• President 2012,  Rick Perry

    President 2012: Rick Perry Can’t Remember the Federal Agencies He Wants to Cut

    Texas Governor Rick Perry has a lapse of memory during tonight’s CNBC Presidential Debate

    Rick Perry’s campaign for President imploded tonight with his lapse of memory as to which federal agencies he would cut. The answer he is grasping for  = Department of Energy.

    AllahPundit over at Hot Air has the quotes:

    • To my memory, Perry’s forgetfulness is the most devastating moment of any modern primary debate – Larry Sabato
    • That might be the most uncomfortable moment I’ve ever witnessed in presidential politics – Rich Lowry
    • That was the greatest flame-out I’ve ever witnessed in a debate – Mona Charon
    • WaPo’s Aaron Blake tweets: “Top Perry fundraiser to me: ‘Perry campaign is over. Time for him to go home and refocus on being Gov of TX.’”

    And, Perry’s retort after the debate: 

    “I’m sure glad I had my boots on because I sure stepped in it out there.”

    Put a fork in Rick Perry – He’s Done!

  • Polling,  President 2012

    President 2012 GOP Florida Poll Watch: Cain 30% Vs. Romney 24% Vs. Gingrich 19%

    According to the latest Rasmussen Poll.

    As he continues to battle media coverage over past sexual harassment allegations, businessman Herman Cain leads other Republican hopefuls in the first Rasmussen Reports look at the GOP primary race in Florida.

    The latest statewide telephone survey of Likely Republican Primary voters shows Cain with 30% support while former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney picks up 24% of the vote. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich draws support from 19% of Florida GOP voters with no other candidate picking up double-digits.

    This Florida survey of 788 Likely Republican Primary Voters was conducted on November 8, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.

    Note the rise of Newt Gingrich. When Cain ultimately falls, I believe Newt will be left to duke it out with Romney.

  • Polling,  President 2012

    President 2012 GOP South Carolina Poll Watch: Romney 22% Vs. Cain 20% Vs. Gingrich 10% Vs. Perry 9%

    According to the latest Clemson Palmetto Poll.

    Two months short of the state’s Jan. 21, 2012, presidential primary, South Carolina voters are unsure of who is the best GOP candidate to support. 

    That’s the finding of the just-completed Clemson University 2012 Palmetto Poll of a sample of 600 likely voters. The S.C. presidential primary is expected to draw 600,000 voters early next year.

     “What South Carolinians think and who they back is historically important,” said Clemson University political scientist Dave Woodard. “Since 1980, the winner of the GOP South Carolina Primary has won the Republican nomination for president every time.”

     Nearly 70 percent (68 percent) of those polled had not yet decided on a candidate and a similar number said they were most likely to change their minds between now and January when they do have a choice.

     “This indicates the electorate is still fluid,” said Clemson political scientist Bruce Ransom.

     Among respondents who had chosen a candidate, the Palmetto Poll showed Mitt Romney (22 percent) and Herman Cain (20 percent) leading the field. The third-place candidate was Newt Gingrich (10 percent), followed by Rick Perry (9 percent).

    The remaining candidates finished with single-digit percentages: Ron Paul (3 percent), Michelle Bachmann (3 percent), Rick Santorum (1 percent) and Jon Huntsman (1 percent).

    This is anyone’s race and Romney will face off with whomever survives Iowa, and New Hampshire.

  • Herman Cain,  President 2012

    President 2012 GOP Poll Watch: 51 Per Cent Say Accusations Against Herman Cain Likely Serious and True

    According to the latest Rasmussen Poll.

    Most voters now say that the sexual harassment allegations made against Herman Cain may be both serious and true. At the same time, two-thirds believe Cain’s ethics are at least as good as most politicians. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 51% of voters nationwide say it is at least somewhat likely the allegations against Cain are both serious and true.

    The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on November 7-8, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.

    I tweeted yesterday that it was my opinion that Herman Cain was DONE.

    I think you can say that American voters agree.

    Put a fork in Herman Cain – He’s DONE.

  • Pinboard Links,  The Morning Flap

    The Morning Flap: November 9, 2011

    These are my links for November 8th through November 9th:

    • Court will draw Texas map in boon to Democrats – In a boost to Democrats’ chances of retaking the House next year, federal judges in Texas will draw a map for the state’s 2012 congressional races.

      A Washington, D.C., federal court on Tuesday declined to sign off on redistricting plan spearheaded by the state Republican Party. The D.C. court ruled that the Republican line-drawers “used an improper standard or methodology to determine which districts afford minority voters the ability to elect their preferred candidates of choice.”

      The decision means the issue is headed for a lengthy court battle, which, in turn, means the map won’t be ready in time for the 2012 election. Because of this, the DC court tasked a panel of federal judges in San Antonio to draw an interim 2012 map — which could lead to significant Democratic gains — by the end of the month.

      “This most likely means three additional Democratic seats in Texas,” said former congressman Martin Frost (D), a victim of the GOP’s last redistricting map. “The GOP overreached one time too often in Texas.”

      Republicans had drafted a map on which they would likely win three of the four new seats the state is gaining in reapportionment — despite already having a 23-to-9 edge in the state’s congressional delegation and much of the state’s growth over the last decade occurring among minority communities.

      Democrats say a court-drawn map could net them an extra two or three seats in Congress, bringing their gains to three or four seats and reducing GOP gains to one or zero seats. Republicans expect the new map to include one new GOP seat and three new Democratic ones.

      Democrats nationally need to win 25 seats to retake the majority.

    • David Gregory: No “Grand Wizard” In GOP To Force Cain Out – On Wednesday’s “Today” show, host of NBC’s “Meet the Press” David Gregory says there is no “Grand Wizard” right now in the GOP to “force” Cain out of the primary. Transcript below:

      Ann Curry, NBC News: “He’s not stepping down, continuing to suck the air out of the narrative the Republican party really wants to tell. Does the party now wish he would just go away?”

      David Gregory, NBC News: “Well there is no, you know, Grand Wizard in the party right now who can really force the issue. I’ve talked to Cain’s advisers in Iowa, they think their support is still strong there, that it’s not falling. There may be cracks in the foundation according to pollsters I’m talking to, that his numbers may be starting to shift but right now core support remains there.”

      UPDATE: David Gregory has apologized and tweeted the following: “‘Wizard’ remark this morning was a very poor choice of words. Did not mean to make that connection at all. Was not thinking. I apologize”

    • Ohio Voters Choose To Opt Out Of Health Care Mandate – Voters in Ohio have approved a ballot measure intended to keep government from requiring Ohioans to participate in any health care system.

      The constitutional amendment passed is largely symbolic, coming in response to the 2009 federal health care overhaul, a provision of which mandates that most Americans purchase health care.

      Supporters hope it will prompt a challenge of the overhaul before the U.S. Supreme Court.

      The tea party and Republican groups backing the amendment say the Affordable Care Act was an overreach by the Obama administration and Congress.

      They hope approval of the ballot issue will bar Ohio from instituting a state-mandated health insurance program like that of Massachusetts.

      Opponents argued state law can’t trump federal law and that the amendment’s wording could unintentionally jeopardize state health programs.

    • Cain aide wrongly insists they’ve ‘confirmed’ accuser’s son works for POLITICO – Herman Cain campaign manager Mark Block, in an appearance with Sean Hannity on Fox News just now, insisted that a relative of the second woman to publicly accuse the candidate of sexual harassment in the 1990s works at POLITICO.

      “Her son works at POLITICO,” Block said of Karen Kraushaar, whose name POLITICO printed earlier today after other media outlets made her identity public.
      Continue Reading

      “I’ve been hearing that all day – you’ve confirmed that now?” Hannity asked.

      “We’ve confirmed that he does indeed work at POLITICO and that’s his mother, yes,” said Block.

      Block appeared to be referring to former POLITICO reporter Josh Kraushaar, who left for another outlet, National Journal, in 2010.

      Josh Kraushaar tweeted earlier in the day, apparently after getting questions, that he’s in fact not related to Karen Kraushaar, and simply has the same last name.

    • Herman Cain Accuser filed complaint in next job – A woman who settled a sexual harassment complaint against GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain in 1999 complained three years later at her next job about unfair treatment, saying she should be allowed to work from home after a serious car accident and accusing a manager of circulating a sexually charged email, The Associated Press has learned.

      Karen Kraushaar, 55, filed the complaint while working as a spokeswoman at the Immigration and Naturalization Service in the Justice Department in late 2002 or early 2003, with the assistance of her lawyer, Joel Bennett, who also handled her earlier sexual harassment complaint against Cain in 1999. Three former supervisors familiar with Kraushaar’s complaint, which did not include a claim of sexual harassment, described it for the AP under condition of anonymity because the matter was handled internally by the agency and was not public.

      To settle the complaint at the immigration service, Kraushaar initially demanded thousands of dollars in payment, a reinstatement of leave she used after the accident earlier in 2002, promotion on the federal pay scale and a one-year fellowship to Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, according to a former supervisor familiar with the complaint. The promotion itself would have increased her annual salary between $12,000 and $16,000, according to salary tables in 2002 from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

      Kraushaar told the AP she considered her employment complaint “relatively minor” and she later dropped it.

    • Craig Huey to Run for Office in 2012 – AD 66? » Flap’s California Blog – Craig Huey to announce candidacy for California AD-66? #tcot #catcot #teaparty
    • Flap’s Dentistry Blog: The Morning Drill: November 9, 2011 – The Morning Drill: November 9, 2011
    • Day By Day November 9, 2011 – Pussies | Flap’s Blog – FullosseousFlap’s Dental Blog – Day By Day November 9, 2011 – Pussies #tcot #catcot
    • @Flap Twitter Updates for 2011-11-09 | Flap’s Blog – FullosseousFlap’s Dental Blog – @Flap Twitter Updates for 2011-11-09 #tcot #catcot
    • Banning Soda at School Ineffective In Curbing Consumption? | Smiles For A Lifetime – Temporary (Locum Tenens) Dentistry – Banning Soda at School Ineffective In Curbing Consumption?
    • Dilbert November 8, 2011 – The Lie » Flap’s California Blog – Dilbert November 8, 2011 – The Lie
    • The Afternoon and Evening Flap: November 8, 2011 | Flap’s Blog – FullosseousFlap’s Dental Blog – The Afternoon and Evening Flap: November 8, 2011 #tcot #catcot
  • Day By Day,  Fast and Furious,  Sharyl Attkisson

    Day By Day November 9, 2011 – Pussies

    Day By Day by Chris Muir

    Most of the Lamesream media slants to the LEFT and they are very protective of the Obama Presidency.

    But, there is some hope, Chris: CBS News Reporter: WH, DOJ Screamed At Me Over Fast And Furious

    Laura Ingraham, host: “So they were literally screaming at you?”

    Sharyl Attkisson, CBS News: “Yes. Well the DOJ woman was just yelling at me. The guy from the White House on Friday night literally screamed at me and cussed at me.”

    Ingraham: “Who was the person? Who was the person at Justice screaming?”

    Attkisson: “Eric Schultz. Oh, the person screaming was [DOJ spokeswoman] Tracy Schmaler, she was yelling not screaming. And the person who screamed at me was Eric Schultz at the White House…….They say the Washington Post, the LA Times is reasonable, the New York Times is reasonable. I’m the only one who thinks this is a story, and they think I’m unfair and biased by pursuing it. My side of the story is I never knew where this story was going when I talked to those whistleblowers back in January and February, and I didn’t care where it went. I’m just sort of digging away and going where it leads, but I’m sure they take it very personally because they have very important implications.”

    Indeed, this cat is out of the bag…..

  • Twitter

    @Flap Twitter Updates for 2011-11-09

    • Karen Kraushaar, second Cain accuser wants 'joint press conference' http://t.co/GABaLZZt #
    • Poll: Cain favorability slips with Republicans as allegations mount – The Hill's Blog Briefing Room http://t.co/IFdnWmoO #
    • Poll: Cain favorability slips with Republicans as allegations mount http://t.co/DrCEwlVx #
    • OK, time for a nice 3 mile walk……have to cool off from all of the Twitter heat from the Herman Cain implosion. #
    • @tom19803 Oh….. in reply to tom19803 #
    • @retiredchiefANG Oh please…. the Democrats are sooooo organized. in reply to retiredchiefANG #
    • @AakashRaut In 2008 I backed Rudy Giuliani. No choice in 2012, so far. in reply to AakashRaut #
    • Newt Gingrich e-mail fundraisers just got overtime….. a lot of it! #
    • The problem Herman is that most people in their lives do not have any sexual harassment claims against them and you have 4-5 and counting #
    • I wonder what all of Herman Cain's donors are thinking now? I know – stop the check quick! #
    • OK with this pretty much done, can we bet on what the closing song will be? Who has the Over? Under? #
    • I think based on this performance, we can pretty much say that Cain is done – put a fork in him….Perry and Gingrich #Winning #
    • RT @RobStutzman: oh that's bright….defend men who are harassed by women in the workplace. #
    • Herman Cain is willing to take lie detector test but won't….unless it suits him….. then the answer is NO #
    • Herman Cain says he is willing to take a lie detector test….. #
    • Herman Cain's management of this crisis will be a case study for PR classes for decades = what NOT to do. #
    • How long before Allred releases photo of Cain and Bialek….1…2……3 #
    • Hey Herman, you willing to take a lie detector test? #
    • >Uh Oh! RT @FixRachel: RT @DanFosterNRO: Herman, you didn't see her for the first time at the presser. There's pics of you hugging her. #
    • Herman Cain- what is up with the third person…..? #
    • Good grief a slick lawyer introduces Herman Cain….. let's hope no singing at the end…. #
    • Waiting for the Cain presser to begin – Oh Boy! #
    • (403) http://t.co/uGvIJk1U... http://t.co/BZ3Fv7ZJ #
    • President 2012: Let’s Get this Done http://t.co/7xfDTp6L #tcot #catcot #
    • NBC to Air ‘The Biggest Loser: Where Are They Now” Special on Wednesday, November 23 http://t.co/WfPogPTm #
    • Cain surrogate warns "elites in conservative media" http://t.co/58Lp7S3W #
    • Herman Cain accuser has history of financial troubles, legal squabbles http://t.co/Zdl1nql5 #
    • Cain attacks accuser, cites woman's 'long and troubled history' http://t.co/5GLtk0ME #
    • RT @politico: From @aburnspolitico: The Cain camp launches a lengthy attack via email on Sharon Bialek — http://t.co/Fpm7C02G #
    • Cain Accuser: ‘SHE IS VERY RELIABLE’ http://t.co/pTCPXxv7 #
    • Mitt Romney Winning Fundraising Contest For Bush, McCain Bundlers http://t.co/iktfckOy #
    • NJ Gov. Christie heads to NH to campaign for Mitt Romney http://t.co/KCScIWkz #
    • The Morning Flap: November 8, 2011 http://t.co/5YvSq0HI #tcot #catcot #
    • The Morning Drill: November 8, 2011 http://t.co/7JrjuenQ #
    • 39% Think Cain Allegations True, 24% False http://t.co/TK1zGtIz #
    • Video: Carly Fiorina Speaks at Americans United for Life 40th Anniversary Gala | Flap's Blog – FullosseousFlap's… http://t.co/7LSNtpSR #
    • Day By Day November 8, 2011 – Tech Support | Flap's Blog – FullosseousFlap's Dental Blog http://t.co/lOHSfdV0 #
    • FWIW: Herman Cain presser will be at 5PM Eastern time today. #
    • Video: Carly Fiorina Speaks at Americans United for Life 40th Anniversary Gala http://t.co/q1C0V55v #tcot #catcot #
    • @LeaPea2417 OK, but do you have any evidence.?I think we have to wait for Herman Cain to answer the charges this AM. in reply to LeaPea2417 #
    • Day By Day November 8, 2011 – Tech Support http://t.co/gwxSVZBU #tcot #catcot #
    • Gingrich Gains 21 Points on Obama among Independents | http://t.co/XXyAQxd2 #
    • Cain Visits Jimmy Kimmel; Will Address 4th Accuser in Presser Tuesday http://t.co/KNGsHZSw #
    • Report: Cain sought dinner date with fifth woman http://t.co/T9gpIYd6 #
    • Happy Tuesday: Run like hell and get the agony over with. –Clarence DeMar #
    • > Indeed congrats Mindy RT @KevinMaddenDC Congrats to @mindyfinnhttp://t.co/nky9qAVH” #
    • RT @HotlineReid CNN: Largest campaign staff in South Carolina belongs to … Newt Gingrich? #tcot #
    • @Flap Twitter Updates for 2011-11-08 http://t.co/tswFD3TK #tcot #catcot #
    • @LeaPea2417 No, I would say Rick Perry or Mitt Romney but probably Perry upon reflection. in reply to LeaPea2417 #

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