Top 5 New Crazy Republicans

Here's a look at the nuttiest of the incoming pack of crazy GOP congressmen-- courtesy of Hunter from the Daily Kos:

Glenn Grothman, WI-06: Top of the list has to be the new Wisconsin Representative Glenn Grothman.  Grothman is embarrassingly prone to saying the things Republicans are not supposed to say out loud.   He is a fervent believer in stopping The Gay Agenda, which he believes exists in our nation's classrooms.    In a December 2012 press release,  Grothman's state senate office asked, "Why Must We Still Hear About Kwanzaa?"  In it, Grothman claimed that Kwanzaa is a phony holiday promoted by "white left-wingers who try to shove this down black people's throats in an effort to divide Americans."  Many still doubt that Grothman has the chops to outclass Texas Republican Louie Gohmert as America's Dumbest Congressman-- but we shall find out soon enough.

Jody Hice, GA-10: Another beneficiary of a hard-right conservative district, Georgia's Jody Hice isn't known for gaffes-- he's just plain mean. A proto-typical tea party asshole, Hice is a preacher, a conservative radio host, a gun-toter, and the district's replacement for Paul "Evolution and embryology and the big bang theory are lies from the pit of Hell" Broun.  Hice's most recent hit has been the assertion that Muslim-Americans are not protected by the First Amendment because Islam is not a true religion; he also is frothingly anti-gay and is for women entering politics only if it is "within the authority of her husband." Look for Hice to be a loudmouth-- not dumb, but meaner than a sack of snakes.

Mark Walker, NC-06: An also-ran compared to up-and-coming morons like Grothman and Rice, Mark Walker will nevertheless make a solid addition to the GOP whack-job Hall of Fame.  His highlight reel heavily features the time he proposed "we go laser or blitz"  on Mexico in order to teach them a lesson about immigrants crossing our southern border. He also says he'd vote to impeach Obama.

Joni Ernst, IA-Sen: When it comes to the Senate, all disaster forecasters are expecting great things from the Sarah Palin-esque Joni Ernst. A far-right conspiracy theorist, Ernst is a lock to join the contingent of Republican believers in all things conspiratorial and insane.   Part crazy grandpa, part tin foil hat wearer, Ernst alternated between ducking the press  and engaging in tortured word jumbles that rival the best Palin-isms.  Stand-up comics and underemployed reporters expect great things from her.

Tom Cotton, AR-Sen: He won't be a Joni Ernst, primarily because Ernst has squirreled away too much crazy for anyone but Ted Cruz himself to challenge, but Tom Cotton looks to be a solid GOP Craven Liar Republican.  Cotton's campaign showed a level of straight-up bullshit and pandering when he claimed that ISIS and Mexican drug cartels would be teaming up to attack us across our border, a conservative wet-yer-pants scenario aimed squarely for the dumbest  of Arkansas voters.  Cotton was also the most prolific user of ISIS-produced terrorism films in his campaign ads, a strategy both meant to invoke terror in Americans so they would vote his way and likely to earn the gratitude of the terrorist group for boosting publicity of their snuff films as they had intended.

Less Votes In Texas On Election Day

Disenfranchisement is the order of the day on Election day in the state of Texas-- thanks to the Supreme Court, which affirmed the Lone Star state's  restrictive voter ID law.  From Zachary Roth of MSNBC:

Lindsay Gonzales, 36, has an out-of-state driver’s license, which isn’t accepted under the ID law. Despite trying for months, she has been unable to navigate an astonishing bureaucratic thicket in time to get a Texas license she can use to vote. “I’m still a little bit in shock,” said Gonzales, who is white, well-educated, and politically engaged. “Because of all those barriers, the side effect is that I don’t get to participate in the democratic process. That’s something I care deeply about and I’m not going to be able to do it.”

Adam Alkhafaji, a student at the University of Houston, turned 18 in September and was excited to vote for the first time. But to prove his residency and get a Texas ID, he needed a residential housing agreement, a birth certificate, and a Social Security card, none of which he had. Overwhelmed with school, he ran out of time. “It’s almost like a milestone in your life: You take your first steps, then you get your driver’s license, and then you exercise your right to vote,” Alkhafaji said. “I’m more than disappointed.”

The majority of the Texans affected by the new voter ID law are minorities.  Catherine Overton, who is 70 and black, moved to Dallas from Las Vegas earlier this year. In a phone interview, she said she wasn’t told about the ID law when she registered to vote. When she went to the polls last week, Overton said she was turned away by a poll worker who told her, “If you’ve been here long enough to get a voter registration card, you’ve been here long enough to get ID.” She said she hoped to go with her sister Monday or Tuesday to get a state ID, then take it to the polls. But because they both have doctors’ appointments, it may not work out.