Colbert In Congress

Comedy Central Star and Comedian Stephen Colbert testified before a House Committee today and the Establishment is generally losing its collective shit as a result. First of all, Iowa Rep Steve King (our very own, I'm SO proud) weighed in, was pissed off and dropped the astonishing bombshell that Colbert's right wing persona was a put on. (Gasp... really?)

People seemed even more offended that Colbert remained in character for his testimony, feeling that perhaps he was mocking the hearing process and Congress in general. Of course, responding to that charge is way too easy. If Congress was silly enough to invite a comedian to testify on an issue like migrant labor, then Congress should expect to have its collective nose rubbed in it. (Meaning: of course he's going to mock them. They were, after all, silly enough to invite him.) But it's not without precedent- our glorious leaders have heard testimony from Elmo before, so while irritating, while potentially treasonous in some eyes and inappropriate in others, it's not all that surprising.

But the real story about Colbert in Congress isn't about what he said, it's about what was going on somewhere else in Washington D.C.- as a scandalous story managed to slip completely under the radar of every major media outlet in the country. The conservative blogosphere has been bubbling about this all day and I'll admit I'm not all that familiar with the facts of the case, but former DOJ Official Christopher Coates testified today about the dismissal of the New Black Panther Party case. (The gist of it: White voters complained about the New Black Panthers intimidating them. The DOJ dismissed it because none of the political appointees wanted to enforce voter intimidation laws AGAINST racial minorities. Meaning that in the Obama DOJ, white voters apparently don't get protection from voter intimidation. AWESOMENESS.)

The media didn't touch this with a ten foot pole, so here (courtesy of the Christian Science Monitor, not some howling Red Stater blog, by the by) is some coverage for you, kids. Read 'em and get pissed off...