Posted on 09/16/2011 7:45:31 AM PDT by Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus
Republican presidential hopeful Jon Huntsman will announce the endorsement of former U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Gov. Tom Ridge Friday in an event at St. Anselm College in Goffstown.
Ridge, a former governor of Pennsylvania, plans to attend a press conference with Huntsman at the college’s New Hampshire Institute for Politics.
In a statement by the Huntsman campaign, Ridge said Thursday that Huntsman is “a serious, insightful leader.”
Huntsman, 51, a former Utah governor and ambassador to China, said he’ll be counting on Ridge for help and counsel.
(Excerpt) Read more at unionleader.com ...
Poor Rick Santorum, what a nice guy to be betrayed not once but now twice by PA “Republicans”, Arlen Specter and now et tu Ridge. PA is unkind to even its own presidential candidates.
I hadn’t read that Perry refused to back Michael Stanley Dukakis because I had always though having “St. Lloyd” on the ticket would have been enough to hold most of the TX Democrats. I still get irate whenever I see the old tape of Dan Quayle letting Bentsen walk all over him, for no reason. That was an easy slight to respond to, but Quayle let it pass and looked weak.
Actually, much of the Lamar Smith House seat was represented by a Republican, Harry Wurzbach of San Antonio, in the 1920s. And Republicans made fair showings for governor in 1924 and 1932 against “Ma” Ferguson. It was possible to run as a Republican, but no recent person succeeded until Bruce Alger and then John Tower. Mr. Alger may be the oldest living former member of the U.S. House. He even spoke out against the “free lunch program” in the late 1950s! How our little party has grown and moved further left at the same time!
The vast majority of Texans did not fall for Bentsen on the ticket.
Perry was no exception.
Just like he was no exception to the historic rule, scratch a Texan and underneath the skin you will find a Democrat.
For that, he has been savaged. For being what Texans once were, Democrats.
John Tower broke that hold. People were so mad at LBJ, who, after savaging Kennedy in the campaign, went on Kennedy’s ticket, they voted for John Tower for Senate. But even as that happened, across Texas generally you could not find a Republican primary ballot or even a Republican to vote for on a general election ballot. I’m speaking generally, overall. For state races and local...
The precedent for Tower’s run and win had been set at the Federal Election level, so Texas had begun to crack open when in back-to-back Presidential elections they voted for Eisenhower over Adlai Stevenson.
People say Perry was late in the day in switching. I don’t dispute that, but his area around Paint Creek was one of the very last to change. They are unbelievably traditional there and they clung hard to their family and area traditions. Now, even they have changed. But that’s where Perry first ran from when he went to the Texas House.
I also point out that Phil Gramm was late in changing, too, but was one of Reagan’s most ardent supporters and water carriers as a Democrat in the House. Only after that did he actually become a card carrying Republican.
He was actually still a Democrat while an economics professor and House member. Changed parties to run for and win a Senate seat, and he touted his Reagan creds to win.
Jimmy Carter cured him.
If your area didn’t have a Republican organization it did not happen.
The vast majority of Texas areas did not have Republican organizations.
I never said it was impossible to run as a Republican. I am saying it didn’t happen in the vast majority of cases, for many, many years. Such things don’t happen magically. When a Republican primary happens, and when Republican names appear on ballots, some folks working at the grass roots made that happen.
You can find exceptions to almost everything.
My point remains that Perry followed family and area traditions...actually you could say he virtually clung to them, until finally his fingertips slipped off that cliff’s edge he was clinging to. He said it was when Gore got nowhere in 1988 and instead Dukakis won.
I see you’re back pimping for Huntsman.
There cannot be primaries in Texas unless a party gets 20 percent of the ballots in the past general election for governor. There was a Republican primary in 1926 because the 1924 nominee got in the mid-30’s I believe it was. So there could be no local primaries without one statewide too.
There have been no Libertarian primaries in TX because the party has never met the 20 percent threshold. Therefore, nominees from minor parties have to be chosen at state or county conventions.
There were Republican primaries, state and locally, in all the years that Perry won as a Democrat, 1982, 1984, 1986, and 1988.
There have been Republican primaries in all TX counties since 1962, if candidates filed for local offices. In 1964, GHWB had to win a primary runoff against Jack Cox, a former Democrat state representative, before he could lose in the fall to Ralph W. Yarborough. There were also primaries in 1926 and possibly 1934 too, right after the party won more than 20 percent of the vote in the past general elections.
Yes, in heavily Democrat counties (many of which are now Republican ones), one may have had to ask for a Republican ballot, or he would otherwise have just been handed a Democrat ballot.
Yes, Gramm was late in switching parties too, 1983; he had run as a Democrat against “Lord Bentsen” in 1976.
Tower began service as one of the four or five most conservative senators, but by the time he thankfully let Washington, he was a Ford supporter, an abortion booster, and a critic of SDI. Many think Tower would have been defeated in a 1984 primary had he run. Tower helped to sink the 1972 gubernatorial nominee, Hank Grover, a rock-ribbed conservative.
The history of the Texas GOP since oilman Jack Porter challenged LBJ in November 1948 is truly fascinating. It’s hard to believe that the GOP has won all statewide races in TX since 1998 and all but one too in 1996. No other state GOP, I don’t think, has such a record of success. That LBJ Senate seat has been represented by a Republican for 50.5 ar, going on 54 years. Yes, Gramm and Perry are later party switchers, Gramm even ten years after the late John B. Connally, Jr., who would not dare have bolted the Democrats until after LBJ died. And even then Connally continued in business with Democrat-in-chief Ben Barnes.
Thanks.
Huntsman is a big fave of MSNBC. Even Rachel has the hots for him. Tells me all I need to know.
I for one was waiting on the edge of my seat to find out who (what’s his name again? Oh yeah, Ridge) would endorse./sarc
You use words like 'credibility' and 'honesty' yet it is you who are saying Perry LIED.
“I intend to vote the same convictions. The only difference is there will be an R beside my name.”~Rick Perry
I have long thought Perry was a liar. It's good to see a Perry supporter finally admit that he is. Thanks!
So Tom Ridge is real idiot huh.
Huntsman is on fire, now he has 2 supporters (Jeb Jr.)!
He may yet catch up to Buddy Roemer.
Quite good satire; I wish I had coined it first. But remember like John Kerry he "was in Vietnam." People in PA always thought he was "special."
Why aren’t Roemer and Gary Johnson allowed in the “debates”?
If we can talk about Huntsman at 1%, why is Thaddeus McCotter at 1% not a contender? Why is McCotter excluded from the debates? Why is McCotter excluded from the polls?
MCCOTTER 2012!!!
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