Tea Afterparty

Think Progress: With the incendiary claim that the Obama presidency is the greatest threat the American people have ever faced, Newt Gingrich has launched a massively funded effort to mobilize ten million conservative voters this November. American Solutions for Winning the Future is bankrolled by a cadre of the right-wing billionaires and oil and coal companies who put George W. Bush into office and destroyed the national economy.

Another 'populist' uprising underwritten by the super rich and the multi-national corporations. Since we are talking the Republican Party it's sure to work.

Anti-American

AP: Senate blocks bill to punish firms that export jobs overseas.

All the Republicans filibustered this bill. They sure are good at job creation... in China. If the Chinese could vote in our elections they would for sure vote GOP. Why an American worker would however, is beyond us.

The Obstructionists

Two weeks ago, the Progress Report warned of a nightmare scenario where a single senator decides to object to virtually every measure being considered by the Senate, a maneuver could effectively bring the entire body to a screeching halt. Now, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) has come close to turning this nightmare into a reality.

If these people don't want to govern they should get out of government. If voters want people in government who are actually interested in solving problems they will need to vote out the Republicans. Sen. DeMint has just made that abundantly clear.

Taliban Republicaan

Twenty-four hours after Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson launched a scalding TV attack comparing his opponent to the Taliban for his positions on women’s issues, Florida Republican Daniel Webster is pushing back.

Taliban Dan as they call him can "push back" all he wants, but the fact of the matter is large parts of the Republican party would like to see our democracy replaced with a theocracy and the constitution replaced with the bible.

Can't Get The Job Done

Former adviser to President Ronald Reagan, David Stockman told a news radio program recently that Republicans "can't get the job done" with their redux of the 1994 "Contract with America."

Oh yes, the last honest Republican. He's mistaken however. The GOP will get done the job they're trying to get done: enriching themselves and the crony constituents that fund their political campaigns while depriving the government of the resources to regulate the corporation. But why anybody else would think the policies that have wrought national disaster would turn out any different if implemented again is beyond us.

Entitlment

Yesterday West Virginia GOP senate candidate John Raese appeared on the Matt Lewis show, a conservative talk radio program. When Lewis asked Raese about his background and his life experience, Raese offered this straight-faced response:

LEWIS: Tell us a little bit about you and your business experience and how you got here.

RAESE: I made my money the old-fashioned way, I inherited it. I think that’s a great thing to do. I hope more people in this country have that opportunity as soon as we abolish inheritance tax in this country, which is a key part of my program.

Another rich Republican trying to buy public office. And this one is honest about the fact he's literally doing it in order to protect his own family fortune.

The Vote Cagers

“And since the voter law did not get passed this year that could hit you with $100,000 and three years for unsuccessfully challenging a voter, we can still do this,” said Tim Dake, a prominent tea party member with the Wisconsin GrandSons for Liberty, the group that provided cover for Americans for Prosperity and the Wisconsin GOP by agreeing to be the public face for the campaign.

“Hallelujah,” shouted an unidentified meeting attendee in response.

“Yes, everybody gets to take credit for that,” replied Dake, before decrying early voting and detailing purported instances of voted fraud committed by individuals with Vietnamese surnames.

Since the only actual case of individual voter fraud we can think of is Ann Coulter, it's pretty obvious this is just another shot in the long Republican war on democracy.

It's also worth noting how their efforts to take away people's vote always seem to target minorities.

End Their Sales

Just days away from the implementation of new rules that will prevent insurers from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions, numerous major insurers have opted to end the sale of child only policies.

They should be forced to end the sale of all policies. These companies in no way serve the public good. They make massive profits and pay their executives robber baron compensation by taking in more money than they pay out in "health care." They do this primarily by unjustly and illegally denying coverage. And people die as a result.

Our health care dollars should go to our health care and not private jets, yachts and multiple mega-mansions for "heath care" company executives. These companies should either not be allowed to exist or if they do, the law should mandate they be heavily regulated and non-profit.

In All Its Entirety

In their platform, Montana Republicans declare the Constitution must “be upheld in all of its entirety.” In the same document they go on to call for a repeal of the 16th amendment.

They also endorse nullification. This is more proof the GOP really doesn't really have much use for the Constitution beyond using it for a political prop.

The Inquisitors

It was revealed Monday that a former O'Donnell (R-DE) aide once wrote that President Barack Obama is secretly a Muslim.

Jon Moseley told TPMuckraker's Ryan J. Reilly that he still holds those beliefs.

"Yes, actually, I do," Jonathan Moseley told TPM on Monday when asked if he still believes that Obama secretly practiced the Islamic faith.

"The reason being that becoming a Christian is more than simply rooting for a football team," Moseley said. "There's an actual conversion that takes place. And I don't think we've ever seen evidence that he ever converted."

It disturbing this crowd spends so much time and energy running their mini Inquisition. They really don't belong in a secular government.

Black Magic

Following Revelation Of ‘Witchcraft’ Comment, O’Donnell Cancels Sunday Show Appearances

Don't know much about witchcraft but the Republican party sure is good at making things disappear. Surpluses, prosperity, stability...

What Constitution?

Former House speaker Newt Gingrich has proposed a federal law to ban the use of Sharia law in the United States.

We already have a federal law that does exactly that. It's called the establishment clause and it's in something called the constitution. Seems these days Republicans only acknowledge it exists is when they're trying to get rid of its parts or have the whole thing replaced with the bible.

Evil Doers

CNN: Perhaps the former House Speaker's loudest applause came when he weighed in on the controversial Islamic center and mosque proposed to be built near ground zero, declaring, "We as Americans don't have to tolerate people who are supportive of violence against us, building something at the sight of the violence."

Of course law abiding, decent, Muslim Americans will be at that center, not terrorists from Saudi Arabia. To imply otherwise is bigotry. We're sure though that Newt loves the Saudis, their Bin Ladins, and their madrassas just as much as the rest of his Republican party.

Ask Them Why They're Nazis

GOP candidate Glen Urquhart (R-DE): "Do you know, where does this phrase 'separation of church and state' come from?" Urquhart asked at a campaign event last April. "It was not in Jefferson's letter to the Danbury Baptists. ... The exact phrase 'separation of Church and State' came out of Adolph Hitler’s mouth, that's where it comes from. So the next time your liberal friends talk about the separation of Church and State ask them why they're Nazis."

Jefferson's letter called it a "wall of separation between church and state," but it means the same thing. This along with the fact our system of government was set up long before Hitler clearly shows it was Jefferson and our founding fathers that led us to practice what the term we use today represents. So that connection is bullshit. We can however quite easily show the deep relationship, past and present, between the American right-wing and Nazis/white supremacists. First of course, the Bush family got rich underwriting the Nazi war machine. Then the GOP used the self described "Southern Strategy" to build their base with racists. And to this day the GOP and white supremacist organizations make common cause. They really shouldn't bring it up.

Popular

Christine O'Donnell in 2007: "They are -- they are doing that here in the United States. American scientific companies are cross-breeding humans and animals and coming up with mice with fully functioning human brains. So they're already into this experiment."

It's beyond shocking how people like this vault right to the top of the GOP.

GOP Tea

AP: Tea party favorite O'Donnell wins GOP Senate primary in Delaware over longtime congressman.

Sharon Angle admires Pinochet and advocates gun violence against the government if the GOP doesn't win in November. Rand Paul thinks the Civil Rights Act is unconstitutional and panders to people who want to replace the constitution with the bible. And Christine O'Donnell actually campaigned against masturbation. These people are the new Republican party and they are to the right of Atilla The Hun. If you want a racist theocracy that tells you how to live your personal life while selling out to the corporation, looting the economy, destroying the environment, and shredding the constitution, vote GOP.

Could Be Worse

Think Progress: I spoke to several of the delegates here, and some of the speakers, who said — including Newt Gingrich — who said it might come down to a budget battle where the federal government might need to be stopped temporarily to force President Obama to the table. What do you think about that?

COLLETT (R-MN): I think if the stakes are high enough, we might have to do that. Now that has real consequences to real people in lots of different ways. So, certainly that is not the first best option, but what’s at stake is very important so that decision will have to be made at that time.

Well, hell, at least she's not advocating for war against the country if the Republicans don't "win at the ballot box." But still, no government is a government only the corporations could love.

The Party Of Traitors

A surrogate for Nevada GOP Senate candidate Sharron Angle is saying that advocating "Second Amendment remedies" in order to effect political change is going too far and revealing that he was pressured to push such comments by some Republicans while running for the Senate. In a Sept. 8 interview on the Mike Wiley Radio Show, Danny Tarkanian, who lost the GOP primary to Angle, said such statements -- which were floated by Angle -- were "a little bit extreme."

We need investigations and hearings into to exactly who in the GOP was pressuring Danny Tarkanian to advocate for taking up arms against the United States. Once we find out they need to be arrested.

Bin Ladin Arrested

A man who compared himself to a Christian version of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden was in jail Saturday after being arrested for allegedly helping plot an attack against an abortion provider, according to published reports.

We've long said home grown right-wingers are every bit as dangerous as radical Islam. We wouldn't be at all surprised if Sharron Angle was posting bail for this guy as we speak. The whole bunch of them need to be put on the terrorist watch list. And they damn sure don't belong anywhere near our government.

Dam Bridges

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) opposes the the Obama administration proposed 50 billion infrastructure program, even though one-third of his state’s bridges are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete and the state has 178 high hazard dams (which is a dam where failure “would cause a loss of life and significant property damage”). He does so while at the same time pushing for an $830 billion tax cut for the richest two percent of Americans.

You would think rich people don't drive on bridges. As you can see from the picture it's clearly dangerous to have Republicans in government.

A Million Reasons

Pacificare faces nearly 10 billion dollars in fines for nearly a million violations.

These companies make massive profits and pay their executives robber baron compensation by taking in more money than they pay out in "health care." They do this primarily by unjustly and illegally denying claims. And people die as a result.

Our health care dollars should go to our health care and not private jets, yachts and multiple mega-mansions for "heath care" company executives. These companies should either not be allowed to exist or if they do, the law should mandate they be heavily regulated and non-profit.

Don't Like Democrats. Hate Democracy

Benjamin Pearcy, 20, is running for a seat on the Arizona Corporation Commission, which oversees public utilities, railroad safety and securities regulation. Although Mr. Pearcy says he is taking his first run for public office seriously, the political establishment here views him as nothing more than a political dirty trick. Mr. Pearcy and other drifters and homeless people were recruited onto the Green Party ballot by a Republican political operative who freely admits that their candidacies may siphon some support from the Democrats. Arizona’s Democratic Party has filed a formal complaint with local, state and federal prosecutors in an effort to have the candidates removed from the ballot, and the Green Party has urged its supporters to steer clear of the rogue candidates.

Since the GOP is religiously anti-environment you know they're not supporting the Green Party based on their merits. It's just to pull votes away from the Democratic candidate, a strategy which if successful would result in a situation where a minority of voters elects the candidate with the opposite political philosophy from the majority. This is another GOP salvo in their long assault on democracy. From voter intimidation, to purging eligible voters from the voter rolls, or restricting voting stations in Democratic districts to slightly less horrible schemes like phone jamming, vote caging, and planting fake candidates, Republicans have shown they're not prepared to let the people fairly elect their leaders. Fans of democracy would do well to keep them out of power.

Terrorists

Discussing President Obama’s Tuesday Iraq speech on Fox News Sunday’s morning panel, moderator Chris Wallace cited Obama’s discussion of the economy in order to ask the panelists, “Is it unfair to say that this a president whose heart doesn’t seem to be into winning the war on terror”

His heart is into it far more than the Republicans. The evidence shows they start dishonest wars that devastate our country and help the terrorists recruit and raise funds. They were asleep at the switch the summer and fall before 9/11. They deliberately destroyed the CIA spy network tasked with keeping tabs on WMD flows to terrorists. Going back further, they and their big oil cronies helped depose Mosedegh in 1953, which led directly to the Islamic revolution in Iran. They funded and armed radical Islam. They sold munitions of war to the Iranians (after they caused the Islamic revolution). And they have long standing personal and business relationships with the country widely regarded as one of the biggest state sponsors of terrorism in the world today.

Duh

Analysts: Iraq war 'partly to blame' for financial crisis

Who would have thought lying and cheating to transfer trillions of taxpayer dollars to war profiteering crony companies would be a bad thing for our long term fiscal and economic health.

Poetry

"All you guys were doing and talking were beheadings, beheadings, beheadings," Jan Brewer (R-AZ) told the Daily Star about her now famous debate performance last night. "That is something that has stuck with you all for so long, and I just felt we needed to move on." She also contended that when discussing the headless bodies, she "never said 'Arizona,' and it's unfortunate that it was construed as 'Arizona.'" As TPM reported, Brewer said on Fox News in July: "We cannot afford all this illegal immigration and everything that comes with it, everything from the crime and to the drugs and the kidnappings and the extortion and the beheadings." The anchor later asked: "Which beheadings in Arizona were you were referring to?" Brewer responded: "Our law enforcement agencies have found bodies in the desert, either buried or just lying out there, that have been beheaded."

Wow, talk about making a bad situation worse. Remember Sue 'chickens for checkups' Lowden? She was riding high until that disaster. Now she's history. This is starting to look an awful lot like that.

Jan Brewer wasn't elected governor of Arizona. She was appointed, after Napolitano went to work for Obama. And she wasn't really well known until she whipped up The Southern Strategy against migrant workers and instantly became a big star in the GOP. It would be poetic justice indeed if one of the lies she told in that effort ended up putting her into retirement.

Works For You Mike, Works For You...

Last night on CNBC, Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) told supply-side guru and Reagan disciple Larry Kudlow that the way to get businesses to “unleash” the nearly $2 trillion in cash and assets they’re currently sitting on is to extend the Bush tax cuts for the rich and then cut marginal income tax rates even further. “C’mon, we know what works,” Pence said

If you're trying to explode the deficit and the national debt that works. If you want to increase the gap between rich and poor, that works. If you want to encourage outsourcing that works. If you want to do right by the American people, that doesn't work. This is history's verdict.

Divine Providence

Yesterday Mariner Energy employees, along with thousands of oil industry workers, rallied in Houston to protest the Obama administration’s offshore drilling moratorium that was designed as a safety precaution after BP’s disastrous Gulf oil spill.

Today their rig blew up.

Nice.

The Boys Who Cried Wolf

Retired USAF Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney -- a Fox News contributor who while a "military analyst" helped the Bush Pentagon manipulate coverage of the Iraq War -- is now questioning President Obama's legitimacy as commander-in-chief in an affidavit filed on behalf of a military doctor facing court martial for refusing deployment orders because he does not believe Obama was born in the United States.

First of all, anybody who helped lie us into Iraq should in prison for the rest of their lives. Second, why would somebody like this think anybody would believe a word they have to say?