Birther Announcements
The birthers, citizens who claim President Obama is not a natural born U.S. citizen and therefore cannot legally be president, are rising up and making their voices heard. Well, at least they’re trying to. Recent supporters of the movement include former vice president Dick Cheney’s daughter (Liz, not Meghan) and an old devil from the Nixon administration, G. Gordon Liddy. MSNBC’s Chris Matthews fed Liddy his lunch last week as Liddy defended the birther cry of “Show me the birth certificate!” Actually, Matthews fed him a copy of Obama’s birth certificate. Liddy jumped on the fact that the copy Matthews gave him was redacted, prompting Matthews to give him a copy that wasn’t.
Birther Announcements
The birthers, citizens who claim President Obama is not a natural born U.S. citizen and therefore cannot legally be president, are rising up and making their voices heard. Well, at least they’re trying to. Recent supporters of the movement include former vice president Dick Cheney’s daughter (Liz, not Meghan) and an old devil from the Nixon administration, G. Gordon Liddy. MSNBC’s Chris Matthews fed Liddy his lunch last week as Liddy defended the birther cry of “Show me the birth certificate!” Actually, Matthews fed him a copy of Obama’s birth certificate. Liddy jumped on the fact that the copy Matthews gave him was redacted, prompting Matthews to give him a copy that wasn’t. The only argument Liddy offered that approached being reasonable was the alleged existence of a sworn statement from Obama’s step-grandmother claiming she had witnessed his birth. Let’s rundown the checklist of supports: Convicted felon from one of the most corrupt administrations in U.S. history; the former vice president’s new puppet; and the nuts at WorldNetDaily.com. Let’s not forget about the U.S. Army reservist who filed a lawsuit to avoid being deployed to Afghanistan (a tour he volunteered for and could have simply unvolunteered). His lawsuit was dismissed and he lost his job as an employee with a defense contractor because of the suit.
Adoption Debate
While the ruling that Florida’s ban on gays adopting is under appeal, the judge who issued the most recent ruling, Cindy Lederman, was recently demoted in what was described as an administrative reorganization. Meanwhile, Governor Charlie Crist is on tour (again!) promoting adoption in Florida. Crist, who had voiced his support for the ban in the past, told a reporter who asked if he would consider lifting the ban, “I’d have to think about it.” His not-so-radical change in position is probably an attempt to center him for the swinging he’ll be doing in his senate race.
Mommy Dearest
Lesbian “Mommy” Olive Watson adopted her partner, Patricia Spado, back in 1991. Back then same-sex marriage was but a twinkle in our eyes and Watson and Spado were seeking to protect their family status. To make a long story short, Spado and Watson broke up a year later and didn’t have the adoption annulled. Watson’s father Thomas, of IBM fame and fortune, passed away in 1993 and left a trust from which cash payments would be paid to his grandchildren once they reached the age of 35. Having been adopted by his daughter, Spado legally became his granddaughter and eligible for a slice of his estate. Spado and Watson’s family have been back and forth in court, where at one point the same judge that signed the adoption annulled it because he claimed the couple had not fulfilled residency requirements; the most recent ruling in the case dispensed with the annulment and left Spado in position to inherit. The case is on appeal, of course, and would be an excellent candidate for a mid-season miniseries.
Judging Beauty
Between judging the Miss California beauty pageant and his run-in with a fist belonging to the road manager from The Black Eyes Peas, Perez Hilton probably felt pretty beat down. He’s got nothing on a gay beauty pageant beating reported in the Chicago Tribune. According to the report one judge voted against a contestant another judge favored. The result? The judge who voted wrong was reportedly crowned by the other judge with the trophy while a contestant jabbed at him with a sharp object. They should have checked their purses at the door.
Still Standing
You can’t talk about beauty queens and pageants without bringing up the recently dethroned Carrie Prejean, Patron Saint of Family Values and Opposite Marriage. The Huffington Post noted last week that her book entitled “Still Standing” is due out in bookstores in November. It’s unclear why she chose this title for the book since her implants will remain perky for several more years, but that’s what happens when you give a beauty queen a box of crayons.
That’s it for this week, but feel free to carry on the discussion at HotspotsMagazine.com/ Situation.
