Campaign donations, 'shady sources' and the lies of the left By Frank Salvato Many people will insist that the subject of the Democratic National Committee's attack ad – the one that takes pot-shots at Karl Rove, Ed Gillespie, the US Chamber of Commerce and the GOP in general – is a dead issue; that the moment in time to "slice and dice" this most egregious media hatchet job has come and gone. Nothing could be further from the truth and here's why: This attack ad by the DNC – and John Podesta, via the Center for American Progress – makes honesty an issue in this election cycle. Pardon me for saying so, but it is well past time that we expect honesty from not only our elected officials but from those running for office, those raising money for those running for office, the political parties – and their surrogates, and the media, the total of the media, both the new and the decrepit. We Americans have tolerated dishonest "spin" for decades and, quite honestly, we have only ourselves to blame. If we weren't buying it, they wouldn't be selling it. Case in point... The Democrat National Committee launched perhaps the most ridiculous political attack of this election cycle when they unveiled their campaign strategy of claiming that Republicans, via the US Chamber of Commerce, were the beneficiaries of foreign money for their midterm election campaigns. The strategy came complete with a commercial pathetically attempting to connect Karl Rove and Ed Gillespie – both no longer engaged in any active political campaigns for the Republican Party – to the GOP fundraising effort. Newsflash for the Progressive Left: No one is buying the "it's all Bush's fault" tactic. You would be wise to "MoveOn," no pun intended. Perhaps the most miscalculated element to this preposterously inept ploy is the accusation that Republicans are accepting foreign money via proxies to fund their midterm election campaigns. Honestly, the Democrats and Progressives have governed so poorly, so catastrophically, that if it weren't for the need for "face time" with the electorate in order to achieve a proper level of name recognition, Republicans wouldn't need to spend a dime. As Progressives and Liberals are known to do, they are telegraphing what they themselves do onto those they wish to attack. "What?" you ask. It's true. Progressives and Liberal Democrats always accuse their opposition of doing exactly what they are doing or of what they have done. For example, as Progressives and Liberal Democrats accused Republicans of taking money from the Chinese, the truth of the matter is that they have already engaged in that activity, and not too long ago. In 1996, Al "Global Warming Farce" Gore got his fingers caught in the Chinese and Korean fortune cookie jar. As reported in the Washington Post:
Another and more recent example comes in the form of foreign-money campaign contributions coming into the Obama campaign in 2008. As reported in Israel Today Magazine:
Ms. Geller went on to say:
Along with telegraphing their guilty deeds onto those they have targeted for smear, Progressives and Liberal Democrats routinely misrepresent legal and legitimate issues and entities, portraying them in an unfavorable light. For example, the recent attack ad states:
The US Chamber of Commerce website explains their mission statement, in part, as:
Now, let's take a look at the definition of "shill":
If the US Chamber of Commerce's primary purposes is to "represent the interests of more than 3 million businesses," how are they "shilling for big business"? The US Chamber of Commerce is supposed to support and advance all business, making the accusation that they "shill" patently absurd. Further, the Obama Administration has achieved a true Janus face where "big business" is concerned, having cozied-up to big business and even the US Chamber of Commerce – while flamboyantly engaging in intimate relations with labor unions at the same time – to achieve Obamacare, the bailouts and the stimulus. Yet, Progressives and Liberal Democrats can look the American people straight in the eye and say that the Obama Administration and congressional Democrats aren't in bed with big business. But perhaps the most egregious element to this assault on honesty is their contention that:
If the Republicans are "stealing the Democrats' democracy" we are witnessing the robbery of something that doesn't existent. In reality, what we are witnessing is the thieving of our American heritage – the rewriting of American history, and Progressives and Liberal Democrats are doing it right before our eyes and have been doing so for almost a century. It would be impossible for Republicans, the US Chamber of Commerce and the "Bush crowd" to "steal our democracy" because we don't live in a democracy, we live in a Republic...a Republic. Say the Pledge of Allegiance and pay attention:
But don't rely solely on the Pledge of Allegiance. Turn to our Founding Fathers: Benjamin Rush said of democracies:
James Madison, considered the Father of the Constitution said:
John Adams said:
And Dr. James McHenry, one of Maryland's delegates to the Constitutional Convention, wrote in his notes that at the close of the convention, as Benjamin Franklin emerged, a Mrs. Powell of Philadelphia queried, "Well, Doctor, what have we got – a Republic or a Monarchy?" Franklin replied, "A Republic, madam, if you can keep it." I take issue with the misguided notion that the United States of America is a "democracy" for very good cause. Simply put, a democracy does not preserve the rights of the minority and is, in fact, tantamount to mob rule (to learn more about the frailties of "democracy" and how it can lead to full-blown despotism I suggest you watch the video on this page). So, it would appear, Progressives and Liberal Democrats have a habitual problem with the truth, or at least with telling the truth. In election cycles past, this wouldn't have been an issue. James Carville and Paul Begala, and now David Axelrod, Valerie Jarrett and Robert Gibbs would have all been laughing it up, slapping themselves on the back in congratulations for the well-crafted rhetorical deception perpetrated on the American electorate. But, to paraphrase a line from the comedy 48 Hours: There's a new sheriff in town, and its name is the Tea Party. Here in the "Land of the Free," we in the Tea Party take issue with liars, thieves and cheats. Judging from this attack ad, it looks like Progressives and Liberal Democrats fit that bill. Note to the Obama team, the DNC and John Podesta over at Center for American Progress, the bona fide liars responsible for this cow manure of a political ad: The next time you plot to lie to the American people, let ACORN do it, at least they were fun to watch. Frank Salvato is the Executive Director and Director of Terrorism Research for BasicsProject.org a non-profit, non-partisan, 501(c)(3) research and education initiative. His writing has been recognized by the US House International Relations Committee and the Japan Center for Conflict Prevention. His organization, BasicsProject.org, partnered in producing the original national symposium series addressing the root causes of radical Islamist terrorism. He is a member of the International Analyst Network and has been a featured guest on al Jazeera's Listening Post. He also serves as the managing editor for The New Media Journal. Mr. Salvato has appeared on The O'Reilly Factor on FOX News Channel, and is a regular guest on talk radio including on The Captain's America Radio Show, nationally syndicated by the Phoenix Broadcasting Network and on NetTalkWorld Global Talk Radio catering to the US Armed Forces around the world. Mr. Salvato is also heard weekly on The Roth Show with Dr. Laurie Roth syndicated nationally on the USA Radio Network. His opinion-editorials have been published by The American Enterprise Institute, The Washington Times & Human Events and are syndicated nationally. He is a featured political writer for EducationNews.org and is occasionally quoted in The Federalist. Mr. Salvato is available for public speaking engagements. He can be contacted at contact@newmediajournal.us.
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