It turns out that Congressman Joe Wilson wasn’t the only rogue during Obama’s speech to a joint session of Congress.  Rapper Kanye West interrupted Obama’s discussion of health care reform to plug Beyonce’s new video.

Joe Wilson was one of only seven members of the South Carolina Senate to vote to keep the Confederate battle flag flying over the state house in 2000.  Now he has one other grand accomplishment to add to his distinguished resume: Wilson shouted “you lie” during Obama’s speech to Congress.  Of course, that statement is a bit ambiguous in a room full of professional liars.

Saturday Night Live has apparently figured out why Wilson made his historic outburst:

Racist quotes are nothing new for conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh.  But his most recent comments show that America is not post-racial as many had hoped when Obama was elected president.  Rather, racism is a festering wound on America’s psyche that continues to infect our country from within.

On his popular radio program Wednesday, Limbaugh declared that the United States needs to return to racially segregated buses.  Referring to a recent incident in which two black students beat up a white student on a school bus, Limbaugh said, “I think not only it was racism, it was justifiable racism.  I mean, that’s the lesson we’re being taught here today.  Kid shouldn’t have been on the bus anyway.  We need segregated buses — it was invading space and stuff.  This is Obama’s America.”

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President Barack Obama said what the country was thinking in an off-the-record comment that was caught on tape and posted around the Internet.

“The young lady seems like a perfectly nice person.  She’s getting her award.  What’s he doing up there?  He’s a jackass.”

When the crowd in the room erupted in laughter, Obama instantly realized his offhand remark would make news.  “C’mon guys,” Obama said, “Cut the president some slack.”

South Carolina Republican Rep. Joe Wilson shouted “You lie!” during President Obama’s health care speech to Congress on Wednesday.  Wilson’s outburst came when Obama denied that his proposed health care legislation would provide free health coverage to illegal immigrants.

Obama immediately stopped his speech and glared at the heckler, as if Wilson were an insolent child.  “That’s not true,” Obama coolly responded.  CNN Fact check: Will reform plan cover illegal immigrants?

Seated behind Obama, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appeared shocked (though she often has that deer-in-the-headlights look) and Vice President Joe Biden looked down and shook his head (probably glad that for once he wasn’t the one sticking foot-in-mouth).  Loud boos echoed through the chamber. Read More

There’s a joke floating around the Internet that asks:

Has anyone wondered about the coincidence that Obama is on vacation during the month of Ramadan?

At least I’m assuming this was sent as a joke, because it’s a flawed implication.

#1. Congress and the President have been vacationing in August almost since our country’s inception, which is no surprise given how oppressively hot it is in D.C.  In 1970, finally facing the reality of long sessions, Congress mandated an August summer break as part of the Legislative Reorganization Act.  The President has also traditionally vacationed during this time.

#2. Because Ramadan is based on the lunar calendar, it begins about 11-12 days earlier each year.  This year Ramadan started on August 21st.  Wait about 15 years, and Ramadan will coincide with Easter.  So does that imply Jesus was a Muslim?  I think not.

#3. Obama took his vacation at the same time of year as George W. Bush did during his presidency.  If Bush was still in office, do you think people would be asking about this coincidence?

#4. The implication is that Obama is a Muslim.  So what if he is?  The comment smacks of religious bigotry and intolerance.  Which is ironic, considering that’s a complaint often leveled against Muslims.

Now if you want to tell a Muslim joke about Obama that’s funny and intelligent:

A Christian, a Jew and Barack Obama are in a rowboat in the middle of the ocean.  So Obama says, "This joke isn’t going to work because there’s no Muslim in this boat."

From Late Night with Conan O’Brien:

Reporters in Washington are saying that President Obama’s hair has gotten visibly grayer in the seven months since he took office.

Amazingly, each of his gray hairs is the result of a black hair and a white hair being brought together by Obama to share a beer.