» "Toxic."
"…Despite [Sarah Palin's] nice turn on Saturday Night Live, she has turned toxic for the McCain camp. Palin's cheery good looks–and her gun-toting, Bible-thumping small-town conservatism–electrified the Republican convention and temporarily transfixed the "mainstream" media… Intentionally or not, Palin's stark and strident approach may be hurting McCain with the hard-right by vividly reminding them of what they expect a real conservative to sound like. This week she broke with her ticketmate to say that she favors a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. In moments like these, her ideological certainty makes him look soft." [Newsweek] |
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But something else he said that may get lost in the shuffle is just as important, if not more so. He criticized the GOP for spreading the lie that Obama is a Muslim, but he also spoke at length about the harm that such accusations do to Muslim Americans in this country. Powell specifically mentioned this photo of Elsheba Khan hugging the Arlington Cemetery gravestone of her son, a Muslim who died at the age of 20 while serving in Iraq. Judging Americans like Khan or her dead son, Kareem, based solely on their religion "is not the way we should be doing it in America," he said. |
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» Frightening…
"Three Putnam County voters say electronic voting machines changed their votes from Democrats to Republicans when they cast early ballots last week. This is the second West Virginia county where voters have reported this problem. Last week, three voters in Jackson County told The Charleston Gazette their electronic vote for "Barack Obama" kept flipping to "John McCain". In both counties, Republicans are responsible for overseeing elections. Both county clerks said the problem is isolated." [The Charleston Gazette] |
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Let's run through the list: first, Obama's a donkey, then there's the floating ribs, watermelon and Kool-Aid. Oh, and not to mention that delicious bucket of fried chicken! Too bad those silly white people forgot the greens. (It's not as if black people don't eat their vegetables!) [via Pam's House Blend] |
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» Backlash.
"Veteran Republican Congressman Ray LaHood criticized his party's vice presidential nominee Friday, saying that Sarah Palin's vitriolic campaign rallies 'don't befit the office she's running for.'" [HuffPo] |
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The Buckeye State's Republican party recently sent out this flier declaring that Democratic candidate Ray Pryor, a Democratic candidate for the Ohio House, supports gay adoption. Such a stance, of course, is baaaad. |
» Pulling Back…
"John McCain is pulling out of Michigan, according to two Republicans, a stunning move a month away from Election Day that indicates the difficulty Republicans are having in finding blue states to put in play. McCain will go off TV in Michigan, stop dropping mail there and send most of his staff to more competitive states, including Wisconsin, Ohio and Florida." [Politico] |
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Let's stand on high like Romans watching the gladiators, shall we? |
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Oh gawd! It's like all the news anymore is a hurricane made of lies and garbage and bullshi. And it's ceaseless! Are you mad we yell about the GOP on here? Listen, we'll stop taking the GOP to task when it stops pulling stunts like this… |
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Fosella, a Republican Assemblyman represented New York's Staten Island, said last May that he would not seek reelection after being arrested for drunk driving and admitting to having a child with his mistress. GOP officials here, however, have been pushing for a political resurrection: [Leaders] have been increasing pressure on former Assemblyman Robert A. Straniere, who won the Republican primary this month, to withdraw from the race for the Congressional seat so that they can substitute Mr. Fossella’s name for his. Apparently Straniere faces "certain defeat" this November, and Fossella's seen as the most capable replacement. It's worth mentioning, we think that baby-fathering Fossella thrice voted to preserve "the sanctity of marriage." |
» (Perceptive) Words…
"I think the Republican Party is too smart to call Barack Obama 'black' in a sense that it would be a negative. But you can take something about his life, which I noticed they did at the Republican Convention – a 'community organizer.' They kept saying it, they kept laughing. I think where there are overtones is when there are uses of language that are designed to inhibit other people's progress with a subtle reference to their race." - New York Governor David Paterson on the GOP's Barack Obama attacks. [WCBS via SH] |
» Big Draw.
"More than 37 million U.S. TV viewers tuned in to watch Sarah Palin accept the Republican nomination for vice president on Wednesday, just shy of the record set last week by Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, Nielsen Media Research reported. Nielsen has said the 38.4 million viewers averaged by Obama's address last Thursday is believed to be the biggest television audience ever for a U.S. political convention speech, and Palin's tally of 37.2 million came close to that." [Reuters] |
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That seemed to be a turning point for the States' social political landscape. We even predicted that Craig's arrest would help bring the long-raging Culture Wars to a close. John McCain's selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate, however, may prove us wrong. |
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Minnesota based non-profit The UnConvention recently began circulating a series of ads urging gay residents to be "unconventional" while welcoming Republicans, who are currently celebrating their national convention in St. Paul. Above you'll see a commercial depicting a gay and lesbian couple who switch it up as two suits walk their direction. The tagline reads: "The Republicans are coming. Make an effort." While surely this is a light-hearted jab at the GOP's exclusionary politics, the "closet yourself" subtext rubs us the wrong way. |
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» Editing.
"The Virginia delegation canceled an order of a publication it planned to hand out to visitors at the upcoming Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, because it included a six-page section for gays and lesbians…" [POQ] |
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