Rabbi Harold Kushner, author of the best-selling book “When Bad Things Happen to Good People,” offered criticism of Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock’s remarks about God's will and rape; "I continue to be bemused by the ultraconservative lawmakers who say they want smaller government and less government intrusion into people’s lives, except when it comes to who you can marry and how many children you should have." The problem with these ultraconservatives is that, despite candidate Romney's effort to portray himself as a reasonable leader who would represent all Americans, he has shown no ability to differentiate from the extremists who control the GOP.
One of the distinguishing characteristics of the GOP radicals: they know what's best for you. In their world view, doubt belongs to moral relativists. Romney's endorsement of Mourdock speaks volumes about the extremists in the GOP willing impose their "reality" on the rest of America without question or willingness to accept diversity, unless it conforms with their world view.
According to the investigative journal, Mother Jones, here are some of the big thinkers who have Romney's ear:
Robert Bork? John Bolton?? 9 Advisers Who Have Romney's Ear
Want to know what a Romney presidency would look like? Check out these guys' records.
By Dana Liebelson and Adam Serwer on Wed. October 24, 2012 3:00 AM PDT
One way to understand what a presidential candidate might do if elected is to look at his advisers. Here are nine advisers who are shaping Mitt Romney's views—and could end up shaping his presidency. You may not have heard of them, but you should know about them.
COFER "HEAD ON DRY ICE" BLACK
Position: Foreign Policy Adviser
His Qualifications: Black was head of the CIA's Counterterrorism Center when Al Qaeda brought down the towers and is a former executive for the "private security" company Blackwater.
What You Need to Know: Black has long been associated with the Bush administration’s "dark side," including torture and extraordinary rendition. He's also a fan of colorful speech, having said that he wanted to "Capture Bin Laden, kill him, and bring his head back in a box on dry ice." That didn't happen, but a 2005 CIA inspector general's report did chastise the CTC for not sharing information with other agencies that could have led to the discovery of the 9/11 plot before it occurred.
WALID "LEBANESE WARLORD ADVISER" PHARES
Position: Foreign Policy Adviser
His Qualifications: Phares has worked as a professor, counterterrorism adviser, author, and pundit for Fox News.
What You Need to Know: As Mother Jones first reported last year, Phares "was a high ranking political official in a sectarian religious militia responsible for massacres during Lebanon's brutal, 15-year civil war." Phares has tried to downplay his involvement in this messy war (which resulted in more than 100,000 fatalities) but according to Régina Sneifer, who served in the Lebenese Forces' Fifth Bureau, "Mr. Phares was aware of the crimes of Samir Geagea [a ruthless militia leader] and he was still close to him."
ROBERT "SATURDAY NIGHT MASSACRE" BORK
Position: Judicial Adviser
His Qualifications: Bork was a failed Supreme Court nominee under President Ronald Reagan and played a controversial role in the Watergate scandal.
What You Need to Know: Bork, then solicitor general, agreed to fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox, who was close to cracking open Watergate. (Bork's colleagues, Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus, had refused to fire Cox and resigned on principle.) Ted Kennedy later said that "Bork's America is a land in which women would be forced into back-alley abortions, blacks would sit at segregated lunch counters, rogue police could break down citizens' doors in midnight raids [and] schoolchildren could not be taught about evolution." Bork has also proposed reducing the scope of the 14th Amendment, and says it's "silly" to think: "Gee, [women are] discriminated against and we need to do something about it."
KRIS "BIRTHER FLIRTER" KOBACH
Position: Immigration Adviser
His Qualifications: Kobach is the secretary of state for Kansas.
What You Need to Know: Kobach is the intellectual architect behind harsh Arizona-style immigration laws all over the country. Kobach has flirted with birtherism and even sought to abolish birthright citizenship. But illegal immigration isn't Kobach's only hobby horse: At the GOP convention, he dipped his toe into Shariah panic by urging the adoption of an anti-Shariah plank to the GOP platform.
PAUL "YOU'RE A TAKER" RYAN
Position: Domestic Policy Adviser/Vice Presidential Candidate
His Qualifications: Ryan is a Republican congressman from Wisconsin and the chairman of the House Budget Committee.
What You Need to Know: Technically he's the veep pick, but in choosing Ryan, Romney tied himself to Ryan's policy agenda. In the past, that agenda has included turning Medicare into a voucher system so that seniors have to pay more for their health care, slashing Medicaid so that states have less money to cover medical services for the poor, old, and disabled, and all while cutting taxes on the wealthy. Where does Ryan's plan make up that extra revenue? In part by raising taxes on the poor. There's no one on Romney's team who embodies the "half the country are moochers" mindset expressed by Romney on that 47 percent video more than Ryan does.
JOHN "IT'S NEVER A BAD DAY TO BOMB IRAN" BOLTON
Position: Foreign Policy Adviser
His Qualifications: Bolton is a lawyer and diplomat who served under George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush.
What You Need to Know: It's never a bad day to bomb Iran if you're John Bolton, the walrus-mustachioed Bush-era ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton has been pushing for an Iran strike for years, he recently said he thought the Israelis should have bombed Iran "three and a half years ago." A favorite of anti-Muslim activists like Pamela Geller, Bolton likes a good conspiracy theory himself, recently warning that a UN small arms treaty could take Americans' guns away.
GENERAL TOMMY "WHERE'S BIN LADEN?" FRANKS
Position: Military Adviser
His Qualifications: Franks, a retired commander of the US Central Command, led the 2003 invasion of Iraq…and came in at No. 4 on Foreign Policy's "worst general in American history" list.
What You Need to Know: It's hard to know where to start with Franks: He didn't tell the American public he was planning on invading Iraq and then he helped spread the big fat lie that there were actually weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Once the war was over, he had no plan to deal with the aftermath. Oh, and he lost Osama bin Laden.
HAROLD "DRILL BABY DRILL" HAMM
Position: Energy Adviser
His Qualifications: He's a self-made American oilman worth $9.7 billion, as of September 2012.
What You Need to Know: Hamm would end federal control of drilling on government land, a policy Theodore Roosevelt ushered in to help protect wildlife and America's most beautiful places. Instead, states would have the authority to frack and mine government lands. The New York Times calls this "a radical shift from decades of policies under both Democrat and Republican presidents." According to Rolling Stone, Hamm has also given nearly $1 million to Romney's super-PAC.
KEVIN "DOW 36,000" HASSETT
His Position: Economic Adviser
His Qualifications: Hassett was a senior economist for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
What You Need To Know: Hassett is your typical right-wing economist: He favors stimulus when Republican presidents are in office and austerity when Democrats are in office, and in that sense he's kind of a perfect adviser for Mitt Romney, who is known for changing his mind on big issues when it's convenient. Hassett is most infamous, though, for writing (with James K. Glassman) the 1999 book Dow 36,000, in which he predicted an ever-rising stock market. "Stocks are now in the midst of a one-time-only rise to much higher ground," Hassett and Glassman wrote, which is true if you ignore subsequent downturns including the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. With a track record like that, how can Hassett's assertion that Romney's jobs plan will create "millions of jobs" possibly be wrong?
One of the distinguishing characteristics of the GOP radicals: they know what's best for you. In their world view, doubt belongs to moral relativists. Romney's endorsement of Mourdock speaks volumes about the extremists in the GOP willing impose their "reality" on the rest of America without question or willingness to accept diversity, unless it conforms with their world view.
According to the investigative journal, Mother Jones, here are some of the big thinkers who have Romney's ear:
Robert Bork? John Bolton?? 9 Advisers Who Have Romney's Ear
Want to know what a Romney presidency would look like? Check out these guys' records.
By Dana Liebelson and Adam Serwer on Wed. October 24, 2012 3:00 AM PDT
One way to understand what a presidential candidate might do if elected is to look at his advisers. Here are nine advisers who are shaping Mitt Romney's views—and could end up shaping his presidency. You may not have heard of them, but you should know about them.
COFER "HEAD ON DRY ICE" BLACK
Position: Foreign Policy Adviser
His Qualifications: Black was head of the CIA's Counterterrorism Center when Al Qaeda brought down the towers and is a former executive for the "private security" company Blackwater.
What You Need to Know: Black has long been associated with the Bush administration’s "dark side," including torture and extraordinary rendition. He's also a fan of colorful speech, having said that he wanted to "Capture Bin Laden, kill him, and bring his head back in a box on dry ice." That didn't happen, but a 2005 CIA inspector general's report did chastise the CTC for not sharing information with other agencies that could have led to the discovery of the 9/11 plot before it occurred.
WALID "LEBANESE WARLORD ADVISER" PHARES
Position: Foreign Policy Adviser
His Qualifications: Phares has worked as a professor, counterterrorism adviser, author, and pundit for Fox News.
What You Need to Know: As Mother Jones first reported last year, Phares "was a high ranking political official in a sectarian religious militia responsible for massacres during Lebanon's brutal, 15-year civil war." Phares has tried to downplay his involvement in this messy war (which resulted in more than 100,000 fatalities) but according to Régina Sneifer, who served in the Lebenese Forces' Fifth Bureau, "Mr. Phares was aware of the crimes of Samir Geagea [a ruthless militia leader] and he was still close to him."
ROBERT "SATURDAY NIGHT MASSACRE" BORK
Position: Judicial Adviser
His Qualifications: Bork was a failed Supreme Court nominee under President Ronald Reagan and played a controversial role in the Watergate scandal.
What You Need to Know: Bork, then solicitor general, agreed to fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox, who was close to cracking open Watergate. (Bork's colleagues, Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus, had refused to fire Cox and resigned on principle.) Ted Kennedy later said that "Bork's America is a land in which women would be forced into back-alley abortions, blacks would sit at segregated lunch counters, rogue police could break down citizens' doors in midnight raids [and] schoolchildren could not be taught about evolution." Bork has also proposed reducing the scope of the 14th Amendment, and says it's "silly" to think: "Gee, [women are] discriminated against and we need to do something about it."
KRIS "BIRTHER FLIRTER" KOBACH
Position: Immigration Adviser
His Qualifications: Kobach is the secretary of state for Kansas.
What You Need to Know: Kobach is the intellectual architect behind harsh Arizona-style immigration laws all over the country. Kobach has flirted with birtherism and even sought to abolish birthright citizenship. But illegal immigration isn't Kobach's only hobby horse: At the GOP convention, he dipped his toe into Shariah panic by urging the adoption of an anti-Shariah plank to the GOP platform.
PAUL "YOU'RE A TAKER" RYAN
Position: Domestic Policy Adviser/Vice Presidential Candidate
His Qualifications: Ryan is a Republican congressman from Wisconsin and the chairman of the House Budget Committee.
What You Need to Know: Technically he's the veep pick, but in choosing Ryan, Romney tied himself to Ryan's policy agenda. In the past, that agenda has included turning Medicare into a voucher system so that seniors have to pay more for their health care, slashing Medicaid so that states have less money to cover medical services for the poor, old, and disabled, and all while cutting taxes on the wealthy. Where does Ryan's plan make up that extra revenue? In part by raising taxes on the poor. There's no one on Romney's team who embodies the "half the country are moochers" mindset expressed by Romney on that 47 percent video more than Ryan does.
JOHN "IT'S NEVER A BAD DAY TO BOMB IRAN" BOLTON
Position: Foreign Policy Adviser
His Qualifications: Bolton is a lawyer and diplomat who served under George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush.
What You Need to Know: It's never a bad day to bomb Iran if you're John Bolton, the walrus-mustachioed Bush-era ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton has been pushing for an Iran strike for years, he recently said he thought the Israelis should have bombed Iran "three and a half years ago." A favorite of anti-Muslim activists like Pamela Geller, Bolton likes a good conspiracy theory himself, recently warning that a UN small arms treaty could take Americans' guns away.
GENERAL TOMMY "WHERE'S BIN LADEN?" FRANKS
Position: Military Adviser
His Qualifications: Franks, a retired commander of the US Central Command, led the 2003 invasion of Iraq…and came in at No. 4 on Foreign Policy's "worst general in American history" list.
What You Need to Know: It's hard to know where to start with Franks: He didn't tell the American public he was planning on invading Iraq and then he helped spread the big fat lie that there were actually weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Once the war was over, he had no plan to deal with the aftermath. Oh, and he lost Osama bin Laden.
HAROLD "DRILL BABY DRILL" HAMM
Position: Energy Adviser
His Qualifications: He's a self-made American oilman worth $9.7 billion, as of September 2012.
What You Need to Know: Hamm would end federal control of drilling on government land, a policy Theodore Roosevelt ushered in to help protect wildlife and America's most beautiful places. Instead, states would have the authority to frack and mine government lands. The New York Times calls this "a radical shift from decades of policies under both Democrat and Republican presidents." According to Rolling Stone, Hamm has also given nearly $1 million to Romney's super-PAC.
KEVIN "DOW 36,000" HASSETT
His Position: Economic Adviser
His Qualifications: Hassett was a senior economist for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
What You Need To Know: Hassett is your typical right-wing economist: He favors stimulus when Republican presidents are in office and austerity when Democrats are in office, and in that sense he's kind of a perfect adviser for Mitt Romney, who is known for changing his mind on big issues when it's convenient. Hassett is most infamous, though, for writing (with James K. Glassman) the 1999 book Dow 36,000, in which he predicted an ever-rising stock market. "Stocks are now in the midst of a one-time-only rise to much higher ground," Hassett and Glassman wrote, which is true if you ignore subsequent downturns including the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. With a track record like that, how can Hassett's assertion that Romney's jobs plan will create "millions of jobs" possibly be wrong?
3 comments:
Feds investigate phony letters warning Florida voters they're not eligible to vote
Florida voters receive letters saying their citizenship is being challenged, along with their eligibility to vote. WBBH's Dave Elias reports.
By Michael Isikoff
NBC News
The FBI and U.S. Postal Service inspectors are investigating bogus official-looking letters sent to voters in at least 28 Florida counties questioning their citizenship and their eligibility to vote, NBC News has learned.
David Couvertier, a spokesman for the FBI in Tampa, said his office opened up an investigation into the possible attempt at voter intimidation on Wednesday after receiving reports that eligible voters throughout the state have received the letters.
"We're taking it as a serious situation," he said. "We're looking at everything from civil rights violations to election fraud -- to everything in between."
Chris Cate, a spokesman for the Florida Secretary of State's Office, told NBC News, "We believe these letters appear to meet the standard of voter intimidation." Between 50 and 100 such letters have been reported to state officials so far, "and those are only the ones we know about. We're encouraging people to come forward."
The fake letters, which first started showing up last Friday, have been sent under the names of real Florida county election supervisors -- with some correct contact information -- informing the voters that the supervisors have received "information" about their citizenship status, "bringing into doubt your eligibility as a registered voter."
The letters also say the voter must fill out a Voter Eligibility Form in the next 15 days -- and failure to do so will result "in the removal of your name from the voter registration rolls and you will no longer be eligible to vote."
"A non-registered voter who casts a vote in the state of Florida may be subject to arrest, imprisonment, and/or other criminal sanctions," the letters state.
Colin Powell endorses President Obama:
"Mr. Powell said he supported Mr. Obama in part because he is ending the war in Afghanistan and has a strong counter-terrorism record. “There’s some very, very strong neo-conservative views that are presented by the governor that I have some trouble with,” he said.
“I’m not quite sure which Governor Romney we’d be getting with respect to foreign policy,” he said.
With respect to Mr. Powell, I think know which Governor Romney we will get – the ideologically pliant one who will turn over his government to the neo-con hawks who now advise him.
It’s a group that Mr. Powell is right to fear. After all, he was George W. Bush’s Secretary of State, Bill Clinton’s and George H.W. Bush’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Ronald Reagan’s national security adviser. He knows a neo-con when he sees one.
Mr. Powell did himself and his reputation harm by (albeit inadvertently) presenting fictional tales about weapons of mass destruction and Saddam Hussein’s supposed nuclear ambitions to the United Nations as part of the campaign to mislead America and its allies into war with Iraq.
But unlike other members of Mr. Bush’s team, many of whom are now advising Mr. Romney, Mr. Powell has since acknowledged the falseness of those claims."
You know, referring to the Bush administrations administering of waterboarding as its "black side" once again substitutes fantasy for reality. It is a simple fact that Obama's lack of courage in using drones to kill high value al Qaeda and terrorist targets rather than doing the hard work of capturing and interrogating them places this nation at risk to avoid the "messy" second guessing of liberals about interrogation techniques.
President Bush had the courage and took a measured, prudent, legally reviewed approach. So well legally reviewed that after a congressional committee exonerated those involved of any wrongdoing, the Obama administration's Justice Department (being run, incidentally, by a man that by today's standards, easily qualifies as a domestic terrorist) investigated them yet again, resulting in untold mental anguish and legal expense for those involved. Very quietly, earlier this month, the Obama Justice Department found no grounds to bring any charges against any of them.
You can stop labeling these people and the policy as criminal, now please. Obama's Attorney General says they're not.
Lobs just don't allow the truth to get in the way of a good story!
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