Right-Wingers of Spring

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What in the world is President Popeye smoking? Who will replace the Washington Post's disgraced right-wing blogger? Who's the first president to blog? Can Bay Buchanan deport 11 million people without breaking a fingernail or running out of cattle cars? And what happens when elected Democrats and citizen bloggers stand up to the right-wingers of spring? Hint: the future of right-wingery doesn't look bright.

President Popeye's Meltdown

Did you see any corporate media coverage of Bush's wild-eyed rant? Of course, not. The only soundbite replayed concerned a presidential Speedo nightmare scenario. For those who missed it, George W. Bush let her rip on live TV during one of his paint-by-numbers speeches. DUer Bush_Eats_Beef alerted everyone in this post:

Bush meltdown, live TV, NOW: "My Dad FOUGHT the Japanese!"

He's yelling, saying that the 'murcan people don't need a president who chases polls and focus groups, that in thirty years he'll be thanked, that he's doing what he believes, and it's amazing that he sits down at a table with Koizumi and negotiates when his dad fought the Japanese.

This man is clearly off his meds.

Here's the transcript. Be sure to swallow your beverage before you get to this part:

Q From Australia. I've got a question about global warming -- in the Australian Parliament, Tony Blair called for greater action. And this seems to be something that the U.S. President could make a major difference on. There's a virtual consensus that the planet is warming. If you addressed issues like emissions, fuel efficiency, issues to do with alternative energy in your last few years as President, it could make a significant difference I think to the --

THE PRESIDENT: I appreciate you bringing that up.

Q -- and I suppose I want to know, what is your plan?

THE PRESIDENT: Good. We -- first of all, there is -- the globe is warming. The fundamental debate: Is it manmade or natural. Put that aside. It is in our interests that we use technologies that will not only clean the air, but make us less dependent on oil. That's what I said in my State of the Union the other day. I said, look -- and I know it came as quite a shock to -- for people to hear a Texan stand up and say, we've got a national problem, we're addicted to oil. But I meant what I said.

He meant what he said, and he said what he meant... just like Popeye. News flash, Bush! The State Of The Union wasn't "the other day." What is this guy smoking?

Friday's Child posted this screen capture for those without cable access during said meltdown:


And CanOFun has Bush's "The Globe Is Warming" video. Naturally, corporate media crickets chirped.

Help Wanted: Wingnut Blogger With No History Of Bad Behavior

If that's an accurate job description, that Washington Post position isn't likely to be filled any time soon, is it? The Rude Pundit is ready and willing to replace disgraced wingnut Ben Domenech. His application blog post is a must-read. As for the currently unemployed Ben Domenech, Your Logo Here hammers home the moral of the story: "Ben Domenech. Pure Comedy Gold."

DUer Kpete posts Larisa Alexandrovna's explanation of the editorial process in the real world (not in Domenechville), and even conservative C-Cup Debbie Schlussel writes, "Other Conservatives Got Away with Plagiarism." Poor Debbie! She claims that not-so-swiftboater Jerome Corsi even plagiarized her! Debbie's name means "key" in German, which is fitting for a wind-up I guess. Psst! If any of you would like to replace Red America's Ben Domenech, FishbowlDC is accepting nominations.

Meanwhile, Editor and Publisher is still trying to find out why AP's CEO Tom Curley fired veteran journalist, Christopher Graff. Also interested in learning why are Senators Leahy and Jeffords, Rep. Bernie Sanders, and Gov. Jim Douglas. News Hounds has the details of how Bill O'Reilly factors into the story. Reality Bites Back, however, explains why we may never know what really happened.

Past and Potential Presidents: Blogged About and Blogging

Not only is President Jimmy Carter the first U.S. president to blog, he debuts with a bang by taking on the immoral majority (34% is a majority?) and blogging about values at Daily Kos.

Usually, it's presidents and presidential candidates who are blogged about. Last Sunday, Rep. Tom Tancredo chastised Senator Hillary Clinton's lack of Bible knowledge on This Week. Clinton had noted that the Republican immigration plan would stop you and me from offering any kind of aid to those in need, unless they were bona fide US citizens. Think Progress notes that it's Tancredo whose biblical knowledge is sorely lacking:

TANCREDO: I'm not really surprised that Hillary Clinton doesn't know the first thing about the Bible. Her impression - her analysis, her interpretation of both the law and the Bible are certainly wrong to say the least. This has nothing to do - the bill we passed out of the House has nothing to do with criminalizing Good Samaritans.

Clinton is right about the law. According to Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahoney, the proposed provision "is so broad that it would criminalize even minor acts of mercy like offering a meal or administering first aid." Mahoney has instructed the priests of his archdiocese to disobey the law if it is enacted.

As for Clinton's knowledge of the Bible, it's Tancredo who needs a refresher. Take Isaiah 49:10: "They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat upon them. He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water."

Tancredo needs a refresher, all right. Humanity 101 would be a good place to start.

It's Baghdad! It's Istanbul!

Actually, it's the right-wing turkey of the week. Leave it to Jesus' General to make the most of Rep. Howard Kaloogian's bogus-looking photos of beautiful downtown Baghdad.


Here's the questionable Baghdad photo (from the original Daily Kos post):


Why does Baghdad look so good, you ask? Maybe because that's a picture of Istanbul. Oh, by the way - Kaloogian now blames his webmaster for posting the picture of Istanbul (claiming it was Baghdad) on his website. We all knew a staffer would have to fall on a sword for Kaloogian, didn't we? TPM Muckraker has the details. In case you're wondering who Howard Kaloogian is, Pensito Review calls him the mastermind behind the Davis recall in California.

Exit Cheeseburger Boy; Enter The Budget Disaster Master

Andrew Card (aka Bush's "Cheeseburger Boy" Chief-of-Staff) departs, in what the corporate media calls "a major shakeup." Uh, hold on. One guy does not a shake up make. And replacing him with Joshua Bolten (aka the poster boy of the fiscally challenged) is supposed to quiet the rumblings of Republican discontent? Maybe on Planet Oh-Right-Sure. Here on Earth, however, a shake up means axing the true incompetents: Cheney and Rumsfeld and Rice, oh my. WatchBlog has the particulars:

Literate Americans may remember Card as "Cheeseburger Boy" from Ron Suskind's book, "The Price of Loyalty":

"Go get me Andy Card," Bush said to one of the Secret Service agents. Card, the designee as chief of staff, entered from an adjoining room. Along with Cheney, Card was running the transition, and he had a long history, having served every Republican President since Ronald Reagan took office. He is stolid and jovial, a man of solid, loyal character.

Bush looked impatiently at Card, hard-eyed. "You're the chief of staff. You think you're up to getting us some cheeseburgers?"

Card nodded. No one laughed. He all but raced out of the room.

No one is laughing now, either. Replacing Card with Bolten is like replacing Malibu Barbie with Catalina Barbie.

The Incredible Light-Mindedness of Being Bay Buchanan


Hey, did you catch Bay Buchanan's idea to deport 11 million illegal immigrants? Think Progress has the video and partial transcript. My favorite comments after the post:

51. Such pure genius, devoid of the slightest whiff of practicality or of a hint of a logical thought process, can only germinate in a Republican mind.

Alternate universe material.

Comment by Abby - March 27, 2006 @ 1:47 pm

52. Bay Buchanan is also batshit crazy. But hey, what you gonna do?

Comment by Quisp - March 27, 2006 @ 1:49 pm

Stand Up Dems!

You'll notice that there's no comma between Stand Up and Dems. This is a major milestone. Frank Pallone, Stephanie Tubbs Jones, Diane Watson, and Louise Slaughter called attention to the Republicans who rubber stamp BushCo policies by, um, showing Republican Rubber stamped placards on the House floor this week. Crooks and Liars has the video, and Firedoglake has this:


Eight Pages Of Lies

It's one thing to add written statements to the Congressional Record after floor debate has ended, but what do you call inserting eight pages of debate that never happened? Just another day in Republicanville. SCOTUSblog has the sordid details:

In the few minutes that it took the Senate to complete passage of the Detainee Treatment Act last Dec. 21, little was said in the chamber beyond a round of congratulations for a job well done. But the Congressional Record for that very brief legislative effort now runs to 21 pages, with three columns of small print per page.

(snip)

Back and forth, Kyl and Graham discuss the new law, with continuing emphasis on their argument that the courts will lose jurisdiction over existing cases under the new bill. Along the way, they criticize the Supreme Court's 2004 decision in Rasul v. Bush, allowing the Guantanamo detainees to file challenges (but without specifying any relief). The new law, they stress, is intended to overturn Rasul. At one point, Kyl says: "The system of litigation that Rasul has wrought is unacceptable." Graham immediately says: "I agree entirely."

Hamdan's lawyers, in response, criticized the Record insertion as "a single scripted colloquy that never actually took place, but was instead inserted into the record after the legislation passed." The Justice Department, however, did not see it that way; in reply, it said it "is not so" that the senators' views became known only after the bill was passed. "The legislative history itself tells a much different story," it says.

In a Republican nutshell, Senators Lindsey Graham and Jon Kyl inserted eight pages of bogus floor debate into the record that the U.S. Supreme Court could cite when they decide the case. Republican sleaze tactics at their finest!

Consequences, Anyone?

Election Predictions has analyzed the national political movement since 1988, and the future doesn't look bright for Republicans.

Based on calculations for all 50 states and the District of Columbia, we can place these states in three categories: (Trending Republican), (Trending Democrat), or (Steady). If a state is moving at a rate of 1% or less we will categorize it as steady in political movement, just in case of inaccuracies in calculations (rounding). I will list the number of Electoral Votes a state has in parenthesis next to it, and the state is color coded according to the party it voted for in 2004.

Every time elected Democrats and citizen bloggers challenge the Wretched Right, a few more rays of sunshine highlight the mess we're in. Every time we point out the hypocrisy and the outright lies, Republicans loosen their grasp on the throats of our founding fathers. And every time we stand up to this year's Right-Wingers of Spring, we have a better chance to energize the voters of Autumn.

-- Delilah Boyd