This article appeared in the November 27, 2019 edition of the Monitor Daily.

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Now on Fox News: How Thanksgiving can be bigger than politics

Mary Altaffer/AP
Jesse Watters (third from left) poses with co-hosts of Fox News' "The Five" during an appearance with sports broadcaster Terry Bradshaw (third from right) Oct. 10, 2019, in New York.

Today's five hand-picked stories examine the fairness of the rules of war, how floods affect a sense of home, how Bedouins had a change of heart about their own history, a novel view of the Sixth Commandment, and a different kind of relief effort in the Bahamas.

But first, regular viewers of Fox News’ “The Five” will know that co-host Jesse Watters and his mother do not see eye-to-eye on politics. Yet viewers will also know something else: how much Jesse Watters and his mother adore each other.

On this Thanksgiving eve in America, when so many are worried about how partisan politics might poison the family dinner table, Jesse and Anne Bailey Watters offer something to be thankful for.

Mr. Watters, a conservative, first started sharing his liberal mother’s furious texts with co-hosts behind the scenes. “Everyone just got a kick out of it,” he tells The Atlantic. So then the idea was hatched: What if he read them on the air? "Mom Texts" was born.

Some are classic mom material. When Mr. Watters wore a pink blazer, mom texted that he looked like a “ferris wheel operator.” But many are politically pointed. “Do not name call and parrot Trump’s insults. That is beneath you,” came another.

What never changes, however, is the mutual affection, even during the recent impeachment drama. “Please be assured that despite your WRETCHED political orientation I love you forever!” Mr. Watters read on air. Just maybe, the Watters family points to how Thanksgiving can be an antidote – not a casualty of partisan anger.


This article appeared in the November 27, 2019 edition of the Monitor Daily.

Read 11/27 edition
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