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Vic Lundquist

Giuliani Appointed 8 Democratic Judges for each Republican Judge Appointed

February 28th, 2007 | 5 Comments | Posted in 2008 Election, Legal and Judicial, Rudolph Giuliani

Ben Smith’s article from Politico.com is interesting today. This is a short quote from a very balanced article on the subject:

A Politico review of the 75 judges Giuliani appointed to three of New York state’s lower courts found that Democrats outnumbered Republicans by more than 8 to 1. One of his appointments was an officer of the International Association of Lesbian and Gay Judges.

Click here for the ENTIRE ARTICLE

~ Vic Lundquist

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Vic Lundquist

McCain Implosion Predicted - Happening Now?

February 28th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in Rudolph Giuliani

Rumors have been circulating for several days now that McCain’s campaign is in the process of collapsing under its own weight of high cost help; lack of cash. But is it collapsing? Following are excerpts from two sources, Townhall.com (Dick Morris) and ABC News (Teddy Davis).

It has been interesting to me that so many people have continued to be interested in a candidate who always seems to be morose at worse and near second stage REM sleep at best. Mr. McCain is a true American patriot no matter how you shake it. And he continues to have a huge stake in America with two sons serving our nation in the military. But I think he is done. I think it may be time to have him take an easy chair and watch from the margins. I do think that Morris is correct about McCain. In this piece he is wrong on Romney as it appears he has not done his research on Romney’s actual positions, legislation he has enacted, and expert endorsements he has received that completely counter Morris’ assertions to the contrary.

Following are excerpts from Dick Morris’ latest pontificating in Townhall.com today:

The John McCain candidacy, launched amid much hope, fanfare, and high expectations, may be dying before our eyes.
Even worse, it may go out with a whimper instead of a bang.
It may not end in an Armageddon style primary defeat, but just dry up from lack of support, money, or interest.
_____

What is McCain’s problem?
Why did he go from the most exciting candidate in the race a year ago to the verge of oblivion today?

Fundamentally, he failed to heed the Shakespeare’s admonition “to thine own self be true.” The John McCain of the 2000 campaign is nowhere in evidence in 2007.

Instead of challenging the party establishment, he pathetically waits at its door, hoping to be invited. Where he used to challenge the religious right, he now panders to them. Once he led the battle against big tobacco, for corporate governance reform, in favor of campaign financing changes, and in support of action against global warming.

Now he has been identified with two issues, neither popular in the Republican Party: The Iraqi troop surge and amnesty for illegal aliens.
_____

Republican strategist and Reagan campaign manager Ed Rollins makes an interesting point about McCain: He has switched roles. He has gone from being the McCain of the 2000 race, challenging the party orthodoxy, offering new ideas, and demanding reforms and changes to the Bush of the 2000, toeing the party line and only timidly venturing different ideas if he advances them at all. And this is no way to win the presidency or even the Republican nomination. But where it has counted, on the two core issues that move Republican voters these days — tax cuts and immigration — McCain is badly out of step with the GOP base.
He voted against the Bush tax cuts, the only real success of the administration and the main accomplishment of the president’s first term. On immigration, his bill, cosponsored by Ted Kennedy, permits illegal aliens to become citizens without returning to their native lands and seeking legal entry.
_____

He looks small, shrunken, weak, cowed, and timid. He shows all of his 70 years of age including the roughly lived period at the hands of the tender mercies of the North Vietnamese. It is hard to imagine him as a strong leader as he meekly answers questions from the likes of Tim Russert and George Stephanopoulos.

Click here for ENTIRE ARTICLE

Following is the entire ABC News article by Teddy Davis about a possible McCain collapse. Donilon says McCain is “the unchange”. Mitt Romney has always been be the man of the hour for innovation and positive change. I have always thought in many ways Romney and McCain are polar opposites within the same party in that Romney is a true statesman and McCain is a true politician; one of many contrasts between them.

Two Washington veterans agreed Wednesday that a “change dynamic” is at work in a 2008 presidential campaign dominated by the war in Iraq. They disagreed, however, about what it means for the presidential aspirations of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

“In a change dynamic, McCain is the un-change,” said Tom Donilon, a former Clinton administration official who has served as senior adviser to Democratic presidents and presidential candidates for 20 years.

Former Reagan chief of staff Ken Duberstein disagreed with Donilon on the question of whether McCain’s presidential bid has suffered a “collapse” as a result of embracing President Bush’s plan to increase U.S. troop levels in Iraq by more than 20,000.

Duberstein and Donilon offered their assessments of the 2008 presidential race during the first panel discussion of a joint project between the Brookings Institution and ABC News. The joint project is called “Opportunity ‘08: Independent Ideas for Our Next President.”

Wednesday’s discussion, which was moderated by ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos, came on the heels of an ABC News/Washington Post poll showing former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani holding a two-to-one advantage over McCain among Republican nationally.

During a panel discussion at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., Duberstein disagreed with Stephanopoulos when he suggested that Giuliani and former governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney have given themselves more flexibility to break from Bush on Iraq in the future by being less vocal than McCain in their support for the president’s proposed troop surge.

“Rudy is very much locked in to the president’s policy,” said Duberstein, adding that Romney, who is at 4 percent in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll, has no choice but to support the president’s position, given Duberstein’s prediction that a huge preponderance of Republican primary voters will support Bush’s pursuit of a robust policy in Iraq.

Donilon took issue with Duberstein’s suggestion that Giuliani owes his rise to high name recognition.

“McCain is also well known,” said Donilon.

The key for McCain, Duberstein told ABC News following the forum, is for him to “talk about the future as a change agent.”

Click here to go to the ABC NEWS Posting.

~ Vic Lundquist

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Mike Laub

Lets talk to each other, not about each other…

February 28th, 2007 | 1 Comment | Posted in 2008 Election

“Bull Dog Pundit” wants to talk. That is cool. I’ve been trying to collect the type of information he asks for here. I would also collect similar info for Rudy and McCain.

~ Mike

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“Lincoln-Douglas” and “Romney Giuliani ” debates

February 28th, 2007 | 3 Comments | Posted in 2008 Election

Hugh Hewitt joined me in calling for a “Lincoln-Douglas” type debate.

As I said; “Lincoln and Douglas had 7 debates. Each debate had this format: one candidate spoke for an hour and a half, then the other candidate spoke for two hours, and then the first candidate spoke for a half hour. The candidates alternated going first. That is 4 hours each debate, with 7 debates, and a total of 28 hours of debate, for just two candidates.”

Lincoln and Douglas weren’t even trying to become president at the time. They were just trying to become Illinois senators. The American presidency is too important to let the media determine who will be POTUS in 2008. These times are more complicated.

We need a substantive debate. I don’t want to hear a Romney ad, and I sure don’t want to see McCain or Giuliani ads. Nothing worth saying can be said in 60 seconds. We need hours of debate. For the good of the nation Romney, and Giuliani should commit to at least as much debate as Lincoln and Douglas, or 14 hours of talking from each candidate. 28 hours of debate between the two of them.

Do you agree with me? If you support Rudy, can you try and get him to com-Mitt (ha-ha) to this? Those who know Mitt Romney (not I) can you get him to talk to Rudy about this?

I would like to see Hillary or Barak involved too.

Here is Hugh’s article.

~ Mike

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Rush Limbaugh: “Pure Hit Piece” Referring to AP Article on Polygamy in Romney’s Past

EIB: “Drive-by Media Out to Get Mitt Romney”

This is the headline for Limbaugh’s February 26th transcript from his “Excellence In Broadcast” radio show. I rarely listen to Limbaugh’s show for many reasons, not least of which is the fact that I am working during the hours of his show. And to be candid, it seems to me that “ditto-heads” sometimes suspend use of their brains and simply drop in behind Mr. Limbaugh and follow him no matter what.

But what cannot be ignored is that Limbaugh has the ear of a very large number of conservative voters and he has a very large megaphone. Others who do listen to him have told me that until recently, Limbaugh has either not mentioned Romney much at all on his show or if he does, his comments on Romney have been very brief and not that supportive.

This transcript from Limbaugh’s daily radio show I think is excellent. The online transcript posting is quite long and includes a number of exchanges as is customary between Limbaugh and several callers. Since the transcript is so long, I have shortened it significantly and included only those excerpts that stand out as meaningful references to Romney. Unless otherwise shown below, the quotes are from Limbaugh:

RUSH: Boy, they are out for Mitt Romney! I saw this over the weekend: “While Mitt Romney condemns polygamy and its prior practice by his Mormon church, the Republican presidential candidate’s great-grandfather had five wives and at least one of his great-great grandfathers had 12. Polygamy was not just a historical footnote, but a prominent element in the family tree of Mitt Romney.” This is an AP story by Jennifer Dobner and Glen Johnson.

Three days ago I received a candid email reply from Jennifer Dobner after I sent her one stating I thought the article she and Johnson wrote covered irrelevant material. I made a number of other arguments and gave her a recommendation on material I thought would be relevant for a strong article. Her reply to me stated in effect she had received many emails, all from those who would not identify themselves. I recommend that others send her messages of their own, but do not get personal or be mean. I think the best approach is to provide ideas for articles that would in effect compare qualifications among all the candidates. Doing so would show Mitt Romney as a stand out. I also think it is best not to mention support of Romney. Dobner’s email address is:

jdobner@ap.org

RUSH: This is unbelievable! How many wives has Romney had? He may be the one guy in the race that’s only had one. Rudy’s been divorced. McCain’s been divorced. I don’t know about some of the others, but why are they doing this? You might ask: Why this kind of a hit piece on Mitt Romney? Obviously they’re afraid of the guy. They’re trying to destroy him. This is just classic Drive-By Media stuff that is designed to cause problems for Romney when he doesn’t promote this; he doesn’t advocate it; he has not lived it. How many of you have a family member or two whose lives, were they to be made public, well, maybe not embarrass you — well, yes, embarrass you. As Ross Perot said, “We all have at least one crazy aunt in the basement,” crazy uncle or what have you. We’re not supposed to analyze the religion of anybody else, but here we go analyzing Mitt Romney’s in this really despicable fashion.

–text skipped–

RUSH: Let me explain the difference in this Mitt Romney business and the way Democrats are treated in this regard. Ted Kennedy’s father — we’re not talking about a great-grandfather or great-great grandfather; we’re talking about father. Ted Kennedy’s father was a Third Reich sympathizer. Franklin Delano Roosevelt had to pull him as ambassador of the Court of Saint James. (For those of you in Rio Linda, that’s Great Britain.) He had to pull him out of there because he was a sympathizer to the Third Reich. Now, we don’t hold this against Teddy. Teddy had nothing to do with that. Just as we don’t hold Mitt Romney’s grandfather, or great-grandfather, against him. But the lib media, the Drive-Bys, are definitely trying to do that. You take a look at who the media really goes after and you’ve gotta wonder whether there’s fear there, fear driving it. Well, they just want to destroy every conservative they can. It’s just part and parcel of the agenda that exists.

–text skipped–

RUSH: We had several large groups that attended baseball games every year. It was my job to sell them and convince them, and they coordinate the ticket sales with their group and their appearance that night at the ball game and pregame festivities. There was a Mormon night. It wasn’t called that, it was Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

CALLER: Mmm-hmm. Right.

RUSH: It was in Kansas City, and I met with the group that put this thing together every year, and I have to tell you, I was impressed with them. The fellowship between these people on that committee, the love they had for each other, it was heartwarming to be part of it. I think there’s obviously something because this is new and this is the first time there are a lot of people going to try to make a whole big deal out of this, as this hit piece story indicates, but there have to be ice breakers, and people like first times. That’s what people liked about the last Super Bowl. There were a lot of firsts in this Super Bowl that aren’t going to happen again. It’s impossible to have the first two black coaches in the Super Bowl ever again.

–text skipped–

RUSH: Look, polygamy is still alive and well in parts of the Islamic world, the Middle East. You can’t criticize that! Of course there’s not one of them running for president (ahem) yet, and that’s what sets this apart. Why is that? Many of us have been trying to analyze for many years: why this personal hatred of George Bush on the part of entertainers and others when they don’t even know him. It’s one thing to disagree with somebody’s policies and so forth, but the personal hatred is just difficult to understand, unless you understand the root of it.

I think I do, and I think it has to do with faith. I think they’re scared of Bush. I think so many people who don’t believe in God have basically a guilt trip about that — not all, but some do — and whenever they are confronted with someone who doesn’t have such doubts but has a firm belief in God, I think they’re threatened immediately. If they then think that a person who has a firm belief in God is using any aspect of that faith as part of a foundation for governing, the way a personal life is lived, I think it’s threatening. There are probably a lot of other psychological factors rooted in this because it’s quite abnormal to personally hate somebody you don’t know. Yet there’s quite a lot of it on the left, and I think as I’ve mentioned to you before, global warming is a religion. It’s not a scientific movement. It’s not a moral movement as Gore wanted to point out.

It’s a pure religion, and as I think Chesterton said, “If you don’t believe in God, you’ll believe in anything,” and people who do believe in God and people who have no problem publicly proclaiming their faith are a huge, huge threat, both psychologically and emotionally to people who don’t share that faith or have any faith at all — other than in inanimate objects like elements of the earth or what have you. I think with Romney, the fact that Mormonism is not understood by people, it’s considered to be a cult, a weirdo sect. It’s considered, by people who don’t know about it, to be very, very serious and devout, and it’s the devout aspect that just sends the left quivering and shaking. We cannot have somebody who’s going to be judgmental, can’t have somebody who has absolutes of right and wrong and good or bad. We can’t have somebody like that running the country. No, no, no. That’s why the left feels like they are imprisoned when such people have positions of power.

–text skipped—

CALLER: Not to belabor the point, but on the Mitt Romney thing, I just want to point out to you, last month’s issue of the AARP magazine had a little survey in it right at the beginning of the book. It was entitled, “Is America ready for…?” It was the Obama thing. Is America ready for Obama? Of course the response was yes, and then the next question was, “Is America ready for a woman president?” Then, of course, overwhelming response was yes. But what really appalled me, was the third question: “Is America ready for a Mormon president?”

RUSH: Well, let me ask you this. Dingy Harry is a Mormon. He is. Dingy Harry is a Mormon from Utah. If Dingy Harry were running for president, do you think we’d see stories about polygamy in his background or in the Mormon church at all? Do you think the same Drive-Bys would be trying to destroy Dingy Harry were he running for president?

CALLER: Oh, I doubt it. I wouldn’t be surprised if AARP contributes to Dingy Harry.

RUSH: Oh, that’s probably true. Anyway, look, there is no question there’s a lot of controversy and fear over Mormons, and so forth in this country, but to run a hit piece? The fact that his grandfather or great-grandfather were polygamist is no bearing on him. He’s not led his life that way at all. This is a pure hit piece. It’s not based on his Mormonism. It’s happening because he’s conservative.

–text skipped–

If you wish to read the entire transcript from Rush Limbaugh’s radio show on this topic, click here. There are some comments sprinkled throughout this show that are quite humorous and overall I think the entire transcript is worth reading. There are other items about Romney that I did not include.

~ Vic Lundquist

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Kyle

Mitt Packs Them In At NH Fundraiser

February 28th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in 2008 Election

Here’s a report from Jame Pindell at the Boston Globe:

Over 350 people bought tickets to quickly sell out a local Republican fund-raiser in New Hampshire this week featuring former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, organizers say.

Romney will be the keynote speaker at a Lincoln Day Dinner Thursday night sponsored by the New Hampshire Republican committees of Derry, Hampton, and Portsmouth.

Last year, former U.S. Senator Bill Frist addressed a less-than-sellout crowd at the event.

I continue to see signs that the early state strategy of the Romney campaign is working.

-Kyle Joseph Farmer

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Mike Laub

“It is the economy, stupid”

February 28th, 2007 | 4 Comments | Posted in 2008 Election

At one point the Dow industrial average was down more than 546 points, or 4.3 percent, at 12,086, but it recovered some ground in the last 90 minutes of trading to close at 12,216.24, down 416.02 points, or 3.3 percent, the worst drop since Sept. 17, 2001. The Dow rose last week to both a closing and an intraday record.

Click here for Romney’s business record.

~ Mike

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He calls for a mop

February 27th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in 2008 Election

This from the blog “My Man Mitt”:

The Boston Globe’s Scott Hellman loves to swing at Romney. Any tidbit he can find about the man, the campaign, and the race is grist for his mill. So when some outside consultant hands him a PPT deck laying out a supposed roadmap for Governor Romney’s campaign… he calls for a mop and salivates. OK.. That was a bit over-dramatic… but you get the point.

So first thing to note… this is NOT the campaign’s roadmap. It’s doubtful the Governor ever saw it. This type of analysis comes in unsolicited all the time. It’s silly to think that Spencer Zwick has this laminated in his coat vest.

Click here for the rest of the post.

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This just in: Joy Behar from “The View” will not vote Romney!

February 27th, 2007 | 4 Comments | Posted in 2008 Election

After taking some liberties with Catholicism, Behar lets the audience know that when it comes to anti-Semitism, she will have none of it.

She admitted that she would not vote for Mitt Romney and that’s because he announced his bid for the presidency in front of the Ford building. Ford, she said, was ‘a big, big, Hitler supporter.’ This is a claim that not even those who charge Ford with being an anti-Semite make. Leaving Ford aside, it’s nice to know that these ex-Catholic ladies have little tolerance for anti-Semitism.

Click here for the article.

~ Mike

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Rush Limbaugh: Drive-By Media Out to Get Mitt Romney

February 27th, 2007 | 1 Comment | Posted in 2008 Election

Thanks Don!

You might ask: Why this kind of a hit piece on Mitt Romney? Obviously they’re afraid of the guy. They’re trying to destroy him. This is just classic Drive-By Media stuff that is designed to cause problems for Romney when he doesn’t promote this; he doesn’t advocate it; he has not lived it. How many of you have a family member or two whose lives, were they to be made public, well, maybe not embarrass you — well, yes, embarrass you. As Ross Perot said, “We all have at least one crazy aunt in the basement,” crazy uncle or what have you. We’re not supposed to analyze the religion of anybody else, but here we go analyzing Mitt Romney’s in this really despicable fashion.

RUSH: Let me explain the difference in this Mitt Romney business and the way Democrats are treated in this regard. Ted Kennedy’s father — we’re not talking about a great-grandfather or great-great grandfather; we’re talking about father. Ted Kennedy’s father was a Third Reich sympathizer. Franklin Delano Roosevelt had to pull him as ambassador of the Court of Saint James. (For those of you in Rio Linda, that’s Great Britain.) He had to pull him out of there because he was a sympathizer to the Third Reich. Now, we don’t hold this against Teddy. Teddy had nothing to do with that. Just as we don’t hold Mitt Romney’s grandfather, or great-grandfather, against him. But the lib media, the Drive-Bys, are definitely trying to do that. You take a look at who the media really goes after and you’ve gotta wonder whether there’s fear there, fear driving it. Well, they just want to destroy every conservative they can. It’s just part and parcel of the agenda that exists.

Rush says the media is afraid of Romney? Watch the video at the top of this page to see why the media is afraid of Mitt.
~ Mike

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The Media

February 27th, 2007 | 6 Comments | Posted in Media

This article says the following:

-In his Senate race, he wrote a letter promising a gay Republican group he would be a stronger advocate for gays and their rights than his liberal opponent, Edward M. Kennedy. Now he emphasizes his opposition to gay marriage and civil unions.

Why does the media keep repeating this lie about Romney? When he ran for governor in 2002, Romney declared his opposition to both same-sex marriage and civil unions. Click here for a link to a 2002 article that explains this.

There is no change. Why is it that the media attacks Romney over non existing flip-flops, but does not attack Hillary?

It often seems that journalist would rather cause problems, than fix them. They don’t even try to give an accurate portraits of what Romney believes. But this is not new. Journalist tend to over simplify things. Else why do they summarize the president’s speech, when you can read the whole thing online? Why do they have to put it into their own words? Ego? Agenda? Or do they need to explain it to us?

Edward R. Murrow said; “The line between investigating and persecuting is a very fine one.” I actually disagree with this. I think it is obvious when you have crossed the line into persecution. When you don’t follow journalistic standards. When you don’t treat all the candidates the same. When you oversimplify someone’s position, when you misrepresent someone’s position… these are all examples of persecution. AKA: Drive-by media.

Thomas Jefferson said; “Nothing can now be believed which is seen in a newspaper. Truth itself becomes suspicious by being put into that polluted vehicle.” This is, of course, an exaggeration, but what would motivate TJ to say this? Newspapers are motivated by selling adds. Controversy sells papers, and therefore, adds. Newspapers promote controversy (just like Eminem). But it is more than just saying, journalist will have more stories to write about if there is more conflict is in the world. Ads are sold by conflict, but they are also sold by reassuring the reader what they already believe. Thus newspapers in liberal areas tend to attack conservatives, and newspapers in Red States tend to attack liberals. But which came first? The chicken or the egg? Did the liberal newspapers cause liberals to become liberal, or does the newspaper follow the liberals? Those familiar with the bible will be familiar with the term “itching ears”. Or those who speak what their audience wants to hear.

Others have observed that the media likes to start fights. H. L. Mencken (1880 - 1956) has said; “All successful newspapers are ceaselessly querulous and bellicose. They never defend anyone or anything if they can help it; if the job is forced on them, they tackle it by denouncing someone or something else.”

So the newspapers will not help us figure out who we need in 2008. They will never sit down and do a thorough analysis of both sides of each issue. They will just miss-quote and misrepresent each side just enough to keep both sides angry. So what are we to do? We should go around them. We should sit down and figure out for ourselves.

Is Mitt Romney a flip-flopper? In the next two years, you will never see the media try to figure this out. You will just hear them use whatever names they can get to stick. So lets figure it out ourselves. Please help me compile all the reasons to agree or disagree that Mitt Romney is a flip-flopper. I will, unlike the media, present both sides.

http://myclob.pbwiki.com/flip-flop

I look forward to your comments, and will add whatever reasons you tell me to add. I won’t silence you, by ignoring your logic (like the media).

~ Mike

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What would a strategic audit of Iraq yield?

February 27th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in 2008 Election

1 in 75 American males is in jail.
1 in 450 Iraqi males is in jail.

American policeman are maintaining peace in America by putting their males in jails at 6 times the rate of those in-charge of Iraq.

There is a war going on in Iraq, and we are locking people up 6 times as often here at home as we are in Iraq.

We need a strategic audit of Iraq, by someone with a proven track record of turning things around. We need Mitt Romney

~ Mike

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Winning the GOP Nomination

“Ideas for Leading the Traumatized Party to Victory in ‘08″

Interesting article for two reasons:

1) It was published by the New York Times.
2) It was reprinted in the print edition of the Orange County Register on 2/26/07, a local Southern California, very politically conservative newspaper.

The article is written by NYT columnist, David Brooks and is reprinted at HeraldTribune.com (see link in Title above or at bottom).

Among all the obvious strengths of Mitt Romney’s leadership, the one attribute above them all that first attracted my support is the fact that he is a master strategist. I think these are but basics that MR has known for a long time; still interesting to consider though. Complete article:

I want you to know I’ve shelved the idea of writing a book called “The Idiot’s Guide to Winning the Republican Presidential Nomination.” But that doesn’t mean I don’t have ideas. Here are a few rules the GOP contenders should follow if they want to sweep this thing.

First: Be the Snowball. The conventional view is that Feb. 5 is going to be the decisive day of the race, when California, New Jersey, Illinois and a bunch of other states will probably have their primaries. That’s wrong.

Since so many states will be voting then, the candidates will be stretched thin in all of them. As a result, the Republican candidate who does best in the first three states — Iowa, New Hampshire and, on Feb. 2, South Carolina — will sweep on Feb. 5 through sheer momentum.

You want to be that snowball rolling downhill. Focus your efforts on the first three, especially New Hampshire. Win those, and the big states will take care of themselves.

Second: Remember the Rule of Three. When three big candidates go up against one another, two of them often get into a mutually destructive grudge match and the third skates through to victory. (Right now, the McCain and Romney camps seem set to brawl, leaving Giuliani alone.) Whatever you do, don’t let yourself become one of the duelists.

Third: Don’t Be a University. Most campaigns organize their policy experts like academic departments — economists on one committee, social policy types on another, religious leaders on a third. They come up with utterly conventional recommendations.

You want to organize your committees according to priorities. For example, create a Flourishing Families Committee. Get economists, religious activists and psychologists in one room to figure out how government can reduce stress on struggling families. You’ll be surprised by how much interdisciplinary creativity you can unleash and how much closer you get to the problems of real people.

Most of all, you’ll break free from the useless categories most pundits use to define Republicans: social conservative, free-market libertarian, neoconservative. If you define yourself by those categories, you’re dead.

Fourth: Be the Change. You are running to lead a traumatized party. Many Republicans think their party can recover from recent setbacks by returning to the old verities: cutting spending, cutting taxes, attacking government bureaucrats.

That’s wrong. The world has changed since the glory days of the 1980s, and no amount of Reagan nostalgia will bring those conditions back.

For example, Republicans in the 1980s could win by promising to expand freedom and reduce overbearing government. But today, post-9/11, most Americans aren’t anxious because their freedoms are being impinged. They’re anxious because there’s chaos all around: foreign-policy chaos, fiscal chaos, cultural chaos. The authority structures they rely on have let them down.

You need to lead the party to a new definition of Republicanism. This is a Republicanism that can provide safety, order and authority, so people can feel secure enough to pursue their dreams. This doesn’t mean championing a big government. It means championing a strong government that can do the jobs it is supposed to do.

Your main job over the next few months is to come up with a governing philosophy that explains how individual freedom can be enhanced by a strong, limited and energetic federal government.

Fifth: Make an Offer They Can’t Refuse. If your last name is Giuliani, McCain or Romney, social conservatives are never going to love you. Don’t try to pander to gain their devotion. Instead, offer them a deal.

Tell them: You social conservatives may not agree with me on everything. You may doubt my recent conversions on your issues. You may not even like me. But I’m the guy who can deliver on four programs you want. Then pick out four programs you and they can agree on and repeat them in every speech for the next year.

Sixth: Get Ready for Phase II. Over the next several months, the surge in Iraq will dominate debate. But by late summer, the surge will either have succeeded or failed. A new, broader debate will start. One candidate will define the landscape by coming up with a new Grand Strategy for the war against extremism. Be that guy.

Seventh: Win the TR Primary. Many of you admire Theodore Roosevelt. You’ve got his picture on your walls. Every day, as the campaign madness swirls around, wake up and ask, Would TR be proud of what I’m doing? If not, take a risk. Do something else.

The online article can be read here.

Victor Lundquist

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“Washington is full of talk”

February 26th, 2007 | 2 Comments | Posted in 2008 Election

U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., introduced Romney. He praised Romney, whose candidacy he has endorsed, as someone who could manage this country’s “huge, wasteful federal government.”

“Washington is full of talk,” DeMint said.

“But … talk makes no sense when you’re not getting anything done. We need someone who understands that it’s the results we’re after. And we need a president who understands that the strength of America is not in Washington, D.C. — it’s in our people, it’s in our churches, it’s in our businesses. It’s in thousands of volunteer associations all across this country that make our country better every day, and if our government could just get out of the way, America all by itself would just become greater and greater.”

Click here for the whole article.

~ Mike

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RCP Interview

February 26th, 2007 | 3 Comments | Posted in 2008 Election

The Real Clear Politics blog has an interview posted by Tom Bevan with Governor Romney. It’s focused pretty heavily on foreign policy and is certainly worth a read.

I enjoyed this particularly:

RCP: Switching gears to a lighter subject, for our readers to get a better sense of who you are as a person, tell me something about yourself that only people who know you well know.

ROMNEY: I love practical jokes and humor. That there’s frankly no joke that I don’t think is funny. I love practical jokes, but I don’t like being scared. My sons will tell you that when they have jumped out of the tree when I’m coming from work in the middle of the night and said “boo” to me, that there is swift and severe retribution.

I have five boys in the family, and it’s constant competition, sport, humor, and practical jokes. For instance, when we gathered for my big - was it the announcement day, no I guess it was the big fund raising thing, we were going to have a January national call day - all my sons came back to gather for that. We were there at the dinner table and someone said, “hey, should we go have a 440 race at the high school?” Sure enough, we all went upstairs and found our respective jogging shorts, put on tennis shoes or running shoes, went over to the high school and had a 440 competition at the track.

RCP: Who won?

ROMNEY: I came in last. I was thinking I could beat my son Ben but, boy, even though he’s in medical school and has gotta be out of shape, he still beat me, darn it!

You can find the whole interview here.

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