COMMENTARY | Ted Nugent, the rocker, hunter, and gun rights activist has attracted the attention of the Secret Service, according to the Washington Post, for some remarks at a recent National Rifle Association Conference.
In a speech that was an impassioned plea to elect Mitt Romney, which included a demand to chop peoples' heads off, Nugent concluded by saying, "If Barack Obama becomes the next president in November, again, I will either be dead or in jail by this time next year."
That statement has been interpreted by Democrats as Nugent suggesting that he intended to go all grassy knoll on the president. Nugent has denied that was his intent and has promised to cooperate with the Secret Service in whatever investigation it intends to conduct.
Of course Democrats have immediately demanded that Mitt Romney repudiate Nugent's statement, which the campaign dutifully did, albeit tepidly. Suzi Parker, writing for the Washington Post, was more upset that Nugent called House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, "Varmints."
Mind, that was rude, but it does not rise to the level of what Bill Maher calls women like Sarah Palin every week on his HBO show. While Nugent has endorsed Romney, it has not been reported that he has given him a million dollars. In the contest of whose supporters are meaner to women, Obama still wins hands down.
Going back to the prediction that Nugent made about being in jail or dead because of Obama's reelection, one could think of all sorts of fanciful reasons besides the aging rocker's hunting the biggest game of all. Doubtless this was Nugent just mouthing off and there was nothing implied or threatened besides a good shock line.
The one fact that destroys whatever comparison between Nugent and Maher is that Nugent is a far better musician than Maher has ever been a comedian. Generations of rock fans have loved Nugent's music, which is mainly about drugs and debauchery. Maher has never been particularly successful or funny as a comedian, resorting to trying to get laughs by making more and more outrageous statements while toadying to liberal power brokers.
Neither should be told to stop or to be prevented from performing as they make pretty good bad examples.
