Liberal in the Land of Conservative: Psycmeistr

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Birthers Run SD15 Republican Party...

8:30 PM | Posted in Psycmeistr, Republican, Senate District 15

A couple of weeks ago over at Bluestem Prairie, Sally Jo Sorensen took a look at potential birtherism within the ranks of the Republican Party in the 6th Congressional District. In particular, Sorensen questioned whether a member of the Executive Committee here in SD15, Leo Pusateri, was in fact a birther.

I deciding to spend a little time chasing it, hunting it down. In fifteen minutes of browsing, I found that conservatives in Minnesota did indeed show interest in the topic. Take, for instance, blogger and Senate District 15 GOP Secretary Leo Pusateri.

There are other examples in the state. Read about Mr. Pusateri's interest in the controversy and that of other two other conservative Minnesotans below the fold.

Mr. Pusateri currently blogs at Psycmeister's Ice Palace and Freedom Dogs, as well as cross-posting at True North.

He's brought up questions about Obama's birth certificate a number of times. Here's one such post, from his personal blog in July 2008begins:

It appears that Obama's alleged birth certificate has been deemed a forgery, calling to question whether Obama was born in the United States, which would be a Constitutional prerequisite for his ability to legally run for President.

In a February post at Freedom Dogs, he wrote:

A cultural and spiritual awakening...is this why the agenda media were willing to overlook and/or gave short shrift to many of the Obama scandals, from his friendships with Tony Rezko, Rev. Wright and William Ayers, to the flak over his birth certificate?

That should give readers a flavor of his take on the matter.

Well, let us add another tidbit to that collection of evidence:

I really have to wonder who is running the Republican Party around here and if the general populace knows that they could potentially be voting for this level of crazy. Does the rest of the Executive Committee in SD15 believe that President Obama was not born in the United States? Would they be willing to come out in opposition to Mr. Pusateri and his tin foil hat viewpoint?

Category: Psycmeistr, Republican, Senate District 15

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And They Accuse US Of Propaganda?

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10:33 AM | Posted in Gary Gross, Psycmeistr, Republican

I noticed today that Barbara Banaian wrote a piece about the recent protests held at Lake George here in St. Cloud. How coincidental that Barbara is the spouse of King Banaian at SCSU Scholars who spoke at the event and is good friends with the event organizers, Gary Gross of Let Freedom Ring and Leo Pusateri of Psycmeistr. The column reads like a propaganda filled infomercial whose premise is that these protests cross party lines implying a Republican/Democrat coalition.

The idea that these protests are anything more than a fringe element of the Republican Party though is completely laughable unless we are talking about the line between the most conservative elements of the Republican Party and the most perhaps slightly more anti-government elements of the libertarians coupled with independent crazies who deny the citizenship status of the President.

A few items from the article caught my eye:

According to Gross, we need to send a message to Washington that old-style politics must end. They are patronizing and condescending, he said, and it is wrong to think the average citizen cannot understand what transpires in Washington.

Says the blogger who never misses a chance in his writing to be completely condescending to every Democrat or Democratic idea. If there is one thing I have learned from reading Gary Gross, it is that he is interested only in calling people childish names and demonizing anything and everything that is not a Republican Party idea. Essentially, he is a tool of the local/national Republican Party and exists only to do their bidding. To believe that Gross wants to end "old-style politics" is to be foolishly naive. Gross doesn't want to end old-style politics, he simply wishes that old-style politics would have given his party a win last November and that old-style politics might bring his party a win in 2010.

If there were any clearer example of the partisanship of these protests and their organizers it is this quote:

Pusateri agrees. “The direction of this country since January of 2009 has been a veritable sprint toward ever-encroaching governmental influence and control over many aspects of our lives, and an accompanying erosion of individual choice and liberties. I have spoken with Republicans, Independents and even some Democrats who are alarmed not only at the size and scope of the growth of government, but also its breathtaking rate of growth.”

Really? It is just since the election of a Democrat in January of 2009 that government has "encroached" over our lives? I wonder what specific day to day things/activities Mr. Pusateri or others in this movement are unable to do that they were able to do prior to January of this year. To be honest, though, I would expect nothing less from Pusateri, a leader of the SD15 Republican Party (totally bipartisan), who is perhaps even more partisan and hateful than Gross. A man who has spent the last few months repeatedly calling or implying that this President is Hitler.

I was always under the impression that Professor Banaian was the most sensible of this triumverate but it is becoming increasingly clear that neither he nor his wife is willing to call out the more hateful rhetoric found at these rallies and are more than willing to simply propagandize them. Is there any hope for moderation in the Republican Party?

Category: Gary Gross, Psycmeistr, Republican

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Laughing At Constituents...

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5:54 PM | Posted in Perhaps THIS is why..., Psycmeistr, Steve Gottwalt

Last month I attended a Health Care Listening Session hosted by some area legislators. The event was meant to allow constituents in the area to provide their ideas and express their opinions about health care in Minnesota. At this event I was disappointed to notice local legislator, Steve Gottwalt, responding in a less than civil manner to the testimony provided by a local resident. After the event, I wrote an open message to Mr. Gottwalt in which I expressed my disappointment to these actions. In my opinion, the post was fair in that it did not entirely rake Mr. Gottwalt over the coals, but rather it expressed my feelings on a man who I had thought was principled despite any disagreements we might have.

Another attendee, Gary Gross, offered his opinion of the event (both on his blog and in my comments section) and of the Gottwalt incident in a fair and civil manner. Others chimed in and although I have disagreements with their opinions at the very least they were respectful.

Unfortunately, local conservative blogger Leo Pusateri has decided to take respect and civility and throw it out the window entirely. On my youtube page, he posted this comment about the Gottwalt incident:

"Personally, I don't see the problem with this. I think he showed remarkable restraint in that he didn't bust out laughing at the ludicrous idea that we should adopt a failed Canadian system of healthcare."

Essentially, the message is that if you do not believe as Mr. Pusateri believes, then you are worthy of nothing more than laughter and derision. Is this the opinion of Mr. Gottwalt? One has to wonder, then, if Steve Gottwalt would be willing to stand by the statements of his friend Leo Pusateri that constituents deserve to actually be laughed at in open forums or in other venues. I may not like or agree with the opinions of Pusateri or Gottwalt but I would NEVER claim that those opinions deserved public scorn through laughter.

Perhaps, given these recent statements, it is time to write or call Mr. Gottwalt. If Mr. Pusateri would like to make these statements, then I want to hear from the horses mouth just how constituents ought to be treated.

Get to your phones and write your letters and lets find out just what Mr. Gottwalt believes! If this is the battle that Mr. Pusateri wants, perhaps we could oblige.

As I have said before, Perhaps THIS is why you keep losing elections!

Category: Perhaps THIS is why..., Psycmeistr, Steve Gottwalt

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Michele's "Coming Out" Party

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10:07 PM | Posted in Michele Bachmann, Psycmeistr

Michele Bachmann had her "coming out" party for the 2008 6th District campaign at an undisclosed location in St. Cloud. Leo Pusateri, a right wing water carrier in the St. Cloud area, has a glowing report of the Representative and how hard she worked during her first year in Congress. Let the games begin...

From Pusateri's Propaganda Page:

Fresh in from a Christmas trip to Iraq, and an earlier trip to Israel, MN 6th District U.S. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann kicked off her 2008 campaign today at a home in St. Cloud. Looking even better than she did a year ago, Bachmann was her usual firebrand self, yet even more confident in her convictions than she was a year ago.

This is code for she hates gay people even more than she did a year ago! My thought is, how does one become "even more confident" when one believes that God ordained her for Congress? Apparently an ordination by God isn't the highest level of confidence in oneself.

Bachmann related how when Republicans were in the majority, an average of 600 votes were cast during a normal legislative year. Last year, according to Bachmann, somewhere in the neighborhood of 1200 bills were put up for a vote in the House. Of those 1200, only around 140 passed; and of those 140 bills, nearly half of those were for re-naming post offices.

I understand that Pusateri is no mathematician, but using the number 140 passed bills (which doesn't include further measures Bush has since signed) you get a percentage of 33% of those being re-naming post offices. So, to call 33% "nearly half" you really have to be in the business of inflating numbers. It seems to me that it is closer to one-third than "nearly half" but that is just me. Now lets forget the fact that the previous Congress had a percentage of 25% of its passed bills re-naming post offices and that Congress had a Republican majority and a Republican President. What Pusateri conveniently leaves out is the other record set by this Congress. The Senate forced obstructionist cloture votes 62 times throughout this year. In one year the Republicans have forced cloture votes one more time than the previous record set in the two years of the 107th Congress.

In other words, the U.S. House Democrat leadership got nothing done of substance. Bachmann described most of the 1200 bills brought to the floor as "vanity bills," bills designed to look good to constituents, but were short on substance and weren't even meant to pass.

Yes, "vanity bills" such as children's health insurance, minimum wage increases, ethics reform, veteran's health care, small business loans, military pay raises exceeding the President's, and emergency funding for a fallen bridge that Michele conveniently voted to adjourn on before voting to approve.

In her talk, Bachmann lamented the fact that she was required to spend so much time in Washington, as she didn't get nearly as much of a chance to visit with her constituents as her predecessor, Mark Kennedy, who was in office during a Republican majority.

This is by far my favorite part of this post. You see, poor Michele was forced to work an entire five day week and to top it all off she sat on ONE whole committee. It must have been a terribly stressful and time consuming year for her. I do recall, however, that we have at least one other freshman congressman here in Minnesota. Tim Walz sits on three committees and had to work the same five day week, yet whenever I go to Bluestem Praire (the unofficial authority on all things Tim Walz) there is another instance of Walz meeting with constituents in open forums and town hall meetings. Does Bachmann really believe that voters will buy the argument that working a five day work week and sitting on one committee was too arduous to bring her back for even one open meeting with her constituents when the Representative for southern Minnesota was able to do it numerous times?

Also present at the gala were Minnesota Representatives Steve Gottwalt and Dan Severson, as well as bloggers extraordinaire King Banaian (and his lovely wife) and Gary Gross; along with St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis, and soon-to-be returning KNSI talk show host Dan "The Ox" Ochsner.

Would that be the same "Ox" who doctored Bush rally photos to make it appear as though it was his own rally? Oh, and that must be the same Steve Gottwalt who is so principled that when constituents speak he mocks them in front of en entire crowd of people. Along with you who convicts people before they have had their day in court, Bachmann has a "top notch" group of YES men!

Folks, there is no greater conservative voice in the United States House of Representatives than Michele Bachmann. Although I was a bit skiddish in the beginning, since I have come to know her I have every confidence in her conservative, principled leadership, and the residents of Minnesota 6th are more than fortunate to benefit from her unwavering dedication to conservative ideals.

If this is being fortunate, I would hate to see what unfortunate would look like!

Cross Posted on Dump Bachmann

Category: Michele Bachmann, Psycmeistr

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So Much Anger, So Little Sense!

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9:03 PM | Posted in Psycmeistr

In a rambling response to my recent analysis of his satire, Leo tries to defend drowning people for information, denies that the "decider" had any responsibility for the war, then becomes selectively outraged at the names Democrats have called Bush. It was quite a rant! You have to wonder why a guy would get so defensive if there weren't any grains of truth in my writing.

Leo Pusateri said... What is so sad is the fact that you pull out the ever-present strawmen from the Kos-Kids like "illegal wiretapping"-- WHERE?

Waterboarding-- Do you have any other non-lethal ideas as far as getting information so that our servicepeople don't get killed..

Do you even understand what a strawman is? How have I misrepresented your position or the position of the President? As of right now a judge has declared the wiretapping program illegal and despite what I'm sure will be your ad Hominem claim that this is some terrible liberal judge, I was always under the impression that when a judge interprets something as illegal that it is illegal. Now, given that her ruling was overturned but the higher court refused to declare whether the program is legal or illegal you would have to honestly say that at the very least this program is highly questionable.

If you can find me a study in which waterboarding is proven to work, I would be interested in reading it. However, every bit of evidence I have been able to find rebukes the use of waterboarding. Psychologically speaking, how could you possibly defend the use of such a technique?

War on faulty intelligence? You mean the same intelligence that Kerry, Clinton etc. were privy to when they voted to give the President the power to go to war; you mean the same intelligence that they were privy to when they saw the need to take out Saddam even before Bush became President? Then they do everything in their power since November of 2005 to undermine the war and try to ensure defeat to garner themselves a political victory. There's patriotism for you.

You're right, there are Democrats equally as culpable for this debacle but we weren't talking about them now were we? I believe the topic of discussion was how amazing George W. Bush is and how he is "gracious". If you want to have a discussion about the inequities of certain Democrats, we can do that, but for now let's stick to the topic at hand. Also, I thought George was the "decider"? Doesn't that make him somewhat at fault? Given that he was the one who wanted to use military force, shouldn't he have been the one to make doubly sure his information was accurate? If it was the Democrats job to prove the case, then Bush really should have stepped down and let them do the job.

Incidentally, the last time I checked, we still had a First Amendment and speaking out against something does not make one unpatriotic!

Unwillingness to compromise? You mean when Bush pretty much let the democrats write the education bill?

Yeah, I know--compromise to the democrats means doing everything their way or no way.

Wait, did you just make the claim that one compromise in seven years proves your point? If that is the best you can do, you may have proven my point for me.

But damn it, Bush was so mean spirited as to call the Democratic party the "Democrat party!" For shame!!!

You're right--that's so much more demeaning and mean than the democrats likening Bush to Hitler, or likening our soldiers to the Nazis or Pol Pot.

Calling you "democrats" is so much more partisan than your side calling Bush a liar for acting on the same intelligence they had. It's so much more mean-spirited than Dhimmi Carter labelling Bush as the "worst president ever" (I'll bet ol' Dhimmi never looks in the mirror, does he?)

Yes, the term "democrat party" is so much more hateful than the niceties that the democrats utilize when describing Bush, isn't it?

Yep. Bush said, "democrat." He should have thought about that.

BTW... let me know when you get an original thought in your head.

Should be amusing, to say the least. November 29, 2007 7:52 PM

Ahh, the Politics of Outrage in action! I hope you didn't bust anything after that tirade. Once again, let us stick to the subject at hand and not ramble into defending your guy by attacking the other guys. We can have a discussion another day about all of the stupid things Democrats have done and said but claiming that your guy is great because the other guys are terrible is silly. Oh, and that ending where you impugn my originality, I love it! Have a happy day Leo!

Category: Psycmeistr

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Psycmeistr Rolls Out The Humor

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7:49 PM | Posted in George W. Bush, Humor, Psycmeistr

I enjoy a good laugh as much as the next guy, and Leo Pusateri over at Psycmeistr has got one of the most humorous posts I think I have ever seen in my entire life. Granted, Leo may not have intended it to draw the "laugh at me" crowd with this one but the mere premise of his argument is so partisan and so out there that one can only read it as humor ala Stephen Colbert. If I didn't know any better I would have assumed that he was one of the greatest satirists this country has ever seen.

Go ahead, share a laugh with me on a Monday:

Monday, November 26, 2007
Class... vs. no class.

From inviting Teddy Kennedy for movie night, to allowing the democrats to write his education plan, President Bush has bent over backward to implement the "new tone" he set to implement in Washington.

I'm just curious, Leo, but would that new tone be creating war with faulty intelligence, playing politics with the Justice Department, an unwillingness to compromise, or simply insulting Democrats at every turn? I could go on with issues such as waterboarding, illegal wiretapping, and the like but I think we get the purpose of this "new tone".

Yet, the money line comes next:

"Say what you want about Bush, but he has been gracious in all things, resorting to criticism of his opponents in only the most dire of situations. Despite attack after virulent attack, President Bush, honoring his office, has again and again taken the high road, not allowing his office to wallow in the pit of hyper-partisan politics."

If what I have seen from this administration over the last seven years is taking the high road, I would NOT want to see what that low road is all about!

Thank You Leo! You made my Monday a little brighter with your amazing satirical skill!

This one's for you Leo: