American Glob

Now why would someone who volunteers for an organization that supports the Ground Zero mosque attack a Muslim man with a knife? Could it be because he’s a leftist who was trying to create a narrative of anti-Muslim violence that could be blamed on opponents of the mosque? Politico reports…

The apparent anti-Muslim assault on a New York city cabbie by a man shouting “Assalamu Alaikum. Consider this a checkpoint” produced an immediate round of recriminations over its connection to opposition to a New York Islamic Center and an apparent rising tide of Islamophobia.

But as often at the intersection of politics and violent crime, the story doesn’t appear to fit any easy stereotype: The alleged assailant, Michael Enright, is — according to his Facebook profile and the website of the left-leaning media organization Intersections International — a student at the School of Visual Arts and a volunteer for Intersections, which recently produced a statement of support for the Park51 project and is funded by the mainstream, liberal Collegiate Church of New York.

Intersections did not respond to two messages, and the group does not appear to be picking up the phone. Enright did not respond to a message through his Facebook account.

If this attack was a hate crime against an innocent human being just because he is a Muslim, it is an absolutely horrible and cowardly act.

If it was a false flag attack by someone who claims to be open minded and tolerant, but would butcher an innocent human being to indict his political opponents, isn’t that worse?

Check out what other bloggers are saying about this at Memeorandum.

You’re right, Ben. Who cares about armed activists at the polling place if everyone is going to vote Democrat anyway?

“I’d been a bit skeptical of the reports that the Black Panthers were out intimidating voters on Obama’s behalf, largely because the precinct is in the city’s northern 14th Ward, which went (.pdf) overwhelmingly — more than 95% — for John Kerry in 2004. You don’t typically intimidate your own voters.”

Way to go to bat for the left, Ben.

Allow me to do the honors…

Nothing to see here folks, move along!

Obama has continued a number of policies from his predecessor, but now he even has a “Mission Accomplished” moment of his very own.

As reported by the Politico:

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — President Barack Obama has a new campaign slogan.

“Yes, we did.”

And it doesn’t stop there. Republicans, an animated Obama argued Thursday, wouldn’t have.

They wouldn’t have set the economy back on track, he said during a fundraiser for Senate candidate Robin Carnahan, or passed a health care overhaul or financial regulatory reform. Giving the GOP control of Congress again — a possibility that Obama acknowledged — would usher in another era of a “you’re on your own philosophy,” he said.

In which alternate reality is the president currently residing? The economy is back on track? You could have fooled me.

Republicans wouldn’t have passed Obamacare? That’s a feature not a bug, Mr. President.

Your on your own philosophy? You mean like the people of Arizona who wish the federal government would do its job and secure their border?

If this is your idea of “yes we did” maybe you could do us a favor next time.

Don’t.

Specifically on the issue of illegal immigration…

Long pilloried for being soft on illegal immigration, top Democratic officials have concluded there’s only one way they can hope to pass a comprehensive immigration bill:

Talk more like Republicans.

They’re seizing on the work of top Democratic Party operatives who, after a legislative defeat in 2007, launched a multiyear polling project to craft an enforcement-first, law-and-order, limited-compassion pitch that now defines the party’s approach to the issue.

The 12 million people who unlawfully reside the country? Call them “illegal immigrants,” not “undocumented workers,” the pollsters say.

Is this the ultimate admission of failure, hypocrisy or both?

Remember, this is the same party that stood up and applauded when President Calderon of Mexico insulted the State of Arizona on the floor of the House of Representatives.

This is the same party that has repeatedly used Arizona’s new illegal immigration law for their own political benefit.

Pathetic.

Since Democrats are trying to sound like Republicans, is it any surprise that they’re starting to throw their support to Charlie Crist?

A well deserved victory.

Nikki Haley, the Republican South Carolina candidate for governor is on her way to the South Carolina governor’s office.

Despite the smear tactics used against her by bloggers and competitors, she got almost 49% of the vote in last night’s Republican primary.

I’m so looking forward to November. Can you already picture campaign events for Nikki Haley with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie?

What about Sarah Palin or Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal? Haley will likely also get support from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, as well as Florida senate candidate Marco Rubio.

Below, you’ll find a round-up of Nikki Haley awesome-ness.

Erick Erickson of Red State, an ardent and early supporter of Haley, says she is now The Most Dangerous Woman in South Carolina…

They called Nikki Haley a whore. They called her a raghead. Now they better start practicing calling her Governor.

Nikki Haley came within a percentage point or two of avoiding a runoff for the Republican nomination in South Carolina. Despite all the smears and all the foul play, she is a winner.

The second place finisher, Congressman Gresham Barrett, goes into the runoff roughly 27% behind Haley.

This race also makes Nikki Haley the most dangerous woman in South Carolina. The old order, the old way of doing things, has been decidedly defeated. The runoff becomes the last stand — a TARP voting establishmentarian versus the outsider accountant they threw everything at.

Politico notes that Haley mopped the floor with her competition despite the smear campaign…

State Rep. Nikki Haley trounced U.S. Rep. Gresham Barrett, her closest rival in the four-way Republican primary for governor Tuesday, but will face him again in two weeks in a runoff election.

Amid two allegations of infidelity and an ethnic slur, Haley ran as the reform candidate scorned by the good ol’ boy network – and she’s been crowned the voters’ Cinderella. With nearly all the precincts reporting, she was winning nearly 49 percent of the vote, more than twice Barrett’s 22 percent. But she needed to pass 50 percent threshold to avoid a runoff.

“We knew from the very beginning it was us versus the establishment,” Haley told a cheering election night crowd in Columbia. “I won’t stop until we get a conservative House, a conservative Senate, and conservative governor.”

David Weigel at the Washington Post explains why there will be no runoff election…

A surprisingly blunt press release from the Republican Governors Association all but calls for Rep. Gresham Barrett (R-S.C.) to stand down and let Nikki Haley start running for governor of South Carolina, after she missed the right to avoid a runoff by the narrowest of margins.

The statement from Executive Director, Nick Ayers:

The voters of South Carolina made a clear choice in Nikki Haley, notwithstanding the possibility of a runoff. The outcome is all but certain. Nikki Haley withstood a barrage of innuendoes and slurs in the closing days of the primary season and persevered to the finish with dignity, determination and confidence. Moreover, receiving half of the votes against two other statewide incumbent Republicans and a sitting Congressman speaks volumes of her strength as a candidate and bodes very well for her in the General Election. We congratulate Nikki for her grit and determination.

Congratulations to Nikki Haley!

As Republican Charles Djou inches closer to victory, Hawaii Dems are starting to panic.

I cite as evidence this pathetic letter to the editor in the Honolulu Weekly:

Djou Resign Yet?

Many of us are wondering why Councilman Charles Djou has not resigned from his seat on the Honolulu City Council. How can he effectively fulfill his obligations and responsibilities as a Council member and run a full-time congressional campaign? Legally, he is not required to resign, but what about his moral obligation to the community? It seems apparent he believes that he will lose this election and needs his council seat to fall back on when he does. It is clear that Djou feels his political ambitions are more important than serving the people that elected him to office. His lack of principles and integrity disqualify him from holding any political office in Hawaii!

David Bohn
Wahiawa

A quick Google search shows there is a “David Bohn” of Wahiawa, HI who’s a registered member of Change.org.

Assuming it’s the same David Bohn and assuming his membership in Change.org is indicative of his ardent support of Obama, one has to wonder if Mr. Bohn was compelled to write a similar letter to the editor when Barack Obama was ignoring his duties as a US senator while running for president.

Meanwhile, Obama himself is using his political activism group Organizing for America to plea with Hawaii voters to vote for a Democrat. Any Democrat…

President Obama is out with an email to his Organizing for America supporters in Hawaii urging them to vote for a Democrat in Hawaii’s upcoming special election—either Democrat.

Even with former Rep. Ed Case and Democratic state Senate President Colleen Hanabusa splitting the Democratic vote—a scenario that is making it increasingly likely Republican Honolulu City Councilman Charles Djou could win the heavily Democratic seat—Obama does not specify which contender he is urging Hawaii voters to choose in the May 22 race.

And then we come to the real reason for the panic…

“I wanted to take a moment to write directly to you, the voters of Hawaii’s 1st district. Hawaii has special meaning for me — it’s where I was born and spent much of my time as a child,” writes Obama of the seat former Rep. Neil Abercombie vacated to run for governor.

It’s all about Obama. Always was, always will be.

If the Democrats lose this seat while Obama is president, they will consider it an embarrassment and although a victory for Djou isn’t guaranteed, it seems likely at this point.

With that in mind, the Democrats might want to dust off their trusty media spin machine sooner than later.

UPDATE: Linked at Riehl World View, thanks Dan!

Ben Smith at The Politico asks the burning question that’s keeping everyone awake at night. Washington Post or Huffington Post?

The once-cautious Washington Post has begun to invest heavily in the liberal blogosphere, transforming its online presence – a combination of accident and design – into a competitor of the Huffington Post and TalkingPointsMemo as much as the New York Times.

The Post’s foray into the new media world received some unfavorable attention last weekend when its latest hire, Dave Weigel, who covers conservatives, referred to gay marriage foes as “bigots.” But the resulting controversy brought into relief a larger shift: The Post now hosts three of the strongest liberal blogs on the Internet, and draws a disproportionate share of its traffic and buzz from them, a significant change for a traditional newspaper that has struggled to remake itself.

Who can tell the difference? Has everyone forgotten that little incident in July of 2009 when the editor of the Washington Post was caught red handed selling access to the Obama Administration?

The Washington Post’s ill-fated plan to sell sponsorships of off-the-record “salons” was an ethical lapse of monumental proportions.

Publisher Katharine Weymouth and Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli have now taken full responsibility for what was envisioned as a series of 11 intimate dinners to discuss public policy issues. For a fee of up to $25,000, underwriters were guaranteed a seat at the table with lawmakers, administration officials, think tank experts, business leaders and the heads of associations.

Furthermore, it’s worthy to note that in a recent article by Byron York of the Washington Examiner, titled The Top 10 Dumbest Things Said About the Arizona Immigration Law, The Washington Post won the contest hands-down with 3 out of 10. Even The Huffington Post only scored a 1.

Robert Stacy McCain sums it up perfectly.

As long as you get the facts right, who gives a damn about “bias” or “favoritism”?

Favoritism from the Washington Post doesn’t count for much anyway.

Just ask Creigh Deeds.

According to a new article on Politico, Libertarians are leading the way for 2010 and 2012…

Who are these centrist, independent-minded voters who swung the elections in Virginia, New Jersey and Massachusetts to Republican candidates and are likely to be crucial in races this fall?

Political analysts are searching for a name. They have tried “tea partier,” “populist,” “conservative,” even “strange and unpredictable.”

None of these fits, however.

These voters are neither populist nor conservative. But many may be libertarian — fiscally conservative but socially liberal or tolerant.

A careful look at polling data shows these voters may be less mysterious than analysts think.

Libertarians seem to be a leading indicator of this trend in centrist, independent-minded voters, based on an analysis of many years of polling data. We estimate that libertarians compose from 14 percent to 23 percent of voters nationally. They are among the few real swing voters in U.S. politics.

Wow, Libertarians are leading the way? Who knew?

Oh yeah… I did:

As the Tea Party movement continues and many Americans grow more concerned by government expansion, the interest and support for Libertarian style Republicanism is knocking loudly at the front door of conservatism. The GOP would be wise to answer.

Read it all.

Conservatives frequently complain of bias in the media, but every once in a while you have to marvel at the level of bullshit. Observe:

Liberal Democrats see an opportunity to reassert their power in the Senate this spring on the Wall Street reform bill, after being forced to swallow a series of compromises on everything from health care reform to jobs legislation.

Got that? The Democrats’ Health Care bill was forced on them, not you. Liberal Democrat Senators were “forced to swallow a series of compromises.” The article goes on:

A group of Democrats, joined by Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois, are planning an aggressive spring offensive to strengthen key provisions of the financial reform bill — and daring Senate Republicans to vote against them.

Politicians who are afraid to meet their constituents are in no position to dare anyone to do anything.

After bringing down ACORN and championing the charge against the progressive media of personal destruction, this is hardly a surprise. In the following interview with Politico, Andrew Breitbart explains that the threat came after videos of him confronting left wing journalists at CPAC went viral.