Rand Paul:

A spokesman for Rand Paul, the Tea Party-backed Senate candidate in Kentucky, said Paul “will vote against and filibuster any unbalanced budget proposal in the Senate.”

Sharron Angle:

“There are certain things that can be done just by your junior senator,” Angle said, explaining that even if Republicans remain in the minority after 2010, she could filibuster, which allows lone lawmakers to delay legislation through lengthy debate.

“I guarantee that I can talk most anything to death.”

Read more »

We’re not entirely sure how we feel about this — it’s a great trick for stifling dissent of all flavors — but happily, we’re not a Responsible Op-Ed Columnist:

The controversial Florida pastor who threatened to burn Korans on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks is expected to be billed at least $200,000 by the city of Gainesville for costs associated with the stunt.

Pastor Terry Jones, who got international attention with his on-again, off-again plan to burn 200 copies of Islam’s holiest book, said the costs would essentially bankrupt his 50-member church, the Dove World Outreach Center.

No, no, no, they’re already morally bankrupt. Gainesville just wants to fiscally bankrupt them to match.

Florida Pastor Who Vowed to Burn Korans Billed for Security; Says Church Would Go Bankrupt [ABC, via Yahoo]

“A new FoxNews poll, conducted Sept. 18 and released Tuesday, shows Democratic Senate nominee Chris Coons leadng Republican Christine O’Donnell by 15 points, 54 percent to 39 percent. Sixty percent of those surveyed said O’Donnell is not qualified to be a U.S. senator, while 59 percent said Coons is qualified.” [Politico]

[NY Daily News]

Our guest columnist is a Beefeater copywriter from 1965, reminding us what we should have done before watching Bristol Palin on Dancing With The Stars last night.

How do you find the time to serve a great martini, especially in a home with small children? Some household rules have been found to help:

First, let the head of the house assume the responsibility for the martini. You can, of course, get someone else to do it — a paid hand on a yacht, a butler if you possess one.

Read more »

Reverend Selena Fox, High Priestess and Senior Minister of Wisconsin’s Circle Sanctuary: “‘Any political candidate that is going to equate witchcraft with Satanism is ill informed and is not likely to get the support of people involved in nature religion,’ she said, noting that the pagan community was ‘multi-partisan.'” [HuffPo]

The 2012 Presidential Campaign kicks off in high style tonight at eight:

There will be high security tonight when Sarah Palin shows up to watch daughter Bristol perform on “Dancing with the Stars”…

Our spies say security guards at CBS Television City in L.A. — the place where “Dancing” is broadcast — is on “heightened alert.”

Well, so are we! Almost enough to liveblog it, except we’re on the Left Coast, so it would be more like a Tape-Delay Blog, which takes all the fun out of it. Especially the fun that would ensue if there’s a security breach on live television, in which case protecting Mama Grizzly is a “higher priority than Bristol.”

And speaking of The World’s Luckiest Unwed Teen Mom:

Palin, 19, calls herself “naturally shy” and wants to make sure she sets a good example for her son, Tripp, 20 months.

Yes, we remember how proud we were at 5, to learn that Mom had whored herself out on national television before we could walk.

‘Dancing’ Studio on Red Sarah Palin Alert [TMZ, via Political Wire]

Bristol Is Miss Modest in Her Dancing Costume [People, Sept. 7]