RACE News:

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"Norquist dropped by The [Los Angeles] Times’ Washington bureau today and, as part of his negative critique of Obama’s liberal stances on economic issues and other matters, he termed the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee “John Kerry with a tan.”" ... "Since Norquist isn’t running for anything, he can get away with such remarks; we doubt McCain will be incorporating the line into his speeches anytime soon."

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-HuffingtonPost.com

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John McCain - Rod Parsley - John Hagee - Military - Terrorism - Religion - Politicians - Homosexuals - Racism - Television - Media - Ohio - Texas - 2008 Election - "In Rebuking Minister, McCain May Have Alienated Evangelicals." ... "The [Republican televangelist, Reverend] Rev. Rod Parsley paces the stage, wiping his forehead and shouting to his congregation in a taped sermon that marriage is under attack by "tortured and angry homosexuals."" ... "During another of his nationally broadcast television shows, he compares Planned Parenthood to the Ku Klux Klan, saying that its goal is to "eliminate" blacks. And at another service at his 12,000-member World Harvest Church in Columbus, Ohio, he punches the air and calls Islam a "false religion" that God has told America to destroy." ... ""We were built for battle! We were created for conflict! We get off on warfare!" he adds." ... "Images of one of the nation's rising stars of television evangelism are widely available on DVDs and Web sites, with sermons that are almost certain to inflame some segment of the voting public. But in its quest to secure support from evangelical Christians, the campaign of presumptive [2008 Election] Republican presidential nominee John McCain did not note a long record of inflammatory statements by Parsley and the [Republican televangelist, Reverend] Rev. John Hagee of Texas, another TV evangelist, until long after McCain had accepted their endorsements." ... "The move backfired last week when clips of the ministers' sermons gained national attention, prompting McCain to reject their support. The candidate's abrupt turnabout brought criticism not only from secular viewers, who questioned why he had aligned himself with controversial religious voices, but also from evangelicals, who said he may have alienated a powerful bloc of potential Republican voters." ... "In February, McCain appeared with Parsley to accept his endorsement and called him a "spiritual guide."" ... "He [Parsley] and his family reside in a 7,462-square-foot house, valued at more than $1 million, on a 24-acre gated property." ... "In 2005, Parsley created a voter registration organization called Reformation Ohio, telling Christians that it was time to "lock and load" and to prepare for a "Holy Ghost invasion" of government." (1, 2) -By Kimberly Kindy with contributions by Alice Critics, Meg Smith, and Madonna Lebling -WashingtonPost

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WATCH Rod Parsley, McCain's "Spiritual Guide" who claims God wants America to destroy Islam, and screamed, "We get off on warfare."

McCain Parsley McCain's "Spiritual Guide" Rod Parsley "We get off on warfare!"

John McCain - John Hagee - Terrorism - Racism - Politician - Military - Religion - History - Germany - Israel - Palestine - Book - Arizona - US - 2008 Election - "McCain Backer Hagee Said Hitler Was Fulfilling God's Will (AUDIO)." ... "[Republican televangelist] John Hagee, the controversial evangelical leader and endorser of [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain, argued in a late 1990s sermon that the Nazis [Germany] had operated on God's behalf to chase the Jews from Europe and shepherd them to Palestine. According to the Reverend, Adolph Hitler was a "hunter," sent by God, who was tasked with expediting God's will of having the Jews re-establish a state of Israel." ... "Going in and out of biblical verse, Hagee preached: "'And they the hunters should hunt them,' that will be the Jews. 'From every mountain and from every hill and from out of the holes of the rocks.' If that doesn't describe what Hitler did in the holocaust you can't see that."" ... "He goes on: "Theodore Herzl is the father of Zionism. He was a Jew who at the turn of the 19th century said, this land is our land, God wants us to live there. So he went to the Jews of Europe and said 'I want you to come and join me in the land of Israel.' So few went that Hertzel went into depression. Those who came founded Israel; those who did not went through the hell of the holocaust." ... ""Then god sent a hunter. A hunter is someone with a gun and he forces you. Hitler was a hunter. And the Bible says -- Jeremiah writing -- 'They shall hunt them from every mountain and from every hill and from the holes of the rocks,' meaning there's no place to hide. And that might be offensive to some people but don't let your heart be offended. I didn't write it, Jeremiah wrote it. It was the truth and it is the truth. How did it happen? Because God allowed it to happen. Why did it happen? Because God said my top priority for the Jewish people is to get them to come back to the land of Israel." (Listen to the audio below.)" ... "The sermon, which was first posted by Bruce Wilson on his site, Talk To Action, adds another element to Hagee's controversial stance on the state and history of Israel." ... "Since McCain secured the endorsement, both his campaign and Hagee have been pressed to explain a series of derogatory remarks the Reverend made about the Catholic Church, including his reference to the institution as "the Great Whore."" ... "As Wilson notes, in his 2006 book "Jerusalem Countdown", Hagee proposed the theory that "anti-Semitism, and thus the Holocaust, was the fault of Jews themselves -- the result of an age old divine curse incurred by the ancient Hebrews through worshiping idols and passed, down the ages, to all Jews now alive." He also wrote that "Most readers will be shocked by the clear record of history linking Adolf Hitler and the Roman Catholic Church in a conspiracy to exterminate the Jews."" -By Sam Stein -HuffingtonPost.com

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(Audio) "McCain Endorser Hagee: God Sent Hitler, Jews Have Dead Souls"

McCain Hagee:

Israel - Racism - Palestine - Families - Human Rights - Law - People - History - "Arabs say racism on rise as Israel turns 60." ... "Salwa Abu Jaber believes her story shows Israel discriminating against its Arab citizens, 60 years after the state was established as a haven for Jews." ... "The 32-year-old mother of four from northern Israel said her five-year-old daughter has never seen her father, who lives in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Separated from the man for five years, she says she has been forced to divorce him." ... "Thousands of families have been similarly split by a 2003 ban on Palestinians in the West Bank from reuniting with their families inside Israel, imposed citing security reasons after the Palestinian uprising or intifada began in 2000." ... ""In practical terms, Israel forced the divorce on us," Abu Jaber said. "We could not continue to live like this any longer. If this is not racism, then what is it?"" ... "This week, as Israel celebrates the anniversary of its foundation, its supreme court has said it found merit in the position of numerous petitions filed by rights groups against the law that keeps the families apart." ... "But Israeli Arabs -- those Palestinians who remained after hundreds of thousands fled or were expelled from their homes when Israel was created -- say institutionalized racism and illegal killings of Arabs have increased since the intifada started." ... "After 1948, about 120,000 stayed and were granted Israeli citizenship. Now about one in five Israelis is Arab, and many prefer to be called Palestinians like their kin outside Israel." ... "About 1.5 million Arabs reside in Israel with 5.5 million Jews, but 3.8 million Palestinians live in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem." (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) -By Mohammed Assadi with contributions by Samia Nakhoul, Sara Ledwith and Ari Rabinovitch in Jerusalem -Reuters 

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Terrorism - Politics - US - International - South Africa - Race - History - "U.S. has Mandela on terrorist list." ... "Nobel Peace Prize winner and international symbol of freedom Nelson Mandela is flagged on U.S. terrorist watch lists and needs special permission to visit the USA." ... "The requirement applies to former South African leader Mandela and other members of South Africa's governing African National Congress (ANC), the once-banned anti-Apartheid organization. In the 1970s and '80s, the ANC was officially designated a terrorist group by the country's ruling white minority. Other countries, including the United States, followed suit." -By Mimi Hall -USATODAY 

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Racism - Texas - Prison - History - People - DNA - Human Rights - "DNA frees Texas man imprisoned for 27 years." ... "James Woodard [a black male], 55, spent more time in prison than any other wrongfully convicted inmate in U.S. [United States] history who was subsequently freed by DNA testing, local media reported." ... "He was also the eighteenth person freed in Dallas County [Texas] based on a post-conviction DNA analysis, according to the Innocence Project, a New York-based legal center that specializes in righting grave miscarriages of justice." ... "That is more than any other U.S. county, highlighting problems in the local justice system that include what critics have said is a history of racism and racial profiling." -By Ed Stoddard with contributions by Todd Eastham -Reuters 

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Tony Zirkle - Racism - Religion - Indiana - Illinois - South Carolina - 2008 Election - "House GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican] Candidate Spoke At Hitler Event: [Indiana Republican Tony Zirkle 2008 Election] Candidate For Indiana District Defends Speech At American National Socialist Workers Party Event Celebrating Nazi's Birthday." ... "A congressional candidate is defending his speech to a group celebrating the anniversary of Adolf Hitler's birth, saying he appeared simply because he was asked." ... "Tony Zirkle, who is seeking the Republican nomination in northern Indiana's 2nd District, stood in front of a painting of Hitler, next to people wearing swastika armbands and with a swastika flag in the background for the speech to the American National Socialist Workers Party in Chicago [Illinois] on Sunday." ... ""I'll speak before any group that invites me," Zirkle said Monday. "I've spoken on an African-American radio station in Atlanta."" ... "He compared his speech to other politicians appearing at Bob Jones University." ... "[Republican] George W. Bush, then a candidate for president, was criticized eight years ago for speaking at the South Carolina school, which teaches students that Catholicism is a cult. Also at the time of the speech, the school banned interracial dating, a policy that has since been dropped. " -AP via -CBSNews

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Barack Obama - Hillary Clinton - Workers - Pay - Legislation - Women - Minorities - 2008 Election - "Republicans block pay discrimination bill." ... "U.S. [United States] Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked legislation to reverse a Supreme Court ruling that makes it tougher for workers to sue for pay discrimination." ... "[2008 Election] Democratic presidential rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton interrupted their campaigns to return to the Senate to vote for the bill. The measure would lift tight time restraints to file claims that could expire before workers realize they were treated unfairly." ... "It is opposed by the [Republican President Bush] White House and business groups, which warn it would trigger an explosion of lawsuits and allow suits to be filed years and even decades after alleged offenses." ... "On average in the United States, women are paid about 23 percent less than men, while minorities receive even less -- despite laws that mandate equal pay for equal work." (1, 2) -By Thomas Ferraro with contributions by Richard Cowan and Peter Cooney -Reuters 

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Tony Zirkle - Racist - Indiana - Illinois - 2008 Election - "GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican] candidate defends speech at Nazi gathering." ... "Tony Zirkle, Republican candidate for [Indiana's 2008 Election] 2nd District U.S. [United States] representative, said he is willing to talk to any group that invites him, and that's why he addressed a weekend gathering in Chicago [Illinois] of the American National Socialist Workers Party." ... "The occasion was a celebration of the 119th anniversary of the birth of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler." ... "Photos an ANSWP Web site show Zirkle at the podium in front of the larger-than-life portrait of Hitler, flanked by an American flag on one side and a Nazi flag on the other. Swastika banners hang on the wall, and other head-table guests are wearing swastika arm bands." ... "The references [by Zirkle at the Nazi meeting] to prosecuting Jewish and Zionist gangs, Zirkle said, come from his days as a deputy under former St. Joseph County [Indiana] Prosecutor Chris Toth." ... "In an interview in early March with the [Indiana newspaper] Kokomo Perspective, Zirkle raised the idea of segregating different races in separate states. " -By Nancy J. Sulok -SouthBendTribune.com

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Tony Zirkle - Racist - Indiana - Illinois - US - German - Military - History - 2008 Election - "Worst Campaign Idea Ever? Hoosier [Indiana Republican Tony Zirkle, 2008 Election] congressional candidate speaks at birthday party for Hitler, in Chicago [Illinois]." ... "U.S. [United States] Congressional candidate Tony Zirkle is facing criticism from one of his primary opponents, and a host of people on the Internet, for speaking at an event over the weekend that celebrated Adolf Hitler's birthday." ... "Zirkle confirmed to The News-Dispatch on Monday he spoke Sunday in Chicago at a meeting of the Nationalist Socialist Workers Party, whose symbol is a swastika." ... "When asked if he was a Nazi or sympathized with Nazis or white supremacists, Zirkle replied he didn't know enough about the group to either favor it or oppose it." ... "The Crown Point [Indiana] Republican spoke in front of about 56 "white activists" at an event honoring the birth of Hitler. The German leader was responsible for the genocide of millions of Jews and others during World War II." -By Jason Miller -TheNewsDispatch

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Barack Obama - Music - Entertainer - Politics - Military - Economic - Racial - Justice - Environment - Illinois - 2008 Election - "Dear Friends and Fans [Bruce Springsteen endorses Barack Obama for President]:" ... "LIke most of you, I've been following the campaign and I have now seen and heard enough to know where I stand. [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate and Illinois] Senator Obama, in my view, is head and shoulders above the rest." ... "He has the depth, the reflectiveness, and the resilience to be our next President. He speaks to the America I've envisioned in my music for the past 35 years, a generous nation with a citizenry willing to tackle nuanced and complex problems, a country that's interested in its collective destiny and in the potential of its gathered spirit. A place where "...nobody crowds you, and nobody goes it alone."" ... "At the moment, critics have tried to diminish Senator Obama through the exaggeration of certain of his comments and relationships. While these matters are worthy of some discussion, they have been ripped out of the context and fabric of the man's life and vision, so well described in his excellent book, Dreams From My Father, often in order to distract us from discussing the real issues: war and peace, the fight for economic and racial justice, reaffirming our Constitution, and the protection and enhancement of our environment." ... "After the terrible damage done over the past eight years, a great American reclamation project needs to be undertaken. I believe that Senator Obama is the best candidate to lead that project and to lead us into the 21st Century with a renewed sense of moral purpose and of ourselves as Americans." ... "Over here on E Street, we're proud to support Obama for President." -By Bruce Springsteen 

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Barack Obama - 2008 Election - Politics - Kentucky - Racist - "G.O.P. Rep. Refers to Obama as ‘That Boy’." ... "[Kentucky Republican Represenative Geoff Davis on 2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack Obama:] “I’m going to tell you something: That boy’s finger does not need to be on the button,” Mr. Davis said." ... "Once the “boy” remarks began to circulate on the Internet, the Obama campaign moved swiftly to criticize them. “It’s hard to tell what is more outrageous - Representative Davis’s condescending and personal attack, or his absurd and offensive claim that Barack Obama is not prepared to defend America. Geoff Davis may hide behind offensive tough talk, but he has marched in lock-step with Bush-McCain policies that have devastated our national security, while Barack Obama has stood up against a misguided war in Iraq and worked with respected Republicans like Dick Lugar and Chuck Hagel to secure loose weapons and nuclear materials from terrorists,” Bill Burton, the campaign spokesman said." -By Kate Phillips -NYTimes

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Barack Obama - 2008 Election - Race - Politics - Illinois - "Poll: 76 percent say U.S. ready for black president." ... "The number of Americans who believe that the country is ready for a black president is rising, a poll released Thursday suggested." ... "More than three quarters, 76 percent, of respondents in a CNN/Essence Magazine/Opinion Research Corp. poll said the country is ready to be led by an African-American, up 14 percentage points since December 2006." ... "Some of the rise can be attributed to the success of [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate and Illinois Senator] Sen. Barack Obama in the Democratic presidential primaries, said Keating Holland, CNN's polling director." ... ""We're not asking this question in a vacuum. In many cases, respondents must have had Obama in mind when giving their answer, even though he is not mentioned anywhere in the questionnaire," Holland said. " -By Paul Steinhauser -CNN

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John McCain - Race - History - Civil Rights - Arizona - Tennessee - "McCain's Memphis Visit Raises Past Opposition To MLK Day." ... "This Friday, [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain will head to Memphis, Tennessee to commemorate the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." ... "The stop, which is part of the senator's extended biography tour, is a complimentary gesture both to the African American community and to King's legacy. But is also threatens to resurrect an inconsistency McCain has had on one of the more symbolically important civil rights issues: whether or not to create a holiday commemorating Martin Luther King." ... "In 1983, McCain voted against passing a bill to designate the third Monday of every January as a federal holiday in honor of King. Four years later, then-Arizona Governor Evan Mecham rescinded Martin Luther King Day as a state holiday, saying it had been established through an illegal executive order by his Democratic predecessor." ... "McCain said he thought Mecham was correct in his decision." ... "Two years after that, McCain's viewpoint began to change, but only gradually. In 1989, he urged lawmakers to make Martin Luther King Jr. day a state holiday, but said he was "still opposed to another federal holiday." -By Sam Stein -HuffingtonPost.com

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