Tag Archives: Family Research Council

September 15, 2012 · 2:13 PM

Is Hate On The Agenda At This Weekend’s Values Voter Summit? (VIDEO)

 

Uh, yes, it is…

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The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), along with other signatories, sent a letter asking several prominent speakers, including vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan, to reconsider attending the Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C. this weekend because of defamatory comments against the LGBT community made by the host of the conference, the Family Research Council (FRC) and one of its co-sponsors, the American Family Association (AFA). Both of these organizations are classified as hate groups by the SPLC and they cite specific examples of why they are designated as such in their letter:

Here is what Bryan Fischer, the AFA’s Director of Issue Analysis, wrote in 2010: “Homosexuality gave us Adolph Hitler, and homosexuals in the military gave us the Brown Shirts, the Nazi war machine and 6 million dead Jews.” He once said that welfare rewards black people who “rut like rabbits.”The FRC’s extremism is also illustrated by its recent hiring of retired Lt. Gen. William “Jerry” Boykin, a radical anti-Muslim propagandist and conspiracy theorist, as its executive vice president. Last year, Mr. Boykin stated that “Islam is not a religion and does not deserve First Amendment protections”— a statement that is antithetical to American ideals. In the Affordable Care Act, he literally sees a plot to create a shadow police force that he compares to Hitler’s “Brownshirts.” Yet, the FRC has not only hired Mr. Boykin, it has given him a prominent speaking slot at the Summit.

Here’s a short video displayed the rabid hate that will be on display this weekend:

Really?! These are the values that Republicans and their Christian supporters want us to vote for? The breakout sessions scheduled for Saturday on the Values Voter Summit site sound innocuous enough when you read the titles but I think they are masking their real agenda so I’ve provided my own translation of the actual topics being addressed:

  • Economic Inequality: Reconciling Capitalism And Compassion (Screw The Poor)
  • Israel, Iran And The Future Of Western Civilization (Bring On The Rapture)
  • Speechless? Silencing The Christians (Adopt Our Beliefs or Get the Hell Out)
  • Understanding Radical Islam 101 (Converting The Heathens)
  • One Life: 40 Years Of Roe V. Wade, Ending Abortion Today (Every Egg is Sacred)
  • Repealing Obamacare (Screw the Sick)
  • Can You Protect Your Children From The Commercial Sex Industry? (Okay, No One Is Pro Child Sex Trafficking)
  • Preparing For The Coming Economic Earthquake (President Mitt Romney)
  • Grassroots Activism Get-Out-The Vote (GOTV) Workshop (Voter Suppression 101)
  • Vertical Vote Campaign For Life, Marriage and Religious Liberties (God Hates Fags)
  • Millennial And The Future Of Political Engagement (Homeschoolers Unite)
  • Debunking The Myth Of Separation…Why Pastors Must Engage In Politics (America, Christian Theocracy)

Three days of anger, fear and hate in the name of God. Just like Jesus would have wanted!

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September 4, 2012 · 12:20 AM

Misinformation, Fear, And Hate In America

More right-wing fear and loathing of the POTUS.  This is a stirring critique…

Democratic Underground ~ proud2BlibKansan

The GOP and the Right Wing Media, Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, et al, have been propagating a campaign of irrational fear and hate against President Barak Obama since 2007. These devious and dishonest attacks are designed to delegitimize the Presidency of Barak Obama, and to characterize him as; the other, foreign, un-American, non-Christian, and alien.

He has been called socialist, communist, fascist, The New Hitler, Marxist, Stalinist, Muslim, African Anti- Colonialist, Anti-Christ, baby killer, gay lover, uppity, The Food Stamp President, and n!@@&r. The base of the GOP is clearly without any morality, their claim to Jesus and God rings hallow as they practice Anti-Christ in the name of Jesus.

Their base constituency has been duped with fear, into a position of unfounded distrust and hate. In their fevered zealotry, they express a fanatical willingness to vote against their own self-interest. The Conservatives have been conquered, their party has taken over by the Corporatist, in a pact with the Theocrats, and the Objectivist. Watch this video in its entirety, and then tell me how anyone with a modicum of intelligence, or any degree of honesty, could vote for a Republican.

“I don’t agree with all the people who support me, and my guess is they don’t all agree with everything I believe in, but I need to get 50.1 percent or more and I’m appreciative to have the help of a lot of good people.” – Mitt Romney 

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August 20, 2012 · 4:37 PM

Todd Akin’s Greatest Hits

Todd Akin

As most of you know, this blog is about “sorting out the crazies”.  Todd Akin may be at the top of the list in the GOP Crazies category.

TPMDC

An untold number of Americans first met Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) — the GOP’s nominee to unseat Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) — on Sunday, after he falsely claimed that women have a natural defense against becoming pregnant from what he called a “legitimate rape.”

Though the outlandish claim represents a fairly common view in the pro-life movement and the GOP, the backlash was so fast and severe that some GOPers are calling for Akin to abandon his candidacy, so somebody less tainted can take his place.

But even if Akin hadn’t exposed that he holds this controversial view, his candidacy wouldn’t have been a cakewalk. Although until this weekend he enjoyed a small lead over McCaskill, his record is thick with the sort of fringe views that prevented several GOP challengers from defeating Democrats in 2010. That’s why McCaskill, an unpopular incumbent, worked hard to assure Akin won his party’s nomination.

Here are some of Akin’s greatest hits.

Student Loans

In April, Akin cited a law Democrats passed in 2010 that saves billions of dollars by preventing private banks from profiting, risk free, on federally backed student loans as an example of the notion that “America has got the equivalent of stage three cancer of socialism, because the federal government is tampering in all kind of stuff it has no business tampering in.”

When offered the chance to clarify, he declined, saying “I called a spade a spade.”

Social Security

During a CSPAN appearance on March 2011, Akin raised strong objections to one of the nation’s most popular federal support programs. “Social Security, through the years, for many many people, has been a terrible investment. It’s really a tax is all it is. Social Security is a tax. The government is taking the tax — there’s more money coming in than going out — and we spend it. That’s not responsible. I don’t like it. I didn’t design Social Security. It was — it actually came from Bismark. FDR put it in place.”

First Amendment

In June 2011, Akin told Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, that “the heart of liberalism really is a hatred for God and a belief that government should replace God.”

Marital Rape

In 1991, as a state legislator, Akin questioned whether anti-marital rape legislation might be used “in a real messy divorce as a tool and a legal weapon to beat up on the husband.” He ultimately voted for the bill.

Civil and Voting Rights

Akin recently claimed that elections “historically have always been a state thing.” Without expressing opposition to the Civil Rights Act and other federal protections for ethnic minorities, Akin noted “I think we’ve come a very long way from those days,” adding, “I think we need to make sure that everybody has a right to vote — once,” a transparent nod to the inaccurate notion that voter impersonation fraud is a persistent problem that requires legal restrictions on voting.

School Lunches

In 2010, he was one of 13 to vote against expressing support for the goals and ideals of the National School Lunch Program.

Missing And Exploited Children

In 2003, he and 13 other Republicans voted against a five year reauthorization of a law that provides support for missing and exploited children.

In 2005, he was one of 52 congressmen to oppose legislation to create a national sex offender registry, compel convicted sex offenders to register, and impose mandatory sentences for convicted child molesters.

Anti-Abortion Violence

When he first ran for Congress in 2000 he fell under scrutiny for writing a 1995 letter of support to the 1st Missouri Volunteers — a fringe, anti-abortion private militia.

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August 18, 2012 · 12:06 AM

Tea Party Nation Declares Liberals ‘Deranged’ Bloodthirsty Maniacs After FRC Attack

Addicting Info

It’s almost like I can see the future! Recently, I predicted that the right would be outraged, OUTRAGED, by the botched attack on the DC headquarters of the anti-gay hate group, The Family Research Council, by what is presumably a liberal. I also said that, magically, this one incident would overshadow the decades long pattern of right-wing violence.

Here’s Judson Phillips, founder of Tea Party Nation and hate/fear-monger in charge to prove me right,

Yesterday was a day we in the conservative movement will need to remember for a very long time.  It represents something we had better learn about and learn to deal with quickly.

What is it?

It was the shooting at the Family Research Council in DC.

It was left on right violence.

It is soon to be the new norm.

BE AFRAID! THE LIBERALS ARE COMING! Judson blathers on for a bit and finally gets to the part where conservatives are the true victims and liberals are out of control monsters:

Conservatives have been the victims of left-wing violence.  In 2009, Kenneth Gladney was beaten by leftist thugs in a St. Louis Tea Party event.   More recently we have seen violence committed by the Occupy mobs.

Ah. Kenneth Gladney? THIS Kenneth Gladney? I wonder if Judson thinks a man getting into a scuffle with two other men is the same as a liberal woman being thrown to the ground and stomped on by Rand Paul supporters? Probably not. She had it coming, after all. Just a heads up, the Gladney case ended in an acquittal for the “union thugs” while the manly stomper of women plead out for probation and paying for his victim’s medical bills. Also, notice that Judson can’t be bothered to say what KIND of violence has occurred at the Occupy protests? Probably because it’s hard to spin smashed windows and graffiti into a credible attack on conservatives.

Judson wraps it up with a textbook case of projection in which he transfers the sins of the right to the “radical left”:

Left wing media outlets and radical far left groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center are creating the hysteria that is the catalyst for violence.  The blood is on their hands. (be afraid - FLS)

I wish I could say the shooting at the FRC yesterday was an isolated incident.  It is not.  It is an example of growing violence against conservatives in this nation. (be afraid – FLS)

Fortunately yesterday, no one died.   Unfortunately, I fear it is only a matter of time before that happens. (be afraid – FLS)

The left is getting more desperate.  They are seeing their power fade and the left must have power.  They know they will lose the Senate and the White House in the election this fall and they are becoming more and more desperate. (Be. Afraid. – FLS)

For conservatives, the message is simple.  We must be on our guard. (BE. AFRAID. – FLS)

These are dangerous times for conservatives.  Before this is all over, I fear there will not only be more violence against conservatives, I fear conservatives will be killed by some of these deranged far left wing activists. (BE AFRAID! – FLS)

In most cases, I like to be right in my predictions.  In this one case, I pray I am very wrong. (OH MY GOD ARE YOU TERRIFIED YET?! – FLS)

The message here is clear: “Go out and get more guns to protect yourself and if you happen to blow away a few liberals, they probably had it coming.” This is precisely the kind of “hysteria” the left DOESN’T create but the right specializes in. Oh? he didn’t mention guns so I’m exaggerating? What, pray tell, does the right festishize for self-defense? Guns, pepper spray, tasers or martial arts? That’s right, guns. Let’s move on.

Conservatives love the idea that they are under siege and Republicans love the idea of their base being terrified of their neighbors. It makes them easier to control. It’s nice to see Judson running plays right out of the GOP handbook: “How To Keep’em Dumb & Scared – Your Guide To Winning Elections.” He’s definitely earned his Koch money this week.

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August 17, 2012 · 1:46 PM

O’Reilly uses hate group shooting to exonerate himself in abortion doctor’s murder

Bill O'Reilly talks about Dr. George Tiller

Bill O’Reilly always claimed that he had nothing to do with “brainwashing”  the killer of  the late Dr. Tiller, and now he goes further…

The Raw Story

During a Thursday interview where Tony Perkins blamed the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) for the recent shooting of a Family Research Council (FRC) employee, Fox News host Bill O’Reilly took the opportunity to insist he did not “exacerbate” the situation that led to the murder of abortion doctor George Tiller by calling him a “baby killer.”

“Now you may remember back in 2009, some in the liberal press accused me encouraging the assassination of late-term abortionist George Tiller in Kansas,” O’Reilly said.

As PBS’ Now noted, O’Reilly had mentioned Tiller’s name on 27 episodes of his Fox News show, often calling him “Tiller the Baby Killer” without attributing the label to anyone.  He also said  Tiller had “blood on his hands,” was guilty of “Nazi stuff” and was “operating death mills.”

“I never called him a killer,” O’Reilly insisted on Thursday, even though PolitiFact found that the Fox News host had used the term “baby killer” to describe Tiller at least 24 times.

“I simply referred to what Tiller was doing in detail and the press hounded me for it,” O’Reilly continued, bringing on Family Research Council President Tony Perkins to talk about the most recent shooting.

“I believe that the Southern Poverty Law Center is responsible for creating an environment that led to this,” Perkins explained. “[Your critics are] saying you are using hate speech — well, the Southern Poverty Law Center — because they disagree with our position on marriage and certain religious issues — have labeled us a hate group, and that gives license to lunatics like this that come in and shoot innocent people.”

“It’s a shocking situation,” O’Reilly agreed. “And as we said in the Tiller situation, there’s no excuse for it. I didn’t exacerbate that situation.”

“And I don’t know about the Southern Poverty Law Center,” the self-proclaimed culture warrior added. “We will check that out. Absolutely.”

In a statement released on Thursday, Southern Poverty Law Center senior fellow Mark Potok said that his organization “deplores all violence” and Perkins was just using the tragedy to “score points.”

“Perkins’ accusation is outrageous,” Potok wrote. “The SPLC has listed the FRC as a hate group since 2010 because it has knowingly spread false and denigrating propaganda about LGBT people — not, as some claim, because it opposes same-sex marriage. The FRC and its allies on the religious right are saying, in effect, that offering legitimate and fact-based criticism in a democratic society is tantamount to suggesting that the objects of criticism should be the targets of criminal violence.”

Potok pointed out that Perkins had claimed that that pedophilia is “a homosexual problem” and another official at the Family Research Council had said he wanted to “export homosexuals from the United States.”

“Perkins and his allies, seeing an opportunity to score points, are using the attack on their offices to pose a false equivalency between the SPLC’s criticisms of the FRC and the FRC’s criticisms of LGBT people,” Potok Concluded. “The FRC routinely pushes out demonizing claims that gay people are child molesters and worse — claims that are provably false. It should stop the demonization and affirm the dignity of all people.”

ED note: (Emphasis are mine)

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February 15, 2012 · 12:57 AM

Sioux City Bishop Calls For Christians To ‘Violently Oppose’ ‘Evil’ Birth Control Rule

Think Progress

Appearing on a webcast hosted by the conservative Family Research Council, Walker Nickless, the Bishop of Diocese of Sioux City, Iowa, warned the Obama administration’s new contraception policy is the work of “the devil,” who “wants to silence the [Catholic] Church’s voice.” During the interview, first flagged by Right Wing Watch, Nickless said, “The power of evil, the devil, is certainly looking everywhere where the power of evil can make a difference.” “And that’s why we’ve got to stand up and violently oppose this,” he added, “we cannot let darkness overshadow us.”

Watch it:

While it’s unclear if Nickless is calling for literal violence in opposition to the mandate — something that’s difficult to square with Jesus Christ’s teaching that “if someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other” — or merely calling for strong resistance, his comment underscores the extreme rhetoric with which some religious conservatives have responded to the Obama Administration’s effort to ensure that all women have access to contraception. Some recently told Sean Hannity they’d be willing to die before complying with the law.

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November 4, 2011 · 2:44 PM

Walsh Gets Pro-Family Award Despite Child Support Allegations

 

Not only is this ironic, it’s the height of absurdity.  This epitomizes how the ultra-right wing of the GOP is absolutely out of their minds.

TPMMuckraker

Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL), whose ex-wife says he owes $117,437 in back child support, was honored by the Family Research Council Action on Thursday for his “unwavering support of the family,” the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

“We thank Cong. Walsh who has voted consistently to defend faith, family and freedom,” FRCA President Tony Perkins said. “Cong. Walsh and other ‘True Blue Members’ have voted to repeal Obamacare, de-fund Planned Parenthood, end government funding for abortion within the health care law, uphold the Defense of Marriage Act, and continue support for school choice. I applaud their commitment to uphold the institutions of marriage and family.”

“I am proud and honored to be recognized by the Family Research Council as the only member from Illinois with a 100 percent pro-family voting record,” Walsh said in a statement. “Defending American values have always been one of my top priorities, and this reward reaffirms my dedication to that fight.”

Walsh claims he had a “verbal” agreement with his ex-wife not to pay the money because, according to his attorney, “Joe and his former wife were both tired of court appearances and the resulting emotional and financial impact on the family. Neither party had the financial or emotional wherewithal to continue the battle.”

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October 7, 2011 · 1:19 PM

Southern Poverty Law Center Reminds GOP Of The Hate Groups Behind Values Voter Summit

All one has to do is see  how the folks at the “Values” Voter Summit behaved in past conferences.

Think Progress

As all of the major GOP presidential contenders prepare to speak at the Family Research Council’s (FRC) annual Values Voter Summit, the Southern Poverty Law Center is holding a press conference and has published an ad in the Washington Post reminding the candidates and the press that the groups behind the event “spread lies designed to demonize the LGBT community,” Muslims, Mormons, Jews, and others:

 

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April 6, 2011 · 3:55 AM

The Religious Right’s Anti-Union Crusade

Mother Jones

Wisconsin‘s ongoing labor battle has officially become a holy war. The Family Research Council, the evangelical advocacy organization founded by James Dobson, has been dipping into its war chest to defend Republican Governor Scott Walker’s efforts to curtail collective bargaining for public-sector unions. FRC president Tony Perkins interviewed backers of Walker’s anti-union bill on his weekly radio program and has tweeted his support for the bill, directly linking social conservatism with an anti-union, pro-business agenda: “Pro-family voters should celebrate WI victory b/c public & private sector union bosses have marched lock-step w/liberal social agenda.”

The FRC’s new political action committee, the Faith, Family, Freedom Fund, is airing ads on 34 Wisconsin radio stations in an effort to influence the April 5 judicial election that could ultimately decide the fate of the law. The ads target Wisconsin Assistant Attorney General JoAnne Kloppenburg, who’s running against a conservative incumbent, David Prosser, for a seat on the state Supreme Court. If elected, Kloppenburg would alter the balance on the court in favor of Democrats, giving them the ability to invalidate the recently enacted ban on public-employee collective bargaining. “Liberals see her as their best hope to advance their political agenda and strike down laws passed by a legislature and governor elected by the people,” say the ads. “A vote for Prosser is a vote to keep politics out of the Supreme Court.”    Continue reading here…

 

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September 17, 2010 · 5:11 PM

Huckabee Opposes Insurance For People With Pre-Existing Conditions

Mike Huckabee giving a speech following the So...

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 So much for Christian compassion and the age old Christian concept of “Faith, Hope and Charity”.  It seems the ultra Conservative Christian “Reich” feel that the above tenets are not a requisite to be a member of their version of “Christianity.  Every now and then I have to repeat Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi words:  I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.  

TPM DC  

When Republicans attack health care reform, Democrats like to counter by accusing Republicans of wanting to repeal a law that requires insurance companies to cover people with pre-existing conditions. According to Republican Presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee, that’s exactly right. People with pre-existing conditions, he explains are like houses that have already burned down.  

“It sounds so good, and it’s such a warm message to say we’re not gonna deny anyone from a preexisting condition,” Huckabee explained at the Value Voters Summit today. “Look, I think that sounds terrific, but I want to ask you something from a common sense perspective. Suppose we applied that principle [to] our property insurance. And you can call your insurance agent and say, “I’d like to buy some insurance for my house.” He’d say, “Tell me about your house.” “Well sir, it burned down yesterday, but I’d like to insure it today.” And he’ll say “I’m sorry, but we can’t insure it after it’s already burned.” Well, no preexisting conditions.”  

A moment of candor from the evangelical former Arkansas governor. Hard to say how that comports with voting on values, though.  

It’s worth pointing out, too, that the health care law’s individual mandate is in large part meant to make sure people don’t wait until they get ill until they buy insurance. But Republicans want to do away with that part of reform as well.  

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