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23 Oct 2011 11:43

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Politics: Herman Cain, to Michigan crowd: For the poor, it’s not 999, it’s 909

  • If you are at or below the poverty level, your plan isn’t 9-9-9, it is 9-0-9. Say amen y’all. 9-0-9.
  • Herman Cain • Claiming that his much-talked-about 999 plan was intended to always be income-tax-free for the poor. 909? Isn’t nearly as catchy now, is it? Cain made this statement in Detroit on Friday, which plays into some of the criticism his campaign has gotten — that he’s not focusing on the states that will help him win the early primaries. Earlier this month, Karl Rove put this point succinctly: “He needs to get his bus to Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Florida and Nevada. If he doesn’t break through there — and to break through there, you’ve got to show up, particularly in the first three.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

23 Oct 2011 11:09

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Politics: Marco Rubio’s back-and-forth with the Washington Post does draw blood

  • first The Washington Post published an article that punched holes in Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s life story — saying that his parents left Cuba before the 1959 revolution.
  • then Rubio responded in an op-ed for Politico: “The essence of my family story is why they came to America in the first place,” he wrote, “and why they had to stay.”
  • now But the article did lead to some changes. Though Rubio shot back against the article, in the end, his staff changed the bio on his Web site to reflect the Post’s article. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

22 Oct 2011 15:36

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Politics: Nevada backs down on primary, gets better hotel rooms in exchange

  • We just basically want to be the adults in the room here. This is not a matter of New Hampshire being a bully or telling us what to do. It’s a matter of Nevada doing what needs to be done for Nevada.
  • Nevada GOP chairwoman Amy Tarkanian • Discussing why the state decided to move its primary date back to February 4, after facing massive criticism, boycotts and a Jon Huntsman no-show at a recent debate, for setting their primary on January 14. Probably a good idea, Nevada, but one they came to with some perks to sweeten the deal — including prime hotel space at the Republican National Convention next year. Enjoy the minibar, guys! That’s what you get for taking the high road. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Oct 2011 15:01

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Politics: Oops, that’s bad: Herman Cain implicitly makes pro-choice stance

  • So what I’m saying is it ultimately gets down to a choice that that family or that mother has to make. Not me as president, not some politician, not a bureaucrat. It gets down to that family. And whatever they decide, they decide. I shouldn’t have to tell them what decision to make for such a sensitive issue.
  • GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain • Expressing his views on abortion on Piers Morgan Tonight. We applaud Cain for being willing to split with his party’s orthodoxy, here, but in doing so he’s exposed himself to a damaging contradiction; he also said he believes life begins at conception, and that abortion was appropriate “under no circumstances.” What that means to a passionately anti-abortion GOP base is that Herman Cain, while believing a fertilized egg is in fact a human life, is not willing to defend that life through the law. And if he was striving for independent appeal (which wouldn’t work even if he supported abortion rights wholesale), his personal objection to abortion under any circumstance blunts that. Cain’s Twitter account has since said he is “100% pro-life,” which follows exactly with what he implied before; pro-life personally, but not legislating his opinion. This could be a critical blow to Cain’s recent success in GOP polling. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Oct 2011 20:01

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Politics: Stumpin’ in Sin City: Three things to look for in tonight’s debate

  • Hello, and welcome to yet another GOP debate! YAY WE’RE SO EXCITED! Hopefully Anderson Cooper won’t screw this up (don’t take any tips from Wolf Blitzer, bro). Here are a few things to look for during tonight’s debate:
  • Herman Cain …has the most to gain, and the most to lose. He could solidify his standing as the co-frontrunner and anti-Romney candidate by giving thoughtful answers to substantive policy questions, but if he’s caught flat-footed, it’ll confirm to many that he is, in fact, the (pizza-toned) flavor of the week.
  • Mitt Romney …has so far been able to coast along simply by not screwing up, but this debate could be different. Given Cain’s momentum, Romney will have to go at least somewhat on the offensive, or risk getting flattened by The Cain Train. It’ll be interesting to see whether he goes all-out against Cain.
  • Rick Perry…could, in theory, make a comeback tonight. But that was true about the last debate, too, where he not only failed to capitalize on the opportunity, but didn’t even really seem to care about capitalizing on it. On the plus side, his performance will likely be hailed as a success if he doesn’t fall asleep at the podium.
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Oct 2011 17:33

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Politics: Herman Cain keeps voters in the dark on his advisers

  • The Cain Brain: In advance of tonight’s GOP debate, everybody is tabbing new polling frontrunner Herman Cain as the man to watch. Since last debate, however, he’s absorbed scrutiny over his foreign policy credentials (or lack thereof), which has been exacerbated by Cain’s refusal to name his advisers. He himself spoke to this strategy in Tennessee last week: “I’m not going to tell you! They’re my advisers, not yours. They just want to know who my smart people are so they can attack them.” This is a tact that we don’t think will benefit Cain. Voters like to feel as if candidates are being more open than they need to, not less. Employing a “need to know basis” sort of argument over his adviser’s very identities just comes off badly. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Oct 2011 23:28

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Politics: Herman Cain takes a stroll towards becoming president

  • He’s not running for president; he’s sort of strolling for president.
  • George F. Will • On Herman Cain. If Cain is strolling for president, Newt Gingrich is crawling for president. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

17 Oct 2011 22:01

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Politics: $1 trillion or bust: Ron Paul would take a giant slash out of the deficit

  • $1 trillion in budget cuts offered up by Ron freaking Paul
  • five number of agencies Paul would get rid of with these budget cuts
  • 30% size of the cuts Paul would push on the EPA with his budget cuts
  • zero number of wars Paul would fund after he got his cuts through source
  • » The biggest cut? Presidential salary: If Paul were president, he would cut his salary to $39,000 — the median salary for U.S. citizens. That’s a big downgrade from the standard $400,000-per-year salary and actually less than we make from our job. That would be a huge symbolic gesture, if you ask us.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Oct 2011 14:01

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Politics: The good, the bad and the ugly: Clint Eastwood nearly vice-president?

  • So wait, they picked Dan Quayle over this guy? Back in 1988, there was a period where George H.W. Bush’s presidential campaign was looking a little rough, so they considered a variety of skippers to help steer his ship in the right direction. Among the picks, according to former Secretary of State James Baker? Clint Eastwood, who was a budding Republican politician at the time — the mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. “When we were way behind. Honestly, [Eastwood] was suggested in not an altogether unserious – Well, he was a mayor. He was a Republican mayor,” Baker noted. The idea got shot down pretty quick … paving the way for the guy now known for going after Murphy Brown for being a career woman. On the plus side, we got “Unforgiven” out of the deal, so it wasn’t all bad. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Oct 2011 11:15

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Politics: Herman Cain, deeply tied to the Koch brothers? Say it ain’t so!

  • Cain allegedly has deep ties to the Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity. The currently-soaring presidential candidate has built up his base with GOP voters through an image that he’s a non-politician who’s not beholden to anyone (and makes a good pizza). But Cain has a history with the controversy-laden Koch brothers that he does not promote very heavily — at least not as heavily as his business career. The Associated Press’s article on Cain’s deep ties to Americans for Prosperity found some fairly surprising things:
  • surface Cain has a campaign manager, as well as a number of campaign aides, who once worked for Americans for Prosperity.
  • deeper Rich Lowrie, the apparent Sim City player behind Cain’s easy-to-follow 999 plan, served on AFP’s board of advisors from 2005 to 2008.
  • deepest Cain himself built up AFP in 2005 and 2006, collaborating with Mark Block to build local chapters throughout the country. source
  • » Ties that still stand: While Cain no longer gets paid for his appearances with AFP (he used to, before he started running for president), he is still active with the group. For example, Cain will speak at an AFP event in DC on November 4, despite the fact that most of the other presidential candidates will be at a dinner in Iowa. The caucus is in Iowa; what’s this guy doing in Washington? Wait a second! (photo by Flickr user Gage Skidmore)
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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