It's the Economy, Stupid

Seen at Brilliant at Breakfast.

Vote Republican.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

GOP Toons

Supersize it

Is This Legal?

Colorado Representative Tom Cole is offering Congressional Medals of Merit.....for a $500 donation to the GOP.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

Harold Meyerson Is Tired of His Job

The Op-ed columnist for the Post has penned his resignation, I think.

As Christians across the world prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus, it's a fitting moment to contemplate the mountain of moral, and mortal, hypocrisy that is our Christianized Republican Party.

[...]

My concern isn't the rift that has opened between Republican political practice and the vision of the nation's Founders, who made very clear in the Constitution that there would be no religious test for officeholders in their enlightened new republic. Rather, it's the gap between the teachings of the Gospels and the preachings of the Gospel's Own Party that has widened past the point of absurdity, even as the ostensible Christianization of the party proceeds apace.

[...]

[If] Bush can conform his advocacy of preemptive war with Jesus's Sermon on the Mount admonition to turn the other cheek, he's a more creative theologian than we have given him credit for. Likewise his support of torture.

[...]

It's not just Bush whose catechism is a merry mix of torture and piety. Virtually the entire Republican House delegation opposed the ban on waterboarding. Among the Republican presidential candidates, only Huckabee and the not-very-religious John McCain have come out against torture, while only libertarian Ron Paul has questioned the doctrine of preemptive war.

[...]

But it's on their policies concerning immigrants where Republicans -- candidates and voters alike -- really run afoul of biblical writ. Not on immigration as such but on the treatment of immigrants who are already here. […] The Bible isn't big on immigrant documentation. "Thou shalt neither vex a stranger nor oppress him," Exodus says the Lord told Moses on Mount Sinai, "for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt."

[...]

The demand for a more regulated immigration policy comes from virtually all points on our political spectrum, but the push to persecute the immigrants already among us comes distinctly, though by no means entirely, from the same Republican right that protests its Christian faith at every turn.

[...]

We've seen this kind of Christianity before in America. It's more tribal than religious, and it surges at those times when our country is growing more diverse and economic opportunity is not abounding. At its height in the 1920s, the Ku Klux Klan was chiefly the political expression of nativist Protestants upset by the growing ranks of Catholics in their midst.

It's difficult today to imagine KKKers thinking of their mission as Christian, but millions of them did.

[...]

The most depressing thing about the Republican presidential race is that the party's rank and file require their candidates to grow meaner with each passing week. And now, inconveniently, inconsiderately, comes Christmas, a holiday that couldn't be better calibrated to expose the Republicans' rank, fetid hypocrisy.

Enjoy your retirement Hal.

An Even More Frightening Possibility

Steve Bennen discusses what's lacking in the current crop of Republican candidates and suggests that the GOP nomination may go to none of the above. His possible suggestions? Jeb, Cheney, and Newt Gingrich.

The GOP might think twice about putting another Bush in so soon, but Cheney....well, he did find himself the fittest to be V.P.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

What's the Message?

I know I've been busy lately, but I can't believe it's been since Thursday that I've looked at Whatever It Is I'm Against It. Must be, though, because it was a Thursday post there that said everyone was having fun with the new GOP convention logo.

I think it was Keith Olbermann who said that the only time elephants get on their hind legs is when the male mounts a female. Perhaps the GOP is trying to suggest that it's not gay - that it's full of manly energy. (A commenter at W3IAI suggested we shouldn't say anything about the wide stance.)

But my firt impression and what I see when I look at this logo is a trained circus elephant, performing at the crack of the ringleader's whip.

Cutting and Running

Two Republican senators who oppose the administration's handling of Iraq have announced that they won't be seeking re-election. Nebraska's Chuck Hagel and Virginia's John Warner have just plain given up (although Warner was talking about running again as late as December of last year).

And who can blame them?

Politics GOP Style

What makes the Republican Party -- and the conservative movement more generally -- so attractive to closeted homosexual men?

Somewhere in the textbooks of psychosexual pathology there may be a straightforward answer, so to speak. Does the party draw closeted men because they can hide behind Republican homophobia? Or does the party promote homophobia as a political ruse while closeted men run the show?

  Salon

I don't think there's an "or" answer. I think it's an "and".

But I'm wondering if this doesn't fit into something much more sinister - a general climate of control through fear that today's Republican leadership seems to be overly fond of and that seems to be getting way out of control. Take for instance this story out of Denver:

A local couple is complaining that U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn left them two threatening voice mails after they wrote a letter criticizing his fundraising.

[...]

Apparently, Jonathan Bartha, who works for James Dobson's Focus on the Family, and his wife Anna, were disappointed when Lamborn voted against stricter dog-fighting laws. They wrote a letter to the editor, identifying themselves as conservative Republicans, and noting that Lamborn accepted campaign contributions from the gambling industry.

It prompted Lamborn to call the Barthas personally, leaving a message that said, "[T]here are consequences to this kind of thing, but I would like to work with you in a way that is best for everyone here concerned." Shortly thereafter, Lamborn left another message in which he said, "I'd rather resolve this on a Scriptural level but if you are unwilling to do that I will be forced to take other steps, which I would rather not have to do."

On a "Scriptural" level? Resolve what? Steps to do what?

I certainly hope that the Barthas make sure there are consequences to those mafioso-type phone calls.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

Political Scandals, Republican Style

Larry Craig's arrest seems an opportune time to tally. TPM has a current post and an ongoing docket keeping track.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

Still Another One!

Okay, I don't know about this...

First of all, don't tap your foot in a public restroom stall, men. That's a sign you want to have illicit homosexual sex.

Secondly, I would never imagine that tapping your foot in a public restroom would get you arrested, but it happened to Republican Senator Larry Craig (Idaho) at the Minneapolis airport. There must be more to the story, because he pled guilty to charges of disorderly conduct, even while claiming his actions were "misconstrued".

The guilty plea makes me think that indeed he was trying to have illicit homosexual sex. And if so....what in the world is it with all these Republican political officials getting caught in similar conduct lately? I might ask why so many closet Republicans, but I'm more concerned about why so many frigging stupid Republicans. With these types of scandals coming one after the other, wouldn't you be a little more cautious? Lay low for a while?

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

Update: A little more information makes it appear that Craig knew all the moves.

Party Dues

A reader of TPM alerts us to a scheme by the RNC via a letter received by the reader's father.

[click to enlarge]

The letter, it turns out, is just a misleading pitch for a contribution to the RNC -- one of the "irregularities" cited in the letter is that "I cannot find a record of you taking a single action in support of the Republican Party -- not locally, not nationally!" A contribution, the letter suggests, would help set the record straight.

  TPM Muckraker

That sounds very Gestapo-like to me. There are certain irregularities. We suggest you contribute to the party.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

Why Not Just Go With It?

There seem to be so many Republican "scandals" about somebody being caught in a homosexual relationship (or simple act), that I think the GOP ought just to go ahead and declare its gayness outright. Grand Old Pansies. Grand Old Peterpuffers. I don't know. Whatever. I'm all for letting people have whatever sexual preference they have and leave them in peace about it, with the exception of those whose preference is for children or sex by force. But the hypocritical stance of Republican officialdom is just setting them back.

The President of the National Young Republicans, under allegations of sexually harassing another man, has resigned from his post.

An older complaint, from 1988 alleged that Glenn Murphy, whose term at the helm of the group began last month, "had the blankets pulled up over the waist of [redacted] and was committing oral sex on him when he awoke."

Murphy sent an email to friends saying he was resigning from the post he has held for a month for business reasons.

  PageOneQ

Okay, boys. I don't think "sexual harassment" aptly describes what went on here. If it wasn't agreeable to the previously-sleeping party, that sounds like rape to me. But apparently the accosted man didn't feel it was that serious. Sexual harassment. Sheesh.

Murphy resigned for business reasons all right. No lie there.

Let's just not say that Republicans are anti-gay, when so many of them actually seem to be gay. They are simply anti-gay-rights.

Why do they hate themselves?

Flippancy aside. This is really a sad state of affairs, because it would seem that they do indeed have very low self-esteem and/or fear of being caught. Which, you might think, would inspire them, in their positions of political power, to push for equal rights, openness and liberty and justice for gays.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

GOP Family Values

Family machine gun shoot. That's what my family likes to do on weekends. The kids are just crazy about it.

For only $25, Republican party members attending a Manchester, New Hampshire, fundraiser scheduled for next month will get to spend the day on a firing range with some heavy-duty fire power, using some of the same machine guns as US troops fighting in Iraq.

The organizer for the August 5 "Machine Gun Shoot" told Reuters that it would be "a family day" event [...]

You can go and just watch for $10.

Often it does seem a pity that Noah and his party did not miss the boat. --Mark Twain

Cluckers

It appears the Republicans might not be having that YouTube debate after all.

Update 7/27: So far, only John McCain and Ron Paul are brave enough to face You.

In an interview Wednesday with the Manchester (N.H.) Union Leader, Romney said he's not a fan of the CNN/YouTube format. Referring to the video of a snowman asking the Democratic candidates about global warming, Romney quipped, "I think the presidency ought to be held at a higher level than having to answer questions from a snowman."

  WaPo

Well, that snowman video was pretty stupid. But in a country where everything is entertainment or it doesn't get seen or heard on TV, that's where we're going. And isn't it Twit Romney who's using YouTube to ask citizens for ideas about what he should use as campaign material? What if the snowman suggests global warming?

Personally, I think the presidency ought to be held at a higher level than strapping a dog to the roof of your car to take a vacation, and refusing to stop for the kids to take potty breaks. I think it ought to be held at a higher level than impersonating officers in order to strong-arm reporters, avoid paying tolls and to trick security guards.

And I definitely think it ought to be held at a higher level than this...

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

GOP Branch Operatives

Not long ago, in a different context, I asked, "Is there no federal agency that's clean?"

TPM has a list (maybe somebody will put them in list format soon) of agencies that Karl Rove has been manipulating to make them another arm of the GOP, and a question for Gonzo in his hearing today: was the DoJ on Karl's speaking tour?

Ron Paul

It's surprising that I'm promoting a Republican politician, but after the media get through with Ron Paul, I don't think you'll be hearing any more about him. I recommend taking a look at his website. On one page, there's this bulleted list of his ideals regarding government:

Rights belong to individuals, not groups.
Property should be owned by people, not government.
All voluntary associations should be permissible -- economic and social.
The government's monetary role is to maintain the integrity of the monetary unit, not participate in fraud.
Government exists to protect liberty, not to redistribute wealth or to grant special privileges.
The lives and actions of people are their own responsibility, not the government's.

I'm sure I'd have some arguments, but he must find it difficult to actually be a modern Republican.

Here's a taste of an address regarding Iraq:

Instead of questioning who has the best interests of our troops at heart, we should be debating which policy is best for our country. Defensive wars to preserve our liberties, fought only with proper congressional declarations, are legitimate. Casualties under such circumstances still are heartbreaking, but they are understandable. Casualties that occur in undeclared, unnecessary wars, however, are bewildering. Why must so many Americans be killed or hurt in Iraq when our security and our liberty were not threatened?

Clichés about supporting the troops are designed to distract us from failed policies, policies promoted by powerful special interests that benefit from war. Anything to steer the discussion away from the real reasons the war in Iraq will not end anytime soon.

And here's his February address regarding the threat to attack Iran:

HON. RON PAUL OF TEXAS
Before the U.S. House of Representatives
February 6, 2007

Don't Do It, Mr. President

It’s a bad idea.
There’s no need for it.
There’s great danger in doing it.
America is against it, and Congress should be.
The United Nations is against it.
The Russians, the Chinese, the Indians, and the Pakistanis are against it.
The whole world is against it.
Our allies are against it.
Our enemies are against it.
The Arabs are against it.
The Europeans are against it.
The Muslims are against it.
We don’t need to do this.
The threat is overblown.
The plan is an hysterical reaction to a problem that does not yet exist.
Hysteria is never a good basis for foreign policy.
Don’t we ever learn?
Have we already forgotten Iraq?
The plan defies common sense.
If it’s carried out, the Middle East, and possibly the world, will explode.
Oil will soar to over $100 a barrel, and gasoline will be over $5 a gallon.
Despite what some think, it won’t serve the interests of Israel.
Besides-- it’s illegal.
It’s unconstitutional.
And you have no moral authority to do it.
We don’t need it.
We don’t want it.
So, Mr. President, don’t do it.
Don’t bomb Iran!
The moral of the story, Mr. Speaker, is this: if you don’t have a nuke, we’ll threaten to attack you. If you do have a nuke, we’ll leave you alone. In fact, we’ll probably subsidize you. What makes us think Iran does not understand this?

And he could have said...

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

2008

And the Fascists move quickly, don't they?

The chairman of the Michigan Republican Party said Wednesday that he will try to bar Ron Paul from future GOP presidential debates because of remarks the Texas congressman made that suggested the Sept. 11 attacks were the fault of U.S. foreign policy.

  mlive.com article

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.

Ron Paul's Website

The Tangled Web

I want to pull out the comments from two posts back on the foiled alleged Fort Dix murder plot, in order to introduce another topic.

Here's Bob's comment to the Fort Dix post and my response (with capital letters restored):

bob said...

I haven't been paying much attention, but when I saw the story, I thought pretty much the same thing Josh said. And, if there's any truth to it--are "they" fighting us here so "they" don't have to fight us there? Do they prefer leading our troops home to waiting forever to follow them?

Plus, scour the news closely--the arrests, which apparently could have been made any time in the past 16 months, must have been announced now to cover up something.

m said...

When I was doing research in the IPM business, we made use of insect pheromones to interrupt mating cycles. One of the methods was to saturate the air with the particular insect's mating pheromone. In order to mate, males find their way to females by following a scent trail. If all the air is saturated, the trails are obscured. My guess is that this could be the Republican plan. Saturate the airWAVES with news of and leads to scandals until we can no longer find any one track leading anywhere.

Immediately after posting that reply, I read Cannonfire's blogging today in which Joe comments about a story he's been following for some time. I know it's a huge though relatively unreported story, but I just have the hardest time wrapping my head around all the particulars, precisely because it has so many damned leads and links to so many things. And I feel quite certain that most of the Republican scandals do indeed connect in one big net. Pull on a string here, you tap a point there. (With drug trafficking, arms dealing, and prostitution rings tightly interwoven and integral parts.)

So, while my reply to Bob's comment was something of a joke, I think there's a good measure of truth contained in it. And, even if it weren't an intentional ploy, it works.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.