http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2010/1019/First-Amendment-flap-Was-Christine-O-Donnell-touting-tea-party-view
First Amendment flap: Was Christine O'Donnell touting 'tea party' view?
First Amendment and church-state separation were debated Tuesday between Delaware Senate hopefuls Christine O'Donnell and Chris Coons. Her stance is akin to that of some tea party activists.
Peter Grier, Staff writer / October 19, 2010
Delaware GOP Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell on Tuesday during a debate with opponent Chris Coons seemed to question whether the Constitution calls for a separation of church and state. So what’s her view of the First Amendment?
The First Amendment is the section of the nation’s founding document that deals with church-state issues, after all. The First Amendment reads, in part, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...."
To Ms. O’Donnell, it may be the second clause there – “prohibiting the free exercise” – that’s most important. That means the government can’t interfere with religion, she emphasized in remarks to National Review Online after Tuesday’s debate at Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Del.
To O’Donnell, that means, for instance, that public schools should have the right to teach intelligent design as a theory of how life on earth came to be, along with the theory of evolution.
The First Amendment “gives them the freedom to teach that if that’s what they want,” O’Donnell told National Review Online’s “Battle ‘10” blog.
Mr. Coons, along with many constitutional law scholars, likely would see that example the other way around. They’d say that intelligent design, which holds that the universe is best explained as the creation of some form of larger being, is a religious belief, not a scientific theory. Allowing it to be taught in public schools would be to favor one particular religion over another – something prohibited by the “respecting an establishment of religion” clause of the First Amendment.
Confused? Let’s start from the top.
During Tuesday’s debate, O’Donnell and Coons were arguing over the teaching-of-Creationism thing when Coons said that one of the “indispensable principles” of the Founding Fathers was “separation of church of state.”
“Where in the Constitution is the separation of church and state?” said O’Donnell in reply, drawing gasps from a crowd composed largely of law students and professors.
A few minutes later, Coons returned to the subject, saying the First Amendment establishes the separation between church and state.
“The First Amendment does?” said O’Donnell. “You’re telling me that the separation of church and state is found in the First Amendment?”
After the debate, O’Donnell did not respond to reporters asking her to clarify her remarks. Her campaign manager, Matt Moran, later issued a statement saying that she was not questioning the concept of separation of church and state. “She simply made the point that the phrase appears nowhere in the Constitution,” Mr. Moran said.
O’Donnell is not the only conservative Republican Senate candidate with "tea party" support who has raised the issue of what the First Amendment means. In Nevada, Sharron Angle has taken a point of view similar to that of her Delaware compatriot.
In an interview earlier this year, Ms. Angle said that Thomas Jefferson, the Founding Father credited with originating the phrase “separation of church and state,” has been misunderstood on this matter.
“Thomas Jefferson was actually addressing a church and telling them through his address that there had been a wall of separation put up between the church and the state precisely to protect the church from being taken over by a state religion,” said Angle to Las Vegas Sun columnist Jon Ralston. “That’s what they meant by that. They didn’t mean we couldn’t bring our values to the political forum.”
Showing posts with label Christine O'Donnell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christine O'Donnell. Show all posts
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Christine O'Donnell Seen as 'Nutjob': Meghan McCain
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dc/2010/10/christine-odonnell-seen-as-nut.html
October 17, 2010
Christine O'Donnell Seen as 'Nutjob': Meghan McCain
Michael McAuliff
The Tea Party movement may be bringing energy and voters to the Republican Party, but in Delaware Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell, it’s also brought someone Republicans regard as a “nutjob,” Meghan McCain declared today.
Speaking on ABC News’ “This Week,” the daughter of Arizona GOP Sen. John McCain argued that the unrestrained anger and extremism of the Tea Party has allowed unqualified, untested candidates like O’Donnell to succeed.
“I just know, in my group of friends, it turns people off because she’s seen as a nutjob,” McCain said of O’Donnell, whose best-known remarks are probably a video clip of her admitting she dabbled in witchcraft.
“I speak as a 26-year-old woman and my problem is that, no matter what, Christine O’Donnell is making a mockery of running for public office,” McCain said. “She has no real history, no real success in any kind of business.”
“And what that sends to my generation is, one day, you can just wake up and run for Senate, no matter how [much of a] lack of experience you have,” she said.
Republican consultant Matthew Dowd didn’t exactly jump to O’Donnell’s defense.
Republicans “can nominate anybody they want — they nominated somebody that’s not qualified, that’s probably incompetent, that has said some crazy stuff,” Dowd said. “The great news is, the Delaware electorate is probably going to send her packing.”.
Earlier in a debate aired on the show with Delaware Democratic nominee Chris Coons, O’Donnell made a plea for GOP help — that probably will not be forthcoming.
“The state party isn’t helping us. And we’re asking the National Republican senatorial to help us,” she said. “We’ve got the Democratic Senatorial Committee coming after me. We’re hoping that the National Republican Senatorial Committee will help us. But it’s two-and-a-half weeks left, and they’re not.”
October 17, 2010
Christine O'Donnell Seen as 'Nutjob': Meghan McCain
Michael McAuliff
The Tea Party movement may be bringing energy and voters to the Republican Party, but in Delaware Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell, it’s also brought someone Republicans regard as a “nutjob,” Meghan McCain declared today.
Speaking on ABC News’ “This Week,” the daughter of Arizona GOP Sen. John McCain argued that the unrestrained anger and extremism of the Tea Party has allowed unqualified, untested candidates like O’Donnell to succeed.
“I just know, in my group of friends, it turns people off because she’s seen as a nutjob,” McCain said of O’Donnell, whose best-known remarks are probably a video clip of her admitting she dabbled in witchcraft.
“I speak as a 26-year-old woman and my problem is that, no matter what, Christine O’Donnell is making a mockery of running for public office,” McCain said. “She has no real history, no real success in any kind of business.”
“And what that sends to my generation is, one day, you can just wake up and run for Senate, no matter how [much of a] lack of experience you have,” she said.
Republican consultant Matthew Dowd didn’t exactly jump to O’Donnell’s defense.
Republicans “can nominate anybody they want — they nominated somebody that’s not qualified, that’s probably incompetent, that has said some crazy stuff,” Dowd said. “The great news is, the Delaware electorate is probably going to send her packing.”.
Earlier in a debate aired on the show with Delaware Democratic nominee Chris Coons, O’Donnell made a plea for GOP help — that probably will not be forthcoming.
“The state party isn’t helping us. And we’re asking the National Republican senatorial to help us,” she said. “We’ve got the Democratic Senatorial Committee coming after me. We’re hoping that the National Republican Senatorial Committee will help us. But it’s two-and-a-half weeks left, and they’re not.”
Friday, September 24, 2010
Delaware Masturbators March Against O’Donnell
Fri, 17 Sep 2010
andy@borowitzreport.com
Delaware Masturbators March Against O’Donnell
Largest Pro-wanking Demonstration in History
WILMINGTON (The Borowitz Report) – Galvanized by Republican senatorial nominee Christine O’Donnell’s anti-masturbation stance, masturbators from across the state converged on Wilmington today in what some are calling the largest pro-wanking protest in American history.
Carrying signs reading, “O’Donnell: Hands Off Our Masturbation,” the angry masturbators clogged downtown Wilmington, stopping traffic for blocks.
Harley Farger, a leading Delaware masturbator and planner of the Million Masturbators March, said it was difficult to organize masturbators “because they’re used to acting alone.”
Mr. Farger, the executive director of the pro-monkey-spanking group MasturNation, said that the “wank and file” of his organization believe that masturbation is an inalienable right guaranteed by the Constitution.
“Our country was founded by rugged individualists,” he said. “And you know what individualists like to do.”
He said that Ms. O’Donnell’s anti-whacking position was “ill-timed,” adding, “In this economy, masturbation is one of the few simple pleasures people still can afford.”
Tracy Klugian, a homemaker and masturbator from Dover, Delaware, said she is “puzzled” by what she sees as the contradictory nature of candidate O’Donnell’s position: “If you’re against masturbation, why would you want to serve in Congress?”
A spokesman for the Wilmington Police Department, Crandall Darlington, said that the Million Masturbators March could cost the city tens of thousands of dollars, “especially when you include the cost of cleaning up afterwards.”
The Los Angeles Times says Andy Borowitz has “one of the funniest Twitter feeds around.”
Upcoming Events
October 20, 2010 at 08:00 PM
Andy and Alec Baldwin!
See Andy in his only New York appearance this fall, with his special guests Alec Baldwin, Jeffrey Toobin and Judy Gold.
Location:
The 92nd Street Y, 92nd and Lexington
For tickets go to Andy Borowitz Live
The Borowitz Report: Waste Someone's Time: Forward to a Friend.
andy@borowitzreport.com
Delaware Masturbators March Against O’Donnell
Largest Pro-wanking Demonstration in History
WILMINGTON (The Borowitz Report) – Galvanized by Republican senatorial nominee Christine O’Donnell’s anti-masturbation stance, masturbators from across the state converged on Wilmington today in what some are calling the largest pro-wanking protest in American history.
Carrying signs reading, “O’Donnell: Hands Off Our Masturbation,” the angry masturbators clogged downtown Wilmington, stopping traffic for blocks.
Harley Farger, a leading Delaware masturbator and planner of the Million Masturbators March, said it was difficult to organize masturbators “because they’re used to acting alone.”
Mr. Farger, the executive director of the pro-monkey-spanking group MasturNation, said that the “wank and file” of his organization believe that masturbation is an inalienable right guaranteed by the Constitution.
“Our country was founded by rugged individualists,” he said. “And you know what individualists like to do.”
He said that Ms. O’Donnell’s anti-whacking position was “ill-timed,” adding, “In this economy, masturbation is one of the few simple pleasures people still can afford.”
Tracy Klugian, a homemaker and masturbator from Dover, Delaware, said she is “puzzled” by what she sees as the contradictory nature of candidate O’Donnell’s position: “If you’re against masturbation, why would you want to serve in Congress?”
A spokesman for the Wilmington Police Department, Crandall Darlington, said that the Million Masturbators March could cost the city tens of thousands of dollars, “especially when you include the cost of cleaning up afterwards.”
The Los Angeles Times says Andy Borowitz has “one of the funniest Twitter feeds around.”
Upcoming Events
October 20, 2010 at 08:00 PM
Andy and Alec Baldwin!
See Andy in his only New York appearance this fall, with his special guests Alec Baldwin, Jeffrey Toobin and Judy Gold.
Location:
The 92nd Street Y, 92nd and Lexington
For tickets go to Andy Borowitz Live
The Borowitz Report: Waste Someone's Time: Forward to a Friend.
Christine O’Donnell In Oct. 1999: ‘I Dabbled Into Witchcraft’
http://thinkprogress.org/2010/09/18/christine-odonnell-witchcraft/
Christine O’Donnell In Oct. 1999: ‘I Dabbled Into Witchcraft’
Faiz Shakir
9-18-10
Before she stole the hearts of tea party activists, Delaware GOP Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell was best known for her regular and bizarre punditry on 22 different episodes of Politically Incorrect. The host of that show, Bill Maher, now has an HBO show called Real Time.
Last night, Real Time aired its first show of the current season. Maher began by mocking O’Donnell, calling her “an unemployed, anti-masturbation activist and a close friend of mine.” “I created her,” Maher told the audience, turning to the camera and stating, “You owe me Christine O’Donnell.” Maher said that he has great fondness for O’Donnell, adding, “She does not have a mean bone in her body, or any other bone in her body.”
Later in the show, Maher played a previously-unaired Oct. 29, 1999 clip of O’Donnell on Politically Incorrect, in which O’Donnell said she once “practiced witchcraft”:
O’DONNELL: I dabbled into witchcraft — I never joined a coven. But I did, I did. … I dabbled into witchcraft. I hung around people who were doing these things. I’m not making this stuff up. I know what they told me they do. [...]
One of my first dates with a witch was on a satanic altar, and I didn’t know it. I mean, there’s little blood there and stuff like that. … We went to a movie and then had a midnight picnic on a satanic altar.
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nECxQUi_pr0
Maher joked that he’s going to show a fresh clip of O’Donnell every week on his show until O’Donnell agrees to appear again on his show. “I’m just saying, Christine, it’s like a hostage crisis,” he said, “every week you don’t show up, I’m going to throw another body out."
Christine O’Donnell In Oct. 1999: ‘I Dabbled Into Witchcraft’
Faiz Shakir
9-18-10
Before she stole the hearts of tea party activists, Delaware GOP Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell was best known for her regular and bizarre punditry on 22 different episodes of Politically Incorrect. The host of that show, Bill Maher, now has an HBO show called Real Time.
Last night, Real Time aired its first show of the current season. Maher began by mocking O’Donnell, calling her “an unemployed, anti-masturbation activist and a close friend of mine.” “I created her,” Maher told the audience, turning to the camera and stating, “You owe me Christine O’Donnell.” Maher said that he has great fondness for O’Donnell, adding, “She does not have a mean bone in her body, or any other bone in her body.”
Later in the show, Maher played a previously-unaired Oct. 29, 1999 clip of O’Donnell on Politically Incorrect, in which O’Donnell said she once “practiced witchcraft”:
O’DONNELL: I dabbled into witchcraft — I never joined a coven. But I did, I did. … I dabbled into witchcraft. I hung around people who were doing these things. I’m not making this stuff up. I know what they told me they do. [...]
One of my first dates with a witch was on a satanic altar, and I didn’t know it. I mean, there’s little blood there and stuff like that. … We went to a movie and then had a midnight picnic on a satanic altar.
Watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nECxQUi_pr0
Maher joked that he’s going to show a fresh clip of O’Donnell every week on his show until O’Donnell agrees to appear again on his show. “I’m just saying, Christine, it’s like a hostage crisis,” he said, “every week you don’t show up, I’m going to throw another body out."
Christine O'Donnell Election Button
Button courtesy of Richard Metzger and DangerousMinds.net
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