Newt Watch - Cashing In On Rush Limbaugh's "Slut-Shaming"

March 4th, 2012

Image via

Well, even after the fat man issued his phony apology, there was at least one politician who sought to gain some advantage by dragging himself through Rush's snail-stain.

The National Journal reports:

"Newt Gingrich on Saturday used the flap over Rush Limbaugh's controversial denunciations of Sandra Fluke as a way to attack President Obama for acting "opportunistically" when he called the Georgetown University law student to express his disappointment over Limbaugh's comments.

After Limbaugh described Fluke as a “slut” and “prostitute” for advocating for subsidizing birth control, Obama contacted Fluke personally. Numerous conservatives and other GOP presidential candidates have rebuked the conservative broadcaster to varying degrees, but the former House speaker said he saw the issue much differently.

"I think the president will opportunistically do anything he can," Gingrich said in response to a reporter’s question after a rally in Hamilton. "I think the most important use of language in the last week has been the president's apology to religious fanatics, and I want to stay focused on what the president has said, and I think what he said was inexcusable and is exactly the wrong policy at a time of life and death, and playing political games is irrelevant as far as I'm concerned."

My first reaction is to suggest that Gingrich, with this act of opportunism, is the last person who should accuse anyone else of behaving "opportunistically."

What's really illuminating here is that he attempted to use the vile spectacle while simultaneously framing it as no big deal.

Another GOP Debate... Again

Feb 23rd, 2012

I didn't have the stomach to liveblog last night's angry-white-man-distortion-fest. Sullivan, whether to his credit or as a sign that he really is a masochist, did so HERE. His takeaway:

"Maybe I've lost my mind after all these debates, or maybe I secretly want him to win (because he would finally expose all the insanity that has been building in this party and needs venting). But I thought Santorum was on form tonight. My sense is that he will not lose his current momentum after tonight. I didn't feel Newt tonight. Romney doesn't wear well. Paul was great and funny and human.

But there was a winner, it seems to me. He's in the White House."

Yup.

Romney Watch - Et Tu, Mittens?

Feb 22nd, 2012

by F. Grey Parker

Barry Goldwater once said, 

"Religious factions will go on imposing their will on others unless the decent people connected to them recognize that religion has no place in public policy. They must learn to make their views known without trying to make their views the only alternatives."

My. How things have changed.

There was a time when I had some regard for Mitt Romney. He once seemed contemplative and fair. There is plenty in his record to respect no matter how much he's running from it lately.

But that's just it... he's really running from it. What's more, what he is running to is un-American.

A few months ago, he was not just the GOP elite establishment's choice. He also seemed the smart choice. Not anymore.

I believe that yesterday, Romney not only sealed the fate of his campaign but also that of his party.

Newt Watch - Turning Up The Crazy

Feb 13th, 2012

Image via Salon

It's understandable, I suppose, that Gingrich would be trying to beat Rick "Crazy-Pants" Santorum at his own game. After all, Santorum's star seems to be rising with the GOP base in direct proportion to his widening orbit away from both reality and decency.

But, two of Newt's recent statements are particularly unbelievable:

Defeating President Obama is now "a duty of national security" because "he is incapable of defending the United States."

Uh huh. Tell that to Qaddafi and Bin Laden.

Even more rich is this gem from Raw Story:

"At a campaign event in Suwanee, Georgia, the former House Speaker told supporters that he would bring back cheaper gas because "you can’t put a gun rack on a Volt."

Hee haw.

Dominionists On Parade

Feb 21st, 2012

Well, Franklin Graham certainly distinguished himself this morning. Appering on Joe Scarborough's show, he openly questioned the faith of the sitting President and smeared the Mormon faith. Graham said at one point that because Brack Obama's father was a Muslim, "Islam regards him as a son of Islam."  He also makes sure to remind the audience, several times, of Obama's attendance at services in Jeremiah Wright's church.

No dog whistles there.

Coversely, he declared that there is "no question about" whether Rick Santorum is a Christian. What's more, he makes no bones about his trust in Newt (the prevaricating philanderer) Gingrich's faith.

The panel was justifiably shocked. A visibly angry Willie Geist shot back at one point, "So, Newt Gingrich is a Christian, but you’re not sure that President Obama is?"

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

The GOP's Ala Carte Religious War

Feb 12th, 2012

Juan Cole takes aim at the hypocrisy of the GOP's Dominionist darlings:

"The right wing Republican politicians who have been denouncing the requirement that female employees have access to birth control as part of their health benefits as an attack on religious freedom completely ignore the church teachings they don’t agree with. Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich are both Catholics, and wear their faith on their sleeves, but they are hypocritical in picking and choosing when they wish to listen to the bishops."

By ignoring the Catholic Church's opposition to pre-emptive war and the death penalty as well as their support for expansion of welfare programs and organized labor - all argued in the name of theological duty - the candidates have demonstrated a conveniently narrow interest in "protecting" religion in public life.

CPAC Round Up, cont...

Feb 11th, 2012
The day 1 round up is HERE

The Presidential contenders arrived and gave their speeches yesterday.

Newt Gingrich brought the crowd to their feet by attacking unemployment insurance, going so far as to call it a "violation of the Declaration of Independence." We're aren't making this up.


Rick Santorum continued his crusade against the evils of birth control and further ginned up the controversy over insuring women's health with an argument that should make every educated human being shake their head in disbelief:

"...here is what they are forcing them to do, in an insurance policy, they or forcing them to pay for something that costs just a few dollars. Is that what insurance is for?"

Igor Volsky responds:

"In reality, oral contraceptives or “The Pill” range between $35 and $250 for the initial provider visit and the cost of a monthly supply of pills ranges between $15 and $50 a month, which amounts to between $180 and $600 a year depending on woman’s medical coverage. This means some women without insurance coverage for contraception may pay over $850 the first year of their prescription. Other forms of birth control are far more expensive. For instance, the cost for a monthly supply of birth control patches ranges from $15 to $80 dollars, or between $180 and $960 a year. Combined with the doctors visit, uninsured women could spend over $1,200 dollars in the first year."

Ron Paul, the unlikely star of CPACs past, was noticeably absent from his year's festivities. However, he sent his son in do some dirty work for him.

Which brings us to the "frontrunner."

Mitt Romney gave a speech that addressed the burning issue of our time; No, not the ongoing economic decline of the middle class. As everyone at CPAC knows, the real threat to America is "the gay." Bragging about having used an early 20th Century law originally intended to prevent interracial marriage in his fight against marriage equality today, he said:

"On my watch, we fought hard and prevented Massachusetts from becoming the Las Vegas of gay marriage. When I am president, I will defend the Defense of Marriage Act, and I will fight for an amendment to our Constitution that defines marriage as a relationship between a man and a woman."

Although Ron Paul won the previous two CPAC presidential straw polls, the powers that be gave Mitt Romney the victory today with 38% of the vote. Santorum was a close second with 31%.

President Of The Moon

Feb 5th, 2012

SNL has some fun

The Nevada Caucus And Beyond

Feb 5th, 2012

I am not sure this is actually even news but, yes, Mitt Romney won yesterday's Nevada GOP Caucus. Thanks in no small part to a huge turnout of Mormon voters (roughly 25% of ballots cast) and a ground game he's had in place since before the last Presidential election, there is no surprise in this. It's worth noting that Romney actually received less votes than he did when he took the state in 2008. This exposes the serious disgruntlement among the rank and file that the GOP establishment continues to fail to address.

How Newt Gingrich proceeds, along with his increasingly complicated motivations, is a more interesting story. As Reuters reports, he's still showing no signs of pulling out:

"I'm not going to withdraw," Gingrich told reporters, repeating his frequent vow to continue all the way to the Republican nominating convention in Florida in August. "I'm actually pretty happy with where we are."

Newt Gingrich... Zombie?

Feb 1st, 2012

Good Stuff

Mitt Wins Big

Feb 1st, 2012

Boy, was I wrong about Florida. Although I was certain Mitt would take the win and, with it, all of the delegates, I was convinced that older GOP voters and early voting would produce a much narrower margin than the most recent polls were showing. In fact, the opposite proved to be true.

Having lost by nearly fifteen points, Newt has pivoted, again, to what was only recently the kind of argument we hear from Democrats; That is, that money basically bought the Romney team's victory. The thing is, he has a point. Just as he was correct in arguing that Bain Capital's methods were somewhat dubious (the latest example is HERE), the degree to which vastly larger amounts of money and negative advertising by Romney and his backers made this victory can't be understated.

The Guardian's Ewan MacAskill noted the disproportion last Friday:

"On television stations from Jacksonville in the north to Key West in the south, as well as radio stations, negative ads about Gingrich are near unavoidable, paid for either directly by the Romney campaign or by the super-PACs supporting him. The television spots, popping up regularly between ads for carpets, weather-resistant paint and holidays, focus on Gingrich's tempestuous years as House Speaker and ends with a picture of him with Obama, saying "If Newt wins, this guy (Obama) will be very happy."

The radio ad claim Gingrich has "more baggage than airlines".

Gingrich ads by comparison seem sparse, with a ratio that feels closer to six in one. Gingrich describes himself in the ads as the "true conservative". In another ad, yet to be broadcast, he accuses Romney of lying five times in the CNN debate on Thursday in Jacksonville, Florida"

In the end, Romney took 46.4% of the GOP primary votes. Gingrich had 31.9%, Santorum had 13.4% and Ron Paul eked out a mere 7.0% with all the ballots counted.

Here's where things are getting interesting and somewhat reminiscent of the bruising battle the Democrats fought among themselves in 1980... No one is pulling out of this race. At least, not yet.

Rachel Rose Hartman reports:

"Gingrich claimed Tuesday's results solidified the 2012 primary as a "two-man race" between a "conservative leader" and a "Massachusetts moderate." He vowed to remain in the race for the duration.

"We are going to contest every place, and we are going to win, and we will be in Tampa as the nominee in August," Gingrich said, speaking from his Florida headquarters in Orlando. Gingrich claimed he will show how "people power" can defeat "money" in this race.

Gingrich also announced that he will soon release a new version of the Republicans' 1994 "Contract with America," which Gingrich helped author.

In Las Vegas, despite his third place finish, Santorum vowed Tuesday night to remain in the race. He called on his competitors to focus on issues instead of "mud wrestling."

While I predict Santorum will cave no later than Super Tuesday, there is every reason to believe that Paul and Gingrich will, as they say, "take this all the way to the convention."

Paul's motives are still clearly a desire to force certain concepts into the debate. Newt, however, has a renewed lust for vengeance. It's in the core of his nature.

David Corn agrees:

"Thirty-four years ago, Newt Gingrich summed it up. In a speech to College Republicans—shortly before he would win his first election to Congress—the future speaker had a piece of fundamental advice for the young and impressionable GOPers: "I think one of the great problems we have in the Republican party is that we don't encourage you to be nasty. We encourage you to be neat, obedient, and loyal, and faithful and all those Boy Scout words."

Nasty—that was a critical component of Gingrich's formula for political success. And through the 1980s and 1990s, as Gingrich wielded his nastiness to overturn the Democratic order in Congress and seize the people's House for the GOP, he was hailed by Republicans."

While Corn seems less convinced than I that Newt will refuse to bow out before the convention, he's correct in seeing the next few weeks as likely to be even more vicious and unrelenting than anything we've seen so far.

Grab the popcorn and get ready to duck.

Palin Backs Newt - Hilarity Ensues

Jan 30th, 2012

Yup, by golly. Governor half-term is telling everyone to cast a vote for Newt in the Florida GOP primary to, and I quote, "annoy a liberal." This leads me to believe that her insulation from liberals is absolute as they almost uniformly are salivating at the prospect of a Gingrich candidacy.



You know who really is annoyed? Her loyal followers on Facebook. You betcha.

Newt's Florida Misfortunes

Jan 30th, 2012

Jonathan Capehart is apparently enjoying every minute of it:

"Hearing Newt Gingrich’s belly-aching about his treatment at the hands of Mitt Romney’s campaign — a stellar two-pronged attack, if they may say so themselves, which they do — caused me to suffer a severe case of schadenfreude. Giggling over someone else’s misfortune is not very kind, and also bad for one’s own karma. But Gingrich is an exception to that rule."

I was thinking the same thing. For "Newt The Destroyer" to be lamenting tactics is a hoot.

Will Newt Score An Upset?

Jan 30th, 2012

As tomorrow's Florida Primary approaches, the conventional wisdom is that Romney is going to blow his opposition, principally Newt Gingrich, out of the water. The latest polling shows a more than 10 point lead for Mitt. There is some truth to Newt's accusation that the Romney camp has been "carpet-bombing" that state with negative ads. The latest data shows Gingrich having been outspent 5 to 1 according to TPM:

"...the total ad spending through Tuesday in Florida by the Romney campaign and its allied super PAC, Restore Our Future, is $15,340,000. The total spending for Gingrich’s campaign and his super PAC, Winning Our Future, is $3,390,000."

I think the final tallies tomorrow could be surprising. Walter Shapiro makes the  case for an upset driven by Florida's elderly GOP base:

"Up until now, Gingrich has been especially successful at appealing to the I-remember-the-invasion-of-Grenada voting bloc. In Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, according to exit polls, there was a powerful, but little-noticed, straight-line trend—the older the voter, the higher the level of Gingrich support. Since Gingrich finished fourth in both Iowa and New Hampshire, this age skew did not fit into a convenient campaign narrative. But in South Carolina, it was key to the Newtonian bomb that leveled the political landscape and sent the GOP establishment into full panic. Gingrich support in the January 21 primary rose from 28 percent among the small slice of under-30 votes to 40 percent among middle-aged Republicans to 47 percent among South Carolina voters mature enough to collect Medicare."

The GOP base is angry and fracturing. In Florida, it is also demographically older than the previous state contests.

If the eleventh hour passes prior to the casting of ballots and Newt doesn't have some extra trick up his sleeve, I think Mitt will still take it. However, I also the margins will be substantially tighter than they look right now.

Most Hilarious Headline Of The Year So Far...

Jan 29th, 2012

Yup. It's real. Via TPM:

Feel free to make up your own copy...

Newt Watch - The GOP Establishment Goes For The Kill

Jan 26th, 2012

We are witnessing a whole new level of enmity from the powers that be in the GOP.

Jim Vandehei and Mike Allen write:

"Newt Gingrich better hope voters who lapped up his delicious hits on the “elite media” and liberals don’t read the Drudge Report this morning.

Or the National Review. Or the American Spectator. Or Ann Coulter.

If they do, Gingrich comes off looking like a dangerous, anti-Reagan, Clintonian fraud.

Newt Watch - The End Of The GOP "Establishment"?

Jan 23rd, 2012

Collective insanity is not hard to cultivate given enough time, resources and insulation from rational opposing forces. The GOP built the base which now has them terrified.

Timothy P. Carney writes:

"There may no longer be a Republican establishment powerful enough to move Republican voters en masse. Whatever institutional support the establishment can provide may be outweighed among the conservative base by the Scarlet E stamped on the candidate."

He's right. There has been an imposition of so many narrow and fringe litmus tests that we are seeing the party finally begin to devour itself. The hyper-radicalized base the GOP "establishment" thought they could exploit endlessly has at last arrived at a place where the concept of traditional American politics and its inherent requirement of compromise is deemed traitorous.

Newt Watch - The Establishment Panics

Jan 23rd, 2012

Jennifer Rubin literally begs for someone, anyone, to intervene and stop Newt's rise. In an "open letter" to the GOP leadership, she whines:

"It is time to make the case for winning conservatism — a conservatism attractive to centrist voters that can be translated into a reform agenda. If conservatism becomes a movement of anti-media bashing and hyperbolic rhetoric, it will cease to be a force in American politics. And if it is led by an egomaniac whose personal advancement takes precedence over any principle, the GOP will be (correctly) mocked."

As used to Rubin's consistently obtuse pronouncements as I am, this is still quite rich. If "conservatism becomes" a hollow charade? The mantle of "conservatism" was hijacked long ago and the GOP has been wholly reduced to unprincipled and egomaniacal absurdity for some time.

On To Florida

Jan 23rd, 2012

The very big lead Romney held in Florida only days ago is gone.

Newt Wins SC - Which Is Flat Out Nuts

Jan 22nd, 2012

There's a line from Robert Towne's "Chinatown" screenplay that sums up Newt's victory in the South Carolina GOP primary perfectly:

"Politicians, ugly buildings and whores all get respectable if they last long enough."

Gingrich is, after all, two out of these three.

While some pundits are still treating this as a horse race, the latest Newt "surge" is more significant.