Juan Williams Insists He Isn’t Liberal, Just A “Foil”

Juan Williams hit it off with the I-man on the July 11 broadcast of Imus in the Morning.  Apparently, Williams, who was fired by NPR in 2010, is the “foil” for the conservative personalities on Fox News.  When Imus asked if Fox News was “right wing,” Williams responded with “given what I’m up against, I think that’s the way it comes across. If you’re arguing politics with Krauthammer and Brit Hume or Eric Boiling or Dana Perino–everybody’s on the right so you say, hey, wait a minute there’s another way to think of this. But, in general, I don’t know I would define myself as a liberal. I know most of the audience wouldn’t –But obviously, that is my job to be a foil for strong right-wing views.”

However, while midway through the interview when Imus and Williams were talking about the real criticisms with Fox News, Mr. Williams reiterated that Fox News does disseminate serious content with journalistic integrity, especially in their six o’clock slot [Special Report], but then made a bizarre statement concerning how he was able to be on the network due to his conservativeleanings.  This coming from a man who claims to be “foil” for “right wing views.”

DON IMUS: That’s my point. That is the point I was going to make, that you sort of clumsily made, the point is that if you look at Megyn Kelly, although she can freak out once in a while but not very often. But if you look at Megyn Kelly and you like at Shep smith –oh my god—I mean Shep smith can turn into a commie sometimes. If you look at those news programs — or Bret Baier — those are news programs. I mean—I would say what it is. But I mean when somebody derides and disparages fox news, they really mean Hannity or they mean some of these other nuts, you know.

JUAN WILLIAMS: Well Sure

IMUS: I can’t tell you how it irritates me. And I have no dog in this. I don’t care.

WILLIAMS: If you want to put it that way, we’re like brothers; yeah you’ve got a dog in it because I’m your dog on this one.  I mean I’m there; I’m there every day. So I wouldn’t exist. Now Let’s just put the shoe on the other foot. Imagine — imagine for a second that my job was to come in and to be a personality on, let’s say, another major cable news network and they say oh you know what? He’s pretty conservative, because I’d be pretty conservative over there, i don’t think I’d get past the parking lot because they don’t want any personalities that aren’t –you know—with the program. But on Fox I exist. I’m one of the team.

On the one-hand, Williams insists he’s a liberal foil, but that he’s too conservative for CNN or MSNBC. That’s quite an indictment from a liberal about how far Fox’s competitors are.