REACTIONARY PSEUDO-DEMOCRAT DAN BOREN USES FALSE GOP TALKING POINTS TO SMEAR BARACK OBAMA

Dan Boren courtesy of Photo Tune

There are very few Democrats who vote with the GOP as frequently as Oklahoma arch-reactionary Dan Boren, who calls himself a Democrat because his father was a popular Oklahoma Governor and Senator and the light-in-the-brains-department son did figure out that that being a Democratic politician-- even if in name only-- would be his meal ticket. Today Boren joined a small handful of extreme right Democrats who often join the GOP on substanbtive matters-- like Tim Mahoney of Florida-- in declaring he would not endorse Barack Obama. (The father, currently the president of the University of Oklahoma, has endorsed Senator Obama.)

Obama doesn't need Junior's endorsement and, in fact, being freed from having defend such a creature of the Bush staus quo will make it easier for Obama to campaign in Oklahoma. But what irks many Democrats is that Boren picked up on patently false Republican propaganda, calling Obama "the most liberal senator." Don't we wish he was! But, alas, it isn't even close. In 2004 Republican medi allies designed a score card that "proved" John Kerry was the most liberal; he wasn't either. This year, the same hacks designed a new scorecard to "prove" Obama is the most liberal. No matter which way you look at all the votes-- just tough substantive ones, all votes for the current session, all votes for his Senate career, Obama is a solid moderate. Looking at the Progressive Punch Chips Are Down ranking, Obama comes in as the 43rd most liberal senator out of 50 Democrats. His voting record is about halfway between moderate Republican Olympia Snowe and the other senator from Illinois, Dick Durbin. Obama ranks between conservatives Max Baucus and Blanche Lincoln. He never came close to Hillary Clinton, let alone real liberals like Frank Lautenberg, Sheldon Whitehouse, Sherrod Brown, Barbara Boxer and Bernie Sanders. His votes have more in common with moderates like Jon Tester and Claire McCaskill and with conservatives like Evan Bayh and Mark Pryor.

Of course, compared to Boren, any real Democrat would like like a liberal. On the same Chips Are Down rankingBoren, who votes far more to rubber stamp the worst of the Bush agenda than to join Democrats in opposing it, ranks a dismal 34.72 (out of 100). Only 5 reactionay Democrats-- Don Cazayoux (LA), Jim Marshall (GA), Nick Lampson (TX), John Barrow (GA) and Joe Donnelly (IN)-- have worse voting records. (And I should add that Cazayoux shouldn't even be considered a Democrat since he is adhering to the Bush line more religiously than more than a dozen Republicans!)

Boren is an anti-choice fanatic-- voting against women and with the religious right every single time-- and a vicious homophobe, even though his father is a bisexual. He has one of the worst records of any Democrat on the environment and is actually much worse on the environment than scores of Republicans. And I doubt it will surprise anyone that he has been one of the main Democratic supporters of Bush's Iraq agenda.

Right-wing bloggers have already picked up on Boren's slimy characterization of Senator Obama-- even the really lunatic fringe ones.


UPDATE: IS BOREN A RACIST?

Our pals at the Seminal point out that Boren endorsed Hillary-- and her voting record is more liberal than Obama's. So what's the problem for the representative from "Little Dixie?" Is it the color of Obama's skin? I wonder what Boren's dad thinks about the little turd he spawned.


UPDATE: BUT McCAIN'S WOES ARE WORSE WITH REPUBLICANS WHO SERVED WITH HIM IN CONGRESS AND KNOW EXACTLY HOW UNFIT HE IS TO LEAD THE COUNTRY

We've been writing about right-wing Dixiecrat shitheads and racists like Boren, Boyd and Mahoney who have refused to endorse Obama. McCain has a much more extensive problem with his party. Today's Hill emphasized that more than a dozen Republican members of Congress haven't endorsed McCain.

Republican members who have not endorsed or publicly backed McCain include Sens. Chuck Hagel (Neb.) and Jeff Sessions (Ala.) and Reps. Jones, Peterson, John Doolittle (Calif.), Randy Forbes (Va.), Wayne Gilchrest (Md.), Virgil Goode (Va.), Tim Murphy (Pa.), Ron Paul (Texas), Ted Poe (Texas), Todd Tiahrt (Kan.), Dave Weldon (Fla.) and Frank Wolf (Va.).

Throughout his career in the House and Senate, McCain has been at odds with his party on a range of issues, including campaign finance reform, earmarks, immigration, healthcare, taxes and energy.

Some Senate Republicans were especially irked with McCain’s role in the “Gang of 14” deal on judicial nominations.

Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.), who has been sharply critical of McCain on immigration, told The Hill in February, “I don’t like McCain. I don’t like him at all.”

Tancredo spokesman Mac Zimmerman said Tancredo won’t endorse McCain because he fears the senator would repudiate it like he did with the formal backing of controversial pastor John Hagee.

However, Tancredo told ABC News this week he will reluctantly vote for McCain.

... Jones, who has voted repeatedly with Democrats on Iraq, said he can’t back McCain until he gets “a better explanation of the plans for Iraq and more discussion on the economy.” Jones added that no one from McCain’s campaign has reached out to him.

And, unlike Ron Paul, at least Boren and his KKK allies aren't holding a competing convention.