Psychopath

Headline: Paul Denies ‘Kidnapping’ Anyone, But Won’t Deny He Forced A Woman To Bow To Aqua Buddha

Rand Paul is dangerous. Not because of what he was into in college but because he's is a big fan of mountain top removal mining, he thinks corporations should regulate themselves, he doesn't think the government can tell business they can't discriminate against black people, and he has common cause with people who want to replace the constitution with the bible. And a big swath of the GOP agrees with him on pretty much all fronts. Any voters who are not deranged themselves should consider that when they cast their lot in November.

To Know It Is To Hate It

Over the weekend, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was in Homer, Alaska, to film her TLC documentary series Sarah Palin’s Alaska. Alaskan teacher Kathleen Gustafson decided to welcome Palin with a banner reading “WORST GOVERNOR EVER.” Upon seeing Gustafson’s handiwork, Palin walked over to talk with her. Gustafson told Palin that she was angry that the former governor quit to become a “celebrity.” Palin tried to defend herself, claiming that she’s working to “elect candidates who understand the Constitution,” but the teacher was unmoved, insisting that if Palin really wanted to help the people of the state, she would not have quit her post. At one point, Palin asked Gustafson what she did for a living. When Gustafson responded that she is a teacher, Palin visibly rolled her eyes.

Palin may well be helping to elect candidates who understand the constitution, but they damn sure don't like it. Her brand of Republican is showing open hostility to large parts of our basic system. They are fans neither of our constitution or our democracy

Teh Gay

Florida Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Bill McCollum is telling Florida Baptist News that he wants to expand Florida’s discriminatory adoption laws to prohibit gay people from serving as foster parents:

MCCOLLUM: I don’t believe in gay adoption. I don’t believe in involving the government in enforcing or encouraging the lifestyle of gays and homosexuals. I just don’t believe that. [...]

Since McCollum personally made the decision to give over $100,000.00 of taxpayer money to a guy who promptly ran off to Europe with a gay male prostitute, he's obviously full of shit. Since it seems for all the world the more these people discriminate against gays the more they actually turn out to be gay themselves, somebody should investigate McCollum's personal life. We think he doth protest too much.

Feeding The Base

On his Fox News show on Thursday Glenn Beck compared President Obama's America to Planet of the Apes.

Republicans know their base will respond to racist messages because they deliberately built their base with racists.

Half Right

JIM DEMINT (R-SC): The decisions that have been made about our economy over the last couple of years have brought our economy to its knees. This is no longer something we can blame on President Bush. In fact, the Democrats have been in control of policy making, economic policy spending, for four years now. This is not Bush’s recession. This is the result of Democrat economic polices. This nomination will continue our move in the wrong direction.

We actually agree with Demint that we can't blame this on Bush. Bush was just an empty vessel stuffed with standard GOP public policy. It was that standard GOP fiscal, economic and regulatory policy that caused the economic meltdown. Implement it again and we will suffer the same result.

Don't Need No Stinkin Federal Law

The Roanoke Times reports that in response to a question at a town hall meeting Wednesday Virginia Gov Bob McDonnell (R) declined to say whether he backed "nullification," the idea states can ignore federal law.

So we know the Republican party doesn't like the the fourth amendment, the fifth amendment, the eighth amendment, the 14th amendment, the 16th amendment, the 17th amendment, Article VI, the Civil Rights Act, the establishment clause, posse comitatus or due process. McDonnell is now another Republican in the anti-Article VI column. Democrats all over the country need to be asking the question: do Republicans stand with the constitution or against it.

Special Interests

Yesterday, the Senate finally overcame a Republican filibuster to approve $26 billion in funding to bolster state budgets, including $10 billion to prevent massive teacher layoffs. Police and firefighters would have also been cut. The bill is paid for by closing some tax loopholes for multinational corporations that offshore.

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) on the bill this morning: "The American people don't want more Washington 'stimulus' spending - especially in the form of a pay-off to union bosses and liberal interests."

Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) responded: "Incredibly, the Republican Leader John Boehner disparagingly referred to those who teach our children, protect our homes, and keep our streets safe as ‘special interests.’ Washington Republicans are opposed to supporting our teachers, firefighters, and policemen at home in order to protect corporate tax loopholes that promote the export of American jobs.”

We have nothing to add. Rep. Van Hollen did well. Everybody should run with that.