The Right-Cheek Ass Clown for November, 2016

A new month is here, the election is just days away, and it's time to name our

Right-Cheek Ass Clown

for

November 2016

I made my selection and wrote this post earlier in the week, before other news surfaced that made me reconsider my initial choice and decide instead to present a dual award. The first goes to -

FBI Director James Comey

The FBI's motto is "Fidelity, Bravery, Integrity," and Mr Comey demolished the "fidelity" and "integrity" parts by injecting a huge blast of partisan innuendo into the already-fraught presidential campaign when he announced that an FBI investigation of another case had revealed "new" e-mails which might or might not have any bearing on the case of Hillary Clinton's infamous personal e-mail server. Mr Comey succeeded in doing the nearly impossible - getting both Republicans and Democrats to condemn the announcement, which had produced no facts or firm information, but served only to inflame partisan passions in an already-overheated political season.

In any normal season, Mr Comey's blatant politicization of the authority of the nation's premier law enforcement agency would have made him a clear winner of our award. However, this is far from a normal season, and so I have decided to make a second award for this period, to

The Republican Party

The simple fact of having put forward the most staggeringly unqualified and distasteful candidate in history might have qualified the GOP for this award, but the party's positions, comments, and attitudes as the election approaches would have made it a lock other than for the actions of FBI Director Comey.

Consider this depressing article from today's Washington Post - Republicans Are Now Vowing Total War. And the Consequences Could Be Immense. While the title of the article may be overly hyperbolic, the GOP actions it describes are not. Here are two verbatim excerpts from the article, including the original embedded links:

"High-ranking Republican officeholders are now suggesting that they may impeach Clinton as soon as she takes office. These are not just backbench nutbars of the Louie Gohmert variety, but people with genuine power, including Ron Johnson, the senator from Wisconsin, Michael McCaul, the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, and veteran legislators like James Sensenbrenner and Peter King. The message is being echoed by top Trump surrogates like Rudy Giuliani.

"There is a growing movement among Republicans in the Senate to simply refuse to approve any nominee appointed by a Democratic president to the Supreme Court, leaving open any and all vacancies until a Republican can be elected to fill them."

In every previous election in the American democracy, the people made their choice and the two parties grudgingly kissed, made up, and went on with the often-messy business of government. This year, one party is openly stating that it will, if it loses the election, not only refuse to work with the new president, but to begin impeachment actions immediately. That party is openly stating that it will do everything in its power to paralyze the government and continue the partisan lunacy that has made us a laughingstock around the world. That party is the GOP.

With only four days left until the election, I present the Right-Cheek Ass Clown Award jointly to FBI Director James Comey for his shameless partisan meddling in the political process, and to the Republican Party for it's deliberate and shameful refusal to work with its political opponents to conduct the nation's business.

It's enough to make you cry.

Have a good day. Come back tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday, when we'll try to find something to laugh at.

More thoughts then.

Bilbo