Sure, these wingnuts look ridiculous to us "fake Americans", but they're heroes in the eyes of "real Americans" who create their own realities. Such truth-shifting works for the looney 40% of this country who love Palin.

For some reason, I imagine Keith Olberman to be reading that in G.O.B. Bluth's voice.

You're missing one key point: conservatives don't give a crap if their later denials prove them wrong. The master of "I never said that" even though he was on tape saying it is Dick Cheney. It works great for him, so it's unsurprising that other mad-dog conservatives try it.

In defense of Bachmann, she may not have realized what she was saying because she has a serious mental illness. That poor woman needs compassion and medical attention, not scorn.

I think you mean Michelle Bachman, not Rachel.

But yeah - you'd think they realize that if you say something in public, and you're a public figure, it's probably being recorded.

Of course, as the McCain example shows, even when they know they're being recorded they think they can make stuff up and people will buy it, so maybe it wouldn't help them.

But as they're finding out, good luck winning elections with 40% of the vote. So long may they rave.

Who you going to believe? Me or your lying eyes?

Seems like I've heard that somewhere before.

But Republicans don't care about looking ridiculous. All that matters is that they get the accusation out there. They know there is no follow-up to fear, certainly not anywhere "the base" will see it or hear it. The dumbing down of America has its dividends (for some).

How in the hell did American political discourse come to this?

Where do I purchase my "I'm an America-hating, god-hating Liberal" t-shirts?

There have been a number of studies that show that lies tend to re-enforce previously beliefs. More interesting though is the finding that conservative republican's belief in lies increases when the lie is discredited.
See the article by Shankar Vedantam of the Washington Post.

I would suggest that what Rep. Bachmann needs is a lobotomy but the evidence suggests that she's already had one.

The more mud Republicans sling, the more it gets on themselves. After the election, somebody should hand them a hose on their way out.

There's a name for this kind of incident: Macaca.

"Ideally, Republican officials would stop saying insane things."

Doesn't this clown even preface this comment by stating he needs to watch to make sure he says nothing improper? So he knew he needed to try to be less insane, but still could not get his mouth to comply.

If the media, particularly interviewers, would question these politicians aggressively about these lies until they conceded they were lying, we might actually be able to pull our political culture back toward accountability.

Shhhhhhhh! Don't listen to him, republicans! Tapes are a myth! Go on, say whatever you want - nobody will ever be able to prove it.

Sheesh, Steve - what are you thinking?

I've said this before, and I'm sure I'll say it again: Someone who does not understand how tape works is not fit to hold public office. I'm not referring to the polarization of iron oxide particles or anything technical. I'm referring to the simple fact that tape records and plays back.

Watching the video at MotherJones of David Corn talking to McCain supporters it is quite clear that the well has been poisoned and that the right will claim any job losses and struggles by the middle and lower classes will be the fault of a Barack Obama administration. There was someone shouting off camera that Obama is taking his job because of his tax cuts.

It's incredible that people actually believe this and it seems to be the direct result of the recreation of a perpetual underclass of low info voters who can be easily propogandized through the right wing echo chamber.

Dismantling this Hutu like echo chamber should be part and parcel of an Obama admin.

I recently re-read George Orwell's 1984, and I've come realize some of the parallels between the 2008 GOP and Oceania are pretty striking.

Doublespeak, for example, is clearly a favorite of the GOP. Keep two contradictory beliefs going at the same time and deny, deny, deny if those inconsistencies are mentioned.

Dang Matt W! You beat me to my "we have always been at war with Eurasia" snark.

I think you mean Michelle Bachman, not Rachel.

I think you mean Michele Bachmann, not Michelle Bachman.

You'd think what happened to George Allen might give these clowns pause, but no. Apparently their mindset is in the days before cameras, TV, radio...

To quote Adam Savage on Mythbusters: "I reject your reality and substitute my own".

Until this gets into the MSM in some direct way, they will continue to use lying and obfuscation(I think those are the same, but obfuscation sounds more elitist). There doesn't seem to be any downside to this. ACORN is another example.

peace, st john

Notice what the "Hate Talk Express" surrogates are doing now. They are speaking for liberals, stating that we "hate" real Americans. Meanwhile, republicans make no bones about who they detest. They proudly proclaim hatred of: liberals, democrats, minorities, Clintons, Muslims, "radicals", anti-gun people, non-Christians, the poor, the educated, elites, celebrities, immigrants, Frenchmen, Germans, Russians, Chinese, blacks who vote for blacks, gays, straights who accept gays, pro-choicers, atheists, Canadians, environmentalists, brown poeple, and on and on and on. They will actually tell you they hate these people. Amazing!

Meanwhile, at the Obama rally in Roanoke last Friday, I heard three people speak. And while I heard a few remarks that questioned Sarah Palin's fitness for the VP office, I did not hear a single reference to an "us versus them" culture. None at all. There were no statements that "republicans don't understand us" or "they're not like us."

The republicans seem to be creating so much hatred in their party that it's starting to point at each other. Look at how they've torn into Colin Powell, for God's sake.

With any luck, those non-hate-filled republicans [of which there are many] are seeing their party for what it really has become: a corporate stooge using fear and prejudice to keep America profitable for a very few. With any luck these folks will tire of the hate speech and the "us versus them" mentality. Maybe then they'll come over to our side. And when they do, they'll realize that liberals have always included them in our plans.

Republicans never let the truth bother them. Witness the dire predictions that preceded the first Clinton budget. The one that passed with no (zero) Republican support. We were going to head into recession. Probably all be selling apples and wearing nothing but a union suit and a sandwich board. Of course, the Republicans all promptly forgot their words. And the example of the prosperity that followed.

They're stupid, brazen liars. (No need to suggest that they're one or the other. They're both.)

If Republican officials stopped saying insane things they wouldn't be Republican officials.

Another flip-flop from John McCain, from Rep. John Lewis' website:

Sen. John McCain has said, "I've seen courage in action on many occasions. I can't say I've seen anyone possess more of it, and use it for any better purpose and to any greater effect, than John Lewis."

John Lewis' recent statement on the ugly rhetoric of the McPain campaign is an example of that courage and truth telling. But John McCain doesn't like being called on his lies and has misconstrued Lewis' words. Truly sad.

Ideally, Republican officials would stop saying insane things. But barring that, they may want to keep in mind that reporters keep tapes, and their denials end up looking pretty ridiculous later.

Yes, but you're assuming either they or their 'real' American" supporters care. If anything, playing a tape showing them saying the opposite of what they claimed they said only reinforces the notion that facts have a liberal bias.

Hayes: "liberals hate real Americans that work, and accomplish, and achieve, and believe in God"

My spouse and I are Americans, liberals, Christians, work hard, achieve and accomplish things. So we hate ourselves??? What???

It's very simple. As my Mom has told be time and time again.....A Lie has no Memory. Thanks Mom.

A Pew Research report indicated that, more than any other group, conservatives hold even more tightly to their beliefs when they are demonstrated to be false.

Not surprising for the Party choice of fundamentalists.

This seems to speak to two things:

1. The GOP's complete and utter failure to understand the Internet -- Back in 2000 (and, to some extent, 2004) they could say whatever the hell they wanted, and there wasn't a good way for people to check whether or not it was true.

We still relied on the media for fact checking, but the media had been beaten down by the GOP for so long that the GOP lies went unchallenged. Thus, Gore "said he invented the Internet" (he didn't) and that Bush was a "compassionate conservative" (who executed more than 150 people, including those with mental disabilities).

They have yet to figure out their words can be checked for accuracy in a matter of seconds.

2. They have repeated enough lies that, somehow, became truth -- Again, with the help of a compliant media, the GOP has spent nearly every second since 1994 repeating lies over and over and over again, without challenge. And it's much easier to get a lie into the news stream than it is to fish it back out again.

Thus, we still have a disturbing number of people who think Saddam ordered 9/11, Obama is a Muslim (1% even think he's Jewish for some reason), and that Al Gore said he invented the Internet.

Getting the lie out there is the ultimate goal, and they've been outstanding at it. Mostly thanks to a corporate media that is uninterested in holding political figures accountable for their words and actions, deciding maintaining access is more important (ask Joe Klein about that).

(It also explains why the media hates bloggers -- they had a good thing going, and now these pesky upstarts like Steven Benen are exposing their failings and lack of ethics. They hate that.)

Whether or not the GOP will ever learn is up for debate. But until the media calls them out EVERY SINGLE TIME they do this, I don't see them changing. Why would they?

The reason these Republicans don't remember what they say it's that it's their version of speaking in tongues. You never remember what you say when you have been speaking in tongues.

Braaaack! Yeek! Yeek! Gimmegimmegimme! Odododo!

See. I can do it too, but I never remember what I type.

Robin Hayes sounds really creepy. Kinda like some child molesting southern televangelist. Honestly, I didn't think anybody could dumb down political discourse more than Palin, but Hayes has done it. Congrats!

"Palin done gotter did" will be the rallying cry for every batshit crazy god loving liberal hater in the patriotic parts of the old U.S.of A.

Off the real problem with investigating Congress to find out who is anti-American and who is pro-American is that only an anti-American would deny being an anti-American. And only a pro-American would deny being a pro-American.

Further: it's anti-American to investigate your peers without probably cause. It's also anti-American to question the infallibility of George W Bush because he's the president of the United States. [It's also anti-troops.] I would assume this rule would apply to questioning Congressmen, inasmuch as they are equals to the president through checks and balances and must therefore be infallible.

So does suggesting that someone investigate Congress make Bachmann anti-American? Or was she already?

See, you all thought I was toast - that in the running debate about whether Bachmann or Steve King should get the top seed for Representative Most Likely to Howl at the Moon, my guy King was done.

But you all forgot one little thing. To be the looniest congressperson you have to be in Congress. After Nov. 4, Bachmann may not be eligible. Her opponent has raised $700,000 since Bachmann's rant. A Republican who lost to Bachmann in the primary has started a write in campaign. Her seat is now in serious doubt.

And Steve King will once again be the number 1 seed! Woohoo! (Ok, except for this new Robin Hayes person. . .)

Only un-real Americans (imaginary? artificial?) believe in silly things like documentation and evidence.

Well I don't hate the one's that work or the one's that achieve, it’s the one's that believe in "god" that he got spot on! Snaps Rep. Hayes!!

And Steve King will once again be the number 1 seed! Woohoo! (Ok, except for this new Robin Hayes person. . .)

You have to admit that for a while, Chris Cannon was giving your boy King a run for his money. Also that congresswoman from Ohio...what is her name...I can see her face...is this what getting old means?

Mean Jean Schmidt?

I wouldn't be surprised, Zeit, if Bill Sali starts giving King a run for the title, if Michele is disqualified. But I've never been sure if the title went to the looniest Member of the House, or on Congess in general, because if it is the latter, I'm still backing James Inhofe.

And don't forget Gov. Palin standing up and saying the Troopergate report totally exonerated her.