Tennessee GOP Lawmaker Warns Undocumented Immigrants Will ‘Multiply’ Like ‘Rats’

[babylonsister]

:puke:

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/11/11/tennessee-immigrants-rats/

Tennessee GOP Lawmaker Warns Undocumented Immigrants Will ‘Multiply’ Like ‘Rats’

During a hearing Tuesday, Tennessee state Rep. Curry Todd (R) asked a health official if a state health program that helps pregnant women checks the immigration status of its patients before offering benefits. After he was informed that the federal government doesn’t allow citizenship tests for prenatal care because all children born in the U.S. are automatically American citizens, he warned that without status checks, immigrants will “go out there like rats and multiply.” Watch it:

Video at link~

“No other lawmakers on the state Fiscal Review Committee responded to the remarks,” the AP reported. In a follow up interview, he told the newswire service that he should have used less offensive words, saying, “I was actually wrong, and I admit when I’m wrong.” However, he said it would have better to use the term “anchor babies” — an unquestionably offensive term. Indeed, his rhetoric, while extreme, reflects a disturbingly common view amongst mainstream conservative leaders. ThinkProgress identified 130 Republicans in Congress, along with over a third of the incoming GOP freshmen class, who want to end the Constitutional guarantee on birthright citizenship. These include such prominent leaders as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and even some “moderates,” like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC).

[bullwinkle428]

1. Republicans doling out heaping helpings of racism? Check!

[madaboutharry]

2. The nazis said that about the Jews in Europe.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

[FSogol]

3. I'm more concerned that GOP lawmakers will spread stupidity across the nation.

The CDC probably doesn't have the resources to stop unchecked stupidity.

[AsahinaKimi]

4. Why

aren't these racists confronted? People should get in their face and tell them they are stupid and ignorant. They should be told that these are not the kind of people who should be in government office. Maybe other Lawmakers, Senators and Representatives should shine a light on these people, and then shun them.

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Tippy]

10. Tell them they are stipid and ignorant......Heck they know they are stupid and ignorant

they are proud of it.

[Tippy]

5. K&R I am ashamed for TN

[Kalyke]

9. Don't be totally ashamed... we have some great lefties here.

Unfortunately, we're outnumbered - due mostly to our right-wing-only media.

[Tippy]

12. More on Todd

Time to end Tennessee's liquor law hypocrisy
Some conservatives in the Tennessee General Assembly need to make up their minds about whether they believe that government is the answer to our problems, or whether government is the problem. Representative Curry Todd (R-Collierville) has taken it upon himself to introduce a bill which would ban alcohol sales in the State of Tennessee after

midnight-for those of you who like to take your spouse or significant other out on the town every once in awhile, that means the last call would be midnight if this legislation were to become law.Todd and others would also like the State's hypocritical and antiquated liquor laws to be enforced so rigidly that the sale of liquor by the drink in this State at all could be significantly curtailed:

http://www.examiner.com/tennessee-statehouse-in-knoxville/time-to-end-tennessee-s-liquor-law-hypocrisy

This one about guns in bars veto:

“I won’t tell you what the governor can do with that piece of paper he just sent,” Rep. Curry Todd, R-Collierville, told the House after the governor’s veto message, signed last Thursday, was officially read in the chamber.

Snip:House Democratic Leader Mike Turner of Nashville chided Rep. Todd, saying his remarks were “a little out of line. ... I think it was inappropriate what he said about our governor. I hope he would refrain from doing those type statements in the future.”

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2009/jun/02/tennessee-house-guns-bars-sponsor-hopes-override-b/

[tanyev]

7. Bet he considers himself pro-life, too.

Asshat.

[marmar]

8. Ugh.....Racist right wingers keep breeding and breeding, like rats.

nt

[pinboy3niner]

16. Perfect response, LOL!

:thumbsup:

[UTUSN]

11. K&R but the Inscrutable UnRekker of legit topics on a Dem discussion board strikes again

My K&R aimed to give prominence to wingnut rottenness and to validate a perfectly valid topic of discussion of interest to Dems at a Dem discussion board.

Hence, my Eternal wonder at how the UnRec is MIS-used. Repeating endlessly, I refer to the MIS-use, the ABUSE of it, NOT the intended use of it. The abuse might be any of these: 1) Wingnut disruption. 2) Personal vendetta. 3) Random mischief.

[UTUSN]

14. Finally, the Recs have broken the UnReKKK barrier to a big #1.

I've always guessed that the UnReKKK crew numbers about a half dozen, dozen max.

[ladjf]

13. That statement clearly shows the kind of mentality common to

Republican politicians. He considers undocumented immigrants to be vermin. nt

[fascisthunter]

15. actually, that's what I say about right wing nazis like yourself

[Scurrilous]

17. K & R

:thumbsup:

[Posteritatis]

18. The dehumanizing language is the big thing here and should be extra-noticed

We can say the guy's being xenophobic and hyperbolic and the like, and be perfectly correct, but when an elected politician starts referring to any other humans as anything other than humans - and yes, I think using a simile instead of a direct equation like this guy did counts - anyone in his neighborhood had better shiver. Someone who lets that term slip is at least willing to speak as though other people are less than human beings, is possibly willing to believe as though that's the case, and is far too likely to start getting other people to have the same thoughts.

And the news and history are quite full of what happens when people get too comfortable thinking that someone else isn't "really" a human. The mental leap between "like rats" and "inyenzi" is astonishingly narrow at times, especially if the former's bandied around often enough that it starts becoming acceptable to say in general.