TAKE A PEEK INTO A MIND RAVAGED BY RIGHT-WING EXTREMISM, ONE THAT WANTS TO BE IN CONGRESS: HOWARD KALOOGIAN, A TRUE FANATIC

I have to admit that I don't listen to their radio shows or watch their TV farces and I don't go see their standup comedians (like Ann Coulter or Michelle Malkin) or read their newspapers or magazines. I've always read widely in history and I've seen quite enough of what the far right inevitably does, to waste time marveling at their vicious lies and self-deluding nincompoopery. I'm not even curious about their twisted and demented delusions. That said, this evening a friend of mine-- knowing how strongly I feel about Francine Busby, the progressive good-government candidate who's running for Congress down in San Diego-- sent me an advert taken out by one of her wackier opponents in the Washington DC's "Moonie Times." I've written about this guy before, a sleazy street fighter named Howard Kaloogian but the ad has to be seen to be believed.

Basically the ad is a call to arms among the looniest of the far right crazies. If you ever wonder how they think and how they twist up reality, here's a chance. I guess if you already watch Fox and listen to Limbaugh and go to their fake political churches you already know. But for me it was fascinating. Keep in mind this is the district formerly represented by another far right maniac, Randy "Duke" Cunningham who recently resigned in disgrace after admitting to being part of a gigantic bribery operation which netted him millions of dollars. Although he has plead guilty and is cooperating with Federal prosecutors against other Republican crooks, Kaloogian only mentions Cunningham resigned and is ominously quiet about the issues involving reform and cleaning up government that have propelled Busby to a lead in the polls in this once safe red district.

But where it gets really funny is when Kaloogian, somewhat well-known as a lowlife smear artist (even among Republicans), tries to insinuate that Busby is involved with a "violent contingent of anti-war protesters" and that she's taken some kind of secret vow to impeach Bush. And there's a real culture clash here. His ad prominently features Bush, whose approval ratings are back below 40%, and tries tarring Busby with some kind of "guilt by association" with people and organizations admired by people who don't populate the wild fringes of right-wing extremism: Air America, MoveOn.org, Cindy Sheehan, Howard Dean, President Clinton... It's almost as though Busby could run much of the same ad for herself!

Oddly, Kaloogian also denounces budget deficits, a very strange thing for a Republican to run on, considering who has controlled both houses of Congress and the Presidency while the worst deficits in our nation's history were run up (right after a Democratic Administration had turned Republican deficits into a huge surplus and economic prosperity). His list of backers is pretty wild too. I mean if this list of crazies and psychopaths doesn't motivate Busby's supporters to get out and vote, nothing will!


THURSDAY MORNING UPDATE: MONEY

The Art Department is always chastising me for not reminding everyone about our ACT BLUE Page for Busby. It's a great and easy way to make a donation to a victory against a one-party state and towards a good-government candidate who will make a real difference in Washington. Even $10 or $20 will help Busby maintain the financial advantage she needs to stay competitive in this formerly-red-trending-purple Southern California district. (If you need a little impetus to dig deep, look at that Kaloogian ad again and think of an America like that!