Dick Armey is an old toad.

I'm actually working from home and caught it, too. I nearly lost my lunch.

Armey, of course, is the same class act who once referred to Barney Frank as "Barney Fag."

Couldn't believe what I was seeing.

Hi

Yes, I saw the show.

Check out the post, "The Princess and the Rat"

Pierre

Good post Toni. As depicted in Michael Moores' book. This country is filled with Stupid White Men..

I'm trying to embed the video, but having a heck of a time!!!

Joan Walsh is pure class. Dick Armey is pure ass.

Thanks Kerry, for the embedding! :-)

Glad you copied my post and got the cover.................

What a condescending old fucker he is.

Well said Sandra!

Kerry, you're kidding me? He called Barney Frank, Barney Fag? Armey is truly a class act!

Saw it. Dick has a well deserved reputation at being the most arrogant man in the world. Also the most insensitive and uncaring. He is worth less than the sweat off my hairy ass. And that's the kindest thing I can say about him.

Toni... you are a class act... thanks for your email note.

My statement of "class act" about Toni is a compliment... I just notice their are comments about Armey that are not.... I should have used a different phrase.... like an honorable lady.

You're making me blush, really you are. You seem like a fine man yourself.

Of course, Dick Armey was a fool and not for the first time. I was more disgusted with the lack of moderation by the moderator, Chris Matthews. What's the matter with him? Why is he so often intimidated by right wing dittos?

Anyway, Joan Walsh took them both on and won, and without even having to use a shoe! Bravo, Joan!

seen it, what a arrogant,sexist statement to make.
i hope his wife,"Vagina Coastguard" slap's his glasses off his face when he get's home.

michael walsh (no relation)

I just watched this. I can't believe Armey said that to her. I wish Joan had been close enough to whack him upside the head. What an asshole!!!!!!! Joan owes him a huge dis.!!!!!!

(I mean I watched it "live" on Hardball which I do almost every night. I do wish Chris would stop interrupting all the time, though)

Right on Joan!! Dick Armey is a complete jerk; no class whatsoever. You however, are a class act and I LOVED watching you disarm him today; in fact, I've watched it twice.

Keep on speaking the truth :)

Chris does interrupt his guests quite a bit, but I think that he rather enjoys the sparring (however nasty) between his guests.

That was the most incredible display or ignorance, arrogance and sexism that I've seen in a long time.

Dick Armey must have been experiencing some type of 50's flashback or something.

Kudos to Joan for maintaining her professionalism

I haven't been angry or upset for decades, but something about that old jerk's treatment of Joan set me off, so much so that I've been searching for places to rage ever since I saw it. The hubris! The arrogance! The stupidity! The chauvinism! I've already written to Hardball, and I'm saving my choicest language for Armey himself. Wonder if he's capable of recognizing what a colossal mistake he made.

But kudos for Joan Walsh. Thank you for a serious, graceful, strong, wise response to a turdly blunder. The winner and loser in this bout are perfectly clear.

Well, Dick Armey confirmed tonight once again what a total waste of humanity he is. Chris Matthews should have stepped in and asked him to apologize on the spot or leave the set.

Joan Walsh ... you are truly a class act! Not sure how you kept your composure while being verbally assaulted by Dick Armey.

We need civilized discourse in this country now more than ever. Armey is the past. Let him fade into the Texas sunset ... hopefully very quickly. The irony is that HE is the paid political hack. Let's move forward without him quickly. We will be much better off without him!

About five of us (that I have seen) posted within minutes of the interview. Nice job getting the video up so quickly. I have noted this on my post. It's really got to be seen to be believed.

Armey has always been loutish in his regard for women.
A crusty fucker of a Bully.....

The sad part is that Republicans elected this guy. They think he's doing a great job, and they don't see anything wrong with his behavior. Remember that, when you interact with your friends and family members who voted Republican: this is what they choose. This is what they believe in. This is what they stand for.

Thanks Toni. Hey, it's not because Armey's white. He's just an old fart. And when is Chris going to get with it?

I've enjoyed Joan's appearances on Hardball for quite some time now. Today, when Armey launched his junevile tirade, I was watching from a treadmill and his behavior (almost literally) floored me. However, I was even more in awe at Joan's composure. Even on the rare occasions when I've disagreed with her stance on issues, she has always elevated the discussion on Hardball with her intelligence and class. After today, my respect for her has been elevated into the stratosphere.

Sick and stunned. Horrorfied. dick is a class act of a no class white man acting like he is somewhere over the rainbow in another land.

I think we all should write good ole dick letters and tell him of our appreciation for the 'kind' words he said to Joan.

I watched this with my mouth hanging open in disbelief. The arrogance of Dick Armey is beyond comprehension. I'm so proud of Joan for proving that professional wins over pompous any day.

I believe that kind of arrogancy needs a smacking down. Joan, you should have called him on the carpet. He obviously had nothing constructive to say so he tried a personal "attack". That's typical Republican tactics. If you can't win on intelligence, try to win on name calling or shouting over your opposition. Fact is, who would want to be Armey's wife? God Bless Her. She has much to bear.

Go Joan Walsh! My GF & I just picked our jaws off the floor when he said that "good thing you aren't my WIFE" and "PRATTLE" line!! Could that old dinosaur possibly be more blatantly sexist?? What a hoot! That clip should be on every TV set across his district next election--the ballot box being private, my bet is plenty of women who recognize their republican husbands in this toad's attitude would be up for a little vengeance transferance therapy on voting day...

OMG, I laughed out loud at his archaic sensibility. Does this man think it's the 50's or something?? Wow. What an idiot. How did you not fall out of your chair with contemptuous laughter, Joan? You have marvelous restraint, although there was a hint of disbelief in your face, like, "Really? Really?"

Armey was an embarrassment. I think the Republicans already miss Dubya's inanity and are trying desperately to fill the void. The may have better speaking ability, but they are promoting Dubya's legacy quite well.

Joan is where she is because she is smart, tough and classy. She never goes down to their level.

What a misogynistic pig. I love how he threw the wife thing in there...
....
But I think I might have just fallen for Joan ;)
Thanks for sharing the ass whoopin.
rated.

Joan rocks. Armey is a misogynist blowhard.

Toni - thanks for posting this.

God everyone, thank you. I still have a bad cold and it's in my ears, I'm serious, I had a moment of not being sure I was hearing right. And then my reaction was, What year is this?

I've gotten hundreds of emails, all of them nice, so it's rewarding to know that so many people see it the way we do. Armey and Rush really are history, tragic history, and we should treat them that way.

I did ask the producers when it ended: Was I OK? I didn't say "fuck," or anything awful, did I? They said no, I was great. Sigh.

God everyone, thank you. I still have a bad cold and it's in my ears, I'm serious, I had a moment of not being sure I was hearing right. And then my reaction was, What year is this?

I've gotten hundreds of emails, all of them nice, so it's rewarding to know that so many people see it the way we do. Armey and Rush really are history, tragic history, and we should treat them that way.

I did ask the producers when it ended: Was I OK? I didn't say "fuck," or anything awful, did I? They said no, I was great. Sigh.

This was hysterical...I watched Limbaugh on Hannity's show on Fox and it was not something that he would have to apologize for. She didn't say anything worth while in this little segment. The Armey guy was just telling her not to take it seriously because with any president comes insults. People bashed Bush so bad and people will do the same thing to Obama. Nothing makes him different or excluded from insults ...Obama is fair game just like any other president out there...

joan,will you marry me? you don't even have to change your name.
just kidding,but you truly are a class act.hats off to you for keeping your cool,unlike my wife (christine) if someone said a thing like that to her, would have come up side his head with the closest thing she could get her hands on.
way to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To quote a trashy novel I once read.....

"She may have called him "sir", but she pronounced it as "cur"."

Ever since he rose to a position of leadership in the House, I thought Armey was a dick; this merely cements his status in my mind.

At the risk of sounding overly vulgar, let me just repeat: what a dick.

I love your zeal, give 'em hell, Toni! I have a dream, one day I awaken and the Limbaugh's, and Armey's, and Gramm's have all gone pasture, and we actually live in a twenty-first century world of acceptance and adult dialogue. These guys are clueless, and passe. They just didn't read the memo.

What a fucking moron! Even I couldn't have predicted where that went, and I've grown up and loved among men like him almost my whole life. Unreal, yet real.

Why is an foolish old fart like Armey showing up on national TV? Does anyone take this guy seriously?

hi. sandra no longer miller, with an attitude like Frank's I doubt if he is a fucker of any kind, just a garden variety asshole.

Makes me want to change my name -- even though it's spelled Arney with an 'n.' Maybe back to the old country version von Arnim. Dang, still too close. Chris Matthew's junior high behavior says a lot about why he isn't being elevated beyond cable info-tainment. Armey's commentary says a lot about Dick Armey. Right on, Joan.
-sa

He better watch out. Everyone knows Joan carries a shiv...

Didn't we just get rid of one Dick? Perhaps it's the congressional tanning salon, Armey seemed a little "well-done" to me.

Grace under fire, for certain. I was wishing that someone would've hit the bastard over the head. Joan demonstrated with poise and class that she was better than that pinhead.

Ignorant, offensive and a loudmouth. Looks like Armey hit the trifecta.

Bravo Joan.

She handled this with grace, aplomb and eloquence. Obviously he felt threatened enough by her that he had make such a grossly sexist statement.

Chris Matthews should have had that Dick apologize, though.

Dick Armey makes me puke. I have a feeling an awful lot of women are really glad not to be married to that obnoxious old dickhead.

I'd really like to see him dig his own grave in Washington, metaphorically speaking. "Tomb of the well-known GOP Ass."

I just watch that horrid man [Dick Armey] on Hardball with Chris Matthews rerun. I was so mad I could have spit in his face. I love Joan and her sense of courage. I've seen her many times on Hardball and she never backs down. I commend you Miss Walsh On your grace in which you handled this ape of a man. I'm so sick of these old leftover's from the Bush era. I'm also suprised Chris didn't say something to Armey. He usually doesn't let fools get away with this crap. Of course if you've seen her before you know she can take care of herself. He [Armey] really made a fool of himself.
Hurray to Bob Herbert to make sure it didn't idly pass by. What a man. Thanks from all us women that were offended and couldn't smack Dick where it counts.

Armey, Rush Limbaugh, and Hebert are one and the same. And sadly, so is Joan. They are politicos. And deserve no pity.

Stellaa nailed it. The clubby way that Armey was talking over Joan to Matthews, all "WE men understand what should upset someone, this little lady is just too stupid to understand."

I bet he had no dick, I bet that's why he acts like this. He has no penis at all, he took so much Viagra it just blasted off and is now orbiting the earth. If you watch the western sky in March, you'll see it flaming as it re-enters the earth's atmosphere and drops with a plink into the Pacific.

I just got up in the middle of the night and am still so angry about this sexist pig remark that I am writing about it now. The Republicans are as horrific and the Wall street bankers. This is what led us for years, and we wonder why we are in the condition we are in today.

Brava Joan!

Joan Wash. WOOF. One can not help but notice that @ 8:48, you said the f- word 2- X's. You must have meant the D- word? DUCK. O Cluck?
If you say duck or fuck, 1- more times ...
You get ta`go-a, MD doc. OS QUACK.
In other words (not Mandarin), if YOU
seze: Dame, Duck, Cluck, Fuck, deleted...
Ya said that in public? O sh&t. WOOFS.

And another thing: Joan never was given the chance, between Chris Matthews(smart guy, but definitely jumps in before his guests may finish their thought!) and Armey constantly raising his voice, to finish what I think she wanted to say, in quoting Rush Limbaugh, and his notorious, ugly wish for President Obama. Rush Limbaugh actually said:
"I hope he fails.".
Between that kind of awful rhetoric, and the incredibly misogynistic comments from Armey towards Joan, it was all I could do to keep watching.
As many others here have commented, Joan definitely kept her cool, and once again, came across as the dignified, intelligent woman she is!

The repugnicans forget that half the human race is female.
The better half, apparently...

Did I call Dick Frank? I must be losing a few synapses. Sorry. cy

This guy is disgusting. So is Rush and I want to know why they have even the minimal power that they do. People need to do more complaining.

Dick Armey is not in elected office at present. He was a US Representative from Texas in the Gingrich years and had to leave office in some disgraceful situation. He was not a heavyweight, as will be no surprise to you. We do not have many heavyweights in Texas, just overblown, pompous, impotent white men and sweet, harmless, demuring women like Kay Bailey Hutchison. Texas has not had classy representation at any level of government since Anne Richards.

Armey is a has been; totally irrrelevent to today's issues. I cannot understand why Chris Matthews continues to have this blast from the past appear on his show from time to time. He tried to reduce the severity of our nation's problems to silly politics and posturing and, finally, "prattle". That is because it is all a game to Republicans.

I would want no apologies from either Armey or Matthews. If I decided to continue to appear on that show, I would be as outspoken and tough as I could and I would not accept Matthews' patronizing reassurrances that my comments were not "prattle".

I was going to make some kind of really smart comment here, when I noticed in Toni's list of friends blogs on the right, there is a picture of Joan Walsh with the blog "I Won."
Yes you did Joan. Yes you did.

Dick, is a dick.

Joan your hair looks great, btw. Love the new 'do.

I like Armey. He should be on TV more because he doesn't talk like a politician. He's willing to say unpopular things like a watered down Denis Miller. And he addresses false outrage, the tiptoeing everyone is forced to do because of political correctness. Is the Democratic platform wealth distribution? The top 50% pay 95% of taxes, most of which went to the bottom half until recently with the bailout via social programs, medicaid and medicare. Now that is not to say we should toss the elderly into the street, but it is easier for someone paying $40 a week in taxes to say we need more programs than someone paying $400 a week in taxes, or a teacher, who's income is derived from local, state or federal money. The founding fathers like Jefferson, Adams and Franklin revolted over a hell of a lot less taxes than the government is taking now.

Jim

I understand where you're coming from---I would much rather someone be genuine, than act like a phony. Right, Dick Armey is NOT a phony. His words are a genuine expression of his personal beliefs.

I think that the issue taken here is how he used insult to make a point. I'm still not sure what the point was of his comment toward Joan.

wow. I'm speechless.
This guy has got to go. Obviously he doesn't understand politics with a mouth like that.

I think we should all write to hardball@msnbc.com and suggest he publicly apologize. Otherwise, I promise, I am not turning my TV to MSNBC until time for Keith Olbermann.

When I heard Armey say that to Joan , I hooted out loud! The look on her face was priceless and I bet he got holy hell when he got back to his wife...you know, the one that IS his....ha!

I for one am glad Matthews didn't make him apologize as it would have added weight to the petty school boy comment...this way his words could just echo on and on in Armey's own little brain and in the minds and memories of everyone else!
Joan can and did hold her own. SHE wasn't the one who looked/sounded foolish, that's for sure!

Reminds me of a time in eleventh grade English after I had dared to verbally argue against a popular boy's inane interpretation of some passage or chapter..no one else dared to counter his stupidity...when I did, he yelled across the room "Linda, you're NEVER going to get married!" He was wrong. And wrong again.

Pathetic and dull old Dick Armey should be so lucky!

Ohhh shooot!!! IE truncated your title line and I read the whole article thinking it was Joan Walsh versus dick.

So much for speed reading!

'Political discourse is inane'.

Excuse me, CONGRESSMAN?

I've always asked myself how political discourse in the United States has reached such degrading lows. And now we know that is: because those to whom power and responsibility has been granted act like total jackasses.

Political 'discourse' shouldn't be inane, it should seek to address the issues of the day. Dick Armey and his idiot colleagues in Congress, alas, may not understand that.

Joan Walsh. Oh, that Chapeau ... hat that's on You.
The Wash/Post,
in today's Style's,
sorry? Ya gotta's,
Return? Yes. Ha!
The "groggy" hat?
No. Bow-buoyant!
The lovely grey wool, buoyant bow hat, that Aretha Franklin wore with with the huge, Swarovski crystal-encrusted bow that Aretha wore at the memorable:`Swearing-In... Sing-In... "My Country, 'Tis
of Thee" at President Obama's swearing-in... on Jan., 20.... Well. D!
The Smithsonian Institution asked Arethan to donate the BOW-hat to add to the Mchelle Obama's:` Jason Wu inaugural gown---? O. An

Exhibit?
Exhibit?
Yikes. If I was Aretha Franklin... I'd let the hat be lent out to folk like Joan Walsh. Why not? Joan Walsh, Dick Armey, Chaney, ETC., may borrow the bow-hat and smile in a looking-glass. I say: `Aretha should keep her pretty bow-chapeau. It was a Great ... Hat Chapeau crowning moments.
I'd keep the cute hat.
Keep lending the hat.
Joan Walsh? Return?
It's Aretha's? Return.
O I loved the bow hat.
Lend out. Mull. Keep?
I's lend a Alpaca wool?
I wear a silly black hat.
O well. My Friends say:`
`Hush. Quiet. 'Um pinch.
`Um pinch facial cheeks?
Then say:`shush. ha! huh?
I's way behind. sushi. huh.

To those who have e-mailed me @ Open Salon.
Please know ..?.. my curiosity ..!.. No scare cat?
My e-mail is broke. But, known Ya are renown.
In my mind ... Or, as in Noble. Beautiful. I bow.
As in ... 'Ya That Noble One. I's multi-taskin'in?
As in ...`Good gracious. I love ta' commune too.
As in ...`My teeth no chatter, O no run to torch?
Ya in ...`My thoughts, and if Ya heart's on fires?
heehaw.`No run in a barn ta' fetch, retrieve Ya?
huh. Yes! But, I'd no kiss Ya with garlic breaths?
heh. Ha Ha! Yup. Ya no need to translates Love.
If Ya House's ablaze ... rush back in for a teeth?
No. Love Ya who did e-mail, and know? O Know!
Know. Know. Know that my sense is Yes! O Bless,
and if I can get a few things fixed (spider no), Yes.
I'd no be devious, and Yes, discreet, and e-mail Ya.
Translate? Ask a turbaned cabbie? Oh, a J. Walsh?
I got real teeth. I crawl in a crib like a spider? Yikes.
I'm innocent as I (humanly) can be. I love reaching.
But, what's ` a purpose of reaching for a foul duck?
huh. Thanks for asking/inviting ~ To Join The Fun.
I'll figure out how to get the e-mail fixed? I do hope.
I no ogling, but I'd sure tenderly "pinch"`Ya cheeks?
So, I'm saying:`Thanks for those e-mails. `O Shofar.
I'll, I'm saying:`Thanks. I even love toothless Ladies.
Yes!
Let's all wish for thee best of luck. Oh, it's a Wild Willie?
A Wild Willie Mustard era. Is this a "text message? huh?
Bewildered? No. No bean the banter? O eat Lima beans.

and a brisk salute to Brian Wilson!