February 6, 2008

Post Super Tuesday

In the good news column, Obama did very well. Looks like the horse race is on, however, and we are far from done with this contest. I am still very proud that the Democratic party is divided between voting for a woman and a person of color. That is historic and should be celebrated.

On the other side, I am still a little stunned at the hatred from the far right toward John McCain. Has the GOP shifted so very far to the right that they really think that someone like John McCain is a liberal? That seems ridiculous on its face. James Dobson, for example, is all upset:
"I'm deeply disappointed the Republican Party seems poised to select a nominee who did not support a Constitutional amendment to protect the institution of marriage, who voted for embryonic stem cell research to kill nascent human beings, who opposed tax cuts that ended the marriage penalty, and who has little regard for freedom of speech, who organized the Gang of 14 to preserve filibusters, and has a legendary temper and often uses foul and obscene language.
I love how opposing tax cuts makes you a liberal. Why does Mr. Dobson not want us to pay for his wars? Where does he find that in his giant Bible? And the foul language? Come on. Was he equally upset by Dick Cheney's use? I doubt it.

Bible Belt Blogger notes that and has a nice little shot at the entire public prayer idea so loved by the right.
Dobson's wife, Shirley, is chairman of the National Day of Prayer Task Force. Once each year, she gets invited to the White House so that she and President Bush can publicize the power of prayer with the television cameras rolling.

If Sen. McCain becomes President McCain, will he continue to allow Dobson to pray in the East Room each May? Or will he tell Ms. Dobson to "enter into thy *#@!#% closet, and when thou hast shut thy *#@!#% door, pray to thy Father which is in *#@!#% secret..."
Hmm. Making a show of prayer. That is just so Godly.

But what is even more troubling for the Christian right is that Dobson cares more about John McCain's language than he does about our current President's defense of torture. Actually, Bush said in 2005:
“We do not torture,” Bush declared in response to reports of secret CIA prisons overseas.

Of course, at the same time, Bush was supporting Dick Cheney's effort to stop the Senate from outlawing torture.

January '09 really can't come quick enough. And if this primary means that people like James Dobson and Rush Limbaugh lose power, then that can only be good for our republic.

16 comments:

ANewAnglican@gmail.com said...

Perhaps the good news in this reaction is that the far right is increasingly becoming minimized by the party?

Tony said...

Alright, you all need to tighten up. The preacher is back. Heh.

This whole scenario with McCain has fascinated me, not that Repubs really have anyone electable out there anyway. I have more greatly enjoyed watching Clinton and Obama and you are right, that side of the election is historic.

I think it will be even more historic when the Democrat is elected, and the Repubs lose much of their power.

Streak said...

Anglican, I hope you are right. I hope that is what this means.

Tony? Hmm. We used to have a Tony who posted around here. Wonder what happened to him....


Welcome back.

Anonymous said...

Dobson can go fuck himself. That guy is a major league asshole. Big time.

Bootleg Blogger said...

Streak- somewhat tangential, not sure if you saw this from Reuters.

Also, since you seem a little too calm for a political post from Streak (no profanity in your post) did you catch Huckabee's speech last night? I had PBS on in the background and heard this part:

Tonight, we are making sure America understands that sometimes one small smooth stone is even more effective than a whole lot of armor.

So, now he's David. I guess that shows some humility when just a few weeks ago you were Jesus:-).

I agree with ubub. Not only is Dobson a tool politically, he's also responsible for most of the spankings I got as a child- anyone else's parents read Dare to Discipline?

Later- BB

ANewAnglican@gmail.com said...

Oh, man. The Dobson child-rearing thing. I, too, was a product of some form of that, and look how I turned out?

But seriously, I do have a vivid memory of Dobson. When I found out that my parents were reading his book (or books--don't know which one they actually may have read) it really threw me for a loop. I took it as some sort of personal affront that my parents would even need a resource like that. As an adult, I can now see that my disillusionment came from seeing, perhaps for the first time, that my parents were human and not infallible. But at the time, my thoughts were more simple. "Who is he to tell you how to be a good parent?" I said, rushing to their defense. I think they thought it was kind of sweet.

gblackwell said...

Can anyone explain why Edwards received more than 10 percent of the OK Democratic vote? The closest other state was AZ. Didn't he, uhhhh, DROP OUT a week ago. What's going on here?

Streak said...

Also, since you seem a little too calm for a political post from Streak (no profanity in your post)

I am offended. Damn ass hell offended! And ubub swore for me. Of course, he was quoting President Jesus, but...

I had missed the Huck's latest pronouncement. He reminds me of those travelers to Israel who start to imagine themselves as various characters in the Bible. Except, of course, they are experiencing a documented psychological disorder, and Huckabee is just cynically manipulating people of faith. Even as Bush taught him to. Verily.

I do remember the great Dobson as a child. I remember him mostly from our church in Fort Collins where some video series on teenagers ran during some Sunday evening program for a while.

Gblackwell--nice to see you commenting here, even if it is to point out that either some of our Ok brethren are stupid, or merely stubborn. :) I suspect the latter more than the former.

Interestingly enough, I saw Peggy Noonan on MSNBC this morning and she wasn't terrible. She joked about people like Limbaugh suggesting that McCain might break the Republican party and said, "the party has already been broken by the last 8 years." Peggy "I wrote for Ronald "John Wayne" Reagan thinks that.

But she also tried to suggest deep divisions in the Democratic party. But even she had to acknowledge that they aren't nearly as deep as those within the Republican base.

Oh, and I forgot to mention in the original post that Karl Rove is now officially working for Fox Noise. Evidently Satan was busy.

Bootleg Blogger said...

No whining. "And ubub swore for me." Doesn't count.
BB

Streak said...

Well, fuck.

Anonymous said...

If I swore for Streak, Dick Cheney swore for me. It really speaks well of our leaders when you can string together their inappropriate quotes in a blog comment.

Ninjanun said...

If Clintong becomes the Democratic nominee, I see a real nasty campaign ahead (from both sides). Republicans hate her for a number of reasons, but I also think (throwing my feminist shoe in the ring) it has a lot to do with the fact that she's a woman. For some reason, it's still okay to question one's ability to do a job based on their plumbing, whereas to do so based on skin color is (as it should be) taboo.

Ninjanun said...

Also, I think Dobson is an asshat, not an asshole, as he covers for assholes and kisses the asses of those in power.

Either way, his close proximity to said asses means he's stinky and covered in...well, you get the idea.

Ninjanun said...

Don't know why I misspelled Clinton...must be lack of sleep due to mid-terms. *shrugs*

Streak said...

Ubub said something very bright the other night (it happens) about Hillary. The right thinks she is a Commie bitch, while the left thinks she might be a right wing thug.

Ninjanun, I think there are some reasonable people who have problems with Hillary at a policy and political level, but I also think you are right that there are some who simply will look for a reason to vote against a woman.

steves said...

McCain isn't well liked by conservatives because he isn't all that conservative. I'll have to admit that I am not all that fond of him. He is painfully dull and makes Bob Dole look hyperactive. His campaign finance reform law was unConstitutional, IMO.

My lefty friends don't like Hillary. It isn't because they think she is right wing, but they think she is an opportunist that will say and do anything to get elected.