It’s not a problem I can think of from any past campaign I’ve covered or observed. But it’s starting to be clear that Connecticut GOP Senate candidate Linda McMahon has a real dead wrestler problem. Not only are there on-going concerns and accusations that many pro wrestlers have died prematurely because of a mix of hard living, management-indulged steroid abuse and frequent injuries. But a growing number have actually died prematurely just during this campaign (three in the last twelve months). And it’s starting to become a real problem dogging her campaign, generating a litany of bad headlines and tragic storylines in the press. Read our story here.

Presuambly it’s a real problem for the bereaved families, the widows and the orphans too. But that goes without saying.

Jon Stewart, on Koran burners: “Who’s funding these radical Christian clerics?” Watch.

Sources tell our Brian Beutler that the White House’s budget/deficit commission is now gunning for Medicare too.

Another reason to look forward to the 2012 presidential primaries. John Bolton is telling people he’s gonna run.

Interpol has issued a global terror alert warning of an increased risk of terror attacks if the Koran burning in Florida goes ahead as planned.

This whole situation is obviously devolving, pretty rapidly, in a really bad direction. I can see many people of good will thinking, “Wait, if we don’t upend and own constitution and prevent this idiot from burning Korans, we’re going to be attacked by terrorists?” And it’s not an unreasonable sentiment. But then you fall back and think, how’d we get here exactly? Read More

Who could have predicted that an orchestrated campaign anti-Muslim hate speech on the part of many of the country’s most prominent politicians and the country’s biggest news network could have led to this unfortunate situation in Florida?

MSNBC is reporting that the FBI is paying a visit to the church of the Florida Koran-burning pastor.

Earlier CNN reported that its crew on the scene had seen what looked like government agents, in suits, go into and then leave the church. But CNN at that time was not able to confirm the identity of the visitors or their affiliation.

More soon …

State Department issues global travel warning based on Koran-burning church ruckus.

Speaking just now on MSNBC James Zogby made a very good point — and pressed Andrea Mitchell on it. His point was that sure, this Pastor Jones fool is one guy, who’s managed to get worldwide attention for his stunt. But you cannot separate him, as I noted below, from the whole climate of hate speech and anti-Muslim agitation from the Newt Gingriches and the Sarah Palins and the rest of them.

At that point, Mitchell jumped in and said, wait, Palin said she disagrees with the Koran burning. To which Zogby replied, something to the effect of ‘C’mon’. ANd that’s just the right reply. This is the standard approach of race haters and demagogues. They keep stirring the pot, churning out demonizing rhetoric and hate speech. Then some marginal figure does something nuts and suddenly … oh, wait, I didn’t mean burn Korans. Where’d you get that idea from? We were just saying that Islam is a violent, anti-American religion and that American Muslims should stop building their mosques and focus on apologizing for 9/11 and maybe get out of America. But burn the Koran? No way.

That’s a bit much.

Actions have consequences. This isn’t about one guy.

FBI and virtually everyone else trying to convince radical cleric Terry Jones to call off the Koran burning.