Dennis Miller: Liberal or Conservative?

[Marc.Knight]

I thought he was a liberal... was this a change to ensure the existence of an audience?

[Eddie Coyle]

Quite Liberal circa 1990...but moved towards the center in the 90's and then rightward after 9/11. Neo-con views on foreign policy. He was a brilliant comedian years ago, his "Black and White" HBO special from December,1990 was great. Not as funny these days, still prety good.

[onan]

Quite Liberal circa 1990...but moved towards the center in the 90's and then rightward after 9/11. Neo-con views on foreign policy. He was a brilliant comedian years ago, his "Black and White" HBO special from December,1990 was great. Not as funny these days, still prety good.

I agree with you, his ascerbic wit and vast knowledge of "liberal arts" makes him one of the brightest talkking heads out there. I am not sure how he lost his way. I do not mean about liberal or conservative but rather his sensibilities on entertainment. Brillaint satiricist to radio talk show host with a monkey... I dont get it.

A little trivia--his brother is one of the biggest talent agents in the Hollywood. He goes by the name Muss (sp) Miller and represented Jim Carrey, the Wayon brothers and others.

[MV/Liberace!]

i remember hearing miller fill in for hannity in september of 2003.  i believe it was his first foray into talk radio, and i recall wishing he'd replace hannity.  he was that good.  i'm glad he's doing a radio talk show.  it's totally up his alley.

[George Drooly]

Can't stand the guy. His whole f-ing career is based on him concluding every sentence with "...my friend" -- how is that funny? Plus he probably spends more time on his hair than Howard Stern.

[aquagoat]

I think some of his funniest stuff is whenever he is around Norm McDonald.  All the left/right stuff falls away, and they;re just two 13 yr olds. cussing up a storm,

Now if Miller AND Mcdonald ever could pitch a flyer fora  talk spot on the drive home shift -- -- bloody magic!

[Eddie Coyle]

I think some of his funniest stuff is whenever he is around Norm McDonald.  All the left/right stuff falls away, and they;re just two 13 yr olds. cussing up a storm,

Now if Miller AND Mcdonald ever could pitch a flyer fora  talk spot on the drive home shift -- -- bloody magic!

     Agree, they're great together, especially on Miller's old HBO show.

[TaoOfLuxLisbon]

Libertarian who got his balls snipped when Fat Druggie Rush whined about him getting the Monday Night Football job, calling it a vast left-wing conspiracy by ABC to push politics into sports. It worked, as mouth breathing middle America having never seen a second of his HBO show saw his semi-mullet and went apeshit. Granted, he was an awful fit, but he spent most of his time on MNF making obscure references to music and TV, not politics but the die was cast. Decided if you can't beat 'em, join 'em, now spends his time with his face buried in the lap of the unfunny and uncreative Bill O'Reilly on FOX as penance.

[rangers1919]

I think some of his funniest stuff is whenever he is around Norm McDonald.  All the left/right stuff falls away, and they;re just two 13 yr olds. cussing up a storm,

Now if Miller AND Mcdonald ever could pitch a flyer fora  talk spot on the drive home shift -- -- bloody magic!

I agree they are hilarious together. Some of my favorite Youtube clips are when Norm was appearing on Miller's show for a few minutes each week.

Miller is not a libertarian as someone stated though, he is an authoritarian. At times he was a self-identified libertarian in the way many others claimed to be, but this is ending, and was only because the conservative ideology he adhered to was in such disrepute after the Bush administration.

[Seamus Capone]

I'd pay to see a debate between Dennis Miller and Bill Maher. They're two sides of the same acerbic, acidic coin. They both look down on individuals who don't share their views. They have similar personalities, so it would be fun to watch if they engaged in a battle of wits.

[Seamus Capone]

It worked, as mouth breathing middle America having never seen a second of his HBO show saw his semi-mullet and went apeshit. .

Was that a parody of a "progressive" snob? If so, well done.

To answer the OP's question, Miller leans to the right on economic and military issues. He leans to the left on social issues.

[TaoOfLuxLisbon]

Was that a parody of a "progressive" snob? If so, well done.

I just calls it like I sees it. No offense was meant to non mouth breathing Middle Americans who don't spend their free time believing everything some millionaire drug addict that lives in a mansion in Boca tells them and made up their own mind about Miller's shortcomings as a booth jockey.

[The General]

I've been listening to Miller more and more recently.  I find his show to be entertaining.  And that's all I want anyway.  His show is entertaining in a way that a lot of the dried up old school radio guys could never be.  I really don't know how hannity or levin stay on the air.

[OilyManatee]

I never bought into Millers word play.

When his show first started here, the 'smart words' were less frequent. He slowly worked one in a day, often getting it all wrong and being corrected by his sidekick. He would literally pronounce a new word wrong and be corrected.

Learn a new word a week that sticks and you too can be Dennis Miller - promoter of "limited big government and maximum federal power" and self proclaimed wordsmith. Just spend a few dollars on a pocket thesaurus.

I never really enjoyed under the breath giggling and gasping that seemed to be laid on strong to kill time.

[Falkie2013]

I listen to Miller's rants on O'Reilly every week. He's brilliant and says stuff that no one else says about O'buma, the Chinese and God knows what else. His specials on politics are available on You Tube and he tears California a new one everytime he talks about the state I live in. * sigh *

[MV/Liberace!]

i first heard miller on the radio when he filled in for hannity in 2003.  he was 1000% more entertaining than the host he was filling in for, and i knew he'd soon have a show of his own.  sometimes when i'm at the office extremely late at night, i pass the time with his show.  very enjoyable and smart.

[The General]

He's very smart.  But it blew me away today to hear him say that he honestly thought Thanksgiving was a worldwide holiday.  WTF?  Don't you know history bro?  I do love his show, and we all say or think dumb shit sometimes, so... I forgive him.  He's smarter than I am, anyway.

[analog kid]

Everytime I hear him anymore I'm horrified at the amount of baloney being slung. Jesus this country is fucked.

[The General]

Everytime I hear him anymore I'm horrified at the amount of baloney being slung. Jesus this country is fucked.

I don't know about that, but I think your avatar is giving me a fucking seizure.

[Frys Girl]

I don't know about that, but I think your avatar is giving me a fucking seizure.

Seriously that avatar is a piece of garbage. I'd take a picture of poop over that. I used to read this blog about how law school is like a toilet and each post had a picture of poop in a toilet. Even that was more tolerable than this guy's (?!) avatar.

[The General]

Dennis Miller today on Herman Cain:

"The problem with the Cain Train is that it goes in and out of too many tunnels."

[West of the Rockies]

Boy, has this thread gone dry....  I listen to Miller for a few minutes several days a week.  I think he's pretty conflicted; he seems to run a little libertarian for one segment, fairly far-right the next, then a little liberal.  He also is starting to sound a little old when he starts reminiscing about Mitzi Gaynor and The Duke.  I think his average audience member has to be well past 50.  I also get a little tired of his vaguely hipster schtick:  "That Obama cat, I just don't get him.  I know the broads dig 'im, but I think he's in over his head."  Is he trying to channel Sinatra?

[analog kid]

Everytime I hear him anymore I'm horrified at the amount of baloney being slung. Jesus this country is fucked.

What a douchebag comment that was. Guaranteed to be drunken babble, but that's no excuse.

[West of the Rockies]

What a douchebag comment that was. Guaranteed to be drunken babble, but that's no excuse.

Hey, Analog... I'm a bit confused.  You quoted your own words adn then called them douchebaggish.  Did you click on the wrong comment or something?

[analog kid]

Hey, Analog... I'm a bit confused.  You quoted your own words adn then called them douchebaggish.  Did you click on the wrong comment or something?

No, I often look back at myself being an ass on the internet and cringe.

[West of the Rockies]

No, I often look back at myself being an ass on the internet and cringe.

Oh, I've been there before, too!   

[Eddie Coyle]

No, I often look back at myself being an ass on the internet and cringe.

          I'm very happy that I didn't get on "the Web" until December 28, 1998, when I was 23. I recoil in horror at my opinions as a teen/young adult. The 37 year old me wants to strangle the 17 year old me.

[West of the Rockies]

I listen to about half an hour of Miller a couple days a week on the commute home.  I think he clearly leans to the right, but now and again, he clearly is uncomfortable with how far to the right (and how divorced from facts) some of his listeners may be.  For instance, this week he took a call from some guy who said that Meals on Wheels was a huge and horrible disaster.  (This after several short calls in a row in which people were complaining about the government and, specifically, Obama's handling of that government). 

Miller -- clearly a bit vexed -- said (I paraphrase), "Well, I can't comment on that.  I think the program probably does lots of good for a lot of people.  I don't want to trash a program just because it is run by the government."

I've heard a couple such exchanges along these lines.  I'd love to know what Miller thinks of his former SNL castmate Victoria Jackson.  Is there a category for MIOWFBNIAEAI (Milf I once wanted to * but now I am embarred to admit it)? 

[Pragmier]

I think he's pretty conflicted; he seems to run a little libertarian for one segment, fairly far-right the next, then a little liberal.

Maybe he just sounds that way because we've been conditioned to only accept someone else's definition of how people are supposed to think. I find it a sign of a healthy mind that critics can't fit you into a box. And I don't mean you WoTR just talking general. I "lean left", but if I catch myself agreeing with every left talking point I know i've erred somewhere.

[West of the Rockies]

Oh, you have that right!  If I ever become a ditto-head for anybody, I'll know I've stopped thinking for myself.  I've heard Miller offer some pretty sage advice on things.  I've heard Keith Olbermann say some stupid things.  On the other hand, I pretty much never hear a Sean Hannity offer any meaningful commentary on anything, and I think that Rachel Maddow is pretty damn smart.  (I imagine if I spent a few hours with her, I'd hear a couple things I didn't agree with.)

I respect the fact that Miller can occasionally say 'no' to something a caller says (and not just a left-leaning caller).  It shows at least some effort to be honest about the topic being discussed.  On the other hand, I've heard a caller say something pretty silly ("Obama wants to take away all of our guns") and Miller won't challenge the caller.  It can't be easy, walking a tightrope such as a talk-radio show must do.  He knows the majority of his listeners skew a certain direction politically and cannot risk upsetting the base too much.  But it can't be easy listening to a bunch of people saying really stupid things.  This is what bugs me so much about C2C (and Noory).  A caller can say anything and Noory will essentially agree.  "The other day, George, I was watching TV and there was a knock at the door.  I went and answered it and it was Bigfoot selling Girlscout cookies!"  "That'th incredible!" comes Noory's response.