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After playing a series of embarassing clips from Michele Bachmann, Phyllis Schlafly, Allen West, Sarah Palin, John Ratzenberger and others, the same bunch of assorted lunatics who show up at all these conservative conferences over and over again, this time at the Faith & Freedom Coalition conference now on in DC, Martin Bashir asked former RNC Chairman Michael Steele this rather pointed question...

MARTIN BASHIR: What does the GOP hope to accomplish by repeatedly appealing to the far right of the party while at the same time possibly alienating more mainstream republicans?

MICHAEL STEELE: [Deep breath and a sigh] Well, I think they need to....

...and Steele's voice trailed off as MSNBC's Karen Finney and Touré burst into howls of laughter.

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They just can't help themselves, can they?

Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) in response to a question from Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) during a House Committee on the Judiciary Hearing on H.R. 1797 (June 12, 2013), via Rep.Zoe Lofgren:

via WaPo

Another Republican congressman ventured into the realm of rape and pregnancy Wednesday, saying at a committee hearing that incidences of pregnancy from rape are “very low.”

Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), whose measure banning abortions after 20 weeks was being considered in the House Judiciary Committee, argued against a Democratic amendment to make exceptions for rape and incest by suggesting that pregnancy from rape is rare.

At least one Republican called out Frank's remarks, Massachusetts Senate candidate Gabriel Gomez, who called Frank "a moron", several times.

“I think that he’s a moron and he proves that stupid has no specific political affiliation"...“I have no idea what goes into the mind of a moron like that."

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The weeper of the House reacted to the question of whether Edward Snowden was a patriot or a traitor about as expected, a stand which will probably rankle a few feathers among some libertarian-minded and tea party republicans. He also noted he's been briefed on all these snooping programs and agrees with them. For privacy rights, Boehner noted 9 of 10 people in the room are usually lawyers there to protect the American public. Or somethin'. If only these guys could learn to couch their phrases in less cartoonish jingoism they might be a shade more convincing. Maybe.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Speaker, thank you for doin' this. Let's talk first about these-- revelations about the National Security Agency. Edward Snowden has come forward, said he brought the documents into the public eye. His supporters say he's-- a whistle-blowing patriot. His critics say he's betrayed the country, broken the law. Where do you stand?

JOHN BOEHNER: He's a traitor. The president outlined last week that these were important national security programs to help keep Americans safe, and give us tools-- to fight the terrorist threat th-- that we face. The president also outlined that there are appropriate safeguards in place-- to make sure that-- there's-- there's no-- snooping, if you will-- on Americans-- here at home. But-- the disclosure of this information-- puts Americans at risk. It shows-- our adversaries what our capabilities are. And-- it's a giant violation of the law.

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Jake Tapper had ex-FreedomWorks Dick Armey on to comment on New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's democratic decision to opt for a Special Election to fill the seat of recently deceased Frank Lautenberg rather than appoint some placeholder Republican for 18 months. Armey was not pleased.

DICK ARMEY: "This is what rankles conservatives. There's not a Democratic governor that wouldn't have seized the opportunity to appoint a Democrat senator, no matter what the status. In some states they may try to sell it and get rich off it as they did in Illinois. All Christie has to do is appoint a Republican. That's the correct move for him to make."

"Now, I put it down as debilitating stupidity, the first rule of politics is don't lose the friends you already have for the friends you're never going to get. And if he thinks the Democrats are going to love him for being the guy who plays fair rather than takes the political opportunity he's crazy.

"Democrats hate Republicans. Democrats aren't going to vote for Republicans. They're not going to get a break from Democrats. They will use him, Obama will use him for political cover as he's done twice now and then actively campaign against him."

For some reason, Armey thought the politically expedient move of appointing a Republican was far preferable to letting the voters of New Jersey decide. Armey also called congressman Frank Pallone a "shoo-in", I guess forgetting that Cory Booker is the overwhelming favorite in the Democratic Primary, to be held in August with the odd timing (most have said politically calculated) of a general election to be held in mid October.

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Republicans just can't help themselves, can they?

Via the Washington Post

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant (R) said Tuesday that America’s educational troubles began when women began working outside the home in large numbers.

Bryant was participating in a Washington Post Live event focused on the importance of ensuring that children read well by the end of third grade. In response to a question about how America became “so mediocre” in regard to educational outcomes, he said:

I think both parents started working. The mom got in the work place.

Bryant immediately recognized how controversial his remark would be and said he knew he would start to get e-mails. He then expanded on his answer, saying that “both parents are so pressured” in families today. He also noted that America seemed to be losing ground internationally in regards to educational outcomes because other nations began to invest more in their own school systems and make progress.

Sunday night's episode of HBO's 'Game of Thrones' appears to have traumatized millions, or at least those who've never read the book by George R.R. Martin, A Storm of Swords.

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Lest you think that title above is hyperbolic, that is pretty much a verbatim quote of what Fox's Erick Erickson said yesterday on Fox Business News with Lou Dobbs. A new study by Pew Research that showed women were the primary bread winners in 40% of American households was the cause of this uproar.

via Raw Story

ERICKSON: “I’m so used to liberals telling conservatives that they’re anti-science. But liberals who defend this and say it is not a bad thing are very anti-science. When you look at biology, when you look at the natural world, the roles of a male and a female in society and in other animals, the male typically is the dominant role. The female, it’s not antithesis, or it’s not competing, it’s a complementary role.”

“We as people in a smart society have lost the ability to have complimentary relationships in nuclear families, and it is tearing us apart. Rreality shows us it's was harmful for women to be the primary source of income in a family.

Faux Democrat Doug Schoen would later lament that these so-called breadwinner moms would "tear society apart", to harumphs and hear-hears all around.

Erickson reacted to the disgust in characteristic fashion.

So how come American politicians don't watch anything cool?

via The Guardian

It’s a bloody tale of warring clans fighting for control of the throne – so it should perhaps come as little surprise to Game of Thrones fans that Julia Gillard is an avid viewer.

Revealing herself as a fan of the HBO series in an interview with Guardian Australia, the prime minister said she had been drawn into George RR Martin’s mythical medieval-like world, in which feuding fiefdoms do battle in pursuit of power.

And her favourite character? Daenerys Targaryen - the woman who emerged triumphant from a trial by fire to be acclaimed as the uncontested leader of her people.

Gillard is backing Targaryen, who carries the title “khaleesi”, to take control of the iron throne. Targaryen is the first female war leader of a tribe called the Dothraki, in the complicated maze of competition between would-be rulers. She’s resolute and at times bloodthirsty – the khaleesi, that is.

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Good for Hannah and her mom.

via ABC News:

Don Thompson, CEO of McDonald's Corp., found himself on the grill after a 9-year-old girl accused the fast food giant of trying to "trick kids into eating food that isn't good for them."

Hannah Robertson, 9, flew in with her mom from Kelowna, British Columbia, to attend McDonald's annual shareholder meeting Thursday in Oak Brook, Ill., the company's headquarters.

"Something that I don't think is fair is when big companies try to trick kids into eating food that isn't good for them by using toys and cartoon characters," Robertson read during the question and answer part of the meeting. "If parents haven't taught their kids about healthy eating then the kids probably believe that junk food is good for them because it might taste good."

Her mother, Kia, attended the meeting as a member of advocacy group Corporate Accountability International (http://www.stopcorporateabuse.org/), headquartered in Boston and with offices around the world. Kia Robertson, 36, started "Today I Ate a Rainbow" in 2009, described as an "interactive nutritional game," and is a nutrition blogger.

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It's clear that Rep. Steve King is no fan of immigration reform, or amnesty as he calls it. It's also clear that he and other wingnuts in congress should be really leery of using foreign concepts to them such as "statistical analysis" when they're speaking, as evidenced by the bewildered expressions in the room to King's theory.

via The Hill

The Iowa Republican said immigrants that Ronald Reagan legalized by signing a 1986 "amnesty" bill were responsible for Obama's election.

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) said Thursday that President Obama would not be president if it weren't for the 1986 amnesty bill that Ronald Reagan signed into law.

King is a leading GOP critic of efforts to pass an immigration reform bill, and has often said on the House floor that Republicans are overreacting to the 2012 election, which some Republicans saw as a sign that the GOP needs to get behind a reform bill.

In an effort to dissuade Republicans, King argued that the 1986 immigration bill that Reagan signed into law is estimated to have brought amnesty to three million illegal immigrants.

He said conservative estimates show that, on average, each of these people brought in five others, leading to 15 million more people in the country, most of whom voted for Obama.

"[T]hey have to admit that Ronald Reagan's signature on the '86 amnesty act brought about Barack Obama's election," King concluded on the House floor.

"[I]t's clear to anybody that can do any kind of statistical analysis that Barack Obama wouldn't be President of the United States without Ronald Reagan's 1986 amnesty act."