Free Republic

(WARNING: The video on LGF goes to Soros Funded Think Progress. I didn't know why LGF linked to them at first, but I can't find the video anywhere else.)HUNTER: This is it folks. This is it. There is nothing after 2012. [...] I don’t care if it’s a more moderate/former liberal like Ronald Reagan, who would never be elected today in my opinion. If it’s someone like him or a hardcore conservative, you gotta elect the most winnable person this time. I know it sounds bad, but Congress makes the law. You’ve got a conservative Congress. You’re one third there....

Yesterday Ann Coulter might have unintentionally, or possibly intentionally, let it be known that Sarah Palin will not run for president in 2012. Everyone has made their own best guess on whether or not Palin will run, but Coulter may have access to more "insider knowledge" given her position as an established conservative commentator. In an interview with Sean Hannity last night Coulter said that she "loved" Palin, but also took a slight verbal jab at the former half-term governor of Alaska. After praising Palin, Coulter goes on to say that she does not think that Palin will run for...

Des Moines Register allows title and link only. http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20110228/NEWS09/102280302/Iowa-Poll-Palin-s-favorability-rating-slips-among-Iowa-Republicans?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Frontpage

ROCK HILL, S.C. — As Sarah Palin wonders whether to run for president, she might want to talk to people in places such as South Carolina. She'd find her star fading, and her prospects daunting. Republicans still like her, but now they openly question whether she could or should be nominated for president, let alone elected. At a recent gathering in South Carolina, the site of a crucial early presidential primary next year, party activists said the former Alaska governor didn't have the experience, the knowledge of issues or the ability to get beyond folksy slang and bumper-sticker generalities that...

I think American voters would do better to think about the influence political leaders exert by their words and actions, instead of treating their speeches (not to mention their sound bites and 60-second spots) as evidence of anything but what they think we want to hear. This came to mind last week as I read the report about Sarah Palin's non-appearance at this year's biggest conservative non-event (or should that be biggest non-conservative, pretending-to-be-conservative event?). She released a statement intended to keep her distance from the individuals and organizations whose non-appearance was meant to convey disapproval of CPAC's trendy surrender...

Oil industry leaders delivered a stinging rebuke of the production tax that became a hallmark of Gov. Sarah Palin's administration, telling a legislative committee Wednesday that it has discouraged investment and made Alaska a less attractive place to do business. Representatives of BP Alaska, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil and Pioneer Natural Resources said the tax cut and expanded tax credits proposed by Palin's successor, Gov. Sean Parnell, is a positive step toward encouraging greater activity and boosting oil production.

As the 2012 presidential race approaches, the Republicans are exploring all possibilities to deny Barack Obama a second term. As the potential Republican candidates met in Washington for the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), the real estate mogul Donald Trump made a surprise appearance to reiterate the possibility of him running for president in 2012. Among the likes of Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney and Ron Paul, the real estate mogul will have to first beat out the ever popular Sarah Palin to even be considered. Although Trump flirted with the idea way back in 1999 when Bill Clinton was the...

Tammy Bruce, columnist, radio host & conservative gay activist, announced on her website today that she will resign her position as advisory board member to GoProud. I want to let you know that after being a supporter and serving as Chair of the Advisory Board since May of 2010, I gave Chris Barron and Jimmy LaSalvia my resignation Saturday night. If you search GOProud here at the blog you’ll see the affection with which I’ve held both Chris and Jimmy, and I wish them well. I spoke with Tammy at the CPAC convention and when asked for comment on the...

I applaud Sarah Palin’s passion, her adroit sense of humor, and her you-go-girl! gumption. But the more I learn about Sarah Palin, the more I become perplexed by her over-heated gender-bending rhetoric. I believe we can all agree that men and women should have equal opportunities. But let’s not confuse equal opportunities with identical outcomes. Just because a woman has the same right to an education and a decent job doesn’t mean she will pursue the identical career path, toil as long, or work as many years as a man. Men and women have differing proclivities and interests — most...

Sarah Palin has hired a veteran operative to serve as a chief of staff to her loosely organized team, one of the biggest indicators yet that the former Alaska governor is leaning toward a run for the White House. POLITICO confirmed late Friday night that Palin has hired Michael Glassner to serve the key role.

Sarah Palin did not say she supports gay marriage. She hasn't celebrated the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. But she also did not say that a gay Republican group should be banned from participating in a big Republican conference, and for that, social conservatives are begging her to "clarify." Controversy has been brewing for months over GOProud, a gay conservative group, and its participation in CPAC, one of the biggest Republican events of the year--a must-do for most aspiring presidential hopefuls. Many social conservative groups are boycotting the conference because GOProud was allowed to participate. But Palin said she...

No great surprise here, really; Palin has quietly backed the end of DADT and expressed support for conservative gays and lesbians in the past. Speaking here with David Brody from the Christian Broadcast Network and excerpted by Breitbart TV, Palin doesn’t endorse GOProud but does defend their attendance at CPAC, and argues that the value of events such as CPAC is to debate the issues and provide as much information as possible to attendees:

Next Thursday marks the start of the Conservative Political Action Conference, commonly known as CPAC, where conservative activists gather every year in Northwest Washington, D.C. It's a chance for bigwigs to make speeches to a ballroom full of influential types, which makes it a particularly choice venue for Republican presidential aspirants, which speak there regularly. It's a packed three-day schedule from Thursday through Saturday, so there's room enough for most of them. Tea party hero Michele Bachmann, whose office indicated in January that she's considering a 2012 run, will be the first of the 2012ers to speak. Bachmann, many will...

Last Spring in New Orleans, Jonathan Martin and I picked up a very clear sentiment from Republican activists about Sarah Palin, reporting from the Southern Republican Leadership conference that "the wide admiration for Palin among the rock-ribbed Dixie Republicans gathered in the room wasn't matched by a confidence that she was ready to run." Jeff Zeleny picks up something very similar at the Reagan Library this weekend: Roy Billings, a Reagan admirer and a longtime contributor to the [Young America's Foundation], said he liked Ms. Palin a great deal, but he hoped that she would not run for president in...

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said he is “more likely” to run for president in 2012 if former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin makes a bid, according to snippets from an interview to air on CNN Monday night released on Twitter. “The more Republicans in which I can show a contrast, probably the better chance, the better chance that I have,” Mr. Giuliani is quoted as saying on CNN host Piers Morgan’s Twitter account. “My one chance, if I have a chance, is that I’m considered a moderate.” The implication being that Ms. Palin, a tea party favorite, is not...

# This Politico story about the group drafting Indiania Congressman Mike Pence to run for the GOP presidential nomination is full of interesting tidbits about Republicans' dissatisfaction with the rest of the field: An Indiana congressman with just five terms in public office, Pence is currently the subject of a draft movement—but he may well pick a gubernatorial run over a White House bid. . . . . The pro-Pence crowd consists of a group of traditional conservatives who, while sympathizing with her, don’t view Sarah Palin as a serious presidential candidate. They doubt Mike Huckabee will run again or...

Rudy Giuliani has already announced that he’s “considering” a run for president in 2012, but, as he tells Piers Morgan in Monday’s episode of Piers Morgan Tonight, he’ll be much more likely to run if Sarah Palin decides to as well. Giuliani says that running against Palin would position him as a “moderate Republican” in contrast to Palin’s views. Morgan called him the “acceptable face of the Republican party,” to which America’s Mayor replied, “Well. I don’t know if I’m acceptable. The way I got elected as mayor of New York City was not being acceptable. My slogan was ‘You...

Washington (CNN) -- A new national poll indicates that 56% of all Americans have an unfavorable view of Sarah Palin, an all-time high for the former Alaska governor. That 56% unfavorable figure is up seven points from just before the midterm elections, according to a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released Wednesday morning. Thirty-eight percent of people questioned in the poll say they have a favorable view of the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, down two points from October.

When you ask Barack Obama’s admirers what they like most about him, you will typically hear of his personality traits before any specifics about policy. Obama’s fans say that he is so “smart… cool-headed… articulate…” To point out that in terms of policy, Obama isn’t that different from most other conventional Democrats–or even that different from George W. Bush–does little to dissuade the president’s most ardent champions, and any failure to live up to liberal ideals does little to change Obama’s current popular status as liberalism personified. Sarah Palin is the Republican Obama. When you ask Palin’s admirers what they...

Dude, I think we just found our keynote speaker for RINOcon. “(Palin’s) coming from the street, she’s coming from the we-the-people rank-and-file, she makes sense when she talks, she says all the right things, she’s sincere, she’s knowledgeable , she’s articulate, she’s damn good-looking, plus she kills moose, how can you go wrong?” Nugent gushed. However, when Cooper pressed Nugent on whether Palin would make a good president, Nugent balked. “It’s too early to tell. Right know, if we had a vote, I couldn’t vote for Sarah Palin. And I love her. I love her madly, and I respect her.”...