cross-posted at The Courage Campaign

Yesterday it was revealed that state senator and Republican candidate for Lietenant Governor, Tom McClintock, had distributed a fundraising letter penned by Mel Gibson on four occasions to raise money for his campaign.

In the letter, Gibson wrote:

”When I find that rare politician who will stand his ground for what is right — no matter what the pressure or consequences — I take notice.”

And that…

the senator stood solidly for principles that might not be politically correct — but that were right and true.

Yikes.

He continued…

“I don’t often support political candidates,” Gibson wrote, “But I love this state, and I believe it is worth fighting for.”

Finally, the actor promised, McClintock will make the office of lieutenant governor into the kind of “bully pulpit that will be essential to produce the longterm political change that is so deperately needed in California.”

As you can imagine, Gibson’s damage control soon gave way to McClintock’s, who yesterday vowed to not use the letter again.

When the whole thing came down with Gibson recently, “Tom was disillusioned by it,” said Devereux. “He said basically stop using the letter, and make sure it doesn’t go out anymore.”

But the senator’s woes just won’t seem to go away. Today, the AP is reporting that McClintock is distancing himself from Mel even further. About Gibson’s anti-Semitic tirade:

”I deplore them and I disassociate myself completely from them,” McClintock said.

McClintock said Gibson’s remarks did a disservice to the image of Christian conservatives…” I think he did a great deal of damage,” said McClintock.

Well, those words are fine, but we at The Courage Campaign think Senator McClintock should go even further. We’re calling for him to take a stronger stance against intolerance and give all the money that was raised as a result of Mel Gibson’s letter away to the Museum of Tolerance.

Sign our petition HERE and tell Tom McClintock give the money away today.

There is no room for intolerance in Sacramento.

Mel’s done some fundraising on behalf of Tom McClintock.  Mel’s a true believer.  And you know what a good judge of character Mel is:

But one thing’s clear: the unusually gushy, three-page, single-spaced fundraising letter sent out by the star of “Braveheart,” and “Passion of the Christ” to help raise campaign cash for McClintock’s effort won’t help much now: it could even be a “Lethal Weapon” for the GOP candidate because Gibson, arrested for DUI, is tabloid fodder for making a rash of anti-Semitic comments.

In the good old days before his current troubles, Gibson’s letter shows he appeared eager to get into the political mix, detailing what he believed was wrong with California’s government — and how McClintock would set that straight.

“When I find that rare politician who will stand his ground for what is right — no matter what the pressure or consequences — I take notice,” Gibson wrote in last year’s fundraising pitch for McClintock obtained by the Chronicle. (SF Chron Blog 8/8/06)

Doesn’t that make you want to reach out and hug Tom?  No?  Really?  Didn’t you see Braveheart? The Patriot? Mad Max?  You should love Tom now! Dammit! Apparently some people are playing this “gotcha” game against Mel Gibson.  Just because Mel said some stuff about Jews doesn’t mean we can’t all love him, right?

McClintock pulled the ad, apparently Gibson isn’t such a good friend after all. Oh, and by the way, Mel loves Tom’s running mate, Arnold Schwarzenegger, too.  Arnold’s “fighting for vital reforms and needs strong voices to help him make the case.”  You know, like the reforms to ensure that big corporations control the California economy and that the poorest workers get little to no pay raise.  Those kind of vital reforms.