The Democrat Thread

[lostfan]

I really try not to acknowledge Rush Limbaugh's existence.

[shipps]

Michelle Obama is f***ing hot , that is all sorry for the interruption.

[bmags]

Balta,

 

do you think that Rahm Emanuel may be the reason that Dean is not our HHS?

[Balta1701]

Balta,

 

do you think that Rahm Emanuel may be the reason that Dean is not our HHS?

Well, him and the President.

[bmags]

It just seems odd to me that with all Howard Dean did, and him asking for the position, he would get passed over. I know of no problems between Obama and Dean, but I remember Emanuel talking about how dumb the 50 states strategy was. (green) I think rahm won that argument.

[BigSqwert]

I'm annoyed that Dean wasn't offered the position.

[Balta1701]

Steele vs. Limbaugh, the opening salvo:

DL Hughley: You know what we do, we talk like we're talking now. You have your view. I have mine. We don't need incendiary rhetoric. Like rush limbaugh, who is the de facto leader of the republican party.

 

Michael Steele: No, he's not.

 

Hughley: I will tell you what --

 

Steele: I'm the de facto leader of the republican party.

 

Hughley: I can appreciate that. But no one will actually decry down some of the things he says. Like when he comes out and says he wants the president to fail. I understand he wants liberalism to fail. I get it's not about the man. But it is still about the idea that he would rather have an idea fail so his idea will move to the forefront. And that to me is destructive.

 

Steele: How is that any different than what was said about George Bush during his presidency?

 

Hughley: You're absolutely -- let me say something. You're absolutely right.

 

Steele: Let's put it into context here. Rush limbaugh is an entertainer. Rush limbaugh, his whole thing is entertainment. Yes he is incendiary. Yes, it's ugly.

 

Hughley: He influences the party. I will tell you what, you're the first republican I have talked to, and I have talked to a lot, to say he's not the leader of his party.

 

Limbaugh Vs. Steele; the battle is joined.

It seems to me that it’s Michael Steele who is off to a shaky start….

 

Now, Mr. Steele, if it is your position as the chairman of the Republican National Committee that you want a left wing Democrat president and a left wing Democrat Congress to succeed in advancing their agenda, if it’s your position that you want President Obama and Speaker Pelosi and Senate leader Harry Reid to succeed with their massive spending and taxing and nationalization plans, I think you have some explaining to do.

 

Why are you running the Republican Party? Why do you claim you lead the Republican Party when you seem obsessed with seeing to it that President Obama succeeds? I frankly am stunned that the chairman of the Republican National Committee endorses such an agenda…

 

I don’t understand why you’re asking Republicans to donate to the Republican National Committee if their money is going to be spent furthering the agenda of Barack Obama? If we don’t want Obama and Reid and Pelosi to fail, then why does the RNC exist, Mr. Steele? Why are you even raising money?…

Frankly, my money's on Limbaugh.

[BigSqwert]

Limbaugh is criticizing the President during a time of war. How dare he?!?! That's treasonous.

[bmags]

mine too. Am I wrong, though, to say that I've never seen the leader of a party as outspoken as Steele?

 

Maybe I'm just following stuff more, but I just don't remember the position being such a PR job as much as organizing fundraising and such.

[Balta1701]

The most brilliant F***ing thing I've read all day:

Anyone else noticed that the Dow Jones Average now serves the same purpose on cable news shows that the terrorism alert level served between 2001 and 2004?

[Balta1701]

Frankly, my money's on Limbaugh.

Betting on a Republican apologizing for wronging Limbaugh these days is a better payoff than the Stock Market. Less than 24 hours, every single time.

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele says he has reached out to Rush Limbaugh to tell him he meant no offense when he referred to the popular conservative radio host as an “entertainer” whose show can be “incendiary.”

 

“My intent was not to go after Rush – I have enormous respect for Rush Limbaugh,” Steele said in a telephone interview. “I was maybe a little bit inarticulate. … There was no attempt on my part to diminish his voice or his leadership.”

 

The dust-up comes at a time when top Democrats are trying to make Limbaugh the face of the Republican Party, in part by using ads funded by labor. Americans United for Change sent a fund-raising e-mail Monday that begins: “The Republican Party has turned into the Rush Limbaugh Party.”

 

Steele told CNN host D.L. Hughley in an interview aired Saturday night: “Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. Rush Limbaugh — his whole thing is entertainment. He has this incendiary — yes, it's ugly.”

 

Steele, who won a hard-fought chairman's race on Jan. 30, told Politico he telephoned Limbaugh after his show on Monday afternoon and hoped that they would connect soon.

 

“I went back at that tape and I realized words that I said weren’t what I was thinking,” Steele said. "It was one of those things where I thinking I was saying one thing, and it came out differently. What I was trying to say was a lot of people … want to make Rush the scapegoat, the bogeyman, and he’s not."

 

“I’m not going to engage these guys and sit back and provide them the popcorn for a fight between me and Rush Limbaugh,” Steele added. “No such thing is going to happen. … I wasn’t trying to slam him or anything.”

I think "Pathetic" is a pretty good word.

[lostfan]

Damn Steele, nut up, don't be such a b****.

[HuskyCaucasian]

Limbaugh is criticizing the President during a time of war. How dare he?!?! That's treasonous.

:notworthy

[HuskyCaucasian]

Betting on a Republican apologizing for wronging Limbaugh these days is a better payoff than the Stock Market. Less than 24 hours, every single time.

I think "Pathetic" is a pretty good word.

I thought I heard / read someone say that you are the leader if after you rip that person, you then have to go back and apologize and say you were misunderstood.

 

I guess Rush is the man. This just keeps getting better and better. The Democrats are perfectly playing this. They pushed hard to brand Rush as the GOp leade, and some how it's becoming a self-fulfilling prophesy.

[Balta1701]

mine too. Am I wrong, though, to say that I've never seen the leader of a party as outspoken as Steele?

 

Maybe I'm just following stuff more, but I just don't remember the position being such a PR job as much as organizing fundraising and such.

So far, Michael Steele is being for the Republicans what the wise folks in the media and on the right told us Howard Dean would be for the Democrats as he was taking that job in 2005.

[Balta1701]

I thought I heard / read someone say that you are the leader if after you rip that person, you then have to go back and apologize and say you were misunderstood.

 

I guess Rush is the man. This just keeps getting better and better. The Democrats are perfectly playing this. They pushed hard to brand Rush as the GOp leade, and some how it's becoming a self-fulfilling prophesy.

Press Release; the DNC jumps at the bait.

Kaine Statement: Steele Apology to Rush Limbaugh Proves the Point:

Limbaugh is Leading Force behind Republican Party

 

Washington, DC – On the same day GOP Chairman Michael Steele apologized to conservative talk radio show host Rush Limbaugh for courageously challenging Limbaugh’s role as leader of the Republican Party calling his show “incendiary” and “ugly,” Governor Tim Kaine, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, issued the following statement calling on Republicans in Washington to stop following Rush Limbaugh’s lead:

 

“I was briefly encouraged by the courageous comments made my counterpart in the Republican Party over the weekend challenging Rush Limbaugh as the leader of the Republican Party and referring to his show as ‘incendiary’ and ‘ugly.’ However, Chairman Steele’s reversal this evening and his apology to Limbaugh proves the unfortunate point that Limbaugh is the leading force behind the Republican Party, its politics and its obstruction of President Obama’s agenda in Washington. Just this weekend, Rush Limbaugh repeated his claim that he is rooting for the President to fail. The last time Rush Limbaugh said he wanted the President to fail, virtually every single Republican in Congress followed his lead and voted against the President’s plan to create or save 3.5 million jobs.

 

“As Congress works to pass the President’s budget, Republicans need to stop following divisive figures like Rush Limbaugh, stop apologizing to him and put aside the failed politics of the past so we can put our economy back on track, reform our health care system, break our dependence on foreign oil, improve our schools, and lay the foundation for long-term growth in the 21st Century.”

[HuskyCaucasian]

 

 

Edited March 3, 2009 by Athomeboy_2000

[HuskyCaucasian]

Eric Cantor criticizes Rush... refuses to elaborate or reaffirm.

As we've noted, a Republican can't go much longer than a day criticizing Rush Limbaugh before having to recant his offending remarks. Now, over the weekend, House Minority Whip Eric Cantor criticized Rush's 'fail' rhetoric about Barack Obama without doing so far as to criticize the Great Leader directly. And then today Rush is saying that Cantor really didn't criticize him. So we called up Eric Cantor's office. And we asked, were you criticizing Rush or not? He ducked the question.

[whitesoxfan101]

As much as people like Rush Limbaugh HATE to admit it, the GOP cannot sustain any sort of relelvant power without gaining moderate votes. And as long as the GOP caters to Rush Limbaugh, they will not win the moderate vote. There are simply too many moderate voters (like me, and I hate to speak for anybody, but I feel safe in doing it here) who realize that Rush Limbaugh is a dumb hack and will not stand to listen to his nonsense. It is pathetic that he is the most powerful and relevant voice in the GOP right now, but that really is the case at the moment and it's sad to see the party has fallen that far.

Edited March 3, 2009 by whitesoxfan101

[StrangeSox]

As much as people like Rush Limbaugh HATE to admit it, the GOP cannot sustain any sort of relelvant power without gaining moderate votes. And as long as the GOP caters to Rush Limbaugh, they will not win the moderate vote. There are simply too many moderate voters (like me, and I hate to speak for anybody, but I feel safe in doing it here) who realize that Rush Limbaugh is a dumb hack and will not stand to listen to his nonsense. It is pathetic that he is the most powerful and relevant voice in the GOP right now, but that really is the case at the moment and it's sad to see the party has fallen that far.

 

I agree with this 100%. He may be able to galvanize the base (or at least parts of it) into a stronger group, but in doing so he's going to push out an awful lot of more moderate people. You won't win national elections that way.

[Balta1701]

I agree with this 100%. He may be able to galvanize the base (or at least parts of it) into a stronger group, but in doing so he's going to push out an awful lot of more moderate people. You won't win national elections that way.

Rush Limbaugh polls lower in national polling than George W. Bush.

[bmags]

Where are the intellectuals of this conservative group? Where are the Buckley's? Surely there are brilliant people people in this country that believe in small government and strong defense, is there not a one who can create a platform that isn't antagonistic and fear-mongering? I mean, of conservative writers...I respect David Brooks...uh, alright done.

[Balta1701]

Where are the intellectuals of this conservative group? Where are the Buckley's? Surely there are brilliant people people in this country that believe in small government and strong defense, is there not a one who can create a platform that isn't antagonistic and fear-mongering? I mean, of conservative writers...I respect David Brooks...uh, alright done.

When your party turns on anyone and anything that could be considered intellectual, you're not going to have many.

 

"Carl: Let's make litter out of these literati!

Lenny: That's too smart you're one of them! (punches thrown)"

[HuskyCaucasian]

DNC site: ImSorryRush.com

 

And here is why the DNC is pounding the Limbaugh message:

The seeds were planted in October after Democracy Corps, the Democratic polling company run by Carville and Greenberg, included Limbaugh’s name in a survey and found that many Americans just don’t like him.

 

“His positives for voters under 40 was 11 percent,” Carville recalled with a degree of amazement, alluding to a question about whether voters had a positive or negative view of the talk show host.

 

Paul Begala, a close friend of Carville, Greenberg and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, said they found Limbaugh’s overall ratings were even lower than the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama’s controversial former pastor, and William Ayers, the domestic terrorist and Chicago resident who Republicans sought to tie to Obama during the campaign.

Edited March 4, 2009 by Athomeboy_2000

[HuskyCaucasian]

Oh good lord...

Fifteen Republican members of the Missouri General Assembly have signed on to a state constitutional amendment that appears aimed at advancing the claims of the fringe movement that doubts President Barack Obama's eligibility to serve as president.

 

The language is contained in a proposed "voter’s bill of rights," which would serve "as a defense against corruption, fraud, and tyranny."

 

The proposed amendment states:

For candidate

s

who are required by the Con

s

titution of the United

S

tate

s

to be natural born citizen

s

, the

s

ecretary of

s

tate

s

hall reque

s

t an official copy of the candidate

’

s

birth certificate. Other certification

s

,

s

uch a

s

a certificate of live birth,

s

hall not be accepted.

S

hould any candidate fail to provide an official birth certificate within thirty day

s

of the reque

s

t by the

s

ecretary of

s

tate, hi

s

or her name

s

hall not be placed on the ballot.

 

The Birthers, as they're known, have focused on the State of Hawaii's refusal to release the original of Obama's birth certificate, as opposed to official copies; Hawaii state law bars the release of the original.

 

State Rep. Robert Cooper wasn't immediately available to discuss the bill, which has drawn criticism on a local liberal blog.

 

Well, it looks like no one from the state of Hawaii will ever be able to be on the presidential ballot in Mizzu ever again.

Edited March 4, 2009 by Athomeboy_2000