Some Republican leaders prefer not to discuss Sarah Palin [Romney "laughing and smiling"] [McCain]

Politico ^ | 2009-05-03 | Jonathan Martin

[rabscuttle385]

In the latest instance of a high-profile GOP member taking a passing swipe at the party's 2008 vice-presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Governor and GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney jokingly dismissed Sarah Palin’s inclusion on TIME’s list of influential people in an interview broadcast Sunday.

He asked, was “the issue on the most beautiful people or the most influential people?”

. . . . .

Romney, who was appearing with House Minority Whip Eric Cantor as part of a party re-launch the two are organizing with other prominent Republicans under the banner of the National Council for a New America, was laughing and smiling as he said it. His spokesman, Eric Fehrnstrom, called it only “a self-deprecating joke as to why there weren't more Republicans on the list.”

But Romney’s quip reflects the deep unease among many in the GOP establishment about the continued high-profile of Limbaugh and especially Palin. There is almost a sense of exasperation among many party elites over the media coverage the two polarizing figures get – attention which, in Palin’s case, is widely seen as a product largely of her good looks and tabloid-fodder family troubles.

“She’s bigger in the media than in reality,” lamented GOP consultant Mike Murphy, a longtime friend and adviser to John McCain.

[Deagle]

Mercy...are you WRONG! We have to change the Constitution to insure that PLAIN LANGUAGE is interpenetrated as it is written (and insert such language as required). That is the problem! Too many of the Supreme Court judges seem to think that it is their responsibility to interpret the words as they wish. Damn them all...

[SolidWood]

Palin PING!

Anyone on or off the Palin ping, write me.

...

Of course the RINOs prefer to ignore Palin. Because they fear her and the tide that will flush them out.

[RobbyS]

Romney like many ambitious pols is unable to understand why he failed. He failed because he comes across as a stuffed shirt. When Steve Forbes ran for president, I thought him much more likeable simply because he was just himself—both he and his family—just your ordinary multi-millionaire . and his wife and kids. Forbes is as homely as Henry Kissinger and about as smart.

[RobbyS]

They are going to do everything they can to defeat her in 2010. They have given up the fight against Obama, at least for the moment. If he stumbles badky, of course, they will turn their attention in that direction, of course.

[Hugin]

Responding to King’s question first, House Minority Whip Eric Cantor said “there are some who like to make it all about personalities, but it's about ideas.”

Former Gov. Jeb Bush, who is also playing a prominent role in the Council, similarly said to POLITICO Saturday after the group's launch in Arlington, Va., that the group hopes “to make the next election about ideas and not about personalities.”

The new mantra of those devoid of any personality.

[RobbyS]

Right. Candidates that bad have no right to offer advise.

[RobbyS]

Cantor is a smart guy, but he is afraid of the camera. Sanford is very deadpan, but he is not. Then there is that Jewish thing. Sorry, but it matters.

[kcvl]

These beltway a-holes really do not have the slightest clue as to why they are all losers at this moment in time.

Obviously not! And I doubt they get a clue any time soon either.

It's going to take more than some stupid listening tour (ala Hillary) to wake them up too it seems!

If they are this dense they are mostly a lost cause.

[Cementjungle]

Now, conservative leaders that is a whole different story, and, that too is sad. It does not appear that Republican “leadership” is going to allow conservatives to take the helm.

That's our problem right now... actualy it's America's problem.

[Cementjungle]

And if the GOP picks Romney for their candidate next election, will conservatives in America FINALLY get the picture and leave the Republican party????

And go where?

[DangerZone]

Don’t allow them to do it. Get involved and take the GOP back beforehand.

[ScaniaBoy]

“Don’t you think that with the reaction coming from the public right now that anyone considering the GOP run for the next election might lean more toward the conservative side?”

####

Certainly.

----------------

I posted this on another thread yesterday (Jeb Bush on ditching Reagan), but I agree fully. The way forward for the GOP is not going "wet" - to quote Lady Thatcher.

One can argue that the poll numbers I quote are just blips on the curve and not a trend at all, but given the economic and political outlook in conjunction with the "strange" behaviour of the Libs (eg Perez Hilton, the frivolous ethics complaints against Gov Palin), which is already meeting a backlash I think this may be the first signs of a real conservative revival:

I just wrote this in an e-mail to a friend:

Not that our media and "expert" commentators will notice but the political climate in the US may be changing:

#1: According to Rasmussen's daily tracking poll on Obama's approval he was at +1 on Saturday. That's his lowest so far. Still those who "somewhat" approve are at 54% vs 45% for those who somewhat disapprove. But it is a large decline in approval rate since his heydays in late January.

#2: Another Rasmussen poll shows that for only the second time in 5 years the Republicans are polling better than the Democrats (41% vs 38%). The last time before this was in March.

#3 Despite an increase for the GOP in the generic congressional ballot, fewer voters consider themselves Republicans (32.6% vs 38.7% Dems).

#4 This is in keeping with the fact that 69% of GOP voters feel that their representatives in Congress have lost touch with their voters.

#5 It does not look like the voters want the GOP to move more towards the middle ground. Seventy-two percent (72%) of Republicans say it is more important for the GOP to stand for what it believes in than for the party to work with President Obama.

All of the above figures come from various Rasmussen polls. But these figures tally well with some results from a recent Pew poll on gun control and abortion.

#6 In a Pew poll released 30 April, it was found that public attitudes on a pair of contentious national issues -- gun control and abortion -- have moved in a more conservative direction over the past year.

#7 For the first time in a Pew Research survey, nearly as many people believe it is more important to protect the right of Americans to own guns (45%) than to control gun ownership (49%). The figures for protection of the right to bear arms has never been so high, not even after 9/11, and the figure for gun control has never been below 54% before.

#8 The proportion saying that abortion should be legal in all or most cases has declined to 46% from 54% last August. Currently, 44% say abortion should be illegal in most (28%) or all cases (16%), up slightly since last August (41%). The Pew poll has only been this close on abortion once before (August 2001). Otherwise there has always been a larger proportion of the voters favouring abortion.

#9 Add to this the "tea parties" and fact that Arlen Specter had to change parties to stand any chance of saving his seat in the Senate I would say that there appears to be the beginning of a conservative backlash against the swing to the left in the elections of 2006 and 2008.

Hmm, I guess Jeb Bush does not agree with my analysis.

[Impy]

Odd how these guys don’t like even mentioning her, get all nervous, like they’re threatened......

[MaggieCarta]

There’s a better version.From FReeper’s RTO’s parody at
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1971878/posts?page=371#371

All Done With John (Sung to ‘Already Gone’ by the Eagles)

Well, I heard some Freepers squalkin’ just the other day
And they said choose Mc ‘C’ or Obama you will help
But let me tell you I got another view
That you sure don’t have a clue
When Dems eat your lunch, you’ll be left all by yourself
’Cause see I’m all done with John
And I’m say-ay-in’ so long
I won’t sing his RINO song, woo-hoo-hooh! Woo-hoo-hoo

The “lesser” that you vote, see, makes evil plot another lie
But I guess you felt like you have to reject the right
Just remember this, in Mac’s world … spending pork will multiply
He will cede the War when the bills go outta sight (that’s right)

’Cause see I’m all done with John
And I’m say-ay-in’ so long
I won’t sing his RINO song, woo, hoo,hoo,woo,hoo,hoo

Well I know it wasn’t you who held our ground
Heaven knows it isn’t you to take the lead
Go soft in times of fashion, so that we give our votes in vain
And we never seem to hold the G-O-P

But see, I’m all done with John
And I’m say-ay-in’ so long
I won’t sing his RINO song
’Cause I’m all done with John
Yes, I’m all done with John
And I’m say-ay-in’ so long
I won’t sing his RINO song
’Cause I’m all done with John
Yes, I’m all done with John
All done with John
All right, nighty-night

[iopscusa]

Also noted that these GOP poofers did not mention Gov Sanford or Gov Perry...I wonder why?

[chainsaw]

He asked, was “the issue on the most beautiful people or the most influential people?”

Romney should look in the mirror and ask himself the same question. He couldn't beat McCain - who was/is a sorry excuse for a republican politician.

Go Sarah, we're with ya.

[chainsaw]

Odd how these guys don’t like even mentioning her, get all nervous, like they’re threatened......

Right they are, because if Sarah gets hold of the presidency, their records, as liberals, will flush their political careers, right down the toilet. They are petrified of her. She has political appeal and resonates female equality. She is smart and has executive experience to go with her attractiveness.

[Diogenesis]

"It's agreed, then. Our agents and their spouses will attack Gov. Palin to help Obama and us."

"Romney Disses Palin Again - This Time by Proxy"
"Who's Mike Murphy? He's a Romney guy!
He's hated Palin from Day One...when she was announced as McCain's VP nominee,
he was the jerkwad on the air with Peggy Noonan when she made her infamous hot-mike disparaging remarks about Palin...
nd he himself was calling the Palin choice "gimmicky" and "cynical."
They never gave Palin a chance.
They had contempt for her and for the ordinary Americans she represents."

"Murphy is a Romney hack.
Although he worked for McCain in 2000, he switched to help Romney for the 2008 race.
He now works for Palin-deranged MSNBC as a token Republican."

Poor sport spoiler Romney attacks Gov. Palin:

"Peeking Out From the McCain Wreckage: Mitt Romney"

"Someone's got to say it: IS MITT ROMNEY RESPONSIBLE FOR OBAMA'S VICTORY?"

"Vanity: Team Romney Sabotaged Palin and Continuing to Do So?"

"Romney Supporters Trashing Palin"

"Romney advisors sniping at Palin?"

---

Poor sport spoiler Romney attacks other GOP candidatesn:

Novak: "Fred Thompson drop-out rumors traced to Romney campaign"

Said Novak: "The rumors were traced in part to Mitt Romney's campaign,
trying to stir up strife between McCain and Thompson."

"Despite outspending his rivals by huge margins throughout the primaries,
(Mitt Romney, Carpetbagger UT,CA,MA,NH,Mexico) lost Iowa, South Carolina, Florida and California.
The only primaries he won were in Michigan, where Dad was governor; LDS states;
and a few states on Super Tuesday in which his California-obsessed rivals
couldn't spare the cash to advertise.
Only John Connolly in 1968 had a worse cash-to-delegates ratio.
And John McCain rightly did not like Romney's tactics during the primaries.
(W)hen (Romney's early leads) started slipping away, he resorted to unfair,
distorted, scorched-earth negative ads, betting that his opponents couldn't
afford to spend enough for the truth to catch up to his charges."
[Romney: A Mistake for McCain, 7/23/2008, Dick Morris]

[Rappini]

I don’t see MO anywhere all I see are Curly and Larry.

[NordP]

I thought that for someone as talented with his verbal skills as Romney is, he should NOT have spoken so flippantly about THE REAL DEAL & RUSH. When will they EVER get it??? (answer: I wonder if EVER)

(and I'm a Romney fan, who LOVES PALIN and who thought a Romney/Palin ticket would be a great way to get Palin in there for those still a bit unsure of her "Presidentiality" factor)