NOW Denounces Newsweek

The National Organization of Women has come to the defense of Michele Bachmann.

NOW, an organization that has received some criticism for its deafening silence when prominent conservative women like former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin are lampooned in the national press, has come out strongly against the depiction of Rep. Bachmann as the “Queen of Rage.” “Who has ever called a man ‘The King of Rage?,’ NOW president Terry O’Neil told TheDC. “The ‘Queen of Rage’ is something you apply to wrestlers or somebody who is crazy. They didn’t even do this to Howard Dean when he had his famous scream.”

Quote Of The Day - Sarah Palin

"I'm through whining about a liberal press that holds particularly conservative women to a different standard, because it doesn't do any good to whine about it. Nobody ever promised life was going to be fair. And politics really isn't fair, the scrutiny, the double standards, and all that. I'm dealing with it I guess in a different way than others who want to bring more light to it and demand that Bill Maher apologize." -Sarah Palin, responding to Bill Maher calling her a "dumb twat" on his show Monday night. The National Organization of Women has denounced Maher, but Palin says, "I need NOW's defense like a fish needs a bicycle."

Bruce Bastian Donates $100K To NEM

WordPerfect creator Bruce Bastian has donated $100,000 to the National Equality March, half of the event's projected cost. The Washington Blade did some porta-potty algebra and says that if NEM organizers are abiding by Park Service guidelines, the number of loos being ordered means they expect just over 100,000 attendees. NEM founder Cleve Jones has declined to make any attendance forecasts. A protest of DADT has been scheduled for Arlington National Cemetary on October 10th, where gay military dischargees will place rememberances at the Tomb Of The Unknown Soldier.

Palin Pulls A Fast One With NOW

"I know Sarah Palin cares about women’s rights, she cares about equality, she cares about equal pay, and as Vice President she will fight for it. She cares about our children and she cares about women's lives. She's an athlete and she knows what Title Nine did for girls like her. It is an honor to call her sister. America, this is what a feminist looks like." - Los Angeles NOW chapter president Shelly Mandell, introducing Sarah Palin at a rally this weekend. (Video)

Conservative blogs and commenters are exulting. "Finally, an intellectually honest feminist!", crows the first commenter on the linked post. Some news outlets are mistakenly saying that LA NOW has endorsed Palin, prompting the state organization to shout that Mandell was not authorized to speak on behalf on NOW and that the McCain/Palin campaign deliberately "misrepresented" her as speaking for NOW. (Imagine that.)

Patty Bellasalma: "As President of California NOW and as a member and officer of Los Angeles NOW, I can assure you that there is no local or state affiliate of NOW, including LA NOW, which endorses or supports the McCain/Palin ticket. John McCain and Sarah Palin oppose many of the rights and freedoms we have fought for throughout NOW's 42 years, and we will not be pushed back to the days of back-alley abortions, forced pregnancies, and pay discrimination without remedy. Nor will we let the media distractions deter our members and activists from our organizing for freedom and equality for all women, putting our hopes and our dreams, our hard work and our hard-earned money, behind a proven team for women: the next President of the United States – Barack Obama – and his running mate, longtime friend and ally of women, Sen. Joe Biden With equal ferocity we will fight to protect young women by defeating Proposition 4 and to keep bigotry and discrimination out of our state constitution by defeating Proposition 8 here in California."

After Mandell's introduction, Palin went into her now-standard "Obama runs with terrorists" schtick. I'm wondering how the fuck Mandell got to be president of LA NOW. As Jen Graves says, "Revoke her vagina!"

NOW Endorses Obama

The National Organization for Women, presumably a massive collective of Hillary supporters, has at last endorsed the Obama/Biden ticket.

America's largest women's rights organisation delivered a snub to Sarah Palin's history-making candidacy yesterday by endorsing Barack Obama and Joe Biden's bid for power.

The National Organisation for Women (NOW) is 500,000 strong and hugely influential. The feminist organisation almost never supports a presidential candidate, but the Alaska governor's Christian fundamentalist faith and her opposition to abortion rights has forced its hand.

Other women's rights organisations are also campaigning against Governor Palin, pushed along by a spontaneous anti-Palin movement among women.

In Alaska at the weekend, a Welcome Home rally for Mrs Palin was dwarfed by a demonstration organised by Alaska Women Reject Palin, which was held on the lawn of a downtown Anchorage library.

After triggering a huge surge of enthusiasm for John McCain's campaign and sending him into the lead over Barack Obama, Mrs Palin has come under intense scrutiny from the national media. The investigation known as "Troopergate" threatens to expose her as a bullying governor who fired Alaska's de facto police chief for family rather than professional reasons.

The controversy moved up a notch yesterday when Mrs Palin's campaign team announced her refusal to co-operate with the Troopergate investigation because it was "tainted" by politics.

NOW's decision to back Senator Obama when a woman is within striking distance of becoming elected is a bold step for the group and a setback for John McCain's hopes of luring the millions of women who supported Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primaries.

About time, ladies.