South Carolina Governor Appoints Congressman Tim Scott to US Senate

South Carolina governor Nikki Haley has announced the appointment of congressman Tim Scott to replace outgoing senator Jim DeMint. Earlier this month, Sen. DeMint announced his plans to leave office in January to become President of conservative think-tank The Heritage Foundation.

Scott, a Republican who recently won a second term, represents the Palmetto State's 1st Congressional District- which stretches along the coast north of Charleston. During the 2010 primaries, Scott ran against the son of segregationist Senator Strom Thurmond and won, going on to win convincingly in the general election against his Democrat opponent.

Once elected to office, Scott declined to join the Congressional Black Caucus. Early on he was assigned to the House Transportation Committee and House Small Business Committee before being appointed to the House Rules Committee. Prior to that, Scott had served on the Charleston County Council and South Carolina General Assembly in addition to owning his own insurance agency.

Scott will become black senator from the state of South Carolina, the first black senator from the South since 1881 and the only black senator during the 113th Congress [Interestingly, many of the media types who normally savor the ethnic head-counts were remarkably quiet after Gov. Haley's announcement on Monday- NANESB!].

According to South Carolina state law, Gov. Haley is also required to set a date for a special election for Scott's vacant Congressional seat. It's also worth pointing out that the boundaries for South Carolina's first congressional district had shifted significantly after the 2010 Census. While the district still encompasses much of the coast, the First District will be mostly between Charleston and Hilton Head Island, SC and much of Scott's former district is now part of the newly-formed 7th Congressional district which will be represented by Horry County Republican Tom Rice.

Presumptive GOP Nominee Mitt Romney Chooses Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan as Running Mate

GOP Presidential candidate Mitt Romney announced his VP selection at a campaign event in Virginia over the weekend. An announcement from the Romney campaign that a VP decision would be made over the weekend led to a flurry of rumors on social networking sites like twitter and unsubustantiated media reports on Friday night. Romeny introduced Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan [R- WI 1] as his running mate in front of the battleship USS Wisconsin at Norfolk, VA on Saturday.

Some analysts theorized that the former Governor Mitt Romney would've been reluctant to nominate somebody who is more charismatic or could outshine him on the campaign trail. Pundits had speculated that other potential nominees included New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, former Minnestoa Governor Tim Pawlenty, Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal, Ohio Governor Rob Portman or Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell [notice the abundance of governors and complete lack of community organizers! NANESB!].

Ryan, who chairs the House Budget Committee, had a number of high profile clashes with the Obama Administration over the federal budget, entitlement reform and the debt ceiling since 2010 when the GOP became the majority in the House after a number of Tea Party swept into office.

Romeny's Ryan pick has reportedly energized a conservative and Tea Party base who were wary of Romney's credentials as a moderate, with the selection garnering praise from a number of Tea Party affiliated PACs. The pick also puts the focus of the 2012 Presidential campaign squarely back on the economy.

The duo appeared before large and enthusiastic crowds in the swing states of Virginia, North Carolina and Ryan's native Wisconsin over the weekend. Like the Supreme Court ruling that upheld 0bamacare as a tax, the Romney campaign enjoyed a massive surge in donations shortly after the Ryan announcement was made- reportedly collecting as much as $3.5 million in the 24 hours after the two appeared in front of the USS Wisconsin.

Democrats, the media and Obama-alligned PACs reacted fairly predictably, claiming that the Ryan pick was a sign of 'desperation' from the Romney camp and struggled to portray the two as being out-of-touch Washington insiders who sought to take away entitlement programs from the elderly and women. However, the fundraising and large crowds turning out in battleground states to see both Romney and Ryan belied such claims from the Democrats. Also, the nominee could've been Pawlenty, Jindal, Chrisite or Portman and I imagine the left, the media and the Obama campaign would've been saying the exact same things about them, only altering the name for the script.

After appearing at a campaign event in Waukesha, WI, on Sunday the Romney camp announced that he and Ryan would be campaigning seperately until the Republican convention in Tampa at the end of the month. Ryan was slated to appear at the Iowa State Fair on Monday while Mitt Romney is supposed to head to Florida.

At Least 12 Killed After Gunman Opens Fire in Crowded Theater in Suburban Denver

A gunman wearing a gas mask and riot gear shot moviegoers at a theater in the Denver suburb of Aurora, CO in the early morning hours on Friday.

According to eyewitness accounts the shooter forced his way through a side door about a half hour into the midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises, tossed a smoke grenade and began making his way up the aisles, shooting patrons as they attempted to flee. Some present in the theater initially thought the smoke and gunfire was part of the show or a prank before seeing the gunman moving up the aisles, shooting some people at point blank range. After running out of ammunition for his shotgun, the shooter reportedly continued shooting with a semiautomatic rifle and two pistols.

The gunman then reportedly made his way out to the parking lot where he was confronted by police and surrendered. The suspect in custody has been identified as 24 year old James Holmes. While being taken into custody, Holmes had reportedly warned officers that there were more explosives stored in his apartment. When police and federal agents went to search Holmes' apartment, they reportedly discovered explosives, ammunition and booby traps that the Aurora police chief described as "pretty sophisticated".

Earlier Friday, an ABC news reporter had erroneously identified Holmes as a member of the Colorado Tea Party. However, ABC had to walk back their comments after it was learned that the James Holmes listed on the Tea Party website was in his 50s. The University of Colorado confirmed that the Holmes in custody dropped out of their medical school back in June.

When news of the mass shooting first broke, there were numerous contradictory reports claiming that the killer was Indian, a second shooter was killed by police at the theater, or that the shooter was dressed like Bane, the antagonist from the Dark Knight Rises and the Batman comics- none of which were reportedly true. Cellphone footage showed some of the walking wounded making their way out of the front door of the Aurora Century 16 theaters with blood on their clothes. Bullets from theater 9- where the shooting started- tore through the wall and injured moviegoers in the adjacent theater 8.

President Obama and presumed GOP nominee Mitt Romney both issued brief statements regarding the mass murderers and both campaigns announced they would postpone some campaign events in the coming days.

Police and eyewitnesses say there were numerous children present in the theater at the time of the shooting and a 6 year old girl and 3 month old baby were among the wounded. In an eerie development, an aspiring sportscaster named Jessica Ghwai was among the fatalities at the Dark Knight Rises screening. In June, Ghwai- who sometimes broadcasts and blogs under the name Jessica Redfield- had a close call at Toronto's Eaton Centre when a gunman opened fire on the crowded food court on June 5th, killing 2 and wounding three. Ghwai reportedly changed her mind on where to eat at the last minute and passed up eating at the restaurant where the killings took place. Her final blog entry consisted of her further elaborating on the near miss and her reaction immediately afterwards.

Effort to Recall Michigan Governor Abandoned After Walker's Wisconsin Win

Less than a week after Wisconsin governor Scott Walker handily survived a union-backed recall campaign, a group seeking to recall Michigan's Republican governor has abandoned their effort after coming up well short of the required 807,000 signatures.

This is actually the second time a liberal organization called Michigan Rising had attempted to reall Gov. Rick Snyder. Like Scott Walker, Snyder was elected to office with the backing of the Tea Party that saw a number of conservative candidates winning US House seats and governor mansions.

"It has become abundantly clear that Michigan Rising was not going to accomplish its goal," Fealk said.

The group will continue work to stop "the corporate takeover" of Michigan and plans to develop a progressive think tank and leadership development organization, he said

Meanwhile, teachers unions in Louisiana have begun circulating petitions to try and force a recall of Republican governor Bobby Jindal and a number of state lawmakers who backed the governor's statewide school voucher program.

The Louisiana Association of Educators Board of Directors unanimously voted Saturday to endorse the effort to recall Gov. Bobby Jindal.

Recall organizer Lee Barrios told the board she also is seeking endorsements from the Louisiana Federation of Teachers and the AFL-CIO.

She said a number of teachers signed the recall during a rally on the Capitol steps during the legislative session.

Barrios said there was some talk of dropping the recall because of insufficient signatures by the September deadline, but organizers decided to "double our efforts" and branch out and try to bring in organizations.

"We want it to look successful," Barrios told the LAE board.

In addition to Gov. Jindal, the Louisiana recall effort is targeting State Speaker of the House Chuck Kleckly- a Republican representing Lake Charles in Baton Rouge- as well as St Tammany Parrish GOP state representatives Kevin Pearson and Greg Cromer.

Badger State Beatdown- Scott Walker Becomes First US Governor to Survive Recall; Obama's Bad Week Continues

Wisconsin governor Scott Walker surivived Tuesday night's union-backed recall effort by a considerable margin. The results marked the first time that a sitting governor had survived a recall- a campaign that was about 18 months in the making and gained national attention for possible nationwide implications. Walker had earned the ire of organized labor and the left for legislation introduced curtailing the collective bargaining rights of public employee unions like the SEIU and AFSCME in 2011- prompting Democrat state senators to flee the state to prevent a quorum on such legislation.

Interestingly, the network who's 'personalities' were the most emotionally invested in seeing Walker unseated were the first ones who called the race for Walker. Less than an hour after the polls closed in the Badger State, MSNBC called the race for Scott Walker.



In the week prior to the election, the consensus among the media and punditocracy was that it would be an extremely close contest with Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett reportedly closing a significant gap with Walker. However, when the polls closed on Tuesday night, the results of the recall wasn't anywhere near as close as anticipated.



Not only did Walker handily surivie the recall effort, but Republican Lt. Governor Rebecca Kleefisch retained her office by a similar margin against challenger Mahlon Mitchell. Kleefisch is the first ever Lt Governor in the USA to face recall.

Yay Wisconsin!

Three of the four state senators (all Republicans) also successfully held off challengers from the Democrat party in their respective state Senate districts. GOP State Senator Van Wanggaard [Senate District 21, which covers most of Racine county aloing the Illinois state line- NANESB!] was unseated by Democrat challenger John Lehman, giving the Democrats the majority in the Wisconsin State Senate. However, that majority would only be theoretical and may be short-lived- the Wisconsin State Senate has already adjourned for the year and the seat is up for re-election in November of this year- before the Senate re-adjourns. It's possible Lehman could serve out his entire term without the Senate ever being called into session.

Not surprisingly, some organizations did their best to spin the outcome in their favor, despite overlooking the agonizingly obvious in the process.

Win or lose, Scott Walker has joined ignominious company in suffering the humiliation of a recall election. 3rd ever. #wiunion
— AFL-CIO (@AFLCIO) June 6, 2012

Many of the same pundits, media figures and politicians who were emotionally invested in seeing Walker voted out of office before completing his first term could only point to the exit polls showing President Obama leading over presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney as a bright spot. However, these same exit polls showed that the race between Walker and Barrett was a dead heat- so their reliability is suspect at best.

Perhaps one of the most intruiging breakdowns of the recall is that Walker recived more than ⅓ of the vote from union households. Even before the polls closed, prominent Democrats such as former President Bill Clinton and White House Press Secretary Jay Carney began circulating the talking point that the only reason Walker could win was because of out-of-state support from the Tea Party and wealthy donors such as the Koch Brothers [rather conventiently ignoring the $20 million unions and Democrats spent on the recall, the margin which candidate Obama outspent candidate McCain in 2008 or President Obama's lavish Hollywood fundraisers this year- NANESB!].

I pointed out that Obama was conspicuously absent from Wisconsin just days before the recall voting despite fundraising in neighboring Illinois and Minnesota- one of the first bad omens for the Barrett campaign. Despite recent GOP gains in the Badger State, Obama was still considered a favorite to win Wisconsin in the November 2012 presidential campaign until Tuesday night. However, if the Obama camp decided to stay away from the Wisconsin recall as a pre-emptive means of damage control, it didn't do them any good.

Walker’s win prompted Democratic and Republican strategists to reassess Wisconsin’s political landscape and the role the state will play in the presidential race. Until earlier this week, target states listed by President Barack Obama’s campaign didn’t include the state, which has voted Democratic in the past six presidential elections, albeit narrowly at times.

In a campaign video released June 4 -- the day before the recall -- Obama campaign manager Jim Messina listed Wisconsin as “undecided,” along with Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Ohio, North Carolina, New Hampshire and Virginia.

So not only would Obama be facing an energized Republican base in Wisconsin come November, but a demoralized liberal and union base who won't forget that he had abandoned just before to the recall.

If that wasn't enough, the same day Walker cruised to an easy win, Bill Clinton questioned Obama's economic proposals of allowing the Bush-era tax cuts to expire.

Incredibly, Bill Clinton – the man the White House sent to represent the President during the election – compounded the result by admitting that the country was in a recession and by urging Congress to extend the Bush tax cuts. That makes him the most senior liberal in the nation to cast doubt on Obama’s economic strategy.

In recent weeks, prominent Democrats such as Clinton, former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell, Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick and Newark, NJ mayor Corey Booker have cautioned the Obama camp that they should back off their attacks on private equity as a means of attempting to attack Mitt Romney's tenure at Bain Capital.

Tea Party Marine Discharged From Corps For Facebook Posts Critical of President Obama

The United States Marine Corps has announced the discharge of a Marine sargeant who posted several messages on his Facebook account critical of President Obama. The discharge also carries with it an automatic demotion to lance corporal- or the E-3 paygrade.

Sgt Gary Stein, 26, a Temecula resident, ran afoul of Marine Corps and Pentagon regulations restricting troop political activity by calling for Obama's ouster and making statements that the president was the "enemy" and that he would not follow his orders unless he considered them lawful.

Stein, who could not be reached for immediate comment, was informed of the decision Wednesday morning, according to one of his attorneys, Gary Kreep of the United States Justice Foundation.

"He is very disappointed," Kreep said. "His grandmother died last night and then this hit him."

Stein will now fight for reinstatement through Marine Corps legal channels and continue pressing a court case, Kreep said. Earlier this month, he unsuccessfully sought to persuade a federal court to issue a restraining order or preliminary injunction to stop the separation.

In a statement issued late Wednesday morning, the Marine Corps said Yoo had reviewed the findings of a separation board that unanimously recommended earlier this month that Stein be kicked out after nine years of service.

"The Commanding General found that the board was conducted in accordance with law and regulation, that the findings of misconduct were supported by the evidence of record, and thus has approved the board's recommendation that Sgt Stein be separated from the Marine Corps with an "other than honorable" discharge," the Marine Corps statement said.

A Marine separated as a result of adverse conduct can receive an other than honorable characterization of discharge if the basis for separation is the commission of a serious offense which is a "significant departure from the conduct expected of a Marine."

Stein was also a member of the Armed Forces Tea Party Patriots- the offending commentary was reportedly left on the groups Facebook page.

According to court documents, Stein posted "'Obama is the economic enemy ... He is the religious enemy ... he is the 'Fundamentally change' America enemy ... he IS the Domestic Enemy" in one Facebook update. Stein's critcisms of President Obama would be perfectly legal under the First Amendment in the civilian world, his statements wouldn't neccesarily enjoy the same protections under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

Although I think that Stein's comments should call for some sort of disciplinary action [short of discharge- NANESB!], one has to wonder why the Pentagon wasn't keeping as close an eye on the Facebook page of- oh, I dunno...let's say Bradley Manning as the were Sgt. Gary Stein.

Teamsters Boss at Obama's Detroit Labor Day Rally- "Let's Take These Sons of Bitches Out"

Does anybody else remember President Obama's call for civility in his Tuscon speech earlier this year?

Yeah- about that.....

Shortly before President Barack Obama spoke to the labor unions in Detroit, Jimmy Hoffa Jr. warmed up the audience and harshly attacked the Tea Party movement saying:

"We got to keep an eye on the battle that we face: The war on workers. And you see it everywhere, it is the Tea Party. And you know, there is only one way to beat and win that war. The one thing about working people is we like a good fight. And you know what? They've got a war, they got a war with us and there's only going to be one winner. It's going to be the workers of Michigan, and America. We're going to win that war," Jimmy Hoffa Jr. said said

"President Obama, this is your army. We are ready to march. Let's take these son of bitches out and give America back to an America where we belong," Hoffa then added.

President Obama immediately praised Mr. Hoffa, in the beginning of his remarks saying he was "proud" of the teamster president.

Hoffa's veiled threats came about a week after videotaped comments from Representative Andre Carson (D- IN7) telling an audience at a Congressional Black Caucus function that the Tea Party wanted to see blacks 'Hanging from a tree' last week. Prior to that, Representative Maxine Waters (D- CA35) fired up an SEIU-packed crowd in Inglewood, CA by saying she would tell the Tea Party to "go straight to hell" [her district?- NANESB!].

While hardly a departure for members of the Congressional Black Caucus to make incendiary accusations of racism against non-members, this seems to be triangulated with veiled threats from Union leaders like Richard Trumka or Jimmy Hoffa Jr and Vice President Biden likening GOP members of Congress to terrorists during the summer's deficit ceiling debate ahead of the 2012 elections.

UPDATE: Not only is the Tea Party 'terrorists' according to VP Biden, they're also 'Barbarians at the gate'

Small Wonder: Longshot Tea Party Candidate Upsets Incumbent Congressman in Delaware Senate Primary.

Giggty....I could caucus with that all night!

Yesterday was pretty much the big wrap-up for primary elections across the country, with voters heading to the polls in Massachusetts, Washington DC, New York, Maryland, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and Delaware.

The biggest news from Tuesday night's primaries came from the 2nd smallest state in the union, where upstart Christine O'Donnell defeated former governor and nine-term Congressman Mike Castle in Delaware's Republican primary for Vice President Joe Biden's vacant senate seat.

The result immediately created a schism between GOP Leadership and the Tea Party, who's candidates have defeated other Republican candidates seen as favorites by the GOP establishment at earlier Senate primaries in Nevada, Alaska and Kentucky. The National Republican Senatorial Committee (who were heavily invested in Castle) had to walk back an earlier report that they would not provide any financial support to O'Donnell's campaign on Wednesday. For now, it appears as though Castle has picked up his toys and left in a huff, refusing to endorse his primary opponent after launching a series of attacks against O'Donnell immediately before the Primary. Keep in mind this is the same NRSC that supported such stalwart and loyal conservatives like Charlie Crist, Jim Jeffords and Arlen Specter.

Personally, I figured a fairly dark blue state like Delaware would pick the more liberal/moderate/RINO-ey/whatever-the-hell-you-want-to-call-it Castle to represent them in the Senate, so I was a little surprised. And as far as I know, the state of Delaware doesn't have an open primary, so it's not as though Democrats and liberals were trying to derail Castle's campaign by showing up en masse to vote for his primary opponent.

Unlike Carl Rove, I'm not going to lose too much sleep over this. Castle was one of eight Republicans who voted for the onerous, job-killing cap and trade bill in Congress. If a Congresscritter voted for cap and trade, odds are I wouldn't cross the street to piss on them if they were on fire- unless I could magically piss some sort of flammable liquid [gotta watch out for that splashback tho', NANESB!].

The conventional wisdom was that if Castle lost, the state would automatically go deep, dark blue. However, the more I find out about New Castle County commissioner and self-proclaimed bearded Marxist Chris Coons (the Dem candidate for the Senate seat), the less convinced I am this seat will automatically go to the Dems. Apparently Coons nearly bankrupted New Castle County in his 5 years as Commissioner as well, but is branding himself a fiscal conservative for Halloween this election.

Having said that, I know just as much about O'Donnell herself. Right before the primary, Castle saw it fit to bring up a civil suit in which she was a plaintiff and her falling behind on mortgage payments recently. She was endorsed by Sarah Palin and the Tea Party Express, but I had my doubts about how much weight those endorsements would carry in Biden country.

[New Castle County is the northernmost county in Delaware and includes Delaware's largest city, Wilmington, as well as Amtrak's Northeast Corridor and I-95 in its boundaries- NANESB].

So right now, I think the big takeaway from all this is that not even incumbent Republican seats are safe from the rising tide of anti-incumbent sentiment. Let's also keep in mind that the increasingly influential Tea Party doesn't have the monopoly on anti-incumbent fever. It remains to be seen whether or not O'Donnell can gain any traction after her primary win or if in 50 days people will be having a conversation on whether or not it was better for the GOP and conservatives to have lost a blue state with a more conservative candidate or won it with a very liberal Republican congressman.

Missouri to 0bamacare: "Drop Dead!"

73.1% of Missourians Racist!!

Tuesday was Primary day in Kansas, Michigan and Missouri. For the Show-Me state, besides voters heading to the polls to pick each party's candidate for the November elections, there was a ballot measure that some observers are calling an early referendum on Obama and the Democrat's recently-passed healthcare laws.

Missouri's Proposition C Missouri sought to exempt state residents from the federally mandated purchase of health insurance in HR 3590 that was passed back in late March. The ballot measure, sponsored by state senator Jane Cunningham (R-Chesterfield) among others, passed by a margin of just under 75% on Tuesday night.

The measure enjoyed a wide range of support from Tea Party groups and statewide Republicans. Prop C saw little in the way of organized resistance- save for the Missouri Hospital Association spending $300,000 on mailers- and while some Dems running for officer were against the measure, they spent very little time and money fighting it.

Still, some critics of Prop C hold out hope that the measure could be easily be gutted or overturned in the courts (see California's Proposition 8 or Arizona's SB 1070). Even if Proposition C turns out to be merely symbolic, that has not stopped other states from putting similar measures on the ballot. Voters in Arizona, Florida and Oklahoma will vote on similar measures in November, with Tuesday's vote being seen as an early bellweather.

Notice how the early spin on this seems to be 'This won't stand up in court'- not '0bamacare HR3590 is so wonderful- why would you possibly want to oppose it!?"...just 'sit down and eat this turd sandwich already!'.

But as this Administration has shown us before, it won't think twice [or at all- NANESB!] about taking one of the states to court. Particularly a Red state.

Jealous Much? NAACP Chief Backpedals (Somewhat) After Issuing Condemnation of Tea Party 'Racism'

I am afraid that there is a certain class of race-problem solvers who don't want the patient to get well, because as long as the disease holds out they have not only an easy means of making a living, but also an easy medium through which to make themselves prominent before the public.

- Booker T Washington; My Larger Education, Being Chapters from My Experience (1911)

The NAACP held its convention in Kansas City this week, which included the following resolution that was voted on:

delegates attending the annual NAACP convention in Kansas City, call upon “all people of good will to repudiate the racism of the Tea Parties, and to stand in opposition to its drive to push our country back to the pre-civil rights era.”

Jealous later had this to say when addressing the convention:

“Expel the bigots and racists in your ranks or take the responsibility for them and their actions,” Jealous said. “We will no longer allow you to hide like cowards and hide behind signs that say ‘Lynch Our President’ or anyone else.”

Besides the few but well-publicized racist and provocative signs that have shown up at Tea Party rallies, Jealous' statement are based in large part on the yet-to-be-proven allegations that black lawmakers were spat upon and called racial epithets immediately prior to the March 20th 0bamacare vote. Curiously, there were those in the lawmaker's entourage who were filming the crowd on their way to the vote, yet they have not stepped forward to collect the $10,000 bounty offered by conservative online columnist Andrew Breitbart for video or audio of such an incident- despite a preponderance of camerphones and video cameras among both the lawmakers, journalists and protesters that day.

Jealous then walked back his comments on Thursday claiming that the NAACP resolution never explicitly called the Tea Party 'racist'. Yet the initial draft published by the Kansas City Star (quoted above) and his address to attendees seem to indicate otherwise.

Let me put it to you in these terms, Mr. Jealous. Prior to the April 15th Tea Party protests, word was circulating of infiltrators planning on crashing the gatherings with racist or inflammatory signs to discredit the Tea Party in general. At the one and only gathering I've been to so far, some of the attendees were pretty quick to gather around somebody holding up a 'THE MOON LANDING WAS FAKED!' sign with little bright pink arrows that read 'Phony'. And you're somehow expecting me to believe these same people in the Tea Party who were all over Mr. Mooninite would've just shrugged it off if somebody else showed up at the rally with a 'LYNCH THE PRESIDENT' sign?

Of course! How else would this explain the warm reception this neo-nazi got at a St. Louis Tea Party?

Of course the other problem with the NAACP's 'stop-beating-your-wife-already' style resolution is that even before President Obama won the election, the definition of 'racism' has become quite malleable.

The “socialist” label that Sen. John McCain and his GOP presidential running mate Sarah Palin are trying to attach to Sen. Barack Obama actually has long and very ugly historical roots.

Using that line of reasoning, I guess 55% of the respondents to this Carvelle poll are raaaaacists, too. Having said that, if the Tea Party really were comprised of racists and Klansmen, maybe President Obama would have some kinder words for them like he had for a recently departed Kleagle in the KKK:

“And as I reflect on the full sweep of his 92 years, it seems to me that his life bent towards justice,” Obama said. “Like the Constitution he tucked in his pocket, like our nation itself, Robert Byrd possessed that quintessential American quality, and that is a capacity to change, a capacity to learn, a capacity to listen, a capacity to be made more perfect.”

Unless, of course, you apparently lack that capacity if you oppose the President's Financial 'reform', healthcare 'reform', Cap and Trade or Card Check. In which case, you're all a bunch of mean, no good racists- every last one of you.

Go ahead- just ask the NAACP.

One Nation's Astroturf Yields Yet Another Pitiful Harvest

Riding the momentum of the hugely successful Coffee Party and union bought-and-paid-for The Tea Party is Over comes word from the Washington Post that a cross section of liberal activists have formed yet another sorely needed left-wing group- this one called 'One Nation'- to counter the Tea Party's influence heading into November's mid-term elections.

The groups involved represent the core of the first-time voters who backed President Obama -- including the National Council of La Raza, NAACP, AFL-CIO, SEIU and the United States Student Association.

Gosh- maybe if I listen to the perfectly rational, selfless and mainstream folks at La Raza and the SEIU, I'll forget all about the crappy economy, the inept response to the Deepwater Horizon spill, unemployment teetering around 10% nationwide, the deteriorating situation along the Mexican border, or the job-killing legislation this Administration's been pom-pom shaking for over the last 18 months.

Leaders of the groups have been meeting for about three months in a planning process that some participants called arduous, debating everything from the name of the coalition to what the branding and logo should look like.

Ah yes.....the same people who took three months to come up with a logo and name for the group are the same people who think the USA has been treated to 18 months of mistake-free governance from this White House and Congress, and that we deserve more of the same.

Seriously- three months for a bunch of supposedly like-minded organizations to agree upon a name and a logo? Must be the Deepwater Horizon method of branding. Yet these people will miraculously know what's best for you and me when it comes to healthcare, energy policy, financial regulation and the porous southern border and will act just as decisively.

I'm a tad confused by all this....first the Tea Party was supposed to be a fringe movement of racist, hateful extremists.....but then the American left makes no less than three attempts in the last 6 months to emulate that very same group of violence-prone racist hateful haters.

[Hat tip: Lonely Conservative]

Crazy Wingnut Extremist Tea Baggers: "Feds Put Southern Louisiana Out of Work" and "People Are Dying Down Here!"

And by 'right wing extremist Tea Baggers', I mean former Clinton political strategist James Carville.

Not to be out done in the crazy wingnut department is Ravi Sangisetty, a Congressional candidate for Louisiana's third district with a scathing rebuke of the Obama administration's moratorium on offshore drilling.

HOUMA, La. — Ravi Sangisetty, candidate for U.S. Congress in the Louisiana Third District, said the federal government has issued a death sentence to South Louisiana’s economy.

“Last night the President went on TV and said, ‘If something isn’t working, we want to hear about it,’” Sangisetty said. “Well, because of the federal government and BP, the list of things that aren’t working is pretty long. The federal government’s moratorium means the oil rigs aren’t working; failure to regulate BP means now the Gulf is full of oil; the oil means the fishermen aren’t working; that means our restaurants and tourism industries aren’t working. Mr. President, the federal government stopped South Louisiana from working.”

Sangisetty said that safety must be ensured on the deepwater rigs in a matter of days, not months. He also said that domestic oil is key to our national economy and security.

“The President chastised America for sending a billion dollars a day to foreign countries for their oil,” Sangisetty said. “Domestic oil is a perfect way to counter that, however our ability to drill our own oil has been crippled because Washington is broken. We have a serious problem down here. We need a solution for coastal economy that puts South Louisiana back to work now.”

Did I mention that Sangisetty is a Democrat? And that I agree with him? For some reason, Sangisetty is not running on the 'Obama-is-responding-to-the-BP-oil-spill-just-fine-you-stupid-coonasses' platform in 2010 like I suspect the DNC would like him to.

Meanwhile, in West Virginia's long-serving and ethically challenged congressman Alan Mollohan lost a challenge in West Virginia's 1st congressional district primary race to Mike Oliverio back in May. Oliverio- like anybody with some functioning synapses- claims he is against Obamacare, Cap & Trade and the increase of government spending and is none too fond of Nancy Pelosi either.

Oh yes- did I mention he's a democrat, too?

Besides Republican challenger David McKinley, Oliverio faces opposition from 94 year old Ken Hechler, an influential Mountaineer state Democrat who vowed to establish a Political Action Committee with the sole purpose of defeating Oliverio [because nothing says 'bold and refreshing and ready for change' like another 90-something West Virginia democrat!- NANESB!].

West Virginia's 1st district includes Wheeling and the Northern panhandle along with Morgantown and the university of West Virginia- which is coal country and also sits atop the Marcellus Shale natural gas deposits.

Somehow I get the feeling that neither Sangisetty or Oliverio (or their respective districts) would fully embrace a campaign appearance by Obama or Pelosi.

Black Politicians Inspired By President Obama to Run For Higher Office......As Republicans

This story has actually been around for a few weeks already, but was picked up by the New York Times recently.

According to the conservative Fredrick Douglas Foundation, at least 33 black candidates are running for seats in the US House of Representatives as Republicans for the 2010 mid-term elections.

Of the more than 30 black Republican congressional and senatorial candidates running for office this election cycle, the Frederick Douglass Foundation held a leadership summit for more than 15 of them this weekend.

“Because [Obama's] policies are so out of touch with most of America I think specifically you have black conservatives that are looking beyond just the image. They’re looking at policy and how it impacts us,” [Douglass Foundation Vice Chairman] Nelson said.

He also said there’s “a stronger network of visible black conservatives than many have not seen in the past.”

“What we found is a lot of candidates are feeling like, ‘Hey, I’m not an island by myself, there are other black Republicans who are out there who are not afraid to say it,’ and I think that that has given them a greater sense of confidence,” Nelson said.

This would likely include some of the candidates winning the support of the attendees of the tea party rallies, so apparently they haven't gotten the memo that all tea partiers are inherently bigoted and racist. Yet I somehow get the feeling that if they're running on a platform of lower taxes, limited government and blocking or repealing some of the President's top legislative priorities (such as cap & trade, card check or 0bamacare), they'll have the ear of alot of Americans, not necessarily limited to those who regularly show up at the tea parties.

The following is a list of some of the candidates for the US House of Representatives listed by the Fredrick Douglas society:

Lester Phillip, Alabama’s 5th District
Princella Smith, Arkansas’s 1st District
Vernon Parker, Arizona’s 3rd District
Virginia Fuller, California’s 7th District
Star Parker, California’s 37th District
Chrystopher Smith, California’s 39th District
Mason Weaver, California’s 53rd District
Ryan Frazier, Colorado’s 7th District
Prince Brown, Florida’s 8th District
Eddie Adams, Florida’s 11th District
Corey Poitier, Florida’s 17th District
Allen West, Florida’s 22nd District
Deon Long, Florida’s 24th District
Cory Ruth, Georgia’s 4th District
Deborah Honeycutt, Georgia’s 13th District
Rupert Parchment, Georgia’s 13th District
Isaac Hayes, Illinois’s 2nd District
Robert Broadus, Maryland’s 4th District
Charles Lollar, Maryland’s 5th District
Bill Hardiman, Michigan’s 3rd District
Angela McGlowan, Mississippi’s 1st District
Barb Davis White, Minnesota’s 5th District
Martin Baker, Missour;s 1st District
Shannon Wright, New Jersey’s 6th District
Michael Faulkner,New York’s 15th District
Jerry Grimes, North Carolina’s 1st District
Lou Huddleston, North Carolina’s 8th District
Bill Randall, North Carolina’s 13th District
Jean Howard-Hill, Tennessee’s 3rd District
Charlotte Bergmann, Tennessee’s 9th District
William Hurd, Texas’s 23rd District
Stephen Broaden, Texas’s 30th District
Coby Dillard, Virginia’s 3rd District

There are also some black GOP and Libertarian candidates for state offices in Georgia that Jammie Wearing Fool has been following lately.

Like I said regarding last month's tea parties, I'm not really into the whole ethnicity-to-ideology headcount deal that liberals and their mainstream media enablers insist everybody follows, but I imagine issues near and dear to conservatives such as lower taxes, strong national security and a less invasive or overreaching government wouldn't be limited to a select ethnic group.

Now most of the aforementioned races haven't even gotten beyond the primaries yet, but I will be interested in keeping track of their progress as we get closer to election.

[Hat tip: Jammie Wearing Fool; Alex Pappas of The Daily Caller]

Amused Obama: Tea Party Protestors 'Should Be Thanking Me'

Whether it's spending Christmas in a spacious Oahu villa or speaking to donors at a $30,000 a head fundraiser in singer Gloria Estefan's Miami Beach mansion, let it not be said that Obama's ever lost his touch with the common man.

"We cut taxes for 95 percent of working Americans, just like I promised we would on the campaign," Obama said.
“So I've been a little amused over the last couple of days where people have been having these rallies, about taxes. You would think they would be saying, "Thank you!" That's what you'd think!

Really? 95% of working Americans? Of course, now that I think about it, there's been alot less of those since President Obama was sworn in. Assuming I took what the president had to say at face value (which would be a fool's errand), I'd have to wonder how much of this wonderful, fantabulous 95% savings would be negated by various fees, mandates and stealth taxes in 0bamacare and other legislation that's waiting in the wings. Plus I have a hard time imagining that the words 'Thank you!' were the first things on the minds of the ongoing parade of motorists dropping their completed tax forms at the mailboxes adjacent to post office that was the venue for last week's Tea Party protest.

Like I predicted last fall, instead of holding off on their job-killing legislative agenda, it looks as though this Administration and Congress and their enablers in the media are establishing the narrative that the high nationwide unemployment rate is part of the 'new normal' and that we're in the midst of a 'jobless recovery'.

Well, like the man said, I guess we should be thanking President Obama. Thank you for this 'Jobless Recovery' and new normal of 9%+ unemployment rate, Mr. President!

Guess we don't know how good we have it. Exactly who should we thank for that?

Tea Party Confidential; Voting "Present" on April 15th

My curiosity got the better of me and even though it was a bit of a haul and coincided with part of my odd work schedule, I decided to swing by one of the tax day Tea Party protests at the nearest (and unnamed) metropolitan area. Through the magic of this thing called the Internet, I found the location and time of one earlier today that started a few hours before I was supposed to be at work.

One of the advantages of showing up so early is that I got to park nearby. About 30 or so people were already there with hand-made placards, Gadsden Flags or star-spangled doggie sweaters for the pooches that were accompanying them. A few people were also there to circulate petitions and pass out campaign literature for the upcoming Senate race (although I reside in a different district). Earlier in the week, reports were circulating that counterdemonstrators were planning to infiltrate the Tea Parties and hold up racist or outlandish signs for the media to record. That seemed to be the case with one individual who was holding up a large sign claiming the moon landings were faked by NASA, although he was subsequently flanked by people with hand-made brightly colored arrows saying 'FAKE' that were pointing Mr. Mooninite.

It's also worth noting that the Tea Party protest took place directly in front of a Post Office, so as the crowd was growing, one of the postal workers had to wade into it with a ginormous cart to empty out all of the mailboxes [and lived to tell the tale, since to hear CNN and the Southern Poverty Law Center tell it, every last Tea Party protester hates all things from the government and will lash out violently at them with no provocation- NANESB!]. There was also a steady stream of vehicles passing by the drive-up mailboxes, many no doubt dropping off their tax forms by the midnight deadline.

When I first showed up, the crowd was predominantly old or middle-aged, which sort of made sense as this was just getting underway during what would've been a normal workday for alot of people. I tried doing the informal headcount deal-ey, but #1) I suck at that to begin with and #2) I'm easily distracted. Seriously, every time I'd try and count everybody present, my attention would wander and when I'd try and start over, there'd be a knot of people waving signs and placards where there was empty space moments ago. Alot of these newer arrivals were much younger and a few had school-age children with them. My best estimate was that it was in the 'dozens' when I showed up and well into the 'hundreds' by the time I left, with more people making their way in as I was departing. A couple of people showed up selling t-shirts, although I couldn't quite see what they said.

As for imagery, I didn't see anything as offensive as the Tennessee state flag neo-nazi insignias like certain hyperventilating bloggers or MSNBC hosts guaranteed me that I would find. Believe it or not, vexilloligy is one of my strong suits and the only flags present were the stars and stripes and variations of the Gadsden flag. There were more than a few signs that were a variation of the Obama 'O' from the 2008 Campaign that would read 'Enough Already' or 'No New Taxes' featuring the stylized O. One of the kids with the 'later' arriving families was holding up a placard depicting President Obama as a latter day Jack Sparrow-esque pirate, which I'm sure could be construed as racist by the Southern Poverty Law Center those in the professional victimocracy who have been bound and determined to find signs of 'dogwhistle' racism since January 2009. As for race, I'm not as into the 'let's count the minorities' game the mainstream media has taken to playing with the Tea Parties, but there were some older Hispanic and Asian protesters there early on- so right away it was much more ethnically diverse than the lineup of MSNBC hosts. A camera crew from one of the local TV stations was present, but at the time it looked like he was simply filming panoramic shots of the crowd.

Personally, I didn't get to do much more other than mill through the crowd [I would've taken some snapshots, but the batteries in the Fenway-cam were deader then Uday and Qusay Hussein's Iraqi Parliament campaign- NANESB!] and try to figure out where one nearby congressional district ended and the other began with some of the other attendees....it gets even more convoluted when it comes to the state senate.

So after about 40 minutes or so, I had to take my leave in order to be reasonably on-time for work. At that point, more protesters were showing up and waving signs and flags on the other side of the street, which most passers by were enthusiastically honking while driving along. There was something of a police presence, but they kept their distance of about half a block away.....probably because there was nowhere else to park their patrol cars.

I left before any of the scheduled speakers arrived (I'm not even sure who they were), so I couldn't offer any informed commentary on that. There were actually some Tea Parties scheduled in towns alot closer to where I live, but they were scheduled to start when I was supposed to be at work.

Overall, I'd say it left me with a good first impression, but that was only after some 40 minutes. Certain snide, hypercondescending TV 'personalities' and bloggers would leave their dwindling viewer/readership with the impression that the Tea party was comprised exclusively of racists, birthers and Westboro Baptist-caliber fundies. By and large, they struck me as rational people who are concerned about an ever-expanding and increasingly tone-deaf and unaccountable Congress and Administration cramming through entitlement program after entitlement program- and correct me if I'm wrong, you 'where-were-these-racist-hypocrites-when-Bush-was-running-up-the-deficit' concern trolls waiting in the wings, but President Obama is on par to triple the Bush-era deficit in one year.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Charles Johnson of Little Unseen Footballs. Napoleon Charles, I just wanted to say that if it wasn't for your sneering, intellectually dishonest broadbrusing of Americans practicing their freedom of assembly and freedom of speech expressing the same concerns that at least half the country shares about the economy as foaming-at-the-mouth racists coupled with your blocking the accounts of the lions share of veterans, Jews and conservatives at your blog, I would be less inspired to find out about the whole Tea Party phenomena firsthand. Your abrupt and contrived ideological pivot has cost you far better posters than myself, but your actions have shown you to be nothing more than a lazy hack who's blog has devolved into a reptilian MSNBC, only without intellectual heavyweights like Keith Olberman and Dylan Ratigan. Thank you and don't forget to hit the tip jar!

Astroturf Yields Weak Coffee Crop

Coffee Vs Tea: A Political Movement is Brewing Dozens Turn Out Nationwide For 'Successful' Coffee Parties.

At Java Monkey in Decatur, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, coordinator Stacey Hopkins said turnout far exceeded expectations, with around 60 people participating at the "very productive" meeting where health care reform was the overriding issue... [snip] In Asheville, North Carolina, about 35 people gathered at Filo Pastries and Coffee..[snip] About 30 people came out to a meeting at Raleigh, North Carolina's Cup A Joe.

Coffee Party founder Annabel Park, who worked as a volunteer for Barack Obama's presidential campaign and Democratic Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia's 2006 campaign, says the group is not "aligned" with any party and calls the two-party system out of date.

One glaring omission in the fawning articles and puff pieces about this 'spontaneous, grassroots' movement was Annabel Park's work as a political strategy analyst for the New York Times, which miraculously didn't appear in any of the articles about the Coffee Party (hell, her work for the Webb and Obama campaigns only got a belated mention).

Astroturfing is defined as calculated, well-publicised and well-funded political campaigns being presented to the public as a popular, spontaneous 'grassroots' movement. Early on, the Tea Party was accused of being 'astroturf', but the Coffee Party almost seamlessly fits that definition.

If you stop and think about it, this time last year the mainstream media was ignoring the Tea Party movement. Then, when they did acknowledge its existence, it was only to portray them as a dangerous and threatening fringe movement- that's if they weren't applying homoerotic monikers to the attendees. This was followed up by falsely attributing recent high-profile acts of violence to the perpetrators' [ultimately non-existent] participation with the Tea Party or falling under its influence. Now the latest tactic seems to be starting well-connected and well-financed organizations to counter the Tea Party such as the Big Labor-funded TheTeaPartyIsOver website or Annabelle Park's Coffee Party.

Here is Annabelle Park's Coffee Party mission statement:

The Coffee Party Movement gives voice to Americans who want to see cooperation in government. We recognize that the federal government is not the enemy of the people, but the expression of our collective will, and that we must participate in the democratic process in order to address the challenges that we face as Americans. As voters and grassroots volunteers, we will support leaders who work toward positive solutions, and hold accountable those who obstruct them.

Which more or less translates to: "Shut up and stop complaining: Obama and the Democrats are in charge and know what's best, so don't you dare question them on anything".

I'd really love to know what the Coffee Party's stance on Cap and Trade, Card Check, Obamacare or a second stimulus are. I'm sure we'll know once I hear Rahm Emmanuel, David Axelrod or the SEIU sounds off....

[Hat tip: Lonely Conservative; Big Journalism]

US Media Attempting to Establish Non-Existent Links Between Tea Party Opposition to Obama and Very Real Acts of Violence?

In all honesty, myself and others saw this coming as far back as the 2008 Presidential campaign; certain elements of the press and blogosphere were attempting to establish the narrative that anybody who opposed Obama was likely a racist, if not a dangerous fringe militia type. It was a pretty transparent attempt to put the onus on the Illinois Democrat's critics to explain exactly why they weren't racist fringe wingnuts instead of dwelling on such niceties like Obama's lack of foreign policy or legislative experience or his long-standing association with a rogue's gallery of outspoken America-haters and criminals such as Jerimaih Wright, Tony Rezko or William Ayers.

The sad part, as you can see, is that it was all too effective.

About a month into the administration, CNBC on-air editor Rick Santelli accused the Obama administration of rewarding bad behavior with the administration's Homeowner Affordibility and Stability Plan. While live on the air from the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Santelli raised the possibility of a latter-day 'Tea Party' movement in Chicago, which is widely believed to be the genesis of the Tea Party movement's name.

A little over a month after Santelli's on-air remarks, on April 4th, 2009 Pittsburgh Police officers Eric Kelly, Paul Sciullo and Stephen Mayhle were murdered in the line of duty while responding to a domestic disturbance call involving a mother and her adult son. The perpetrator, 22 year old Richard Poplawski was later found out to have been discharged from the Marine Corps before even completing boot camp and was a regular visitor to white-supremacist websites ranting about ZOG (neo-nazi shorthand for Zionist Occupation Government). After a 4-hour standoff, he eventually surrendered to police.

Curiously, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette managed to slip this little aside in on the day of the shooting and standoff:

Mr. Poplawski had supported Republican candidate John McCain in the presidential election and had "very spirited debates" about Democratic candidate Barack Obama

Wow- I know I'm about 18 months too late with this newsflash, but Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) is about as moderate as they come for the Republicans....and some would say politicians in general. Maybe it's just me, but the underlying implication seems to be 'even supporters of moderate Republicans are unstable and potentially dangerous cop-killers'.

Also keep in mind that, the Pittsburgh shootings were the latest in a string of high profile mass-murders in the span of a few weeks. On March 21, 2009, convicted felon and child-rapist Lovelle Mixon shot and killed Oakland Police motorcycle patrolmen Mark Dunakin and John Hege during a routine traffic stop before fleeing to his sister's apartment and ambushing Oakland SWAT officers Ervin Romans and Daniel Sakai before Mixon himself was cut down by return fire. The day before the Pittsburgh shooting, a disgruntled Vietnamese immigrant named Jiverly Wong used a car to barricade the door of an American Civic Association Center in Binghampton, NY before fatally shooting 13 people inside and turning the gun on himself.

Yet at no point did we hear about the political leanings of Mixon or Wong from the mainstream media. It was probably considered not relevant at the time, unlike speculation about Poplawski's political preferences.

Then, in April 2009, the Department of Homeland Security issued a bulletin to law-enforcement againcies throughout the country warning about a rise in "rightwing extremist activity", broadly defining returning veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan and US citicizens opposed to gun control, abortion and illegal immigration as potential extremists. The report drew criticism from conservative bloggers and the American Leigon and although the DHS claimed the work that went into compiling the report began in the last months of the Bush Administration, many of the report's key findings factored in the current recession and election of Obama as President.

The authors of the report seemed to be vindicated when Dr. George Tiller was gunned down in a Witchita, KS church on May 31st 2009 by an anti-abortion activist. The killing drew condemnation from the President, who issued a statement within hours. Attourney General Holder ordered US Marshalls to provide additional security at abortion clinics across the country the day of Dr. Tiller's murder. However, barely 24 hours later, Pvt. William Andrew Long of Conway, AR was shot and killed and Pvt. Quinton Ezeagwula of Jacksonville, AR was wounded in a shooting targeting the US Army Recruiter's office in Little Rock, AR. The gunman, 24 year old Abdulhakim Muhammed, was a convert to Islam and had spent time in Yemen. As vindicated as proponents of the DHS report might've felt after the Tiller murder, they were remarkably silent after the Little Rock shootings.

And for the remainer of 2009 the Mainstream Media would only notice the Tea Parties long enough to remind us how dangerous and enigmatic they were and the DHS report failed to take into account the actions of terrorists like Nidal Malik Hasan or Umar Frouk Abdulmutallab while DHS secretary Napolitano assured us 'the system worked'.

So let us flip the calendar forward to 2010, where we've aleady had a few high profile acts of violence and we're not even through the month of Febuary. On January 4th 2010, a gunman opened fire inside of the Las Vegas, NV Federal Building, killing a security guard and wounding a US Marshall before being cut down by return fire. Now given how the racially diverse MSNBC personalities were assuring us it was only a matter of time before the racist, unhinged anti-government individuals that made up the Tea Party movement began lashing out in a murderous fashion- and what better place for them to lash out than a Federal building? Only, it turned out that the shooter, 66 year old Johnny Lee Wicks, was angry at his reduced Social Security benefits. Wicks, who was black, had earlier sued the Social Security Administration claiming racial discrimination and set his condo on fire before his Federal building rampage.

Then, on Febuary 12th, 2010, University of Alabama Huntsville biology professor Amy Bishop allegedly opened fire during a faculty meeting on campus, killing three of her colleagues and wounding three more. Perhaps even more disturbing about the shooting was the string of previous incidents involving Bishop, starting with the fatal shooting of her brother in 1986.

And last week, there was the case of Jospeh Stack III, who deliberately flew his single-engine aircraft into a building in Austin, TX housing an IRS field office after torching his own house and posting a lengthy online screed. Stack and one person in the office building were killed. And since the other two incidents were likely considered 'false-starts', the Mainstream Media has decided to go for the gusto and try and portray Jospeh Stack III as a regular attendee of the Tea Party rallies, cherry-picking his tirade for quotes that sound like something 'those gosh-darn teabaggers would say' when he seemed just as upset at the Catholic Church, GW Bush and the fact that obamacare didn't pass as he was at the IRS

Out of the three aforementioned high-profile acts of violence in 2010, I would have to say Professor Amy Bishop would come the closest to being politically motivated. Whether or not her murder spree at Huntsville was politically motivated is up for debate, but other bloggers and certain Boston area media outlets have done a yoeman's job in bringing to light several troubling aspects of Amy Bishop's past that would have most people in jail or unemployable for the rest of their days. In 1986, Bishop was arrested in Braintree, MA after fatally shooting her brother with a shotgun and brandishing it at employees of a nearby Ford dealership before she was arrested. Questions were raised about the case some 23 and a half years later when it was learned she was released to her mother's custody before she was booked. Bishop's mother was a Braintree town official and then-Norfolk County DA Bill Delahunt ruled the shooting accidental. The files from the case had gone missing until fairly recently and the current Norfolk County DA's office ruled that sufficent evidence existed in 1986 to charge Amy Bishop with assault with a deadly weapon.

Delahunt (D-MA) is now a US Congressman from Massachusett's 10th district, although this month he announced he's contemplating retirement. Although a spokesman from the tHugo Chavez-allied Democrat's office said such considerations are routine, it's pretty safe to say he wasn't so sure about calling it a career before Scott Brown stomped Martha Coakley in the January special election or the spoiled brat his office kicked lose some 20+ years ago killed again.

In 1993, Bishop and her husband James Anderson were considered 'persons of interest' by ATF and U.S. Postal inspectors when a Harvard Medical School Professor recieved in the mail two pipe bombs that failed to detonate. However, charges were never filed by the Feds due to lack of evidence.

In 2002, Bishop was arrested for assault and battery at a Peabody, MA IHOP when she found out another family dining in the resturant had the last booster seat. According to the Peabody Police report, an enraged Bishop let loose a profanity-laced tirade at the mother of the family with the booster seat before punching her in the head and shouting "I am Amy Bishop!". She was found guilty of misdemanor battery charges and sentenced to take anger-management classes, which she skipped out on.....

According to the Boston Herald, family sources indicated Bishop was a leftist 'obsessed with President Obama to the point of being off-putting' and certainly benefitted from preferntial treatment by the Braintree Police and Norfolk County DA's office. This begs the question that no matter how 'book-smart' Amy Bishop may have been, what the hell was she doing a free woman, let alone an assistant professor seeking tenure?

But the million dollar question is, if the tea party-people are as dangerous as the mainstream media has been advertising, wouldn't we have had more than one high-profile violent incident attributed to them by now? I mean....surely a dangeous and reactionary group that Newsweek and MSNBC has been describing would've lashed out violently at the object of their unjutified rage by now.....or would the press that's been breathlessly warning the rest of us what a dangerous and violent fringe movement it is have to stoop to creating nonexistant links?

[Hat tip to LoppyD and New Class Traitor for the detailed background info on Amy Bishop]