If Jesus returned as Glenn Beck

Maid-gate

And now, the details on the "October Surprise" of the California gubernatorial campaign.

Meg Whitman knowingly employed an undocumented worker through 2009, according to attorney Gloria Allred.

"Nicki," the employee, sat next to Allred during a press conference Wednesday and tearfully detailed her experience as a housekeeper for Whitman.

Allred told reporters that her client was paid for just 15 hours of work per week, despite working past those hours. Allred claimed that when Whitman hired her client, she never asked if she was in the country legally.

"Nicki" told reporters that when Whitman let her go, the Republican candidate for governor said, "I don't know you, and you don't know me."

More trouble for Meg Whitman

An animated and humorous Jerry Brown soundly trounced a stiff and script-reading Meg Whitman in last night's California gubernatorial debate, and it looks like Whitman is going to have more trouble today.

Gossip site TMZ reports Wednesday that the former housekeeper of the one-time eBay CEO plans to make "explosive" allegations against Whitman in a live news conference coming later at 11 AM PT. The maid is supposedly planning "to tell how she suffered as a long-time, Latina household employee in Meg Whitman's home." The maid's lawyer? Gloria Allred, the high-profile Hollywood attorney that represented Nicole Brown Simpson's family in the 1990s. More recently, however, Allred represented Amanda J. Eneman, the ex-girlfriend of Illinois lieutenant gubernatorial candidate Scott Lee Cohen, whose comments about the Democratic candidate's behavior helped push him from the race in early 2010.

MORE health care reform!

With recent polling showing that a majority of Americans think health care reform didn't go far enough will there be any Democrats smart enough to campaign on EXPANDING reform as opposed to Republicans who want to repeal it?

Somehow, I don't think so. More's the pity.

Pastors defy Jesus

Jesus commanded his followers to obey earthly laws and authorities. Pastors across the US will be defying their Lord and Savior this Sunday, protesting IRS rules by supporting political candidates from their pulpits. No comment from Jesus yet at this latest disobedience from his purported adherents.

How America lost almost 3 Trillion dollars

(h/t Newsburger)

The Bush tax cuts that mostly benefitted the wealthy did not create new jobs and cost us nearly 3 Trillion dollars. Notice that I capitalized the "T." Consult the nearest Carl Sagan book to get an idea of just how much 3 Trillion is.

Total income was $2.74 trillion less during the eight Bush years than if incomes had stayed at 2000 levels.

That much additional income would have more than made up for the lack of demand that keeps us mired in the Great Recession. That would mean no need for a stimulus, although it would not have affected the last administration's interfering with market capitalism by bailing out irresponsible Wall Streeters instead of letting the market determine their fortunes.

And the Republicans would like to keep those losses coming. Of course they do -- because the political calculation is that keeping the economy down and making things worse is how they'll beat Obama in 2012. They don't care about the country, they only care about political power for themselves and their corporate buddies.

This is why, Democrats, no matter how disaffected or disappointed you may be that you haven't gotten everything you wanted in health care reform, financial reform, gay rights, you HAVE to get off your ass and vote in November. With Obama, we're at least headed in the right direction. If the Republicans get the prize they want this year, things will get much, much worse, because the Republicans INTEND for them to get worse.

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss

Must-see video comparing what the Republicans said then with what the Republicans say now with their "new" ideas.

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Just Say No vs. Eat Well

How crazy are right wingers? When Nancy Reagan promoted "Just say no" as an anti-drug campaign, right wingers praised her to the skies for singlehandedly solving the nation's drug problem. But Michelle Obama encouraging kids to eat well and exercise? OH MY GOD! INDOCTRINATION! TYRANNY! SHE MUST BE STOPPED!

Consider the possibility

Consider the possibility that our system of government is so screwed up that even the wisest, most idealistic leader couldn't fix it or get anything done.

The weight of all the pinheads, the greedy, the corrupt, the power-mad is just too heavy to lift to move out of the way.

DADT - a modest proposal

So the Party of No doesn't want to repeal DADT and allow gays to serve in the military, even though a majority of both Democrats and Republicans in America are for repeal?

Okay. How about enforcing ALL of it then?

Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue was designed to PROTECT gays from being kicked out of the military just for being themselves.  In practice, however, only the "Don't Tell" part has been enforced.  McCain's meltdown occured when someone brought up the fact that the military WAS asking and WAS pursuing.

I have a recommendation for everyone who wants to see justice served on this issue.

Write to your Congressmen.  Write to your Senators.  Write the President.  Write the Attorney General.  Write to the Pentagon.  Write to Lambda Legal.  Write to the ACLU.

Insist that DADT must be enforced -- ALL of it.  Every single case where gays have been kicked out of  the military needs to be reviewed to see if someone flouted DADT by  asking or pursuing, and if so, that person should be immediately kicked out of the military.

Sharron Angle mocks autism

Teabagger Sharron Angle has been caught on video mocking health coverage for autistic children.

Just add it to her other callous statements like the unemployed being "spoiled" or how pregnant rape victims just need to "turn lemons into lemonade."

Sharia Law

I don't know who the hell is talking about "enforcing Sharia law in America," other than the teabaggers, but they sure are upset about it.

At any rate, teabaggers, I'll see your "ban Sharia law from US courts" and raise you a "ban the 10 commandments from US courts." Deal?

Undecided voters hate Sarah Palin

New polling on the "undecideds" around the country shows something interesting -- they're ambivalent about President Obama. However, they HATE, with a white-hot burning passion, Sarah Palin.

So to win with undecided voters, making the GOP the party of Sarah Palin is the winning strategy to get the fence-sitters to come down on our side. Smart Democrats will take every opportunity to equate Palin with Republicans and vice versa.

Look at your God. Now look at me.

Wanna destroy the Republican Party?

Think back to when Democrats took Congress in 2006. The Republican Party was convulsed with recriminations, leading to a contentious primary season that left John McCain -- JOHN MCCAIN -- standing... and losing handily to Barack Obama.

And when Obama won, a virtual civil war broke out in the GOP because of the power vacuum. Recriminations reached a fever pitch. It was very nearly open warfare in the party. This led to ultra-wacky teabaggers purging almost all the moderates out of the party.

And this has helped Democrats' chances in what was looking to be a very bad year.

Now, would you like to strike the final blow? Then get your ass to the polls this November and vote. Don't let the Republicans take the House or the Senate. Deny them that prize.

If they lose in November, I really don't think the Republican Party will survive the circular firing squad that is sure to erupt in the wake of that loss. The teabaggers will go even crazier and move even further to the right, ensuring more future victories for Democrats and what is sure to be the reelection of President Obama.

Which will send them over the cliff.

It's up to you.

Why Barbara Boxer is the best choice

God was wrong!

Terry Jones, the radical Christian cleric I call Pastor Burnsalot, announced on the Today show this morning that he won't be burning Qurans at his church, "not today, not ever."

But wait a minute. Back when all this started, he said God told him to burn Qurans. That's why he wouldn't back down. God gave him marching orders. God can't be wrong. God shouldn't be disobeyed.

But then Pastor Burnsalot said he wouldn't burn Qurans if Imam Rauf agreed to move the "Ground Zero Mosque." He made a big announcement that there was an agreement to move it. Well, that turned out to be completely untrue, so Burnsalot seemed to indicate that the Quran burning was back on.

Because God told him to burn Qurans, you know. God is never wrong and shouldn't be disobeyed.

But NOW Burnsalot says the Quran burning is totally off. For realz, y'all.

His excuse now is that he didn't really intend to burn Qurans, he just wanted to "expose that there is an element of Islam that is very dangerous and very radical," that's all. The whole "I'm gonna burn me some Ko-ranns" thing was nothing more than a ploy to get attention so he could make a point about how nasty those dirty Muslims are.

In other words, either God was wrong... or Pastor Burnsalot is nothing more than a feckless, cowardly LIAR.

Counter protest the Quran-burning preacher

I have an idea for a counter protest against the radical Christian cleric Terry Jones, a.k.a. Pastor Burnsalot, with his burning Qurans. I propose we get a crowd of people to gather outside his church for a few hours and blaspheme the Holy Spirit through loudspeakers and bullhorns.

Burning Bibles, while offensive to Christians, doesn't quite have the same effect that burning Qurans does to Muslims. A closer sacrilege would be blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.

Also, imagine the fun as Jones' parishioners become fearful that they might accidentally think to themselves the blasphemies they hear from the protesters, and thereby open themselves up to what they believe is "the unforgiveable sin."

Dr. Laura: "Just how it started in Germany"

Dr. Laura infamously used the n-word over and over and over again on the radio. Understandably, people got upset and complained, so she quit. She claims that this is somehow a violation of her free speech rights -- that her audience didn't like what she said and dared to complain about it.

Now she says that people being upset because she screamed racial epithets over and over again is "how it started in Germany."

No, really.

I thought I was pretty good on the subject of history. It's a hobby. But I must be stupid because I just don't remember when Hitler had a radio show, and listeners got pissed at him for all his anti-Jewish rhetoric, and then he quit in protest. I just don't remember that ever happening.

I think Dr. Laura is a bit confused about which part SHE's playing in the whole "this is just how it started in Germany" thing.

Before you vote consider this

Before you vote, consider this:

If you're thinking of voting for Republicans because you're mad as hell about the economy and about the unemployment problem, consider carefully. Do you think if the GOP takes control of the House and/or Senate they're going to work to fix the economy and put people back to work?

No. Because they do NOT want the situation in America to improve so long as Obama is president. If Republicans take back Congress, don't be deceived and think they're going to work to make things better. They're not. They have no intention of doing so.

If you're a "disappointed Democrat" thinking of sitting out the election because you're mad as hell at Obama or your party, consider that your lack of a vote is a vote for Republicans. It's a vote for a shutdown of the government. Things will NOT improve. They will get worse, because the Republicans WANT THEM TO GET WORSE... It's how they plan to run against Obama in 2012.

Sending Republicans to Congress is NOT going to improve the economy or put people back to work. That's the LAST thing Republicans want while Obama is in the White House.

The only hope, small though it may be, it to send more Democrats, preferably progressive-minded Democrats, to Congress in November.

Think hard. Vote to make America better. Vote Democrat.

Are the polls turning around?

Obama poll numbers are showing signs of turning around. A CNN poll shows Obama approval up after Iraq speech, now at 50% (+3 since last month), but Americans are still in a surly mood over the economy, even though another poll shows that 71% blame Bush for the economic downturn.

A new national poll indicates that President Barack Obama's approval rating has edged up three points, and it appears that the war in Iraq is behind the bump. But according to the CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey, Americans are giving the president bad marks on the economy.

The survey, released Friday, indicates that 50 percent of Americans approve of the job Obama's doing as president, up from 47 percent in last month, with 49 percent disapproving, down two points from August. And Obama's approval on how he's handling the conflict in Iraq now stands at 57 percent, an eight point jump from July. The poll was conducted Wednesday and Thursday, after the president gave a prime time address from the Oval Office on Iraq.

Full results [pdf]

Glenn Beck's rally crowd numbers REDUX

Right wingers are BLASTING the crowd counting experts who said there were 87,000 people at Glenn Beck's religious rally last Saturday (even though 87,000 is still a damn good number, nothing to sneeze at).

But they LOVED the EXACT SAME EXPERTS when this same company had a smaller estimated than others for Obama's inauguration.

Just goes to show you that these right wingers don't really care about facts.