Saxby Strikes Again...Snakes Always Do

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You'd like to believe there would be some tiny kernel of decency and humanity lurking deep inside even the most craven of Rovian Rethuglican political types. You would be wrong.

On the ropes in his reelection campaign, Georgia Senator Saxby Chambliss is bringing out the big guns. Nope, not the recent loser in the presidential sweepstakes. Although John McCain has been there, campaigning for Chambliss. The same John McCain who decried the tactics Chambliss used when he ran against then-Senator Max Cleland, a triple amputee, against whom Chambliss' cronies used advertising so vile--linking war hero Cleland with bin Laden--that McCain cried foul.

But that was then, and this is now. And the Chambliss campaign cronies are using the same vile tactics he used against Cleland to try to defeat Jim Martin. This time, Chambliss fellow-travelers like the NRSC and Ari Fleischer's Freedom's Watch are calling out Martin for being soft on crime against children.

Despite the fact that Martin's own daughter was kidnapped when she was eight years old.

Yeah, I believe that's a coincidence. Rigggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhtttt.

If we learned anything this election season, it's that the serpents never change. They prize their politics over honor, over integrity. They sting over and over and over....until they are completely, totally, finally voted out of office. One by one.

And we must be ever vigilant lest they coil and raise their heads again to strike...out.
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(crossposted at firedoglake's Oxdown Gazette)

Lieberman the Extortionist

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Show him the door, Senate Dems...
enough's enough.

If the Republicans think having a double-dealing, self-aggrandizing, egomaniacal traitor in their midst is a plus, well, that's just more seats for Dems to pick off in 2010 and 2012.
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"I'm the King. You're Nothing...."

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This is a pure, unabashed love letter to the geniuses at The Daily Show.

Last night, we saw firsthand more actual in-depth investigative journalism and news analysis through their comedy prism than the rest of the cable and network newsbots have given us for months.

Which brings me to Ralph Kramden. If you've never seen the Golden Age comedy genius of The Honeymooners, you've missed iconic television.

Ralph, the forever dreaming bus driver, was always brought back down to earth by his wife, Alice. There's a whole lotta Ralphs in the country these days, easily beguiled by schemes--like oh, say, trickle-down Reaganomics. One wishes a lot more of the Joe-the-Plumbers these days would have Alices in their lives.

Among the classic moments of the scarce 39 episodes was one where Ralph revs himself up and blusters at his wife, Alice:

I'm the king...you're nothing. The king. You're nothing....
He paces around their tiny flat, arms flailing. Building himself up more and more.

Alice watches him with long suffering patience.

Well, then, that would make you the king of nothing.

We see a whole lotta Ralphitude out of the Republicans these days. But unlike Gleason's character, this isn't a role for them. A few Alice types have emerged. Colin Powell among them.

Rumor is there are a bunch of other Republicans sharing Powell's views, but not willing to speak out. Shame on them.

McCain and his campaign are going out of their way to appeal to the Inner Ralph Kramden these days. Divisive, distorting, and attacking. Because what he has to offer is same ol' same ol'.

And when we can't count on the traditional news media to cut through the political spin with facts rather than endlessly playing over and over the same distorted attacks from McCain [yes, I am listening to McCain on CNN as I type, why do you ask...]....

Then we do, yes, turn to the comedians. Like Jon Stewart's smackdown of the Photeny Palin Truth Squadders Nancy Pfotenhauer, Sarah Palin, and Michele Bachmann.

And speaking of Sarah Palin... did you see Jason Jones' on the scene reporting from Wasilla? The interview with the current mayor of the community that provides no city services... No education services... No...

Well, see it for yourself. 'cause Sarah Palin... and John McCain... Now there's the king of nothing.
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(crossposted at Firedoglake's Oxdown Gazette)

Prairie Thought for Today

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Inspired by the Republicans' current conflation-station scheme to ratchet up the base by screaming "voter fraud" when it's actually voter registration fraud...

No, I don't believe Santa Claus, Minnie Mouse, Conan the Barbarian, or Freckles the cat are going to turn up at a polling place near you. Now do you? Really?

Don't hand me a mud pie and tell me it's my Gramma's lemon meringue....

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Hate Talk Express

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We've been hearing little belches of bile of late from the McCain team of desperation. You know, that anti-Muslim DVD that's been tidily tucked into midsized newspapers around the country. The one I will give no further press by naming or linking. You know it's out there.

Speaking of out there, since the veep debate something else has been "out there"--the hate talk machine is starting to ratchet up. Oh, my yes. Sarah Palin's leadin' the charge, callin' Obama unAmerican and unpatriotic, and associatin' with characters like William Ayers.

Interesting, coming from a woman who's in bed--literally and figuratively--with Alaska-firsters, who want to separate that state from the rest of the Union.

Not to be outdone, Senator Joe Lieberlouse, CT for Joe, this morning on Faux "News" carried the baton a little further forward about Obama's "questionable associations." Hmmmm, Joe, seems to me you were one of those questionable associations, y'know, bein' his Senate mentor and all.

Say it ain't so, Joe.

Gee, that sounds familiar. Now where have I heard that before?

Now lots of folks aren't taking kindly to this "guilt by association" stuff. Like Paul Begala, this morning on Meet the Press, pointing out that John McCain has his own "questionable associations"--with the extremist, racist, anti-Semitic U.S. Council for World Freedom.

John McCain sat on the board of a very right-wing organization. It was the U.S. Council for World Freedom. It was chaired by a guy named John Singlaub, who wound up involved in the Iran-Contra scandal. It was an ultraconservative right-wing group. The Anti-Defamation League, in 1981, when McCain was on the board, said this about this organization. It was affiliated with the World Anti-Communist League, the parent organization, which ADL said, “has increasingly become a gathering place, a forum, a point of contact for extremists, racists and Anti-Semites.”

Which I suppose you could dismiss as so much ancient history. Except that right now the McCain camp is having to do damage control for John's own brother Joe likening Northern Virginia to a hotbed of commies.

So when Sarah Palin used that "say it ain't so, Joe" line the other night...do you suppose she was maybe mixin' up her Joes?
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