The Top 10 RNC Dirty Tricks Against the Democratic Primary So Far

[McCamy Taylor]

I. The “Race Memo”

During the South Carolina primary, an Obama campaign “staffer” compiled a “Race Memo” and attempted to distribute it to the new media. The Huffington Post printed it. Obama disavowed it, and it was withdrawn from circulation. Here is a link to the memo.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/01/12/read-obama-campaign-memo-_n_81220.html

Among other charges, the memo contains three media distortions which had been debunked by media watchdogs including the widely read Media Matters before the Memo was compiled. These include: i) Hillary compared herself to MLK Jr (she actually compared herself to LBJ and Obama to JFK) ii) Bill called Obama’s campaign a “fairy tale” (he called Obama’s account of his Iraq War stance a “fairy tale”) iii) Mark Penn introduced the issue of drugs on Hardball (it was an all Obama, all drugs show in which Tweety repeatedly asked “Do things really go better with coke?” He also repeatedly questioned his guests about Obama’s youthful drug use and refused to let the subject drop).

Note: The media distortions which I will discuss in this journal have been debunked in my previous posts. Anyone who wants a link, please let me know. This journal will be much too long if I cite all the evidence again.

I believe that this is an example of the number one Buchanan dirty trick from 1972---smears against one Democrat attributed to another Democrat—as outlined in this document:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/watergate/stories/buchananmemo.htm

"COVERT OPERATIONS -- We should have as many of these down there as needed to conduct harassment exercises, and embarrassment exercises for the Democrats. They should have no connection at all with the GOP Observation Post, and should be directed out of here, as they have been in the past.
"They should be able to help put demonstrations together, get leaflets out, start rumors, and generally foul up scheduled events -- and add to the considerable confusion and chaos that will inevitably exist."
It continued:
"The preparation of attacks on one Democrat by another -- and 'endorsements' of one Democrat by another, which has to be repudiated, are examples of what can be done. Nothing should be done here, incidentally, which can seriously backfire and anything done should be cleared by the highest campaign authority. The Secret Service, it should be noted, will be all over Miami; and any activity will have to take into consideration their capabilities.
"We should guard here against a) anything which enables the Democrats to blame us for the mess which takes place in Miami Beach; b) anything which can be traced back to us and c) anything which is so horrendous as to damage us, if the hand is discovered."
The memo was labeled "CONFIDENTIAL"

Just to give you an idea of what kind of bad things they did in 1972, here is a list of some of what was done to Muskie to drive him out of the race early.

http://www.woodstockjournal.com/elections.html

August, 1971
a newspaper article damning the political chances of Senator
Edward Kennedy was mailed to the media and
all members of Congress in counterfeit Muskie envelopes

again by the Nixonites
February 2, 1972
The Nixonites sent out a letter from “Citizens for Muskie”:
“We on the Senator Edmund Muskie staff sincerely
hope you have decided upon Senator Muskie as your choice.
However, if you have not made your decision
you should be aware of several facts”

The letter went on to accuse Senators Jackson & Humphrey
of a variety of sexual activities
going back to 1929.

The letter was prepared with the help of
25 year old Robert Benz, a Young Republicans leader from Tampa

Why is it unlikely that the “Race Memo” came from the Obama campaign? For one thing, who in the Democratic Party is idiot enough to come up with something called “The Race Memo”? And, who would include charges that have been debunked by a widely read media watchdog like Media Matters? The Obama campaign is a sophisticated operation. It does not get its news straight from CNN. It has ways to independently verify what it the real news is. It does not want to get caught in a mistruth.

CREEP used moles to infiltrate Democrat’s campaigns in 1972. For instance, Lucianne Goldberg was a paid mole. A mole could have come up with the “Race Memo” and attempted to pass it off to the press as the work of the Obama campaign. Unfortunately, The Huffington Post published it, and now it is a matter of public record.

What are the immediate implications? None. The press has ignored it.

What are the GE implications for Hillary? It won’t mean much if she is the nominee.

What are the GE implications for Obama? It is potentially devastating for Obama if he is the nominee. The same corporate media that spread the three distortions above can suddenly correct the record---and accuse the Obama camp of knowingly spreading lies (for the record had already been corrected by the time the “Race Memo” was produced, the media watchdogs sites provide evidence of that). This memo can serve as the smoking gun that the Obama camp resorted to lies in an attempt to portray the Clintons as racists in order to alienate their traditional allies. Obama’s public repudiation of the memo can be portrayed by the GOP biased media as political posturing. This can be contrasted with McCain’s squeaky clean image. If Hillary and Obama are perceived to have parted ways after a bitterly fought primary battle, this “Obama is a Chicago style corrupt politician” smear will be particularly effective.

II. The “Bad Endorsment: Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell

Almost as soon as Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell endorsed Obama it turned out to be trouble. For, the Reverend runs an anti-gay ministry.

http://www.talkleft.com/story/2008/1/20/23019/3991
From TalkLeft:

But new questions about Obama's commitment to fighting homophobia will be raised by the news, via owl06, of this endorsement by Rev Kirbyjon Caldwell. This is troubling because Rev. Caldwell is, like Donnie McClurkin before him, a believer that homsexuality is a curable disease of the soul:
We are pleased to announce the creation of “The Way, The Truth and The Life”, a program created to provide Christ Centered instruction for those seeking freedom from homosexuality, lesbianism, prostitution, sex addiction and other habitual sins.
Perhaps Obama is unaware of Rev. Caldwell's background and views regarding gays and lesbians. One hopes he does not embrace yet another homophobe in his campaign.

I will bet that Obama had never seen this internet site.
http://www.beliefnet.com/story/159/story_15958_1.html

The Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell is pastor of Windsor Village United Methodist Church, the largest United Methodist congregation in the nation, with 15,000 members. Caldwell is also a friend of President Bush's. They met when Bush was the governor of Texas; Bush admired Caldwell's work in using faith-based programs run out of his church to meet social needs. Over the years, they became friends, even though Caldwell is not a Republican. Why? Both are Texans. Both are Methodists. Both earned MBAs from renowned business schools. And both have a passion for faith-based programs. Beyond that, they both are known as straight-shooting CEO-types who don't get tangled up in a lot of introspection.

Today, Caldwell occasionally prays with the president on the phone, and Bush has long pointed to Caldwell's work as a positive example of what can be accomplished through local churches. Caldwell introduced Bush at the 2000 Republican National Convention, performed the benediction at the first inaugural, and spoke at the Sept. 14, 2001 National Day of Mourning. This year, he is again delivering the inaugural benediction.

Here is what the Dallas Morning News said about the endorsement:
http://dallasmorningviews.beloblog.com/archives/2008/01/kirbyjon_caldwe.html

Kirbyjon Caldwell's endorsement of Obama was the most surprising political news to me over the weekend. (You can read about the Hous>ton pastor's rec on our Religion blog.)
Rev. Caldwell not only leads one of the largest Methodist mega-churches, he also has been a strong supporter of President Bush's since at least 1998. He took part in Bush's '99 gubernatorial inaugural, plus he had an officiating role in Bush's 2001inaugural. There apparently has been no falling out with Bush, because Caldwell called Bush about his endorsement, and Bush said that's OK.
Yes, Rev. Caldwell is African-American. Still, the fact he's skipping past several Republicans over to Obama is significant. This is a Bush guy, which Obama could point to as he talks about his ability to reach beyond the Democratic faithful.

In other words, this endorsement stinks like last week’s sushi. This is a “bad” endorsement, one which the candidate will have to disavow almost as soon as it is received, because as soon as he gets it, some awful truth about the one making it will be discovered. Until someone can find proof otherwise, I will remain convinced that Rev. Caldwell is still a true friend of George W. Bush.

What are the immediate implications? It has increased the tension between the gay and lesbian community within the Democratic Party and the Obama campaign just as he is trying to bridge that gap. This has added to the conflict within the party and fortified the resolve of one of the groups backing Hillary that she must not give up her fight for the nomination. Since Karl Rove is working on the Brokered Democratic Convention strategy---the premise that the longer he can keep the Dems from getting a nominee, the weaker the eventual nominee will be---anything that keeps a core group resolved to back one candidate because of animosity towards another is a good thing for the RNC.

GE implications Probably negligible.

III. Bob Novak Is Hillary’s BFFL In Iowa.

In the middle of campaigning for the Iowa caucuses, Bob Novak stuck his drunken, lying traitorous nose into the Democratic primary for the second time, as nicely summarized in this article from Tennessee Guerrilla Women. It is well worth a read.

http://guerillawomentn.blogspot.com/2007/11/bob-novak-plays-swift-boat-politics.html

In a nutshell, Novak claimed that he knew Hillary’s secrets, and that she had dirt on Obama (she just had not used it yet). Obama, for whatever reason (he was politically naïve, he had fallen for the MSM lie that Hillary crushed puppies under her heels) decided to call out Hillary.

Back in July, our friend Novak said that a "woman or an African-American" Democratic nominee would give the GOP "hope." How much more hopeful for the GOP if that woman and that African American can be persuaded to lunge at each other's throats! Until there is something called evidence, it is just plain stupid to believe that this is anything other than another little nasty divide and conquer trick from the Dark Side.

Ironically, Novak participated in 1972 as well.
http://www.affbrainwash.com/archives/022403.php

“The people don’t know that McGovern is for amnesty, abortion and the legalization of pot,” according to one anonymous “liberal senator” Novak quoted.

Years later, Novak decided to blame (dead) Senator Eagleton. I guess he will claim to have been his BFFL, too.

Immediate effects Obama accusing Hillary of being a dirty trickster made Hillary looked like a dirty trickster in Iowa, which probably hurt her in the caucuses. Obama’s accusations against Hillary made him look naive or opportunistic to political insiders and probably started the feud between his campaign and Hillary’s, in that her supporters would have decided that he was not savvy enough to tackle the right wing smear machine or that he was not ethical enough to lead the country.

General election effect for Hillary None

General election effect for Obama Probably will be forgotten except by a few hard core Democrats who will remember it as proof that Obama is either 1. naive or 2. opportunistic. Unlikely to be dredged up by the press since it would portray Bob Novak in a bad light.

IV. The Rumor that Dare Not Speak It’s Name

Last summer, Michael Mustow of the Village Voice started a rumor that Hillary was having lesbian affair with a Muslim aid. Now that the Voice has endorsed Obama, I am sure that they wish that they could take back that rumor, which has spread like wildfire across the internet, since it smacks of dirty politics—from the left. The right wing has made use of the story, which they can attribute to a progressive journal. And they have found a way to take it up a notch.
The story made it into the mainstream media in the UK in the Times and at home it got into Harpers .

http://www.harpers.org/archive/2007/11/hbc-90001616

Not Just Republicans Spreading Rumors About Hillary’s Lesbian Affair
DEPARTMENT Washington Babylon BY Ken Silverstein PUBLISHED November 7, 2007
It’s not just Republicans who play rough in South Carolina. Rumors have been circulating in the Palmetto State, and elsewhere, that Hillary Clinton is having a lesbian affair. Her alleged paramour: a beautiful aide named Huma Abedin (Oscar de la Renta says he longs to see Huma in a strapless dress before he dies). As you can see from the photo, if Hillary is having an affair with Abedin it would not be evidence of her lesbianism as much as of her common sense and sound judgment.
Snip
But it’s not just Republicans who are pushing the story. Will Folks, a well-known blogger in South Carolina, reported yesterday that he’d “heard from sources at rival Democratic presidential campaigns who claim that they ‘know it to be true’ that Hill and Huma are romantically-involved.” I called Folks, and he said that two different Democratic campaigns had told him about the alleged affair, but neither had “presented anything remotely resembling proof.”
Folks said he couldn’t identify which campaigns were spreading the story, so I called Rod Shealy, a top GOP consultant. Shealy told me he had no idea of who was talking up the story—but that the only Democrats with active staffs and organizations in South Carolina were Barack Obama, John Edwards, and Bill Richardson.

This is one of those stories that just keeps on giving---for the RNC. It feeds the Big Lie that Hillary is a lesbian. It is also a potentially explosive general election story about Obama, as in “Look what that dirty Chicago style politician did to that woman to beat her in Bible toting South Carolina!” You can almost hear Republican women gritting their teeth and marching to the polls on their stiletto heels.

There are just two problems with the story. Both sources are Republicans. Will Folks used to be the press secretary of the Republican governor, and he is now a political consultant. And the article even says the other guy belongs to the GOP.

Immediate effects The problem with a story like this is, after Iowa, where Obama believed Novak and stood up and called out Hillary as a dirty trickster and may have cost her votes in a state where dirty tricks are frowned upon, Hillary’s supporters would have read this Harper’s piece and not all of them would have looked up Will Folk’s history. Some of them would have thought to themselves. Harper’s is accusing Obama of spreading lesbian smears against Hillary. No wonder she did so badly! This would have heightened the tension between the two camps. And since this a topic that no one in the Hillary camp could talk about openly, they would have felt especially frustrated and victimized.

General Election Effect on Hillary The right wing internet rumors will continue to circulate the way they have for years, but the South Carolina story will not have an effect if she is the nominee.

General Election Effect on Obama If he is the nominee the effect could be devastating. The right wing would love to take the story “Hillary is a lesbian” out of the closet and into the mainstream media using as an excuse “Obama is a dirty politician.” A team of New York Times reporters could take the “Race Memo” and this story and the reaction to Novak in Iowa and paint a very ugly picture of the Obama team---one that would turn a lot of women (Democrats, Independents and Republicans) away from Obama. If Will Folks has represented even one Democratic client, he could paint himself as bipartisan. Maybe he has got one right now.

V. The Moonies “Madrassa” Story

Over a year ago, the Moonie publication Insight published a double whammy lie. It claimed that Obama was a Muslim who was trained in a Madrassa and that Insight got the story from Hillary.

http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/flash_4.html
Following a play book that we have all become familiar with, the corporate media gave this story wide coverage under guise of asking the question Did Hillary the bitch really do this dirty trick? Obama did not not bite and eventually the media frenzy died down.

Immediate effect None

General election effect for Hillary This story can be used to paint Hillary as the source of all the rumors that Obama is a Muslim even though it is right wing sites that have propelled the story (see my journals).

General election effect for Obama Big Lies take a while to work. You can make anyone believe anything if you repeat it often enough. By getting this story into the MSM—under the guise of asking “Did Hillary do it?”---the RNC has had more time to work on its number one anti-Obama Big Lie. Plus, it make McCain look clean--his fingerprints are not on it.

VI. Matt Drudge is Hillary’s BFFL

We can thank the New York Times---home of Judy Miller, Michael Gordon (the human voice activated tape recorder), and now Bill Kristol—for this one. And it is a doozy. According to the times, Tracy Sefl has been feeding Matt Drudge info from the Hillary campaign.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/22/us/politics/22drudge.html?_r=2&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&ref=politics&adxnnlx=1193061614-C4edhgywviRmy3z16YJYiw&oref=slogin
Bullshit info that does not help Clinton at all like her campaign finance reports. No one in the Clinton camp, including Sefl will discuss this story. What is so weird about it is that Sefl hates Wal-Mart
http://media.www.chicagoflame.com/media/storage/paper519/news/2006/10/23/News/Tracy.Sefl.Speaks-2382719.shtml
And we all know that within the Democratic Party , Hillary wears a great big letter W for Wal-Mart, which makes me wonder what Sefl is doing in the Clinton campaign in the first place, and how the NYTs got her name and this story, and if she really, truly likes Hillary.

But anyway, the NYTs printed this story about how Drudge got some of Clinton’s financial reports before other media sites got her reports. If you read the Woodstock link, you will see that CREEP had a lot of ways to steal documents from the Democrats. Plus, Rove now has FISA and AT&T.

This NYTs piece was just the opening act in a three part drama. Drudge would go on to show us Obama in a dress---and say that Hillary made him do it. And then he would edit Hillary’s 60 Minutes interview as documented here by Media Matters.

http://mediamatters.org/items/200803030004
Each time the Obama camp took the bait. Keith Olbermann even accepted the Drudge edited 60 Minutes footage as the real thing.

Immediate effect Hillary was branded as a dirty trickster and Obama was portrayed as a Muslim by the press which gave these two ridiculous stories wide coverage under the guise of criticizing Hillary. Those who were skeptical of the source (Drudge) were left to assume that Obama was either naive or opportunistic , as after the Novak episode in Iowa. The general public’s reaction to both candidates was to increase their unfavorable ratings. The nonpolitical public wants to see upbeat candidates discussing solutions, not two people slinging mud.

General election effect for Hillary These stories can be used to portray her as a bitch and dirty trickster compared to “clean” John McCain.

General election effect for Obama The Big Lie Obama is a Muslim has been reinforced by his own supporters through their reaction to these stories which kept them alive. In addition, if credible sources like the NYT revisit these stories and question Drudge’s reliability (in light of his known RW ties and propensity to dispense RW propaganda) Obama can be portrayed as an opportunistic dirty trickster who only pretended to believe Drudge in order to attack Hillary unfairly in the primary, again driving a wedge between him and women.

VII. The Wright Videos
As I detail in my journal about media smears against Obama, the right wing has been attacking his church for over a year. FOX News is a propaganda organ for the administration and the Republican Party. The Wright Videos were probably pulled out of the vaults early, because Obama threatened to upset Rove’s Brokered Democratic Convention strategy. The RNC hoped to knee cap Obama so that Hillary could catch up.

This dirty trick should serve as an important lesson. When a smear obviously comes from the right, the American public does not want to hear it. People are wise to their tricks. Obama supporters may have decided that Hillary is a liar, but she was a truth teller when she informed the public about the existence of the right wing conspiracy .

Immediate effect Brought Democrats together by reminding them who the real enemy was

General election effect on Hillary None

General election effect on Obama Everyone now knows he went to a Christian Church for 20 years. The Obama is a Muslim lie took a serious hit. This dirty trick will increase some right wing opposition to him but it will also increase some left wing support for him since it shows a long term commitment to liberation ideology. He has also acquired a reputation for Teflon.

VIII. Bosnia in the Mid 90s Was a Great Vacation Spot
There is something about this story that really bothers me. The news reports describe swarms of journalists on the ground. I would have expected no less. First lady lands in Bosnia with celebrities. Surely CBS was not the only news network that had film recording technology in 1996?
Usually when you get a “he said, she said” story like this, every news media outlet wants to jump in with their version of events. Look! We were there! This is our intrepid reporter’s footage! This is what our writers’ wrote! Where was NBC? Where was CNN? Where was the NYT? AP? ABC? None of them covered this story? What were the other journalists there for? To study the local fungi? Surely Stars and Stripes was there. If Hillary is a big fat liar, it would be nice to see something more than a few seconds of CBS footage, heavily edited, minus sound (so we can not tell if there was gun or mortar fire in the distance) without footage of Hillary exiting the plane (so we do not know if she cringed or crouched or ran or looked scared), choppy (so we do not know what was cut out to give the appearance that the US had the situation under control back in 1996).

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/bbc-reports-on-hillary-clintons-bosnia-claims/1234772335

Now, why is the rest of the corporate media holding back their evidence about what they saw or heard on the landing strip that day? Could it be because they have not been told what story they are supposed to tell?

Immediate effect Total war within the Democratic Party. The Obama camp is out for blood after Wright and though Hillary did not do it, they do not care. The Hillary camp sees this is “Gore is a liar” recycled, and they are about to explode. They have dug in their heels at the perceived unfairness of the attacks from within their own party and absolutely will not concede to “dirty tricks.”

GE Effect Hillary If Hillary is the nominee we can expect to see NBC and some of the other news media players come up with their own versions of the CBS video, showing Hillary and Chelsea doing a cakewalk across the airfield in Bosnia while Sinbad entertains them with joke and Crow sings. Moral: Hillary is a liar, McCain is a war hero.

GE Effect Obama This is just a hunch but if Obama is the nominee, the news networks that have been holding out on us will come up with raw footage that shows the sounds of gunfire, maybe shows Hillary demonstrating apprehension as she disembarks, evidence of high levels of security,smoke in the distance, interviews with armed security---all edited to paint a much different picture.
Everybody here has seen the film The Conversation right? You can make a film or video show whatever you want it to show. Hillary says she was scared. Sinbad said he was not scared. If CNN comes up with footage that looks scary, then McCain can do a gotcha and say Sinbad lied! He did it for Obama! They beat up on a woman! It was a dirty trick! And once again. Obama loses women voters.

IX . Hillary Will Punish You If You Do Not Buy Into HillaryCare

If you said that the Obama camp came up with this one, you are wrong. Matt Drudge—whom the NYT would have us believe is Hillary’s BFFL after Bob Novak spread this lie.

http://www.drudgereportarchives.com/data/2007/09/18/20070918_201653.htm

Under a screaming Hillary picture the headline announces “Health Insurance Proof Required For Work” That isn’t just illogical. It is wrong. According to Media Matters the AP source article said that the Clinton camp said that one day proof of health insurance might be like proof of vaccination when kids go to school depending upon what Congress decides. Because that is the bottom line. Congress writes legislation, not the president.

Immediate effect Other MSM news sites published the smear, reviving fear of universal health care. The Obama camp, worried about the backlash, distanced itself from the concept of universal health insurance and ended up committing one of its biggest faux pas when it designed replicas of the old Harry and Louise ads intended to distance itself from Hillary’s mandatory health insurance plan. This widened the dissension within the ranks of Democrats.

General election effects for Hillary If she is the nominee she will find it harder to convince people to embrace universal health insurance because of the work of Drudge and her own Democratic rival. Since health care is one of her signature issues and one the Democrats’ strengths this will hurt the party.

General election effects for Obama Minimal.

X. CREEP Alumnus Roger Stone is now being quoted by the Press on what is American

Surreal.

http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/14678.html

From email smears to misleading pictures making the rounds, Barack Obama’s critics have tried, with varying degrees of subtlety, to argue that the Illinois senator somehow lacks the requisite patriotism to be president.
Yesterday, the AP’s Nedra Pickler tackled the charges.

Sen. Barack Obama’s refusal to wear an American flag lapel pin along with a photo of him not putting his hand over his heart during the National Anthem led conservatives on Internet and in the media to question his patriotism.
Now Obama’s wife, Michelle, has drawn their ire, too, for saying recently that she’s really proud of her country for the first time in her adult life.
Conservative consultants say that combined, the cases could be an issue for Obama in the general election if he wins the nomination, especially as he runs against Vietnam war hero Sen. John McCain.
“The reason it hasn’t been an issue so far is that we’re still in the microcosm of the Democratic primary,” said Republican consultant Roger Stone. “Many Americans will find the three things offensive. Barack Obama is out of the McGovern wing of the party, and he is part of the blame America first crowd.”

What is wrong with this story? Besides the obvious, Roger Stone is what is wrong with it.
There is a link about Stone in the article. Among other things he did dirty tricks for Nixon in 1972 against Democrats, he lead the Rico Act violating Republicans who stopped the vote recount in Dade Florida in 2000, he left threatening messages for Gov. Spitzer’s father and brags that he is the one who turned in Spitzer himself to the feds (through his own association with call girls I guess).
You got this? Roger Stone, one of the youngest CREEPsters is telling us what is patriotic.

Immediate effect Nada. Democrats don't care about symbols of patriotism.
General election effect If people like Stone are running loose and if the MSM is taking orders from them, then no one can in the press be trusted. The whole news media has to be considered one great big wing of the RNC, just like the Department of Justice. Hmmm. That must be why it has taken me seven journals just to document the media atrocities committed against Obama and Hillary so far--- and we are not even out of the primary .

These are just a few of the dirty tricks that we have seen. I believe that these are all right wing dirty tricks, straight out of the Buchanan playbook, designed to cripple our nominee, whomever it may be and divide and conquer the Democratic Party. Since the Republicans have chosen McCain as their second best (Rudi being unacceptable to every telecom except his masters at News Corp), they will seek to portray our nominee as a liar and dirty trickster, even though they are the ones doing the dirty tricks. They will take care to keep McCain's prints off of the attacks, attributing the smears to Dems whenever possible. In my previous journals, I have documented many separate instances in which media lackeys of the RNC have contributed their own individual efforts to the cause. Please read them if you have not. They will let you see who is the enemy. In addition, I have attempted to show the overall plan as well as the success which Rove has achieved in bringing some sections of the Democratic Party to a level of insanity usually associated with epidemics of ergot poisoning from bad grain stores.



In order for the Rove plan to fail it is important that Democrats stop fighting. That means no more of this

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/seth-grahamesmith/the-monster-a-loyal-clin_b_90632.html#postComment

With its 10 lies and distortions along with references to phony scandals that the right wing conspiracy dreamed up to hound a Democratic president who dared to unseat a Bush.

And please, no more of this either

http://lisalexicon.typepad.com/how_dare_she/2008/02/obamas-sexism-s.html

I do not think that Hillary needs us to stand up for her. She is strong. She can take care of herself.

“Divide and conquer—that’s what they try to do to any group trying to make social change. I call it D&C. Black people are supposed to turn against Puerto Ricans. Women are supposed to turn against their mothers and mothers-in-law. We’re all supposed to compete with each other for the favors of the ruling class. - Florynce R. Kennedy

[emilyg]

1. k/r

[leftofcool]

2. Excellent post and story.

[crispini]

3. BFFL?

Nice work! :D

[McCamy Taylor]

5. Best friend for life.

[anonymeme]

34. BFFL? Me, Too, McCamy? PPWSOI? ?:]]

Your posts these last few days are the only things that have given my heart a lift and made me smile and feel like keeping up the fight -- besides my hubby, ie.

ITYAMT&KYTFTFPT *L* ~*:hug:*~

[McCamy Taylor]

39. Eeks! I have never texted in my life! But I get the emoticon.Thanks!

:loveya:

[ProSense]

4. Wow, all that to hide this spin:

If Hillary is a big fat liar, it would be nice to see something more than a few seconds of CBS footage, heavily edited, minus sound (so we can not tell if there was gun or mortar fire in the distance)

She lied, accept it!

[DerekJ]

6. She has been living in a complete state of denial.

[McCamy Taylor]

10. Actually, Hillary has been telling us about this RW conspiracy for years. Obama should address it.

[theredpen]

43. That one jumped out, too

The "there has to be more to this story" sounds reasonable, until you realize that we haven't heard more to this story.

For example, with Kerry, several people came out to back up John Kerry's story. With the "Obama is a Muslim" whispering campaign, it took about 15 seconds to find out that Obama was a Christian and had been for decades. With the "madrassa" smear, it too about a day for non-Moonie news media to discover that Obama went to a regular school in Indonesia.

The list of similar smears goes on. As the OP points out, the counter-evidence should be easy to find, so where is it?

[bhikkhu]

7. K&R - everyone should read this

Including the candidates staffs!

Thanks again McCamy

[McCamy Taylor]

8. There is a RNC dirty trick at work right on this board. See this link

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=5299306&mesg_id=5299306

This stuff never fails to amaze me. The Woodstock link shows that even back in 1972 they were using the tactic of calls that were supposed to come from one Dem (but came from CREEP). It also shows that even back then they had ways of getting info from a Dem camp (including moles, paid thieves). Now the WH can just use FISA and warrantless spying.

And look at how DU takes the bait. Hillary supporters, seeing this, will just get even angrier and more determined not to quit, since they will know that it must be the RNC and that they are being accused unfairly.

BTW, when I was pointing out these dirty tricks once, I had an Obama supporter tell me it was Hillary's fault for not standing up and telling the press about the dirty tricks attacks on the Democratic Party. It would be funny if it was not so sad. She has been talking about this stuff for years. The press mocks her. The last time she tried, this winter, they spent days talking about how she had multiple personality disorder and needed psychiatric help.

[readmoreoften]

14. Thank you. One nitpick: Obama's campaign actually was involved with Caldwell. No smear there.

The anti-gay Kirbyjon Caldwell is mentioned a few times on his site and spoke at a campaign rally last year.

http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/officialevent/4vfvx

[McCamy Taylor]

17. I know. But the anti-gay ministry was not unveiled until the day after the endorsement.

They sucked him in deliberately, and then they made a big media stink the next day, knowing that he was trying to mend things with the gay community. It was a Rove dirty trick, trust me. I am from Texas.People talk about Chicago like they are supposed to be so corrupt, but they do not know a thing about dirty politics up north compared to the South, and Texas is the worst. I think that is why Rove would rather run against Obama. Northerners are so damn honest. They take people at their word. Hillary is a northerner, too, but if he runs against her, he has to face Bill and he knows the score.

[readmoreoften]

52. The antigay campaign was on his website the whole time. His campaign should've vetted him.

I saw the metanoia site before it was removed and Caldwell seemed directly involved. I doubt that it was unknown to anyone in Obama's campaign that Caldwell ran a ministry with anti-gay overtones. I mean, the man did support Bush. I think the Obama campaign made tactical choices that blew up in their face, in this particular case. I think they were more concerned about the black conservative vote going Republican (Republicans have made inroads into the black vote on antigay platforms) and figured they could withstand the hit from gay voters. I think where they miscalculated was how many straight voters are motivated to fight bigotry against LGBT people. Rove or his replacement entity is doing a great job messing up the campaign for sure, but I think that doesn't rule out candidates making bad choices on their own.

I'm in Texas too. Voting here is a trip. I couldn't BELIEVE the whole caucus thing. Unreal. What a mess.

[InfiniteNether]

33. I was that Obama supporter.

I didn't say it was Hillary's fault. I simply said that she should know better, because of her age and her political background, to not fall for certain tricks. You said yourself that Obama might not know of such Dirty Tricks, since he lived most of his early life outside the US, among other things. You are misrepresenting my words. It was your very words, Mr. Taylor, that gave me doubt as to whether Obama knew what was happening, or even what CREEP was.

[McCamy Taylor]

40. If Obama does not know by now, he is not ready for the GE, Rove is his opponent.

not McCain.

[InfiniteNether]

41. And Hillary does?

He knows the Repugs are the enemy. And it seems Clinton's advisers don't know about Dirty Tricks, either, in spite of their backgrounds. Wasn't it Harold Ickes that advised Ted Kennedy to go all the way to the Convention in 1980? Either he hasn't learned from history, or he himself is a Dirty Trick mole. Obama is more than ready. Grace under fire, I might say. He will do fine in the general.

[dailykoff]

9. Vast right wing conspiracy, check.

Also known as Hillary Inc.

[McCamy Taylor]

11. Anyone who does not believe in the RW conspiracy lives in a state of denial.

Just go read the 1000s of pages of Media Matters.

BTW, if you do not believe that these originate from the RNC, then Obama's got some 'splaining to do. However, I think too highly of both our Democratic candidates to believe that either of them would resort to these kinds of tactics. Democrats do not stoop to gutter politics. Karl Rove is the one man in America today who has a track record of being willing to break any law to win an election.

[dailykoff]

12. There's no doubt that it exists and that they're desperately pushing Hillary

up our asses. I imagine she cut a deal with her media pals to finish what Bill started in 1996 if they manage to put her over and that's just the beginning of her dirty deals. :mad:

[DURHAM D]

13. Is that you Karl? eom

[dailykoff]

16. Last week Karl was on Fox defending Hillary.

What a shock, not.

[McCamy Taylor]

18. He has also given advice to Obama. The man is a snake in the grass.

He is a pathological liar and he has stolen two US presidential elections and must steal this one or his precious George could go to jail later for his crimes.

[dailykoff]

19. Link? And the fact remains that Rove is defending Hillary on Fox News.

Meaning, Hillary is the torch bearer of the vast RW conspiracy.

[McCamy Taylor]

21. Meaning you do not know politics. When GOP pundits praise a Dem it is "code"

for Republican voters to cross over in upcoming primaries to vote for that Democrat in order to interfere with the primary. Usually it means that candidate is the easiest one to beat in the fall. In this case, it is because the GOP wants to keep the delegate count split so we do not have a nominee. And no that isn't Hillary's fault. She would be the winner now if the GOP had not changed the Florida primary (another dirty trick I forgot to mention) and if Republicans had not crossed over earlier for Obama.

As Wayne Barret documents in The Village Voice conservative pundits praised Obama all last fal through the winter. Then,, abruptly, as Obama overtook Hillary, they started praising Hillary.

http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0811,374100,374100,2.html

This is consistent with Rove's "Brokered Democratic Convention". When Hillary was ahead, Republicans were given coded messages from their pundits to cross over and vote for Obama. Here are links about Rove offering "advice" to Obama all last fall. This was also code to Republicans that Obama needed to be fluffed up to help him in the primary per Karl Rove.

http://wonkette.com/politics/strange-bedfellows/karl-rove-has-advice-for-obama-323906.php

http://wonkette.com/politics/strange-bedfellows/karl-rove-has-advice-for-obama-323906.php

As soon as Obama passed Hillary in delegate count, the conservative pundits began praising Hillary. Republicans in the know took this as a sign that they were supposed to cross over and vote for Hillary.

We need to have some kind of school here at DU to teach people about the tactics of the opposition so that they know what the Republicans are up to. When Obama supporters were getting all excited last fall about all the Republican support he was getting and the cross overs I told them about the Chicago 1968 plan and that just as soon as Obama was ahead, the right wing would start attacking him and helping Hillary. But they don't remember,no. And now,when the Republicans help Hillary it is all a dirty trick.But when they voted for Obama it was bipartisan appeal.

You can not have it both ways. It was always a dirty trick. I realize that growing up in Texas I cut my teeth on the nastiest politics in the US, but can people really be this naive?

[dailykoff]

26. It seems you've ahem, mispoken. Rove was interviewed on CSPAN --

he is not "advising" the Obama campaign. Your Wonkette link has a CNN link which goes to this:

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Former top Bush aide Karl Rove said Thursday he thinks Sen. Barack Obama has missed key opportunities to knock rival Hillary Clinton off track.

In an interview with CSPAN, the man behind President Bush's two White House wins cited a recent debate in Philadelphia when Clinton was asked why more of her records as first lady have not yet been made public.

"He missed the opportunity," Rove explained. "If he had stood there and said, 'Senator, with all due respect, it is entirely within the power of you and your husband to immediately order the release of those documents. And your failure to do so reveals legitimate questions in the minds of the American people about what you might be hiding and it's not going to be good for the Democratic party or for you if you allow those questions to persist,' it would have been a moment, it would have been a big moment.

Direct link: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2007/11/17/rove-obama-missing-opportunities-to-knock-clinton/

In other words, your insinuation that Rove is working for Obama is crap, but thanks for stinking up the place. :hi:

[McCamy Taylor]

36. Rove is working for the RNC, he pretends to support the Dem whom he wants the GOP to vote for at the

moment.

[dailykoff]

27. That's laughably untrue. Rove is NOT advising Obama.

You must be getting pretty desperate because your insinuations are delusional. Here's what Rove actually said, in a CSPAN interview, not to Obama or his campaign:

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Former top Bush aide Karl Rove said Thursday he thinks Sen. Barack Obama has missed key opportunities to knock rival Hillary Clinton off track.

In an interview with CSPAN, the man behind President Bush's two White House wins cited a recent debate in Philadelphia when Clinton was asked why more of her records as first lady have not yet been made public.

"He missed the opportunity," Rove explained. "If he had stood there and said, 'Senator, with all due respect, it is entirely within the power of you and your husband to immediately order the release of those documents. And your failure to do so reveals legitimate questions in the minds of the American people about what you might be hiding and it's not going to be good for the Democratic party or for you if you allow those questions to persist,' it would have been a moment, it would have been a big moment.

link: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2007/11/17/rove-obama-missing-opportunities-to-knock-clinton/

[McCamy Taylor]

37. You deliberately distort my words so you can post lines to support your own assertions.

Sauce for the gander is sauce for the goose.

[Ztarbod]

32. State of denial, or LW conspiracy?

[McCamy Taylor]

42. State of denial or right wingers pretending to be LW or left wing sell outs.

True left wingers do not act like that. Now, I suspect that certain members of the left wing---especially some who are involved in the entertainment industry, books, TV, movies---could be bought by the telecoms with promises of deals for books, TV shows etc. Plus, Obama is trendy, so getting out there and writing an intensely partisan screed for Obama that gets you on top of the googles is good way to get name recognition if you are a writer or artiste at the moment. So, not everything that looks like it is coming from a true Obama supporter is necessarily coming from an Obama supporter.

You could see that in 1968 and 1972. There were people who, economically were just as happy with Nixon, who would say "I'm with Gene" or "I'm with McGovern" from the entertainment industry because their target audience was young and they wanted to be associated with the hip, youthful candidate. They would often say or do things that were inappropriate. We are seeing this now. People who want to leech off Obama to absorb his trendiness. Even politicians do it. Nancy Pelosi thinks that she can be forgiven for not impeaching and not ending the war if she just supports Obama. Yeah, right. She is not speaker of cheerleaders. She is speaker of the house.

Anyway, the point I am trying to make is that politicians, Hillary and Obama, can not control the people from their own side who try to coat tail on them. Like Hillary could not control the husband of Shaheen in New Hampshire. He is gonna say what he wants to say. It is no sweat off his brow if Hillary kicks him off the campaign. He's invested in his wife's career.

BTW, has everyone seem this McClatchy piece from today about how Superdelegates tend to vote for the candidate who contributes to their campaign? I'm posting this inside this journal rather than as a stand alone so that it will not be flame bait. This is surreal. You can buy Superdelegates. The one with the most money, gets the most. This is not right.

http://www.star-telegram.com/elections/story/551431.html

[DURHAM D]

15. Once again, thanks for your excellent work.

I don't read Huffpost - do you post there? Or anywhere.

I have a good friend who is a strong Dem but will not play in the muck here at DU. However, several weeks ago I directed him to one of your journals. Now he googles you every day and is disappointed when he doesn't find a new post. He is also disappointed when he calls me after reading one of your posts if I have not already read it. He thanks you and I thank you for your work.

[crankychatter]

20. Thanks -

I for one am out of the fray... and I will save incendiary language for the more raucus blogosphere. It can be fun and even therapeutic in times of frustration.

When I see lurid, inflammatory, "yellow press" style scandalmongering... it is natural to want to defend the candidate I support and even respond in kind.

But it's too easy and above all, it's counterproductive and a waste of time.

If the OP is asserting that ALL of this sort of campaigning is a function of over-zealous supporters, being duped by the RW spin machine... well I cannot concur in full.

Many supporters are not dupes at all when they use proxies, socks and multiple IDs to boost the nastiest strings to the top here. They are disingenous, because they know these things to be overstated, imbalanced and in some cases, straight from the right wing, LIES. We're not stupid. Sometimes, evidentally, we just don't give a shit.

I am not going to let this thing break MY "give a shit." YOU do what you want. If you engage in heinous behaviour, don't be asking ME to "play nice" and let bygones be bygones. In fact, don't talk to me at all.

Well that's it... let your yeah be yeah and your nay be nay. I'll keep crackin little jokes and jibes... try not to take myself too seriously either and, occasionally find some common ground with the opposition.

I am nothing, if not teachable.

[McCamy Taylor]

22. Political Prosecutions by the DOJ are another dirty trick and this year they are being timed for the

primaries. Note that Mukasey is acting exactly like Gonzo. They have just indicted the Gov of Puerto Rico, mere months before that primary along with politicians from Pennsylvania. The Eliot Spitzer case is another attack on a prominent Dem. The GOP and Mukasey are fighting tooth and nail to keep justice from being done for Seigelman. Meanwhile, the DOJ is working to protect Jerry Lewis in California. The timing of the Rezko trial could not be more suspicious.

No doubt we will see the War on Black Folks Part III (see my journals for the War on Black Folks Parts I and II) which the DOJ unleashes every election year as part of an effort to vilify African-Americans (as part of the Southern Strategy which Karl Rove and Pat Buchanan can not seem to let go of) so that voter will pick a GOP president to neutralize the effect of such "scary" politicians as Rangel and Conyers. In this, I think that the two men are deluded. Most Americans think that Dick Cheney is much scarier than John Conyers.

The main point I am trying to make is the early, aggressive employment of the DOJ as a political tool for the RNC shows that the Rove dirty tricks machine is in full swing already.

[bridgit]

23. k&r'd...

:kick:

[NewJeffCT]

24. great post - and, I noticed the "so far" on the end

There will be more to come -

I already know there is another rumor that dare not speak its name out there as well that could be coming...

[Time for change]

25. Excellent compilation

The corporate news media is going to be a major force trying to make sure that no Democrat is elected President this fall. It will be a major challenge to fight back against their lies.

[The Wizard]

28. Very well done

I have suspected many of the dirty tricks had GOP roots. What is most disturbing is the number of Democrats who I know who have fallen prey to Ku Klux Karl and his media hand maidens. The media is in the tank for the Republicans as Republicans own the media. The corporate media is to be ridiculed into History's dust bin if we are to continue as a democratic republic.
It is incumbent on us, the net roots and cyber-activists, to take time from our keyboards and physically confront the talking heads who shape political opinion. Ask them embarrassing questions. Shame them whenever possible. Challenge them at every turn. Hound them like a hungry mutt chasing a pork chop. Let them know we are wise to their bullshit.
I had a few of them slack jawed with this question: "If the United States gets hit by another terrorist attack during Bush's tenure what part of Bill Clinton's anatomy will the liberal media blame?" One of the more famous Fox News propagandists even ran away from me. Hint: I should have told him to take the eyes out of that thing before he put it on his head.

[Irishonly]

29. Thank you

Democrats have spent years complaining about the corporate media. We complained about the coverage and what was done to Gore in 2000 and then 9in 2004 the pattern repeated. Of course, they are trying to destroy the democratic candidate. We should not be buying in but sadly some are.

When you doubt the media's complicity in fueling the fight you need to remember coverage about all of the Bush scandals and their admission of not doing their jobs preceding the war and also their glee in attempting to destroy Gore.

[susankh4]

30. K&R&blogroll!

Thanks!!

[Ztarbod]

31. Wow! Rove actually planned

for the Democrats to have a brokered convention? He really is a genius, to pull that off.

[McCamy Taylor]

35. No, Pat Buchanan and Nixon created the strategies in 1972, they are the smart ones

Rove only steals ideas from other people. His weakness is that he is so predictable. We are not supposed to be aware of the Republican meddling. We are supposed to think that this is a natural event. However, I have been writing about this since last fall.

If Rove were Pat Buchanan, he would be dangerous. He is a magpie. He squats in other people's nests.

[VolcanoJen]

38. This is a most excellent post. Thank you, McCamy!

Huge K&R!

:dem:

[L. Coyote]

44. DITTO + Who is Roger Stone, the Long-Time R Dirty-Trickster and Miami Mob Leader?

Who is Roger Stone, the Long-Time R Dirty-Trickster and Miami Mob Leader?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x3052618

[Phred42]

45. These are not Dirty Tricks - they are terrorist acts against Democracy

Let’s STOP referring to the evil manipulative crap that the Republicans do as ”Dirty Tricks”!

The term “Dirty Tricks’ is a term for something cutesy and benign. What these bastards have done, are doing, and will continue to do, is not cute, and it is not benign. What they are doing is a blatant, premeditated, dishonest, underhanded and direct attack on the foundations of Democracy. They are calculated backdoor full assault, designed to subvert, undermine and manipulate the Nation, the Constitution, the Truth and the Democratic Process.



Switching the salt and sugar in their respective containers for April Fools day - is a Dirty Trick.



Filling a paper bag with dog shit, leaving it on someone’s door step, lighting it on fire, ringing their doorbell and running away – is a Dirty Trick.



What Nixon did to Muskie, what Reagan did to Carter and what the Bush’s did to Gore was not cute, and it was not benign. What they did was nothing less than subvert the Democratic process and hijack the Nation.



This is what cowards do when they cannot make an honest, factual, truthful and convincing argument.



You have some heavy thinkers there. So do the Nation a service and find another term for this evil, corrupt, and dishonest practice. Start calling it what it is, and calling the people that do it, what they are.

[McCamy Taylor]

47. Good point.

[dailykoff]

46. So the GOP outsourced their smear operation to Hillary Inc. Congratulations.

That's been obvious to most of us for months. :shrug:

[waiting for hope]

48. Thank you McCamy Taylor -

There are days I log on here and think I'm at Freeperville.

K&R!

[ProSense]

49. Who was responsible for

these?

[McCamy Taylor]

50. Tit for Tat. Shall I find the Harry and Louise ads Obama mailed?

Shall I find the TV footage to show that Obama surrogate KO claimed (on national television) that a report of hearsay in Canada completely exonerated Obama of charged that the candidate's campaign had had dealings with Canada about NAFTA when he said it didn't and that the same hearsay convicted Hillary of the charges when it did no such thing? Shall I cite the many times that Obama and surrogates have sought to portray Hillary as being no different from George Bush--even a NeonCon--when the record shows that she clearly began objecting to the War in Iraq even before Sen. John Kerry?

Both candidates are pursuing aggressive campaigns. Obama's supporters on these boards are at the point where they no longer recognize that they are delivering a distorted message. They have fallen victim to the attempts by the RNC to Divide and Conquer .

In posting this type of inflammatory material here, you show that you prefer the divisive bickering to a unified party. I wonder why. Obama and Hillary have both indicated that they understand the need for unity. You are doing neither candidate nor the Democrats a favor, and since the truth is that both sides have used these tactics, your one sided posting does not honor to the truth. This makes it dangerously close to the type of splitter propaganda that the news media has been serving up.

I hope that this is because your dedication to your cause and your naiveness have blinded you.

[ProSense]

51. Oh you're offering BS spin! I'll find them for you:

here and here

Again, got proof about your BS claim?

[McCamy Taylor]

54. Unlike Obama in Iowa in response to Novak's dirty trick, I am too savvy to bite.

Go spread divide and conquer tactics in thread in which they are welcome.

[ProSense]

55. You have nothing but spin! Hillary is despicable and divisive, no

amount of face-saving spin will change that as long as she and her surrogates (read Carville's op-ed?) continue their Rovian dirty tactics!

She will continue to lose credibility!

[Malidictus Maximus]

56. Well put.

No matter how much anyone may dislike Hillary OR Obama, it's another thing altogether to be suckered into doing damage to AMY Democratic candidate.

Both candidates have made errors in judgement, both in moral and strategic ways, in my opinion (the particular issues I dislike their positions upon not being the point here). I believe the Taliban used the same trick to instigate the fire-fight that got Pat Tillman killed; fire on one group while making it appear the other group fired, disappear and let the ensuing fire-fight cause casualties; as a strategy it probably goes back to Sun Tzu or earlier. No mater how much one may have loathed Ronald Reagan, his saying 'speak no ill of another Republican" was a net plus for their side.

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

53. Another richly researched and spellbindingly written post. K & R.

:applause:

:kick: