Who Won the Republican Debate Last Night?

by: TJ Walker

Fri Dec 16, 2011 at 13:37:09 PM EST

Here is the breakdown:

Newt Gingrich-Newt had horrible moments and great moments. When Newt goes on and on explaining why he was paid $1.6 million by a federal entity to NOT be a lobbyist, he doesn't pass the laugh test. And when he prattles on about what a celebrity he is and how he can make $60,000 a speech he makes Mitt Romney look like a full-time homeless advocate. But Newt also had great moments. Let's face it; there is no one better in the Republican field at expressing contempt for Obama, Liberals and the judiciary than Newt. There is a huge faction of the GOP that feels contempt for all things Democratic and Newt oozes their contempt better than Oprah exudes empathy for housewives. Newt held his own for the evening.

Mitt Romney-Mitt was Mitt, calm, cool and collected. He didn't make any $10,000 betting blunders but he also didn't land any strong blows toward Gingrich. Romney's worst moment was when Fox's Chris Wallace read chapter and verse on all the liberal positions Romney has expressed, specifically on gay rights. Watching Romney dance away from his past while claiming to not be dancing away from his past is always a fun show, and it's a reminder why the majority of the conservative party does not trust or like Romney.

Jon Huntsman-Jon opened really strongly. He gave a nice slam against Donald Trump and not turning himself into a pretzel by pandering to interest groups or The Donald. It was a clever jab at both Newt and Romney. Huntsman also gave a great message on banking reform that was both conservative and populist and courageous. He didn't do or say much of anytime else of interest in the debate. Still, more and more eyes are looking at Huntsman as party leaders hope and pray that Gingrich will collapse and the Party will have to move on to the next non-Mitt.

Ron Paul-Ron was consistent, as always. Yes, Paul had some of the biggest applause lines of the night. And he also had people gasping at his foreign policy views. Paul was audacious and honest when he labeled Gingrich's cashing in on Freddie Mac as "Fascism." Every liberal Democrat and moderate in the country fell in love with Paul when he labeled Gingrich's money-making escapades "Fascism." Unfortunately for Paul, they don't get to vote in Republican primaries or caucuses.

Rick Perry-Rick has a good night anytime he can remember his name. Perry had some sprightly moments and got in the sound bite of the night claiming he wants to be like "Tim Tebow." Had Perry debated like this in his first few debates, chances are he'd still be the front-runner. But now, Perry just seems like a "Forrest Gump" character, albeit one who doesn't like gays.
Michele Bachmann-Michelle had a good night and fired off some great shots against Newt. Her problem is that both the high brow and the low brow wings of the Republican Party have written her off. She's never recovered from earlier demagogic stumbles and it just doesn't matter what she does in debates any longer.

Rick Santorum-Rick still looks and sounds like a 2-term congressman. On paper, Santorum could and should be a frontrunner (at least for 3 weeks) but he has all the charisma of a three-week old tuna fish sandwich.  

Shaheen 1, Perry 0

by: William Tucker

Wed Nov 16, 2011 at 06:00:00 AM EST

During Gov. Rick Perry's "colorful" speech to the Cornerstone Action Dinner last month, he attacked Sen. Jeanne Shaheen over a bill she sponsored to promote energy efficiency.

"Instead of relieving the economic burden … you have your counterpart in the United States Senate who is working on a bill that would make things worse for home builders." Perry said to great applause at the Cornerstone Action Dinner, October 28, 2011 in Manchester, N.H.

"Under her scheme, federal bureaucrats could take over the local building code enforcement in your city if so-called green mandates are not complied with quickly enough," Perry said. "It is just simply bureaucratic overkill."

Perry was referring to the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act of 2011, a bill Shaheen introduced with Republican co-sponsor Sen. Rob Portman. The bill proposes numerous changes to national energy policies and practices with the goal of increasing the use of energy efficiency technologies and fostering job creation.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning researchers at Politifact reviewed the details of the proposed legislation. Would it potentially allow the federal government to take over local building code enforcement as Perry alleged? In a word, no.

Under Shaheen’s energy legislation, states would be required to report whether they plan to meet the model building codes. Those states that agree to the standards and accept federal dollars would be subject to a certification process to ensure they meet the regulations. But there is nothing in the bill that requires states to take part, nor are there any penalties for non-compliance. The bill is voluntary, not mandatory. We rate Perry’s claim False.

Trick or Treat? (Regression or Progress?)

by: Mike Hoefer

Tue Oct 25, 2011 at 11:01:15 AM EDT

In one corner, Cornerstone will be holding it's annual fundraising dinner - presumably to raise money in order to advocate the "traditional values" they support, like sending out political mailings with John Lynch's picture in a lineup of convicted sex offenders. Their keynote speaker? Gov Rick Perry (Frmr. Cornerstone head Kevin Smith recently said he was "surprised and disappointed"  with Perry's debate performances. Talk about awkward!.)

Regardless, I'm sure Mr. Smith hopes he has not totally lost his shot at some Perry PAC money to fund is presumed run for Governor.

Just across town, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England will be kicking off their 2012 fundraising campaign with an event at Southern New Hampshire University (get tickets here). They are hosting Daily Show Co-Creator, Air America co-founder, and political satirist Lizz Winstead. Tickets available here

Based on the NHGOP's War on Women the choice of which event you should attend should be easy.

The Religous Bigotry of Some Rick Perry Supporters

by: Kathy Sullivan 2

Mon Oct 17, 2011 at 12:17:38 PM EDT

And now it appears that people close to Perry are purposely promoting an anti-Mormon message in the hope of disqualifying Romney on the basis of his religion.  This flies in the face of everything our country stands for.  Ironically, Perry's wife claims that Perry is under attack because of his religion. No, it's because he is a lousy governor with bad ideas, and a lousy candidate who needs to do something about his supporters who are engaged in anti-Mormon bigotry
http://www.thedailybeast.com/a...
 

Frank Guinta, the RGA, and $100,000

by: Dean Barker

Wed Sep 21, 2011 at 05:45:26 AM EDT

Perhaps this renewed scrutiny into Frank Guinta's campaign mystery money (still unresolved by FEC) can bring needed press attention to a more recent matter.

Union Leader, August 26, 2011:

Guinta mentioned that he had contacted several national groups for money and that he had been hoping "to get up to $100,000 from the Republican Governors Association [for the NHGOP]," the source said.

From Mother Jones, key piece of information on a related issue.  This concerns a loophole scheme for federal officeholders to solicit unlimited funds for super-PACs, which in turn could then spend unlimited amounts in their districts bashing their opponents (quite analogous to state party spending):

Last week, the campaign finance watchdog's top attorneys quietly released a draft opinion declaring that Bopp's plan violates campaign finance law. Specifically, the attorneys pointed to the McCain-Feingold law, which bans elected officials and candidates from soliciting "soft money," or unlimited campaign contributions, in connection with a federal election. The attorneys added that it's OK for federal officials to appear and speak at fundraisers where unlimited cash is being raised, so long as they don't directly solicit it themselves.

(find me > 140 on birch paper; on Twitter < 140)

Texas is burning

by: Lucy Edwards

Mon Sep 05, 2011 at 12:49:18 PM EDT

Evolution: It's a Theory That's Out There

by: William Tucker

Fri Aug 26, 2011 at 06:00:00 AM EDT

A politician's attitude to evolution is perhaps not directly important in itself. It can have unfortunate consequences on education and science policy but, compared to Perry's and the Tea Party's pronouncements on other topics such as economics, taxation, history and sexual politics, their ignorance of evolutionary science might be overlooked. Except that a politician's attitude to evolution, however peripheral it might seem, is a surprisingly apposite litmus test of more general inadequacy. This is because unlike, say, string theory where scientific opinion is genuinely divided, there is about the fact of evolution no doubt at all. Evolution is a fact, as securely established as any in science, and he who denies it betrays woeful ignorance and lack of education, which likely extends to other fields as well. Evolution is not some recondite backwater of science, ignorance of which would be pardonable. It is the stunningly simple but elegant explanation of our very existence and the existence of every living creature on the planet. Thanks to Darwin, we now understand why we are here and why we are the way we are. You cannot be ignorant of evolution and be a cultivated and adequate citizen of today.

If Only We Had Job Creator Extraordinaire Rick Perry

by: elwood

Sun Aug 21, 2011 at 18:58:12 PM EDT

Then, instead of a 5.2% unemployment rate, we would be up in Texas territory at 8.4%.  With 60% more people out of work, we would have an extra 23,563 unemployed workers.  (38,290 today at Lynch's 5.2%; 61,853 at Perry's rate.) No need to cut the Department of Employment Security under Governor Perry!

To be fair,Texas' jobless rate is still a bit below the national average - thanks to big handouts from Washington during Perry's years.

There's an old New Hampshire expression about Texans like Rick Perry: "all hat, no cattle."

Rick Perry Doesn't "Believe" In Global Warming

by: Rep. Jim Splaine

Wed Aug 17, 2011 at 22:21:51 PM EDT

This election should be fun.  I look forward to learning about evolution, or the lack thereof, from Mr. Perry.  

It is so sad that so many Republicans hate science.  It must be one of the several classes they failed in school, so that's why they hate funding education too.  

Mitt Romney Clinches the Nomination

by: Dean Barker

Tue Aug 16, 2011 at 19:44:56 PM EDT

"It is over for Mitt Romney."

With Palin, McCain Makes It A Race

...Either Central Casting and Candid Camera have teamed up to trick cable television, or this is the best real choice and the best hidden secret the republicans have made in decades.

Palin understands energy policy and is an old-school, Teddy Roosevelt Republican who cares about conservation and the environment.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry: An Opposition Campaign Primer

by: The Journeying Progressive

Mon Aug 15, 2011 at 21:02:32 PM EDT

That's what's on the mind of political pundits this week as they come down off the high of the Iowa Straw Poll in Ames. With nothing to report until--well--something unpredictable happens, or until the Iowa caucuses in January, the media and blogosphere will gush with pedantics about this outsider to the GOP fratricide-fest that has been the 2012 presidential nominating process thus far.

Unless something extraordinary happens, Texas Governor Rick Perry will be the GOP and Tea Party presidential nominee in 2012. He's the darling of the extreme right and can be stomached by party moderates who know Mitt Romney has no chance of winning the top spot on the ticket without flip-flopping on nearly all of his social positions. So, no big deal, we're looking at Rick Perry.

Here is some friendly advice that an opposing campaign should follow--Republican, Democrat or Independent:

Who Is Rick Perry?

by: Kathy Sullivan 2

Fri Jul 15, 2011 at 10:49:07 AM EDT

This article from the Texas Observer is a must read.  Here is a snippet to pique your interest:

But what makes the New Apostolic Reformation movement so potent is its growing fascination with infiltrating politics and government. The new prophets and apostles believe Christians-certain Christians-are destined to not just take "dominion" over government, but stealthily climb to the commanding heights of what they term the "Seven Mountains" of society, including the media and the arts and entertainment world. They believe they're intended to lord over it all. As a first step, they're leading an "army of God" to commandeer civilian government.

In Rick Perry, they may have found their vessel. And the interest appears to be mutual.

In all the media attention surrounding Perry's flirtation with a run for the presidency, the governor's budding relationship with the leaders of the New Apostolic Reformation movement has largely escaped notice. But perhaps not for long. Perry has given self-proclaimed prophets and apostles leading roles in The Response, a much-publicized Christians-only prayer rally that Perry is organizing at Houston's Reliant Stadium on Aug. 6.

https://www.texasobserver.org/...

Way to Go Texas Gov. Perry!!

by: Dean Barker

Thu Mar 19, 2009 at 00:00:00 AM EDT

Tweet, tweet:

Way to Go!!

(h/t Katherine Welsh)

Unconscionable

by: Dean Barker

Thu Mar 12, 2009 at 19:13:18 PM EDT

Gov. Rick Perry will announce today that he is blocking the state from accepting $550 million for expanded unemployment benefits as part of the federal stimulus package

If this half-man ever steps foot into our state with his presidential ambitions in tow, I hope we will emphatically remind him of this moment.

And if you're interested in an historical perspective on just how knuckle-draggingly immoral Perry's decision is, put it up against the Styles Bridges Anti-Stimulus Measuring Stick.

The Styles Bridges Anti-Stimulus Measuring Stick

by: Dean Barker

Thu Feb 26, 2009 at 21:43:25 PM EST

I think I've found an historical measuring stick for the crazy they feel.

Former New Hampshire Governor, and later Senator, Styles Bridges, is famous, or infamous, rather, for a few things.

Such as his staunch support for Joseph McCarthy.  And his friendship with J. Edgar Hoover, whom he used to spy on his political enemies.  And then there's the time he blackmailed Senator Lester Hunt (D-WY) into dropping out of his reelection race, or else face his son being prosecuted for the misdemeanor of soliciting sex from a male undercover cop. (Hunt refused. Bridges went forward and outed the boy.  The Senator from Wyoming later shot and killed himself in his office.)

But let's leave all that aside.  In terms of policy, Styles Bridges is perhaps best known for being one of the loudest Republican voices against the New Deal, particularly regarding what he felt was FDR's bias toward labor unions.  As is noted (transcription, and any errors, mine) in James Kiepper's Styles Bridges: Yankee Senator,

He complained, "We have expended nationally billions and billions of dollars...and we have made no progress at all...Our present heavy relief expenditures will be with us for many years to come. Don't let anyone tell you differently."
    Roosevelt's 1932 election had been a "ghastly mistake," declared Bridges, which submerged "most of the states in the union beneath a flood of Democratic debt, doubt, and delay."

Well, guess what? Style Bridges, the Anti-FDR, was nonetheless one of the strongest supporters of unemployment relief around at the time.  From the book (p.249):

Unemployment insurance is not a cure-all, but it is the single greatest constructive step from the staggering burden of relief.

So when Bobby Jindal and Rick Perry and whoever else from this parade of charlatan public servants get on their political hobby horse and proudly declare that they will keep money out of the least fortunate of their citizens' hands, remember Styles Bridges.

Bridges, a man remarkable for the stridency of his conservatism and the ferocity of his partisanship, who nonetheless was human enough to understand the basic morality of accepting money that's been offered for the jobless during a severe economic crisis.