It Seems People Noticed

The whole problem with being a busy person while trying to document  the gaffs of Conrad Burns, is that by the time I'm ready to write about one, he's already made another.  Fortunately, Matt and Neal are all over the hysterically funny epic of the mighty Conrad Burnt requesting that the Governor take action ... when Gov. Schweitzer was already a month ahead of the game.  Yeah, Conrad certainly has his fingers on the pulse of  Montana, by golly.

No, what has surprised me today is the buzz that Conrad is getting in the web-o-world over his dire warnings concerning turncoat taxi drivers of mass destruction.  Perhaps we in Montana are just getting used to Conrad doing the five-toe-tonsil-tickle, but I didn't find his comment that outrageous (enormously stupid and droll, yes, but not that outrageous).  On the Conrad foot-swallow meter, I wouldn't give it more than half way to the arch.

But see, when you say something that incredibly stupid, and the First Lady is around to watch you do it, it tends to get press.  So much so that Conrad was honored with the title "Worst Person In The World", by Keith Olberman (hat tip to Shane).  And if it hits the press (outside of Montana)  it's definitely gonna hit the blogs.

Of course Kos noticed it.  He tends to take an interest in the Big Sky state, so that didn't surprise me at all.

But Pam Spaulding noticed as well, at Pandagon.  I was a bit surprised by that.   I haven't seen a Pandagonian mention politics related to Montana since Ezra Kline left.

Though he didn't give it a post of its own, TBogg caught the subtle racism in Conrad's fear mongering.

One of the well known bloggers I originally encountered on Metafilter many many years ago, Oliver Willis pulls no punches.  He calls it a Republican Bigot Eruption.

But my favorite response, bar none, was from the good Reverend Mykeru.

Sure. I know I'm missing out. But it seems to me more and more is that I'm missing out on irreducible stupidity. For example, this gem from today's The Raw Story:

At a fundraiser on Wednesday featuring First Lady ;Laura Bush, Montana's Republican Senator Conrad Burns said that "faceless" terrorists "drive taxi cabs in the daytime and kill at night."

First thought: Uh...wow. This mental human sinkhole is a Senator. Second thought: Bummer, where do you go with something is irreducibly stupid as this? Answer: Nowhere. It's a dark mental cul-de-sac. Once you descend down that sinkhole of the mind where taxi drivers equal swarthy foreign people and swarthy foreign people equal terrorists, the air is completely cut off and one can't even get a spark going, much less a flame.

Except, maybe, to note that our War on Terror is such a success that being a terrorist isn't even a full time job. We kick ass. Especially when it's a completely unrelated, irrelevant ass. The fact that the terrorists are faceless goes a long way towards explaining why we keep attacking the wrong fucking people.

I couldn't have said it better myself.

Comments

[Mark T]

I doubt these Burns comments hurt him much as far as his base goes. He made the taxi driver comment twice, which leads me to believe it might have been a talking point, otherwise he would have been prevented from saying it a second time by staff. But maybe his staff is totally stone eared too.

Maybe where it does hurt him is in the reachout to independents - hard to know. I wish there were a poll tracking his approval timelined with his gaffes.

"Gaffe": When a politician accidentally says something that is true.

[Shane C. Mason]

I think that it is important to note that comments about little painting immigrants, tribal African Americans, womens-lib stewardess and terrorist cab drivers are not so much taken in singular. As Mark T commented, "I doubt these Burns comments hurt him much as far as his base goes".

I would venture the guess that they may help him somewhat. What is important about them is the plurality. The daily Burns gaffe is likely to sway some who might have voted for him on the 'pork' issues. Even if they themslves are not offended by the statement, to know that their senator can not control his mouth might go a long way. Especially coupled with embarrasing issues like the "State of Emergency".

[Cece]

doing the five-toe-tonsil-tickle.

I swear, I will die laughing form your remarks. You are killing me . . .

Thank you for your bluntness and humor in disparaging times

Man I love you!

[Mandy]

This is from an interview NEWSWEEK did with Tester...

NEWSWEEK INTERVIEWER TO JON TESTER: The Burns campaign declined NEWSWEEK'S request for an interview. When we told them that you had agreed to chat, Burns' campaign spokesperson said, "He has time to talk, because he's just sitting up on his farm."

Apparently it's not just Burns who has Foot-in-Mouth disease, his campaign workers seem to be contracting it too.

[Justin]

I don't think Cornhole's comments help him, even with his base. Pretty much all of my friends with the exception of one or two are pretty staunch Republicans, all have a Libertarian streak a mile wide much like I do, but unlike me they're afraid to admit that they don't know their right wing from their wrong. As with our fearless leader, the might King George, they're even getting pretty fed up with The Great Cornholio's antics. I think that no one but the deeply retarde . . . . um . . . . Republican I mean . . . . . could forgive all of this guy's crap.

From what I'm hearing around town, even from other truck drivers on the CB (truckers are notoriously conservative as a group), we can stick a fork in old Corndog, cuz' he's done. I hear a lot of bickering about Tester as well, but when I've charged people with giving me an example of how he's such a "wacko Liberal", I've yet to find one person that can pony up with any real examples.

If Tester wants to steal more votes from Cornrad, the best thing he could do would be to stress that he won't be taking orders from the national Democratic party, he'll be taking orders from the people of Montana. The folks that I've talked to that still sware that they won't vote for him, cite the fact that he's a Demoncrat as their reason. I think they're afraid that they'll just be giving the wacko left a bigger voice in Washington, which I reall don't think is the case at all. Tester seems pretty level headed from what I've seen, regardless of his political affiliation.