# Bob “Pumpkin Head” Barr is history – see ya, Chumpsey! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 21, 2002, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928 "2002-08-21T14:50:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Ace_of_Swords)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/21 "2002-08-21T20:52:46Z")
Oh, FWIW. Bob Barr’s directory on Salon: [http://dir.salon.com/topics/bob\_barr/index.html?ti=13](http://dir.salon.com/topics/bob_barr/index.html?ti=13) One more parting shot: Barr was surrounded by scribblers taking down his latest jabs at the president. He had just finished his floor statement advocating impeachment in which he had referred to John F. Kennedy’s “Profiles in Courage.” Patrick Kennedy wasn’t amused at the reference. He pushed into the clot of journalists around Barr. “You addressed the White Citizen’s Council and lied about it,” Kennedy yelled at Barr. “Anyone who’s part of a racist organization has no right invoking my uncle’s memory.” “Young man,” Barr shot back, “say what you like.” ---
**Author:** ![The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Ace_of_Swords)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/22 "2002-08-21T20:59:47Z")
Moderation in Georgia? C’mon, you made that motto up, now didn’t you? 😃 Zell Miller looks sane, by comparison! ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/23 "2002-08-21T22:05:53Z")
No, no. It’s right there on our state seal. Seems our politicos never paid too much attention to it, though. What’s going on, by the way, is the result of the de-gerrymandering of Georgia’s congressional districts. The districts had been gerrymandered to create “pure” Democratic districts and “pure” Republican districts. The result was that we had a bunch of wing nuts like Barr and McKinney in the House. With the de-gerrymandered (or at least more **moderately** gerrymandered) districts, candidates are required to have some appeal across party and racial lines. As a result, we’re seeing more moderate representatives emerge. ---
**Author:** ![december](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@december](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/december)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/24 "2002-08-21T22:16:57Z")
\<\\> Unfortunately, this has been happening nationwide as well. More security for Congresspersons, less input from voters. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Jello](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@Jello](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jello)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/25 "2002-08-21T22:48:56Z")
Barr didn’t abandon the 11th district - it was redrawn by the Democratic legislature so that he and Linder would have to face each other in the primary; Linder just got to keep his district number. So while Georgia gained two districts in the last census, one of the incumbents had to lose his seat. Thankfully it was this one. Now, with the loss of Barr and McKinney, Georgia will be represented by the…quiet maniacs. I saw Barr at the mall a few months ago…it’s a good thing they don’t keep those little axes next to the fire estinguishers anymore, or Mr. Barr would have left Congress a little bit earlier. I hate that heartless thug. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/26 "2002-08-21T22:56:28Z")
I’m confused - that thing about white supremacists in the OP seems to be about Trent Lott, not Bob Barr. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/27 "2002-08-22T02:24:43Z")
six of one… ---
**Author:** ![The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Ace_of_Swords)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/28 "2002-08-22T04:08:01Z")
Christ, they BOTH spoke at the Council of Conservative Citizens? And I copied the wrong thing. Yay, me. Here’s more info on his (Barr’s) speech. [http://www.wsws.org/news/1998/dec1998/barr-d12.shtml](http://www.wsws.org/news/1998/dec1998/barr-d12.shtml) ---
**Author:** ![jujuju](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7993a0/32.png) [@jujuju](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jujuju)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/29 "2002-08-22T06:48:19Z")
according to neal boortz [http://www.boortz.com/aug20-02.htm](http://www.boortz.com/aug20-02.htm) : > [@](#): > > SOME LISTENERS ARE FURIOUS > > They’re furious with me because of my support for John Linder over Bob Barr. Sorry you’re mad, folks. But I call them the way I see them. I’m just as furious with Bob Barr as you are with me. Bob Barr put his personal political ambitions over the good of this country. Bob Barr made the decision to move out of a congressional district that he knew he could carry, in order to challenge John Linder in another district. Barr left a district where 70% of the population is already represented by him and moved to a district where only 17% of the population is currently represented by him. When Barr made that decision he knew full well that the district he left would fall to the Democrats. He was the Republican Congressman for most of those people — and he left. At a time when the Republicans only hold the slimmest of margins in the House of Representatives, Bob Barr decided to hand the Democrats one more seat in a quest to buy easier campaigns for him down the road. No matter who wins today in the 7th, there’s going to be one less Republican and one more Democrat in the Georgia delegation ---- and the blame rests with Bob Barr. > > Maybe some of you ought to redirect some of your anger. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Corrado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a88e4f/32.png) [@John\_Corrado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Corrado)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/30 "2002-08-22T11:20:40Z")
I shall also dance upon Mr. Barr’s political grave. My favorite riff on Barr- shortly after he accidentally fired a gun at one of his political rallies, a Georgia political cartoonist made mention of the incident by noting it as a newpaper headline: "Barr fires gun at Fund Raiser Eager Supporters donate wallets, jewelry" ---
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/31 "2002-08-22T12:26:03Z")
Wow- this is a great thread. On politics. In the Pit. Way to go Dopers! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/32 "2002-08-22T16:03:05Z")
**Jello** wrote: > [@](#): > > Barr didn’t abandon the 11th district - it was redrawn by the Democratic legislature so that he and Linder would have to face each other in the primary… Not exactly. The 11th _was_ re-drawn in such a way that it incorporated more Democratic voters. It still would have been a close race had Barr stayed in the district, and he might’ve won against a Democratic challenger. We’ll never know, since he left the district to run in the more safely Republican 7th (against Linder). So the legislature didn’t _force_ Barr to run against Linder. He just _chose_ the chicken-shit route. True to his character. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@The\_Ace\_of\_Swords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Ace_of_Swords)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/33 "2002-08-22T18:46:25Z")
Tapped Commentary: [http://www.prospect.org/webfeatures/2002/08/tapped-s-08-19.html#955amfringe](http://www.prospect.org/webfeatures/2002/08/tapped-s-08-19.html#955amfringe) ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/34 "2002-08-22T18:56:35Z")
[Today’s Mike Luckovich cartoon.](http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/opinion/luckovich/) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2002, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/35 "2002-08-23T17:08:09Z")
So Barr is gone. One less hate-filled hypocrite in Congress, and therefore a small battle won in a big war. Armey, Thurmond, Helms, and Gramm are leaving too, so perhaps we can celebrate. But they were small fry. We still have Burton, DeLay, and Hyde in leadership positions to worry about. Time to pile on: It’s hard to imagine Barr as a virulent anti-black racist. Judging his ancestry from his photos, I’d expect him to have a hard time getting served at Denny’s, knowhutahmean? ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2002, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/36 "2002-08-23T18:05:28Z")
[Updated link to Mike Luckovich cartoon.](http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/opinion/luckovich/2002/082202.html) ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2002, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/37 "2002-08-25T16:26:35Z")
I know I’m late for the party, but this will always stick in my mind. Barr threatened to hold DC’s federal transportation funds hostage until its neighboring state (VA) modified the names of the National Airport metrorail station. [http://www.hillnews.com/050201/editorial.shtm](http://www.hillnews.com/050201/editorial.shtm) > [@](#): > > Barr, who sponsored the bill that changed the airport’s name, is threatening three Metro projects: a Blue Line extension to Largo, Md., rail service to Dulles Airport, and a New York Avenue station. In addition, $60 million is pending for rail cars and buses, money that Barr has suggested he would try to block, according to Lyndsey Layton of The Washington Post. :mad: Some more fun stuff: [Dear Dumbass, How about “Alzheimers Big Metal Bird Nest”?](http://www.geocities.com/deardumbass/20010426.htm) [The Two Faces of Bob Barr](http://www.tylwythteg.com/enemies/Barr/barr1.html) ---
**Author:** ![syncrolecyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@syncrolecyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/syncrolecyne)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2002, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928/38 "2002-08-26T04:07:45Z")
Without Bob Barr and Jesse Helms…who is going to be the ‘poster boy’ of the far right in Congress? Tom Delay? Helen Chenowith (who would insist on being refered to ‘poster boy’ and not ‘poster person’)…is she still around? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bob-pumpkin-head-barr-is-history-see-ya-chumpsey/124928.md?page=1)