The Next Generation of the Grand Old Racist Party

No doubt Trent Lott simply welled up with tears of pride when he heard this:

 

Blackface Photo on Web

Riles Black Caucus at Penn State

 

The Penn State Black Caucus demanded that the chairman of the university's College Republicans resign after finding on his personal Web site a photo of a white man in blackface and another with a Ku Klux Klan reference.

 

Black Caucus President Tiffanie Lewis yesterday said the pictures were inappropriate for the leader of a student organization and urged the resignation of Brian Battaglia, chair of the College Republicans, and anyone else involved in posting the pictures. ...

 

The pictures on Battaglia's Web site were among dozens of pictures from a Halloween party Battaglia hosted at his off-campus home.

 

One shows a white man in blackface, with the caption: "Apparently Takkeem was released long enough to come to our party. We thank the local police department."

 

The caption was a reference to Undergraduate Student Government vice president Takkeem Morgan, who paid a fine last month after pleading guilty to a summary charge of criminal mischief regarding a stolen bicycle.

 

A second photo shows a white man wearing a pillow case as a hood with the caption: "He took a break from cross burning to drink a cold one." ...

 

"The bedrock principals [sic] of the conservative movement generally and the College Republicans in particular, are personal liberty and freedom of expression," Battaglia said in a written statement. "The College Republicans stands ... staunchly opposed to the mindset held by the radical left on college campuses across the country. Their viewpoints, which posit that any action or speech that gives discomfort to a vocal minority should be cause for censorship, persecution, or demands for public apologies, are the greatest threat to liberty in our time." ...

 

Dan Lewerenz

Blackface photo on Web riles Black Caucus at Penn State

Associated Press

December 5, 2003

 

Read Battaglia's statement again. Apparently, mocking African-Americans with the most disgraceful and racist stereotyping ever dreamed up by stupid white bigots now equates to nothing more than being "opposed to the mindset held by the radical left."

 

Gee, I wasn't aware that common respect and recognition of black folks as fellow human beings was part of the "radical left" mindset.

 

And "cross burning" -- oh, yeah, that's real freakin' funny. Golly, where were the lynching pictures?

 

(Oh, black readers! How did you like the bit where he reduced you to a "vocal minority"? Gosh, maybe you all -- along with Hispanics and us homos -- ought to just shut the hell up, huh? After all, we might be causing this shining example of American values "discomfort.")

 

Battaglia, you are a pig. You shame white people. You make me sick. May you get drunk and take a midnight walk through South Central L.A.

 

Don't forget your white sheet.

 

Better yet, bring your "oversodomized frat pledge" to the next San Francisco Pride Parade, and let's see just how my people (whom, I am certain, you would know only as "faggots and dykes") react to your sense of humor.

 

______________

 

P.S. The good news: Battaglia's site is DOWN. I just checked. And, no, I'm not going to link to the URL; in case it comes back up, I won't send traffic to that rotten little bigot's site.

 

However, if you want to see what Battaglia's Bigot Brigade was up to Halloween night, I found a mirror site created by a Greek fraternity member. It's all here: the blackface, the KKK member, the drunken priest, one of a "typical stoned, liberal hippie" (with the wish, "Rot in hell"), and the most disgusting of all, captioned: "An oversodomized frat pledge. Well done, Jason. Well done." Here:

 

http://www.geocities.com/immortal1st/

 

If the above site is down (GeoCities will cut off access for an hour or so at a time if traffic gets too heavy), you can see most (but not all) of the offending photos here:

 

http://home.houston.rr.com/skeptical/Brian/Halloween 2003.htm

 

After seeing these, I'm serious: I am genuinely surprised there were no mock lynchings.

 

 

Related articles:

 

No Apology From Penn State Blackface Student. A Penn State University student who wore blackface to impersonate the student body vice president says he has nothing to apologize for. Jason Covener told student newspaper The Daily Collegian that he was the person in photographs posted on the personal Web site of Brian Battaglia, the chairman of the Penn State College Republicans. "I dressed up as Takkeem Morgan. I don't really feel compelled, though, to defend or explain how I dress at a private Halloween party," said Covener, a member of the College Republicans.  ... [Associated Press, December 4, 2003]

 

University responds to College Republicans' acts. Mr. Brian Battaglia -- As chairman of the College Republicans and member of the Penn State community I think you and a number of the people in your organization owe a lot of people an apology for the horrible images on your personal Web site ... My understanding of the law is that the College Republicans have every right to embarrass themselves nationally. You have every right to use racially insensitive images; you have every right to make fun of the Catholic Church; you have every right to promote alcohol abuse; you have every right to put on blackface; you have every right to attack sororities and fraternities; and you have every right in your own homes, on your own time, to dress up in KKK costumes, take photos and post them on your own private Web sites. You have that right in this country, but you also have a greater responsibility to the rest of us to be a better person. Take down the Web site and offer a strong, clear public apology to the community. ... [Letter to chairman of the College Republicans from Bill Mahon, Assistant Vice President for University Relations, Penn State Live, Sunday, December 7, 2003]

 

PSU student group defends leader. Penn State's College Republicans issued a vote of confidence in their chairman this weekend after he posted photos from a Halloween party that mocked blacks, Catholics, gays, and fraternity and sorority members. The group praised Chairman Brian Battaglia for "vision and leadership" and thanked him "for his continued and steadfast service during stressful times for the club." The stressful times began last week, when Battaglia's personal Web site offered outsiders a vision of his recent Halloween party. Guests -- many of them associated with the club -- came in costumes ranging from blackface, to a klansman, to a "sodomized" fraternity pledge, sorority prostitutes and, in one case, a priest on the make. [Bill Mahon] said he wrote to Battaglia and suggested he issue an apology. Battaglia replied with an e-mail informing Mahon that the photos were copyrighted. "In order to legally possess these pictures, you must have my expressed written consent. Since you lack this permission, I advise you destroy them immediately," Battaglia wrote. ... Other photos included a shot of a student in full clerical garb drinking a beer with his left hand, a bottle of liquor in his right, and a caption saying: "I guess they drink before they go get to the boys." ... One young man appeared as an "over-sodomized fraternity pledge" with strategically placed artificial bloodstains on his trousers and face. ... "I think it's much ado about nothing," Covener said yesterday. "I think anytime a white person puts on blackface, there are certain elements, especially here on a university campus, that will look for any reason they can to be offended and will use it as an opportunistic means to push their agenda." ... [Dennis B. Roddy, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, December 7, 2003]

 

Former College Republicans to form new group. Several students began forming a new Republican student group after they became disconcerted with the College Republicans in light of recent events. Controversial pictures posted on the Web site of College Republican chair Brian Battaglia have led Bryan McKinney (senior-health policy administration) and Nomi Deutch (junior-political science) to form the Penn State Young Republicans. Both are former members of the College Republicans and are working to establish an alternate group for Republican students who disagree with the current organization. The group already has about 40 or 50 students supporting it, McKinney said. ... "Meetings are every week with the College Republicans," he said. "They deviated from their task and became too much about activism. We will not be about liberal bashing or conservative activism." ... [Meghan Gaffney, Penn State Collegian, December 9, 2003]

 

Web site owner makes apology. Penn State College Republicans chair Brian Battaglia issued an apology yesterday for offense taken at photographs posted last week on his Web site. "While we stand staunchly behind our freedom to express ourselves in a lawful manner, after contemplation, we understand that the content of the Web site was offensive to members of our community," Battaglia said during a press conference yesterday in the HUB-Robeson Center. ... Black Caucus held its own press conference at noon, at which members of the offended organizations responded to the situation. In front of about 300 people, Black Caucus Vice President Anesha Ali said she would accept the College Republicans' apology through actions, not words. "Apologies may come, and while resignations may come, institutional change on behalf of the university is the only acceptable outcome to this situation," she said. Ali called the situation the first episode of its nature at University Park, but added it is not an isolated incident ... University spokesman Tysen Kendig said the apology is a "positive first step," but it only happened after the group was urged to do so by university officials. Allies President Sara Ryan said she was concerned about the photographs depicting an "oversodomized frat pledge" because it is an insult to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and allied community at the university. "This happened only a few weeks after anti-gay fliers were placed all over campus and on the Allies office door by the same group advertising their Conservative Coming Out Day," she said. ... [Bridget Smith, Penn State Collegian, Tuesday, December 9, 2003]

The Next Generation of the Grand Old Racist Party 11:33:13 PM
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Conservative Babylon, Part 1:
Sex and the Not-So-Single Republican
Thomas to Wingate

Previous entry: Scarborough to Stangeland

Remember, kids:

These are the God-fearin' righties who want to

legislate your morality and "family values":

 

 

 Bill Thomas (R-Calif.)

 

Adulterer

 

Moral apex: Affair with healthcare lobbyist Deborah Steelman.

 

Don't deny, but justify: Never confessed to nor denied the affair, but reassured constituents in an open letter that he's never let his personal life influence his public duty.

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Thomas:

 

For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

 

-- Mark 8:36

 

 

 Clarence Thomas

 

United States Supreme Court Justice; Bush I's Token Negro nominee to replace retiring SCJ Thurgood Marshall

 

Bottom line: We still believe Anita.

 

Sage advice: If Justice Thomas offers you a Coke, tell him you're not thirsty.

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Thomas:

 

A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall not escape.

 

-- Proverbs 19:5

 

 

 Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.)

 

U.S. Senator; anti-gay, segregationist paleocon; adulterer; philanderer

 

Moral apex: No one moment stands out; too many to count. Nickname says all.

 

Nickname: The Sperminator.

 

Fun factoid: Long rumored to have fathered a child out of wedlock. A black child -- which wouldn't make a bit of difference, were Thurmond not a segregationist.

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Thurmond:

 

For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue.

 

-- Psalm 5:9

 

 

 John Tower (R-Tex.)

 

Texas' first Republican Senator (1961) since Reconstruction; chairman, Armed Services Committee under Bush I; adulterer; drunkard

 

Remembered for: Boozing, philandering, messy divorce (from wife number two), and appearing in a newspaper while wearing a Superman costume, reportedly while drunk.

 

Where he is today: Dead. Plane crash.

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Tower:

 

Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.

 

-- Proverbs 20:1

 

 

 Sol Wachtler

 

New York State Chief Judge; high-profile Republican with big political aspirations; adulterer; stalker

 

Moral apex: Had longterm affair while he was married. She broke up with him. He started stalking her, threatening her, and once even sent a condom inside a greeting card to her 14-year-old daughter. When he threatened to kidnap the girl, Mom called the FBI; they tapped her phone, and nailed him.

 

The twist: She didn't realize her stalker was Wachtler until he was arrested; he had been using a device to mask his voice over the phone.

 

Twinkie defense: Depression, addiction to amphetamines, and "causal toxicity."

 

The end: He pleaded guilty to a number of different charges, including extortion, and was sentenced to 11 months, which he started serving in 1993.

 

Aftermath: Wrote a book, After the Madness: A Judge's Own Prison Memoir. Critics said it was amazing how a book about life on the inside could be so dull.

 

Fun fact: Wachtler and his mistress were step-cousins by marriage.

 

Memorable quote:

 

"There will always be those who will refuse to accept the fact that a person can function in what appears to be a normal fashion in his or her job, and still suffer from a mental disorder."

 

-- After the Madness: A Judge's Own Prison Memoir

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Wachtler:

 

Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.

 

-- Matthew 17:15

 

 

John Warner (R-Va.)

 

U.S. Senator, 1978 - ; Senate Armed Services Committee chairman; adulterer; damned fool

 

Moral apex: Dumped first wife Catherine Mellon (she of the ultra-right-wing and obscenely wealthy Mellon-Scaife clan) -- from whom he won a $7 million divorce settlement -- for Elizabeth Taylor. Married Liz in '76; separated in '81; divorced in '82.

 

No fool like an old fool: Any moron knows that marrying Liz means a quick induction into the Hall of Ex-Mr. Taylors. (Warner was husband number 7 out of 8... so far.)

 

What Liz said about Warner on the Larry King show: "I adore him." Of course, she's also on record as saying she "adores" wearing gems, and Michael Jackson, among other hobbies, so you can take it to mean she at least thinks more highly of Warner than she does of spawn-of-Satan Eddie Fisher. (Still, she told Larry, the two great loves of her life were Richard Burton and Michael Todd.)

 

Memorable quote:

 

"Bob, I knew what to do, I just didn’t know how to make it interesting."

 

-- In response to Sen. Bob Smith (R-N.H.), who asked:

"What was it like to be married to Elizabeth Taylor?"

2002 campaign fundraiser for Smith

 

It figures: If super-pro-gay Liz had any influence on Warner, it was marginal at best; while he's been known to meet with Log Cabin Republicans (the gay Uncle Toms of the GOP), his record on all civil-rights issues (from LGBT rights to women's to other minorities') has been positively abysmal. He's so anti-gay, he's even against prohibiting job discrimination by sexual orientation!

 

Stacked odds & double standards: The "family values" party has no quibble with a twice-divorced Hollywood husband (remember how Peter LaBarbera used Jack Ryan's marriage to actress Jeri as an example of Ryan's immorality?).

 

BUT: If you're a woman with a clean record, and you've accused a man of sexually inappropriate behavior, you haven't got a chance: In 2001, The Southern Political Report called 73-year-old Warner "a solid favorite for reelection" in 2002. Noted SPR: "So far, his only potential opponent is retired General Claudia Kennedy. But Kennedy - who made the front pages when she accused a fellow Army officer of sexual harassment - has not made it official. If she runs, she would be a long shot."

 

That's three-star Lieutenant-General Claudia Kennedy -- until her retirement, the U.S. Army's highest-ranking female officer, who filed charges against Major-General Larry Smith over a 1996 incident in which Smith made unwanted sexual advances toward her.

 

Note that SPC and other RW sources conveniently omitted the fact that Kennedy won the suit in 2000. Noooooo, can't let readers know there was any merit to her charges; gotta make the folks believe she's just another one of these damned hysterical feminazis!

 

Guess a three-times-married old Republican beats a three-star Democratic general (and a female, unmarried one! gasp!) any day.

 

Memorable observation:

 

"...Sen. John Warner, of Virginia, has been married and divorced twice and now is going to marry for the third time. He has already ruined the lives of two families and now he is going to ruin the life of a third wife. Yet he is going to protect the institution of marriage so that he can continue his serial polygamy with the blessing of the Commonwealth of Virginia and the other states of the country.

 

The U.S. Senate is chock full of white rich old men who have enjoyed the benefits of serial polygamy under the marriage laws of the United States not to mention their extra-marital affairs where they have occurred. For a group of men in the Senate to protect the institution of marriage and family values is a primary example of hypocrisy and fraud perpetuated on the citizens of the United States by a group of elected representatives who cannot and do not set a example of protection the institution of marriage in their own personal lives. They want the rest of us to do as they say and not as they do. Give me a break."

 

Dr. Joseph H. Quintano

Letter to Cavalier Daily

October 17, 2003

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Warner:

 

This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;

 

-- 1 Timothy 3:1-2

 

 

Rep. J.C. Watts (R-Okla.)

 

Pro-"family values," anti-gay Republican Token Negro, trotted out for photo ops to illustrate "tolerance" & "diversity" of GOP

 

Fact #1: He's an ordained Baptist minister.

 

Fact #2: He consistently earned a 100% approval rating from the Christian Coalition throughout his career.

 

Punch line: He fathered at least one out-of-wedlock child.

 

Memorable quote:

 

"Character is simply doing right when no one is looking."

 

Memorable observation:

 

"A black man voting Republican is like a chicken voting for Colonel Sanders."

 

-- J.C. Watts, Sr., to his son

 

Where he is now: Who knows? He resigned.

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Watts:

 

And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau.

 

-- Genesis 27:32

 

Bonus Bible reading for Mr. Watts:

 

Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

 

-- Exodus 23:9

 

 

 S. Vance Wilkins, Jr. (R-Va.)

 

Former Speaker, Virginia House of Delegates; groper; briber; old lech

 

Moral apex: In 2002, stopped a sexual-harassment lawsuit cold with $100,000 in hush money.

 

Gory details: At least three women accused Wilkins of making sexual advances. He paid off one to keep her from filing suit -- a 26-year-old who said the 65-year-old GOPer pinned her in her office.

 

End result: Republicans called for his head; he resigned.

 

Memorable headlines:

 

VIRGINIA HOUSE SPEAKER RESIGNS IN SEX SCANDAL

CNN, June 14, 2002

 

PREEMINENT TO PARIAH IN JUST 7 DAYS

Washington Post, June 16, 2002

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Wilkins:

 

Great men are not always wise: neither do the aged understand judgment.

 

-- Job 32:9

 

 

Charles Wingate

 

Republican Colorado Springs (Co.) City Council member, 2001; thief; porn addict

 

Moral apex: Convicted on 16 felony counts and two misdemeanor charges....

 

But: None of his convictions involve sex crimes; instead, he was nailed for bouncing checks, charging pizzas to his state-issued credit card, and stealing and pawning city-owned equipment, including his city-owned computer.

 

Why he's here: Because he was also a habitual (some might suggest addicted) Internet porn surfer -- using, of course, his city-owned computer, on city time.

 

Fun fact: He was also sued for failing to pay off his campaign debts.

 

Memorable quote:

 

"Everyone in the Republican Party can break the rules except me."

 

Suggested Bible reading for Mr. Wingate:

 

Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

 

-- Mark 7:22-23

 

 

End of Part 1

 

 

Stay tuned for Part 2:

Men and Women of the Cloth -- Dis-Robed!

 

 

Conservative Babylon, Part 1:
Sex and the Not-So-Single Republican
Thomas to Wingate 12:37:00 AM
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