Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

Pelosi: “He either is stupid, or he thinks the rest of us are.” Why not both?

Never give a known liar the benefit of the doubt.

Of course you can have champagne before noon. That’s why orange juice was invented.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

The gop couldn’t organize an orgy in a whorehouse with a fist full of 50s.

It’s a new day. Light all those Biden polls of young people on fire and throw away the ashes.

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

Following reporting rules is only for the little people, apparently.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

Hey Washington Post, “Democracy Dies in Darkness” is supposed to be a warning, not a mission statement.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

Tide comes in. Tide goes out. You can’t explain that.

If marriage is the equivalent of selling yourself into slavery, women with self respect should reject the offer.

Insiders who complain to politico: please report to the white house office of shut the fuck up.

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

Accountability, motherfuckers.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

“When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they’re gonna use it.”

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

Republican obstruction dressed up as bipartisanship. Again.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / The facts were in the ball park

The facts were in the ball park

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This story is a little old, and it’s possible that it’s already been discussed here, but it made made me laugh out loud:

Vaughn Ward, the Republican congressional candidate from Idaho, has the dubious character trifecta of the Palin brand: bone-headed, defiant and willfully ignorant. When told that Puerto Rico was not a country, he said, “I don’t care what you call it.”

Reader Interactions

77Comments

  2. 2.

    Jeff Fecke

    But DougJ, how can we hate those illegal immigrants from Puerto Rico if they’re already U.S. citizens? Clearly we need to build a wall between America and the Puerto Rican border.

    I hate having to press “1” for English. Too. Also.

  3. 3.

    Yutsano

    @Cat Lady: Not necessarily. There are sections of Boise that are blue, and one bright blue spot right in the area that should gourd Bible Spice the most: Moscow, where the University of Idaho is. Plus Idaho is much more libertarian than Republican, very much the gubmint hands off crowd. Oh and of course a large population on Social Security and Medicare, and a large Mormon population in the southern part of the state. Republicans only do well there because the Democrats wrote off Idaho decades ago.

  6. 6.

    Mark S.

    The guy plagiarized a speech by Obama? Shouldn’t that get you kicked out of the GOP?

    I also liked this idiocy from Palin:

    The attacks on her man in Idaho, Palin told a half-empty arena in Boise on Friday, were “a violation of our press freedom.”

    You go get your Department of Law right on that, Sarah.

  7. 7.

    JenJen

    Don’t knock Idaho till you’ve tried it. I could live quite happily in Boise, honestly. The place gets a bad rap.

    But Vaughn Ward? Truly, worst congressional GOP candidate ever. That guy was just a train wreck. And only days before the complete meltdown, there was Sarah Palin lending a hand.

    She sure can pick a winner.

  9. 9.

    Yutsano

    @JenJen: I went to college in Boise for a year. It is VERY livable, if still a touch culturally insulated. However they did just have a tech boom, so that usually attracts folks from outside the WASP spectrum. I have a lot of hope for that place, plus they have a very nice airport for a mid-sized city.

  11. 11.

    SiubhanDuinne

    I mentioned in an earlier thread another Republican, Mark Kirk, Illinois Senate candidate.

    The Republican candidate for President Obama’s old Senate seat has admitted to inaccurately claiming he received the U.S. Navy’s Intelligence Officer of the Year award for his service during NATO’s conflict with Serbia in the late 1990s. Rep. Mark Kirk (Ill.), a Navy reservist who was elected to Congress in 2001, acknowledged the error in his official biography after The Washington Post began looking into whether he had received the prestigious award, which is given by top Navy officials to a
    single individual annually.

    Do you think this will get anything close to the ink, pixels, and air time that the Richard Blumenthal story got?

  12. 12.

    Roberto Mussenden

    As a Puerto Rican who routinely is asked whether he is a citizen of this country, this ignorance pisses me off. The US annexed PR in 1898 as part of its spoils of the Spanish-American War, eight years after Idaho achieved statehood. To quote Wikipedia “Puerto Ricans “were collectively made U.S. citizens” in 1917 as a result of the Jones-Shafroth Act. The act was signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson on 2 March 1917. U.S. Federal law 8 U.S.C. § 1402, approved by President Harry S. Truman on 27 June 1952, declared all persons born in Puerto Rico on or after 13 January 1941 to be U.S. citizens at birth and all persons born in Puerto Rico between 11 April 1899 and 12 January 1941, and meeting certain other technical requirements, and not citizens of the United States under any other Act, are declared to be citizens of the U.S. as of 13 January 1941.”

    We’ve been part of this country for over 90 years…we’ve fought and bled and died for this country from Flanders Field to Falujah and for some uneducated pendejo to deny our citizenship requires a single response: “Chupame, payaso”

  13. 13.

    scav

    well, all I can say is that’s one hell of a ballpark some people are playing in.

  14. 14.

    Belafon (formerly anonevent)

    I seem to be dealing with people like him at work, which led me to this thought: “You can lead a moron to knowledge, but you can’t make him think.”

  15. 15.

    Alex K

    @Cat Lady:

    Well, sometimes liberals and Democrats have good reasons to be pessimistic, but I think you’re kind of pushing it here. This is the best possible environment for guys like him, and he still couldn’t pull it off. When is he going to in the future? I can’t see him working to get smart or competent enough to deserve it.

  16. 16.

    Yutsano

    @SiubhanDuinne: Smells like another episode of IOKIYAR to me. But sometimes these things get legs, and even if it doesn’t get national press Gianoulis will pounce on this, especially after the heat he’s been taking for his family’s banking ties.

  17. 17.

    Warren Terra

    The whole piece is good. I really like Timothy Egan, have since he was the New York Times stringer for the Pacific Northwest.

  18. 18.

    scav

    @SiubhanDuinne: oh oh. some of the quotes / details are great (from the Trib, o! shock of shocks!)

    “I found that an award listed in my official biography was misidentified as ‘Intelligence Officer of the Year,’ Kirk said on the blog posting.

    For years, Kirk has said he was named intelligence officer of the year for his role in the U.S. Navy’s actions during the war in Kosovo, known as Operation Allied Force. When he first ran for Congress, he submitted a resume to the Tribune stating among his military decorations that he had earned the honor of intelligence officer of the year.

    Kirk now says that his unit – not just him – received a different citation from a professional organization called the National Military Intelligence Association. That citation – the Vice Admiral Rufus L. Taylor Award – was given to his unit while it was based in Italy.

    NB. there should be ellipses between the clips from different paragraphs.

    I mean that’s dedication and team unity. Confusing a man and a unit. For years. Again, they’re playing in one hell of ballpark.

  19. 19.

    El Cid

    You goddam libruls with all yer “facks” and “ideers” ain’t worth a damn shit compared to people like us who actually love this country.

    You think your damn ‘smart smart’ and ‘thinky think’ is important?

    Lemme tell you what’s important.

    Tradition. Tradition is important.

    I’m stupid. My Daddy was stupid. My grand-daddy was stupid. And by god, if I got some’in to do with it, my boy’s gonna be stupid too. ‘Cause if it was good enough for all of us, it oughtta be good enough fer all a’yall.

  20. 20.

    strandedvandal

    He can’t win, he lost the primary to an even bigger nutbag.

    Idaho is a great place to live. The only thing I really cannot stand about living in the Boise area is the BSU Broncos and their damn Smurf Turf..

  23. 23.

    PaulW

    This is why I support Puerto Rico statehood: it’s bound to drive the wingnuts so mad they’ll explode like those guys who watch too many blipverts!

  24. 24.

    Jody

    That’s gonna endear him to the mouth breathers who don’t know what it is either.

  26. 26.

    mclaren

    He sounds like a Balloon-Juice commenter.

    Now all he has to do is scream that anyone who disagrees with him is insane, and he’ll be ready to post his deep thoughts on this forum.

  28. 28.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @scav: So let me get this straight. It was Kirk’s entire unit, not Kirk himself. It was the Vice Admiral Rufus L. Taylor Award, not the U.S. Navy’s Intelligence Officer of the Year Award. It was awarded while the unit was based in Italy, not in a war zone in Kosovo. Other than that, this guy’s bio got it pretty much right?

    As Yutsano notes, IOKIYAR. But on the bright side, and coming back more on topic, maybe Kirk can get Palin to campaign for him.

  29. 29.

    Tonal Crow

    @Elisabeth: It means, “Put me in office, and I’ll have the ‘press’ saluting me 24/7 — or I’ll have them in irons”. You think Saddam’s spirit just vanished — poof! — like that when he died?

  30. 30.

    sherifffruitfly

    He’s an average American. Americans simply don’t care what’s true and what’s false.

  31. 31.

    Martin

    @SiubhanDuinne: All Republicans are presupposed to have served in every major military conflict of their lifetime, earned a purple heart, bronze star, and medal of honor. Even if Kirk was mistaken about that award, it won’t diminish the fact that when he was in the CIA that he figured out a Soviet super-advanced submarine was going to defect, he convinced the stupid Navy guys to believe him, got onto the sub, killed the sabateur, and prevented World War III. Not to mention the time during WWII, after he lead a company to storm Normandy beach, he then took a handful of men to track down the lone surviving brother from his family and return him safely home.

    Nothing like that Democrat from Connecticut who spit on soldiers and sent care packages to Osama Bin Laden.

  34. 34.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @scav: Oh yeah, I remember the Trib’s political bent from my years growing up in Chicago. (I left half a century ago, but some things never change.)

    Frankly, both candidates sound pretty slimy. But then again, as I said above, some things never change.

  35. 35.

    chuck

    Maybe he learned his geography from Yakko Warner’s “Countries of the World” song, which makes the same mistake of identifying Puerto Rico as a country.

  36. 36.

    Josh

    When I first heard about this I laughed out loud.

    Seriously. These are the kind of jackasses that run for public office. I’d like to give members of congress a standardized test to ascertain their knowledge of how the government works and see if they have a basic understanding of our tax system.

    My assumption is that most members of congress are horribly stupid.

    I mean, you can make an assertion as to the level of intelligence versus political savvy, but my guess is that most people who actively want to serve in that cesspool don’t exactly rate intelligence as their best quality.

  37. 37.

    Yutsano

    @SiubhanDuinne: The local snicker right now is that Palin has endorsed the teabagger candidate over the two-time loser Republican slimeball. Or as I joked to my brother, the Kiss of Death. I think, however, we’re gonna end up with the endorsement candidate because of our joke of a primary system. It sucks because I want Patty to absolutely destroy the teabagger, which she would without blinking.

    @Steeplejack: And yes the name was very controversial during the McCarthy era. The residents stubbornly refused to change it because it celebrated the history of the Russian immigrants to the area at the turn of the 20th Century. It’s a little colony of pure liberalism in the red sea that is Idaho. It’s also a neat little town, when I was in college the better restaurants were a short drive away in Moscow.

  41. 41.

    kommrade reproductive vigor

    The attacks on her man in Idaho, Palin told a half-empty arena in Boise on Friday, were “a violation of our press freedom.”

    Yep. ReaLAMEricans shouldn’t be violated by a press that reports facts.

  42. 42.

    Mike G

    Vaughn Ward, the Republican congressional candidate from Idaho, has the dubious character trifecta of the Palin Republican brand: bone-headed, defiant and willfully ignorant.

  43. 43.

    asiangrrlMN

    Wow. That whole article is right-on. He did a really nice job in summing up La Palina in a few deft strokes. I am glad this particular idiot (Jones) was upset, but I am not sanguine that we have reached peak Palina yet. We shall see.

    @El Cid: Man. I really dig it when you post comments like this one. Fake-marry me again?

    @Steeplejack: OK, I know your work schedule has been screwy lately, but you’re messing with my mind.

    @Yutsano: Hi, hon. I read in the post below that your pain spiked today. I hope you’re feeling better now.

  44. 44.

    Steeplejack

    @Yutsano:

    Okay, you’re freaking me out with your ability to bend space and time and respond to my comment before it was even posted.

    Say, did I hear theramin music?

  47. 47.

    Yutsano

    @Steeplejack: Heh. Wifey showed me that trick. Yeah it’s kinda fun to do that, all you do is reply in the edit square. Then you’ve time-warped without even trying!

    @asiangrrlMN:

    you’re messing with my mind.

    :: suppresses Beavis laugh ::

    I’m on a lotta drugs to manage how I’m feeling right now. Not real sure why the pain level surged on me, but I’m not bleeding so that’s a good sign at least.

  49. 49.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Yutsano: Why you laughing at me? You like Steepman messing with my mind? And, I am glad you are not bleeding, but boo on needing so much drugz to be functional.

    @Steeplejack: Ah. Just read the other thread. Cool that you are done for the weekend.

  50. 50.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN: I think…I’m just gonna sit here and snicker and keep you guessing some. Yeah I can occasionally be that evil. Not often though, and if pressed I can always blame the drugs.

    Crap. Suddenly I want chocolate.

  51. 51.

    Steeplejack

    @asiangrrlMN:

    Wanted to mention that I just noticed a little while ago that “The World According to MEH!” is on the blog roll. Kudos.

    And has Yutsano given any bowdlerized, euphemistic description of his surgery? Bone spurs? Fixing old sports injury? Sex reassignment?

  52. 52.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Yutsano: I haz chocolate. I will even share if you tell me! But, I suspect it has to do with the irony of me saying someone is messing with my mind since I do it all the time.

    @Steeplejack: Thanks! I was stoked when I first saw it, too. And, not on BJ he hasn’t. But, I know I know! Pick me! Whaddya give me to tell ya?

  54. 54.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN: I haz some in the house, I’m just choosing to be lazy about going and getting it. Not that it’s far or hidden or anything like that. Well kind of. It’s hidden from my brother cause not only is it chocolate it’s Girl Scout cookies. So that makes it doubly delish.

    @Mnemosyne: I blame lassitude. Oh and wanted to let you know re: the puppeh: my one friend just lost her dog of 14 years so she’s still too raw for that yet. It’s okay though cause I’m leaning on another friend down there, he’s a big gay softie when it comes to animals.

  56. 56.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN: Brownies. Or I’ll figure out those broccoli white cheddar scones you were so gaga over. Though I may need FH #1’s assistance with that. I make kickass brownies however.

  58. 58.

    Mnemosyne

    @Yutsano:

    It takes a while to be ready for a new pet. After our cat Natasha died, G was very resistant to getting another one until Keaton picked me out. (No, seriously, Keaton reached out of his carrier at Petco when the rescue group was packing up for the day and grabbed my arm.)

    I was looking on the Petfinder site for her just now and she’s gone so — fingers crossed! — it looks like someone else fell in love with her and took her home.

  59. 59.

    Steeplejack

    @asiangrrlMN:

    Whaddya give me to tell ya?

    Hmm, let’s see . . . picture of adorable little black feral kitten just adopted by my friend?

  60. 60.

    Yutsano

    @Mnemosyne: To give you an idea just how much of a softie my gay friend is when it comes to animals: his beagle got run over five years ago. He still won’t talk about it. It was why I brought up that sweet face to him as well.

    I will take her ad being gone as a positive sign that she has a new home.

  61. 61.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN:

    And, not on BJ he hasn’t. But, I know I know! Pick me! Whaddya give me to tell ya?

    I will compromise on this point. You can tell the exact diagnosis, just not on BJ. Actually there are only three people on here who know that, and they know who they are.

  63. 63.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Steeplejack: Ooooooh! Tempting! Let me confer with Yutsy. Well, you can read what he said below. I will abide by his stricture. Can I haz pic, anyway?

    @Yutsano: I can live with that. (And you know I would never really tell without your permission, right?)

  64. 64.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN: I know you’re just playing around. It has nothing to do with me sending brownies and/or scones if I can get the dynamics figured out. If Steepy is curious enough and keeps bugging you you’re free to disclose in an e-mail. In the meantime I’ll get cracking on the baked goods.

  66. 66.

    Sentient Puddle

    Ward was truly a terrible candidate. For this and many other reasons.

    One thing unmentioned that’s also amusing is that he made that statement about Puerto Rico in a debate with his primary opponent, and that primary opponent happens to be from Puerto Rico. I have to wonder what the fuck was going through his mind when Ward was giving his reply to the question.

  67. 67.

    Steeplejack

    @Yutsano:

    Jeez, I’m just looking for some sort of “the facts were in the ball park” approximation here, so I can gauge how to titrate my sympathy and get-well wishes (which I duly send, by the way). “Fixing a bunion” is very different from Cole’s “I did a shoulder plant protecting my trash hound from snowy paw syndrome.”

  68. 68.

    Yutsano

    @Sentient Puddle: The most disappointing part? No one has linked to this yet!

    @Steeplejack: Enough for full anesthesia but incision less than two inches. I’m much better than I was I just had an unexpected pain spike today. I was going to try and wean myself off the serious pain drugs today, but I still have them so if I need I gotz.

  69. 69.

    Steeplejack

    @Yutsano:

    Key words: “full anesthesia.” If they knocked you out, that’s a big deal. And recovering from anesthesia is an ordeal in itself, even if they didn’t cut you and just stood around mocking you while you were out. Take as long as you need to come back, and fuck those idiots at work if they don’t get it.

  70. 70.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Steeplejack: Somewhere in between. That’s safe to say! Hee hee. Your follow up post about standing around and mocking is hi-larious. I agree with your sentiments, though. Yutsy should not be going back in yet.

    @Sentient Puddle: Are you serious? He said that with a Puerto Rican present? I should not be surprised, but for some weird reason, I am.

  72. 72.

    Tehanu

    @Josh: My assumption is that most members of congress are horribly stupid.

    Mark Twain: Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a Member of Congress. But I repeat myself.

  74. 74.

    Brian J

    @Sentient Puddle:

    In some cases, candidates should be required, by outside sources, to record their thoughts following a debate. I would have loved to read what went through Obama and Biden’s heads following their debates with McCain and Palin.

  77. 77.

    goatchowder

    Ummm…. that’s the BUSH brand! Dumb, willfully-ignorant, and damn proud of it, defiantly– all Bush. Palin is just the latest spokesperson for it. She is Bush in lipstick.

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