Putting aside the corrosive impact of the "tea party" on American politics, they deserve credit at least for backing colorful candidates. When you're up against the likes of Christine O'Donnell, Carl Paladino and Rick Iott, it's harder and harder to feel like San Francisco liberal darling Nancy Pelosi is in any meaningful way outside of the hum-drum mainstream of American culture. Seriously, the tea-party wing of the GOP has the congressional candidate who enjoys dressing up in a Nazi uniform, the evolution denier who would be senator and the gubernatorial candidate whose homophobic remarks may be some of the less offensive things he's said. Read the stories below and tell me how the democrats can compete with this.
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/tea-party-nazi-reenactor-rick-iott-defends/story?id=11845422
http://abcnews.go.com/News/christine-odonnell-evolution-myth/story?id=11721684
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/2010_Elections/carl-paladino-gay-successful-option/story?id=11846967
Please democratic party, what good is winning the war of ideas if you lose the battle of media attention. Candidates like Christine (not a witch) O'Donnell, Carl (I'll take you out) Paladino and Rick (doesn't like the Nazi ideology, just digs the clothes) Iott may be bad for the country, but they're much better for the media circus that really makes the country go. Sadly, I suspect that the remainder of the election cycle will ignore boring, dedicated public servants like Barbara Mikulski and Chris Van Hollen. Then again, if people vote for those boring, dedicated public servants on election day, I guess I can live with it.
Here's how we compete: WE RUN LEMMY KILMINSTER FOR PUBLIC OFFICE. There's the little problem of him being British, but by god, if they can get Arnold elected Governator, we can get Lemmy elected to something. Is he a witch? No, but he was in Hawkwind, which is mighty close. Has he threatened to take anyone out? Have you listened to any of Motörhead's lyrics? Does he hate the Nazis, yet collect WWII-era Nazi memorabilia? Boy howdy! He even comes with a built-in campaign slogan: "Lemmy Kilminster: Born to Lose, Live to Win!"
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