Cross Guys Seeking to Put the Keyes Thing in Perspective
ArchPundit
And failing because they still haven’t found anyone as crazy
2004
I Can’t Stop
Channel 2 has Judy’s reaction and it is priceless (video)
Channel 5 has the quotes:
“We should look [homosexuality] right in the eye,” Keyes said. “It is a self-centered, selfish, self-oriented pursuit of pleasure. If my own daughter were a homosexual or a lesbian, I would love my daughter but I would tell my daughter that she was in sin.”
Former Gov. Jim Thompson was very harsh in his criticism of Keyes, Kay reported.
“I think the people of Illinois would find those kinds of remarks offensive and I think it’s an offense to the political process that we have to suffer a candidate on our ticket who says things like that,” Thompson said. “So it is not something that I as a voter would put up with, and I don’t think the people of Illinois will put up with it, either.”
Republican Illinois Congresswoman Judy Biggert, an abortion-rights Republican, was equally offended.
“I think it is shameful — I really do,” she said. “I think he should apologize. This is destroying everything that we’ve been building.”
Former Gov. Jim Edgar chairs the president’s re-election campaign in Illinois.
“It is an unfortunate thing. I think it takes away from the real issues in this campaign.”
Illinois Party Chairman Judy Baar Topinka minced no words.
“You don’t attack other people’s children,” she said. “I can’t stand behind that kind of an idiotic comment — that is exactly what it is, idiotic. If somebody went after my son, you know I would go for the jugular. You just don’t do that.”
Damn….Cross Comments on Keyes
I had a great gag set up where I linked to a Google News Search with “alan keyes” and “tom cross” and noted that none of them have Cross commenting on Keyes. Today, Cross got caught and the Trib has his comments.
State Rep. Tom Cross, the House Republican leader, joked with reporters about the length of Keyes’ lease on his apartment in Calumet City.
“My suspicion is we will see and hear from candidate Keyes for the next 60 days, and after that he’ll probably be out of Illinois,” Cross said.
Whomever has been keeping Cross away from this deserves a raise.
Channel 5 has his more serious comments
“When you start to talk about an individual, especially someone’s daughter, and personalize it, you’re going into territory that a lot of people find offensive,” he said. “Stating your position is one thing — personalizing it is probably not the right way to handle it. It’s not something I would have done.”
Thompson’s Voting for the Best Candidate
Edgar has always been pretty smooth and not much shakes him.
But CBS 2 has a video of him reacting to Thompson’s reaction that is just hysterical.
Need to be using Internet Explorer for it to work.
Keyes thinks the press should apologize.
I’d transcribe what Edgar said, but it’s really that there is virtually nothing to transcribe….
Leader Looper Fun
From the inbox–I can’t keep up with all of the threads over there:
“…although it seems to be lost on many of my fellow conservatives, he is making us all look nuts. You can be pro-life without comparing women who get one to terrorists. You can be pro-Second Amendment without sounding like you want to have everyone walking through the streets armed with machine guns. You can be anti-gay marriage without referring to the Vice President’s daughter as a “selfish hedonist.” And you can hope to empower black Americans without calling for reparations, regardless of the form you want them to be in.
More
“…I have never, in my life, used the phrase “right-wing extremist” to describe anyone. I have always found it to be a cute little tool used by the left to try to paint mainstream conservatives like President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Jeb Bush, Bill Frist, Jack Ryan, etc. as out of the mainstream. However, if they ever do want a true definition of an intolerant, right-wing extremist, Alan Keyes is that man.”
The e-mailer pretty much nails it:
This thread is a great expression of why it’s conservatives who should be hopping mad at Keyes. Agree with conservatives or not, they have genuine aspirations that deserve an honest, clearheaded assessment by voters. For liberals, Keyes is a joke and, as you said, a gift. For Republicans, he’s an outrage and a disservice.
The Other Side of the Story
Over at the Leader, they offer up the other side of the story on Keyes most recent outbursts.
Except, I can’t find any facts in dispute. Anyone? What exactly is the other side of the story?
Some Helpful Supporters For Keyes
There’s Tom Coburn running for Senate in Oklahoma. He was the sole Congressman to support Keyes run for the Presidency in 2000.
The Good Dr. Coburn has suggested that his election is a battle of good vs. evil
“This isn’t political jihad, this is an election.” – Democratic congressman and senate candidate Brad Carson responding to Rep. Tom Coburn’s remark that the senate race in Oklahoma represents “the battle of good and evil.”
Ann Coulter has joined in the Alan Keyes fan Club:
“God bless Alan Keyes!” Coulter said after the event. “I’m buying popcorn and videotaping the debates!”
I personally thank God for Alan Keyes, but hey.
And Phyllis Schlalfly brings her understanding of reality into question yet again:
The event was led by conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly of Missouri, and speakers included nationally syndicated conservative columnist Ann Coulter. But it was Schlafly’s introduction of Keyes that drew some of the biggest applause of the day, as she presented “the man who is going to save the Republican Party and the pro-life movement in the state of Illinois.”
BTW, just because I like to point it out, Phyllis’ son Roger has a blog. It’s a hoot.
BTW, The Illinois Party Leaders Are Weak
Keyes wasn’t happy angering the Vice President, he decided to use it as a way to criticize Illinois Republican Party Leaders for not pushing a Gay Marriage ban as Missouri just passed. You know, because they have a majority and everything and he’s going to help that condition out a whole lot.
At this point one can offer one other possibility than Alan Keyes just being a loose cannon, and that is that once he sticks his foot in his mouth he just continues to say outrageous things so no one can pin him down on the previous outrageous things. I mean, we haven’t heard anything about automatic weapons and his actual position have we?
How far down is the problem:
Illinois Treasurer and state GOP Chairwoman Judy Baar Topinka – a moderate whose strained relations with Keyes are no secret among Illinois Republicans – sharply criticized his remarks. And even conservatives like state Sen.
Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, bristled.“Those comments are not appropriate,” Brady said from the floor of the convention late Wednesday. “It’s not up to us to judge individuals, it’s up to us to make public policy.”
Brady ran against retiring 15th District Congressman Tom Ewing’s son in the Republican primary. Ultimately Tim Johnson won the primary and eeked out a victory against Mike Kelleher who was then redistricted out by less than a block. Brady and Ewing formed a mutual suicide pact which lost the race against Johnson, of whom the best that can be said is he often didn’t fall down at appearances. Brady and Ewing essentially had supporters try and out Bible Study the others supporters. One could pick up the Pantagraph and find 3-5 letters a day towards the primary in which members of each candidate’s church wrote about what fine Christians each were and that is why you should vote for them often inferring their candidate attended more often than others with such details as the frequency of Bible Study classes.
So when you lose Brady on an issue like this–you got a problem.
Democrats, liberals, socialists in general
Berkowitz has a threefer up. Starting with his wondering about Mark Kirk’s non-embracement of Keyes. Jeff wonders why Kirk isn’t thinking about the future, but the real problem is that embracing Keyes is as problematic if he wants a future. And of course, strong conservatives aren’t going to vote for him anyway.
More on Daley and Wal-Mart.
And Keyes talks about the evils in the title not bothering to actually identify any socialists.