Collins puts "moderate" myth firmly to bed.

As often as it is said by those who believe it, upon the utterance of "moderate Republican", it is swiftly followed by a few names, one always being Susan Collins of Maine. What she has done lately, or even at all to prove her political or temperament of moderation is highly spurious, and pretty much non-existent.

But late last week she may have outdone herself. In a five minute video in regards to the decision by the Justice Dept. to arrest, interview, and allow Christmas day bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab miranda rights, Collins goes on to spew as many lies as she can pack in to 314 seconds.



This is a perfect example of the right-wing's deceit and shocking hypocrisy when it comes to national security and their own recent past. First let's point out that Collins claims that no-one in the national intelligence power structure was informed of the administration's decision to move forward with the prosecution of UFA by way of simple, criminal procedures:

When the Obama administration decided to treat Abdulmutallab as an ordinary criminal, it did so without the input of our nation‘s top intelligence officials.

The director of national intelligence was not consulted. The secretary of defense was not consulted. The secretary of homeland security was not consulted. The director of the National Counterterrorism Center was not consulted.

This was not only quickly refuted by a myriad of sources online, but NBC's Andrea Mitchell even corrected Collins to her face in an interview. Collins, looking like she had seen a Sarah Palin debate, then went on to answer none of Mitchell's facts and did the time honored Republican response of shuck & dive.

Whitehouse counterterrorism and homeland security advisor John Brennan has now come out swinging, letting it be known that Republican leaders were fully briefed on the administration's intention of prosecuting the xmas bomber in a civil trial.

"On Christmas night, I called a number of senior members of Congress," Brennan said on NBC, specifically identifying Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, and House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, as well as the ranking Republicans on the Senate and House intelligence committees, Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., and Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich.

Where the complete hypocrisy and typical right-wing myopia enter into it is Collins' seeming amnesia with regard to the Bush administrations policy of trying over 300 terrorists in civilian court, with a 100% conviction rate. But listen to the right and lawyered up these people would be walking around with a venti latte in the Village planning their next attack thanks to those demonic Justice Dept. officials. Funny how the conservatives were only too happy to keep schtum about that process while Saint George was in office. Need more be presented to show the Repubs are engaged in nothing but bloviating hypocrisy and staunch obstructionism?

What makes the story even more compelling when taken in context of the right's claim that trying terror suspects in civilian courts is the fact that Abdulmutallub is singing like a canary. But I'm sure giving him the old Jack Bauer treatment would have worked so much better. Well, at least in the minds of those who wish Bauer was real and "24" was actually a reality show.

Update:
Video of Rachel Maddow decimating Collins.