Michael Barone; Ted Cruz and Antoine Dodson

National Review Online  "The big media has assumed that tea-partiers are potentially violent despite the lack of evidence of any violent behavior. That’s why ABC’s Brian Ross mentioned on-air an Aurora, Colo., tea-partier with the same name as the movie-theater murderer, although it’s a common name and Aurora has 325,000 people.

"In contrast, the MSM has been happy to celebrate the much smaller and often violent Occupy movement and characterize it as “mostly nonviolent.”

...."In Huntsville, Ala., YouTube celebrity Antoine Dodson, who is openly gay, dined at Chick-fil-A on Wednesday. “That’s what freedom is. We don’t all have to believe in the same things,” he told a Huntsville Times reporter.

...."Dodson presumably is not an expert on the Constitution like Ted Cruz. But he has something to teach the liberal mainstream media about the spirit of the Founders."

The shameless Harry Reid

Debra Saunders: Harry Reid's big mouth   "Reid seemed to understand how fantastic his charge appeared. He told HuffPo, "Now, do I know that that's true? Well, I'm not certain. But obviously he can't release those tax returns. How would it look?" "

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/job-367600-shoots-lowering.html?pic=1

We ran this a few days ago, but here it is again: 'Call Obama's bluff!' 

Romney should call a press conference and issue a challenge in front of the nation. He should agree to release more of his tax returns, only if Obama unseals his college records

From The Washington Post, of all papers! Four Pinocchios for Harry Reid’s claim about Mitt Romney’s taxes   "But Romney’s 2010 return and his estimated 2011 return do show that he paid substantial taxes in those years. In 2010, he earned nearly $22 million, including $3 million in taxable interest, nearly $5 million in dividends and more than $12 million in capital gains. He reduced his taxes by giving $3 million in charitable contributions (much of it in appreciated stock, which shielded him from paying additional capital gains.)"

From Hope n' Change, which also adds some commentary.

WH Sides With Reid, Calls on Romney to Release Taxes  How about we exchange Romney's taxes for Obama's college transcripts? This breaking news just in: 
Reid: Credible Source Says Romney Owns a Pet Elephant  Via White House Dossier

Two from Lucianne: 
Even Mother Jones says  It's Time to Stop Celebrating Harry Reid  "This is contemptible stuff and it's not just business as usual. We've spent too many years berating the tea partiers for getting on bandwagons like this to get sucked into it ourselves the first time it's convenient. It's time to quit cheering on Reid and get off this particular bus."

Bachmann and Reid: A Troubling Double Standard  "Bachmann’s claims were based upon the thinnest possible evidence, and she was quickly denounced -- particularly by members of her own party -- for making such unsourced and scurrilous, claims.

" “These are dangerous accusations,” Speaker of the House John Boehner said on CNN, “If somebody had the facts, somebody should have put the facts out there." "

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/2012/08/07/102603

LA Times Touts Reid’s Lies as Winning Issue  "One of the journalists who follows Reid most closely, columnist Jon Ralston, told the Washington Post that the old pol was ‘fearless and shameless.” "

Dennis Miller's Epic Harry Reid Rant   "He might be one of the stupidest beings who still manages to stay upright."

"We've Been Warned: Obama ad candid about post-election plans --and it's scary"

Clark Judge  "Strengthening the middle class is, of course, a Democratic Party mantra… and a Republican Party goal.  It is universal to politics in a nation where almost every one of us considers him or herself part of the middle class.  But all the net new jobs over the past three decades have come from businesses started in the prior five years.  So where is the president going to find what he calls “middle class jobs” after he strangles entrepreneurship with higher taxes?  Meanwhile despite a nod to the deficit, he says not a word about spending that has gone from 20 percent of GDP before his presidency to 25 percent today.  Again, he gives not a hint of a lesson learned from his mistakes."  Via Hugh Hewitt

Did Senator Obama dodge taxes on a $400,000 gift from Tony Rezko?

American Thinker  "Last February, a website focused on Chicago corruption reported that a former business partner of Tony Rezko gave Rezko $400K that Rezko gave to then Senator Barack Obama."

Daniel T. Frawley, a former business partner of Antoin "Tony" Rezko, claims he gave Rezko $400,000 that Rezko gave to then U.S. Senator Barack Obama.

"Frawley's pro bono attorney, Thomas Durkin, has been nominated by President Obama, and championed by the two Illinois US Senators, to become a Federal Judge." Corruption!

"Now that the presidential candidates' tax histories are on the table, isn't it time that a White House correspondent ask a question about Frawley's accusation?"

In real life, the MSM helps Obama carry all that baggage, sad to say.

Brent Bozell: If a Story Doesn’t Help Obama, The Media Won’t Cover It

Conservative Daily News;  Bozell, founder and president of the Media Research Center,  discusses a wide variety of issues ranging from media bias to the future of the conservative movement. Bozell said:

I’ll give you a couple of examples. When the Catholic Bishops launched a- announced a lawsuit against the president on the health care mandate that happened to be the single largest lawsuit in the history of the republic against a standing United States President on the number one issue of concern to the media.  how much coverage did it get on ABC? Nothing. CBS? Nothing. NBC? Nothing.  Read Article...

Here's another on this subject: How Journalists Pretend There Aren't Any White House Scandals

President Barack Obama goes into the 2012 [race] with a weak economy that may doom his reelection. But he has one asset that hasn’t received much attention: He’s honest.   Jonathan Alter

"[Brenda] Nyhan’s methodology insisted that a president doesn’t have a scandal until The Washington Post calls it a “scandal” by using that precise word.

"This grants nearly all the power in defining what is or is not a scandal to the Washington media elite. Congress can launch investigations, hold hearings, or otherwise make real news, but journalists have repeatedly ignored or dismissed the Obama scandals."
The article then proceeds to list "scandals" the press gave scant coverage to.

And nobody can spread it like Obama

Rich Terrell

Obama Columbia classmate: Romney should call Obama's bluff!

The Blaze   "By attacking Romney’s tax records, Obama’s socialist cabal creates a problem that doesn’t exist. Is the U.S. Senate Majority Leader making up stories out of thin air? You decide. But the reason for this baseless attack is clear- make Romney defend, so not only is he “off message” but it helps the media ignore the real Obama scandal.
"My answer for Romney? Call Obama’s bluff.

"Romney should call a press conference and issue a challenge in front of the nation. He should agree to release more of his tax returns, only if Obama unseals his college records. Simple and straight-forward. Mitt should ask “What could possibly be so embarrassing in your college records from 29 years ago that you are afraid to let America’s voters see? If it’s THAT bad, maybe it’s something the voters ought to see.” Suddenly the tables are turned. Now Obama is on the defensive."

Via Rush Limbaugh Quick Hits page, in which Rush went on to read from Root's 
 article:

Bing

"If you could unseal Obama’s Columbia University records I believe you’d find that: A) He rarely ever attended class. B) His grades were not those typical of what we understand it takes to get into Harvard Law School. C) He attended Columbia as a foreign exchange student. D) He paid little for either undergraduate college or Harvard Law School because of foreign aid and scholarships given to a poor foreign students like this kid Barry Soetoro from Indonesia."If you think I’m 'fishing' then prove me wrong. Open up your records Mr. President. What are you afraid of? 

Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II (morph sequence)

This is an absolutely exquisite video tribute to Queen Elizabeth II that traces her life from infancy to the present. As someone who can barely blog properly, I am overwhelmed by the beauty of the "morphing" done by the creator of this video. I cannot comprehend what it took to do this. TD
Youtube

Hat tip to Patti Vaughan, Plano, TX

Liars, Damned Liars, and Harry Reid (Updated with great irony)

American Thinker  "Deriving from legal sources like the United States Constitution, Article I, Section 6, this "safe harbor" to slander and defame shamelessly is known as the "legislative privilege."  At its finest, the legislative privilege exists to assure unfettered debate, permitting robust criticism of government without fear of being sued for tortious defamation.  However, Harry Reid does not embody its finest.  Note that Harry Reid, when speaking outside the safety of the legislative chamber, speaks of having heard rumors about Mitt Romney but never states outright that Mitt Romney cheated on taxes except when Reid is on the Senate floor, artificially protected from being sued as a "dirty liar."  Thus, he not only is a "dirty liar," but he is also a coward.  If the lines at Chick-fil-A are too long, you can always find at least that one chicken in the United States Senate."   (emphasis added. TD)
Hat tip to Margi Hawks; Liberty, MO

http://editorialcartoonists.com/cartoon/display.cfm/113573/

UPDATE: Irony alert: White House disses Drudge Report: ‘Be mindful of your sources’

One more time: Sikhs-are-NOT-Muslims

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/2012/08/07/102583

Turban or not, these people could not be more innocent of what they have been accused by ignorant people.

UK Guardian; Sikhs say attacks on community are 'collateral damage' of 9/11

"Sometimes they call you a Muslim or Bin Laden. It's the way they say it. They are not fair to everybody," said Singh who immigrated from India 14 years ago. "But I have not seen violence before. We did not expect it. We are peaceful. We open our arms to everyone."

http://www.sikhtoons.com/

Sikhs reel after 'senseless' attack: We're not Taliban  "That turban has tragically marked us as automatically suspect, perpetually foreign and potentially terrorists," Valarie Kaur, a filmmaker who has chronicled attacks on Sikhs in the 2006 documentary "Divided We Fall," told the AP"

'Call Obama's bluff!'

donkeyhotey

Thomas Lifson;  "President Obama has now placed the documentary history of a presidential candidate on  the table as a legitimate demand. His stooge Harry Reid has demanded 10 years of financial documentation from Mitt Romney.  Wayne Root, who was Obama's class of '83 classmate  at Columbia and a Libertarian Party vice presidential nominee,  lays out very clearly how Mitt Romney can spring a trap on the Obama campaign's desperate gambit. From The Blaze:".....

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/2012/08/07/102594

And why should we, the citizen taxpayer, be more concerned with what Romney does with his money, and less concerned with what Obama, Pelosi, and Reid do with ours?"

How the Obama Campaign/Media Alliance Works    "So do you wonder why Harry Reid is going around telling everyone who will listen that he heard from someone (name not revealed) that Romney did not pay taxes for ten years ? I think it is because the new Obama attack campaign is designed to make Romney look like a slimy tax cheat. Harry Reid has no shame. He is a millionaire many times over.  
And the Media is complicit in all this.  "Anyone who doesn’t believe Obama is behind what Reid is up to, doesn’t want to. The media knows Team Obama is behind this, but won't say so. Because saying so isn't part of a sleazy plan that was formulated and rolled out in this way…"

American Thinker; Why is Harry Reid riding the mail pony?  "And why should we, the citizen taxpayer, be more concerned with what Romney does with his money, and less concerned with what Obama, Pelosi,  and Reid do with ours?"  More...