God Takes Revenge on Falwell

LYNCHBURG, Va. — The Rev. Jerry Falwell, who founded the Moral Majority and built the religious right into a political force, died Tuesday shortly after being found unconscious in his office at Liberty University, a school executive said. He was 73.

Falwell liked to claim that things like hurricanes and terrorist attacks were god's revenge on what he thought of as bad people (i.e., gays, lesbians, secular humanists, etc).

So, clearly, his death begs the question: what did he do to piss god off?

Update: here's one of my favorite Falwell quotes:

"AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals."

Out With The Trash Watch

It's a long-standing tradition in Washington to make embarrassing announcements late on a Friday, the theory being no one learns anything new on Saturday. Which is a pretty good theory. This is known as "throwing out the trash."

Today in the White House's trash... Deputy National Security Adviser Barty JD Crouch.

Crouch, 48, said he's been thinking for months about leaving his job as deputy to the president's national security adviser, Stephen Hadley.

In announcing his resignation on Friday, Bush said Crouch has been "at the forefront in devising and implementing the new strategy to help build a peaceful, stable and secure Iraq."

Heckuva job, Crouchy.

Previously...

GOP Debate

Three of the 10 Republican presidential candidates debating at the Regan Library last night indicated they do not believe in evolution.

It's hard to tell from the video which three raised their hands, but they have since been identified as Brownback, Trancredo and Huckabee. McCain (who seems more and more unhinged to me) hesitated before saying "yes," he does believe in evolution.

Tommy Thompson said he thinks it's just dandy if an employer wants to purge gays from his payroll.

Brownback said the day Roe v Wade gets overturned will be a "glorious day."

"The Iranians looked into Regan's eyes, and two minutes later, released the hostages," pandered Giluiani, who doesn't so much smile as bare his teeth. Like a Rottweiler.

McCain promised that he would pursue bin Laden "to the gates of hell." Um... I think we can get bin Laden without plunging the United States into the infernal Lake of Fire. So, y'know, thanks, Ahab, but I think we'll have to pass on that, and you.

All in all, quite the warm and fuzzy bunch of old white guys, huh?

McCain Calls Iraq War a Tragedy?

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Republican presidential contender John McCain called the Iraq war "a great tragedy" on Thursday, yet still decried a timetable for a U.S. withdrawal as the Senate voted to begin pulling out troops by Oct. 1.

Really? Let's check out that quote:

"I'm aware of the patience of the American people. I read the polls. I'm not embarrassed to say that. I understand the frustration and sorrow that American people feel about this war. It's a great tragedy," said McCain, who was campaigning in this early voting state and missed the Senate vote on the bill containing the withdrawal timetable.

I know what it looks like to me. It looks like he's calling "the patience of the American people" with regard to the Iraq war "a tragedy." Not the war itself.

Did the way they quoted him change the context? Maybe. But note that he also missed the vote. I'll be interested to see him expand on this, because if he's calling this war "a great tragedy," it's a major change of position--aka, a flip flop.

What do you guys think?

Gonzales Goes Down For The Count

It has been a disastrous morning for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. The major problem with his testimony is that Gonzales maintains, in essence, that he doesn’t know why he fired at least some of the eight dismissed U.S. attorneys. When, under questioning by Republican Sen. Sam Brownback, Gonzales listed the reasons for each firing, it was clear that in a number of cases, he had reconstructed the reason for the dismissal after the fact. He didn’t know why he fired them at the time, other than the action was recommended by senior Justice Department staff.

Later, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham returned to the subject. “Mr. Attorney General, most of this is a stretch,” Graham told Gonzales. “I think most of them [the U.S. attorneys] had personality disagreements with the White House, and you made up reasons to fire them.”

Bomb Bomb Bomb, Bomb Bomb Iran

Another man — wondering if an attack on Iran is in the works — wanted to know when America is going to “send an air mail message to Tehran.”
McCain began his answer by changing the words to a popular Beach Boys song.
“Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran,” he sang to the tune of Barbara Ann.

I'd rather think McCain has lost his marbles than that he's lost his scruples, 'cause this could track either way.

All this pandering to people he spit at in 2000... Falwell, in particular.

Something's not right... and, again, I'd rather think he's been felled by dementia than by the desire to get to the Oval Office no matter what.

As much as I have always disagreed with his positions on most issues, I used to think he was better than that.