progressreport.org
2/23/2005
O'REILLY'S RAMPAGE: Fox News host Bill O'Reilly is on the
rampage again, this time against imaginary government-funded breast
reduction surgeries for men. MediaMatters reports that O'Reilly falsely
accused California's state government of financing "'breast reduction
surgery for men,' 'transgendered surgeries,' and cosmetic surgeries like
facelifts and nose jobs." (http://mediamatters.org/items/200502230002) In
reality, the San Jose Mercury News set the record straight last June,
reporting, "A state prison inmate who was reported to have had
breast-reduction surgery at taxpayer expense was instead operated on to remove
a tumor
(http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/8826055.htm)
." O'Reilly was taking issue with an effort by Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger and other California legislators to lobby for more federal funding,
particularly homeland security money, of which the state receives less
per capita than Wyoming
(http://www.stateline.org/stateline/?pa=story&sa=showStoryInfo&id=419375)
. "[W]hy should we give him [Schwarzenegger] our money when the Golden
State has lost control of spending?" O'Reilly asked. Yet, as
MediaMatters states, "California is one of 18 states that paid more in federal
taxes
(http://www.latimes.com/news/local/politics/cal/la-me-budget15feb15,1,4286500.story?coll=la-news-politics-california)
in fiscal year 2003 than it received in funding, [meaning]
Schwarzenegger would first have to receive his state's own money back before he
could begin to target 'our money.'"