The GOP Prepares for War in New Orleans
The headline on Politico’s resident Democratic Party cheerleader Ben Smith’s blog was curious: “Republicans convene in New Orleans, with no mention of Katrina.”
What makes this such a puzzling headline is that residents of New Orleans that I talked to weren’t mentioning it either. Recovery from the devastating natural disaster has been slow but fairly steady, and those that I asked about the effort to rebuild were matter of fact about progress. One hotel worker I asked about Katrina recovery pointed to several reopenings of apartment complexes as evidence that things are getting better. She was a little frustrated with the pace of improvement, believing that “some areas have gotten more money than others.” But the general feeling among residents — and they have showed up in force at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference (SRLC) — was satisfaction at the efforts of state and local government to bring the city back from where it was five years ago.
Besides, the attendees at the SRLC appear to be in no mood to dwell on the past. The first general session last night was marked by enthusiasm and excitement at the prospects for victory in November’s midterm elections. For comparison, I attended the 2009 CPAC event and can report that the difference in mood between the two confabs is astonishing. There was much defensiveness at that CPAC conference as well as a subdued atmosphere that reflected Obama’s recent ascension to the presidency. The contrast with the eagerness for combat expressed by the speakers and attendees here in New Orleans is striking.
That combativeness was best illustrated by two of last night’s speakers: Liz Cheney and Newt Gingrich.
Ms. Cheney gave a speech that took the Obama administration to task for its foreign policy retreats. At times, her criticisms were a direct challenge to the Democrats’ narrative of her father’s tenure as vice president. Her biggest applause lines came when she defended the use of “enhanced interrogation” techniques by the CIA, saying that “foreign terrorists do not have constitutional rights.” She also skewered Attorney General Holder for going after interrogators of the terrorists while dithering about setting up the new interrogation regime at the Justice Department.
But Cheney saved her harshest criticisms for the administration’s Israeli policy:
In the era of Obama, American allies have their loyalty met with humiliation, arrogance, and incompetence. The shabby reception Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu received in Washington a few weeks ago — being treated as an uninvited guest at the White House — was disgraceful. President Obama must not understand the most fundamental point about US-Israeli relations – the world is safer when there is no daylight between America and the state of Israel.
Israel is our strongest ally in the Middle East and one of our strongest and most important allies in the world. Barack Obama is playing a reckless game that could have deadly consequences if he continues on the path of diminishing America’s ties to Israel.
Cheney also had plenty to say about Obama’s Iran policy:
Iran watches as the administration answers their threats with weakness, confusion and self-serving lectures that put down America and diminish our achievements. That kind of talk can win you a Nobel Prize these days, but it dishonors this nation, and the brave men and women who have fought and died for our freedom.
By God, “socialist” and “un-American” are not “extreme partisan rhetoric.” 2+2=4.
Quite correct. How the hell else would one describe this administrations agenda and actions??
2+2=4 indeed!
In this age of PC delusion the LAST thing a serious contender should do is IGNORE the socialist leaning elephant in the room. For heavens sake, of course BHO is a socialist, marxist and third world afficiando, heading the US Republic off a cliff.
NOT pointing out this salient truth rises to the level of ‘candidate’ malpractice!I would suggest though that the candidates stick to the facts WITHOUT resorting to pejorative name calling. After all, the amount of concrete information needed to back up the above charges are OVERWHELMING/STAGGERING, able to stand up to scrutiny on their own merits!
I understand this sentence from a psychological point of view, but it is true that WHAT THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS DONE AND IS DOING should be the real worry of honest voters (however positioned they believe themselves to be).
And the fact is that this administration has confirmed the worst fears that some had before its election: the “extreme partisan” policies of this administration are ripping the country apart, with a kind of “revolution from top” that DOES remind of the regimes of Southern America.
How many more nationalizations are we to expect in the next two-three years ? how many more wars against “the rich and the corporations” (translation: the free market economy) ? how many more attacks against Israel and other allies (India) ? how many more sophisms about denying the role of radical islam ? how many more radicals will be appointed to key positions ? how many more marxists ? how much more debt will be created ?
The honest voters must look at all this, not at how much they like labels or not labels…
If they do, America will be safe.
Actually Gingrich, and the 94-99 repub congress, did deliver on most of the promisses in the contract with america. Both spending and the deficit were significantly reduced, the budget balanced, and welfare reform passed, during his speakership. He did go astray with the impeachment hearings, but I must admit so did I, since at the time I supported them. The main contract with america plank that did not pass was the balanced budget amendment, but that was not the repubs fault, because it required a 2/3 vote and the dems opposed it.
The real problems with the repubs were during Bush, but Gengrich was no longer in congress then, and thus has bears little blame for the “Compassionate Conservative” nonsense, and the scandals and earmarks.
Gengrich has always had good ideas, but I’m not yet convinced he has the likability to attract ndependents as a presidential candidate.
Are you taking the position that because the contract merely declared to bring bills to the floor that it was successfully fulfilled? That’s the kind of weasel position I’d expect a lawyer/congresscritter to take regarding the contract, but the average person considers fulfillment resulting in actual laws that actually made a difference.
Do you dispute the Wikipedia article on the Contract? It pretty clearly states that most provisions of the contract did not result in any real change. It was all bluster and barely affected reality.
It all depends on what the GOP offers as an alternative. If they offer fiscal sanity, a massively smaller role for Government in our lives, and a chance for a rebirth of civic institutions – the Tea Party platform in short – then it’s definitely 2+2=4 and a winning proposition. A Reagan-scale landslide winning proposition.
If their alternative is a return to Compassionate Conservatism, to impoverishing us at a slightly slower rate and being slightly less corrupt than the Dems, well, then it’ll just be partisan rhetoric and we might want to read up on our 1854 history.
It all boils down to whether they mean it or not. Gingrich led a revolution once, and then utterly failed to follow through on the important points. Did he learn from that? If he didn’t, did enough others in the party? That’s the quadtrillion dollar (what is the national debt these days anyway?) question. Will the GOP be a party of political hacks looking for a marketing angle, or a party of Americans looking to provide a genuine alternative to the socialism of Obama. A genuine alternative will win big.
Bingo! The Repubs need to act like they have a different menu to chose from!
LOL!
“The headline on Politico’s resident Democratic Party cheerleader Ben Smith’s blog was curious: “Republicans convene in New Orleans, with no mention of Katrina.””
You can’t NOT mention Katrina when NOLA is discussed. Don’t you Republicans know that? You have to mention Katrina. Every liberal knows this. Hell, NPR can’t do two hours of programming without mentioning Katrina. Katrina was the Crisis that Must Be Forever Milked For Political Gain – that’s why Nagin and Landreiu did it, just as they were told to by the DNC! (“it” being nothing, that is….on purpose….so it could be milked for the next twenty years by NPR and the MSM and the Dems, and used perpetually as “ammunition”.)
Now the Repubs have to NOT mention Katrina. HOW DARE THEY!
Well ACTUALLY, Gov Perry did mention Katrina, if you were listening.
Let me tell you something, the Democrats should not pointing fingers at the GOP for katrina. I’M SICK AND TIRED OF HEARING ABOUT DAMN KATRINA. if those poor people had better state leadership like they do now, instead of two quisling Democrats they had in Nagan and Blanco, two affirmative action cases, the place would’ve averted the disaster and casualties. Jindal’s leadership was proven in the hurricane that plowed through in 2008 during the RNC.
again, democrat libs should shut their mouths when pointing fingers about Katrina and partisan hacks at politico should do their research and point fingers at the libDems when two NY Democratic BLACK politicians squandered over $30,000 of a fund that was raised to “help” victims of katrina. that’s your democrat liberals.
enough is enough. these people need to get on their own two feet and not rely on liberal promises of salvation. government doesn’t help anything. if u look at how long it’s taken for the World Trade Center to be rebuilt you only have to look at government involvment. world trade center 7 was rebuilt in just a few short years. why? it was privately run.
- Ben Smith: “Republicans convene in New Orleans, with no mention of Katrina.”
So… Smith is on the Journo-List? Interesting. No doubt they’ve gotten the talking points to execute the Democrats’ sure-fire strategy of running against Bush (again) this year.
As for the socialist moniker, that one is not only well-deserved, but we’ve been instructed by no less than a Reverend working in the employ of the President of the United States, that Socialism is what we overwhelmingly voted for in November of 2008. That cat is already out of the bag, and it’s time we started chasing it.
As for un-American, yes, it is un-American to have almost half the nation’s households getting a free ride on taxes. It’s un-American to ignore the will of the People when over half of America wants socialized medicine repealed, over half of America believes media reform is far more important than campaign finance reform, over half of America believes that BHO’s Pre-emptive Surrender® defense policy is wrong and almost half of America believes the TEA Party movement’s views are closer to theirs than the president’s.
Meanwhile, I’m glad the 2 + 2 = 4 thing is catching on.
Goy, Goy, Goy . . . all are well advised to consider your views skeptically. With grand certainty you claimed that there was the Tea Party and the Republican Party and that never the twain shall meet. “Only someone who has no idea what’s going on would suggest one is merging with the other,” you proclaimed.
But then . . .
“Do the Republicans become tea partiers, do tea partiers become Republicans? How does this evolve?” CNN’s Ali Velshi asked Bachmann on CNN’s Newsroom Thursday.
“It’s really merging into one single, solitary unit,” Bachmann replied. “They have unified. A number of Tea Party groups from around the country are coming together.” All echoed by Hannity and Levin and Limbaugh and the rest of your media monarchs.
And so the National Federation of Tea Baggers is official. Fully subsumed exactly as I predicted.
Goy, this is your chance to consult your palm and refute your errant ways. Admit you were wildly, emotionally self righteously wrong. But you’re a conservative, so you can’t muster the balls to do that. Let me help . . . Perhaps a complaint about some liberal meany head threw an egg at your bus.
And a 1 and a 2 and a 3 and a . . . EQUIVOCATE!
57% of the United States wants a public option. What people want to get rid of is the current health care law, which sucks. However, the majority of people want the government more heavily involved in health care. So much so that they want the government to start providing it as if it were a private entity. I know that math is hard for you, but 43% is not more than half but 57% is. So the correct statement is that more than half of the public wants socialized medicine, just not the crap that recently passed into law.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/19/AR2009101902451.html
You have to quote an article that is six months old to support your position, ergo, you are wrong. Your source is out of date. Find something written in the past week.
Obama says that Confederate History Month is inappropriate for no mention of slavery or it’s legacy…. Didnt he do this same thing in regards to his slip of the tongue which required a “beer summit” to smooth over his freudian slips?
Is there such a thing as a discussion of the confederacy without a discussion of slavery? I don’t think so. And I think saying just that would be the appropriate response from the governor….
But if I were him I would include a rebuttal chock full of other examples of what may be deemed inappropriate by 9 out of 10 carbon based life forms:
1.)Turning tricks for Tony Rezko.
2.)Anything involving William Ayers.
3.)Anything involving Frank Marshall Davis
4.)Anything involving Khalid Rashidi
Lefties try to sell the idea that “extremist” resistance to the Obama/Reid/Pelosi, socialist agenda will hurt Republicans because they know it will actually help them whip Democrats in coming elections.
“…and almost half of America believes the TEA Party movement’s views are closer to theirs than the president’s. ”
And there lies the tale in the tape. The GOP in their heart of hearts don’t much care for the Tea Party either. It is apparent that Steele would rather talk to LaRaza (because he has just two weeks ago) than say the Chicago Tea Party (which he has not ever). So Cheney and Newt gave great speeches, but quite frankly they don’t get it either.
This country wants a political and legal roll back to its roots where a man can stand on his own, mind his business and earn a decent living for his family. Nothing else satisfies. Both political parties ignore that desire at their own peril.
“…and almost half of America believes the TEA Party movement’s views are closer to theirs than the president’s. ”
And there lies the tale in the tape. The GOP in their heart of hearts don’t much care for the Tea Party either. It is apparent that Steele would rather talk to LaRaza (because he has just two weeks ago) than say the Chicago Tea Party (which he has not ever). So Cheney and Newt gave great speeches, but quite frankly they don’t get it either.
This country wants a political and legal roll back to its roots where a man can stand on his own, mind his business and earn a decent living for his family. Nothing else satisfies. Both political parties ignore that desire at their own peril.
I hope the Republicans can conjure up someone a bit more believable than their last presidential candidate. While they’re at it they need to come up with a better plan for running the country than they had the last time around. Three elections in a row, I held my nose and voted for ‘the lesser of two evils’ and am getting damn sick of doing so. I do think Bush was an honorable man but he was no fiscal conservative and no opponent of large government, both huge negatives in my book. And McCain – spit.
I have no use for Romney either. He’s as bad as McCain in my book. Until the Republicans get rid of Michael Steele and put someone with some political savvy and intestinal fortitude in his place, they’re just opportunist salesmen to me. If the national leadership is going to be weak-kneed lily-livered, then the party is no better than the opposition. As a matter of fact, they could be seen as worse for not having the guts to come out and flatly state their position as fiscally conservatie and anti-govemnet growth and stick to that position.
These are many of the same people who proved so inept and unresponsive to America’s citizenry the last time they were in power. When will they realize that they will never appeal to ever facet of the voting public and show some loyalty to the rest of us?
The first thing they need to campaign on is going back to the old Senate rule where it took a 2/3 majority to get a bill passed. Then they need to kill the reconciliation procedure permanently. If they can’t promise and try their damndest to deliver on these things, they don’t deserve any support. They need to campaign on and deliver on reducing by 2/3 the number of federal regulations and bureaucracies. They need to campaign and deliver on passing 1 law only and that is that they can make no laws or establish any federal guidelines that pertain to the public but not to them.
Sorry, I don’t trust them much more than the oppostion any more.
How about Palin for Party Chair, Huckabee for President and Ryan for Vice? Ryan and Jindal can duke it out in 2020 for the nomination for President.
Nice speech, Newt, but you will not be nominated in 2012. Very few conservatives trust you. Big-government Republicanism is dead, buddy.
10. Joe
Joe..your dead on in my book. The GOP and newt better realize we are SICK of GOPers who say one thing then DO NOT ACT on those principles. The tea party people seem MAD AS HELL at the GOP as well…and i agree with them. The GOP MUST change its ways and not just get elected…but actually work for WE the people!!!
Newt had his chance…my worry with him is he will get in office and be another politacal wussie and not got for it to make a move toward MUCH smaller gov.
Yes the tea party may hurt the GOP but its time the GOP may have to along with the them.
The true test will be the primaries…i hope to god the true conservative(not Socially) will win the day.
In the end i have always voted “9lesser of 2 evils” and thought a third party would hurt that lesser…but i dont believe that now…its time to go for it and MAKE real change and if we fail..then socialism here we come…but letting another Bush(he sucked fiscally, and grew the gov) is it just a slower slide to the same end!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I hear the Dems will try to run against Bush again. This actually sounds good to me because the easy counter is:
“Obama and Democrats blamed the recession on the Bush admin’s policies. It’s been almost two years and how many nonpartisan books and articles have you read explaining it was actually the Bush’s admin’s fault? Right. It was just more hot air. Whereas we can point to concrete actions by the Obama administration that have hurt the economy. Out of control spending, new regulations on every front, creating a hostile environment for investors (with among other things taking away the secret ballot in Union elections), et cetera et cetera. Obama will just say anything (then the next series of ads go down his broken pledges).
This regime is right out of Alinski’s Rules for Radicals; If it waddles like a Socialist, and quacks like a Socialist… Why should we cower from the truth?
Political Correctness has poisoned this country by intimidating people from speaking unpleasant truths.
So where did keeping your thoughts to yourself get you? Betrayed, enslaved, so far in debt your grandkids will never see daylight, that’s what!
“Be quite you little sheeple, don’t wonder how your refrigerator works, the government will make the light always comes on when you open the door”. -Bella Pelosi
If ever a life-lesson was hard learned: speak-up when I know something is wrong, or don’t bitch about the consequences.
Having said that; I don’t want the old Republican guard running in 2010, too much baggage. That election is still three years away. Let’s take it one election at-a-time. The mid-terms will be the indicator of where we are heading, maybe those results will cause the next Reagan to throw in his/her hat.
Why are people surprised by Obama. Look who he has advising him. Look who his friends are.
He is the first anti American president. He the first overtly anti-Semitic President. Outside of
Truman all the other presidents who helped Israel in its time of need were Republicans. Look it up.
Well, New Orleans does now have one mark of distinction. According to a recent report, the most violent city in the world is Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. The second is Caracas, Venezuela, and the third is New Orleans, Louisiana.
I would not vote for Newt Gingrich… unless his only opponent is Barack Obama. In truth, I don’t buy all the extremist rhetoric, which means even the current Democratic Congress and the Republican National Committee should take note. Both are out-of-touch, self-serving organizations that haven’t yet grasped the depth of anger and disappointment among the voters.
The coming elections (including more than just the next two, as it happens) are a battleground over what it means to be an individual, free American under the Constitution of the United States of America, with an opportunity to order life as one chooses, or what it means to be a European-style welfare dependent subject to whatever the government deems is good enough.
That’s what the Tea Party is all about: trying to figure out a way to get good governance for the benefit of as many of the citizens as possible, without trampling all over their lives. What is so hard for politicians to understand?
Joe Post #10 “Sorry, I don’t trust them much more than the oppostion any more.”
I have to agree. Of the candidates I’m impressed with few.
I still don’t get this Ron Paul madness everyone seems to have. Thus far he’s not said many things to make me believe he’d be a better prez than anyone else.
“Again, as with the risk of painting the administration as “socialist,” trying to sell the majority of voters on the “un-American” charge invites a backlash from independents and moderate Democratic voters who eschew that kind of extreme partisan rhetoric.”
There are no independent or democrat voters dithering over which side they’re on. By now, people are either extreme partisans themselves or have already parted ways with the democrat party. Anyone who now remains a democrat and is not in open revolt against their own party leaders is, by definition, partisan in the extreme and totally supports the fascist state controls being put in place by the democrat party. The democrat party tried to force slavery down the throats of the American people once before which led to the founding of the Republican Party specifically to end slavery in this nation once and for all. The democrat party has never changed their goals and they are now attempting to institute fascist socialist state controls to, in effect, return democrats to the status of slave owners. The right of democrats to the ownership of others, and the right of democrats to manipulate the character of future generations based on their bigoted eugenics, are the only two rights the democrat party has consistently supported. Everything else they’ve ever supported, they supported only to further those two core principals, core principles that directly contradict the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. Just as democrats were willing to dissolve the Union rather than deny themselves total ownership of others, they’re now willing to dissolve the Constitution rather than deny themselves total ownership of others.
The Republican Party is the only tool available for citizens to use to once again halt the democrat effort to assert their “right” to the ownership of others, and the Republican Party was founded specifically to end the idea that anyone could be the property of either another individual or the state. Anyone who cannot stand the clarity of simply stating the truth needs to admit they’re more comfortable sitting under the democrat table waiting for table scraps than they are fighting for the most basic of their rights. No one would argue that the Republican Party is perfect or even nearly so, but to argue that there is at this point in time an alternative to the Republican Party foolish. Those who sideline themselves through a third party or a lack of participation because “they’re all the same”, are simply trying to continue talking the talk without ever taking the risk of walking the walk. Voting democrat by proxy or abstinence may make people feel better about themselves, but it’s still voting democrat and voting to support the democrat agenda. Worse than remaining on the sidelines, though, is becoming a pontificator of record who counsels others to not be “radical” in the defense of liberty and to just nudge the truth now and then rather than stating it clearly. Such counselors are either themselves incapable of facing reality or quite capable of working as fifth columnists on behalf of the democrat socialist machine.
Regards
Ah, but Mr. Moran left out a key part of Mr. Gingrich’s address; perhaps conveniently (??). Mr. Gingrich referred to the Obama administration as a “secularist and socialist” administration according to other sources. As a lifelong traditional conservative Republican (“traditional” = fiscal conservative & social libertarian), I’m real tired of so-called conservatives calling for limited government on the one hand. But then using the other hand to call for big government intervention in elements of citizens’ personal & private lives or to dictate what citizens’ religious beliefs should be.
Yes, it’s those same old cultural issues again. I have no issues at all with fellow citizens who wish to worship as they please; oppose gay marriage; don’t approve of abortion or birth control usage in their own families. But if Gingrich, Palin, whomever, decide to continue pushing the far right agenda of groups like Family Resource Council, Focus on the Family, etc., the re-birth of a Republican majority will get sidetracked.
#19 Rashputin: “….supports the fascist state controls being put in place by the democrat party…..” Seems to me that we earlier got a good dose of fascism with the so-called Patriot Act passed by Bush/Cheney.
SteveB Post #20 “Ah, but Mr. Moran left out a key part of Mr. Gingrich’s address; perhaps conveniently (??). Mr. Gingrich referred to the Obama administration as a “secularist and socialist” administration according to other sources.”
Actually Moran said that on the second page of the article. Did you catch it?
CRASH.ORG is an interesting site that intends to rally people to crash any
“tea party” meetings with misinformation to the media and general public.. right now the site is crashed.
Hanoi Jane was up to tricks again on Larry King show in her comments about Palin. Jane, the community butt kisser, American soldier hater, couldn’t hold a candle to Palin..or anyone else I know.
I appreciate Pallin not only for who she is..but that she annoys the hell out of the liberals who are trying to tear our country apart.
crash.org is nothing of the sort that you describe. Maybe you are confused.
you are right!! wrong address…will get it right. we went there earlier and I suppose I copied down wrong,m sorry..
“crash the tea party.org”
Gingrich? This guy talks a good talk, but can’t walk the walk. I’m still waiting for the promises in the Contract for America to be delivered.
Where’s the beef?
Yo trolls:
http://www.pollingreport.com/health.htm
The party of dumb.
“Seems to me that we earlier got a good dose of fascism with the so-called Patriot Act passed by Bush/Cheney.”
You apparently haven’t even read the definition of fascism. That’s not unusual, though, given the fact that the left has spent decades screaming that others were fascist while themselves pursuing every fascist policies.
The actions against Israel by Obama have left me little doubt as to his religious beliefs. Only a Muslim leader would treat the Israeli leader with such open disdain.
Bowing to a Saudi king – but not to the Queen of England? These facts add up folks.
Is this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMUgNg7aD8M a Freudian slip?
I’m also beginning to believe he may not be American born. Wasn’t it his belle Michele who referred to Kenya as ‘visiting his home land’ when the went there?
If the Obama administration is heading down the path of socialism, maybe it is not so bad. My stock portfolio has emerged from the Bush debacle and is rising in this Obama boom.
Gingrich is a Flaming RINO. We are not fooled. He can go scozzafava himself.
New Orleans is doing great due to New Orleanians. I will NEVER forgive my party (Republican) for abandoning the city. You may be able to con the rest of America, but THIS Republican New Orleanian will NEVER forget my own party abandoning its own citizens for YEARS.
Poor Ben! He had his narrative all formed and then the GOP didn’t follow it. What could he do? Use it anyway.
Alas, DoctorJ, you’ve been gulled by the media. Blame your mayor and governor for failing to understand the procedures for invoking FEMA aid. To have moved in without proper authorizations would have violated federal law. As you may have noticed, the Coast Guard was there immediately, while the mayor watched on TV. All that the yelling and recriminations accomplished was to waste a lot of resources.
In the end, every disaster has to be met ultimately by those it hits. That’s why FEMA recommends that every family have a 72 hour kit. It takes at least that long for the feds to get there with more. Others can help, but they can’t undo the results of failure to foresee, plan and prepare. Engineers in NOLA had feared such an event for decades, yet the canal walls were the weakest link.
The problem with the “fiscal sanity” approach is that it is much akin to going on a chastity crusade after you have been roughly deflowered by 26 burly truckers.