I have no idea whether or not Charlie Crist is gay, mostly because I don’t care. But, given that a lot of people do seem to think he’s gay, I have to wonder if the teabaggers will do something like this to him:
The NRCC has been quick to attack Tennessee state Sen. Roy Herron, who has emerged as the Democratic candidate for the seating of retiring Blue Dog Rep. John Tanner — and along the way, they seem to be using some rather interesting rhetoric.
Herron is a former minister and an attorney, and he has taught at both the divinity and law schools at Vanderbilt, his alma mater. He has been married for 22 years, and has three sons. He has also written several books, including Tennessee Political Humor, How Can a Christian Be in Politics?, and God And Politics. However, the NRCC says Herron isn’t being honest about his social liberalism.
Over the course of the past week, the NRCC has mounted a series of attacks on Herron that taken together could suggest they’re trying to say that Herron is gay or effeminate. The NRCC denies that’s their line of attack, and the Herron camp hasn’t publicly raised the issue (see late update below), but take a look at what the NRCC has been saying.
Am I wrong to think that, sooner or later, Rubio will pull this trick out of his teabag? And if the teabaggers challenge Lindsay Graham for acting sanely on a few issues (say, climate change), will he get hit with this too?
At some point, hitting below the belt has to seem like a very tempting option for Hoffman crowd.
El Cid
Much of the GOP thinks that the ideal public rhetoric style is that of the most unruly and unhappy bully boys of the 4th and 5th grades, so, why would they think it odd to build a campaign out of basically calling somebody ‘fag’, but in a style which the teacher can’t easily catch them on?
I.e., ‘you needed that job, but thanks to affirmative action it went to a minority,’ because, hey, Alex Castellanos is an awesome analyst.
New Yorker
No, you are not wrong. At all.
C’mon, the party’s standard-bearer just endorsed the birthers as legitimate, even though they’re the intellectual equivalent of 9/11 truthers. The party is batshit insane. I’m just wondering why they haven’t used this line of attack before…..
kommrade reproductive vigor
Dude, do you think they’ve been playing fair so far?
Please, hinting someone is gay is the height of civility for these dumbfucks. What are you waiting for? The p-shopped pictures of him in a manwich with Frank and Obama?
eemom
not only is Charlie Crist gay, he’s probly getting it on with Obama, like when they posed for that photo together when Crist supported that socialist communist nazi death camp stimulus plan of Obama’s. Cuz why else would he do that if weren’t also one a them long haired hippie type pinko fags. Betcha he’s even got a commie flag hanging up on the wall inside of his garage.
eemom
oh sheeet. spelled soshalist wrong, got moderated. : (
Leelee for Obama
I have been surprised that it hasn’t come up already, to be honest. I expect it will, as I’ve heard this rumor since Crist was Attorney General. Don’t know if it’s true, don’t care. I can’t vote for him in the primary, and Kendrick Meek is my guy in the general, so my opinion doesn’t matter to Crist. But, it may just move Republican people here who aren’t nuts, just like it did last time. Charlie was, and still is, I think, popular with the non-crazy, so it’ll be interesting.
Zuzu's Petals
I’m so tired of having my intelligence insulted by these people.
Off to ActBlue to donate to Herron’s campaign, then an e-mail to Sere/NRCC telling them why.
Maybe they listen, maybe not…but it sure makes me feel better.
AngusTheGodOfMeat
@kommrade reproductive vigor:
OMG, funny. The Manwich(tm) reference. Is that original? If it is, I will steal it and take credit for it.
Thanks.
Notorious P.A.T.
@Zuzu’s Petals:
I like it. It’s good to take action, but better to tell people why you’re doing it.
Little Dreamer
@New Yorker:
Ya’know, this slow cooker death of the GOP is getting boring. I wish they’d just jump off the deep end already and get it over with.
::yawn::
JenJen
I think they’ll absolutely do this to Crist. The allegations in the very good film “Outrage” are enough for them, probably. I have a sinking feeling this is going to get so, so ugly.
And noted Palin apologist, Teabagger enthusiast and general wankopotamus Dan Riehl certainly isn’t being shy about employing homophobic slurs when it comes to his feud with Sully.
Col. Klink
Reihl’s comments on Sully immediately struck me as the Lady doth protest too much. Who knew Reihl spent his time imaging these things in such detail.
Persian
Yes, they’ll definitely gay-bait Crist and others. That’s how they roll. But I don’t think it’ll work much longer. On the other hand, if they do win, the repressed gay men in the party (Craig, Boehner, Gohmert) will be even more anti-gay and socially conservative to save themselves from the mobs.
DougJ
Who knew Reihl spent his time imaging these things in such detail.
JenJen
@DougJ: Some would indeed say that. For even more kicks, check out Riehl’s twitter feed.
grrrlgeek
@kommrade reproductive vigor:
I agree, but now I need some bleach for my mind’s eye.
DougJ
check out Riehl’s twitter feed.
What an idiot. It’s not “rut roh”, it’s “ruh roh”. Doesn’t he know anything?
TruthOfAngels
Republicans imply Democrat is gay and/or effeminate (or, if female, gay and/or butch.)
How the merry fuck is that new, exactly?
JenJen
@DougJ: In between tweets, I picture Riehl furiously refreshing Facebook, looking for Sarah’s vigorous defense of his use of the word “retard.”
AhabTRuler
Hmm…Test?
ETA: Fuckin’ A, the damn thing works. Almost like a real website.
Punchy
@eemom: Brilliant Charlie Daniels reference. Gracias
Chuck
I think the notion of “the belt” went out of fashion when the Bush 2000 campaign pulled the “black baby” routine with John McCain. Or when several prominent journalists accused John Kerry of fragging himself in 2004.
Cerberus
Oh fuck yeah, they’ll insinuate and gay-bait and if we’re lucky they’ll stop just this short of standing in front of his face yelling faggot over and over again.
And the fact that Crist actually is a closeted homosexual (there is a wealth of information and first hand testimony from a number of sources, he didn’t hide it well) isn’t the why for it. It’s all about getting up on any moderates in order to get a)moderates scared shitless to be anything other than wingnuts and b)getting gay politicians and gay people to continue to be afraid to be honest to themselves and their constituents thus aiding their general anti-gay hate movements.
chrome agnomen
wow. first time i’ve ever visited ‘riehl world’. that guy is a little unhinged to say the least. is he always that far over the top, or does sully just ‘push his button’? and north dallas thirty? plasma in search of a life.
ed
Fag!
kommrade reproductive vigor
c.a.
Yes.
JenJen
@chrome agnomen:
Not always. Sometimes he tells heartwarming stories about his encounters with people of color, and you kind of feel for him, and you realize that he’s just a sweet guy who gets a bad rap.
I’m feeling kind of awful that you ever had to hear of Dan Riehl in the first place, honestly.
ETA: Oooh, Edit Function, Now with Fancy Pop-Up Window!
Little Dreamer
@chrome agnomen:
ND30 used to post here. Huge pain in the ass, that one.
Little Dreamer
And I still don’t have edit, but I don’t think it’s BJ’s fault. I gotta re-up the latest version of FF (again… sigh).
ETA: Cancel that, I got it now.
auntieeminaz
Didn’t Crist get engaged when he was angling for the VP nomination with McCain? Wonder what happened with that.
Yutsano
@auntieeminaz: He got married REAL fast. No word on how their marriage is.
JenJen
@auntieeminaz: He’s since married.
Zuzu's Petals
@Notorious P.A.T.:
A-yep. I thanked Sere, since without his scummy work, I would not likely have heard much about this candidate.
Ben
@Persian:
My thoughts exactly… hard to imagine that kind of detail unless you’ve actually been blowing someone in a bookstore.
AhabTRuler
No, I haven’t, but I can learn if it means
goodsteady work.Zuzu's Petals
@chrome agnomen:
Some posts are more breathtakingly depraved than others.
Rosali
I’m hoping that some good ol’ corruption brings down Crist. Crist’s BFF, Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein, is talking to the feds, looking to shave some years off his life sentence.
gbear
Of course they will, because being gay is the absolutely worst despicable horrific awful thing that any man can be. I bought into that one until I was in my 30’s, and I’m gay and knew it then. My own feelings were hideous to me, and conservatives would be happier if I still felt that way.
They’re more accepting of a man who was caught with a prostitute while wearing a diaper.
Rosali
FL History shows that it’s just a matter of time til the Crist gay rumors show up in ads.
When Assface Bill McCollum was a congessman, he tried real hard to develop a reputation as a conservative “family values” guy. His efforts culminated in the successful impeachment of Bill Clinton over some blow jobs.
In 2004, he ran in the rep primary for US Senate. He lost the primary after Mel Martinez unleashed a series of ads that painted McCollum as a weak gay-lover because, at one point, McCollum voted in favor of adding gays to a hate-crimes bill.
LD50
@Little Dreamer:
He used to post here? I tangled with him on a pro-evolution board a few years ago. A fucking asshole beyond compare.
mandarama
@eemom:
I’m a faithful follower of Brother John Birch, I belong to the Antioch Baptist Church, and I ain’t even got a garage–you can call home and ask my wife!
mandarama
They must really be desperate for something on Herron. He’s pretty much a TN Dem, which means “not that liberal.” I’m happy for him to run for Senate, because he WAS going to run for governor, and I’d like to see Kim McMillan win our gubernatorial instead.
Ian
@JenJen:
and the last two paragraphs
That is 4 counts of gaybaiting. Assuming you count that last monstrosity as only one anti-gay tirade. Does not meet A+ grade wingnut standard essay writing.
Edit- blockquote fail. The you’re sick dude line was from Riehl
Fraud Guy
They seem to be strangely fascinated with that region, don’t they?
Persia
If you haven’t seen Outrage yet, do yourself a favor and check it out. Depressing as hell, but quite enlightening.
andy boy
it wont matter
Democrat Maurice Ferre will beat Meek in a upset and wrap the property tax issue around Crist’s neck to become the first Puerto Rican in the U.S. Senate.
Zuzu's Petals
@Persia:
I second that. Quite interesting to hear from the McGreevys, for example.
ksmiami
There must be a lot of repressed homosexuality in the Right wing cause they certainly dwell upon something (biological) that affects a small population of good people. Again, to be this obsessed with homosexuality either means you have never met a gay person, or you have a lot of your own insecurities / issues. Think about it. Gays are burned, tortured and hurt in places like Iran, but “Red blooded Americans” are fine with this approach in 2009. There really is something rotten in red state America.
Little Dreamer
@mandarama:
My God that brings back memories, this shit has been going on since even then, eh? Wow! I didn’t even realize. But, I was just a child then.
Of course, they hadn’t exactly pinpointed their target then, they were just going after streakers and whoever they could villify.
CalD
Now all they need is an ad with a trashy male hustler saying, “Hey, Johnny! Call me…”