The “Alliance for a Better Minnesota” – the attack-PR drones financed by Alida Messinger and a group of plutocrats with deep pockets to make toxic, sleazy attacks on their opposition – stepped in it last night, to the point that even the Twin Cities mainstream media had to report it (with emphasis added):
The DFL-supporting Alliance for a Better Minnesota took its mockery of a Republican candidate a step too far, it admitted on Thursday.
In a Halloween-themed blog post, it suggested that Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson should dress as Patrick Bateman, a serial killer in American Psycho, because he is “seemingly nice but actually pretty evil inside.”
Carrie Lucking tried to bury the evidence – but the Internet sees and knows all:
Leaving aside the obvious question – what should Alida Messinger and Carrie Lucking dress as? – it appears as if the smooth-running messaging machine at ABM is trying to break in some new amateurs.
But have no fear. Lucking explains it all (again, emphasis added):
Carrie Lucking, the group’s executive director, said within 10 minutes being alerted to the post they took the image down, removed the reference to Bateman and changed what it said about Johnson.
Instead of calling Johnson evil, the site says that he is “seemingly nice in public, but actually the policies he supports are pretty evil. It also appended an apology to its post.
Ah. Disagreement is “evil”. That’s much better.
How very Alinsky.
“The original image and text for Jeff Johnson was removed and the costume changed because it was an inappropriate reference to a fictional character. We apologize for this error. It will not happen again,” the web site said.
Yes it will – because every time ABM writes about Republicans, they’re writing about “fictional characters”. Alinskyite “framing” is all about turning real people and real ideas into characters and catch phrases that have little or nothing to do with reality. “Tom Emmer is angry”. “Jeff Johnson is evil”. “King Banaian is Arab”. Little bits of mental chaff that ABM is hoping – indeed, paying big bucks to prove – will stick in the minds of people who don’t think that hard about politics come election time.
It’s dishonest. It’s also how the Democrats do politics.
But I Promised A Brilliant Plan, Didn’t I?: Watch ABM’s coverage this past couple of days. Their flailing at Johnson was only the tip of the iceberg; I wrote earlier today about their calling Julianne Ortmann a “Genie”, with video of a blonde, jiggly Barbara Eden helpfully added in case you thought Lucking was referring to the “Djinn” of Arab mythology.
The election is a year away, and the attacks are already…
…unhinged.
And it occurs to me – maybe that’s a good barometer for the GOP races? Whichever candidate is drawing the most unhinged, scabrous “coverage” from ABM can be presumed to be in the lead?
A look at ABM’s front page this morning shows two weak-gruel attacks on Jeff Johnson.
That’s probably good news for the Johnson campaign.
The challenge for the Thompson campaign is obvious.
Carrie “Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli” Lucking.
With the way these people are out front with their contempt if not outright hatred for the religious, I’m shocked that they would even recognize the concept of ‘evil’.
I’m trying to think of people either fictional or real who have sold their souls to the devil. The DFL, and Lucking in particular, are just soul-less. Maybe Bart Simpson? He sold his soul and then couldn’t get automatic doors to open.
Seflores wrote:
“I’m shocked that they would even recognize the concept of ‘evil’”
But they’ve changed the meaning of ‘evil’, Seflores. In the age of relativism, evil is whatever they say it is. The important thing about ‘evil’ is that you must be made to hate it, what ever it is this chosen to be this week, with all your heart and soul.
That’s the best she/they can come up with? A 90’s era serial killer? I purposely bought and read the book because it was being boycotted by some then-liberal groups. It wasn’t that great a read, the character was pretty predictable, and the storyline pretty dated. Even for it’s publication date.
So what’s the big deal? Johnson doing anything other than giggling at the lame attack would only tend to validate it. Personally, I’d be more offended by being called Jason Bateman than Patrick Bateman.
Hopefully for the DFL’s sake, their “panic” over this is just a ploy to make themselves look weak and lower the GOP’s defenses. If not, then it’s good news … as long as the MN GOP doesn’t shoot itself in the feet again.
“but actually the policies he supports are pretty evil.”
Ah. Disagreement is “evil”. That’s much better.
No one here said disagreement is evil, they said they believe certain policies are evil. I think you can fairly extrapolate from that what is meant is the policies have terrible outcomes, results, do harm to people.
That is not the same thing as saying disagreement is evil. It is saying that the results of policies are evil. You are conflating two things which are very dissimilar, and that is intellectually dishonest.
I find your repeated harping on Alida Messinger pretty funny, given the amount of big bucks from wealthy donors that were used for unethical action.
And this seems a pretty trivial social media gaffe, compared to the MN GOP Chisago social media gaffe reported earlier this week in City Paages, relating to racism and slavery. Oooops! That was followed with similar apologies.
Seriously Mitch? Trying to make something out alternative phonetic spellings? , Genie, aka jin·ni, aka jinn, djin, djinn, djinni, jin.
jinni (or genie) is the singular, jinn is the plural
genie is as valid as the many spellings for the Koran
We’re seeing big money switching sides, including Romney donors and other big money Republicans in Georgia donating to a Democrat, Virginia Republicans fleeing the Tea Party candidates there, ESPECIALLY Republican WOMEN — (and not just quitting those who were elected and then involved in scandals). And of course the U.S. Chamber and other big right wing $ fighting the tea party primary candidates running for the vacant congressional seat in ultra-conservative Alabama, where it looks like the hard right is going for a hard fall.
With the MN GOP in a deep $1.3 million financial hole, do to their own mismanagement and utter lack of that fiscal responsibility your lot like to bloviate on and on about, I think you have far more serious things to worry about than what the DFL is up to in minor social media gaffes.
But I suppose your job is to distract from all that unpleasant reality by trying to make more out of something than is really there. Especially with Obamacare growing in popularity as the tea party tanks.
http://www.examiner.com/article/bad-news-for-the-gop-obamacare-now-more-popular-than-the-republican-party
Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Robert SobelOrlando Liberal Examiner
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October 24, 2013
The bad news for the Republican party keeps rolling in. Two new polls were released this week and show that not only is the Republican party in bad standing with the American people, but their number one target, “Obamacare,” is actually becoming more popular than they are.
A CNN/ORC International survey and a Washington Post-ABC News poll were both released this week giving great insight into how the American people view the government, both political parties and who they blame for the recent government shutdown. According to the CNN/ORC International survey, 54 percent of the American people think it’s a bad thing that Republicans are in control of the House of Representatives, which is an 11 point increase from last December.
And of course there are those other polls which show Dayton and Franken soundly defeating any Republican candidate likely to run against them so far.
I’m half expecting that, if she can avoid jail for her antics in Iowa and other ethics violations which might be more like felonies, that Michele Bachmann will repeat her last minute stunt in 2012, and run after all.
It would be a joy to watch the big Republican money that would likey fund Jim Graves come flowing in…..
DG; dr
“No one here said disagreement is evil, they said they believe certain policies are evil. I think you can fairly extrapolate from that what is meant is the policies have terrible outcomes, results, do harm to people.”
Fighting fascism in WW2 caused harm to untold millions of people. Therefore, fighting fascism in WW2 was evil.
Dog Gone, once again, displays her unfathomable ignorance.
Dog Breath;
First, any sources from libturds like you, that you use to “prove” your bullshit statements, have no more credibility than you do.
Second, thanks for continually being an illustration of the symbol of your chosen political party; a braying jackass!
Your comment reminds me of Jennifer Rubin’s constant drivel. Both reason based on blatantly absurd premises.
DG is an MSNBC addict. I’d bet, say, a dollar on it.
I watched MSNBC for an afternoon. It’s weird. It’s all hate, all the time. No opposing views presented with respect. Just hate. A lot of browbeating of conservatives, when they are allowed to appear. Fox is very, very different in the way it treats liberals, and in the ratio of libs to conservatives that are allowed to appear.
Pot meet kettle.. ^;)
I wrote:
“Fox is very, very different in the way it treats liberals”
Emery responded:
“Pot meet kettle.. ^;)”
Which, despite its brevity, is about as incoherent as anything DG has written
PM, I’m happy to dumb it down for you:
MSNBC and FOX are opposite sides of the same coin. Two partisan networks, serving two different political masters. > “Pot meet Kettle”
MSNBC is run by a showbiz type. Fox news is run by a political guy.
Fox does news and commentary. MSNBC is all commentary.
They are not ‘two sides of the same coin’. It’s not even close. I don’t think that you have ever watched either network, Emery.
The problem with Fox News is not that it’s biased. That’s ok if it wants to be. The problem is that it pretends and tells it viewers that it’s impartial. European papers are partisan but they’re honest about it.
If I want someone’s opinion I’ll read the editorials page. Just tell me what was observed, and name your source where ever possible.
“The problem is that it pretends and tells it viewers that it’s impartial.”
No it does not. It tells its viewers that it is ‘fair and balanced”. That is not remotely the same thing as impartial.
A side by side comparison of Fox’s popular shows with MSNBC’s popular shows reveals that is much more likely to have on guests or panelists with liberal views, than MSNBC is likely to have guests and panelists with conservative views. MSNBC is all about affirming its viewers beliefs.
I watched Hannity on Fox. It’s a platform for Hannity to bash liberals. On Fox its an outlier.
Every MSNBC program is like Fox’s Hannity. Well, maybe not Scarborough. I’ve never seen it.
“Nobody ever went broke underestimating the stupidity and bad taste of the American public.” H. L. Mencken
In general I find it odd how partisan US media tends to be, given how little difference, in European terms, there is between the two parties.
Mencken’s aphorism is a bit too much like a cliche for me, that is, it is a substitute for considered thought. The genius of the American constitution, as it was originally conceived, is that it builds on strengths rather than weaknesses. Even stupid people with bad taste can determine their own best interests. Stupid people with bad taste are terrible at, say, determining what kind of health insurance is ‘best’ for me to buy.
The United States was built with an explicitly federal system where the federal government was given very limited responsibilities, with far greater rights and responsibilities falling on the states, localities and individuals. The federal system works best when the federal government preserves negative rights of the citizenry and the states, while states and localities focus on positive legislation like social programs and economic management. The federal government can throw money at a problem, but it cannot create and reform efficient social and economic programs. It is constitutionally incapable. The US needs to re-learn that lesson.
But you refuse to vote for anyone who believes what you believe, Emery. Palin? No. Bachmann? No. Cruz? No.
About half of GOP voters really believe in federalism (okay, I pulled that number out of the air). No Democrats believe in federalism. There is no such thing as a true progressive party, you get to pick between 18th century constitutionalists on the right and 18th century statists on the Left. As Kevin Williams writes: “The dream of consolidating national political power in a unitary parliament wielding both legislative and executive powers with which to expertly manage the affairs of the nation is not an idea from the 21st century; it’s an idea from the 18th century.”.
They all (Palin, Bachmann, Cruz) lack essential qualities for the presidency.
We need to stop electing these type of populists, and find pragmatists who are intent on making the welfare state run better, collecting taxes more efficiently, walking softly and carrying a big stick abroad. No more southerners, and no more baby boomers. I want the next president born after 1964; I am so sick of that (boomer) generation.
Emery wrote:
“No more southerners”
That is understandable. Obama was born in the tropics.
No one has had the essential qualities needed to be president since Bush I.
Didn’t you say you were a Perot voter? Or was it me who said you were a Perot voter?
Emery said:
“PM, I’m happy to dumb it down for you”
Unearned condescension. Explaining what you really meant when you said something meaningless in context is not referred to as “dumb it down”.
They all (Palin, Bachmann, Cruz) lack essential qualities for the presidency.
And yet EmeryTheUSAHater thinks 0bumbler walks on water. “dumb it down” indeed.
“thinks 0bumbler walks on water.”
Say, what’s more depressing? That we have the worst economy since the 1930s and Obama won’t talk talk about it, or that the press won’t ask him about it?
The GOP hasn’t been worth a damn since GHW Bush left office. When the Democrats ran against the deficit, the blame attached was to policy. Some of that was about taxes, but not all that much because Reagan raised taxes for six straight years and GHW Bush famously raised them despite his “no new taxes” pledge. The GOP runs against the deficit by blaming government, by blaming the existence of government, not merely wasteful or misdirected policies like those pilloried by Reagan and mocked by John McCain.
I place a large part of the responsibility — I’d say blame but that’s a loaded word — on the changes in the GOP primary rules that dramatically empowered the far right. The first absolute test became absolutism about abortion, then it became absolutism about nearly everything, from America’s “exceptionalism” to a kind of free market fundamentalism to ideas like returning to the gold standard that are unhinged from reality. The party, which I supported for many years, is unrecognizable to me. An example is the weirdness about the deficit; calling for trillions in cuts when the entire non-defense discretionary budget is somewhere around $600B a year, with the largest part of that being veterans affairs, is nonsensical.
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