After South Carolina, how Romney should fight back
A week ago, Mitt Romney led Newt Gingrich in the South Carolina opinion polls by an average of eight percentage points. Today, he is licking his wounds from a 12-point loss there in the only poll that matters, the one taken at the ballot box.
Romney spent Sunday suggesting he will sharpen his attacks on Gingrich, particularly his character and past leadership performance, and that’s fair game and fine as far as it goes. But South Carolina voters — and Republican voters more broadly — have not gravitated toward Gingrich because they think his track record in those areas is superlative, or even because they’re unaware of his shortcomings in them. He has attracted voters because he’s proven willing to be a fighter, while Romney has come off as unwilling to protest as much.
That this would have happened in South Carolina after attacks by Gingrich and his super PAC against Romney’s record at Bain Capital, and by others about Romney’s wealth and tax payments, is telling (note I did not say Gingrich had proven willing to fight for conservative principles, in large part because of those not-so-conservative attack lines). Romney needs to find his voice on those issues of wealth, taxes and free enterprise that Democrats are bound to use against the GOP’s nominee, particularly if it’s him. That vulnerability has made Republicans question whether Romney is up to the task.
The race is now bound to continue well past Florida — although, even with its reduced delegate total, that will be a huge test for Romney’s ability to regroup and regain the initiative in a state where he has held a sizable lead in most polls. After that, Georgia will come into play as a crucial state on Super Tuesday (March 6).
Hang on, because we’re going to get to see a real barn-burner of a primary up close and personal.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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111 comments Add your comment
Joel Edge
January 23rd, 2012
5:18 am
There’s just one problem with Romney ‘finding his voice’. After he is nominated, he may lose it again. Romney is not a good choice.
Aquagirl
January 23rd, 2012
5:36 am
The scraping sound you hear is sharpening knives all across America. Newt has made plenty of enemies, they’ll be after the new frontrunner. Add in Newt’s tendency to self-destruct and he’ll never make it to the White House.
God, I love watching the GOP implode.
Paul
January 23rd, 2012
5:55 am
Surely Obama is thoroughly enjoying this – immense resources being squandered by the GOP, eating their own, and not a viable contender in the lot. Special kudos to South Carolina – even his own Republican Party booted Newt from the House Speaker position that he ironically wears like a badge of honor.
DeborahinAthens
January 23rd, 2012
6:28 am
So Americans want a fighter–at any cost? Newt is seriously not what this country needs. He is not smart, he is not a leader, he is a strutting banty rooster that has a disconnect in his head and soul between what his reality IS and what he wishes the voters to THINK it is. He was a horrible Speaker of the House that was shown the door by his own Republicans. He is a flake that proposes things like putting mirrors in space to light streets at night. So far we have heard NOTHING of his plans to create jobs other than de-regulate everything, and take away a decent paying jobs from janitors (who,but the way, in many cases, runs the physical plant of schools as well as cleaning) to kids. This man has lied about being a lobbyist for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mack. Again, the disconnect. He really believes he was a “historian” or a “consultant” not a lobbiest. Even Republican darling Chris Christy called hin a liar on that one. Is hea fighter–you bet. But he is a horror of a man that has no business running for any public office. The fact that he’s gotten this far is frightening. If you recall, Dubya the Dumb had the same disconnect between what went on in his brain and reality. We can’t do that again.
GodHatesTrash, Superstar
January 23rd, 2012
6:36 am
Romney has a tough row to hoe. Paul has captured the libertarian wing, Newt and Santorum are splitting the religious crazies, and Newt is the darling of the white racists, birthers, Islamophobics, women-haters and xenophobes that make up the majority of the GOP.
Romney, despite his attempts at building his “kkkonsrvative” street-cred, Romney is seen as a moderate, and there are damn few moderates in today’s GOP.
Maybe he could use the n-word about Obama, the ooogedy-boogedy crowd would love that.
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
7:23 am
Newt should be more concerned that Brian Williams — moderator of tonight’s Florida debate — will fight back if Newt decides to attack the “liberal elite media” again. There are questions that can be asked that Newt won’t like. King is a lightweight when it comes to thinking on his feet. Williams won’t be such a pushover.
Proud Democrat
January 23rd, 2012
7:24 am
Newt is riding high from all the hot air in his fat stomach. Please make him the nominee, Obama will squeeze all the hot air fromhim in a debate. Heck, I could debate newt and make him cry again, just talking about his past and how he left a cancer wife for a new one.. Who in thier right mind could support someone who did this???/ As President, will he abandon this country for England if times are bad????
Dumb and Dumber
January 23rd, 2012
7:33 am
Romney could always try flip-flopping; its brought him this far. Its a can’t not miss strategery.
jconservative
January 23rd, 2012
7:34 am
“(note I did not say Gingrich had proven willing to fight for conservative principles,…”
That is because Gingrich has no conservative principles.
House Republicans did not fire Gingrich as Speaker because he was a crook, but because he sold out to the Clinton administration over tax policy. Gingrich is not, was not, and has never been a conservative, He is the perfect example of the term “RINO”.
But he does blast the press. So if Republicans want someone in the White House who just does that, then that is the way for them to vote.
But I do not believe that the independents who put a liberal Obama in the White House, who re-elected a liberal George W, will support a candidate whose only redeeming quality is criticizing the press. And without the independent vote a Republican loses to Obama.
k483
January 23rd, 2012
7:51 am
@byteme,
Agreed. Newt pulled a good one by deflecting criticism back at the institution most disliked in the auditorium. I doubt that will happen again. Never pick a fight with someone who buys ink by the barrel, so the saying goes….that said, I find it really interesting that they didn’t pick him apart on his “why won’t Romney tell us about his personal (tax return) life” vs. “How dare you ask me about my personal (infidelity) life.”
reebok
January 23rd, 2012
7:53 am
President Obama has got to be loving this.
JDW
January 23rd, 2012
7:55 am
It is interesting to watch the Republicans eat their young (old). I find it unbelievable that a former Republican Speaker, who was summarily tossed out of office for poor ethics and leadership and has spent the last 15 years selling influence to the highest bidder can garner any votes much less threaten to capture a nomination.
The real question is fast becoming can the Dems regain the House.
BTW great article from Andrew Sullivan in Newsweek this week. I think he nails it.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/01/15/andrew-sullivan-how-obama-s-long-game-will-outsmart-his-critics.html
HDB
January 23rd, 2012
8:00 am
What you’re seeing is that the Republicans don’t care about the NATION…only caring about maintaining power and wealth in the hands of the privileged few. People…especially those in the GOP need to WAKE UP and see what they’re doing!! As long as Republicans are content with marginalization and disenfranchisement…..those knowledgable voters will notice and persistently vote AGAINST them at the polls!!
JohnnyReb
January 23rd, 2012
8:01 am
I see some of Bookman’s limmings can’t wait for Jay to post an anti-Newt piece. No, Newt is not perfect but none of us are. Newt blasts the media becuase they deserve it. The Left and Republican establishment did not want Reagan. The good thing is, the Republicans who go to the polls will chose the nominee, not the Left, not the media. BTW, I get a big chuckle when I see a post where someone thinks Barry would out debate Newt. Talk about never seeing the sunshine. Don’t count Santorum out.
Aquagirl
January 23rd, 2012
8:02 am
Newt pulled a good one by deflecting criticism back at the institution most disliked in the auditorium.
The idiot moderator threw him a softball by asking “would you like to discuss your private life?” Nobody cares about Newt’s extramarital habits—-UNTIL he brings in the government after others (Bill Clinton, anyone gay.) The man publicly yammered about Clinton’s moral failing at the same time he was cheating on his own wife. That’s everyone’s business, not just Newt’s, and outside the teanut crowd he won’t get any cheers for acting the victim.
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
8:02 am
I’m Brian Williams and Gingrich deflects by attacking the media, I ask:
“Speaker Gingrich, if you were to become President, but found that the job wasn’t all it was cracked up to be, would you ask America for an ‘Open Marriage’?”
Williams can pull that off with a straight face. Can Gingrich handle it properly?
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
8:05 am
BTW, I get a big chuckle when I see a post where someone thinks Barry would out debate Newt.
What you don’t get is that Gingrich turns into a little puppy dog when in the presence of real power. It’s easy to attack someone with lies when they’re not there to respond. Much harder if Obama starts off with something like “Newt, when you say ‘the fact of the matter is’ to preface a huge lie, it just makes all the other things you say hard to believe.” Then Gingrich spends the rest of the evening thinking about every word he says and it throws him off his game.
Jose
January 23rd, 2012
8:10 am
Newt talks the talk but fails to walk the walk. He cheated on wife #1 (his former HS math teacher then stricken with cancer) and on wife #2 (Calista at the time the affair started was a young congressional staffer…Clinton comparison anyone?). If he is willing to lie to those closest to him, at what point does he stop lying? He is morally bankrupt and therefore not fit to lead.
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
8:12 am
He is morally bankrupt and therefore not fit to lead.
And Republi-cons are leading the charge for bailouts for his morals.
k483
January 23rd, 2012
8:15 am
@ ByteMe & AquaGirl: So, you think King pitched Newt the question as he did so Newt could hit it out of the park? Or was King hoping the other panel members would pick up the fight? IMHO if that was what King was looking for that was a piece of tabloid journalism.
JohnnyReb
January 23rd, 2012
8:18 am
It’s amazing the number of people who post here and next door who have never sinned. What’s more amazaing is, the majority appear to be Progressives. Is this the same group who still worship at the feet of Bill? You know, the Bill that was POTUS and lied to America in a Nationally televised address. The one that thinks a BJ is not sex.
Jose
January 23rd, 2012
8:22 am
Johnny, I didn’t vote for Clinton or Obama. As for sinning and forgiveness, Newt sinned not once but over and over again and from what I saw last week in South Carolina, is unrepentant. He instead blamed the media rather than taking personal responsibility. So, while I may be willing to forgive him as a man, I do not feel compelled to vote to elect him the leader of the free world.
JohnnyReb
January 23rd, 2012
8:24 am
Jose, history is full of powerful leaders whose personal conduct does not stand up under the microscope.
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
8:30 am
So, you think King pitched Newt the question as he did so Newt could hit it out of the park? Or was King hoping the other panel members would pick up the fight?
I think King was leading with what had just come out in the news that day instead of focusing on the bigger picture. It was his own fault with the way he phrased the question and backed down from following up, but you can’t tell me that most everyone in the crowd wasn’t interested in the answer to the question that Gingrich didn’t actually answer.
Jose
January 23rd, 2012
8:32 am
Johnny, so what? That they were powerful leaders did not give them a free pass when it comes to lying and sinning. God holds us all to the same standard. Regardless of what you choose to do, Johnny, I am choosing to demand that the candidates who I decide to support be both qualified and meet a basic moral standard.
Aquagirl
January 23rd, 2012
8:33 am
IMHO if that was what King was looking for that was a piece of tabloid journalism.
I don’t think King knew what he was looking for, which makes him an idiot. The whole “open marriage” was really nothing new and a phrase ABC seized on for its salacious appearance. King was kind of stuck—-as a journalist, he couldn’t ignore the cheating elephant in the room, but his dim little brain had no way to connect it to anything meaningful. Thus he was stuck with ‘you want to talk about that?” CNN should fire him for shoddy work.
ABC should fire whoever emphasized the “open marriage” tagline for Marianne Gingrich’s interview. They’re the tabloid journalists.
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
8:35 am
lib bedwetters are running scared. The fact of the matter (IMO) is that this country is so sick of urkle and his cronies that whichever Republican gets the nomination they will win not on who they are but who they aren’t. barry and me-shell will be served eviction papers in November.
Proud Democrat
January 23rd, 2012
8:41 am
Hey Joe, my toilet is backed up from all the run on sentences in your post. Ever heard of a comma??
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
8:43 am
lib bedwetters are running scared. The fact of the matter
As I wrote earlier, Joe, when you say ‘the fact of the matter is’ to preface a huge lie, it just makes all the other things you say hard to believe
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
8:44 am
hey proud dimocrap, I charge extra if I see a urkle sticker on your car……
Road Scholar
January 23rd, 2012
8:45 am
Joe TP: Oh that insult really hurt the liberals! You must be an hourly employee since you have so much free time on your hands as a plumber!
JDW
January 23rd, 2012
8:50 am
@JohnnyReb…if Newt’s only problems were a couple of affairs maybe one could overlook them but tagging right along there are ethics concerns past and present. In the past he was censured, in the present he has been using campaign events as book selling events to make personal gain.
Another issue is the fact that he has been selling influence for the last 15 years and would have one believe that he is an outsider…HORSE HOOEY…I have been in corporate life for 20+ years some of that at the executive level and I couldn’t give you even a half baked reason that a company would pay millions for the services of a “corporate historian”.
Finally there is the little matter of how he left congress…just before the mob of his own with the tar and feathers.
When someone, be it Romney or Obama, decides to have full out war on Newt he is toast.
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
8:50 am
hey byteme, seriously bite me……couldn’t care less what you believe. As I stated it is my opinion, that this country is so sick of your little boy sitting at the big desk that whoever is nominated will win against this clown currently known as the pretender in chief. Guess it can’t be a fact or a lie until the morning of November 7th. Bless your heart, thanks for playing, now back to your crayon pile.
td
January 23rd, 2012
8:52 am
I have been hearing for months how much you libs really want Obama to face Newt in the general election. Now Newt wins one little primary and it appears you libs are so scared you are wetting you beds. It appears to this observer that you all have been telling some little white lies the past several months and are now scared to death that you might have to say President Newt!!!!
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
8:52 am
hey byteme, seriously bite me……couldn’t care less what you believe
Of course you care. You wouldn’t have responded if you didn’t. It really bugs you.
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
8:55 am
yes, td, we’re all sceeered of little Newtie. Hahahahahaha. Pathetic argument. Only people who should be scared are the Republicons.
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
8:56 am
ooh road, you be’s such a racist, pointing out likes you did that I couldn’t possibly have my own company becauses I visits the blogs, it must be because I’m black that I must have a bossman who what pays me by the hour and being a person of color I must be’s lazy and hiding from work so I’s don’t has to do nothin. Thank God we has a food stamp president cause as soon as my application be approved I can tell this white bossman I quit. What foolish people you libs are.
JohnnyReb
January 23rd, 2012
8:58 am
My preference is Santorum. Romney is a RINO. Newt, well, we all know his baggage. However, any of the three are better than keeping Obama for four more. If Newt is the nominee, I can vote for him without hesitation.
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
9:00 am
hey biteme, we’ll see what kind of bsong libs like you & keep, gotnolife, granny, aqua, little debbie and the rest are singing November 7th. I can see it now….It was Racism, It was voter fraud, It was intimidation. Sorry libs but it will be as urkles preacher likes to say….the chickens coming home to roost.
td
January 23rd, 2012
9:07 am
jconservative
January 23rd, 2012
7:34 am
“(note I did not say Gingrich had proven willing to fight for conservative principles,…”
That is because Gingrich has no conservative principles.
House Republicans did not fire Gingrich as Speaker because he was a crook, but because he sold out to the Clinton administration over tax policy. Gingrich is not, was not, and has never been a conservative, He is the perfect example of the term “RINO”.
The ACU (American conservative union) gives Newt a 90% lifetime voting rating. Rick receives a 86% and Ron Paul a 84%.
Yep, that sounds pretty RINO to me.
td
January 23rd, 2012
9:10 am
ByteMe
January 23rd, 2012
8:55 am
yes, td, we’re all sceeered of little Newtie. Hahahahahaha. Pathetic argument. Only people who should be scared are the Republicons
Then please explain to all of us mere mortals why all the vitriol? You libs should all be on hear cheering Newt on and putting down Romney? Looks like to this poor observer that you are going against your own self interest by the pure hate, unless that is, my original thought is true?
Mary Elizabeth
January 23rd, 2012
9:12 am
One must recall that one of the original versions of the U.S. Constitution would have freed the slaves, but South Carolinians, and two other Southern states, would not join the union if slaves were freed. The start of the Civil War occurred off the shores of South Carolina, the first state to join the Confederacy.Through the example set by South Carolina’s Senator Strom Thurman, conservative Dixiecrat Democrats changed to the conservative Republican label after the Civil Rights Bill was passed in the mid-1960s.
This has been the “big picture” thinking of South Carolinians for generations. South Carolina’s Republicans chose Newt Gingrich for their nominee for President of the United States. Gingrich has welcomed their endorsement. I hope, in the general election, Americans, including Georgians, will reject Gingrich’s narrow vision for America – if he, in fact, becomes the Republican nominee – and will choose, instead, President Obama’s more humanistic and far-reaching vision.
Bart Abel
January 23rd, 2012
9:13 am
Remember that word list that Gingrich distributed back in the 90s? Use negative words to define your opponents (anti, radical, destructive) and positive words to define yourself (pro, leadership, American)? He still uses it. Seriously. Print a copy and have it handy the next time you watch Gingrich speak.
The name of the cover memo was “Language: A Key Mechanism of Control”: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article4443.htm
Got that? Mechanism of CONTROL!
I can’t believe that after all these years (after the focus group tested word list, after the government shutdown, after the ethics violations and penalties, after the adultery and corresponding hypocrisy, and more) people are still falling for his schtick.
Rafe Hollister
January 23rd, 2012
9:22 am
Mary Elizabeth
What you just said is that the election is a choice between those who want to stick with the Constitution that has brought us prosperity and an unequaled standard of living for 250 years and those who want to make up the rules as we go along or do what feels right at the time.
Road Scholar
January 23rd, 2012
9:27 am
Joe T P: Are you hearing voices? Where in my post did I mention race? Food stamps? Racism? They are your words and thoughts.
So you alledgedly own your own company (your words- I do not know you- and I’m glad at that). Congratulations! But where does that allow you to berate others? Because you’re the Boss? Because you can hide behind your keyboard? I pity your employees if they have to put up with your crap!
Business must be slow for you since you have time to blog! Otherwise you would be studying ways to expand your business or just taking care of business.. According to Gov Deal, we have a shortage of people in the trades…you would be the mentor form HELL!
Aquagirl
January 23rd, 2012
9:28 am
I can’t believe that after all these years……people are still falling for his schtick.
Some people don’t heed warnings about the Dark Side. Angry and fearful = easily controlled.
td
January 23rd, 2012
9:28 am
Bart Abel
January 23rd, 2012
9:13 am
Yes and if you want to read Obama’s playbook then just go read Saul Alinsky’s “Rules for radicals”. It makes Newts talking points look like a Sunday school picnic.
td
January 23rd, 2012
9:32 am
“Obama learned his lesson well. I am proud to see that my father’s model for organizing is being applied successfully beyond local community organizing to affect the Democratic campaign in 2008. It is a fine tribute to Saul Alinsky as we approach his 100th birthday.” –Letter from L. DAVID ALINSKY, son Saul Alinsky
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
9:41 am
road failure, just how often do you talk to your bedwetting buddies over on jays insult page about berating others…………………..? Expanding my business….business is fine little fellow. In fact I have no plans to add more employees until 2013. As far as my employees, they are pretty happy with some of the highest wages in town, benefits and savings programs. I believe anyone looking on the inside of my company would find some of the happiest employees of all the NAPHCC member companies around. Perhaps your time would be better spent trying to clean up the actions of your likeminded lib buddies. All is well over here, barrys time as pretender in chief is winding down.
DW
January 23rd, 2012
9:46 am
@TD
You are a total d0uche bag. Get over yourself
Just Saying..
January 23rd, 2012
9:47 am
Voters in your Party making you nervous, Kyle? Three years of plotting to get that man out of the White House, and you’re down to these choices:
1) Obama Lite
2) The Serial Zipper
3) The American Ayatollah
Yeah, I feel your pain.
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
9:48 am
awww dw got her wittle feelings hurt cause somebody said something about urkle, true as it may be. Too Funny.
DW
January 23rd, 2012
9:50 am
who said I liked Obama? I said TD is a d0uche and thats it.
Road Scholar
January 23rd, 2012
10:04 am
Joe what the name of your company?
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
10:07 am
Bad news folks….THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, AS WE KNOW IT, IS FINISHED….!!!!!
It is badly fractured and dysfunctional, as witnessed by both the House of Representatives and the Republican Presidential primaries…..
Whether or not Newt wins Florida….there’s no way to polish up Mitt where he wins…Newt either..Ditto for the House..a 9% approval rating is BAD….VERY BAD…..!!!!
It’s time to take it down and start over…Start with Gary Johnson and Ron Paul…
Get rid of the Wall Street clowns like Mitt Romney, Eric Cantor, and Jack Welch….Feed ‘em to the Democrats..those Occupy folks are MAD..!!! and there’s a lot of them…found that out over the weekend..!!
The quicker the Republican party quits trying to prop up Romney and let the “free political markets” take over, the quicker the party will find its voice..!!!!!
.
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
10:09 am
road failure, Foolish question, but considering the source…………………..
Road Scholar
January 23rd, 2012
10:13 am
So you don’t need new business? Your response was even more stupid! Bye!
td
January 23rd, 2012
10:15 am
DW
January 23rd, 2012
9:50 am
I see my number 1 fan has made an appearance today. To bad all he/she can do is to call names and runaway. But then again just another typical lib.
JPP
January 23rd, 2012
10:17 am
I am a DEM, but feel Romney doesn’t have to apologize for being wealthy. I don’t agree with him on policy, but who here doesn’t wish he was worth $200 million?
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
10:25 am
road failure, Do I need new business that you are able to provide…I think not. As far as anyone you would be able to refer, sorry but we don’t take EBT…..
DawgDad
January 23rd, 2012
10:42 am
Romney’s problem is he has very little populist appeal outside of the Northeast and some other urban centers. Reagan and Bush II were effective because (1) Reagan was a master at articulating the conservative message to the masses, and (2) Bush, though less capable, displayed enough down-home charm to get elected.
You rarely if ever see the big-corporate CEO’s come through the office and talk with the workers in any meaningful way. Just doesn’t happen, and it breeds an aura of elitism and a level of distrust. Policy is announced to the people, after consulting with the “experts”, because companies are not countries; Corporate governance is NOT “of the people, by the people, and for the people”, like our government SHOULD be, it is “of the stakeholders, by the stakeholders, and for the stakeholders”, with the financial stakeholders first in line and holding the cards. We’ve seen what happens when countries put the financial stakeholders ahead of the people, and we’re sick of it.
Romney is carrying this baggage, Newt as a politician has more effectively skirted his insider ties up to this point. To prevail, Romney needs to channel Reagan and quickly overcome his weaknesses in connecting with voters or he’s going to sink the GOP ship, because the RNC/GOP establishment would rather lose than admit they are wrong about their candidate. He’s not Reagan, nobody is, and no Reagan-esque candidate is in the race.
Proud Democrat
January 23rd, 2012
10:46 am
Joe is no business owner, he is a plummer’s tech for roto rooter.
Rebecca
January 23rd, 2012
10:49 am
td
January 23rd, 2012
8:52 am
I have been hearing for months how much you libs really want Obama to face Newt in the general election. Now Newt wins one little primary and it appears you libs are so scared you are wetting you beds. It appears to this observer that you all have been telling some little white lies the past several months and are now scared to death that you might have to say President Newt!!!!
td you as well as the rest of your conservative party knows that the Democrats are not scared of either of these two losers. Neither one of them are wanted by your own party. Lets just wait until the General Election and see how either of them stacks up against the President. I hope you are still on here posting your rhetoric then.
Joe The Plumber too.
January 23rd, 2012
10:49 am
proud dimwit, you be so funny, you ought to go national….hahahahahahahaha
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
10:51 am
US population demographic is 25%, 55 and over….18-55….60%…….The VAST majority of late teens and twenty-somethings are ANGRY and LIBERAL….except Ron Paul’s bunch….Older folks aren’t going to support a Mormon…and younger folks aren’t going to support a Wall Streeter….
If Romney loses Florida…Who do you think will win the general…!?!?! I already don’t think there’s enough SuperPAC money NOW to buy Romney the election…..IT’S DONE…IT’S OVER….
Time to re-tool, re-think, and concentrate on the future…..You want free markets..!?!? Well start with the politics…. Not enough polish in the world for this bunch of crap..!!!!
BW
January 23rd, 2012
10:52 am
The GOP primary is speaking….and they’re saying that want to re-elect the President, give the House back to the Dems, and expand the Dem majority in the Senate….snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. I will have my popcorn ready after Newt wins in Florida next week.
Jose
January 23rd, 2012
10:56 am
Not sure who I am voting for (except NOT Newt), but as for the criticsm of Romney as “big business”, I don’t understand why it is a bad thing to have experience firing people (a whole lot of firing should happen within federal agencies) or experience running large corporations (the federal government is massive).
Mark
January 23rd, 2012
10:59 am
Enter your comments here
DawgDad
January 23rd, 2012
11:00 am
Jose – we’re not electing a Chief Administrator for the Fed, we’re electing a President to provide policy direction.
Mark
January 23rd, 2012
11:15 am
With Mitt making comments like these about Gingrich, we Liberals applaud him for some excellent ammunition to be used against him if he’s LUCKY enough to win the coronation:
“Speaker Gingrich is also a leader,” Romney said at a rally last night in Ormond Beach, Fla. “He was a leader for four years, as speaker of the House. At the end of four years it was proven that he was a failed leader and he had to resign in disgrace.”
“Over the last, what, 15 years, since he left the House, he talks about great bold movements and ideas,” Romney said on the stump yesterday. “Well, what’s he been doing for 15 years? He has been working as a lobbyist. He was working as a lobbyist and selling influence around Washington. He was working for Freddie Mac — heard of those guys? He says that he’s just been a historian. I would like him to release his records.”
Jose
January 23rd, 2012
11:47 am
Dawg: We are electing the equivalent of a Chief Executive Officer. The President typically has some broad philosophical stands but the specific ins and outs of policymaking are left to his key staff. I want a President who is for smaller, more efficient government and can surround himself with capable individuals at the agencies and on his staff that can formulate and implement the policy changes needed to accomplish that end.
If you want a micro manager, look at Jimmy Carter’s presidency as a model showing how that doesn’t work.
wallbanger
January 23rd, 2012
11:59 am
It is frightening that a person in this country cannot be proud of his financial achievements and be liked. He should be applauded as the epitome of the American dream come true, but have we become a nation of jealous bedwetters, only happy if everyone is brought down to the lowest common denominator? I do wish Mitt would man up and kick butt. I know it isn’t his style, but sometimes you got to just let go.
TRUTH
January 23rd, 2012
12:01 pm
This GOP race is beyond belief. We have a few liars in the mix. Newt, well its Newt…, Willard (Mitt)…well its classic Mitt and although he changes with the wind, he doesn’t add anything new. Ron Paul…everyone’s kinda favorite crazy uncle. We laugh at some of his ideas and then wonder what if he was right? Naaaawwwwww….. Rick Santorum, definitely NOT a President, but would make for a great student body president at a seminary.
C’mon, Republicans… YOU pushed for the primaries and caucuses to be held on New Year’s and this really is the best you can do? Seriously??
I’m going to say it L-A-N-D-S-L-I-D-E!!! OBAMA 2012….
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:05 pm
Kyle makes an interesting point – conservative voters are looking for a fighter. Though it’s not the only quality, or else Ron Paul would be winning, but it does seem that bluntness and taking issues head-on is what’s popular. Could explain why Newt, leading in November, suddenly dropped like a lead balloon when Romney first started attack ads. During that time, Newt kinda went wimpy before I guess he decided he really did want to win. After stepping back to the plate, he has surged again, and now Romney has the soft-guy approach, and it’s not working. This is going to go to the guy willing to show the most fight, and that’s what’s needed if they want any chance of beating Obama.
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
12:05 pm
Do not underestimate how ANGRY 18-30 year olds are…..They are PISSED….!!! Mostly, they are mad at Wall Street…!!!!! They’re parents had jobs right out of school…and they don’t….They’re pissed, they’re pierced, and they’re tattooed..!!!!!
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
12:09 pm
Wall Street ain’t gonna git it done….You can Swift Boat….you can SuperPAC….but as long as the money is coming from millionares….It’s going to HURT more than it’s going to HELP…..I’m telling you….Not going to be a good year for millionares….They should have truly been CREATING JOBS..!!!!! Not going to be a good year for Congress, either…..
TRUTH
January 23rd, 2012
12:10 pm
Amen, RedneckBludedog!!
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
12:11 pm
wallbanger
January 23rd, 2012
11:59 am
——————————-
It’s not about making money…..It’s about HOW you make your money…..Steve Jobs..GOOD, Bain Capital….BAD…..My personal opinion is that capitalism, like government, isn’t always perfect….But the word on the street is not so understanding….
Steve - USA (I support "None Of The Above")
January 23rd, 2012
12:17 pm
redneckbluedog,
I guess you missed Jay’s piece on Apple in China.
The Snark
January 23rd, 2012
12:26 pm
Gingrich “has attracted voters because he’s proven willing to be a fighter, while Romney has come off as unwilling to protest as much.”
So let me get this straight: the chief qualification that Republican primary voters seek in a man who wants to manage the federal government is the ability to say really nasty things about his opponents in public speeches?
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:27 pm
Anybody who watched the show “Street Smarts” or even just watches the local news will know that the “word on the street” does not understand much at all. We as Americans need to move past our ignorance. It would help a lot in avoiding being taken advantage of both by Wall Street and Washington…
The young generation may be angry, but so are the Tea Party voters. Should be an interesting election, the traditional voter bases will have much less sway than they are used to, on both sides.
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
12:28 pm
Steve – USA (I support “None Of The Above”)
January 23rd, 2012
12:17 pm
——————————–
Again…not my personal opinion…Just the word on the street…….
JOHNSON/PAUL…2012……
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:29 pm
Snark, no more just not somebody who will roll over and cry “Uncle!”, like it looked as if Newt was gonna do going into Iowa. Need a guy who will fight for himself and his record, and yeah mud-slinging is part of the game. Just wait till Obama joins in…
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:30 pm
redneckbluedog, are you sure that wouldn’t be Paul/Johnson 2012? Still nobody knows who Gary is, and Ron is much better leader for that pair (though I prefer Johnson personally)
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
12:30 pm
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:27 pm
———————————
The young generation may be angry, but so are the Tea Party voters. Should be an interesting election, the traditional voter bases will have much less sway than they are used to, on both sides.
———————————————
And you’re telling me the Tea Party is going to come out in droves for Mitt Romey….!?!?!?
Better do what I do and take ALL the BS out of the politics….http://www.garyjohnson2012.com
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
12:32 pm
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:30 pm
redneckbluedog, are you sure that wouldn’t be Paul/Johnson 2012? Still nobody knows who Gary is, and Ron is much better leader for that pair (though I prefer Johnson personally)
—————————————
Paul has to many negatives to be competitive nationally…..Nothing but upside for Gary Johnson….he worked WONDERS as the two-term governor of New Mexico….and they still like him there…
Frigmund Scroid
January 23rd, 2012
12:34 pm
Why is it that the idiots on the right…of which many have chimed in today…think that assailing a Republican for their political and professional issues is somehow equated to FEARING them, while their constant attacks on Obama are simply a political assault.
Every. Single. Conservative. Fears. Obama.
And for good reason. He’s been far more effective than anyone – liberal or conserative – gives him credit for.
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:40 pm
The problem Gary Johnson has – and trust me I’d rather have him than any of the others – is that nobody knows who the heck he is. Quite unfortunate. He was in the one debate, and got very little time, and the only sound byte was a lame joke. Even running Libertarian, if he were interested, won’t get him the press, and he does not have enough money to run a successful independent campaign. But I would be open for a miracle! Meanwhile, Tea Party voters will vote for whoever they have to in order to remove President Obama, even if holding an airline barf bag while doing it!
Frigmund Scroid
January 23rd, 2012
12:42 pm
By the way, there’s still time for Jeb Bush to throw his hat into the ring. Since the current ring is emitting a stench that is causing the GOP elite’s eyes to tear up, I have no doubt this is being bandied about secretly amongst party operatives.
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
12:46 pm
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:40 pm
—————————-
In this race….being an unknown is a GOOD thing…..Bottom line…Romney nor Gingrich are going to win….Johnson may not win…but at least he puts a positive face on the GOP……..
As a tax paying veteran…If I’m going to go to the trouble to vote, I’m going to vote my conscience….Gary Johnson….Obamacare isn’t going to “ruin the country” any more than the Republicans did in 2008….and he has more foreign policy experience than Romneycare….
the edge
January 23rd, 2012
12:52 pm
Anyone but the community organizer is an improvement.
The Snark
January 23rd, 2012
12:52 pm
@ Tea Party Hobbit:
Aren’t you a little concerned that just because a guy can make the nastiest verbal attacks (”fight for himself and his record”) doesn’t necessarily mean that he has the chops to execute the duties of the office of President? It sure concerns me. The Republican primary is devolving into a game of who can say stuff to fire up the base. No one is saying much about the realities of governing, and I fear that some of these people don’t have much to say.
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:55 pm
redneckbluedog – thank you for your service. it means more than most people will ever know.
how are you going to vote for Johnson? will he be on ballots? he can be written in of course, but that won’t put him in GOP camp, the face of his libertarian reasoning gets stuck in as just another independent. man I hate the two-party system…
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
12:55 pm
IS THAT ALL THERE IS?
Mitt or Newt?
Is that all there is, is that all there is?
If that’s all there is my friends, then when will it end?
Let’s break out the booze and cry in our beer.
If that’s all there is WE HAVE A LOT TO FEAR.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
12:59 pm
@Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:40 pm
Tea Party voters will vote for whoever they have to in order to remove President Obama, even if holding an airline barf bag while doing it!
*********************************************************************
You will also need to DISINFECT the stench of racism, the foul odor of hypocrisy and the putrid air of
hate from whoever you want to remove President Obama.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
1:08 pm
@The Snark
January 23rd, 2012
12:52 pm
@ Tea Party Hobbit:
Aren’t you a little concerned that just because a guy can make the nastiest verbal attacks (”fight for himself and his record”) doesn’t necessarily mean that he has the chops to execute the duties of the office of President?
************************************************************************
If a guy can make the nastiest verbal attacks WHAT WOULD HE DO WHEN HE GETS THE 2:00 A.M.
PHONE CALL?
You CAN’T OUTNASTY THE ENEMY with verbal attacks (Iran, The Taliban, Al-Qaeda etc.)
Loose lips sink ships ………. “beware of unguarded talk”.
GT
January 23rd, 2012
1:11 pm
Republicans have been mil-lee mouthed in the past and they did it for a reason. The raw meat that feeds the pep rally is not the same as what is needed to win the football game. Somewhere reality sets in. You cannot win the swing vote cheering the death penalty or swearing your Christian belief like a 100 pound man claiming he is a pro football player. You have to hope and pray you sneak by the sleeping dunces of your far right and live long enough to fight the real battle against Obama. McCain was clever in picking Palin in hoping that would feed the far rights superficial appetite and allow him to convince the swing voters they had an answer besides the lipstick on a pig. Didn’t work did it, the country still wants a real person in the White House or a least enough of America that they still can get a majority. When they can’t get that majority that is when the country won’t be worth saving anyway. Big hat and no cattle is no way to run a railroad or a country.
Herman Cain..
January 23rd, 2012
1:13 pm
If Gringrich wins the White House (he won’t), can it be said of his wife (Callista)- they’re a wh@re in the White House? LMAO
Herman Cain..
January 23rd, 2012
1:16 pm
If Gringrich wins the White House (he won’t), can it be said of his wife (Callista)- there’s a wh@re in the White House? LMAO
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
1:16 pm
@the edge
January 23rd, 2012
12:52 pm
Anyone but the community organizer is an improvement.
***************************************************************************
mmmmmmmmmm
Tax Cheat who likes to fire people?
Wife Cheat/Adulterer Fornicator?
Community Organizer?
Be careful what you wish for.
Wishes are brutal, unforgiving things.
They burn your tongue the moment they’re spoken and you can never take them back..
GT
January 23rd, 2012
1:16 pm
Herman what is the difference, I know a lot of professional woman who would gladly take her place, she is very well paid, and not even that talented.
Herman Cain..
January 23rd, 2012
1:17 pm
If Gringrich wins the White House (he won’t), can it be said of his wife (Callista)- they’re a wh@re in the White House? LMAO
Sorry folks, Hermie was stroking his manhood in the buff while typing…
Jack
January 23rd, 2012
1:27 pm
If you want someone who is an excellent debater and is the smartest person who has ever walked this earth (this I know because he tells us each and every day), then vote for the thrice divorce, self-confessed adulterer.
If you want a proven executive with a sparkling business background who can appeal to the independent voter who will decide this November election, vote for Mitt Romney.
On second thought, maybe the self-confessed adulterer is the best choice. Think of how much money he will save by elimating the need for all Cabinet Secretaries. After all, since he is the smartest person on earth, I am sure he is smarter and can do a better job running each Cabinet position than anyone who he could appoint!
Mike
January 23rd, 2012
1:39 pm
I think it is great the way people are ignoring the morals of ole Newt. Who else can people look up to and see all the things wrong in a man and still want him to be their president. Not the womanizing, not the cheating on his different wives, not the taking of lobby money, not the continual blame of people of color (which was a big hit in South Carolina) for their supposedly lot in life, although stats put 60% of those other folks make up the majority getting aide, not the downright mean spiritness that comes out. Don’t you love when people applaud when ever he refuses to answer questions about his behavior. He will fit right in here in Georgia.
A Tax Cheat or A Wife Cheat (Is this the Best Republicans Have To Offer?)
January 23rd, 2012
1:39 pm
@Herman Cain..
January 23rd, 2012
1:17 pm
If Gringrich wins the White House (he won’t), can it be said of his wife (Callista)- they’re a wh@re in the White House? LMAO
Sorry folks, Hermie was stroking his manhood in the buff while typing…
*************************************************************************************************
You are soooooo funny.
I forwarded your first comments to my friends in California.
I can’t wait until they get this one………:)
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
1:40 pm
Tea Party Hobbit
January 23rd, 2012
12:55 pm
—————————–
I apologize, Hobbit…I’m already in the general…..I’ll be voting Paul in the primary….That’s a no-brainer for me….
td
January 23rd, 2012
1:49 pm
Red, You are dreaming my friend. A libertarian is not going to win the WH. All those angry young voters can go and vote for him as much as they want too but the only results is that the youth vote that came out in droves for Obama 4 years ago will just only reduce his vote total in November.
td
January 23rd, 2012
1:53 pm
I have said it over and over again that this election is not about whoever the Republican nominee is but rather if the white married middle class suburban woman (Independent vote) thinks Obama has done a good enough job to get four more years. If gas prices are going to $5 per gallon at the end of the summer then the Republican nominee WILL be President. End of story, can I get an Amen!!!
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
2:53 pm
td
January 23rd, 2012
1:53 pm
————————–
You’re usually right, td, but you’re wrong on this one….You DID see the South Carolina results..!?!? and Iowa…!?!? 2012 will be a referendum on millionares….not the President….R-Money has only won New Hampshire….and then to talk about “FREE MARKETS” while simultaneously propping up “the look at me, i’m rich…” candidate..!?!?!? It’s a non-starter for anybody with half a brain…especially in the South…
As to the question that you propose; Will white, married, middle-class women prefer a married Christian with two kids over a polygamist/polytheist and/or a swinger…!?!? The analysis is that Mormonism will cost Romney (or Huntsman) up to 7%…which is about the same influence as the selection of a running mate….
CrossroadsGPS and Priorities USA are going to hurt their perspective causes as much as help…Gary Johnson is a Lutheran who has climbed Mount Everest…He is, however, divorced and currently engaged…That’s still better than Mitt and Newt, though, in my mind….
Tiberius - Your lightning rod of hate!
January 23rd, 2012
3:45 pm
redneckbluedog, please provide any evidence whatsoever that Mitt Romney is a polygamist.
Anything.
redneckbluedog
January 23rd, 2012
4:57 pm
Don’t have to….Can you prove he is not….!?!?!
We ALL know what the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints says in PUBLIC….but I challenge you to come up with what they say in the secret Temple…..I CAN provide you with the Official Southern Baptist Convention position on Mormonism……http://www.sbc.net
Muslims are polygamists, Hindus are polytheists…..But Mormons keep secrets…!!!!!