The Morning After

Westboro Baptist Church candidate in Kansas spends nothing on campaign

Jack Wu, a Republican candidate for the Kansas State Board of Education and a Westboro Baptist Church regular, raised only $5.00 for his campaign, which was disclosed in the financial reports published by the Kansas Secretary of State. In an interview today with the Associated Press, Wu said that he doesn’t like to ask for “money” and that it’s not his “style”.

“I don’t like asking for money,” Wu told the Associated Press. “It’s not my style.”

The majority of Kansas voters are Republicans, and like most voters, they are often lacking information about the candidates and simply look for the party letter, the "D" or the "R" after their names. Jack Wu knows that based on the "R" alone, he will get some votes, and if voters don't know about his ties to the church, he could possibly win.

On Wu's campaign website, he says that he was drawn to Kansas from California in 2008 by the Westboro Baptist Church's message, the church is well known for its congregation’s activism and its extremist views towards the LGBT community. The church members regularly picket the funerals of military servicemen and women with vulgar signs. While Wu is not a member he says that he regularly attends services; Wu is proposing that the state end the teaching of evolution in its public schools.

Incumbent Democrat Carolyn Campbell raised $13,518 and spent $12,101. Much of that money was spent on ads that highlight Wu’s relationship with the Westboro Baptist Church.
Kansas Democratic Party Chairwoman Joan Wagnon said Campbell can't assume rank-and-file voters know about Wu's affiliation with Westboro. Wagnon said in Kansas, where registered Republicans significantly outnumber Democrats, people tend to vote along party lines when they know nothing about candidates in down-ballot races.

"The reality is, for a Democrat in Kansas, you have to campaign," Wagnon said. "There are a certain number of people who will vote Republican, no matter what."

Five of the board's 10 seats are on the ballot this year, with members serving four-year terms. Two other races are contested.

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A Very Quick Look at President Obama's First Term

NBC has a problem and his name is David Gregory, host of ‘Meet the Press’

Yesterday on NBC’s Sunday talk show “Meet the Press” with host David Gregory, a misquote was perpetuated by its host. And after 24 hours, neither NBC nor David Gregory has said a word as people on Twitter and Facebook display their dissatisfaction at both the Network and the host, David Gregory.

On Sunday’s show, Gregory was speaking to David Plouffe, a senior adviser to President Barack Obama, Gregory thinking he was quoting President Obama said to Plouffe, “that al-Qaeda has been defeated.”

“The President has said as recently as May of this year that al-Qaeda has not had a chance to rebuild, that al-Qaeda has been defeated, ‘ said Gregory.

 Here is what President Obama actually said while he was addressing our troops at Bagram Air Base in May, on this year’s anniversary of the killing of Osama bin Laden, “The goal that I set to defeat al-Qaeda and deny it a chance to rebuild is now within our reach.”

“And one year ago, from a base here in Afghanistan, our troops launched the operation that killed Osama bin Laden. The goal that I set to defeat al-Qaeda and deny it a chance to rebuild is now within our reach. Still, there will be difficult days ahead. The enormous sacrifices of our men and women are not over," said Obama.

And there are several other quotes from President Obama saying that while we have done serious damage to al-Qaeda and its leadership, they're still out there plotting and planning.

Misquotes happen, and when they do, “credible” reporters and their media outlets usually point out their mistakes, and when NBC and “Meet The Press” say nothing, that credibility quickly vanishes. Their viewers hear nothing but crickets from Gregory or NBC on their Twitter and Facebook accounts. The video is posted with this article.

Tonight David Gregory will be moderating a U.S. Senatorial debate between Senator Scott Brown and challenger Elizabeth Warren in Massachusetts, at the University of Massachusetts Lowell’s Tsongas Center, and you can be sure that those watching will be paying attention to see if Gregory is asking questions that are not misquotes.

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"The Dirty Fucking Hippies Were Right"

Everyone should watch this video, then share it!!!

Pastor Terry Jones incites riots at U.S. embassies in Libya and Egypt

*Updated: September 12, 2012 4:00 a.m.
**Updated: September 12, 2012 5:30 a.m.

Pastor Terry Jones of Gainesville, Florida, who is famous for promoting the burning of Quran's which incited riots in Afghanistan in 2011 that killed a dozen people, has now caused two U.S. embassies, one in Cairo, Egypt and the other in Benghazi, Libya to be overrun by Muslim protestors after promoting an online movie.

The film that Pastor Jones was promoting on the 11th anniversary of 9/11 is called the “Innocence of Muslims”, which was produced here in the United States, and allegedly insults the Prophet Muhammad.

Video: US embassy flag torn down and replaced with Islamic flag in Cairo 

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has confirmed that a State Department officer was killed at the embassy in Benghazi, Libya.

Pastor Jones, a Christian fundamentalist, has a history of using the September 11, 2001 anniversary date to intentionally incite Muslims around the world.

The Quran book burnings were originally planned to take place on September 11, 2010, which was the ninth anniversary of the attacks here in the U.S., but after General David H. Petraeus intervened, Jones cancelled the book burnings.

But in April 2011 when the outrage grew in New York over a Mosque being built near America’s holy hole at “Ground Zero”, Jones went ahead with the book burnings which caused riots in Afghanistan killing seven United Nations workers, and five of the rioters. No Americans were killed in that riot.

Tuesday night, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton released a statement on the violence in Libya and Egypt:

"I condemn in the strongest terms the attack on our mission in Benghazi today. As we work to secure our personnel and facilities, we have confirmed that one of our State Department officers was killed. We are heartbroken by this terrible loss. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and those who have suffered in this attack.

This evening, I called Libyan President Magariaf to coordinate additional support to protect Americans in Libya. President Magariaf expressed his condemnation and condolences and pledged his government's full cooperation.

Some have sought to justify this vicious behavior as a response to inflammatory material posted on the Internet. The United States deplores any intentional effort to denigrate the religious beliefs of others. Our commitment to religious tolerance goes back to the very beginning of our nation. But let me be clear: There is never any justification for violent acts of this kind.

In light of the events of today, the United States government is working with partner countries around the world to protect our personnel, our missions, and American citizens worldwide."
And it didn't take long for Mitt Romney to seize the moment and use the riots to attack President Obama."

In a statement Tuesday night, Romney said he was outraged by the attacks and the death of the American consulate worker. He added:

"It's disgraceful that the Obama administration's first response was not to condemn attacks on our diplomatic missions, but to sympathize with those who waged the attacks"

In response to Romney, Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt said in an email early Wednesday:

"We are shocked that, at a time when the United States of America is confronting the tragic death of one of our diplomatic officers in Libya, Gov. Romney would choose to launch a political attack."

Jones said in a statement that the film "Innocence of Muslims" was intended not to attack Muslims but to show the "destructive ideology of Islam."

"The movie further reveals in a satirical fashion the life of Muhammad," said Jones.

In the past, the world has witnessed Muslim's killing and rioting over simple drawings of the Muslim Prophet, and Jones thinks that a movie that portrays Muhammad in a satirical way would not be seen as an attack.

*Update: September 12, 2012 4:00 a.m.
Libyan officials said Wednesday that U.S. Ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens was among four Americans killed in an attack by Muslim protesters on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi the previous evening.

"I do condemn the cowardly act of attacking the US consulate and the killing of Mr Stevens and the other diplomats," Deputy Prime Minister Mustafa Abushagur said on his Twitter account. "Amb. Stevens was a friend of Libya and we are shocked at the attacks on the U.S. consulate."

**Update: September 12, 2012 5:30 a.m.
President Barack Obama has released a statement "strongly" condemning the killing of Ambassador Chris Stevens:

"I strongly condemn the outrageous attack on our diplomatic facility in Benghazi, which took the lives of four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens," Obama said in a statement.

"Chris was a courageous and exemplary representative of the United States," Obama said.


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Suggested by the author:

• 9/11: The day America had forever changed
• Poll: 15 percent of Ohio Republicans credit Romney for killing Osama bin Laden
• Gallup: Obama approval rating receives bump after DNC
• Coal miners forced to attend Romney event and donate to campaign
• Mitt Romney poem going viral: ‘Wherefore Art Thou, Mitt Romney’

Coal miners forced to attend Romney event and donate to campaign

On August 14, 2012, Mitt Romney held a campaign event in Beallsville, Ohio that featured coal miners as a back drop from the Century Mine. Yesterday, on WWVA talk radio, host David Blomquist read e-mails from coal miners who work for the Century Mine, which is owned by Murray Energy Corporation.

 In the e-mails, miners said that they were forced to attend the campaign rally, without pay, and had to donate to the Romney campaign. Bloomquist said that he had received several e-mails and calls to his show about the intimidation being used against them.

Blomquist interviewed Rob Moore the Chief Financial Officer for Murray Energy Corporation on his talk show to address the complaints by the miners.

David Blomquist told Moore that miners feared for their jobs if they did not attend the Romney event, and then read one of the e-mails from the miners:

“Yes, we were in fact told that the Romney event was mandatory and would be without pay, that the hours spent there would need to be made up my non-salaried employees outside of regular working hours, with the only other option being to take a pay cut for the equivalent time,” the employees told Blomquist. “Yes, letters have gone around with lists of names of employees who have not attended or donated to political events.”
“I realize that many people in this area and elsewhere would love to have my job or my benefits,” one worker explained. “And our bosses do not hesitate in reminding us of this. However, I cannot agree with these callers and my supervisors, who are saying that just because you have a good job, that you should have to work any day for free on almost no notice without your consent.”
“We do not appreciate being intimidated into exchanging our time for nothing. I heard one of your callers saying that Murray employees are well aware of what they are getting into upon hire, or that they are informed that a percentage of their income will go to political donations. I cannot speak for that caller, but this is news for me. We merely find out how things work by experience.”

CFO Rob Moore told Blomquist that the charges were untrue, and the following conversation between Moore and Blomquist took place:

Moore: “There were no workers that were forced to attend the event. We had managers that communicated to our work force that the attendance at the Romney event was mandatory, but no one was forced to attend the event. We had a preregistration list. And employees were asked to put their names on a preregistration list because they could not get into the event unless they were preregistered and had a name tag to enter the premises.”
Blomquist: “What about not getting paid for an eight-hour day? If the mine was shut down for the visit, I understand, but wouldn’t it be fair, let’s use the word ‘fair’, to still pay these individuals for that day? I mean, it wasn’t their fault they weren’t working.”
Moore: “Our management people wanted to attend the event and we could not have people underground during Romney’s visit”.
Blomquist: “But why not still pay then their wage for that day?”
Moore: “By federal election law, we could not pay people to attend the event. And we did not want anyone to come back and see where anyone had been paid for that day.”
Blomquist: “I’m not saying pay them to attend the event, I’m saying, ‘Hey look, we have to close down the mine, if you want to attend this event, that’s fine, but you’re still going to get a day’s pay for the work that you would have done. Why not do that?”
Moore: “As a private employer, it was our decision and we made the decision not to pay the people”.
“We’re talking about an event that was in the best interest of anyone that’s related to the coal industry. I do not believe that missing an eight-hour day, when you put it into perspective, when you think about how critical this next election is, and how critical it is that we get someone in this office that supports coal, to give up eight hours for a career, I just don’t believe that there is anything negative about that.”

Robert Murray, the CEO of Murray Energy Corporation received national attention in 2009 after his Crandall Canyon Mine in Utah collapsed, leaving six miners trapped inside. Government mine inspectors had issued 325 citations against the Utah mine since January 2004, according to federal Mine Safety and Health Administration online records.

Murray is a large campaign donor for Republicans and runs a Super PAC called the Murray Energy Corporation Political Action Committee. The Super PAC has given $317,575.00 to various Republican campaigns, including Mitt Romney in 2012.

This past June, Mitt Romney spoke to the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB), and told them to threaten their employees and “make it very clear” that they must support his campaign or they could lose their jobs.

You can listen to the entire radio interview on the Huffington Post by clicking here.

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The Elephant in the Womb

"Boy, these conservatives are really something, aren't they? They're all in favor of the unborn. They will do anything for the unborn. But once you're born, you're on your own. Pro-life conservatives are obsessed with the fetus from conception to nine months. After that, they don't want to know about you. They don't want to hear from you. No nothing. No neonatal care, no day care, no head start, no school lunch, no food stamps, no welfare, no nothing. If you're preborn, you're fine; if you're preschool, you're f**ked." George Carlin

One Cries Because One Is Sad

Our Republic is no more

Money can't buy you Love, but it can buy you Politicians.

Thank you SCOTUS for Citizens United, because of you, the United States went from a Democracy to a Plutocracy.

Tonight your decision to open the floodgates of money was on full display.

The Supreme Court Justices that came before you are rolling over in their graves as they witnessed the destruction of our Republic which stood for 236 years being sold to the highest bidder.

Our Republic is no more.

Mitt Romney: Little to Like

Mitt Romney: The ‘Everyday Joe’

Mitt Romney just doesn’t get it; he just doesn’t understand the trials and tribulations that American families go through every day. No matter how hard he tries to present himself as an Everyday Joe, he manages to do just the opposite, and ends up highlighting his elitism.

Then when Romney hears criticism about being distant, aloof, rich and elite, he says, “If people think that there is something wrong with being successful in America, then they better vote for the other guy”.

 But that is not the problem, the Everyday Joe doesn’t care that he’s rich and successful, what voters are looking for is someone who is able to connect with them, even when they are not rich and successful.

Every American Joe would like to be rich and successful, like Romney, but until that day comes, if it does come, Americans want a President that understands everyday “kitchen table” discussions. Not someone who’s never faced any of the problems Americans face on a daily basis, and certainly not someone who has shown that he cannot relate.

Speaking of tables, on the campaign trail in Rochester, New Hampshire, while seated with a group of possible supporters and trying to fit in as an Everyday Joe, Romney stunned them when he said, “I know what it’s like to worry whether you’re going to get fired. There were a couple of times I wondered whether I was going to get a pink slip.”

In November 2008, Mitt Romney wrote an Op-Ed for the NY Times, that liberal newspaper that Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh are always damning as they quote the paper. In the Op-Ed Romney writes about the proposed bailouts for the US Auto Industry, first by former President George W. Bush, and then President Obama after he took. The title of the Op-Ed: Let Detroit go Bankrupt

"If General Motors, Ford and Chrysler get the bailout that their chief executives asked for yesterday, you can kiss the American automotive industry goodbye."

Back on February 1, 2012, Mitt Romney said, "I'm in this race because I care about Americans.” And then, in the very next sentence he says, but “I'm not concerned about the very poor, we have a safety net there. If it needs repair, I'll fix it.” The same safety nets that the Republican Party seeks to eliminate; Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid.

Romney showed how aloof he was when he said that nothing should be done to stop foreclosures, and here in Nevada, where we have one of the highest foreclosure rates in the nation, that did not sit well with Nevadans. Romney will lose Nevada partly because of that statement.

''Don't try to stop the foreclosure process. Let it run its course and hit the bottom.''

Then there’s NASCAR, the Daytona 500, Romney wanted to be among the working Joe’s. Romney had dressed down, he wore no tie and wanted to enjoy a day at the races among the masses, and then he was asked by an AP reporter if he followed NASCAR. And only an out of touch elitist like Romney could have responded the way he did.

"Not as closely as some of the most ardent fans. But I have some great friends who are NASCAR team owners." Romney replied.

But it didn’t stop there; Romney commented on the attire that some fans were wearing. As Romney approached a group of fans wearing plastic ponchos as “fancy raincoats”, something that was certainly alien to him in his world, he just couldn’t help himself with his comment.

“I like those fancy raincoats you bought,” he said. “Really sprung for the big bucks.”

When it was announced on the PA system that Romney was in attendance, the crowd booed. They might have booed because of his elitism, and not being able to connect to Everyday Joe’s, or it could have been that the NASCAR cars were made in America. Remember the title of that Op-Ed: Let Detroit go Bankrupt.

Romney talks of owning several cars, he even says his wife drives two Cadillac’s, he owns many homes, he even offered a bet to Rick Perry on stage during a debate for $10,000. Mitt Romney hides his money in foreign banks that are in foreign countries, such as the Cayman Islands, Switzerland, Bermuda, Australia, Germany, Ireland, and Luxemburg. He paid 13.9% in taxes, the Everyday Joe, paid twice as much.

This is the world of Mitt Romney, not the Everyday Joe. Americans don’t care that he is rich and successful; they just wish that he could relate to the problems that they face on an everyday basis. And Romney has shown over and over that he is out of touch with ‘Real Americans”.

 

Mitt Romney during a debate says "Well, I'm not concerned about the voters"

 

 

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