Summary: “Rise of the New Right: A Hardball Documentary with Chris Matthews” — Part 6: How the New Right Exploits the Media. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 12, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that six Baghdad-area churches were bombed within 24 hours on July 11-12, 2009, killing at least four people and wounding 32. Iraq has lost more than half of the 1.4 million Christians who once called it home, mostly since the war began in 2003, and few who fled have plans to return.

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Summary: The growing fear among some citizens of losing their rights and freedoms has created a political backlash toward the U.S. government and manifested itself in violent rhetoric and anti-government groups who want to “take their country back.” MSNBC’s Chris Matthews takes a hard look at the recent surge of anger on the political right in “Rise of the New Right: A Hardball Documentary with Chris Matthews.” In this blog entry, Aubrey Immelman chronicles the rise of rightwing extremism in America following the election of Barack Obama as president of the United States in November 2008. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on June 16, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that North Korea threatened a “fire shower of nuclear retaliation” if provoked by the U.S., but that U.S. officials were downplaying any imminent threat to the United States of a North Korean missile strike or confrontation between the two countries at sea.

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Summary: Conspiracy theories have long been a fixture on the political landscape, with political paranoia most virulent among politically marginalized sectors of the polity. So, with Democrats holding the reins of power, it stands to reason that the right-wing fringe has become the prime repository of collective craziness. … Conspiracy-theorist-in-chief Michele Bachmann. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on February 20, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported that Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the Iraqi reporter who hurled his shoes at George W. Bush, said at his trial that President Bush’s smile as he talked about achievements in Iraq had made him think of “the killing of more than a million Iraqis, the disrespect for the sanctity of the mosques and houses, the rapes of women,” and enraged him. “After more than a million Iraqis killed, after all the economic and social destruction … I felt that this person is the killer of the people, the prime murderer. I was enraged and threw my shoes at him.”

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Summary: For the second year running, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) figured prominently in 2009 year-end lists. The Minnesota Independent has a concise overview. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on January 21, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported that in his inaugural address President Barack Obama promised to “begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people” and forge “a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan,” and that his promise to end the war in Iraq was on the agenda for the first full day of his presidency, January 21, 2009, when the new commander in chief was scheduled to meet with his top national security aides and senior commanders.

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Summary: PolitiFact, the Pulitzer Prize-winning project of the St. Petersburg Times to find the truth in American politics, has announced its “Lie of the Year” contest to find the most significant political falsehood of 2009, with U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann among the eight nominees. … Talking Points Memo has announced the 3rd Annual Golden Duke Awards (named in honor of disgraced Congressmann Randy “Duke” Cunningham) recognizing excellence in public corruption, betrayals of the public trust, and generally shameless behavior, with Rep. Michele Bachmann a serious contender in the “Meritorious Achievement in The Crazy” and “Best Public Policy-based Fib” categories. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on December 15, 2008, Aubrey Immelman reported that an Iraqi reporter hurled his shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush on a farewell visit to Baghdad, shouting in Arabic, “This is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, you dog.”

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Summary: According to a November 2009 Anti-Defamation League Special Report titled “Rage Grows in America: Anti-Government Conspiracies,” a wave of anti-government hostility has swept across the United States since the election of Barack Obama as president, creating a climate of fervor and activism with manifestations ranging from incivility in public forums to acts of intimidation and violence. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on November 19, 2008, Aubrey Immelman reported that U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), at a November 2008 forum at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, leveled harsh criticism at the GOP, the lack of intellectual curiosity among some Republican members of Congress, the Bush administration’s handling of nearly every aspect of governance, and the conservative radio voices that dictate the GOP agenda.

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Summary: Politico reports that elements within the GOP are concerned that the “bomb-throwing” Rep. Michele Bachmann, Republican of Minnesota, may be inflicting damage on the party’s reputation with her incessant incendiary rhetoric. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the ninth day after losing his 2008 primary challenge against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman, in line with his focus on national security, reported that the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 turned it into a terrorist training ground for jihadists around the world, with militants converging on Iraq to learn increasingly sophisticated insurgency techniques and then exporting those tactics to other hotspots, including Afghanistan, turning the war against terror “global” in a way not foreseen by the Bush administration.

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Summary: The Dump Bachmann blog, citing the Minnesota Independent’s coverage of Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s recent visit to Virginia to support embattled Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell, reports that “Michele Bachmann’s political poison continues to taint other Republican politicians.” … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the first day after the Sept. 9, 2008 Minnesota State Primary Election in which Aubrey Immelman challenged U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, he reported and analyzed the election results, thanked his supporters, and congratulated Rep. Bachmann on her win.

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