Too Dumb for the Death-Eaters

I'm overdue for a longer post on the increasingly ridiculous Republican candidate for Senator of Delaware, Christine O'Donnell - you know, the woman who's anti-masturbation, anti-sex, anti-evolution, a frequent liar, believes in scientists creating mice with human brains, and who dabbled in witchcraft. But she is the comedy gift that keeps giving, and this item demanded immediate attention.

Starting a political ad like this is a sign that you're in deep trouble:



This comes via TBogg, who writes:

In the ad Christine O’Donnell immediately sets America’s Tea Bag Fevered Mind at ease by pointing out that she is totally “not a witch”; a statement normally found by the first or second line in every candidates online bio. Right after they don’t mention being born in Kenya. In Christine O’Donnell’s mind, this whole “witch” misunderstanding is really the only impediment to her getting, like 107% of the vote so she just had to come out and say it and, wow, is that a load off her chest, and so it is smooth sailing and happy days are here again and we all can breath a sigh of relief that the anti-masturbating, deadbeat, resume-padding, evolution-denying, Fear of A Braniac MiceMen Planet, daughter of a part-time clown is not a witch.

As commenter Lesley notes, "Strangely she picked a murky blue backdrop and a black dress. What’s missing? A pointy hat." Seriously, why didn't they go with some bright, sunny backdrop and a different look altogether? I suppose this look is supposed to make her look "serious," but it strikes me as a bad choice.

O'Donnell's denial reminds me of an infamous but possibly apocryphal LBJ story, about:

...how Lyndon Johnson first got elected to Congress in 1948 when his opponent was a wealthy and politically favoured pig farmer: 'Lyndon was running about 10 points behind, with only nine days to go... He was sunk in despair. He was desperate... he called his equally depressed campaign manager and instructed him to call a press conference at two or two-thirty ( just after lunch on a slow news day) and accuse his high-riding opponent (the pig farmer) of having routine carnal knowledge of his barnyard sows, despite the pleas of his wife and children... His campaign manager was shocked. 'We can't say that, Lyndon,' he said. 'It's not true.' 'Of course it's not,' Johnson barked at him, 'but let's make the bastard deny it.'

The big difference, of course, is that it's O'Donnell who's smeared herself, over and over again.