This Inhofe guy…look at his face. Man, are his eyes just a little too far apart, or what?

    ha ha


  68. Winski says:

    Inhofe not only looks like a clown, but IS a clown…even his own constituents think so…


  69. eyeswideopen1 says:

    They are gonna have a tough time trying to win media battles with a sharp witted former professional comedian who also happens to be very intelligent and knows his stuff.


  70. Cleo says:

    Well folks, just remember Inhofe was drunk when he said it.


  71. Daddy-O says:

    Franken ought to take his solid oak cane, wait until Inhofe isn’t looking while Inhofe’s sitting at his desk, sneak up behind him, and beat the crap out of him, leaving him in a partial coma, unable to perform his duties or vote as a Senator until his term expires.

    Or horsewhip him. That would work. Jeez, people, this is nothing that hasn’t happened on the floor of the Senate, ALL THE TIME–at least in the 19th century, I mean…Senatorial tradition, that’s what it’s all about.


  72. ralph the wonder locust says:

    dbadass Says:
    ROTFL, look at that picutre! Who is he to talk! LOL


    Another great nonpost. Still the ROTFL opening is really summed up with the LOL closing. Really pulls this piece together sort of the way Lebowski’s rug did

    Dude.


  73. ralph the wonder locust says:

    … or His Dudeness, Duder or El Duderino if you’re not into the whole brevity thing…


  74. dbadass says:

    Ya know ralph it dawned on me to make that correction just as i hit the submit button.


  75. ralph the wonder locust says:

    I hate it when that happens, dbadass.


  76. Buckie Boy says:

    Well, Inhofe looks like a complete As$hole to me…go figure.


  77. Perry logan says:

    The Repubs need a clown. They’re lookin pretty bummed these days.


  78. maxcochran says:

    Listen, I am from Oklahoma and I really don’t appreciate some of he comments being made about the State. It appears to me that the progressives can be as cruel and hard hearted as their conservative brethren. The problem is that Imhoff is backed by Big energy concerns and the religious right. These are well entrenched interest here. It is difficult to counter these interests without support. I haven’t seen much outside support. The progressive establishment has pretty much given up on Oklahoma as a lost cause. That is a big reason why Imhoff keeps getting re-elected.


  79. pags2 says:

    I can’t figure out how Republicans think they can sell the voters stupidity as their vision for America.


  80. okie dokie says:

    Inhofe seems to feel it is necessary to express his dislike for anyone that doesn’t agree with him unless you pay him to behave otherwise.

    And how do you expect him to look after 15 years of having his lips locked on dubya’s but?


  81. ralph the wonder locust says:

    maxcochran, you have our sympathies. There are a couple other Oklahomans who post here regularly, as I recall. Unfortunately, as long as you guys are represented in the Senate by the best comedy team in the country, you’re gonna have to deal with the humiliation.

    But your charge of no outside help seems a little off base. I know DKos gave Andrew Rice a lot of support in the last campaign.


  82. The Shadow says:

    Look Senator Inhofe, you look like an A–hole, so do you want Sen. Franken calling you one in public?


  83. eyeswideopen1 says:

    pags2 Says:

    I can’t figure out how Republicans think they can sell the voters stupidity as their vision for America.

    Because (sadly) it has worked well for them in the past. The new generation is much more media savy and have access to more sources of real facts so it is much harder for these clowns to BS them like they have in the past.

    They are trying hard to adapt though. Case in point, they now have their own 24hour cable news channel and various reich-wing websites to spread their spew. They still stick with the same basic principles. Keep repeating the same lies over and over again and get it to echo from various sources until people start accepting it as truth.


  84. okie dokie says:

    maxcochran, just saw your post.

    ralph twl- Actually the national Dem party gave Rice minimal support compared to what the GOP gave Inhofe. And his campaign had KKKarl written all over it. They made Rice look like a gay socialist terrorist.


  85. dannylauve says:

    It’s pretty obvious who the bigger is man here and who feels threatened by clowns….


  86. dannylauve says:

    It’s pretty obvious who the bigger man is here and who feels threatened by clowns….


  87. WillWrite4Food says:

    Hence why the GOP is a superminority in Congress


  88. Doc Rock says:

    Inhofe is the Senate’s biggest clown–he’s just a tragic one, not at all funny. He believes that global warming is orchestrated by Voldemort.


  89. SP Biloxi says:

    “Inhofe defends calling Franken a ‘clown’: ‘He kind of looked like a clown when I was talking to him.”

    A clown comment from a clown. Welcome to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Senate, Senator Al Franken.


  90. austininc4 says:

    If Sen. Inhofe, would like to see a real “CLOWN”, he should take a look at the picture of G.W. Bush he has in his office. Or better still, in could look in the nearest “MIRROR.”


  91. PissedOffVeteran says:

    Thank you senator McBoxofRocks (R) BatshitCrazyLand

    KMAMF


  92. ctcadguy says:

    I would love to see Franken match wits with any of these simpleton fascist Rethugs.


  93. flight says:

    Asked by Bill Press to respond to Inhofe last week, Franken simply replied, “I don’t know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment.”

    }}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

    One of the greatest pleasures in life is a person with a first class wit. Franken demonstrated his craft and outclassed the hillbilly from the Oaky. Inhofe may still trying to figure it out.

    I will take a first class clown over a stupid buffoon any day!


  94. bsober says:

    Wow, bring it on Mr. Imhole. I would love to see how you would stand up in ANY debate with this clown! Just more from the junior high crowd in the GOP.


  95. Tim Vaculik says:

    Franken isn’t a clown, he’s a JOKE…


  96. Tenebrae says:

    That’s okay, whenever Imhofe’s talking, he kinda SOUNDS like a clown!



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