Ask mental health orgs to denounce GOP attacks

[Dickie Flatt]

In an effort to keep myself informed as to what they're up to, I subscribe to the MNGOP's mailing list. And their latest issue contained something far more offensive than usual. In their effort to smear Al Gore, the MNGOP repeated claims of mental instability leveled against Gore, and came up with a few of their own. This after the RNC made the same attacks, in addition to claiming that Gore has "anger management issues." The relevant portion of the MNGOP's email is reproduced below. They repeat charges that Gore "could use a little help," is "off his lithium," and suffers from "narcissistic personality disorder."

We might be able to do something about this. If we send enough messages to Minnesota mental health organizations to denounce these sickening attacks, maybe we can get the MNGOP to stop making a mockery of serious mental health issues. When you write your letter, be sure to mention all four attacks (anger management issues, needs psychiatric help, off his lithium, narcissistic pesonality disorder) and express your anger at the fact that the MNGOP is playing up mental health issues as a joke for political gain. And don't forget -- the attacks appear on the official RNC website and in The GOP Newsline, the "official online publication of the Republican Party of Minnesota" . Here's who you can email:

Linda Vukelich, Executive Director, Minnesota Psychiatric Society: [e-mail]

Rebecca Buller, Executive Director, Minnesota Psychological Association: [e-mail]
Michele Wolfel, Communications Associate, Minnesota Psychological Association: [e-mail]

Mental Health Association of Minnesota: [e-mail]


--- MNGOP Newsletter ---

3. ANGER MANAGEMENT

The reviews are in regarding Al Gore’s recent full-throated harangue against Bush Administration Iraq policy and one wonders what was going through poor Al’s head - aside from the sheer desperation of vainly fighting off utter irrelevancy. And although Gore’s increasingly hysterical behavior is somewhat understandable in light of his rapid and palpable descent into oblivion (interrupted only by these episodic attacks of theatrical bellicosity), his most recent diatribe is widely considered to have backfired against John Kerry. It certainly failed to convince anyone of his thesis: i.e., the Bush Administration is responsible for anything and everything wrong in Iraq specifically, and the world in general.

But, in fairness to Gore, one can’t much blame him for simply regurgitating the Kerry’s campaign’s main, and seemingly only, talking point: Everything (and they mean EVERYTHING) from world hunger to the cancellation of ‘Friends’ is President Bush’s fault.

That’s why, considering the depths to which Gore has fallen (from inventing the Internet and inspiring ‘Love Story’ to endorsing Howard Dean and suffering yet another all-too-public meltdown) we doubt there’s need to humiliate him further. Therefore, we’ll let others do it for us.

ROLL CALL’S MORT KONDRACKE CALLS GORE “OUT OF CONTROL”
“You know, I really think that we can all thank God that Al Gore was not elected president of the United States. I question whether this man is stable in a crisis. I mean he clearly is out of control of his words. Now, I don’t know whether he’s outside of control of his thoughts as well. But if the pressure is on and I think the pressure has something to do with his being, you know, rejected as a presidential candidate, and probably absent a political future. And he’s getting desperate and saying wild things. Betrayed the country? I mean that is beyond the bounds. It is not only – it’s just irrational. That’s all I can say about it… There is nothing that you can imagine that Al Gore would not say about George Bush. I mean he has said before that George Bush is a menace to our liberty because he’s doing things in secret and hiding, and all that and, you know. And this is obviously conspiratorial.” (Fox News’ “Special Report,” 2/9/04)

WASHINGTON POST COLUMNIST CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER SAYS GORE “COULD USE A LITTLE HELP.”
“About Al Gore, Krauthammer invoked his previous career as a psychiatrist and said, “He could use a little help.’” (Mark Francis Cohen, “Hard Right,” Washingtonian, 4/04)

FOLLOWING GORE’S SPEECH AT NEW YORK UNIVERSITY, KRAUTHAMMER SAYS “IT LOOKS AS IF AL GORE HAS GONE OFF HIS LITHIUM AGAIN.”
“Well, it looks as if Al Gore has gone off his lithium again, but the real issue here is he speaks for the Democrats…” (Fox News’ “Special Report,” 5/26/04)

FORMER NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH AND FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL DR. HENRY MILLER SAYS GORE MAY SUFFER FROM “NARCISSISTIC PERSONALITY DISORDER.”
“Al Gore appears to suffer from Narcissistic Personality Disorder, which is not treatable with medications.” (Henry Miller, Op-Ed, “One Strange Guy,” Scripps Howard News Service, 5/28/04)

POLITICAL ANALYST STUART ROTHENBERG SAYS GORE REMINDED HIM OF A “SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE ROUTINE.”
“What I saw of the speech Gore’s voice sounded like Linda Blair in ‘The Exorcist,’ where her head spins around. Gore almost sounded like Howard Dean when Howard Dean was doing his rant about Oregon, Washington and all. The last couple of times I have seen Gore he has been so animated and so loud that he almost seems like a Saturday Night Live routine.” (“Political Analysts Pan Gore’s NYU Speech, Say He Hurts Kerry,” The White House Bulletin, 5/27/04)

IN DECEMBER, KONDRACKE SAID GORE IS “IN FULL HATRED MODE.”
“Well, I mean, Gore has been increasingly drinking the anti-Bush Kool-Aid, you know, that has consumed the Democratic Party. I mean he is - he is now in full hatred mode.” (Fox News’ “Special Report,” 12/9/03)

TIME COLUMNIST JOE KLEIN SAID GORE’S “ANIMAL ANGER” WASN’T “VERY STATESMANLIKE.”
“And the kind of anger that Gore show showed isn’t very statesmanlike… There’s so much animal anger and passion there.” (CNN’s “Paula Zahn Now,” 5/27/04)