Posted on 10/19/2011 5:22:56 PM PDT by smoothsailing
October 19, 2011
Well, this much is clear: Rick Perry's campaign takes its cues from this blog, which just a few days ago asked in a headline, "Time for Perry to Bring up Mitt's lawn care?" Apparently, it was time. The question that came to my mind as that remarkable fracas last night was occurring was: could this turn into Mitt Romney's driver's license moment? Hillary Clinton was sailing along on an aura of inevitability in the fall of 2007, acing the debates much as Romney has done, when she found herself ganged up in a Philadelphia debate over her ambiguous stance over whether or not illegal immigrants in New York state should be allowed drivers' licenses.
It was a damaging moment because it brought to the fore all at once the less appealing side of her political persona, the trimming and calculating Hillary. There was a sudden similar risk in Perry's attack on Mitt's lawn workers (and what is it, anyway, with immigration as the issue that sparks revelatory moments in both parties' debates?) -- it reacquainted viewers very clearly with the Romney that he had managed to submerge so far in the campaign, the supremely wealthy suburban Boston pol who finds it unnervingly easy to talk away past positions or actions in blatant denial of the historical record. It will be up to viewers to decide what they make of this Mitt -- appealing to Anderson Cooper to restore order, his face red, his voice raised to a full shout -- in the constant replaying that the back and forth is sure to get in the coming days. Me, I thought the Times' Alessandra Stanley nailed it: "Romney looked a little like a country club tennis player dealing with a nonmember guest who gauchely calls a ball in that was obviously out."
Still, for this to turn into an equivalent of Hillary's driver's license moment will require that there is another candidate who is able to capitalize on this opening the way that Barack Obama was able to do then, as he deftly zeroed in on the triangulating Hillary in the Jefferson-Jackson speech in Des Moines that revived his campaign. This is the chance for Rick Perry's team to prove they're as good as everyone in Texas says they are.
VIDEO-Romney & Perry Take the Gloves Off
I don’t care what sinks Romney, as long as something does and it’s done in the primaries. I don’t care who does it, either.
You gotta admit, Perry must have the balls of a brass monkey to attack Romney on illegal immigration, for Pete’s sake!
One wants to hire illegals and the other wants to give them in state tuition rates. Good grief.
Can we please find a real conservative who has a shot at winning this election??? Or are we going to have 2008 all over again?
You missed the point. It was that Mitt is a major flip flopper and says one thing and does another.
hope so.
Even though this was the second time?
For the same people?
2 years, 2 different exposes?
why be sorry?
we all hate him here at FR(I hope)....
but his hired landscape company using illegals is a stretch for Perry to go after him for....there is Sooooo much more...hey Rick, how about that ‘Obamney thing’
My condo association has a landscaping company that of course is all hispanic. I don’t dare throw my hat in the ring for the presidency because I’d be dead in the water if one of those guys was found to be an illegal and I didn’t do a thing about it.
Will Perry’s tied to massive illegal alien employer Bob Perry (Perry Homes) sink him? Give me a break. Both Mittens and Perry are damaged goods on this issue.
Will Perry’s ties to massive illegal alien employer Bob Perry (Perry Homes) sink him? Give me a break. Both Mittens and Perry are damaged goods on this issue.
I literally want to reach through the TV and grab Morris by the neck. He has his nose so far up Romney's butt its disgusting. He WILL NOT say a good word about Perry come hell or high water. He WILL NOT say a BAD word about Romney come hell or high water.
Did you catch the Frank Luntz focus group? I wish he would've asked the question, "By a show of hands, how many of you are Mormons?" Yeah, that's under the belt, but applicable.
None of those people in the focus group came into the room supporting Perry. Maybe 1 dude out of 30 or so. Luntz is about to send me off the edge as well. I think I'm done with Fox News altogether. They have become as biased for Romney as CNN is for Obama. Maybe WORSE!!
My husband does our lawn and he's a White guy.
“My condo association has a landscaping company that of course is all hispanic.”
Romney hired a legal immigrant from Colombian which was fine, but the man used almost exclusively illegal Guatemalans, they interacted with Mitt and his wife, speaking exclusively Spanish, for a decade, including Mitt’s time as a Governor, with high security, and background checks. Mitt pushed the workers onto other people, like his adult children.
In 2006, the Boston globe busted Mitt Romney for the illegals, it was a huge scandal. In the 2007 debates, Giuliani brought up Mitt’s “Sanctuary Mansion”, Mitt played dumb like he did in this debate and denied it, a few days later the Boston Globe gave it a shot, and guess who was there at Mitt’s house, the exact same situation, and the same Colombian with his illegal Guatemalans.
Your comparison is idiotic and ignores a real, and serious, 11 year period of actions and choices by a Governor, and now a Presidential candidate.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.