Update: Love Wins.

The Anne Arundel GOP seemed at pains to attack my piece yesterday highlighting Republican Michael Peroutka’s well-known love of the Confederate flag and membership on the Board of the League of the South–a hate group.

Here is the exchange from Twitter:

A few thoughts on the Anne Arundel GOP’s tactics and views:

1. Obfuscation: The real issue, of course, is Peroutka’s views–not whether I have spoken to Peroutka. This is a standard deflection tactic. Do Republicans speak in advance to each Democrat that they criticize on every occasion? I didn’t think so. Indeed, Gov. Larry Hogan didn’t speak to Peroutka before cutting him loose during the campaign. Like me, he didn’t need to waste his time.

2. Ignoring Reality: My post stated a number of uncontested facts. The posting of this YouTube showing Peroutka leading the singing of Dixie as the “national anthem” next to the Confederate Stainless Banner is a fact:

I also reported on Peroutka’s campaign contributions. Frankly, it isn’t a heavy lift to conclude that Peroutka’s values are heinous. Their willingness to ignore them says a lot about the people currently running the Anne Arundel GOP’s twitter account.

3. Casting the First Stone: After saying that I lack “integrity, judgement, or original thinking,” the Anne Arundel Republicans accuse me of “casting the first stone.” They then call me “hateful” as well as “judgmental and cowardly.”

Well, I’ll concede judgmental–it’d be a mighty dull opinion blog if it lacked opinions entirely. Seems mighty hypocritical though to accuse someone of “casting the first stone” when one engages in name-calling before and after. It’s like they’re characters from Berke Breathed’s wonderful Bloom County carton:

I also wonder if these guys have ever met Peroutka themselves. This guy is more than happy to condemn and cast stones and support the efforts of noxious groups to do the same. As I have reported in this space previously:

Peroutka also finds the time to be active in the extremist John Birch Society. Apparently, he believes that the gay rights movement will lead to “forced homosexuality.”

During the campaign, Peroutka, proudly maintained his membership on the board of the League of the South, which states on its website:

If the South is going to survive, especially against a flood tide of massive Third World immigration and leftist attempts to destroy her very cultural and political foundations, she is going to have to seek her independence and govern herself.

So I think it’s safe to say that Peroutka and his ilk have no problem casting stones.

4. Peroutka and @AnneArundelGOP are more extreme than many other Republicans. The Governor’s spokesman, Adam Dubitsky, said about Peroutka: “Those views have never been a part of the Republican Party, and they never will be.” An Anne Arundel Republican candidate was quoted as opposing Peroutka’s “racism, classicism, cultural bigotry and hate.”

So my presentation of the facts leads to the same opinion as Governor Hogan. The Anne Arundel Republicans are free to stand by their man. It says a lot about them.