GOP Vixen

Columns aplenty: China, Rambo, and Mitt and Mac

How can you resist that tease? Well, the schedule's been kinda busy the past few days, so before I go down for a long winter's nap here are the links to my latest:

• China's dirty pre-Olympic housecleaning, Pajamas Media: China dumps truckloads of garbage on own its citizens, and when one of them records the event on his cell phone, he’s beaten to death by municipal officers. Then his cell phone footage is deleted by the regime intent on airbrushing its repression in advance of the Olympics.
• California's new starring role in presidential primaries, Pajamas Media: By bumping up its primary from March to Super Tuesday, California is finally more than just a ATM for cash-hungry presidential candidates — and Golden Staters are getting excited about it.
• The U.N. can learn something from Rambo, L.A. Daily News: While basically ignoring the plight of the Burmese people, the Human Rights Council prefers to play political vendettas.
• Mitt and Mac trade barbs in California GOP debate, Pajamas Media: My first-hand report from the Reagan Library!

And as the press bus lumbered down the hill from the Reagan Library, at the first stop sign were half a dozen or so strapping young men yelling and waving Mitt Romney signs. "What are those, Mitt's sons?" I wondered aloud. "Are there five of them?"

Rudy endorses McCain

Liveblogging the Republican debate!

It's gonna be a good day, because I got the last space in the press parking lot! And the library also set up good wireless access -- yay! John McCain and Schwarzenegger are set to speak soon... endorsement?? Until then, let's break down the contents of the press gift bag:

• A useless collection of editorials from the L.A. Times
• A Politico pen and Politico/CNN reporters' notebook
• A box of Jelly Bellys and pen from the Reagan Library
• A tin of L.A. Times mints that vaguely resembles illegal drugs

                                                                                                  

McCain loves him some Daily News!

OK, I have to admit, this was kinda fun to stumble across: On John McCain's Web site, on the News and Media page, one of the three featured headlines in the "In the News" box, was "LA Daily News' Bridget Johnson: The Case for John McCain." At first I was just like, "Wow!" -- then I realized his campaign was probably eating up any GOP pundit who wasn't beating Mac Daddy over the head. Especially since, in my endorsement, I criticized other pundits for beating Mac over the head.

I'll be up at the Reagan Library for the debate later today, so look forward to some blogging from there (if, er, I can get a good wireless connection).

Huckabee responds to Mitt's KFC faux pas

Help Save an Afghan Journalist’s Life

It’s easy to just focus on campaign news this week, but a journalist in Afghanistan needs help. Sentenced to die for distributing to classmates — not even writing, mind you — an article that asked why, if Muslim men could have four wives, women didn’t have the same right. This, according to a mullah court in Mazar-e-Sharif, is blasphemy for which Sayed Perwiz Kambakhsh should die. Read more about the case and what you can do to help here.

The case for John McCain

Just in case you needed any inspiration as we head into the Florida primaries and toward Super Tuesday, this past Sunday was endorsement day at the L.A. Daily News. I penned the case for John McCain (whom the paper as a whole also endorsed) and other op-ed writers pitched other candidates -- including Dan, aka GayPatriotWest, aka Wordluf, endorsing Rudy Giuliani.

Also, for a chart on the back of the Viewpoint section, we had to name our dream team and what their campaign slogan would be. I picked McCain and Lieberman, with the slogan "Cojones over 'change'!"

For the scariest candidate, I had to pick Mitt. And in picking the candidate we'd most like to be stuck with on a desert island? Dennis Kucinich, of course, because the UFO could rescue us.

Also on the chart, Daily News editorial cartoonist Patrick O'Connor picked Bill Clinton as favorite candidate, Bill Clinton as his ideal running mate, Bill Clinton as the scariest candidate, and Bill Clinton as most likely to be the next president.

Nerd alert!

Wanting to seem like ordinary folk, Mitt Romney stopped into a KFC while on the campaign trail in Florida today and, as you see, ordered a combo (white meat, according to the AP, which is no surprise). Video caught Romney proceeding to peel the skin and precious breading off the fried chicken (if you want healthy, um, order the Tender Roast), then eat it with a knife and fork.

All I can say is he'd better steer clear of Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles campaigning in L.A., or he's bound to get jumped by a bunch of purists.

The AP's tongue-in-cheek lede: "Mitt Romney's body is a temple..."

Huck has Chuck, but McCain just got Rambo's endorsement

Revolting Westboro Baptist Church plans to picket Ledger's funeral

The hate-filled Westboro Baptist Church -- you know, that scruple-less group that stands outside soldiers' funerals with signs declaring that the deceased is in hell because America tolerates gays (I think that's the seven degrees of separation excuse, anyway) -- plans to protest Heath Ledger's funeral:

"Members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan., are trying to find out where the 28-year-old actor's funeral will be held and have already made signs to hold outside the Oscars that read 'God Hates Fags and Fag Enablers,' 'Heath in Hell' and 'Mourn for Your Sins,' Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of the church's controversial founder Pastor Fred Phelps, told ABCNEWS.com.

Though Ledger was not gay, the church believes he 'misused the giant megaphone given to him by God Almighty to speak the truth about fags,' Phelps-Roper said, and instead 'used his position of prominence to say God is a liar and that homosexuality is not an abomination.'"

Rumor has it the funeral will be held in Ledger's native Australia, so if the Westboros can figure out where that is in relation to Topeka, I hope they meet with a few well-aimed boomerangs.

More on Heath's death from our entertainment guru Greg Hernandez at Out in Hollywood...