MA and PA Senate Races

by muon

Time to talk about some of this year's Senatorial races.

Senator Scott Brown of Massachusetts, during his debate with challenger Elizabeth Warren, decided to introduce race as an issue in his campaign, He complained that Ms. Warren claimed to be a Native American. He hinted that she only used her claims of race to advance her career. He said he could tell whether she was Native American simply by looking at her, and to quote him, "Clearly, she is not." (I suppose, in Brown's limited experience, he believes Native Americans need to look as if they've ridden out of a Roy Rogers movie, complete with feathers and war paint.)  In a pathetic echo of the Obama birther movement, he challenged her to "release her records."  If you want to watch this part of the debate, click here.  

 Last Saturday, some of Brown's staffers tried to disrupt a Warren rally by doing tomahawk chops and war whoops. (Watch the clip here.)  Seriously, fellas? It never occurred to you that those actions might be considered racially offensive? Especially since anyone watching sports in the last decade has heard of Native American tribes repeatedly asking the Atlanta Braves to discourage their fans (the vast majority of whom are white, surprise, surprise) from doing the exact same offensive behavior.

The staffer in the tan cap leading the chops and whoops is Brad Garrett, Brown's state GOP operative. The guy in the blue cap and camo shirt is Jack Richard, Constituent Services Counsel for Brown. Mr. Richard is on the federal payroll to the tune of 60,000 taxpayer bucks annually. Yes, while spreading racial devisiveness, Jack Richard's pocketing our tax money.

Scott Brown, though he said he regretted the actions of his staffers, launched a new website this week, where he calls Elizabeth Warren a "Fake Indian." Last night, Cherokee Chief Bill John Baker released this statement:"We need individuals in the United States Senate who respect Native Americans and have an understanding of tribal issues. For that reason, I call upon Sen. Brown to apologize for the offensive actions of his staff and their uneducated, unenlightened and racist portrayal of native peoples."

I'd go further than that. As a taxpayer, I demand that all staffers on the federal payroll who participated in the event be fired.  If Brown wants to keep them on and pay them out of his own pocket, fine. But I don't want them on my dime.

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Tom Smith                            Bob Casey

Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, senate challenger Tom Smith is running ads claiming incumbent Bob Casey "hasn't passed a bill in 6 years." This is quite true. Senators cannot single-handedly pass bills. However, Mr. Casey did vote support the following bills: Middle Class Tax Relief, Veterans Jobs, FDA Food Safety, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Children's Health Insurance and the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, to name a few. If bills didn't pass, it was because of GOP filibusters.

In August, Smith stated that he opposes abortion in all circumstances, even in cases of rape and incest, and he equated the trauma of pregnancy by rape to that of having a baby out of wedlock.

Smith claims to have been a successful job creator, owning a coal company that employed over 100 people. If you look up Thomas J. Smith, Inc., records state that the firm employs 25 people, yet had gross annual sales of $5,075,000 in 2011. Which explains how Smith has the moolah to primarily self-fund his campaign and flood the airwaves with lies.  Smith claims he retired in 2010, yet the site above still lists him as the owner. If he ever did employ 100 people, he shrunk his workforce by 75%.  Good work, Job Creator.