“This officer (and candidate) ain’t no gentleman when it comes to Bush,” writes Evan Derkacz at Alternet’s PEEK:
If Paul Hackett is the new breed of Democrat, they may just have to get used to winning.
Despite the fact that his Chris Matthews segment was prefaced with a comically slanted intro, Iraq vet and candidate Paul Hackett used his time on Hardball to articulate exactly what’s offensive and dangerous about Bush without the quivering apologies so common in the “genteel” world of DC politics.
Or: he ripped him a new one. Bob Geiger has the transcript. Money quote:
MATTHEWS: What is a chicken hawk?
HACKETT: Chicken hawk is somebody who is not willing to fight the fight of their age, their generation, and speaks brashly and with unnecessary bravado when they’re sending other kids and other sons and daughters, other folks’ sons and daughters, off to war.
It is — encompasses language like, bring it on. It encompasses language like, you’re with us or you’re against us and we’re going to take it to you. And I think that’s dangerous. And I’ve got to tell you, you know, when we’re over there fighting in Iraq, Marines and soldiers, and we hear language like, bring it on coming from the Oval Office, that’s a danger. We don’t need that. That’s encouraging an…
MATTHEWS: Paul, why did you call the president — why did you call the president of the United States, whose office you respect, a chicken hawk?
HACKETT: I respect the office of the president of the United States. I said those words. I meant them. I stand by them. I would say them again.
Atrios adds: “Paul Hackett may not win the race on Tuesday. Let’s face it, this is an incredibly uphill battle. But, in the past week we’ve managed to alter the dynamics of the race, get national media attention for the candidate and if he wishes turned him into a rising political star, gotten the NRCC to spend a lot of money to “bury him,” and perhaps altered the momentum in the Ohio political landscape. …” But Atrios wonders why more people haven’t contributed to Hackett’s Act Blue fund. (Add .03 to a donation to show it comes from BoomanTribune.com.)
Atrios also recommends Ohioans “[t]urn on your answering machines. Record any attack robocalls you get about Hackett. These under the radar smear campaigns are almost impossible to document unless someone manages to record them.”