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Howard Dean was on Fox News Sunday this morning, where he blasted the network for what he called racist, phony, crap stories. Dean said, “I think Fox News did something that was absolutely racist…They have been pushing a theme of black racism with this phony Black Panther crap, and this business, and Sotomayor and all this other stuff.”

Here is the video courtesy of Media Matters:

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Dean said, “Let’s just be blunt about this. I don’t think Newt Gingrich is a racist, and you’re certainly not a racist, but I think Fox News did something that was absolutely racist. They had an obligation to find out what was really in the clip. They have been pushing a theme of black racism with this phony Black Panther crap, and this business, and Sotomayor and all this other stuff. Look, the Tea Party called out their racist fringe, and the Republican Party has got to stop appealing to its racist fringe, and Fox News is what did that. You put that on.”

A whole lot of people including some Fox News viewers agree with all the points that Howard Dean made. Fox News is finally getting called out for their endless race baiting. The network is guided by ideological, not journalistic principles, and Dean was correct to tie their Shirley Sherrod story to other instances of race baiting at FNC. The Fox News spin is that they did nothing wrong. They were responsible in their coverage, and according to Glenn Beck, Fox News got the story right. If by getting the story right, he means getting it completely wrong then he is correct. FNC has also claimed that they are the real victims of racism, not Shirley Sherrod.

Now is the time for everyone with a voice to be decrying the racist tactics of Fox News. The strategy to open up old wounds and divide America based on race has been going on since the 2008 general election campaign. Republicans believe that if they can divide this country along racial lines, they can turn the 2012 presidential election into a tossup. The reality is the GOP base, which consists of white male voters, is so solidly outnumbered, that the end result of this strategy could actually be shrinkage in support for the GOP. Howard Dean showed some real guts by calling out Fox News on their own program, and now is the time to turn up the heat in order to ensure that their attempts at the ugly politics of racism do not divide us