Sunday, November 23, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
It's scary that Newt Gingrich has ANY influence beyond FIXED News
From Bill-O tonight, Newt on civil rights...
Look, I think there is a gay and secular fascism in this country that wants to impose its will on the rest of us, is prepared to use violence, to use harassment. I think it is prepared to use the government if it can get control of it. I think that it is a very dangerous threat to anybody who believes in traditional religion.
Is he serious? 10 years after Matthew Shepard's murder, are heterosexuals now at risk of straight-bashing? This civil rights thing is such a pain in the A.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Tennessee's new path backward
From today's Tennessean...
Rep. Mumpower prepares for 'a new order'
Mumpower, 35, said the GOP House agenda is still under discussion, but the party will make education a priority and push for it to be taken up early in the budget process. He also expects to press for pro-business legislation, and quickly pass bills long bottlenecked in the House, including a constitutional amendment on abortion and firearm bills, before dealing with the budget.
FYI... Jason Mumpower is posed to become the new House speaker and is obviously a cookie-cutter partisan for the extremist TN GOP. God save the Governor.
One more thing, and I know they do it all the time, but it is *ridiculous* how abortion and gun ownership seem to roll one-after-the-other for Republicans. Do they not see anything wrong in wrapping fetuses and guns into one platitude?
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Blackburn probed with the L-word
Congressman Marsha starts off pretty well by reiterating her view of the right-wing's path forward. Unfortunately, the same ol' b.s. starts once this weird-lookin' conservative dude uses key words like "liberal", "far-left", then brings up the scariest topic of all... SCOTUS!!!
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Advice I hope TN GOP lawmakers take
The crew at the Tennessean provides some words of wisdom to the new GOP-controlled state legislature...
It would be a mistake to use newfound power to flex muscles over social issues like abortion and guns. A few lawmakers may be chomping at the bit to aggressively push such issues to the fore. The public will be better served if the legislature keeps sensible priorities and shows the best possible performance in managing the budget and working in ways all Tennesseans deserve.
We can only hope...
Friday, November 7, 2008
Marsha Blackburn on the future of right-wing politics in America
Congressman Marsha's op-ed from RCP is getting attention! I stumbled across it on some blog from Kansas, and of course among the usual crazies in TN.
I must say, in the clip from MSNBC below, MB makes sense... and she didn't even have to use phrases like "liberal elite" or "latte-sipping- *insert-some-noun-trying-to-make-yourself-sound-like-you're-not-from-Brentwood*."
I'm sure everyone knows what I'm gonna say next, including Congressman Marsha. These might have just been random names she threw out, but...
Fred Thompson?!!!! John McCain?!!!! How did the message go from new blood to two of the oldest Republicans alive?
That's all I'm gonna say about that. Even I know that Rep. Blackburn is smarter than to believe these two guys are the future of the right-wing. I know there is no such thing as "new" conservative ideas, but there has got to be at least one or two Republicans who aren't old as dirt or complete morons.
But I will say this... everyone knows that Sarah Palin is, in fact, a complete moron. I believe Marsha used the word "bases" when she spoke of Palin's rallying capabilities. No, no, Congressman... she rallied ONE base: fellow morons.
I must say, in the clip from MSNBC below, MB makes sense... and she didn't even have to use phrases like "liberal elite" or "latte-sipping- *insert-some-noun-trying-to-make-yourself-sound-like-you're-not-from-Brentwood*."
I'm sure everyone knows what I'm gonna say next, including Congressman Marsha. These might have just been random names she threw out, but...
Fred Thompson?!!!! John McCain?!!!! How did the message go from new blood to two of the oldest Republicans alive?
That's all I'm gonna say about that. Even I know that Rep. Blackburn is smarter than to believe these two guys are the future of the right-wing. I know there is no such thing as "new" conservative ideas, but there has got to be at least one or two Republicans who aren't old as dirt or complete morons.
But I will say this... everyone knows that Sarah Palin is, in fact, a complete moron. I believe Marsha used the word "bases" when she spoke of Palin's rallying capabilities. No, no, Congressman... she rallied ONE base: fellow morons.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
The buzz wears off... reality sets in...
WARNING: If you are still riding an Obama victory high, you might want to skip this post.
Obviously it's too much to ask to be all-around happy with the results of an election, especially when it includes such pivotal races on the federal, state, and local levels. The first thing that came to mind when MSNBC announced Obama as president-elect was "wow, this is the first time I've voted for someone and they've won!" I actually voted with the majority of Americans!
Of course, the Tennessean had to slap me in the face Wednesday morning. Newsflash: Republicans have taken control of both Houses of Tennessee's state legislature for the first time since Reconstruction. My reaction can be summarized in the following way...
Oh..... shit.
As the TN GOP states:
“The election of a Republican majority in the General Assembly is historic in its own right, and even more so given the strong Democratic tide across much of the country,” said Robin Smith, Chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party. “Our victories send a national message that Republican values still resonate with mainstream America. The power of a consistent conservative Republican message - low taxes, small government and respect for life - once again demonstrated its power to attract a majority.”
And yes, I'll just let you know right now that the no-moderates-allowed TN Repubs have confirmed their plan to strip Tennessee's women of their reproductive rights. That's what they mean by "respect for life"... unless you screw up and they condemn you to death.
Soooo... Tennessee, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana were the only states to vote more Republican in 2008 than in previous years.
I understand that, 1) TN does not have the diversity of Georgia, North Carolina, Alabama, etc., 2) TN is still mostly rural, and 3) and Obama didn't give TN a hint of attention, but why exactly did Democrats fail statewide?!! Did the TN Democratic Party not spend enough of its resources on these races? Did Obama take Democrats' attention away from the elections that were actually winnable here? Were the candidates sub-par?
Granted, in Williamson County, I didn't even have the option of voting for any Democrats besides Barack and Congressman Marsha's opponent, but still... this is ridiculous.
...And therefore Republicans will redraw TN's congressional districts in 2010. I'd expect it to look similar to the current map below, although the gerrymandering will reverse the 5D/4R split.
Thank God Gov. Bredesen will be around until then.
In other crazy right-wing news, Rep. Blackburn is now focused on climbing the remaining Republican ranks. Word is that she's looking to chair the Republican Study Committee... "a group of over 110 House Republicans organized for the purpose of advancing a conservative social and economic agenda in the House of Representatives."
This means take all regulations off the economy and put them on society.
The core lyric of my favorite country song is "When you're in a hole, stop diggin'." That also sums up the message voters have given Republicans.
Tuesday night, our party suffered a resounding electoral defeat. President-elect Obama and his congressional partners deserve our sincere congratulations on their victory. As the country catches its breath, the conservative movement must regroup and set upon a course to prevent November 4th from repeating itself in two years.
The great question now is "how?" As a party we have added to Americans' frustration with the gulf between our message and our methods. We have become lazy in our assertions and half-hearted in our actions. It isn't good enough to evoke "Ronald Reagan" without bothering to explain how and why the ideas he articulated 30 years ago are the best framework to solve today's problems.
House Republicans are now the "last men standing" to fight for conservative values. It is up to us to articulate what a conservative believes and how a conservative behaves. In this, we cannot oppose for opposition's sake, but find the imperative to stand up and fight when we have the better idea for a stronger America.
---
I actually cut out all of the parts bashing liberals.
Obviously it's too much to ask to be all-around happy with the results of an election, especially when it includes such pivotal races on the federal, state, and local levels. The first thing that came to mind when MSNBC announced Obama as president-elect was "wow, this is the first time I've voted for someone and they've won!" I actually voted with the majority of Americans!
Of course, the Tennessean had to slap me in the face Wednesday morning. Newsflash: Republicans have taken control of both Houses of Tennessee's state legislature for the first time since Reconstruction. My reaction can be summarized in the following way...
Oh..... shit. As the TN GOP states:
“The election of a Republican majority in the General Assembly is historic in its own right, and even more so given the strong Democratic tide across much of the country,” said Robin Smith, Chairman of the Tennessee Republican Party. “Our victories send a national message that Republican values still resonate with mainstream America. The power of a consistent conservative Republican message - low taxes, small government and respect for life - once again demonstrated its power to attract a majority.”
And yes, I'll just let you know right now that the no-moderates-allowed TN Repubs have confirmed their plan to strip Tennessee's women of their reproductive rights. That's what they mean by "respect for life"... unless you screw up and they condemn you to death.
Soooo... Tennessee, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana were the only states to vote more Republican in 2008 than in previous years.
I understand that, 1) TN does not have the diversity of Georgia, North Carolina, Alabama, etc., 2) TN is still mostly rural, and 3) and Obama didn't give TN a hint of attention, but why exactly did Democrats fail statewide?!! Did the TN Democratic Party not spend enough of its resources on these races? Did Obama take Democrats' attention away from the elections that were actually winnable here? Were the candidates sub-par? Granted, in Williamson County, I didn't even have the option of voting for any Democrats besides Barack and Congressman Marsha's opponent, but still... this is ridiculous.
...And therefore Republicans will redraw TN's congressional districts in 2010. I'd expect it to look similar to the current map below, although the gerrymandering will reverse the 5D/4R split.
Thank God Gov. Bredesen will be around until then.In other crazy right-wing news, Rep. Blackburn is now focused on climbing the remaining Republican ranks. Word is that she's looking to chair the Republican Study Committee... "a group of over 110 House Republicans organized for the purpose of advancing a conservative social and economic agenda in the House of Representatives."
This means take all regulations off the economy and put them on society.
Marsha also has a profound op-ed on RealClearPolitics telling Republicans what their path forward should be....
The core lyric of my favorite country song is "When you're in a hole, stop diggin'." That also sums up the message voters have given Republicans.
Tuesday night, our party suffered a resounding electoral defeat. President-elect Obama and his congressional partners deserve our sincere congratulations on their victory. As the country catches its breath, the conservative movement must regroup and set upon a course to prevent November 4th from repeating itself in two years.
The great question now is "how?" As a party we have added to Americans' frustration with the gulf between our message and our methods. We have become lazy in our assertions and half-hearted in our actions. It isn't good enough to evoke "Ronald Reagan" without bothering to explain how and why the ideas he articulated 30 years ago are the best framework to solve today's problems.
House Republicans are now the "last men standing" to fight for conservative values. It is up to us to articulate what a conservative believes and how a conservative behaves. In this, we cannot oppose for opposition's sake, but find the imperative to stand up and fight when we have the better idea for a stronger America.
---
I actually cut out all of the parts bashing liberals.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
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