Free Republic

COLDWATER, Miss. — Amid the Confederate flags, the guns and the pigs — in pens and on plates — Chris McDaniel worked the Tate County Fair in search of votes in his quest to beat Sen. Thad Cochran in a runoff election in two weeks. “I need you,” McDaniel said to Brandy Davis, before also greeting Bobby Goodwin, a heavyset man carrying a handgun, at a booth for the Citizens Militia of Mississippi. The members of the militia, whose motto is “Any fate but submission,” implored the Republican to take a hard-line stance on immigration and gun rights. McDaniel assured...

The antitax Club for Growth on Wednesday called on Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) to end his campaign a day after a too-close-to-call primary against tea party-backed Chris McDaniel that could be headed to a runoff. “Yesterday’s historic vote makes it clear that Mississippians are ready to turn the page to a new generation of bold, conservative leadership. Senator Cochran has served honorably, but the rationale for his candidacy ended yesterday. He said he didn’t want to run again, but everyone asked him to. Well, a plurality of Mississippi Republican voters just proved that they don’t want him to,” said Club...

Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour is dismissing Sarah Palin and Rick Santorum as “outside celebrities” who have gotten involved in the highly-charged Mississippi GOP Senate primary to “help themselves nationally.” Voters in Mississippi head to the polls on Tuesday, when incumbent Sen. Thad Cochran will face a challenge on the ballot from state Sen. Chris McDaniel. Ahead of the primary, Barbour, the influential Republican in the state, is arguing that McDaniel is relying on out-of-state conservative stars, while Cochran is boasting support from Mississippi Republicans. “The McDaniel campaign emphasizes the outside celebrities (Palin and Santorum) who are involved in MS...

HATTIESBURG, Mississippi - The final push of the Tea Party-backed fight to defeat Sen. Thad Cochran in the Republican primary brought big names to Mississippi this weekend in support of conservative challenger Chris McDaniel. Sarah Palin came to campaign for him Friday: Had a great time today in the lovely Magnolia State rallying to elect Chris McDaniel to the U.S. Senate. It was wonderful meeting Chris’ beautiful family — and a special thank you to Chris’ son Cambridge for the gorgeous magnolia . . . This Mississippi senate race is a clear case of We the People vs. the permanent...

BILOXI, Mississippi — When Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) goes on the record with reporters, it always seems to bring a surprise or two. This time, in an interview with veteran Washington Post reporter Dan Balz at a campaign stop, Cochran accidentally called Obamacare “an example of an important effort by the federal government to help make health care available, accessible and affordable.” “I’m glad to be involved in that effort,” Cochran added. According to Balz, Cochran was asked how he evaluated the state of play over the health care law. But afterward, a Cochran adviser phoned Balz to claim it...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)Former first lady Barbara Bush reiterates in a new interview that presidents don’t have to be members of political dynasties. "If we can't find more than two or three families to run for office, that's silly, because there are great governors and great eligible people to run," Bush says in an interview that will air Monday on C-SPAN. "And I think that the Kennedys, Clintons, Bushes — there are just more families than that. And I'm not arrogant enough to think that we alone are raising" presidential candidates. Her son Jeb Bush, former governor of Florida, is considered a potential...

JACKSON, Miss. - At a fundraiser at a country club in Mississippi this evening that was expected to raise a record-breaking $1.7 million, Mitt Romney defended the Republican Party against its reputation as the "party of the rich" explaining that really, it is a party focused on helping the poor. "We're accused, by the way - in our party - of being the party of the rich," Romney said. "And it's an awful moniker, because that's just not true. We're the party of people who want to get rich. And we're also the party of people who want to care...

One of the great legends of political consulting is the Dog Food Problem: an apocryphal tale of a company that had the best packaging, the best advertising, the best marketing. But there was only one problem: the dog wouldn't eat it. Forevermore we should no longer call it a Dog Food Problem. We should call it a Mitt Romney Problem. In truth Romney is still probably the most likely GOP nominee. He has the most money, the best organization, the most endorsements, and the best hair. There is only one thing wrong with the Mitt Romney campaign: Mitt Romney. If...

Mitt Romney's presidential campaign would like to be focusing its attacks on Democratic President Barack Obama around now. But after failing to seize control of the Republican nomination race on "Super Tuesday," Romney cannot shake off rival Rick Santorum, whom he criticized on Thursday as a political insider. Opening up a new front against Santorum, the Romney campaign accused him of being a lobbyist in his home state of Pennsylvania even before he went to Washington in 1991. Romney's campaign also attacked Santorum for holding regular meetings with lobbyists as a Senate leader, part of the Republican "K Street Project"...

Haley Barbour is all about Newt Gingrich Continue Reading "I'm crazy about Newt," Barbour told reporters after a breakfast at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce after he was asked about Gingrich's likely presidential announcement. "We've been friends for a very long time." Gingrich is considering a presidential run and has been the focus of intense speculation this week after it was reported that he planned to announce the formation of an exploratory committee on Thursday. His spokesman, Rick Tyler, issued a strong statement Tuesday night insisting Gingrich would not use his Thursday trip to Georgia to make a presidential announcement.....

President Barack Obama is one of America's best politicians ever, according to one of his potential rivals for re-election in 2012. "The president is one of the greatest politicians in the history of the United States," Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press."Barbour's comments came during a discussion of Wisconsin's budget battle - a fight that's sparked widespread protests as Republican Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has tried to curtail collective bargaining rights for public employees. Obama is "quiet [on the issue] because most Americans know this has to be done,"

So it may not actually have been cut yet, but Haley Barbour's rivals will struggle to beat his repurposing of this direct-to-camera endorsement from his 1982 Senate race: "I'd like to take a moment to talk with you about our country's future and a very special leader - Haley Barbour. The problems of the 1980's are rapidly changing and demanding new solutions and fresh vigorous ideas. I've learned first hand that Haley Barbour has the intelligence, courage and experience to make a great United States Senator. These are difficult times but slowly and surely we are making America prosperous again....

Mississippi Gov Haley Barbour will visit the Republican-heavy Upstate of South Carolina Wednesday for two private events with local GOP officials to discuss a potential presidential run, POLITICO has learned. Barbour will meet with Republicans first in Greenville and then in Spartanburg. The closed-door gatherings will include party leaders and current and former elected officials, according to a South Carolina source familiar with the events. Barbour's trip to the first-in-the-South Palmetto State illustrates his increasing seriousness about a presidential bid. His appearance in the two Upstate cities comes just a few weeks after he appeared in Columbia for the inauguration...

JACKSON -- The good news for Haley Barbour is that the left wing is after him. That means he’s being taken as a serious contender. The ruckus over Barbour’s latest interview is a typical example of taking individual words out of context. For instance, Barbour is being blasted for saying that something -- we don’t know what -- “wasn’t that bad.” The liberal bloggers argue that Barbour was saying the Citizens Council and the KKK “wasn’t that bad” but, in fact, Barbour said no such thing. Here’s is the exact text of the Weekly Standard article. “In interviews Barbour doesn’t...

“Hi, this is Sarah Palin. I’m calling to encourage you to send a message to Washington in this election. Steven Palazzo is a principled conservative like you and me. We can depend on him to support our values and stand up to the liberals in Washington. Let’s change things on Tuesday. Vote conservative Republican Steven Palazzo for Congress. Thank you.” – Governor Sarah Palin Steven had this to say: “I’m honored to be endorsed by Governor Sarah Palin. She is a great representative of the Tea Party’s ideals. As our momentum continues to build, we look forward to Election Day.”...

In a speech Tuesday night at a pro-life event in Houston, former presidential candidate Sarah Palin said abortion is an "essential" issues for the pro-life movement in the 2010 elections. Palin said it is important to take advantage of the opportunity the elections present to mitigate President Barack Obama's pro-abortion agenda. Palin said Obama has been responsible for "the biggest advance of the abortion industry in America" thanks to the ObamaCare bill that includes abortion funding, she said, according to CNN. She added Obama is "the most pro-abortion president to ever occupy the White House," "That's why it's essential that...

Video of Bennie Thompson's opponent ambushing him at town hall last week. David went looking for Goliath last week and found him.

President Obama repeatedly said yesterday during his press conference on the Gulf oil spill that he takes responsibility for the disaster. Nevertheless, Republicans are pounding the president for failing to step up as a leader during the crisis. Some are also questioning his decision to extend for six months a moratorium on new offshore drilling plans. Millions of gallons of oil have flowed into the Gulf of Mexico since the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded on April 20. Oil company BP, which was operating the rig, is responsible for the cost of the clean up and containment efforts under the...

Like Mike Huckabee did in the 2008 GOP Primary, a dark horse candidate from the South could rise up to win some big races in 2012. But who could that little known candidate be? I’ll offer some suggestions about who could be a household name in two years. In my last column “Why Republicans are in trouble in 2012” I described the woes of the Grand Old Party for 2012. A combination of weak candidates with surprisingly thin resumes and potential nominees with bad luck in their state’s history could hand what might be a winnable race against President Obama...

Ever since Rep. Travis Childers (D) won a stunning special election victory in the 1st district in May 2008, Republicans have been itching to win back this conservative district previously held for seven terms by now-Sen. Roger Wicker (R).