Suspect in Fulwood case is believed to be grandson of one victim and nephew of the other A man has been arrested on suspicion of murdering his grandmother and one of his aunts, whose bodies were found in a burning bungalow shortly after 2am on Monday. Officers were called to the address in Fulwood, near Preston, in the early hours. A spokeswoman for Lancashire constabulary said: “On arrival the house was found to be on fire and inside were the bodies of two women. “A 21-year-old man was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder and is currently in custody.” The man being questioned is understood to be the grandson of one of the victims, who was named locally as Maureen Allen. Neighbours said she used a wheelchair and was often seen looking after her garden in the quiet close of seven similar properties. Stephanie McDougall said that her mother, who lives next door to the burned-out bungalow, rang her in distress just before 2am. “My mother thought the house was on fire and someone had stabbed somebody. “I didn’t know them myself but they were nice people. It’s very upsetting. It’s shocking that something like this could happen here.” The other dead woman is understood to be the arrested man’s aunt. Police have sealed off the semi-detached property while it is searched by forensic officers and fire service specialists. The close was also sealed off, with only residents and visitors allowed in. One woman allowed through said it was her mother’s house. She spoke briefly to officers at the scene before driving away with a police escort. Lancashire constabulary said more details would be released later. Crime Martin Wainwright guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Maddow: If We Take S&P at Their Word, the Downgrade Was Due to Republican Brinkmanship on Debt Ceiling
August 7, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Well, we had one bright spot on the Sunday morning talks shows this weekend — the fact that Rachel Maddow was a panel member on Meet the Press. The downside, she got stuck debating Republican hack Alex Castellanos who just regurgitated one Republican lie filled talking point after another during the entire panel segment. When responding to whether his buddy Mitt Romney should have shown some leadership and weighed in on the debt ceiling debacle before it was over with or not, Castellanos tried blaming the downgrade by S&P on government spending and too much debt and Maddow corrected him about just who exactly they blamed if you actually read their report — Republicans playing chicken with the debt ceiling and their rigid refusal to ever allow taxes to be raised. MADDOW: To the extent that we are taking the S&P downgrade as a serious thing, that we believe that S&P has the credibility to have done this, and this actually does levy a blow against the U.S. economic credibility. I mean, honestly, we should talk about the fact that during the financial crisis, S&P was handing out AAA ratings to any pile of junk tall enough to reach the doorbell and ask. So they do not have the most credibility on this. But if we are going to take them seriously, let’s take them on their word about why they did this. They said they did this because of brinksmanship over the debt ceiling. They did not say they did this because there’s too much government spending. GREGORY: All right. Let’s, let… MADDOW: They said they did this because of Republicans holding the debt… CASTELLANOS: Because of the debt. MADDOW: No. The debt ceiling. Brinksmanship… CASTELLANOS: Yeah, but the debt ceiling is the ceiling… MADDOW: …is their word. Naturally Castellanos did his best to interrupt her so she couldn’t make her point. Austan Goolsbee got a chance to follow up and agree with Maddow on the fact that Republicans were the ones out there actually insane enough to be pretending that default might be acceptable. Steve Benen made some similar points in his post from today A pox on one house : But for all the complaining I do about this, it’s only fair to note when someone gets this right. National Journal ’s Edmund Andrews, for example, had a good piece yesterday that specifically rejected the notion that the downgrade is “a pox-on-both-your-houses curse at the intransigence of both Republicans and Democrats.” And who instigated this brinksmanship, refused to compromise, and delayed a resolution until literally the last day? Putting aside, at least for now, whether S&P has the credibility to make such sweeping condemnations, it’s worth emphasizing the extent to which the agency pointed the finger at congressional Republicans. It not only directly attributed blame to the GOP hostage strategy of the past few months, it lamented the very idea of allowing “the statutory debt ceiling and the threat of default” to “become political bargaining chips in the debate over fiscal policy,” before complaining that “the majority of Republicans in Congress continue to resist any measure that would raise revenues.” Andrews added, “[I]t’s hard to read the S&P analysis as anything other than a blast at Republicans.” Full transcript below the fold. GREGORY: But, but the–who’s the front-runner right now? Mitt Romney, a man you advised, who couldn’t have been farther away from what happened in Congress over this debt ceiling debate, and then at the end he says, “By the way, I’m against the deal.” Is that big leadership? CASTELLANOS: I think riding, you know, it’s like being a newspaper editor, riding out of the hills down to the battlefield after the battle’s over and shooting the wounded. I don’t think that’s particularly productive. But I think something Mr. Greenspan says is important and that is that this is not going to be without pain. There’s a reason alcohol, drugs, and promiscuous government spending are all addictive. They feel good at first. When you stop doing them, it’s going to feel less good. GREGORY: Right. CASTELLANOS: Republicans out there politically are saying, “Take the pain now. Don’t pass it on to the next generation.” That’s why they’re being so firm. GREGORY: I suspect you disagree with it, that that’s their view. MADDOW: To the extent that we are taking the S&P downgrade as a serious thing, that we believe that S&P has the credibility to have done this, and this actually does levy a blow against the U.S. economic credibility. I mean, honestly, we should talk about the fact that during the financial crisis, S&P was handing out AAA ratings to any pile of junk tall enough to reach the doorbell and ask. So they do not have the most credibility on this. But if we are going to take them seriously, let’s take them on their word about why they did this. They said they did this because of brinksmanship over the debt ceiling. They did not say they did this because there’s too much government spending. GREGORY: All right. Let’s, let… MADDOW: They said they did this because of Republicans holding the debt… CASTELLANOS: Because of the debt. MADDOW: No. The debt ceiling. Brinksmanship… CASTELLANOS: Yeah, but the debt ceiling is the ceiling… MADDOW: …is their word. GREGORY: Right. CASTELLANOS: What is the debt ceiling… GOOLSBEE: What is a rating? A rating is simply an estimate of the probability of default. GREENSPAN: That is true. GOOLSBEE: The probability of default on Treasury is zero. It’s the safest asset in the world by far. But we’ve just gone through an experience that anybody looking at it has to say, “Whoa, maybe somebody might actually default in the future,” if we were going to go to the edge of, of insanity. MGREGORY: Right. Let’s… MADDOW: That’s right. GREGORY: Let me get in here. I want to take a break.
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Statement is sharpest criticism yet directed by Saudi Arabia against Arab state since Middle East unrest began Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah has demanded an end to the bloodshed in Syria and recalled his country’s ambassador from Damascus, in a rare case of one of the Arab world’s most powerful leaders intervening against another. It was the sharpest criticism the oil giant – a monarchy who bans political opposition – has directed against any Arab state since a wave of protests roiled the Middle East and toppled autocrats in Tunisia and Egypt. “What is happening in Syria is not acceptable for Saudi Arabia,” he said in a written statement read out on Al Arabiya satellite television. Events in Syria had “nothing to do with religion, or values, or ethics”, the king said. A crackdown by Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad against protests has become one of the most violent episodes in the wave of unrest sweeping through the Arab world this year. Activists said troops with tanks had launched an assault on the city of Deir al-Zor in the east of the country, killing dozens. The past week has seen scores of people killed in a siege of Hama, a city where Assad’s father launched a crackdown nearly 30 years ago, killing thousands. Assad’s government says it is fighting against criminals and armed extremists who have provoked violence by attacking its troops. Activists and western countries say Assad’s forces have attacked peaceful protesters. “Syria should think wisely before it’s too late and issue and enact reforms that are not merely promises but actual reforms,” the Saudi king said. “Either it chooses wisdom on its own or it will be pulled down into the depths of turmoil and loss.” The Arab League, in a rare response to the escalating bloodshed in Syria, called on authorities there to stop acts of violence against civilians. Although several Arab states have joined the west in opposing Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi, most of the region’s rulers have been cautious about criticising other Arab leaders during the protests. King Abdullah sent Saudi troops in March to help neighbouring monarchy Bahrain put down anti-government protests, and Saudi officials have criticised the decision to put Egypt’s ousted leader Hosni Mubarak on trial. Saudi Arabia has acted as a mediator in neighbouring Yemen, and is hosting its president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who went there for medical treatment after being wounded in a bomb attack when protests against his rule turned into open conflict. Syria Saudi Arabia King Abdullah Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East guardian.co.uk
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Despite their wildly differing politics, John Malkovich and Harold Pinter were friends. Now the film star is directing Julian Sands in a tribute to the playwright. As the Edinburgh festival launches, Stephen Moss meets them I spot John Malkovich ‘s head as soon as I enter the courtyard of the hotel, even though he is in the lounge, with his back to me and partially obscured by a blind. That cranium has an aura. He has just arrived in Edinburgh, where he is directing his long-time friend Julian Sands , the British actor, in A Celebration of Harold Pinter . It is being touted as the starriest fringe event for a decade. Sands gives me a cheery wave when I enter the lounge, and starts rearranging the furniture so the three of us can talk; Malkovich sprawls languidly in a large leather armchair. Sands, in an elegant grey suit and with a physical tautness that belies the fact he is now past 50, is fluent and to the point; Malkovich speaks slowly, and when he tells a story is strong on detail. There’s a quirky mind in that majestic bonce. A fashion designer as well as an actor and director, Malkovich is wearing a big blue jacket and jeans with huge turn-ups. Both sport grey silk scarves he designed. The origins of this Pinter celebration lie in 2005. Pinter had been due to give a reading of his poems, but throat cancer had impaired his voice and he asked Sands to step in, instructing him on how to deliver them. “After he died,” says Sands, “I repeated the recital as a memorial tribute in Los Angeles, recorded it and made some CDs for those who couldn’t be there, one of whom was John.” Sands was later approached by producer Nick Brooke to do a Pinter show at Edinburgh, followed by a national tour. Enter Malkovich. “I thought if we’re to do this, it needs to be completely re-examined,” says Sands. “I wanted more of a celebration of Harold, a convincing audio portrait. John had said to me after I’d given him the CD that I should think about working this up into a theatre piece. I’d just seen John perform in The Infernal Comedy , and his power and presence was so compelling that I thought if I was going to work with anyone on this, it has to be him. His contribution as director is more like a conductor. Yes, I
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Police deployed to deal with trouble in Enfield and Brixton, plus reports of disturbances in Dalston and Walthamstow There was mounting evidence on Sunday night that some of the second night of rioting in London was part of an orchestrated plan, as violent disturbances broke out sporadically across parts of the capital. Police in riot gear were deployed across the city to deal with trouble in Enfield, six miles north of the site of riots in Tottenham, while looters later pillaged shops in Brixton. The scenes in Enfield, while reminiscent of Saturday night’s clashes, were smaller in scale, and they took place from about 7pm. Teenagers gathered on St Andrews Road – said to have been a preplanned destination – broke down walls on terraced streets so they could collect bricks to throw at police. About a dozen shops were ransacked and a police car smashed on Church Street. Riot police moved in to secure the area and train station. Shortly after 8.30pm, a crowd of about 100 mainly teenage boys broke into a jewellery store. When police arrived less than a minute later, there were chaotic scenes, with a number of people struck with batons and attacked by dogs. Resident Mizu Rahman, 34, said a plainclothes police officer had told him at around 2pm that there was intelligence that disorder was imminent. “The officer came down the street warning us there would be trouble,” he said. “He showed me his ID. He said, ‘Do you live here?’ I said yes. He said, ‘St Andrews Road is going to be the frontline tonight’.” There was no obvious reason why the rioting should have spread to Enfield, which is in the outskirts of north London. Rahman, an engineer, said he had seen a message on Facebook that Enfield would be “next on the hitlist”. At 9.30pm, Met police and reinforcements from Kent began turning the whole of Enfield into a sterile area. Hundreds of riot police arrived with vans and police dogs, charging at groups of teenagers, who melted into sidestreets. They smashed cars and shop windows as they ran. Some teenagers knew exactly where they were heading, saying the plan was to go to Ponders End. A large crowd of youths then sprinted west, attacking a retail park and shops. Among them was a closed Tesco Extra store. Workers inside described hearing windows smashing as dozens of youths poured into the store. “They left carrying TVs, alcohol – they were stuffing trolleys,” said one supermarket worker. Unlike the previous night’s disturbances, riot police were on the scene in large numbers. Their stance was also more aggressive, with baton charges and dogs used to disperse crowds. At 11pm, on a nearby road called Elizabeth Ride, a young man was stabbed under the arm. He could walk to an ambulance but his friends refused to talk to police and disappeared, shouting: “Why would we talk to feds? You’re the reason this is happening.” Amid evidence that locals were turning against the rioters, one young woman, aged about 20, was in tears, shouting: “What are you doing? Is this how you pay your respects to Mark? Is this what he would have wanted?” The leader of Enfield council, Doug Taylor said he believed disturbances there were linked to events in Tottenham. He said: “There’s got to be a link to that extent that it’s the day after and the police are hugely well organised in Tottenham so maybe this was seen as the place to have a second night.” In Brixton, crowds attending a daytime festival were good-natured but gangs of youths ransacked shops in the area as darkness fell. Branches of Vodafone, Footlocker and H&M were all targeted by looters, who made off in scooters and cars. Police in riot gear were pushing people up Brixton High Street at around 1am. Elsewhere, there were reports of disturbances in areas including Dalston and Walthamstow. The latter area’s local Labour MP, Stella Creasy, said that branches of Argos, BHS and Barclays were all attacked, while angry locals said that looters asked them for directions to shops and banks. The Metropolitan police said on Twitter on Sunday night: “Police are responding to a significant amount of criminal activity across London and are deploying officers to tackle it.” London Crime Police Paul Lewis Matthew Taylor Ben Quinn guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things: Rep. Jason Chaffetz Dismisses Jobs Solutions With GOP Bumperstickers
August 7, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media (h/t Heather at VideoCafe ) With all the consequences of Republican destructive economic policies coming down on us this week, I knew that both the corporate media and the multitudes of GOP politicians would be spinning mightily. Not one would have the self-awareness or intellectual honesty to look at their own behaviors — focusing the debt/deficit instead of jobs, playing the false equivalency game, acting as if the economy only got bad on January 20, 2009, etc. — and acknowledge that everyone involved owns the S&P downgrade and the rotten economy that we have. On This Week , the roundtable went down predictable routes. George Will spouted his oft-repeated and still incorrect whinging that nothing the Obama adminstration has done, especially the stimulus , has worked. But relative Sunday pundit newcomer Mellody Hobson injected the fresh air of outside-the-Beltway thinking and told all these Villagers that their focus was wrong. It’s not about cutting budgets right now to improve the economy; it’s all about bringing the jobs back. And here’s where Hobson showed up these Villagers: she had some possible solutions : Yeah, so we have to put more — you know, one of the things that people don’t want to talk about is corporate incentives. Right now, no one wants to give the corporations any extra help, but there are corporate incentives out there that could move the job story. So, one, giving the corporations the ability to repatriate all this money that they have all over the world without a huge amount of taxation. If you tied it to job creation and investment spending, that would help this country. I heard a great idea from Alan Khazei, who’s running for Senate in Massachusetts, who talked about the 99ers, the people who are getting 99 weeks of unemployment insurance. Give the corporations a sponsorship for those 99ers. Tell them, we will give you a voucher for 99 weeks of compensation with the hope that you will bring these people on full time, not to mention how it affects people’s psychology that they can get up and go to work every day. Talk about affecting sentiment in this country. Wait, wait…tying tax incentives to bringing back onshore jobs? Giving 99ers a chance to get back into the workforce? That’s crazy talk. No, really. According to Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, that’s just ridiculous: Well, we’re not just one good tax increase away from prosperity. That’s not the way that we’re going to actually grow the economy and grow jobs in this country. We in the reality-based community who value logic and sense recognize that Chaffetz entire argument is better known as Ignoratio elenchi . Did Hobson–who gave lucid and cogent suggestions of things Congress could do right now to improve the economy–actually suggest that taking steps towards getting people employed would result in instant prosperity? Of course not. But listen to Chaffetz’s suggestion: We need stability in our government. We need predictability. If you look at all the new regulations that have been — health care, the EPA, in my state of Utah, energy is a huge — in fact, that’s where the best jobs are. We don’t have an energy policy in this country. So there are lots of things we can do to grow jobs, but stability is part of it. Bumper stickers, signifying nothing. If a lack of regulation stimulates growth, where the hell was all of it during the Bush administration? As Cokie Roberts rebukes Chaffetz, if stability is needed, that ship sailed with the GOP shenanigans during the debt ceiling debate, as the S&P specifically mentioned. But this is exactly why we can’t have nice things in this country. We get bumper stickers instead of solutions and not one of the Villagers shaping dialog for the country can be honest about it.
Continue reading …Jim Jordan: Politicians Should be Careful About Shooting Their Mouths Off After He Blew Off Dangers of Defaulting on our Debt
August 7, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan apparently has his irony alert button broken after this statement he made this Thursday for the Young America’s Foundation . Responding to a question by one of the student participants, he warned that politicians had better study up on policy before they come on the air and say something stupid. This video was from Thursday, before S&P decided to downgrade our credit rating after the debacle of watching our politicians run right up to the deadline before finally agreeing to raise the cap on our debt ceiling. If Jordan thinks politicians should be studying up on policy matters before they go on the air and say something ridiculous, maybe he should be rethinking his irresponsible remarks he made on C-SPAN’s Newsmakers last month , where he acted like a partial default and running past the deadline in August would have been acceptable and would not have caused even worse problems than what we’ve seen from Standard and Poor’s over the weekend. After being asked “how you decide what the difference between risk and being naive”, Rep. Jim Jordan responded this way. JORDAN: You want to educate yourself, now what the policy is, instead of just rushing in there and being goofy and saying all kinds of crazy things, you want to take the time to make sure that you’re prepared. That’s why I try to in my comments talk about, you know, being disciplined, doing the hard work and all those things. You’ve got to do that before you, particularly in politics, before you shoot your mouth off or something like that, along those lines. So, that’s important, just to do your homework and be prepared. That’s I think a prerequisite for just about anything you’re going to try to accomplish. Later in the segment, he also said that the United States should make cuts to domestic spending before they ever dare to cut a penny out of defense, because god knows, we’ve got to have our priorities straight, don’t we? Can’t dare to put an end to that war machine we’ve got going, but poor and elderly Americans, they’re expendable. Click here to view this media I’m not sure how much worse things have to get before the voters in these wingnuts’ districts start holding them responsible. Must they destroy what’s left of our middle class in America? All I can say is they’re probably really lucky that most of their constituents don’t pay nearly the amount of attention as I do with listening to what comes out of their mouths and how they’re governing. We all know that our corporate media isn’t pointing it out for them.
Continue reading …The GOP’s Broken Record on Job Creation – More of the Same in Their Weekly Address
August 7, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Wash, rinse, lie, repeat. That was about what we got from New York Rep. Michael Grimm in this week’s GOP Weekly Address. Par for the course, it’s more of their broken record on job creation; more tax cuts, deregulation, Washington spends to much, the confidence fairy and their insane proposal to pass their Paul Ryan plan on steroids balanced budget amendment which they know there is no chance in hell of ever passing. We’ve already seen that their grand plans for job creation didn’t work under the Bush administration where we were losing as many as 700,000 jobs a month at the end of his term. And the stimulus plan didn’t work as well as it should have because Republicans wouldn’t allow it to get through the Senate unless a good part of it was tax cuts. And of course none of these Republicans will admit that right wing governors all over the country purging government jobs at the expense of tax breaks for corporations has a great deal to do with why our unemployment numbers look so bad right now. While it’s become obvious that the Republican Party is doing its best to make sure the employment problem in America is as bleak as they possibly can to keep President Obama from being reelected, which is their goal according to their leader in the Senate Mitch McConnell, they’ve still got the nerve to come on the air day after day and pretend their party cares one iota about job creation in the United States as Grimm did here in their weekly response. Transcript via the LA Times below the fold. Hello, I’m Congressman Michael Grimm from the great state of New York, proudly representing Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn. After serving my country in combat with the United States Marine Corps and deep undercover with the FBI, I decided to go out on my own and start a small business. I’ve seen firsthand how politicians and bureaucrats can make it harder to meet a payroll and create jobs. The latest jobs report shows that President Obama’s ‘stimulus’-driven policies are simply not working. The overspending, overtaxing, and over-regulating coming out of Washington is creating uncertainty and holding our job creators back. Every day, I hear the frustration in the voices of my neighbors and constituents who ask ‘where are the jobs?’ and this reminds me, this is not the country we grew up in. The good news is that we can, and will, get it back. if we change course. That’s why Speaker Boehner told President Obama we would not grant his request to increase the national debt limit unless we cut spending by a larger amount. And we wouldn’t accept any tax increases, which would destroy jobs. The Budget Control Act signed into law this week takes a step in the right direction. I voted for this legislation, but I have to be quite honest in telling you that it’s far from perfect. The cuts and reforms do not go nearly far enough. But it’s a reasonable and responsible approach which includes spending cuts larger than the debt limit hike; common sense caps on future government spending; and no tax increases. It puts us on a track to fix our fiscal problems, which will provide more confidence for employers in America, the very people we expect to reinvest in our economy and create jobs. Still, this is no time for celebration. We can celebrate when our budget is balanced, our debt is under control, and our economy is back to creating jobs again. There is a lot of work to be done. This fall, as a result of the Budget Control Act, lawmakers of both parties will be working on legislation to produce trillions of dollars in further deficit reduction through necessary spending cuts. While that work is being done, the House and Senate will also be voting on a Balanced Budget Amendment, something Republicans insisted on as part of the Budget Control Act. There’s no better way to provide certainty to the private sector and control spending over the long haul than through a Balanced Budget Amendment. To help lift our crushing burden once and for all, both parties should come together this fall and send a Balanced Budget Amendment to the states. We were right to the hold the president accountable on the debt limit, because he’s already back to proposing more ‘stimulus’ spending, higher taxes, and even more regulations. Doubling down on the same failed policies is not the answer. Republicans are focused on implementing a strong roadmap for job creation that reduces burdensome regulations, calls for a simpler and fairer tax code, and expands American energy production. These are the kinds of common-sense solutions that would get government out of the way and give our job creators the certainty they need to invest, plan, and create jobs. Many of these proposals have already passed the House and are waiting on action from the Democratic-led Senate. You can review all the details of our plan at Jobs.GOP.gov Listen, we know we have all the tools and resources we need to grow our economy and rebuild this great nation: the relentless work ethic of the American workforce, innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit and courage to succeed. So my questions for Washington are this: how many more jobs reports will it take before we change course? What will it take for all of us to just say ‘enough’? For the sake of our economy, I’m urging the president to wake up to reality, abandon his failed policies, and join Republicans in the hard work needed to turn our country around and create jobs. Calling on both parties to come together and send a Balanced Budget Amendment to the states would be a good start. We need less politics and more common sense if we’re going to save our country from financial ruin and restore a thriving economy for our children and grandchildren. Thank you, God bless America.
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A family argument in Copley, Ohio ended in the deaths of eight people in two places, including an 11-year-old child A family argument in Ohio ended in eight people being shot dead in two places, including an 11-year-old, and two more people were wounded, say authorities. Five people to were killed in one location, then two more were killed nearby before police killed the gunman, police chief Michael Mier told WKYC-TV. The shootings happened in a wooded, residential neighbourhood of older homes outside Akron, Copley Township officers said. The neighbourhood remained blocked off by police all afternoon. Jeff Kirby of nearby Norton said he was visiting his mother’s home not far from the shootings at mid-morning when he heard gunfire – about 15 shots with several pauses between them. Kirby, 53, said the last gunfire he heard occurred about the same time he heard sirens in the neighbourhood. Copley police sergeant Eric Goodwin said he did not know the conditions of the wounded but said he believed there were no more victims. “As far as I know, everyone’s accounted for,” he said. He gave no more details, including how the shooter and victims were related, their names or what led to the argument. “That’s still under investigation,” he said. Copley is a town of about 14,000 people outside Akron in northeast Ohio. Ohio United States Gun crime guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Tea Party Nation’s Judson Phillips claims in WI protest: ‘Liberal Ideology Has Killed A Billion People’ (VIDEO)
August 7, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media The right wing pundits and tea party operatives are trying to cover for all the heat they took for their outrageous behavior during the HCR debate and their ugly tea party town halls where spitting and violence took center stage so they have been trying to come up with a typical false equivalence narrative to offset it. We liberals are all so mean to the tea party now for saying that they held the government hostage in their efforts to cut spending. Unfortunately for them, it’s also only the truth. Judson Phillips, the TV face of Tea Party Nation went to Wisconsin to defend Alberta Darling, a Republican facing a tough challenge from Sandy Pasch in the recall elections this week. Phillips took his chips and went all in on the nasty : The founder of Tea Party Nation claimed liberal ideology is responsible for “a billion” deaths over the past century during a raucous rally here Saturday in support of one of the six Republican state senators facing a recall election Tuesday. “I will tell you ladies and gentlemen, I detest and despise everything the left stands for. How anybody can endorse and embrace an ideology that has killed a billion people in the last century is beyond me,” said Tea Party Nation CEO Judson Phillips. Phillips, who a day prior likened protesters of Gov. Scott Walker to Nazi storm troopers, urged a few hundred tea party supporters to turn out for state Sen. Alberta Darling, who is in a ferocious battle with state Rep. Sandy Pasch to hold onto her suburban Milwaukee seat. But he wasn’t the only speaker to use loaded language to gin up the crowd. Vince Schmuki, a leader of the Ozaukee Patriot tea party group compared the recall effort to a terrorist attack. “This is ground zero,” said Schmuki. “You remember what the term ground zero means? We have been attacked.” He continued, “Tuesday is going to be the beginning of our takeover. And we’re going to follow it up the following week, and then we’re going to polish off the enemy in November 2012. Who’s with me?” Phillips believes that only land owners should have the right to vote . Calling the tea party caucus hostage takers is certainly a colorful way to describe their negotiation tactics since they refused to strike a deal on the debt ceiling vote that included any type of revenue being raised and needed to be done on their terms only. But it’s not inaccurate. The debt ceiling was never used as an ideological tool before and for good reason. With the S&P downgrade on Friday, now we see the results of their actions. Phillips, a regular on MSNBC revealed himself to be an ideologue of the highest order who’s basic goal has nothing to do with policy and all to do with his hatred of Liberals. Most of the conservative movement that got involved in black helicopter politics when Bill Clinton took office have been transmitted into the mainstream of the GOP and Judson’s views typify their beliefs to the max. They’ve made a cottage industry out of their hatred for Liberals and Progressives. Not to mention that his Tea Party Nation group has come under a lot of fire by conservatives for their slimy accounting practices . So, we’re all murderers now on a scale of which Stalin would be jealous. Blue America’s Sandy Pasch is running so close to Scott Walker’s biggest supporter, Alberta Darling that it’s causing them a lot of concern. Here’s why: Darling’s important because: A) She is one of the leaders of the pack of Wisconsin R’s. B) Her race wasn’t supposed to be close, but now it’s a dead heat . The fact that her seat is even competitive shows how strong the progressive response to these elections has been. Darling was co-chair of the committee that wrote Wisconsin’s union-busting bill, and had a central role in shaping it. She is also an unapologetic shill for corporate interests: She called Paul Ryan (who’s fundraised for her) a “hero” and recently insisted that those making $250,000 a year “ aren’t wealthy people .” C) Darling has a whole lot more money in the bank than her opponent, Sandy Pasch, though with the momentum building up in the race Pasch out-fundraised her in July. If this race, which wasn’t supposed to be competitive, ends up flipping, it will be a small but important sign of voters beginning to reject Tea Party economics. The pressure is really getting to her now because in front of the Milwaukee press she tried to deny even knowing anything about Paul Ryan’s Medicare-killing budget, when before she hailed it as heroic. Here’s Howie’s latest tweet : Alberta Darling used to brag she loves Ryan’s plan to end Medicare. Now: “I don’t know the details” but supports Ryan’s “fiscal goals.” Sandy Pasch was endorsed by Blue America and is running against Darling in the recall election and we did a great live chat session with her in June along with another WI hero, Chris Larson. You’d have to be living under a rock not to know there’s a battle in Wisconsin that’s crucial for the whole progressive movement and for the future of our country. That’s why Blue America started a new Wisconsin Recall page and it’s why we’ve invited state Senator Chris Larson and state Senate candidate Sandy Pasch here for a Blue America live chat today (2pm, CT, noon, PT)… read on We’re hoping to send Scott Walker and the entire tea party a message, and getting rid of hacks like Darling – who care nothing for the working class in WI – would be an excellent start. Andy Kroll has been following this for Mother Jones as well. Don’t forget to GOTV for Sandy against this Walker/Paul Ryan shill. And let’s not forget how he feels about the Constitution: Tea Partiers sure seem to want to tear up the Constitution they loudly proclaim to love
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