Justin Spees

Where will the birthers strike next?

President Obama released his long-form, but "birther bills" are still alive in state houses across the country

President Barack Obama gestures as he speaks at a Democratic party fundraiser, the third of three such events he attended in one night, in New York, Wednesday, April 27, 2011. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)(Credit: AP)

President Obama’s disclosure of his long-form birth certificate this week has yet to deter many birthers — including the ones elected to public office.

Less than 24 hours after the president’s press conference on Wednesday, for instance, Oklahoma’s House of Representatives passed a bill requiring presidential candidates to provide proof of identity and U.S. citizenship in order to appear on the state’s ballot. In all, about a dozen similar bills have been introduced in legislatures across the country. (In Arizona, a birther bill actually passed earlier this month, only to be vetoted by Gov. Jan Brewer.) Some of the proposed laws have some interesting twists — including one that would declare any voter who cast a ballot for an ineligible candidate guilty of a crime.

Here are a look at the five most notable birther bills that are still pending:

Oklahoma

SB 91 requires all candidates running for federal office to submit an “original birth certificate” to the Oklahoma Election Board. It passed the House in a landslide yesterday and will now be sent to the Oklahoma Senate for a procedural vote. The Oklahoma House and Senate both entertain a large Republican majority, and the bill is expected to pass. Oklahoma state legislators assume that Gov. Mary Fallin will sign the bill into law. We emailed Fallin’s office asking for a comment and received a reply stating that she has not made any public comment on the issue.

Louisiana

State Rep. Alan Seabaugh and state Sen. A.G. Crowe jointly proposed HB 561 several weeks ago, which also requires candidates to prove U.S. citizenship before appearing on a state ballot. Both lawmakers stated yesterday that they were pleased that Obama had released his long-form birth certificate, but that they would press forward with the bill in an effort to close loopholes in existing Louisiana law. The bill was publicly endorsed by Gov. Bobby Jindal last week. “It’s not part of our package,” his press secretary said in a statement, “but if the Legislature passes it, we’ll sign it.”

Missouri

At first glance, HB 121 appears to be a standard update of Missouri election procedure, but provision 8 of the bill would require presidential and vice-presidential nominees to submit proof of citizenship to Missouri’s secretary of state. State Rep. Lyle Rowland, who sponsored the bill, claims that the provision is intended to keep illegal immigrants from taking over the White House, just in case “something were to happen where one of them became popular with the people.” According to Rowland’s office, the bill has made it out of committee and is scheduled to be debated on the House floor. The specific date has yet to be determined.

Texas

Authored by Tea Party favorite Leo Berman last November, HB 295 would require presidential candidates to show their birth certificates to the Texas secretary of state. Unlike his many of his counterparts, Berman is an out and proud birther — in an interview yesterday, he claimed that he found Obama’s long-form birth certificate unconvincing and suspected it may be a hoax. The bill is currently stuck in committee. We contacted Gov. Rick Perry to see if he would support such a bill but did not hear back from his office.

Nebraska

Sponsored by State Rep. Mark Christiansen, LB 654 might be the most radical birther bill in the country. If enacted into law, the bill would not only require presidential and vice-presidential candidates to submit original copies of their long-form birth certificates to Nebraska’s secretary of state — but would also require candidates to prove that their parents obtained U.S. citizenship prior to his or her birth. Nominees would then have to sign a sworn affidavit to that effect and additionally swear that they were not born dual citizens. Nebraskans who vote for a candidate that has not met these criteria would be guilty of a class IV felony. According to Christiansen’s office, the bill is currently stuck in committee and will most likely stay there, at least through the end of the year.

Donald Trump: A history of hand-scrawled rage

The note he sent to Salon's Justin Elliott today is tame compared to some of his greatest hits

Donald Trump attends the South Florida Tea Party's third annual tax day rally Saturday, April 16, 2011 at Sanborn Square in Boca Raton, Fla. Sounding increasingly like a candidate, Donald Trump repeatedly told a raucous tea party crowd Saturday he has the qualities needed in the White House and the conservative ideals necessary to seal the Republican nomination should he decide to run. (AP Photo/Palm Beach Post, Gary Coronado) MAGS OUT; TV OUT; NO SALES(Credit: AP)

Jerry Seinfeld this week pulled out of a scheduled appearance at a benefit event organized by Donald Trump’s son, Eric. The elder Trump responded by sending Seinfeld a letter that contained some …. choice words:

“I agreed to do, and did, your failed show, ‘The Marriage Ref,’ even though I thought it was absolutely terrible . . . Despite its poor ratings, I didn’t cancel on you like you canceled on my son and St. Jude. I only wish I did.”

This, of course, comes on the heels of two other angry and highly-publicized letters from The Donald to writers that, in his view, wronged him with their words. (One was to the New York Times’ Gail Collins and another to Vanity Fair’s Juli Weiner). It isn’t a new habit, either.  Trump actually has a lengthy history of using colorful hand-scrawled notes (which often reort to juvenile name-calling) to express his pique with members of the media. We’ve rounded up a collection of some of his best public letters of condemnation.

January 1988 to March 1989 – The Spy magazine saga

Spy  contacts Trump about doing a story on his new wife, Ivana. Trump agrees to participate, on the condition that the magazine sticks straight to the facts, and threatens litigation for any perceived libel. What follows is the exhausting process, documented by the magazine, that culminates in Trump sending a letter to Alvin Schragis, father of an investor in Spy, denying he that he ever agreed to help with the story, and assuming (incorrectly) that Schragis is in any way connected to it:

Now I hear through the grapevine that you are doing an extremely inaccurate and dishonest story on Ivana and that the story is being written because I have said no to SPY Magazine going on the Shuttle flights.

September 11, 2005 - Letter to the New York Times Book Review

After the Times’ reviews a new collection of essays from Mark Singer, Trump writes in to take shots at the New Yorker writer, who had produced a profile of him years earlier:

Most writers want to be successful. Some writers even want to be good writers. I’ve read John Updike, I’ve read Orhan Pamuk, I’ve read Philip Roth. When Mark Singer enters their league, maybe I’ll read one of his books. But it will be a long time — he was not born with great writing ability. Until then, maybe he should concentrate on finding his own “lonely component” and then try to develop himself into a worldclass writer, as futile as that may be, instead of having to write about remarkable people who are clearly outside of his realm.

February 21, 2006 – Letter to Martha Stewart

Trump pens an open letter to Stewart criticizing her and gloating in the failure of her own “Apprentice”-style reality show:

It’s about time you started taking responsibility for your failed version of The Apprentice. Your performance was terrible in that the show lacked mood, temperament and just about everything else a show needs for success. I knew it would fail as soon as I first saw it – and your low ratings bore me out.

Between your daughter, with her one word statements, your letter writing and, most importantly, your totally unconvincing demeanor, it never had a chance – much as your daytime show is not exactly setting records.

January 9, 2007 – Letter to Rosie O’Donnell

After Rosie O’Donnell criticizes Trump on “The View,” Trump sends her a letter telling her that he and Barbara Walters both dislike her.

After your maniacal and foolish rant against me two weeks ago, Barbara called me from her vacation (I did not call her) in order to apologize for your behavior. She had heard that I was going to retaliate against you and tried to talk me out of it. She very much wanted me to go on the show as soon as she got back so that she could “patch things up” (I said no). To be exact, she said that “working with her is like living in hell” and, more pointedly, “Donald, never get into the mud with pigs” and, “don’t worry, she won’t be here for long.”

December 13, 2007 – Letter to Davan Maharaj

Trump sends a letter to the business editor of the Los Anegeles Times criticizing reporter David Lazarus for asserting that Trump has amassed his fortune from reality television rather than real estate:

I am worth many billions of dollars, am building large scale developments all over the world, am considered by many to be, by far, the hottest name in real estate, and I have to read an article by a third-rate reporter in your newspaper that my “primary claim to fame” is hosting The Apprentice.

When your reporter called me two weeks ago to ask questions about Trump University, a very successful though very small part of my business holdings, this reporter sounded like a real “wise-guy”. Unfortunately, there are too many such people in the otherwise wonderful profession of journalism. With people like this working for the Los Angeles Times, I now see why it is a newspaper in a tailspin — both from an advertising and circulatory standpoint. Try getting rid of your “bad apples” like this and I bet you will do a lot better — and by the way in last season’s Apprentice the Los Angeles Times was all too anxious to partake in one of its episodes.

September 2009 – Letter to Mike Tollin

In 2009, ESPN commissions filmmaker Mike Tollin to create a documentary on the rise and fall of the United States Football League. Tollin’s finished product posits that Trump, as the owner of the New Jersey Generals, torpedoed the league by demanding it move from the spring to the fall to compete directly with the NFL. Trump responds by scribbling a reply in pen on a copy of a letter originally sent him by Tollin:

Mike

A third rate documentary — and extremely dishonest (as you know) —

Best wishes

Donald Trump

P.S. You are a loser

January 2010 – Letter to the city of Palm Beach, Florida

Trump organizes an Andrea Bocelli benefit concert at Mar-a-Lago, his golf club in Palm Beach, but the city demands he cap the attendance at 700. Trump had argued with Palm Beach before — in 2006, he filed a lawsuit when he was fined for hanging an oversize American flag over his club in violation of zoning codes. This time, Trump sends a letter to Mayor Jack McDonald and the Town Council expressing his anger:

I’m giving the money to charity. Instead of saying “great going,” they send me a nasty letter telling me I have to live up to the declaration-of-use agreement.

I am reprimanded and threatened by people that have no business running a town — the same people, in fact, that demanded I rip down the American flag, and lost!

December 1, 2010 – Letter to Donna Shalala

After a 7-5 football season, University of Miami president Shalala fires head coach Randy Shannon. Trump, who had apparently pushed for the school to hire former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach instead of Shannon back in 2006, uses the opportunity to gloat:

Donna – You made a big mistake when you did not take my advice and hire Mike Leach of Texas Tech – look what happened to them since he left – (they knew he was leaving) – Hire Coach Leach and you will be #1 – And you can now get him for the right price. Best wishes, Donald.

April 13, 2011 – Letter to Bill Cosby

Frustrated with Trump’s decision to embrace birtherism, Cosby tells “Today’s” Meredith Vieira on Today that he needs to run for president or shut up. Trump responds thusly:

The other day on The Today Show, right after I was interviewed by Meredith Vieira, a terrific person and reporter, I happened to watch Bill Cosby who was on at the end of the show. While I have never been a fan of Cosby’s, I had always assumed he liked or respected me because every time I met him–the last time at the David Letterman show where I preceded him as a guest–he was always so nice, saying “let’s get together”–asking me out to dinner, and being polite to the point of offering to buy me a suit because he has a “great tailor.”

In any event, as I watched the show, the subject of Donald Trump came up. I was surprised to hear him blabber, somewhat incoherently “you run or shut up.” The hatred was pouring out of his eyes when he said this. As I am sure he must know I cannot run until this season of Celebrity Apprentice ends. I know that he has taken a lot of heat over the years in that he seems to be talking down to the people he’s talking to and purportedly trying to help.

 

Continue Reading Close

The 10 most hilarious right-wing nicknames for Obama

The comments section of Sarah Palin's Facebook page is littered with angry -- and unintentionally funny -- puns

Skimming through the comments section of Sarah Palin’s most recent Facebook note earlier this week, we were struck not so much by the hostility toward President Obama, but by the strained attempts to twist his name into some kind of an insult: “Nobama,” “Obomba,” “La Bamba” and so on.  Other commenters skipped the puns and crafted their own nicknames for their president. We then checked Mike Huckabee’s page and found the same phenomenon at work. So we decided to compile our favorites: 

10. Obummer – Dave McArdle, from Nashville, Tenn.

9. Obonehead – Timothy Ditter, from Little Elm, Texas

8. Obeyme – David Burkhardt, location unavailable

7. Lyer in Chief – Jimmy Douglas, from Lubbock, Texas

6. Golfer-in-Chief – Jim Schroud, from Sun Prarie, Wis.

5. King of Teleprompters – Nelinda Fleming, location unavailable

4. Barry the weak – Don Barnhill, location unavailable

3. One Big A*# Mistake America – Elizabeth Mushill, from Bethalto, Ill.

2. Obama 2012!!! Muslim Reign is Christian Pain! – Thomas Dado, from Ventura, Calif.

And finally,

1. Enuich(sic)-in-Chief – Charles Harry Sharrard, location unavailable

Continue Reading Close

The 5 best and worst states to be unemployed in

Michigan just slashed aid to the jobless. How does it compare to the rest of the country?

People wait in line to attend a job fair for military veterans and other unemployed people in Los Angeles, California, October 7, 2010. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson (UNITED STATES - Tags: EMPLOYMENT BUSINESS)(Credit: © Lucy Nicholson / Reuters)

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s state isn’t the only one with labor pains. Michigan, for example, faces the longest ongoing stretch of double-digit unemployment in America. And the state’s governor, Rick Snyde, has just signed a bill into law that slashes the total number of weeks the jobless can collect unemployment benefits from 26 to 20.

Since nearly every state has long offered 26 weeks of coverage, the move makes Michigan one of America’s stingiest states when it comes to helping the unemployed. But when you look at the whole picture — including the amount of money recipients are eligible for, which varies widely by state — it isn’t actually the stingiest. Several states offer far less to recipients than the $362 per week maximum that Michigan offers its laid-off workers. (Thus, an unemployed worker in Michigan receiving the top amount can collect a total of $7,240 over the 20 weeks of coverage that the state guarantees.)

Here, then, is a list of the five least generous states in America when it comes to aiding the jobless:

1. Mississippi
Unemployment rate: 10.2 percent (42nd)
Maximum weekly benefit: $235
No. of weeks state pays for: 26
Total possible compensation: $6,110

2. Arizona
Unemployment rate: 9.6 percent (38th)
Maximum weekly benefit: $240
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $6,240

3. Louisiana
Unemployment rate: 7.9 (20th)
Maximum weekly benefit: $247
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $6,422

4. Alabama
Unemployment rate: 9.3 percent (33rd)
Maximum weekly benefit: $265
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $6,890

5. Tennessee (tie)
Unemployment rate: 9.6 percent (38th)
Maximum weekly benefit: $275
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $7,150

5. Florida (tie)
Unemployment rate: 11.5 percent (49th)
Maximum weekly benefit: $275
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $7,150

Meanwhile, the top five states for unemployment benefits are:

1. Massachusetts
Unemployment rate: 8.2 percent (22nd )
Maximum weekly benefit: $625
No. of weeks state pays for: 26
Total possible compensation: $16,250

2. New Jersey
Unemployment rate: 9.2 percent (32nd)
Maximum weekly benefit: $598
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $15,548

3. Minnesota
Unemployment rate: 6.7 percent (11th)
Maximum weekly benefit: $578
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $15,028

4. Pennsylvania
Unemployment rate: 8.0 percent (20th)
Maximum weekly benefit: $573
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $14,898

5. Washington
Unemployment rate: 9.1 (30th)
Maximum weekly benefit: $570
No. of weeks: 26
Total: $14,820

Continue Reading Close

Stephen Colbert on anti-Obama obituaries

A Salon report inspires the comedian: "This gives a whole new voice to America's extremely silent majority"

On his show Wednesday night, Stephen Colbert introduced viewers to a story originally reported by Salon’s Justin Elliott about a bizarre trend: Obituaries containing pleas to send — in lieu of flowers — money to efforts to unseat Barack Obama:

The real, fake @MayorEmanuel creator revealed

The author of one of the notorious and mysterious twitter feeds is a punk-turned-journalism-professor in Chicago

Former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel leaves a news conference in Chicago, Monday, Jan. 24, 2011, where he responded to an Illinois appeals court ruling that threw him off the ballot for Chicago mayor because he didn't live in the city in the year before the election. The court voted 2-1 to overturn a lower-court ruling that would have kept Emanuel's name on the Feb. 22 ballot. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)(Credit: AP)

5 months after it began, @MayorEmanuel had accrued 39,102 followers, notoriety among Washington insiders, and a $5,000 request from now-Mayor-elect Emanuel to reveal himself after the election. And for 5 months the anonymous Twitter feed kept up a kind of Greek chorus to the Chicago mayoral race by providing a take on real events with an increasingly absurd bent. By the end it had veered into an insane fantasy that both celebrated Emanuel’s inevitable victory and had him disappearing into a void in the sky.

Today, the feed’s creator has revealed himself to The Atlantic as Dan Sinker, founder of the now-defunct zine Punk Planet and journalism professor at Columbia College in Chicago. The Atlantic has published a fascinating article about Sinker, and the meaning of one of the most compelling Twitter odysseys we’ve yet to see from the new medium.

Said Alexis Madrigal in The Atlantic:

And in some sense, the glory of @MayorEmanuel was that it exposed the dark humor that political operatives know and love, mixed with the drunken idealism that tends to drive the politicos. Politics is desperate and raw and exhausting, yet on TV it looks so polished and prim. It’s a knock-down, drag-out war in which everyone has to fight in their Sunday best. @MayorEmanuel looked at that state of affairs and started cussing, not unlike what a lot of us do when we look at our politics.

Read more about the real @MayorEmanuel here.

Continue Reading Close

Page 1 of 6 in Justin Spees

www.salon.com/writer/justin_spees/index.html