Barack Obama should apologize for winning the Nobel Peace Prize. He should really be big about this and just give it back to the socialists in Norway. Because if he doesn't give it back, then he really is the Antichrist.
These and other similar sentiments are making the rounds in the parallel universe formerly known as the lunatic fringe but which now goes by the name Republicanism.
The blogger Atrios (Duncan Black) has had a running joke, dating back to the Bush II presidency, about how mainstream pundits—whom he calls "the Villagers"—automatically spin any event, good or bad, as ultimately "good for the Republicans." This reached a peak of sorts when these czars of the airwaves and op-eds speculated about how another terrorist attack would help John McCain's presidential campaign. They seemed to welcome an attack so that, as Chris Matthews put it, they could "smell the Aqua Velva" of a wizened member of the D.C. "Village." The logic seemed to be that massive carnage would immediately require a serious "war veteran" like McCain to take over the helm of the ship of state.
Atrios followed every piece of news like this with the tag "This has to be good for the Republicans." Then he would attach it to a link. When Obama won the Nobel, I immediately thought of Atrios and went to his site (www.eschatonblog.com) to see if he continued this tradition. Alas, he did not say "This has to be good for the Republicans." Instead, he said, "I think people can legitimately think all kinds of things about Obama's peace prize, but of course the Villagers ran right for the stupid," then linked to a Media Matters post about Time magazine's immediate reaction to Obama's Nobel Prize. Time posted two articles on its Web site, one titled "Why Winning the Nobel Peace Prize Could Hurt Obama," the other "Obama's Nobel: The Last Thing He Needs."
This kind of dementia has colored much of the press reaction to the unexpected and astonishing news of a sitting president of the United States being named the Nobel Peace Prize winner. Rather than even acknowledge the honor, the media immediately went negative. The Republican National Committee led the way with "The real question Americans are asking is, 'What has President Obama actually accomplished?' It is unfortunate that the president's star power has outshined tireless advocates who have made real achievements working towards peace and human rights."
No, it is unfortunate that a political party has been hijacked by crazy people. Like Rep. Michele Bachmann. Yes, the same Bachmann who recently said, "I want people in Minnesota armed and dangerous on this issue of the energy tax" is coming to the Hartford/Springfield area this week. She is the keynote speaker at the "Connecticut Liberty Forum." This event will be held at the Bradley Airport Sheraton Hotel on Oct. 17, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The forum is, the press release says, "about educating the public about the meaning of the Constitution, and how its provisions are being implemented in terms of the issues facing Americans."
One wonders about a group whose self-proclaimed mission is to protect the U.S. Constitution aligning itself—no, headlining itself—with Michele Bachmann, whose special brand of lunacy has late-night comedians working overtime.
Two Bachmann quotes are enough for any column to have to bear:
"I find it interesting that it was back in the 1970s that the swine flu broke out then under another Democrat president, Jimmy Carter. And I'm not blaming this on President Obama. I just think it's an interesting coincidence."
"Isn't minimum wage really just superfluous? Why do we even have one?"
