The wingnutosphere has been in high froth the last week or so about ACORN, the community organization dedicated to helping low-income Americans. The freak-out concerns a series of videos showing ACORN employees engaged in nefarious schemes (it took lots of shoots for the right-wing activists to get the footage they wanted, incidentally). This has led to the Census Bureau distancing themselves from ACORN and the Senate to block HUD funding for the group. It's interesting in and of itself that the right has decided the source of all ills in America is a relatively small non-profit community organization and not the banking and financial interests who destroyed the economy and took hundreds of billions in bailout money for good measure (lots more on this here). But never one to miss a pile-on, the Governor has requested an investigation of ACORN:
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger apparently has been captivated by recent news stories about a conservative filmmaker who exposed misdeeds at ACORN, the national organization that serves low-income residents and has been involved in controversial efforts to register Democratic voters.
The Republican governor sent a brief memo Wednesday to Democratic Attorney General Jerry Brown asking him to investigate ACORN's activities in San Bernardino. Two conservative activists have posted videos of their visits to ACORN offices around the country in which they posed as a prostitute and a pimp seeking advice.
In San Bernardino's ACORN office, a volunteer who claims to be a former prostitute is shown offering advice to the two activists on how to set up a brothel using underage girls from El Salvador. She tells them that they would be breaking various laws, but also explains ways to get around those laws. At one point, she claims to have connections to various Democratic lawmakers in the state Legislature and Congress.
It's amusing that the Governor has honed in on the San Bernardino case. Because that would be at least one instance where the guerrilla filmmakers - and now, the Governor - got totally played. John Santore explains:
Most critically, it is clear that Fox News has made virtually no attempt to verify the authenticity of the tapes before broadcasting them -- something no self-respecting journalistic organization would dare do. Consider the case of the San Bernardino ACORN office, which was featured in the most recent video to be released. The words of ACORN employee Tresa Kaelke appear to be damning. Not only does she offer assistance to Giles and O'Keefe, but she claims that she murdered her former husband following a period of domestic abuse.
On September 15, Beck and Sean Hannity both broadcast Kaelke's assertion. Beck, who had reported breathlessly on the supposed confession during his radio program, added on Fox, "She never spanked her kids, but she did shoot her husband dead." Later that night, Hannity played the same clip before commenting, "Specifically, now, she goes into this scenario about her husband and the killing of him."
The following morning, on September 16, Fox News' Gretchen Carlson repeated the allegation, saying, "She killed somebody? Despite this, some lawmakers want to keep funding the group."
The problem, of course, is that Kaelke was deliberately lying. The San Bernardino Police Department itself has now confirmed that her claim regarding her husband was untrue. A department statement released on September 15 reads: "The San Bernardino Police Department is investigating the claims made regarding the homicide. From the initial investigation conducted, the claims do not appear to be factual. Investigators have been in contact with the involved party's known former husbands, who are alive and well."
Furthermore, Kaelke has claimed that when she made the statement, she was seeking to mislead the undercover videographers, whom she was suspicious of. "They were not believable," Kaelke is quoted as saying in an ACORN press release. "Somewhat entertaining, but they weren't even good actors. I didn't know what to make of them. They were clearly playing with me. I decided to shock them as much as they were shocking me."
But none of these simple facts stopped anyone at Fox from running with the story. Any cub reporter would have thought to actually call the San Bernardino police before effectively alleging that ACORN was staffed by murderers. But such an act never occurred to people like Beck, Hannity, or Carlson. (In her defense, Carlson later added that the husband was still alive, "according to ACORN," but ignored the police report.)
Some of the other allegations have shown what may be wrongdoing, if the tapes are legitimate and not doctored (they are certainly edited for effect, and we know they were in some cases obtained illegally and therefore inadmissable as evidence). It may even warrant an investigation. But Schwarzenegger is specifically riffing off the San Bernardino incident, in which the main offense described there has been proven to be a lie. This apparently doesn't matter. I'm wondering what other provable falsehoods have led to the Governor urging a criminal investigation.
This is at least not as embarrassing as Tim Pawlenty, who ordered agencies in Minnesota to "cancel all state funding for ACORN," when there... is no state funding of ACORN in Minnesota. But it's pretty weak nonetheless. And par for the course for a headline-chaser like Gov. Schwarzenegger. But if he wants to get in line with far-right extremists with an obvious racial agenda who want to demonize people of color and the organizations that provide help for them, go ahead. It did a lot for Pete Wilson.
It was a scorcher out in east San Diego County on Saturday afternoon as the crowd gathered to attend Congresswoman Susan Davis' Health Care Town Hall. The east county has traditionally been a haven for right-wing fringe groups, and they were out in full force for this event. As we approached the Spring Valley Gymnasium, we were greeted by members of the John Birch Society handing out DVD's so we'd understand how the Constitution works. The driveway was lined with a motley collection of birthers, deathers, Jesus freaks and anti-abortion protestors.
Mary Bono Mack has in her career adeptly threaded the needle, voting mostly with the right but surprising on just enough bills every year to appear moderate to her district, which went for Barack Obama in 2008 and has a PVI of only R+3. But her yes vote on the Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill has incensed conservatives, so much so that they are waging jihad against not only Bono Mack but her Congressman husband, who by the way voted against Waxman-Markey.
So it was probably a bit of a shock to her when she saw the headline above that I captured in a screen shot from the Republican Party blog, Red State: Mary Bono Mack Should Be Burned In Effigy And Voted out Of Office. It was written by Georgia Republican Party operative Erick Erickson and something tells me Erickson isn't about to endorse Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet, who's not just gay, but married (to another man) and happily raising their two children! Too far a stretch for Republicans who seem to always be involved with "opposite marriages," or whatever they call the degrading situations traditional marriage sanctity defenders like Mark Sanford, David Diapers Vitter, Larry Craig and John Ensign are in.
Erickson and the fringe loons on the furthest reaches of the non-criminal right are so upset with Bono Mack that they are threatening to not just defeat her but to go after the right-wing extremist husband to boot! He demands that she vote against health care reform and against the energy bill when it comes back from the Senate-- where it will probably be watered down and look more acceptable to mainstream conservatives!!!-- or face the consequences.
"Otherwise, we beat her and her husband at the polls.
Yes, you heard me. We can get at Mary Bono Mack in two ways-- her district and that of her husband. He should feel the heat just as much as her."
Now, Erickson is a silly person. And his frothing at the mouth is unlikely to result in any change in CA-45. However, I wonder if they can entice some far-right activist to run in the primary. Gary Jeandron, who lost to Manuel Perez convincingly in 2008, is supposedly preparing for a rematch. But AD-80 is far less cordial to Republicans than CA-45 is. And maybe enough foot-stomping tea partiers can persuade him - or some other teabagger - to challenge Bono Mack in the primary. As one of only 8 Republicans to vote for the Waxman-Markey bill (and one of them, John McHugh, is about to become Barack Obama's Secretary of the Army), the wingnuts don't have many targets. Bono Mack may have poked her head up on the wrong bill.
This could be a good time to check out Steve Pougnet.
There are 72 hours left to determine whether California will take a massive step backward on human rights and allow the far right to dictate policy here - or whether we can rally voters to make a stand for equality. Polls don't vote - it's time for us to go all out on GOTV to defeat Prop 8.
This is especially important given how motivated our opponents are. They are raising money hand over fist and have thousands of fervent followers planning to get out the vote on Monday and Tuesday. We know their GOTV operation is exceptional.
Your job now is to volunteer to defeat Prop 8. Our goal is to reach 1000 netroots volunteers for No on Prop 8 GOTV. Have you signed up yet? You need to take action, NOW, to make sure that our supporters get to the polls.
As I write this Yes on 8 supporters are gathering at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego for "The Call."See their crazy video - this is what is going to be unleashed on California over the next 72 hours. Are you going to help us fight back?
"The Call" organizers are billing this as "a confrontation between light and darkness will happen this November. To the victor goes the soul of the nation." Some of their featured speakers - a who's who of the theocratic right:
Lou Engel, founder of The Call: "The powers of darkness shall not prevail - this is a call for war. California is the Armageddon of the cultural wars of today."
James Dobson, Focus on the Family (he has donated over $550,000 to the Yes on 8 campaign): "Tolerance and its first cousin, diversity, 'are almost always buzzwords for homosexual advocacy.'"
James Garlow, Skyline Church: Garlow said of gays: "Homosexuals are not monogamous. ... They want to destroy the institution of marriage. It will destroy marriage. It will destroy the earth."
Tony Perkins, Family Research Council: Tony Perkins says humanity will not survive if Prop 8 loses: "It's more important than the presidential election.... We've picked bad presidents before, and we've survived as a nation. But we will not survive if we lose the institution of marriage."
These are the people who will be the new power brokers in California politics if Prop 8 passes. They will be emboldened to unleash the full brunt of their far right agenda on California and ALL of us are going to be its targets.
So let's make sure they don't get that chance, and that Prop 8 is defeated. Sign up to defeat Prop 8 now!
Here's LA Times blogger Andrew Malcolm, who was Laura Bush's press secretary in 1999-2000, trying to make something out of nothing and playing John McCain's POW card for him:
As part of its effort to show the 72-year-old Republican Sen. John McCain as old and out of touch, the Democratic Party's hip campaign of Sen. Barack Obama, which frequently says it honors the former POW's military service to his country, Friday released a new ad.
As noted Friday by our blogging colleagues over at the Technology blog here, the ad says, among other things: "1982, John McCain goes to Washington. Things have changed in the last 26 years, but McCain hasn't.
"He admits he doesn't know how to use a computer, can't send an e-mail."
Like many of his generation, McCain does not like to talk details a lot about his wartime experiences, certainly not about any lingering physical symptoms. To be honest, it could sound like complaining and, as he's ruefully noted, unlike many others, McCain did come home [...]
Here's a passage from a lengthy Boston Globe profile on McCain that was published the last time he ran for president. It was headlined "McCain character loyal to a fault." It was written by Mary Leonard.
And it was printed more than eight years ago, on March 4, 2000.
It is available online, where Jonah Goldberg of The Corner blog at the National Review found it.
"McCain gets emotional at the mention of military families needing food stamps or veterans lacking health care. The outrage comes from inside: McCain's severe war injuries prevent him from combing his hair, typing on a keyboard, or tying his shoes. Friends marvel at McCain's encyclopedic knowledge of sports. He's an avid fan -- Ted Williams is his hero -- but he can't raise his arm above his shoulder to throw a baseball."
BRZEZINSKI: Does John McCain, does he use the internet? Does he use email? [...]
DAVIS: He actually is, he always is grabbing people's Blackberrys on the bus. In fact, no reporter's Blackberry is safe from his prying eyes. He loves to tool around on the internet, he especially loves the videos that get produced that usually poke fun at him. I think that's his most entertaining part of the internet.
Now, maybe his thumbs work and his fingers don't, but considering that he said in the same article that he's learning to get on the Internet by himself, I highly doubt the veracity of this. Oh, and here's Tucker Bounds claiming he travels with a laptop:
"John McCain travels with a laptop," said McCain campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds. "This is a senseless tactic from Obama's campaign because they're struggling with the realization that the American people understand he is not equipped to deliver change because his record has no bipartisanship or significant legislative accomplishment in it."
Because of the OC Register, I hate being alive. I hope they're happy.
In a column from last week that would have escaped me if Jesse from Pandagon hadn't seen it, Hank Adler decides that the best way to attack Barack Obama's spending plan is to remind everyone what professional athletes will lose out of the deal.
It was fortunate for Tiger that his most-recent U.S. Open win occurred in 2008. Under twin tax proposals from Obama to 1) remove the "cap" from Social Security taxes for individuals earning over $250,000, a plateau Tiger has long since surpassed in 2008, and 2) eliminate the "Bush" tax cuts, thereby raising the top marginal federal income tax rate to 39.6 percent, Tiger's taxes on his winner's check would have increased to approximately $776,000, a boost of almost $190,000. Instead of Tiger keeping 57 percent of his earnings and the government taking 43 percent, under the twin Obama tax proposals, Tiger's federal and California taxes would have amounted to 57 percent of his winnings, leaving Tiger with just 43 percent.
I know when California families are deciding between air conditioning or meat, when they muse about using a rickshaw to get to work because gas is as out of reach as gold, they are actually upset because they know Tiger Woods is being deprived of $190,000 out of the eleventy billion in his bank account. What, his new baby has to get silver-plated starter clubs now instead of the expected gold? Can you look yourself in the eye and say that doesn't eat you up inside?
Adler continues:
Prefer baseball to golf?
The New York Yankees have a 2008 payroll of approximately $208 million. Under the twin Obama tax proposals, the 24 Yankee players would be hit with an aggregate increase in federal income taxes of just over $22 million, with slugger Alex Rodriguez single-handedly getting dunned with $2.6 million in additional federal taxes.
The owner of the Yankees would owe an additional $7.5 million of federal taxes. Ticket prices would need to be increased by about $65 million so that the owner and players could have the same after-tax income as before. The increase in ticket prices would amount to an average $16 per ticket. Given that the least-expensive ticket in Yankee Stadium currently is $14, this would more than double the cost of a seat in the bleachers.
Adler hit upon the two most sympathetic characters in all of sports, maybe all of Christendom, to single out as martyrs: Alex Rodriguez and George Steinbrenner. Incidentally, with the Yanks 7 1/2 games out of first, I don't think anyone's going to feel too bad about them losing money. Then there's the part where Steinbrenner is entitled to his after-tax earnings and simply must fleece the hardworking fans, because the Yankees have no other revenue streams to speak of.
You can go on to dispute Adler by mentioning the top-level tax rate in 1960 (it was 90%), the tax rates under Clinton which Obama would restore and how that affected business (the largest peacetime expansion in history), etc., etc. But someone with the insight to use the plight of enormously wealthy ballplayers to rally the middle-class public to his cause isn't really worth the time. Only the mockery.
So you expect a couple of conservative bitter-enders like KFI shock jocks John and Ken to depict Italian-American Don Perata as a Mafia boss. Slightly less expected was that the same graphic would make its way onto local news in Sacramento.
A televised graphic depicting Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata as an apparent Mafia leader, pointing a gun skyward, has angered Italian-Americans.
Bill Cerruti, who is chairman of a state Italian-American task force and leader of the Italian-American Cultural Society, blasted the characterization today and demanded an apology.
The graphic, depicting Perata in a purple suit and white tie, was broadcast by Sacramento's KOVR 13 - with anchor Chris Burrous - and on the website of talk-show hosts "John and Ken" of KFI radio in Los Angeles, Cerruti said.
Burrous goes on to blast Perata for suggesting the state raise taxes to help balance the state budget.
Yes, anyone who doesn't want to see thousands of teachers fired and elderly people denied health care is most certainly a gangster.
I'm not wired for outrage, so you tell me if this slur is beyond the pale or not. What I do know and expect is that the Denham recall will provide plenty more opportunities for the "Don" Perata slur to manifest itself, and the dead-ender anti-tax forces running his recall opposition campaign are not likely to disappoint. Hopefully they have Perata shoot bullets from a Tommy gun into their "No on the Recall" logo! Hey guys, pay me for that idea before you use it!
When I wrote the earlier piece today about California suing the EPA over granting a waiver on tailpipe emissions, I noticed a lot of comments in the linked article from denialists, touting that "The head of the Weather Channel thinks global warming is a scam... how could it be true if the founder of the Weather Channel doesn't believe in it?" This appears to be a new denialist talking point. John Coleman, the founder in question, wrote a piece for a global warming skeptic site calling it a scam. It got the full Drudge treatment, and wingnuts are engaging in a link-fest.
John Coleman may be the "founder of the Weather Channel," but he's actually just a hack weatherman in San Diego:
John Coleman has been a TV weatherman since he was a freshman in college in 1953 and TV was brand new. He still loves predicting the weather and relating to the television viewers. "I also love working at KUSI NEWS", he adds. "It is a rare thing; a locally owned and managed TV station. And, there are dozens of wonderful people who work here."
John has predicted and shoveled his share of snow. He has been a TV weatherman in Champaign, Peoria and Chicago, Illinois; Omaha, Nebraska, Milwaukee, Wisconsin and New York City. For seven years he was the weatherman on "Good Morning, America" on the ABC Network.
It's basically like turning all scientific thought on climate patterns over to Willard Scott, or someone else who's been reading a TelePrompTer all their life.
In fact, Coleman likes to call being a TV weatherman in San Diego "outrageous scam," meaning that, in his mind, he has something in common with global warming.
Coleman ran the Weather Channel for a year. He's no longer involved in any way. And they've embraced science at this point, making the fight against global warming part of their mandate.
What's hilarious is that the right-wing, constantly trumpeting the death of the MSM and questioning every word out of the mouths of the "librul media," is now embracing a LOCAL TV NEWS WEATHERMAN as the last word on global warming. As long as he is saying what fits, I guess...
Please help our friends at Orange County/San Bernardino Planned Parenthood! I spoke with an OC Planned Parenthood staffer earlier this afternoon, and she let me know that local anti-choice wingnuts are busing in MORE WINGNUTS from Riverside County, just to try to intimidate and silence us. Now can we just allow this to happen? Sorry, but I don't think so: We can't let them silence us!
If you can come to Temple Bat Yahm in Newport Beach next Thursday, please do. We need to support our progressive allies at Planned Parenthood, and I think it would be nice to show the wingnuts that they can't scare us... NOT EVEN BEHIND THE ORANGE CURTAIN!
If you can make it next Thursday, then follow me after the flip for more info...
