California Republicans reach out to women!

[kimmy]

There was a big Republican convention in California this weekend. They even had Rick Perry as a keynote speaker. Rick has ditched his "Brokeback" style sheepskin jacket and is now wearing thick-rimmed glasses, in a desperate bid to make himself look smarter.

Anyway, apparently the main themes of the weekend were trying to figure out how Republicans can connect with women voters, minority voters, and young voters, all groups that thoroughly rebuffed the Republicans during the last election.

Why do the Republicans poll so poorly among women? How can they convince women that Republicans can address the issues that are important to women? How can they avoid repeats of embarrassing incidents like Todd Akin and "binders full of women" and so on? These are the kinds of questions they were asking.

So, how did it go?

Well, the only major news item to come out of the convention was this photo tweeted by a journalist:

Enough said.

-k

[bleeding heart]

I'm not sure what's worse about this: the elementary douchiness, or the fact that the humour is poor by any standards (offensive or otherwise) of what constitutes good humour. I mean, parse it out, on its OWN douche-y terms...it still fails muster.

[Shady]

So what about that button isn't true!? Lol!

[Shady]

Anyways, Republicans have always polled better with men because women are more government centric.

[bleeding heart]

Why do I get the feeling that Kimmy is going to wonderfully clean your clock on this matter?

[Boges]

Those pins are very juvenile.

A lot of media I observe comments on how fat Chris Christie in New Jersey is. They question how an obese man like that can be president. I'll assume no one on the left will make Fat jokes regarding him anymore.

You can make the comparison here in Canada where people mocked the image of Stephen Harper in the Calgary Stampede outfit but it was sort of taboo to mock the overweight First Nations Chief and her "Hunger Strike".

Edited October 7, 2013 by Boges

[Guest American Woman]

This was not the work of "the GOP" as it's being presented, and hardly indicative or representative of the Republican party. (emphasis mine):

A vulgar button likening Hillary Clinton to a hen with "2 fat thighs, 2 small breasts… left wing" popped up at a GOP fest in California.

The churlish tchotchke targeting Republican enemy No. 1 was hatched up by an unknown vendor this weekend

Marinucci told the Daily News that the event planners sought her out to learn where the offending buttons were being distributed and banished the crude accessory within an hour from her posting.

Attendees welcomed the move. Response from the crowd of Republican men and women at the gathering was "overwhelmingly negative," she said.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/tongues-cluck-hillary-clinton-kfc-buttons-article-1.1478434#ixzz2h3fyy4Ni

Edited October 7, 2013 by American Woman

[Shady]

Why do I get the feeling that Kimmy is going to wonderfully clean your clock on this matter?

What matter? We don't even know who produced the bottoms. Regardless, women are gonna have to buck up when it comes to politics. Chris Christie gets ridiculed about his weight constantly. If women want to be equal than there gonna have to start getting cases of the vapors when instances like these arise.

[Guest American Woman]

We don't even know who produced the bottoms.

It was, as I pointed out in my previous thread, "an unknown vendor." The planners of the event didn't even know where the buttons were being distributed and banished them as soon as they found out. It was hardly "California Republicans," as kimmy's thread title states.

I'm sure kimmy will do the right thing and change her thread title now that the reality of the situation has been pointed out.

Edited October 7, 2013 by American Woman

[bud]

it was an "unknown vendor". nothing to see here. the republicans do not have a tendency to attract racists, bigots and sexists with terrible sense of humour.

[Bitsy]

How hard would it be for the Republicans to discover the unknown vendor and how he was able to introduce these buttons into this gathering, instead of the lame excuse they are offering....it doesn't work for me as a 70+ something American

[Guest American Woman]

How hard would it be for the Republicans to discover the unknown vendor and how he was able to introduce these buttons into this gathering, instead of the lame excuse they are offering....it doesn't work for me as a 70+ something American

It works for me as a Democrat.

Read what the woman who broke the story had to say. I'll repeat it again here:

Marinucci told the Daily News that the event planners sought her out to learn where the offending buttons were being distributed and banished the crude accessory within an hour from her posting.

Attendees welcomed the move. Response from the crowd of Republican men and women at the gathering was "overwhelmingly negative," she said.

It would be nice if we weren't so quick to judge people and believe the worst of them based on our biased prejudices. I swear some people believe this is representative of Republicans because that's what they want to believe. They want this to be true. This was no more representative of Republicans than the odd disgusting thing that pops up where Democrats are concerned represents Democrats.

[Bitsy]

It works for me as a Democrat.

Read what the woman who broke the story had to say. I'll repeat it again here:

Marinucci told the Daily News that the event planners sought her out to learn where the offending buttons were being distributed and banished the crude accessory within an hour from her posting.

Attendees welcomed the move. Response from the crowd of Republican men and women at the gathering was "overwhelmingly negative," she said.

It would be nice if we weren't so quick to judge people and believe the worst of them based on our biased prejudices. I swear some people believe this is representative of Republicans because that's what they want to believe. They want this to be true. This was no more representative of Republicans than the odd disgusting thing that pops up where Democrats are concerned represents Democrats.

Good, glad that it works for you. I do not buy it. , I have heard it played too often. Has the organizer offered an explanation how this could occur or an apology for the lack of oversight?

[Guest American Woman]

Good, glad that it works for you. I do not buy it. , I have heard it played too often. Has the organizer offered an explanation how this could occur or an apology for the lack of oversight?

I'll recall that you don't buy it next time the shoe is on the other foot.

[Bitsy]

I'll recall that you don't buy it next time the shoe is on the other foot.

Sounds fair.

[jacee]

Regardless, women are gonna have to buck up when it comes to politics.

WRONG.

Men are going to have to smarten up and clean it up if they want the votes.

There just aren't enough ignorant asshats

to make a president anymore.

[BubberMiley]

I'm sure the vendor was unknown to the Daily News and is certainly unknown to AW, but if there's a vendor onsite at the convention, he's not unknown to the convention organizers.

I try not to get all upset about bad jokes though.

[kimmy]

What matter? We don't even know who produced the bottoms. Regardless, women are gonna have to buck up when it comes to politics. Chris Christie gets ridiculed about his weight constantly. If women want to be equal than there gonna have to start getting cases of the vapors when instances like these arise.

Rest assured, Shady, that the one person who couldn't care less about these attacks is Hillary Clinton.

In fact, if she is indeed the Democratic nominee in 2016, she and her campaign team will be extremely pleased each time a Republican opens his mouth to say something like this.

-k

Edited October 8, 2013 by kimmy

[kimmy]

I'm sure kimmy will do the right thing and change her thread title now that the reality of the situation has been pointed out.

No, I'm quite satisfied with the title the thread has.

The convention was, indeed, touted as a chance reach out to women and minorities. They even brought in the President of the National Republican Women's Association to speak.

They keep paying lip service to the idea of inclusiveness, and they keep getting shot in the foot by dummies within their own ranks.

It was, as I pointed out in my previous thread, "an unknown vendor." The planners of the event didn't even know where the buttons were being distributed and banished them as soon as they found out. It was hardly "California Republicans," as kimmy's thread title states.

As Bubber and Bitsy point out, it strains credibility to suggest that the vendor is unknown. Nobody gets a vendor's table at a convention without approval from the organizers, and unless the organizers are completely retarded, they vetted the merchandise.

-k

[kimmy]

It would be nice if we weren't so quick to judge people and believe the worst of them based on our biased prejudices. I swear some people believe this is representative of Republicans because that's what they want to believe. They want this to be true. This was no more representative of Republicans than the odd disgusting thing that pops up where Democrats are concerned represents Democrats.

I certainly don't claim this is representative of Republicans as a whole. But it's certainly representative of some within the party. Many Republicans are themselves aware of what a serious problem they have. Remember Bobby Jindal after the election, pleading for his fellow Republicans to "stop being the Stupid Party"? This is exactly the kind of thing he was talking about.

Unfortunately for Bobby, they can't stop being the Stupid Party, because they've got too many Stupid People shooting off their mouths.

-k

[eyeball]

I think it's entirely appropriate to judge a political party by the words and deeds of it's supporters. It's no different than holding an electorate accountable for the governments they elect.

You are what you eat.

[Guest American Woman]

As Bubber and Bitsy point out, it strains credibility to suggest that the vendor is unknown. Nobody gets a vendor's table at a convention without approval from the organizers, and unless the organizers are completely retarded, they vetted the merchandise.

Of course it's not unknown to them any longer since they put a stop to it once they found out about it, but it was unknown to them that there was a vendor who was selling said merchandise until Marinucci tweeted about it. And no, all of the merchandise sold by vendors at such conventions is not vetted nor endorsed by the party.

Buttons like this are manufactured and sold by independent contractors who also sell similar buttons at Democrat gatherings.

These little political button stands are not being operated by people affiliated with the party, neither Republicans nor Democrats.

These button stands are put together by people trying to make some cash selling buttons, not the party folks.

According to MSNBC:

State party officials thanked reporter Carla Marinucci for “bringing the matter to our attention,” in an emailed statement to MSNBC.

“The first time CRP leadership and staff became aware of these buttons was as a result of Chronicle reporter Carla Marinucci’s tweet,” said Mark Standriff, Director of Communications for the California Republican Party. “After identifying the vendor who was displaying the buttons, CRP staff had them removed. For your additional information, the vendor had brought only 5 of the buttons to convention, none of which had been sold.”

That you are satisfied with your thread title even as you include this as a Republican move says a lot.

[Guest American Woman]

I think it's entirely appropriate to judge a political party by the words and deeds of it's supporters. It's no different than holding an electorate accountable for the governments they elect.

You are what you eat.

Vendors are there to make money, not as supporters.

[Bitsy]

Buttons like this are manufactured and sold by independent contractors who also sell similar buttons at Democrat gatherings.

These little political button stands are not being operated by people affiliated with the party, neither Republicans nor Democrats.

These button stands are put together by people trying to make some cash selling buttons, not the party folks.

According to Mr.Conservative

http://www.mrconservative.com/2013/10/25540-anti-hillary-clinton-buttons-appear-at-california-gop-convention/

[Guest American Woman]

According to Mr.Conservative

http://www.mrconservative.com/2013/10/25540-anti-hillary-clinton-buttons-appear-at-california-gop-convention/

And according to the Salon: The California GOP isn’t represented by every sexist piece of crap some yahoos want to peddle in its name....

The name of the blog is irrelevant. The information is correct. These buttons were not sold nor endorsed by the Republican party.

Edited to add: Romney was criticized because such vendors were barred from the Republican National Convention.

For years at these political conventions, there has been a marketplace set up where merchants sell campaign buttons and all sorts of political memorabilia.

But those vendors are conspicuously absent this week; instead, there is just an official Romney-Ryan store, a monopoly for the campaign.

Californian Robin Abrams from Irvine is selling the wares of Mort Berkowitz, the legendary “button king.” But she has been forced to do it at a hotel 30 miles away from the Tampa convention site, which she said is terrible for business and for the consumer.

Edited October 8, 2013 by American Woman