New documentary on teabaggers is the new Psycho

AFI lists Psycho, Jaws, The Exorcist and the Silence of the Lams as some of the scariest movies of all time; they have not seen "The Rise of New Right," a documentary with Chris Matthews.

In the documentary aired earlier this month, the MSNBC anchor summed up all the tea bagger nonsense that began almost two years ago with his opening statement.

“A raging hostility toward the elected government of the U.S.,” Matthews said. “Their common enemy, the President of the U.S., Barrack Obama.”

He highlights the extremisms of the teabaggers, including birhters, the Michigan Militia, secessionist groups and white supremacists. Matthews offers a crisp timeline, and a quick moving pace. Teabaggers and my rightwing critics on this blog will dismiss it because Matthews is a host on MSNBC and because of his past political affiliation. The problem is he used the teabaggers own words. How do you deny them?

We have rightwing extremist Alan Keyes, for example. I had the misfortune of hearing him speak when I covered the local anti-choice dinner where he was the guest speaker. The Maryland Republican is one of the early so-called leaders of the birther crowd. Keyes has an obvious hatred of Obama because Obama creamed the carpetbagger in the 2004 Illinois Senate election.

“Obama is a radical communist,” Keyes said. “We’ve got to stop him, or the U.S. will cease to exist.”

That’s a sane man? Funny, he calls Obama a communist, but the co-hosts of my favorite radio show have ignited a debate by calling Obama a corporatist who has tacked to the center on every issue. Even if Keyes’ insane rantings were true, the U.S. is stronger than just one man.

The documentary talks to teabaggers and shows photos of their racist signs, including the Gadsden flag that the first Marines used in 1775; just one of many symbols teabaggers have misused. It is displayed at the fake Astroturf “tea parties,” anti-health care rallies, militia events and even by Republican members of Congress playing to the extremists that control the GOP.

“The flag flew as a warning to the occupying foreign oppressor,” Matthews said. “Now, the enemy is not a foreign king, but the government chosen in an honest election by the American people.”

The documentary also talks to the Michigan Militia; a fringe, anti-government hate group. They are now trying to claim a legitimate role, but this is the same anti-government hate group that wants to overthrow the government by force of arms that went into hiding after the Oklahoma City terrorist attack in 1995. They were always there, but only the diehards stayed when people discovered what they were really all about in 1995.

Now, they are trying to clean up their image, but the mission and beliefs are the same as they were the last time we had a Democrat in the White House. But they have done such a great PR job hiding what they are really all about and the fact that the fringe element has taken over the GOP that their membership has tripled since Obama was elected President.

Perhaps the most interesting part of the documentary was the look back at the last tine the extreme right held away in this country, the McCarthyism of the 1950s and the rightwing John Birch Society. The language and rhetoric are eerily similar. Those people played on the fears of people just like they are now.

When you watch, “The Rise of New Right” make sure the lights are on, and you do not watch it alone.

Mobs continue to disrupt townhalls

The weekend political talk shows were filled with talk of health care reform and the extremist right-wingers stirred up by the health insurance lobby to disrupt townhall meetings.

MSNBC’s Chris Matthews took a rightwing tool from one of the rightwing Washington, D.C. lobbying groups feeding tea at baggers lie to task. Matthews asked some great and tough questions, like when they chant “just say no” to disrupt a townhall meetings what exactly are they saying no to?

Are they saying no to covering people with pre-existing conditions like for-profit insurance providers routinely fail to do? Are they saying no to portability so people can take their health care with them when they change jobs, lose their jobs or start their own business?

Another amazing thing is how can so-called “freedomworks” be a nonprofit and nonpartisan? Even though Matthews is not a journalist, real journalists should take a lesson and actually ask some tough questions for a change. Everyone says we need - at least 75 percent do - to reform health care, but only the Democrats have a proposal, and all the Republicans can do is say no.

The attempt at health care reform has been around since the Truman Administration. We have had six GOP Administrations since; including when Bush controlled all levers of government, and we still have no health care reform.

The only thing Republicans want to do is stop President Obama at any cost.

I watched one show where some guy from the rightwing Weekly Standard said Democrats came out winners because of the townhall hijackings, but his reason makes no sense. I agree we came out ahead after the American people saw what these extremists are rally like, but his reason is way off.

He claims Democrats came out winners because it changed the subject and people were talking about the thuggery and not the contents of the bill. Say what?

Democrats want to talk about the contents of the bill, but the tea baggers will not allow it. He said opponents of reform are more passionate. I agree with that.

If someone told me there would be a “death panel” to decide if senior citizens would live or die I would be riled up, too. The problem with that is that is an outrageous lie, and I’m amazed anyone could actually believe that lie. So, what they have done is whip up a disruptive mob with lies, and now they are using the fact people are calling a mob what it really is as a fundraising gimmick.

No one has ever said these tea baggers were paid to disrupt the meeting. The fact is they are being manipulated with lies from the insurance lobby spending $1.4 million a day. Saying this is a nonpartisan grassroots effort is another lie.

We need to get our people out to these townhall meetings, and if there is violence people need to remember it wasn’t us that tried to shout anyone down.

I wonder when my Congressman, Mike Rogers, is going to hold a townhall meeting.

Quote of the Week: Ann Coulter-like Congress critter channels Joe McCarthy

If you ever wondered what would happen if anyone would be dumb enough to ever actually vote for rightwing hatemonger Ann Coulter we just need to look at the example of Minnesota rightwing Congresswoman Michele Bachmann.

She is really out there, and she showed that on a recent episode of "Hardball with Chris Matthews" where she voiced the McCain campaign strategy that Sen. Barack Obama is somehow "un-American" because he doesn't share her extremist views. Unfortunately, her view is held by too many people who somehow believe if you don't agree with them you are un-American.

Bachmann apparently wants to bring back the Committee on Un-American Activities that made Red-baiter Joe McCarthy infamous. Apparently, Bachmann also worships the disgraced Senator just like Coulter does.

Bachmann has tried to deny the comments and blame it on the media because it may cost her the election. This Quote of the Week is dedicated to Michele M. Bachmann

"Absolutely. I'm very concerned that he may have anti-American views. That's what the American people are concerned about. That's why they want to know what his answers are. That's why Joe the plumber has figured so highly in the last few days."

"What I would say -- what I would say is that the news media should do a penetrating expose and take a look. I wish they would. I wish the American media would take a great look at the views of the people in Congress and find out, are they pro-America or anti-America? I think people would love to see an expose like that."