Lil Ricky Bows Out (Again)

Call it what it is

We already knew Wednesday night shortly after the killings at the historic African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Charleston, SC--the oldest AME church in the south--that the act was committed by a young white man against nine African Americans. Only someone who hadn't lived in this country for more than five minutes wouldn't have had it cross their mind that the attack was racially motivated. Later that same evening, it was already being labeled a "hate crime" by authorities. And yet, by the next morning, Fox & Friends was already pushing the idea that the crime was an attack on Christians and Christianity (and the solution was more guns in churches--but more about that later).

Still later that morning, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on "The View" said, "There are people out there looking for Christians to kill them." Another GOP presidential hopeful, Rick Santorum, jumped on the bandwagon, calling it part of a broader assault on "religious liberty" in America. And, Congressman Mark Sanford (R-SC) was all over the TV as slippery as a greased pig refusing to say the new R-word (racism)--alternately describing the attack as the Devil's work or trying to get out of explaining why the Confederate flag still flies in front of South Carolina state capitol.

Meanwhile, America had long heard the words uttered by shooting suspect Dylann Roof:

When a man pleaded with him to stop, the shooter replied, "You rape our women and you're taking over our country. And you have to go," she said. 

A law enforcement official says witnesses told authorities the gunman stood up and said he was there "to shoot black people."

But it wasn't just politicians pushing this anything-but-race "alternative" theory of the crime. Comment after comment on articles and Facebook posts and other social media had average Joe's and Jane's--well, white ones anyway--earnestly insisting that the murders were due solely to mental illness, or attacks on religion, or incredibly whining "why was it being made about race" or "why am I being called a racist" when nobody had called them that in the first place.

The sheer will it must take to wonder "why this happened," or to subscribe alternate motives, or to gloss over the racial aspect of this when the POS who did it was absolutely clear why he murdered nine black people is astounding.

(The usually smart Amy Poehler's Smart Girls initially being pretty clueless which

they thankfully rethought here by linking to Charles P. Pierce's great article in "Esquire.")

Besides what he said himself, this is the same man who proudly displayed Rhodesia and apartheid-era South Africa flags on his jacket, a Confederate flag license plate on his car, whose friends admitted he was a racist, and whose racist views were apparently spilled all over his social media postings, and who drove hundreds of miles to go to an historic black church to murder black people.

This was first and foremost about race (so stop "wondering"). It was a deliberate attack on black bodies. And, yes, while it did occur in a church, it was not about religion:

It was also an act of terror. As Crooks & Liars pointed out, "The New York Times" tried to warn us just one day before this attack:

The main terrorist threat in the United States is not from violent Muslim extremists, but from right-wing extremists. Just ask the police. 

... 

An officer from a large metropolitan area said that “militias, neo-Nazis and sovereign citizens” are the biggest threat we face in regard to extremism. One officer explained that he ranked the right-wing threat higher because “it is an emerging threat that we don’t have as good of a grip on, even with our intelligence unit, as we do with the Al Shabab/Al Qaeda issue, which we have been dealing with for some time.” An officer on the West Coast explained that the “sovereign citizen” anti-government threat has “really taken off,” whereas terrorism by American Muslim is something “we just haven’t experienced yet.”

And, while this was about race, the accessory to these murders--to this act of terrorism--was our twisted gun culture and our refusal to stand up to it. From President Obama's statement:

I've had to make statements like this too many times. Communities like this have had to endure tragedies like this too many times. 

We don't have all the facts, but we do know that once again, innocent people were killed in part because someone who wanted to inflict harm had no trouble getting their hand on a gun. 

Now is the time for mourning and for healing. But let's be clear. At some point, we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries. It doesn't happen in other places with this kind of frequency.

And, from the "Washington Post":

Dylann Roof, the man accused of a shooting spree that left nine people dead at a historic black church in Charleston on Wednesday night, should not have been able to get a gun. 

Federal law prohibits people with pending felony charges from obtaining firearms. In February, Roof was arrested and later charged with felony possession of Suboxone, a narcotic prescription drug. He was released, and the case is pending. 

Because of his criminal record, Roof would not have been able to buy a gun from a store. Federally licensed gun dealers are required to run background checks on gun purchasers, and Roof’s pending charges should have turned up as a red flag. 

But Roof didn’t need to go to a dealership. According to his uncle, Roof received a .45-caliber pistol from his father in April for his birthday, Reuters reports.

And, lastly, this: 

In case you can't tell, that sticker on the newspaper is an ad for a gun shop...

Wherever He Is, Rick Santorum's Probably Having A Bad Day

Of course, it's about the ban being declared unconstitutional:

Same-sex couples across Pennsylvania could begin tying the knot on Friday or Saturday under a landmark federal court decision in Harrisburg that had some people celebrating and others crying foul.

An order on Tuesday by U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III overturned the state's 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, positioning Pennsylvania to become the 19th state in which same-sex couples can marry legally. Jones declared the 1996 act a discriminatory violation of the Constitution that belongs in “the ash heap of history.”

“We now join the 12 federal district courts across the country which, when confronted with these inequities in their own states, have concluded that all couples deserve equal dignity in the realm of civil marriage,” Jones wrote in a 39-page opinion.

Daryl Metcalfe defined the problem a few paragraphs later:

“We're not going to stand by silently while an activist judge tries to strike down an institution that has been preserved throughout history,” said state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Cranberry. He introduced an earlier impeachment resolution against [Attorney General Kathleen] Kane, who refused to defend the marriage law.

Here's the decision if y'inz wanna read it.

And here's why Lil Ricky's probably having a bad day today: He endorsed Jones for the seat on the District court (h/t to slate).  Here's Santorum's statement by way of the way back machine where he said that Jones was:

...highly qualified to assume the important role of Judge and the duty of protecting the Constitution and ensuring the effective operation of our judicial system.

But Rick had more to say about Judge Jones (h/t to the Washington Blade).  Take a look:

Santorum said he was excited about Jones' federal judgeship because Jones "understands our values and traditions."

But did you see the date on the endorsement?  March 1, 2002.  That means that it was during George W. Bush's first administration.  He was also confirmed unanimously by the Senate.  That means that every Republican member of the United States Senate in 2002 voted for the guy.

Oh, and he was also the guy who struck down the teaching of Intelligent Design in public schools.

So I'd say, yea, Rick Santorum's have a bad day today.

Poor Rick.

Santorum 2013!

 

Santorum for Pope!

It will get him out of the U.S. and his policies only slightly more conservative than that of the current Vatican.

As Medieval As They Wanna Be

Rick Santorum was once called “one of the finest minds of the thirteenth century” in the pages of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is somewhat less retro, preferring the 16th century (but probably having some beefs with the Renaissance):


Separated at birth?
That's the hat he wore to President Obama's second inauguration yesterday. According to WalshLaw:

The hat is a custom-made replica of the hat depicted in Holbein’s famous portrait of St. Thomas More. It was a gift from the St. Thomas More Society of Richmond, Virginia. We presented it to him in November 2010 as a memento of his participation in our 27th annual Red Mass and dinner.

I'm sure Scalia likes to see himself as a defender of the faith too (even when acting less than saintly) and, no doubt sees no conflict in that. I'm also guessing that More would have had no problem with Scalia's views on women (or little else).

Rick Santorum at Birther Central

Back in December, the OPJ posted the news that our favorite Man-on-Dog ponderer, Rick Santorum, takes up column space at World Net Daily - aka Birther Central.

If that in itself isn't enough evidence to show how meaningless his political career has become, his most recent column certainly is.

While complaining about President Obama's "constitutional violations" he simply shows his own ignorance of that document.  But first Rick's frame:

President Obama’s announcement last week on his plans to make sweeping changes to our nation’s gun laws by presidential executive order is yet another example of his continual disregard for the United States Constitution and the separation of powers it set forth to protect the American people from government by fiat.

Rick might want to check with the radical leftist who was George W Bush's last Attorney General on the constitutionality of the president's gun control program:

Former Bush Attorney General Michael Mukasey appeared on the Fox News Channel’s “Hannity” Wednesday night with a message that left the host looking rather disappointed.

Rebutting the Republican talk show host, Mukasey said that President Barack Obama’s executive orders so far have been legal, as much as he finds them distasteful.

Uh-oh.  But let's take a look at some of the examples that Rick uses show Obama's "continual disregard" of the Constitution.  This is first on the list:

Two days after he took office, President Obama rescinded by executive order the “Mexico City policy,” which prevents foreign aid going to organizations that perform or promote abortions. No legislation passed, no debate, just an executive order.

Um, Rick?  Do you know why only an executive order was necessary for the rescindment of the "Mexico City Policy"?

Because the enactment of that policy was implemented by an executive order - namely George W Bush's:

The Mexico City Policy announced by President Reagan in 1984 required nongovernmental organizations to agree as a condition of their receipt of Federal funds that such organizations would neither perform nor actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in other nations. This policy was in effect until it was rescinded on January 22, 1993.

It is my conviction that taxpayer funds should not be used to pay for abortions or advocate or actively promote abortion, either here or abroad. It is therefore my belief that the Mexico City Policy should be restored. Accordingly, I hereby rescind the "Memorandum for the Acting Administrator of the Agency for International Development, Subject: AID Family Planning Grants/Mexico City Policy," dated January 22, 1993, and I direct the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development to reinstate in full all of the requirements of the Mexico City Policy in effect on January 19, 1993.

As you can plainly see, the history of the policy goes all the way back past Bill Clinton to Ronald Reagan. Each restoration/rescindment an executive branch decision, none requiring any sort of legislation.

It's simply embarrassing for a law school graduate to get this so amaurotically wrong.

Another thing Rick got wrong - his next example:

In early 2011, the Obama administration stop enforcing the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, a law duly passed by Congress and signed into law. Here President Obama has directed his Department of Justice to ignore the Constitution and separation of powers and not enforce a law.

For this, Politifact has done the research:

In February 2011, Attorney General Eric Holder sent a letter to House Speaker John Boehner saying that the Obama administration would no longer defend the law -- in court.

Holder argued that the law, as applied to same-sex couples legally married under state law, violates the equal protection component of the Fifth Amendment. While the letter stated that the Obama administration would not defend the law in two cases, it also stated that it will continue to be "enforced" by the executive branch until Congress repeals it, or the courts definitively strike it down.

And so on.

How many more things does Rick need to get wrong at WND before he's laughed off the stage?

Lil Ricky finds a new home!

Via Think Progress:

Rick Santorum has joined WorldNetDaily, a conspiracy theory blog best known for its indefatigable work advancing the birther movement, as an exclusive columnist.

Here's a sample of headlines from WorldNetDaily taken off the intertoobs:

 

 

 

 

 

Mitt Romney Profited From Abortions

Anyone who reads this blog for any length of time knows that I am pro choice. Mitt Romney was pro choice and then he wasn't. The virulently anti choice Republican Party has managed to overlook Romney's flip-flop and will officially nominate him as their presidential candidate this summer. But can they overlook the fact that he personally profited from abortions?

Via Mother Jones:

Earlier this year, Mitt Romney nearly landed in a politically perilous controversy when the Huffington Post reported that in 1999 the GOP presidential candidate had been part of an investment group that invested $75 million in Stericycle, a medical-waste disposal firm that has been attacked by anti-abortion groups for disposing aborted fetuses collected from family planning clinics. Coming during the heat of the GOP primaries, as Romney tried to sell South Carolina Republicans on his pro-life bona fides, the revelation had the potential to damage the candidate's reputation among values voters already suspicious of his shifting position on abortion.  

But Bain Capital, the private equity firm Romney founded, tamped down the controversy. The company said Romney left the firm in February 1999 to run the troubled 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and likely had nothing to with the deal. The matter never became a campaign issue. But documents filed by Bain and Stericycle with the Securities and Exchange Commission—and obtained by Mother Jones—list Romney as an active participant in the investment. And this deal helped Stericycle, a company with a poor safety record, grow, while yielding tens of millions of dollars in profits for Romney and his partners. The documents—one of which was signed by Romney—also contradict the official account of Romney's exit from Bain.

First, imagine the furor on the right if such a revelation came out about Obama! Second, if this gets the play in the media it deserves -- and that's a pretty big if -- we will be seeing Republicans twists themselves into pretzels trying to defend Romney. As a bonus, reread the last line of the second quoted paragraph above -- just one more lie from the Land of Mitt Believe.

Also, shouldn't poor Little Ricky Santorum's head be doing one of these at this news?

Clash Of World Views: Obama vs Teh Crazies

President Obama makes an exceedingly reasonable statement:

So I decided it was time to affirm my personal belief that same-sex couples should be allowed to marry.

And the culture warriors go crazie.

We have to start with Senator Man on Dog himself:

The announcement today by President Obama should come as no surprise to the American public. President Obama has consistently fought against protecting the institution of marriage from radical social engineering at both the state and federal level. The President recently opposed the North Carolina constitutional amendment and, of course, he refused to defend President Clinton's Defense of Marriage Act before the U.S. Supreme court. The charade is now over, no doubt an attempt to galvanize his core hard left supporters in advance of the November election.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops:

President Obama’s comments today in support of the redefinition of marriage are deeply saddening. As I stated in my public letter to the President on September 20, 2011, the Catholic Bishops stand ready to affirm every positive measure taken by the President and the Administration to strengthen marriage and the family. However, we cannot be silent in the face of words or actions that would undermine the institution of marriage, the very cornerstone of our society. The people of this country, especially our children, deserve better.

Rush Limbaugh:

It's official. Obama has announced he supports gay marriage after talks with his wife and daughters, gay service members, and others. Pink smoke coming from the White House chimney.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue:

President Obama will be hurt by this decision in the swing states. More than that, he has now made this cultural matter a major issue in the presidential campaign.

The time has finally come to pass a constitutional amendment affirming marriage as an institution reserved to the only two people who can naturally produce a family, namely a man and a woman.

Same sex couples should be allowed to marry. It's only fair.

And just because the bigotry is faith-based, doesn't mean it isn't bigotry.

Texts from Hillary goes out on top

The meme of the week shuts down after only a week. But, when you get the Secretary of State to play along, there's no where left to go but downhill.

Anyhoo, the Facebook page is still up.

Jesus doesn't want him for a sunbeam -- Santorum drops out

Too bad, so sad
Winners: Animals, vegetables and minerals.

Losers: PA TV stations as the Romney campaign rushes to cancel all those ad buys.

Santorum: First it was "blah" people, now he's called Obama a "government nig"

While Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum may be against them, if there ever was a candidate who needed a teleprompter, it's him!

You'll recall earlier this year when Lil Ricky had a problem with "blah" people:


Now he's called President Obama an "anti-war, government nig":


Lil Ricky, Dr. Freud is calling. Your slip is showing!

Nice To See We Agree On Something!

And by "we" I mean me and Scaife's braintrust.

As I've written before, they're surprisingly critical of our Rick.  Ostensibly it has to do with Rick's then support of Arlen Specter over Pat Toomey in 2004 - and they're not alone in their conservative disdain of Rick.  But given the vitriol on their part, I suspect it's something deeper.  But it's just an evidence free gut feeling, if you will.

Which brings me back to today's criticism of Rick by Scaife's braintrust.  When they get something right, they should be congratulated.  CONGRATULATIONS TO SCAIFE'S BRAINTRUST!  THEY GOT ONE RIGHT.

Let's go take a look at the editorial:

Fun With Video: The Frothy Mix

Shit Santorum Says:



New Santorum Campaign Ad:



Documentary on Rick "Honey Badger" Santorum's Tenacity:

Rick Santorum: "The Believer" says President has a "phony theology"

Back in 2005, the New York Times Magazine did a cover story on then Senator Santorum titled "The Believer." From that article:

Sean Reilly, a former aide to Santorum in the Senate and now a political consultant in Philadelphia, said that he has come to view his former boss in other than political terms. ''Rick Santorum is a Catholic missionary,'' he said. ''That's what he is. He's a Catholic missionary who happens to be in the Senate.''

[snip]

Santorum is not a reader of Scripture -- ''I've never read the Bible cover to cover; maybe I should have'' -- and has no passages he clings to when seeking spiritual guidance. ''I'm a Catholic, so I'm not a biblical scholar. I'm not someone who has verses he can pop out. That's not how I interact with the faith.''

However, despite his lack of Bible training, Lil Ricky feels perfectly comfortable in criticizing President Obama's understanding of scripture and theology:

The “president’s agenda” is “not about you,” he said. “It’s not about you. It’s not about your quality of life. It’s not about your job.

“It’s about some phony ideal, some phony theology,” Santorum said to applause from the crowd. “Oh, not a theology based on the Bible, a different theology, but no less a theology.” [...]

Although Santorum criticizes the president daily on the campaign trail, this is the first time he has used this rhetoric or said the president has a “different theology.”

And, Uber Catholic Santorum doesn't just question Obama on theology, he questions all mainline Protestants. Here's Santorum in 2008:

We all know that this country was founded on a Judeo-Christian ethic but the Judeo-Christian ethic was a Protestant Judeo-Christian ethic, sure the Catholics had some influence, but this was a Protestant country and the Protestant ethic, mainstream, mainline Protestantism, and of course we look at the shape of mainline Protestantism in this country and it is in shambles, it is gone from the world of Christianity as I see it. [...]

Whether its sensuality of vanity of the famous in America, they are peacocks on display and they have taken their poor behavior and made it fashionable. The corruption of culture, the corruption of manners, the corruption of decency is now on display whether it’s the NBA or whether it’s a rock concert or whether it’s on a movie set.

Santorum has since defended his remarks on Obama and claimed that he was not questioning Obama's faith or the legitimacy of his Christianity (unlike the Christianity of all mainline Protestants?). Meanwhile, Robert Gibbs, Obama campaign strategist and former White House press secretary, rightfully called Santorum's comments “well over the line.”

Perhaps it's time for Someone to remind Lil Ricky that this election will not be decided with a puff of white smoke and that he's running for President and not Pope.


Looks like it's time for me to update this graphic I made when he was running for the Senate:

The War on Women, Part I: Keep Your Knees Together, Gals!

Rick Santorum's Super PAC donor, Foster Friess, offers us gals some advice:

I'm beginning to think that they don't really like women

[Where "I'm beginning to think" means "I've always known."]

Rick Santorum blames his wife for anti-feminist statements in his book.

GOP to fight to let any employer deny birth control coverage to women.

Virginia to continue shackling pregnant inmates while giving birth.

Zero Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee vote to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.

Fox News pundit says women in military should expect to be raped and that feminists have demanded too much money to fund programs for sexual abuse victims. (I wonder if Ron Paul would consider those to be "honest" rapes...)

Santorum: New GOP Frontrunner?

Lil Ricky celebrates by doing the
angry white male R version of jazz hands.
Santorum surges ahead in national polls.

(Photo from daylife via Shakesville)

More On Rick Santorum's Hanukkuh Card

It's a rare event when I can fill in the blanks like this on something The Trib published.  But first some context.

The Trib really really REALLY doesn't like lil Ricky.  And so it's understandable when they publish this:

Perhaps Rick Santorum was attempting to convert them.

News broke Wednesday that the Republican presidential contender and former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania made a thoughtful gesture to his Jewish supporters in South Carolina in December. His campaign sent them Hanukkah cards.

The cards were adorned with Stars of David, a pair of dreidels and the following inscription: "I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life."

Where did that come from? It's from John 8:12 in the Bible's New Testament.

That's right -- the New Testament. If you need an explanation as to why that was such a hysterical faux pas, Santorum probably has a prominent position waiting for you on his campaign staff.

Turns out the Trib was telling the truth.

Perhaps the Mayans were on to something after all

Case in point