Cromwell Burns in Hell

Here are a few pictures posted by folks over at the Daily Kos of Glenn Beck’s “I Have A Scheme” Rally.

Here’s a shot of the crowd on the Washington Mall.  CBS reported that the crowd was approximately 87,000 in size (plus or minus 9,000, according to their crowd estimate methodology). 

An estimated 87,000 attended. The wingnuts will probably claim a zillion people attended (as we've seen, math isn't right-winger's strong point).

 When Barack Obama gave his acceptance speech before a similar number of people in Denver in August 2008, Beck commented that it reminded him of something that would have taken place in Nuremburg (old Glenn is obsessed with Nazi analogies).  Using what passes for Beck’s logic, how should we characterize his rally?

There was lots of empty rhetoric at the rally praising Martin Luther King Jr.  Not surprisingly, not every wingnut got the message to pretend to admire King.

The sign reads "The Bold Truth MLK Was Pro Communist." Well, at least he spelled it correctly.

Much of the rhetoric at the rally was devoted to praising and honoring the military.  Apparently, that means to the wingnuts in attendance using the World War Two Memorial’s fountain as a wadding pool and the monuments as bleacher stands. 

No commentary is necessary here.

Or here, either.

This wingnut apparently didn't get the word that you weren't supposed to bring signs (particularly, misspelled ones!).

I just spent the last three hours watching “Beck Fest” or what the participants referred to as the rally to “Restore Honor” or “Restore America.”   It seems to me that America already restored some of it’s lost honor with the departure of the Bush/Cheney cabal, and the only thing I would like restored right now is the three hours of my life that I wasted watching this turd.  For all the hype circulating around this event, this teabaggers between temper tantrums gathering  has turned out to be a real yawner.  Even the collection of rubes in attendance appeared largely bored by it all — apparently there wasn’t enough rabid teabagger rhetoric or empty-headed conspiracy theories offered up for them to wallow in.  

Among the “highlights” of this latest right-wing embarrassment:

Caribou Barbie showing up at this “non-partisan” rally to use  a handful of veterans as props in a shortened, watered-down versions of her typically empty-headed stump speech (apparently the organizers couldn’t come up with the cash for a full-length discourse from this idiot, or maybe she just quit half-way through the speech…you know she has a habit of not fulfilling obligations and commitments).  Regardless, the dullards in attendance loved every minute of the babblings of their know-nothing queen.

Every black wingnut in America was paraded on the stage in a lame attempt to connect Beck and his agenda with that of Martin Luther King, Jr.  Beck’s primary prop to achieve this Alveda King, the niece of MLK.  For those who aren’t familiar with her, Alveda King has long been estranged from the King family over her misrepresentations (such as asserting that MLK was a conservative Republican) and her extremist views (she has equated gay marriage with genocide).  Like many right-wingers, she’s also an enormous hypocrite – claiming to be staunchly pro-life while undergoing two abortions during her child-bearing years.   

Alveda King appearing on Beck's Fox Show with another civil rights icon Ted "Happy to See Alot of White People Here" Nugent

Her appearance at the rally really undermined Beck’s earlier assertion that he had no idea that the date was the anniversary of MLK’s March on Washington.  Of course, the fact that Glenn Beck is a compulsive liar is obvious to everyone except the most delusional of the teabaggers.

A strong streak of evangelical Christianity was present throughout the event.  In spite of the assertions of wingnuttia, most of  us on the left have no problem with religious expression.  Many of us on the left are people of faith, and I can’t think of a movement for equality and social justice (that concept that old Glenn finds oh-so-scary) have featured progressive members of the clergy.  We just want to ensure that the framer’s separation of church and state is respected and maintained (a separation that right-wing theocrats– our would be American Taliban – are continually trying to breach). 

Also, we do object when those on the right attempting to rewrite history to match their religious beliefs.  Beck is particularly guilty of this given his promotion of David Barton, a pseudo-historian who has twisted history to claim that the United States was established as a “Christian Nation.”  Neither Barton nor Beck have apparently ever read Article VI of the Constitution (which forbids any religious test or oaths for holding a public office or trust), the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment (which prohibits the government from establishing a religion), or the Treaty of Tripoli (where Jefferson explicitly refutes the idea of the United States being a Christian nation).

BTW, didn’t you love that one minister who cited the bible passage which cited the need for public care of the poor and taxation?  You could almost hear a pin drop in the stunned silence of the crowd, only broken by the the sound of a few teabagger heads exploding!

I’ll give Beck some credit for giving a speech that was devoid of most of the incendiary rhetoric that he has become notorious for.  It was the “kinder, gentler” version of Beck, who encouraged a rejection of “hate”  (it’s too bad that he doesn’ t take his own advice when conducting his own radio and television show).  It was also devoid of the crazy conspiracy theories that he has woven that his gullible followers have accepted as fact.  No, it was a Beck that tried to give an uplifting, patriotic, religious address to rival William Jennings Byran’s “Cross of Gold” speech or King’s “I Have a Dream” Speech. 

The result?  It was pretty much a dud.  There were no memorable lines or phrases.  Old Glenn couldn’t even give us a good cry — although he did pretend to choak up about three times.  Beck has swindled his rube followers once again.  This time not be tricking them into investing in overpriced gold coins, but giving up their time and money to attend this non-event.

As a speech and event, it was pretty empty — just like Glenn’s head and conscience.

Recently, the students in my three American National Government courses took their first exam, which was  largely focused on the U.S. Constitution.  The bad news is that about a third of my students flunked.  The good news is that they probaby fared better than your typical teabagger who claims to have a great knowledge of — and love of — the Constitution.  In a number of earlier posts, I’ve pointed out the high level of wingnut ignorance of the core document and the subsequent 27 amendments.  Let’s procede with a few other examples of teabagger cluelessness.

First, we had the recent case of Arizona trying to intrude upon an area reserved for the federal government.  Wingnuts celebrated the passage of this legislation, and Arizona Governor Jan Brewer  suddenly became a teabagger favorite.  Let’s see what the framers had to say about this matter.  Article One, Section Eight clearly lists the establishment of a “uniform rule of naturalization” as a power of the U.S. Congress.  If the wingnuts had bothered to read a little further into the document, they might stumble upon Article Six and a little something called the Supremacy Clause, which clearly asserts the supremacy of national laws in our political system. 

One humorous response to a very unfunny law

 Also, the law’s requirement for naturalized citizens to carry documentation confirming their legal status, and the obvious racial profiling that would occur under this legislation, would run right into a brick wall called the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. Not surprisingly, a federal judge struck down major portions of this odious law.  Of course, the wingnuts have screamed bloody murder over the decision, and have accused the judge of “liberal judicial activism.”  Apparently, these ignoramuses have never heard about the separation of powers (which grant the courts the power to review the laws) and a case called Marbury v. Madison.

Constitution 1, Teabaggers 0.

Speaking of the Fourteenth Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause, a federal judge used that language in the constitution to strike down California’s Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage in the state.  An overwhelming percentage of wingnuts supported this ballot proposition, apparently fearful that the temptation of marrying someone of the same gender was so powerful that it would destroy millions of  traditional marriages. Once again, wingnuttia has gone berzerk, claiming that the judge in the case was another liberal activist (appointed by the far-left Ronald Reagan — a.k.a. “Conserva-Jesus”) who was biased in the case because he was openly gay (using wingnut “logic” wouldn’t a “straight” or married judge also have to excuse themselves for bias?). 

Sanford, Vitter, Ensign Gingrich, Limbaugh...all staunch defenders of the sanctity of "traditional marriage" (which apparently means cheating on and/or divorcing your wife!).

 I also must say that I was amused by the outrage at this decision as illegitimate because it conflicted with the will of the voters (do these lunatics think that liberties should be at the mercy of the majority?) , and I could barely contain my laughter as multiple-divorce buffoons like Rush Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich bloviated about the “sanctity of marriage.”

Constitution 2, Teabaggers 0.

Yeah, that pesky Fourteenth Amendment.  It seems to ruin so much of the teabagger’s fun in discriminating against gays and other minorities.  Wingnuttia doesn’t seem very happy about the amendment granting all people born in the United States citizenship (particularly those brown ones).   Not surprisingly, they now propose legislation to clarify the amendment (gee, I didn’t know that you could alter the constitution by passing a law) or by actually amending the constitution with new language clarifying who is entitled to citizenship if born within the country. 

It seems that right-wing minds are plagued with visions of armies of “anchor babies” being unleashed on the country by the brown hordes who’ve been taking away all those minimum wage jobs that whites are clamoring for.  In spite of all the teabagger fury, don’t hold your breath waiting for two-thirds of both houses of Congress and three-quarters of the state legislatures to eliminate birthright citizenship.

Constitution 3, Teabaggers 0. 

As long as we progressives remain vigilant, we can protect our beloved constitution from the wingnuts and teabaggers who would “love” it to death.