Free Republic

'Taxpayer March' in D.C. Attracts Party Leaders, but Some Are Wary. BY DAN EGGEN & PERRY BACON JR. With tens of thousands of conservative protesters expected to gather in Washington on Saturday for a "Taxpayer March on D.C.," Republican officials are attempting to capitalize on a movement that lately has galvanized anti-Obama activists more effectively than the party's elected leaders in Washington. Searching for ways to compete with Democrats after two consecutive electoral drubbings, Republicans have moved past earlier uncertainty about the protesters, who organized nationwide rallies this summer that have threatened Democratic health-care plans and eroded President Obama's standing...

(snip) SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Well, I thought the president is eloquent. I thought he had a lot of passion. (snip) MCCAIN: I hope he gets a bill. I hope we can sit down together and do the things that all of us agree on. And there are a number of things that are -- that we can agree on. And I think the American people, obviously, want that. I don't know what the administration and the Democrats will insist on. Facts are stubborn things. The bills so far have had no bipartisanship associated with it. They were drawn...

PARIS, France (CNN) -- Former first lady Laura Bush praised the performance of her husband's successor Monday, breaking with many Republicans in telling CNN that she thinks President Obama is doing a good job under tough circumstances.

Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker Believes There is Still Room for Compromise on Health Care. BY SHAILAGH MURRAY Republican Sen. Bob Corker stood before a packed high school auditorium this week for his 24th and final town hall meeting of the summer, sketching out his vision for the bipartisan health-care plan he says he is convinced Congress can pass.

The Daily Beast's Meghan McCain on why the far-right pundit, who says McCain needs to shut up, won’t be getting her wish—and why telling moderates to get out of the party is bad for the GOP. BY MEGHAN MCCAIN Michelle Malkin, the conservative pundit and author of the recent book Culture of Corruption: Obama and His Team of Tax Cheats, Crooks, and Cronies, was asked during a live chat on Politico’s The Arena on Friday which conservative political figure or commentator needs to shut up. Guess who her answer was? Yeah, that’s right—yours truly. So Michelle Malkin successfully rounds out...

(CNN) — Despite his campaign-trail promises, President Obama has failed to change the partisan tone in Washington, Arizona Sen. John McCain said Friday. "I'm afraid they have," Obama's former presidential rival told CNN's John King when asked if the administration has 'failed' in delivering on its repeated pledge of bipartisanship.

SAN DIEGO – Immigration, a hot-button issue that has dominated headlines in Arizona and nationally over recent years, is fading from the public consciousness amid economic turmoil, Arizona Republican Party Chairman Randy Pullen said July 30. “Because of what’s going on with the recession, although (immigration) is still important, it’s not nearly as important as the recession,” Pullen said in an interview at the Republican National Committee’s annual summer meeting. “Cap and trade is now even a higher issue in Arizona than is immigration, as well as health care.” . . . . . Pullen, an anti-illegal immigration activist before...

U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez's support of Sonia Sotomayor was never in much doubt, but he made it clear today that he will vote to confirm her to the Supreme Court. "Given her judicial record, and her testimony this week, it is my determination that Judge Sotomayor is well-qualified to serve as Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court," he said in a statement. Judge Sotomayor is knowledgeable of the law, would be a fair and impartial judge, and seems to have a good understanding of the limited role the judiciary plays in our democracy.

Sen. John McCain once reveled in his stance as a maverick of the Republican Party on climate change. Now, as the Senate prepares a new bill, the party's 2008 presidential nominee has people wondering whose side he's on. McCain opened the year critical of President Obama's plan to pay for middle-class tax cuts with global warming legislation. He called the House-passed bill a "1,400-page monstrosity," pointing out special giveaways to reluctant lawmakers and provisions that threaten to spark an international trade war. While McCain has built a reputation as a critic of government excess, his complaints about the Democrat-led effort...

anyone who is talking smack about Senator Lindsey Graham is going to have a problem with me as well, that man is family to me.about 7 hours ago from web

Conservative activists are outspoken in their opposition. But Republican senators who will actually vote on her nomination offer muted responses. Some think the party has a chance to reach Latino vote. BY PETER WALLSTEN and RICHARD SIMON Reporting from Washington -- Rush Limbaugh called her a "reverse racist." The conservative Judicial Confirmation Network said she was an activist with a "personal political agenda" and should be blocked from the Supreme Court. . . . . .The Republican senators who will actually vote on her were not following the activists' script. Instead, GOP senators offered muted, sometimes admiring, responses, and seemed...

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Republicans seeking a path out of the political wilderness are eyeing Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, a Mormon who's nudged the conservative stronghold in a more moderate direction on the environment and gay rights and drawn praise from President Barack Obama's campaign manager. The popular, 49-year-old Huntsman has spoken publicly of the need to open the Republican Party to a wider range of viewpoints if it is to attract younger voters. He's won praise from party elders, including 2008 GOP presidential nominee John McCain, who called the governor a potentially promising contender in 2012. Huntsman has...

Charlie Crist is a popular candidate best positioned to keep a Senate seat in Republican hands. But he has also broken with party orthodoxy on environmental and voting rights issues. BY PETER WALLSTEN Washington. With the Republican Party diminished in power and embroiled in debate over whether to broaden its ideology or adhere to core ideals, top GOP officials today took the unusual step of inserting themselves into a party primary, picking a moderate U.S. Senate candidate over a conservative in Florida. In endorsing Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sen. John Cornyn of Texas,...

The Republican Party is not an endangered species but can do a better job of outreach, recruiting candidates and getting the message out, Sen. John McCain said Sunday. In an appearance on ABC’s “This Week,” McCain responded to a question referring to a story in Time magazine, describing the party as “in distress.” “I probably would not go that length,” McCain said. “We all work in cycles for many years. We have seen parties down and parties up. That’s a great thing about American politics. “But having said that, do we have to do a better job of getting our...

(CNN) — Meghan McCain, daughter of former Republican presidential candidate John McCain, said the GOP is going to have to become more inclusive if it wants to rebuild. “I just wish that moderates like myself — more moderate Republicans and more socially liberal Republicans — weren’t looked at as, ‘Get rid of the dirty moderates. Get rid of them,’” the 24-year-old told CNN affiliate KTAR radio in a joint interview with her father. “We need to be an inclusive party. We need to be an umbrella party. We need to inspire 20-somethings, which is something the Obama campaign did very...

After losing Arlen Specter to the Democrats, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell moved quickly to gauge the level of discontent of one of his caucus’ few remaining moderates. McConnell sat down privately with Sen. Olympia J. Snowe of Maine on Wednesday and let her vent about what she thinks is going wrong with the Grand Old Party. It was a one-on-one follow-up to a New York Times essay in which Snowe contended the party didn’t need to lose Specter. After the meeting, Snowe had nothing but good things to say about McConnell, R-Ky., and focused her criticism on other wings...

10:49 a.m., April 24, 2009----While their political opinions may differ, University of Delaware alumni David Plouffe and Steve Schmidt, the two men who helped run the opposing campaigns for the 2008 presidential election, agree that President Barack Obama was a once-in-a-generation candidate and that young people have become an important part of the American political process. Schmidt, who led the Republican campaign of U.S. Sen. John McCain, and Plouffe, who led the Democratic campaign of Obama, discussed their experiences with candor and humor before an audience of about 500 people on Thursday, April 23, in Clayton Hall. The discussion was...

Okay, I had wanted to stay away from further focus on the Twitter exploits of Meghan McCain, the daughter of the 2008 presidential candidate. But sometimes you just can't tear your eyes away. The latest Tweet from McCain: "I used to have the hugest crush on Eminem when I was in high school and he still looks hot in his new music video!!" This would be, presumably, the music video in which Eminem depicts himself having sex with Sarah Palin.