Lousetrap

From POLITICAL CORRECTION:

The tragic shootings in Tucson prompted calls for civility from politicians on both sides of the aisle, including Sen. Mark Udall’s (D-CO) proposal for Democrats and Republicans to sit together at the State of the Union. But yesterday on Scott Hennen’s radio show, Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA) — who is best known for his frequent bouts of incivility — vehemently rejected the idea of mixed seating at the presidential address. Responding to a caller who described Udall’s suggestion as a “slap in the face” to conservative voters, Broun [said:]

Our leadership said you do whatever you want to do. If you wanna sit with the Democrats, you can. If you wanna sit with Republicans, that you can. We’re going to have a conference next week and I’m gonna bring that up there. I already believe very firmly that it is a trap and a ruse that Democrats are proposing. They don’t want civility. They want silence from the Republicans. And the sitting together being kissy-kissy is just another way to try to silence Republicans, and also to show — to keep the American people from seeing how few of them there are in the U.S. House now. Then when people stand up to — what the Democrats are going to be doing when Barack Obama spews out all his venom, then, um, if they’re scattered throughout all the Republicans, then it won’t be as noticeable as if we’re sitting apart. So it is a ruse and I’m not in favor of it and I’m talking about it and I hope other members of the Republican conference in the House will not take the bait.

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The Barbour of Incivility

From the Memphis Commercial Appeal:

JACKSON, Miss. — Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour is drawing criticism for proclaiming April as Confederate Heritage Month without mentioning slavery, the second governor this month to come under fire for the omission.

Rep. Robert Johnson, D-Natchez, who is black, said Monday that people need to learn about the “abhorrent, violent, depraved actions of slavery.”

Bob McDonnell, Virginia’s Republican governor, also named April as Confederate History Month, but his original proclamation didn’t mention slavery. After coming under national criticism, McDonnell last week revised it to denounce slavery as “evil and inhumane.”

Barbour, a Republican who helped campaign for McDonnell last year, said Sunday on CNN that slavery was bad but a fuss over McDonnell’s original proclamation “doesn’t amount to diddly.”

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Breaking News: Lt. Gov. Bauer Solves Childhood Obesity Problem

From The State:

GREENVILLE – Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer has compared giving people government assistance to “feeding stray animals.”

Bauer, who is running for the Republican nomination for governor, made his remarks during a town hall meeting in Fountain Inn that included state lawmakers and about 115 residents.

“My grandmother was not a highly educated woman, but she told me as a small child to quit feeding stray animals. You know why? Because they breed. You’re facilitating the problem if you give an animal or a person ample food supply. They will reproduce, especially ones that don’t think too much further than that. And so what you’ve got to do is you’ve got to curtail that type of behavior. They don’t know any better,” Bauer said.

In South Carolina, 58 percent of students participate in the free and reduced-price lunch program.

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Get (Incum)bent!

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The epic 2008 election may yet have a sting in its tail two weeks after election day, as Democrats pin hopes on three yet-to-be decided Senate races which could further tip the balance of power.

In a long-shot scenario, races in Alaska, Georgia and Minnesota could take Democrats to the magic 60-seat threshold which would frustrate Republican obstruction tactics.

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The Politics of Fear and Loathing

From Freep:

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson is urging prayer before Election Day to stave off an imminent Mideast war he said could bring nuclear attacks on the United States.

In a letter on his Web site, http://www.patrobertson.com, Robertson said his opinion was that Israel would bomb Iranian nuclear sites between Nov. 4 and the inauguration of the United States’ new president.

Robertson tied his warning to biblical prophecy.

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Conventional Wisdom, Part III

From Business Week:

Obama Gets His Attack Dog
It can’t be easy hitting the Democratic convention podium after the pair of Clintons and the attendant drama over whether they would, or wouldn’t, be effusive enough in their backing for Barack Obama. No one worried about that when Joe Biden’s turn came to speak. Instead, the drama surrounding the new vice presidential nominee’s speech centered on a simpler question: just how aggressively would he go on the attack against McCain?

Biden Time

From The New York Times:

WASHINGTON — Senator Barack Obama introduced Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. as his running mate on Saturday, a choice that strengthens the Democratic ticket’s credentials on foreign policy heading into the general election against Senator John McCain.

In Mr. Biden, Mr. Obama selected a six-term senator best known for his expertise on foreign affairs — Mr. Biden spent last weekend in Georgia as that nation engaged in a tense confrontation with Russia — and his skills at political combat.

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X the new W, Cafferty tells you Y

I had no internets connection last night (thank you, Tropical Storm or Hurricane Fay) , so, in order to have a poster for you kids tonight, I had to rely on what I had on my computer. I found a comic book cover that I didn’t even remember I had and thought I would go with that. Of course, that means I had to find a story to match it, and I came across this from Jack Cafferty at CNN :

Commentary: Is McCain another George W. Bush?
NEW YORK (CNN) — Russia invades Georgia and President Bush goes on vacation. Our president has spent one-third of his entire two terms in office either at Camp David, Maryland, or at Crawford, Texas, on vacation.

His time away from the Oval Office included the month leading up to 9/11, when there were signs Osama bin Laden was planning to attack America, and the time Hurricane Katrina destroyed the city of New Orleans.

Sen. John McCain takes weekends off and limits his campaign events to one a day. He made an exception for the religious forum on Saturday at Saddleback Church in Southern California.

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