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Michael Rectenwald confronts Tucker Carlson, host of MSNBC's "Tucker" (11 July 2007).

Dateline: 16 july 2007

"How could you justify doing something like this? Why is it your business?" So Tucker Carlson asked me last Wednesday on his television talk show. Why would the Citizens for Legitimate Government (CLG), under the editorial management of Lori Price, publish the "DC Madam's" phone list? Why wouldn't my own sexual behavior also be a topic of concern?

Our answer is that the CLG is not appalled at the immorality of visiting an escort or house of prostitution. As a liberal news and activist organization, we generally couldn’t care less about the sexual proclivities of elected officials, unless such activities are illegal or involve children. Anyone who has any familiarity with the CLG would know that we are not sex moralists. Unlike many Republicans, we are not about trying to legislate on the sexual behavior of consenting adults. However, we have good solid information linking elected officials, statesmen and other Republican operatives to prostitution. The list may also link Democratic politicians to phone numbers. Our theory, however, is that it is most likely the warmongers who are also the whoremongers. The Republican Party, we believe, is very short on love—that is why they must resort to whores for sex and wars for kicks. So far, our theory is holding up to the empirical evidence being unearthed by the activists at the CLG and other sites.

Further, the case in question involves a US Senator who allegedly committed a number of crimes and a State Department official who resigned when his name was uncovered from the phone records. Other political operatives have also been recognized. Need we remind the rightwing that soliciting the services of a prostitute is illegal? One of the alleged criminals, David Vitter (R, La.), a US Senator, ran on a platform of “family values” and the “sanctity of marriage.” We believe such a platform is code language for anti-gay, anti-gays-in-the-military, anti-abortion and anti-sexual-liberty policies in general. During the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, Vitter claimed that Bill Clinton should be impeached for moral turpitude. How ironic that Vitter, who replaced Livingston (R, La.) after the latter was exposed by Hustler’s Larry Flint for an extramarital affair, should also be so exposed, this one for sex with a prostitute! How ironic that both Livingston and Vitter supported Clinton’s impeachment. How ironic that the party espousing such views should be consistently riddled with sex scandals. Should we remind the rightwing of its recent embarrassments? How doubly hypocritical and ironic that said party should now claim that the sex lives of its representatives, even when illegal, should be off-limits to public scrutiny! The hypocrisy and bend-over double standard is mind-boggling for its incomprehensibility. I am not happy that I ended up screaming at the smirking, snide, innocuously sinister and impertinently preppy little punk, Tucker Carlson. But is it any wonder, given his pretzel logic? What is more incomprehensible is how such a completely inchoate interlocutor should end up with a national television talk show.

The principal of the Pamela Martin & Associates, Deborah Jeane Palfrey, has been charged with criminal racketeering. If he committed one or more criminal acts, Vitter should turn himself over to the investigating body—the FBI or the DC police, whichever is most appropriate. His resignation should follow any conviction.

Now, let’s answer the question as to why we at the CLG are doing this. The answer is simple: Our aims are strictly political. Why shouldn’t they be? While we want to underscore the contradictions between rightwing ‘family values’ and ‘sanctity of marriage’ platforms, and the behavior of officials espousing such views, we do so only because we want to destroy the remaining political efficacy of our enemy. And why would we want to destroy the remaining political efficacy of our enemy? Because we believe that the views, policies and politics of that enemy are demonstrably anathema to planetary human welfare and to the US Constitution. We are taking this tactic simply because it may serve a greater good. And, unlike our enemies, we are doing nothing illegal. Unlike our enemies, who committed the US to an illegal war, we are doing nothing illegal. Unlike our enemies, who violate human rights on a minute-by-minute basis, we are doing nothing illegal. Unlike our enemies, who are responsible for the deaths of over 600,000 Iraqis, the displacement of another four million and the deaths of over 3,500 US service people, we are doing nothing illegal or immoral. Unlike our enemies, who prey on teenage pages, and patronize prostitutes, we at the CLG are doing nothing illegal.

As the Bible says, whatever is done in the dark will be revealed in the light. Or something like that. We are the light. We are pointing our light into the dark. Get ready to scatter, you moles and maggots!

And who is our enemy? The Bush regime (including its Congressional and extra-official supporters) is our enemy. If you want to see why the Bush regime is our enemy, visit our site (http://www.legitgov.org/) and all the writings, comments and press coverage that we have generated over seven years. We have consistently maintained and demonstrated that the same anti-democratic means by which Bush & Co. seized the office of President of the United States would characterize its overall policies. These policies include both international and domestic ones, from the Iraqi War to the erosion of civil liberties and the eradication of Constitutional rights.

Finally: Should the sex lives of politicians be subject to public scrutiny? Ideally, the answer is no. But we are living under far less than ideal political circumstances. If we had our way, our views would be self-evidently clear to all concerned. Anyone not utterly brainwashed by rightwing ideology would see the situation without recourse to such tactics. However, since the Puritan ethic of the rightwing apparently defies sense and rates infidelity and sexual immorality above mass murder and planetary destruction on its all-time sin list, we have resorted to the exposure of its representatives’ sexual indiscretions—and will resort to any other legal means necessary—to stop the destructive Republican-led juggernaut.

For our part, we will continue to work on linking phone numbers to names and will let the chips fall where they may. As I said above, I believe that our theory—that warmongers are also the more likely whoremongers—will be validated.

And here’s a promise to the media: during every one of my appearances on national television, I will reveal another client of Pamela Martin & Associates. Let the games begin!

Michael D. Rectenwald, Ph.D., founded and helms Citizens for Legitimate Government (CLG). He is ably assisted by Lori R. Price, manager for CLG.

(This commentary can be found also at CLG's site at: http://www.legitgov.org/comment/rec_report_160707.html )

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