Via Sam Stein, the false claim that President Obama is a Muslim -- a smear on both Muslims and the President -- surfaces in Colorado's U.S. Senate race:
Former Colorado lieutenant governor Jane Norton, one of the five candidates competing in the Republican primary for the state's 2010 Senate race, is distinguishing herself with her full-hearted embrace of the tea party crowd.
Appearing at a recent coffee-shop event with Colorado voters, Norton sat silently while a female attendee declared twice that President Barack Obama is a Muslim and while a male attendee insisted that the president -- who he deemed "an idiot" -- wanted to let babies die on the side of the road "with the garbage."
"Well as you can tell there is a lot of passion around what is happening in our own country," Norton responded to the crowd, rather than correcting either individual.
Watch:
As we head towards the 2010 midterms, look for this kind of thing to become a major campaign issue. Republicans are already fired up by this kind of craziness, but as it continues to percolate and reveal itself, it will also energize Democrats and independents who want to keep the loons out of government. If Democrats also manage to deliver a strong progressive agenda, November's results might end up surprising a lot of political observers.