The muted response to Van Jones’ resignation says volumes about where progressives stand in the Obama administration and whether so-called outsiders have a role to play in shaping the administration’s policies. Judging by just how quickly the administration surrendered to Glenn Beck’s assault, Jones wasn’t really worth defending. What does that say about his ideas?

A recent story in AlterNet explores some of the ties between Astroturf groups and the FOX news campaign. Jane Hamsher at Firedoglake offers her take on why liberal institutions have distanced themselves from the whole affair. So what’s really at stake? And what does the Van Jones story reveal about American politics?

Ludovic Blain, Project Manager of Closing the Racial Wealth Gap Initiative, Rory O’Connor, co-founder of Globalvision and the author of Shock Jocks: Hate Speech and Talk Radio: America’s Ten Worst Hate Talkers and the Progressive Alternatives, Tim Wise, the author of Between Barack and a Hard Place: Racism and White Denial in the Age of Obama, and Jane Hamsher, the founder of Firedoglake discuss the recent developments and what their impact might be.