Why the Gingrich win bodes poorly for the GOP
“Over the past few weeks we’ve seen a frontal assault on free enterprise. We expected this from President Obama. We didn’t anticipate some Republicans would join him. That’s a mistake for our party, and for our nation…. Those who pick up the weapons of the left today will find them turned against us tomorrow.”
– Mitt Romney
in his concession speech
in South Carolina Saturday
————————
Newt Gingrich’s impressive 12-point victory margin in South Carolina has touched off enormous doubt among national Republicans, much of it centered on Mitt Romney’s perceived weaknesses as a candidate.
To cite just one example of many, here’s Mark Steyn at NationalReview.com:
“Even if you don’t mind Romneycare, or the abortion flip-flop, or any of the rest, there’s a more basic problem: He’s not a natural campaigner, and on the stump he instinctively recoils from any personal connection with the voters…. For a guy running as a chief exec applying proven private-sector solutions, his campaign looks awfully like an unreformable government bureaucracy: big, bloated, overstaffed, burning money, slow to react, and all but impossible to change.”
While there’s certainly some truth to that, I think the Republican problem is much more deep-seated than the failings of a particular candidate. Newt Gingrich not only exposed Romney as a flawed politician; he exposed the fact that their economic message sucks.
Look at what happened: In a Republican primary in a deeply conservative state, Gingrich rode to victory by employing the Democratic line of attack against Mitt. What does that tell you about the power of that critique in the general election, among a much less conservative electorate?
(UPDATE at 11:50: Two new polls out of Florida:
Insider Advantage puts Gingrich up 34-26.
Rasmussen has Gingrich up 41-32.)
It’s really quite stunning, in ways that a lot of people don’t yet comprehend.
It’s true, of course, that the economy was just one of many factors that affected the outcome in South Carolina. For example, Gingrich outperformed Romney by 2-1 among evangelical voters, and given Newt’s personal history, that’s amazing. Romney’s religion had to have played a role in that kind of outcome.
However, when you sift through the exit-poll numbers on the economy, what you find is really compelling:
Seventy-nine percent of South Carolina voters told exit pollers that they were very worried about the nation’s economy; Gingrich carried that group by 14 percentage points.
Among the 11 percent of voters who said their own economic situation was improving, Romney did well, finishing in a virtual tie with Gingrich. But Romney and his message fell flat among those who said their economic status was static (Gingrich up 14 points) or slipping (Gingrich by 19 points).
Among income groups, Romney was competitive only among those said they made $100,000 or more, losing that demographic by only five percentage points. He lost by 15 points among everybody else.
Again, these are conservative voters in a conservative state, in an election cycle in which the economy will be the defining issue. And yet they clearly sided with a candidate who conducted “a frontal assault on free enterprise,” to use Romney’s description.
For the moment, Romney’s solution is to do as he did in his concession speech: whine about the treachery of a fellow Republican daring to advance a liberal critique. Within the confines of a GOP primary, that approach may have some temporary success.
But again, in a general election that’s not going to work.
Two more points: One, as Gingrich clearly recognizes, Romney’s personal history, his bearing and his personality all make him the perfect foil for a populist message. He epitomizes the Wall Street tycoon often central to that narrative, and it’s a weakness for which there is no cure.
Two, the lessons of South Carolina may have real consequences for House and Senate races as well. If the overall GOP message truly is as weak as it appears after Saturday — if it can be turned into a handicap even in a Republican primary — then Democratic prospects downticket may be brighter than they have seemed.
– Jay Bookman
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1,059 comments Add your comment
0311/1811
January 23rd, 2012
10:27 pm
Headline: “Obama: Abortion Enables ‘Our Daughters’ To ‘Fulfill Their Dreams’… ”
Except for the unborn daughters and the “daughters” who have a lifetime of regret about what they did to their child.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
10:28 pm
@Jamal Jenkums
January 23rd, 2012
10:16 pm
We don’t really care what you think. we aren’t gonna let you and the liberal media pick our candidate. Any one of them will mop the floor with Big Eared Oblunder.
Get yourself a crying towel for November.
************************************************************************
You are right my friend.
Anyone of them is qualified to be a janitor not a president.
0311/1811
January 23rd, 2012
10:28 pm
Headline: “CHICAGO (WLS) -President Obama’s State of the Union speech Tuesday evening is likely to be viewed as a reelection speech, and the president’s former chief of staff, Mayor Rahm Emanuel has some ideas about how the speech should be constructed.
The mayor told a panel at the University of Chicago that the president should say very little about his first term, and focus on what he would do in a second term. Emanuel said, “What you do with the first term is say, ‘I inherited a mess, I did what I could to stabilize it, and here’s what we’re gonna do.’ ”
In other words, try to bury/hide your miserable first term.
getalife
January 23rd, 2012
10:30 pm
jm,
You can’t even beat the newt.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
10:31 pm
Can we have just one night where no one brings up Newt’s rotundness and s-e-x. It conjures up nightmarish images. Doomy gonna sleep with the lights on now.
bman
January 23rd, 2012
10:32 pm
0311 .. ..
That plan worked out well the first round. All Obama did was talk about what he would do. It isn’t as if he could talk about what he had already done. Somehow, it worked.
I don’t believe the American public is so stupid. Then again, it did work once.
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:32 pm
reagan reagan reagan
newt was small bit until he was speaker
and then he was a disaster.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
10:33 pm
“The mayor told a panel at the University of Chicago that the president should say very little about his first term”
Speaks volumes when you have to run and hide from your own record.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
10:33 pm
@jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:20 pm
another super stupid Newt idea.
mitt: need a good space program
yeah mitt
***********************************************************
Newt is crookedly awful
and
Mitt is awfully crooked.
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:34 pm
sorry doom
getalife, mitt will beat newt
or a brokered convention will bring in mitch daniels
newt will not be the nominee
JamVet
January 23rd, 2012
10:35 pm
Doom, I think one of the reasons I always liked that word, is how Crash in Bill Durham used it so derisively for Nuke. Who lamented, “Why does he call me meat? I’ve got a Porsche.”
I just modified it for the sock puppets, drive bys, etc.
So did anyone quiz Newt on the Kama Sutra tonight?
Or ask him if he and Herman were ever wing men?
St Simons - we're on Island time
January 23rd, 2012
10:36 pm
Wow, Mitt’s on Newt like a dog on the back of a station wagon.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
10:37 pm
doom
He got bin laden, right? He saved the US auto industry, right? He finished the job in iraq, right? Not too shabby right there….
0311/1811
January 23rd, 2012
10:37 pm
bman:
It has worked more than once:
Carter – once.
Clinton – twice
Obama – once.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
10:38 pm
“That plan worked out well the first round. All Obama did was talk about what he would do. It isn’t as if he could talk about what he had already done. Somehow, it worked.”
I saw something interesting on that. A psychologist speaking about studying focus groups who supported Obama. Turned out in general that many of them were more focused on how he spoke- his mannerisms, his charisma, etc. and not focused on what he said. The old style vs substance. In our American Idol dumbed down culture the man with flair, style, and charisma with zero meaningful experience won over a far more qualified but boring candidate- McCain.
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:38 pm
look
as a fiscal conservative, I wish mitt had more ambitious goals to shrink the government
but he has committed trying to get it from 24% of gdp to 19%
if he can accomplish that, as difficult as it is to cut spending, that would be a huge accomplishment
0311/1811
January 23rd, 2012
10:38 pm
Mick:
The military got biin Laden and would have regardless who was president.
Iraq is a big mess right now and getting worse.
Ford didn’t take a penny and the others shouldn’t have either.
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:40 pm
yeah. work.
go mitt
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:41 pm
the volt is a POS
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
10:41 pm
Mitt is a PHONY
Newt is a CROOK
Ron Paul is a NUT
Santorum is an IDIOT
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:42 pm
newt the chameleon….
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:43 pm
mitt is as honest as the day is long (during the summer solstice)
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
10:44 pm
JamVet,
Yeah. I remembered where the term came from. But still no matter how often I see you calling one of us cons “meat” I still start laughing out loud. Damn it never gets old.
“So did anyone quiz Newt on the Kama Sutra tonight?”
Not nice of you AmVet. Did I mention I have a weak stomach too and just ate? Visions of Newt in various… Never mind. Suffice it to say it aint helpin. Ya’ll nasty!
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:44 pm
I think tax cheat is getalife
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
10:45 pm
@Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
10:38 pm
“That plan worked out well the first round. All Obama did was talk about what he would do. It isn’t as if he could talk about what he had already done. Somehow, it worked.”
I saw something interesting on that. A psychologist speaking about studying focus groups who supported Obama.
********************************************************************************
When and where did you see a psychologist speaking about studying focus groups?
Can I google it?
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
10:45 pm
1811
How come the military under bush didn’t get him? Lost his focus in a faux war in iraq.
Iraq is a big mess? Who started it? Was the US a big mess when we had our uncivil war? Let them sort it out.
Having a US auto industry is a good thing for our people and our country, jeesh…
jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:45 pm
go mitt 2012
i’m out
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
10:46 pm
Mitt calls it “influence peddling”. He looked strong on that.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
10:46 pm
@jm
January 23rd, 2012
10:44 pm
I think tax cheat is getalife
*******************************************************
NOT
getalife
January 23rd, 2012
10:49 pm
Wrong as usual jm.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
10:49 pm
Mitt is a HYPOCRITE too.
He has investments in Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.
Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
10:52 pm
A tax cheat. This was a few years ago during the election when they were doing focus groups and talking about why focus groups were interested in McCain or Obama. Funny that you should ask for a link after making repeated claims such as Romney is a war monger without an iota of evidence to back it up. Do you always just make basesless claims out of thin air?
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
10:53 pm
Tax cheat is not getalife. He is his twin.
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
10:55 pm
Well guys, if Newt wins the nomination, I don’t know if he will will the election. But I would bet odds that he will smoke the president in any debate. And I say this with him being my third choice. He is a truly fine tactical debater with a strong command of factual knowledge and a sharp mind. Obama is smart and has a nice anecdotal way of speaking and seems to have a strong ability to employ analogies, but that won’t win the day against Newt. That is my objective opinion.
Recon 0311 2533
January 23rd, 2012
10:55 pm
No knock out punches but Romney through a few and drew some blood. I think he should of at least proved the wimp label doesn’t apply. The beat goes on and will for sometime.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
10:56 pm
1811
The truth of the matter is that president obama is a good family man who is trying his best to do what’s right for this country. Some people are stuck on this european socialist kenyan b.s. I mean how is he european? Like thatcher or the beloved churchill? The propaganda is childish. He has been an OK president with a shot at greatness. If you guys go with newt, he’ll get his chance…
md
January 23rd, 2012
10:56 pm
“How come the military under bush didn’t get him?”
May want to read up on the timeline…….there was no pause.
Team effort my friend……..OUR guys all pitched in to get the job done.
bman
January 23rd, 2012
10:58 pm
all of the NBS embeds are white as rice. No color in there whatsoever
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
10:59 pm
So did anyone quiz Newt on the Kama Sutra tonight?
I didn’t see enough of the debate to form a strong opinion, but the NBC people seemed to think Newt handled himself very well.
Turned out in general that many of them were more focused on how he spoke- his mannerisms, his charisma, etc. and not focused on what he said.
My theory, Doom, is that Obama benefited greatly from the Blank Slate Phenomenon the first time around. Because his supporters had so little info about him, they tended to “fill in the blanks” with all positive things. Now, he has to run on his record. I don’t think the Blame Bush strategy is going to win it for him. At some point, the American people will demand some accountability.
md
January 23rd, 2012
10:59 pm
One also needs to remember that after FL the primaries head west where the party has a tendency to be a bit more moderate…….out of the bible belt.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
11:01 pm
doom
He got bin laden, right?
Actually I would say the CIA and the U.S. military got Bin Laden. Obama giving the go ahead was an easy call. 90% of us would have made that call.
He saved the US auto industry, right?
Not really. They could have gone into bankruptcy restructuring. I’m not a fan of the too big too fail phenomenon. Nor of picking winners and losers such as deciding which dealerships got to stay open depending on how much they supported Democratic causes. Frankly it was nothing short of sickening.Also putting union interests ahead of secured bondholders is breaking the law- about as clear cut violation as there could be. I don’t know which is worse- that or intimidating the secured bondholders into staying quiet. Also last I saw we are still owed about 15 billion. So this story isn’t done being written yet.
“He finished the job in iraq, right? Not too shabby right there….”
The surge under W is what won that war. By leaving too early and not doing a better job of negotiating to leave a stabilizing force of 5-10,000 U.S. troops in Iraq we now face the very real possibility of losing the country to a chaotic civil war and also to the influence of Iran.
He’s done some good things such as going after the taliban and terrorists hard and heavy in Afgh and particularly inside of Pakistan. But overall I don’t see anything particularly impressive other than that.
md
January 23rd, 2012
11:02 pm
Folks need to remember that it was the idies that put Obama in power…….his base will still vote for him, but the indies are currently trending away……..but newt would scare them back to the left imo.
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:03 pm
Tax cheat is not getalife. He is his twin.
Its taken me a while, Doom, but I have getalife solidly in the “cool” category at this juncture. He stands up for what he believes in, and speaks the truth as he sees it without apology. If I make it out to Vegas again, I hope he and I can get together and put a hurting on the crap table.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:04 pm
md
**May want to read up on the timeline…….there was no pause.**
That’s b.s. also and you probably know it. The previous guy disbanded the search in 06 and put more resources into iraq, remember the surge? Obama campaigned on it and delivered. Ask bob gates about the presidents decision to get him. Give the president, and of course our military, their due…
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:05 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
10:55 pm
Obama is smart and has a nice anecdotal way of speaking and seems to have a strong ability to employ analogies, but that won’t win the day against Newt. That is my objective opinion.
*************************************************
You are right…..
Obama is SMART and he will NOT get into a peeing match with a SKUNK (Newt).
md
January 23rd, 2012
11:07 pm
“That’s b.s. also and you probably know it.”
As I said, you may want to read up on the timeline……specifically when they started tailing the guy that eventually led them to OBL…….hint…..it was pre-Obama…..
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:08 pm
doom
Love the way you are so dismissive of all the positives I mentioned. The fact is iraq is a disaster from the get go. Would you like to one of those 50k you mentioned stationed there? Don’t think so. Pretty easy to say when your skin isn’t in the game. Who’s the number one automaker in the world today? Your glass is empty…
Recon 0311 2533
January 23rd, 2012
11:09 pm
I’m not certain solely based on the S.C. outcome that we can conclude that Gingrich has effectively captured the Christian Evangelical vote for his very own. I know the libs would like to believe he did but consider Iowa and the Evangelical vote there, where Gingrich got shot down. This will continue on for awhile and it’s foolish to draw conclusions.
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:09 pm
Obama is SMART and he will NOT get into a peeing match with a SKUNK (Newt).
Cheat–Obama got into office strictly due to a confluence of events: Bush left office in near disgrace, McCain was way past his prime, and the country was sick of war.
If he had faced Newt the first time in the debates, we wouldn’t be talking about him now.
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:09 pm
“Obama is SMART and he will NOT get into a peeing match with a SKUNK (Newt).”
Your emotional sentiment hardly disproves my claim. I have heard even very liberal political analysts acknowledging his debating prowess. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not a big Newt fan. But he is impressive in debate. To say otherwise is simply ignoring the reality.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
11:10 pm
“Because his supporters had so little info about him, they tended to “fill in the blanks” with all positive things.”
True. But to me its just plain bizarre how a man so eminently unqualified to be potus got to be potus. Its remarkable he beat Hilary more than anything else. And when I speak to friends, acquaintances, or just people that voted for Obama and ask them why they think he was qualified to begin with the answers I get range from a blank stare to complete nonsensical incoherent rambling to changing the framing of the argument to something about “enough of w or the republicans”.
“Now, he has to run on his record”
Yes. And it aint good. I figure he can be destroyed in a debate by simply bringing up his abysmal economic record repeatedly.
getalife
January 23rd, 2012
11:10 pm
The newt can’t even win a debate against willard.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:11 pm
md
Hint: What’s your source? Who did the due diligence to see it through? Who gave the green light for that particular operation? Yes, by all means lets minimize it…
0311/1811
January 23rd, 2012
11:12 pm
Mick:
Regarding Obama ……….. he’s the worst we’ve ever had !
1) Starting your campaign in the home of terrorists
For outlandish vacations at taxpayer expense
2) Not respecting the unborn
3) For the biggest debt in our history
4) For bad mouthing America not only here but overseas
5) For promoting violence:
** Obama: “They Bring a Knife…We Bring a Gun!”
** Obama to His Followers: “Get in Their Faces!”
** Obama on ACORN Mobs: “I don’t want to quell anger. I think people are right to be angry! I’m angry!”
** Obama to His Mercenary Army: “Hit Back Twice As Hard!”
** Obama on the private sector: “We talk to these folks… so I know whose ass to kick.“
** Obama to voters: Republican victory would mean “hand to hand combat!”
** Obama to lib supporters: “It’s time to Fight for it.”
** Obama to Latino supporters: “Punish our enemies.”
** Obama to democrats: “I’m itching for a fight.”
6) For promoting the likes of “Occupy”
7) For subverting the Constitution
9) For campaign for 2012 when you should be at work
10) For dividing this country more than it’s been since the Civil War.
TAPS ! Everyone be nice to each other ……………….
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:14 pm
**simply bringing up his abysmal economic record repeatedly.**
Only fools would believe he caused it. He inherited it and if you think mccain would have been better, well….look out the window, quick – a flying pig…
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:16 pm
“But to me its just plain bizarre how a man so eminently unqualified to be potus got to be potus. Its remarkable he beat Hilary more than anything else. And when I speak to friends, acquaintances, or just people that voted for Obama and ask them why they think he was qualified to begin with the answers I get range from a blank stare to complete nonsensical incoherent rambling to changing the framing of the argument to something about “enough of w or the republicans”.
I understand your sentiment here, TD. But if you have ever read Julius Caesar, you would know the power of oratory. Obama won, among other things, because he is a good orator. But he will look not so great in this respect if he matches up against Newt because he is not nearly as good a debator.
Recon 0311 2533
January 23rd, 2012
11:17 pm
I think debating skills are not to be taken for granted but none the less are over rated. When the dust settles and you have the nominated challenger up against an incumbent president there are very few one on one debates. It’s out on the stump where it really matters.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:17 pm
@Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:09 pm
Obama is SMART and he will NOT get into a peeing match with a SKUNK (Newt).
If he had faced Newt the first time in the debates, we wouldn’t be talking about him now.
*****************************************************
SHOULDA
COULDA
WOULDA
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:18 pm
.look out the window, quick – a flying pig…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYsukJdTsL8
Mick–The Roger Waters tour is strictly “The Wall” this go round, no??
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:18 pm
1811
Numbers one through five are bald faced lies and I pity anyone who believes that garbage. I think the mother who actually gets the abortion will have to answer for it – not you, I, or president obama. Some people just can’t deal with an african american president, I’m proud of this country for electing him, that’s what america is all about…
p.s. 6-10 is just as lame…
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
11:18 pm
“Love the way you are so dismissive of all the positives I mentioned. The fact is iraq is a disaster from the get go.”
No doubt it was a disaster for a long time Mick. I won’t argue the point. However, there is really no question that the resistance was largely subjugated with the surge and by the time Obama came in the war was largely won. There really isn’t any dispute on that matter.
“Would you like to one of those 50k you mentioned stationed there? Don’t think so. Pretty easy to say when your skin isn’t in the game.”
Really? No skin in the game? You need to do some backpedaling real quick Mick. I wasn’t there but my brother was there for 18 months in the middle of it getting rocket attacked.He had to travel the same IED laced roads and endured several rocket and mortar attacks- a few of his guys got hurt and one got part of his face blown off. I cried the day he went and cursed W for the war. So don’t tell me I didn’t have “skin in the game”.
“Who’s the number one automaker in the world today?”
Mick, if you are going to give Obama credit for making Gm the number one automaker in the world then you really need to put down the kool-aid. That’s a stretch that gumby couldn’t make.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:19 pm
@Recon 0311 2533
January 23rd, 2012
11:17 pm
I think debating skills are not to be taken for granted but none the less are over rated. When the dust settles and you have the nominated challenger up against an incumbent president there are very few one on one debates. It’s out on the stump where it really matters.
*******************************************************
Tonight you are the SMARTEST person on the blog.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:19 pm
bruno
Yes, it is a must see, I can’t stress it enough…
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:19 pm
“I think debating skills are not to be taken for granted but none the less are over rated. When the dust settles and you have the nominated challenger up against an incumbent president there are very few one on one debates. It’s out on the stump where it really matters.”
Agreed. But I think Newt, if nothing else, would diminish one of the best things Obama has going for him – the ability to talk a good game.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:23 pm
doom
Well, just answer the question, is gm number one? Do you think your brother wants to be stationed in iraq? I wasn’t trying to disrespect you or him, I don’t want an american presence in that god forsaken country, it’s over…
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:24 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:16 pm
“But to me its just plain bizarre how a man so eminently unqualified to be potus got to be potus. Its remarkable he beat Hilary more than anything else. And when I speak to friends, acquaintances, or just people that voted for Obama and ask them why they think he was qualified to begin with the answers I get range from a blank stare to complete nonsensical incoherent rambling to changing the framing of the argument to something about “enough of w or the republicans”.
*********************************************************************
Your DOG WHISTLE LIES won’t hunt.
Try another lying tactic to distort the facts.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
11:25 pm
“But if you have ever read Julius Caesar, you would know the power of oratory. Obama won, among other things, because he is a good orator.”
I could not agree with you more strawman even though I didn’t read JC. Its oratory and a little bit of the cult of personality thing going. Lot of people who placed an inordinate amount of faith in this man as if he was a God that could magically solve the nation’s problems.
“But he will look not so great in this respect if he matches up against Newt because he is not nearly as good a debator.”
Yep. I am absolutely certain Newt would annihilate Obama in a debate. I don’t think Newt can win the general election simply due to his personal baggage and the fact that the media is going to be cheerleading Obama all the way. But in a head to head debate he will run circles around Obama. And I think that is what Jay truly fears.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:26 pm
Bring it on
Love the way all you cons think so highly of newts debating acumen. Advantage obama. He took on a whole room of republican congressman and beat them with the facts. Newt would get newtered….
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:26 pm
“Your DOG WHISTLE LIES won’t hunt. Try another lying tactic to distort the facts.”
Um…I wasn’t the one who made the statement you quoted. I was quoting it myself.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:28 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:19 pm
Agreed. But I think Newt, if nothing else, would diminish one of the best things Obama has going for him – the ability to talk a good game.
****************************************************************
The key word is “I” (you)…………..think Newt would diminish……….
No one else does.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:28 pm
doom
Your politics are way twisted but you write some pretty interesting screed and most importantly, doomy has humor…roger out
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:31 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:26 pm
Obama won, among other things, because he is a good orator. But he will look not so great in this respect if he matches up against Newt because he is not nearly as good a debator.
*****************************************************************************
ARE YOU QUOTING NOW?
Or are you just WRONG.
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:32 pm
“Love the way all you cons think so highly of newts debating acumen. Advantage obama. He took on a whole room of republican congressman and beat them with the facts. Newt would get newtered…”
I at one time said I would never vote for Newt because of his character issues. So I said what I did not as a Newt fanboy. But I have an MA in English and have seen many debates over the years. And I must concede that Newt is one of the best debaters around, because it’s the truth. If Newt gets the nomination, I would bet Obama’s team will seek to minimize the number of debates with him. If so, that will prove my point.
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:33 pm
“Or are you just WRONG.
”
And smiley faces prove what, exactly (just wondering because it seems the liberals here make an inordinate use of them)?
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:34 pm
Yes, it is a must see, I can’t stress it enough…
I was one of the lucky few to see the Wall tour the first time around in LA. I remember sitting through it wishing they would break out material from The Dark Side of the Moon or WYWH. When I finally saw Roger a few years ago in Atlanta, he fulfilled my every wish by playing all their great songs.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:34 pm
@Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:09 pm
Obama is SMART and he will NOT get into a peeing match with a SKUNK (Newt).
If he had faced Newt the first time in the debates, we wouldn’t be talking about him now.
**********************************************************************************
SHOULDA
COULDA
WOULDA
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
11:34 pm
Mick,
Honestly I don’t know who is the number 1 carmaker. I always thought it was GM if it was an American company at all. But Ford is a bigger exporter than GM and does much better overseasa. I always thought it was Toyota though but if you’re saying it was an American company then do enlighten me.
Thanks for not disrespecting my brothers svc. I always knew you had more class than that anyway. He went over there in good spirits and came back the same. Hell he handled it 10 times better than I did- especially the day he left when I just started bawling like a little girl. Funny thing though is that he never had much fear about the attacks and all that. What actually bothered the hell out of him was the pointlessness of dealing with such a corrupt group of people. When they paid the officers the officers would steal most of the money that was to be paid to the enlisted men and divide it. So they got to the point to where American personnel had to pay the Iraqis individually, especially the enlisted men, to keep up morale and bypass the Iraqi corruption. The crappiness of the Iraqis themselves, their corruption,giving jobs to relatives(nepotism) over merit to non-family, etc. Those things really frustrated him.
“I don’t want an american presence in that god forsaken country, it’s over…”
Mick on the one hand I so want to agree with you. I’m just tired of those infighting, corrupt, backwards ass people that I just want to throw up my arms and say screw em. On the other hand though I think we would have been so much better having a small force there to keep the nation stabilized. Only time will tell how the whole Iraq thing turns out. Hopefully you are right and we didn’t need to waste time with any more soldiers over there.
Gerald
January 23rd, 2012
11:35 pm
If Romney wanted to beat Gingrich, all he has to do is start hammering home the fact that Newt Gingrich has never had a “real job”; has never worked in the private sector. You know, the same charge that the GOP has leveled at Obama for the past 4 years. Except that it is code word race-baiting (i.e. lazy welfare cheat black man) when it is made against Obama, which is why it will never stick against Gingrich with GOP voters … so never mind. Though it is true. Gingrich went straight from college grad to college professor to politics just like Obama, and even when he left politics, it was lobbyist/consultant type work still related to government (i.e. his being on the government payroll for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac). Oh, but I forgot … double standards between Obama and Gingrich in “never having a real job.” Just like double standards between Gingrich and Clinton on ethics and “private life” scandals. Except that at least the Gingrich-Clinton double standard wasn’t race baiting …
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:36 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:33 pm
“Or are you just WRONG. ”
And smiley faces prove what, exactly (just wondering because it seems the liberals here make an inordinate use of them)?
***********************************************************
Because we are happy people.
We are not like angry miserable Republicans.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
11:37 pm
WYWH,
An iconic song for the ages. Thanks Bruno. I think I’ll go ahead and youtube it will i finish out the night.
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:38 pm
“Because we are happy people. We are not like angry miserable Republicans.
”
You mean like all of the divorced celebrities or like Elton John and Madonna recently?
Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:38 pm
Gn all..
moonbat betty
January 23rd, 2012
11:38 pm
Bruno – Pink Floyd/Roger Waters concert is on my bucket list.
Highly unlikely now unfortunately.
Welcome to the Occupation
January 23rd, 2012
11:38 pm
Romney’s personal history, his bearing and his personality all make him the perfect foil for a populist message. He epitomizes the Wall Street tycoon often central to that narrative, and it’s a weakness for which there is no cure
Romney is like George Herbert Walker Bush baffled by the barcode scanners at the supermarket multiplied by about 100.
Romney screams with every fiber of his being: “am a one percenter, always have been a one percenter, always will be a one-percenter”.
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:39 pm
Doom–I’ll bet you 10 to one that TP wrote a letter of complaint to Jay about how mean we were to him tonight.
What a friggin tool. I almost feel sorry for him that he’s so out of it socially, but he seems to make no effort to learn how to be cool. So, in the end, I don’t feel sorry for him.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
11:39 pm
Mick,
Twisted? I can handle that red leader! Have a good night.
Thulsa Doom
January 23rd, 2012
11:42 pm
Bruno,
TP is one of the 3 on this blog that I don’t particularly care for. My opinion of him is the same. However, I am surprised to see you go off on him. You are normally much more restrained and fact is he just isn’t impodent enough to get all riled up over. You can’t make him see the light no matter what. Hell md proved that emphatically in their little debate over global warming.
Mick
January 23rd, 2012
11:42 pm
bruno
Last post for the evening….The wall is my least favorite floyd album and I saw roger do the whole dark side plus more. As I said before, I only really like about 5 of the 22 cuts, but in the live show, it’s the technology and what he is able to project onto the wall. The music plus the production value is state of the art, you have to see it to appreciate what I’m saying. It’s a great evening out…
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:43 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:32 pm
But I have an MA in English and have seen many debates over the years. And I must concede that Newt is one of the best debaters around, because it’s the truth. If Newt gets the nomination, I would bet Obama’s team will seek to minimize the number of debates with him. If so, that will prove my point.
*********************************************************
Obviously your MA IN ENGLISH has not helped you very much.
Obama the Harvard graduate was on his debate.
Obama is no idiot. Don’t take him for granted.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:44 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:32 pm
CORRECTION:
Obama the Harvard graduate was on his debate team.
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:46 pm
moonbat betty–Any reason you can’t see him in Atlanta this summer?? He’s coming to Phillips on June 13. Tickets are still on sale in the $70 range.
The Wall isn’t my favorite PF album, but this song always hit home deeply with me:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBkTUzKAiXQ
md
January 23rd, 2012
11:46 pm
“Hint: What’s your source? Who did the due diligence to see it through? Who gave the green light for that particular operation? Yes, by all means lets minimize it…”
Minimize? I believe it is you who may be doing that to a mission that spanned two administrations……hence the reason I said OUR guys got him.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:47 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:38 pm
“Because we are happy people. We are not like angry miserable Republicans. ”
You mean like all of the divorced celebrities or like Elton John and Madonna recently?
*************************************************************
HUH?
I don’t understand gibberish.
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:50 pm
TP is one of the 3 on this blog that I don’t particularly care for. My opinion of him is the same. However, I am surprised to see you go off on him.
When I first came to this blog, TP immediately started mouthing off about his 3 degrees from Georgia Tech. Wrong button to push on a Mudder.
http://www.hmc.edu/
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
11:51 pm
@Strawman
January 23rd, 2012
11:09 pm
“Obama is SMART and he will NOT get into a peeing match with a SKUNK (Newt).”
I’m not a big Newt fan. But he is impressive in debate. To say otherwise is simply ignoring the reality.
**********************************************************
Newt is what stupid people think smart people sound like.
moonbat betty
January 23rd, 2012
11:54 pm
Is Taxpayer now Tax Cheat?
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:55 pm
Newt is what stupid people think smart people sound like.
So what do you have going for you other than your petty insults, Cheat??
Accomplish anything in life of note??
Bruno
January 23rd, 2012
11:56 pm
Is Taxpayer now Tax Cheat?
Easy to make that mistake based on the asswipe factor, betty, but I’m sure they’re different people.
moonbat betty
January 23rd, 2012
11:59 pm
true, Bruno. 11:56
I will be unable to make the June date for Roger Waters, unfortunately.
Hopefully can catch them another place/time.
Thulsa Doom
January 24th, 2012
12:00 am
Being a metalhead I’m sure my favorite Floyd song is probably not anyone else’s favorite floyd song. But here it be.
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=not+now+john+pink+floyd+youtube&mid=43DFABF657B415D117E743DFABF657B415D117E7&view=detail&FORM=VIRE2