Pander-Fest 2008 reaches South Carolina
By Steve Benen Thursday Jan 17, 2008 6:10pmWith the GOP primary in South Carolina coming tomorrow, the temptation for culture-war pandering is apparently a little too strong for some candidates.
“You don’t like people from outside the state coming in and telling you what to do with your flag,” Mr. Huckabee, a former governor of Arkansas, told supporters in Myrtle Beach, according to The Associated Press.
“In fact,” he said, “if somebody came to Arkansas and told us what to do with our flag, we’d tell them what to do with the pole; that’s what we’d do.” […]
And a radio advertisement paid for by an independent group used the flag issue to attack Mr. McCain, of Arizona, and praise Mr. Huckabee. “John McCain assaults our values,” it said. “Mike Huckabee understands the value of heritage.”
First, I can appreciate the fact that McCain is vulnerable on the issue. Before the 2000 campaign, McCain didn’t support the Confederate flag. Before the South Carolina primary, he switched, endorsing the flag. After the primary, he switched back, saying his pre-primary position was an “act of political cowardice.” If Huckabee wants to point that out, it’s certainly fair game, but that clearly wasn’t the message yesterday.
Second, Huckabee certainly has a unique approach to federalism. On the one hand, the federal government should have minimal input on state laws. On the other, Huckabee wants to redo the Constitution to bring it in line with “God’s standards,” limiting states’ rights on marriage equality and reproductive rights.
And third, in the 21st century, do we still need to use a Civil War battle flag as red meat for far-right Republicans?
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Reality TV!
http://blip.tv/file/520347/
the mouth-breathery is at record levels in the Palmetto State
Huckleberry:
Amazing what works with the southern GOP. Who cares about the economy, the war, or anything else. Just don't mess with my flag.
Otay @ 3:
GIT ER DONE
I just can't picture any of these people as president.....so sad.
Lasthorseman @ 1:
Thank you for that.
abarts @ 4:
:lol:
And third, in the 21st century, do we still need to use a Civil War battle flag as red meat for far-right Republicans?
Apparently Huck thinks so. Ted Nugent would be proud.
The party of Lincoln pandering to Confederate flag wavers. It isn't irony... it's just plain bizarre.
Let's just face it folks. These ass holes are not going to stop this madness until we act on them with more then words.
abarts @ 4:
Give me yer flag, and I will. ;)
Ahh...South Carolina...nothing could be finer. The state where "Lee" Harvey Atwater honed the fine art of dirty politics. Grab some popcorn. It's gonna get down right gooood.
I have a question for Republicans: which flag do you prefer, the Confederate flag which represents a bunch of LOSERS; or the American flag, the flag that beat the Nazis, beat the Commies, and reached the Moon?
I thought there's supposed to be one flag to which we pledge. One flag we're supposed to be protecting in those asinine anti-burning amendments the Republicans keep promoting. One flag, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
P.S. I'm a Southerner. You got a problem with me being an AMERICAN who supports the AMERICAN FLAG? Take it up with my 300 million fellow Americans, you doofs.
“Mike Huckabee understands the value of heritage.”
Heritage: that's the only thing any southern red-stater needs to read or here. It's all there in that one word.
Heritage = Jim Crow, "separate-but-equal schools", night riders in white sheets, burning crosses, protectin' the virtue of white women, keeping the coloreds at the back of the bus, racist voter registration tests, and, of course, lynching.
Vulgar. No class. Cretin. Just like bush, spewing with his mouth full, telling Syria to "stop this shit."
NEWS FLASH! JUST RELEASED!
The issues in the races for the democratic and the repug nominees has been kidnapped and are thought to be held in secret detention by JOHN EDWARDS. Sources say, that he will not release them until he gets the equal coverage of the other leaders in the democratic race and even the losers in the republican race.
Huck-a-buck HAS to beat McCain in SC, or he's toast.
He'd dig up the corpse of George Wallace, and parade
around Richburg in Confederate Grays with it, if he thought he
could win that way.
Of course, as soon as he gets west, he will turn all populist
and shit and leave all this coded "States Rights" crap behind....
NO MORE SOUTHERN POLITICIANS!
The jerks down south that will ONLY vote for someone with
a drawl should be disinfranchised for the next 50 years for
what they and their politicans have done to this country.
I have no problem with anybody flying the confederate flag as long as they call it "The Loser Flag." The south DID lose, didn't they?
In case you've ever wondered why a part of the state is known as "Low Country" I think their politics might give you a clue.
Ian McGarrett @ 9:
Yeah, but let's face it: the party of Jefferson Davis, Woodrow Wilson(racist) and nearly all of the States Righters who fought civil rights in the '50's & '60's- the Democratic Party- is more likely to nominate a black man or a woman than a white man as their Presidential nominee.
Amazing as it sounds,these 'Issues' DO resonate with 'voters in The South'. I am a transplanted New Englander now in Floriduh. Never underestimate the moron who can vote. Everyone here is proclaiming the demise of the Republicans. I am as progressive as the next guy,BUT you fail to understand the 'mind'of a deep south voter. OR those in the North who 'think' as a deepsouth voter. To think that a Dem is assured the presidency is to ignore millions of voters that 'think' in ways you can't imagine.
we captured that flag. it no longer belongs to south carolina's klu klux klan faction. it's time for the southern gop rednecks to understand that they lost that flag.
Worst year of my life was the year I lived in Columbia SC. I have no respect for anybody who panders to the worse elements in that part of the country.
"" .... in the 21st century, do we still need to use a Civil War battle flag as red meat for far-right Republicans?""
Sigh, "Yep."
I understand that the South was planning to rise again, but did it have to be so soon?
The Union Jack; The Confederate Flag; The Swattika Flag; The Rising Sun Flag; The Hammer and Sickle Flag. All these fell to The Stars and Stripes.
OF COURSE they have to use the flag. They have nothing else to get folks riled up about.
Nothing. nuttentag. Ferret turds. Turd Blossoms.
Also with all this economic collapse news today... they gotta talk about something.
CrackpotPress @ 27:
unless it's illegal immigrant fags wrapped in the flag who want to marry
I think it's incumbent upon sane, rational CONSTITUTIONAL-LOVING South Carolinans to dress down Huckabee for this shameless ass-kissing of the racist right (which is what that flag represents) . I think they'll be doing that at the ballot box .
Sorry,but the south lost the civil war.....GET OVER IT.
And to riff on the above-I have said for 6 months that clinton will never be president and Obama will never be president. As painfull as it is,This country will Never elect those candidates. It's notMe saying that-It's the voters that are saying that. IF anyone believes that a blackman or a Clinton will be elected in a general election,is fooling themselves. I say that knowing I willbe hurled allkinds of epitets. But.It Is what it is.
Barney Google @ 18:
Everyone lost.
As a South Carolinian who has ancestors who not only fought for the Confederacy, but signed the Ordinance of Secession, the flag of the Confederacy, in any of its forms, has no business on US or State Government property, except possibly in the "Six Flags over Disney World" or whatever historical context. The issue should be a private matter for descendants to fly or not to fly a flag if they wish on private property (I do not), The flag is no business of rednecks, politicians, troublemakers, the ignorant, move-in's, visitors and diverse other assholes.
That being said, I think we all need to be pulling for Huckabee, because he will guarantee the maximum blood-letting of the RepubliKKKers. He also represents the most hilarious reductio ad absurdum for the conservative movement (bowel, comes to mind here.) This two-bit, ignorant Protestant Torquemada has all the earmarks of a colossal trainwreck in the making for the Repukes. And I for one am willing to give him a "tracks all clear" signal for him to put on the steam.
STEVEinSC @ 33:
I'll add My shovel of coal. I aggree with your idea.
I have an idea.......let's ALLOW huck to pander to the ass backwards inbred halfwit fucks, and hopefully ride that all the way to the republican nomination.......he is absolutely completely and totally UNELECTABLE by the general populace.....there are only about 40 or 50 million fundie fucks (some of whom are starting to break ranks by some accounts).....only about 15% of the country.....pretty much everyone else including the other factions of the goop thinks he's ridiculous.
V V
David Hawes @ 34:
Make that three of us!
Huck understands that the U.S. has entered the Dark Ages.
He may not win, but he's the model of future presidents.
wisedup @ 5:
You may not have to. On the evening news tonight Mike Bloomberg supposedly is saying he will run if Huckabee and Hillary gets the nomination from their respective parties.
Andy K @ 36:
Well,now We've got 'an organisation'. 50 more and We'd 'have a movement' LMAO
VietVet8666 @ 37:
Ahhh VV .No glue,so something else has altered your mind.
David at 40
I don't like Huck.
My comment was about America.
A large, motivated, and well-organized segment of the population is intent on taking this country backwards into the future.
"And third, in the 21st century, do we still need to use a Civil War battle flag as red meat for far-right Republicans?"
YES, WE DO! Which, by the way, gives me hope for the future of America, and faith in the ultimate destiny of the nutcase fringes of American politics to self destruct. Let's just sit back and watch these Republican candidates go batshit crazy trying to win the S. Carolina nomination! Advocating compulsory display of the Confederate flag in all school classrooms, segregation of neighborhoods, exclusion of women from the work place, compulsory gun ownership, religious tests for politicians and administrators, and a 'zero tolerance' ban on all sexual practices that deviate from the 'missionary position.'
I take your point.
We'll need a motto. Hmm, let's see, I nominate "If English was good enough for Jesus, it's good enough for you."
(I tried to post this once before, but if it comes across twice, my apologies.)
Well,VV Huck can't Think enough about Dark Ages since He nor His ilk know what that means.The model for future presidents stops a W since He will be president beyond 08.
“In fact,” he said, “if somebody came to Arkansas and told us what to do with our flag, we’d tell them what to do with the pole; that’s what we’d do.” […]"
Who would Jesus tell to stick a flag pole up their ass?
STEVEinSC @ 44:
It's the Alice's Resterant anti-masacree movement and all ya gotta doto join is sing it the next time it comes around on the guitar!
I would not even say this were it not for Huckabee going personal by bashing innocent gay people over gay marriage to pander to southern bigots and had "compassionate conservative" Rush Limbaugh had not said after Clinton's first election "that there was going to be a new dog in the White House, Chelsea Clinton!". But if Republicans want to bash people and the children of Democrats then the gloves are off!
Have you seen Huckabee's daughter? My gawd! Run a DNA test, looks like a product of Arkansas inbreeding to me! Looks like the north end of a south bound mule!
Woof! Woof!
Whenever I hear these clowns talking about the confederat flag, I tell them that the last flag that flew in the south was the white flag of surrender/
History's losers and still bitter about it.
-GSD
Ruthless People @ 48:
....it's going to take 2 shootguns to get her married!
Wait! I heard He was against sex with animals. Seems she'll remain a vergin,eh?
Ruthless People @ 50:
I don't have a dog in this fight. Do you have a link?
For those who love the Confederate Flag I have the perfect place for you to go on vacation - Great Oaks Campground in Rehobeth Beach Delaware.
Yes, that's right a family campground in Delaware. I guess you can still consider Delaware south of the Mason-Dixon line. Visit this place and you would think you were in the deep south.
This campground is filled with Confederate flags flying everywhere. I mean everywhere. The long term campers living in trailer homes have them flying atop tall flag poles at their site. With a black POW sign below it. Even some of the short term campers had the flag displayed somewhere.
The camp store has a section with - you got it - Confederate stuff, flags and all kinds of civil war and confederate gifts and stuff. Alot of pro-Bush stuff there to as I recall.
When I was there last summer the lifeguard at the pool had the confederate flag plastered on her ass. Yep, she was wearing a conferedate flag bikini. Her towel was a confederate flag. When she went to grab a smoke from her red Ram Pickup truck, even that had confederate flag plastered on the bumper.
The groundskeepers at the campground wore t-shirts, all with different designs but they had some kind of confederate flage design on it. Their utility-carts had some sort of confederate flag decal on them.
I tell ya, this place was an island unto itself. I had never seen such a display of confederate flags at any place at anyone time and in Deleware at the beach of all places. Absolutely incredible. Even my kids said something about it.
There are obviously some places still stuck in some kind of time warp.
Chip @ 53:
thanx for the travelguide. I'll avoid it like palmettobugs.
David Hawes @ 39:
I doubt Huckabee will win any primaries outside the south and maybe Oklahoma. Utah's religious, but mormon, so they'll go for that other religious charlatan. Even if by some miracle Huckabee gets the nomination he would most likely loose the generals. Then those fat, beer swilling, NASCAR watching, toothless hillbilly religious zombies can cry all over their friend chicken stained conferderate flag emblemed sleevless T-shirts.
Unfortunately,there will always be misguided souls who just don't know no better. And those can be accepted,if not aggreed with. BUT. I agree with those here and at other sites that it's well past time to get down in the slop and have at it. For too long We've had to listen and watch Rush,Hannity, Coulter, etal and be told 'don't resort to that level- we're better than that'. Well.Fuck That. IF You want Your country back,nice don't work. Keep the foot on the neck until they DIE. That is how You win. Politics is dirty.Well,there is plenty of US who can fight dirty. You want to win? Or sit complaining? It's your choice.
Ron @ 52:
No, Huckabee's daughter was on NBC Nightly News tonight. They were doing a story on Huckabee's daughter and McCain's daughter campaigning for them. Which makes her even more of a target than Chelsea Clinton because Chelsea was a child when Clinton ran the first time and was not campaigning for her father which made Rush's attack on Chelsea even more mean spirited. Whereas Huckabee's daughter and McCain's daughter are adults AND they have entered the public arena to campaign for their dads, coupled with Republican's history of personal attacks, mean spiritedness and viciousness make them fair game.
Oh, and far as McCain's daughter? She's no prize either. Picture a younger, female version of him.....but at least her teeth aren't yellow and crusty...I'll her that much.
More or less anything that happens to the Rev Mr. Huck is good, as long as he's at least partially successful. He's unacceptable to the Villagers, but if he's dissed, his tongue-speaking camp followers won't vote. If they try to give him second spot, he becomes a clown the size of a barn to anyone who enjoys ridicule. We'll hang every SBC-Sharia enormity on his and his running mate's ass and have fun doing it.
The Huckleberry children don't marry animals. They torture them. To the death.
FUCK THEE HUCKKKABEE
But wait, there's more! We have the junior Huck an enormous (and moronous) sadistic animal torturer. Sweet.
Sorry, you beat me to it.
STEVEinSC @ 62:
hehe...yes, the "Oh MY GOD, it's moving towards us" son.
"And third, in the 21st century, do we still need to use a Civil War battle flag as red meat for far-right Republicans?"
Better believe it. They're also using a 2nd cousin to the flag, which is to place a question on many ballots about making English the "official" language. This is to appeal to bigotry against Hispanics, especially Mexicans.
Back to the flag, the supporters continually redefine the reason for flying it. Back in 1956, when Brown vs. Board of Education was passed upon by the Supreme Court, there was no mistake about it, the flag was flying as a symbol of opposition to desegregation. Now the Confederate flag is recast as a "heritage" thing. Most of the Confederate flag supporters are Republicans who support a lot of recasting. For example, torture is recast as enhanced interrogation. Success in Iraq is recast from 6 months and $20B to 10 years and $2 Trillion. Creationism is recast as "Intelligent Design". Estate taxes are recast as "death taxes". A parallel reality culture has developed, fostered somewhat by the likes of Fox news.
Do I want a unity candidate that will unify us with these people? Hell, no. What we need to do is what the fundamentalists have been doing for years, which is turning out the vote. Huckabee is playing to the fundamentalist because of their turnout, which gives the fundamentalists power beyond their numbers.
How many gay marriages has broken up a heterosexual marriage? How many single parent households have been created, how many broken marriages, broken families have been caused by the Republican's oil war? Countless. But these reactionary redneck religious morons are too stupid to figure this our for themselves. "Here ya go, have anutha wun of my younguns to be sent off to fight for that gooood Chreestian George Bush's war! And hurry up a pass that consteetutional marriage ameendment to pro-tect my flag and my famlee!"
Simple minded fools.
NoBuddy @ 64:
You are more correct than You realise. Wellthought out.
Ruthless People @ 65:
Yes. But they Vote.
Barney Google @ 26:
Beautiful! Hope you don't mind if I steal it when I'm confronted by these Confederate assholes.
Robert E. Lee was a traitor!!
Attacking Mike Huckabee's daughter on the basis of looks and justifying it because a right-wing blowhard said mean things about Bill Clinton's daughter. Clearly the Republicans don't have a monopoly on vileness.
As I said above-You want your country back? Then get down in the mud and fight for it. Send letters. Organize. Nobody willdoit for You. YOU do it. Fight now or don't complain later.
Ruthless People @ 38:
great that will make three repigs in the race
Ian McGarrett @ 69:
You may want to avoid the Candy Crowley thread....
Ian McGarrett @ 69:
Hey! It's time to take the gloves OFF.IF They doit Then WE doit. You wanna lose an election by being 'nice'? Fuck that. Time to get down in the mud. And win.
Ruthless People @ 46:
i know george w bush!!!!!!!!!!!
Ian McGarrett @ 69:
You want to vile? Telling a grieving mother that her son died of AIDS because he played "Russian roulette" with his life. That's what Jesse Helms said 20 years ago. Go rent "Dear Jesse". What else is vile is when Phelps pickets gay funerals with signs "God Hates Fags" and "Fags burn in Hell" and when Matt Sheppard is tied to a fence, beathen and left in the cold night to die alone because he was gay and religious conservatives think he got what he deserved. Now THAT's vile. Huckabee throws fire on gay bashing like this with his comments and positions and you get watery eyed over a post I made about his daughter? What I said about Huckabee's daughter, who as entered the public arena by campaigning for her dad as a member of the party of hate and vile, is small potatoes compared to what they've done and said about and against us. For 30 years we have played nice and where has it gotten us? It took a disasterous war and the worst president ever to even get congressional majorities! You want to be a milquetoast Democrat and play nice? Go ahead. That's worked out real well when dealing with Republicans in the past hasn't it? I for on I'm tired of getting my teeth kicked in by these low life scumbags and of loosing elections by not fighting back. I make no apologies and I'm not sorry if you got offended that I made and off color comment about the physical appearance of some Republican's daughter especially in the age of Rove, Coulter, Limbaugh and Bush who say the same and worse about Democrats. At least I didn't say I hope she got killed in a terrorist attack like Coulter said about Edwards, I was being nice.
I thought this was the flag of South Carolina? Exactly what outside forces are threatening that?
And by the way... these "true" Christians should know not to make a false idol out a flag, right?
You think Huckabee's pandering?? No way. He's cuttin loose. This is his people and this is the real Huckabee.
I'm waiting for that asshole to break out the snakes and start talkin in tongues, his native language.
StirFry @ 78:
I'm waiting for the holy-rolling.
The more I hear about red states, the more I'm in favor of secession.
New state motto:
South Carolina: Anus of the South
Republicans conquered that flag during the Republican War of Northern Aggression.
odanny @ 80:
This is the state that re-elected time and time again Strom Thurmond as their senior senator. A man who led the fight against the Civil Rights movement--changing political parties, his opinions, and hair color, all to stay in office and protect his image. At 66, he married a 22-year-old beauty queen young enough to be his grand daughter, and shortly after he died, it was revealed that he had fathered a child with an African-American teenager in 1925! A goooood southern Christian family values man.! Thank God we have God fearing moralist southerner like Strom Thurmond as role models protecting the institution of marriage from those heathenous homos!
South Carolina isn't the asshole of the south. It's the asshole of the nation.....no wait, I forgot about Mississippi. South Carolina is the sphincter of the nation, Mississippi is still the asshole.
Sarah @ 76:
I think Huckabee is confusing South Carolina with Georgia. This was the old Georgia state flag http://sos.georgia.gov/museum/html/georgia_state_flag_since_1956.htm until 2001 when uproar finally got them to remove the confederate battle emblem from the flag itself. Then they changed it to this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Flag_of_Georgia_%28U.S._state%29.svg But notice how the conservative southern rednecks still got there "fuck you" by replacing the confederate emblem on the old state flag with the words "In God We Trust" on the new state flag. Out with the rascist state flag, in with the theocratic state flag. Southern conservatives really are a petty small minded offensive lot.
The flack in South Carolina was they were flying the confederate battle flag separately but under the state flag on the capitol grounds. Keep in mind this is a state with the highest percentage of African Americans in the nation but those SC rednecks wanna make sure those powerless negros never forget their place! By keeping that flag flying under the state flag on the statehouse ground they thought they were doing just that and that is what Huckabee is supporting.
We should of let the south secede the union in the mid 1800s when they wanted to leave. We'd be a lot better off today.
David Hawes @ 21:
Florida is not the "South" unless you're near the Georgia border. Most of the state is considered North Cuba & South Yankeeville. And SC isn't as pigeon-holed as you might think. I know black sons-of-the confederacy as well as some who fly confederate flags. My brother who is a big time GOPer, doesn't. Crazy, ain't it.
And the best Revolutionary War Flag of all came from SC, the "Don't Tread on Me" copperhead flag.
Don't move to the South if you hate it. Stay in the rat holes you've created in the NorthEast and Midwest.
Why do you feel so smug and superior when you and yours created polluted, crime-ridden, cess pool Yankee cities. It sucks so bad there you move and trash another region.Maybe y'all should stay put and clean up your messes. When your native states are perfect, please feel free to criticize my home....Wanker.
Lasthorseman @ 1:
The new one's pretty good, too...
http://blip.tv/file/608760
Of course Huckabee fails to note no one is telling them what to do with their state flag
Miss Lane:
Where do you think the vermin who have destroyed the North came from?
You and I both know the answer to that.
This nation took a decided turn to the Dark Side when JFK was killed by the South and the South threw their support to the GOP.
The South and its racist plantation culture and economic philosophy have led the nation to ruin.
We need the government to be firmly in the hands of Yankees so that it will have the intellectual heft to govern its way out of the mess created by Southerners.
What do you expect from people who shit in bed and kick it out with their feet?
The reason NASCAR is so popular with these red necks is because they can root for the car with their favorite soap AND the same number as their IQ... ever notice there's no cars over 99 why Dale Earnhardt was so popular?
Andy K @ 20:
The parties have switched positions - all the Dixiecrats left the Democratic Party and became Repugnicans and are now pandering to the religious zingnuts.
I wonder if Nutjobabee would support the right of Neo Nazis to display the swastika flag as a symbol of their German heritage. Probably, if they voted for him. What a shameless panderer. This and his comment about amending the Constitution to reflect "God"s" law make him the most dangerous of all the presidential candidates.
“In fact,” he said, “if somebody came to Arkansas and told us what to do with our flag, we’d tell them what to do with the pole; that’s what we’d do.” […]”
Coded racism, how sick that Huckster has to appeal to evil to get votes. It's about time for SC to join the 21st century and get out of the gutter.
Miss Lane, I would like to point out that Florida was part of the confederacy and is located south of the Mason Dixon Line.
As for secession, I think it would be a good idea. It would spare southern states the indignity of being ruined by carpetbagging Yankees like George and Jeb Bush.
“You don’t like people from outside the state coming in and telling you what to do with your flag,”
So Huckster is endorsing freedom of speech in matters of flags? I am so glad to see him come around to opposing any form of flag desecration laws.
Who'd 'a thought!
Miss Lane @ 84:
Thanx for making my point for me.
I guess that's what they call 'Southern Hospitality',eh?
Courtesy is given when deserved, rudeness is addressed and dealt with appropriately.
Please all you bashers, ID your home state, I'll be happy to disabuse your superior attitudes.
I am not blind to SCs shortcomings, but pointing fingers at us while allowing your states to elect Lieberman, Coleman, & any Repub from Ohio, etc., people who are far more damaging to the country, is petty and short sighted.
I think Huckabee will be the nominee, because of his abilities at this low-brow pandering. Hes the real thing, as far as the religious right is concerned, and even though the financial right prefer Romney, or Thompson, so far the voters aren't voting the way the media is indicating they're supposed to. It still takes a close minority of actual voters before you can start doing the legal maneuvers to flip elections, and even though the number of committed republican voters is large, it's still a finite number of idiots, so this time, I think the money will have to follow, not lead the voters. The financial right has not made the typical record breaking contributions yet, but the money is there; watch it suddenly come flooding in as soon as the nominee is clear.
It"s good to hear from a few guys out there talking about a harder, more vigorous move from the left in this country. If the shooting starts, Ill be there.
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