GOP Rep. Nunes Excuses Racist, Homophobic Tea Partier Slurs As A Response To ‘Totalitarian Tactics’

[Kablooie]

Source: Think Progress

This morning on C-Span’s Washington Journal, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) justified the disturbing racist and homophobic epitaphs that angry tea baggers hurled yesterday at Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), and other House Democrats. Nunes insisted that everyone has a right to “smear” whoever they want and that the tea baggers’ behavior was understandable given the “crazy totalitarian tactics” that he alleges Democrats are engaged in.

Read more: http://thinkprogress.org/2010/03/21/nunes-tea-part/

---

Ah ha! So the *Democrats* are responsible for the teabagger's behavior. Ah ... ha.
Boy, talk about putting out a fire with gasoline.

[jwirr]

1. If this nation was totalitarian that crowd would already be in containment

camps.

[DeSwiss]

10. +1

Exactly.

- K&R

[DBoon]

2. weird definition of totalitarian

an elected majority passing popular legislation in the full eye of the press is "totalitarian"?

[Kablooie]

4. A Democracy is when Republicans decide everything. Totalitarian is when someone else does.

Remember, Republicans represent the glorious people of America.

Democrats represent liberals.

There's a huge difference between people and liberals.


(Please ignore the fact that Democrats now represent corporate interests, okay?)

[theoldman]

3. The tea baggers irrational behavior is the result of the Republican leadership.

It's similar to using a Judas goat to lead the sheep.

[Kablooie]

5. No. Democrats force people to become racist because they insist of voting on bills.

There is no way anyone could NOT become racist when confronted with such an unbearable situation.

[SoapBox]

6. CONTACT him here!

...cross posted to the video post as well.

CONTACT Mr. Clown here:

Email:
https://nunes.house.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactUs....

Phones:
https://nunes.house.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactUs....

...and this is the message that I sent:

----------------------------

Dear Mr. Nunes:

Simply said, your defense of the slurs from TeaBaggers on Saturday in Washington, D.C. is unacceptable.

In this year, 2010, there is absolutely no excuse for using some of the lowest forms of slurs. Period.

And even worse, it is absolutely indefensible to stand up for those persons, whether it be 1 or 1,000. Period.

Would you find it acceptable for various slurs to be yelled at you?

You should have called them out...instead you enabled the situation to get worse.

You are a disgrace to California and The United States of America.

P.S.,

Explain all of these signs? Explain all of these, mass-made signs....Just 1 or 2 out of control persons? Seems very organized and coordinated to me.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/20/tea-party-protests-nier-f_n_507116.html

[matt819]

16. Thanks - just sent my e-mail

Vile - this was the first word that came to mind when I saw this on HP.

[Ikonoklast]

7. "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice."

'Patriots' can always rationalize their penchant for Fascism.

But never, ever call them on it.

[FreedomRain]

23. They always forget the next line

in Mr Goldwaters speech:

Moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!

[Plucketeer]

8. Ah YES!!!

I'm thrilled to say this is MY FINE REP from the great 21st district of California! I'd like to do more than SPIT on this sludge-filled skin-bag. Nunes' IQ is the same as the Walnut trees that are prevalent in his disctrict! Of course, walnut trees give back more than Dippity Devin Does! Here's me, serving a meal for Nunes -> :puke:

[JDPriestly]

9. This is irresponsible. What if the racist remarks were about Hispanics?

How would he feel if they were about him? How about some empathy, Mr. Nunes? Can't you imagine how another person feels? Do you consider having feelings of love and compassion for others to be somehow weak? Sissy? Why do you defend expressions of irrational hatred?

[Kablooie]

14. Of course he would be furious if it were about Hispanics. But it's not -- so he supports it.

That's Republican logic for you.

[on point]

11. Classic Projectionism

It is the rethugs engaged in totalitarian behavior and tactics, but they project this on to their opposition to demonize them and justify their behavior. This is exactly why these people are very dangerous nut cases and a threat to the American democratic system. They are fascists pure and simple, brown shirts.

[ISW]

12. There is never a reason to use racial slurs.

[Kablooie]

15. Yes there is. Racial slurs expose the remaining racists in our society. That's useful.

[Jefferson23]

13. What an idiot, keep it up racist losers, and continue to marginalize yourselves

even further...right into oblivion.

[Odin2005]

17. The lunatics are running the asylum!

[Quantess]

18. Nunes is a hispanic name, if I'm not mistaken.

How would he like to be called a racial/ethnic slur?

[Left Coast2020]

19. The link is not working.

[Quantess]

20. it works for me. (no text)

[KamaAina]

29. Portuguese, actually

but he is a founding member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Could be an interesting caucus meeting next month...

[BreweryYardRat]

21. Nunes needs a lesson in the difference between reasonable debate and "crazy totalitarian tactics."

Unfortunately, I can't think of any way that would penetrate his self-centeredness, have a lasting effect...and still leave him alive.

[JohnWxy]

22. HItler said totalitarian powers were necessary to protect against "communist" threat

to establish totalitarian state.

[muntrv]

24. Haven't you heard? We progressives make them hatemongers.

:sarcasm:

[David__77]

25. This guy's district is 40%+ Latino.

Central valley California. Unfortunately, the white voters are backward as hell, and vote more frequently. But things are changing and soon people like him will be watching themselves more carefully unless they want to be thrown out. Demography and time are on our side.

[tom_paine]

26. Now we are getting EERILY close the Bushpublicans sounding like Nazis criticizing the Jews

I knew it was coming, years ago, but it doesn't make it any less startling to see a "successful prediction" start to come true.

Nazi:

"The Jews are liars, and propagandists who are totalitarians and want to take over the world."

What can you say to that? The Nazi has described himself and ascribed it to his victims. Listening to the most authoritarian-totalitarian movement and way of thinking that now dominates, which is the 21st Century RW American Authoritarian movement under the rubric of the Republican Party that now behaves in a very distinctly Nazi/Klan/authoritarian fashion, from revising Texas textbooks to eliminate Thomas Jefferson and the Enlightenment to recent spitting on Congresspeople, is like listening to Nazis describe themselves in their calumnies against the Jews.

OBAMA is the totalitarian one? If it was possible to argue using reason with Nazis about Jews or Bushies about Liberals, I might quietly interject:

Ummmmm, if that was true and Obama was a Totalitarian, wouldn't he be able to easily pass anything he wanted, even when he had less than 50 votes in the Senate (you know, LIKE BUSH/CHENEY did 2006-2008)?

Wouldn't the Totalitarians ones be able to tie up the legislature (like in Italy 1922-24 and Germany 1928-32) with only 41 votes while the Democrats can barely pass a watered-down corporate giveaway that trades a few crumbs from master's table in exchange for massive expansion of Corporate Power WITH 59 votes?

Of course, as we all, know, arguing using history and facts and things are out of bounds when discussing with authoritarians, but oh boy, these are all very bad signs that our Empire is pushing through Middle Transition Phase to Penultimate and Final (Solution?) Phases and that these phases are closer than ever.

No one can know the exact path of the future, but I suspect that the Bush Family and whatever corporate factions are actually running things won't let Obama win in 2013, and this will let off steam from their crazy Brownshirts while they tighten the screws another notch toward the RW Authoritarian Corporate Neofeudalist State or Uber-Right Really Bad State or whatever is coming when they are done.

But one thing is certain, RW Authoritarians still accuse their future victims of doing and being exactly what they are (sometimes unwittingly, especially for the followers) embracing.

[classysassy]

27. The law and order republicans

are reveiling the their lawless hateful side that most of us always knew they are.

[newspeak]

28. here, I thought he was talking about the eight years of *

Can we just give these bigots their own state? They'll probably all be white, then they can form a new bigotry between those who have blue eyes and brown eyes.