The Latest Stupid Thing Paula Deen Said

This would be number…..

Paula Deen just needs to go away–she continues to be a national embarrassment.  There is no way Deen can compare herself to the struggles of the gay community.

Paula Deen’s $100 million empire crumbled last year after she admitted to using a racial slur in her everyday life, and as she continues campaigning to repair her public image with a $75 million investment deal on her side, the celebrity chef has compared her struggles to those of the NFL’s first openly gay prospect, Michael Sam.

“I feel like ‘embattled’ or ‘disgraced’ will always follow my name. It’s like that black football player who recently came out,” Deen said in a People Magazine cover story, which hits newsstands on Friday. “He said, ‘I just want to be known as a football player. I don’t want to be known as a gay football player.’ I know exactly what he’s saying.”

 

How Are Governor Scott Walker And Governor Chris Christie Alike?

Openness and transparency are something that people want from their elected officials.  Given the degree people are drawn to social media, and the frankness that so many of them express on almost every topic imaginable, it then seems odd to hear office-holders when caught in political scandal dodge and deflect questions that the public want answered.

Yet that continues to be the modus operandi when it comes to the two biggest legal dramas playing out among Republicans.

In New Jersey beleaguered Governor Chris Christie has let it be known that he is not “going to give into the hysteria” or “speculate on things I don’t know about”.  In others words he is no longer going to respond to the questions that need to be answered about not only the lane closings on the busiest bridge in the nation, but also on the tentacles of that story which reach into the very way his office operates.

Meanwhile back in the Midwest where politicians are to be more ‘one with the people’ than the brusque nature of New Jersey pols the same level of short-changing the inquiring minds of the citizery can be found.

Governor Scott Walker has taken the same approach as Christie, and stated he is not going to comment on the past actions of his office while serving as Milwaukee County Executive.  If Walker can not square with the public how his political operation ran counter to the law and ethics while in Milwaukee how are the voters to have any faith that his office in the statehouse operates any differently?    Until Walker honestly confronts the truth as shown by the documents from the John Doe probe how can citizens believe that he has learned any lessons going forward?

The questions will not go away for either governor.  They will be asked over and over until the issues are resolved with a frank and honest answer.

The longer until such answers are provided the more of a toll it takes on the political veneer each of these men have tried to cultivate.   They may not care about the right of the voters to know the truth, but in the end the truth will come out one way or another.  The only question then is how much credibility will Christie and Walker have remaining.  And what will it then be worth?

The Heat Is Turned Up On Racine Mayor John Dickert, Accused Of Racketeering In Lawsuit

It may be frigid outside but I suspect the temperature is rising fast in the corridors of Racine City Hall.

The complaint filed by the owners of six former Racine bars alleges that Mayor John Dickert, and more than a dozen current and former officials, engaged in a concerted effort to close minority bars, depriving the bar owners of their civil rights.

In its 50 pages, the lawsuit alleges an elaborate plot to pull licenses from minority-owned bars, accusing Dickert of accepting illegal campaign contributions from members of the mostly white Racine City Tavern League, then conspiring with the Public Safety and Licensing Committee, the Downtown Business Improvement District, and Racine Police Department officials to “prevent minority bar owners from obtaining and/or maintaining their liquor licenses.”

The effort, according to the lawsuit, ensured that white bar owners kept their liquor licenses, protecting them from the alleged excessive police and committee scrutiny experienced by minority bar owners, and giving them access to the limited number of liquor licenses available in Racine.

Such targeting of minority-owned establishments and their minority patrons constituted “a pattern and practice of discriminatory treatment on the basis of race” depriving the plaintiffs of their right to equal protection under the law, as well as their right to equal privileges and immunities, the lawsuit claims.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer Has Vetoed Anti-Gay Bill

Arizona  Gov. Jan Brewer has vetoed the anti-gay bill.   We fought it, and won!

Why it took so long to do the correct thing is a mystery to those with any common sense and political courage.  There was never a time she was going to sign this once corporations started threatening Arizona’s economy.  You can always count on a Republican to think with their wallet.  And that is a battleground so easy to fight them on with many issues.  I wish, however, Brewer would have been driven by moral convictions when it came to this bill, and would have been able to stand with those who fight for gay civil rights.

But in the end this bill was vetoed and that is the most important thing.

Governor Jan Brewer To Speak Tonight (7:45 E.T.) On Anti-Gay Bill AWaiting Her Signature Or Veto

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer’s office says she will speak at 7:45 PM ET about a bill allowing businesses that assert their religious beliefs the right to deny service to gay and lesbian customers.

More later this evening on Caffeinated Politics.

Powerful Wisconsin Lawyer Daniel Rottier Charged With Caning Wife

Not sure this PR is as effective as television commercials for the law firm.

Daniel Rottier, the president of Wisconsin personal injury law firm Habush, Habush & Rottier, is facing criminal misdemeanor charges related to a domestic violence incident in early February.

According to a Dane County criminal complaint:

Police in Maple Bluff were dispatched to Rottier’s lakefront home on the evening of Feb. 7 for a report of a disturbance between a man and a woman.

Rottier’s wife, Frankie, told police her husband was supposed to take their children to the movies but came home about 7:30 p.m. and had been drinking. She admitted being angry that he was no longer going to take the children to the movies and confronted him about being drunk.

Rottier then drew back his cane. His wife said she turned away, and was struck across her back. Officers observed a red welt, about an inch wide and seven inches long, from her shoulder blade to her spine. Emergency medical staff arrived and treated Frankie Rottier, but she declined transport to a hospital.

Rottier, 62, was arrested and taken to the Dane County Jail, where a preliminary breath test indicated a blood alcohol level  of 0.13.

Federal Judge Strikes Down Texas’ Ban On Same-Sex Marriage

And now Texas!

A federal judge has struck down Texas’ ban on same-sex marriage, but is leaving it in place pending a ruling by an appeals court later this year.  That is the procedure as with many other states, and lets note that appeals courts are not over-turning the rulings.  “Texas’ current marriage laws deny homosexual couples the right to marry, and in doing so, demean their dignity for no legitimate reason,” wrote the judge, Orlando Garcia of U.S. District Court in San Antonio.

Why Is Former Congressman Joe Walsh So Angry? Are Gay People “Constitutional Terrorists”?

We now have a better understanding why the words ‘former congressman’ are placed before his name.

I think former Illinois congressman Joe Walsh has shaky radio ratings and needs some PR to drive his name.  There is no other logical reason one can find for the antics he pulled.   Walsh compared the LGBT community to “constitutional terrorists” on Twitter.

I am fine with giving folks like Walsh some ‘air time’ on my blog as it underscores the level of crazy that exists among the haters and bigots.

Walsh was commenting on Bill SB1062 in Arizona, a bill that would allow businesses to deny services to gay and lesbian individuals while citing religious beliefs. The bill has passed the state legislature, but calls for Gov. Jan Brewer to veto the bill have been loud and fierce. In the world of incensed sound bytes and inflammatory rhetoric, this is seen as anti-constitutional bullying.

Walsh didn’t limit his comments to labeling the LGBT community terrorists. He went on to say he was being “force[d] to respect” people and something about blowing up freedom.

His tweets are just absurd.