by brownsox [courtesy of Daily Kos]

Republican Mike Erickson, candidate for the nomination in Oregon's 5th District, has come under heavy fire lately from primary opponent Kevin Mannix, with rumors afloat that Erickson used to hold wild cocaine parties on his boat.

Well, Erickson flatly denies these scurrilous allegations; he's not only never used cocaine, but

"I've never used cocaine. I wouldn't know what it looks like," Erickson said, adding that he has never used illegal drugs or tobacco.

He doesn't know what cocaine looks like? He's never seen  Beverly Hills Cop? He's never cooked with baking soda?

I had to snort at that one.

Call me a skeptic, but Erickson's denial just doesn't pass the smell test.

It would have been a bit more plausible if he just denied knowledge of the coke parties. Something like "If there's been cocaine use here, well, it's been happening right under my own nose."

Anybody else got a clever pun? A not-so-clever one?

In all seriousness, this is one of the most ridiculous statements we've seen yet this cycle. Either Erickson is a bald-faced liar, or a first-class moran. It's his choice as to which he'd rather be.

And please submit all coke-related Erickson jokes below!

by Julia [courtesy of Firedoglake]

Bill Donohue, whose religious indignation as the head of the Catholic League might seem to the cynical to be more informed by his loyalty to The Heritage Foundation than to his catholicism, has forgiven Senator McCain's great and good friend Rev. Hagee on behalf of the Roman Catholic church (or, as Rev. Hagee puts it, the Great Whore).

by Scout Finch [courtesy of Daily Kos]

Today's edition was a bit lighter than the recent run on delegates, with Californian Congressman Pete Stark being the only delegate endorsement of the day.  Apparently nobody wants to be relegated to the Friday afternoon news dump.  Nonetheless, advantage Obama as he continues to pull away from Clinton.

Congressman Stark said, "Senator Barack Obama has captured the imagination of Americans in a way we’ve not seen for decades.  He’s inspired millions of young people to register to vote and join the ranks of our Democratic Party, he’s consistently opposed the war, he advocates universal health care, and he delivers a message that transcends party politics at the same time.

"I have the greatest respect for Senator Clinton and for her many years of service, but I believe the time has come to unify our party.  The outcome we need in November is a Democratic President.  To achieve that, we must turn our focus squarely on Senator McCain and his quest to continue another four years of the failed Bush agenda.

"Barack Obama is the person we need as the next President of the United States of America.  I’m excited to help him achieve that goal."  

by mcjoan [courtesy of Daily Kos]

If there's any governor's mansion in the country the Republicans want to gain in November, it's Washington's. This year's race is a rematch of 2004, with poor loser Dino Rossi trying to capitalize on the sour grapes the state and national Republicans still feel over their 133 vote loss that came after three vote tallies and a failed Republican court challenge. That election was also probably the reason for the firing of USA John McKay, who refused to open a federal criminal investigation into voter fraud allegations.

So there's a lot at stake for Republicans in this. And it's not looking too good for Rossi at the moment. On the heels of reports that she doubled Rossi's fundraising in April, raising well over a million dollars (1.3m) to his $641K, comes some very encouraging polling from Rasmussen.

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Washington voters shows Gregoire leading her Republican challenger, Dino Rossi, by eleven percentage points. It’s Gregoire 52% Rossi 41%.

In late March, Gregoire was up by just a statistically insignificant single percentage point. In February, Rossi had a one point advantage. Four years ago, the 2004 election between the same two candidates was one of the closest elections in the state’s history.

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by Phoenix Woman [courtesy of Firedoglake]

You'll have to excuse the mess, folks. My head just exploded. John Sidney McCain III just lied away the existence of the Iran-Contra scandal, and the press took him at his worthless word, preferring to save their outrage for Barack Obama, who had inadvertently dared trespass into sacred Bush territory and given a reporter a Bush-like nickname.

by Scout Finch [courtesy of Daily Kos]

Speaking to the NRA today, John McCain called Obama's foreign relations plans "reckless."  The McCain quote (courtesy of from Ben Smith at The Politico):

Earlier today, Sen. Obama made a few remarks I would like to respond to. I welcome a debate about protecting America. No issue is more important. Sen. Obama claimed all I had to offer was the ‘naive and irresponsible belief’ that tough talk would cause Iran to give up its nuclear program. He should know better. I have some news for Sen. Obama: Talking, not even with soaring rhetoric, in unconditional meetings with the man who calls Israel a ‘stinking corpse’ and arms terrorists who kill Americans will not convince Iran to give up its nuclear program. It is reckless to suggest that unconditional meetings will advance our interests.

It would be a wonderful thing if we lived in a world where we don't have enemies. But that is not the world we live in, and until Sen. Obama understands that reality, the American people have every reason to doubt whether he has the strength, judgment and determination to keep us safe.

Barack fired-up that rapid response team and wasted no time hitting back (via press release):

by emptywheel [courtesy of Firedoglake]

Dear George Bush: Thank you for giving this son of immigrants the opportunity to deprive brown people of their right to vote. I'm just sorry I won't have the opportunity to do so during the 2008 election. Love, Hans I'm sorry. That's not exactly what Han von Spakovsky said in his resignation letter. But it might as well have been.

by David Neiwert [courtesy of Firedoglake]

The NRA Convention is always good for a few ripe samples of eliminationist right-wing "humor," but today, Mike Huckabee reached new depths ...

by Donita Sparks [courtesy of Firedoglake]

Finifinito, who helps me each week with technical support here at The Spin I’m In, supplied us with this week’s play-list which he swears will get us spring cleaning. Shake your tail feather duster.