Apparently, John McCain Needs A Jew-Counter On His Staff

I've been on a few campaigns in my day and I think that I've got the basics of what you need for a good staff. A campaign manager, field operation, fundraisers, media relations, lots of volunteers and a couple of lawyers are a good supplement to a great candidate. However, McCain is not a great candidate, he knows it and feels the need to add other types of political operatives.

If I were him and had one wish, it would be for a miracle. Aside from being a higher power, my miracle would not come in the form of Fred Malek. To say Malek has an ugly past would be an understatement. The last time a presidential candidate hired him the guy was pressured to resign almost on the spot. So why you ask is Fred such a bad boy?

From Media Matters:

On April 3, Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) 2008 presidential campaign announced that it had hired former Nixon staffer Fred Malek as its national finance co-chairman. However, as David Corn, Washington editor of The Nation, noted in an April 3 entry on his Capital Games weblog, the McCain campaign's press release "left out an interesting piece of Malek's history: when he counted Jews for President Richard Nixon." As Corn reported, Nixon suspected that a "cabal" of Jews at the Bureau of Labor Statistics was skewing economic figures to make the administration look bad and assigned Malek to report back on how many Jews were employed at BLS. When former President George H.W. Bush hired Malek as a top official at the Republican National Committee (RNC) in 1988, revelations in the press regarding Malek's work for Nixon reportedly led him to resign. McCain's hiring of Malek would seem to warrant the same disclosures from the media, but so far, only one news outlet other than The Nation has reported it.

Moreover, as Media Matters for America senior fellow Eric Boehlert documented, Politico senior writer Ben Smith "lean[ed] on lots of innuendo" in a March 13 weblog post in order to report that Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) has a "Jewish Problem," but failed to provide evidence substantiating that claim. Now that McCain has hired Malek, who allegedly aided President Nixon's attempts to expose the so-called "Jewish cabal" in the Bureau of Labor Statistics, will the Politico investigate "McCain's Jewish Problem"?

So why would McCain leave that little tidbit out (and for that matter, why didn't Ben Smith report on it at the Politico?) while highlighting his financial abilities. Perhaps counting Jews isn't a part of a 2008 Presidential race, so maybe it isn't that important. Being a Jew myself (who is sitting in a coffeeshop salivating over all the delicious baked goods) I think that it is absolutely ridiculous to hire someone that carried out the wishes of that anti-semite (IMHO) Richard Nixon.

When George H.W. Bush hired him he was quickly let go of. People in 1988 realized that having that kind of press isn't the best to have when running for President. So why is the media (save for The Nation and Media Matters) not reporting on it? Media Matters offers tons of material (from the link above) on how this issue is being kept quiet in the press. It is time to put the pressure on the media and subsequently John McCain and fire Fred Malek.

Romney Likes To Veto

This has to be one of the strangest campaign ads I've seen in a while:

Go Back To Africa And Do Your Gay Voodoo Limbo Tango

This creative anti-gay slur and many others were part of a heated email exchange between an army recruiter and a member of careerbuilder.com. The army recruiter, Sgt. Marcia Ramode contacted Corey Andrew about a position in the army, but got nasty after he disclosed that he was an openly gay man. Today Andrew got press on the issue, bringing the controversial "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" program back into the spotlight.

From RawStory:

After posting his resume on online job site CareerBuilder.com, Corey Andrew was contacted by an army recruiter about a job.

The email exchange between Andrew and the recruiter, Sergeant Marcia Ramode, quickly turned hostile when Andrew revealed that he was a homosexual.

"You are definitely unqualified," wrote Ramode. "Now take you gay self [sic] back to someplace else we do not tolerate gay people like you in any part of the military."

"Her response was appalling," Andrew told CNN.

The email exchange grew more heated, with Ramode suggesting that Andrew should, "go back to Africa and do your gay voodoo limbo tango and wango dance."

Thankfully the recruiting station based in Brooklyn had some common sense on their part and put the Sargeant on leave, saying her childish behavior is not acceptable for the ambassadors of America's army. Nevertheless, the episode reveals how the military's policy dealing with homosexuals is flawed.

While the army has no qualms about inducting convicted felons and other ilk, they are still repulsed by the fact that a man or woman may be attracted to their own gender. I feel bad for Andrew because he had to deal with the recruiter's homophobia upclose and personal. Hopefully there is a silver lining in all of this and the military finally takes a hard look at their failed policy and ditches it. Of course, I'm not holding my breath either.

Embalming Your Congressman

Stephen Colbert, as usual, asks the tough questions we all want answers to:

There Is A Whole Lot Of Safe Sex Going On In NYC

New York City officials in the health department are enjoying quite a bit of success today over their NYC Condom campaign. Although it cannot be confirmed if they've all been used (nor does anyone want to really find out) the health department has given away over five million condoms in the first month of their program.

From The Empire Zone:

Between Feb. 14 and March 14, more than 800 organizations requested the condoms, which come in black wrappers with circled letters — each circle the color of one of the city’s train lines — spelling “N.Y.C. Condom.”

“The N.Y.C. Condom is a sensation,” said Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas R. Frieden. “Hundreds of community organizations are signing up to give out free condoms, many for the first time. I commend them for doing their part to prevent sexually transmitted diseases and unplanned pregnancies, and I urge anyone who wants an N.Y.C. Condom to visit www.nyccondom.org or
call 311.”

This is a huge success for the health department and for New Yorkers that are thinking with their heads first. It would be great to see more cities follow our lead. Safe sex is an important issue in these times and our government should do more to help out. George Bush and his fundy friends might object to this noble effort, but if you care about common sense, then who really wants to listen to them?

Karl Rove Gets Stoned

Bush's brain wasn't caught with marijuana last night, but that might have calmed his nerves after getting pelted with numerous objects at American University. For safety's sake the students did not used rocks when they hurled insults and various items at Karl and his car. Without injuring the guy, the message definitely got across.

Karl was leaving the university after talking with College Republicans on campus. He might have been able to talk about the ridiculousness in the White House and how to spin it, but those pesky CRs certainly understood that the vast majority do not approve of the man or his methods.



Although the images are a bit fuzzy, it is easy to tell this wasn't a pretty scene for the spin-meister. Despite the craziness and the students that laid down on the street in front of his car, no one was arrested or detained.

Watch Out Hillary, Here Comes Obama

One of Hillary's biggest strengths going into this race was her ability to raise major amounts of cash. With the 1st quarter numbers in, she didn't disappoint. Raising $25 million dollars is not small change. However, Obama released his numbers today and startling to some, matched that amount. Thats not all, while Hillary raised that money from 50,000 donors, Obama doubled that number.

One hundred thousand individual donors proves he has widespread appeal while Hillary's numbers show that the big-time Democrats largely have her back. The problem for Hillary is that she just doesn't appeal to the masses. Especially so in the Democratic activist sphere, which is the one that counts here.

More from The Huffington Post:

The campaign reported that the figure included at least $23.5 million that he can spend on the highly competitive primary race. The Clinton campaign has yet to disclose how much they can use for the primary verses money that is designated for the general election.

While Clinton has honed a vast national fundraising network through two Senate campaigns and her husband's eight years as president, Obama launched his bid for the White House with a relatively small donor base concentrated largely in Illinois, his home state. But his early opposition to the Iraq war and voter excitement over his quest to be the first black president quickly fueled a powerful fundraising machine.

Since he formally declared his presidential campaign in February, Obama has been traveling the country with a focus on urban areas where he could build his momentum and bring in new donors. He attracted big-money Hollywood and Wall St. executives along with families who came out to his stops in places like Oklahoma that sometimes are neglected by other candidates.

Obamamania continues to surge while Hillary is relying on a network that has been in place for years. Yet, even her donors are wary. While Obama proudly reported that most of his contributions are for the primary, Hillary is obviously embarrassed by the primary cash she has raised. If she wasn't, it would have been released.

Meanwhile, Edwards raised a slightly smaller number, around $14 million. Although the amount is nearly 40 percent below his two main rivals, don't be surprised if he has a surge of his own. Time will only tell if Obama can transform his rockstar into a long-term success. With today's media constantly looking for ratings over substance, you never know what they'll throw at Obama or any of the candidates tomorrow, next week or in the coming months leading up to the primary.

Hiding Behind A Shrub

The video really says it all:

Jesus H. Obama!?!

The art world continues to be rocked by controversial works concerning the almighty Jesus. That crazy old son of God is up to his old tricks by outraging (modern-day) Pharisees all over the place. Last week it was chocolate Jesus by Cosimo Cavallaro, which was quickly pulled by the hosting gallery. This week Jesus gets into the 2008 Democratic Presidential primary.

From The Chicago Tribune:

CHICAGO -- He wears Jesus' robes and a neon blue halo, looks like Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and is causing a stir at a Chicago art school.

An undergraduate student's paper mache sculpture of Obama as a messianic figure -- entitled "Blessing" -- went on display Saturday at a West Loop gallery run by the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. By Monday, word of the piece had spread on political blogs, and the school had been flooded with calls.

David Cordero, 24, made the sculpture for his senior show after noticing all the attention Obama has received since he first hinted he may run for the presidency.

It is commonly noted that art imitates life. That statement couldn't be more true in this instance. To many around the country, Barack Obama represents a new hope and salvation from the current disaster widely known as George W. Bush. Everything from the book "Audacity of Hope" to his charismatic speeches have helped to create a huge buzz around this relatively new national political figure. He may not be the second coming, but he is way closer than George Bush could ever come to it.

Rocking Out In Baghdad

With all the death, mayhem and chaos that envelops the capital of Iraq it is hard to imagine anything worthwhile could come out of that city. However there are people in Baghdad that are fighting back without bullets. In this video, a young man by the name of Adel writes and plays music that defines the violence that surrounds his life. Although the rest of his band has moved to safer places like the north and into Jordan, they vow to play again together.



From ChatThePlanet:

In this episode, Adel uses heavy metal to express his rage at the death and destruction surrounding him.

Hometown Baghdad was shot by an all-Iraqi crew and tells the stories of three young people trying to survive in Baghdad.

To view all videos in this series, go to http://www.youtube.com/chattheplanet

Vacationing At Hypocrisy Ranch

In Washington, the general rule around Easter time is to take a recess for Representatives to go back to their districts for a week or two while the President does the same. It is happening this year as it has for many years before now. Of course this didn't stop President Bush from being an utter hypocrite and criticizing Congress for not getting his bills passed before the break.

From ABC News:

"They need to come back, pass a bill," said Bush during a press conference about Congress' efforts to attach conditions for a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq to a war spending bill.

The President said Congress' traditional spring recess over Passover and Easter holidays has delayed the passage of emergency Iraq war funding.

"The Democrats in Congress … have left Washington for spring recess without finishing the work," said Bush. "They need to come off their vacation, get a bill to my desk, and if it's got strings and mandates and withdrawals and pork, I'll veto it and then we can get down to business of getting this thing done," he said.

Those are some tough words from a President who has spent 405 days at his ranch and is about to add to that number with a long Easter weekend down in Crawford. Of course Bush didn't complain in previous years when the Republican Congress took longer breaks and moved even slower to pass King George's legislation. This political grandstanding is nothing more than a load of crap. For anyone that is paying attention, Bush is trying to show that the Democratic Party isn't working as hard as he is or supporting the troops.

It is too bad that only his small band of followers and the man in his mirror believe the bullshit that comes out of his mouth. The truth is, the Democrats do support the troops while not dutifully following the President. The facts in the legislation prove that the only party that supports the troops with actions is the Democratic party. In fact if Bush vetoes the bill that provides funding for the troops through the middle of next year, he will only have himself to blame for not giving our soldiers what they need in the middle of Mess o'potamia (credit for the term to Jon Stewart).

O'Reilly Invites Snoop On The Factor, Will He Accept?

Apparently word traveled back to Bill O about Snoop's interview over in the Netherlands. The Dutch TV episode shows Snoop Dogg and his opinion on O'Reilly which isn't that pretty, especially to the sheltered minds out there. During the show Snoop said "F*ck Bill O'Reilly" among other things. Snoop also said that he would go on the Falafel Factor anytime, only it would have to be in the hood.

Well Bill got the message and invited the rapper on his show. Of course Bill had some barbs of his own for Snoop, though they did not include any cuss words. Instead he made references to Snoop's lifestyle which is far from his where he was brought up and of course threw in a drug reference. Check out the video at Think Progress.