DAILY KOS ROCOMMENDED 1APR16

Daily Kos Recommended

• Stop. Rachel Maddow is not 'basically Fox News,' and dozens of good Democrats aren't corrupt shills
• The second part of Trump's answer that got audible gasps from the audience
• Alabama governor in sex scandal, possibly criminal, said to have purchased multiple 'burner' phones
• John Kasich blames 'the minority community' for Ohio's sky-high infant mortality rate
• Charles M. Blow: 'Bernie or bust' is bonkers
• Woman forced to give birth to stillborn in Texas because of 'Women's Health Laws'
• Colorado parents unhappy that atheist and Satanic literature will accompany Bibles given to students
• Lawmaker snaps, files bill demanding fellow lawmakers quit using 'physical' when they mean 'fiscal'
• Cartoon: Superhil V Bernman
• Corporate sponsors freaking out over sponsoring the Republican National hatefest 
• 
  
• Republican congressman: Bernie and Hillary seek to control your wake-up time, meals, and inner thoughts
• Mississippi Senate passes bill allowing residents to carry holstered guns without permit or training
• Republicans dodge, but can't explain how to ban abortion without punishing women
• A deadlocked Supreme Court is a broken Supreme Court
• U.S. Soccer stars file federal complaint for wage discrimination—and their case looks strong
• Transgender people are in an epic battle to use the bathroom in peace
• Salma Hayek has the best advice on the entire Donald Trump saga
• It turns out there weren't '147 agents' looking at Clinton's emails? Go figure. 

(VIDEO & Article) The Second Part of Trump's Answer That Got Audible Gasps From the Audience &Trump: GOP-approved? (video) 30MAR&1APR16

THERE has been much condemnation of donald drumpf's 'punish the woman for getting an abortion' statement, but his answer to the next question shows he supports imposition of christian sharia law on us. Thank you to Chris Matthews for conducting this hard hitting interview with drumpf because he showed America what he really is, if anyone hadn't figured that out by now. The one thing I still can't understand is that more than 50% of republican women have a favorable opinion of drumpf AFTER he made his statement on women and abortion. I would love to send these women to Iran or saudi arabia for a year so they personally experience the kind of government they want to impose on America. From +Daily Kos, +MSNBC & UltraViolet....

The Second Part of Trump's Answer That Got Audible Gasps From the Audience

When I watched the Chris Matthews interview with Trump on MSNBC tonight, I’d already seen the video exchange where Trump said that women who had gotten an illegal abortion should be punished.  But when I watched the entire discussion, Trump made an even more shocking, and I think, more newsworthy statement that no one even bothered to mention. 

Was this because he was saying something that everyone took as a given?  I really hope to God not.

At the end of that whole segment, just before the commercial break, Chris asked him if the guy who had gotten the woman who had an illegal abortion pregnant should also be punished.  After hemming and hawing for a few seconds - during which Chris pointed out that ‘some would say the guy had something to do with it’, Trump said simply...

“No.”

Donald Trump's Hazy Stance On Abortion 'Punishment' | Hardball | MSNBC

I just about fell out of my chair.  But I wasn’t the only one.  There were audible gasps from the pro-Trump audience members, a good portion of which were women.

I know that Trump’s view of women is probably slightly above his views on keeping dogs as pets, so it’s no surprise that he’d said that.  But where is the media outrage over his second statement? 

The idea that women might have to go to jail if they’ve chosen the only option available to them when making the gut wrenching choice about whether to have a child or not, is horrific on it’s own.  But saying that the guy who was equally responsible for putting her in that position should bear no consequences at all when she’s being punished, is beyond the pale.

Thank you Chris Matthews for asking that question, because it really needed to be asked.  But I really think the mainstream media needs to hold him accountable for his FULL statement.

Trump: GOP-approved? (video)

Donald Trump reached shocking new lows this week, even for him.

Possibly more shocking: the number of Republican Party leaders who say they'll endorse him if he's the nominee (which is highly likely).

Trump's racist and sexist rhetoric is defining this election, and every woman voter needs to know what the 2016 GOP is all about. Check out this short video and then please share it with everyone you know.

Watch and share it on Facebook.

Not on Facebook? Watch and share it from our website.

Thanks for speaking out.

--Nita, Shaunna, Kat, Karin, Adam, Holly, Kaili, Kathy, Onyi, Susan, Clarise, Anathea, Audine, Ryan, Shannon, Megan, Kaytee, and Libby, the UltraViolet Action team

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Want to support our work? UltraViolet is funded by members like you, and our tiny staff ensures small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.

Presidential debate: Planned Parenthood in the crosshairs, WILL THE U.S. GOVENMENT SHUTDOWN? 17SEP15

PLANNED  PARENTHOOD is under attack, still, but this time the fight might result in a shutdown of the U.S. government. Attacking Planned Parenthood has become a cornerstone of almost every republican presidential candidates stump speech, and their supporters are loving it. The sad thing is, they are deliberately lying about Planned Parenthood, spreading misinformation, deceiving the public into believing Planned Parenthood = abortion. Interesting campaign style for a group, most of whom are Christians (Thou Shall Not Lie?). Nothing could  be farther from the truth, as Leigh Anne Woods tried to show the world when she exposed her mastectomy scars in public last month in Virginia, telling Hollis supervisor al bedrosian Planned Parenthood is more than abortion. If you can please make a donation in support of Planned Parenthood (I donated $10.00) by clicking the link from +BoldProgressives  and share with others.....

---

Donate $3 to Planned Parenthood.

Republican presidential candidates made clear at last night's debate that they will destroy Planned Parenthood if given the chance:

Jeb Bush: "I don't believe that Planned Parenthood should get a penny from the federal government."

John Kasich: "I agree with defunding Planned Parenthood."

Scott Walker: "I defunded Planned Parenthood four-and-a-half years ago, in a blue state...we should be able to do this nationally."

Chris Christie: "I've vetoed Planned Parenthood funding eight times in New Jersey."

Carly Fiorina: "If we will not stand up and force President Obama to veto this bill, shame on us."

Ted Cruz: "Absolutely we shouldn't be sending $500 million of taxpayer money to funding an ongoing criminal enterprise."

Over 4.6 million women, men, and young people depend on Planned Parenthood. Despite what Ted Cruz says, there's nothing "criminal" about that.
Are you willing to stand in solidarity at this moment?
Click here to donate $3 help Planned Parenthood FIGHT BACK against these attacks.
Sunday, Elizabeth Warren vowed to fight back, telling supporters at a rally in Texas: "Ted Cruz wants a fight over Planned Parenthood? My answer is, 'BRING IT ON!'" And PCCC members are fighting back, too -- donating over $18,000 to help Planned Parenthood fight.
We stand with Planned Parenthood. We always have. We always will. Together, let's show that far-right attacks on Planned Parenthood will only make it stronger.
Click here to donate $3 to Planned Parenthood.
Thanks for being a bold progressive.
-- Kayla Wingbermuehle, PCCC Organizing Team

In total, Planned Parenthood saw 2.7 million individual patients in 2013, and it provided nearly 11 million services, according to its most recent annual report. About 12 percent of patients received an abortion, (assuming one procedure per abortion patient), so the remaining 88 percent of patients received other health services.
Here’s the section of the report breaking down services provided in 2013: Want to support the Warren wing? Senator Elizabeth Warren says, "When PCCC members donate millions in small-dollar donations and make millions of phone calls for progressive candidates, leaders in Washington, they take notice." Chip in $3 here.

Virginia woman bares mastectomy scars to lawmaker intent on defunding Planned Parenthood & Roanoke County supervisor Bedrosian ruffles feathers at news conference 28&24AUG15

 
IT is said a picture is worth a thousand words, but this picture gave me goosebumps, left me almost speechless. The courage of Leigh Anne Woods is amazing. That this woman could stand bare-chested, still raw, and still painful physically and psychologically, shows the strength of Leigh Anne Woods. She knows the truth about Planned Parenthood, she knows PP provides a far greater number of medical services to women, children and men, entire families, than they do abortions. In total, Planned Parenthood saw 2.7 million individual patients in 2013, and it provided nearly 11 million services, according to its most recent annual report. About 12 percent of patients received an abortion, (assuming one procedure per abortion patient), so the remaining 88 percent of patients received other health services.
Here’s the section of the report breaking down services provided in 2013: 
Americans need to be made aware of the services Planned Parenthood provides to counter the propaganda campaign of the "pro-life" politicians and their supporters. And we can thank Leigh Anne Woods for her courageous action and hope it will inspire others to make similar public statements in the faces of those spreading lies, misinformation and deception about Planned Parenthood. From +Daily Kos and WBDJ in Roanoke .....

Fri Aug 28, 2015 at 09:22 AM PDT

Virginia woman bares mastectomy scars to lawmaker intent on defunding Planned Parenthood

by Kerry Eleveld

Protester Leigh Anne Woods confronts Roanoke County Supervisor Al Bedrosian.

GOP Roanoke County Supervisor Al Bedrosian, who's all in on Jeb!'s plan to defund women's health, got a surprise at his recent press conference. Bedrosian's crusade to starve Planned Parenthood of money extended to ending county fundraising drives for the local United Way because the organization helps fund PP education services unrelated to abortion. But his anti-abortion rant went awry when ...

A woman who was identified as Leigh Anne Woods by WDBJ walked up the podium and took her shirt off as Bedrosian was speaking. “You have a problem because they perform abortions, look at everything else they do, they save lives!” Woods said.
“It’s more than birth control,” she insisted. “It’s more than abortion. They save lives.”
Woods told WDBJ that she wanted to show the county supervisor the scars from the mastectomy she had just weeks earlier, and she credited Planned Parenthood for saving her life.

Exactly. Planned Parenthood saves lives. Yet Republicans like Jeb! Bush and Al Bedrosian don't think the organization should get a penny.

Originally posted to Kerry Eleveld on Fri Aug 28, 2015 at 09:22 AM PDT.

Also republished by Pro Choice and Daily Kos. 

Roanoke County supervisor Bedrosian ruffles feathers at news conference

Bedrosian says the United Way gives financial support to Planned Parenthood and that money is helping pay for abortions

Noell Saunders, nsaunders@wdbj7.com

POSTED: 08:00 PM EDT Aug 24, 2015    UPDATED: 10:00 PM EDT Aug 24, 2015 

Protestor interrupts Bedrosian news conference

Show Transcript

ROANOKE Co., Va. - Hollins Supervisor Al Bedrosian held a news conference Monday in front of the Roanoke County Administrative building Monday saying he wanted to let people know where their money is going if they support the United Way.
Bedrosian says the United Way gives financial support to Planned Parenthood and the money is helping pay for abortions. But one woman showed she strongly disagreed and even took off her top to show just how much.
"You have a problem because they perform abortions, look at everything else they do, they save lives!," yelled protestor, Leigh Anne Woods.
Woods is a former Planned Parenthood employee, and a cancer survivor. She said screenings made possible in part by the organization saved her life. Woods had a double mastectomy recently.
"When my lump was felt it was like 'boom let's go.' I knew something was there that needed to be checked out," Woods said.
Bedrosian says he has been against giving county money to any nonprofit since he took office two years ago.
"Even if Planned Parenthood...whatever business they are in we shouldn't facilitate it," Bedrosian told WDBJ7. "I think it's a little heightened now because of what they do with abortions, which I'm totally against. Again, I always vote zero on all of them."
Afira DeVries is the CEO of United Way. She says the organization funds Planned Parenthood education and she wants to make one thing clear.
"We do not fund abortion. We do fund a successful abstinence plus education program that has led to phenomenal results in this community," DeVries said.
Bedrosian says he will ask Roanoke County supervisors to support his decision. The board of supervisors, as a group, has not addressed the issue.

• Copyright © 2015, WDBJ7

 

Add your name: Fight Republican attacks on women's health care 19AUG15

REPUBLICAN 2016 presidential candidates continue the war on women, actually voicing their opinions that as a nation we are spending too much on women's health care. Bernie Sanders doesn't think so and is committed to improving women's health care in America. Please sign this petition in support of Bernie and share with others......
 
 
I'm not sure we need half a billion dollars for women's health care."
-Jeb Bush, August 4, 2015
That's wrong. We need to be spending a lot more money on women's health care. We need to be investing in organizations like Planned Parenthood that provide absolutely essential health services for women, particularly in low-income communities.
We must stand up for women's health. Add your name to fight these Republican attacks on women's health care.

VIDEO; Newest Republican effort to appeal to women voters reaches killer clown levels of terrifying & GOP anti-war on women debate features the dating game 22MAI14

OH my gosh! I hope the women and men of Colorado remember this obnoxious display in November! The moderator is quite an ass!!!! No matter the national gop propaganda campaign, the repiglican / tea-bagger war on women continues.....

Thu May 22, 2014 at 11:15 AM PDT

Newest Republican effort to appeal to women voters reaches killer clown levels of terrifying

by Hunter

GOP anti-war on women debate features the dating game  

Jeebus. Just ... Jeebus.

Three of the four GOP candidates for Colorado governor took part in a debate Tuesday that was meant to reassure women that Republicans have their best interests in mind. [...] At the start of the “Women and Colorado’s Future” debate, the moderator explained that it would be like a dating game, where a panel of four women could interview the three “bachelors” — former Congressman Bob Beauprez, former state Senate Minority Leader Mike Kopp, and Secretary of State Scott Gessler. The fourth candidate, ex-congressman Tom Tancredo, did not attend.
The moderator invited the women to join the stage, saying, “It’s so much more ornamental if the four of you would be on the stage with the four of us.” Theme music from The Dating Game TV show played as the panelists took their seats.

Holy effing bacon-greased verdant limbo Sriracha nunchaku hell, what was that? Republican efforts to appeal to women are no longer distinguishable from a Saturday Night Live sketch. Or night terrors.

Originally posted to Hunter on Thu May 22, 2014 at 11:15 AM PDT.

Also republished by Colorado COmmunity and Daily Kos.

TX-Gov: Abbott (R) Advisor Charles Murray, "No evidence that women are significant thinkers" 9APR14

IT'S during campaigns like Texas republican / tea-bagger greg abbott's that I really miss Molly Ivins'  quick wit and wonderful sense of humor. He is a fool, advised by fools like libertarian charles murray, and is the perfect candidate for the rich and powerful and all the corporate interest financing him because he has no qualms about taking their money for doing what he's told. Texas, are you seriously considering election this immoral, corrupt ass? Really???
poopdogcomedy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQh0bQ8_BR4
http://www.rawstory.com/...

An adviser to Greg Abbott, the Republican candidate for Texas governor, said this week that he had found no “evidence” to prove that any woman had been a “significant original thinker in any of the world’s great philosophical traditions.” In audio obtained by the Burnt Orange Report, American Enterprise Institute scholar Charles Murray can be heard explaining to an audience at the University of Texas that his views on women had not changed since a 2005 paper, in which he asserted that one or “maybe” two women had played significant roles in the field of philosophy.
When a woman at the event on Tuesday asked Murray if he still believed what he wrote, Murray quipped, “Who do you have in mind?”
Murray argued that in “certain traditions” like literature, women had been at the “peak of accomplishment.” But he said that he could only recall one important female philosopher, “and she was not a significant thinker in the estimation of historians of philosophy.”
“So, yeah, I still stick with that,” he insisted. “Until somebody gives me evidence to the contrary, I’ll stick with that statement.” - Raw Story, 4/9/14

Murray really hasn't been good for Abbott's campaign: http://www.burntorangereport.com/...

Abbott hasn't exactly figured out how to deal with his women problems. He has so far avoided talking about the gender pay gap in his Attorney General's office and a video by the Wendy Davis Campaign suggests he abruptly canceled an April 7th press conference to avoid questions about his education plan in which Murray is cited. Abbott used Murray's work to present his plan for Texas to lead the country in education outcomes. Murray describes himself as "a libertarian, and libertarians don't do solutions. We're not good at them." Murray then proceeded to tell this room full of college students that a "mediocre" k- 12 education at "a mediocre school" was "not that bad."
Murray's AEI believes the pay gap is a "myth" and says making it a political issue will discourage the hiring of women. They also say the gap is a results of "many women prefer[ing] to stay home with their children," and that "women often choose fields of study, such as sociology, liberal arts or psychology, that pay less in the labor market." Ultimately they say that, "once education, marital status and occupations are considered, the 'gender wage gap' all but disappears."
Of course the real conversation about equal pay has always been predicated on equal work, which AEI seems to imply women must not be doing.
The main topic of discussion though was Murray's new book "Coming Apart: The State of White America 1960-2010." He said he only used white males between 30-49 as his data set to prove that class and not race was the main factor in America's cultural decline. He believes it started in the 60's of course, right about the time of the Civil Rights movement that was being celebrated just across campus at the LBJ Library.
Murray happened to be speaking on campus during the Civil Rights Summit, which is -- to say the least -- ironic. He has been identified as a "White Nationalist" by the Southern Poverty Law Center for his views on race and gender. He opened by saying that he "had a different view of equality" and that by the definition of some he was indeed a "racist and a sexist," and said probably "any other 'ist'" that is out there. - Burnt Orange Report, 4/9/14

So how has Abbott been dealing with Murray?  Running away from the press: http://www.politicususa.com/...

So the press arrived to an empty room in Dallas yesterday for a scheduled press conference with the Republican gubernatorial candidate, only to discover that Greg Abbott had suddenly canceled it, according to the Davis campaign. The Wendy Davis (D-TX) campaign caught it all on tape:

http://youtu.be/2qNtMo2IjRw

Had Mr. Abbott shown his face, he would have had to answer why he thought a guy who believes “mens brains are larger than women’s” was a good choice as inspiration for an education program.
Abbott would have had to explain why he thinks pre-K should only be for a select few. In case you missed that dog whistle, page 2 of his pre-K plan explains that destiny is predetermined by background (so American!): “Family background has the most decisive effect on student achievement, contributing to a large performance gap between children from economically disadvantaged families and those from middle-class homes.”
Yeah. Southern Poverty Law Center is not impressed, they say that Murray uses “racist pseudoscience and misleading statistics to argue that social inequality is caused by the genetic inferiority of the black and Latino communities, women and the poor.” In case it’s not clear yet where this is going, DOG WHISTLE WELFARE STATE, “Murray advocates the total elimination of the welfare state, affirmative action and the Department of Education, arguing that public policy cannot overcome the innate deficiencies that cause unequal social and educational outcomes.” - Politicus USA, 4/8/14

Yeah, good call there Abbott.  But Abbott is resorting to tying Davis to Obama but Davis isn't going to be running away from him: http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/...

“ObamaCare’s Three Musketeers – President Obama, Sen. Harry Reid and Rep. Nancy Pelosi – are convening at a swanky Houston fundraiser tonight; will Sen. Davis be joining her big government allies?” said Abbott campaign spokesman Matt Hirsch. “Last month Sen. Davis said she would welcome President Obama to Texas, so we assume she wouldn’t miss it.” Reid actually isn’t coming, though his name was on the original invite for a joint DSCC/DCCC fund-raiser. Pelosi arrived in Houston with Obama a little while ago.
As for Davis, the Democratic nominee for governor, her campaign tells us she isn’t ducking Obama at all. She’ll be at his speech Thursday at the LBJ library civil rights summit in Austin. - Dallas Morning News, 4/9/14

Davis will be at former President Bill Clinton’s speech and a dinner at the LBJ summit tonight.  Lets help Davis fight back against sexists and racists like Abbott and Murray.  Click here to get involved and donate to Davis' campaign:

http://www.wendydavistexas.com/

Originally posted to pdogcomedy on Wed Apr 09, 2014 at 09:00 PM PDT.

Also republished by The Democratic Wing of the Democratic Party, TexKos-Messing with Texas with Nothing but Love for Texans, and Dallas Kossacks. 

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/04/10/1290863/-TX-Gov-Abbott-R-Advisor-Charles-Murray-No-evidence-that-women-are-significant-thinkers?detail=email 

This is heartbreaking, Sign the Petition: Stop this Inhumane Bill 6NOV13

I get so disgusted by these hypocritical politicians who feel they have the right to legislate their "morality" based on claims of being people of faith (in this case Christian) while their record is one of voting against, blocking and de-funding social welfare programs that provide for children and their families. Where is the morality, the Christianity in that? Besides their blatant religious hypocrisy they also treat women like chattel, think they are too dumb to make their own decisions concerning their bodies and their health care. This legislation is nothing but political grandstanding to mollify the repiglicans and tea-baggers seeking to impose "christian" sharia law on the rest of us. Please sign this petition to the Senate demanding they vote against fotze sen lindsey graham's bill. From UltraViolet and Daily Kos...

Senator Lindsey Graham is introducing an extremely cruel and inhumane abortion ban bill in the Senate. Sign the petition telling the Senate: no more attacks on women, block Graham's bill! Click Here

Extreme conservatives in the Senate are about to introduce a sweeping ban on abortion. Here's one family who's already been hurt by this type of law:
Danielle and Robb Deaver were "over the moon" about Danielle's pregnancy until her water broke at 22 weeks. They were heartbroken to learn their baby would not develop further or survive, but that heartbreak was compounded when doctors told them they couldn't end their nightmare and induce labor because their state bans abortion after 20 weeks. Doctors had to wait for Danielle to get sick or for the baby to die before they could do anything. When baby Elizabeth was finally born, she survived for only 15 minutes.¹
Senator Lindsey Graham is planning to introduce a national bill this week that criminalizes abortions after 20 weeks.² When politicians introduce these inhumane bans on abortions, they are tying the hands of doctors who want to help couples like the Deavers. Less than 2% of abortions occur after 20 weeks, and many of them are for heartbreaking reasons that no one should ever have to face.³
Texas, North Dakota, and Arkansas have all passed 20-week abortion bans this year, and so has the House in Congress.⁴ If we don't make a stand against Sen. Graham's bill in the Senate, more states will be emboldened to pass these inhumane laws. We have to make sure that conservatives everywhere know we won't stand for this.
Tell the Senate: You have no right to legislate our medical decisions. Enough with the attacks on women. Block Graham’s inhumane and extreme abortion ban bill.
Add your name to the petition.
Extreme attempts to criminalize abortion after 20 weeks aren’t new. Multiple states have already passed such laws, including Texas most recently. But Sen. Graham's bill is unconstitutional, and it directly contradicts Roe v. Wade. A federal appeals court threw out Arizona's ban in May. Courts have also overturned similar laws in Idaho and Georgia.⁵
What’s worse are the heartbreaking stories of women who needed to abort their much-wanted pregnancies after 20 weeks. We received some of these stories during the battle in Texas from UltraViolet members. There was Kathy, a military wife with 3 college degrees and already a mother of 2 wonderful boys. At the 20-week ultrasound for her 3rd baby, the doctors found a severe case of spina bifida, “the worst they had ever seen.” She and her husband chose to terminate for the sake of their family. Kathy wrote that she still grieves but knows it was the right choice.
Doctors are also speaking out against these extreme bills. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has resoundingly opposed such legislation and told politicians to get out of their exam rooms.⁶
These extreme bills are not about women’s health or the lives of healthy babies. They are not about good and safe medicine. They are about extreme politicians who think they know better than women and our doctors about what’s right for our families. We need to make a national stand against this inhumane extremism.
Tell the Senate: stop your attacks on women and our families; stop Graham's extreme abortion ban bill.
Sign the petition.
Thanks for speaking out.
--Nita, Shaunna, Kat, Karin, Malinda, Adam, and Gabriela, the UltraViolet team

Sources:
1. Danielle and Robb's Story, Planned Parenthood of the Heartland YouTube, March 5, 2011
2. Lindsey Graham Will Put 20-Week Abortion Ban Before Senate: Report, Huffington Post, November 1, 2013
3. Facts on Induced Abortion in the United States, Guttmacher Institute, August 2011
Who Has an Abortion After 20 Weeks?, Slate, July 11, 2013
4. Restricts Abortion After Specific Gestational Age, Guttmacher Institute, October 1, 2013
5. House Republican Calls Nationwide Abortion Ban Vote ‘Staggering Stupidity’, Think Progress, June 13, 2013
6. Ob-Gyns Denounce Texas Abortion Legislation, The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, July 2, 2013

Maybe Ken Cuccinelli Shouldn't Have Built His Campaign Around Sodomy & I Can’t Believe Terry McAuliffe Is Going to Be Governor of Virginia 5NOV13

TWO good articles from Mother Jones summing up the dismal choices Virginia voters had in today's governor election; terry (the one night stand you wish you hadn't had) mcauliffe D and ken (the abortion you wish you had had) cuccinelli repiglican tea-bagger. I voted for mcauliffe and then went right home and took a shower, the guy is that sleazy. Still, I just couldn't not vote for him, and then be able to live with myself if cuccinelli had won by ONE vote!!!!!
My real fear is a mcauliffe administration will set back any gains the Democratic Party may realize with today's election. Virginia is on the cusp of turning from red to blue, there is a growing grass roots movement in the Commonwealth that wants and will elect a government that really represents the will of the people and provides good, open, honest, transparent elected officials who promote and provide the social justice policies that benefit all Virginians. (see how Minnesota Democrats took their state back at Wellstone's Revenge: How Minnesota Democrats Took Their State Back from Mother Jones & FreedomWorks: What I Witnessed In Austin This Weekend Shook Me To My Core SEP/OKT 2013 & 24OKT13 http://bucknacktssordidtawdryblog.blogspot.com/2013/10/wellstones-revenge-how-minnesota.html )
mcauliffe's reign as governor may be so plutocratic that he may actually be harmful to the bold progressives (like JENNIFER BOYSKO) that we hope to see elected so in the next election the voters will swing back to the gop. I hope and pray I am wrong....

—By Tim Murphy

| Tue Nov. 5, 2013 3:00 AM PST

 

Pete Marovich/ZUMA

the real cuccinelli? (not part of the Mother Jones article, I added the pic below)

 

In retrospect, maybe the sodomy part was a mistake. Republican Ken Cuccinelli goes into today's gubernatorial election in Virginia expected to lose to Democrat Terry McAullife, a man who almost missed the birth of a child to attend a fundraiser and once downed shots of Puerto Rican rum on morning television. The Most Quoted Man in Washington, University of Virginia political science professor Larry Sabato, has summed up the election as two people "running against the only people they could beat"—and Cuccinelli, well, couldn't.
Why? There were a lot of contributing factors: McAuliffe outspent Cuccinelli by about $14 million, living up to his reputation as a relentless fundraiser. Cuccinelli's swan dive coincided with the government shutdown in October, which was especially painful to Virginians. A third-party candidate, Robert Sarvis, took up a protest vote that might otherwise have gone to Cuccinelli. And both Cuccinelli and sitting GOP Gov. Bob McDonnell were tied to a slow-burning political influence scandal.
But perhaps the simplest explanation for Cuccinelli's struggles is that Virginians found him and his running mate, E.W. Jackson, to be uniquely unlikable politicians fixated on uniquely unappealing issues.

Jackson, who suggested upon receiving the nomination that the presence of a black Republican on the ticket would terrify President Barack Obama, believes that yoga is an instrument of Satan, that gays are "ikky," and that society is under attack from witches and hip-hop, which he called an "egg of destruction." ("Eggs of Destruction" would be a great name for a death metal band, except unfortunately, Jackson has also declared death metal to be haram.) Jackson said that "gay people are sick people psychologically, mentally and emotionally." He has also, at various points, denied saying many of those things, which would have been easier if they hadn't been on tape and in his book.
Cuccinelli, at least, had a record as attorney general to fall back on (notwithstanding his shortcomings as a lawyer), but he chose the campaign path that offered the most resistance from 21st-century constituencies. For instance, already vulnerable to suggestions he was overly involved in people's bedroom activities (he'd sent an volunteer to monitor a George Mason University sex fair and said the state should regulate gay sex), he opted to set up a website to advocate for the restoration of the state's sodomy law, which was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2003. And critically, given the extension of the franchise to women just 93 years ago, McAuliffe was able to target Cuccinelli for supporting transvaginal ultrasounds for women seeking abortions because Cuccinelli supports transvaginal ultrasounds for women seeking abortions.
Are there broader lessons for Republicans going forward? That depends on whom you ask. According to a survey from Public Policy Polling, 25 percent of Virginia Republicans think Cuccinelli lost because he wasn't conservative enough. Even so, one prediction seems fairly safe: This was the last time a major party candidate in a statewide race made sodomy laws a substantial part of his platform. Probably.

Tim Murphy

Reporter

Tim Murphy is a reporter at Mother Jones. Email him with tips and insights at tmurphy [at] motherjones [dot] com. RSS | Twitter

If You Liked This, You Might Also Like...

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• Laid-Off Workers Talk to "Documentary Film" Crew, End Up In GOP Attack Ad

  Former Global Crossing employees say they weren't told their comments would be used in Ken Cuccinelli's latest hit on Dem Terry McAuliffe.

• WATCH: Ken Cuccinelli's Response to His Pro-Choice Critics: What About Anthony Weiner?

  After being slammed as anti-woman, Cuccinelli's campaign hits Democrats for not denouncing Anthony Weiner. Hmm.

• I Can’t Believe Terry McAuliffe Is Going to Be Governor of Virginia

  No experience in office? Check. Sketchy business partners? Check. Media manipulation? Check.

• Ken Cuccinelli Scrubs His Immigration Hardliner Past

  In 2007, Virginia's GOP nominee for governor warned of the "deadly cocktail of drugs and gang violence" immigrants brought to the state.

 http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2013/11/ken-cuccinelli-jackson-virginia-election

I Can’t Believe Terry McAuliffe Is Going to Be Governor of Virginia

No experience in office? Check. Sketchy business partners? Check. Media manipulation? Check.

—By Stephanie Mencimer

| Tue Nov. 5, 2013 10:12 AM PST

Nancy Kaszerman/ZUMA

The real mcauliffe? (not part of the Mother Jones article, I added the pic below)

Terry McAuliffe and I go way back. I first started writing about him in 1997, when Mother Jones assigned me to look into a lawsuit in DC Superior Court in which McAuliffe, the Democrats' super-fundraiser, was being sued by some of his business associates. That story turned into something much bigger. I went down the rabbit hole of McAuliffe's business dealings, probing his relationship with a pension fund run by a union he raised lots of money from—a money trail that ended up making McAuliffe part of my life for over a year. During that time, he never returned one of my phone calls and I never had the opportunity to meet in person the glad-handing, boyish "Macker," who first drew headlines by wrestling an alligator for a political donation. Nonetheless, the time I spent covering McAuliffe—who became head of the Democratic Party during George W. Bush's first term—has left me dumbfounded that he (according to the polls) is poised to become the next governor of Virginia.
Allow me to explain. McAuliffe represents an unseemly slice of Washington. His primary role in politics for the past two decades or more has been raising money—most notably, for the Clintons. He cooked up the idea of essentially renting out the Lincoln bedroom during the Clinton administration as a fundraising vehicle, and he smashed all previous presidential fundraising records in the process. When McAuliffe was the Dems' top fundraiser, a campaign finance scandal besieged the Clinton White House. Coincidence? No. McAuliffe was all about pushing the envelope when it came to the political money chase.

That alone might not be enough to render him a distasteful political candidate. What's different about McAuliffe is his brazen mixing of his campaign fundraising activity and attempts to enrich himself personally. Many of McAuliffe's business deals have come about due to his place in the political cosmos, not because he possesses a wealth of business skill. That tangled history has linked him to a long list of unsavory characters. 
Let's take a look at some of his business associates over the years.
Richard Swann: Swann is McAuliffe's father-in-law, and his story starts back in 1980, when Swann helped found American Pioneer Savings and Loan in Florida. Ten years later, federal regulators seized the thrift, which was drowning in bad loans and foreclosed real estate. The bailout cost taxpayers more than $500 million. Swann settled charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which found that Swann and a partner had broken the law in selling $10 million worth of junk bonds from the thrift to shore up its reserves. Investors—mainly mom and pop depositors at the thrift—lost their shirts, and Swann eventually filed bankruptcy. But he saw an opportunity in the wreckage of his former savings and loan. In 1991, he helped McAuliffe set up a partnership to buy up the failed thrift's former real estate assets, which were being sold at rock-bottom prices as part of the federal liquidation.
Swann and McAuliffe persuaded the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers pension fund to finance the purchase of Orlando strip malls and apartment buildings on the cheap in a highly risky investment scheme. The pension fund put up $38 million; McAuliffe put up nothing, but he got a 50 percent stake, meaning that if the deal went south, the pension fund would lose millions while all he would lose were his free shares in the partnership. The deals didn't perform well, and the union never got its promised 9 percent preferred return—about what Treasury bills were paying back then. McAuliffe, though, walked away with $2.4 million after the pension fund bought him out. The US Department of Labor sued the union for making imprudent investments and two IBEW officials were forced to pay six-figure fines; the union had to reimburse the pension fund for the losses. Swann and McAuliffe escaped unscathed by the investigation.
Tony Coehlo: Coehlo is a former California congressman who resigned in 1989 after the disclosure that he had taken a sweetheart loan from the operator of a troubled savings and loan operator and used the money to buy junk bonds from the notorious Drexel Burnham Lambert, which that year paid a record $650 million to settle criminal charges with the SEC for stock manipulation. Coehlo and McAuliffe worked together on various political campaigns, but they also were involved with a real estate firm in Washington, DC. Former business associates accused the pair of using their political connections to win improper commissions on deals involving federal agencies. The matter eventually was settled confidentially.
Gary Winnick: Winnick was the founder of Global Crossing, a fiber optic company that earned McAuliffe $8 million on an initial investment of $100,000—a deal he accessed because he was working as a consultant to Winnick before the company went public. Winnick had been an acolyte of junk bond king Michael Milken before starting Global Crossing. His management of Global Crossing has been compared with Ken Lay's leadership of Enron. He and other top executives hid the company's losses and cashed out more than a billion in stock before the company collapsed in 2002 and caused $54 billion in shareholder losses. Lots of people thought Winnick should have gone to jail, but he avoided any serious federal action. McAuliffe cashed out his shares in Global Crossing before it crashed and was not accused of any wrongdoing, but his profiteering in this case has been a political liability for him.
Anthony Rodham: When McAuliffe in 2009 created GreenTech, a now-troubled electric-car company, he turned to an old pal for assistance in courting foreign investors: Tony Rodham, who is best known as one of Hillary Clinton's embarrassing brothers. A former repo man, prison guard, and private eye, Rodham by then had a long history of trying to cash in on his famous sister's connections and generally causing problems for her. In 1999, he and brother Hugh nearly caused a diplomatic crisis with a plan to sell hazelnuts from the Republic of Georgia; their partner was a local political boss who also happened to be a political rival of the country's president and US ally, Eduard Shevardnadze. Over the years, Rodham has been in the news for the occasional fistfight and for child-support arrears. He was implicated in the Clinton pardon scandal. But McAuliffe somehow thought Rodham was just the guy to help him with his electric-car venture. Rodham owns a company that solicits foreign investors for American projects (deals that allow these foreign investors secure US visas). GreenTech relied heavily on foreign investors. Now, the car company (McAuliffe resigned from the firm to run for governor) and Rodham's visa operation are under investigation by the SEC.
Joseph Caramadre: Caramadre is a Rhode Island estate planner who pleaded guilty to scamming terminally ill people by stealing their identities and buying annuities in their names. When they died, Caramadre and his investors could cash in. McAuliffe invested $33,000 in this scheme in 2006 and netted $47,000 in return. Caramadre also was a big donor and fundraiser for McAuliffe's first run for governor in 2009, giving $27,000 to McAuliffe's campaign. (Caramadre apparently wanted to become an ambassador to the Vatican.) During this most recent governor's campaign, Bob Lewis, a veteran AP reporter, was fired for reporting inaccurately on this episode, and the matter evaporated as a campaign issue. But that doesn't change a basic fact: McAuliffe was doing business with this guy.
The list of McAuliffe's questionable business dealings goes on. But he has used his substantial influence to try to minimize the news coverage of his various wheeling-and-dealing. In 1996, the New York Daily News fired reporter David Eisenstadt after he wrote an unfavorable story about McAuliffe potentially having connections to notorious fundraiser John Huang, who in 1999 pleaded guilty to felony charges for arranging more than $150,000 in illegal campaign contributions to the Democratic Party. McAuliffe later gloated to the Washington Post about having called paper owner Mort Zuckerman to get Eisenstadt canned.
I learned about McAuliffe's dark side firsthand while trying to report on his business deals. He sicced his lawyer, Watergate prosecutor Richard Ben-Veniste, on me early on in the process. And when the Washington Post hired me to continue working on McAuliffe stories, he continued to threaten my editors with veiled libel threats. He even came in for a meeting with Len Downie, then the paper's executive editor. It was eerie how much he knew about what I was doing at the paper. It turned out that McAuliffe was a good source for some of my colleagues, and they were feeding him information that he was using to try to kill the investigation. It was a classic example of McAuliffe playing the inside game, a skill that has helped him survive this long in politics despite questionable financial dealings and now, perhaps, has helped him get elected to an important and high-profile political job.

Stephanie Mencimer

Reporter

Stephanie Mencimer is a staff reporter in Mother Jones' Washington bureau. For more of her stories, click here. You can also follow her on Twitter. RSS | Twitter

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