For instance, Wednesday we caught Liar, Liar (the bad All of Me rip-off) and the liar looked even more believable as played by filth Amy Goodman on Democracy Now!:
In other campaign news, Senator Obama says he's accepted Senator Hillary Clinton's explanation for controversial comments invoking the 1968 assassination of Robert F. Kennedy to justify her continued stay in the Democratic presidential race. In an interview in South Dakota Friday, Clinton cited Kennedy's assassination as an example of a contest continuing through June.
Sen. Hillary Clinton: "My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California. You know I just--I don't understand it."
Clinton explained she was trying to cite a historical precedent for a June presidential contest. While not apologizing for the remark, Clinton did say, "I regret that if my referencing that moment of trauma for our entire nation and in particular the Kennedy family was in any way offensive." The Obama campaign initially criticized Clinton for invoking the assassination of a candidate. Obama has received Secret Service protection since the early stages of his campaign.
Our mouths fell open and, for a moment, we felt we stumbled across across a badly edited version of Ken Russell's Whore but, of course, no one could ever mistake Theresa Russell as a sexless mouse.
"Mouse" is a good word for Amy Goodman. "Rat" is a better one. The non-story was dead and Amy Goodman, apparently thumbing through her copy of Pravda several days late, was bound and determined to revive it.
As always with the Mouse, facts be damned. "The Obama campaign initially criticized Clinton for invoking the assassination of a candidate"?
That's Amy proving what a Rat she can be. She's filth, she lies for Barack every chance she gets. If she had anything left to whore out for him, she would. But like the MSM's Keith Olberman, both have whored out every last bit. Hillary made a factual statement and the Obama campaign worked like crazy to scream, "She's talking about killing!" (We're assuming bi-racial Barack was supposed to be "White" in that moment of offense, like RFK?)
Here's Katherine Seeyle (New York Times) explaining what Goody wouldn't:
Shortly after Mrs. Clinton spoke on Friday, the Obama campaign jumped on the story, sending an e-mail message to reporters saying her comment had no place in a presidential campaign. It linked to a online report in The New York Post that said Mrs. Clinton was ''making an odd comparison" between the dead candidate and Barack Obama--a phrase the newspaper later dropped.
On Tuesday, Joan Walsh would get specific on CNBC's Hardball:
It was an unfortunate choice of words. But she is being bloodied for this. And I have no doubt that it came originally, somewhat, from the Obama campaign. I got the e-mail on Friday from Bill Burton, making sure that thousands of reporters saw the remarks and that they construed it in the way he wanted them to. I got the e-mail from the Obama campaign, saying that Keith Olbermann--with Keith Olbermann's "special comment" on it.
Goody's a liar, a filthy liar who lies to create problems. She lies to sew dissension. She's not just toxic at this point, she's pathological. Joan Walsh told the truth Tuesday night so Wednesday morning it was time for the rat digging through the garbage to surface with more lies.
"Obama accepted the explanation"? Obama stirred up the s**t with a lot of help from Media Whores like Amy Goodman.
Was there ever any reason for anyone to be outraged? No. Don't believe it? Read this:
It is clear from the context that Hillary was invoking a familiar political circumstance in order to support her decision to stay in the race through June. I have heard her make this reference before, also citing her husband's 1992 race, both of which were hard fought through June. I understand how highly charged the atmosphere is, but I think it is a mistake for people to take offense.
That's Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and, if Hillary was doing what the liars said she was, he'd be the first to call it out. RFK was, after all, his father. As Bob Somerby (Daily Howler) pointed out throughout the week (but especially Wednesday), the same accurate statement got no attention when it was made in March, the difference was that the Obama campaign attempted to create a media event. That is how, for example, Marjorie Cohn came to write her embarrassing copy (sorry, Marjorie, that column is a pile of crap), she got her heads up from the Obama campaign. It's how she wrote it before Keith Olbermann ever went on air. The campaign sent out the orders and the Red Guard took off marching.
Amy had a curious and pathetic line up last week. We couldn't figure out whether she fancied herself Mike Douglas or Robin Leach. But in the week that followed Come Back To The Five & Dime, John Cusack, John Cusack, she was chatting it up with Gore Vidal, remembering Utah Phillips (those asking "Who?" are forgiven), exploring the BookExpo America, gabbing with fired failed journalist Robert Scheer and grabbing the tissues with Norman Finkelstein, a vocal critic of Israel, who was deported.
Deported? May 21st the Canadian government announced that US war resister Corey Glass had until June 12th to leave Canada or he would be deported. Goody never found time to tell anyone about that. We'd say she might do it next week but we understand 'reliable sources' tell her they can book Zsa Zsa Gabor for the hour next week!
What an utterly embarrassing and boring week of viewing offered. In fairness to the Hu**ler magazine publishing Goodman, the real excitement was online last week, not on TV.
Early Thursday morning, community member Martha gave a heads up to everyone that, at TalkLeft, Big Tent Democrat has another video from Barack's church. This one was of Michael Pfleger 'preaching' hate speech last Sunday. Pfleger's known Barack as long as Barack's gone to Trinity Church. Pfleger's donated to his campaigns, served on his current campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination and spoken publicly at campaign events for Barack. When the Jeremiah Wright controversy erupted (after ABC's Good Morning America broadcast videos of Wright damning the United States of America, saying AIDS was a US government plot to kill African-Americans, etc.), the Barack campaign urged the media to speak to Pfleger who could vouch for Wright ("as a White man," was the Obama campaign pitched it to one network and two daily papers). So there was Pfleger insisting that Wright had never said anything outrageous and a national media that really didn't know anything about Pfleger ran with him as a 'respected' and 'sane' source.
We'll assume they were shocked to see the mincing performance Pfleger gave, one that made us think of Patrick Swayze trying to girl it up in To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar.
To a standing ovation, Rev. Otis Moss intro-ed Pfleger, "He needs no introduction. He's a friend of Trinity, he's a brother beloved. He's a preacher par excellence. He's a prophetic, powerful pupiteer. He is our friend. He is our brother. He is none other than Father Michael Pfeger. We welcome him once again."
After that wordy intro, anything else might be anti-climatic. But Pfleger's the rhinestone that sparkles.
He started out screaming in his impersonation of White people. Not him, you understand, though he is White. But others, you know, the ones not as 'enlightened' as he is. Those people, you understand, are insisting "don't hold me responsible for what my ancestors did."
Pfleger demonstrated how unAmerican he is as a friend with Smallville pointed out on the phone urging us to catch a rebroadcast Thursday night (and consider reviewing the show again). Smallville is the story of Clark Kent (Superman) and it's hard to get more Americana than that. In Thursday's broadcast, Clark met Kara (Supergirl) who was also from his home planet (Krypton) and, at the end, goes to the Fortress of Solitude to speak to his dead father and ask why he was never told about Kara before? His father tells him that Kara's father was not to be trusted and, therefore, Kara cannot be trusted. Clark respondes that you really can't blame her for the things her father did. That is the American way. We're not living in a feudal society. But don't wake up Pfleger.
He was raving at the mouth insisting that yes, you can (he's so very Obama) blame any White person today "unless," he said noting an escape clause, "you are ready to give up the benefits! Throw away your 401 fund! Throw away your trust fund! Throw away all the money you put into the company you walked into because yo Daddy and yo granddaddy and yo great granddaddy, unless you're willing to give up the benefits" and at that point he was screaming so loudly, we feared he burst a blood vessel. Okay, we hoped that.
Your 401 fund? Between us we cover several disciplines (with degrees) but we'd never heard of a 401 fund. We called our accountant. He explained that "the crazy" means the 401K. Yeah, you kind of need the "k" in there to identify the 401K.
But we were back ot the video and wondering why Pfleger was saying "Yo Daddy," et al? Was he attempting to say this is how the vile White people speak? Was he attempting to pass for 'street'? We didn't have too long to ponder because that was just his opening number.
"When Hillary was crying," Pfleger said pantomiming tears as though he thought he were on stage at The Palace, "and people said that was a put on, I really don't believe it was a put on." In this section especially, Pfleger will be panting into the microphone and we saw that as his attempt to play Sally in When Harry Met Sally . . . . Michael Pfleger, you are no Meg Ryan. Allowing his voice to rise, he snarled, "I really believe that she just always thought, 'This is mine'." At this point he begins speaking in a voice more girlish than his natural one and, stating, "I'm Bill's wife. I'm White. And this is mine. And I jus' gotta get up. " While we won't doubt the allegedly celibate Pfleger would enjoy being Bill's wife, we found the rest of the performance lacking. And unconvincing.
Some might question his choice of a deep voice when Pfleger declared "Hey, I'm Barack Obama"; however, we don't think he was trying to butch up Barack (is that even possible?), we think he grasped what a delicate flower he came off.
He was back to 'dainty' in the following, "She said, 'Oh, damn! Where did you come from! I'm White! I'm entitled! There's a Black man stealing my show!'"
Last time we checked, the Catholic Church does not believe in mind reading anymore than they believe in the gnostics. Some might call what Pfleger offered a performance, we saw it as a heresy.
In his own voice (we really shouldn't call it "his normal voice") he screamed, "She wasn't the only one crying! There was a whole lotta White people crying!"
Through out, the crackpot congergation of Trinity went wild. As Andrew S. Ross' "Campaign question-5: Obama's latest racial problem" (San Francisco Chronicle) wondered, "Apart from the appallingly racist nature of Father Michael Pfleger's remarks about Hillary Clinton, what is one to make of the congregation who seemed to lap it all up?"
We'll come back to that.
For now, let's note somethings that did follow. Barack Obama never apologized for the sexist (that drag queen performance by Pfleger was sexist and insulting to all women) and racist remarks Pfleger made. (Though we're sure if Goody ever covers this, she'll lie that Barack apologized.) He said it did not reflect the country he has seen during the presidential campaign. But, let's be clear, it reflects exactly what he's seen for 20 years at Trinity and he was fine and dandy with it then.
Early on Friday, Dick Durbin tried to play Pfleger spinning for Wright by spinning for Pfleger to The Chicago Tribune. It was embarrassing, deeply embarrassing and Durbin knows a slap-down when he sees one so he's probably done with the subject. The slapdown? Jake Tapper (ABC News) quoted Cardinal Francis George of the Archidoces of Chicago Friday with this statement: "The Catholic Church does not endorse political candidates. Consequently, while a priest must speak to political issues that are also moral, he may not endorse candidates nor engage in partisan campaigning. Racial issues are both political and moral and are also highly charged. Words can be differently interpreted, but Fr. Pfleger's remarks about Senator Clinton are both partisan and amount to a personal attack. I regret that deeply."
Prior to that Durbin was already stepping in it. He was explaining to The Chicago Tribune's editorial board (links for all of this can be found in Friday's "Iraq snapshot") that Jeremiah Wright's 'statements' were a good thing because they caused the nation to 'explore' racism and ask, "'Why is he so angry? Why is Jeremiah Wright so angry over the situation in America today?' Here is a man who volunteered with the Marine Corps in Vietnam, who went on to be a Navy corpsman. There's no question about his patriotism. Then why is he so angry about this country?" Pfleger stepped in it.
No one wants to talk about that. Wright's a crackpot preaching hate. And Bill Moyers got called out for shining it on for Wright. But what Pfleger has done is more damaging. He's a White person. With Wright, some non-African-Americans could say, "Well maybe it's a Black thing?" They could (wrongly) assume that's just how 'they' are. With Pfleger attacking White working class Americans and Pfleger being White, this is even more toxic than anything Wright did.
Let's go through it slowly. Though we have heard of 401Ks, neither of us have one. We have a few IRAs, but we have no 401K. The reason is we are wealthy. A 401K is something you and your employer contribute to. Wright wasn't attacking the moneyed class when he went beserk over "401 funds," he was attacking the working class.
If he wanted to attack the moneyed class, he could have, for instance, asked Katrina vanden Heuvel of The Nation to give up her Harlem mansion. Come on, a White woman living it up in a mansion in Harlem? Is there anything that reeks more of entitlement? (In fairness, Katrina does provide jobs to the area -- for her household help.) 401Ks? That's for the working class and the middle class.
So what Pfleger did was announce -- as a White Barack supporter and someone who was part of the campaign and someone Barack used publicly to campaign for him -- that White people better be able to give up their 401Ks.
Pfleger just gifted John McCain's campaign with the Willie Horton moment. In the general election, anyone already bothered by the Black Liberation religious theory Barack has been part of could tell themselves, "But Barack's 'post-racial.' He says so. George Will says so!" Not now. Now, a White supporter of Barack's has announced to the country that, if you're White working class, you better surrender your 401K for the big give-away.
We can already see the ad this fall if Barack's the Democratic nominee. "Barack Obama speak of 'change'." Insert Pfleger screaming nonsense here. "Is it 'change'? Or is it Get Whitey?"
Wright had an out for Barack. Wright's skin color was his out. Barack was happy to use that out and to claim (in that nearly 4,000 word speech) that Wright was a relic of the past, still caught up in the old wars of the past. (Those 'wars' would be the Civil Rights Movement which still has a long ways to go in the United States.) Barack presented himself as far, far from Wright. And some made uncomfortable by Wright could buy into that. They could tell themselves, "Well, Wright lived through really bad times and personally was discriminated against gravely and repeatedly."
Pfleger, a White man, can't make that same claim. The only discrimination he's faced in his adult life is probably some people assuming he's a pedophile due to his collar.
And, more importantly, all Americans have an image of the Catholic Church and they damn well know what Pfleger was doing is not consistent with the teachings of the Catholic Church. The only thing he was representing on stage was the Obama campaign -- hence the attacks on Hillary.
So the Obama campaign now stands for robbing from the working class. In the consumerist culture that we live in, the threat of taking things away from those near the bottom and at the bottom doesn't motivate a lot of people to vote for you. One of the most effective lies told about Al Gore was that he wanted to take away "your guns and cars." That was repeated over and over. One of us (C.I.) was asked to speak at a high school by a teacher in 2000 because she had booked a pro-Bully Boy speaker. The man speaking for Bully Boy repeated that smear. It was met with anger. The man lied and said it was in Earth in the Balance and even after it was corrected (by C.I.), there were still high school seniors (at a well off school) convinced Al Gore was going to take away their cars. (They didn't give a damn about the guns.) There were jokes, as they left the assembly, about how Al wanted them to ride horses to school.
Few people like the idea of giving up something. And on the issue of slavery, no one should. The US government encouraged slavery, refused to make it illegal. All those owning slaves died sometime ago. The US government needs to make reparations of some form. Even suggesting something as mild as a national college fund is still controversial. So the idea that a Barack supporter, someone who has known Barack for years and has campaigned for him, is calling for non-African-Americans to give up their 401Ks is not going to go over well.
That moment is not dying.
And you better believe the McCain camp (whether they use it themselves or farm it off to surrogates) aren't going to let it die either. On Friday, John Bentley (CBS News) noted Senator John McCain's comments, "I have known Sen. Clinton for a long time. I respect her, and I think that kind of language and that kind of treatment of Sen. Clinton is unwarranted, uncalled for, and disgraceful." McCain is now on record opposing Pfleger's statements. The campaign (or its surrogates) will run with it if Barack's the nominee. It will be bigger than Willie Horton because it will play into the issues of race, economics and the US history of slavery.
It will not be pretty.
And it's probably not fair to call it "the Willie Horton" moment because it will be tapping into much more than race and because Pfleger is White. But it will have that kind of impact and whomever fills the commercial will have a long, long line of other campaigns begging to sign them up.
Those are basic realities and, if the campaign season thus far has demonstrated anything, it's that they aren't interested in realities. Which is how you got the ridiculous Washington Week Friday where Gwen brought the issue up as brief aside. The issue was being covered by the media on Thursday and Friday. It's not a non-issue and it's not something to be swept aside. But if she hadn't done that, viewers couldn't have enjoyed the rampant sexism on display, could they?
You had Slate's John Dickerson dismissing any suggestion that sexism on the part of the media has been utilized in press coverage of Hillary. And, to really underscore how 'trivial' he thought sexism was, near the end of the show, he was making jokes about it. Making sure no one missed how strong sexism is today, CNBC and The New York Times' John Hardwood decided to give examples as he talked over ABC News' Martha Raddatz in the final moments, basically told her she was stupid ("the issue on the table!") and much more. We found it interesting that Gwen was trying to cut John off due to time limits but not seriously. She put her hand down firmly on the table when Martha attempted to respond. Martha she could get firm with, John yelling and screaming (it was a very crazy week for Washington Week), she wasn't going to 'moderate.' John and John struck us as acting out their own pathetic version of In The Company of Men.
We would have thought the week couldn't get any nuttier . . .