Well played, Mr. Axelrod.
Poll-Axed
This post is in: Dog Blogging, Election 2012, Open Threads, Politics
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Come for the politics, stay for the snark.
The republican speaker is a slippery little devil.
How any woman could possibly vote for this smug smarmy piece of misogynistic crap is beyond understanding.
No one could have predicted…
Well, whatever it is, it’s better than being a Republican.
fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)
Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.
Republicans: The threats are dire, but my tickets are non-refundable!
Russia bombs Ukraine’s maternity hospitals; Republicans in the House can’t sort out supporting Ukraine.
Motown is Joe-Town!
I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.
He imagines himself as The Big Bad, Who Is Universally Feared… instead of The Big Jagoff, Who Is Universally Mocked.
This must be what justice looks like, not vengeful, just peaceful exuberance.
You are so fucked. Still, I wish you the best of luck.
They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.
A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals
The current Supreme Court is a rogue court. Very dangerous.
You cannot shame the shameless.
They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!
“Joe Biden deserved better than he got from some folks in his own party.”
The choice is between normal and crazy.
No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.
Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.
“Let’s not pretend [Trump] wants to engage in high-minded discourse.”
Republicans got rid of McCarthy. Democrats chose not to save him.
WereBear (itouch)
I love it!
c u n d gulag
Cue the Conservative idiots screaming about Obama being a bad owner because Bo doesn’t have a seat-belt on!
This, of course, from the same people who allow not just their dogs, but their children, to ride in the bed of their pickup truck.
Besides, everyone knows that the best place for dogs, and children if you can get away with it (to avoid them arguing, having to entertain them, or asking how long before you get there), is to strap them to the roof.
It teaches them rugged individualism – or, something like that.
At the very least, a sense of fear. And isn’t THAT important in maintaining control. And what else is modern Conservatism, but gaining, and maintaining, control!
Egg Berry
Are there many people who transport their dogs over long distances on the roof of their cars? I must admit I haven’t seen or heard of this before the Romney tale.
Linda Featheringill
Bo is a big boy these days. Very handsome.
And yes, Axelrod is cool.
Warren Terra
Looking at that picture, I discern that must be the interior of the biggest, plushest crate ever strapped to the roof of a car. That is, after all, how dogs are to be transported.
bnmng
That’s an official car representing the office of the president and payed for by the taxpayers! And he lets a DOG inside! He Hates America!
kindness
Why would I expect our President to have a more portable phone in his limo? That one is like a desk model.
amk
@Egg Berry: No, willard earned that unique douchebag award. A soulless cretin if ever one.
Narcissus
That phone can probably call the moon though
sagesource
“That one is like a desk model.”
Probably has the mother of all encryption hardware weighing it down. Wouldn’t want Murdoch hacking into it, would we?
capt
But if you are really REALLY rich your dog gets to ride outside of the quite riding rooms the wealthy enjoy. Of course the really rich dog eats filet mignon so there is that.
c u n d gulag
@Narcissus:
Isn’t that where Newt wants to build his “Cave of Evil?”
If he gets enough private funding, that is.
Keith G
Very cool picture indeed. It is a nice touch to use soft humor as a tactic to say that something about Mitt just “ain’t” right.
Now will our side be able to appreciate the humor if Mitt Inc. can manage to pull off the same feat?
Narcissus
Ten bucks says if Newt builds a Cave of Evil on the moon, a time-travelling young Mars exploring Barack Obama thwarts his evil plan.
Kevin K.
How many wingnuts have accused Obama of strangling Bo in that picture?
Schlemizel
@bnmng:
This is probably the correct expectation – I would think Mush Lamebrain would be howling this on his radio show today.
@kindness:
It has encryption capabilities so when he calls a drone strike the ISI can’t listen in.
@Keith G:
I think the Willard “dog on car” event is more of a dog whistle for the left. I’d be willing to bet 75% of the voters have no idea what the joke is in this tweet. If we can make it part of Willards story that would be a win but I don’t think it is today.
Donut
@Schlemizel:
Re: who this dog whistle is for – I think it’s intended just for Romney alone. It’s a mind-fuck. Axelrod wants to be in his head.
This is Willard’s big day, vanquishing the G-Unit in FLA, re-taking Frontrunner Position, and Axelrod reminds everyone in the political world, which is to say, the Village, that Willard is one fucking weird dude.
Sharp little stick. Poke-poke.
BudP
I won’t ask if you personally have ever strapped a dog in a carrier to the top of a car. I know you haven’t. I won’t ask if you know anyone who has done this. I know you don’t. I’ll ask this: Have you ever in your life seen a dog in a carrier strapped to the top of a car on the highway?
That is what makes this story so weird.
Maude
@kindness:
It is a secure phone. Portable phones aren’t secure.
Betty Cracker
@Schlemizel: I think you’re right about the vast majority of voters being completely unaware of the dog-on-car incident. That’ll make it all the more powerful when it comes out in the general election. And it definitely will — it’s just too bizarre to not get a full public airing.
I’ve brought it up to a few acquaintances who don’t follow politics closely and didn’t know about it. Every single one said something like, “What kind of person DOES that?”
RossInDetroit
Whatever the 11D game that’s going on, that’s a great picture. Check out the red/white/blue collar on the First Pooch. Stars!
Peej01
Poor Bo. T hat mean,nasty man is forcing him to look at something out the window of the car. Probably the DFHs camping out in McPherson Square.
Comrade Javamanphil
@bnmng: Followed by muttered comments about how that black guy sure is uppity riding around in a lim-o-zine. Newt would put him in his place.
Elizabelle
Remind me: how is it that we know about dog on car in the first place? Did a Romney spill the beans? Are there any photos?
If I don’t get a good answer via BJ, I’m asking Gail Collins.
TR
@Betty Cracker:
And when it does, he can kiss off a lot of independents. The kind of people who make their decisions based on who they’d want to have a beer with rarely pick “the dog torturer.”
RSA
That’s not that Hawaii-traveling dog, is it? /wingnut
Schlemizel
@Donut:
Ew! Good catch! I had not thought of that. Now the image of Willard stomping his little foot in rage at the meanness of this jibe while he storms around his hotel room in Redneck Heights Florida makes me smile. 8-{D
TR
@Elizabelle:
If I’m remembering correctly, Mitt himself told the story in an effort to show he was a regular guy who could solve problems.
Elizabelle
@TR:
So glad not to have coffee in hand yet.
Ivan Ivanovich Renko
My SO, who is a thorough-going dog person and who works with an ASPCA-affiliated pet insurance company, read me the riot act the other day because one of their customers told her about Mitt’s dog-on-car history and I, the resident political junkie, had not.
She was pissed, and so were most of her dog-loving co-workers. Don’t misunderestimate the power of Dogs Against Romney.
Exurban Mom
I tell you what: my kiddo knows the dog-on-car story, and every time she sees Romney on TV, she says “I hate that guy! He’s mean to animals!”
We know this story from a long profile of the Romneys written a few years ago in a magazine…and he’s been asked about it several times in televised interviews, like this one here:
http://www.petside.com/article/mitt-romney-admits-family-dog-rode-roof-his-car-12-hour-trip
Schlemizel
@TR:
Yes, he told it to some Time Stenographer who related it as an example of his problem solving ability and cool calmness under pressure. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
OT – have you ever notice how people who would be upset about cruelty to a dog make jokes about it with cats? It really struck me when I noticed the reaction to two tasteless jokes I used to tell; one with the dog cruelty as the punchline and the other with a cat. Some people would get mad at the dog joke but laugh at the cat joke but never the other way around. Also the number of casual comments about cat cruelty is much greater than about dogs.
dmsilev
@Elizabelle: Romney, or maybe it was one of his sons, boasted about it. An example of his problem-solving skills, crisis management, etc.
MariedeGournay
@Narcissus: I read your comment hand all these images for a Saturday morning cartoon flash into my head.
geg6
@Schlemizel:
Oh, it’s getting out there. I’ve had people mention it to me at the local VFW, for Pete’s sake. ;-) But I am serious about that. And I told the story to two co-workers (one GOPer and one clueless Indie) who are dog lovers. They were completely and utterly repelled but, being they know my political persuasion, had to go confirm the story as true. Which, of course, it is.
They now hate, hate, hate Mittens. Just hate him. And to finish my mission, I’m sending them a copy of this pic.
amk
cohen’s take-down of the rethug goon squad is good.
WereBear
There is a certain ambivalence about cats; for some reason our society continues to put a stigma on actually loving a cat. And if you are a woman with four cats (and I am) heaven help ya.
geg6
And seriously folks, how beautiful is that dog? Seriously. Bo is just awesome.
Ivan Ivanovich Renko
@WereBear: I am a man with two cats, and I get the same thing.
Screw ’em. Dogs are cool, man, but cats are where it’s at!
Hill Dweller
I knew about Mitt putting the dog on top of the car, but I didn’t know, until Maddow did a segment on it, the poor dog became distressed during the trip and soiled the inside of the carrier, which makes the story even more appalling.
Donut
Even if Willard and friends don’t publicly react to this pic (and they seem to have enough discipline not to), you can bet they are talking and thinking about it. Axelrod knows if er have a referendum on the economy, his guy’s chances are not as good (though still pretty decent). The more stuff that gets out there (a la Cokie), the better.
rikryah
sometimes, Axe is just funny
rikryah
I’m not a pet person; never had one. But, I’ve always been interested in this story because of the dog lovers in this country. I always thought the story sounded cruel.
amk
@Hill Dweller: No, what is even more appalling, nah disgusting, was willard’s defense that the carrier was comfortably designed for the dog.
kay
@Exurban Mom:
He’s such a liar. “Climbed up there all by himself”. Sure he did.
Hill Dweller
@amk: Chris Wallace, of all people, pointed out putting the dog on top of the car is illegal in Massachusetts.
WereBear
@Ivan Ivanovich Renko: I wrote an article about it:
The Cat’s Public Relations Problem
Garbo
@kay: Yeah, climbed up there with a full understanding the car would be going 70 MPH. Asshole. The other thing that gets me is that he put Seamus back up there after hosing him off, so he could be wet and in the wind. Much better. Double asshole.
Special One
Portugese Water Dog is, I think, the second best thing to come out of Portugal.
(The first is the road to Spain!)
WereBear
I do think that while this story has been around as long as Mitt has, the pressure of actually getting the nom is what will push it mainstream; and then there’s no turning back.
It has such a visceral reaction speed, among anyone with a heart. Even if you don’t like animals that much… you know how someone who does should act!
Origuy
The story actually broke in the Boston Globe in 2007, but the article is behind a paywall. You can find it in their archives, and subsequent references to it.
Anna Marie Cox wrote about it in Time Magazine.
Jess
@Schlemizel: Because, as any devoted cat owner knows, cats are evil. And they sneer at us.
Rafer Janders
@Betty Cracker:
Moreover, at the time he did this Romney was already stinking rich, worth tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars. Rather than drive ten hours to Canada with a dog on the roof of his car, why didn’t he just fly? Or at least rent a larger van that would have fit the dog?
It’s a bizarre sort of stinginess and miserliness to do something like that when you have the means to have a much easier trip.
Kane
“This is a completely airtight kennel.” -Mitt Romney
Try to find a completely airtight kennel. There is no such thing because a dog needs air to breathe! The closest thing that one can find to an airtight kennel is called a coffin.
dmsilev
@Jess:
Since when do cats have ‘owners’?
Kane
How much poo does a dog need to do while strapped to a roof of car before it becomes noticable that it’s dripping down the back window of the car?
Amir Khalid
@Rafer Janders:
Dude, you don’t get to be rich being all extravagant like that.
Jess
@dmsilev: Good point. Should have written “owners” in quotes.
Teddy's Person
Love this picture. Bo’s riding in style.
dogwood
You know it’s not just people who are crazy about their pets who find this story offensive. I’ve got a close friend who is not necessarily a pet lover but has had at least one dog and one cat in the household since her kids were young. With the kids grown and gone, she definitely will be done with pet ownership when the dog they still have passes. However, she finds the “dog on car” story appalling. And people who don’t own pets are not animal haters either. The “dog on car” story is a big turn-off to decent people in general.
maya
The part of Mitt driving his Mormon Stagecoach to Canada story I don’t understand: is it possible to bring animals across the Canadian border – and back? I thought the animals not only have to have records of all required shots, but that there is a quarantine period for animals involved crossing any national border. Anyone know about this?
jacy
It tells you all you need to know about Mittens that not only he committed the horrifying deed but found it a USEFUL ANECDOTE TO HUMANIZE HIMSELF. Empathy, how the fuck does it work?
Betty Cracker
The thing I found most surprising on reading the original story (now locked behind a pay wall) — aside from the monstrous indifference to the dog’s comfort, of course — is how the reporter went along with the “isn’t this a cute example of crisis-free management” angle. He or she LED with that.
Apparently the story was recounted by one of the Romney Mini-Me sons, and while you can’t expect a child who was raised by such a person to recognize what a horrifying idea it was to strap a dog to the roof of a station wagon for a 12-hour trip, wouldn’t the reporter have gone, “WTF”? Wouldn’t an editor or someone have recognized how awful it was? Maybe they were trying to sandbag Romney. Who knows…
Ed Drone
@Jess:
Dogs have owners; cats have staff.
So, as staff underlings, we are more prone to cruel jokes about cats than about dogs — it’s a way of “sticking it to the MAN,” even though we would not (most of us) actually do the things in the jokes (the “cat workplace” is one big, happy family, as long as we keep the cat happy).
Ed
Mike E
My daughter, Miss E, has a beagle and two cats, but she prefers felines. The younger cat was raised as a kitten to think he is, somehow, part dog. He’s the prettiest cat I’ve ever seen (&appears in last yr’s calendar) and is prolly the debbil…so pretty in fact that Miss E cried one time over his evil-claw and bitey tactics. It’s just not fair!
After major oral surgery Miss E was really laid low and I will never forget the image of her trying to sleep it off, with Scratchy nestled at her knee, the beagle at her feet, and the original cat (who hates both of those furry interlopers) next to her ear, all keeping vigil like her recovery depended upon them. I’m a cat person too, but whenever I hear the dog v cat rhetoric I just flash back to that scene and laff.
PTirebiter
@Rafer – That was the source of my outrage as well. We have three shelter dogs dogs, the latest being a 3 yr year old Grand Pyrenees that showed up a few months back. We live in a rural area and we’re often confronted with dogs being treated far worse than the occasional ride on top of Mitt’s family truckmaster. I have to forgive the ignorance, poverty and cultural attitudes that may drive the neglect, but what excuse could Mitt have? I guess Republicans consider being empathy deficient as a feature and not a bug.
WereBear
I do wonder if this is part of Mitt’s “let’s act like regular folks” pretensions; station wagon! No servants! Dog on roof!
He’s just so freakin’ bad at it.
djork
@Ivan Ivanovich Renko: Cat loving male here. My old southern grandmother, FSM bless her, told me once ()when i was about 12, mind you) that the fact that I prefered cats to dogs means I’m probably gay. (I’m not.) She also always feminizes cats, in that if she asks me how my cats are, they’re both referred to as “she,” even the male. So, if I say, “Max jumped on the table,” she’ll ask me, “why did she do that?”
So, yeah, there is a weird prejudice towards cats in some quarters, for sure.
Jennyjinx
In the part of Ohio where I’m from, this type of thing isn’t uncommon. People are total fucking asses when it comes to their animals. They’ll put them on a 2 ft long chain connected to a little dog box and never let them off. They’ll leave them outside in scorching heat with no water; in the dead of winter with no straw. They’ll stick them in boxes in the back of their trucks.
We’re appalled because we’re empathetic. There are plenty of cretins who couldn’t care less what Romney did with his dog. The fact that he hosed him off would make them think he’s a wuss for babying the animal anyway.
phoebes-in-santa fe
@Rafer Janders: It’s even odder than that. Romney himself said that there was no room in the car – a station wagon – what with the kids and the LUGGAGE taking up all the room in the car and the way back.
Well, hint-to-Mint, why not strap the LUGGAGE to the roof and put the dog in the back seat or the way back? Isn’t that what LUGGAGE RACKS are for?
Has anyone else thought about that part of it?
dollared
@PTirebiter: But it really is damn hard to fly a real dog via the airlines. Air Force One is a bit easier. No, the real problem is “vy not a minivan? Or a Suburban?”
dollared
@maya: Canada and US, you just have to show proof that Fido has had his shots.
quannlace
Just like that photo of him and the Mrs. doing their laundry.
gogol's wife
@WereBear:
I was reading the Vanity Fair article about Mitt out loud to my husband, and when I got to that part he made me stop, he couldn’t even hear it. I made sure he knew the gist of it, though.
It was I think a 12-hour ride. The dog was flooding the outside of the car with diarrhea. They stopped at a gas station, Willard hosed him down, and drove on.
Ronzoni Rigatoni
@Schlemizel: Stuffinonsense. I don’t know of any dog owners who actually hate cats, or v.v.. The segregation here is I think prolly because they don’t have the time or patience to deal with two (almost) different cultures LOL. Personally, I wouldn’t have a dawg inna house without a cat and never had in the 70 (very) odd years I have trod these boards. If my formerly 13-year-old daughters ever learned anything about social cohesion in a civilized world, they learned it from the pets. Not from me, certainly.
Ronzoni Rigatoni
@maya: YES, I have done it. No big deal.
Ronzoni Rigatoni
@dollared: Bullshit! I flew a Russian Ocharka (the only one I know of in the US) to the US of A via FinnAir from St. Pete (Russia) to (almost) St. Pete here in FL. Had no problems with proper prep.
Nikki
Actually, regarding “hosing” down the dog, the story is worse than you think…
Rafer Janders
@phoebes-in-santa fe:
Or why didn’t he just hire a private plane to fly him and his family there? He’s a freakin’ multimillionaire, he could easily have afforded it. Why this pretense of faux-humility by stuffing everyone into a station wagon for a twelve hour drive?
You never see Trump pulling this nonsense….
Rafer Janders
@dollared:
As I said above, he’s rich enough not to even need the airlines. He could have rented a jet and have had everybody fly in comfort for an hour instead of subjecting them to twelve hours of cramped misery.
gogol's wife
@Nikki:
Oh, man, a car wash!
I assume this poor dog is no longer with us — does anyone know? How did it do after this ordeal?
Mrs. B.
You guys must have seen this site:
http://www.dogsagainstromney.com/
It’s got the whole sordid story and lots of followers.
Paul in KY
@WereBear: Try being a dude with 4 cats…
Paul in KY
@maya: It might not have registered that there was an actual live animal in there.
WereBear
@Paul in KY: Yep, like Mr. WereBear.
WereBear
@Mrs. B.: Wow, went by to see the latest; what enterprising reporter will uncover this cover up?
kc
Awwww!
Triassic Sands
Mr. President, get that dog on the ROOF where it belongs!!!
JoyfulA
I want that picture and comment for this fall’s campaign literature. I know several vaguely Republican women whose main concern and topic of conversation is their dogs and how wonderful dogs are, etc.
If I can remind them or tell them about Mitt’s dog-on-roof, they’ll be votes for Obama.