Ben Shapiro Loses Sponsors Over 'March for Life' Appearance
Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro’s speech at the March for Life on Friday has cost him a second sponsor.
Quip, a maker of toothbrushes, pulled its ads Friday. Later in the day Calm, a relaxation and meditation app, announced that it too would stop advertising on Shapiro’s podcast.
Shapiro came under fire for comments about the idea of aborting Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.
The Daily Wire editor-in-chief told the crowd at the Washington, D.C., march that “no pro-life person would kill baby Hitler” because “baby Hitler was a baby.”
The Huffington Post was the first to report that Quip was distancing itself from Shapiro.
“Our mission is to make good oral health more accessible to everyone, and podcast advertising is one way we’re able to realize this,” Quip said in a statement. “However, following one of our ads being read in a venue we did not endorse, we have chosen to discontinue our advertising relationship with this show. We are also taking steps to ensure all of our advertising partners are aligned with our oral health mission and values.”
Calm tweeted its decision.
“We do not align with this message. We’re pulling our sponsorship,” the company said.
We do not align with this message. We’re pulling our sponsorship.
— Calm (@calm) January 19, 2019
Shapiro was broadcasting live during Friday’s march, the biggest annual event of America’s pro-life movement, when he began a discussion of “baby Hitler.”
“The argument, I guess here, is that would you kill baby Hitler?” Shapiro said.
“And the truth is that no pro-life person on earth would kill baby Hitler, because baby Hitler wasn’t Hitler, adult Hitler was Hitler. Baby Hitler was a baby.
“What you presumably want to do with baby Hitler is take baby Hitler out of baby Hitler’s house and move baby Hitler into a better house where he would not grow up to be Hitler, right? That’s the idea.”
Self-described “progressive activist” Jordan Uhl tweeted a short clip of Shapiro’s comments.
Ben Shapiro at March for Life: “The truth is no pro-life person would kill baby Hitler. Baby Hitler was a baby.” pic.twitter.com/PPgQcbWSrq
— jordan (@JordanUhl) January 18, 2019
It wasn’t long before “#babyhitler” was trending on Twitter and Shapiro was being bombarded with criticism.
The pro-life march probably would have come across as more principled talking about all the migrant and refugee children around the world than whether or not baby Hitler should have been killed
Maybe extending an invite to @benshapiro to speak wasn’t the best idea
— Jeremy Louis (@JeremyLevine92) January 19, 2019
Anti-choice rightwing creeps like Shapiro think children should only be killed in schools, with unregulated firearms, like God intended.
— Mark Hughes (@markhughesfilms) January 18, 2019
I don’t even know what to say other then that’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard and I hope there’s actually more to the exert or point then that.
— ASpoone_Fit_Chick (@AmySpoonemore) January 19, 2019
Shapiro responded Friday by saying Uhl cut his remarks “completely out of context.”
In re: baby Hitler – thanks to @JordanUhl for cutting 21 seconds completely out of context. The argument was simple: pro-choicers sometimes argue that abortion lowers crime rates. It is immoral to kill children because of what they might become in the future.
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) January 18, 2019
Hence the baby Hitler reference. Now, I’m sorry that some people are wildly intellectually dishonest or idiotic and pretend not to understand the argument. But I’m glad they were born all the same!
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) January 18, 2019
“Here’s the good news: you don’t have to take my word for it!” he tweeted. “Simply watch the entire video or listen to today’s podcast, in which I say all of this. Or, alternatively, keep lying.”
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
