'Saps' of our nation rise in the spring: Olbermann mocks Beck, Palin

Beck: 'I'm sick and tired of being called a Nazi'

The Fox News host most likely to invoke Nazi imagery to smear his targets doesn't like it when the steel toe-tipped boot is on the other foot.

Glenn Beck joined Sarah Palin in speaking to NRA members in Charlotte over the weekend. MSNBC's Keith Olbermann ripped the Fox News personalities while reviewing their speeches Monday: "The sap in the trees rises come spring and so do the saps in our national discourse."

In his usual animated style, Beck told NRA members, "The old hatreds are starting to come back in Europe and that's not who we are. I'm sick and tired of being called a Nazi because that's not the right in this country. The right in this country is small government. Nazism is National Socialist Worker's Union. It's giant government," Beck said shrilly while flailing his arms at the audience.

"Yell louder and move your hands more if you want to not be mistaken for a Nazi," snarked Olbermann, who has been mocked in a similar fashion for rants on fascism by Comedy Central's Jon Stewart and Ben Affleck on Saturday Night Live (links with videos).

Beck continued, "They're dividing us. I've got news for you. If the people will pull their heads out of the sand and look at the people we have running our country, these are not Democrats. These are revolutionaries. They are Marxist revolutionaries. They are not Democrats. We need to make sure we reach out to the good Democrats and say are you a revolutionary Marxists? No. Good, then stand up, man."

Only days before, Comedy Central's Lewis Black called out Beck for his overuse of Nazi imagery.

"Glenn Beck is offended!" announced Black Tuesday night. "Glenn Beck thinks playing the Nazi card is going too far. Glenn Beck. this is a guy who uses more Swastika props and video of the Nuremberg rallies than the History Channel."

Olbermann also mocked Palin for saying that the truth is "Bambi's mother is dinner" and then later "spending two-and-a-half minutes reading 'You might be a redneck jokes off of her...Blackberry."

"You thought I was going to say hand, didn't you," Olbermann joked, alluding to Palin's addiction to writing on her hands and calling it Christlike.

This video is from MSNBC's Countdown, broadcast May 17, 2010.