Glenn Beck Thinks that the US Bought Alaska in the 1950s

Bad things always seem to happen when Glenn Beck and history collide. The latest example occurred today on FNC’s Fox and Friends, where Glenn Beck claimed that the United States bought Alaska in 1950s so that we could drill for oil. Beck apparently got Alaska’s date of purchase and the year that it became a state confused.

Here is the video courtesy of Think Progress:

Beck was talking about the energy bill when he said, “You know Donald Trump, I want to talk to this guy. When he was on the show just a few minutes ago I was thinking how can you not be laughing at us? How can the world not be laughing at us? We have all these resources. Why did we buy Alaska in the 1950s? We bought Alaska for the resources. And now we say no!”

The term Seward’s Folly refers to the purchase of the Alaska Territory by former Sec. of State, William Seward in 1867. Alaska became a state in 1959. How can anyone take Beck seriously when he thought that the United States bought Alaska in the 1950s? Beck is the Sarah Palin of right wing talk show hosts. I don’t know what’s worse, the fact that Beck knows nothing about history, or that the other two people in the conversation didn’t bother to correct him.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

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Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association