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2010 Right Wing Candidates Weekly Update 9/22

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Wednesday, 9/22/2010 10:20 am

Your update on the right-wing candidates running for US Senate for 9/15-9/22.

Sharron Angle

Radical Right: Speaks at John Birch Society and Oath Keepers-sponsored event in Utah, describes crowd as “mainstream America” (Salt Lake Tribune, 9/20).

Tea Party: Planned Las Vegas convention featuring Angle quietly cancelled (TPM, 9/20).

Health Care: Claims that pre-existing conditions coverage can be “addressed very well by the free market” (Huffington Post, 9/21).

Poll: Fox News poll shows Angle and Reid running neck-and-neck (Washington Times, 9/21).

Ken Buck

Ads: New Democratic ads hit Buck over the 17th Amendment and reproductive health (CNN, 9/21).

Civil Rights: Left-leaning group holds rally protesting Buck’s views on contraception and choice (Denver Westward, 9/21).

Economy: Favors extending all of the Bush tax cuts (Colorado Independent, 9/17).

Carly Fiorina

Poll: New poll shows Fiorina trailing Boxer by 8% (Public Policy Polling, 9/21).

Ad: Boxer blasts Fiorina’s performance as CEO of HP (Daily Kos, 9/18).

Tea Party: Wins endorsement from Dick Armey’s FreedomWorks PAC (WaPo, 9/21).

Economy: Supports extending tax cuts for the wealthy (AP, 9/20).

Campaign: WSJ profiles Fiorina’s focus on the San Joaquin Valley (WSJ, 9/21).

Joe Miller

Government: Big-Government critic received farm subsidies (AP, 9/21).

GOP: Knocks Murkowski for running as a write-in candidate (CNN, 9/21).

Poll: Rasmussen poll shows Miller leading with 42% (Rasmussen, 9/21).

Economy: Changes position on unemployment benefits after criticism (ThinkProgress, 9/21).

Tea Party: Receives endorsement from Dick Armey’s FreedomWorks PAC (Business Wire, 9/20).

Christine O’Donnell

Campaign: Used $20,000 of campaign money to pay rent for house and served as her own campaign’s treasurer (Christian Science Monitor, 9/21).

Religious Right: Journalist unearths 2008 comment where she called homosexuality an “identity disorder” (ABC News, 9/20).

Poll: Fox News poll shows Chris Coons leader 54-39% (Fox News, 9/21).

Bewitched: Reactions to “dabbled into witchcraft” comment vary (Yahoo News, 9/20).

Ad: DSCC slams O’Donnell in new ad on finances (DSCC, 9/17).

Rand Paul

Government: AFL-CIO mailer condemns Paul’s views on Social Security, workplace safety (Politico, 9/20).

Media: Criticized by journalists for not speaking to press about views (WHAS, 9/20).

Palin: Sarah Palin fundraises with Paul and joins him for Fox Business interview (Mediaite, 9/18).

Education: Knocked for supporting Dept. of Education’s elimination (McClatchy, 9/21).

Dino Rossi

Economy: Stimulus-critic Rossi visits shipyard that benefited from Stimulus funding (Seattle Times, 9/17).

Government: Rossi hammered for views on government subsidies for refueling tanker competition (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 9/21).

Poll: Patty Murray leads Rossi by 5% in new poll (Rasmussen Reprots, 9/16).

Immigration: Opposes both a path for citizenship and deportation of illegal immigrants in the US, offers no alternatives (Seattle Times, 9/20).

Marco Rubio

Tea Party: Speaks to “Forward with the Constitution Rally” in St. Augustine (St. Petersburg Times, 9/19).

Ad: Crist disparages Rubio for earmarks in new ad (TPM, 9/20).

Pat Toomey

Fundraiser: Scott Brown (R-MA) to fundraise in Philadelphia for Toomey (Boston Globe, 9/21).

Poll: Leads Joe Sestak 48-40% in Fox News poll, 50-43% according to Quinnipiac (PA2010, 9/21).

Economy: Signs pledge to back Estate Tax repeal (CBS21, 9/20).

Wall Street: Ties to Wall Street banks come under scrutiny (LA Times, 9/17).

Value Voter Recap: We're All Tea Partiers Now (Including God)

Submitted by Peter Montgomery on Tuesday, 9/21/2010 10:43 am

The so-called Values Voter Summit, organized by the Family Research Council and sponsored by a number of right-wing groups, brought more than 2,000 activists (their count) to Washington D.C. for two solid days of speeches, workshops, networking, and a chance to spend time with others who passionately hate President Obama and the Democratic congressional leadership. Addressing the crowd were a number of GOP presidential hopefuls, including Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, Mike Huckabee, and Rep. Mike Pence (who eked out a narrow victory over Huckabee in the straw poll). Not surprisingly, conference speakers echoed the themes heard at the smaller Faith and Freedom conference convened by Ralph Reed just one week earlier.

Here were the top themes emerging from these Religious Right political conferences.
 
1) We’re All Tea Partiers Now (Including God)
 
The Faith and Freedom conference and Values Voter Summit signaled the Religious Right’s full embrace of (or effort to co-opt) the Tea Party movement and its activists’ anti-Washington energies. Rep. Michele Bachmann, a superstar in both the Religious Right and Tea Party movements, railed at Tea Party critics: “If you are scared of the Tea Party movement, you are afraid of Thomas Jefferson, who penned our mission statement [the Declaration of Independence].”
 
The events were also designed to attack the notion that the Tea Party movement is, or should be, focused only on economic issues and not on moral ones. This is more than the ongoing effort to solidify a working electoral partnership among fiscal, social, and national security conservatives. This is an ideological campaign against the very idea that one can legitimately be a fiscal conservative without embracing the Religious Right’s “family values” agenda on issues such as legal abortion and marriage equality. At the Values Voter Summit, there was little patience for libertarians who consider themselves economically conservative but socially liberal. Sen. Jim DeMint, greeted as a folk-hero for his success at backing Tea Party challengers to establishment GOP candidates, took on the idea directly, saying “you can’t be a true fiscal conservative if you do not understand the value of a culture that is based on values.” 
 
Others echoed the theme. A Heritage Foundation video declared that faith is necessary for liberty. Rep Mike Pence, the dark-horse winner of the summit’s straw poll, said America’s darkest moments have come when economic arguments trumped moral principles. Newt Gingrich declared that activists have to go back to making the moral case for free enterprise, not the economic case. David Limbaugh decried “economic justice,” which he called a leftist euphemism for “confiscation.” 
 
At a Values Voter Summit panel on the Tea Party movement, two activists described their work as being inspired in part by instructions they received from God in the early morning hours, like Glenn Beck; one insisted that her activism was not just about taxes but about getting America to turn back to God.
 
2) Nothing is more important than the 2010 and 2012 elections.
 
Nearly every speaker said that the 2010 election is the most important in our lifetime. Speakers insisted that President Obama, his administration, and Democratic congressional leaders are not only wrong, they are evil and are out to destroy the American experiment in limited government and individual liberty.  It is simply not possible to overstate the level of anger and hostility directed toward Obama (described as an America-hating narcissistic Marxist), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. 
 
Activists were told they must fast, pray, and work hard to defeat Democrats this November. The Family Research Council urged people to visit the website of Pray and A.C.T, a campaign led by Jim Garlow, who has been a rising star on the Religious Right since leading religious organizing on behalf of California’s anti-gay Prop 8. Ralph Reed is promising to share with local activists a massive new database of faith-based and fiscally conservative voters that he is building. 
 
Activists were also told that they must plan to keep sacrificing their time, energy and money for the next two years to make sure that Obama is defeated in 2012. Former Sen. Rick Santorum told activists not to expect dramatic improvements even if they win big in November: things won’t really change for the better as long as the White House is in Obama’s hands. Activists were warned that these two elections may be the last chance to stop the nation’s slide toward socialism and the end of America as we know it.
 
Right-wing speakers are optimistic about the possibility of delivering both the House and Senate into Republican hands and electing a conservative Republican president in 2012. FRC’s PAC held a fundraiser Friday night for Christine O’Donnell, the new Tea Party-backed GOP Senate candidate from Delaware, and other like-minded candidates.   Ralph Reed said that voter registration and focused turnout campaigns being waged by his and other right-wing groups would turn this from a good election cycle for Republicans into a historically sweeping one. And there’s particular excitement that Florida GOP Senate candidate Marco Rubio could be the face of the GOP’s future: right-wing strategists see him as Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama rolled into one appealing, Latino-vote-getting package.
 
3) Repealing Health Care Reform the Top Legislative Priority
 
According to several Values Voter Summit speakers, health care reform legislation signed into law by President Obama wasn’t really about health care at all. It was about extending the power of the federal government into tyrannical realms. Repealing “Obamacare” before it fully goes into effect is the top legislative priority of movement leaders. Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell was one of several speakers who called the legislation unconstitutional, saying that if the legislation was allowed to stand, it would effectively spell the end of any limits on federal power. 
 
4) Muslims Replace Immigrants as a Top Target
 
While previous conferences have portrayed unchecked illegal immigration as the most dire threat to America, this year’s speakers picked up on the right-wing generated furor over a proposed Islamic center in lower Manhattan – the inaccurately dubbed “Ground Zero Mosque” – to make repeated bitter denunciations of Islam. Immigration was not completely ignored: Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, in a list of complaints, denounced the White House for being an administration “whose idea of a rogue state is Arizona,” and the Heritage Foundation sponsored a workshop on “The Real Cost of Illegal Immigration.” But the real energy was in attacking Islam, which was a primary focus of remarks by Bill Bennett and Gary Bauer.
 
5) Pursuit of Happiness With an Asterisk: Gays Need Not Apply
 
Not surprisingly, all the talk about individual liberty being at the core of our national identity did not extend to the freedom of gay and lesbian Americans to pursue happiness by marrying the person they love. Several speakers exhorted attendees to help mobilize conservative voters in Iowa to turn out for upcoming retention elections and vote against Iowa Supreme Court justices who ruled that denying gay couples the freedom to marriage violated the state’s constitution. The American Family Association’s Bryan Fischer, who insisted that there is no confusion about what is right in the sight of God and what is evil in the sight of God, said that politicians who support, defend, and promote “counterfeits” to marriage (which include not only marriage equality but also civil unions and domestic partnerships) are doing something evil and deserve condemnation. Fischer repeated Religious Right claims that LGBT equality and religious liberty are incompatible: “we are going to have to choose between the homosexual agenda and religious liberty because we simply cannot have both.”
 
The federal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell law which forbids gay members of the Armed Forces for serving openly and honestly, was also high on speakers’ minds. Sen. James Inhofe urged people to call their senators in advance of a scheduled vote on a defense authorization bill that would include language to overturn Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell as well as language that would, in his words, turn military hospitals into abortion clinics. 

2012 Candidates Weekly Update 9/21/10

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Tuesday, 9/21/2010 10:39 am

Your update on the potential 2012 Presidential candidates for 9/14-9/21:

Mitch Daniels

2012: Newt Gingrich says Daniels should run for President (Courier & Press, 9/21).

Economy: Attends Chamber of Commerce event in Indianapolis (WIBC, 9/20).

PAC: Leadership PAC runs ads encouraging IN voters to support Republicans (Politico, 9/19).

Newt Gingrich

Religious Right: Demands ban on Sharia Law’s use in US Courts (TPM, 9/18).

Health Care: Calls for HHS Sec. Kathleen Sebelius’ resignation, compares her service to “Soviet tyranny” (Politico, 9/18).

GOP: Headlines fundraiser for the Minnesota GOP (Star Tribune, 9/17).

Obama: Gingrich attacked by critics for pushing over the top anti-Obama rhetoric (NY Daily News, 9/20).

Mike Huckabee

Obama: Criticizes President’s treatment of Christians (Newsmax, 9/17).

GOP: “Thrilled” about the defeat of “establishment” candidate in primaries (Huffington Post, 9/20).

2010: Expects a Republican wave in home state of Arkansas (Arkansas Democrat Gazette, 9/20).

Sarah Palin

Iowa: Speaks at Iowa’s Ronald Reagan Dinner, tells Fox News she may “give it a shot” to Presidential run (NY Daily News, 9/18).

2012: Wins straw poll of presidential prospects at RightNation convention (Chicago Sun-Times, 9/20).

2010: Tweets to Delaware’s Christine O’Donnell with a warning against “appeasing nat'l media” that’s “seeking ur destruction” (The Hill, 9/19).

Religious Right: FRC head Tony Perkins suggests that Palin is a “cheerleader” rather than a presidential candidate (Politico, 9/18).

Media: Claims that journalists disrespect fallen troops when they “tell lies” about her (Des Moines Register, 9/17).

Poll: Rasmussen survey says slight majority of Americans identify more with Palin’s views than Obama’s (Rasmussen Reports, 9/20).

Tim Pawlenty

2010: Fundraising for GOP gubernatorial nominee Scott Walker in Wisconsin (AP, 9/20).

Economy: WSJ profiles Governors like Pawlenty and others who visited China (WSJ, 9/20).

Mike Pence

Religious Right: Indiana Congressman wins a plurality of votes at Values Voter Summit’s 2012 straw poll (MSNBC, 9/18).

2012: Speaks to conservative Hillsdale College about the Presidency (EducationNews, 9/21).

2010: Defends Christine O’Donnell in Delaware from attacks (CNN, 9/20).

Mitt Romney

New Hampshire: Romney’s Leadership PAC endorses and donates to victors of GOP primaries (Politics Daily, 9/18).

Religious Right: Lashes out at Obama’s economic and social policies, “counterfeit” values at Values Voter Summit (Religion Dispatches, 9/20).

Poll: Leads 2012 pack with 22% support from Republicans (Public Policy Polling, 9/12).

2010: Going to Florida to stump for Gov hopeful Rick Scott (Daily Sun, 9/20).

Rick Santorum

South Carolina: Tests message in early primary state (Daily Caller, 9/16).

Religious Right: Says that families don’t exist in poor neighborhoods (CBS News, 9/17).

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 9/20/2010 5:51 pm
  • Rep. Mike Pence won the Values Voter Straw Poll.

  • The Religious Right is confident that its issues will be included in the forthcoming House GOP Contract with America.

  • Mike Huckabee says "contrary to published reports I believe that there is a way to cover people with pre-existing conditions" and says they "should be covered and can be covered by individual states creating pools that provide coverage for people in high-risk categories."

  • Bryan Fischer continues to pen column after column rooted entirely in his own ignorance, declaring with finality that "we have won the global warming debate."

  • Apparently, Christine O'Donnell's past statements are too much for even CWA to defend, leaving them to simply attack the media and conservative men. 

  • Quote of the day from Peter Sprigg opposing repeal of DADT on the grounds that it'll force the US taxpayers to support all those soldiers who get AIDS: "This creates a financial problem, since taxpayers will have to pay for the health care of HIV-infected service members for the rest of their lives through the military and veterans’ health programs."

  • The AFA's Don Wildom received the James C. Dobson Vision and Leadership Award at the Values Voter Summit - here is the intro video they produced:

Strong Morning Tea for Values Voters

Submitted by Peter Montgomery on Friday, 9/17/2010 2:09 pm

 

We, the morning people, started the day with a breakfast hosted by Liberty University and Liberty Counsel, which promised to help us oldsters understand the Millennial Generation (defined here as born since 1980). Schooling us were two Millennials, Rev. Johnnie Moore, a VP and campus pastor at Liberty, and Dr. Johsua Straub, from the American Association of Christian Counselors.
 
Millennials, it turns out, are distrusting and disillusioned and have a “mangled” foundation of truth, based on their parents’ divorces and the cultural sewer they have grown up in, yet they’re still optimistic and passionate about trying to make a difference in the world.
 
The good news, say Moore and Straub, is that Millennials believe in God, are anti-abortion, and have moved away from the Democratic Party since 2008. The bad news is that many of them have fled organized religion, have little taste for partisan politics, tend to cohabit with partners before marriage, and support gay couples’ freedom to marry. The key to engaging Millennials, they say, is not with a hard political message, but with a “relational” approach. Everyone in attendance was urged to find their own “Timothy” and devote time to being a mentor.
 
So clearly the audience for the Friday morning session was not the turned-off-by-politics Millennials described at breakfast. Friday’s session was a parade of harsh partisan attacks on Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Barack Obama,and anyone who supports their America-destroying values. The session featured Religious Right and Tea Party folk heroes like Sens. James Inhofe and Jim DeMint and Rep. Michele Bachmann, as well as potential presidential contenders Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, and Rep. Mike Pence. Huckabee backers handed Huck PAC stickers and signs to people on the way in, hoping to boost his showing in the presidential straw poll.
 
The overriding theme of the morning – other than speakers trying to out-do each other in their hatred of “Washington” and the Democratic leadership – was the impossibility of separating the anti-government message of the Tea Party from the “traditional values” message of the Religious Right.   One speaker after another hammered home the message: the breakdown in family values creates dysfunctional people that have to rely on government services we can no longer afford. Sen. DeMint declared that you can’t be a true fiscal conservative if you don’t accept that our culture is founded in Judeo-Christian values.
 
Get used to hearing about American exceptionalism, because that’s the rhetorical glue that right-wing leaders are using to bind economic and social conservatives. America is unique because we don’t want government to take care of us, and we can only survive that way if Americans turn back to God, oppose abortion, and keep gay couples from getting married. An interminable Heritage Foundation video declared that “faith is necessary for liberty.”
 
And don’t even get started on gays in the military. Sen Inhofe used his time to urge people to contact their senators and oppose an upcoming defense authorization vote because it will include language repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and permitting abortion in military hospitals.
 
Also on display were typical cheap shots at “Washington elites,” like those who Michele Bachmann said believed that Values Voter participants should be feared because they’re people of faith, and boringly predictable jingoism like Mitt Romney’s concluding applause line that America is a force for good and we’re just not going to apologize for it. Now that’s bold. Just imagine what we’ll hear from Rick Santorum and Gary Bauer this afternoon. Not to mention Christine O’Donnell.
 
 

2010 Right Wing Candidates Weekly Update

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Wednesday, 9/15/2010 11:12 am

With the Tea Party on the march, RightWingWatch will now feature weekly updates every Wednesday detailing the activities and controversies of the right-wing candidates running for US Senate this year.

Sharron Angle

Polls: Mason Dixon shows Reid leading 46-45%, and Ipsos has Reid up 46-44% (Politics Daily, 9/12; Reuters, 9/14).

Ad: Reid calls out Angle for controversial vote on domestic violence (CNN, 9/13).

Debate: Asserts that she withdrew from debate because she wants “an informed electorate” (Las Vegas Sun, 9/14).

Lawsuit: Las Vegas Review-Journal sues Angle for printing stories without the newspaper’s permission (AP, 9/14).

Palin: Hopes that Sarah Palin will rally the NV GOP base (Las Vegas Sun, 9/14)

Latinos: Angle’s problems finding Latino supporters (AP, 9/10).

GOP: Republican gubernatorial candidate Brian Sandoval distances himself from Angle in interview (Las Vegas Sun, 9/10).

Ken Buck

Website: After primary, Buck’s website changes language on issue-pages regarding abortion, stem-cell research and immigration (Denver Post, 9/8).

Debate: Holds aggressive debate with Bennet in Grand Junction (ABC, 9/12), a second debate is scheduled for Friday.

Carly Fiorina

Economy: Refuses to support Small Business Lending bill, but says it has “many good aspects (AP, 9/14).

Poll: Trails Boxer by 2 percentage points, 46-44%, in latest Fox News poll (San Francisco Chronicle, 9/14).

Joe Miller

GOP: Mitch McConnell sends Miller a $5000 contribution, asks Sen. Murkowski to “move on,” NRSC pledges to spend $170,000 (Anchorage Daily News, 9/14; Fairbanks Daily News-Miner; 9/10).

Government: Miller criticized for views on federal government’s land ownership (The Mudflats, 9/13).

Christine O’Donnell

Victory: Upsets Congressman Mike Castle, 53-47% (Politico, 9/15).

Abstinence: Video from MTV shows O’Donnell, then head of Savior's Alliance for Lifting the Truth, speaking against masturbation (TPM, 9/14).

Rove: Trades barbs with Karl Rove (Washington Post, 9/15).

GOP: Castle unlike to endorse, campaign suggests that NRSC stays out of race (The Hill, 9/14).

Rand Paul

GOP: Calls out Republicans in Congress for failing to cut spending (AP, 9/12).

Ad: Claims that Health Care Reform “puts Washington bureaucrats in charge” in new ad, NRSC also on the air criticizing HCR (CBS News, 9/8; HuffPo, 9/14).

Palin: Fundraiser with Sarah Palin set for 9/16 (Courier-Journal, 9/13).

Dino Rossi

Poll: Murray leads Rossi 50-41% in new Elway poll (Seattle Times, 9/13)

Trial: Building Industry Association of Washington, a big Rossi backer, on trial for skimming finances for campaign purposes (Bellingham Herald, 9/14).

Economy: Says that Obama’s $50 billion infrastructure plan “makes no sense whatsoever” (King 5, 9/6).

Marco Rubio

Religious Right: David Barton of WallBuilders to headline event with Rubio (Orlando Politics Press, 9/14).

Poll: Rubio leads by double-digits in new Fox News poll (Political Wire, 9/14).

GOP: State Party’s internal audit clears Rubio on abusing Party-issued credit card, Crist campaign cries foul (St. Petersburg Times, 9/13).

Social Security: Says he opposes privatization but supports Bush-proposed “personal retirement accounts” (ReidReport, 9/14).

Economy: Supports extending all of the Bush tax-cuts (Orlando Sentinel, 9/14).

NOM: Desperate in DC

Submitted by Peter Montgomery on Saturday, 9/11/2010 12:09 pm

As we’ve been reporting, the National Organization for Marriage has been pumping money into Washington D.C.’s Democratic Party primaries in order to make good on its threat to punish elected officials who supported the District’s marriage equality law. With NOM’s mayoral candidate Leo Alexander barely registering in the polls (one percent among likely voters), and its candidate for the at-large council seat knocked off the ballot for failing to collect sufficient valid signatures, NOM’s last best hope seems to be helping Ward 5 council candidate Delano Hunter make a respectable showing this Tuesday, September 14. 

To make that happen, NOM is pouring its resources into attacks on Ward 5 Councilmember Harry ‘Tommy’ Thomas. We recently noted the chutzpah it took for NOM, which has bragged about efforts to get “white suburban Christian Republicans”  to fund anti-equality candidates in DC, to send voters a flyer complaining about a fictional flood of “outside” money from San Francisco and New York supposedly attacking Hunter.
 
NOM’s latest flyer is even worse. It seems calculated for maximum divisiveness, featuring a rich, snooty, white guy looking down his nose at voters with claims that “DC Elites” are disrespecting voters in majority-Black Ward 5 by preventing a referendum on marriage equality. The flyer’s theme fits with comments by Bishop Harry Jackson, who has worked tirelessly to inflame racial divisions over the issue.
 
Hunter, who lost badly to Thomas in a recent straw poll of Ward 5 Democrats, didn’t help himself during a Friday debate on “The Politics Hour,” a local public radio show. He's the only one of four candidates who does not support marriage equality and had a hard time giving a clear answer about his position. By the end of the show he was pushed into promising that if elected he wouldn’t try to change the law. So what exactly is NOM hoping to get from its six-figure investment in DC’s elections? I guess an Election Day margin between Thomas and Hunter that will allow NOM leaders to come up with some face-saving spin about their failed efforts to start the “war” that Jackson promised marriage equality would bring to D.C.:
 
 

Fischer: Muslims Know They Need Christians To Keep Them From Killing Each Other

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Wednesday, 9/8/2010 11:57 am

Last month, Bryan Fischer declared that the war in Iraq had been an epic failure and that our soldiers had died for nothing because we had failed to topple Islam's dominance in the country. 

As Fischer saw it, the only thing that had kept Iraq functioning under Saddam Hussein was that "Christians to help him run the country [because] Christians were the only decent, trustworthy, honest people he could find." When Hussein was toppled, it left Iraq in the hands of Muslims and "Islam simply doesn’t produce men with the kind of character and integrity needed to run a country."

Today Fischer is back and pointing to a poll showing nearly 60% of Iraqis disagree with the decision to withdraw US soliders as evidence proof Muslims know that they are incapable of living in peace and need to be controlled by Christians who can keep them all from killing one another:

How can this be? How is it possible that the Muslims in Iraq long for a Christian army to stay in their land? Simple. They know that Islam is a violent, bloodthirsty religion and that their nation will lapse into uncontrollable chaos once Christian America is no longer projecting force there.

In other words, the Iraqis are Islamorealists. They know instinctively, confirmed by long years of experience, that it is impossible to build or sustain a democratic form of government in an Islamic land. Islam is about domination, control, and tyranny. While Christianity expands through persuasion, Islam - each variant of it - expands at the point of a sword.

There is no such thing as “We the People” in an Islamic country. It is “I the Prophet” everywhere. The Prophet and his Qur’an excercises controlling power, not a democratically elected government or democratically adopted constitution.

...

Iraqi Muslims know that if they do not have a Christian army to protect them, they will soon see the disappearance of any semblance of freedom.

Is Islam a religion of violence and war while Christianity is a religion of peace and stability? CBS asked the Iraqis, and they just gave us the answer.

Back in July, Fischer was saying that the US needed to get out of Iraq and Afghanistan if all we were doing was creating Islamic states, so it becoming pretty clear that Fischer believes that the central goal of any US military operation ought to be to place Christians in control over non-Christian nations.

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 9/7/2010 5:33 pm
  • The straw poll at the Values Voter Summit will include Michele Bachmann, Jan Brewer, Chris Christie, Mitch Daniels, Jim DeMint, Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee, Bobby Jindal, Bob McDonnell, Sarah Palin, Ron Paul, Tim Pawlenty, Mike Pence, Marco Rubio, Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan and Rick Santorum.

  • WND's Joseph Farah will debate GOProud's Chris Barron at WND's Take Back America conference.

  • The Catholic League's Bill Donohue blasts "Burn a Koran Day."

  • The World Conference of Families comes out against California's Proposition 19.

  • Rifqa Bary has gained permanent residency in the United States.

  • Relentless GOP obstruction is leaving President Obama's judicial nominees in limbo and vacant seats unfilled.

  • Finally, Cliff Kincaid set out to defend Sarah Palin from the recent Vanity Fair profile, but ended up writing mostly about Manhunt.

NOM's Capital Chutzpah

Submitted by Peter Montgomery on Wednesday, 9/1/2010 9:34 am

The National Organization for Marriage, which has been pouring money into District of Columbia elections to punish officials who supported DC’s  new marriage equality law, has sent voters in the city’s Ward 5 a lurid campaign piece supporting an anti-marriage-equality candidate (see below) and warning that “Outside Special Interests are Targeting Delano Hunter.” 

Thousands of dollars from homosexual activists outside Ward 5 are attacking Delano Hunter because he supports our right to vote on whether the District legalizes ‘gay marriage.’
 
Radical, gay marriage activists are flooding Ward 5 with money to defeat Delano Hunter, not because they don’t like his plan to improve our community, but only because he supports the Biblical definition of marriage.
 
The outside gay activists don’t care about our right to home rule and right to vote on gay marriage. They only care about their agenda to redefine marriage. Don’t let them target Delano Hunter.
 
Of course, flooding states with “outside special interest” money is NOM’s own modus operandi.
 
In July, we noted that NOM’s Brian Brown was bragging about the formation of the DC Values PAC:
 
Bishop Jackson's heroic leadership has lead to something no one has ever seen before: a coalition of black Democrats leaders and white suburban Christian Republicans to help elect pro-marriage and pro-life black Democrats in the District of Columbia. 
 
Outside money, anyone? The August 10 filing for the DC Values PAC at the DC Office of Campaign Finance showed that the PAC had raised $3,275 – of which $2,500 was from outside the District of Columbia, including $1000 from Maryland-based “Harry Jackson Jr. Enterprises Inc.”
 
NOM itself reported making $82,446.40 in independent expenditures in July, with all but $4000 of that going to King & Associates for production and distribution of flyers attacking the mayor and councilmembers who had voted for marriage equality legislation. (A campaign finance report from June had shown another $60,900 going to King & Associates, which is run by Ward 5 Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Bob King.) 
 
In addition, NOM donated more than 85 percent of the income reported by Stand4Marriage DC’s initiative effort in its July 31 filing - $40,000 out of $46,122. In an intriguing twist, almost every single contributor in that report is listed as living in DC, even though the zip codes and city names make it clear that many are from around the country. Among the reported contributors are those residing in Nashville, DC; San Diego, DC; and Tucson, DC.
 
Hunter is challenging incumbent Councilmember Harry Thomas, whose support for marriage equality legislation generated some heated opposition and made him a top NOM target. In an August 23 straw poll held by the Ward 5 Democrats, Thomas handily defeated Hunter, 613 to 239, with two other candidates far behind. The Democratic primary will be held September 14.

Human Events Posts Letter From "God" Telling Obama To Be a Better Christian

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 8/19/2010 1:11 pm

In light of the new poll showing that a significant section of the population mistakenly believes President Obama is a Muslim, Human Events has posted a letter from God telling Obama that it is his own fault:

Why is it that everyone in the country knows you like to golf/play basketball, but they don’t know your religion? Don’t blame it on the media or George W. Bush. Blame it on how you prioritize your time.

I’ve given you the freedom to worship however you choose. But choosing to worship as a Christian comes with responsibilities, particularly if you’ve also chosen to put yourself in a public leadership position.

And right now, looking at your record, you seem to be doing anything but leading by example.

It’s impossible for people to judge without a doubt what’s in your heart and what your intentions are. That’s my job. But that’s also why I’ve set up a system on earth where actions speak as loud as words. So let’s make correcting your record a top priority.

First, take your kids to church. Regularly. Particularly on Christmas. You missed last year. Think I didn’t notice?

I know you’re worried about inconveniencing church-goers in D.C. That’s gracious of you. But looking at your dismal approval ratings, I think more Americans -- even those dealing with the inconvenience -- would feel better seeing you in church asking for help rather than you just staying away.

Second, when you’re in church, actually pay attention to what the pastor is saying. I’m not really sure how you stayed 20 years at a church where the pastor’s philosophy was more radical than anything even the Democrats have accused the Tea Party of. I don’t know how you let a man baptize your daughters and marry you that believes God should “d$5#” America. That tells me your Christian faith may not be very important to you.

Third, if you can fit in this many games of golf, you can fit in going to church more regularly.

I understand you want to be ecumenical. But a great tool in being ecumenical is being the best example of your own faith. People respect someone who acts like they believe what they’re saying.

So, have a good vacation. See you on Sunday?

~ God

Glenn Beck Is On A Mission From God

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 8/16/2010 4:19 pm

For months now, Glenn Beck has been regularly featuring David Barton of Wallbuilders on his program and so I guess it was only a matter of time that Beck showed up as a guest on Barton's radio program, which is what happened today.

Beck came on to discuss how his upcoming Restoring Honor rally is being orchestrated by God to unleash revival upon America:

Beck: I think this is an opportunity to gather God's people together and wake people up. And I just have this feeling that this is the beginning of something gigantic in this country, that it is spiritual awakening.

What's going to happen there will raise the hair on your arms. What's going to happen there you will never, ever forget and I promise you, then next day when you read about it - if the press covers it - you will say "oh my gosh, I wish I would have been there." This will go into the history book.

This is Divine Providence. This is the Lord's hand at work. This is a miracle.

Barton: And it really is. It's an intervention of God. And a lot of times when he shows up, it's not the way you thought he was going to show up, but man the results are always his and it's really good the way it works out.

Beck: And that's kind of the point of 8/28: you just have to stand where the Lord wants you to stand. He'll explain it to you when the time comes.

You can feel the presence of the Lord. I mean, the Spirit is so strong. When you two hundred, three hundred, five hundred thousand people on the Mall in that space right there between Washington and Lincoln with the Reflecting Poll - a spiritual space in our nation - the Spirit of the Lord is going to be unleashed like I think you've never felt it before.

Any Group With Just 15% Support Should Not Be Calling Anyone an "Ideologue"

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 6/29/2010 5:19 pm

Outside of the incessant Twittering of the Judicial Crisis Network's Carrie Severino, I haven't seen much commentary from the Right on Elena Kagan's hearing today ... and the few things I have seen have tended to be along the line of this ridiculous press release from the American Life League:

"Elena Kagan has revealed herself as the pro-abortion activist she is. The 'health of the mother' exception has long been code for abortion on demand for any reason under the sun - including financial 'health.'

"Kagan's position is clearly opposed by the majority of Americans who self-identify as pro-life. While we are not shocked that an Obama nominee would be anything but rabidly pro-death, we are compelled to demand representation from our elected leaders: this pro-abortion ideologue is not fit to serve on the Supreme Court.

While poll results may show that a bare plurality of Americans consider themselves "pro-life," a whopping 80% believe that the option should be available in certain circumstances ... like for "the health of the mother":

Only 15% believe abortion should be illegal in all circumstances, which is the position held by the American Life League .. and yet ALL claims that it is Kagan who is the extremist ideologue.

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 6/22/2010 5:49 pm
  • PFAW: New PFAW Poll Shows Americans Want Action to Correct Citizens United.

  • Amanda Marcotte: Conservative Feminism: The Idea That Women Are Too Stupid To Know the Difference.

  • David Weigel: Honolulu city clerk debunks new 'birther' theory.

  • TPM: Fundraising Group Led By GOP All-Stars Falling Short Of Goals.

  • Alan Colmes: Thomas Sowell: Obama “Dismantling” Democracy Much Like Hitler Did.

  • Finally, do you have a Twitter account?  Ours is now being written by a real live person: Me! So follow us. 

She Might Not Have A Radio Show, But She Has A Blog

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 6/22/2010 12:13 pm

A few weeks back, Janet Porter asked her supporters what would cause them to visit her Faith 2 Action website more frequently and among the top responses was "regular updates or blog postings by Janet."

Of course, that choice only received 8 votes, but since only 44 votes were cast in total, that was enough to put it among the leading suggestions. 

As such, Porter has responded by launching a new blog and using her very first post to announce that while her radio program is off the air indefinitely, she'll be contributing daily commentaries to American Family Association Radio, and still trying to defend her May Day prayer rally (which cost her her own radio program in the fist place) by claiming attendance was "in the thousands" with "viewership in the millions":  

Let me start by thanking all those who have prayed for and supported Faith2Action. You have helped make possible many of the things we have done together over the years, including the Presidential debate in 2007, the How to Take Back America conference last fall, and the Israel Friendship Project this spring, in which 30,000 yellow roses were sent to encourage Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the people of Israel.

Thanks also to all those who have contributed through your time, prayer, and financial support to May Day. God was honored that day. We were blessed with a beautiful, warm day, safety in travel, and no major technical or security problems. All of these things were answers to prayer. There were also scores of people (that we know about) who humbly prayed for Jesus to become their Savior and Lord that day. Praise God! The overall attendance was in the thousands, and viewership in the millions, but whether it was enough to withhold God’s judgment and give our nation another chance remains to be seen. We obeyed God and stood in the gap, the results are up to Him.

While we are no longer airing our daily radio program, the good news is that the 60-second daily Faith2Action commentaries will be back up and running this month, thanks to our partners at the American Family Association. They have agreed to produce and air them on their American Family Radio (AFR) network at 1:15 p.m. Eastern (12:15 p.m. Central), along with the Bott Radio Network, and others.

We are also in pre-production of “True 2 Life the Movie.” It’s a true romantic comedy that includes my work in Ohio to pass the nation’s first ban on partial-birth abortion. You’ll hear more about that in upcoming entries!

Porter's claim that thousands attended is laughable, since Truth Wins Out's Wayne Besen was there and he estimated the crowd at less than 300.

Is anyone surprise that Porter would lie in her inaugural blog post?

Don't Forget About Huckabee in 2012

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 6/14/2010 4:32 pm

Whenever Mike Huckabee gets asked whether he has any plans to make another run for the White House in 2012, his standard answer is that he's not really thinking about it at the moment as he is focusing on his TV program and various other activities. 

So the Des Moines Register recently conducted a poll asking Iowans about possible 2012 candidates that did not include Huckabee ... and now Huckabee's close associates are complaining: 

Mike Huckabee should still be included on the list of possible Republican presidential candidates, a close associate said Friday.

The former Arkansas governor, who won Iowa’s 2008 Republican caucuses, had indicated he probably would stay out of the 2012 race.

But Hogan Gidley, executive director of his political action committee, said that stance may be changing.

“You know, everybody has a bad day,” Gidley said about Huckabee’s earlier statements. “I would check his actions over the last 24 or 48 hours.”

Gidley later sent a statement from Huckabee saying no decision about his political future will be made until after the mid-term elections.

Gidley, who runs HuckPAC, contacted The Des Moines Register on Friday after the newspaper released an Iowa Poll showing the favorability ratings of possible Republican presidential candidates. The paper excluded Huckabee from the poll because the former Arkansas governor had said he probably wouldn’t run.

I, for one, am quite glad to hear this because I have spent a lot of time chronicling Huckabee's ties to the radical Religious Right fringe and I'd hate to see it all go to waste if he decided not to run.

NOM pouring $ into DC elections

Submitted by Peter Montgomery on Monday, 6/14/2010 11:09 am

We noted last month that flyers sponsored by the National Organization for Marriage had been appearing on front doors around the District of Columbia. The flyers urged people to vote against every elected official who supported marriage equality in DC and is up for reelection this year.

NOM, which has been pouring money into campaigns around the country to punish pro-equality elected officials, was particularly stung by marriage equality’s victory in the nation’s capital. It has been working to overturn that victory in the courts, and it’s now clear just how much NOM is invested in trying to take down at least one pro-equality elected official.  
 
DC’s Gay & Lesbian Activist Alliance has noted a recent campaign finance report in which NOM reported paying outspoken anti-marriage-equality activist Bob King more than $60,000 for distribution of those flyers.  King is an elected Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner in DC’s Ward 5, where anti-marriage-equality rhetoric was strident. Ward 5 Councilmember Harry Thomas, Jr. cast what was almost certainly the riskiest pro-equality vote on the DC Council.  NOM and local anti-gay activists are trying hard to make an example of Thomas, who narrowly won a straw poll at Saturday’s DC Democratic State Convention. Thomas defeated challenger Delano Hunter, “who was well-organized and drew voters who want a referendum on gay marriage,” according to the Washington Post. According to GLAA, King was reportedly working with Bishop Harry Jackson to bus their supporters to the convention.
 
NOM has been bragging about the hundreds of thousands of dollars it dropped into robo-calls against former Rep. Tom Campbell, who opposed California’s Prop. 8 and was recently defeated in the GOP senatorial primary. But on a per-capita basis, the $400,000 NOM spent attacking Campbell pales in comparison with the $60,900 it has already reported spending in DC, with the District's September 14 primary still three months away.

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 6/8/2010 5:42 pm
  • Texas Freedom Network: The Whole Truth about the Confederacy.

  • David Weigel: The sagging popularity of the tea parties.

  • Justin Elliot: Republican Jewish Coalition Hosts Birther Taitz As 'Special Guest' At Annual Bash.

  • Andy Birkey: Bachmann riles New Jersey Tea Partiers with robo-calling.

  • Alvin McEwen: THIS is what a hate attack looks like!

  • Iowa Independent: Mailers focus on gay marriage in HD66 Democratic primary.

  • Jim Burroway: Exodus President Expresses Regret For Uganda Debacle.

  • Towleroad: John Podesta and Robert Levy to Co-Chair Advisory Board of AFER, Currently Fighting Prop 8 in Federal Court.

Roy Moore: "You Can’t Be Happy If You Don’t Follow God’s Laws"

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 5/18/2010 12:12 pm

Oddly, ever since we noted last year that infamous Ten Commandment judge Roy Moore was seeking the GOP nomination for Governor in Alabama, we haven't written much about him. 

And it is not because we haven't been paying attention, but rather because he seems to have really focused on his race and worked on cutting down on his crazy-talk, resulting in the very real possibility that he might actually be able to come out on top on the primary in two weeks, at least according to recent polls.

Bus as the race comes down to the wire, it looks like Moore is going to be placing more emphasis on how, if elected, he'll make sure that Alabama's follows "God's law": 

Over the clink of plates and cutlery, Republican hopeful and former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore reaffirmed his belief in strict interpretations of the U.S. and Alabama constitutions and an unwavering belief in God’s law as a foundation of American democracy.

...

Moore said the U.S. has the best form of government that has ever existed and one firmly founded on a belief in God as the source of basic rights.

“President after president have recognized that our constitution exists because there is a God,” he said.

Moore also said the happiness mentioned in the Declaration of Independence is synonymous with the idea of justice as defined in the Bible.

“You can’t be happy if you don’t follow God’s laws,” he said. “If you follow God’s law, you can’t help but be happy.”

Wildmon: Polls Are "Hogwash"

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Friday, 5/7/2010 11:59 am

The American Family Association's Tim Wildmon says it is "hogwash" to claim that the Tea Party movement is in any way motivated by racism: 

In America, if you are called a racist by certain people you are guilty until proven innocent.

Take nationally syndicated columnist Leonard Pitts, for example. He used a recent column to declare the Tea Party movement one driven by racism due to the fact that President Barack Obama is an African-American. What hogwash.

Pitts wrote a racial profile of the Tea Party movement this way: "They tend to be white, Republican, male, over 45 and wealthier than the rest of us."

Again I say, hogwash!

Of course, Pitts wrote that the Tea Party movement tends to be "white, Republican, male, over 45 and wealthier than the rest of us" precisely because that is what polls have found:

Tea Party supporters are wealthier and more well-educated than the general public, and are no more or less afraid of falling into a lower socioeconomic class, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.

The 18 percent of Americans who identify themselves as Tea Party supporters tend to be Republican, white, male, married and older than 45.

But apparently pointing out that polls reveal that Tea Party activists tend to be white, male, Republicans, over 45 is "hogwash" ... says Wildom, a white, male, Republican Tea Party activst (presumably) over the age of 45.

But even worse, it is blatant attempt to play the race card against a bunch of white, male, Republicans over 45 who just so happen to be the only ones capable of seeing that President Obama is destroying America:

And even it were true, what does any of that have to do with being deeply troubled, upset, and angered by the massive expansion of the federal government by both Congress and the White House? Maybe white, Republican males over 45 and wealthier than the rest simply see clearly what is happening to America and they don't like it. That does not make the Tea Party movement racist.

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Right Wing Leftovers
SUBMITTED BY: Kyle Mantyla, Tuesday 04/12/2011, 5:38pm
Rick Santorum has won the all-important Pacific Homeschool Super Conference straw poll. On a related note, if all the other possible GOP candidates would drop out, Sarah Palin would be in the lead. Rep. Michele Bachmann blasts judges: "They are not put there to make the decisions." Really? It is pathetically obvious that Donald Trump as literally zero understanding of the social conservatives or what they want. Finally, it looks like Sally Kern's anti-Sharia legislation is dead. MORE
Religious Right Panics Over Marriage Equality
SUBMITTED BY: Brian Tashman, Tuesday 04/12/2011, 3:57pm
During The Awakening’s panel on “Messaging and Mobilizing a New General of World Changers,” the fear of swelling youth support for marriage equality laws was widespread. Religious Right activists were particularly worried about the results of a recent ABC News/Washington Post poll that found that not only did 53 percent of Americans favor marriage equality, but that support was even stronger among younger Americans: “In an ABC/Post poll five and a half years ago, for example, under-30s were the sole age group to give majority support to gay marriage, at 57 percent.... MORE
Fischer Likens Boehner To Pontius Pilate Over Planned Parenthood Compromise
SUBMITTED BY: Brian Tashman, Tuesday 04/12/2011, 11:00am
Bryan Fischer’s recent attacks on African Americans, Native Americans, Muslim Americans, and the Constitution haven’t seemed to bother leading Republicans, who consistently appear on his show. But now, Fischer is going after the highest-ranking Republican official in the country: House Speaker John Boehner. As part of the budget compromise to avert a government shutdown, Boehner withdrew the Republicans’ extreme and unpopular policy rider to defund Planned Parenthood. Defunding the women’s health organization was on the top of the agenda for Religious Right groups.... MORE
2012 Candidates Weekly Update 4/12/11
SUBMITTED BY: Brian Tashman, Tuesday 04/12/2011, 9:36am
Michele Bachmann Iowa: Slams marriage equality in speech to The Family Leader (Politico, 4/11). Religious Right: Wins straw poll at Liberty University's The Awakening 2011 (Freedom Federation, 4/11).  Budget: Refuses to endorse budget compromise (NPR, 4/11).  Haley Barbour Background: Experience as a lobbyist may make problems for campaign (AP, 4/12). New Hampshire: Traveling to Republican events in New Hampshire this week (Boston Globe, 4/11). Herman Cain South Carolina: Talks about the "ultimate destruction of the IRS" at Furman University (CSBT, 4/9). ... MORE
Right Wing Leftovers
SUBMITTED BY: Kyle Mantyla, Monday 04/11/2011, 5:40pm
Rep. Michele Bachmann won the straw poll at this weekend's Awakening 2011. On a related note, Mitt Romney has officially launched an exploratory committee. CBN's David Brody is actually dedicating an entire episode of his half-hour TV program to Donald Trump's presidential campaign. Did you know that Trump is a lunatic? Finally, I am really getting the feeling that GOProud will not be back at CPAC next year. MORE
2012 Candidates Weekly Update 4/5/11
SUBMITTED BY: Brian Tashman, Tuesday 04/05/2011, 10:02am
Michele Bachmann Iowa: Hires Mike Huckabee’s former state director for campaign (MN Public Radio, 4/4). Religious Right: Slated to speak at Family Leader events (Des Moines Register, 4/4). Fundraising: Tops Mitt Romney in fundraising (Time, 4/1). Obama: Says President Obama is deliberately damaging the economy (RWW, 3/31). Haley Barbour 2012: Wife concerned about presidential race, says bid “horrifies” her (Reuters, 4/2). Mississippi: Economic conservatives criticize Barbour’s record as governor (Politico, 4/2). Poll: Trails Huckabee in poll of home state’s... MORE
Wilson: Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Repeal An "Insult" To Democracy
SUBMITTED BY: Brian Tashman, Friday 04/01/2011, 11:54am
As part of the House GOP’s efforts to thwart the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) of the House Arms Services personnel subcommittee is holding a hearing this morning on the implementation of the repeal policy. Wilson wants to see Don’t Ask Don’t Tell reinstated and at least twenty-five House Republicans have signed on to legislation that would effectively block the repeal from going forward. Moreover, likely GOP presidential candidates Mike Huckabee, Tim Pawlenty and Haley Barbour have came out publically to support reinstatement. Large... MORE