The Post: Democrats Share the Blame for GOP Bad Behavior
I've mentioned a few times here about how the Washington Post has been getting worse and worse. Perfect example this morning.
This week a slide show produced by the Republican Party got out to the public. Politico broke the story Wednesday:
(BTW, you can see the slide show itself HERE.)
Oh, and here's the funny part.
Ambassador to Luxembourg -- I love that. So the Republicans just left this thing lying around and Politico ended up with it.
Maybe you saw Howard Dean on Keith Olbermann's show last night, with Lawrence O'Donnell hosting. Dean's usually pretty good with the talking points, he puts his message out there where he wants it, but last night he was just stammering. His message was, "I can't believe this."
OK, you may or may not like Howard Dean and you know he's a good Democrat speaking on behalf of the party, but the truth is -- this Powerpoint talk was presented by high-ranking Republican officials, it represents their philosophy of campaigning, and, importantly, there is nothing like this to be found in any Democratic rally or backroom meeting.
So here's what gets me. This morning you have the Washington Post talking about how the Republicans are trying to control the damage from this thing. Here's how their story starts. I want to direct your attention to the first sentence of the second paragraph of this article.
Excuse me -- both parties use?
BOTH PARTIES ? ? ?
We await the release of the corresponding documentation of the Democrats' appeals to fear and their mockery of their own donors.
This week a slide show produced by the Republican Party got out to the public. Politico broke the story Wednesday:
The Republican National Committee plans to raise money this election cycle through an aggressive campaign capitalizing on “fear” of President Barack Obama and a promise to "save the country from trending toward socialism."
The strategy was detailed in a confidential party fundraising presentation, obtained by POLITICO, which also outlines how “ego-driven” wealthy donors can be tapped with offers of access and “tchochkes.”
The presentation was delivered by RNC Finance Director Rob Bickhart to top donors and fundraisers at a party retreat in Boca Grande, Florida on February 18, a source at the gathering said.
In neat PowerPoint pages, it lifts the curtain on the often-cynical terms of political marketing, displaying an air of disdain for the party’s donors that is usually confined to the barroom conversations of political operatives.
The presentation explains the Republican fundraising in simple terms.
"What can you sell when you do not have the White House, the House, or the Senate...?" it asks.
The answer: "Save the country from trending toward Socialism!”
Manipulating donors with crude caricatures and playing on their fears is hardly unique to Republicans or to the RNC – Democrats raised millions off George W. Bush in similar terms – but rarely is it practiced in such cartoonish terms.
One page, headed “The Evil Empire,” pictures Obama as the Joker from Batman, while House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leaders Harry Reid are depicted as Cruella DeVille and Scooby Doo, respectively. Exclusive: RNC document mocks donors, plays on 'fear'
(BTW, you can see the slide show itself HERE.)
Oh, and here's the funny part.
The 72-page document was provided to POLITICO by a Democrat, who said a hard copy had been left in the hotel hosting the $2,500-a-head retreat, the Gasparilla Inn & Club. Sources at the event said the presentation was delivered by Bickhart and by the RNC Finance Chairman, Peter Terpeluk, a former ambassador to Luxembourg under President George W. Bush.
Ambassador to Luxembourg -- I love that. So the Republicans just left this thing lying around and Politico ended up with it.
Maybe you saw Howard Dean on Keith Olbermann's show last night, with Lawrence O'Donnell hosting. Dean's usually pretty good with the talking points, he puts his message out there where he wants it, but last night he was just stammering. His message was, "I can't believe this."
And it‘s astonishing to me—what is so astonishing is not that they are propagandists. They‘ve been doing that since Lee Atwater. What‘s astonishing to me is that they‘d turn the fire hose on their own people. They just don‘t respect anybody who disagrees with them and they really believe that they are entitled to run the country just because of their far-right views. And it‘s just—I‘m shocked. I really am. That would never happen at the DNC.
You know, you can‘t even ask me what would you do if that happened at the DNC. It never would, because we fundamentally respect other people. In fact, when I was chairman, we actually even reached out to respect evangelical Christians because we thought we could get some of their votes and we did.
I‘m stunned. I just can‘t believe that this party is so open about how contemptuous it is for the very people they work for ultimately which is the American people.VIDEO
OK, you may or may not like Howard Dean and you know he's a good Democrat speaking on behalf of the party, but the truth is -- this Powerpoint talk was presented by high-ranking Republican officials, it represents their philosophy of campaigning, and, importantly, there is nothing like this to be found in any Democratic rally or backroom meeting.
So here's what gets me. This morning you have the Washington Post talking about how the Republicans are trying to control the damage from this thing. Here's how their story starts. I want to direct your attention to the first sentence of the second paragraph of this article.
National Republican leaders scrambled Thursday to control damage caused by an internal party document that caricatures President Obama as the Joker and stokes fear of socialism to raise money in a critical election year.
The 72-page PowerPoint presentation reveals the blunt appeal to emotion that both parties use to motivate donors and prefer to keep private. But its release online and consequent cable chatter became an unwelcome distraction for Republicans, because the strategy it outlined fit squarely with Democrats' portrait of the GOP as the party of "no." Republicans try to control damage from fundraising document
Excuse me -- both parties use?
BOTH PARTIES ? ? ?
We await the release of the corresponding documentation of the Democrats' appeals to fear and their mockery of their own donors.
posted by JimK at 11:36 AM
29 Comments:
It is one thing to be evenhanded. It is quite another to be evenhanded when the facts do not support being evenhanded. Just as there was no "moral equivalence" between the misdeeds of the Soviet Union and of the United States, there is no such "moral equivalence" between Republican and Democratic tactics. The Post's effort to appear evenhanded is misguided, to say the least.
President Obama has attempted to change the tone in Washington was to get away from this sort of garbage. The Republican response was to make it even worse. See, for example, Liz Cheney's attempt to smear members of the Obama Justice Department for doing things that the American Bar Association (and many former Bush attorneys) endorse: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/ns/msnbc_tv-rachel_maddow_show#35718576 (from last night's Rachel Maddow Show)
The American people are going to be tested this year. Will enough of us fall for the campaign of fear and lies to put the perpetrators of fear and lies back in full power of the Congress?
And the Senate will be tested. Will it continue to keep rules that allow one Senator out of 100 to block the work of democracy and rules that allow 41 out of 100 to routinely do the same thing?
fear?
you could say anytime you argue for any case, you're appealing to "fear"
health care reform? playing on people's "fears" they won't be able to afford to get a doctor
cap and trade? playing on "fear" of some unproven global catastrophe
transgender discrimination? playing on "fear" that some guy dressed like a girl won't be able to order a pizza
indeed, your accusation that the other side is appealing to "fear" is nothing but a disingenuous bit of propaganda
among the "fears", the danger of trending toward socialism is a legitimate concern
Obama and the gang need to be stopped before they do irreparable damage to our country
there are ways around the "41", David
if the Repubs weren't supported by American people, there would be enough pressure from constituents to break off a few of them
as it is, the Dem bill is so objectionable that the Repubs are becoming heroes to the American by blocking it until an election can be held
it should be a record rearrangement of Congress
you know how the global warming alarmists say the blizzards of this winter are the result of GW because GW results in an increase of dramatic weather of all kinds?
looks like global warming theory is taking another hit:
"(March 5) -- Last month was on the verge of becoming the first February in at least the past 60 years with no tornadoes reported, when one finally touched down on the 27th. The weak twister near Taft, Calif., caused no damage, and other than knocking February out of the record books, it did nothing to diminish the slow start of the tornado season across the United States. The relative quiet will continue through March.
The lack of tornadoes, however, is a reflection of the current weather pattern, which, in turn, give evidence about whether this trend of fewer tornadoes will continue through March, a month where the three-year average of tornadoes increases to 138.
February was highlighted by numerous storm systems in the southern part of the country -- something that would usually result in frequent dangerous thunderstorms and perhaps tornadoes if the storms were to interact with unseasonably warm and humid air originating from the Gulf of Mexico. That part of the equation -- warmth and humidity from the Gulf -- was lacking. February temperatures were significantly below normal in areas along the Gulf Coast; in fact, on Feb. 12, snow was on the ground in every one of the 48 states in the continental U.S.
As we head through March, it appears that the active southern storm track will remain in place, but once again, the warmth and humidity needed for tornado formation may generally be lacking. The latest Climate Prediction Center 30-day forecast is predicting that temperatures will be below normal along the Gulf Coast."
if this is global warming, America's heartland must be heartened
Obama wants health care passed so he can take his kids on Spring break to Australia
sorry, Barry
no can do:
"Democrats are racing the clock to pass health care reform ahead of a wave of Tea Party-driven town hall meetings planned for the spring recess -- the kind of gatherings that nearly derailed the package last August.
Tea Party groups, as well as former House Republican Leader Dick Armey's outfit, FreedomWorks, are holding their meetings and trying to coax lawmakers into attending.
"We're about to ratchet it up," said Debbie Dooley, a Tea Party Patriots organizer and FreedomWorks volunteer outside Atlanta. "You're about to see the passion that we saw during the August recess."
Conservative activists across the country are planning to sponsor town hall meetings, rallies, debates and visits to district offices to voice their objections to the health care reform bill, starting as early as next week. The big push will come during the two-week congressional recess that starts March 29.
"We're gonna hit 'em when we know they're back in (the) district, and we're gonna hit 'em hard," said Tom Gaitens, a Tampa Tea Party organizer who coordinates with FreedomWorks.
But the town hall organizers are banking on the debate dragging out through the break. They're going to invite representatives and senators to the town hall meetings, and they hope local press outlets will help them shame lawmakers who don't show up.
"If they refuse to attend the town hall meetings, we're going to have an empty chair with their name on it," Dooley said. "If they choose not to face their constituents, that's their decision. I'm sure their constituents will remember that."
President Obama, meanwhile, is prodding lawmakers to pull health care reform over the finish line quickly.
"I believe the United States Congress owes the American people a final vote on health care reform," the president said Wednesday. "I therefore ask leaders in both houses of Congress to finish their work and schedule the vote in the next few weeks. From now until then, I will do everything in my power to make the case for reform."
As the planned town halls demonstrate, the administration still has some salesmanship to do with the public; polls show deep opposition not just to the bill itself, but to the process of reconciliation Democrats plan to use to pass part of the package with just a 51-vote majority.
Asked about the poll numbers Thursday, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said, "We're working on that."
Democratic leaders also have a lot of convincing to do in their own caucus on Capitol Hill, where the plan is for the House to pass the Senate-approved bill and then for both chambers to approve a reconciliation bill that includes changes.
Bob MacGuffie, a conservative activist in Connecticut, said part of the anti-health care bill strategy is to press "soft Democrats" not to vote for the bill because they might not ever see the package of changes come to fruition.
"They shouldn't trust on that one," he said.
MacGuffie said there's a "good chance" Pelosi won't be able to round up the needed votes in the House this month, pushing the debate into the spring break.
"They're definitely afraid of that," he said. "Facing their constituents is the last thing they want to do."
Gibbs, though, said the bill is "on schedule" to pass the House by March 18, with a bill signing expected "shortly thereafter.""
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WASHINGTON — The ethical woes facing Democrats are piling up, with barely a day passing in recent weeks without headlines from Washington to New York and beyond filled with word of scandal or allegations of wrongdoing.
The troubles of Gov. David A. Paterson of New York, followed by those of two of the state’s congressmen, Charles B. Rangel and Eric J. Massa, have added to the ranks of episodes involving prominent Democrats like Eliot Spitzer, Rod R. Blagojevich and John Edwards
Obama IS a socialist. And that IS scary.
Mwahahahaha
yeah, Obama is a socialist
I'm not that scared because he won't last long, as Americans have come to realize this
the scariest thing is if they socialize medicine, it will be very hard to undo, at least to restore the quality we now enjoy
it doesn't look like they can do it because the abortion coverage allowed in the Senate is unacceptable to a core of moral Democrats
fortunately, it can't be changed through reconciliation because it doesn't impact the budget and those Democrats won't vote for it and trust the Senators to do the right thing
back to this poor sap, Obama
he went to college and took his professors too seriously and never had a real job so he was never cured of a bad case of socialist syndrome
"The ethical woes facing Democrats are piling up,"
that's really funny when Jim says "GOP Bad Behavior"
hahahahahahaha!
it will be very hard to undo, at least to restore the quality we now enjoy
Keep saying that, Anon, that's a real selling point for the Republicans. People are really going to be looking back at the good old days of health care.
Christianity is Socialism!
Christ invested in people, focusing on their welfare. He was not an investor in huge, money-grabbing monopolistic corporations. Isn't there a reference in your Bible to his "tossing out the money-lenders from the temple"?
Christ was a Socialist!
His true followers are Socialists!
McDonnell in action:
"RICHMOND -- Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II has urged the state's public colleges and universities to rescind policies that ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, arguing in a letter sent to each school that their boards of visitors had no legal authority to adopt such statements.
In his most aggressive initiative on conservative social issues since taking office in January, Cuccinelli (R) wrote in the letter sent Thursday that only the General Assembly can extend legal protections to gay state employees, students and others -- a move the legislature has repeatedly declined to take as recently as this week.
Cuccinelli's move suggests that he intends to take a harder line with the state's university system, where liberal academics have long coexisted uneasily with state leaders in Richmond.
"It is my advice that the law and public policy of the Commonwealth of Virginia prohibit a college or university from including 'sexual orientation,' 'gender identity,' 'gender expression,' or like classification as a protected class within its non-discrimination policy absent specific authorization from the General Assembly," he wrote in the letter.""
now, we have a homosexual Dem scandal
more on how Dems "bad behavior" is their own:
"Congressional Democrats reclaimed control of Congress in 2006 by pledging to "drain the swamp" after Republican ethics scandals rocked Capitol Hill. Now, a series of controversies involving Democratic members has robbed the party of its claim to hold the higher moral ground -- and could threaten its hold on power in this fall's elections.
The announcement Friday by Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.) that he will resign amid allegations that he sexually harassed a male staffer capped a week of near-daily ethical distractions for a party struggling to pass heath-care reform legislation.
A few days earlier, congressional Democrats forced Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.) to step down temporarily from the chairmanship of the House Ways and Means Committee. The House ethics committee had admonished Rangel for accepting corporate-sponsored trips, and he remains under investigation for other alleged violations.
Rep. Peter J. Visclosky (D-Ind.) is under investigation by the Justice Department in a lobbying case.
The controversies have increased scrutiny of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), who pledged in 2006 that Democrats would run "the most ethical Congress in history."
"Ethics really matter to voters; they matter almost more than any other issue," said Melanie Sloane, head of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a nonpartisan group. "And you would think that Democrats would know that""
rational: it will be very hard to undo, at least to restore the quality we now enjoy
irrational: Keep saying that, Anon, that's a real selling point for the Republicans. People are really going to be looking back at the good old days of health care.
dear irrational:
it will seem like the good old days when we're paying twice as much and aren't able to get off the waiting list before we die of our ailments
if the Dems pass Obamacare, they are destined for the dustbin of history and will be forever remembered for killing the goose that laid the golden egg
Rep. Parker Griffith (Ala.) on Saturday stressed he joined the ranks of the Republicans last December because the Democratic Party had "lost its way" in the healthcare debate.
As congressional Democrats ready their final push on reform legislation, aiming to deliver a bill to the president's desk by the month's end, Griffith framed his defection in the GOP's weekly radio address as one motivated by his former party's pursuit of policies "dangerous for our country and out of step with our values."
"Given all that’s at stake, I realized that being a voice of dissent and a vote of conscience was not enough," Griffith said. "Shortly before Christmas, after much thought and prayer, I decided to align myself with House Republicans, who have stood on principle to fight this big-government agenda and offer better solutions to the challenges facing our country."
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- If President Obama's 2011 budget were put into effect as proposed, the U.S. federal government would add an estimated $9.8 trillion to the country's accrued debt over the next decade, according to a preliminary analysis from the Congressional Budget Office.
You want to talk about scandals Anone? Here are some facts for you to ponder:
R-Florida Rep. Mark Foley's scandalous behavior toward young male interns was known for years by GOP aides, and according to Rep. Tom Reynolds, R-NY, was also known for months by GOP Speaker Hastert who did nothing about it. Foley did not resign until we all read his lurid instant messages to male interns in our local newspapers.
R-Senator Larry Craig stayed in office until the end of his term after pleading guilty in a court of law to soliciting anonymous male sex in a public rest room.
D-Eric Massa announced he will resign his House seat on Monday because of allegations he sexually harassed a male staffer.
R-Senator David Vitter paid for the services of a prostitute and did not resign
D-Governor Eliot Spitzer paid for the services of a prostitute and resigned
R-Tom Delay refused to resign after he was admonished by the Ethic Committee and by the SEC. The GOP changed the rules so Delay could remain in his GOP leadership position even if he was indicted in Texas. Delay did finally step down from his Majority Leader role shortly after he was indicted but didn't resign his seat for another six months.
D-Charles Rangel requested a leave of absence from his leadership position after he was admonished by the Ethics Committee.
In 2004 in a closed-door meeting of the House Republican Conference, the GOP voted to allow GOP leaders to retain their position even if they have been indicted. The Democrats have set up better rules for the conduct of their members of Congress and they are enforcing them.
Members of both parties have scandals. The difference is that the Democrats enforce meaningful rules of conduct while the GOP changes the rules to keep their criminals in office.
"Christ invested in people, focusing on their welfare."
yes, he did, but he never suggested doing this through government
"He was not an investor in huge, money-grabbing monopolistic corporations."
nor in huge, money-grabbing monopolistic governments
"Isn't there a reference in your Bible to his "tossing out the money-lenders from the temple"?"
that's actually in all Bibles
Jesus was rejecting the buying and selling of spiritual blessings
it was a rejection of materialism, and socialism is an over-emphasis of materialism
"Christ was a Socialist!
His true followers are Socialists!"
this is called liberation theology and was popular in the 50s to 70s
there's tons of material available debunking it
do a search
"Members of both parties have scandals."
yes, they do
but Dems tried to make it seem to be a Republican phenomenom in the last election
and TTF said: BOTH PARTIES ? ? ?
"The difference is that the Democrats enforce meaningful rules of conduct while the GOP changes the rules to keep their criminals in office."
please
Barney Frank, Gerry Studds, John Edwards, Bill Clinton, Gary Hart....they all remained in office
after the way Dems talked in 2008, we need a new term:
Democrite: a Democrat hypocrite
Studds - 1983, Hart - 1987, Frank - 1990 The House reprimanded him for fixing parking tickets, but I-plead-guilty-Larry Craig attempted to have Frank censured and failed.
John Edwards hasn't held elective office since 2004.
And LOL, yes, in 1998 the GOP tried to impeach Clinton but failed. That's why Clinton remained in office. During the impeachment, it was discovered that Speaker of the House Bob Livingston had had an extra-marital affair so he resigned and David Vitter, the admitted prostitute user who's still in office, was elected to Livingston's old seat.
We already have the term "repugnican." They changed the rules in 2004 to keep criminals like Tom Delay in House GOP leadership positions.
actually, democrisy is very current:
Eliot Spitzer: 2008
Rod R. Blagojevich: 2009
David A. Paterson: 2010
Charles B. Rangel: 2010
Eric J. Massa: 2010
Peter J. Visclosky: 2010
John Edwards: the vilest of the group ran for president in 2008 and was on Obama's short list for VP
Bill Clinton: very influential in Dem circles; you may have heard his wife has a fairly important job, third in line to the presidency, and he is probably the most influential racist in America
oops! I almost forgot our leat noble Nobel Prize winner, Al Gore, who has been repeatedly been caught lying about global warming stats
Great list! Other than Paterson who said he will not run for re-election and Blagojevich who was impeached, each one of those Democrats has voluntarily stepped down from either their elected office or their leadership role. Compare that to the GOP who changed House rules in 2004 to allow indicted criminals like Tom Delay to retain their leadership positions.
Obama did not select Edwards for Veep, but Bush did select Cheney for his. Clinton survived the impeachment process but both GOP Speakers of the House -- thrice married Newt Gingrich and adulterer Robert Livingston -- didn't. And then prostitute visiting David Vitter was elected to fill Livingston's House seat.
Look what's happening to the Cheney brand. Liz Cheney, Dick's number one defender, is starting to remind other GOPers of Joe McCarthy. Conservatives Turn Against Liz Cheney - As Bad As McCarthy
Anones are the reason Al Gore wrote his book, The Assault on Reason: How the Politics of Fear, Secrecy, and Blind Faith Subvert Wise Decision Making, Degrade Our Democracy, and Put Our Country and Our World in Peril, and why it was number 1 on the NYTimes bestseller list for weeks.
what a joke inane-b is
Wow! Clinton survived impeachment
OJ survived a murder trial
Wow! Obama didn't pick John Edwards
but he palled around him
Wow! only Blago and Patterson didn't resign
and you keep griping about one Repub who didn't
Wow! Al Gore had a number one book
so did Sarah Palin but Gore has since been caught in several egregious lies about global warming
face it
the Dems have been found out
"Anonymous"
Just wondering...do you ever have one moment in your otherwise barren life to be honest and forthright? Your "creativity" in hiding behind hundreds of made-up-at-the-moment i.d.s is suggestive of a person who is in need of intensive psychiatric treatment.
Why are you so afraid to tell us who you really are? Do you think that someone will t.p. your house if your identity becomes known? Are you a high school dropout?
Who pays your salary to take up so much space on this site?
Emmanual Kant
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