Sen. Dole Must Want a Jackass Award: Tries to Name AIDS Bill After Jesse Helms

Posted by Rachel Weiner, Huffington Post at 3:25 AM on July 17, 2008.

Yes. That Jesse Helms.

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Republican Senator Elizabeth Dole introduced an amendment to name an HIV/AIDS relief bill after the recently deceased Jesse Helms. Helms, of course, was a strident foe of HIV/AIDS prevention, research and treatment. The blog Joe.My.God recalls some of Helms' notable moments in AIDS relief:

Jesse Helms, the man who in 1987 described AIDS prevention literature as "so obscene, so revolting, I may throw up."

Jesse Helms, the man who in 1988 vigorously opposed the Kennedy-Hatch AIDS research bill, saying, "There is not one single case of AIDS in this country that cannot be traced in origin to sodomy."

Jesse Helms, the man who in 1995 said (in opposition to refunding the Ryan White Act) that the government should spend less on people with AIDS because they got sick due to their "deliberate, disgusting, revolting conduct."

Jesse Helms, the man who in 2002 announced that he'd changed his mind about AIDS funding for Africa, but not for American gays, because homosexuality "is the primary cause of the doubling and redoubling of AIDS cases in the United States."

In fact, in 1991 seven activists from the group ACT UP put a giant condom on Helms' Arlington home that said "Helms Is Deadlier Than A Virus."

Tagged as: jesse helms, elizabeth dole, elizabeth dole aids, elizabeth dole aids bill, elizabeth dole helms, elizabeth dole jesse helm, jesse helms aids, jesse helms death

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living oxymorons [Report this comment] Posted by: luzmejor on Jul 17, 2008 6:11 AM Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] There is no such thing as a "conservative" Republican in the party's hierarchy. Jesse Helm's would have brought back cross-burning if he had dared. As it happens, he found an even better way to promote hatred everywhere he went. He started the biggest, most powerful political-attack machine ever devised, with the help of televangelist's money. That hate philosophy is still alive and well in their campaign press and some notable and ignoble television "news" programs. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] Take That, Helms! [Report this comment] Posted by: QQOblivion on Jul 17, 2008 8:34 AM Current rating: 4 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] Ah, but the irony. Can you imagine Jesse Helms looking up at Earth from Hell, seeing that someone from his own party wants to name an AIDS-prevention bill after him. HA! Take that, you fucking fascist! Next they should name civil-rights legislation or a voting-rights bill after Helms. It makes me wish that the deceased could indeed watch the happenings on Earth after they die. (Sadly, I think that after we die, we are completely kaput.) Does this "insult" upon the "moral" Mr Helms make the fires of Hell any hotter? I sure hope so! [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] Jim in Raleigh [Report this comment] Posted by: judemitch on Jul 17, 2008 9:10 AM Current rating: 4 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] It appears obvious to me that Ms. Dole is doing this to have her link with Jesse reinforced here in North Carolina. She is, after all, running for reelection this year. And Jesse is no longer here to voice that support. Her choice of venue is pure Jesse. The more the opposition decries your action, the more base support you engender. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] » RE: Jim in Raleigh Posted by: master09 Bizarro World [Report this comment] Posted by: Dankhank on Jul 17, 2008 12:17 PM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] In the old Superman comics "Bizarro" was Superman's exact opposite from another dimension that was the opposite of Earth's dimension. The term "Bizarro" has been used occasionally in the media by talking heads to suggest some outrageous situation not necessarily opposite of expected behavior. This Helms/Aids thing is precisely the opposite of reality and definitely IS "Bizarro." Bush's "clean skies" and water management and forest preservation programs are "Bizarro" in nature, too. OK, chilluns, now is your chance to identify true "Bizarro" activities of our current government. Have Fun ... and stay true to the "Bizarro" creed ... the opposite. Thanks Ms Dole, for the perfect instructional tool to define the term. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] » RE: Bizarro World Posted by: Quannah Will Dole Win Re-election? [Report this comment] Posted by: Midway54 on Jul 17, 2008 1:03 PM Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] This woman has to be the most invisible and ineffective Senator in the chamber. She is only seen when a vote is on and then only briefly. On a rare occasion, she appears in the Senate to support some crackpot ultra-right winger's bill designed to increase the comfort of the plutocrats. The same political question posed by Thomas Franks a couple of years ago for Kansas elections is applicable here, as well: What's the Matter with North Carolina? [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] » RE: Will Dole Win Re-election? Posted by: Vik Insult upon Insult [Report this comment] Posted by: sober7teen1 on Jul 17, 2008 5:52 PM Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] This woman is gone crazy. That's like naming the Bill of Rights after Osama Bin Laden. Helms was a bigot and a foe of all but the extremely religious right and the rich. This is plantation mentality; exhault the massa or else. I thought I had heard it all but this leaves me speechless and ashamed of these elected officials. She picked the wrong white woman to mess with here. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] Helms and Dole: the legacy lives on [Report this comment] Posted by: Forrest on Jul 18, 2008 5:28 AM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] The legacy of Helms lives on......... I know a hemophiliac who is living with HIV that he contracted from contaminated blood back in the 1980's. Helm's comment “There is not one single case of Aids in this country that cannot be traced in origin to sodomy.”, is a vicious callous insult to all peoples living with HIV. Senator Elizabeth Dole, back when she was president of American Red Cross, and other business "leaders" made a conscious decision not to heat treat blood products because it would cost money. As a direct consequence of their collective irresponsible decision placing profit before people- thousands of people became infected with HIV and HCV- Remember Ryan White? He died because of their greed. Senator Elizabeth Dole is still making those same irresponsible decisions representing her state of North Carolina. She recently voted against children's health care because the proposed tobacco tax would hurt her state's tobacco industry. Two years ago, my father died because of her state's tobacco industry. He died from lung cancer. He tried to quit several times. It was not his decision to continue smoking- he was "hooked" on this legal and very profitable drug. The tobacco industry lost a customer when my father died. Profit before People. The legacy of Helms lives on......... [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

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