March 2010

Rick Green Touts Support of Right Wing Doctor Who Believes All Disease Is Caused By Sin

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Friday, 3/26/2010 10:33 am

We've already written several posts about Rick Green, the Chuck-Norris-approved-Alan-Keyes-supported-WallBuilders'-employed-pseudo-historian-TEA-Party-Religious-Right-activist who has made it into a run-off election for a seat on the Texas Supreme Court despite the fact that he has exactly zero judicial experience. 

And we've noted already that he's been endorsed by a who's who of local and national right-wingers, including David Barton, Mat Staver, Kelly Shackelford, and even Steve Hotze:

Now Hotze may not be a household name, but even by the standards of your average Texas right-winger, he is something special. 

He was behind the anti-gay mailings targeting Houston mayoral candidate Annise Parker last year and he has a long history of weilding his influence in right-wing Texas politics: 

Thin and long-faced, 46-year-old Steven Forrest Hotze has carved out a niche in local politics over the past decade as an unyielding and occasionally strident opponent of abortion and public acceptance of homosexuality. He may not be a household name outside Republican circles, but within the party he is admired by a devout coterie of followers, catered to by secular conservatives and feared by moderates, who find themselves in a position of needing his approval to win nominations in GOP primaries. Those summoned to kiss his ring encounter a tough, uncompromising zealot who is used to getting his own way.

...

It's a considerable amount of clout for someone whose stated beliefs place him to the right of the religious right. "If we are to survive as a free nation, and if justice and liberty are to be restored in our land, then biblical Christianity, with its absolutes, must once again be embraced by our citizens," he wrote several years back in a Chronicle op-ed piece. "Only then can we expect to see Christianity's influence once again to be reflected in the laws of our civil government."

As the Houston Press reported a few years back, Hotze's medical credentials and views are also rather suspect:

Hotze was able to better articulate his views in 1986, when he was one of dozens of ministers, professionals and laypersons who signed the Coalition on Revival's Manifesto for the Christian Church. The coalition claims on its Web site to be a national network of religious leaders aligned in a mission "to help the Church rebuild civilization on the principles of the Bible so God's will may be done on earth as it is in heaven." They want all aspects of life -- government, science and education -- to adhere to fundamental biblical beliefs. These beliefs include the following:

• A wife may work outside the home only with her husband's consent

• "Biblical spanking" that results in "temporary or superficial bruises or welts" should not be considered a crime

• No doctor shall provide medical service on the Sabbath

• All disease and disability is caused by the sin of Adam and Eve

• Medical problems are frequently caused by personal sin

• "Increased longevity generally results from obedience to specific Biblical commands"

• Treatment of the "physical body" is not a doctor's highest priority

• Doctors have a priestly calling

• People receiving medical treatment are not immune from divine intervention or demonic forces

• Physicians should preach to their patients because salvation is the key to their health

• "Christians need better health to have more energy, tolerate more stress, get depressed less often, and be more creative than our non-Christian counterparts for the advancement of God's Kingdom."

Last week, Rick Green made a campaign stop at Hotze's Wellness Center:

Wonderful visit with Dr. Steve Hotze at his Wellness Center on Friday. What a Blessing he is to SOOO many people!!!

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/25/2010 5:54 pm
  • Both the Senate and House are expected to vote on resolutions condemning Uganda’s "kill the gays" bill.

  • Anti-abortion extremist Neal Horsley is now running an anti-gay website.

  • Sen. Bob Bennett's effort to stop Washington DC's marriage equality law failed.

  • Why am I not surprise by the Peter LaBarbera would have someone on his radio program who writes things like "Have I mentioned lately how utterly *disgusting* Obama is? And, yes, it’s because he’s black. God, help us all"?

  • Finally, "listen up, Buckwheat."

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/25/2010 5:42 pm
  • Matt Barber continues to attack the SPLC for labeling Peter LaBarbera's Americans for Truth a hate website while LaBarbera takes pride in the designation.

  • Rep. Michele Bachmann spoke at a Susan B. Anthony List fund-raiser last night where she declared that she was among the first to highlight President Obama's "anti-American views ... and now I look like Nostradamus.”

  • Speaking of the Susan B. Anthony List, Sarah Palin will be headlining their "Celebration of Life Breakfast" in May.

  • Operation Rescue says that it has been inundated with hateful messages and death threats for its opposition to health care reform.

  • Not surprisingly, the Family Research Council does not like the new Don't Ask, Don't Tell guidelines.

  • Concerned Women for America claims that "thousands of women we represent cannot and do not feel safe with AG [Eric] Holder directing the Department of Justice."

  • Finally, behold Pat Robertson's birthday cake:

Worst. Boycott. Ever.

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/25/2010 4:32 pm

Shortly after voters in Maine repealed a law that granting marriage equality rights to gays and lesbians, Larry Grard, a reporter from The Morning Sentinel in Waterville, Maine fired off an email to the Human Rights Campaign declaring "you hateful people have been spreading nothing but vitriol since this campaign began. Good riddance!"

Shortly thereafter Grard lost his job with the paper and he became, for a short while, a right-wing cause célèbre, at least until everyone moved on to other issues.  Everyone, that is, except Gary Cass of the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission who has continued to flog the issue for months, recently culminating in a demand that Grard be reinstated in his job and that local businesses stop advertising in any outlet owned by the paper's parent company, MaineToday Media, until some sort of acceptable settlement was reached.

Not surprisingly, everyone in Maine pretty much ignore Cass's threat and so now he has kicked it up a notch and announced a wholesale boycott against a long list of local companies which continue to advertise with the "anti-marriage and anti-Christian" MaineToday Media: 

In our letter to their advertisers we specifically asked that they stop advertising in any MaineToday Media publication until this matter with Larry is equitably resolved. We informed them that our plan was to communicate with people across the state of Maine who supported the “Yes on 1” campaign and urge them not to patronize businesses that advertise in MaineToday Media publications.

In addition, we followed up the letter with a phone call to the advertisers to give them another opportunity to be taken off of the boycott list by pledging not to advertise. As of now, CADC is calling for a boycott of thirty-three businesses who have decided to continue to advertise with MaineToday. More may be added.

With your active support of this boycott we are hoping that soon MaineToday Media would feel the error of their way and immediately make it right with Larry. We are determined to get justice for Larry who stood with the majority of the citizens of Maine to defend marriage. We can’t sit back and allow a Christian to be fired simply for standing up for biblical values.

Please, help us fight for justice for Larry. It might be your job next!

The CADC is a tiny, fringe right-wing group headquartered in Vista, CA which has almost no money and even less influence or reach. 

But apparently Cass thinks that he's got enough clout to get residents on the other side of the country in Maine to boycott dozens of local establishments like Rebecca's Place in Augusta and Fred's Coffee in Oakland and Damon's Quick Stop in Skowhegan and Andre’s Barrels & Buckets in Starks.

Best of luck with that.

Heads McDonnell Wins, Tails Gays Lose

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/25/2010 3:22 pm

Last month, VA Gov. Bob McDonnell made news when he rolled back anti-discrimination protections for gay state workers, doing so on the grounds that such protections for "sexual orientation" had never been passed by the state legislature.

Now McDonnell is saying that he probably wouldn't even sign such a bill if one were passed by the state legislature because he doesn't think it is needed: 

Based on numbers he’s seen, Gov. Bob McDonnell said today he’s not sure the state needs a law protecting people against bias based on sexual orientation.

Asked on his monthly radio appearance on WRVA if he would sign such a bill, the governor said, “I don’t know that we need it based on the numbers that I’ve seen.“

“There really isn’t any rampant discrimination on any basis in Virginia,“ he said. “If you’re going to have a law, it needs to actually address a real problem.“

Of course, the very point is that "the numbers" could now potentially skyrocket, thanks specifically to McDonnell, who has made it easier to engage in "rampant discrimination" against gays in Virginia.

And so even if the state legislature then passes a bill to remedy it, McDonnell says he probably won't sign it because he doesn't think it is necessary.

Bill Donohue Declares War On the New York Times

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/25/2010 1:29 pm

Today, the New York Times ran an article reporting that "top Vatican officials — including the future Pope Benedict XVI — did not defrock a priest who molested as many as 200 deaf boys."

And predictably, the Catholic League's Bill Donohue responded ... by attacking the New York Times:

Media requests to deal with this subject make it difficult to provide an adequate response to today's article by Laurie Goodstein. But the time has come to ask some serious questions about why the Times is working overtime with wholly discredited lawyers to uncover dirt in the Catholic Church that occurred a half-century ago. Those questions will be raised in an ad I am writing that will be published in next Tuesday's New York Times; a rejoinder to the article will also be made. All I can say now is that this is the last straw.

Donohue has long asserted that any coverage and/or criticism of the Catholic Church's handling of this issue is itself blatant anti-Catholic bigotry, but now it appears as if Donohue's role as a professional apologist for the Church is reaching an entirely new level as he openly declares war on the New York Times. 

The NRCC Goes Where Even Ken Cuccinelli Will Not

Submitted by Anonymous on Thursday, 3/25/2010 12:01 pm

Today's Roanoke Times contains this rather stunning reaction from the NRCC to the serious threats made against Virginia Congressman Tom Perriello:

While his organization doesn't condone such behavior, National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Andy Sere said Perriello is not the victim.

"Central and Southside Virginians are the ones who are going to have the bear the burden of increased taxes," he said. "What you're seeing is a frustration among his constituents who believe he's not listening to them."

But we're not talking about folks letting off steam, we're talking about life and death:

The FBI and Albemarle County officials are investigating a severed gas line from a propane tank to a gas grill on the porch of the Ivy home of Bo Perriello, a day after Lynchburg Tea Party member Mike Troxel listed the address he believed was the congressman's on his personal blog, encouraging people to protest. According to The Associated Press, a threatening note also was sent to the house.

The article also contained these rather reasonable quotes from a familiar figure:

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, who has a following in the Tea Party movement, called the posting of Perriello's brother's address "appalling."

"I think that is way over the line," he said. "I don't think it's close. It's an appalling approach. It's not civil discourse. It's an invitation to intimidation."

When the NRCC makes Cuccinelli look like a voice of reason, you know the GOP has gone off the deep end.

Anti-Immigration Groups Going Out of Business?

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/25/2010 11:26 am

Today, the American for Legal Immigration PAC sent out an email desperately seeking a meger $30,000 in donations to keep the organization afloat, saying it needed $11,000 in the next six days to avoid a potential shutdown, which is what has reportedly happened to the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps:

Only six days remain for us to reach our minimum safe fund raising goal of $30,000. While ALIPAC has never failed to reach our goals, the last few funds drives have been like pulling teeth.

If you want to see Americans for Legal Immigration PAC continue our mission as one of the largest national organizations in America fighting against illegal immigration and against Amnesty on your behalf, then please get your donation on the way now!

Due to many factors, including the bad economy and shifting interests, over 40 smaller groups and organizations in our coalition have folded in the the last year.

Today, we say farewell to ALIPAC's ally known as the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps headed up by Chris Simcox and Carmen Mercer. Citing a lack of adequate funding, the group has sent out a national release announcing their permanent closure.

This leaves ALIPAC as the only major national group formed since 2004 to still be in operation.

We need a very strong response to THIS EMAIL request to make sure ALIPAC does not join the growing organizational casualty list.

We only have SIX DAYS LEFT to raise almost $11,000. Should we fail to reach our minimum operations budget, we will use your donations to keep the main site operational as long as possible during a phased out shutdown.

This was the first we had heard about the Minutemen shutting down, but it looks like that is indeed the case:

The Arizona-based Minuteman Civil Defense Corps that was a border watch group comprised of private citizens has decided to disband.

Minuteman president, Carmen Mercer, says she and the board's two other directors voted to dissolve the group after a five-year run over concerns that her recent "call to action" would attract the wrong people to the Arizona-Mexico border.

Mercer sent an e-mail on March 16 urging members to come to the border "locked, loaded and ready." She proposed changing the group's rules to allow members to track illegal immigrants and drug smugglers instead of just reporting the activity to the U.S. Border Patrol.

Taking a Bold Stand for the Sanctity of Our Public Bathrooms

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/25/2010 11:08 am

I don't know what the Right's obsession is with protecting the sanctity of our public bathrooms, but they have recently been making it a centerpiece of their local efforts to fight proposed anti-discrimination ordinances. 

They did it Colorado and now they are doing it in Montana to justify their bigotry:

An organization called NotMyBathroom.com announced this week its opposition to a city ordinance that would protect people from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity ...So far, the only other group willing to identify itself as affiliated with NotMyBathroom.com is Concerned Women For America, said [Dallas] Erickson. CWA representatives already have come out against the proposed ordinance.

... 

The group fears the law would create "a government assigned sex," cost businesses money "to provide toilet facilities," and possibly "force ministers to perform homosexual marriages."

But NotMyBathroom.com chairman Tei Nash said the chief concern is the safety of women and children in public restrooms. He said the ordinance would give a man who "is female affirmed" the freedom to use women's restrooms.

"When he walks into the bathroom, you can't stop them," Nash said. "Is that going to surprise you and the kids? It probably is. Most women will be frightened to no end. Kids, too. They won't understand."

The argument seems to rest in part on the notion some predatory men are waiting for such an ordinance so they can attack women in bathrooms. Nash, though, said culprits will use the law as a cover and business owners won't be able to stop them.

"I don't mind saying this. It's not so much trans people. It's sexual offenders," Nash said. "This has already happened in Portland, and it's happened in Florida."

Laws protect people against sexual crimes, but Erickson also said he fears for people in the Bitterroot who come to Missoula and have to use bathrooms. Society should maintain the standard that people are born a man or a woman, he said.

"If you've got a peeping Tom that likes to see how the other side lives, all they have to do is say they're a woman today," Erickson said.

If there was ever a moment when the anti-gay Right jumped the shark, I'd have to say that NotMyBathroom.com just might be it.

The Cuccinelli Admiration Society

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/25/2010 10:29 am

This New York Times profile of Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli mentions his anti-gay views, his flirtations with Birtherism, and even his Social Security paranoia and notes that Cuccinelli's magnetism for controversy is not sitting well with fellow Republican Governor Bob McDonnell.

But I think that was best demonstrates Cuccinelli's radical views is the people who are coming to his defense:

“Ken is in tune with typical family people, people who work in this state,” said Robert G. Marshall, a Republican delegate from Prince William County. Mr. Cuccinelli’s popularity, he said, derives from his sharp legal mind and steadfastness to his principles regardless of what others think.

“When others make him seem controversial, it just raises his name recognition,” Mr. Marshall said.

That would be Bob Marshall, the Delegate who made news last month when he declared that disabled children were God's punishment for abortion:

You know someone is radically right wing when Bob Marshall declares that they are doing a great job.