http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/gopcoup/ en-us Tue, 30 Jun 2009 05:43:54 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282216/posts Alaska's lipstick-wearing pit-bull is a "Little Shop of Horrors." That's how one longtime friend and campaign trail companion of John McCain, the vanquished 2008 GOP presidential nominee, described veep nominee Sarah Palin. In an expansive story in the August edition of Vanity Fair, a slew of senior members of McCain's campaign team told reporter Todd S. Purdum that they suffer a kind of survivor's guilt following the 2008 presidential election. The New York Daily News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282216/posts#comment Tue, 30 Jun 2009 05:43:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2256978/posts Listening to President Obama and former Vice President Cheney give their respective national security speeches Thursday put me in mind of John Gray, author of "Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus." Different men, different planets. Or are they? Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2256978/posts#comment Sat, 23 May 2009 18:37:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2249067/posts Republican leaders frantically seeking to rebrand their party might want to swing their attention from Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney to a feisty young Republican who has never been elected to anything: Meghan McCain. The 24-year-old daughter of U.S. Sen. John McCain, the 2008 GOP presidential candidate, is a regular political blogger and most certainly not her mother Cindy's serene, St. John-suit-wearing stereotype of a Republican woman. The San Francisco Chronicle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2249067/posts#comment Tue, 12 May 2009 04:59:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2243630/posts Jeb Bush, GOP: Time to leave Reagan behind Party leaders go on 'listening tour' with eyes on future By Joseph Curl (Contact) | Sunday, May 3, 2009 Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said Saturday that it's time for the Republican Party to give up its "nostalgia" for the heyday of the Reagan era and look forward, even if it means stealing the winning strategy deployed by Democrats in the 2008 election. www.washingtontimes.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2243630/posts#comment Mon, 4 May 2009 09:28:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2193657/posts Was is just me or did the entire GOP just throw in the towel last night? From the moment Obama walked into the chamber, until the last talking head went to sleep, it seemed like the Republican party just decided to give. Up I couldn't believe my eyes or ears. As Obama walked into the chamber I saw Republicans lunge towards the aisle, straining for to touch the leaders garment. It was a cross between Jesus entering Jerusalem and the Beatles hitting the tarmac in the US for the first time. As Obama spoke, the Republican rose in applause multiple... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2193657/posts#comment Wed, 25 Feb 2009 15:02:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2194539/posts The Grand Old Party has lost its way. It is in the wilderness with no leader and no true goal, and it is there because its authoritarian nature on social issues has led it there. Organized Exploitation http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2194539/posts#comment Thu, 26 Feb 2009 15:19:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2167716/posts Time for a revolt? Yes, it is. It is actually long past due for one, and now is the time to start. "The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first." Thomas Jefferson All over the country Republicans have been losing elections, from here in New York to the National elections. Why? Simple, they have lost their way and have strayed so far from their base no one wants to support them or vote... My post at RedCounty http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2167716/posts#comment Mon, 19 Jan 2009 23:56:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2120367/posts Ms. Palin has emerged as a flash point for a split dividing talk-radio populists and conservative traditionalists from some of their former intellectual allies at National Review and the Heritage Foundation. “These are the people who are embarrassed by Sarah Palin,” Rush Limbaugh recently declared on his radio program, pointedly criticizing several columnists by name, “ ’cause she’s not an intellectual and she didn’t go to Harvard or have a college degree from approved universities and she drops her g’s from words like ‘morning’ and says ‘mornin’.” One of the columnists, David Frum, fired back on National Review’s Web site.... NYTimes http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2120367/posts#comment Fri, 31 Oct 2008 03:33:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2118686/posts It looks like there might be some truth to those rumors former Mitt Romney supporters are already trying to clear Sarah Palin from the GOP presidential deck to make room for their man Mitt in 2012. Former Romney Spokesman Kevin Madden was particularly harsh on Palin in an interview on CNN. His criticism of Palin is especially noteworthy because we're only days from the election. In a spot with Campbell Brown Madden said Palin's wardrobe flap showed how "unseasoned" Palin is. BROWN: And, Kevin, even defending this whole controversy over the clothes, the RNC buying all the clothing, it keeps... Townhall http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2118686/posts#comment Wed, 29 Oct 2008 17:27:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2116099/posts I've had enough, after watching Gerry Rivers of all people, an inveterate Obama fan, throw dirt on McCain/Palin, I think the list of traiterous Republicans otherwise known as Vichy Republicans should be assembled before the election. Self http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2116099/posts#comment Mon, 27 Oct 2008 02:41:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2115020/posts Former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for president yesterday, citing Obama’s “deep sense of calm” and “first-class political temperament.” Weld, a Republican, said he has never endorsed a Democrat for president before, but in the last six weeks or so, it became “close to a no-brainer.” Obama has a history of bringing Democrats, Republicans and independents together and is the best choice at a time when America’s standing in the world is at a low point, he said. “It’s not often you get a guy with his combination of qualities, chief among which I would say is... The Boston Herald http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2115020/posts#comment Sat, 25 Oct 2008 16:12:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2113689/posts Contrarian that I am, I'm voting for John McCain. I'm not talking about bucking the polls or the media consensus that it's over before it's over. I'm talking about bucking the rush of wet-fingered conservatives leaping to Barack Obama before they're left out in the cold without a single state dinner for the next four years. I stand athwart the rush of conservative ship-jumpers of every stripe — neo (Ken Adelman), moderate (Colin Powell), genetic/ironic (Christopher Buckley) and socialist/atheist (Christopher Hitchens) — yelling "Stop!" I shall have no part of this motley crew. I will go down with the McCain... ibdeditorials.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2113689/posts#comment Fri, 24 Oct 2008 01:32:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2113546/posts NEW YORK -- Scott McClellan, President Bush's former press secretary, says he is backing Barack Obama for president. McClellan made the endorsement during a taping of Comedian D.L. Hughley's new show that is premiering on CNN this weekend. Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2113546/posts#comment Thu, 23 Oct 2008 22:27:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2113376/posts The former governor said Obama represented the best hope for an America facing an economic crisis.Former Republican Gov. Arne Carlson endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama today, saying Obama represented the best hope for an America facing an economic crisis and criticizing Republicans for waging a mean-spirited campaign that has "been going down all these side roads." Introduced to a standing ovation at the State Capitol by U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, Carlson said his party had strayed from the moderate philosophies of past Republican leaders such as Ohio Sen. Robert Taft and President Dwight Eisenhower. "I consider... Star Tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2113376/posts#comment Thu, 23 Oct 2008 19:01:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2108585/posts I read today where Philadelphia talk show host Michael Smerconish has endorsed Obama. Michael also worked in the Bush Administration and has been a frequent guest host for Glenn Beck. He will be paraded about as another "conservative" who is voting for Obama by the MSM. This is not like voting for Bill Clinton in 96 or voting for a local Democrat for governor or Congress. Any national "conservative" who supports a Marxist like Obama and thinks it would be best for America to elect him along with a Congress controlled by Pelosi and Reid has either lost their mind... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2108585/posts#comment Sat, 18 Oct 2008 02:44:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2108524/posts If the election were held today, Barack Obama would be the new President of the United States of America. The latest Real Clear Politics average of national polls shows Obama ahead of McCain by nearly seven percentage points. It looks like the Democrats are going to have control of both the White House and Congress for the next four years. And, mark it down, if there is a Democrat sweep, conservative Republicans will get the blame. The fact of the matter is, however, that President Bush and the Republicans who dominated Congress during most of his administration governed as anything... Renew America http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2108524/posts#comment Sat, 18 Oct 2008 00:52:38 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2108109/posts The truth few wish to utter is that the GOP has abandoned many conservatives, who mostly nurse their angst in private. Those chickens we keep hearing about have indeed come home to roost. Years of pandering to the extreme wing — the “kooks” the senior Buckley tried to separate from the right — have created a party no longer attentive to its principles. Instead, as Christopher Buckley pointed out in a blog post on thedailybeast.com explaining his departure from National Review, eight years of “conservatism” have brought us “a doubled national debt, ruinous expansion of entitlement programs, bridges to nowhere,... National Review http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2108109/posts#comment Fri, 17 Oct 2008 16:34:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2107778/posts But we have seen Mrs. Palin on the national stage for seven weeks now, and there is little sign that she has the tools, the equipment, the knowledge or the philosophical grounding one hopes for, and expects, in a holder of high office. She is a person of great ambition, but the question remains: What is the purpose of the ambition? She wants to rise, but what for? For seven weeks I've listened to her, trying to understand if she is Bushian or Reaganite—a spender, to speak briefly, whose political decisions seem untethered to a political philosophy, and whose foreign... Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2107778/posts#comment Fri, 17 Oct 2008 05:11:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2105173/posts Actor Duvall Blasts Palin Critics at Fundraiser October 14, 2008 8:24 AM ABC News' Imtiyaz Delawala Reports: Introducing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin at a GOP fundraiser Monday, actor Robert Duvall blasted conservatives who have criticized the McCain-Palin ticket in recent days, calling conservative columnist George Will a "super-nerd" and former Wisconsin governor Tommy Thompson a "block of wood". At an RNC fundraiser in McLean, VA, Duvall introduced Palin for the third time since her nomination to the Republican ticket, taking the opportunity to accuse Republicans critical of the McCain campaign as giving "credence to the other side." "It bothers me... ABC News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2105173/posts#comment Tue, 14 Oct 2008 12:59:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2104790/posts RUSH: Bill Kristol, writing today an op-ed in the New York Times, says it's time for McCain to fire his campaign. He says that what McCain needs to do is get rid of the whole campaign and start over these last three weeks and make the case for "a broadly centrist conservatism." Now, you know, Bill Kristol and I know each other and I've been a friend of Bill Kristol for a number of years. Bill Kristol, however, was one of the early supporters of Senator McCain back in the 2000 presidential race; and, of course, I was not. Moving... EIB http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2104790/posts#comment Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:47:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2104563/posts David Frum, CBS On MondayÂ’s CBS Early Show, co-host Harry Smith discussed the presidential campaign with former Bush speech writer David Frum and declared: "There is growing concern among some Republicans about McCain's campaign. They're calling on him to stabilize it." Later in the segment, Smith asked Frum point blank: "Was Sarah Palin a mistake?" Frum replied: "I think Sarah Palin was a huge mistake...Americans can be pretty jokey about their government when times are good, but when times are bad, they want to know do -- can you do the job? And when you have a candidate who so... Newsbusters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2104563/posts#comment Mon, 13 Oct 2008 18:16:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2102328/posts Let me be the latest conservative/libertarian/whatever to leap onto the Barack Obama bandwagon. It’s a good thing my dear old mum and pup are no longer alive. They’d cut off my allowance. Or would they? But let’s get that part out of the way. The only reason my vote would be of any interest to anyone is that my last name happens to be Buckley—a name I inherited. So in the event anyone notices or cares, the headline will be: “William F. Buckley’s Son Says He Is Pro-Obama.” I know, I know: It lacks the throw-weight of “Ron Reagan Jr.... The Daily Beast http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2102328/posts#comment Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:46:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2102066/posts Modern conservatism began as a movement of dissident intellectuals. Richard Weaver wrote a book called, “Ideas Have Consequences.” Russell Kirk placed Edmund Burke in an American context. William F. Buckley famously said he’d rather be governed by the first 2,000 names in the Boston phone book than by the faculty of Harvard. But he didn’t believe those were the only two options. His entire life was a celebration of urbane values, sophistication and the rigorous and constant application of intellect. Driven by a need to engage elite opinion, conservatives tried to build an intellectual counterestablishment with think tanks and magazines.... NY Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2102066/posts#comment Fri, 10 Oct 2008 05:43:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2102059/posts WASHINGTON -- If you're a Democrat who needs help getting the votes of rural white folks, the go-to guy is David "Mudcat" Saunders, a central-casting political consultant recently made famous by a parade of magazine writers led by The Weekly Standard's Matt Labash. But sometimes you can learn more about a people and their place through literature than by hiring consultants. So I called Ron Rash, poet, author and purebred Appalachian whose newest novel, "Serena," should be at the top of Barack Obama's reading list. Sarah Palin might enjoy it as well. Described by one blurber as "an Appalachian retelling... Townhall http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2102059/posts#comment Fri, 10 Oct 2008 05:25:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2100839/posts David Brooks spoke frankly about the presidential and vice presidential candidates Monday afternoon, calling Sarah Palin a "fatal cancer to the Republican party" but describing John McCain and Barack Obama as "the two best candidates we've had in a long time." In an interview with The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg at New York's Le Cirque restaurant to unveil that magazine's redesign, Brooks decried Palin's anti-intellectualism and compared her to President Bush in that regard: [Sarah Palin] represents a fatal cancer to the Republican party. When I first started in journalism, I worked at the National Review for Bill Buckley. And Buckley... E-mailed to me http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2100839/posts#comment Wed, 8 Oct 2008 22:16:45 GMT