Let’s go back to one of my favorite book premises: All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. Let’s talk about respect. It is reasonable to expect that someone who grew up with a Kenyan anti-British colonial father, an expatriate mother, and a politically active Indonesian stepfather would have a bit of a different view of America than the rest of us. That’s | Read More »
The President’s State of the Union speech provides a warning to conservatives: he remains a skilled orator; the mainstream media still loves him (see the New York Times’ “fact check”); he does have some accomplishments to talk about – killing bin Laden, saving General Motors, ending the war in Iraq; he will have $1 billion to vilify those who would divide us; the economy is | Read More »
I’ll start with the punchline: with 70% of the voters thinking that the country is on the wrong track, and most thinking that our best days are in the past, we need a turnaround expert. I’m in the small camp that thinks that Newt Gingrich’s “King of Bain” video (well, technically his “independent” PAC’s video) is a good thing. It was easily discredited as blatantly | Read More »
If you have a favorite candidate it is easy to dismiss alternatives, particularly when they have significant flaws. But, as Jim DeMint has said, it is important that conservatives pay attention to why Ron Paul got 23% of the vote in New Hampshire. First let’s get past some of the obvious: - Paul would be 84 at the end of his second term – a | Read More »
A holiday visitor from London asked asked why I thought that Mitt Romney would win the 2012 presidential election. My answer, adjustable for other candidates, is that voters consider four things: 1. Ideology. America is a “center-right” country, with voters self-identifying as about 40% conservative, 40 % moderate, and 20% liberal. (Obama comes from the liberal wing of the Democratic Party; Hillary was the centrist.) | Read More »
Hearing that Iowa last year recalled three judges for approving same sex marriage, the Newtster has apparently decided that the civil libertarian caucus goers will vote for Ron Paul anyway and he should swing for the fences with the evangelicals who are on the warpath about the courts. His Waterloo. The “historian” presidential candidate has determined that the Founding Fathers were wrong in establishing three co-equal | Read More »
So, the folks out here on the Left Coast have largely been evicted from their encampments and, in looking for something to keep their faces on the front page, have decided to take on the shipping industry for no particular reason other than that they can. I’ve got a better suggestion. The centerpoint of the movement which has broad resonance is the web of greed | Read More »
Harry Truman is famous for three things: using the atomic bomb against Japan; firing General Douglas MacArthur; and upsetting Thomas Dewey by running against a “do nothing” Congress. Thus far the Obama strategy is to propose “tax the rich” legislation which knows will fail, making no effort to find compromises – hopefully he won’t resort to Truman’s other highlights. Here are a few facts usually | Read More »
Newt is different. The first three anti-Romney’s started with little name recognition and, fighting for attention in a crowded field, were perhaps unfairly painted as one or two dimensional: Bachmann (woman; social issues); Cain (pizza man; 999); Perry (Texas governor; lousy debater). Under the media’s glare one or two missteps could be fatal. In contrast Newt has a long history with the media and older | Read More »
Any serious candidate for president must understand a few major issues in foreign policy: China (trade; regional ambitions); Mexico (drugs; gangs; immigration); Iran (nukes; regional ambitions); and Pakistan (nukes; instability). I’ll use Pakistan as a test for the Republican candidates. Lets stipulate a few things: – It is not possible to articulate a nuanced policy for South Asia in the 30 second responses allowed by | Read More »
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