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22 May 2011 22:12

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Politics: Minnesota State Rep. Tony Cornish trolling gay rights advocates?

  • I’m not in his district. But I DO live in Minnesota and a statewide policy regarding marriage equality effects EVERYONE living in our state.
  • Minnesota resident Annie Modesitt • Discussing her anger over receiving a fairly rude e-mail from Minnesota State Rep. Tony Cornish that seemed to trivialize her emotion on the gay rights issue. She was one of a number of people who took part in a Human Rights Campaign petition against Cornish, who voted in favor of a proposed state constitutional amendment on gay marriage. Cornish has sent a number of these, including one where he reportedly wrote, “Try writing your own letter without forwarding someone else’s anger and resentment. Get an idea of your own.” Hey Tony, we would like to share our own idea: If this is true, you’re a moron because you respond to form letter e-mails and turn small potatoes into big stories. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

22 May 2011 11:28

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Politics: Herman Cain: National security’s off my agenda … until I’m elected

  • Herman Cain doesn’t want to talk national security. At least not until after he’s elected. “The right approach is that the day I’m elected, I would start on that plan. I think it is disingenuous to tell the American people what I would do,” he told Fox News Sunday this morning. OK … so, we understand that he might not be privy to the documents that Obama has at his disposal, but seriously? National security isn’t something you, as a presidential candidate, are allowed to ignore. This is one of the reasons people will want to vote for you. Waiting to explain your national security plan until after people have put you into office — forcing people to go in blind on one of the key things a president does — is a dangerous stance that will not fly with mainstream voters, Herman. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 May 2011 15:06

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Politics: Jon Huntsman seriously pitches for more civility in politics

  • After the shooting in Tucson when Representative Giffords was injured, we talked seriously as a nation about civility. Many Republicans and Democrats even sat together at the State of the Union. Remember that? Now, if we can just sit together and solve our problems. Civility acts as a lubricant to make the system work.
  • Former U.S. Ambassador to China (and potential presidential candidate) Jon Huntsman • Making his latest commencement speech at a university — he made one just recently at the University of South Carolina while ignoring a nearby GOP convention. Today’s speech, at Southern New Hampshire University, continued in the same kind of vein, though it focused more on politics this time. (Last time, Huntsman name-dropped Ben Folds Five, which fits in with his history as an indie rocker.) His style of campaigning is interesting — and it’s one that’s lacking from the overall playing field right now. To put it simply, why are all the good GOP candidates this time around the minor ones who may not even make a decent showing next year? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 May 2011 14:19

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Politics: Herman Cain: Nobody knows him, but those who do like him

  • “I once Ate a pizza, and it was this big. That’s why they called me the Godfather.” (OK, he didn’t say that; we just love the photo.) Herman Cain, who we’ve covered before on numerous occasions, is the latest guy to drop his hat into the presidential ring. “Let me tell you some of the reasons why I’m running for president of the United States.We have become a nation of crises,” he said when making his announcement today. He’s a bit of a wildcard — he doesn’t have strong name recognition, but he does have the kind of business acumen which makes him pretty desirable. His polling shows a pretty interesting trend — not many people know him, but those who do freaking love him. More:
  • 29% of self-described GOP voters know who Herman Cain even is, according to a May 17 Gallup poll
  • <0.5% of voters in that poll picked the former Godfather’s Pizza CEO as their first choice for president in 2012
  • 71% of people who did know anything about the Herminator, however, had positive feelings about him source
  • » Can he make a run? As we noted in a Webdoc we made a couple weeks back, he kinda killed it at the Fox News presidential debate — which didn’t feature any major candidates, to Cain’s benefit. With big-name establishment Republicans failing to wow the field and loaded with reasons to nick their reputation (looking at you Newt), folks like Cain and Ron Paul have a good chance of doing well this time around. We expect his name recognition to go way up. (photo from Gage Skidmore‘s Flickr page)
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 May 2011 17:35

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Politics: “A failure of basic coal mine safety procedures” at Upper Big Branch

  • I don’t know how you could have assembled a worse record than the record they have assembled in the last few years. It does not appear the culture has changed at Massey. That is most unfortunate.
  • Davitt McAteer, chair of the West Virginia Governor’s Independent Investigation Panel • Speaking on his examination and report about the deadly explosion at the Upper Big Branch coal mine, under the ownership of Massey Energy.  The full report, available here, is pretty damning — the subtitle of the report is, simply, “a failure of basic coal mine safety practices.” Said Senator Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia: “This report tragically reinforces that the disaster that took the lives of 29 men at Upper Big Branch last year was absolutely preventable. That will always be one of the most painful facts about this explosion.” source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 May 2011 16:26

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Politics: Jon Stewart dominates Bill O’Reilly’s own poll

  • Credit where credit is due: The O’Reilly Factor’s viewer polls always have a big stamp on the bottom that says “NOT A SCIENTIFIC POLL,” and that’s as true now as it was when we didn’t find their outcomes so amusing. That said, such a disclaimer also means O’Reilly and his people probably didn’t have to unleash this dispiriting (for him) result to the world. Just look at that map! Jon Stewart is one of the most convincing and talented talkers in the public eye, and it’s his willingness to have nuanced yet incisive debate with his ideological opposites that make him so. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 May 2011 22:53

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Politics: Grassley pokes fun at Daniels’ lack of charisma

  • Maybe I oughta back [Mitch Daniels], because it would be an opportunity to show that people who don’t have charisma could be elected president.
  • Republican Senator Charles Grassley • About…well, Mitch Daniels. Aren’t these guys supposed to be on the same team? He went on to compliment Daniels’ performance as George W. Bush’s budget director (because if there’s anything Bush did well, it was handle the federal budget). source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

18 May 2011 21:34

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Politics: Dark horse alert: Rick Perry may run for president

  • Late registration: The reporting is a bit muddled and inconclusive, but it looks like Texas Governor Rick Perry may be testing the waters for a presidential run. Jumping into the race this late in the game would require a lot of catch up, and Perry’s past flirtations with secession could pose a problem for him as a presidential candidate. Nevertheless, if he did enter the race, he would have a very solid chance of getting the nomination–and, in our opinion, a reasonable shot at defeating Obama in 2012. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 May 2011 17:35

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Politics: Kirk Cameron feels disadvantaged against Stephen Hawking

  • “Like bullying a blind man”: That was what former sitcom actor and adamant Christian activist Kirk Cameron complained it was like to say anything negative about Stephen Hawking. “He has an unfair disadvantage, and that gives him a free pass on some of his absurd ideas.” It’s a crass and lowly insult to Hawking to suggest that he’s the benefit of an “unfair disadvantage,” which clearly refers to his ALS. Especially because it implies that he’s the beneficiary of some sort of sympathy within the scientific community, as opposed to what he is; the owner of a magnificent mind that’s he’s used to bettering humankind. Whatever you might say about Growing Pains, we reckon that contribution doesn’t measure up. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 May 2011 16:58

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Politics: GOP braces for damage from Gingrich remarks

  • Newt tries to stop the bleeding: There’s a problem that Newt Gingrich created in his criticisms of the Paul Ryan budget that goes very far beyond Newt himself — a rapidly approaching torrent of Democratic ads using his words against any Republican opponent who supported or voted for said budget. This stern denouncement is an attempt to blunt that effect, but will it work? Not on Senator Chuck Schumer, at least: “What Newt seems to realize is that it would be impossible to win the White House if they embrace the Ryan plan. If Republicans make endorsing the Ryan plan the standard in the Republican primary, it will make the nominee unelectable.” source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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