Hagan blisters Dole over "Godless" ad; it's over

We are just hours away from the political death of Elizabeth Dole, and I couldn't be happier. Last week, the Dole campaign ran an ad accusing Kay Hagan of being an atheist, and Hagan is striking back. The above ad hits it right on the money.

However, the best news is that Dole is sinking almost as quickly as Sen. Ted Stevens in the polls, so in about 24 hours, two of the country's most moronic, mean-spirited Republican senators will be wondering how it all fell apart.

Anyway, support Hagan in the final hours if you have the means - even a few dollars will help. I'm rooting for Hagan's victory, along with Al Franken's, almost as much as I am rooting for an Obama victory tomorrow.

Gallup: All signs point toward Obama

Happy Sunday morning, everyone. Here's hoping you enjoyed the extra hour of sleep; I just woke up an hour earlier. No complaints, though - it's more time to blog about one of the most important elections in recent American history - two days to go.

Anyway, despite what some GOP hacks are promoting - the idea that McCain is gaining on Obama - the polls are not bearing this out. Yesterday, Drudge pimped a one-day Zogby poll that had McCain ahead 48%-47%. One day? A pimple on the face of the electorate. Even this morning, Drudge has up a Zogby poll that puts Obama up by 6. In the national polls, Obama is up by an average of 7.8%, which is just a bit over yesterday. WaPo has a pretty revealing story about polls - in the last 159 national polls, Obama has led them all.

McCain seems to be narrowing Obama's lead slightly, including right here in Pennsylvania, but I believe it will be too little, too late. I'm not at all surprised that the race is narrowing, however - the last two presidential elections, nefarious vote counting tactics aside, have been very, very close, and I don't think this one will be any different. Of course, I would love to be wrong - I'd love to see Obama run away with it in a landslide, but I have my doubts about that.

We all have to keep fighting - e-mailing, talking to friends, donating some time on Tuesday or even donating a few dollars through Obama's Website. Remember, Obama will still need resources after Tuesday, especially if, heaven forbid, we have a replay of 2000, when the lawyers and ground efforts have to be dispatched if the election is disputed. So, even if you can spare $5, please donate.

There's some good news and bad news in the Senate races. On the bright side, Ted Stevens is going to get bounced out on his ass in his up north after being convicted on seven felony counts this past week; and Kay Hagan is leading the insipid, vapid Elizabeth Dole by five points after her despicable ads portraying Hagan as an atheist. A bit of bad news, though: Norm Coleman now has a small lead on Al Franken in Minnesota, and Saxby Chambliss is up by 5 in the latest polls over Jim Martin, BUT both races are still winnable by the Democrats, especially if Obama carries both states (he will in Minnesota, and he has an outside shot at carrying Georgia).

To that end, please support these Senate Democratic candidates (and of course, others, too) by clicking the links below giving a little bit of money. Even $5 can help to make a difference in the final days.

Jim Martin in Georgia
Al Franken in Minnesota
Kay Hagen in North Carolina

Getting 60 votes in the Senate would be a major plus to Obama if he gets in, and would obviously be useful in blocking some of McCain's more ridiculous proposals should he prevail on Tuesday.

Franken Interview on Thom Hartmann Show

Yesterday Al Franken was on the Thom Hartmann Show (audio above) to discuss Franken's candidacy for the U.S. Senate in Minnesota, where he's running against incumbent Sen. Norm Coleman. Right now, polls show the race to be a dead heat, but Franken seems to have the Big 'Mo - what with Michele Bachman below him talking like the hate-filled, scary neocon that she is running for reelection in the House, and the unpopularity of Bush and McCain in Minnesota, Franken is in position to come away with a victory in two weeks.

Also interesting to listen to their conversation on the Employee Free Choice Act; I happen to agree with them both. I think unions are an imperfect solution to the workers of America, but it beats the alternative. What's more, I think it's reprehensible that employees are fired in this country all the time for trying to organize a union.

Right now, union membership is at about 8 percent of our workforce (11 percent if you count governmental employees). That's a dramatic free fall compared to when President Reagan took office, when the number was around 25 percent. But, Reagan declared war on the middle and working class of America, and one of his first salvos was firing the striking PATCO air traffic controllers.

As I wrote over the weekend, support Franken if you can with even a $5 or $10 contribution. He's exactly the sort of progressive we need in Congress - smart, witty, and informed on the issues.

3 Senate candidates who need our support

Al Franken, the former liberal radio talk show host, comedian and author, is running for the U.S. Senate in Minnesota. His opponent is the Republican incumbent Norm Coleman. Since there's no Senate race to follow in Pennsylvania this election, I've been following this race the closest.

In short, Coleman has been nothing short of a Bush rubber stamp since he took office in 2002, and it's essential that progressives send him packing. I normally am not a big fan of sharing political ads (ad fatigue is quickly setting in with 16 days to go), but the one above is pretty damning about Coleman and his alleged "investigations" of war profiteering. Take a look at the vid, and drop by Franken's Website and make a donation. Even $5 or $10 can make a difference. The Democrats, regardless of whether Obama wins or not, need as many seats in the Senate as they can to reverse many of Bush's disastrous policies. (And the Senate needs new leadership to go along with a nice majority, too.)

Anyway, Franken, by most accounts I've read, has run a remarkably honest campaign, while Coleman has lamely attempted to use Franken's sardonic wit from his past gigs as a radio host, comedian and author to discredit him. So far, it hasn't worked - right now, Franken is up in the polls, holding a small lead. An average of polls by Quinnipiac, University of Minnesota and Rasmussen gives Franken a four-point lead, but he needs all the help he can get, because Coleman is getting plenty from the RNC and his corporate contributors.

Two other U.S. Senate races that bear watching and deserve our support...

In North Carolina, Kay Hagan is running against Republican incumbent Sen. Elizabeth Dole. In case you're wondering, yes, this is the same Dole who did a spectacularly bad job as chairman of the NRSC in 2006 in recruiting strong senatorial candidates to challenge weak Democratic senators. For example, She couldn't find anyone better than the detestable Katherine "Cruella de Vil" Harris to unseat mediocre Democratic incumbent Sen. Bill Nelson. Even worse, Dole said Democrats were "content with losing in Iraq" on Meet the Press just days before the '06 election. (Anyone still wondering why the GOP got its collective butt kicked in '06?)

Here's hoping that Hagan sends Dole back to North Carolina, or Kansas, or wherever she says she's living, to be with another failed GOP presidential candidate, Bob Dole. Maybe she can help him spend all the money he made off of his Viagra ads (and help him use his medicine, too - eeeewwwwwwww).

The latest Rasmussen poll has Hagan up by four points, but the race is still very, very close. Please drop by Hagan's Website to make a contribution - every dollar will make a difference in this race.

In Georgia, the thoroughly contemptible Sen. Saxby Chambliss, the incumbent Republican, is running for reelection against Jim Martin. Chambliss is the man who ran an incredibly mean-spirited campaign against Sen. Max Cleland in 2002, where his campaign ads criticized Cleland for not helping to defeat Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein. (See video above) Of all of the incumbents running for reelection in the Senate, I'd like to see him bounced out more than any other.

Martin, another Vietnam vet, is running a pretty strong campaign, but he too needs our support. Two days ago, an average of three polls showed Martin running a razor-thin two points behind Chambliss. Martin is doing surprisingly well, and he's picking up plenty of support and endorsements, but he's also fighting an uphill battle against an incumbent with plenty of resources in party support and campaign cash.

Chambliss is yet another Republican on a very long list of GOP chickenhawks - a warmonger and Iraq War cheerleader who did all he could to avoid service in Vietnam in the 1960, receiving five student deferments (is he related to Dick Cheney?). Here's hoping that Chambliss' past embrace of Karl Rove tactics that helped him win his seat will come back to bite him this time around. Please drop by Martin's Website to make a contribution as well.

Please, even if it's just $5, support these three very, very important Democratic challengers - three keys to building a larger Democratic majority in the Senate.

A very genuine ad by the Franken campaign

Al Franken, a noted comedian, author and liberal talk show host in his former life, is running for the U.S. Senate in Minnesota against incumbent Sen. Norm Coleman, a George Bush rubber stamp who edged out Walter Mondale in the 2002 race. Just weeks before the '02 election, Progressive Sen. Paul Wellstone, the incumbent, was tragically killed in a plane crash. If there's a heaven, Wellstone is certainly looking down from on high, rooting like crazy for Franken to win, thereby giving his old seat back to a Progressive who will keep his values alive.

The Franken campaign's latest political ad features his wife Franni discussing her battle with alcoholism, & it struck me as remarkably genuine, which really makes is stand out against the backdrop of the thousands of fake and contrived political ads we are exposed to in an election cycle.

For those of you who dismiss Franken's candidacy because he used to be a comedian, the joke's on you - Franken's informed, wise, witty, and has run a remarkably honest campaign. I've been following this race pretty closely, and as of right now, Franken is in the lead in some polls, while Coleman holds a slight edge in other polls. Just about every poll I've seen in the past week is within the margin of error, however, so it's anyone's race, without question.

Franken is also being helped by Independent Dean Barkley's candidacy, which is hurting Coleman's chances much more than Franken's; most polls show Barkley with double-digit numbers.

If you have even $5 to contribute, drop by Franken's site and help him out. Every Senate race counts during this election, and Progressives must take advantage of any race where there's an even outside shot of knocking off a Republican incumbent. The Democrats must get to 60 in the Senate to override GOP filibusters and presidential veto threats (if, heaven forbid, McCain wins on Nov. 6).

The Colbert Report cops a Peabody Award

Congrats to Stephen Colbert and all who work on his show, The Colbert Report, for winning the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award. The award is well deserved, and just in case you don't think he deserves any kudos, it's okay by him - Colbert's inclined to give himself all the praise he deserves. *Smirk* My suggestion? He should send footage of this over to Bill O'Reilly and have some fun with it - maybe using the award as a doorstop, or something like that.

Just in case you were actually starting to believe that Bill O'Lielly is really Bill O'Reilly, it never gets old bringing up his biggest whopper ever told - a blatant lie that his old tabloid show, Inside Edition, won two Peabody Awards.

Man did I get a big laugh recalling how Franken made O'Reilly look like the gigantic ass he truly is. Cooks and Liars has the rest:

Many C&L readers remember the halcyon days when the worst lie Bill O’Reilly ever told was that his old show Inside Edition had won a Peabody Award, the oldest and most prestigious award given to electronic media. You may recall Al Franken also having lots of fun debunking that lie. Now it turns out that The Colbert Report, which "some people say" (ha) is a thinly veiled parody of The O’Reilly Factor, has actually won a Peabody award. Let's hope Mr. O'Reilly sends Mr. Colbert a congratulatory fruit basket.

Update: Okay, comment number 24 is good enough to bring up from below:

Colbert should run around saying he won a Polk, forcing people to remind him it was actually a Peabody.

Brilliant, just brilliant - especially the reader's comment. A little background - Bill O'Reilly smugly began telling people a few years ago that his old show, Inside Edition, won two Peabody Awards. "What do you want us to do, give 'em back?" he snidely remarked when once asked a question about IE being a tabloid show. Upon hearing this, Franken got curious, made a few calls, and discovered that O'Reilly's show hadn't so much as sniffed one Peabody, much less two. And the comment from the C&L story above about a Polk? That was what O'Reilly tried to cover his arse with - that his show won "two [George] Polk awards, not two Peabodys." Turns out, that was a lie, too; Inside Edition won a George Polk award, but after O'Reilly left. Oops.

Oh, why not? Here's some footage of the exchange Franken and O'Reilly had a few years ago at the Los Angeles Book Expo to promote their respective books. It's pretty good - watch as BOR comes unglued. Evidently, Billy no likey getting exposed as a liar. I promise it's worth it - it's under a minute...

Good stuff, eh? This is precisely why O'Reilly derides people like Franken and Websites like Media Matters - because they are able to successfully call him out on his lies. No wonder BOR hates the Internet. (Full disclosure - Franken is the first I read calling BOR "O'Lielly," so I'm carrying the torch, since Franken is trying to make a difference by running for the U.S. Senate in his home state of Minnesota. I hope he wins, but if he doesn't, maybe Franken will go back to writing his brilliant books that sagely debunk the right-wing noise machine, led by none other than O'Lielly himself.)

Great new rules from Bill Maher

I never miss Bill Maher every Friday night, ever. If we are not home, I always TiVo it and catch it over the weekend. My favorite part of every episode, his show-ending "New Rules," were particularly spot-on last Friday night. As Mahablog sagely puts it: "Sad that the best political commentary is from comedians, on cable, and not the free airwaves." Amen. Anyway, the following passage from the video above really struck a chord with me:

And finally, new rule... This Halloween, when you see something that's supposed to scare you, like a skeleton, or a severed head or a gay wizard [Referring to to gay wizard from Harry Potter, Albus Dumbledore], take a moment and think about fear - what are you afraid of, and what should you be afraid of? What's really scary this Halloween - is that the same idea-free losers who won the last presidential election, may very well win the next one, by making us afraid of the wrong things. Which is why this Halloween, I'm going as something truly horrifying - a melting polar ice cap.

It's so exceedingly rare to get any sort of reasonable, thought-out, rhetoric-free political commentary these days - I'm glad that Maher is providing it (Okay, with some rhetoric, but still...) Of course, many/most on the right would vehemently disagree with me - no surprise there. The most frequent "argument" I hear is the feckless witticism that "Maher is a comedian!" [I used to hear that same thing about Al Franken, too - and he's going to be elected to the Senate a little over a year from now.] As if making someone laugh while making a powerful political point is some sort of sin, thereby disqualifying someone from having valid political opinions.

The only thing I can conclude about Maher's many critics on the right - it's jealousy. Still don't believe me? Listen to, read or watch what the right is serving up these days - Michael Savage, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Michelle Malkin, Sean Hannity, Bill Bennett, Glenn Beck and Bill O'Lielly - Yea, that group is a barrel of laughs. I mean, the Half Hour News Hour, Fox News' "answer" to The Daily Show, lasted about as long as a bad case of chicken pox.

And Maher is absolutely right about the "idea-free losers" possibly prevailing in '08 - as much as all Americans should be concerned about homeland security, our totally out-of-whack tax policies, health care for every American, and a whole host of other issues (oh yea, the War in Iraq) - what we'll get is a whole bunch of wind-blown b.s. from the right, and we all know the good 'ole stand-bys now - gay marriage, abortion, stem cell research, "family values" (I have to put that in quotes when Repubes us it), and of course, the well-worn page out of the Karl Rove play book - "Scare 'em to death with the war on terror. Lather, rinse, repeat."

Al Franken on Larry King Live

This video got lost in the shuffle - it's former Air America Radio Host Al Franken on Larry King Live doing one of his first national interviews since declaring his candidacy for the U.S. Senate.

It's a bit dated (hence the Don Imus discussion), but still worth a look. Those who underestimate Franken's chances, specifically those in the Republican Party, do so at their own peril. I believe Franken is going to give Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN) a real run for his money. Coleman is a smarmy Bush rubber stamper, who has only differed with Bush as of late when the president's approval ratings started going in the basement. I'm quite certain Franken won't let him forget it, either.

People are quick to dismiss Franken because of his former career as a comedian. Again, that's just judging a book by his cover. I've read three of Franken's books, and all of them were well researched and well thought out. They were also vulgar and coarse, so that's one adjustment that Franken will have to make on the campaign trail (obviously); that won't play with voters in any state.

If you are considering donating to any Democratic Senatorial candidate in 2008, consider Franken. He's going to need it going up against Coleman, who will be very well funded in his bid to retain his seat. Coleman's seat could be ripe for the picking by Democrats in their bid to expand their slimmest of slim majorities in the Senate.

Bill Maher gives the AccuWrath

Bill Maher is simply brilliant. He's better than he's ever been. His firing from ABC was a blessing in disguise, because Real Time With Bill Maher would not be nearly as funny on network television.

At times, Maher does go over the edge, and I've said so, and I wish he wouldn't, because that merely distracts from his spot on political analysis, satire and humor (like the piece above).

As I was uploading the top video on YouTube today, I found this video, circa 2004, when Maher went head-to-head with BOR. Still the same old same old - he's obsessing over people who call him out on his lies and b.s. - George Soros, Al Franken, etc.

Notice how BOR calls Franken Stuart Smalley - he can't even call him by name. Hilarious.

Has Mike Wallace gone soft?

Earlier tonight on 60 Minutes, journalism legend Mike Wallace interviewed Fox Noise Channel's Bill O'Reilly. I was underwhelmed.

I didn't expect a shouting match, but I did expect, and hoped for, tough questions. Not because Mike was interviewing blowhard Bill (okay, maybe a little), but because Wallace, unlike his son, Chris Wallace, who is picture-postcard proof of a hack if there ever was one, has a well-deserved reputation for going after guests and asking tough questions.

Fizzle.

Wallace did take Bill to task for several things, including Bill's pointing at him and guests on his show (wife's advice be damned); pointing out Bill's incorrect assertion on Maria Shriver; and for arguing with guests he doesn't agree with (which seems to be just about everyone).

But, there were some whoppers that Wallace didn't approach. How about a Keith Olbermann question? Bill-O has a notoriously short fuse, and that would have undoubtedly lit it. The Wallace of 20 years ago would have wasted no time going there. But tonight, no mention of Keith.

How about O'Reilly falsely boasting about having won two Peabody Awards when he hosted Inside Edition? (He later cleared it up after Al Franken bitch slapped him by saying, "I misspoke, I called a Polk Award a Peabody Award." The show did win a single Polk Award, but after Billy left. He just utters these lies thinking no one will check on their accuracy.)

And what about a host of other lies, including O'Reilly's repeated assertion that he never tells guests to "shut up." He even repeated this whopper during Wallace's interview, stating that his staff went back and looked up how many times he's said it since being on the air, and they found "six times" when he told guests to shut up. The irony isn't lost on me that Bill lies about his lying.

That's my issue with him more than anything - he lies. Lies, lies, lies. And no one calls him on it. Political differences I can deal with - I listen to Tucker Carlson, Joe Scarborough and even Michael Smerconish from time to time. But, the far right idiotas who just lie, degrade, defame and name call, like Billy, aren't worthy of my time. I laugh with glee at people who equate O'Reilly with Al Franken, and I've heard this from a number of conservatives I know. Really? When's the last time Franken told someone to shut up, or threatened a guest on his show with violence, or was sued for sexual harassment? Just a thought.

Is there anyone who believes O'Reilly anymore? One can hear Billy say "shut up!" six times in a few shows, or in a week at the most. The thing is, there are people who believe whatever he says and take it at face value. Very few people take him to task for his lies and distortions.

Not even Mike Wallace.

I just dug up Billy and Franken fighting at the Book Expo on C-Span. This is how Billy reacts when called on a lie. When he's busted for lying, O'Reilly calls it a vicious attack. Really, it's just someone calling bullshit on his lies.

Anyway, enjoy - this is good stuff.



One final thought - Bill O'Reilly accusing someone, anyone, of being blinded by ideology is the height of idiocy, and hypocrisy.

A great Olbermann interview, & his top 5

Earlier today, I read a pretty good interview of Keith Olbermann in Rolling Stone, "The Most Honest Man in News," by Mark Binelli. It's a pretty good insight into the man behind the anger. For the entire interview, click Here.

Keith Olbermann is my favorite broadcaster on television today. I don't have a short answer why that is, but there are a number of reasons:

• Even his detractors have to admit that the man has a pretty big set of cojones - he's not afraid to take on President Bush, Vice President Cheney, or, most bravely of all, Bill O'Reilly.

• He certainly seems real to me. I realize that we essentially only know about celebrities and broadcasters what they want us to know, as well as what we see and hear on the air, but there's just something about KO that resonates with me and rings true. And I'm not saying that just because of his politics.

• He's unafraid of feuds, and in fact he seems to welcome them, and it doesn't matter where his opponents come from - e-mail, other networks, etc. This includes Bill O'Reilly, and most recently, Geraldo Rivera. To wit, recently Rivera challenged him to a fight, to which Olbermann responded in the Rolling Stone interview, "Geraldo, you should not give me a hard time. I can still remember when you were a big deal . . . when I was a kid."

• Olbermann is utterly fearless about what he says and who he says it to. I read recently that he attributes this fearlessness to his résumé - "I can go back and do sports any time I want to," he said. He sure can, but with his ratings rising over 85% in one year, he will only have to if he wants to. Olbermann recently signed a four-year contract extension with NBC, so Countdown with Keith Olbermann isn't going away any time soon. Sorry, Bill-O (as Olbermann refers to his chief nemesis).

Although, to be fair, Olbermann has a long way to go before he catches up to the 2o million viewers who take in O'Reilly's pseudo-outrage every week. (Yes, it's truly amazing and frightening that this many people listen to blowhard Bill's screeds every week.)

Anyway, Rolling Stone came up with a top five of Olbermann's rants, so here they are (with descriptions from Rolling Stone). I'm not sure that I agree with the order the magazine puts them in, but the list is about right.

5. Think another speech attacking Republicans for compulsively lying about their Democratic opponents would be predictable and boring? Not from Olbermann. (10/5/06):

Part One



Part Two



4. After controversial comments from Colin Powell, Bush spat that it was “unacceptable to think” that there could be any similarities between the terrorists and America, Olbermann demanded that President Bush apologize to the American people. (After careful consideration, Bush decided not to.) (9/18/06):



3. The night before election day, Olbermann did his part to get out the vote by showing how Bush had hypocritically started using oil as a campaign tool (11/6/06):



2. Taking President Bush to task for soaking habeas corpus in gasoline and setting fire to it, Olbermann himself made the not-at-all-inflammatory statement that President Bush has done more to hurt America than the terrorists (10/18/06):



1. Was staging his Bush corrective in sight of the holy hole at Ground Zero gratuitous and heavy-handed? Sure. But perhaps no Olbermann comment was more powerful than this one, calling President Bush out for using September 11th as just another political gimmick (9/11/06):



###

Anyway, if you haven't checked out Olbermann's show, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, I urge you to check out a few episodes. It airs on MSNBC weeknights at 8 p.m. with a repeat at 12 a.m.

KO has come a long way since his days on CNN & ESPN. I still miss him on SportsCenter, but he's much better in his current profession. He really is the left's answer to Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh and all the rest. He's got a way to go until he catches up with Bill-O, however; although Countdown's ratings were up 85% in Jan. '07 vs. Jan. '06, he's still millions of viewers away from O'Reilly's impressive 20 million viewers per week. Actually, scary is probably a better word for O'Reilly's audience - for the life of me, I can't believe that there are that many people per week who listen to O'Lielly's bluster, lies and distortion.

Probably the biggest difference between Olbermann and those who have failed (Hi, Phil Donohue) is that Olbermann isn't afraid to get down in the gutter and slug it out. Some probably say that "Olbermann shouldn't lower himself to the level of Limbaugh and O'Reilly." Nonsense. Democrats and liberals must lose their fear of being labeled as hateful or nasty - Republicans have been doing it for years. Olbermann (and Al Franken before him) isn't afraid to state his point of view in particularly harsh language if he feels that what it takes.

Some will also say that Olbermann is participating in petty, childish and sophomoric name calling. True, but again, Republicans have been doing it for years. Keith's merely fighting fire with fire.

Olbermann's gaining on O'Reilly, and it's great to see Billy feeling the heat. He's practically issued a fatwa against NBC, which lately I've been watching with great enjoyment (I'll blog more on that later).

With the 2008 election now on the horizon, we'll soon find out if Olbermann has appeal beyond liberals.

So far, his formula seems to be working.

Franken bids adieu, declares for '08

I felt just a little bit older on Thursday. That's because I spent the drive to work listening to Al Franken's last broadcast of The Al Franken Show via podcast. I fondly remember Franken (above, taking off his headset for the last time after his show on Wednesday) on Air America Radio when the network made its debut.

At first, I had mixed emotions on Franken the radio broadcaster (above, after his last show). I've always loved his books, going all the way back to Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot. It was clear from the outset that he was a neophyte in the radio business - his transitions were awful, his voice not much better, and the show wasn't always as planned as it should have been.

But, it didn't take Franken long to find his voice. His show began in March 2004, and I started listening on the Internet as soon as it became available. Looking back, '04 was a pretty big, exciting year for me politically; presidential election years always are for me, but 2004 was more so than any other so far in my life. At the risk of sounding sappy, Franken built up liberals and progressives, and then built us up again after the disaster that November.

Along the way, Franken honed his skills as a host, and sharpened his wit and rhetoric. The last year of his show, Franken really rounded into form - he ratcheted down the sarcasm and ramped up his game, bringing top notch guests to the show every week, including Joe Conason, a noted and respected author; David Brock, the founder of Media Matters; Jonathan Alter of Newsweek; Thomas Oliphant of The Boston Globe; Melanie Sloan and Norm Ornstein. Heavyweights all, and some of them were Republicans.

And, like Olbermann, Franken spent a considerable amount of time taking shots at Bill O'Reilly (whom he christened "O'Lielly" in one of his books - and as readers of The Journey know, I've been carrying that flame). Originally, Franken dubbed his radio show The O'Franken Factor. He's had some legendary run-ins with BOR and even Fox News. In 2004, the network tried suing him for copyright infringement for using its term "fair and balanced" in his book Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right. The judge overseeing the case, in the midst of throwing Fox's suit out of court, noted the irony of a news network, which is supposed to protect First Amendment rights of free speech, suing someone over their right to free speech.

Anyway, at the end of Franken's show on Wednesday, he declared his candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2008. Franken will face Norm Coleman, who won Paul Wellstone's seat in the aftermath of Wellstone's death in 2004. Wellstone and Franken went back many years - both are from Minnesota, and the two had a close relationship. It will be poetic justice if Franken wins the seat next year.

I know there are many who will sell Franken short because of his history as a comedian. Those who underestimate him do so at their own peril. Personally, I can't wait to see Franken tear Coleman to shreds. If Franken holds to form, he will realize success as a candidate just like he has as a comedian, author and radio host.

However, one can predict the Coleman and his staff's plan of attack. For starters, there are literally hundreds if not thousands of audio clips available that can and will be taken out of context by his opponent(s).

On Wednesday, Franken offered up an example of just what his opponents had in store for him. He likes to use a joke about John McCain (that McCain now uses himself). It goes something like this -

People paint John McCain as some sort of war hero, but I don't know why. Real heroes fight, but McCain sat out the war for five-and-a-half years. I don't see how he's a hero.

Even McCain thinks it's funny. But, according to Franken, some people have criticized him for the joke, opining that he's making fun of a war hero.

There'll be a lot more of that in the next 18 months. I'm rooting like crazy for Franken, and whatever happens, he will certainly add a lot of wit and wisdom to the 2008 election.

I've got $20 that says Coleman won't debate Franken more than twice, if at all. (Assuming Franken gets the nomination.) Matching wits with Franken would be a very bad idea for Coleman.

Very bad.

In the meantime, Thom Hartman (above) will take Franken's place on Air America Radio. The future of the fledgling network is still uncertain, but the network was recently approved to emerge from Chapter 11.

Clearly, there's a market for a liberal radio network; Air America has merely been the unfortunate victim of bad management.

For the moment, I've dropped my subscription. I'll admit that Franken was the biggest reason for my subscribing to Air America. It irked me that I had to subscribe at all, but Air America doesn't have an affiliate in Philadelphia, and its satellite agreement is with XM Satellite Radio, and I'm a Sirius man. So, I was paying to listen to Air America's podcasts a day late. But, I'm spending enough money on subscriptions right now, so Air America loses out. Maybe in the future again, someday.

I'll wait and see how Hartman's received, and then maybe sometime in the future I'll subscribe again. (Above, Hartman's bulletin board outside his radio studio.)

I'm certainly rooting for Air America's success, just like Franken's. God only knows that there needs to be more voices to combat the far right blowhards like Insanity and Limbaugh.

Rudy's in. McCain's twin?

Add another hat to the '08 race - Rudy's in. "America's Mayor" has officially thrown his hat into the wide-open 2008 presidential race. This announcement really didn't come as much of a surprise to many, and certainly not to me.

In many ways, Rudolph William Louis Giuliani III's candidacy will be good for the political discourse over the next 18 or so months. At first glance, Rudy brings a buffet of good things to the table to launch a presidential campaign.

For starters, I love his roots - he made his bones as the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. Cigar Aficionado did a piece on Rudy following 9-11, and the piece sums up his legal résumé in part much more eloquently and succinctly than I can:

Giuliani's convictions read like a lawyer's dream come true. He successfully prosecuted and won 100-year sentences against the heads of the major Mafia crime families in New York, including "Fat Tony" Salerno, of the Genovese family, "Tony Ducks" Corallo, of the Lucchese family, and Carmine "The Snake" Persico, of the Colombo organization; the Bonnano family boss, Rusty Rastelli, was indicted but actually sentenced for another crime and Paul Castellano, of the Gambino family, was assassinated before the sentencing hearing. Giuliani also helped break up the Pizza Connection, a $1 billion heroin drug smuggling ring. The investigation led to the arrests of more than a dozen people around the country. He prosecuted very-high profile corruption charges against top politicians in New York. He sent Stanley Friedman, a former deputy mayor and head of the Bronx Democratic Party, to prison for 12 years for acting as a middleman in a bribery scheme. And, he convicted Mario Biaggi, a U.S. congressman from the Bronx, on bribery charges.

He also had other victories, too; most notably launching the investigation that eventually put Michael Milkin in the slammer and winning a conviction against Wall Street financier Ivan Boesky.

Pretty impressive.

His two terms as mayor are a study in contrasts. Putting 9-11 aside for a moment, he had many other victories - most notably cleaning up the sex and sleaze in Times Square and dramatically lowering crime in the city. For instance, according to the Cigar Aficionado piece, felony crimes declined 57 percent during his term as mayor, and the murder rate during the same period declined by 68 percent. Some say he doesn't deserve all of the credit for those statistics, but they occurred while he was mayor, so he deserves at least part of but not all of the credit.

But, as with all candidates, he's not without his warts, either.

He has a Bill Clinton-like reputation for adultery. (And, as a Clinton supporter, I don't mean to soft-shoe either man's indescretions - both are inexcusable.) My favorite example of Rudy in deep doody is when he called a press conference to announce his intentions to separate from his second wife, Donna Hanover, before Hanover knew of his plans. This all happened because the press in New York broke the story that Rudy was having an affair with Judith Giuliani neé Nathan (now his third wife). That's classy. Hey, at least Democrats didn't try to impeach him for the offense.

Other controversies during his mayoral reign include: his 1999 attempt to censor the Brooklyn Museum if the museum did not remove a number of works in an exhibit entitled "Sensation: Young British Artists from the Saatchi Collection." (a battle his administration later lost in court); his defense of the NYPD over a number of brutal assaults and scandals during his administration (and in every case, he always rushed to the defense of the NYPD, critics be damned); his attempt end-run around New York City's charter limiting its mayor to two terms, by trying to stay beyond his mayoral term in the wake of 9-11, a proposal sharply rejected by the mayoral candidates, most notably future Mayor Michael Bloomberg; his handling of the air quality issue at Ground Zero and surrounding areas following 9-11; and New York City's lack of preparedness prior to 9-11.

That last criticism I'd like to take a moment to elaborate on. By writing that I believe Rudy has to shoulder some of the blame for NYC's lack of preparedness for 9-11, I don't mean that the city under his leadership could have prevented 9-11. What I am saying is that the city, specifically the World Trade Center, was attacked in 1993. It's amazing to me that eight years later, the city still had basic communication difficulties during the chaotic moments following the towers' being attacked, and the aftermath of the collapse.

For instance, why in the world did Giuliani maintain the city's Office of Emergency Management headquarters (believed by many to be a terrorist target) inside the World Trade Center? Many accounts have the Giuliani Administration more interested in fighting turf wars than taking much-needed steps to protect the city.

I certainly give Giuliani much deserved credit for his handling of 9-11 in the hours, days and weeks following the attacks. It's not a stretch to say that she displayed a lot more courage and derring-do than President Bush did in the immediate aftermath of the attacks. But, and this is probably politically incorrect to write (and I couldn't possibly care less), but didn't Rudy do what any mayor would do who had even mediocre leadership skills? Rudy did what any good and decent American would do as mayor in that position - he rallied the city, attended the funerals, and went to the extra mile to reassure, revive and restore America's largest city. For that he deserves credit, but I dunno about all of the praise that's unquestionably heaped on him. He also mishandled a lot of things in the aftermath of the attacks, but that's gets short shrift in the media. To be fair, any mayor would have made mistakes in that mayhem, but he's constantly being portrayed as the mayor on the white horse following 9-11. Puh-lease.

Anyway, it's a question I know that won't get asked in the mainstream media, which is already sharpening its skills at routinely giving Rudy a tongue bath.

Besides 9-11, one of the most recent Rudy-love fests the press have given Rudy since 9-11 was at the 2004 Republican National Convention, where he gave a well-publicized speech. In it, he let fly a few whoppers about his reaction immediately following the attacks. Take a read:

At the time, we believed that we would be attacked many more times that day and in the days that followed. Without really thinking, based on just emotion, spontaneous, I grabbed the arm of then Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, and I said to him, "Bernie, thank God George Bush is our president."

I say it again tonight. I say it again tonight: Thank God that George Bush is our president, and thank God...

And thank God that Dick Cheney, a man with his experience and his knowledge and his strength and his background is our vice president.

Al Franken, on the floor of Madison Square Garden during Giuliani's speech, grabbed the arm of an acquaintence and said, "He just made that up." Spot on as usual, Al. Funny how there was no mention of Giuliani's having said that in his bestselling book, Leadership, according to Franken. I freely admit I haven't read the book, but I'll take Franken's word on it, since he has read the book.

And honestly, does anyone really believe that Giuliani's first thought after two jumbo jets slammed into the World Trade Center towers was "Bernie, thank God George Bush is our president"?!? What a steaming, smelly load. Of course, we'll never have any way in knowing, because only Giuliani, Kerik and God know of Rudy made up the quote for the GOP sychophants at the convention, and the first two aren't talking.

Anyway, so far, what I know about his political views says to me that he's a study of contrasts. He's for abortion and stem cell research, but against civil unions and a hard line on immigration. He's also pro gun control.

These stances, when viewed as a whole, would paint him as a moderate Republican, and one I'd faintly consider voting for if the Democratic Nominee were to be a disaster (with the field of strong candidates, I rate the chances of that happening at next to zero).

However, therein lies the drawback - Rudy the moderate can't possibly hope to get the nomination from a religiously hijacked Republican Party. As politically astute as he is, surely he realizes this.

As of late, some cracks are starting to appear in the foundation of Rudy the Moderate.

Above, Giuliani appears on college drop-out Sean Insanity's show, kissing up to the Fox State TV crowd. Note to Rudy: This is NOT the way to court the moderates you are going to need if you hope not only to secure your party's nomination, but also the presidency.

Predictably, Rudy's historical stance on abortion is also changing. Recently on Insanity's show, he was quoted as saying, "I hate [abortion] ... However, I believe in a woman's right to choose." Regarding Roe v. Wade, "That's up to the court to decide," he said.

Rudy will be a formidable candidate, no doubt, but, like every other candidate in the field, he has some obstacles to overcome.

Hopefully, he won't veer far to the right to try and win his party's nomination. I fear that any candidate with any hopes of capturing the GOP nomination will have to do just that. I just hope he doesn't sell out to do it, thereby becoming John McCain's twin.

Quick! Run for your lives! Hillary's in!

You never forget your first, and I got my first "Hillary is the sign of the devil" forward since she declared her candidacy for president in 2008 from one of my aunt's friends a few days ago.

I'll let the idiocy speak for itself, other than to quickly note that I discovered, after a little research, that Betty Ford, Nancy Reagan and the senior Bushes also still have Secret Service protection (as they are entitled to, as all ex-presidents and their wives are). In 1997, the Republican-controlled Congress passed, and President Clinton signed into law, a bill that limits Secret Service protection to 10 years after leaving office. This was done for a good reason - former first families were essentially using the Secret Service as a limo service. (I have this on pretty good authority - I personally know a former Secret Service agent who was on presidential detail.)

Former first families of both parties are guilty of this. Does anyone honestly think that the Carters, Betty Ford, Nancy Reagan or Lady Bird Johnson are really in any danger? They are not.

Also, the forward below mocks the Clintons for moving to New York so Hillary could run for the Senate. Didn't the Bushes used to live in Connecticut? In fact, or current prez was born there. This is America - people are free to move and live where they like.

Anyway, enough from me - check out this gem. I tried to recreate the forward with the colors, and of course, the priceless pictures. I replied to all the recipients with my brief thoughts on this truly eloquent forward (and I actually kept those thoughts brief, even though this post is not. Sorry.) and asked the sender to refrain from sending me any more of this garbage.

Well, enjoy. My comments appear in parenthetical references, in red. ...

"United We Stand!!"

"The real definition of Rotten"

You really should be sitting down when you read this one.

Gold Star Mothers (G.S.M.) is an organization made up of women whose sons were killed in military combat during service in the United States Armed Forces.

(Too bad GSM has 3,000 new members, and growing, on President George WMD Bush's watch, all for a lie in Iraq. Anyone with a plan on how to get out of this mess, write to the president at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, D.C. 20081-0001. Trust me, he needs the advice, but it's doubtful he'll listen.

Just like he didn't listen to the Baker-Hamilton Commission, a bipartisan group that made over 79 recommendations, with a report that was 160 pages in length. But, all I ever hear is the president and Congressional Republicans (but the number of the latter is shrinking) who whine that the Democrats have no plan. The last I read, Nancy Pelosi and Congressional Democrats want to put most of those recommendations in place, but Bush and Cheney continue to ignore those recommendations. How much taxpayer money was wasted there?)

Recently a delegation of New York State Gold Star Mothers made a trip to Washington, D.C. , to discuss various concerns with their elected Representatives.

According to published reports, there was only one politician who refused to meet with these ladies. Can you guess which politician that might be?

Was it New York Senator Charles Schumer?

Nope, he met with them.

Try again.

Do you know anyone serving in the Senate who has never showed anything but contempt for our military? Do you happen to know the name of any politician in Washington whose husband once wrote of his loathing for the military?

(The Clintons grew up in the 1960s and went to college during Vietnam. Despising the military then was about as exclusive as the white pages. How dumb does the author of this e-mail think I am? I guess pretty dumb.)

Now you're getting warm! You got it!

None other than the Queen herself, Hillary Rotten Clinton!

(Rotten? Wow, that's original - almost as original as my admittedly lame "Bill O'Lielly" [thanks, Al Franken]. And the picture is priceless - God, I love Photoshop and people who have this much time on their hands. Hey, I guess I have a lot of time on my hands, too. Oops.)

She refused repeated requests to meet with the Gold Star Mothers.

Now, please don't tell me you're surprised. This woman wants to be President of the United States -- and there is a huge percentage of voters who are eager to help her achieve that goal.

May you sleep in peace always...and please...hug or thank a veteran for that privilege.

(So, I guess people should not hug or thank Senator John Kerry, the '04 Democratic Nominee who was Swiftboated and made to look like a traitor for winning three purple hearts and a bronze star medal. At right, a churlish rube at the GOP 2004 Republican Convention shows her thanks to Kerry by wearing a purple heart Band-Aid. Does that qualify as thanking a veteran?

What about hugging Dick Cheney, the beneficiary of five deferments, who is one record as saying he had "other priorities" during the Vietnam War, or the president himself, who, in the words of Maureen Dowd, so famously leapfrogged over thousands of other applicants to get a spot on the Texas Air National Guard to "protect Texas from Oklahoma.")

Think about this one!!

Don't forget, our girl, Hillary Rodham Clinton, as a New York Senator, now comes under this fancy Congressional Retirement and Staffing Plan. It's common knowledge that, in order for her to establish NYS residency, they purchased a million+ dollar house in upscale Chappaqua, NY. Makes sense.

Now, they are entitled to Secret Service protection for life. Still makes sense.

Here is where it becomes interesting. The mortgage payments hover at about $10,000 per month. BUT, an extra residency had to be built within the acreage in order to house the Secret Service agents.

The Clintons now charge the Secret Service $10,000 monthly rent for the use of said Secret Service residence and that rent is just about equal to their mortgage payment, meaning that we, the tax payers, are paying the Clintons' mortgage, their transportation, their safety and security, their 12-man staff, and it's all perfectly legal.

(So, if it's legal and you're upset, Commander, write your legislators and press to have the law changed. Quick! Before another Democrat gets in the White House and we have to needlessly spend taxpayer money to keep said Democrat and the first family safe.

I wonder how much the government has paid and will pay for the extra facilities on the president's Crawford Ranch, during his presidency and after? And Nixon's Western White House? Or Reagan's?

If you do some research, [unlikely that Sean Hannity, the probable author of this forward, did much research or that he even knows the meaning of the word - he didn't even finish college] there are some interesting figures out there, specifically with Nixon's improvements to his homes, all at taxpayer expense, while he was president. But hey, let's not let numbers and facts get in the way of a Hillary Swiftboating.

Anyone who wants to complain about taxpayer money being wasted should read about the Starr Report - $70 million, all to investigate a blow job. For you mathematicians, that's 7,000 months of the government's alleged payments to the Clinton's for the Secret Service's facilities at their Chappaqua home, but I digress.)

Sincerely, Cmdr. Hamilton McWhorter U.S.N. (retired)

P.S.: Please forward this to as many people as you can. We don't want this woman to even think of running for President. (Too late.) So, just how many people can you send this to? (None.) It will take no more than 2 minutes. Thanks. (Now that I didn't forward it, will something bad happen to me in 10 minutes?)

##

Thanks for your service to our country, Commander. However, since you have so much time on your hands, if, in fact, you are the author of this e-mail, perhaps you have time to write to the president to implore him to end this idiotic and stupid war. While you're at it, maybe you can illustrate to him the real costs of combat in terms of human sacrifice, much less the hundreds of billions being spent to rebuild a country we were so intent on destroying. Because the president has no idea about combat, since he and his vice president took pains not to go when their generation was called to fight.

Ultimately, I don't know if Hillary is qualified to be president or not - that's what I hope to find out during next year's presidential primaries - who the best qualified candidate is. However, I'm reasonably confident that she's more qualified and a great deal brighter than the current occupant of the oval office.

And I'm not forwarding this e-mail to anyone, but it sure was fun debunking it. If I get any more like this, my DELETE button is one keystroke away. Let's quit fighting the pseudo-wars of the 1990s against the Clintons, and let's turn our energies to finding Osama bin Laden, the man responsible for the 9-11 attacks, and also toward ending the War in Iraq.

Have a nice day.

Al is in, but not the Al I want, yet

As expected, Al Franken, the political satirist and soon-to-be-ex Air America radio host, is going to challenge Norm Coleman, the incumbent Minnesota Republican Senator, for his seat in 2008.

If Franken wins, and I hope and expect he will, it will simply be fate playing out as it should have anyway.

Coleman was elected in 2002 for three reasons: 1. Because Karl Rove, Bush's Rasputin, urged him to run against the late Democratic Senator Paul Wellstone, 2. He won because Wellstone died in an October 2002 plane crash, and 3. Republicans politicized the Wellstone funeral, including the usual Fox News political pundits. Once the funeral was over, the Democrats ran Walter Mondale, who didn't have a hope against Norm Coleman and the Bush political machine, which was still a pretty potent force in 2002.

What I really like about Franken is his wit, and his intelligence. Republicans, and most notably Coleman, had best not underestimate him, because Franken will be prepared, funded and ready to fight.

As much as I can't wait to see Franken run, the Al I really want to enter the race is Al Gore. There's still time, Al, but more on him in a bit.

Air America lives

As a subscriber and listener of Air America since the network began, yesterday was bittersweet. The fledgling liberal radio network announced yesterday that it has been purchased by SLG Radio LLC, an entity controlled by Stephen L. Green. The sale is expected to close by mid-February. The announcement was made by Air America CEO Scott Elberg.

"We are extremely pleased to have reached this agreement with Mr. Green, which will solidify Air America’s future," said Elberg. "When you combine Steve Green's business skills and successes -- with his brother Mark Green's history as a respected progressive policy voice, including as a frequent guest and host on our network-- Air America will be in the best hands to sustain our powerful radio voice, expand our reach and broaden the audience."

I know I'M pleased about it. No one can tell me that there isn't a demand for a liberal radio network in this country, because there is. Look at all of the people who voted against Bush in '04 and against his party in '06? No one can make the case to me that this radio network can't survive. It's just been unfortunate that it's had poor management.

Yesterday also marked the announcement that Al Franken will be leaving Air America, effective February 14. That was a disappointment to me - I've listened to Al since day one. His material is good, but his voice and radio hosting skills are wanting. But, in the end, he brought me to the network, and I love his knowledge, wit and political smarts.

Fans of Franken shouldn't weep, though. We haven't heard the last of him, via his great books, or perhaps as a candidate. He has expressed interest in running for the Senate in his home state of Minnesota.

Yesterday, he said he will make his decision soon. I for one think he has as much smarts as many who occupy the Senate chamber today.

So long, Al. It's not an overstatement that if it weren't for your star power, Air America would have gone under probably long ago, so well done. And keep writing those books and engaging rightist blowhards.

And sorry, Matt Drudge, Bill O'Lielly, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Insanity - you don't get to have your Air American funeral. Boo hoo.

What a Rush - intolerance in the morning

My favorite drug addict is at it again.

Yesterday, I was listening to Howard Stern (as usual) on Sirius Satellite Radio while getting ready for work. I must confess that I don't always agree with what Stern says, but yesterday he took off on a rant about Rush Limbaugh, complete with audio clips from his show. His rants on Limbaugh and Republicans are usually worth the price alone for subscribing to Sirius, but yesterday's rant was sort of special.

The short of was this - Limbaugh was talking about Barack Obama getting a celebrity endorsement from actress Halle Berry. This is how Rush announced it on his show it:

"Halfrican American Barack Obama has received another endorsement, this time from Halfrican American Halle Berry."

I'm trying REAL HARD to stick to my New Year's resolution of not using profanity on this blog, but it's not easy when I hear stuff like this.

Stern wasted no time laying waste to Rush. ...

"He's such a f------ dickhead. I hate it that he's successful. I mean, what's your point?!?"

I think Howard missed the point about Limbaugh's mispronunciation, though. At best, Limbaugh was intentionally mispronouncing "African-American" simply to annoy people (unlikely, but it IS what he's best at), and at worst (likely), he was mispronouncing it because both Berry and Obama are half African-American.

His listeners must be awfully proud. Making fun of Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's Disease (which he can't help) wasn't enough - now Limbaugh's moved on to making fun of people's ethnic make-up (which they can't help, either [not that they would want to, I'm quite certain]).

It got me thinking - I listen to Al Franken quite a bit on Air America Radio, and I defy anyone to come up with an instance when he race-baited his audience (or his detractors), or made fun of people's diseases because he disagreed with them politically.

Granted, Franken did write a book called Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot, but that's really what Rush is. I wonder if Franken will write a sequel, Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Intolerant Drug Addicted Moron. Now that Franken is leaving Air America Radio (more on that in a minute), he'll have the time. Get going, Al.

Just who started this name calling, anyway?

So I get several comments a few weeks back on this blog from someone I don't even know that got me thinking. Of course, before I go any further, I appreciate anyone who reads my blog, and I respect everyone for his or her opinion. But, the comments went something like this: "My, we are angry, aren't we?" and also "What's with all the name calling?"

Honestly, I don't know who started all of this name calling in politics and who poisoned the atmosphere, and frankly, I don't care. But, it doesn't take sophisticated, scholarly research to reveal that there's plenty of guilty culprits on both sides.

Everywhere I look, there's a right-wing author trying to save America from us "Godless, Evil" liberals. Thank God we have people like Sean Hannity around who can truly deliver us from evil.

Then we have people like Michael Savage. Yep, all liberals are enemies.

And thank God Savage broke the news to me that my liberalism is a mental disorder. Who knew?

This one might be my favorite. Every liberal is an idiot?

This Al Franken book is definitely my favorite example from the left. And Rush really is a big fat idiot. Wait, shouldn't there be a part 2 to this book? How about Rush Limbaugh is a big, fat, divorced, hypocritical, drug abusing, impotent idiot? That would be better. A close second on my favorites list is Franken's Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them; A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right.

I particularly enjoyed Franken's Lies book - nothing pisses off Bill O'Lielly more than when he's caught in a lie. However, this now happens so often, it's hardly worth noting. It's like Bush lying - we are so used to it that it hardly registers on the radar.

Say what you want about Franken, but at least his books are adequately and accurately researched vis a vis Ann Coulter.

Back to Coulter for a second - this is the woman who has alleged that Former President Bill Clinton was a rapist and that Hillary Clinton has fat legs. No on the former and who cares on the latter. But, when you look like an old scarecrow like Coulter does, it's not a good idea to criticize what others look like.

What's my point in this post? That plenty of stones are thrown on both sides. I'm merely wading into the cesspool and taking my turn. That's the name of the game in politics - throw the rock at them before they throw it at you. There are those people who say, "You should rise above it and not sink yourself down to that level." And to those I would say this - it never does any good - you're just portrayed as a wimp when you do that. If you need proof of this, 1. You haven't been paying attention to American politics in the last 30 years, and 2. See the Swiftboating of John Kerry as a refresher. He waited to respond, and the next thing you know, it stuck. Bush and Rove's lies, libel and slander about Kerry were subconsciously believed as fact by many. So there you go - fight fire with fire, or get burned at the stake.

And as for my reader's comment that I seem angry? He's spot on. I AM pissed, but instead of just sitting here and blogging, I speak with my actions - my dollar and my pen.

Meet neo-Falwell, with breasts & anorexia

Ann Coulter - Is this detestable, vile, hate mongering piece of shit even worth our attention? Yes. Many of you might just say, "RJ, why even bother?" Because of all the things she is, irrelevant is not one of them. Why would I, someone who despises her even more than Bill O'Lielly and Rush Limbaugh (and that's saying a lot, believe me), call her relevant? Because her new, idiotic screed, Godless, now ranks #3 on Amazon's list of top selling books (and at various times in the last week, it has been #1) AND it debuted #1 on The New York Times bestseller list (although it's not in the top 5 as of tonight). So, people are paying attention to her, and it's pretty clear that more than a few wayward souls are buying into this shit. (Oh, and for those of you who think I got the above photo from some obscure Web site, I did - AnnCoulter.com.) You've just got to love someone who admires Joe McCarthy.

So, what's the dustup all about? Well, it's not the usually typical right-wing bullshit that she serves up this time that has attracted such controversy. It's what she said about the 9-11 widows. And when confronted with her remarks, she just becomes more bellicose, belligerent and defiant.

First, on the Today show, when Matt Lauer called her on some of the more controversial remarks in her book, Coulter took to the offensive, talking about "liberal infallibility" and how these women were being used politically. The best part about it is that Lauer came right back over the top of her. "So grieving widows aren't allowed to have a political opinion?" Coulter then started to stutter and stammer. She's used to sycophants interviewing her with softball questions. Not this time. She then proceeded to reiterate that the 9-11 widows are "enjoying their husbands' deaths." Too bad Matt didn't really prepare for the interview, or he could have cut this hate monger to pieces. Fitting that this interview took place on 6.6.6. Coulter would have been cast great opposite Al Pacino in The Devil's Advocate instead of Connie Nielsen.

Anyway, in case you missed Coulter's appearance on Today, here are a few of her quotes:

Coulter: "These self-obsessed women [9-11 widows] seem genuinely unaware that 9-11 was an attack on our nation and acted like as if the terrorist attack only happened to them. They believe the entire country was required to marinate in their exquisite personal agony. Apparently, denouncing Bush was part of the closure process."

And...

Coulter: "To speak out using the fact they are widows. This is the left's doctrine of infallibility. If they have a point to make about the 9-11 commission, about how to fight the war on terrorism, how about sending in somebody we are allowed to respond to> No-No-No. We always have to respond to someone who just had a family member die."

If anyone can suggest a more contemptible c--- on this planet, I'm taking suggestions.

Just a few comments, and then I'll end this post. Criticizing her is a waste of time, and frankly, too easy.

First, I wonder if she would criticize these 9-11 widows if they cut commercials for Bush during the 2004 presidential campaign? Duh. Of course not. Coulter's just pissed that Bush couldn't use his pet cause and #1 topic to demagogue the American people, terrorism, to full effect in the last election and that these widows wouldn't automatically support the self-anoited "Wartime President." The 9-11 widows have every right to be pissed - our ports are wide open, as are our borders, and anti-terrorism funding is a fraction of what it should be, and our troops and resources are being diverted for a moronic and idiotic war in Iraq (to say nothing about the tragic loss of American and Iraqi lives). But, let's keep those tax cuts rolling, Mr. President - war and anti-terrorism costs be damned.

Second, what makes her words even more hateful is that she seems to be picking up speed as the outrage growns. She responded to the criticism by spewing even more venom in a Time Magazine interview, calling the widows "harpies" and "witches."

Third, this is just a blatant attempt to sell books and get publicity. She's Limbaugh sans the penis and blue M&Ms. However, there's plenty of evidence her outrageous statements are working, if her book ranks #3 on Amazon book sales. I guess the old adage of "any publicity is good publicity" applies here. There are vast amounts of people who are easily manipulated in the American electorate, and Ann's getting rich off them. Many of these same people probably think their most important vote is the one they phone in for American Idol. Now, I can hear some of you already - "That's just what I hate about liberals - they think they know what's best for the country; I'm tired of their conceit." You know what I say to those people? Fuck you. Who am I referring to? People who actually believe even two syllables of Coulter's tripe; people who don't vote in elections yet sit around and bitch about which way the wind is blowing in America; people who never miss one goddamn episode of American Idol, yet can't tell the difference between Brittany Spears and a broccoli spear. Wake up, people.

One last thing that annoys me to no end, and I can rarely keep my mouth shut when I hear it. ... To combat criticism of Coulter, people just bring up someone from the left, "evening" the score in their minds. It goes something like this:

Liberal: "Can you believe what Ann Coulter said? What an evil person."

Conservative: "Yea, people like her an Al Franken are what's wrong with America."

I defy anyone to name me a liberal or someone on the left, no matter how far left, who has written something like this lately. And when I say that, I mean find me someone of Coulter's stature; she sells millions and millions of books - find me an equivalent on the left. And I don't mean someone who has made some offhand, foolish, regrettable remark, I mean someone who has said something even remotely this hateful, then, when offered the chance to recant or backtrack even a little, has refused, as Coulter has. Yea, get back to me - your search is gonna take a while. If you find one, write me, and I'll denounce them with equal fervor on this blog.

Conservatives of the world, you may not like Al Franken, Bill Mahr, or the such, but if you are putting them in the same class as Coulter, or even Bill O'Lielly, you're pretty misguided.

I'll have more on O'Lielly soon in a future post - this guy lies so much, it's easier to point out the few instances when he's told the truth than it is to point out all of his lies. He's been caught red-handed lately, too, and when he does, he just gets more belligerent. And it's awfully enjoyable to watch.

Instead of going on more of a rant on Coulter, I thought I'd just share some more cartoons and pictures of her. Is it degrading? Yep. Am I lowering myself to her level? Hardly, but sometimes it just feels soooo good to be mean spirited, doesn't it, Ann? The big difference is that I'm being mean spirited about you, not 9-11 widows who have lost husbands, have families to raise on their own, and who you degrade just because they don't happen to share your political extremism.


Ann as she appears for a photo shoot, above. Okay, skanky, but not totally hideous.

But take a look at Ann without makeup! Ewwww.

Okay, I was just having fun. This is an artist's depiction of what Ann Coulter would really look like without makeup. I can't imagine waking up next to that.


A humor piece that pokes fun at Ann AND Rush? Gold.

I love Newsweek. The magazine always hits the nail on the head, and these two cartoons are no exception. Look at how the artist drew her above! I laughed for like five minutes when I saw it.

To hell with Coulter and all who are like her. Time to watch some hockey.

My summer reading list

Summer is just about here, and one of my favorite things about my favorite season is how it puts me in the mood to read, even more than normal. I have quite an ambitious reading list of books to get through this summer. I've only read 3 books so far this year, so I'm way behind my normal quota of at least hitting double digits per year, at bare minimum.

Right now, I'm about 2/3 done with Richard Reeves' book on Ronald Reagan, President Reagan: The Triumph of Imagination. I will discuss the book more on here when I'm finished, but I'll say now I'm enjoying immensely and would already unequivocally recommend it. He's no apologist for Reagan, that's for sure. If you are a close-minded Reagan boot licker in the vein of Peggy Noonan, you may want to move on and not get/read this book.

Other books I plan to get to this summer (or at least hope to!)...

Among the Dead Cities, by A.C. Grayling. I came across this tome about the morality of the allied terror bombing of Germany and Japan during World War II. It should be an illuminating, horrifying and eye-opening read.

The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors, by James D. Hornfischer. This is about one of the most celebrated naval battles in U.S. history. Written in a Flags of our Fathers sort of vein, it should be a very good read. Almost all of my reading on World War II has concentrated on the European Theater, but I'm missing out on a lot by not reading books like these. I would also like to get to Ghost Soldiers this summer, if I can.

A G-Man's Life, by Mark Felt. Before I begin reading, I'm wondering how good and credible this book will be. I saw Felt on Larry King about three weeks ago, and this guy has clearly lost many of his marbles. I'm not making fun of him - it's sad to see anyone go through senility and old age. He's 91-years old, and his memory is clearly going, and he had difficulty putting together coherent sentences during the King interview. I hope his book is much better. I'm anticipating that it will be - I'm sure, before I even crack open the book, that this tome is based on many of Felt's former correspondence, letters and files. Let's hope so.

Lapdogs, by Eric Boehlert. This should be a good political screed on how the press has basically rolled over for Bush since September 11, at least up until recently. Lapdogs takes a look at what the press has failed to question and adequately report on, and a big part of it deals with the Valerie Plame story and how many major news outlets failed to explore it, even though many leaders in these news organizations knew or strongly suspected the truth. Some of these news orgs. include the New York Times, the Washington Post, Time, etc. Yea, that liberal press.

31 Days, by Barry Werth. I cannot wait to read this one. In fact, it's up next as soon as I'm done with Reeves' book on Reagan. The subtitle reads, "The crisis that gave us the government we have today." Werth explores the immediate aftermath of President Nixon's resignation on August 9, 1974 and the 31 days following Ford's ascension to the presidency. I can never get enough of the biggest American political scandal of the 20th century, so I can't wait to get started.

The Long Emergency, by James Howard Kunstler. This book explores the end of oil (yes people, it is coming), as well as global warming and other coming catastrophes of the 21st century. Any reader of this blog knows that I firmly believe that global warming is the biggest threat to humankind, so this should be a galvanizing read.

The Truth (with jokes), by Al Franken. I can never get enough of Al. Many on the right (most, actually) love to skewer him, but the fact is that his books are well researched and usually pretty embarrassing and devastating to the people in his crosshairs. Just ask Bill O'Lielly, Ann Coulter or Rush Limbaugh. The only thing I dislike about Franken's lie exposing is that we don't get enough of it. I wish this guy put out a book ever 6 months instead of every 2 years. I can't wait to devour his book on the long flight to my wedding in Cabo San Lucas. I'll start it on the flight and finish it on the beach.

New Rules: Polite Musings from a Timid Observer, by Bill Mahr. If I love this book half as much as I love his show, this will be the book of the summer.

Sweet Jesus I Hate Bill O'Reilly, by Joseph Minton Amann. A little bit too strong of a title, but not too far off about my emotions about a truly detestable man. I've read some of the reviews about this book, and conservatives rightly point out that using "hate" in a book title is probably a little amateurish. But, is that any more offensive than right wingers churing out book after book about how liberals are destroying America? Call it a draw.

The Secret Man: The Story of Watergate's Deepthroat, by Bob Woodward. I'm anticipating this book probably more than Felt's book, because of Felt's condition these past few years. Woodward, along with Bernstein, are probably my two favorite reporters ever, and how long have we been waiting to read this book? I wonder if Woodward had this book written years ago, having it at the ready for the minute that Deepthroat was revealed. One could argue that Woodward is a smart businessman, as well.

The Politics of Truth: A Diplomat's Memoir: Inside the Lies that Led to War and Betrayed My Wife's CIA Identity, by Joseph C. Wilson IV. One side of the inside story about the whole Valerie Plame affair. I certainly look forward to reading Wilson, and by extension, Plame's perspective. This should be riveting.

It's a long and ambitious reading list, and I'm not even taking into consideration the many magazines that arrive in the mail every month. But lots of reading helps shape and mold my many opinions on world events, and even helps them evolve. There's nothing like a good book or magazine while sitting out in the warm air and sunshine of summer.