Lines In The Sand

Howard Dean just called out all the GOP Presidential Candidates to kick Ann Coulter in her balls.

"There is no place in political discourse for this kind of hate-filled and bigoted comments. While Democrats and Republicans may disagree on the issues, we should all be able to agree that this kind of vile rhetoric is out of bounds. The American people want a serious, thoughtful debate of the issues. Republicans -- including the Republican presidential candidates who shared the podium with Ann Coulter today -- should denounce her hateful remarks."

In case you didn't hear, after being introduced by Mitt Romney, she took one of her patented cheap shots at John Edwards:

"I was going to have a few comments on the other Democratic presidential candidate, John Edwards, but it turns out you have to go into rehab if you use the word ‘faggot' – so... Kind of at an impasse. Can't really talk about Edwards, so I think I'll just conclude here and take your questions."

You know, that's fine if your doing stand-up in a seedy bar or even a late night cable TV show.

She was standing on the same stage as people who want to be your president. Brownback was there, Rudy too. Dick Cheney opened up the Conservative Political Action Conference right after leaving Afghanistan.

She crossed a line and not to denounce her is to own her and her filth.

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The other line wasn't so notorious, but could have much more pronounced effect on the course of the war, the '08 elections, and the future of this country.

[Que dramatic John Williams music.]

The netroots are no longer giving Harry Reid and Barack Obama a free pass.

The pressure has been on Obama to clarify his progessive credentials after missing the AFSME Candidate Forum in Carson City, NV, and only seeing Hillary Clinton to the right of his current anti-war stance -- John Edwards' endorsement of John Murtha's redeployment plan and Biden's partition plan being both more concrete and less enabling of the Bush Administration's designs.

While truly an inspirational speaker, the absence of specifics in his policy initiatives has left Obama vulnerable to criticism that he has not used the megaphone the media has bestowed on him to actually, you know, lead.

Not so long ago, Obama was liberal Blogtopia's darling and we cheered that Harry Reid would stike a blow for sanity in the Halls of Congress. Now, scant months since November's irrational exuberance, Obama is being challenged to put some teeth in his Iraq proposals and use the power of the purse and defund the occupation. KOS front pager, McJoan describes Obama's position as an "ultimately defeatest point".

Even more disturbing, for the Democratic Party as a whole, is Harry Reid's pandering to the heart of Wingnuttistan. First, he set us up for humiliation by having FOX News host the first Debates in his Native Nevada. But that wasn't enough to truly alienate all the netroots.

Not to be distracted from his apparent goal of distancing himself from what he must consider unwashed, untouchable nuisances, he really pissed of the KOSsacks and the rest of the progressive online community by tapping Joe Lieberman (CFL) to make the Democratic Response to President Bush's Saturday radio address.

Hey Harry, this is no way to run a revolution.