Toon: The Blame Game

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I'll have more thoughts on Proposition 8 and all of this divide-and-conquer bullshit later.

In the meantime, Barry has three excellent roundups of links/posts/articles about the awful "blame black folks" meme and the nasty "black people are all homophobes" meme or the ridiculous "there's a black vs. gay war" meme: "If you call me a faggot, I will call you a...", "Two more posts on blaming the brown," and "Prop 8: The Rush To Blame The Brown People."

Toon: The Dream and the Nightmare

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Yes, I cried during Obama's speech. I actually also got up and danced around the room at 11 when CNN called the election. I'm sure I'll be jaded and cynical about the whole thing in no time, but I was definitely pinching myself in thrilled disbelief that night, and I even wore a sparkly sequined blue skirt and red sweater the next day (for real).

By the way, this is of course the same couple I drew reacting to Obama's likely nomination back in June. They were pretty psyched at the time about the possibility of marriage equality in California, but that dream is now deferred (hell, STOLEN), thanks to the efforts of some well-funded bigots.

P.S. No, Obama's election does NOT prove that racism is dead. And I'm kinda annoyed with the editorial cartoonists who never draw anyone of color in their cartoons EVER unless the cartoon is about race who are suddenly drawing touchy-feely multicultural cartoons where black parents tell their kids that they too can grow up to be president, etc. Seriously--if you only ever draw white people as the "everyday" Americans reacting to the news, you're just part of the freakin' problem. Also, I just don't want to see a single other editorial cartoon involving the goddamn Lincoln memorial.

The End of the Bush Era

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So long and thanks for all the sh*#!

I know many of my fellow cartoonists are just going to go ahead and assume an Obama win, but I can't say I have such confidence!

Of course, this cartoon could become obsolete too if Bush declared a mysterious state of emergency and called off the election tomorrow.

Washington Post Comics Blog Election Roundup...

Washington Post comics blogger Michael Cavna has a fun roundup of cartoonists' election predictions, including mine and Masheka's.

By the way, how nervous are you about the election?

I am so on edge, it's not even funny. I won't be able to breathe properly until it's all over. EEEEEK! I have visions of rigged voting machines and disenfranchised voters dancing in my head...

Toon: McCain on Women's Quote "Health"

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This cartoon is of course based on a real quote from John McCain during the last debate:

'Just again, the example of the eloquence of Sen. Obama. He's health for the mother. You know, that's been stretched by the pro-abortion movement in America to mean almost anything. That's the extreme pro-abortion position, quote, "health."'

We do not want to see a McCain Supreme Court, that's for sure. See my previous post for more details.

McCain: Protecting health, life of women an "extreme" "pro-abortion" position

Did you all hear that? During the debate, McCain sarcastically mocked the idea that a woman's life/health could ever be in danger from pregnancy. He said that he opposed exceptions to late-term abortion bans to protect the life and health of a woman--and called those who supported such exceptions "extreme" "pro-abortionists." WTF?! Also, he claims that any justice who supports Roe v. Wade is unqualified to be on the Supreme Court. What Obama said (choice quotes in bold, full transcript from CNN here):

OBAMA: I am completely supportive of a ban on late-term abortions, partial-birth or otherwise, as long as there's an exception for the mother's health and life, and this did not contain that exception.

And I attempted, as many have in the past, of including that so that it is constitutional. And that was rejected, and that's why I voted present, because I'm willing to support a ban on late-term abortions as long as we have that exception.

The last point I want to make on the issue of abortion. This is an issue that -- look, it divides us. And in some ways, it may be difficult to -- to reconcile the two views.

But there surely is some common ground when both those who believe in choice and those who are opposed to abortion can come together and say, "We should try to prevent unintended pregnancies by providing appropriate education to our youth, communicating that sexuality is sacred and that they should not be engaged in cavalier activity, and providing options for adoption, and helping single mothers if they want to choose to keep the baby."

Those are all things that we put in the Democratic platform for the first time this year, and I think that's where we can find some common ground, because nobody's pro-abortion.

And McCain, in his response:

MCCAIN: Just again, the example of the eloquence of Sen. Obama. He's health for the mother. You know, that's been stretched by the pro-abortion movement in America to mean almost anything. That's the extreme pro-abortion position, quote, "health."

On another note, I never ever want to hear any more jokes about or see any cartoons about "Joe the Plumber." Why did Obama go along with that claptrap?!

P.S. I'm glad Obama brought up equal pay for equal work. And I thought he very much got across that it was ridiculous that in the midst of an economic crisis, McCain's main selling point is "That guy maybe associated with Bill Ayers and ACORN once upon a time!" Obviously I'm way to the left of Obama, but I've got to admit he's very stately and presidential.

P.P.S. Where does McCain get off playing the victim in all that business where supporters at his rallies are acting like lynch mobs? People are yelling "Kill him!" and "Terrorist!" about Obama, but McCain is the victim of negative attacks because an Obama supporter criticized his George-Wallace-style politics?

Toon: McCain's Remaining Supporters

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The KKK garb is a slight exaggeration, but most of those shouted epithets are of course from actual Palin or McCain rallies.

Toon: John McCain, Master of the Town Hall Debate

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I thought Obama did a pretty bangup job of (a) pointing out that the GOP got us into this nasty deregulated mess and (b) actually speaking to the concerns of voters--the economy, health care, jobs, etc.

Whereas McCain just kept rambling on about overhead projectors and Joe Lieberman or something.

That said--I sure do miss John Edwards. Obama kept talking about the middle class, and McCain sort of mentioned "middle income" folks, but whatever happened to caring about people who aren't even "lucky" enough to have a home to lose?

you know what makes me mad?

Sarah Palin. And you know what makes me even more mad? Women who say they will vote for McCain because of her. Never mind the fact that if McCain dies we will have a president that doesn't believe in evolution, doesn't support the right to abortion even in cases of rape incest or to preserve the health of the woman (only to save the life of a woman -- maybe), has made it her mission to deny same-sex partners health benefits, doesn't believe global warming is caused by humans... but hey it's okay! It's cute! She's a mommy! An abstinence only "education" promoting mommy who would appoint Roe-overturning justices in a heartbeat, but an adorable mommy just the same!

And yes, I still have the RSI and it's driving me up the wall. And my voice is getting really hoarse from using the voice dictation software. Also, I have not read a blog or an online newspaper in three weeks. That is really weird! I've actually been reading the honest-to-goodness print newspaper edition of the New York Times.

P.S. Don't get me wrong -- it's not like McCain is some big moderate like he pretends to be. He's anti-choice too, and wants us to stay in Iraq for a gazillion years, among other things. He doesn't have to die and leave Palin in charge to bring us a horrible Bush-esque presidency!

Veep Contenders: An exclusive peek at McCain's top picks!

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Because I couldn't resist doing a retroactive poke at world-class segregationist, gaybasher and AIDS-funding squasher Jesse Helms. Also, I hate Mitt Romney. And John McCain, of course.

Change I'm Finding Harder to Believe In

I knew that whole optimism over Obama thing couldn't last. What's with this falling all over himself to be as centrist as possible these days? Supporting FISA? Speaking out for the death penalty? WHAT?! Why Barack, why? Yes, I know I'm unfashionably late to the Obama disillusionment party, but I've been a bit too busy being interviewed by BBC Radio 4 (seriously!) and other such excitement to update you all on my political grumpiness.

Toon: And now for a brief moment of sunshine...

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Longtime readers may find this hard to believe, but when I heard Obama would be the nominee, I TOTALLY had a brief moment of optimism... which was only compounded when I heard California had gone for marriage equality and that New York Governor David Paterson had decreed that California/Canada/Massachusetts marriages would be legal in New York.

Seriously, I was upbeat and smiling and dancing around my apartment for nearly a MINUTE before I remembered that the economy is collapsing, the planet is warming and we're all DOOMED.

Also, I like drawing (and wearing) stripes and spirals. That is all.

Toon: Lesser-Known McCain Campaign Slogans

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My first McCain caricature. I have to admit the dude is fun to draw, if not nearly as handsome as Obama. THAT DOES NOT MEAN I WANT HIM ELECTED.

Clinton equates "white" with "hard-working"

I know I said I was totally over the primaries, but now I'm even more disgusted and fed up. Barry has the details and a commentary roundup.

Toon: Primary Fever

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More like Primary Fatigue. Really, all I do want to talk about is Battlestar Galactica. I don't want to hear any more of Hillary trying to prove what a bomb-hungry hawk she is, or Obama going out of his way to sing the praises of bipartisanship (otherwise known as "letting Republicans have their way"). Nor do I want to hear anything any more of those gazillion weird racist smears and internet rumors going around about him. And I especially do NOT care about flag pins.

Somehow I thought Romney's defeat would feel sweeter...

But as much as I hate former Governor Ken Doll (see my cartoon archive for gazillions of examples of Mitt crits), I think the McCain/Huckabee ticket is even scarier.

Here's a little mini-illo I did for Bay Windows about Romney's defeat:

Really scary thought

OK, so I had this really scary thought today. What if wacky "let's stay in Iraq for 100 years" John McCain really is elected president? That's terrifying enough... but what if he also selects Mike "I don't believe in evolution" Huckabee as his VP nominee to court the social conservative base? And what if McCain (who is already 71) dies in office and HUCKABEE ACTUALLY BECOMES PRESIDENT?

I am so scared right now!

Toon: Casualties of Super Tuesday

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Loosely based on my own experience yesterday, except in New York we have those cool oldschool mechanical voting machines with levers.

For the first time in my life, I had no idea what would happen once I stepped in the voting booth. I pushed aside the curtain and stared at all the little levers. I ran my fingers over the Kucinich and Edwards levers with a little sigh of regret, frowned at the Clinton and Obama levers for a few moments, took a deep breath and pulled the Obama switch.

Why Mr. Barack "bipartisanship" (eeek!) Obama? In the end I figured I might as well vote for the guy who MIGHT maybe possibly have voted against the war if he had the chance, rather than the woman who definitely voted for it. Hillary has blood on her hands, and I just couldn't support her, superior health plan or not.

I didn't even have the satisfaction of feeling that either of them was a sure thing to end the reign of GOP terror and wingnuttery we've been under for the past eight years.

Democracy shouldn't be so depressing.

P.S. I am indeed registered as a Democrat (you have to be one or the other to vote in the primaries in NYC). But I'm far too left-wing to truly identify with that spineless middle-of-the-road party. So technically, if I HAD fainted, it would have been fair for a poll worker to say "Democrat down!"

Wow. I'm STILL undecided.

I'm too opinionated to be this confused—but I'm going to the polls tonight and I STILL don't know whether I'm voting Clinton or Obama.I've been staring at their positions at ontheissues.org and listening to other undecided progressives agonizing on NPR.

Maybe I'll just vote for Edwards in protest.

Toon: Why It's Called the "Straight" Talk Express

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I don't get it. Why do so many liberals still love John McCain? He's anti-choice and anti-gay and a true conservative Republican in many other ways as well. Boo to John McCain!

Oh, and this robocall thing is real. Via Politico, here's the actual wording of those robocalls:

We care deeply about traditional values and protecting families. And we need someone who will not waver in the White House: Ending abortion, preserving the sanctity of marriage, stopping the trash on the airwaves and attempts to ban God from every corner of society. These issues are core to our being.

"Mitt Romney thinks he can fool us. He supported abortion on demand, even allowed a law mandating taxpayer-funding for abortion. He says he changed his mind, but he still hasn’t changed the law. He told gay organizers in Massachusetts he would be a stronger advocate for special rights than even Ted Kennedy. Now, it’s something different.

"Unfortunately, on issue after issue Mitt Romney has treated social issues voters as fools, thinking we won’t catch on. Sorry, Mitt, we know you aren’t trustworthy on the most important issue and you aren’t a conservative

"Paid for by John McCain 2008.

Why does Obama have to suck so much on health care?

Why did Edwards (and Kucinich) have to drop out? I've been cautiously leaning towards Obama (mostly out of a distrust/disgust with Sen. Clinton over the war and various other matters) but the health care thing really gives me pause. Krugman compares their two plans, and concludes that Clinton's is far closer to affordable universal health care. She actually has provisions about limiting health care costs to a certain percentage of income, regardless of "pre-existing conditions" and all that nonsense.

That's a Big Deal. Then again, so is the war--which Obama said he opposed from the beginning, but continuously voted to fund. Then again, so is civil rights for immigrats, and Clinton won't support driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants (Obama does). I'm not going to even get into all their corporate ties and the nasty donations they've gotten from health insurance companies and credit card lenders, among other.

So yeah, crap. For the first time since I turned 18, I really don't know how I'm going to vote in the primary. For the record, in 2004 I went for Kucinich in the primary, and in 2000 for Nader. How about you?

P.S. Fellow Cartoonist With Attitude Jen Sorensen is also pissed at Obama over health care.

Pam debunks all that "Post-Racial Election" nonsense the media has been drinking

Over at Pam's House Blend.

A Republican Reader Asks: Why the Tunnel Vision?

Most liberal cartoonists (and bloggers) get a lot of mail like this, so I thought I'd share this letter and my response:

Ms. Reid,

I was shocked this week when I found that even Lloyd Dangle broke away from savaging Republicans, for a change. I was so excited that I immediately went to your latest offering to see if you might have found something, besides Republicans, to ridicule. No, nope, nyet...uh-uh. Don't get me wrong, there's plenty of stupidity and objectionable behavior in my beloved Republican party; but, have you never found something worth mining for your cartoons among the Democrats? I here the Daily Kos is looking for a house cartoonist. You would be perfect for the job!

gb

P.S. I made up the bit about the Daily Kos looking for a cartoonist, but the rest is fairly accurate!

Here's my response:

Dear Gene,

Thanks for the thoughtful letter. It’s true that I spend a good majority of my cartoon energy criticizing Republicans, but I’ve got my reasons.

(1) They’re the party in power, with control—and the job of a satirist is to critique those in power. I wasn’t a cartoonist yet when Clinton was in office, but I guarantee you would have attacked him mercilessly. I’m looking forward to seeing a Democrat in the White House so I can critique him/her, believe you me. Not that I really like any of the Democratic frontrunners—but unlike the GOP slate, at least they don’t actively terrify me.

(2) Sure there are powerful Democrats who have their faults—spinelessness, ineffectiveness, poor organizational skills, lack of integrity, and so forth. I’ve done cartoons in the last year critiquing Clinton (Hillary), Pelosi, Barney Frank, Edwards, Obama and others, and I criticized John Kerry in the runup to the 2004 election.

(3) BUT I only draw one or two cartoons a week, and I’d rather go after what pisses me off the most in one given week. That tends to be things like torture, war, and anti-gay legislation, most of which generally come from the GOP.

All that said, watching Clinton and Obama sling mud at each other lately has been making me ill. So maybe you’ll see some of what you were hoping for sooner than you think.

Regards,
Mikhaela

On another note, it'd be awesome if any of the big-time weblogs really did decide to start paying for cartoons. Hint, hint.

P.S. The reader wrote back saying he appreciated my response very much, and signed his letter "a grudging fan." Nice!

President Huckabee

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How much do those two words together scare you? I'm really sick of the media ignoring what a Falwell-loving Darwin-hating fundamentalist Huckabee is just because he gets photographed playing guitars and wants the Rolling Stones to play at his inauguration. Blech. Here's the quote from the NYT magazine piece that inspired this cartoon:

Huckabee ordered soup and a sandwich without drama or comment and began talking about rock ’n’ roll. This is his regular warm-up gambit with reporters of a certain age, meant to convey that he is a cool guy for a Baptist preacher. Naturally I fell for it, and asked who he would like to play at his inaugural. ‘‘I’ve got to start with the Stones,’’ Huckabee said.

This cartoon is part of a long drawn-out series, by the way... See also: "President Giuliani: The Early Years." Now I've got to do one on McCain (and maybe one on Clinton).

How was YOUR holiday?

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Meant to post this right after the New Year. I'm a cheerful one, huh?

Random election thoughts

I've been neglecting you, dear readers, and for that I apologize--I've got quite a few projects cooking, and the blogging and posting and emailing of my cartoons have been taking a back seat. I do have a couple of random vague election-related thoughts following last night's Democratic debate in South Carolina.

On the Democrats, in no particular order:
• I heart Edwards. Of the three remaining major contenders, he's my favorite--I love the way he talks about poverty and healthcare as a moral issue. I love that he is so passionate about those issues and hasn't toned down his views in response to his poor showings in the polls. Of course, he probably won't be a contender for long, which is too bad because...
• Clinton leaves me cold. Sure she's amazingly smart and capable and take-charge and she's got great positions on many issues and... oh, wait, she's a crazy war-monger in bed with health insurance companies who seems to change her rhetoric every which way for reasons of political expediency.
• Obama, Obama, Obama... Sure he's inspiring and a great speaker and he talks gay issues and immigration issues in a very cool and progressive way. But I'm quite disturbed by his appeals to Republican voters and his invocation of Ronald Reagan and his lack of experience and a record of actually getting anything done as a Senator, among other things. My brother tells me he thinks Obama is a genius who will change the way politics work. It sounds like he wants to do what Reagan did in reverse--to create "Obama Republicans" (like "Reagan Democrats"). That will only make me happy if he can get those votes BUT still be just as progressive as Reagan was conservative.
• ...and no, I haven't forgotten Kucinich. Obviously my views most closely resemble his. I thought I had heard that he was planning to drop out and support Obama, but then I heard he was still running, so I'm confused.

As for the remaining GOP candidates, I honestly don't know who scares me more. Fake Maverick "100 years in Iraq!" McCain, Mike "Not Descended from a Monkey" Huckabee, Crazy Giuliani or Multiple-Choice Mitt. Maybe Huckabee and Giuliani are my top two nightmares, with Mitt a close second.

Legacies, or Some Day, They're Really Going to Feel Like Fools

Cross-posted at Search and Destroy: The Rallblog

Marriage equality: yet another arena in which the Democrats are missing a spine.

40 years ago yesterday, the Supreme Court ruled in Loving vs. Virginia that anti-miscegenation laws were unconstitutional. The Loving decision invalidated the "Racial Integrity Act" that allowed Virginia cops to bust into the bedroom of Richard and Mildred Loving, arrest them for "illegal cohabitation" and sentence them to a year in jail.

Can you imagine the leading Democratic candidates getting up at a campaign stop today and hemming and hawing out the following nonsense?

I believe in full equality of benefits, nothing left out...From my perspective there is a greater likelihood of us getting to that point in interracial civil unions or domestic partnerships and that is my very considered assessment.

or

It's a jump for me to get to interracial marriage. I haven't yet got across that bridge.

or how about

I would not support the Defense of Racial Integrity Act today, if there were a vote today. But the part I agree with is the states should not be required to recognize interracial marriages from other states.

Those are all paraphrases of actual statements on gay marriage from Hillary Clinton and John Edwards. Obama has similar views. (found via Pam's House Blend, an excellent LGBT issues blog that regularly checks in on all the candidate's positions on marriage equality).

Some folks say the Democrats have no choice but to tone down their support of gay rights to appeal to religious voters or values voters. But is that the kind of visionary progressive leadership we want to promote?

Decades from now, the people who were too afraid to support full equality for gay Americans are going to look like spineless sheep, and rightly so. I can see the history books now "The Democrats bravely passed non-binding resolutions, courageously voted to fund an illicit war they claimed to oppose, did nothing of any note to remove an Attorney General with a serious torture fetish and tentatively supported domestic partnership benefits while opposing real marriage equality." Now that's a legacy we can all be proud of! As Susan Ryan-Vollmar wrote in her Bay Windows editorial last week (regarding a possible constitutional ban on gay marriage in Massachusetts):

Twenty years from now, when their time in office has long since ended, those lawmakers who back the anti-gay amendment June 14 will still be asked about their vote by their grandchildren, their neighbors and even reporters writing anniversary pieces. Trying to explain that they supported marriage equality but believed the civil marriage rights of same-sex couples should be decided by popular vote will sound even more disingenuous several decades from now than it does today.

New Toon: Personal Anti-Immigration Wall

Wouldn't it be awesome if all the nativist nutjobs like long-shot Republican presidential hopeful Tom Tancredo were trapped in these things? They'd be too busy watching their own perimeters to waste our time with their racist claptrap.

By the way, have you heard that the KKK is making a big comeback? They still hate black people, but immigrants are their new #1 target.

P.S. I didn't need to draw a cartoon about Rudy running this week, cause I did it already (see "President Giuliani: The Early Years").

P.P.S. Next target: Ted "I'm 100% Straight After Just Three Weeks of Therapy" Haggard.

P.P.S. Join my weekly mailing list by sending a blank message to newtoons-subscribe@mikhaela.net!