Who is Alan Grayson and why is he saying all these terrible things about Wall Street?

In this clip from a U.S. talk show, Grayson encapsulates the Occupy Wall Street movement in a bit more than 30 seconds. It’s enough to earn the back-handed respect of fellow panelist P.J. O’Rourke (a top-shelf satirist — remember “Parliament of Whores”? National Lampoon?).

OK, firstly, Grayson is a former member of Congress, hailing from central Florida. He’s a Harvard graduate who worked briefly as an economist before returning to Harvard to earn his law degree. He’s also a Democrat who was swept out of office this year after only one term in Capitol Hill, caught in the Republican riptide that regained control of the House.

And as you can see from this clip from “Real Time with Bill Maher,” his liberal mindset clicks with the stated grievances of the Occupy movement … not that the movement is sticking to script. From coast to coast in the States are tales of Occupiers whose targets of ire meander from Walmarts to school boards. Sometimes they make a powerful statement and sometimes they defecate behind a park hedge because there’s nowhere else to, um, go. Sometimes stuff is set afire.

Perhaps, as O’Rourke says, Grayson could be a rallying voice for the 99% movement. Perhaps. But first, he needs to lose that tie. Gnarly, dude.

Alan Grayson explains Occupy Wall Street