Welcome Instapundit refugees!  We realize you can’t comment over there, so feel free to do so here.  Before making the mistake of thinking that Reynolds has said something that bears repeating,  however, you might want to read up on what he dismisses as simply Fox’s "heavily-promoted coverage," like teabagging was the Olympics or something:

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To quote Gregg Levine, "What Part of “FNC TAX DAY TEA PARTIES” Don’t You Understand?"  But I guess we’re going to have to dive once more in to the obvious. 

Glenn Beck:

I’m going to also — and we’ll announce this later today — I’m going to do a fundraiser for them. I’m going to try to squeeze in a speech for lunch. So you can come and you can have lunch with me. And I think — I don’t know any of the details, but I’ve heard it’s like $500 a plate or something like that.

Reynolds says "if heavily-promoted coverage is the same as ‘financing’ then the MSM ‘financed’ Obama’s campaign."  Did I miss those $500 a plate fundraisers that Keith Olbermann and Brian Williams were throwing for Obama and promoting on air?  Somebody shoot me a link.

Media Matters:

TaxDayTeaParty.com lists Fox News contributors Michelle Malkin and Tammy Bruce as "Tea Party Sponsors." The sponsors section also lists American Solutions for Winning the Future, whose general chairman is Fox News contributor Newt Gingrich. Gingrich filmed a video "invitation" to attend the April 15 protests. 

And of course there’s Hannity:

Hannity has frequently promoted the April 15 protests by providing on-air information about the protests and encouraging viewers to "join us." Hannity has also encouraged viewers to "send us your ‘Tax Day Tea Party’ videos," which he said may be posted online or on-air. 

"Join us,"  not "join them."

Why not?  The Fox website is extremely helpful:

Fox News’ new website, The Fox Nation, has posted numerous links discussing and promoting the protests. One link, headlined, "Find a Tea Party!" links to results from Google Maps of "2009 Tea Parties." Another link, headlined, "Video: The Trillion Dollar Tea Party Video!" is an embedded YouTube video on Fox Nation’s website from the Tampa Bay Area Tea Party explaining why you should "join your local tea party.

As Media Matters has documented, Fox News and FBC have turned themselves into the all-teabag, all the time networks:

On April 9, one day after the release of Media Matters‘ report, Fox News’ Neil Cavuto and Beck discussed how "left-wing organizations like Media Matters" are "angry … at us for covering these protests." Jeez, why would anyone be angry that a "news" outlet is promoting, fundraising for, and taking part in political protests?

I’m fine with Fox both participating in and covering the teabagging, and I don’t think it means their coverage is automatically invalid because they’re involved.  It would be like saying Netroots Nation couldn’t be covered by Kos, or that CPAC couldn’t be covered by Snake Handlers Weekly.  What’s weird is Fox’s denial that they’re involved, which they clearly are, and even weirder is the bizarre way that the teabaggers themselves are desperate to distance themselves from Fox .

I can’t figure out if they genuinely need to believe that this is a "grass roots" movement that hasn’t been manipulated, packaged and paid for as part of a larger political agenda — or if they just think they do because Fox told them so.

If Reynolds wanted to claim that it was unfair to give all the credit to Fox when there was other big right wing money and organization floating the teabaggers, he’d actually have a point.  But I think he’s trying to pretend this is some kind of spontaneous populist uprising that Fox needs to cover because it’s ratings gold, akin to a Presidential election in the final days that any respectable news outlet must devote 24/7 coverage to.  Which is shamefully dishonest and cynically manipulative even for him.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled post.  But when you get back to Reynolds’ place, ask him if he’s subsidized by any individual or organization associated with or financing the teabaggers, ‘kay?  

Oh sorry, I forgot…you can’t.

Well, enjoy one of Blue Texan’s greatest hits 2006, wherein Glenn Reynolds explained to us all why the Democrats would lose. 

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It was great to be at the bank demonstration today, and one of the best things was getting to meet a personal hero, Bill Grieder (who will be here on the Book Salon on May 10). Despite the fact that it was rainy and cold, people turned up for the citizen-organized demonstration in front of the White House, and I had a great time. Many thanks to David Swanson for organizing it.  Jason Rosenbaum was there too.

After I was done speaking, a teabaggger asked me for an interview because I said the teabagger demonstrations were sponsored by Fox News and he wanted to know what proof I had. Since Bill was speaking not 10 feet away and I didn’t want to interrupt him by getting into a fight with some angry wingnut, I politely told the guy I’d talk to him afterwards.

He took off so I never got a chance to answer his question, and he’s now playing "gotcha" with his little wingnut buddies, because I guess my failure to provide proof on the spot is incontrovertible evidence that Fox had nothing to do with the teabag protests.

Yeah, wherever could I have come up with an idea like that:

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While discussing the April 15 protests on his April 6 program, Glenn Beck suggested that viewers could "[c]elebrate with Fox News" by either attending a protest or watching it on Fox News.

Fox is evidently upset and thinks they are being unfairly associated with the "FNC Tax Day Tea Parties," and so teabaggers are fanning out to prove it’s all a lie. Or something.

If it somehow makes sense to you, lemme know.

Update:  Moe Lane (who I often like) piles on with teh stupid.  Likewise AllahPundit who likes to dance, dance dance at the end of those Fox News strings. Macsmind joins the party, because it’s no fun to be a sheep if you’re doing it alone.  And John Stacy "War of Northern Aggression" McCain never minds looking like a simpleton for a good cause.  (Funny, I just am not getting any trackbacks on any of these posts.)

Update II:  People have tried to go over to Little Mr. Teabagger’s site and answer his question, but he doesn’t appear to be approving those comments.  So sad to go to all that trouble to put that video together and be AWOL in your big moment.   As for Instaputz — well, he doesn’t take comments now does he.

Update III:  The Brave Little Teabagger is blocking comments at YouTube too that don’t bear witness to his glory. 

Update IV:   Fox gives instructions on how to have good teabaggin’ at demonstrations they have nothing to do with.

Update V:  Comments finally liberated.