Bad Deeds for 1-17-2012

On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Romney Campaigning With Anti-Immigrant Official Tied to Hate – On a day set aside to honor civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr., Mitt Romney plans to tout his extreme immigration positions during a campaign stop in South Carolina today — with Kris Kobach, the author of Arizona’s and Alabama’s immigration laws, at his side. He will attack his competitors Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry for their softer immigration stances, which could resonate with South Carolina voters who support that state’s harmful immigration law. Kobach told Fox News’ Neil Cavuto that Romney was much farther to the right on illegal immigration than his fellow presidential candidates.

Before he became Kansas’ secretary of state, Kobach worked for Immigration Reform Law Institute, the legal branch of Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), which the Southern Poverty Law Center has labeled as a “nativist hate group.”

Romney’s views on immigration are radical even in a field of candidates who appear to be competing to take the most radical views on this subject. But as extreme as Romney’s immigration stances have been, campaigning with an anti-immigrant official with ties to a hate group on Martin Luther King Day is beyond the pale.

Update on the above: – Romney opposes education benefits for undocumented residents, such as in-state tuition rates, which he calls a magnet for illegal migration. And he has promised to veto the proposed DREAM Act, which would provide legal status to the children of illegal immigrants who attend college or serve in the armed forces.

“I’m so proud to earn Kris’ support,” Romney said when accepting Kobach’s endorsement. “With Kris on the team, I look forward to working with him to take forceful steps to curtail illegal immigration…”

Republicans Boo Mention of Romney’s Father Being Born in Mexico – There were boos from the South Carolina audience when Fox News analyst Juan Williams mentioned that former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney’s father was born in Mexico. Williams went on to note that Romney has taken a hard-line on immigration with a threatened DREAM Act veto and asked whether that would alienate Latino voters “that Republicans will need to win the general election.”

Republicans Boo Mention of the Golden Rule – Republicans in the South Caorlina Fox/Twitter Presidential debate loudly booed the Golden Rule in the context of foreign policy January 16. Ron Paul said:

My point is that if another country does to us what we do to others, we are not going to like it very much. I would say that we maybe ought to consider the Golden Rule in foreign policy. Don’t do to other nations what we don’t want them to do to us. We endlessly bomb these countries, and then we wonder why they get upset with us?

Rep. Paul’s remarks set off some of the loudest “boos” of the evening from the Republican audience, as well as mockery from his Republican opponents.

The Golden Rule is a key part of Christianity and all other major world religions.

But the Same Republicans Crowd Loves a Bullet in the Head – Just in case you sometimes get Mormons and Quakers confused, Mitt Romney cleared things up Monday night.

“Bin Laden got what he deserved,” Romney, a Mormon, said at a Republican debate in South Carolina. “A bullet in the head.”

The crowd, as debate crowds sometimes do, went wild.

Republican Governor Scott Walker Has Violated Wisconsin’s Campaign Finance Laws 1,115 Times since 2009 – One Wisconsin Now is reporting that Walker has violated the state of Wisconsin’s campaign finance laws 1,115 times since 2009. The total contributions in violation of Wisconsin statute 11.60(1) total $518, 096. One Wisconsin Now previously filed a complaint with the Government Accountability Board in September when Walker’s improperly-reported contribution tally was $235, 000 half of what it has risen to in the last several days., “Scott Walker has improperly reported well over $500, 000 in contributions from inside and outside of Wisconsin, ” said Scot Ross, One Wisconsin Now Executive Director. “Scott Walker has absolutely no interest in following the campaign finance rules of the state of Wisconsin and we again call for state regulators to address his serial violation of our laws.”

Ban on Sharia Law Not Based on Indiscriminate Fear of Muslims – The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Oklahoma’s ban on Sharia law. The opinion could not be clearer. The fear of Oklahoma courts being overrun with Sharia law was not grounded in reality, but simply an indiscriminate fear of Muslims. Specifically the order states, “Appellants do not identify any actual problem the challenged amendment seeks to solve. Indeed, they admitted at the preliminary injunction hearing that they did not know of even a single instance where an Oklahoma court had applied Sharia law or used the legal precepts of other nations or cultures, let alone that such applications or uses had resulted in concrete problems in Oklahoma.”

And You Think This Recovery is Slow – November 23, 1954 – The Dow Jones Industrial Average rises 3.27 points, or 0.86%, closing at an all-time high of 382.74. More significantly, this is the first time the Dow surpassed its 1929 peak level reached just before that year’s crash. Yes, a 25-year dip.

Regards,

Jim