A Sneak Attack On Obama-Rama

This New York Times story from yesterday by Sheryl Gay Stolberg tells us of a fundraiser conducted for John W. McBush in which Dubya headlined and attacked Democrats as usual; not much more to say than, “Terra! Terra! Terra! The Democrat Party loves terrists…Terra! Terra! Terra!...vote for McCain….Terra! Terra! Terra!”

The reason I’m taking note of this story, though, is because I detected some particularly curious language used by the Repugs here…

Mr. Bush did not mention Mr. McCain’s Democratic opponent, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, by name. The only speaker to do so was Michigan’s attorney general, Mike Cox, who warmed up the crowd with a joke about news reports that “Barack Obama was born in a manger” — an apparent reference to what Republicans view as Mr. Obama’s favorable treatment in the news media.

Uh, no , Ms. Stolberg, that’s actually incorrect. As you can read here…

"So we have a New York Senator running for president who was born in Illinois, and an Illinois Senator running for president who was born in a manger."

The joke produced lots of laughs, but like a viral infection stirring out in the ether, the "concerns" that Obama is becoming a dangerously cultlike figure are becoming more prominent the more clearly he emerges as the front runner.

The most widely cited reference is from Time Magazine's Joe Klein who last week wrote, "There was someting (sic) just a wee bit creepy about the mass messianism" developing around Obama.

Los Angeles Times columnist Joel Stein described "the Cult of Obama" and fretted about the "Yes We Can" video by will.i.am that's attracted more than 5 million hits, and even a spoof on presumptive GOP nominee John McCain. Hardball host Chris Matthews has been chided for admitting that he felt "a thrill going up my leg" during Obama's victory speech after the Potomac Primary. Neoconservative columnist Charles Krauthammer complained in the Washington Post about "the national swoon," and the "Obama spell."

Of course, no one ever complained of a “cult-like following” for The Sainted Ronnie R, did they (just another example of our media doing a pivot on the narrative to favor the Repugs - and by the way, as a Roman Catholic, I object to trivializing the person who, according to our faith, was the most important who ever lived by describing Him as a leader of a "cult").

And complaining about “a cult of personality” for a Democratic political candidate is pretty damn funny when you consider that the Repugs gave us the video that immediately follows (interested to see the response, if any, from Rick Noriega - let's see how many voters in Texas who count with their toes decide to vote for Cornyn based on this accoutability-free nonsense)…



...though, admittedly, the reality-based perspective is harder to jingoize (update: the bill passed the Senate, even though Cornyn voted against it).



Update: GREAT response from Noriega (h/t Atrios)...