As I’ve written, Ted Cruz is definitely a ‘natural born’ American citizen and eligible to serve as president. That said, even though he’s now released his birth certificate, you have to wonder what kind of influences he was exposed to growing up in a primitive, post-colonial setting like Canada during the radical Trudeau regime.

Earlier I flagged this very bizarre story of a local circuit court judge in Mingo County, West Virginia who was having an affair with his married secretary and when she tried to break it off he went on a four year campaign trying to frame her husband for a handful of crimes. The story is almost comical in a way, except if you’re David Woodruff – the guy who not only had his wife cheat on him but then had to endure four years of persecution and framings at the hands of the county’s top judge. But there’s something else going on in Mingo – a decade old rape allegation that may be tied to the highly publicized assassination of the Mingo County Sheriff earlier this year. Read More

Back some point during or before 2008, Mingo County Circuit Judge Michael Thornsbury started sleeping with his married secretary Kim Woodruff. When Woodruff tried to break things off, Judge Thornsbury began a 4 year long crusade to frame Woodruff’s husband Robert for a variety of crimes ranging from drug possession to larceny and assault, along the way dragging various other members of county law enforcement, knowingly or unknowingly, into his scheme. The plots ranged from planting drugs on Woodruff to taking a case where Woodruff was the victim of an assault and charging him as the perpetrator. Adding to the weirdness, along the way various members of county government intervened along the way to protect Woodruff but did not go so far as to expose Thornsbury’s vendetta or attempt to have him removed as judge.

U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin finally had to step in (Thornsbury is the county’s only judge); Thornsbury currently faces 20 years imprisonment if convicted.

Not a headline I’d have predicted in this universe or pretty much any other. “Russell Simmons Apologizes For Harriet Tubman Sex Tape“

GOP leaders’ attempts to squelch Obamacare shutdown mania spurs revolt.

Because, of course.

As you may have heard, Business Insider (we and others picked it up from them) reported that RNC Chair Reince Priebus had called Romney’s ‘self-deportation’ “horrific” and “racist.” It turned out that he actually said not “racist” but “it hurts us.” And everyone corrected. But at first, the RNC actually confirmed that Priebus had said “racist.”

These things happen, of course. But I can’t help but thinking that there’s some element in this that signals the rudderlessness or perhaps the multiple rudders operating within the GOP at the moment. As in, the comms folks may not know from one day to the next which GOP is coming down the pike. If someone asks for confirmation that Priebus said, “No Justice No Peace” or “Justice for Trayvon” … I mean, who knows, maybe he did?

The Senate Conservatives Fund – founded by former Sen. Jim DeMint (R) and credited with making it virtually impossible for Republicans to win back the Senate – is now running ads against Mitch McConnell in Kentucky. It’s not terribly surprising in itself. But taking on the party leader in the Senate takes it to a different level. This comes on the heels of McConnell’s saying yesterday that there were some things in Obamacare that he liked.

Last month Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler (R) released a relatively small list (17 people) of confirmed cases of non-citizens voting in November 2012. Turns out they were all citizens.

A very ‘normal’ truck fire on the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge sparks some unsettled memories for New Yorkers. Pictures from TPM Reader CS after the jump … Read More

RNC Chair Priebus calls ‘self-deportation’ “horific” and “racist.”

Late Update: I was a little surprised when Reince Priebus called the moronic concept of ‘self-deportation’ racist. And it turns out he didn’t. The quote originally came from Business Insider. But it now turns out he said not “racist” but “it hurt us.”