Crap Detector: The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Lies Like a Rug… to Seduce Contributions

Editor's note: Today we introduce a new feature at AlterNet, the Crap Detector, to poke some holes in the nonsense that comes across our desks and laptop screens.

The Crap Detector is quite appalled by the disinformation in e-mails coming from the DCCC like a flood to raise money on the symbolic effort for a constitutional amendment on Citizens United. Whoever the copy writers are at the DCCC, they basically are making stuff up, and putting it out under Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s name.

The ruse started Monday, when the Senate voted to debate the amendment. Everyone, even Democrats, know it can’t get 67 votes to pass. But the Republicans agreed to the debate, because it lets them score points. The fact that the Senate was going to debate, which is like showing up for work, was suddenly called a great political victory by the DCCC and Move On. It wasn't. When MSNBC’s Laurence O’Donnell expressed his delight on Monday evening, the honest broker, Minnesota Democratic Sen. Al Franken, had to tell him sorry, but this is all a maneuver by those sneaky Republicans to stall and take up time to prevent any progress on issues like minimum wage before a recess.

But that didn’t stop the DCCC from screaming, “House Republicans will vote Today in Constitutional Amendment overturning Citizen United.” But there was never to be a House vote. Nothing was scheduled. The amendment was never in play in the House. Their fantasy continued, “Boehner and House Republicans will get their turn to vote on the Constitutional amendment in just hours. We need to put immense public pressure on them if we’re going to make them crack.”

None of this is remotely true. There never was going to be a vote.

The next e-mail, from Pelosi, continued the fraud, saying, “I’m disgusted. Boehner’s Republicans just BLOCKED consideration of a Constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United. That's why I'm coming directly to you. It’s time to go on the offensive and expose the Kochs' friends in the House—and we need just $47,000 by midnight to make it happen.”

Make what happen? This e-mail was sent before debate concluded in the Senate. Boehner was never going to bring it to the floor. It wasn’t on the House schedule. The DCCC didn’t answer AlterNet’s questions about what was going on.

The Crap Detector realizes that nothing the DCCC sends out can be trusted. We wonder how many other fundraising appeals are also filled with lies?

Hillary's Wet Kiss to War Criminal Henry Kissinger, Returned in Kind

Yes, it is true that Henry the K. is still alive. And still writing books, as of course is presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. (And Kissinger's book is higher up in the Times’ bestseller list than hers.) So to further burnish her right-wing, war-mongering image, in contrast to the slow-moving Barack Obama, Hillary reviewed Kissinger’s book, World Order, very favorably for the Washington Post.   

It didn’t talk long for Henry to return the favor. “I've known her for many years now, and I respect her intellect... And she ran the State Department in the most effective way that I’ve ever seen.” When asked by reporters if Clinton ran the State Department better than he did, Kissinger said yes.  

Seems like Kissinger is primed to support Clinton for president. And who knows, maybe Hillary could return the favor and give Henry the K another round at State. After all, he’ll only be 93 in 2016. He’d make Hillary Clinton look like a spring chicken.