The 16 year old gay kid who took on GOP Senator George Allen

16 year old gay high school kid takes on Virginia GOP bigot George Allen - what's not to love?

I love the part where Allen talks about the poor little Christians who were arrested for praying. Obviously, Allen was reciting a talking point without knowing the real story he was referring to. Those little Christians in the story in question have a long history of acting up. I'd be curious if George Allen would be proud of those folks if he actually watched them protest in person. Or if he read a little of their own words:

"According to the Scriptures, it's the government's job to enforce God's law and to uphold his law, and the Bible talks about how, I don't want to really get into this — it'll make me sound like I'm crazy — but it does talk about how [homosexuals] are to be put to death. The wages of sin is death. But I want to make [it] clear that I'm not advocating the [independent] killing of homosexuals. … I'm saying that the government's duty is to uphold God's law. … I know that's harsh, but we have all broken the law, God's law, and we need to be held accountable."

Anyway, read about the 16 year old gay kid who took Allen on. Must have been interesting for Allen, who has had an unusually high number of gay men working for him, one might add unusually attractive gay men, over the years. Read More......

Feingold welcomed as a hero in rural Wisconsin

I hear the Republicans are running ads in Wisconsin attacking Feingold for his stance on censure. Doesn't sound like they're working. Read More......

Des Moines Register calls for US pull-out of Iraq

Uh oh, time for the Washington Post to start another Republican blog.

Via E&P;:

The U.S. invasion produced chaos and unleashed ancient hatreds, as experts on the Middle East warned it would. President Bush chose not to listen, preferring to believe his own fairy-tale vision of happy Iraqis welcoming Americans. Now, in the words of the nursery rhyme, all the king¹s horses and all the king's men can't put Iraq back together again.

Only the Iraqis themselves can halt the madness.

I kind of like the image of Bush as the Humpty Dumpty president. Read More......

NH House votes down anti-gay amendment

Wow. Somebody took their state motto seriously. Kudos.

And let me just add, this is not a very good bellwether of Republican efforts to use local anti-gay amendments to help get out the vote in the fall. Read More......

Today's anti-gay hate from America's Taliban

Here's a portion of an emailing I just received from one of those groups who think you can pray away the gay.

The Creation of New Homosexuals
These warnings beg a very serious question: Can people, children in this case, become homosexuals by exposure to certain ideas and behavior? In other words, can a person who would not otherwise become homosexual start the behavior, come to prefer it and form a habitual addiction?

Can a society create more homosexuals? The answer quite clearly is yes. That is how current homosexuals, in fact, came to be.

Ok here are my answers.

Question 1: Yes. I understand hanging around the Bush White House, the State Department and the Republican National Committee is especially dangerous. Reportedly, there's also something in the air of Senator George Allen's office...

Question 2: Unclear. It's difficult to become "addicted" to staying home on Saturday nights wondering why you don't have a date.

Question 3: Yes. See Question 1. Read More......

Stupid spoiled whore

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Washington Post caught lying. Denies they look at the politics of their hires, even though they just hired a Republican to write a Republican blog

Now the Washington Post is outright lying about their hire of a Republican to write a new Republican blog on the Washington Post Web site (and their refusal to hire a Democrat to even the score).

When asked about all of this by the American Prospect's blog TAPPED, the Post responded the following:

TAPPED: Was the hiring of [Republican blogger] Ben Domenech motivated by a desire to placate right-wing critics upset with Dan Froomkin's frequent criticism of George Bush or upset with the recent Dana Milbank appearance poking fun at the shooting episode involving the vice president?

WASHINGTON POST: "When WP.com launched Opinions we said we wanted this new area to be about a variety of voices across a broad spectrum of political and cultural thought. Ben Domenech's Red America is simply another reflection of that effort.

"Ben Domenech brings an original and authentically conservative voice to the site's Opinions area, where we're committed to presenting the most provocative, informed and ideologically diverse policy debate on the web.

"He's an Internet pioneer, an accomplished writer and someone who is willing to challenge sloppy thinking even if, occasionally, he finds it on the GOP side of the aisle."

So the Post admits that the new blog is conservative - hell, it's called "Red America." And the Post admits that they intentionally hired a "conservative" to write their "conservative" blog.

Now read their answer to the next question:

Question 2: Does WashingtonPost.com have any liberal bloggers who can act as a counterpart to Mr. Domenech?

Straus: "Washingtonpost.com hires writers for their ability to add something substantive to the national conversation. As best as possible, we look for that ability regardless of political labels."

So the Washington Post would have us believe that they actually interviewed some liberal writers for the part of the "authentically conservative voice" on their new Republican blog that's even called Red America? I mean, we're Democrats, but we're not stupid. And in any case, would the Post like to pick a position and stick to it, please? Did you create a Republican blog with an authentically conservative voice or do you not pay attention to the politics of your writers? Not to mention, if you don't pay attention to the politics of your writers, then why exactly did you decide to launch this new Republican blog (and not counter it with a liberal blog)?

I guess after all those years of Fred Hiatt enabling the bald-faced lies of George Bush, the Washington Post figured they try the new-normal on for size themselves.

How's it fitting, Fred? Read More......

David Brock writes the Washington Post

And it's a good one:

March 21, 2006

James M. Brady, Executive Editor
The Washington Post
1150 15th Street NW
Washington, DC 20071

Dear Mr. Brady:

I noted with interest the Post's decision to add Republican operative Ben Domenech to its roster of bloggers.

Presumably, this decision grew out of reported complaints both inside and outside of the Post that online columnist Dan Froomkin is too liberal. It's worth noting that Froomkin himself has argued, "I do not advocate policy, liberal or otherwise. My agenda, such as it is, is accountability and transparency. I believe that the president of the United States, no matter what his party, should be subject to the most intense journalistic scrutiny imaginable."

But even if one were to grant the debatable premise that Froomkin is, indeed, a liberal, he is also a journalist by background and training, having spent 18 years in journalism, working for the Winston-Salem Journal, the Miami Herald and the Orange County Register in addition to nearly a decade with the Post. He is deputy editor of niemanwatchdog.org, the web site of the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University.

By contrast, while he does claim previous employment as a "political journalist," Domenech is first and foremost a partisan activist -- a Republican operative who has worked for the Bush administration and Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), is currently an editor at a conservative publishing house, and who describes himself as "the youngest political appointee of President George W. Bush." He is also a co-founder of RedState.org, which describes itself in nakedly partisan terms -- "a Republican community weblog. RedState is focused on politics, and is dedicated to the construction of a Republican majority in the United States."

You recently wrote of reader comments deleted from the Post blog: "If I had let them, they would have obliterated any semblance of civil, genuine discussion." Domenech's inaugural post on his "Red America" blog for the Post referred to "the shrieking denizens of their [the Democrats'] increasingly extreme base" and "the unhinged elements of their base, motivated by partisan rage." Is that the sort of "civil, genuine discussion" you had in mind? Or do you have one set of rules for your staff and another for your readers, one set for liberals and another for conservatives?

Domenech and Froomkin are simply not comparable. In fact, as far as we can tell, the only other Post blogger with a background in partisan politics is Ron Nessen, who worked for a Republican president and who recently offered a snide and substance-free criticism of the progressive Center for American Progress.

When can we expect the Post to hire a partisan Democratic activist as a blogger to balance Domenech?

Sincerely,
David Brock
President & CEO
Media Matters for America

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Cheney campaigns for OH candidate with big tax problems

Cheney was in Ohio yesterday with a candidate who actually showed up. Congressional candidate/State Representative Chuck Blasdel was the beneficiary of Cheney's fundraising visit. And, the Veep gave the usual spiel on GOP issues:

He also pushed [Chuck] Blasdel's candidacy to the already enthusiastic audience and touted the economy, Bush's tax cuts, the Patriot Act and progress in Iraq. He answered no questions after his 15-minute speech and left immediately.

About 400 people crammed into a white tent in the parking lot of the Spread Eagle Tavern to listen to the vice president and Blasdel, who is seeking to replace Ted Strickland in Ohio's 6th District. (Democrat Strickland is giving up his seat to run for governor.) The race has attracted national attention because of its potential to affect political control of the House.

Those GOPers love to talk about the evil of taxes. Swing State Project uncovered some of Blasdel's problem with taxes -- in his case, it's personal, not political, like the fact he owes tens of thousands in back taxes:

The state says state Rep. Charles Blasdel, a Republican in the 6th Congressional District race, owes $20,986.23 or $54,915.87 in estimated delinquent taxes and fees on two defunct businesses he co-owned.

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Open thread

Other latest news? Read More......

Washington Post hires Republican blogger, and no Dem bloggers, to "balance" their coverage. My subscription to the Washington Post is canceled

I'm not renewing my subscription to the Washington Post.

Consider it a small step, but maybe if the Washington Post's advertisers start asking just who subscribes to the newspaper anymore, and they see that it's fewer and fewer "influentials," maybe just maybe the Republicans running the new Washington Post may decide to finally balance their coverage and stop being the FOX News of the dead-tree world.

But don't expect it any time soon.

The latest atrocity from the Post? They've hired a conservative blogger to "balance" their coverage, with no announcement at all of a liberal blogger to balance HIS coverage.

Yes, the Washington Post is hiring a conservative blogger and no liberal blogger. Yeah, that's fair and balanced. Because, you know, the newspaper that brought us the Iraq war with its unwavering support for George Bush, and now is all gung-ho printing outright lies in support of Bush's plans to invade Iran, they need a good conservative blogger to balance their glaring conservative bias.

In spite of all of that, the Post apparently honestly really thought it needed to go MORE conservative to balance out its "liberal bias." Uh huh. Because you guys haven't whored youselves out enough in support of enough failed wars and the dismantling of our democracy? What, did George Bush promise to invite Washington Post editorial page editor Fred Hiatt to more barbeques if Hiatt just lifts his legs one more time?

I'll say it again. Katherine Graham is rolling over in her grave at what Fred Hiatt has done to destroy what once was one of the nation's great newspapers. Read More......

It's fundraising time at AMERICAblog

I explain it all in the paragraph at the top of the page, just below the convenient yellow donation boxes. You can give once, or use the yello box at top right to automatically give a set amount each month. Either way, it's easy and secure - using a credit card or your bank account. Just enter the amount you want to give, click the credit card symbol, and it will take you to a page with more instructions (and no, you don't owe anything just by clicking the credit card symbol, you need to do a lot more before you owe anything, so click through and read more to see if you're comfortable giving online).

Thanks as always, JOHN Read More......

TIME's story on potential US war crimes in Iraq

TIME

According to eyewitnesses and local officials interviewed over the past 10 weeks, the civilians who died in Haditha on Nov. 19 were killed not by a roadside bomb but by the Marines themselves, who went on a rampage in the village after the attack, killing 15 unarmed Iraqis in their homes, including seven women and three children. Human-rights activists say that if the accusations are true, the incident ranks as the worst case of deliberate killing of Iraqi civilians by U.S. service members since the war began.

In January, after Time presented military officials in Baghdad with the Iraqis' accounts of the Marines' actions, the U.S. opened its own investigation, interviewing 28 people, including the Marines, the families of the victims and local doctors. According to military officials, the inquiry acknowledged that, contrary to the military's initial report, the 15 civilians killed on Nov. 19 died at the hands of the Marines, not the insurgents.

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What Bush sees as success in Tall Afar

Bush keeps talking about the need for good news from Iraq -- you know, because the media isn't covering the good stuff. He keeps citing what's going on in the city of Tall Afar. So, this is success, Bush style:

[US Naval War College Professor] Hashim said he has also seen indications lately that the insurgents have begun "seeping back in" to Tall Afar now that the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment has rotated home and been replaced by another Army unit. And given the deep ethnic and sectarian divides in Tall Afar, he said, it is quite possible that the city could succumb to civil war, along with the rest of the country.

A Washington Post employee interviewing residents of Tall Afar found continuing anxiety in the streets. "Al-Qaeda has started to come back again," said Jaafar al-Khawat, 33, a tailor. "They have started to kill Shiites and Sunnis who cooperate with the Americans. Last Wednesday, they killed a truck driver because he worked with the Americans."

Yasir al-Efri, 23, a law student at Mosul University, said al-Qaeda pamphlets began appearing on the biggest mosque in Tall Afar in the past two months claiming credit for attacks. "The Tall Afar mission failed," he said. "The city will turn back to how it was before the battle within two months. The Americans are busy putting cement barriers and barbed wire around their bases and no one is taking care of the infrastructure."

Sebti, the mechanic, was more fearful of sectarian conflict. "People now are afraid to send their kids to school," he said. "I have to take my son to and from the school every day. There are two gangs in Tall Afar now that specialize in kidnapping children. Police can do nothing against that."

Read More......

Tuesday Morning Open Thread

CNN just reported that Chimpy is doing a press conference from the White House at 10 a.m.

The White House can spin all they want, but Bush is an incompetent liar and no one trusts him. He's dangerous. Read More......

NJ GOP Senate Candidate blows off Cheney at his own event

This is classic. Kean managed to miss an appearance with Cheney. The little GOP rats are running from the sinking Bush/Cheney ship:

In the biggest campaign fund-raiser yet on behalf of State Senator Thomas H. Kean Jr., Vice President Dick Cheney traveled to New Jersey on Monday and praised Mr. Kean as someone with "the experience, the values and the vision to be a superb United States senator."

But there was one problem: Mr. Kean was a no-show.

Kean blamed traffic. But, it does seem that if people in NJ know one thing, they know the status of traffic:

As soon as the Senate wrapped up, around 4 p.m., he traveled north "as quickly as I could." But instead of taking the New Jersey Turnpike, like any regular commuter between Trenton and Newark, he and his driver chose Route 1, which is usually crawling with bumper-to-bumper traffic at that hour.

Mr. Kean said he did so because there were delays on the Turnpike in the morning. But at 6 p.m., there were no reported delays between Exit 7A, not far from Trenton, and the George Washington Bridge, according to the Turnpike's Web site.

And Anton Peters, an executive producer at Shadow Traffic, said that Route 1 was relatively trouble-free on Monday afternoon, with the only significant problem a northbound accident near Linden that was cleared up by 2 p.m. "If he was going north, it wouldn't have affected him," Mr. Peters said.

Kean is just another weak, incompetent Republican. Read More......