• President 2012,  Sarah Palin

    President 2012: Sarah Palin’s Perfect Storm

    According to an Alaska political pundit – a run for the Presidency is Sarah Palin’s Perfect Storm.

    She doesn’t want to be president, she just wants to run. She doesn’t want the responsibility of leading the free world, she just wants to ramp her celebrity back up a notch. She doesn’t want to put herself in the firing line of the critics again, she just wants to boost her earning potential for her politico-celebrity life after the campaign.

    Believe me, being president is the last thing she wants.

    So that’s the perfect storm right there… if she can run a campaign that gives the boys a good thrashing in the primary (and let’s face it, she’s done that before), then go raise gobs of money and run a huge general campaign, becoming in the process literally the most famous woman walking the face of the earth, yet not actually run the realistic risk of winning the presidency… what’s not to like about that?

    In essence, what this is about is how she continues to occupy the hallowed and very lucrative ground between politics and celebritydom. It’s an area she has occupied all to herself, at least until just recently when Donald Trump intruded on her, but the Donald quickly discovered how knife-edge and inherently unstable a place it is. Become a celebrity and you lose your political bonafides, get elected to political office and your celebrity (and money-earning potential) gets majorly crimped. The key is to run for office but make sure you lose every time!

    So mark my words, Press peeps. It’s going to happen, and probably soon. By the end of June, I reckon, she will announce her intention to run for President of the United States. What will be left unsaid is that she will have absolutely no intention of winning.

    With Huckabee and Trump out AND Michele Bachmann pledging to run will Sarah be able to stand it?

    Although I have said Sarah will NOT run, and her polling numbers against President Obama are horrible, I think she may be reconsidering.

    Stay tuned…….

  • Pinboard Links

    Flap’s Links and Comments for May 18th on 18:18

    These are my links for May 18th from 18:18 to 18:22:

    • Obama to Unveil New Aid Plan for Mideast – WSJ.com – President Barack Obama will announce this week a new aid plan for the Middle East and North Africa that U.S. officials say will be far bolder than previous American economic assistance to the region.

      Mr. Obama will outline the plan, which could include debt cancellation and a reprogramming of financial aid the U.S. already provides to countries like Egypt, in a speech he is scheduled to deliver Thursday at the State Department.

      Whatever aid he announces, though, is unlikely to assuage Arab governments, which had been hoping the White House would push forcibly for a resumption of Palestinian-Israeli peace talks. The president's aides say his speech will focus only briefly on the issue.

      "At the end of the day, the Palestinian cause remains a dominant issue," said a senior Arab official. "A speech by the president without addressing the conflict is unlikely to generate much enthusiasm."

      Mr. Obama met Tuesday with King Abdullah II of Jordan, who has been pressing U.S. officials to take a more aggressive role in the peace process, according to Arab diplomats.

      After the meeting, Mr. Obama said the U.S. will provide Jordan with hundreds of millions of dollars through the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, the government institution that finances and insures private business to promote economic growth. The result, according to the U.S., will be roughly $1 billion for economic activity in Jordan. The president also pledged 50,000 metric tons of wheat.

      "All of this will help to stabilize the cost of living and day-to-day situation of Jordanians and will provide a foundation so that these economic reforms can move forward and long-term development can take place," Mr. Obama said.

      The president's goal, officials said, is to give a financial boost to the political change sweeping the Mideast and North Africa, where dashed economic aspirations have fed unrest.

      ======

      Read it all.

      Good grief. What is Obama thinking?

      More monetary aid to Egypt while the USA is debt-ridden?

    • President Obama to Tell Arab World US Eager to Help Them Realize Economic and Political Dreams – On Thursday, President Obama will try to convince the Arab World that the U.S. wants to shift its engagement in the region from a military one to a political and economic engagement that will help the people of the region realize their dreams.

      “Having wound down the Iraq war and continuing to do so, and having taken out Osama bin Laden, we are beginning to turn the page to a more positive and hopeful future for U.S. policy in the region,” a senior administration official told reporters today, previewing the speech.

      Sources said President Obama will discuss Syria as a place where the Arab Spring has not been allowed to flourish, though he will not call for President Bashar al-Assad to step down – though he will mention the sanctions the U.S. imposed on him today.

      Officials said the president sees the speech as way to step back and assess the historic changes in the region and to take the opportunity to explain to the world how his administration will support the democratic aspirations of the people in the region while focusing on four core principles: 

      nonviolence,
      support for human rights,
      support for political reform, and
      support for economic reform.

      ======

      Read it all

      What about American debt doesn't Obama understand. Our own people are not working and entitlements are bankrupting us. We owe the Chinese and other countries massive amounts of money.

      How is it in our interests to help Egypt, Tunisia and Syria.

      Come on now…..this will win Obama no new American voters.

  • Donald Trump,  Herman Cain,  Mitch Daniels,  Mitt Romney,  Polling,  President 2012,  Ron Paul,  Rudy Giuliani,  Sarah Palin,  Tim Pawlenty

    President 2012 Poll Watch: Romney 20% Vs. Palin 12% Vs. Gingrich 9% Vs. Giuliani 7%

    According to the latest Suffolk University Poll.

    Favorable Vs. Unfavorable:

    • Barack Obama – 51% Vs. 42%
    • Mitt Romney –  39% Vs. 32%
    • Mitch Daniels – 10% Vs. 14% Never heard of = 46%
    • Tim Pawlenty – 18% Vs. 16% Never heard of = 38%
    • Newt Gingrich – 29% Vs. 50%
    • Michele Bachmann – 20% vs. 28% Never heard of = 30%
    • Ron Paul – 24% Vs. 34%
    • Sarah Palin – 31% Vs. 58%

    Job Approval Vs. Disapproval:

    • President Barack Obama – 47% Vs. 45%

    Do you feel that Barack Obama deserves to be re-elected or is it time to give someone else a chance?

    • Deserve Re-election – 43% 
    • Someone else – 48%

    GOP Primary Head to Head:

    • Romney – 20%
    • Palin – 12%
    • Gingrich – 9%
    • Giuliani – 7%
    • Paul – 5%
    • Daniels – 4%
    • Cain – 4%
    • Bachmann – 4%
    • Pawlenty – 3%

    General Election:

    • Obama – 46% vs. Romney – 43%
    • Obama – 47% Vs. Pawlenty – 31%
    • Obama – 50% Vs. Bachmann – 30%
    • Obama – 52% Vs. Gingrich – 38%
    • Obama – 48% Vs. Daniels – 30%

    Is the economy improving or getting worse?

    • Improving – 41%
    • Getting Worse – 46%

    This is again a national poll and it is not certain that Sarah Palin, Mitch Daniels or Rudy Giuliani will be candidates. And, the poll was taken before Huckabee and Trump dropped out.

    But, at the present time, it looks like you would have to consider Mitt Romney as the front runner.

    The nationwide survey of 1,070 United States likely voters was conducted May 10-17, 2011, using live telephone interviews. The margin of error is +/- 3.0 percent at a 95 percent level of confidence.

  • Pinboard Links

    Flap’s Links and Comments for May 18th on 11:55

    These are my links for May 18th from 11:55 to 14:23:

  • Congress,  Election 2012,  Polling

    Poll Watch: Americans Continue Anti-Incumbent Mood Against Congress

    According to the latest Gallup Poll.

    Twenty-eight percent of U.S. registered voters say most members of Congress deserve re-election, tying the low point in the trend set last year, according to a new USA Today/Gallup poll.

    In early May, Gallup found 24% of Americans approving of the job Congress is doing overall, which reflected a rally in support after the death of Osama bin Laden. Congress’ approval rating had been below 20% in March and April. Nevertheless, voters’ views of Congress in 2011 — in terms of both approval and support for most members’ re-election — are no better than they were last year, despite the great turnover in the 2010 elections that led to Republicans’ taking control of the House of Representatives.

    Since 1992, Gallup has typically found more voters saying most members of Congress do not deserve re-election than saying they do. Generally, when higher percentages of voters express these anti-incumbent sentiments, as in 1992, 1994, 2006, and 2010, there is much change in Congress’ membership at the next election.

    Why, am I not surprised?

    The American economy continues in the dire straights and people will blame their elected representatives in Congress and the President

    What is interesting is voter’s thoughts about their own Members of Congress.

    Voters are more charitable toward their own Representative with 57% saying that he or she deserves re-election – only 34% say they do not.

    So, what does this all mean?

    The anti-incumbent mood that led to sweeping changes in Congress after the 2010 elections persists, and the accompanying change in House leadership has not fundamentally altered the way Americans view Congress. Thus, incumbents remain vulnerable heading into the 2012 election cycle, though perhaps not quite as vulnerable as in 2010, given that voters are now more inclined to say their own member deserves re-election.

    All incumbent members of the House will be running in newly drawn districts in 2012, further adding to the uncertainty about their future. But significant turnover in Congress may be the “new normal” pattern, given that it has occurred in each of the last three congressional elections.

    I would say if I were a new Republican Congressman, I would run hard in their district and not take anything for granted. Voters remain unhappy and will vote you out, if they perceive you are representing yourself and not your constituents.

  • Jon Huntsman,  President 2012

    President 2012: Jon Huntsman to Adopt Florida GOP Nomination Strategy?

    Former U.S. Ambassador to China and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman applauds at the commencement ceremony at the University of South Carolina on Saturday, May 7 2011 in Columbia, S.C.

    Huntsman will be basing his campaign in Orlando, Florida and this is the speculation.

    Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman will base his presidential campaign in Orlando, Florida, if he enters the race, an aide to Huntsman confirmed to CBS News.

    The Huntsman campaign-in-waiting sees Florida as a key state in deciding the Republican presidential nominee – it’s where John McCain effectively won the nomination in 2008 – as well as in the general election, where it is expected to be a key swing state. In addition, the GOP nominating convention will be held in Tampa.

    Huntsman’s wife Mary Kaye Huntsman grew up in Orlando, and the aide noted that she still has family and friends in the area.

    Some are saying that the socially moderate Republican Huntsman cannot compete in socially conservative Iowa and South Carolina. Moreover, Huntsman may very well concede Nevada and New Hampshire (to a lesser degree) because of the strength of fellow Mormon Mitt Romney. Hence the same strategy that was disastrous for Rudy Giuliani in 2008.

    Planting a flag like that in Florida will inevitably bring comparisons (first!) to Rudy Giuliani’s late strategy, which was more an adjustment to early state weakness than a grand plan, and which didn’t work. Whatever groundwork one can lay thinly across a huge place like Florida is in danger of being washed away by the wave coming out of Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina.

    But Huntsman’s stand there (and he’s also playing aggressively in New Hampshire and South Carolina) seems to anticipate the same unusual campaign that Romney is planning for, one that’s more about weakness than strength, in which Romney limps out of the early states wounded but breathing, and facing a rival who simply can’t keep up with his spending through the long march of the first half of 2008. Huntsman may also be able to spend a lot, if not Romney money, and seems also the bracing for a long march.

    What is different this time is that Huntsman, unlike Giuliani, is planning 2012 as his first or a trial run for the Presidency. If lightening strikes and he wins the nomination (probably due to some blow up of Romney, Daniels and Pawlenty) great, if not plan for the future run. Florida is an important state, one in which television media will be in play. Florida will be just as important in 2016 and beyond as it is today.

    And, who knows, if Huntsman does well enough, he could be picked as a Vice President candidate.

    It is all about the future with Jon Huntsman.

  • Pinboard Links

    Flap’s Links and Comments for May 18th on 11:48

    These are my links for May 18th from 11:48 to 11:52:

    • Why Is Soros Spending Over $48 Million Funding Media Organizations? – It’s a scene journalists dream about – a group of coworkers toasting a Pulitzer Prize. For the team at investigative start-up ProPublica, it was the second time their fellow professionals recognized their work for journalism’s top honor.

      For George Soros and ProPublica’s other liberal backers, it was again proof that a strategy of funding journalism was a powerful way to influence the American public.

      It’s a strategy that Soros has been deploying extensively in media both in the United States and abroad. Since 2003, Soros has spent more than $48 million funding media properties, including the infrastructure of news – journalism schools, investigative journalism and even industry organizations.

      And that number is an understatement. It is gleaned from tax forms, news stories and reporting. But Soros funds foundations that fund other foundations in turn, like the Tides Foundation, which then make their own donations. A complete accounting is almost impossible because a media component is part of so many Soros-funded operations.
      This information is part of an upcoming report by the Media Research Centers Business & Media Institute which has been looking into George Soros and his influence on the media.

      It turns out that Soros’ influence doesn’t just include connections to top mainstream news organizations such as NBC, ABC, The New York Times and Washington Post. It’s bought him connections to the underpinnings of the news business. The Columbia Journalism Review, which bills itself as “a watchdog and a friend of the press in all its forms,” lists several investigative reporting projects funded by one of Soros foundations.

      The “News Frontier Database” includes seven different investigative reporting projects funded by Soros’ Open Society Institute. Along with ProPublica, there are the Center for Public Integrity, the Center for Investigative Reporting and New Orleans’ The Lens. The Columbia School of Journalism, which operates CJR, has received at least $600,000 from Soros, as well.

      Imagine if conservative media punching bags David and Charles Koch had this many connections to journalists. Even if the Kochs could find journalists willing to support conservative media (doubtful), they would be skewered by the left.

      ======

      Read it all…

      Indeed the Kochs would be skewered.

    • Why Don’t We Hear About Soros’ Ties to Over 30 Major News Organizations? – When liberal investor George Soros gave $1.8 million to National Public Radio , it became part of the firestorm of controversy that jeopardized NPR’s federal funding. But that gift only hints at the widespread influence the controversial billionaire has on the mainstream media. Soros, who spent $27 million trying to defeat President Bush in 2004, has ties to more than 30 mainstream news outlets – including The New York Times, Washington Post, the Associated Press, NBC and ABC.

      Prominent journalists like ABC’s Christiane Amanpour and former Washington Post editor and now Vice President Len Downie serve on boards of operations that take Soros cash. This despite the Society of Professional Journalists' ethical code stating: “avoid all conflicts real or perceived.”

      This information is part of an upcoming report by the Media Research Centers Business & Media Institute which has been looking into George Soros and his influence on the media.

      The investigative reporting start-up ProPublica is a prime example. ProPublica, which recently won its second Pulitzer Prize, initially was given millions of dollars from the Sandler Foundation to “strengthen the progressive infrastructure” – “progressive” being the code word for very liberal. In 2010, it also received a two-year contribution of $125,000 each year from the Open Society Foundations. In case you wonder where that money comes from, the OSF website is www.soros.org. It is a network of more than 30 international foundations, mostly funded by Soros, who has contributed more than $8 billion to those efforts.

      ====

      Read it all

  • Mitch Daniels,  Mitt Romney,  President 2012,  Tim Pawlenty

    President 2012: GOP Elite Favor Mitch Daniels?

    President Barack Obama is greeted by Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels as he steps off Air Force One in Indianapolis, Ind., Friday, May 6, 2011

    Or, see Mitch Daniels as the GOP 2012 Savior?

    Top Republicans are increasingly convinced that President Barack Obama will be easily reelected if stronger GOP contenders do not emerge, and some are virtually begging Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels to add some excitement to the slow-starting nomination race.

    It’s a sign of the GOP’s straits that the party is depending on the bland, wonkish Daniels for an adrenaline boost.

    But interviews this week with longtime party activists and strategists made clear that many in the Republican establishment are unnerved by a field led by Mitt Romney, who could have trouble confronting Obama on health reform; Tim Pawlenty, who has yet to ignite excitement; Jon Huntsman, who may be too moderate to get the nomination; and Newt Gingrich, weighed down by personal baggage and a sense that he is a polarizing figure from the 1990s.

    Despairing Republican lobbyists say their colleagues don’t ask, “Who do you like?” but instead, “Who do we back?”

    “It’s not that they’re up in arms,” said a central player in the GOP money machine. “It’s just that they’re depressed.”

    And a huge swath of operatives, donors and strategists remain uncommitted, in the hope that the field is not yet set.

    The fact is Mitch Daniels is being helped by Jeb Bush and the Karl Rove/Bush family GOP machine. Daniels is the anti-Romney and the GOP field is better with him in the race. He will announce within a few weeks.

    Daniels is an accomplished two-term GOP Governor in a midwestern state that President Barack Obama won in 2008. His political narrative will play well in the key battleground states where the GOP will confront Obama’s re-election juggernaut.

    The field is starting to shape up: Romney, Pawlenty, Daniels – all capable, non-damaged, accomplished Governors. If one of these fails, then the bench includes Chris Christie and/or Paul Ryan.

    Prospects are looking better to beat Barack Obama next year.

  • Day By Day,  Mitch Daniels

    Day By Day May 16, 2011 – Target Practice

    Day By Day by Chris Muir

    The GOP Presidential season has started for Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels with various conservative pundits taking their shots at him. Here is one.

    And, here is the story about the case.

    People have no right to resist if police officers illegally enter their home, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled in a decision that overturns centuries of common law.

    The court issued its 3-2 ruling on Thursday, contending that allowing residents to resist officers who enter their homes without any right would increase the risk of violent confrontation. If police enter a home illegally, the courts are the proper place to protest it, Justice Steven David said.

    “We believe … a right to resist an unlawful police entry into a home is against public policy and is incompatible with modern Fourth Amendment jurisprudence,” David said. “We also find that allowing resistance unnecessarily escalates the level of violence and therefore the risk of injuries to all parties involved without preventing the arrest.”

    Justices Robert Rucker and Brent Dickson strongly dissented, saying the ruling runs afoul of the U.S. Constitution’s Fourth Amendment against unreasonable search and seizure, The Times of Munster reported.

    “In my view the majority sweeps with far too broad a brush by essentially telling Indiana citizens that government agents may now enter their homes illegally — that is, without the necessity of a warrant, consent or exigent circumstances,” Rucker said.

    Both dissenting justices suggested they would have supported the ruling if the court had limited its scope to stripping the right to resist officers who enter homes illegally in cases where they suspect domestic violence is being committed.

    But Dickson said, “The wholesale abrogation of the historic right of a person to reasonably resist unlawful police entry into his dwelling is unwarranted and unnecessarily broad.”

    Likely, this decision may very well go up on a federal court appeal on Constitutional grounds. But, whether it does or not, I caution folks to make sweeping generalizations about Mitch Daniels and his appointment of Justice Steven David from a list of three candidates presented him.

    In 1970, the Indiana Constitution was amended to create the Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission.  By Constitution and statute, the Nominating Commission is charged with vetting applications and submitting a list of the three most qualified applicants to the Governor for each vacancy that occurs on the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, or Tax Court.  The Governor then appoints an individual from that list to fill the vacancy.

    Previous:

    The Day By Day Archive