The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

What A Breathtakingly Stupid Thing To Say, @AmandaMarcotte

Posted on | July 24, 2012 | 41 Comments

by Smitty

1789 United States Bill of Rights
1955 American Civil Rights Movement (note Wikipedia’s effort to work contrary to the purpose of integration by hyphenating the page title. Good work, segregators!)

So you’re arguing that exercising a Constitutional right which had been granted 166 years previously was actually motivated by fear?

Lord have mercy, Amanda: that is about the most jacked up, ahistorical, illogical pile of hooey I’ve heard since the last time #OccupyResoluteDesk opened his pie hole. Please just take a vacation, de-program yourself, and come to grips with the certainly messy, but increasingly pro-liberty, history of your country. It’s taken a long time for technology to get us to where we can realize the dream of the Founders. Those getting zany with the airbrush, like you are here, are no help whatsoever.

More at Protein Wisdom.

Update: Andrew J. Patrick is also an Amanda fan.

Update II: linked by That Mr. G Guy, and Hogewash. Thanks!

Category: Racism

Axelrod’s Nixonian Manipulations: Tax Flap Is About Mitt’s Mormon Millions

Posted on | July 24, 2012 | 63 Comments

Back in March, when the fight for the Republican Party nomination was still very much in doubt, I warned that the “electability” arguments made on behalf of Mitt Romney were apt to be falsified by a liberal media that would not hesitate to make Romney’s Mormonism an issue:

If they can’t beat Romney with the “greedy Wall Street 1-percenter” class-warfare argument, the Democrats will not hesitate to Do Whatever It Takes to Win.
If Romney gets the nomination and we reach late September with Romney leading the polls, what do you think the Democrat-Media Complex will do? Whatever It Takes to Win, sweetheart.
Can’t you see the five-part New York Times series on the history of Mormonism? Can’t you see Brian Williams on NBC Nightly News and David Gregory on Meet the Press doing Serious Journalism about all the beliefs and practices of the LDS, and ponderously asking What It Means for America?

That was March 6 — Super Tuesday — and I continued pointing out recurrences of the “Mormon Mitt” meme over the ensuing weeks. The closer Mitt came to clinching the GOP nomination, the less secretive the Democrat-Media Complex became about their belief that Romney’s religion would be a general-election vulnerability.

As I predicted in March, however, playing the Mormon card would be a last-ditch measure, to which the media and the Obama campaign (but I repeat myself) would resort only after the class-warfare argument failed. What I didn’t expect in March was that the class-warfare argument would fail as early as it apparently has, and that Democrats would arrive at their last ditch by late July.

The Obama campaign invested many millions of dollars in TV ads hammering Romney as a rich guy who outsourced jobs to China, blah blah blah and . . . Nothing. Zero. Zilch. The RCP poll average hasn’t shifted noticeably in Obama’s direction, his campaign spending is out of control, Obama stepped on a land-mine with his “you didn’t build that” gaffe, and the major swing states are still in play for the GOP.

If things keep going on the current path, Obama’s looking like a certain loser on Nov. 7. It is thus a curiously timed coincidence to see John Heilemann of New York magazine speculating that the reason Romney won’t release his tax returns is because . . . MITT’S A MORMON!

The depth to which Romney has dug in his heels has naturally provoked a welter of speculation about what in God’s name is in the returns—and just how bad it could be. . . .
My own guess, however, is that apart from one or more of these elements, what the Romney tax returns would lay bare is the extent of his donations to his church. In this case and all others, charitable donations are something to be proud of, an entirely honorable thing. But for a candidate who has taken extravagant pains to avoid discussion of his supremely prominent role in contemporary Mormonism, the idea of a wave of news stories detailing the tens of millions of dollars that he has given to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — surely making him among its most generous funders in the modern era — must be a kind of nightmare. . . .
One sign that this issue is weighing on Romney’s mind was the performance that his wife, Ann, turned in on Good Morning America last week. In an uncomfortable exchange with Robin Roberts about her husband’s position on the tax returns, Mrs. Romney said, “You should really look at where Mitt has led his life and where he’s been financially. He’s been a very generous person. We give 10 percent of our income to our church every year. Do you think that is the kind of person that is trying to hide things?”

Heilemann expresses this as his “own guess,” but then immediately points out how Ann Romney’s Good Morning America interview “was seen in Chicago,” i.e., by the Obama campaign:

[I]t suggested that, far more than Bain, the question of the tax returns is getting under the Romneys’ collective skin. That is certainly how it was seen in Chicago. And that is why, though some combination of Team Romney’s attacks on Obama, the Olympics, and the nominee’s selection of his running mate may have the effect of shifting the subject, the effect will only be temporary. For beyond what Chicago is gleaning from its polling and focus groups, the president’s people see in the issue of the tax returns a way to get inside his head.
“One of the things we learned during the Republican primaries is that you can rattle Romney more easily than people think,” says a senior Obama strategist. “And when he’s rattled is when he makes mistakes.”

Reverse-engineering Heilemann’s article permits us to understand what this “controversy” is really all about. The media have made a big deal about Romney’s tax returns at the behest of Obama campaign. Heilemann and others spent weeks singing in unison from this particular hymnal, eagerly and shamelessly doing David Axelrod’s bidding. And why does Obama’s campaign team want those IRS documents (which they’ve obviously already seen themselves) made public?

For the exact reason that Heilemann suggests: Because Romney’s tithing makes him one of the leading funders of Mormonism in the entire history of the LDS church.

Heilemann’s sycophantic stenography conveys Axelrod’s purpose: Mitt isn’t “hiding” anything that Axelrod doesn’t already know about, OK?

It would be a violation of federal law for Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to provide copies of Romney’s tax returns to the Obama campaign, but when has Geithner ever shown any reluctance to violate federal law? Does anyone really believe that Obama’s re-election campaign is more scrupulously law-abiding than Nixon’s historically notorious Committee to Re-Elect the President?

Hell, no.

Axelrod and his henchmen know exactly what’s in Romney’s IRS returns and have a strategic purpose in mind for this information, but they also know that they can’t use it unless Romney himself releases those documents. And they’re so eager about this that they are unable (or perhaps consider it unnecessary) to conceal their intentions from friendly liberal reporters like John Heilemann.

So when I woke up this morning and saw Heilemann on MSNBC telling Joe and Mika what political use the unreleased IRS documents would serve for the Obama campaign, I knew that this was like a strategy memo straight from David Axelrod: If, as some have urged, Romney were to release a full decade of his tax returns, we would learn that Romney’s cumulative contributions to the Mormon church have added up to a Very Large Number. Imagine the reaction if the New York Times could publish this headline:

TAX FORMS SHOW MITT ROMNEY GAVE
MORE THAN $50 MILLION TO MORMONS

Getting that Very Large Number into the public domain is what this media-generated controversy is really all about.

Whatever else is in Romney’s IRS file is incidental to Axelrod’s strategic purpose of using the tax forms to make Mitt’s Mormonism a Legitimate News Story, to justify all those “in-depth reports” and “investigative series” about the LDS church.

And they think we’re too stupid to see what they’re doing.

PREVIOUSLY:

Category: Barack Obama, Election 2012, Mitt Romney, Religion

#RomneyPreferredBy Liberty Lovers. #ObamaPreferredBy Those Who’ve Found You Can Find Happiness In Slavery.

Posted on | July 24, 2012 | 7 Comments

by Smitty

 

 

 

 

Category: Barack Obama, humor, Mitt Romney

LIVE AT FIVE: 07.24.12

Posted on | July 24, 2012 | 3 Comments

— compiled by Wombat-socho



TOP NEWS
Astronaut Sally Ride Dies, 61

Sally K. Ride, 1951-2012, RIP

Conquered space; struck down by pancreatic cancer

Syrians Threaten Foreign Forces With Chemical Weapons
Assad regime promises chem & bio weapons won’t be used on rebels



Colorado Shooting Suspect Appears In Court
Appeared groggy and emotionless



POLITICS
Obama Questions Romney’s Readiness To Be Commander In Chief

This man killed Osama Bin Laden. Personally. Okay, maybe there were some SEALs involved.

Irony reaches toxic levels

Maine Worker Charged With Arson In $400 Million Submarine Fire

Enrollment In Largest Public School Districts Drops, Forcing Layoffs

Justice Department Opens Probe Of Pennsylvania Voter ID Law

Senate Prepares For Tax Rate Showdown

President Greeted By Supporters, Protesters In East Bay

Marco Rubio Endorses Scott Brown

USDA Boosts Aid To Farmers, Ranchers Hit By Drought



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Oil Prices Slip 4% On Renewed Eurozone Concerns: NYMEX $88.14, Brent $103.29
Renewed Spanish Economic Fears Drive Global Stocks Down
McDonald’s Profit Slips Amid Global Economic Woes
Wet Seal Sacks CEO After 11 Months Of Sales Suck
Amazon Offers Targeted Tuition Benefit To Employees
TD Bank Extends Deposit Hours To 8 PM
Cisco To Chop 1300 Jobs To Cut Costs
Apple’s Infuriating Hardware Changes Are For Your Own Good
Is Google’s Nexus 7 Killing The Kindle Fire?
YouTube Fights Horrible Commenters By Naming Names
Skyrim Update 1.7 Beta Released On Steam
Feds Defend E-Book Antitrust Case Against Apple, Publishers



SPORTS
Mariners Deal Ichiro To Yankees

Mariners receive two schnook RHP, 40% of Ichiro’s remaining 2012 salary of $5 million

NCAA Sanctions Stun Penn State; Paterno’s Record Goes Down Memory Hole

Jury Convicts OSU Hoops Player Of Rape

Rangers Get Excellent Deal On Nash Since Blue Jackets’ Hands Were Tied

Indians Avoid Sweep, Beat Birds 3-1

Sox Hit 3 Dingers In 7-4 Win Against Twins

Harper Homers, But It’s Key Single In 10th That Leads Nats’ Rally Past Mets



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Mariah Carey Joining “American Idol” As Judge

Mariah Carey

J-Lo out, Mariah in

Katherine Jackson Told Family She Was Leaving Town, Contrary To Media “Disappearance” Reports

Minka Kelly Sex Tape Scandal: Actress May Have Been Underage When Video Was Shot

Fox Boss Praises “Feisty” Britney Spears And “Spitfire” Demi Lovato On “X Factor”

Cybill Shepherd Engaged To Shrink

Emily Maynard: I Found The Perfect Man

WB Regroups On PR for TDKR

“Glee” Scoop: Meet The “Freshman” Class

Kirstie Alley Sued For Lying About Weight Loss

“The Inevitable Defeat Of Mister And Pete” Underway With Jennifer Hudson, Jordin Sparks



FOREIGNERS
Israel Boosting Security For Its Olympic Team
Cuban Dissident Osvaldo Paya Forced Off Road Into Fatal Crash, Family Says
Beijing Flooding Unleashes Torrent Of Online Criticism Against Government
EU Proposes Suspension Of Zimbabwe Sanctions
Egypt Eases Temporary Entry Rules For Palestinians
EU Hits Syria With Fresh Sanctions
Assam Violence: Forces In Bodoland To Shoot On Sight
South Sudan Makes Khartoum A $3.2 Billion Offer
Philippines, Vietnam Slam PRC Establishment Of City In Paracels; Philippines To Strengthen Military
PRI Accuses Obrador Of Illegal Funding



BLOGS & STUFF
WyBlog: How Does One Guy Work Seven Government Jobs? He Calls In Sick. A Lot.
Riehl World View: Silliness Of The Day – Mitt Romney’s Speech To Olympians Conflated With Obama’s “You Didn’t Build That” Gaffe
Weasel Zippers: Australian Foreign Minister Warns Romney World Leaders See America In Decline
David Gelernter: What Keeps This Failed President Above Water?
Power Line: Is President Obama Above Water? If So, Why?
Just One Minute: We Want More Bain, Not More Pain
The Astute Bloggers: “The Context Is Worse Than The Quote” (Video)
James Taranto: OK, Let’s Debate Gun Control!
Hit & Run: “We’re Compromising All The Time To Spend More Money.”
The Volokh Conspiracy: And Whose Fault Was That?
PJ Tatler: Boston Mayor Bans Chick-Fil-A
American Power: Obama Praises Self For Ending Iraq War On Same Day Insurgents Kill 100 In New Offensive
Protein Wisdom: Workers On Disability Set New Record, Exceed Population Of 39 States
Conservatives4Palin: Poll Says Majority Blame Obama And His Policies For Economy

Category: Live at Five

Obama: Republicans Hate U.S. Military; Poll: U.S. Military Hates Obama

Posted on | July 23, 2012 | 18 Comments

by Smitty

#OccupyResoluteDesk in Reno today, all ahead Full-Tilt Pander:

President Obama told the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Reno today that, under his administration, “for the first time ever” military families and returning vets are a priority. . . .
“And there are a number of Republicans in Congress who don’t want you to know that most of them voted for these cuts. Now they’re trying to wriggle out of what they agreed to,” Obama said. “Instead of making tough choices to reduce the deficit, they’d rather protect tax cuts for some of the wealthiest Americans, even if it risks big cuts in our military.”
“So let’s stop playing politics with our military. Let’s get serious and reduce our deficit and keep our military strong,” he said. “Let’s take some of the money that we’re saving because we’re not fighting in Iraq and because we’re winding down in Afghanistan — use half that money to pay down our deficit; let’s use half of it to do some nation-building here in the United States of America.”

Meanwhile. . .

Rasmussen Poll: Military Veterans Pick Romney Over Obama 59% To 35%

I don’t know any of the 1 in 3 are that have even the slightest regard for #OccupyResoluteDesk. Maybe General McChrystal has some private arrangement. Mr. President: WE DON”T BELIEVE YOU!

Less than four month to go, ye patriots. For example, The Lonely Conservative.

Update: linked at The Camp of the Saints:

The truth of the matter is: Barack Hussein Obama, like the good Leftist he is, despises everything the military stands for. Since Leftism began to form in the 18th Century, all of it’s craftsmen have railed against the organized armed forces of The West. They have only praised those forces that seek to subvert martial tradition and bring Chaos to the ranks. This, of course, is what they seek to do with every institution of The West. The Left especially despises the armed forces of the nations of the Free World because these soldiers tend strongly to be loyal to the idea of their countries than to any one man or group. It is towards the American Military, as you would expect, that the Left reserves it’s most intense hatred. No other martial force in the world is as loyal to a set of ideas, freedom and liberty, than the Armed Forces of The United States Of America. The Leftist seeks to take away freedom and destroy liberty, therefore, their greatest defenders must be destroyed. Lenin understood that such an end was best achieved from within so he encouraged fellow Communists to infiltrate the ranks and sow dissension — and it worked. The Imperial Russian Armed Forces collapsed. Obama and those who run him understand that in America they must be more subtle in their endeavors, so they have unleashed many mini-cancers within the U.S. Armed Forces. Small though they may be, these initiatives share the same collective goal: to destroy the spirit that has animated the American Military since Concord and Lexington.

In particular, Obama despises the fact that the military is sworn to the Constitution, not him.

Update: an excellent point from Bill Quick:

. . .a President can send the military into extended wars on no say-so other than his own. He can send the military out as domestic law enforcement entitites. The generals who answer to the leaders the President appoints, and the congress rubber-stamps, do the President’s bidding, not the constitution’s. In fact, the culture of the upper reaches of American military leadership seems to believe that it does answer to the President first, last, and always.

Yes, the National Security Act of 1947 begat the Military Industrial Complex. And the MIC got a leg over and begat the War Powers Resolution of 1973. The crucial point from the domestic vantage is the Posse Comitatus Act. The military officer corps has to be degraded much further before any President is going to give orders to U.S. troops on U.S. soil.

Category: Barack Obama, The Lonely Conservative

Romney Slams Obama: ‘An Upside-Down Philosophy That Does Not Comport with the American Experience’

Posted on | July 23, 2012 | 7 Comments

Interviewed by Larry Kudlow on CNBC, Mitt Romney slams Barack Obama’s now-infamous “you didn’t build that” remark:

KUDLOW: “Why do you think President Obama, what did he mean, if you’ve got a business, you didn’t build it, someone else made that happen? He claims it’s being taken out of context. What do you think it means? Do you think this is Obama anti-business, anti-entrepreneur? Or do you think maybe he has been treated unfairly?”
ROMNEY: “Well, just read the whole speech. I found the speech even more disconcerting than just that particular line. The context is worse than the quote. The context, he says, you know, you think you’ve been successful because you’re smart, but he says a lot of people are smart. You think you’ve been successful because you work hard, a lot of people work hard. This is an ideology which says hey, we’re all the same here, we ought to take from all and give to one another and that achievement, individual initiative and risk-taking and success are not to be rewarded as they have in the past. It’s a very strange and in some respects foreign to the American experience type of philosophy. We have always been a nation that has celebrated success of various kinds. The kid that gets the honor roll, the individual worker that gets a promotion, the person that gets a better job. And in fact, the person that builds a business. And by the way, if you have a business and you started it, you did build it. And you deserve credit for that. It was not built for you by government. And by the way, we pay for government. Government doesn’t come free. The people who begin enterprises, the people who work in enterprises, they’re the ones paying for government. So his whole philosophy is an upside-down philosophy that does not comport with the American experience. And if we want to get people working again — and that’s my priority — if we want to get people working again, we have to celebrate success and achievement and not demonize it and denigrate the people who have worked hard, who are smart, who have made the kinds of investments to build a brighter future.”

Unlike a certain Republican presidential candidate four years ago, Mitt’s not afraid to get tough with Obama.

 

 


Category: Barack Obama, Election 2012, Mitt Romney

‘Gentleman’ Jim Moran, VA-8, Clues The World In On A Point His Constituents Suspected, Yet Was Better Unstated

Posted on | July 23, 2012 | 5 Comments

by Smitty

No time for a transcript on this gem:

What’s fascinating about Moran’s remark is that it means Moran is a co-member of the No-Junk Brotherhood with Harry Reid. Maybe Reid’s inability to secure an NRA endorsement in 2010 is why Moran is allowed to mumble against them in public.


Patrick Murray for Congress

It’s time VA-8 traded Moran for a Congressman who is, you know, packin’ the gear.

Read more

Category: Jim Moran, Patrick Murray, Virginia

SCARIEST MOVIE EVER MADE!

Posted on | July 23, 2012 | 1 Comment

WARNING: This film is not yet rated and depicts a horrific nightmare vision so frightening I hesitate even to describe it:

OBAMA’S AMERICA 2016
Four More Years of Unimaginable Terror!
Coming Soon to a Nation Near You?

Category: Barack Obama, Election 2012, Movies
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