http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/fredbarnes/ en-us Sat, 11 Oct 2008 22:20:19 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2103372/posts They just said it is a foregone conclusion that Obama's win ( my paraphrase). Good lord. Thanks guys. They say it would take a 3000 point rise in the stock market to save McCain now. The dems special interest agenda caused this debacle and the GOP takes the fall. Is there no justice? But WHY never any mention of the stinkin' muck and company Obama keeps? http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2103372/posts#comment Sat, 11 Oct 2008 22:20:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2097578/posts Palin Comes Out Swinging And keeps hope alive for McCain. by Fred Barnes 10/13/2008, Volume 014, Issue 05 Sarah Palin's scintillating success in last week's vice presidential debate with Joe Biden has made her an enormous asset (again) to John McCain's bid for the presidency. Now McCain must decide how to maximize her role in the campaign. Anything short of bringing her front and center makes no sense. McCain was thrilled by her debate performance. "The kind of excitement that she ignites, frankly, I have not seen before in American politics," he told talk radio host Mike Gallagher. Having gambled... Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2097578/posts#comment Sat, 4 Oct 2008 20:56:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2097075/posts The Thursday, October 2, 2008 "Special Report With Brit Hume" on Fox News discussed the ramifications of not passing the Rescue Bill. Fred Barnes, Executive Editor, the Weekly Standard gave the following stupid response to a question on the House Republican’s resistance to this bailout/pork bill from Host Brit Hume; Brit Hume: “Let me ask you this question, Fred (Barnes). You're none unsympathetic to the conservatives in the House of Representatives, and the noisiest opposition to this measure has come from conservatives in the House. Give me your thoughts on the quality of their arguments.” Fred Barnes: “I think their... "Special Report With Brit Hume" http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2097075/posts#comment Fri, 3 Oct 2008 23:39:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2096722/posts Comeback Sarah Palin changed her image overnight. by Fred Barnes The moment when Sarah Palin knew she was winning last night's debate with her vice presidential opponent Joe Biden came after the subject had turned to nuclear weapons. Palin had talked about nukes as a deterrent and said it was important to keep them out of the hands of dictators who are enemies of America. Then she turned to moderator Gwen Ifill and asked, "Can we talk about Afghanistan real quick?" Afghanistan? The impression Palin had left in television interviews with ABC's Charles Gibson and CBS's Katie Couric was that... www.weeklystandard.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2096722/posts#comment Fri, 3 Oct 2008 16:31:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2074363/posts St. Paul - That was easy. Sarah Palin delivered what may have been the most important speech ever by a vice presidential candidate and made it look like she'd been performing on the national political stage for years. And she made John McCain look good for having picked her as his running mate. Yet, as governor of Alaska, Palin had never addressed as large a crowd as she did last night at the Republican convention. She'd never before given a nationally televised speech in prime time. And she'd never had to deal with a situation filled with such political peril... The Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2074363/posts#comment Thu, 4 Sep 2008 10:21:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2051467/posts It seems Barack Obama had a "senior moment" on Wednesday during his trip to Israel regarding which Senate committees he is a member of. On the same day's Special Report with Brit Hume, during the "Fox All Stars" segment, the Weekly Standard's Fred Barnes called out Obama for his claim, which the Illinois Senator made while trying to impress Israeli reporters, that he is a member of the Senate Banking Committee, and he took credit for the passage of legislation regarding Iran. Barnes: "[Obama] was trying to brag about how tough he was on the Iranians, and he said his... News Busters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2051467/posts#comment Fri, 25 Jul 2008 23:22:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2044685/posts Denver Last January, a "confidential" memo from a Democratic political consultant outlined an ambitious scheme for spending $11.7 million in Colorado this year to crush Republicans. The money would come from rich liberal donors in the state and would be spent primarily on defeating Senate candidate Bob Schaffer ($5.1 million) and Representative Marilyn Musgrave ($2.6 million), who are loathed by liberals for sponsoring a proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. The overarching aim: Lock in Democratic control of Colorado for years to come. Leaked memos have a way of revealing who's on top and who's not in politics and... Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2044685/posts#comment Sun, 13 Jul 2008 04:55:29 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031026/posts For years now, John McCain has warned of the peril to America in sending $400 billion a year to foreign countries in return for oil. He's been loud and relentless on the subject--and wise. "It's a national security issue," he declared last week at a town hall meeting in New York City. Much of the money goes to countries that "do not like us very much," he noted. That was McCain's understated way of saying the beneficiaries include Iran, Venezuela, and Saudi Arabia, countries in which anti-American forces find aid and comfort. So you'd think McCain would favor an unbridled... weekly standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031026/posts#comment Sat, 14 Jun 2008 12:44:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2027536/posts Republicans finally have a winning argument on a big issue, and they'd better make the most of it. It starts with high gasoline prices--the single most infuriating issue to voters these days--but doesn't end there. Democrats are not being blamed for causing the price of gasoline to reach $4 a gallon, at least by the public and at least for now. Where Democrats have stumbled embarrassingly is in their campaign to persuade the public that the American oil industry is the chief culprit. A Gallup national poll in May found only 20 percent blame the oil companies for gouging, down... weekly standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2027536/posts#comment Sat, 7 Jun 2008 13:24:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2026818/posts Out of over 20 debates that Barack Obama has heretofore participated in, he has yet to come away with a decisive victory. John McCain, aiming to capitalize on his political foes weakness, recently challenged Obama to participate in 10 town halls this summer. Fred Barnes argues on The Weekly Standard’s The Blog that Obama’s political cowardice prevents him from accepting McCain’s proposal town hall proposal. Barnes has a point: McCain’s best when he’s spontaneous, while Obama has struggled in such situations... contentions http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2026818/posts#comment Fri, 6 Jun 2008 01:10:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2020997/posts The story of the Democratic Congress is this: So much to do, so little done. Issues of importance are crying out for attention. The alarms are largely ignored. The list of big issues is long and includes immigration, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, health care and health insurance in general, and energy. It might make sense for Republicans to demand these issues be brought up this year, as President Truman did in 1948 to embarrass the "do nothing 80th Congress." But political stunts seldom work the second time. Besides, these are especially complex issues. There's an alternative, however, that might galvanize... weekly standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2020997/posts#comment Sun, 25 May 2008 12:58:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2014121/posts First, the good news. Conservatives won a sweeping victory in an enormously important election the week before last. Unfortunately, it happened in England, where Boris Johnson won the race for mayor of London and Conservatives trounced Labour all across the country. Now, the bad news. Prospects for Republicans in the 2008 election here at home look grim. The political environment isn't as bad as it was in 2006 when Republicans lost both houses of Congress and a lot more. But it's close. The empirical evidence is well known. More than 80 percent of Americans believe the nation is heading in... Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2014121/posts#comment Sat, 10 May 2008 18:40:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2012636/posts The NOTION THAT BARACK Obama should pick Hillary Clinton as his vice presidential running mate is crazy. She passes the first test of a veep selection: she's a plausible president. But she fails the second. She doesn't qualify as a partner on the Democratic ticket (and possibly in the White House) that Obama would be comfortable with--far from it. But there is someone who does meet these two requirements, plus a third one and maybe a fourth. That person is Democratic Governor Edward Rendell of Pennsylvania. Yes, Rendell was the leading supporter of Clinton when she trounced Obama in the... Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2012636/posts#comment Wed, 7 May 2008 20:49:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2007643/posts E.J. Dionne's column in the Washington Post asked this question about Barack Obama: "Is he Adlai Stevenson or John F. Kennedy?" In the New Republic online, John Judis wondered if Obama might be "the next" George McGovern, the 1972 Democratic presidential nominee who lost in a landslide. Both are interesting questions. But there's a more relevant and important one: Is Obama who he says he is? This matters because Americans choose an individual, not a party, to fill the presidency. If voters elected the next president by party preference, the White House successor to George W. Bush would almost certainly... weekly standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2007643/posts#comment Sun, 27 Apr 2008 15:55:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997098/posts During an appearance in Philadelphia last month, Hillary Clinton introduced a controversial couple as part of her presidential campaign. She defended them as victims of smear attacks. "Valerie and Joe have had their patriotism questioned," she insisted. "They have been maligned as un-American because they believed that President Bush was waging a preemptive war that was not in America's interests and now because we believe our troops should not police Iraq's civil war." Of course this wasn't true. Both Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson were accused of being untruthful (and shameless self-promoters), not unpatriotic. Plame was a CIA official who... Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997098/posts#comment Sat, 5 Apr 2008 10:58:51 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1509810/posts Warning Signs Frank Luntz says Republicans could be in danger in 2006. by Fred Barnes 10/26/2005 12:00:00 AM IF YOU'RE A REPUBLICAN and already worried about your party's prospects in 2006, pollster Frank Luntz, a Republican himself, has a message for you: It's worse than you think. Luntz, who worked with Republicans in 1994 to draft the Contract With America and win a realigning election, said political conditions are as bad or worse now--only this time for Republicans, not Democrats. Republicans won 52 House seats in 1994 and have held the House since then. In 2006, he said, Republican control... The Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1509810/posts#comment Wed, 26 Oct 2005 22:36:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1984277/posts When John McCain begins his search for a vice presidential running mate, he'll quickly come upon a sad fact. He wants a candidate who will be seen as a plausible president. That's criterion number one. He also wants someone who won't subtract from his campaign in any serious way. That's criterion number two. The unfortunate truth is that few Republicans meet these simple criteria. McCain doesn't have much of a pool to choose from. But his selection matters enormously, all the more because of his age. McCain will turn 72 on the eve of the Republican convention this summer. Choosing... The Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1984277/posts#comment Wed, 12 Mar 2008 10:08:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1983119/posts The Veepstakes [Fred Barnes] There's an obvious winner. by Fred Barnes 03/17/2008, Volume 013, Issue 26 When John McCain begins his search for a vice presidential running mate, he'll quickly come upon a sad fact. He wants a candidate who will be seen as a plausible president. That's criterion number one. He also wants someone who won't subtract from his campaign in any serious way. That's criterion number two. The unfortunate truth is that few Republicans meet these simple criteria. McCain doesn't have much of a pool to choose from. But his selection matters enormously, all the more because of... Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1983119/posts#comment Mon, 10 Mar 2008 05:55:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1982438/posts When John McCain begins his search for a vice presidential running mate, he'll quickly come upon a sad fact. He wants a candidate who will be seen as a plausible president. That's criterion number one. He also wants someone who won't subtract from his campaign in any serious way. That's criterion number two. The unfortunate truth is that few Republicans meet these simple criteria. McCain doesn't have much of a pool to choose from. But his selection matters enormously, all the more because of his age. McCain will turn 72 on the eve of the Republican convention this summer. Choosing... The Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1982438/posts#comment Sat, 8 Mar 2008 14:39:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1972568/posts A year ago, when neither the war nor political reconciliation was going well, the Bush administration reluctantly agreed to 18 benchmarks for judging progress in Iraq. And the Democratic Congress eagerly wrote the benchmarks into law, also requiring the administration to report back in July and September on whether the benchmarks were being met. Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1972568/posts#comment Tue, 19 Feb 2008 02:53:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1964206/posts The stakes--keeping Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama out of the White House--are too high to be prideful. McCain, probably alone among Republicans, can win this fall, but not without the full-blown support of conservatives. If he continues to reach out to them while running as a conservative, they need to heed Barry Goldwater's advice in 1960. "Let's grow up, conservatives," he said. "If we want to take this party back, and I think we can, let's get to work." The Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1964206/posts#comment Sun, 3 Feb 2008 15:04:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1954470/posts MITT ROMNEY HAD A light home field advantage in the Michigan primary since he grew up in Detroit and his dad was a three-term governor. But that's not why he won. Romney defeated John McCain because the economy is emerging as the overriding issue in the 2008 presidential race, and Romney's message on the subject is stronger than McCain's. And Romney is far more comfortable and persuasive in talking about the economy. So McCain needs to make an adjustment in his campaign. His strength is still national security and the idea that he could step in as "commander in chief... The Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1954470/posts#comment Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:17:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1949601/posts THERE'S A TRUTH THE Democratic presidential candidates can't handle: the success of the "surge" in Iraq. The addition of American troops and the adoption of a new strategy of protecting the civilian population has now dramatically reduced the level of violence in Baghdad and pacified other parts of Iraq as well. But the Democratic candidates insist on pretending otherwise. It isn't clear whether they were uninformed, out of touch, mistaken, politically fearful, or knowingly dishonest when they were asked to comment on the surge during an ABC television debate Saturday night in New Hampshire. In any case, their refusal to... The Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1949601/posts#comment Mon, 7 Jan 2008 15:16:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1949406/posts Can anybody explain Fred Barnes animus towards Fred Thompson. Paraphrasing Barnes - the problem with Fred Thompson's 3rd place finish in Iowa is that he has to continue in this campaign. Later his said Thompson just needs to go home What's up with that? It was so uncalled for that Bill Kristol had to get on Barnes about it. Is Barnes a shill for somebody else and see's Fred pulling support away from his guy? Or is Barnes solely interested in picking a guy he thinks can win – conservative principles be damned? Thompson is one of the most solid... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1949406/posts#comment Mon, 7 Jan 2008 03:24:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1931951/posts PRESIDENT BUSH SAYS the presidency is still "a joyous experience" for him. "People ask if I would do it again. I would." And one reason for his upbeat mood in talking to a dozen journalists Wednesday is progress in Iraq, including revenue sharing by the central government with the provinces. Another is the beginning of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, though Bush cautioned that the creation of a Palestinian state won't come any time soon. Reconciliation between Shia and Sunni is occurring in Iraq, Bush said, but it's "bottom up reconciliation," not top down from the central government of Nouri a-Maliki. However, the... Weekly Standard http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1931951/posts#comment Wed, 28 Nov 2007 23:24:46 GMT