Query

Did the RNC's health insurance coverage pay for the nineteen rubber johnnies that Blake Hall disposed of on his former girlfriend's lawn?

If so, will he be forced to resort to direct deposit now that the policy's being changed?

For I Was Hungry, But The District Recognized Gay Marriage, So You Let Me Starve to Death

The very Christ-like Catholic Church takes a stand:

The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington said Wednesday that it will be unable to continue the social service programs it runs for the District if the city doesn't change a proposed same-sex marriage law, a threat that could affect tens of thousands of people the church helps with adoption, homelessness and health care.

Under the bill, headed for a D.C. Council vote next month, religious organizations would not be required to perform or make space available for same-sex weddings. But they would have to obey city laws prohibiting discrimination against gay men and lesbians.

Fearful that they could be forced, among other things, to extend employee benefits to same-sex married couples, church officials said they would have no choice but to abandon their contracts with the city.

"If the city requires this, we can't do it," Susan Gibbs, spokeswoman for the archdiocese, said Wednesday. "The city is saying in order to provide social services, you need to be secular. For us, that's really a problem."

Then don't take the millions of dollars ($8.2M from 2006-2008, according the article) that the District gives you. That money can be given to actual humanitarian organizations, and you can spend your parishoners' money on the Pope's latest Prada outfits, incense and buying the silence of former altar boys. Ptoblem solved.

Grand Old Police Blotter: Blake's Semen Edition

But [Blake] Hall, 56, will keep his $31,000-a-year job as the civil attorney in nearby Fremont County, according to Prosecutor Joette Lookabaugh, a Republican who hired Hall in January.

Lookabaugh said she told Hall he would keep his job "unless or until his ability to do an outstanding job for Fremont County citizens is compromised."

In a news release, Lookabaugh suggested Hall was singled out because of his notoriety.

"I understand that political figures are held to a higher standard," she said. "What is disturbing is the fact that often people who have devoted their lives to public service are not given the same benefits, or are treated more harshly, than the public at large. There seems to be a certain amount of political glee in striking down the well-known for any real or perceived foible."

And what made Hall so notorious, foible-wise?

Blake Hall, a leading figure in Idaho and national politics for 25 years, was fired Monday as a deputy prosecuting attorney in eastern Idaho and has resigned from the Republican National Committee.

Hall, a former member of the state Board of Education, pleaded guilty Friday to stalking a former girlfriend and is serving a 15-day jail sentence. He also was sentenced to a year of supervised probation. A six-month jail sentence was suspended.

Idaho Falls police reported that witnesses said Hall disposed of used condoms on the lawn of the woman's house. Nineteen condoms were turned over to police, collected on 10 different dates, according to a police report. Both Hall and his lawyer acknowledged the condoms belonged to him, according to a police report.

Also, between March and August, Hall repeatedly followed the woman to restaurants, the movies and her home, and he ignored her repeated requests that he leave her alone, according to police and court records.

But that's not the part that was disturbing to Joette.

Rest assured, members of the Idaho State Bar. If you're a nobody who stalks and harasses a woman and deposits your used scumbags on the woman's lawn, you'll get just the same consideration of your resume from Fremont County as does a politically-connected sex offender applying for the same position. And apparently the State won't yank your license!

Blake's got some mad civil litigation skills, too, according to the police report (see sidebar in above link):

I asked Hall if he left the condoms on the _________ property. Hall told me that he did not. I aksed him if we would find his DNA within the bodly fluids inside the condoms. Hall paused, and then told me it was possible that __________ had gotten into his trash, removed the condoms, and placed them on her own lawn (over a period of several weeks). Hall told me that this might possibly explain how the condoms did originate from him.

A genius like that could tell a jury anything. Although I suspect he'll have trouble finding many people who will make a handshake deal with him.

It won't surprise anyone that Hall owns a red BMW, a red Lexus and a purple Honda Ridgeline.

(Link via Wonkette.)

The Rasmussen Distort

Is there a more worthless polling organziation than Rasmussen? (Don't worry, Frank Luntz, we haven't forgotten you and your grease-laden rug!)

Here's Scotty Rasmussen's latest dump:

Sixty percent (60%) of likely voters nationwide say last week's shootings at Fort Hood should be investigated by military authorities as a terrorist act.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just 27% want the incident investigated by civilian authorities as a criminal act. Another 13% are not sure.

In order of importance:

Does that 60 percent want military authorities to conclude that the shootings were a terroist act? If so, they don't want an investigation at all.

In the real world, the options aren't simply (1) investigation by the military as a terrorist act or (2) investigation by civilian authorities as a criminal act. The military investigates crimes which aren't terrorist acts and civil authorities investigate crimes which are terrorist acts. Both can investigate either, and they can investigate simultaneously. The question forces the respondents to make a false choice, except for that 13 percent that undoubtedly told Scotty Rasmussen to go fuck himself with a bent poll.

And why is Scotty polling likely voters? Do we get to vote on who conducts the investigation?

It's obvious what's going on. Scotty knows that most people understand a shooting by military officer who kills military personnel on a military base will be, and should be, investigated by the military. But he wants people to say the shooting was a terrorist act. So he drafts a question that gets people who recognize the former to say the latter.

Scotty's just another scumbag who exploits a tragedy for political purposes. No wonder he's got Mickey Kaus' endorsement on his website.

One Democratic strategist said that shortly after an appearance on Fox he got a phone call from a White House official telling him not to be a guest on the show again. The call had an intimidating tone, he said.

The message was, "We better not see you on again," said the strategist, who spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to run afoul of the White House. An implicit suggestion, he said, was that "clients might stop using you if you continue."

In urging Democratic consultants to spurn Fox, White House officials might be trying to isolate the network and make it appear more partisan.

But Patrick Caddell, a Fox News contributor and a former pollster for Democratic President Jimmy Carter, said he has spoken to Democratic consultants who have been told by the White House to avoid appearances on Fox. He declined to give their names.

Caddell said he had not gotten that message himself from the White House. "They know better than to tell me anything like that," he said.

In 1988, Caddell left the Democratic Party after an acrimonious lawsuit with a Democratic consulting firm. Republicans would often cite Caddell's tirades against the Democratic Party on the floor of the House and the Senate.
...

His analysis on polls and campaign issues often puts him at odds with the current leadership of the Democratic Party. He has been criticized as often attacking Democratic politicians and predicting the downfall of the Democratic party. Critics point out that he has defended the Bush administration by claiming that Republicans did not exploit the issue of gay marriage in the presidential election of 2004. He also referred to Democrats in the House who voted against the Palm Sunday Compromise, which sought to reinstate Terri Schiavo's feeding tube, as "cold blooded" and denounced them.

Ailes Exclusive: Stills From THE TAPE

I didn't realize it was so public.

That's what I call "Values!"

Grand Old Police Blotter: Guiliani Partners In Crime Edition

The homeland feels more secure already:

Bernard B. Kerik, New York City’s former police commissioner, is expected to plead guilty on Thursday to a single conspiracy charge in an agreement that would resolve the three pending federal criminal trials he faces in New York and Washington, people with knowledge of the matter said Wednesday. The deal, they say, could send him to jail for almost three years.

I wish no harm to Judy Regan's consort, but I'm guessing the man is feeling nostaligic for the Green Zone right about now.

P.S. Heh.

In early returns, Garamendi led Republican David Harmer by 57 percent to 38 percent. Green Party candidate Jeremy Cloward, American Independent Jerome Denham and Peace and Freedom candidate Mary McIlroy were far behind.

Like a contested congressional race in New York and gubernatorial showdowns in Virginia and New Jersey, conservatives sought to portray the election results in the Bay Area congressional contest as a referendum on President Obama's administration and a harbinger of voter attitudes for the 2010 midterm elections.

Actually, most wingnuts realized Harmer was in for a gigantic ass-kicking, and pretended the race didn't exist. But here's some good news:

Garamendi said a representative from Pelosi's office urged him to fly to Washington, D.C., today so he could be sworn into office on Thursday.

"I may very well be there this weekend to provide a critical vote on health care," Garamendi told The Chronicle Tuesday. "I would be very happy to make that yes vote my first vote in Congress."

David Hasselhoff No Longer The Biggest Loser With "Hoff" in His Name

Kudos to the Republican Party for losing a lock twice, first with their own candidate, and then with their adopted one.

As for you, Doug E. Fail, the next time you run for election, try doing it with campaign workers smart enough not to drive over broken glass and without the racist dregs of the internet and basic cable.