Does The President Read This Blog ... Y'Think?

HERE'S US: "Something EVIL your way comes; better to give the Romney bus with the black windows a WIDE berth. Just saying." NAAH ... MUST BE THAT OLD 'THINKER' ZEITGEIST AGAIN — HERE'S THE PREZ:

How Wingnut Media Harasses The MSM/Beltway To Bow To Their Agenda

IT'S THE REAL "HIGH-TECH LYNCHING." Right wing media, spearheaded by FOX and the Daily Caller, has been pounding away at the bizarre, extremist 'Eric Holder is-coming-for-our-guns' conspiracy hatched by the fringe of the fringe and the NRA. According to NRA point man Wayne LaPierre, the 'Fast And Furious' gun walking program is a pretext to "exorcise the 2nd Amendment."  (The NRA has threatened to score the Issa committe members on the vote to charge the AG with contempt of Congress.) Referring to this sustained and unprecedented right wing campaign against our nation's highest law enforcement officer, the Reverend Al said "Attorney General Eric Holder is being stopped and frisked."

The question du jour is: Will right wing media succeed in this metastasizing and coordinated smear campaign aimed at cowing the MSM/Beltway Media and forcing the ouster of Eric Holder?

Rachel's latest report on the Holder witch hunt by Republicans and right wing media is the best "decoder ring" account of what's really going on, focusing on the usual suspects (for a reason), FOX and Breitbart. Here Rachel examines the conduct of these right wing media outlets, with respect to the manufactured Shirley Sherrod scandal, in which an edited Breitbart video made it appear as if Sherrod was a so-called "reverse racist" against white people. This story, carried by FOX as if it was the second coming of Watergate, Rachel noted, stepped all over the White House signing ceremony of Wall Street reform. Right wing media mission accomplished.

Coincidence or conspiracy? Fast-forward to the present day. As the 'Fast And Furious' conspiracy threatens to spill over into the MSM, suddenly the same right wing players are targeting the MSM/Beltway Media and, unfortunately, whatever low-hanging media fruit they can knock off. As Rachel explains, they're "starting to overtly bait" the MSM into embracing this bizarre conspiracy. "This is a test," says Rachel. Watch:

Consider this in light of the suspension on Thursday of POLITICO's White House reporter Joe Williams for comments he made on the Martin Bashir show suggesting Mitt Romney was "only comfortable around white people." Quite honestly, in this rabidly racist society in which far more incendiary statements are said and written daily about President Obama in right wing media without sanction or negative repercussion, POLITICO's suspension of Williams is an overreaction at best, and at worst, rank cowardice.

As an African American jounalist Joe Williams must now contend with white backlash from his superiors regarding the knee-jerk right wing media canard of "reverse racism," a smear, how soon we forget, leveled by Breitbart against Shirley Sherrod. The site has now turned its sights on Williams and is making essentially the same charge against him, with the same purpose: ending his career as they ended Sherrod's career in government. Context is everything. The context here, it's important to remember, is this is happening the midst of right wing media's campaign to goad the MSM into giving credence to their bizarre anti-gun conspiracy against Eric Holder, our first African American Attorney General.

Let's be frank. What Joe Williams said is a non-issue for African Americans. Millions of white Americans, even those who aren't overtly racist, are uncomfortable around black people. Especially, one would expect, white people like Mitt Romney, who has lived an extremely insular life in the bosom of his wealth, his religion, and his homogeneous community. He hasn't been around a lot of black people. That's a fact. Black people are not unlike any person of a different cultural, ethnic, or racial background, who have a heightened sensitivity to the unease of white people, the dominant class, around them. Just as there's the 'gaydar' we should not pretend a 'racedar' doesn't exist.

For objective observers, Joe Williams' statement should be considered non-controversial and the reaction to it (much-delayed regarding his tweets) a recurring manifestation of fake right wing outrage. Honestly, Williams' observation, as a good reporter and as a black man sensitized to his culture, is very likely right on the mark. But unlike Neil Munro, or a lie in Munro's case, a black man dare not speak truth to power.

No wonder POLITICO's Ken Vogel was so guarded on Martin Bashir's show, prompting the post below, before I learned of Williams' suspension. The site targeting Williams recently referred to  Vogel as "one of POLITICO's top hatchet men" (presumably because his reporting focuses on money in politics) who — key the 'ta-da' jingle — is an "ex-Soros' (sic) employee." The headline reads: "KEN VOGEL: POLITICO'S EX-SOROS EMPLOYEE ATTACKS GOP SUPER PACS." Simply because, prior to joining POLITICO, Vogel worked for the award-winning Center for Public Integrity, which has received some funding from George Soros.

 Meanwhile, Daily Caller staffer Neil Munro, who rudely interrupted President Obama before the President had finished his remarks in the White House Rose Garden, then lied about it, is being feted by right wing media as "standing on the shoulder of giants" after "aggressively questioning Power (sic)" compared to Williams who was "race and class baiting." The Daily Caller, which has been on the forefront of right wing media's attacks on Attorney General Eric Holder, is bankrolled up to at least $3.5 million by Rick Santorum sugar daddy Foster Friess of aspirin-twixt-knees-as-birth-control infamy. Friess boasts in his website of being “the major investor” in the Daily Caller. The venal hypocrisy of these wingnuts is boundless.

Ironically, when right wing media claims POLITICO has "become one with MSNBC" I share their concern. POLITICO is hardly "an openly leftist news outlet." But neither is MSNBC. In fact, the network's programming model, as noted once by its president, is daytime straight news, with anchors Chris Jansing, Thomas Roberts, and Tamron Hall. Starting at 4 p.m. with Martin Bashir, Chris, the Rev, Big Eddie, Rachel, and Lawrence the format switches to commentary and opinion with a liberal bent. (So what!?)

Squeezed in between the daytime programming is the very mainstream, very Beltway Andrea Mitchell who hosts Republicans and POLITICOs to utter their talking points unchallenged, and sets the Beltway narrative with POLITICO's "daily briefing." Their tilt, the MSM/Beltway narrative is corporate and conservative, but not right wing. MSNBC leans right through its stubborn adherence to the false equivalency canard, despite mountains of evidence to the contrary, and wimpy susceptibility to right wing bullying.

So yeah, are MSNBC and POLITICO too cozy? Too corporate? Too mainstream? Too Republican and corporate (Wall Street) Democrat? Too elitist? Too out-of-touch? All of the above. What's left (no pun intended) to liberals and progressives is the evening commentariat.

Liberal outliers like Joe Williams do not reflect POLITICO's corporate, conservative party line of Jim VandeHei and John Harris. As far as Ken Vogel goes, he's straight down the middle in his reporting, unless he's spooked by right wing bullies. Joe Williams is an honest reporter who understands what's going down:

“Having covered the Shirley Sherrod firing and seen the fallout from James O’Keefe’s brand of journalism, I’m not surprised a small group with internet access and an ambitious agenda can affect reporting and distort analysis of political news,” Williams said Friday. “It’s quite unfortunate and incredibly frustrating, however, that I landed in the crosshairs this time, calling Politico’s integrity into question and jeopardizing a job and a career that I love.”

The question is, do Jim VandeHei or John Harris understand? Do the MSNBC suits? I only hope Rachel's absence from her post on Friday was to rest her vocal chords or something equally mundane. These days, being a truthteller in media is a hazardous occupation.

Memo To The MSNBC Suits: STOP caving to right wing bullies.

Shocking Photos Smuggled Out of Mitt Romney's Posh Retreat For Plutocrats

PARK CITY, UTAH. —THE PRICE OF ADMISSION, REPORTEDLY: A minimum $50,000 contribution and one pint of blood. Said a smug attendee trading in his street clothes for ritual robe garment and hoodie: "This makes the Bohemian Grove look like an Elks convention in Peoria ... Hahahaha!"

Memo To Martin, et al: As I Was Saying ...

WHAT THE HELL IS POLITICO's Ken Vogel doing on MSNBC!? Keep laughing, fools, when I've insisted ad nauseum that POLITICO is an extension of the corporate right wing media establishment. Who books Vogel — Steve Capus!? Hey Martin, if you have no control over what guests appear on your show, you might want to whisper a disclaimer, "Psst ... Vogel, he was the suits' choice."

LAMINATE THIS! What 60-Vote Supermajority!?

INTRODUCING A NEW FEATURE OF THIS BLOG whose sole purpose and function is to debunk and disprove the GOP talking points that are offered time after time from Republican liars and Romney surrogates on cable "news" networks like MSNBC and CNN, without rebuttal. Instead of constant frustration and downright anger directed at the "professionals" who are shirking their responsibility to be fully conversant with the facts they report and with opposition counter-arguments, better to hold these "professionals" up to shame for reneging on the most basic aspect of being considered a journalist as distinct from a news reader and issues debate facilitator.

The most high profile offender — with a large measure of unanimity among progressive bloggers, radio talk show hosts (David Schuster, Bill Press, Stephanie Miller, and Thom Hartmann, to name a few of the voices nonaffiliated with MSNBC), and some (but not all) media critics — is David Gregory, host of Meet The Press. Lionized by his colleagues at MSNBC despite his sagging ratings, Gregory sets the false equivalence standard — recently reaffirmed by POLITICO Beltway narrative and disinformation specialist Jim VandeHei to a silent Alex Wagner despite dispositive, comprehensive evidence to the contrary from think tank scholars Norm Ornstein and Thomas Mann — that ripple up and down the MSNBC misinformation pipeline with nary a plug valve to slow it. (Thanks to Lady Alex for the laminated card idea, with the hope that her mesmerized silence is but a passing fancy.)

You know how Republican talking heads and pundits keep repeating this uncontested canard that in 2009-2010 the Democrats had a 60-vote filibuster-proof majority in the Senate but failed to place jobs bills, a bigger stimulus, stronger financial reforms, etc. before the President's desk for his signature? Well, setting aside President Obama's signal accomplishment, the Affordable Care Act, passed with budget reconciliation, the Bonnie Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, the watered-down Dodd-Frank financial reform Act, and an $800 billion stimulus bill, including the critical bank and auto industry bailouts — not to speak of the killing of Osama Bin Laden and decimation of Al Queda — in the space of three and one-half years; setting aside all of these extraordinary achievements in the face of a craven Republican strategy of obstructing, from day one, every presidential legislative initiative with the sole stated purpose of denying his re-election, the presumptive Republican nominee, sanguine in his promise to "veto the DREAM ACT," had the audacity to LIE to a Latino audience that President Obama did "nothing" on immigration reform until this "stop-gap" measure announcing a shift in the Department of Homeland Security's policy toward the children of undocumented immigrants!?

The fact is, the DREAM ACT passed the House and garnered 55 votes in the Senate; sufficient at almost any time in the institution's history to pass legislation with a 50 + 1 majority. And THE FACT IS, THAT IN ONLY FIVE MONTHS of the 111th Congress, between January 15, 2009 and November 29, 2010, did Senate Democrats actually have the requisite 60-vote supermajority needed to kill Republican filibusters. In fact, when the DREAM ACT fell short of defeating the Republican filibuster by five votes, the Democratic Senate had already lost its fleeting and ephemeral "60-vote" supermajority.

This chart by the EXCELLENT politics blog "Outside the Beltway" (better fact-gatherer than the generic MSNBC — outside Rachel's outstanding and dedicated research staff, with a nod to Big Eddie and the Rev too) tells the story in crystalline, (literally) graphic detail. It shows that the fleeting 60 Democratic Senate votes existed:

- From July 7, 2009 (when Al Franken was officially seated as the Senator from Minnesota after the last of Norm Coleman’s challenges came to an end) to August 25, 2009 (when Ted Kennedy died, although Kennedy’s illness had kept him from voting for several weeks before that date at least); and 

- From September 25, 2009 (when Paul Kirk was appointed to replace Kennedy) to February 4, 2010 (when Scott Brown took office after defeating Martha Coakley); 

- For one day in September 2009, Republicans lacked 40 votes due to the resignation of Mel Martinez, who was replaced the next day by George LeMieux

(LAMINATE THIS!) 

P.S. — This Is Not The First Time ...

THE ROMNEY CAMPAIGN HAS BLATANTLY LIFTED another campaign ad IN EVERY DETAIL, EVEN DOWN TO THE MUSIC AND FONT. Here, flattering the Obama Team, "[a]s The Huffington Post's Jon Ward first noticed, it's the exact same ad — the tone, the music, the font, everything — the Obama campaign used to hit John McCain in 2008, after the Republican candidate said, "The fundamentals of our economy are strong."

(I'm beginning to think they've taken Mark Halperin on as a fulltime consultant.)

BUSTED, AGAIN! Eagle-Eyes Martin Bashir Pegs Mitt As The "CUT-AND-PASTE CANDIDATE"

TO ROUND OUT HIS ETCH-A-SKETCH PROPS ADDING TO THE EPIC ROMNEY PHONY. Martin's Brit roots and likely fondness for polka-dot dresses, not to speak of Lady Thatcher, smoked out the Romney Team's foray across the pond to seek decades-old inspiration from the double-dip recession austerity party. Lots of money, precious little imagination. That's a deadly combo and a surefire formula for a dressage-down EPIC FAIL, i.e., CRUSHING DEFEAT.

 

Cute Wingnut, Dull Scribe, Hottie Dem, And Bourgeois Bon Vivant

IT'S THE NEW MSNBC LINEUP replacing Dylan. From time-to-time I've put in a good word for all of them — even S.E. Cupp, the adorable wingnut who may yet tax one's patience, but she's so cute — even lampooned Kristal Ball, who I noted has the perfect pundit's name ... and nice shoulders, too. Steve Kornacki's the white guy; and Touré, better festive left and bourgeois bon vivant than Dylan surrogate. It's called "The Cycle." (What's with the mini publicity pic?)

BIZARRE FOX FACTOID: Gretchen Carlson Might As Well Have Been Raised By Wolves

SAYS RIGHT HERE IN THE NEW YORK TIMES: "Gretchen Carlson, the often-severe and incredulous voice of authority. (Ms. Carlson’s childhood baby sitter in Minnesota was Representative Michele Bachmann.)[...] Consider the background of Ms. Carlson, who is known for making light of her supposed ignorance. She has said during the program, for example, that she has had to Google the definition of words like ignoramus and czar. Ms. Carlson, who was crowned Miss America in 1989, is no ignoramus. She plays the classical violin and graduated from Stanford with honors."

Yes, but she was baby-sat by Michele Bachmann. Even worse, she LIES daily and outrageously on FOX, hiding behind her faux ignorance. 'Nuff said.

MITT ROMNEY LIES AGAIN! ALEX FALLS PREY TO BELTWAY BRAIN MELTS ...

THIS IS WHAT I ALWAYS FEAR ABOUT A PROMISE, a diamond-in-the-rough like Lady Alex — her exposure to the DISHONEST Jim VandeHei (might as well have a "GOP" branded across his forehead) and NOT-"GREAT" self-described "SOPHIST" (he's a prankster like his pal, Mitt), YES, PLAGIARIST EXTRAORDINAIRE Mark Halperin, that Alex starts spouting SHIT like there's "something incredibly compelling" about the Romney family story!?

So much for Lady Alex's less-than triumphant return to the belly of the beast. Any more extended stays in D.C. and she'll be another Beltway PodBot. You know what's really, REALLY "INCREDIBLY COMPELLING" about the Romney family story, Alex? THEY FLED TO MEXICO TO ESCAPE A POLYGAMY BAN. As Montana Gov. Schweitzer said:

“I am not alleging by any stretch that Romney is a polygamist and approves of [the] polygamy lifestyle, but his father was born into [a] polygamy commune in Mexico,” Schweitzer said. Romney’s grandfather and other Mormons settled in Mexico following an 1890 ban on polygamy, a practice the church calls “plural marriage.”

Psst, Alex: Guess who used to edit "The Note"? That's right, that "appropriator" to your right you call "the great" Mark Halperin. A second source, the Huffington Post, confirms the intent of the Romney clan's move to Mexico: "The Romneys are Mexican since Miles Park Romney crossed the border in 1884, rejecting the Edmund Act that in 1882 declared polygamy a felony."

MITT ROMNEY LIED AGAIN! IT'S UN-FUCKING-BELIEVABLE HOW THE BELTWAY MEDIA SHEEPLE DON'T FOLLOW THROUGH! IF YOU KNOW THIS SOCIOPATH IS A SERIAL LIAR, YOUR JOB IS TO NOT LET HIM GET AWAY WITH IT. PLAIN AND SIMPLE. DOING YOUR JOBS ETHICALLY IS.NOT.ROCKET.SCIENCE.

Mitt Romney LIED a lot more than twice. But I just don't have the navel-gazing "research" staffs MSNBC has. FIRST, he LIED AGAIN (!) by saying President Obama had concluded no new trade agreements. HERE IS THE TRUTH. (Clickee, thingee, linkee, Alex — can you do that, please!?) SECOND, Romney said the President had done "nothing" (!?) about immigration!? Excuse me, but the DREAM ACT passed the Senate with 55 votes — a solid majority for most of its history, until the Republicans instituted the anti-democratic MINORITY OBSTRUCTIONIST RULE OF ABUSING THE FILIBUSTER with a 60-vote supermajority requirement.

So basically, Romney and the treasonous Republicans are sitting on EVERY LEGISLATIVE MEASURE to improve the economy and enact immigration reform, but as soon as they kick the black guy out of the White House, HE, ROMNEY WILL PASS "COMPREHENSIVE" IMMIGRATION REFORM WITH BIPARTISAN SUPPORT!? Please. He's talking to Latinos here. We don't get fooled by some whitebread IANQUI. We're not naïve, compliant sheeple like the Idiot Punditocracy. Maybe Lady Alex ... I don't know.

 PS. — When ARI MELBER is to your LEFT, Alex, you're in DEEP BELTWAY MUCK.

Extremist GOP, Weird NRA Conspiracy, Hold AG In Contempt

HOW COME NONE OF THE MSM/Beltway Media covered the outrage of Darrell Issa's partisan witch hunt culminating with the nuclear option of a contempt of Congress party-line finding against Attorney General Eric Holder through the prism of a paranoid conspiracy hatched by the NRA — that President Obama and his AG cooked up the 'Fast And Furious' gun-walking ATF scheme to take away their guns and "exorcise" the 2nd Amendment?! Or as the NYT said, "The Republicans shamelessly turned what should be a routine matter into a pointless constitutional confrontation. And the White House responded as most administrations do at some point: it invoked executive privilege to make a political problem go away." For the record, George W. Bush invoked "executive privilege" six times and Bill Clinton 14 times. Furthemore, production of the documents Issa demanded is prohibited by law. Rachel offers the most rational explanation for the Beltway Media's refusal to admit; that fringe, extremist right wing irrationality now drives and controls the Republican Party and explains its bizarre behavior:

BODY LANGUAGE!? HAIL TO THE CHIEF, BABY!

THE BELTWAY MEDIA HAS REACHED EVER GREATER DEPTHS OF CONTEMPTIBLE. All day today, driven among other whispers by a chronology of Obama-Putin JPGs in Psychology Today, the raspy whispers spread like wildfire among the ranks when Presidents Obama and Putin emerged from their lengthy mano-a-mano confab. Chuckles Toddy and his 12 dwarves breathlessly reported alarming "body language" signs between the two leaders with adjectives like "chilly" and "icy." The hilarious Chuckles Toddy earnestly observed that the usually unflappable Jay Carney was getting testy about all the "body language" WH press corps queries.

His remote buddies kept egging Chuckles to jump in the pool behind him (my thoughts exactly) to which he demurred, claiming "work." (Hey man, it's Cancun!) Meanwhile, Psychology Today actually mocked much of the alarmist "body language" nonsense, which was kind of cool. Although, the article got into the Beltway Bots' mood when it came to reading Obama. The Beltway Bots also deliberately misreported the lack of "eye contact" (Chuckles made a little drama of it), which was patently FALSE (see below and PT article). Here's Rachel Maddow driving the final stake into this story, with great context and unflattering contrast between the Commander-in-Chief butting heads with his Russian counterpart, and the guy who wants his job wearing an apron and rolling pastry to make cookies. Oops.

Two things. In all these pictures, the ALPHA MALE is NOT Mr. shirtless Russian presidential sex symbol — President Obama's the DUDE in the so-called "body language" photos. As the PT article asserts, President Obama is the more territorial of the two. His jaw is set, his look is steely, and the American flag in the backdrop framing him gives the President a pretty awesome authoritative power look. Following the handshake President Obama gave Mr. Putin a little tap on the arm with his right hand. To me that spoke volumes, e.g., "no need to bitch and pout, Mr. President. This is non-negotiable, capisce?"

And here's the coup de gras in Rachel's report, which speaks to the advantage (sometimes) of batting cleanup in the 24/5 news cycle program format. Remember that Russian cargo ship carrying  attack helicopters headed for Syria, which provoked vehement protests from the U.S. and its allies? Well, hours after the Obama-Putin meeting, the ship turned back. Whether it was some sweet nothing the President whispered to Putin or the cancelling of its insurance by a UK company we can't say, but when I saw President Obama's locked jaw and Putin's unhappy look I couldn't help thinking of the Cuban Missile Crisis and President Kennedy standing up to the Soviets, as Russian cargo ships laden with missiles headed for Cuba, and saying for all intents and purposes: No pasarán!

Hail to the Chief, baby.

Quotable: Chris On President's Immigration Slam of The RomBot

“If Romney points out that it’s a “short-term solution,” I would come back with a bit of history and say the Emancipation Proclamation was a “short-term solution” that got us to the 13th and 14th and 15th Amendments. But you got to start somewhere.”

EXCELLENT POINT, Chris. I think the Civil War metaphor is very appropriate for, as I began to flesh out this thesis in my post on Republican "treason," it dawned on me that this Republican Party owes a stronger metaphorical and historical allegiance to the Stars And Bars than they do to the Stars And Stripes. They are re-litigating and re-legislating states' rights, while reclaiming formerly Yankee Blue territory.

Blissfully unaware, meanwhile, the people of the occupied northern states, swing states, and battleground states are content to sit this one out or straddle a battleground fence. But a call to arms has gone out to fierce battalions of women voters throughout the land, and to legions of first, second and more, generations of Latinos — America's enslaved "undocumented" populations, to step forth from the shadows, form their lines, and march upon the enemy WITHIN, the RED SOUTHERN MENACE, straight to the ballot box, where the Second Confederacy will be hounded, cornered, and ultimately crushed like Lee at Gettysburg!

Chris And His "Experts" On The Mitt Veep Choice

THE VERY SERIOUS MAGGIE HABERMAN AND CLOWNISH Steelenator agreed on their "expert" pics; which begs the question: Why bring 'em on if you're all going to agree? Their TOP pic: T-PAW — Really?! An uncontested GIFT to the Obama Team. It's Jeb Bush's if he'll take it. And I say he will.

Memo To Martin Bashir: Mocking Munro W/Capehart Remains STUPID & TASTELESS

MAYBE YOU FELT THE COLBERT SKIT GAVE YOU PERMISSION TO BE AN ASSHOLE? Here's a Newsflash for you, Martin: FYI, Stephen Colbert is a conservative libertarian comic; ergo, his cynical skits are amusing at best, and tasteless at worst. Every so often his comedic talent will trump his ideology. I can't tell you how often I've seen naïve liberals puzzle over Colbert's comedy because, gee, "I don't get it, I thought he was a progressive." Needless to say, your pal Ratigan literally worships the ground Colbert walks on, and the Daily Caller was tickled red by his Munro skit. You're off to a great start in the new soon-to-be timeslot, Martin.

Just Imagine Mitt Romney AMAZED With Push-Button Technology In The WH Sit Room

AND BE AFRAID. BE VERY AFRAID: SIMPLY PICTURE THE "HOAGIE" OR SUB AS an intercontinental ballistic missile, with the NUKE works. (Oh, and by the way, it's WaWa NOT WaWa's.)

Ann Romney, The Perfect Wife

Ann Romney, the wife of Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, said Monday that she doubted she and her husband would vacation overseas as frequently as the Obamas if her husband were elected... "I doubt that," Romney replied. "Our vacations and our happiness come from being with our children and our grandchildren." (Yeah, and one of their favorite vacation spots is the idyllic town of … Spepford?!)

Speaking of Horses ... Anyone Heard of The "White Horse Prophecy"?

HERE'S THE STORY BEHIND THE BIZARRE LDS separation-of-church-state-SHATTERING 'White Horse Prophecy':

The disputed prophecy was recorded in a diary entry of a Mormon who had heard the tale from two men who were with Joseph Smith in Nauvoo, Ill. when he supposedly declared the prophecy.

"You will see the Constitution of the United States almost destroyed," the diary entry quotes Smith as saying. "It will hang like a thread as fine as a silk fiber."

Not only will the Mormons save the Constitution, under the prediction, but the prophecy goes further, insinuating that Mormons will control the government.

"Power will be given to the White Horse to rebuke the nations afar off, and you obey it, for the laws go forth from Zion," the prophecy says.

Of course, the Church denounces it and, true to form, Mitt LIED about his father's position on the prophecy, when it came up in the 1968 campaign:

So far, it hasn't been overtly discussed in reference to Romney's bid, but he told The Tribune previously that it was raised in the 1968 presidential run of his father, George Romney.

"It came up in the race, but he didn't believe in it," the younger Romney said in 1999.

In fact, George Romney said there are different interpretations of what Smith and Brigham Young, another Mormon prophet, were saying, according to a 1967 edition of Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought:

"I have always felt that they meant that sometime the question of whether we are going to proceed on the basis of the Constitution would arise and at this point government leaders who were Mormons would be involved in answering that question," George Romney was quoted as saying.

What Do Lance Armstrong, Roger Clemens, And Andy Pettitte Have In Common?

A: THE THREE ATHLETES ARE TEXANS; THEY'RE PERFORMANCE-ENHANCING DRUG CHEATERS (alleged, in the case of Armstrong and Clemens; admitted, in Pettitte's case, who turned state's evidence against his buddy, Roger); and they're ALL RIGHT WING REPUBLICANS.

Somehow, I'm not surprised about these cheaters' politics ... are you?

Mitt's Metamorphosis: Not Just The Black Eyesockets

IN CASE YOU'RE WONDERING WHY MITT ROMNEY grants few interviews ... Note: Bob Schieffer is reportedly shaken up but OK. Memo To America's Heartland: Something EVIL your way comes; better to give the Romney bus with the black windows a WIDE berth. Just saying.

Lady Alex Gets It: Tweet(s) of The Day

NOT ONLY THAT, BUT BETTY FORD IS DECEASED. HE might have had the decency (not in Mitt's de-empathize dictionary?) to upgrade to Lindsey Lohan?!

This one's even better ... Alex, have I said yet today how totally awesome you are? 

Mitt Romney is Weird. Really, REALLY WEIRD: The Continuing Saga of Media Malfeasance

WHAT DOES MITT ROMNEY'S VIRAL, TOXIC, AND DANGEROUS WEIRDNESS have to do with the Media, or should I say, “the press” so labeled, ironically, by derisive Mitt surrogate Mark Halperin in a moment of gamechanging candor? Let us count the ways:

First, we learn from the always quotable Chris Matthews Show that partner-in-crime Howard Fineman, who henceforth had been surprisingly resolute at playing responsible media editor dude at the Huffington Post, unleashed this maximus maxim: “One way the coverage for Romney will improve is that he has a better chance of being President.” Which begs the question, how can it NOT “improve”?! Unfortunately, what I think Howard (the sellout? — Say it ain't so, bro) meant is that coverage of Romney will be even more positive and misleading than it has been to date, presupposing Mark Halperin's planted suggestion that “the press” had been “unfair” in its coverage of Romney.

Before I forget. Howard, there's a toxic lake of LIES we'd like you to jump into. (There he goes! — Another Media sacred cow skinny-dipping in the Romney collaborationist pool of PATHOLOGICAL LIES.) Evidently, Howard is looking forward to more New York Times puff pieces like Ann Romney, the fashion plate, or his perfect “running mate” etc. Pass the BARF BAG, here comes the Fineman puff piece memo to his Huff Post subordinates. Let us help you, Howard and Chris, with some useful links from (slaps cheeks) your own publication and non-sellout competitor, The Atlantic (misidentified; NY Mag, John Heilemann is an aberration), here and here. Jonathan Chait, to be exact, one in the dwindling number of extant journalists covering politics.

Why, for example, have Howard Fineman/Huffington Post (a) largely ignored Mitt Romney's multiple Vietnam War deferments when a sweetheart arrangement between the Mormon Church and the Pentagon shielded him from the Draft in beautiful Paris, France as an exalted "missionary?" The canned excuse is that the Boston papers already covered this ground during Romney's runs for senator and governor. But now Mitt Romney is running for president. Don't you think his and his family's history of non-service in the military is relevant when he proposes to open two new fronts in Iran and Syria and spews neocon Cold War nonsense about the nature of our global threats, belying a stunning ignorance of the real world? (Rhetorical question.)

Why (b) is the Mormon Church's influence on Romney not seriously examined, in light of this piece by Dr. Justin Frank in Time Magazine which postulates that Mormonism may be responsible for Mitt Romney's SERIAL LYING? And why hasn't the Mormon Church, and Mitt Romney's secretiveness surrounding his religion and his campaign, been given the level of scrutiny that prompted JFK to give a speech explaining his Catholic faith and his role as a Catholic in governing, and President Obama to deliver a similar faith-based speech on questions of race and his relationship with the Reverend Wright? (What's that Mitt Romney said about "sauce" for the "goose" and "gander"?! — As Howard examines a swarm of *CRICKETS* with a look of bemused [?], repulsed [?] fascination.)

And finally, Howard, why pray tell should Media coverage of Mitt Romney “improve” (I ask again: Could it be any worse?! Answer: CLEARLY, YES!) when so many questions abound concerning who this mega-rich individual we're supposed to be electing president really is. Here is noted progressive talk show host and author Thom Hartmann with some food for thought:



From where I sit, Howard and Chris, Romney money and influence talk loud and clear above your strained and unnaturally DEAFENING silence. (What's that you said, Howard? "Check Huff Post Spanish edition for answers to our questions" ...? Oh, Okay. I get it. Thanks. Over and OUT goes the Media ...)