The Infectious Virus of the O'Donnell Doctrine

Troutfishing has a excellent Rec'd Diary up detailing the depth of the Counter-Factual "This is a Christian Nation" Doctrine that denies the Separation of Church and State, and how that has begun to slip into our military. But I want to take this back a bit to O'Donnell herself, who clearly thought she Nailed It when she desputed Chris Coons assertion that the First Amendment established the Separation of Church and State.



As Rachel takes us back to re-examine the tape, it's clear that O'Donnell really does think she's won on this point. That Chris Coons accurate quoting of the beginning of the First Amendment is ALL FAIL.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The Constitution also says this in Article VI.

The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.

Taken together these two Constitutional clauses establish that Government will not impose religion on the people, and that religion will not be imposed or required of the agents of the government.

Behind this and the letters of Jefferson and Madison you have the Treaty of Tripoli from 1797.

As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.[

Although this seems self-evident to many of us, and has been affirmed in many court cases including Reynolds and Engle v Vitale (1962) which barred the state from imposing "Official" prayer in public schools. It's not just what's in the literal words of the Constitution, but it's also from multiple judicial interpretations of that phrase.

Further (ht Sam Wise Gingy) O'Donnell doesn't seem to realize that the scenario she suggests - that a local School Board has the "Right" to place Intelligence Design in their curriculum - has already failed before the Courts as it did in the Dover Case - where the Judge overruled the School Board and made this finding.

Teaching intelligent design in public school biology classes violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States (and Article I, Section 3 of the Pennsylvania State Constitution) because intelligent design is not science and "cannot uncouple itself from its creationist, and thus religious, antecedents."

Coons was absolutely, 100% correct.

But the Wingnuts see this in a completely different light. Sharron Angle says that Thomas Jefferson was "Misquoted" in his letters to the Danbury Church. Yeah, that's why Dan Burton has been cutting Jefferson out of Texas Textbooks, because he's been "Misquoted". Those are some easy examples and then there's the Big One.

And then there's - Rush Limbaugh.

Limbaugh: Christine O'Donnell was absolutely correct. The First Amendment says nothing about the Separation of Church and State.

And the left has taken this to say that religious people can not be in government. And that you can't teach something like creation in the schools while you can teach evolution because evolution isn't religion but creationism is. Intelligent design can't be taught because that's a religion, evolution is. Yet both require faith because neither can be proved.

Separation of church and state is not in the Constitution, and the fact that people laughed about this is what's really scary.

So Limbaugh feels she won too. What we're seeing here is part of a larger counter-factual dynamic coming from the right. They are deeply invested in things that are clearly not true, they deeply believe in things that can be called little more than a series of self-aggrandizing fantasies.

And Limbaugh isn't alone - here's the American Spectator on the O'Donnell Doctrine.

The political and pundit class is in a tizzy because Delaware Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell had the effrontery to question Supreme Court jurisprudence that has established a "wall of separation between Church and State."

But while O'Donnell may not have been as articulate as she should have been, she's nonetheless right: The phrase "separation of church and state" appears nowhere in the Constitution. It was penned, instead, by President Thomas Jefferson in a letter that Jefferson sent to the Baptist Association of Danbury, Connecticut.

And, as the Heritage Foundation has observed, far from being a "principled statement on the prudential and constitutional relationship between church and state," Jefferson's missive, in fact, was "a political statement written to reassure pious Baptist constituents that Jefferson was, indeed, a friend of religion."

See, from Jefferson own words "Separation of Church and State" they devise that he was a "friend of religion" - I guess because he agreed to refrain from using the power of government against them, even though they had opposed his Presidency, but then again - "Freedom of Religion and Expression" also stems from the First Amendment doesn't it?

Here's one more example from the "Freedomist.com".

In a debate at Widener University, with a leftist crowd of uneducated college students (who seem to believe the 1st amendment actually contains the phrase “separation of church and state”) Christine O’Donnell stood up to the leftist belief that religion has no place in the public square, that only secular godlessness reigns supreme in the public square. As a result, the leftist blogosphere is atwitter, literally, accusing Christine O’Donnell of not knowing what the 1st amendment means. Oops!

It turns out she does, and they don’t. The 1st amendment in no way shape or form articulates this mythological ‘separation of church and state’ that has been used by secular, godless, leftists to chase any religious value systems out of the public square in favor of so-callled value-neutral secular judgements.

Yeah, we leftists are such godless bullies against the faithful, because we seem to feel that if we were to establish State Sponsorship for religion, exactly which Religion would that be? Protestant? Catholic? Episcopalian? Anglican? Calvinist? Baptist? Mormon? Jewish? Muslim? Baha'i? Hindu? Kabala? Aqua Buddhist?

Which one would rule? Would it be the majority - what if that majority shifts demographically over time? What would happen to the freedom and faith of all the others when that occurs? Do we all have to become Wiccans if they gain electoral dominance and have to write the Pledge to Gaia into our Public School Curriculum?

It's all fun and games to them until someone suggests we have a weekly mass during 5th Period for Thor God of Thunder.

As you can see by how this is written, like O'Donnell, they think they're the smart ones - who have a Special Insight into Truth and we're the ones who are misguided and deluded. They simply don't get it. The only way to protect all faiths, is to ensure to no single faith becomes State sponsored and dominant. There will never be an Official Church of America.

They continue to think that "Intelligent Design" has something to do with Science, and that it should be Taught in Science class, even though it has No Basis in Science. They argue that Evolution is simply a "Theory" - ignoring that you could say the same thing about "Gravity", but I wouldn't recommended stepping off a cliff simply because you don't "Believe in the theory".

E=MC² was just a theory too, until Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The fact that Sunday Schools and Parochial Schools can already teach any religious doctrine they like, is simply not enough for them - they think Government should be able to mandate Religious Creationism-Lite such as Intelligent Design into our Public Schools. They can't pray enough at their own Church, they also have to Pray in Public and have the School Administration use it to intimidate and coerce everyone else to go along? That's all Fail.

Evolution is the core basis of our understanding of Biology, to deny and doubt it would undermine much of our Medicine and Biotech. For example we develop vaccines on the biological basis that living organisms adapt to their environment and can develop anti-bodies to fight off infection. In contrast to this "Intelligent Design" leads us to what Scientifically Valid Conclusions? That we can Pray our Cancer Away? If we fail to understand our own biology accurately, our ability to address disease, infection and injury can be dangerously diminished. That's not just a difference of opinion, that's foolhardy and dangerous.

This type of anti-thinking among the right is also why you find large numbers of Climate Change Deniers among GOP Gubernatorial Candidates.

An exclusive Wonk Room analysis finds that 22 of the 37 Republican candidates for governor this November are deniers of the scientific consensus on global warming pollution. These science deniers are part of an anti-reality wave of Tea Party candidates, who comprise the Republican slate for the U.S. House and Senate. “The GOP is stampeding toward an absolutist rejection of climate science that appears unmatched among major political parties around the globe, even conservative ones,” writes the National Journal’s Ron Brownstein.

Although 97 percent of climate scientists agree that climate change is manmade, only two Republican gubernatorial candidates in Democratic strongholds — Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie (R-VT) and Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona (R-HI) — want to address the threat. Two more candidates — Gov. Jan Brewer (R-AZ) and Meg Whitman (R-CA) — accept that global warming is a manmade problem, but oppose enacting policy to reduce fossil fuel pollution. The other eleven candidates have “artfully avoided” any discussion of the threat global warming poses to their states, from flood-ravaged Iowa and Tennessee to drought-parched Nevada.

It's not just Climate Science they deny, it's Science they deny. They are in denial of Fact. This is where we get the "Stimulus Failed" when it's clear that it saved us from going into a new Great Depression. This is where we get claims such as Obamacare leading to "Death Panels" which Rep Paul Broun just Resurrected by linking it to the Stimulus.

BROUN: We see so many unintended consequences, or intended consequences, that are gonna force people off medicare advantage. Obamacare if it stays in as the law of the land is going to hurt the elderly more than anyone else [...] In the stimulus bill Nancy Pelosi set up a panel or something called comparativeness effectiveness research, what they’re doing there with that is they’re not comparing effectiveness as well as I and all the physicians will do, they’re comparing effectiveness of spending a dollar on one person versus another, which means the elderly are gonna be denied the care to keep them living and keep their health in good shape so they can have a useful, fruitful productive life. So see marked rationing of care for the elderly and those who have disabilites and those who have illnesses that will be terminal over a fairly short period of time, that may be who knows, ten years, those people are gonna be denied coverage of care of their health problems under Obamacare. [...] It’s gonna kill people by denying care.

Just like their misinterpretation of the First Amendment, this view is completely upside down - the Comparative Effectiveness Research is intended to find more efficient and cost effective ways to expand coverage to more people, not deny it.

Under the legislation, researchers will receive $1.1 billion to compare drugs, medical devices, surgery and other ways of treating specific conditions. The bill creates a council of up to 15 federal employees to coordinate the research and to advise President Obama and Congress on how to spend the money.

The program responds to a growing concern that doctors have little or no solid evidence of the value of many treatments. Supporters of the research hope it will eventually save money by discouraging the use of costly, ineffective treatments.

Shouldn't we know what treatments work and which don't? Shouldn't we put a higher priority of effective treatments that don't break our bank?

The fact Broun is himself a Medical Doctor, makes this even more insidious. But that's what happens when someone has become infected by the Anti-Fact Virus of the Right. And sadly, whether they take back either chamber of congress - there is all likelyhood that this virus will only intensify after the election. It's not the separation of Church and State that these people should be worried about, it's their own separation of Fact and Thought.

Vyan

Rachel Maddow v Art (Crazy Bag) Robinson: Cage Match

Sometimes the crazy comes in buckets.. thick heavy buckets. This is truly appalling, truly amazing, like watching a 20 Car pile-up in slow motion which turns into a giant explosive Blevy, and not being able to look away even as the skin begins the blister from the heat.



Wow... just WOW!

Before I break down this lunar loon, let me first cleanse your palatte with a previous piece that Maddow did with Congressman Pete Defazio, where the question of whose funding this guy was first openly asked.



Ok, back to crazytown.

Most of Rachel's interview with Robinson is obviously a complete cluster-frack, but in the midst of all this we do get one half-way cogent position, or comment from this nutbag.

The only thing he was willing to admit to is being a global warming denier. Check.

Maddow: You're well known for your belief that Global Warming is made up. That that is not true, that's sort of a source of your national reputation, to the extent that you have one. You're opponent Mr. Defazio...

Robinson: That's not a belief, that's a conclusion I reached as a Physical Scientist. I have a degree from CalTech. Many others who have degrees from CalTech have agreed with me on this. Thousands of Physical Scientist in this country who on the basis of scientific evidence alone reject the cause of global warming. I'll tell you madam, there are thousands and thousands of them - far more than there are at the UN pushing this bogus claim about global warming.

Did anyone mention to this officious Caltech blowhard that Rachel Maddow has a Bachelors degree from Stanford and is a Rhodes Scholar with a PHd in Philosophy from Oxford University based on a thesis titled HIV/AIDS and Health Care Reform in British and American Prisons?

Everything, EVERYTHING, after this was dodge, deflect, and blame or accuse Peter Defazio of something or the other, and Rachel Maddow of being up to some nefarious evil Liberal Plot to defame and smear Mr. Robinson.

I'm not going to get into his own quotes which paint him as a denier of HIV's link to AIDs and his argument that the entire thing was a government political plot. He rejected that anyway. All he wanted to say was...

Robinson: Pete Defazio voted for higher taxes. Pete Defazio voted for more government regulation. Pete Defazio has cut off Oregonians from access to use their forests and their fisheries. Pete Defazio voted for the Medical Care after he promised that he wouldn't

Pete Defazio's Voting Record is Here via Project Vote Smart.

He voted for the Stimulus which included Tax Cuts for 95% of Americans. He Voted for Energy Efficiency Loans, he voted against Cap and Trade, he voted for Vouchers for Fuel Efficient Cars, He voted to add the Taunton River to part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Program, he voted in favor of Tax Credits for Offshore Drilling and in favor of Oil Production Leases, he voted against forcibly removing our forces from Afghanistan, he voted in favor of the New GI Bill, he voted to improve House Ethics and he voted for the final Health Care Act, even though it didn't have a Public Option.

Generally speaking Defazio is your average middle-of-road Democrat. Not a fire-breathing Liberal, but not a Conserva-Crat either. Here he is with Rachel again explaining way back in the day how Obama's Stimulus was too weak on infrastructure. Oh, for the days when Obama used to tell the Repubs - "I Won"!



Here's a tip Art, when you're being interviewed - the interview is about YOU and what you believe - not all the problems with your opponent.

But Robinson, in this interview refused to explain his support for the concept of hor-mesis, which is the idea that exposure to low-level radiation could actually be beneficial for humans, and hence we should simply dilute the waste of Nuclear Powerplants with sea water and allow it to spread through the population.

This is something I actually bothered to look up. Dodgy though it can be Wikipedia has something on the subject of Hormesis.

Hormesis (from Greek hórmēsis "rapid motion, eagerness," from ancient Greek hormáein "to set in motion, impel, urge on") is the term for generally-favorable biological responses to low exposures to toxins and other stressors. A pollutant or toxin showing hormesis thus has the opposite effect in small doses as in large doses. A related concept is Mithridatism, which refers to the willful exposure to toxins in an attempt to develop immunity against them.

In toxicology, hormesis is a dose response phenomenon characterized by a low dose stimulation, high dose inhibition, resulting in either a J-shaped or an inverted U-shaped dose response. Such environmental factors that would seem to produce positive responses have also been termed “eustress”.

As a layman, I find that pretty clear. It's sounds like the same principle behind vaccinations and immunity. A small or low level dose or exposition to a potential toxin, virus or poison can lead to the development of resistance and which can render something immune to the effects of this toxin. If we're talking about Small Pox, or some other virus this seems to have been clearly borne out in science. However, when you're talking about radiation it's an entirely different story. Viruses interact with our bodies in a specific way that can allow us to develop anti-bodies which can specifically target and eradicate that virus from out systems. Radiation isn't a virus, it's a form of energy entering our bodies and destroying cells as it's passes through. It's like arguing you could became immune to a Light if you just had enough anti-bodies for it, or that you could develop a resistance to a knife blade entering your sternum.

Still apparently the idea has not gone unaddressed in Scientific Circles.

One percent (195 out of 20,285) of the published articles contained 668 dose-response relationships that met the entry criteria.[1]

Indeed, the idea that low dose effects may be (sometimes strikingly) different is accepted, but that the low dose effect is positive is questionable. In one of the better studied areas of hormesis, radiation hormesis the United States National Research Council (part of the National Academy of Sciences),[2] the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (a body commissioned by the United States Congress)[3] and the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Ionizing Radiation (UNSCEAR) all agree that radiation hormesis is not clearly shown, nor clearly the rule for radiation doses.

So it seems that Mr. Robinson is not entirely a fool, still he seems to be a half a bag short of a nut. Just remember that Ted Kasczinky, aka the Unibomber, also had a prestigious degree from Harvard, a Phd in Mathematics from the University of Michigan and was an instructer at UC Berkeley by the time he was just 25. Since then things have gone less well for Ted, and after multiple bombings and murders, his address is now the Colorado Supermax Detention Facility.

Smart is apparently no antidote for crazy.

Pete Defazio is currently running 2 points ahead of this guy -- why don't we SEND HIM SOME MONEY via Act Blue? (Update: Nate Silver has this race as a 100% chance for Defazio's reelection, holding a 27 point lead - which is a massive relief, Robinson did receive $178,000 independently, but Defazio currently has over $600,000 more than Robinson in reserve)

Vyan

Remember Why We Fight

This past Saturday the NAACP and unions such as the AFC/CIO had a rally that put the best Glenn Beck and Fox Disinformation Channel could muster to shame, but of course it was far too much for Fux News and former Senator and Dead Baby Fetishist Rick Santorum to honestly recognize that Progressives had matched and exceeded their best, instead they had to rely on their tried and true bestest counter tactic.... Slander and Bullshit.



I don't think I have to say much here, because I think their own naked demented bullcrap speaks volumes.

But let's not editorialize, let's let them speak for themselves.

Rick Santorum: You're going to see out there on the mall a bunch of people spewing Anti-American rhetoric. If you look at Glenn Beck's Rally, these are people who love America, love what it stands for, celebrate America, celebrate our past, and you're going to see a litany of grievances about how bad America is, these people only like America for what they want to change it to be, but they don't love America for what it is, and that is not going to go over well with the American public.

Yeah, right. sure.

The people at the Glenn Beck rally had no grievances with "how bad America is"? Oh really? Why don't we let them tell us about that.



Here's an amazing report on the "One Nation" Rally, which is a direct contrast to everything claimed by the Rick Sanitorium and the Tea Partiers, yet ironicallly, broadcast by the Fox News Channel. Yikes!



Wouldn't it be something if these people watched their own damn station?

Far too much to ask I know, but richly ironic.

The current numbers are that the Glenn Beck "Restoring Our Honor" rally brought 87,000 people to the mall - despite Beck's claims that it was a 500,000. Wouldn't it be cool if Progressives could bring that many people out?

Yeah, I know, far too much to expect I know. Except...

Oh wait, apparently they did bring over 125,000 people, according to Crooks and Liars. Geepers!



Ruh Roh!

What's a desperate angry paranoid hate-filled bigoted Tea Bagger to do now?

I really didn't see anyone in this video who harbors "Anti-American" feelings - although I suspect more than a few might harbor Anti-Santorum Feelings, rather I think I saw a bunch of people who believed in E Pluribus Enum, from many into one, that that diversity is not our weakness - but out strength, that we are a group of people who are willing to fight for this country, to sacrifice for this country, but not just for the benefit of those who are already rich and prosperous due to wondrous opportunity that America has afforded them already, but for those who are in desperate need, for those who are in pain, for those who are barely surviving - we are people who are willing to fight to give those who need it most a better access to opportunity, better access to success, and better access to Liberty.

And Justice... For All not just for Dick Armey, the Koch Brothers, Halliburton, Wackenhut, Wellpoint, Cigna, Anthem/Blue Cross, Massey Mining, Blackwater/Xe and BP.

Fox Propaganda Station and Rick Sanitorium are not neutral arbiters of fact. They Lie, and Lie Loudly to the benefit of the biggest Corporate Contributors to NewsCorp &trace, even the Saudi Prince who happens to be financing the "Victory Mosque at Ground Zero". Opps, did I burst someone's bubble with that one? Tough.

America is a indeed Secular Country, rather than a Theocratic Caliphate - so far - yet still it should be noted that Jesus of Nazareth said: Blessed Are the Meek, for they shall inherent the Earth.

Jesus who some call the Messiah said: It would be more difficult for the Rich to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, than for a Camel to slip through the Eye of Needle.

Jesus the Prophet said: That which you do to the least of your brethren, you do to me, and to God.

Jesus the Son of Man said: Let those among you who are without sin, cast the first stone.

Jesus tossed out the money changers, who had upset the will of God.

Jesus forgave the criminal, the adulterer, the murderer and the thief, for only through the eye of forgiveness can the divine light of redemption and rebirth burn.

The fact is that Jesus was a Pacifist and a Liberal - something Rick Santorum the self-proclaimed "Jesus Freak" should know well, but of course doesn't - and let God and all Tea Baggers tremble with that thought.

I may be premature and getting all HOPE and CHANGEY up in here, but It looks to me like we have a lack that of a so-called of Enthusiasm gap on our hands.

Oh! Heaven forfend!!

Shake Santorum Shake! You're latest reconning looms.

Vyan

Refudiating Palin's Two-Faced Pout-Rage

When it came to Dr. Laura using the "N-word" eleven times Sarah Palin says "Don't Retreat - Reload" and argues that Laura has had her "First Amendment Rights" taken away by people who actually bother to pay attention, and report, what she actually said.

So the daily show asks what's worse - the N-Word, or the R-Word?



But there was time, not very long ago - when Palin had a completely different position on the "N-word"....
Many people may have forgotten in the face paced world of the corporate media, but not that many months ago Sarah Palin called for Rahm Emmanuel to be fired because he called some people (Democrats actually) Fucking Retarded.

In the Facebook posting entitled “Are You Capable of Decency, Rahm Emanuel?,” Palin called for his firing for comments attributed to him in a Jan. 26 Wall Street Journal article where he called plans by liberal groups to run ads against moderate Democrats "F—ing retarded."

“I would ask the president to show decency in this process by eliminating one member of that inner circle, Mr. Rahm Emanuel, and not allow Rahm’s continued indecent tactics to cloud efforts,” Palin said in the posting.

“Just as we’d be appalled if any public figure of Rahm’s stature ever used the “N-word” or other such inappropriate language, Rahm’s slur on all God’s children with cognitive and developmental disabilities – and the people who love them – is unacceptable, and it’s heartbreaking,” the post continued.

And does anyone remember when Sarah Palin came after David Letterman for a joke where he confused Sarah Palin adult daughter (who'd already had a child out of wed-lock, for her 15 year old daughter who hadn't - yet).

(CBS) On Monday's "Late Show with David Letterman," the comedian came out swinging, saying, "One awkward moment for Sarah Palin at the Yankee game. During the seventh inning, her daughter was knocked up by Alex Rodriguez!"

It turned out that many people took offense at the joke, especially the Alaska governor and former GOP vice presidential candidate and her family.

In a statement, she said, "Laughter incited by sexually perverted comments made by a 62-year-old male celebrity aimed at a 14-year-old girl is .. disgusting."

Than again, maybe she was really just mad at Letterman because of this...



(Nice Catch from Comments:) Remember when Rush Limbaugh used the "R-Word" and Palin said...

On Chief-of-Staff Rahm Emanuel, she said his comments calling liberal groups "f-ing retards" was "indecent and insensitive" and cause for his dismissal.

But the former governor went to great and sometimes awkward lengths to insist that when conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh used the same exact term to describe the same exact group, it was simply in the role of political humorist.

"They are kooks, so I agree with Rush Limbaugh," she said, when read a quote of Limbaugh calling liberal groups "retards." "Rush Limbaugh was using satire ... . I didn't hear Rush Limbaugh calling a group of people whom he did not agree with 'f-ing retards,' and we did know that Rahm Emanuel, as has been reported, did say that. There is a big difference there."

Colbert: Palin is a F-cking Retard!


Limbaugh is a satirist, but David Letterman isn't? Emmanuel should have been fired, but Dr. Laura is having her "Free Speech" attacked and should "Reload"?

Also do you remember when Franklin "Muslim Seed" Graham was disinvited to the Pentagon National Day of Prayer?

"It's truly a sad day when such a fine patriotic man, whose son is serving on his fourth deployment in Afghanistan to protect our freedom of speech and religion, is dis-invited from speaking at the Pentagon's National Day of Prayer service." Palin wrote on Facebook.

"In my years of knowing him, I've never found his tempered and biblically-based comments to be offensive - in fact his words have been encouraging and full of real hope."

"Are we really so hyper-politically correct that we can't abide a Christian minister who expresses his views on matters of faith?" Palin asked. "What a shame. Yes, things have changed."

Why was Graham disinvited? Because in the wake of 9/11 he said this...

Graham: Islam is a very evil and wicked religion,

Yeah, that's not appalling at all. That's not unacceptable. That's not something you should ever hear from a public figure as prominent as Billy Graham's Son. Yeah, we're just all so "politically correct" when someone says the religion of over a billion people is "wicked and evil".

Let's see now Palin was offended by Letterman, offended by Emmanuel, offended by the community center two blocks from Ground Zero which will include a Memorial to 9/11 open to all people of all faiths - but was NOT offended by Dr. Laura telling a black women she was being too oversensitive because her husband wouldn't defend or protect her as his friends and family demeaned her and used the N-word in her presence, not offended by Limbaugh calling Liberals "Kooks and Retards" and not offended by Graham calling every Muslim in the world "Wicked and Evil".

The woman is completely two-faced and her outrage is absolutely phony and purely calculated to do one thing - attack democrats and liberals, period.

Aren't you glad the she isn't our Vice President serving in John "Build the Dang Fence" McCain's Administration?

Unfortunately she is one of the scheduled speakers at this weekends Taking America Back to Hell Rally with Glenn Beck.

Vyan

Specter Lets the Big Black Obstruction Cat Out of the Bag

All of us who've been paying attention have known this for some time, but to have it so openly confirmed is a rare and special moment - Here's Senator Specter Blowing the Whistle on the Republicans Not-So-Secret Plot to use Obstructionism to retake the White House in 2012.



Via TPM.

During his appearance yesterday on Fox News Sunday, Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) appeared to give out some inside dirt from his days as a Republican -- alleging that the GOP plotted early to stop any bipartisan cooperation with President Obama, and to instead look towards the 2012 election.

"I'd like to pick up on what Sen. DeMint says about the process. I think the process was very bad. But the process was really caused, in large measure, by the refusal of the Republicans to deal in any way," said Specter.

"Sen. DeMint is the author of the famous statement that this is going to be President Obama's 'Waterloo,' that this ought to be used to break the president," said Specter, referring to the political battle over health care. "So that before the ink was dry on the oath of office -- and I know this, because I was in the caucus -- the Republicans were already plotting ways to beat President Obama in 2012."

It's not often that a Senator will divulge private conversations from within the party caucuses. In Specter's case, he appears to be dishing out information from his former party caucus, declaring that they decided early on to focus on opposing Obama politically, and they now complain about a lack of bipartisanship that they themselves caused.

They told exactly what they were doing right up front...

The sad reality that we have to face is that this strategy has absolutely worked, it has sparked a wave of Democratic Fraticide we haven't seen the likes of since the Clinton/Obama Fued of the Primaries which some thought would fracture the party permanently.

The other day I watched near battle royale going on between Katrina Vanden Huevel of the nation and Jane Hamsher of Firedog Lake. It wasn't pretty:

JaneHamsher Well @thenation has come a long way. Opposing the Senate health care bill makes you Ralph Nader says @KatrinaNation

JaneHamsher So @KatrinaNation, you believe it's "Naderite" & "hurts progressive agenda" to say Obama is responsible for #hcr bill, and we should stop?

KatrinaNation @janehamsher Jane, Listen--I do respect your views & your right to criticize Obama/my retweeting that post did not mean I agree w/ it all!

JameHamsher RT @KatrinaNation Respect your views / how is that when you RT post telling me to stop criticizing Obama on #hcr? http://is.gd/5Dz08

JaneHamsher Point of the post is I'm "hurting progressive agenda" by criticizing Obama & should stop, not so "big tent" @KatrinaVandenheuvel @thenation

KatrinaNation @janehamsher Hope you'll contribute your view to Nation forum/ Obama @ One. If I didn't respect your right to criticize why seek your input? 8:44 PM Dec 27th from web in reply to janehamshe

KatrinaNation I hope progressive community in 2010 finds ways to disagree that don't divide us --as we work to mobilize, push power & build better future. 8:46 PM Dec 27th from web

JaneHamsher Criticizing the President on Health Care is “Naderite” and “Hurts the Progressive Agenda”: Ka... http://bit.ly/5BdUWB #publicoption

JaneHamsher If @thenation is shushing the President's critics on #hcr I hope everyone is relishing it @schwanderer, that's news.

KatrinaNation Jane-goodnight & let me try again. Point of MY posts: I do believe in big tent & your right to criticize O/Thanks for caring. 8:52 PM Dec 27th from web

This is how progressives are talking to each other - largely because Republicans have strategically abandoned the field and given all the power to people like Lieberman, Landrieu and Nelson.

These are the people on the other side of the argument:



These people can't be reasoned with. They can not be argued into a better position. Reason has completely LEFT THE BUILDING in their house.

Sspecially with Demint, even though he's recently denied it he did indeed say Republicans need to make Healthcare Obama's "Waterloo..."



That is their true face - not this:



Jim Demint is a member of The Family as well as being the One Lone Senator whose been holding up the new head of the TSA from Confirmation. Because of Demint the agency has no leader, yet even after the failed Northwest Airlines Bombing attempt Jimmy contends he's doing the right thing because he oppose "Collective Bargaining" that would delay security improvements.

Instead, the post remains vacant because Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) has held up President Obama’s nominee in an effort to prevent TSA workers from joining a labor union. DeMint, in a statement, said Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab’s alleged attempted attack in Detroit “is a perfect example of why the Obama administration should not unionize the TSA.”

Unions are more scary than terrorists? Really?

Demint was also among the 30 Republicans who Voted against the Franken Anti-Rape Amendment doing so on the grounds that it would threaten Binding Arbitration.

Ok, so a deals a deal when someones been Raped - but when it comes to benefits for TSA Workers the last thing we want is for them to have an extra 15 mins for a coffee break.

He also opposed the New Hate Crimes Bill... because y'know a "Hate Crime" isn't really a Crime is it?



A Hate Crime is a not just a single Crime - it's an act of intimidation and TERRORISM. It's TWO Crimes, therefore it should be addressed as such.

These guys are willing to take down the President, to allow the Nation to be unprotected and attacked by Terrorists, to allow our Soldiers and Citizens to be victimized by Contractors, to allow people of color or of an unpopular religion, or sexual orientation to be terrorized and harrassed without protection?

They. Don't. Care. All they want is to regain Power at ANY COST.

We Progressives may disagree with each other, we might vigorously fight each other over various points within specific legislation - but the one thing we can't do - is let these FracKing NutBalls Back into Power again.

Vyan

Missouri Billboard Calls for Revolution: War Against America

Via Thinkprogress.

Fired Up! Missouri points out that the Lafayette County Republican Central Committee is highlighting a new billboard in the state with steps for a “citizens guide to revolution of a corrupt government“: It calls for citizens to "starve the beast" and "vote out incumbents" -- and if that doesn't work, "PREPARE FOR WAR."

Look, I'm all for reasonable and rational criticism of our government as the representatives of the people - but at a certain point you have to pull over the crazy train before it goes completely off the tracks.

Also read the Other Diary on this.
This we have coming in addition to the Psalm 109:8 Shirts on Cafe Press we have stuff like this appearing....



Nevermind the fact that there is no Gun Legislation on the horizon, that the House Health Care Bill practically reverses Roe V Wade and Obama has done literally nothing about DOMA or DADT - still they fear the exact opposite.



And via Huffpo in Colorado we now have this which is accusing Obama of being a Jihadist in support of the Ft. Hood Shootings!

More on this see "President of Jihad" Diary.



As I've written before the hole in the deficit was blasted George W. Bush with his Wars of Choice and the Great Recession of 2008.

First of all, the primary complaint coming from the Tea Parties was the issue of Government Spending, particularly in the wake of the 2008-2009 Deficit. That would be shown in the following chart from OMB in Billions of Dollars (I've added a column showing the difference between these years, item by item, and the percent of increase to the deficit for each item so we can all see exactly where it came from)

Spending	2008	2009	Difference	% of Deficit
Discretionary Spending
Defense	612	726	114	9.84%
Non-Defense	508	586	78	6.73%
Mandatory Spending
Social Security	612	675	63	5.44%
Medicare	386	425	39	3.36%
Medicaid	201	262	61	5.26%
Other	411	429	18	1.55%
TARP		260	260	22.43%
Recovery Act		267	267	23.04%
Interest	253	167	-86	-8.85%
Disasters		4	4	0.41%
Total Outlays	2983	3801	818	70.58%
Taxes
Individual	1146	953	-193	-16.65%
Corporate	304	175	-129	-11.13%
Social Security	658	655	-3	-0.26%
Medicare	194	192	-2	-0.17%
Unemployment	40	44	4	0.35%
Retirement	9	9	0	0.00%
Excise	67	66	-1	-0.09%
Estate Tax	29	26	-3	-0.26%
Customs	28	24	-4	-0.35%
Fed Reserve	34	25	-9	-0.78%
Other	17	16	-1	-0.09%
Total Taxes	2526	2185	-341	-29.42%
Deficit	-457	-1616	1159

It might seem like a legitimate grievance to point out the U.S. Deficit jumped from $400 Billion to $1.6 Trillion in one year, but the truth clearly shows the primary reason why was - Tax Revenues Went DOWN ALMOST 30%!!! There are two reasons for that, one could be the Tax Cuts Implemented by President Obama in the Recovery Act (except the real impact of this change won't show up until Fiscal Year 2010) and the other is the fact that people lost their jobs (and homes) during the economic down turn - which came to full-blown fruition under President Bush's "starve the people/feed the corporations policy" - that they weren't able to pay taxes the way they did the previous year. They were Broke!

Obama walked into Office with a $1.4 Trillion budget shortfall on DAY ONE. The fact that the Stimulus Bill actually Cut Taxes for Small Business and the fact that the Banks have actually been paying back the TARP funds - these people still rail on!

Wolf Interstate Leasing in Wheat Ridge, Colorado has put up a billboard insinuating that President Obama is somehow tied to Jihadists and the Fort Hood shootings. The billboard features cartoons that show a caricatured President morphing from a suit-wearing politician into a turban-wearing jihadist. The words, "Remember Ft. Hood" appear at the bottom.

Let's not pretend that this type of thing is merely coming from a so-called "Fringe" element - not when the Majority of Republicans believe that Acorn Stole the Election.

The new national poll from Public Policy Polling (D) has an astonishing number about paranoia among the GOP base: Republicans do not think President Obama actually won the 2008 election -- instead, ACORN stole it.

There is a deep seated fear and paranoia at work here. A fear of that which is "Different" - a fear of losing "Their America" - which let's just be frank and admit is, is the "Good White Christian" America. They can not believe of stomach what they believe is the oncoming descendency of White/Christian Priviledge and Influence. This is why they have focused to laser-like on Obama and in particularly ACORN - because both of them represent the ascendency of the forgotten. The minority becoming the majority and the increasing irrelevance of their own concerns.

And of course the number one cheerleader for the Fear Parade is Fox News - who are Trawling For Violence against the President and Government.


Frank Sheaffer on Maddow:


The Truth About ACORN:


As the video points out ACORN has only registered 2 Million people - so exactly how did they cast the 9.5 Million Votes that put Obama over the top against McCain?

Paranoia and Delusion doesn't have to be logical - it's simply exists and continues to feed itself into further and further frenzy. It doesn't matter if Obama succeeds, they will ignore and deride it - if he fails they will Cheer.

They will do whatever it takes, even destroy this nation from the inside - to "Save" it from the future that they fear Obama will bring.

Vyan