Graham's entry into race could help Rubio, hurt Paul
Graham’s bid is designed to push the muscular foreign policy approach that he and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), his close ally, have advocated for years.
“That’s a tried-and-true, time-tested method of getting your pet issue into the conversation. If Lindsey were from Kansas, I don’t think many people would care, but because he’s from South Carolina, and that will alter the dominoes in the early primary, people have to pay attention to him,” said Rich Galen, a GOP strategist.
He is running as an antagonist to fellow Republican Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who criticizes hawks in his own party for the rise of ISIS and wants to shut down the National Security Agency’s bulk telephone data collection program.
Graham has called for 10,000 American “boots on the ground” to stop the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, demanded that Iran renounce terrorism as part of any final nuclear deal, and pronounced himself “glad” that the NSA is collecting phone records.
“It contrasts two longstanding trends that have been with the Republican Party a hundred years. The Republican Party has always been a leader on national security, foreign policy and defense. On the other hand, there’s always been a libertarian streak to it, and even at one point an isolationist streak,” said former New Jersey Gov. Tom Kean, who was chairman of the 9/11 Commission.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Paul’s rival, could wind up as the biggest beneficiary of Graham’s candidacy. His national security and immigration positions mirror Graham’s and he is focusing his resources on South Carolina, viewing it as a springboard to Florida, a pivotal winner-take-all primary state.
Graham jumps into the contest at a time when GOP voters are increasingly concerned about national security and the growing strength of Iran and ISIS.
More...http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/243511-grahams-entry-into-race-could-help-rubio-hurt-paul
Topic: Slappy Statist Candidates for US President 2016 - page 5. (Read 17936 times)
Lindsey Graham's Got a Simple Platform: War!
Just when the US presidential contest needed a real macho man candidate, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) today threw his camouflaged hat in the ring. The Senator is staking it all on the proposition that after 14 years of fighting a global war on terror that has produced nothing but more terror, what Americans really want is eight more years of turbocharged world war under Comandante Graham.
"Radical Islam is running wild," said Graham today, but "I'm afraid some Americans have grown tired of fighting them."
Graham is disgusted that the American people are going weak-kneed about war, and he won't give an inch. Forget that the US war on Iraq was the reason that "radical Islam is running wild." Graham is holding firm to the idea that attacking Iraq was a very good thing.
It was a defensive war, he claimed last month. After all, Saddam was firing on US planes as they bombed Iraq! He first made that claim before the war, in response to then-Rep. Ron Paul's claim that Iraq had not attacked us. To Graham, it is aggression if you shoot back at an American plane that has flown thousands of miles to bomb you.
Saddam was "denying UN weapons inspectors access to sites where we thought there would be weapons of mass destruction," he also told Wolf Blitzer in the same interview. But we have known for years that this is untrue, a lie often used at the time by President Bush to justify the war. The inspectors were in Iraq and working right up until President Bush told them to leave because he was going to start bombing.
The mess in Iraq is all Obama's fault, says Graham. If we had never left, Iraq would be well on the road to being the democratic nirvana that the neocons promised before the attack.
What is to be done now? Graham wants to re-invade Iraq and to invade Syria:
We're going to have to send some of our troops back over there, to partner with Iraqis and Arab armies to make sure these radical islamists don't hit us here at home. There is no easy way forward. There no way to win the war without some of us being over there doing the fighting so they don't hit us here at home.
How many troops?
"About 10,000. I think about 10,000."
More...http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/neocon-watch/2015/june/01/lindsey-grahams-got-a-simple-platform-war/
Just when the US presidential contest needed a real macho man candidate, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) today threw his camouflaged hat in the ring. The Senator is staking it all on the proposition that after 14 years of fighting a global war on terror that has produced nothing but more terror, what Americans really want is eight more years of turbocharged world war under Comandante Graham.
"Radical Islam is running wild," said Graham today, but "I'm afraid some Americans have grown tired of fighting them."
Graham is disgusted that the American people are going weak-kneed about war, and he won't give an inch. Forget that the US war on Iraq was the reason that "radical Islam is running wild." Graham is holding firm to the idea that attacking Iraq was a very good thing.
It was a defensive war, he claimed last month. After all, Saddam was firing on US planes as they bombed Iraq! He first made that claim before the war, in response to then-Rep. Ron Paul's claim that Iraq had not attacked us. To Graham, it is aggression if you shoot back at an American plane that has flown thousands of miles to bomb you.
Saddam was "denying UN weapons inspectors access to sites where we thought there would be weapons of mass destruction," he also told Wolf Blitzer in the same interview. But we have known for years that this is untrue, a lie often used at the time by President Bush to justify the war. The inspectors were in Iraq and working right up until President Bush told them to leave because he was going to start bombing.
The mess in Iraq is all Obama's fault, says Graham. If we had never left, Iraq would be well on the road to being the democratic nirvana that the neocons promised before the attack.
What is to be done now? Graham wants to re-invade Iraq and to invade Syria:
We're going to have to send some of our troops back over there, to partner with Iraqis and Arab armies to make sure these radical islamists don't hit us here at home. There is no easy way forward. There no way to win the war without some of us being over there doing the fighting so they don't hit us here at home.
How many troops?
"About 10,000. I think about 10,000."
More...http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/neocon-watch/2015/june/01/lindsey-grahams-got-a-simple-platform-war/
Scott Walker Has Early Lead in Iowa Poll as Jeb Bush Faces Challenges
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has expanded his early lead in Iowa, while former Florida Governor Jeb Bush continues to face headwinds and Senator Marco Rubio of Florida shows upside potential in the state that hosts the first 2016 presidential nomination balloting.
A new Bloomberg Politics/Des Moines Register Iowa Poll shows more than a third of likely Republican caucus participants say they would never vote for Bush—one factor in a new index to assess candidate strength in such a crowded field. Forty-three percent view him favorably, compared to 45 percent who view him unfavorably.
Walker is backed by 17 percent as the state enters a busy summer of candidate visits, a planned straw poll, and campaigning at the Iowa State Fair. Tied for second are Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson at 10 percent, with Bush and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee next at 9 percent each.
They're followed at 6 percent by Rubio and 2012 Iowa caucuses winner Rick Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania. With eight months to go before the 2016 caucuses, there's plenty of time for movement.
More...http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-05-30/scott-walker-has-early-lead-in-iowa-poll-as-jeb-bush-faces-challenges
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has expanded his early lead in Iowa, while former Florida Governor Jeb Bush continues to face headwinds and Senator Marco Rubio of Florida shows upside potential in the state that hosts the first 2016 presidential nomination balloting.
A new Bloomberg Politics/Des Moines Register Iowa Poll shows more than a third of likely Republican caucus participants say they would never vote for Bush—one factor in a new index to assess candidate strength in such a crowded field. Forty-three percent view him favorably, compared to 45 percent who view him unfavorably.
Walker is backed by 17 percent as the state enters a busy summer of candidate visits, a planned straw poll, and campaigning at the Iowa State Fair. Tied for second are Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson at 10 percent, with Bush and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee next at 9 percent each.
They're followed at 6 percent by Rubio and 2012 Iowa caucuses winner Rick Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania. With eight months to go before the 2016 caucuses, there's plenty of time for movement.
More...http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-05-30/scott-walker-has-early-lead-in-iowa-poll-as-jeb-bush-faces-challenges
Democrats Seek a Richer Roster to Match G.O.P.
WASHINGTON — Over the last few months, Harold M. Ickes, a longtime ally of Hillary Rodham Clinton, has helped organize private meetings around the country with union leaders, Clinton backers and Democratic strategists. The pressing topic: Who will step up to be the Democrats’ megadonors in the 2016 presidential race?
Republican contenders have already secured hundreds of millions of dollars in commitments from a stable of billionaires, including a Wall Street hedge fund executive, a Las Vegas casino magnate, a Florida auto dealer, a Wyoming investor and, of course, the Kansas-born billionaires David H. and Charles G. Koch. But none of the biggest Democratic donors from past elections — for example, the Chicago investor Fred Eychaner, the climate-change activist Tom Steyer and the entertainment mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg — have committed to supporting Mrs. Clinton on nearly the same scale.
“No one has stepped forward as the savior,” said Matt Bennett, a longtime Democratic consultant in Washington.
More...http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/31/us/politics/democrats-seek-a-richer-roster-to-match-gop-in-2016-election.html?_r=0
WASHINGTON — Over the last few months, Harold M. Ickes, a longtime ally of Hillary Rodham Clinton, has helped organize private meetings around the country with union leaders, Clinton backers and Democratic strategists. The pressing topic: Who will step up to be the Democrats’ megadonors in the 2016 presidential race?
Republican contenders have already secured hundreds of millions of dollars in commitments from a stable of billionaires, including a Wall Street hedge fund executive, a Las Vegas casino magnate, a Florida auto dealer, a Wyoming investor and, of course, the Kansas-born billionaires David H. and Charles G. Koch. But none of the biggest Democratic donors from past elections — for example, the Chicago investor Fred Eychaner, the climate-change activist Tom Steyer and the entertainment mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg — have committed to supporting Mrs. Clinton on nearly the same scale.
“No one has stepped forward as the savior,” said Matt Bennett, a longtime Democratic consultant in Washington.
More...http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/31/us/politics/democrats-seek-a-richer-roster-to-match-gop-in-2016-election.html?_r=0
O'MALLEY SAYS HE'S READY TO CAMPAIGN HARD IN NEW HAMPSHIRE
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) -- A day after jumping into the presidential race, Democrat Martin O'Malley vowed Sunday to fight hard in New Hampshire, home of the first presidential primary and a stronghold for Hillary Rodham Clinton.
"I'm used to tough fights, I've always been drawn to them," O'Malley told reporters after greeting voters at a diner.
O'Malley kicked off his presidential bid Saturday and is making trips to the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire. He is the third Democrat to enter the race, behind Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and still remains unknown by many voters. He has campaigned alongside New Hampshire candidates frequently in the last several elections, but is struggling to gain traction in a state where the Clintons have long been popular.
...
"I did support her in 2008, I thought she was one of the best candidates for those times - but times change," O'Malley said. "One of the big challenges that we have yet to address in this country is reining in reckless behavior on Wall Street, and I believe we need new leadership to do that."
More...http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_DEM_2016_OMALLEY?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-05-30-08-53-45
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) -- A day after jumping into the presidential race, Democrat Martin O'Malley vowed Sunday to fight hard in New Hampshire, home of the first presidential primary and a stronghold for Hillary Rodham Clinton.
"I'm used to tough fights, I've always been drawn to them," O'Malley told reporters after greeting voters at a diner.
O'Malley kicked off his presidential bid Saturday and is making trips to the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire. He is the third Democrat to enter the race, behind Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and still remains unknown by many voters. He has campaigned alongside New Hampshire candidates frequently in the last several elections, but is struggling to gain traction in a state where the Clintons have long been popular.
...
"I did support her in 2008, I thought she was one of the best candidates for those times - but times change," O'Malley said. "One of the big challenges that we have yet to address in this country is reining in reckless behavior on Wall Street, and I believe we need new leadership to do that."
More...http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_DEM_2016_OMALLEY?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-05-30-08-53-45
Show me the money: Corporate media set to win election cycle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jMejvSdUNY
As the 2016 election cycle gets underway, many in the mainstream media are preparing for the barrage of (and money for) political advertisements thanks to SuperPACs and similar institutions. “Lionel” of LionelMedia joins Anya Parampil and takes a look at how the mainstream media takes advantage of the political season.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jMejvSdUNY
As the 2016 election cycle gets underway, many in the mainstream media are preparing for the barrage of (and money for) political advertisements thanks to SuperPACs and similar institutions. “Lionel” of LionelMedia joins Anya Parampil and takes a look at how the mainstream media takes advantage of the political season.
Herman Cain: Santorum announces doomed presidential bid in interview with pretend journalist
Ugh.
I may give Bernie Sanders a lot of flak for being unelectable, but I don't want anyone to think Democrats have the market cornered when it comes to candidates with no chance of winning. Though he hasn't announced, we assume Jeb Bush is going to seek the Republican nomination, and the party already has Mike Huckabee in the race. Now, it will have to deal with a doomed Rick Santorum candidacy as well.
Santorum made his announcement in a televised interview with pretend journalist George Stephanopoulos, and you can watch the clip below. To quickly sum it up, he's angling to re-fight the values-and-morality campaign that failed him in 2012, and will have even less traction this time around.
....And that's about it.
Does he bring anything to the table that hasn't already been rejected? Nope.
http://www.caintv.com/rick-santorum-announces-presid
Ugh.
I may give Bernie Sanders a lot of flak for being unelectable, but I don't want anyone to think Democrats have the market cornered when it comes to candidates with no chance of winning. Though he hasn't announced, we assume Jeb Bush is going to seek the Republican nomination, and the party already has Mike Huckabee in the race. Now, it will have to deal with a doomed Rick Santorum candidacy as well.
Santorum made his announcement in a televised interview with pretend journalist George Stephanopoulos, and you can watch the clip below. To quickly sum it up, he's angling to re-fight the values-and-morality campaign that failed him in 2012, and will have even less traction this time around.
....And that's about it.
Does he bring anything to the table that hasn't already been rejected? Nope.
http://www.caintv.com/rick-santorum-announces-presid
Visualizing The Gop's 2016 Bracket
Cool interactive at link based on the recent Quinnipiac poll.
Read the chart from top to bottom, then left to right. For example, 77 percent of respondents who like Ted Cruz also like Ben Carson.
http://www.nationaljournal.com/twenty-sixteen/visualizing-the-gop-s-2016-bracket-20150305
Cool interactive at link based on the recent Quinnipiac poll.
Read the chart from top to bottom, then left to right. For example, 77 percent of respondents who like Ted Cruz also like Ben Carson.
http://www.nationaljournal.com/twenty-sixteen/visualizing-the-gop-s-2016-bracket-20150305
Former Governor George Pataki announces 2016 bid, says he would back 'boots on the ground' to fight ISIS
Former New York Gov. George Pataki, announcing Thursday that he'll seek the Republican nomination for president in 2016, told Fox News that he would authorize American "boots on the ground" to go after Islamic State targets in Iraq.
The former Republican governor weighed in on a debate that has divided the party. Pataki insisted he does not want to see a "trillion-dollar, decade-long war," but said the U.S. cannot allow ISIS to have "recruiting" and "training" centers.
"If necessary, we will send in American boots on the ground to destroy those training centers, destroy those planning centers and then get out," he said. The U.S. has more than 3,000 troops in Iraq to train and equip Iraqi forces, but they are not technically in a combat role.
Pataki, meanwhile, pledged to run on a "reform agenda" as he joins a crowded field seeking the GOP nomination in 2016.
"My whole life has prepared me for this moment," Pataki told Fox News. "I am running."
Pataki formally announced his campaign shortly afterward at a rally in Exeter, N.H., which served as the state capital during the Revolutionary War and claims to be the birthplace of the Republican Party. "Let the next decade be the decade where America proves to the world, you ain't seen nothing yet," Pataki told the crowd.
More...http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/05/28/former-new-york-gov-pataki-announces-run-for-2016-gop-presidential-nomination/
Former New York Gov. George Pataki, announcing Thursday that he'll seek the Republican nomination for president in 2016, told Fox News that he would authorize American "boots on the ground" to go after Islamic State targets in Iraq.
The former Republican governor weighed in on a debate that has divided the party. Pataki insisted he does not want to see a "trillion-dollar, decade-long war," but said the U.S. cannot allow ISIS to have "recruiting" and "training" centers.
"If necessary, we will send in American boots on the ground to destroy those training centers, destroy those planning centers and then get out," he said. The U.S. has more than 3,000 troops in Iraq to train and equip Iraqi forces, but they are not technically in a combat role.
Pataki, meanwhile, pledged to run on a "reform agenda" as he joins a crowded field seeking the GOP nomination in 2016.
"My whole life has prepared me for this moment," Pataki told Fox News. "I am running."
Pataki formally announced his campaign shortly afterward at a rally in Exeter, N.H., which served as the state capital during the Revolutionary War and claims to be the birthplace of the Republican Party. "Let the next decade be the decade where America proves to the world, you ain't seen nothing yet," Pataki told the crowd.
More...http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/05/28/former-new-york-gov-pataki-announces-run-for-2016-gop-presidential-nomination/
Santorum: "Load up the bombers and bomb Iran back to the 7th Century"
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republicans wooing Iowa's most active party members called Saturday for a stronger presence in the world but ran the gamut in tone and just how tough to get with America's enemies.
On Armed Services Day — and a day the Obama administration reported killing a senior Islamic State leader in Syria — most of the nearly dozen GOP presidential prospects at a state party dinner called for a more confrontational stance toward Iran.
Former Sen. Rick Santorum's answer for handling Iran, one of four countries on the U.S. list of nations accused of repeatedly supporting global terrorism, was to "load up our bombers and bomb them back to the seventh century."
Earlier in the day, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush praised U.S. commandos who had reportedly killed the IS leader, described as the head of oil operations for IS. Bush gave no credit to Obama, whom Bush accused of allowing the rise of IS by pulling back U.S. forces from Iraq.
"It's a great day, but it's not a strategy," Bush told reporters in eastern Iowa.
Although Bush joked lightly about the confused statements he made in recent days about whether he would have ordered the attack in Iraq in 2003, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul told the GOP gathering Saturday night that it was a "valid question" to ask presidential candidates whether they would have invaded Iraq and toppled Saddam Hussein.
Republican presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul speaks during the Iowa Republican Party's Linco …
"We have to question: Is Iraq more stable or less stable since Hussein is gone?" asked Paul, who espouses some of the hands-off foreign policy of his father, former Texas Rep. Ron Paul.
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham tried to reject any assertion that the existing problems in Iraq were the result of the Republican president who ordered the invasion, Bush's brother George W. Bush.
"The person I blame is Barack Obama, not George W. Bush," said Graham, who criticized Obama for keeping a campaign promise to withdraw combat troops from Iraq. Of George W. Bush, Graham said, "He made the best decision he could."
More...http://news.yahoo.com/among-rivals-iowa-bush-tries-bounce-back-remarks-215022287--election.html
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republicans wooing Iowa's most active party members called Saturday for a stronger presence in the world but ran the gamut in tone and just how tough to get with America's enemies.
On Armed Services Day — and a day the Obama administration reported killing a senior Islamic State leader in Syria — most of the nearly dozen GOP presidential prospects at a state party dinner called for a more confrontational stance toward Iran.
Former Sen. Rick Santorum's answer for handling Iran, one of four countries on the U.S. list of nations accused of repeatedly supporting global terrorism, was to "load up our bombers and bomb them back to the seventh century."
Earlier in the day, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush praised U.S. commandos who had reportedly killed the IS leader, described as the head of oil operations for IS. Bush gave no credit to Obama, whom Bush accused of allowing the rise of IS by pulling back U.S. forces from Iraq.
"It's a great day, but it's not a strategy," Bush told reporters in eastern Iowa.
Although Bush joked lightly about the confused statements he made in recent days about whether he would have ordered the attack in Iraq in 2003, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul told the GOP gathering Saturday night that it was a "valid question" to ask presidential candidates whether they would have invaded Iraq and toppled Saddam Hussein.
Republican presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul speaks during the Iowa Republican Party's Linco …
"We have to question: Is Iraq more stable or less stable since Hussein is gone?" asked Paul, who espouses some of the hands-off foreign policy of his father, former Texas Rep. Ron Paul.
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham tried to reject any assertion that the existing problems in Iraq were the result of the Republican president who ordered the invasion, Bush's brother George W. Bush.
"The person I blame is Barack Obama, not George W. Bush," said Graham, who criticized Obama for keeping a campaign promise to withdraw combat troops from Iraq. Of George W. Bush, Graham said, "He made the best decision he could."
More...http://news.yahoo.com/among-rivals-iowa-bush-tries-bounce-back-remarks-215022287--election.html
Scott Walker: I Don’t Stand With Rand
Likely 2016 presidential candidate Scott Walker said on Wednesday that if he were in the Senate, he would not have supported Rand Paul’s protest against the reauthorization of the Patriot Act and the the NSA’s domestic surveillance programs.
Paul held the Senate floor for almost eleven hours earlier this week to object to the ongoing collection of Americans’ telephone records.
Speaking to talk radio host Michael Medved, Walker said it was “incredibly important” for national security that the government retain the legal authority to collect Americans’ metadata en masse.
...
More...http://www.buzzfeed.com/ilanbenmeir/scott-walker-i-dont-stand-with-rand
Likely 2016 presidential candidate Scott Walker said on Wednesday that if he were in the Senate, he would not have supported Rand Paul’s protest against the reauthorization of the Patriot Act and the the NSA’s domestic surveillance programs.
Paul held the Senate floor for almost eleven hours earlier this week to object to the ongoing collection of Americans’ telephone records.
Speaking to talk radio host Michael Medved, Walker said it was “incredibly important” for national security that the government retain the legal authority to collect Americans’ metadata en masse.
...
More...http://www.buzzfeed.com/ilanbenmeir/scott-walker-i-dont-stand-with-rand
The more people who DON'T 'Stand with Rand', the more I, as a reformed Liberal, hold out some hope for him as a potentially worthwhile candidate. This is especially the case for mainstream bottom feeders like Scott Walker and his (many) counterparts on the so-called 'progressive' side of the equation.
Scott Walker: I Don’t Stand With Rand
Likely 2016 presidential candidate Scott Walker said on Wednesday that if he were in the Senate, he would not have supported Rand Paul’s protest against the reauthorization of the Patriot Act and the the NSA’s domestic surveillance programs.
Paul held the Senate floor for almost eleven hours earlier this week to object to the ongoing collection of Americans’ telephone records.
Speaking to talk radio host Michael Medved, Walker said it was “incredibly important” for national security that the government retain the legal authority to collect Americans’ metadata en masse.
...
More...http://www.buzzfeed.com/ilanbenmeir/scott-walker-i-dont-stand-with-rand
Likely 2016 presidential candidate Scott Walker said on Wednesday that if he were in the Senate, he would not have supported Rand Paul’s protest against the reauthorization of the Patriot Act and the the NSA’s domestic surveillance programs.
Paul held the Senate floor for almost eleven hours earlier this week to object to the ongoing collection of Americans’ telephone records.
Speaking to talk radio host Michael Medved, Walker said it was “incredibly important” for national security that the government retain the legal authority to collect Americans’ metadata en masse.
...
More...http://www.buzzfeed.com/ilanbenmeir/scott-walker-i-dont-stand-with-rand
The more people who DON'T 'Stand with Rand', the more I, as a reformed Liberal, hold out some hope for him as a potentially worthwhile candidate. This is especially the case for mainstream bottom feeders like Scott Walker and his (many) counterparts on the so-called 'progressive' side of the equation.
Scott Walker: I Don’t Stand With Rand
Likely 2016 presidential candidate Scott Walker said on Wednesday that if he were in the Senate, he would not have supported Rand Paul’s protest against the reauthorization of the Patriot Act and the the NSA’s domestic surveillance programs.
Paul held the Senate floor for almost eleven hours earlier this week to object to the ongoing collection of Americans’ telephone records.
Speaking to talk radio host Michael Medved, Walker said it was “incredibly important” for national security that the government retain the legal authority to collect Americans’ metadata en masse.
...
More...http://www.buzzfeed.com/ilanbenmeir/scott-walker-i-dont-stand-with-rand
Likely 2016 presidential candidate Scott Walker said on Wednesday that if he were in the Senate, he would not have supported Rand Paul’s protest against the reauthorization of the Patriot Act and the the NSA’s domestic surveillance programs.
Paul held the Senate floor for almost eleven hours earlier this week to object to the ongoing collection of Americans’ telephone records.
Speaking to talk radio host Michael Medved, Walker said it was “incredibly important” for national security that the government retain the legal authority to collect Americans’ metadata en masse.
...
More...http://www.buzzfeed.com/ilanbenmeir/scott-walker-i-dont-stand-with-rand
Rubio Demands More Foreign Workers
Rubio’s “I-squared” bill would triple the number of temporary guest workers businesses could bring into the country every year, and allow for a virtually unlimited number of university-based green cards.
....
The big businesses backing this bill and clamoring for more guest workers insist they can’t find enough Americans willing or able to fill certain “high-skilled” jobs. Rubio obviously agrees, and has argued more guest workers and immigration generally will result in more jobs for Americans.
....
“Its only purpose is to please the corporate interests that are very heavy campaign contributors,” he added. “That is literally the bottom line.”
....
Nearly 75 percent of Americans with STEM degrees are not working in STEM Fields, according to Census data, and only 3.8 million Americans with STEM degrees actually hold STEM jobs.
More...http://dailycaller.com/2015/05/19/as-floridians-are-displaced-rubio-demands-more-foreign-workers/
Rubio’s “I-squared” bill would triple the number of temporary guest workers businesses could bring into the country every year, and allow for a virtually unlimited number of university-based green cards.
....
The big businesses backing this bill and clamoring for more guest workers insist they can’t find enough Americans willing or able to fill certain “high-skilled” jobs. Rubio obviously agrees, and has argued more guest workers and immigration generally will result in more jobs for Americans.
....
“Its only purpose is to please the corporate interests that are very heavy campaign contributors,” he added. “That is literally the bottom line.”
....
Nearly 75 percent of Americans with STEM degrees are not working in STEM Fields, according to Census data, and only 3.8 million Americans with STEM degrees actually hold STEM jobs.
More...http://dailycaller.com/2015/05/19/as-floridians-are-displaced-rubio-demands-more-foreign-workers/
To be fair, this could be a reflection of the worthlessness of most degrees. A degree seems to prove that one has a certain level of intelligence and drive, but as the standards relax to where a majority of Americans can obtain one (usually be going into debt slavery or having their parents participate in a transfer-of-wealth scheme) then necessarily the holding of one does not mean a lot. My experiance In the tech sector where H1-B's were common is that people doing the hiring want to make money. Period. If you can help them do that, you are in. China and India with a billion people form a rich vein of talent. I can hardly believe that the governments of China and India will let them go so easily. As far as I'm concerned as a national policy, we should not stare a gift horse in the mouth. The alternate which suites most industries just fine is to export the jobs themselves overseas.
But ya, Rubio is a fuck-head no matter what.
Rubio Demands More Foreign Workers
Rubio’s “I-squared” bill would triple the number of temporary guest workers businesses could bring into the country every year, and allow for a virtually unlimited number of university-based green cards.
....
The big businesses backing this bill and clamoring for more guest workers insist they can’t find enough Americans willing or able to fill certain “high-skilled” jobs. Rubio obviously agrees, and has argued more guest workers and immigration generally will result in more jobs for Americans.
....
“Its only purpose is to please the corporate interests that are very heavy campaign contributors,” he added. “That is literally the bottom line.”
....
Nearly 75 percent of Americans with STEM degrees are not working in STEM Fields, according to Census data, and only 3.8 million Americans with STEM degrees actually hold STEM jobs.
More...http://dailycaller.com/2015/05/19/as-floridians-are-displaced-rubio-demands-more-foreign-workers/
Rubio’s “I-squared” bill would triple the number of temporary guest workers businesses could bring into the country every year, and allow for a virtually unlimited number of university-based green cards.
....
The big businesses backing this bill and clamoring for more guest workers insist they can’t find enough Americans willing or able to fill certain “high-skilled” jobs. Rubio obviously agrees, and has argued more guest workers and immigration generally will result in more jobs for Americans.
....
“Its only purpose is to please the corporate interests that are very heavy campaign contributors,” he added. “That is literally the bottom line.”
....
Nearly 75 percent of Americans with STEM degrees are not working in STEM Fields, according to Census data, and only 3.8 million Americans with STEM degrees actually hold STEM jobs.
More...http://dailycaller.com/2015/05/19/as-floridians-are-displaced-rubio-demands-more-foreign-workers/
Hillary’s agribusiness ties give rise to nickname in Iowa: ‘Bride of Frankenfood’
Hillary Rodham Clinton’s ties to agribusiness giant Monsanto, and her advocacy for the industry’s genetically modified crops, have environmentalists in Iowa calling her “Bride of Frankenfood” — putting yet another wrinkle in her presidential campaign’s courtship of liberal activists who are crucial to winning the state’s Democratic caucuses.
The backlash against Mrs. Clinton for her support of genetically modified organisms (GMO), which dominate the corn and soybean crops at the heart of Iowa’s economy, manifested itself at a recent meeting of the Tri-County Democrats, where members gauged support for the former secretary of state.
A large faction of women voiced strong support for Mrs. Clinton’s candidacy until the GMO issue came up, prompting them to switch allegiances to Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, a liberal stalwart challenging her for the Democratic nomination.
Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/may/17/hillary-clinton-gmo-support-monsanto-ties-spark-ba/#ixzz3aoujACaX
Hillary Rodham Clinton’s ties to agribusiness giant Monsanto, and her advocacy for the industry’s genetically modified crops, have environmentalists in Iowa calling her “Bride of Frankenfood” — putting yet another wrinkle in her presidential campaign’s courtship of liberal activists who are crucial to winning the state’s Democratic caucuses.
The backlash against Mrs. Clinton for her support of genetically modified organisms (GMO), which dominate the corn and soybean crops at the heart of Iowa’s economy, manifested itself at a recent meeting of the Tri-County Democrats, where members gauged support for the former secretary of state.
A large faction of women voiced strong support for Mrs. Clinton’s candidacy until the GMO issue came up, prompting them to switch allegiances to Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, a liberal stalwart challenging her for the Democratic nomination.
Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/may/17/hillary-clinton-gmo-support-monsanto-ties-spark-ba/#ixzz3aoujACaX
Huckabee will be skipping Iowa Straw Poll
2016 hopeful Mike Huckabee announced on Fox & Friends Thursday morning he intends to skip the Iowa Straw Poll, becoming the second GOP candidate-type to do so.
But Huckabee’s decision is far more surprising than that of Jeb Bush, a so-called moderate who routinely polls fifth in the state. Huckabee, a religious conservative, won the Iowa caucus in 2008 and is likely pinning the momentum of his campaign on a repeat.
To do so he intends to marshall all his resources on the caucus, not some stupid straw thing. “It’s been a great political theater,” he said. “But every candidate ultimately has to decide how to use resources and the goal is not to win a straw poll which doesn’t mean anything.”
Huckabee also worried the poll could divide the conservatives in the field. “I just don’t want to see conservatives split up, get into a deep fight, and make a way for someone to come around the edge from the middle and take out a conservative,” he said “That’s not the best way for us to win the election.”
Huckabee pointed out that Michele Bachmann won the dealie in 2012 only to finish sixth in Iowa. Huckabee placed second in Iowa in 2008.
http://www.mediaite.com/tv/huckabee-skipping-meaningless-iowa-straw-poll-just-political-theater/
The Establishment got burned when Ron Paul nearly won the Iowa Straw Poll. If that had not happened, I have no doubt that we'd be still be hearing all the Establishment candidates and pundits yapping about how important the IASP is, if only as an indicator of organizational strength.
But the Establishment can't tolerate the risk of being shown up, and the word has gone out: the IASP (or any other venue they cannot manage or control) has to be dissed, downplayed and relegated to irrelevance ...
2016 hopeful Mike Huckabee announced on Fox & Friends Thursday morning he intends to skip the Iowa Straw Poll, becoming the second GOP candidate-type to do so.
But Huckabee’s decision is far more surprising than that of Jeb Bush, a so-called moderate who routinely polls fifth in the state. Huckabee, a religious conservative, won the Iowa caucus in 2008 and is likely pinning the momentum of his campaign on a repeat.
To do so he intends to marshall all his resources on the caucus, not some stupid straw thing. “It’s been a great political theater,” he said. “But every candidate ultimately has to decide how to use resources and the goal is not to win a straw poll which doesn’t mean anything.”
Huckabee also worried the poll could divide the conservatives in the field. “I just don’t want to see conservatives split up, get into a deep fight, and make a way for someone to come around the edge from the middle and take out a conservative,” he said “That’s not the best way for us to win the election.”
Huckabee pointed out that Michele Bachmann won the dealie in 2012 only to finish sixth in Iowa. Huckabee placed second in Iowa in 2008.
http://www.mediaite.com/tv/huckabee-skipping-meaningless-iowa-straw-poll-just-political-theater/
The Establishment got burned when Ron Paul nearly won the Iowa Straw Poll. If that had not happened, I have no doubt that we'd be still be hearing all the Establishment candidates and pundits yapping about how important the IASP is, if only as an indicator of organizational strength.
But the Establishment can't tolerate the risk of being shown up, and the word has gone out: the IASP (or any other venue they cannot manage or control) has to be dissed, downplayed and relegated to irrelevance ...
Marco Rubio Struggles With Question on Iraq War
Senator Marco Rubio of Florida struggled on Sunday to give clear answers about whether it was a mistake for the United States to go to war against Iraq in 2003, becoming the latest Republican presidential candidate to trip on the wisdom of the military invasion.
Under a barrage of questions from Chris Wallace of Fox News, Mr. Rubio repeatedly said “it was not a mistake” for President George W. Bush to order the invasion based on the intelligence he had at the time. But Mr. Rubio grew defensive as Mr. Wallace pressed him to say flatly whether he now believed the war was a mistake. Mr. Rubio chose instead to criticize the questions themselves, saying that in “the real world” presidents have to make decisions based on evidence presented to them at the time.
...
At one point Mr. Rubio, in discussing the importance of hindsight on the Iraq war, raised a recent boxing fight to make a point. “Based on what we know, a lot of things — based on what we know now, I wouldn’t have thought Manny Pacquiao was going to beat, uh, in that fight a couple weeks ago — — ” Mr. Rubio said before Mr. Wallace interrupted.
The back-and-forth resulted in a two-minute video clip that Republican opponents could use against Mr. Rubio in the future, given that he came across as a politician used to debating fine points and nuances in the United States Senate — a problem that then-Senator John Kerry faced in his presidential run in 2004 — rather than as a seasoned leader used to giving clear statements and sound bites. Mr. Rubio’s readiness for the presidency has been questioned among some Republican voters, given than he is a 43-year-old first-term senator, and moments like the boxing reference seemed discordant on a subject like the Iraq war.
...
http://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2015/05/17/marco-rubio-struggles-with-question-on-iraq-war/?_r=0
Senator Marco Rubio of Florida struggled on Sunday to give clear answers about whether it was a mistake for the United States to go to war against Iraq in 2003, becoming the latest Republican presidential candidate to trip on the wisdom of the military invasion.
Under a barrage of questions from Chris Wallace of Fox News, Mr. Rubio repeatedly said “it was not a mistake” for President George W. Bush to order the invasion based on the intelligence he had at the time. But Mr. Rubio grew defensive as Mr. Wallace pressed him to say flatly whether he now believed the war was a mistake. Mr. Rubio chose instead to criticize the questions themselves, saying that in “the real world” presidents have to make decisions based on evidence presented to them at the time.
...
At one point Mr. Rubio, in discussing the importance of hindsight on the Iraq war, raised a recent boxing fight to make a point. “Based on what we know, a lot of things — based on what we know now, I wouldn’t have thought Manny Pacquiao was going to beat, uh, in that fight a couple weeks ago — — ” Mr. Rubio said before Mr. Wallace interrupted.
The back-and-forth resulted in a two-minute video clip that Republican opponents could use against Mr. Rubio in the future, given that he came across as a politician used to debating fine points and nuances in the United States Senate — a problem that then-Senator John Kerry faced in his presidential run in 2004 — rather than as a seasoned leader used to giving clear statements and sound bites. Mr. Rubio’s readiness for the presidency has been questioned among some Republican voters, given than he is a 43-year-old first-term senator, and moments like the boxing reference seemed discordant on a subject like the Iraq war.
...
http://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-draft/2015/05/17/marco-rubio-struggles-with-question-on-iraq-war/?_r=0
John Bolton will not run for president
Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton said Thursday that he will not run for president in 2016, pledging he would nevertheless ensure those who do focus on his top issue: national security.
Bolton is a longtime Republican foreign policy hand who was considered a significant long-shot in the GOP field.
"While I'm not a candidate, I am certainly not going to sit this election out," Bolton said in a video to his supporters. "I'm also going to focus on the 2016 presidential race, to make certain that foreign policy is critical to winning the nomination."
The mustachioed neoconservative diplomat said he began to consider a presidential run in order to push national security to the top of the Republican agenda. With much of the early presidential debate centering on how potential candidates would tackle foreign policy challenges, Bolton said he believed his mission has been accomplished.
Bolton barely registered in national opinion polls and has never before held elective office.
...
http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/14/politics/election-2016-john-bolton-george-pataki-announcements/
Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton said Thursday that he will not run for president in 2016, pledging he would nevertheless ensure those who do focus on his top issue: national security.
Bolton is a longtime Republican foreign policy hand who was considered a significant long-shot in the GOP field.
"While I'm not a candidate, I am certainly not going to sit this election out," Bolton said in a video to his supporters. "I'm also going to focus on the 2016 presidential race, to make certain that foreign policy is critical to winning the nomination."
The mustachioed neoconservative diplomat said he began to consider a presidential run in order to push national security to the top of the Republican agenda. With much of the early presidential debate centering on how potential candidates would tackle foreign policy challenges, Bolton said he believed his mission has been accomplished.
Bolton barely registered in national opinion polls and has never before held elective office.
...
http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/14/politics/election-2016-john-bolton-george-pataki-announcements/
Marco Rubio: A Demographic on Steroids
Senator Marco Rubio spoke for the Council on Foreign Relations yesterday, staking out his position as the GOP super hawk, announcing that he would not be afraid to go to war. Presumably, he will have to compete with Senator Lindsey Graham for that role. And they both will have to find a suitable target.
Recent polls show him climbing. A Quinnipiac Poll has him tied with Rand Paul for second place in Iowa, behind Scott Walker. And a recent Bloomberg poll has him second only to Rand Paul in New Hampshire.
He is a fascinating candidate popular with the media. I call him a “demographic on steroids.”
First, he is Hispanic and that is the wave of the future for this country.
Second, he is from Florida, a key battleground, must win, state for any Republican.
Third, he is a Roman Catholic, with an LDS heritage, who regularly attends a Baptist church. Believe me, that is a highly evolved creature perfectly fitted for a modern, GOP primary process in an age of the Fox News Channel.
And finally, although he is young, he is the insider, big business, Wall Street, money alternative to Jeb Bush. In fact, Rubio’s people are right now telling donors that a dollar given to Jeb Bush is a dollar given to Hillary Clinton since Bush will never win a head to head contest with her. The national media and major corporations will never allow three of the last five presidents to come from the same immediate family. Bush, we are told, is only insurance in case Hillary slips.
These above are the four major positives of a Marco Rubio candidacy. But he has one major negative.
Marco Rubio, like most of the other candidates in this race, has no raison d’etre. There is no purpose in his candidacy other than naked ambition. For too many candidates in this race it is all about them and not the voter. Hillary Clinton says, “Vote for me I am a woman.” Marco Rubio says, “Vote for me I am Hispanic.” Even Scott Walker’s argument says nothing about what he would do. Walker says, “Vote for me I am a governor. I know how to be an administrator.” It is meant to contrast the ineptitude of the current president.
...
This may be why Senator Rand Paul is now leading these early swing state and battleground state polls. He is a fount of ideas. Young people have a reason to vote for him. African Americans have a reason to vote for him. Born again Christians have a reason to vote for him. Waitresses have a reason to vote for him. He doesn’t just raise the defense budget, he shows how he will do it while balancing the budget.
...
https://dougwead.wordpress.com/2015/05/14/marco-rubio-a-demographic-on-steroids/
Senator Marco Rubio spoke for the Council on Foreign Relations yesterday, staking out his position as the GOP super hawk, announcing that he would not be afraid to go to war. Presumably, he will have to compete with Senator Lindsey Graham for that role. And they both will have to find a suitable target.
Recent polls show him climbing. A Quinnipiac Poll has him tied with Rand Paul for second place in Iowa, behind Scott Walker. And a recent Bloomberg poll has him second only to Rand Paul in New Hampshire.
He is a fascinating candidate popular with the media. I call him a “demographic on steroids.”
First, he is Hispanic and that is the wave of the future for this country.
Second, he is from Florida, a key battleground, must win, state for any Republican.
Third, he is a Roman Catholic, with an LDS heritage, who regularly attends a Baptist church. Believe me, that is a highly evolved creature perfectly fitted for a modern, GOP primary process in an age of the Fox News Channel.
And finally, although he is young, he is the insider, big business, Wall Street, money alternative to Jeb Bush. In fact, Rubio’s people are right now telling donors that a dollar given to Jeb Bush is a dollar given to Hillary Clinton since Bush will never win a head to head contest with her. The national media and major corporations will never allow three of the last five presidents to come from the same immediate family. Bush, we are told, is only insurance in case Hillary slips.
These above are the four major positives of a Marco Rubio candidacy. But he has one major negative.
Marco Rubio, like most of the other candidates in this race, has no raison d’etre. There is no purpose in his candidacy other than naked ambition. For too many candidates in this race it is all about them and not the voter. Hillary Clinton says, “Vote for me I am a woman.” Marco Rubio says, “Vote for me I am Hispanic.” Even Scott Walker’s argument says nothing about what he would do. Walker says, “Vote for me I am a governor. I know how to be an administrator.” It is meant to contrast the ineptitude of the current president.
...
This may be why Senator Rand Paul is now leading these early swing state and battleground state polls. He is a fount of ideas. Young people have a reason to vote for him. African Americans have a reason to vote for him. Born again Christians have a reason to vote for him. Waitresses have a reason to vote for him. He doesn’t just raise the defense budget, he shows how he will do it while balancing the budget.
...
https://dougwead.wordpress.com/2015/05/14/marco-rubio-a-demographic-on-steroids/
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