Hatch Follows Drudge Lead, Implies Alito Critics May Be Racist
Hatch Follows Drudge Lead, Implies Alito Critics May Be Racist
Earlier today on Fox News, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), a member of the Judiciary Committee, followed Matt Drudge’s lead and implied that opponents of Samuel Alito’s nomination may be motivated by Alito’s ethnicity. He warned senators “to be very careful here,” because a vote against Alito would be “held against them” by Italian-Americans:
[They] think they own the Italian-American vote all up and down the East Coast. They don’t, but they think they do. If they become offensive against somebody with the qualifications of Sam Alito, Judge Alito, then I think it’s going to be held against them. They’re going to have to be very careful how they handle this, and frankly what bothers me if 22 — in other words, half of the Democrats in the Senate — could vote against John Roberts, can you imagine what this nomination is going to be like? There’s no reason they should have voted against Roberts. And I think Alito’s going to be just fine but we’re all going to have to work really hard to make sure that’s so.
Conservatives could have picked any number of topics to distract Americans from the real issues of Alito’s nomination. This is among the most cynical and crass.
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Hatch is a whore. Just a GOP criminal with a voice in the U.S. Senate. Just a whore who never saw a f**k he could not pass up.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:13 pmALREADY having to play the race card?!
October 31st, 2005 at 12:17 pmInfuriating!! Here’s the subtle, racist message to Italian-Americans (including me): “Hey you stupid, swarthy wops, here’s the part where you taken over by your emotions, gesticulate wildly, and pressure politicians (with your guns)to support Alito. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to finish watching this episode of the Sopranos before my 7:00 dinner date at the Olive Garden with Strom Thurmond’s ghost.”
October 31st, 2005 at 12:18 pmThe good thing: they’re scared of the “Scalia” reference. Therefore, “Scalito” should be used at every opportunity. If challenged, we should ask why conservatives find comparisons to “Scalia” insulting.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:31 pmBtw, Italian is not a race. It is a cultural and national reference, not racial.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:32 pmThe GOP will kill to cover up it’s treasonous deeds.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:35 pmSpeaking of rudely abusing ethnicity, how come it’s OK for Republicans to go around saying “Gonzalez is jes’ Messican for Souter?”
October 31st, 2005 at 12:37 pmBushco has been very successful in their use of language to divert attention and it’s worked. One of the primary reasons the Democrats lost in 2004 is that they were unable to focus the debate on the issues such as bushco’s lack of performance in office. It worked then, so why change tactics now? It’s Rove’s favorite tactic. Accuse your opposition of something, anything – (remember the Swift Boaters?) and now the oppostion spends all it’s energy and time on denying the charges and not on what is really going on.
You can bet that the religious right will jump on board with a lot of TV time, this nominee fits their requirements so they will join the smear campaign in a big way. I’m certain we can expect a Catholic Bishop to eventually suggest that the church supports this candidate…..this will be nasty, but a nice diversion from Iraq and the little problem with the CIA leak.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:38 pm#1 – what Hatch said is not as bad as what you just said.
Cry liberals, cry. You’ve been had. Conservatives are back in full force and we are ready to detonate you filibuster so don’t even try it.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:39 pmFOLKS, YOU’RE DISAPPOINTING, IF NOT PREDICTABLE.
Now he’s got you jumping through your asses about Alioto (and really, who cares if Roe v Wade is overruled? It’s been so eviscerated by undemocratic measures, the so-called “right to chose” is meaningless to any woman who does NOT have the financial means to get an abortion. Not much difference between now and the 50s, except you can get a doctor to do it instead of some back alley hack) OVERRULING ROE would finally mobilize progressives in this country. Best case scenario: it would hasten the inevitable breakup of this bloated, dysfunctional union. DOWN WITH THE USA…LONG LIVE THE REPUBLIC!
LIBERTY REQUIRES VIGILANCE.
But, more to the point, don’t you see that this nomination is intended to (and judging from the fact that 100% of your stories today have been on this topic, apparently ENTIRELY SUCESSFULLY) catapult TREASONGATE from the news?
Can’t you guys walk and chew gum simultaneously?
Alioto may or may not be confirmed. Do you really think it matters at this point?
WOMEN who are willing to have their personal rights dictated by nine old withered men on Viagra have no business claiming ANY rights at all.
FREEDOM ISN’T FREE and you cannot vest your reliance on any single body to preserve your own liberty.
LIBERTY REQUIRES VIGILANCE.
And keeping your eye on the ball, which right now is definitely TREASONGATE.
As for the constitution? Take a hard look, sheeple.
The First Amendment is dead and gone. Protestors are shunted off into invisible “free speech zones” or illegally arrested.
The Second Amendment is dead and gone. Private guns for hire are confiscating guns lawfully owned by American citizens.
The Third Amendment is dead and gone. Militia, National Guard and members of armed forces can now enter and take over your home
The Fourth (freedom from unreasonable police action), Fifth (freedom from self-incrimination) and Sixth Amendments (right to counsel) are dead, killed by the “Patriot” Act and buried by complicit judges who will be rewarded with SCOTUS seats (Roberts got his nod by approving Chimpy’s Imperial Presidency and the Fourth Circuit is sure to lose one of its own to SCOTUS as a reward for the horrendous Padilla decision — one that rubber-stamps with approval an authoritarian regime modeled after Hitler’s Nazis, reich here in the U.S.of A.
The Seventh Amendment is well on its way to being dead and gone: The “tort” reform is guaranteed to keep poor victims of corporate crime out of court, which is slowly but surely being closed to all but rich white folk.
The Eighth Amendment against cruel and unusual punishment? Don’t make me laugh, this has been ritualistically ignored by prison overseers, fresh from their days as slave overseers, who make inflicting pain and misery a career…so much so, they have been engaged to do it all over at Gitmo and Abu Garaib…former U.S. policies against torture are now “quaint.”
The Ninth Amendment (preserving the soverignty of states)– BEING KILLED BEFORE YOUR VERY EYES. The topic of this latest GOP talking point. Denounce the local government and bambozzle the sheeple into giving up on it, finally approving a centralized “streamlined” government run of course by the incompetent sociopaths currently in charge.
The Tenth Amendment preserving the right of the people (HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA) You gave that up when you elected these criminals.
LIBERTY REQUIRES VIGILANCE and Amurrikka has been in a TVinduced coma for too long to start crying about Roe v Wade…We have MUCH MUCH bigger problems than that.
PRISON CAMPS IN AMERICA…GOOGLE IT.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:40 pmright up there with jaw-dropping cynical and crass, add alito’s viewing rosa parks lying in state at the capitol… every time i think the heights of cynical and crass have been reached, bushco and the r’s raise the bar…
also, the change-the-subject strategy is working, yet again… the national dialogue should be on cheney’s role and why he isn’t owning up to it and here we are, talking about bogus anti-italian sentiments and devoting countless key strokes to alito… good job, karl… glad to see you haven’t lost your touch…
http://www.takeitpersonally.blogspot.com/
October 31st, 2005 at 12:43 pm#9- NED if you’re ready to detonate the fillibuster, I would suspect that you want us fillibuster. Then you can rally the troops. Are you looking out for us with your snip “Don’t even try”? You’re such a benevolent person, NED. Thanks.
But seriously, with declining approval ratings and a majority of the country in favor of the right to limited abortions, I suspect this is another fight GWB will go do on.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:48 pmNED you are part of the murderous treasonous right. I don’t cry. I smash little pukes like you with my bare hands you soft scared piece of crap. Bush is done. He can’t go nuclear anymore than he can fly. You’re a goddamn sensationalist liar. I’d f*cking smash you to bits you leech.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:48 pmNED thinks this is all some bad action movie. Did you have your feelings hurt last week, little peepee?
October 31st, 2005 at 12:48 pmI can’t believe they let him be Senator.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:49 pmFor all of you who sat on the sidelines while the right-wing attacked Miers, and laughed thinking it was a good thing to watch the right canablize itself, here is what we get: ALITO!
October 31st, 2005 at 12:51 pmStupid Stupid democrats, NARAL should have been running a covert ad campaing proping this woman up. Miers = left, Alito = yr. 1829.
welcome to the dark ages people, we will all look back and kick ourselves for not supporting the Miers nomination more aggresively. She had ZERO democrats and 2 republicans supporting her in the Senate. Where was Boxer, does she think Alito is better than Miers???
Did you really think Bush would go with another moderate after the Coulter, Ins-Hannity, Rush nightmare?
I like mini-me Scalia. Come on hasn’t Hatch ever heard Scalia referred to as Nino
October 31st, 2005 at 12:54 pmor Thomas as Long Dong? Still why isn’t any one other than me questioning this MALE appointment. So there wasn’t any woman more qualified than Meirs or just as Alito? Back to kitchen for the lot of you all!
filibusters r us.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:56 pmThis is the fight Rove wanted to red herring the murderous treasonous Bush WH. Make it fast. Make it hard. Drive them out on all counts.
October 31st, 2005 at 12:59 pmBecome offensive to an Italian American? What are the Senators going to do, ask Alito where his organ and monkey are? The right, wanting us to live in the past.
October 31st, 2005 at 1:04 pmNortheast “Dull”emma, I wish you “conservatives” would get over this irrational fear of the filibuster. It’s a perfectly legal parliamentary procedure, and is often the only manner for any minority point of view to be given a full hearing. It’s utterly amazing that conservatives haven’t bothered to change some other rules, such as calling for a “simple majority” vote to overturn a presidential veto, rather than the required 2/3 majority. Perhaps, conservatives should call for a change to a simple majority vote to move a constitutional amendment to the states as well, instead of keeping that pesky 2/3 majority in both houses. Why is it that you people feel that filibustering is so much worse? The REPUBLICANS were actually the first to use the filibuster against a Supreme Court nominee (at a time when cloture required a full 2/3 of the Senate, rather than the current 3/5 of the Senate). That came in the late 60s when LBJ nominated Fortas.
October 31st, 2005 at 1:06 pmFrom an Italian American to Alito –
October 31st, 2005 at 1:11 pmDROP DEAD
This whole thing about racism is stupid.
October 31st, 2005 at 1:21 pmuh…. Italian-American here!!!
I will hold it against them IF THEY DO VOTE FOR HIM.
he should not be on the court, paesano or not. Remember, Mussolini was an Italian…..
October 31st, 2005 at 1:34 pmNeD,
October 31st, 2005 at 1:40 pmAll I can say is, “ooooo!”
This will end up being very interesting, and I think things may not turn out exactly as NeD dreams they will.
Time will tell. But we’re looking at an extremely weak White House and a very unpopular Right Wing. A lot can happen in an election year (when all of this will go down).
October 31st, 2005 at 1:42 pmNico, you moron!! Please tell me someone else writes your headlines for you!!! Italian as a different race?? Could’ve fooled Mr. Aphrodite and my brother-in-law, Chef Boyardee!! Well, our President DID say he would nominate a justice in the mold of Scalia – thank you GWB!!!!!! Cry, moan and wail libs!!!!!! I’ll hand you a bucket and a towel.
October 31st, 2005 at 1:44 pm#11 -
I question whether abortion would be favored by a majority of Americans, given the results of the last election. I would rather see it on a ballot than to have had a court make a decision that we all have to live with and some of us actually dying over.
October 31st, 2005 at 1:45 pmvote against Alito and you’ll be sleeping with the fishes, is that it?
stfu, Hatch! you’re an assault weapon-loving, cult-participating hypocrite…
October 31st, 2005 at 2:07 pmSo, let me get this straight:
The Republicans’ southern strategy is all fine and dandy, scaring up support amongst good, god-fearing white folks by making not-so-subtle and not-so-positive references to darker-skinned folks, and alluding to those bygone times before the civil rights movement as if they were something to strive for…but comparing two judges who share the same off-the-deep-end judicial philosophy, and who both happen to be of Italian descent–a group which suffers absolutely no discrimination in America today, except perhaps at the hands of some right-wing Republican anti-Catholic anglo-saxons who wouldn’t want Scalia and Alito playing at their country clubs–is racism.
Did I get that right?
October 31st, 2005 at 2:11 pmRandy,
October 31st, 2005 at 3:19 pmWhen was the last time you were pregenant? And, maybe while we’re at ti we should ban viagra and vasectomies.
RJ, seems like the right is beating the left at its own game — crying racism where none exists just to score a cheap political gain. How’s it feel?
October 31st, 2005 at 3:34 pmOh puhleaze… my last name is patrizi and the last thing that occurred to me was him being italian.. WhO GIVES A CRAP..
October 31st, 2005 at 3:36 pmI love this nomination! The Dems will Bork him and then Bush will hopefully send up Gonzalez, his little buddy, the guy he really wants on the court.
October 31st, 2005 at 3:50 pmThat ought to get the little freepers panties in a twist!
Senator Hatch, I think someone needs to hose you down.
October 31st, 2005 at 4:12 pmCynicon,
Almost. The right is crassly using cries of racism for blatant political gain, rather than actually addressing racism (which is, generally speaking, what the left tries to do). It’s typical of a right wing berift of any principle or morality besides defending party and power.
Glad I could clear that up for you. But really, you knew that already, didn’t you?
October 31st, 2005 at 4:12 pmAnd the ironic thing, cynicon, is that everyone knows it, so it’s not going to work to distract people from the issue of Scalito’s ideology and rulings. Too bad, so sad.
October 31st, 2005 at 4:13 pmAs an American of Italian descent, I can say that anyone who thinks Italians will hold it against someone who votes against Alito is thinking that old movie stereotypes still prevail. Place the left hand on the inside of the right elbow, then sharply raise the right arm with a closed fist in the air. Get the message?
October 31st, 2005 at 4:21 pmToday we find a nice piece of astroturf at drudge from A. Kenneth Ciongoli the Chairman of the National Italian American Foundation. After going to the NIAF wesbite I decided to look up Dr A. Kenneth Ciongoli at opensecrets. Lo and behold we find him to be a loyal Republican supporter:
CIONGOLI, A K DR BURLINGTON,VT 05401 SELF-EMPLOYED/DOCTOR 1/20/2004 $1,000 Bush, George W
CIONGOLI, ALFRED K MR BURLINGTON,VT 05401 SELF-EMPLOYED/PHYSICIAN 5/17/2004 $1,000 Republican National Cmte
CIONGOLI, BARBARA BURLINGTON,VT 05401 10/14/2002 $800 Vermont Repub Federal Elections Cmte
CIONGOLI, KENNETH NORTH BURLINGTON,VT 05401 SELF EMPLOYED/NEUROLOGIST 6/25/2004 $1,000 Cafaro, Capri
CIONGOLI, KENNETH A BURLINGTON,VT 05401 10/14/2002 $800 Vermont Repub Federal Elections Cmt
http://www.opensecrets.org/indiv…t2002=Y&Order=N
===========
http://www.drudgereport.com/flash9ia.htm
Update: National Italian American Foundation Demands “Scalito” Apology
Mon Oct 31 2005 15:56:42 ET
National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) Statement:
The NIAF is distressed by the attempts of some senators and the media (CNN, CBS) to marginalize Judge Samuel Alito’s outstanding record, by frequent reference to his Italian heritage and by the use of the nickname, “Scalito.”
Appropriately, no one mentioned that Justice Breyer was Jewish or suggested that he was lock-step ideologically with the other Jewish Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, it would have been outrageous to do so. We still do not know Justice Robert’s ethnicity.
We are justly proud of Justice Alito’s Italian heritage and his sterling academic and judicial records as well as his impeccable integrity. However, he should be considered as an individual. In honor of the memory of the just departed Rosa Parks the Senate champions of civil rights should insist that Judge Alito be considered only on his extraordinary merits.
Sincerely,
A. Kenneth Ciongoli
Chairman of the National Italian American Foundation
==================
http://www.niaf.org/about/ board_…rs.asp#ciongoli
…
Dr. Ciongoli is a board certified neurologist. Currently, he is President of the Neurological Associates of Vermont and Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology at the University of Vermont College of Medicine (UVM).
…
Dr. Ciongoli is founding member of the Vermont Italian Colonial Association (VICA), a member of The Mutuo Soccorso, The oldest Italian American organization in Vermont and a past member of the Board of Governors of the Ethan Allen Club, the oldest continuous club in North America.
October 31st, 2005 at 4:23 pm[...] It’s interesting to me that the cons have reacted to their movement’s inability to move much beyond its base of white, christian, males the way they have. Time and time again when they put up non-whites for government positions, their first reaction isn’t to defend the nominee by his or her merits, rather they seek the nominees race or ethnicity as a cover to use. Right now the talking points on Alito are out, and they tell the con defenders to say that Democratic opposition to him is because he’s Italian and a descendant of immigrants (of course, most of us Americans are the descendants of immigrants, aren’t we?). Opposition to Condoleeza Rice was “because she’s black”, not because she’s the National Security Advisor who ignored the Al Qaeda threat. Opposition to Janice Rogers Brown was “because she’s black” not because her right-wing beliefs are extrajudicial and outside of the mainstream. Opposition to Alberto Gonazales was not because he approved torture and disapproved of the Geneva conventions, but “because he’s Hispanic”. [...]
October 31st, 2005 at 4:26 pmHatch is a lying, boot licking idiot. He lied and lied and lied about he voted to put thru everyone of Clintons nominees.
The truth, he kept most of them in committee and they never saw the light of day.
The man cannot even be true to his own religion. He is a closet alcoholic which they call up in Utah a “Jack Mormon”.
October 31st, 2005 at 4:27 pmThis has Rove written all over it. Whipping up a false controversy, getting “real Italian Americans” to claim to be upset, even (now) circulating fake memos with racist crap on them supposedly from the DNC.
Pure, classic Rovian sludge. And the thrice-damned media never, ever learns.
October 31st, 2005 at 4:52 pmFunny that everyone immediately jumps on this as some kind of conservative over-reaction and no one mentioned anything about the alleged “talking points” memo Chris Matthews was discussing earlier in the day (except to immediately go to the paranoid notion of it OF COURSE being a plant), stating:
“I’m sitting here holding in my hands a disgusting document, put out not for attribution. But it come from the Democrats, they are circulating it, I can say that. It’s a complaint sheet against judge Alito’s nomination. The first thing they nail about this Italian-American is he failed to win a mob conviction in 1988. they nail him on not putting Italian mobsters in jail. Why would they bring this up this ethnically-charged issue?”
Real nice.
October 31st, 2005 at 5:22 pmLaw.com ran a story in March 2003 about Alito and his nickname:
There’s a nickname for federal appeals Judge Samuel Alito Jr. that captures two things at once — his particular brand of legal conservatism and a recognition that his credentials are strong enough to put him on any Republican president’s short-list for the U.S. Supreme Court.
Some lawyers call the judge “Scalito.”
Roughly translated, the nickname means “Little Scalia,” suggesting that Alito, a judge on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, has modeled himself after Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
[...]
In some ways, the Scalito moniker hits the mark. In his 13 years on the 3rd Circuit, Alito has earned his stripes as a strong and intelligent voice on the growing conservative wing of a court once considered among the country’s most liberal.
As with Scalia, lawyers say that Alito’s vote is easy to predict in highly charged cases.
But where the nickname misses is temperament, or what some might call personality. Personality-wise, on the bench and in person, Alito is no Scalia.
Though he’s a frequent dissenter and not at all afraid to disagree with his colleagues, Alito’s opinions are usually devoid of passion. And his tone during oral arguments is probing but always polite.
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1046288236052
Hatch is a tool.
October 31st, 2005 at 6:22 pmItalians do not think that way. Italian = American. Not a special interest group. Not “race” driven. They’re barking up the wrong tree with that line of fire. They have got to be kidding.
October 31st, 2005 at 7:09 pmMy aren’t we inside out, upside down and backward. Some D’s make some really crass, really stupid remarks relating to the nominees ethnicity. Then get taken to the woodshed for it by his supporters. And people here are giving the people who made the remarks a pass and cynically attacking the people who called the crass bastards on their BS. Uh huh. Got it.
Has everyone completely lost his or her damn mind?
Reality check people – If you’ve allowed yourself to become so reactionary that even when your political opponents are doing the right thing you have to attack them. Then you’re no longer engaged politically. Is become pathological for you and you need to step back and check yourself. There’s another word for that kind of absolutism. Its called fundamentalism. And just because its not made manifest in a religious context doesn’t make it any less repellant.
October 31st, 2005 at 7:20 pmWould you hold that against me.
October 31st, 2005 at 7:40 pmChris Matthews on MSNBC. Offensive race-baiting from the DNC.
MATTHEWS: I don’t know. I think the democrats, i’m sitting here holding in my hands a disgusting document, put out not for at try bution. the democrats are circulating it. it’s a complaint sheet against judge alito’s nomination. the first thing they nail is he failed to win a mob conviction in 1988. they nail him on not putting italian mobsters in jail. why would they bring this up? this is either a very bad coincidence or very bad politics. either way it will hurt them. this document, not abortion rights, not civil rights but that he failed to nail some mobsters in 1988. this is the top of their list. amazingly bad politics. .
HOST: why not attack him if you are a liberal, why not openly say we fear for abortion rights?
MATTHEWS: i have to ask that. why did they put this document out. this will hurt the democrats. they shouldn’t go after ethnicity. as a prosecutor, a judge, a yale law grad. i don’t understand this kind of politics. unless they have someone who nut on the top of 20 items. the guy being than i talian american not nail a conviction in 17 years ago? interesting.
October 31st, 2005 at 8:09 pm“…i don’t understand this kind of politics.” Matthews
Yah right. I think Matthews was holding his dick in his hands.
October 31st, 2005 at 8:12 pmThe first thing I thought about when I heard Alito was Pres. Bush’s nominee was he is Italian. Don’t blame me I am from NYC- and being proud of one’s ethnicity was par for the course growing up. But that really does not matter because I want the best person for the job, Italian-American or not, female or not. I am a conservative and the more I hear about him the more I like. Not everything he has done is perfect but who is a perfect nominee? There are a lot of angry people at this site. Folks, cool down. We are all Americans. If Alito gets in, that will be good. The fact that he is Italian-American, that is even better. I do not get upset over “racist” comments about Italians. They’re stupid and I am better than that, kind of superior to these people. Btw, I like Bush- he is a good man going through some rough patches- he will get through cause he is a good, honest man. We think alike. Amie
October 31st, 2005 at 8:28 pmFirst guy to say “Scalito” – see link.
October 31st, 2005 at 8:52 pmhttp://www.musementpark.blogspot.com/
So, I suppose that anyone who criticizes hatch is anti-mormon?
October 31st, 2005 at 9:19 pmArnie
October 31st, 2005 at 9:20 pmYou are right! Bush is a good man. He’s just done some stupid things. But haven’t we all. Yeah I know kids are dead. But that’s life, you know. Jeez. I mean come on. Somebody’s gotta die sometime.
I agree with dago – I mean come on, everybody can’t live forever
And look – see those mothers got a new house cause her son died in Iraq – that’s good no?
It’s not all bad. You progressives always got to see the bad, you can’t see the good that comes out of war and death
October 31st, 2005 at 9:24 pm#40
I have no evidence that Hatch is an alcholic himself, but the following tidbit from the deseret news is of interest:
Wine, beer, liquor cash flows into Hatch coffers
By Lee Davidson
Deseret Morning News
Sen. Orrin Hatch, a former LDS bishop who does not drink, has taken more money from wine, beer and liquor groups this year than any other congressional candidate.
The alcohol interests gave him $25,000. Rep. Mike Thompson, R-Calif., whose district is in California’s wine country, is second with $21,568.
That is not all. Hatch, R-Utah, who follows his LDS faith’s admonition against smoking, took the fifth-most money this year among all congressional candidates from tobacco interests.
Hatch, who says he also opposes gambling, as does his LDS faith, took the 15th most among Senate candidates this year from gambling interests.
October 31st, 2005 at 9:26 pmMy mother was born in Italy. Italian Americans all know that ethnic slurs and even racism (Italians were considered an undesirable “dark” race well into the twentieth century)have been plentiful in the past and are alive now. What others regard as funny references to identifying Italians with the Mafia, are not funny at all to many of us.
That history and reality is why I am one of those Italian Americans reacting strongly against the cynical ploy of trying to falsely claim racism to toxify criticism of a dangerously far right Supreme Court nominee. That Scalia and Alito are Italian American is as much as source of shame to me as Clarence Thomas is to many if not most African Americans. Alito must be opposed and defeated.
October 31st, 2005 at 9:31 pmThis racist thing is a red herring. Being anti-Italian would not be considered racist because Italians are not a race unto themselves. Similar court claims have been dismissed on just those grounds.
There is no race bearing in this matter and “Grunge” is just spewing the Rovian talk points.
Hunter of The Daily Kos is quite thorough on this matter. Read for yourself:
October 31st, 2005 at 9:44 pmhttp://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/10/31/193154/76
Tom Z
As long as Hunter of the Daily Kos is thorough then I’m convinced
Italians are not a race so slurs against them are not racist
Good – so the use of the term Dago presents no problem
EXCELLENT
October 31st, 2005 at 9:50 pmThere should be a corollary to Godwin’s Law — whichever side calls the other side a racist name automatically loses. In this case, this side happens to be us.
October 31st, 2005 at 10:21 pmAfrican-American, Irish-American, Italian-American, Scottish-American or Polish-American.
You are all AMERICANS. As we have witnessed when an Australian TV show, fooled some Texans into sticking pins onto a map of the world, of which countries America should invade next. They were sticking them on Australia, believing them to be Iraq or North & South Korea. Granted Australia was labelled as such, but please, not having a general idea where these countries are situated.
Iraq borders Iran, let’s see who are America occupying at the moment in time. And America was at war with the North Koreans only fifty years ago. Don’t these dumb-ass Americans learn anything in school, like World History and Geography?
I had to laugh when one person, stated that he couldn’t believe that South Korea was so much smaller than North Korea, on the map. It was Tasmania and Australia he was looking at, on the map. Tasmania is an island, off the south coast of Australia.
My Grand-Father was French, I don’t say I’m French-British, I’m not, I’m British. I’m very proud of my heritage, and I have a lot of family members who are French. But I was born and raised in England, and I am therefore British.
Think of yourselves as AMERICANS, and don’t let George W. Bush and his government, separate you and categorise you. So that they can garner votes from you, based on your ethnicity.
October 31st, 2005 at 11:07 pmYep, my man is italian and I love every inch of him.
Alito is a neocon scumbag and doesn’t deserve the recognition of being italian. I bet he’s a cross dresser though.
November 1st, 2005 at 2:06 amImplying racism is clearly ridiculous.
Implying religious bigotry would be a much easier sell.
Seriously what is the game here ? That you really needed to look for quotes in the media to find out if the devout Catholic who has been nominated has certain views on abortion ?
This is like Indians digging into the background of Hindus to see if they’ve made any prejudicial comments about the beef industry. Just cut to the chase already and if you want an atheist say you won’t be happy with anyone but an atheist. Then be unhappy.
Or if you don’t like religious influence over your one-nation-under-god in-god-we-trust society then move. FFS though stop acting so suprised and outraged. It only serves to make you look gullible.
November 1st, 2005 at 2:34 amChris Matthews calls the Democrats “disgusting”.
“I don’t know. I think the democrats, i’m sitting here holding in my hands a disgusting document, put out not for attribution. The democrats are circulating it. It’s a complaint sheet against judge alito’s nomination. The first thing they nail is he failed to win a mob conviction in 1988. They nail him on not putting italian mobsters in jail. Why would they bring this up? This is either a very bad coincidence or very bad politics. Either way it will hurt them. This document, not abortion rights, not civil rights but that he failed to nail some mobsters in 1988. This is the top of their list. Amazingly bad politics.”
http://www.shadowtv.com/redirect/notification.jsp?vid=31bb95519fffc352aedbff0b92d14722
November 1st, 2005 at 11:24 amOrrin Hatch wasted no time in his attempt to tar anyone for disagreeing with Bush’s next nominee for the Supreme Court, Sam Alito. Hatch, already playing the race card, “warned senators “to be very careful here,†because a vote against Alito would be “held against them†by Italian-Americans.
Hatch planted the inflammatory rhetoric early and will now count on the Bush ministry of state sponsored news, Fox News Network and the mainstream media to advance their attacks on Democrats and others who oppose Alito, regardless on what grounds. As to the Italian-American population nationwide Hatch must presume that all of them support Alito, not because he’s qualified, but because he’s Italian-American. What an insult to them!
It’s especially hypocritical because Orrin Hatch’s lily-white state of Utah which has less than 1% black population gave Bush a bigger margin of victory than any state north of the Mason-Dixon Line.
Utah, without question, has one of the largest collective population of racists in the country and for Orrin Hatch to begin playing the race card this early was predictable. It is a strategy to get the heat off of the corrupt and traitorous acts Bush has committed since the Iraq preemptive war was launched and after his disastrous Harriet Miers debacle.
With the treasonous Karl Rove still in charge of “catapulting the propaganda”, of course, dividing the country and stirring up their Screech Radio hatemongers with yet more lies and deceit represents the entire unprincipled, corrupt, corrosive Republican Party.
Orrin Hatch is simply one of the messengers of their divide and conquer Right Wing ideologues who will sit on the Senate Judiciary Committee where yet another rubber stamp Supreme Court nominee will be confirmed.
November 1st, 2005 at 12:07 pm“Alito is a neocon scumbag and doesn’t deserve the recognition of being italian. I bet he’s a cross dresser though.”
A Liberal blogger using the name “Dago Scalito”, screams that Republicans are being racist…. If the nominee was black – would your blog-handle contain the “N”-word?
This is what the left has to offer….nice….Keep it up.
November 1st, 2005 at 3:07 pmAfter reading all these comments, it’s apparent that most individuals on this board choose to resort in name calling instead of intelligently discussing the issue.
If you have a problem with Alito, why not logically outline what those problems are, then try to persuade others to your side. If your arguments are valid points of concern (without resulting in personal insults), then most people will take you seriously. If not, then you should shut up.
November 1st, 2005 at 5:44 pm-60 “Yep, my man is italian and I love every inch of him.
November 1st, 2005 at 7:00 pmAlito is a neocon scumbag and doesn’t deserve the recognition of being italian. I bet he’s a cross dresser though.” Comment by Susan
Susan, that’s ALOT to love!!!!! And since YOU ALWAYS seem to denigrate people with perversions – grab a mirror – You really should do something with your mustache. Ick!!!
“And since YOU ALWAYS seem to denigrate people with perversions – grab a mirror – You really should do something with your mustache. Ick!!!
Comment by MightyHermaphrodite eg. LimbaughInLipstick”
Ironic coming from you. We all know you have more facial hair than your husband. Your ‘gender confusion’ would explain your acting out – that’s for sure.
November 1st, 2005 at 9:14 pmI always find it ironic how the incredibly classist and racist republicans can trash america’s poor and minorities while accusing others of racism. It’s a clear sign of their persecution pathology and their schizophrenia. Republicans need medication, not political power.
November 1st, 2005 at 9:15 pmI find it incredible the amount of partisan politics which is promoted here considering just how poorly that’s served them to date.
November 1st, 2005 at 11:23 pmYeah stick with that kids. See if you can alienate yourself more from the majority of Americans who vote Republican when McCain is running next time against anyone. Then all act suprised when you get the same result.
[...] One of the more ridiculous things I’ve seen lately, conservatives claiming that liberals oppose Bush’s new Supreme Court nominee because they’re racist against Italians. [...]
November 2nd, 2005 at 12:25 amHatch is just another Republicans who has embraced prejudice to gain political support (Gays, liberal, blacks, the french, ect…)
November 2nd, 2005 at 1:45 pmMaking fun of Ryan is just anti-moron…..(Sorry Ryan, I couldn’t resist a gratuitous nudge, you know I appreciate you and always will….)
November 8th, 2005 at 12:53 am“the majority of Americans who vote Republican.”
Looks like the idiots who were suckered by Bush are finally waking up. And the 51% percent who allegedly voted for the smirking chimp hardly constitute a mandate for his disastrous policies.
By the way, I’m Italian American and I’m against “Scalito.” These so-called Italian American organizations are a joke. They speak only for themselves, i.e., corporate fatcats and other privileged types. They obsess about imagined insults (”Scalito”) and whine like babies about The Sopranos but they’re almost all Republicans who support far worse things than TV shows about fictional gangsters. Vaffanculo to them anf to Alito.
November 16th, 2005 at 12:00 pmAHAHAHAH!!! It is definetely true… all Americans are a bunch of true idiots!!!!!
October 5th, 2006 at 2:47 pm