Tuesday, November 08, 2005

GOP Source Code For Winning Elections Revealed

A memo written by a former top staffer for House Majority Leader In-Exile Tom DeLay lays bare the strategy of the Republican Party to use divisive wedge issues for political gain. The memo in question was written by Michael Scanlon, at the time a lobbying partner with the now-indicted GOP lobbyist Jack Abramoff, and it described the GOP strategy for assisting a Louisiana Indiana tribe in gaining voter approval for a controversial gaming referendum by using the Christian right or the “wackos” as he refers to them. Abramoff and Scanlon are both under investigation for their role in bilking several Indian tribes out of tens of millions of dollars over a several year period with unfulfilled promises of tribal gaming from the pair.

As Salon.com writes, “[i]n plain terms, Scanlon confessed the source code of recent Republican electoral victories: target religious conservatives, distract everyone else, and then railroad through complex initiatives.” Scanlon deviously explained the GOP strategy in his memo to his Indiana tribe client as follows: "The wackos get their information through the Christian right, Christian radio, mail, the internet and telephone trees. Simply put, we want to bring out the wackos to vote against something and make sure the rest of the public lets the whole thing slip past them. The brilliance of this strategy Salon.com says was twofold: “Not only would most voters not know about an initiative to protect Coushatta gambling revenues, but religious ‘wackos’ could be tricked into supporting gambling at the Coushatta casino even as they thought they were opposing it.”

And what is that something that you use to get the “wackos” to come out and vote? Yes, that would be the amendment to ban gay marriages. So there you have it Eric Miller. Your Advance America organization is the Christian right organization from whom the “wackos” get the information you disseminate through your Christian radio stations, your e-mail alerts and your voter [mis]guides. Of course, we didn’t have to hear that from Tom DeLay’s ex-political operative. House Speaker Brian Bosma’s former chief of staff, Don Blinzinger, already told us that.

The next time you hear Micah Clark complain about you calling him an “extremist”, correct yourself and call him a “wacko.” And tell him Michael Scanlon said so.

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