As campaign season cranks into high-gear, heavy hitters are making their way down to Texas for a few marquee fundraisers in support of various Congressional candidates. Now, you can tell a lot about a candidate by whom they choose to draw in the high rollers. Seems to me that the Republicans down here in Texas are increasingly relying on the crazy fringe to bring out the checkbooks and media attention. Let's take a look at who's traveling down to Texas to raise the big bucks:
Candidate
Special Guest
John Carter, TX-31 -- Round Rock Republican, recently described health care bill as "Death for the Baby Boomers, Jail for the Middle Class, Free Healthcare for Illegal Aliens," on his own website, no less.
Michele Bachmann, MN-6 -- Fox News' favorite census conspiracy theorist and global-warming denier. Hosted fundraiser for Carter on October 17 in Cedar Park.
Michael McCaul, TX-10 -- Unremarkable Republican incumbent and heir-in-law to ClearChannel fortune. Misrepresents gerrymandered chunks of Austin, Harris County, and some of everything in between.
Rush Limbaugh -- Famous radio hate-monger, failed hypothetical NFL owner, McCaul's Daddy-in-Law's heavy hitter. Attended fundraiser for McCaul with Governor Rick Perry in May 2009 at undisclosed location.
Jack McDonald, TX-10 -- Self-made entrepreneur, chairman of Perficient. Leader in the Austin business and philanthropic community. Unstoppable fundraiser, drawing strong bipartisan support in R+11 district.
Dr. Madeleine Albright -- Secretary of State and Ambassador to the UN during Clinton Administration. Also, not a crazy hate-merchant dragging political discourse down into ever-deeper gutter. Special guest at fundraising brunch on October 30 for Jack McDonald at MPower Labs.
As if the Texas Republicans in Congress weren't inane enough, they need to import the likes of Limbaugh and Bachmann to do their fundraising for them? Limbaugh openly hopes for the Obama administration to fail and compares Obama to Hitler. Bachmann blames Obama for the swine flu outbreak and refuses to fill out her census form because she thinks it's an ACORN plot to steal her private information. (Seriously.)
Meanwhile, McCaul's challenger, the completely-not-insane Jack McDonald, is drawing serious support to his campaign from legitimate leaders such as Dr. Albright and talking about how the people of TX-10 can gain real representation in Congress on issues such as the economy, health care, and clean energy.
Currently, John Carter has no challenger to offer the people of Bell and Williamson County actual representation in Congress. But Central Texans can unite behind Jack McDonald, and make sure that the people of Texas' 10th District send a strong Representative to work on their behalf in D.C.
Meanwhile, the voters of TX-10 need to ask themselves: "Who better represents me and my views in Congress? ...
... Rush Limbaugh and Michael McCaul? Or Jack McDonald and Madeleine Albright?"
McDonald's campaign is still in exploratory mode. You can check him out on his website, www.JackForCongress.com, and make a donation or offer to volunteer. It's going to be a good race. Best of all, a McDonald victory may mean 100% less Rush Limbaugh in our backyard. And if that's not a reason to get involved, I don't know what is.
Does Texas Congressman Michael McCaul support the segregation of buses? Because on of his biggest friends -- the infamous Rush Limbaugh -- called for just that today during his radio program.
Then Rush took a caller who said the local police investigating the bus assault said today the attack was not racially motivated. Rush responded to these developments put out by the local law enforcement:
LIMBAUGH: I think the guy's wrong. I think not only it was racism, it was justifiable racism. I mean, that's the lesson we're being taught here today. Kid shouldn't have been on the bus anyway. We need segregated buses -- it was invading space and stuff. This is Obama's America.
Call Congressman Michael McCaul, and ask him to denounce Limbaugh for calling for segegating buses!
Brenham 2000 S. Market Street, Suite 303 Brenham, TX 77833 979-830-8497 979-830-1984 (fax) Office Hours: Monday 1pm – 5pm, Tuesday and Thursday 8am – 5pm CT
Katy 1550 Foxlake, Suite 120 Houston, TX 77084 281-398-1247 Office Hours: by appointment only
Tomball Rosewood Professional Building 990 Village Square, Suite B Tomball, TX 77375 281-255-8372 281-255-0034 (fax) Hours: Monday – Friday, 8am – 5pm CT
Last May, Governor Perry honored Rush Limbaugh as an "honorary Texan" -- and the following video (which we originally posted on BOR) was shot:
Call Congressman McCaul today! Demand that he denounce Rush Limbaugh for asking us to return to the days of segregation! Tell him to end his communications with Rush immediately -- that he must denounce him and never appear with him again.
Perry made a jack*** of himself once again by talking about the non-existent notion of secession. Former bug guy, crook and now Mr. Dancing Pants Tom Delay stepped up to defend his soul mate in funny farm jack***ery.
All hat no head indeed.
This video clip covers three of the biggest right wing lunatics on the planet.
I'd like to remind Mr. Big Government Hating Dancing Pants that his ol' nearby neighborhood, Houston, now boasts the highest number of teenage Moms under 15.
I bet Jack*** the Governor is so very pleased to know that the right wing abstinence program is a resounding success.
Mr. Dancing Pants and his jack*** buddy might also be proud to know that under their watch Texas killed(s) innocent prisoners.
Yesterday I posted a video clip of a former physician/death decider for Humana and Blue Cross/Blue Shield who had testified at a Congressional hearing in 1996. Dr. Peeno admitted that she had made decisions in favor of the profit margins that resulted in the deaths of patients.
Thirteen years later, after the Republicans and health care lobbyists devastated all hopes and efforts at any kind of healthcare reform, the death panels remain in full force today. I suppose this is the reason Sarah Palin suddenly ratcheted down her rhetoric about them. Someone in the GOP likely reminded Ms. Clueless that um, er, silly, silly woman, the insurance companies are knowingly killing off patients. Don't bring attention to it for crying out loud!
Poor, poor short-sighted, seriously uninformed Sarah. That woman does not know when to quit. This time she let the real death panel genie out of its hole in hell.
It was so very naive and silly of me to suggest that the GOP should step up and take responsibility, as any adult would do, by calling a halt to the brown shirt shout downs at town hall meetings on healthcare reform.
Silly, silly me. That won't happen. Never. Ever. Even if hell freezes over and the entire country is in the throes of death, the answer remains to be no, never, in your dreams, not even if hell freezes over.
Despite GOP cries for freedom, its flag waving, its prominence of lapel wearing flag pins, its highly orchestrated scenarios of patriotism and noble words about freedom, the GOP's behavior has nothing to do with any of the principles mentioned above.
Actions speak louder than words. Shouting down and shutting out the questions and opinions that fellow Americans want to ask and share with their elected representative is:
anti-democratic,
anti-patriotic and
anti-American.
When political rhetoric goes over the top, inaction by a party's leadership is the same as blind acquiescence.
According to former right wing Republican and evangelical Christian leader, Frank Schaeffer, the GOP, its conservative pundits and the self-serving corporate sharks in the healthcare industry know no bounds in pulling off what is best for them.
For right wing Republicans, conservative pundits, the corporate sharks and their now enabled fruit loop nut jobs, it is a fight to the death.
Last week I reported on Texas Republicans embrace of Rush Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich (or at least their money) even as these far-right players made racial attacks on the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor. I made reference to Limbaugh's attendance at a fundraiser for Rep. Michael McCaul where he was made an honorary Texan by Gov. Rick Perry.
I know a number of local Democrats were interested in seeing video from that private event which McCaul was hiding the location of until the last minute. Well, Gov. Perry was so kind as to have his staff take video of the event and posted his speech and shoutout of "God Bless Rush Limbaugh" to his campaign's YouTube channel. And McCaul? He's standing by the entire time clapping and grinning at the whole scene. Watch it for yourself.
This isn't a case of guilt by association or proximity (though I can't imagine wanting to be in close proximity to Rush Limbaugh metaphorically or physically). McCaul has yet to repudiate or distance himself from the racially inflamed comments made by Limbaugh and Gingrich which even RNSC chair Sen. John Cornyn has distanced himself from calling them "terrible" and "not the kind of tone that any of us want to set".
And while Limbaugh is still set to headline Cornyn's fundraiser for the RNSC, McCaul is set to benefit from the House Republican committee's fundraiser with Newt Gingrich the same day, next Monday. The DCCC asks the prescient question.
"For five days, Representative Michael McCaul had a simple choice to make: He could strongly denounce Newt Gingrich's shameful rhetoric or stay silent and just take his money," said Ryan Rudominer, National Press Secretary for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "With five days to go until the fundraising dinner with Gingrich, will Representative Michael McCaul finally speak out against the radical right or continue to remain silent and take their campaign cash?"
As we all know, an anti-abortion extremist gunned down and murdered Dr. George Tiller in his church where he served as an usher and his wife sang in the choir. This was the second attempt on the physician's life. In 1993 Dr. Tiller had been wounded by anti-abortion extremists in an unsuccessful assassination attempt. During that same year, Dr. David Gunn was murdered by anti-abortionists in Pensacola.
Records reveal that Tiller's murder suspect has a criminal record and a history of anti-abortion postings on friendly web sites. Apparently the suspect also spends a lot of time at a home known for its strange gatherings.
Neighbors said they've seen a similar car at the house in Merriam. They describe the ongoings at the house as strange. They said it's a revolving door of men coming and staying there and describe what appear to be religious gatherings.
Dr. Tiller has been a target of the right for some time as he was one of the few doctors in the country who would perform late term abortions. A number of right wing TV and radio talk show hosts have made a practice of demonizing Dr. Tiller in an attempt to whip the religious right into frenzy. This time the hate talkers hit the jackpot.
Bill O'Reilly of FOX "News" is one of those who led the charge against Dr. Tiller.
Jed Lewison over at Daily Kos captured the video clip below in which Bill O'Reilly called Dr. Tiller:
National Republican Senate Committee Chairman John Cornyn isn't all to popular these days (and we're not talking about with Democrats). As the chair of the fundraising arms for his Senate colleagues, he's charged with trying to help them claw back to relevance in the upper chamber. So while money and message are very much in his court, he's running into some problems. Namely- his donor base is becoming increasingly conservative making him beholden to the very people that are turning off the voters he needs to win.
So what happens when you mix a NRSC chair who is a Texas Senator and member of the Senate Judiciary Committee with a Latina Supreme Court nominee, a NRSC fundraiser with Rush Limbaugh, and commentary from Newt Gingrich? An epic fail of GOP entertainment.
"Imagine a judicial nominee said 'my experience as a white man makes me better than a latina woman.' Wouldn't they have to withdraw? New racism is no better than old racism. A white man racist nominee would be forced to withdraw. Latina woman racist should also withdraw."
"Here you have a racist - you might want to soften that, and you might want to say a reverse racist," Limbaugh said of Sotomayor on his show.
...
"When the rubber hits the road, such as in this nomination, where are these moderate Republican groups on the nomination? Where are the moderate senators? Where is Colin Powell? Where is Tom Ridge?" Limbaugh asked.
"I'm the one doing the heavy lifting. Colin Powell panders to moderate Republicans," he said. "If the moderates in the Republican Party offer no way to address this danger, then they are useless."
Important to note, Rush Limbaugh is headlining a fundraiser for the NRSC and NRCC on June 8th expected to raise millions for the committees.
John Cornyn's reply? From the Hill...
Q: We've heard Rush Limbaugh and the former House Speaker Newt Gingrich calling Sonia Sotomayor a racist, saying she should withdraw. What do you make of the rhetoric that's tumbling out these days?
A: I think it's terrible. This is not the kind of tone that any of us want to set when it comes to performing our constitutional responsibilities of advice and consent.
Q: Do you worry that language like that harms the discussion? Harms your party's image- especially among Hispanics, where the Republican Party's been losing ground lately?
A: Neither one of these men are elected Republican officials. I just don't think it's appropriate. I certainly don't endorse it. I think it's wrong.
Oh snap. Double snap with his added commentary in talking with KXXV TV (Waco/Killeen) today.
Cornyn took issue with Rush Limbaugh's recent comments about Sotomayor, saying it was a "rush to judgment." Limbaugh had previously called Sotomayor a "bigot" and "reverse racist" among other things. On Friday, Cornyn said "the comments I've seen are comments that I disagree with...It should not make any difference, the ethnicity or a sex of a judge any more than it should make a difference about the ethnicity or race of an umpire in a baseball game. Their job is to call balls and strikes, it's not to somehow impose their perspective because of their ethnicity."
When asked if Limbaugh was wrong to call Sotomayor a "bigot," Cornyn said that questions should be brought up about Sotomayor but "to do so in a civil and dignified proceeding. Name-calling is not the way to get started on the right foot." He also wishes "people would calm down a lot" about discussing Sotomayor's qualifications.
If Cornyn disagrees so much with the leading message and tone coming from Republican Party leaders talk show hosts like Rush Limbaugh then he can show it by making sure Limbaugh's invitation to headline the RNSC's June 8th multi-million dollar fundraiser gets lost in the mail.
Just like Texas Rep. Mike McCaul uninvited Rush Limbaugh from his campaign fundraiser in Houston this week. Photographic evidence of that included below via the Austin American-Statesman.
This Thursday, at an undisclosed location in Houston, the de facto chair of the Republican Party is headlining a fundraiser for Congressman Mike McCaul (TX-10). That's none other than Rush Liimbaugh of course.
Limbaugh and McCaul share a closer connection which his campaign is working to obscure by not even the location of the fundraiser to people invited to it. Let's walk through that close relationship courtesy of the Lone Star Project.
Limbaugh is employed by Clear Channel Communications, which was founded by McCaul's father-in-law, Lowry Mays. Mays pays Limbaugh a reported $38 million per year and gave him a $100 million signing bonus in 2008. (Source: The Wall Street Journal, July 3, 2008)
And there's good reason that McCaul is known as Congressman Clear Channel as evidenced by how well their management and employees line his campaign coffers.
McCaul's Top Contributors: 1) Clear Channel - $140,450 2) Dell Inc - $52,696
3) Zachry Construction - $45,100
4) AT&T Inc - $37,000
5) Loeffler Group - $33,800
(As of May 26, 2009, Source: OpenSecrets.org)
McCaul has shown that he's perfectly happy to accept the public support of Clear Channel and Rush Limbaugh as well as the money from donors who believe that Limbaugh is the GOP's "One True Chairman". Hiding the location of the fundraiser Dick Cheney style isn't going to do anything to cover up the ties between Limbaugh and McCaul. Their desire to see Barack Obama and American fail are still coming in loud and clear(channel).
According to the some of the renowned Viet Nam War draft evaders and right wing war hawks
Dick Cheney, Rush Limbaugh, George W. Bush, Karl Rove, Pat Buchanan, Lou Dobbs, Sean Hannity, Bill Kristol, Bill Blunt, Tom Delay, Newt Gingrich, Rudy Giuliani, Phil Gramm, John Cornyn, Trent Lott, Mitch McConnell, Paul Wolfowitz, Bill O'Reilly, Michael Savage
Nancy Pelosi personally ordered the CIA to find a link between Iraq and Al-Qaida. The GOP sissy boys also insist that when no links between the two evil doers could be found, Nancy the D Girl unilaterally ordered heinous torture to bring about the results the sissy boy cowards needed to gin up their war on Iraq.
Hats off to Ed Shultz of MSNBC for calling the Sissy Boys out on their psycho babble.
Yesterday I posted a 
