Last night President Barack Obama, addressing a crowd of Muslims in the White House observing the holy month of Ramadan, said that under the First Amendment’s separation of church and state, a Muslim community center and mosque  has the right to build where they want to. Obama’s comments echoed the stirring speech given last week by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg defending the concept of religious tolerance.

The shrieks of Republican blowhards and politicians are increasing and no doubt will reach a crescendo tomorrow morning on the Sunday talkshows.

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We suppose, to be consistent, we should object to this novel request:

State elections officials narrowly rejected a Milwaukee Assembly candidate’s attempt to run with the slogan “NOT the ‘whiteman’s bitch’ ” under her name on the ballot.

Ieshuh Griffin, a Milwaukee independent running to replace retiring Rep. Annette “Polly” Williams (D-Milwaukee), said in response she would sue the Government Accountability Board for infringing on her freedom of speech.

“I’m not making a derogatory statement toward an ethnic group. I’m stating what I’m not,” Griffin told board members. “It’s my constitutional right to freedom of speech.”

Then again, to be really consistent, we would have to flip the history of the United States on its head.

Board rejects ‘whiteman’ ballot language from Milwaukee candidate [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]

“Fearing that even marginal voter preferences for tea party candidates could spell doom in November, Republicans now claim that the dozen or more Florida Tea Party candidates running for statehouse seats are part of some Sunshine State shenanigans.” [TPM]

It’s a big Primary night across the country, with twelve states vying for Keith & Rachel’s attention, including Nevada (chickens!) and California (sheep!). We don’t think there will be any surprises, but just in case, we’re keeping our asses covered with this Open Thread/Shearing Party.

Your Closing Times nationwide:

7 pm: South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia
8 pm: Maine, New Jersey
8:30 pm: Arkansas
9 pm: North Dakota, South Dakota
10 pm: Iowa, Montana, Nevada
11 pm: California

We apologize for not having any drinking games to suggest, although Hemlock is always in style.

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Florida GOP mob capo Jim Greer was stuffed in the bag this morning by Florida Department of Law Enforcement agents on a charge he looted the state party organization of more than $100,000.

Greer was forced out his gig as party chairman in January amid outrage that he was using party revenues to fund a non-stop bacchanalia that was too Caligulan even for the party of oligarchic excess, complaints that attracted the attention of state law enforcement officials.

The Fort Laudersale Sun-Sentinel reported on the subsequent indictment that hopefully will put this piece of shit away for decades:

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The neoconfederate, neonazi front group Americans for Legal Immigration PAC (ALIPAC) announced this month that some 17 states are now filing versions of Arizona’s SB 1070 law which is designed to terrorize non-white Americans and give psychopathic racists an outlet for their depthless rage and hatred for the election of a melanin-enriched president.

The fascist dogs at ALIPAC have been inciting legislators in the most nazi-sympathetic states to file legislation to legalize the arbitrary arrest and terrorism of non-whites.

So far these agents of hate have reportedly provoked sympathetic responses to their satanic cause in Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas and Utah.

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“[Nevada] election officials on Friday added chicken suits to the list of banned items after weeks of ridicule directed at Republican Senate candidate Sue Lowden… Under the new rule, chicken costumes will be banned along with political buttons, shirts, hats and signs within 100 feet of polling places.” [AP/MSNBC, via PourMeCoffee]