Newt Gingrich! for President! 2012 !

[miraja2]

Originally Posted by Riot

Newt on "Meet the Press" today, talking about the GOP Ryan budget proposal with Medicare changes, calling it: "Right wing social engineering". Conservatives imposing "radical change".

He's right, of course, and his position, while alienating him from the conservative Tea Party and libertarian members of the GOP, would endear him to independents and even progressives.

Independents and progressives are, however, completely offended when Newt said that you could only understand President Obama if, "only if you understand Kenyan, anti-colonial behavior", then said this is "the most accurate, predictive model for his behavior." (Newt is a liar, or simply a stupid idiot, aside from being willing to use dog whistles, as the President never lived in Kenya)

In response, Paul Ryan on CNN's "State of the Union" stuck to his guns regarding his budget, including the Medicare abolishment provisions (which is strange, as the GOP via Boehner has been massively walking this back this past two weeks, based upon the angry, upset constituents at their town hall meetings telling them to keep their damn government hands off their Medicare. Forty-one freshmen Tea Party Congressmen even wrote a letter to Obama last week, whining, and asking him to intervene in the Democrats pointing out in campaign ads that the GOP voted to abolish Medicare, and ask them not to do that - LOL!).

It should be noted the CBO scored the Ryan budget as increasing our deficit.

On the whole I thought it was a good performance by him today. You are probably right to say that his comment about "right wing social engineering" will hurt him with the religious right, but I don't think that was ever his path to the nomination anyway. Mainly he'll need to soundly beat guys like Romney with college-eduacted voters in the suburbs of Des Moines and Manchester (and places like that) to win the nomination. Performances like he gave today could help him pull it off.
Sure it was his usual collection of thoughtless bluster and nonsense dressed up to sound like actual, rational ideas.....but I thought his style/delivery were perfect for a presidential candidate. I'm never sure exactly how much something like a solid MTP performance helps a candidate, but I thought he was good today.

[Riot]

Originally Posted by miraja2

Mainly he'll need to soundly beat guys like Romney with college-eduacted voters in the suburbs of Des Moines and Manchester (and places like that) to win the nomination. Performances like he gave today could help him pull it off.
Sure it was his usual collection of thoughtless bluster and nonsense dressed up to sound like actual, rational ideas.....but I thought his style/delivery were perfect for a presidential candidate. I'm never sure exactly how much something like a solid MTP performance helps a candidate, but I thought he was good today.

It seems the Sunday morning shows are turning into Republican-fest

Strangely, Newton is strong in Iowa. With Huckabee out, I don't know where the zealot religious conservatives will go to, though (hang in there, T-Paw! I know you want them! )

I think he's hoping to do well in Iowa, New Hampshire, to carry him into South Carolina.

I don't like him as a person. He resigned and didn't even complete his last Congressional term in office, due to the massive Republican reelection failure when he was Speaker.

[miraja2]

Originally Posted by miraja2

On the whole I thought it was a good performance by him today. You are probably right to say that his comment about "right wing social engineering" will hurt him with the religious right, but I don't think that was ever his path to the nomination anyway. Mainly he'll need to soundly beat guys like Romney with college-eduacted voters in the suburbs of Des Moines and Manchester (and places like that) to win the nomination. Performances like he gave today could help him pull it off.
Sure it was his usual collection of thoughtless bluster and nonsense dressed up to sound like actual, rational ideas.....but I thought his style/delivery were perfect for a presidential candidate. I'm never sure exactly how much something like a solid MTP performance helps a candidate, but I thought he was good today.

Apparently this was horrible analysis on my part.
The Republican Party is in an uproar over his dismissal of the Paul Ryan plan on the show. Ryan, Rush, and Beck have all denounced Newt, and most Republicans appear to be treating him as a traitor to the cause.
I said the particular comment would hurt him with the far right, but that his overall performance on the show might help his chances when it came to the nomination. It would seem I was probably wrong. I sometimes forget that the far right wackos are the Republican Party.

[Riot]

Originally Posted by miraja2

Apparently this was horrible analysis on my part.
The Republican Party is in an uproar over his dismissal of the Paul Ryan plan on the show. Ryan, Rush, and Beck have all denounced Newt, and most Republicans appear to be treating him as a traitor to the cause.
I said the particular comment would hurt him with the far right, but that his overall performance on the show might help his chances when it came to the nomination. It would seem I was probably wrong. I sometimes forget that the far right wackos are the Republican Party.

Well, Newt is what Republicans used to be. I thought your analysis spot on. The screeching harpy Republican News Channel attack wasn't all that predictable.

What this shows is how quickly and how far the Republican party has changed in the past few years. The party has lurched very, very far to the right, is quite out of the mainstream of what used to define "conservative values", and is not representative in the least of what it's always been in modern history.

The Tea Party is now actively fighting Boehner, too, as Boehner recognizes the debt limit has to be raised, and told them so to their face last week. It's beyond absurd. They want to demagogue this country into disaster, reality be damned. It's downright scary.

We had a primary election today in Kentucky (home of Rand Paul, unfortunately): Republicans had the very VERY southern conservative long term state bigwig (an extreme conservative to start with, compared to the 1990's and previous) versus an even more extreme Tea Party candidate. The Tea Party candidate gave him a run for his money, the state bigwig Williams only got 48% of the vote. And the Tea Party candidate beat him in the strongly democratic progressive areas of Fayette Country!

So it seems that conservative minorities in strongly democratic areas are going even more extreme? We'll see. Very low voter turnout.

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by Riot

Well, Newt is what Republicans used to be. I thought your analysis spot on. The screeching harpy Republican News Channel attack wasn't all that predictable.

What this shows is how quickly and how far the Republican party has changed in the past few years. The party has lurched very, very far to the right, is quite out of the mainstream of what used to define "conservative values", and is not representative in the least of what it's always been in modern history.

The Tea Party is now actively fighting Boehner, too, as Boehner recognizes the debt limit has to be raised, and told them so to their face last week. It's beyond absurd. They want to demagogue this country into disaster, reality be damned. It's downright scary.

We had a primary election today in Kentucky (home of Rand Paul, unfortunately): Republicans had the very VERY southern conservative long term state bigwig (an extreme conservative to start with, compared to the 1990's and previous) versus an even more extreme Tea Party candidate. The Tea Party candidate gave him a run for his money, the state bigwig Williams only got 48% of the vote. And the Tea Party candidate beat him in the strongly democratic progressive areas of Fayette Country!

So it seems that conservative minorities in strongly democratic areas are going even more extreme? We'll see. Very low voter turnout.

As little regard as I have for Newt, I agree that it's troubling the response to his comments...the Republican Party is drastically shifting far right and I can only hope the majority of Americans see this because if they gain control it will be a disaster.

[Riot]

Originally Posted by somerfrost

As little regard as I have for Newt, I agree that it's troubling the response to his comments...the Republican Party is drastically shifting far right and I can only hope the majority of Americans see this because if they gain control it will be a disaster.

It's the "no compromise at all" position being held by what appears to be a minority. Why the GOP is allowing themselves to be held hostage is beyond me. They are afraid of losing the base - well, independents (many Republicans who do not want to associate with the current) will have nothing to do with that crazy train, the sensible GOP should go back to what they have always been. Just stand up for their values.

The Republican party has to be holding on to the crazies for electoral volume only, only as shifting demographics of the future favor more "democratic" leaning voters to be created. I imagine the Republicans fear a large Democratic party, with a smaller Republican party and a Tea Party.

[Riot]

Originally Posted by somerfrost

As little regard as I have for Newt, I agree that it's troubling the response to his comments...the Republican Party is drastically shifting far right and I can only hope the majority of Americans see this because if they gain control it will be a disaster.

Good grief, have you caught the last 48 hours of Republican talk? They've eaten Newt alive!

Wow - it seems one candidate sticks their head up out of the gopher hole, and the rest of the party descends upon itself in a Whack-A-Mole orgy.

I guess the next due up for her week in the public limelight will be Michelle Bachmann, the queen of Iowa Tea Parties.

So ... I'll guess the final, out of the Tampa convention GOP candidates will be Romney as Pres, and Pawlenty as VP.

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by Riot

Good grief, have you caught the last 48 hours of Republican talk? They've eaten Newt alive!

Wow - it seems one candidate sticks their head up out of the gopher hole, and the rest of the party descends upon itself in a Whack-A-Mole orgy.

I guess the next due up for her week in the public limelight will be Michelle Bachmann, the queen of Iowa Tea Parties.

So ... I'll guess the final, out of the Tampa convention GOP candidates will be Romney as Pres, and Pawlenty as VP.

I'm lovin' it! All that pent up hate has to go somewhere...Republicans may be the only species that actually delight in slaughtering their own.

[Antitrust32]

Originally Posted by somerfrost

I'm lovin' it! All that pent up hate has to go somewhere...Republicans may be the only species that actually delight in slaughtering their own.

I was going to add Sharia Law Muslims... but that would be too literal.