Before his mouth was sewn shut by southern slaveholders, RNC chairman Michael Steele was always talking about the “battle royale” or “royale with cheese” that would define his dynamic, hippity hop leadership: a special election in rural New York State, to replace Democratic congresslady Kirsten Gillibrand, because now she’s got Hillary Clinton’s Senate seat, because blind-ass David Paterson decided the best thing to do was appoint a Democratic congresslady from a rural congressional district where Republicans have a good chance of winning because of all the poor white Hudson Valley trash up there, thus giving the GOP a very early chance to start a “comeback” narrative, which will fuel right-wing listserv The Politico for the next eight years of “seizing the day.” MORE »

Cindy Sheehan’s “retirement” has been worse than Jay-Z’s. [Raw Story]