But It's Not About Racism (The GOP Convention Edition)

Isn't it great to live in the land of post-racial sentiment after we've elected a black man into the Oval Office? Anyone screaming 'racism' is obviously not in touch with the pulse of the American electorate and is simply using the race card as an instrument of division and hate... wait, what?

"...Zoraida Fonalledas, the chairwoman of the Committee on Permanent Organization—took her turn at the main-stage lectern [at the GOP Convention in Tampa Bay]. As she began speaking in her accented English, some in the crowd started shouting “U.S.A.! U.S.A.!” 

The chanting carried on for nearly a minute while most of the other delegates and the media stood by in stunned silence. The Puerto Rican correspondent turned to me and asked, “Is this happening?”... None of us could quite believe what we were seeing: A sea of twentysomething bowties and cowboy hats morphing into frat bros apparently shrieking over (or at) a Latina."

But surely they were chanting because they were proud of their "big tent" and cheering, not jeering the Republican latina woman at their own convention, right? ...Right?

But the Republicans keep telling me that it was Obama who has done absolutely nothing for immigrants (even though the woman was Puerto Rican and therefore an American citizen) in this country, except to throw them a bone with his obvious politicization of young immigrants who are here through no fault of their own, at least according to Romney surrogate John Sununu.

“If Obama really was serious about that, he wouldn’t have been such a phony in doing that, and he would have done it four years ago. This presidency, by doing something late and politically, defined both his incompetence and his insincerity,” Sununu said after answering questions in Spanish with the Hispanic press. 

During the GOP primary, Romney vowed to veto the DREAM Act, which would implement a stronger version of what Obama did through executive order, but since winning the nomination, he’s tacked to the middle and avoided striking the hard-line tone on immigration that made him one of the most conservative candidates on the issue in the GOP field. 

Kris Kobach, the Kansas secretary of state and an immigration adviser to Romney, is the author of Arizona’s of infamous immigration law and took up a suit brought by 10 immigration enforcement agents against the new Obama policy last week.

Hold on. Do you mean to tell me that, try as they might, the Republican Party really isn't that into people of color? I find that hard to believe.

Two attendees at the Republican National Convention were thrown out of the convention center in Tampa on Tuesday after throwing nuts at a black CNN camerawoman and saying, "this is how we feed the animals."

CNN reported that multiple witnesses saw it happen, and police immediately removed the two people from the premises.

Oh, come on! What's next?! Is some frothy guy going to step behind the convention podium and blatantly lie about the Presdient in a clear attempt to rile up the fringiest of the fringe with some dumbass welfare claim even though a large number of white people are help by that program as well?

"This summer he showed us once again he believes in government handouts and dependency by waiving the work requirement for welfare," Santorum said Tuesday in a speech at the Republican National Convention in Tampa. "I helped write the welfare reform bill; we made the law crystal clear -- no president can waive the work requirement. But as with his refusal to enforce our immigration laws, President Obama rules like he is above the law." 

PolitiFact checked a Romney campaign ad's claim that Obama ended welfare work requirements earlier this month, rating it Pants On Fire. In reality, the Obama administration has said it will consider proposals from states that are aimed at finding better ways of getting welfare recipients into jobs. FactCheck.org and the Washington Post Fact Checker have also said the claim is false.

Fuck. Me.

If you haven't noticed, it's been all dog whistles, all the time. Accusations of "gutting welfare requirements" taking a play out of the welfare queen Reagan playbook. Romney making a little "joke" about not having to show his birth certificate - yet the reaction wasn't laughter, but cheers. Delegates at the GOP convention booing and chanting "USA" when an Hispanic woman speaks. Other conventioneers thrown out after assaulting a black CNN cameraperson and calling her an "animal." And yet when it's brought up, it's the DEMOCRATS who are accused of using the RACE CARD?! If it acts like a racist and it smells like a racist...

ADDING... And let's not forget that scumbag South Carolina state representative Alan Clemmons responding positively to a racially tinged email regarding their bullshit voter ID law.  But hey, it's those Democrats playing that damned race card because you know, black man in the White House, new era of enlightenment, post racial land of the free, home of blah, blah, blah...

(Cross-posted at ABLC)

Anti-Obama SuperPAC Ad is Obama's Fault

Yes, you read that right. Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus is blaming President Obama for the leaked Joe Ricketts race baiting Rev. Wright proposal.

...this president’s got a bigger problem and his problem is no matter what he puts out there, no matter what distractions he puts out there, he can’t change the truth and escape the reality of where we are in this American economy. And it’s no good.

Got that? In the twisted mind of what is probably one of the worst RNC Chairmen in recent memory, Priebus is trying to push the meme that it's the Obama administration that put the story out there. Kinda makes you long for the days of Michael Steele, doesn't it?

Oh Noes! RWNJs Angry at Birthday Celebrating President!

It really can't get any more petty than criticizing a man for celebrating his 50th birthday. But that's exactly what the right wingers are doing regarding President Obama's birthday.

President Obama turns 50 tomorrow, but that isn’t stopping him from celebrating early.

Fresh off a bruising debt ceiling debate, and an announcement that the administration is pivoting back to a focus on jobs, Obama heads to his hometown Chicago tonight for a birthday-themed fundraiser at the historic Aragon Ballroom.

...Republicans have unleashed a barrage of criticism against the president for making the trip, accusing him of hypocrisy during tough economic times.

“With 9.2 percent unemployment, he could work on creating jobs, but I suppose the White House is thinking he should stick to the part of his job he really likes,” said RNC spokeswoman Kirsten Kukowski in an email statement.

GOP presidential front-runner Mitt Romney also took a swipe at Obama for the trip, publishing an online video Tuesday that highlights a spike in Chicago’s unemployment rate and falling housing prices over the past three years.

Kirsten Kukowski is right! I mean, I'm sure that if President Obama skipped the fundraiser that will take him out of town for the evening, he could easily solve the unemployment crisis. If only he weren't so callous, inconsiderate and just plain lazy. Just sit at your desk in the Oval Office and do your job, Mr. President! You'd have a plan to lower the unemployment rate to 4% by tomorrow if only you'd put in a hard night's work.

How dare the President of the United States celebrate a birthday during a national crisis!!!

Quite Possibly The Dumbest Tweet Ever

Very serious Republicans.

Honorable mention to a poor soul who engaged me in a Twitter debate last night.



You can read the entire Twitter thread here for a bowl full of stupid.

Sarah's Survey

sur·vey –noun
a sampling, or partial collection, of facts, figures, or opinions taken and used to approximate or indicate what a complete collection and analysis might reveal.

Sarah Palin's definition of a survey:
a skewed, biased questionnaire designed to malign, mislead and disinform; if you disagree with the content of the survey, then disregard and throw it away, as you may skew they intended outcome.

From the Palingate website comes a story of an RNC letter with Palin's name on it and an accompanying survey. The second paragraph caught my eye.

"If you think Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Harry Reid are doing a good job running America, then put this down. This Victory 2010 Survey isn't for you."

That's right. The RNC and Sarah Palin are pushing an anti-Democratic survey, sending it to registered Republicans and telling them not to send it in if they think Obama is doing a good job. I don't know about you, but I think that pretty much defeats the whole purpose of a survey, unless the purpose is to advance ridiculously skewed numbers to shoehorn them into a desired result.

Here are the questions:



Wealth redistribution, future debt, bowing to foreign leaders, border fences and give us money. In other words, nothing new. But if you don't agree with us, for God's sake, DO NOT send back this survey.  Although it doesn't matter because we'll see the answers and throw it in the trash anyway.

Think Before You Speak

No sooner does President Obama nominate Elena Kagan for the Supreme Court, than the RNC makes asses of themselves.

In a tribute to Justice Thurgood Marshall shortly before his death, Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan quoted our first black Justice as having said the Constitution as originally conceived and drafted was “defective.”

“Does Kagan Still View Constitution ‘As Originally Drafted And Conceived’ As ‘Defective’?” the RNC now asks. A litmus test for Kagan, it implies.

But of course the answer should be, yes. Might the Three-Fifths Clause have been a wee bit of a defect?

The continuation of slavery, the three-fifths clause, the omission of women's ability to vote until 1920... uh... yeah, the original Constitution is flawed. But go ahead, RNC, keep making your "big tent" smaller and smaller. It's no wonder that Michael Steele blurts out occasional truths. He can't help himself.

Can A Republican Brother Get A Party Sanctioned Lap Dance?

I don't care about what Michael Steele spends money on. I don't care what he does at night. I don't care if he prefers to frequent lesbian-and-bondage-themed nightclubs and uses private jets and chauffeured limousines to get there. Just don't use public funds, asshole.

On Monday morning, the Daily Caller reported that the RNC spent thousands of dollars on high-end travel arrangements, swanky hotels and, most remarkably, "meals" at a lesbian-and-bondage-themed nightclub in West Hollywood. The latter expense, naturally, grabbed most of the attention and the cleverest of headlines -- prompting the RNC to simultaneously state that it would investigate the expenditures and that it wasn't Steele who went to the club.

But the damage had already been done. While several GOP strategists are willing to grant Steele a pass -- under the rubric that one has to spend lavishly to raise lavish amounts of money -- several big donors and party officials are completely baffled.

"For those donors who truly believe in conservative values, this latest news about Steele has to be very disturbing," said Douglas MacKinnon, former press secretary to Majority Leader Robert Dole. "No matter which side of the aisle you find yourself, if you are giving a political party your hard-earned money, you should have no doubts that it is going to be spent as advertised and not to provide a spoiled, egocentric, out-of-touch chairman with frivolous luxuries which are out of reach of the vast majority of the American people. Michael Steele needs to resign and let the RNC vote in a man or woman who understands that his or her needs do not come before the needs of the nation or the party."

If the Republican National Committee doesn't sack his ass over this, then we can and should call them out on their hypocritical, holier than thou, fiscally conservative, family values bullshit.

That is all.

The Wrong Side of History

For anyone who still believes the Grand Obstructionist Party is stalling the ongoing health care debate and doesn't want reform to pass for the right reasons instead of their own self-serving ones, comes word that no matter what emerges from this debate, no matter how much the Democrats compromise, they're going to hold their breath and their votes.

Senate Republicans predicted on Wednesday that the 40 members of their caucus would unanimously oppose health care reform despite changes made by Democratic leadership to make the product more palatable to conservatives.

Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) told the Huffington Post that he did not think the dropping of a public option for insurance coverage from the bill would be enough for Democrats to win even the support of moderate Republican Senators Olympia Snowe or Susan Collins, both of Maine.

So even before the Congressional Budget Office scores the current bills sent to them, the GOP is saying no way. Even without any form of public option, the bill makes rescission illegal, outlaws insurance denial due to pre-existing conditions and ends caps on what insurance companies pay out for care.

And still 30% of the population identifies with this sorry excuse for a political party. A party that cares more about the profits of corporations than the constituents they are elected to represent.

ADDING... The Republican party is rudderless. And while Sen. Harry Reid's slavery comparison may be a little over the top, although in my opinion it was apropos since Reid's emphasis wasn't the issue so much as the consensus around the issue, isn't it ironic that the leader of the RNC should call someone else an "incompetent leader?" And good job by Donny Deutsch in calling out Michael Steele and not letting him get away with a simple dismissal.

Ronald Reagan Fails Ronald Reagan Test

Oh, the dangers of revisionist history.

The RNC has proposed a resolution, a limtus test, a "purity" test to deny any funding to GOP candidates didn't agree with 80% of their 10 point list of Republican principles. Why 80%? Because their icon, Ronald Reagan said that anyone who agreed with him 80% of the time was his "friend." The problem? Ronald Reagan would have failed in 6 of their 10 points.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Oh what fools these Republicans be.

Chris Matthews and Pissant Criticism

I wrote about this yesterday because it struck me as ridiculous that the RNC apprently still thinks it's campaign season and continues to come out with almost daily inane messages trying to knock President Obama down a peg. Maybe to get him down to a 60% approval rating. I'd leave it alone but I can't help submitting this Chris Matthews video where he nails Bush, the RNC, and Michael Steele.

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"Pissant criticism." BANG! "Nincompoop anti-intellectualism." POW! Chris is fun to watch when he gets his dander up.

Commenter Annette also wrote about Air Force One and that any plane the President is on is AF1. My response was that calling the gulfstream they took to New York City "Air Force One" was a deliberate attempt to confuse their non-thinking, knuckledragging followers into picturing the large jet that the President usually uses to invoke outrage of waste. I wasn't wrong.



They even used the AF1 flyover photo-op that was criticized by most and caused the resignation of the director of the White House Military Office, Louis Caldera. Keep it up, you classy Republicans.

Seriously?

RNC: "As President Obama prepares to wing into Manhattan's theater district on Air Force One to take in a Broadway show, GM is preparing to file bankruptcy and families across America continue to struggle to pay their bills," the GOP said. "Have a great Saturday evening -- even if you're not jetting off somewhere at taxpayer expense."

I'm waiting for them to figure out the cost of security and gas every time President Obama decides to go out to lunch for a burger.

Hey, douchebags, he's the fucking President. Security is what is required especially in light of right wing extremism and domestic terrorism. I'm too lazy to do it, but it's only a matter of time before someone exposes this latest hypocrisy and finds a story of former President Bush taking Air Force One to a rodeo and tractor pull or some monster truck rally. Besides the fact that the RNC got their facts wrong again (as usual):

The president and first lady Michelle Obama flew to New York from Washington on what a White House press pool report called a Gulfstream-type plane, rather than one of the larger craft that serve as Air Force One, Politico reported.

The Obamas also reportedly paid for their own tickets and dinner. When the hypocrites figure out how much taxpayer money was spent on Bush's 900 vacation days with Air Force One flying to Crawford, TX practically every weekend, then maybe they'll see a little perspective. Until then, they should remember that Obama is president, he won the election and unless they have something of substance to say, they should just shut the fuck up.

Balls of Steele...

...are now sitting in a jar on Rush Limbaugh's mantle along with the rest of the Republican political so-called leaders on Capitol Hill.

It started early on with Phil Gingrey in his once in a lifetime moment of lucidity when questioning the rhetoric of Rush Limbaugh, until folding like a house of cards and apologizing to The Portly One the very next day after receiving tons of phone calls from the Dittoheads. For every time one of the Republican politicians deny that Limbaugh doesn't speak for them, denounce his "hope that Obama fails," or that they don't go by what Limbaugh says, they then grovel and apologize the next day.

Now the new off-the-hook, hip-hop, leader of the RNC, Michael Steele is the latest to fall under Limbaugh's corpulent thumb.

During Steele's appearance on D.L. Hughley's CNN show on Saturday, he took umbrage at his host's observation that Limbaugh is the de facto leader of the Republican party.

"I am the de facto leader of the Republican party... Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. Rush Limbaugh — his whole thing is entertainment. He has this incendiary — yes, it's ugly.”

Wow! Michael Steele was one step away from poppin' a cap in Limbaugh's fat ass. But then the inevitable happened.

"My intent was not to go after Rush – I have enormous respect for Rush Limbaugh,” Steele said in a telephone interview. “I was maybe a little bit inarticulate. … There was no attempt on my part to diminish his voice or his leadership.

...I went back at that tape and I realized words that I said weren’t what I was thinking,” Steele said. "It was one of those things where I thinking I was saying one thing, and it came out differently. What I was trying to say was a lot of people … want to make Rush the scapegoat, the bogeyman, and he’s not.

I’m not going to engage these guys and sit back and provide them the popcorn for a fight between me and Rush Limbaugh,” Steele added. “No such thing is going to happen. … I wasn’t trying to slam him or anything."

That brown you see on Michael Steele's face is no longer his skin color, it's the skidmark left after inserting his head into Limbaugh's cornhole. Add another jar to Limbaugh's mantle to house Michael Steele's testicles next to Phil Gingrey's, Mike Pence's, Eric Cantor's, Mitch McConnell's and on and on.

Here's Democratic Committee Chairman Tim Kaine's shorter response: I was impressed with Steele for about a minute, until he licked Limbaugh's stiletto heels. All hail Rush Limbaugh! Leader of what used to be the Republican Party!

11th Commandent: Thou Shalt Not Waste Indoor Tennis Court Time

From the American Thinker, a site whose recent blog post titles include "Global Warming Causes Mental Illness" and "Democrat Wage Controls Mean Mediocre Management" (so beware if you venture over there) comes this lovely gem from Joyce Capron describing her horrifying incident on the tennis court with her playing partner. Oh, the humanity!

Today at tennis, after I made a hard point, my partner offered the Obama fist bump.

"I don't do that," I said, and I gave her a stern look. It's not the first time I've run into Obamabots on the courts; the game attracts argumentative, competitive types (of which I may be one). I didn't stop and lecture the O'Bot, because Wasting Indoor Court Time is a Sin. I just high-fived her with my racquet, and went on playing.

It seems that Capron has a stick up her ass the size of a tennis raquet (raquet head end first). Well, Jebus forbid that she should share a gesture of goodwill and sportsmanship with her playing partner. After all, everyone knows that Obama invented the fist bump and some in the inner circle say you must avoid physical contact with "Obamabots" at all times, else be subjected to infection through skin pores causing inevitable assimilation. So she did what any normally insane wingnut would do. She followed the RNC handbook guidelines for dealing with just such an instance.

• Step One: State your case. Stare the threat in the eye and assert your beliefs. She gave her a stern look and said, "I don't do that."
  
  
• Step Two: Avoid physical contact. She avoided the gesture by using a non-physical appendage. She "high-fived" her with her raquet.
  
  
• Step Three: Promptly dispose of infected item. She wrapped the raquet in a Neocon haz-mat bag (available for a small donation to the RNC).
  
  
• Step Four: Discard. She stored it away in a safe place for later incineration.

What struck me most about this elitist, racist piece of shit was not that she doesn't do the fist jab, which Obama invented by the way, or that she can't stand to look at the President to the point of turning over "offensive magazines" at the store checkout lines (like she actually does her own grocery shopping, HA!) or even that she's arming her kids with disinformation so they can spread their stupidity at their Conservative Club, which they co-founded at their notoriously liberal high school; so liberal in fact, they had trouble finding a faculty sponsor. Or that she'd protest the "porkulus" bill, "Even if it snowed." That's nothing. We're all used to that kind of erratic, irrational thinking and behavior.

No, what struck me, being a non-religious person, was Capron's third sentence into her piece. "I didn't stop and lecture the O'Bot, because Wasting Indoor Court Time is a Sin." That struck me as a little off. I think it's pretty safe to say that the majority of Republicans (at least the rabid type) are devoutly religious in nature. And I don't think I've ever heard any non-religious person use the word "sin" in their daily chatter. Rather than engage in a debate with a person with which she assumes is ideologically opposed to her, voicing her opinion of this outrageous gesture that cannot be taken lightly, this fist bump (which Obama invented), she kept her mouth shut because she didn't want to waste precious tennis court time. And this stuffed shirt, tennis playing snob equated "wasting indoor court time" (with capitalization) to a sin.

Picture that for a minute...

Capron (walking into a confessional): Forgive me father, for I have sinned.

Priest: Yes, my child. Confess.

Capron: I used the Lord's name in vain twice this week. I yelled at my son for hanging out with that liberal boy, Billy from down the block. And... and... (*sniff, *sniff)...

Priest: Go on.

Capron: I refused to fist jab with my tennis partner (you know, because Obama invented the fist jab) and was going to tell her off about her Obamabot ways, but I resisted, knowing that WASTING INDOOR COURT TIME IS A SIN. And then I realized that in my though process, I might have actually wasted maybe... a minute! (*uncontrollable sobbing)

Priest: Write a check to the RNC and your sins will be forgiven.

I really do hope that she does give the Obama fist bumper "an earful" next time and winds up getting an earful of raquet smashed across her head for her trouble. Maybe then she'll move out of the "bluest of the blue states" to a red state to be with her kind, but I don't know that she'll find a tennis partner in Thibodaux, Louisiana.

(H/T Bob Cesca)

They Picked A Winner!

After a series of votes, the Republican National Committee picked former Maryland lieutenant governor Michael Steele as their new GOP chairman. Well, it looks like they picked a real winner.

Steele: And first off the government doesn’t create jobs. Let’s get this notion out of our heads that the government creates jobs. Not in the history of mankind has the government ever created a job. Small business owners do, small enterprises do. Not the government. When the government contract runs out, that job goes away. That’s what we’re talking about here and those 2 to 4 million jobs that are projected? Won’t happen, trust me.

Hmmm... not in the history of mankind has the government ever created a job? That's a pretty broad statement.

I suppose Steele was a volunteer for his lieutenant gubernatorial service in Maryland. As well as his staff... as well as every other elected official and their staffs in government from dog catcher to President. Oh, and I didn't realize that the current 1.5 million active armed forces personnel weren't getting paid for their efforts.

Hey Mike, you mean to tell me we get our mail for free? Awesome! And the next time I walk past a beat cop I'm going to thank him for volunteering to risk his life every day just for the pleasure of it... and firefighters too. Hell, I knew the New York City transit system claimed they're in dire financial straits, but I didn't even realize they weren't paying their bus drivers and train conductors or engineers.

But I'm so glad they picked Michael Steele for his smarts and not because they're trying to show how much their party has changed by electing an African American to the position.

(H/T Think Progress)

Rush The Fucking Asshole

© Broadway Carl 2008
(sung to the tune of Puff the Magic Dragon and inspired by Bob Cesca's post title)

Rush the Fucking Asshole, bloated as can be
Sits at his desk and spews his lies when he's OxyContin free
Little Chippy Saltsman thought it would be cool
To send a racist Christmas gift, he's another right wing tool

Operation Chaos didn't do a thing
For fat man Rush and the GOP to inspire the right wing
He called for violent riots like 1968
'Cause Rush does nothing else but try to stir up wingnut hate

Rush the Fucking Asshole, hoping to get laid
Smuggled in Viagra that he got from his ex-maid
Flew down to the islands with pills and his sex toys
But we all know that he flew down just to butt-fuck little boys

Little Chippy Saltsman wants the RNC chair
But after sending out those gifts he doesn't have a prayer
Chairman Michael Duncan says that he was shocked
What else did he expect from crazy druggies with small cocks?

Rush the Fucking Asshole, as fat as he can be
Always carries water for the Republican Party
One day Rush will clutch his chest and his heart will explode
And we will fin'lly be rid of that horrible pantload

In Defense of the Obama Application

What if John Edwards was chosen to be Poverty Czar or Attorney General by the Obama Administration and then it was revealed that he had an affair? Or what if the affair came to light during the vetting process?

This is what I ask myself as I see grumblings and outrage over the news this week that the Obama transition team has asked prospective applicants for cabinet or other high ranking positions to fill out what some are calling an extensive and even invasive questionnaire.

Jesse Wendel, Group News Blog:

Like it makes sense to give professional political operatives, HR people no less, your deepest, darkest, most personal secrets, along with your medical and tax records going back years. Then TRUST THEM. Because they work for the President-Elect, so they won't fuck you over, no Sir, nuh-uh.
Other than the on the transition website, which goes further than the Bush Administration's, there's no assurance, absolutely none that they won't use everything you tell them to fuck you...

...So go ahead, hand some 20-30 year old political staff the political equivalent of blackmail video-tapes of you having a torrid affair with Bill O'Reilly, surrounded by luffas and candy you stole from children.

Wendel goes on to say that it's all about checks and balances.

"No one should be forced to submit to political vetting (and trust their public identity to non-existent assurances that their identity won't be destroyed by a trial balloon or a tactical leak for political purposes by the Obama team) on hiring decisions PRIOR to initial hiring."

He uses the phrase "tactical leak for political purposes" immediately after after saying how he knows some of the people on the transition team and trusts them deeply.

Wendel doesn't like the idea of the untrained eye - this is the first Obama Administration after all - going over personal information and compares it to the FBI's years of experience, as if the FBI has a pristine record and would never use information for political purposes. He calls it hypocrisy, something the Republicans would do, and even questions the legality of it.

Is this even legal? I know it wouldn't be anywhere else. Or is this another one of those bullshit situations where the Executive and Congress have exempted themselves from the same laws the rest of the United States must live under. Because if I were hiring people for GNB, I sure as shit couldn't ask a potential hire these questions and base hiring decisions on them. I'd get my ass sued and rightly so.

...If President-Elect Obama with his cocaine use is too much of a chicken-shit to use me and grownups like me, then really, he and the transition team can shove it up their hypocritical asses.

Well, I think you've just blown your chance with that last paragraph, Jesse. And by the way, you're wrong about the legal issue, but we'll get to that in a second. I get where you're coming from but you gotta lighten up.

Let's go back to my initial hypothetical question. Imagine if Edwards was chosen as AG and then the affair came out because there wasn't full disclosure? Game. Fucking. Over. While some see this questionnaire as over the line, and while it may be overprotective, I think it's a smart move on the Obama team's part because of all the bullshit attacks they need to defend themselves from daily just on the stuff that's made up. The last thing they need is to put out fires in their administration before getting off the ground.

As far as the legality of the application, here's a comment from "Myrtle Hussein June":

In 1980 I worked for a government contractor on the space shuttle mission at an air force base. I had to fill out a 10 year history, not unlike Obama's questions except no e-mail/internet stuff, for a security clearance and had to pass a drug test for that job.

Today, where I currently work, every single applicant has to submit to a 10 year background check/security.... for a state university. Every single person no matter the position.

Another blogger just got hired and reported having to answer some highly personal questions.

So, it's not JUST the Obama application or just for the federal government. I think no matter where you go these days there are more and more "security" measures connected with getting employment. Thank you Patriot Act.

... I'm applying to the Obama admin, got the app right here. I'm going to fill it out honestly. I'm not going to judge anything I've ever said or done to qualify as being an "embarrassment" to Obama. It just is what it is.

I don't think it's "chicken-shit"; I think it's the laws that have been passed. It's the crazy right wing extremists, or maybe left wing extremists, they're looking out for. And no, I don't consider fighting for our country to take a hard left BACK to the center "extremist" of any sort. I don't think they do either. The Obama transition team is NOT the Bush Administration.

Sorry, I don't think this is all that unusual for government workers. At least, that's not been my experience since 1980.

And that's how I see it as well - you can't be too careful when there's a world of wingnuts looking for that one opportunity to stab you in the back 24/7. Is it a little over the top? Perhaps. But if more than a little intrusion into your privacy when applying for a government job in a post 9/11 America is not your cup of tea, then don't apply. No one is forcing you to divulge information. If you've got nothing to hide then go for it; if you know you have skeletons in your closet that you don't want people to find out about but still want a job in politics, then go work for the RNC. Apply or don't apply - it's up to the applicant and they have full knowledge of what's being asked of them before they apply.

It's also matter of getting things done in a straight forward, organized fashion. Remember that the Obama camp dubbed the President-elect, "No drama Obama." It's not just a catchphrase. They don't abide any distracting bullshit. It rarely happened during their campaign, but the second there was a distraction - like foreign policy advisor Samantha Power calling Clinton a monster for example - she was gone before the end of the day. Look at how the delayed reaction regarding the Rev. Wright mess affected the campaign. It took weeks for them to shake that off. If you don't nip it in the bud early enough, all you'll be doing is fighting off bullshit distractions and never concentrate on real issues. Case in point is the McCain camp for fuck's sake - they got a poll bump from the Sarah Palin pick and then when she became the distraction, they couldn't get rid of her and they sunk like a stone.

I might tend to lean more towards Wendel's argument if the Obama Administration were walking into a "peace and prosperity" White House, but let's face it: shit has never been more fucked up than it is now and they have to hit the ground running. This will just narrow the search earlier than later. It'll shoo away those that are hesitant to apply if they think they have something to hide and cull the herd. Also, no one's 100% kosher, and I'm sure that having something on your record like a traffic violation isn't going to automatically disqualify you, but it's not so bad that it'll ruin your career if it should be nefariously leaked.

Now for those who thought Barack Obama was a lefty liberal's dream, one only need look at the FISA vote long before the election took place, or the $700 billion bailout approval to tell you that with Obama you get a pragmatist who is maybe just slightly left of center on issues that have broad bipartisan appeal. We all knew that coming in and anyone who thought he was a 21st century Che Guevara was deluding themselves.

We can't lose sight of the bigger picture. Change doesn't come in eight days. We just broke the Ronald Reagan deathgrip on this country for the last 28 years - it can't all happen in one day. Baby steps. Already there are those who are pissed at Obama for the Rahm Emanuel pick, or the possibility of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, or the incredibly invasive application questionnaire. But I think I might wait til maybe Inauguration Day before I start flying off the handle. The fact that his was one of the best run campaigns in American politics wasn't a happy accident. I doubt that his entire staff went "Teh Stupid" on November 5th.

But like I said, I just don't think they can be too careful with all the loonies out there. It's not like they're trolling for information to hold against you like the other side does (see 'illegal wiretapping'). And yes, ultimately we don't know who peeks into those files, so if you like instant messaging minors in a sexual fashion, if you rail against gays while picking up men in airport bathroom stalls, if you killed someone and buried them in your backyard, then maybe you shouldn't fill out an application. But if you think you have what it takes, still like your mom and don't fuck your cat Fluffy on a Saturday night bender, then go for it! Make change happen!

Morning Joke™ Off The Rails

Scarborough, Buchanan and TIME's Washington bureau chief Jay Carney are sitting around in DC waiting for the Chimp in Chief's latest poo flinging, talking about the negative ads released today by the RNC and the McCain campaign associating Ayers and Rezko to Obama. Nothing new, right? Then I heard this (paraphrasing):

Carney: I don't think the ads are going to work because people are scared to death about the economy.

Buchanan: McCain missed an opportunity because the market is tanking after this $700 billion bailout and he should have voted against it. He could've been "in the catbird seat" if he had voted against bailing out Wall Street.

Scarborough: Well, why did he vote for it?

Wait for it... Ready?


Buchanan: Because he's an "ESTABLISHMENT GUY." He voted with the majority.

Mika from the studio: Wait, I'm confused. I THOUGHT HE WAS A MAVERICK!

Carney: Well... he's a maverick within the establishment... he's on the edges of the establishment.

Fact Checking the RNC

Rachel Maddow calls a spade a spade... or in this case, a liar a liar on Friday's Countdown.

Liveblogging at Bob Cesca's...

... is like a virtual Republican overload support group. And cheaper than actual therapy. The best part is the connection you feel and bonds you create with fellow commenters.

We've been liveblogging during the Democratic and Republican Conventions and have developed an online friendship discussing our mutual feelings regarding the political scene. We get angry, snarky and silly. There are a few that rise above like 'jane', 'The Space Cowboy', 'ceu', 'JG' and 'kansasdem', but by far, one of my favorite bloggers that I recently discovered is Mr. The Elvis Dingeldein ("its pronounced Dang-le-deen, bitches!") and his blog, "Clusterdouche." He just cracks my shit up. And I mean laugh-out-loud, can't-stop-giggling HI-larity!

Over the last two weeks, it's been my pleasure to try and match the man's sharp wit, insane sense of humor and amazing writing skillz. I haven't even come close, but I have made him laugh once or twice, so imagine my surprise when he complimented me. Yes, I enjoy and admire Mr. Elvis' writing so much that I'm flattered by his comments, so I'm including them here along with some of our comments during the RNC.

Mother, moosehunter, maverick....oh, puke.
How many times have they said "maverick"?? Obviously, they don't know what that word means.
Posted by: ceu at September 4, 2008 09:06 PM

[Obviously, they don't know what that word means.] I don't know what they think it means, but I always substitute the word "cocksucker" for "maverick."
Posted by: Broadway Carl at September 4, 2008 09:09 PM

BEST FREUDIAN SLIP EVER!!! TOM BROKAW INTERVIEWS TOM "RED, YELLOW, ORANGE, GO!" RIDGE, WHO SAYS:
"Because uh John Bush (D'OH!) ... John McCain is very much his own man."
Ohhhh, how I fill the Obama Underoos with love!
Posted by: Elvis Dingeldein at September 4, 2008 11:21 PM

Dear Michael Gerson : Please insert a rabid, feral, and deeply aggravated wolverine cub in your rectum and hang upside down by your ankles until it works its way to your filthy, filthy mouth.
Posted by: Elvis Dingeldein at September 4, 2008 11:26 PM

I love Rachel Maddow enough that I would get a sex-change operation and become a flaming uberdyke to get next to her. She's glorious. GLOR-ee-USSSS!
Posted by: Elvis Dingeldein at September 4, 2008 11:48 PM

The Jane™ said, chicks DIG humor its hotttt
Listen, sister, if years and years (and years) of reading the Interview page of a Playboy centerfold while fighting the urge to doze off in post-self-coital bliss has taught me anything, it's that The Hot Girls love them the sense of humor. And also Corvettes. And money. Yeah, mostly it's the money. But a sense of humor is always a distant third.
Posted by: Elvis Dingeldein at September 4, 2008 11:55 PM

So what does it say about a Republican National Convention with no overt "Republican" signs in the arena, no douchebag Republican monkey-president and no shoot-you-in-the-face vice president? The top two members of the Republican party were nowhere to be seen.
Matthews is talking about it now... condemning your own party leaders so you can be elected.
OOOH! John & Cindy McCain confetti! Also, a Sarah Palin impersonator and a couple of guys with John McCain hand puppets. Not the first time he's had a hand up his ass.
Posted by: Broadway Carl at September 5, 2008 12:02 AM

You and I are truly soul brothers, Mr. The Broadway Carl. I say we merge our efforts and become The Broadway Clusterdouche, what say you, sir?
Posted by: Elvis Dingeldein at September 5, 2008 12:04 AM

Mr. The Elvis Dingeldein: I'm honored that you would consider my occasional quip worthy of such an esteemed compliment. A Broadway Clusterdouche merger is a wonderful thought. That and all the Obama Underoos talk makes me hot.
Posted by: Broadway Carl at September 5, 2008 12:11 AM

"The Broadway Clusterdouche" Sounds like a fantastic musical. Perhaps Andrew Lloyd Webber could write the score? And I think Pat Buchanan would come to see it - he just mentioned something about McCain and "mano a mano," so I think he likes that sort of thing.
Posted by: KatinWilm at September 5, 2008 12:13 AM

Andrew Llyod Webber has so already written The Broadway Clusterdouche, Katin, haven't you ever seen an ALW show? Jesus The Christ™ (Superstar!) they're insufferable!
Posted by: Elvis Dingeldein at September 5, 2008 12:15 AM

I'm going to copy and paste your compliment and post it on my blog, Mr. The Elvis Dingeldein, for surely no one would believe me if I said, "You know, back in aught 8, one Mr. The Elvis Dingeldein asked me to join forces for a Broadway Clusterdouche extravaganza. Then the Republicans won back the House in 2010 and I threw my laptop out the window. I never heard from my Bob Cesca friends again."
Posted by: Broadway Carl at September 5, 2008 12:17 AM

So does that mean that Jane is singing "Don't Know How to Love Him?" Perhaps McCain's first wife could fill in if Jane is otherwise occupied.
Posted by: KatinWilm at September 5, 2008 12:18 AM

Or she could be singing, "What's The Buzz" not realizing it's her vibrator.
Posted by: Broadway Carl at September 5, 2008 12:20 AM

And so if you value your sanity in this insane political time, you should do yourself a favor a stop by one of Bob Cesca's liveblogging threads and vent. It cures what ails ya. Stop by Clusterdouche as well - it's fucking hysterical.

Palin's Speech - Some Thoughts

[Updated below...]

I was holding off in judgment of someone I'd never heard speak publicly, except for the video bits here and there about Hillary Clinton whining or asking what a vice president does. Here's my analysis: Same shit, different mouth.

Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska pulled no punches, was sarcastic, snarky and spewed the usual lies and smears regarding Barack Obama. But if you think about it, that was her job, to deliver a speech written by the McCain flunkies and solidify the base. Job well done.

I was hoping to hear some substance, some policy ideas or initiatives that this campaign plans to instill (if they happen to win the White House) on Day One, but got nothing. And maybe that's the job of John McCain tomorrow night, although I think I've heard his ideas of "drill here - drill now" and "I'm going to win this war by winning it," so I'm not expecting too much tomorrow night.

The "blame the media" card was pathetic as well. It seems that it's sexist for the media to try and find out what Sarah Palin's qualifications are for the vice presidency and actually vet the candidate in a proper fashion, something the McCain campaign didn't do. At least, the McCain campaign is calling it sexist... I guess I missed McCain coming to Hillary Clinton's defense when the media was scrutinizing her.

Hopefully, the media will remain the media and not revert to the McCainstream Media that we've seen this long campaign season. I'm optimistic because it looks like they're not too happy about McCain crying about the media. Joe Klein isn't having any of it:

There is a tendency in the media to kick ourselves, cringe and withdraw, when we are criticized. But I hope my colleagues stand strong in this case: it is important for the public to know that Palin raised taxes as governor, supported the Bridge to Nowhere before she opposed it, pursued pork-barrel projects as mayor, tried to ban books at the local library and thinks the war in Iraq is "a task from God." The attempts by the McCain campaign to bully us into not reporting such things are not only stupidly aggressive, but unprofessional in the extreme.

We'll see what transpires over the next couple of weeks. Biden had better unload and pull no punches because Sarah Palin won't.

More later...

UPDATE (9:40am):

Will Bunch - Attytood: Palin's Speech To Nowhere

HuffPo - AP: Attacks, Praise Stretch Truth At GOP Convention

Crooks & Liars - Attn: Media: Earmark-loving Sarah Palin is not a reformer

Top GOP Pundits Peggy Noonan, Mike Murphy Caught On Tape Disparaging Palin Choice: "Political Bullshit," "Gimmicky"


UPDATE II (2:25pm):