http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/issues/ en-us Sat, 2 Jan 2010 00:52:59 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419255/posts Political furor over the attempted bombing of Northwest Flight 253 has thrust national security back to the center of American politics, with Republicans and the White House scrambling to blame each other for intelligence lapses and present themselves to voters as tougher on terrorism. Strategists in both parties believe that terrorism and, more broadly, foreign policy could emerge in the November midterm elections and in President Barack Obama's 2012 re-election campaign as key issues for voters who have been focused primarily on the economy. GOP opinion leaders such as former Vice President Dick Cheney have seized on the attack to... WSJ http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419255/posts#comment Sat, 2 Jan 2010 00:52:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419254/posts The latest Rasmussen poll of likely voters gives President Obama an approval index of -18 percent. That figure is derived from subtracting the 24 percent of voters that strongly approve of the job that Obama is doing from the 42 percent that strongly disapprove. In the same poll, 46% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. 53 percent now disapprove. The Gallup poll, of American adults 18 years and older, has Obama's current approval rating at 51 percent. According to Gallup, Obama has averaged a 50 percent job approval rating in December. Ronald Reagan's average... The Examiner http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419254/posts#comment Sat, 2 Jan 2010 00:47:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415297/posts Quite a promise. More than a promise, it is a formula for smaller government. In my last edition, Safer Streets 101: Only you have the power, I pointed out that only you can make things happen and turn around the idea of bigger government. David Codrea mentioned taking a new person shooting. It's very good advice for several reasons. You learn more about liberty and your sovereignty from gun owners than you ever will from your public servants, including so-called educators. You'll learn more about civics, more about due process, and more about sovereignty from gun owners than from so-called... LA Gun Rights Examiner http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415297/posts#comment Sat, 26 Dec 2009 14:51:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2414882/posts TPM reports: "With Democratic senators united on the health care bill today, their campaign arm has settled on an attack plan for 2010: Republicans would "repeal" it if they win control. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, aggressively challenging incumbent GOP senators and vying for open seats, will paint the Republicans as only interested in obstructing." So, the Democrats' attack plan is to tell voters that the GOP will repeal the budget-busting, tax-hiking, Medicare-cutting, abortion-funding, big insurance and big pharma giveaway that only has the support of 35% of voters. Brilliant! Conservatives have been saying that if Obamacare passes Republicans should... The Weekly Standard Blog http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2414882/posts#comment Fri, 25 Dec 2009 10:50:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2400473/posts Sarah addresses amnesty, Huckabee and other issues! Enjoy "No I am not for amnesty. Called Illegal for a reason. If they are not going to follow the rules they need to get out." Las Larson Interview http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2400473/posts#comment Fri, 4 Dec 2009 20:57:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396961/posts Political analyst Charlie Cook says that the scandals enveloping Reps. Charles Rangel (D-NY) and John Murtha (D-PA) threaten to increase losses for their party in next year’s election. He writes: As House Democrats try to avert political disaster by limiting their 2010 losses to about 16 seats, the norm for post-World War II presidents' first midterm elections, dealing with their members' ethics problems may be one of their toughest tasks. The task is tough because of Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s reluctance to move against either one, notwithstanding her promise to “drain the swamp” of Congressional corruption and to  “create the most... NLPC http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396961/posts#comment Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:35:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2394351/posts Mickey Kaus alerts us to the latest Greenberg-Carville's Democracy Corps poll suggesting that 6% of likely voters might vote for Lou Dobbs in a Romney-Obama race in 2012. Even tossing a hypothetical Green party candidacy by Ralph Nader into the mix, their numbers raise the possibility that a Dobbs candidacy might well take a serious bite out of the Republican vote. As a third-party candidate, Dobbs does bear some resemblance to Ross Perot in 1992: he's focused on nationalism issues (trade, immigration) rather than moral issues; his style is secular rather than religious; he speaks in specifics that create the... FrumForum http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2394351/posts#comment Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:56:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2392301/posts A few weeks ago seven of the eight incumbent Democrats in the Virginia House of Delegates who lost their seat to a Republican had one other thing in common - a lower National Rifle Association (NRA) rating that their opponent . . . [and] the disparity in support for gun rights between the parties seems to have sharpened. The Examiner.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2392301/posts#comment Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:14:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2391702/posts Senator Landrieu and Senator Lincoln have announced they would give their vote to Senator Reid and the White House to allow ObamaCare to the Senate floor. For the group of U.S. Senators up in 2010 — the ones facing the independent voters that turned 2:1 against the Democrats in the New Jersey and Virginia elections — they will each be tagged all election cycle with providing the one vote needed for ObamaCare to come before the Senate. They could have stopped it, but they did not. The vote on cloture on the motion to proceed needs 60 votes, and therefore... Red State http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2391702/posts#comment Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:47:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2388536/posts Some of the nation's top political commentators, legislators and intellectuals offer some insight into the biggest question burning up the blogosphere today. Today's question:Which issue will be more important to voters in 2010 -- the deficit or jobs?Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) said: Where I come from, jobs. Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) said: I just did some town hall meetings in Nebraska, and I do these all the time. I can tell you, it's jobs, economy and deficit -- all these things. Healthcare's getting a lot of attention right now, and people are very, very mad about it. People see the... The Hill http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2388536/posts#comment Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:45:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2387573/posts Every time I call attention to anything in the Carly Fiorina-Chuck DeVore GOP primary fight in California, I know I can count on more e-mail from each side's dedicated supporters. But this (HT: GOP12) jumped out at me, and warranted the inevitable, "why are you writing about X but not about Y" e-mails... Nonetheless, asked what he thought of Brown’s ideas, DeVore didn’t take the chance to denounce “birther” rumors or the movement itself–which has been heavily active in California. NRO http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2387573/posts#comment Mon, 16 Nov 2009 18:16:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2386086/posts Newt Gingrich, the former Republican House speaker and purveyor of the GOP "Contract With America'' that helped his party win control of the House after President Bill Clinton's election, says GOP chairman Michael Steele has started work on a new framework for 2010 that he is calling "First principles.'' "I've been talking with Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, '' Gingrich said today, speaking with students at C-SPAN's Cable Center Class. "He is developing a first principles model that I think is a very exciting , positive step in the right direction,'' said Gingrich, who has said that he will... Chicago Trib http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2386086/posts#comment Sat, 14 Nov 2009 02:52:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2375776/posts A week and a half ago, Conservative Douglas L. Hoffman was appearing on a nationally syndicated conservative talk show while Democrat William L. Owens was in New York City, attending a fundraiser with...Obama. "I was in a dairy barn that night," said Republican Dierdre K. Scozzafava. "I was talking to a constituent about the dairy crisis." "It struck me at the time that there was a little irony in it. Our congressional race had become a referendum on issues far from here," Ms. Scozzafava said...after announcing earlier in the day that she was suspending her congressional campaign. "Our area had... Watertown Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2375776/posts#comment Sun, 1 Nov 2009 11:22:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2367919/posts Third parties don't work, the Republicans are as bad as the Democrats, most of the existing politicians are universally corrupt. How and who is anyone going to plan, organize, determine new candidates and accomplish taking back our government from all of the corrupt bunch in Washington, D.C. I do not see leadership, organization or any serious effort to keep all of us going in a direction that will get us the candidates and the votes to win...any thoughts out there guys and gals? Stayfree http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2367919/posts#comment Wed, 21 Oct 2009 23:09:22 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2355239/posts For President Obama and his party, last week brought another stiff dose of pain: the announcement of 263,000 more jobs lost, while unemployment ticked up to 9.8 percent. And by all indications, Democrats must endure that form of political torture for at least several more months. Whatever the fate of health care legislation, persistently high unemployment has made “Where are the jobs?” the most potent Republican campaign argument as next year’s midterm elections come into view. Publicly, White House aides and Congressional leaders have responded with incessant attempts to highlight benefits from the $787 billion economic stimulus package they enacted... New York Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2355239/posts#comment Mon, 5 Oct 2009 16:22:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2354982/posts But let’s be realistic. Being, in essence, the white party makes the GOP uncool. And that’s only going to get worse as the impact of decades of indoctrination in the uncoolness of white people by the school system and Main Stream Media continue to pile up. Further, contra Karl Rove, the GOP will never be able to shake its white party image. It will either increase its share of the white vote or it will go out of business as a party capable of winning national power. My suggestion: the only long-term option for the Republicans, the de facto white... iSteve http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2354982/posts#comment Mon, 5 Oct 2009 04:44:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2347001/posts NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. government will have issued $7 trillion in bonds by the time the current fiscal year ends next week, but it expects the debt deluge to stabilize by mid 2010, a Treasury official said on Wednesday. Though markets and the economy are improving, efforts to provide a firm foundation for recovery will require increases to the U.S. Treasury's conventional bonds going forward, as well as debt securities that are indexed to inflation. Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2347001/posts#comment Thu, 24 Sep 2009 04:25:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2337562/posts What is the issue that we all can rally around? Is it healthcare? Guns? Taxes? Spending? The IRS? Corrupt politicians? etc, etc, etc. Folks, how can we become a force to be reckoned with if we are all over the map on the issues? Please remember that these folks in Washington have very short attention spans. If you can't get to the point and/or you don't have a pocket full of cash they won't hear you. These elected officials can not even read the bills that they are passing. How about this, The Constitution of the United States! Lets rally... TheCypressTimes.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2337562/posts#comment Fri, 11 Sep 2009 20:56:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2332684/posts It appears the reason high level Obama appointee Van Jones has such a deep seated hatred for America has been found: He was a nerd who was bullied in school and was "always picked last" in team sports.In an undated interview published at Collage Foundation, Jones spoke of his growing up as a nerd and how he scammed a graduate degree from Yale:When you were younger, what were you interested in? I was mainly interested in journalism and poetry and writing. I read a lot of comic books, James Bonda lot of good guy vs. bad guy type of stuff.... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2332684/posts#comment Sat, 5 Sep 2009 05:04:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2324872/posts This summer brought a significant shift in voter preferences in the Generic Congressional Ballot. As Republican Congressional candidates once again lead Democrats by a 43% to 38% margin this week, this is now the ninth straight ballot the GOP has held a modest advantage. Over the past nine weeks, Republicans have held a two-to-five point advantage over Democrats every week. It is important to note, however, that the recent shift is not only because Republicans have been gaining support, but that Democrats have slipped in support. While support for Republican candidates ranged from 41% to 43%, support for Democrats ranged... Rasmussen http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2324872/posts#comment Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:01:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2321352/posts Sarah Palin is calling for Tort Reform to be the hallmark of any kind of health care reform: President Obama's health care "reform" plan has met with significant criticism across the country. Many Americans want change and reform in our current health care system. We recognize that while we have the greatest medical care in the world, there are major problems that we must face, especially in terms of reining in costs and allowing care to be affordable for all. However, as we have seen, current plans being pushed by the Democratic leadership represent change that may not be what... Flopping Aces http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2321352/posts#comment Fri, 21 Aug 2009 16:40:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2315870/posts For the first time in over two years of polling, voters trust Republicans slightly more than Democrats on the handling of the issue of health care. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that voters favor the GOP on the issue 44% to 41%. Democrats held a four-point lead on the issue last month and a 10-point lead in June. For most of the past two years, more than 50% of voters said they trusted Democrats on health care. The latest results mark the lowest level of support measured for the party on the now-contentious issue. Public support for... Rasmussen Reports http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2315870/posts#comment Fri, 14 Aug 2009 12:31:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2312247/posts Sarah Palin finally came out and made her stance on illegal immigration clear. She is pro amnesty for illegal aliens. In an interview to Univision she stated unequivocally that she is for a pathway to citizenship. In the same interview she says she is against amnesty for illegal aliens. Have your cake and eat it to, I think that is called. Back on the same day that John McCain chose Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential candidate I started investigating Palin's past on illegal immigration. I invited others to send in anything they found. There was nothing on the record. Many... Diggers Realm http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2312247/posts#comment Mon, 10 Aug 2009 01:56:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2309171/posts NEW YORK (Reuters) - The percentage of U.S. homeowners who owe more than their house is worth will nearly double to 48 percent in 2011 from 26 percent at the end of March, portending another blow to the housing market, Deutsche Bank said on Wednesday. Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2309171/posts#comment Wed, 5 Aug 2009 23:59:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2308795/posts Fifty-four percent (54%) of U.S. voters say tax cuts for the middle class are more important than new spending for health care reform, even as President Obama’s top economic advisers signal that tax hikes may be necessary. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey, taken Monday and Tuesday nights, finds that 34% disagree and say new spending for health care reform is more important. Twelve percent (12%) are not sure. It is important to note that this question asked about new government spending for health care reform rather than about the overall concept of health care reform itself. The partisan... Rasmussen Reports http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2308795/posts#comment Wed, 5 Aug 2009 16:59:41 GMT