The mudslinging has officially gotten underway in Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District. In a blatantly racist attempt to support incumbent Teabagger Mike Fitzpatrick, the National Republican Campaign Committee has played the "Mumia" card, and for all intents and purposes being in the Philadelphia area, it might as well be the "Willie Horton Card."
A letter from United Food and Commercial Workers 1776, pointed out ridiculousness of the attack, made a hypothetical argument that since Mike Fitzpatrick is a devote Catholic, he is as complicit in the Catholic Church Child Abuse Cover-up because he throws money into the collection baskets ever Sunday morning. For more about this juicy read more after the fold...
(My original story can be found on The Raging Chicken Press)
Since Mike Fitzpatrick made his own "47%" gaffe, claiming that we should support those who sign the fronts of people's paychecks - not the backs of paychecks, the NRCC began a racist attack against his opponent Kathy Boockvar. Boockvar's "connections" to Mumia stems from her husband - Jordan Yeagar, a prominent Philadelphia Lawyer - defending Veronica Jones (who was 75 when he defended her), a witness who testified against the convicted cop killer in 1982 but later recanted her testimony in 1996 (which is when Jordan Yeagar defended Mrs Jones).
The attacks the NRCC released included launching a Tumblr site (linking her to Black Bloc, Occupy Wall Street and molotov wielding activists), an internet poster - which has a menacing mugshot of Mumia with her picture in the bottom right corner saying "Radical Kathy", and a series of robo calls going through the Bucks County District. The calls said:
Hello, I’m calling from the National Republican Congressional Committee at 320 First Street Southeast, in Washington, DC, 20003, 202-479-7000, with a recorded message about congressional candidate and legal activist Kathy Boockvar and convicted Philadelphia cop killer Mumia Abu-Jamal.
The husband-and-wife law firm of Boockvar and Yeager has represented one of the leading activists for Mumia Abu-Jamal – and Boockvar’s husband was a lawyer for a witness to the murder who accused the cops of pressuring her.
Boockvar’s husband himself accused the Philadelphia police of intimidating witnesses to the murder.
Boockvar’s colleague at a legal activist group accused the Philadelphia police union of having the state’s Supreme Court in its pocket when it comes to Abu-Jamal.
Last year, a group tied to Boockvar’s husband, held an event at the Constitution Center honoring Mumia Abu-Jamal. The cop killer called into the event from prison.
Call Kathy Boockvar at (215) 839-9383 and tell her that’s too radical for Bucks County.
In response to these attacks, UFCW 1776 president released a letter -
which was first published on our website - making the hypothetical connection between Mike Fitzpatrick and pedophile priests. The UFCW leader uses the same reasoning that the NRCC used. If the NRCC is going to link Boockvar to Mumia through "guilt by association," then Fitzpatrick is guilty for the child molestation cover up by the Catholic Church because he gives money to the Church every Sunday.
The author of the letter confronted Fitzpatrick in the parking lot of a Labor Breakfast, and asked if Fitzpatrick would denounce these attacks. The congressman turned his back and walked away.