Pin the Tail on the Stupid, Part Eleventy-Infinity
Where’s the Stupid? First they blindfold you, then they spin you around and around, and then you have to pin the tail on it! It’s hard.
From Scott Johnson, the Curly Howard character at Powerline:
We just met wth two more of Judge Alito’s former law clerks, Jim Goniea and Susan Sullivan (1990-91). They met during their clerkship, married each other and now have two children. They live and work in San Francisco and describe themselves as Democrats of the social progressive persuasion.
They have come out to support Judge Alito as a man of sterling character and an exemplary judge. They say they are confident that he will not advance a political agenda. They say the imputation of racism to Judge Alito and the implication that he supports discrimination is personally offensive to them. They consider it an embarrassment to senators they would otherwise support. Jim describes the venture as a terrible attempt to discredit a man of unassailable integrity in front of milions of people.
Oho, wait, is this the Stupid?
From the Las Vegas Review-Journal, January 4th edition:
Two of Alito’s former law clerks traveled from out of state to speak at the Las Vegas rally, which was hosted by the conservative group Progress for America. Similar rallies are taking place in 18 other states this week.
Jim Goniea, a partner with the Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal law firm in San Francisco, clerked for Alito from 1990 to 1991. Goniea described himself as a Democrat and social progressive.
“Judge Alito is someone to be respected and not feared,” Goniea said. “I think he’s going to be a great Supreme Court justice.”
And who’s Progress for America? Oh, it’s those guys. Also see here:
Progress for America (PFA) is precisely the type of organization at issue.
It has raised millions of dollars, which it uses to promote Bush’s agenda of tax cuts, energy legislation, conservative judicial appointments and free trade.
Although it takes unlimited donations from corporations and individuals, it discloses neither its contributors nor its expenditures.
Feather, in an interview, said PFA is simply a vehicle for building grass-roots support for Bush’s policies. Many other Republicans, however, described it as the first organization designed to capture some of the soft money that the political parties will be barred from accepting after Nov. 6.
PFA has strong ties to the Republican establishment. Its spokesmen include Ken Adelman, the top arms control officer in the Reagan administration. White House operatives, such as Rove and political director Ken Mehlman, have addressed private PFA briefing sessions at the Hay Adams Hotel.
Back to Powerline:
Both Jim and Susan are powerfully persuasive supporters of Judge Alito’s nomination. I understand that Judge Alito’s law clerks are holding a press conference tomorrow. I hope their comments find an outlet in the media.
Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that, Scott. Why, if you’re in the loop for this, then we can only imagine that Tony Snow is too, and so on. But as for not mentioning the Republican astroturf group that’s flying these ‘liberal Democrat’ clerks around to all these pro-Alito meetings, rallies, and press conferences, you have to understand this ‘Google’ thing, which anybody can use if they…
Oh wait, Hindrocket has a new one up.
George W. Bush is Churchill’s heir in our century.
Aaaah! They’re Stupiding faster than we can pin!
I love the self-describing. I consider myself s staunch family-values conservative. Oh, gotta run! I’m late for the zoo orgy.
And of course, Saddam is Hitler, Kerry is Neville Chamberlain, Hugo Chavez is Mussolini, and Amy Grant is Edith Piaf.
I see no problem with this analogy.
“Stupiding”…I love it.
Man, that’s some powerful stupid.
Oh thank god. I come back and you’re off the schneid. I was close to digging out the old Shecky Green albums for my humor fix.
“George W. Bush is Churchill’s heir in our century.”
Whoa. If that’s the case, our century is INCREDIBLY LAME!
I consider myself a long-time dyed-in-the-wool fundamentalist Christian neo-conservative. I think George Bush is an evil man, and the worst president ever, and that our Iraq policy is teh sucxor!!!
Wow, that was easy!
George W. Bush may be drunker than Churchill…
Woman: Mr. President, you’re drunk.
GWB: Yes, madam, but tomorrow when I wake up I will still be stupid.
Yes, and like many heirs in English history, Bush is an ineffective, petty, genetically mutated, inbred incompetent. Can I get a huzzah?
Do a little Googling on James Goniea and it looks like he and his wife are actually pretty liberal and are just supporting Alito’s nomination because they like and respect him tremendously. It’s too bad they’ve turned themselves into show ponies for the astroturf organization Progress for America, but they come off as sincere in the reports and interviews I’ve read.
Sure, I found a few cites that way, but Progress for America is a Bush-propaganda steamroller. The term is ‘Quisling,’ right?
What IS it with these people? Democrats are bad, lying commie terrorist sympathizing atheists fags!! Clinton was the most evil liberal socialist blowjob-getting sumbitch in HISTORY!!
But then, every time they find a “Liberal” who agrees with them, they say, see? This reasonable human being with whom we will agree to disagree on many issues agrees with us on this!!
Why do they think that’s a persuasive argument? If liberal democrats are all the things they routinely say we are, why wouldn’t our agreement with them on ANYTHING not cause them to reconsider THEIR position?
mikey
Churchill said the price of greatness is responsibility.
Bush said fool me twice…won’t get fooled again. So the parallels are there, you just have to wash them down wit da kool-aid.
Weirdly, I actually know Jim Goneia and he isn’t just self-describing himself for some evil purpose; he is being honest. While I don’t personally agree about supporting Judge Alito, he is definitely doing it sincerely and not with the goal of providing token “liberal” support. He is a really nice guy.
so take that with as much value as you would give to an anonymous internet comment.
That is all.
Well, if he’s sincere (and I don’t doubt that), then the word, ‘pwned,’ applies.
When a right-wing group offers to pay expenses for a PR junket, one ought to think a bit carefully about the issues, no?
I see your point Gavin, but seriously who else is going to pay for it?
or is the point that they shouldn’t be speaking out in those forums (fora?) at all?
kathleen –
It’s not that they shouldn’t be speaking out, per se, but that perhaps they lack a certain perspective about Alito because they are close to him personally.
Maybe he is a nice man with a brilliant mind. But none of that matters if he’s got a reactionary agenda he’s trying to keep hidden until he’s confirmed. And that maybe these two should step back and think a bit more about just who and what it is they’re cheerleading for.
At least, that’s my read on it. Gavin’s probably differs significantly.
Well, the way I see it, if a right-wing Astroturf group is paying for them to go around saying, “Hey, Alito isn’t really so conservative at all!” then, well, why would a right-wing Astroturf group be wanting to get that message out, except to try to fool people?
Because if Alito isn’t so conservative, then why on Earth would they be…?
It gets fractal. But once you stop to figure it out, they quickly send another one zooming past you.
So I think it’s mature and rational to assume that anyone associated with a right-wing stealth group is a stupid, dishonest ugly evil liar who’s bad and smells.
Because you never get in trouble that way!