http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/rino/ en-us Sat, 2 Jan 2010 00:15:58 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2419244/posts Mr. BROOKS: Well, we did have Afghanistan, which is sort of bipartisan. I do think when he gets his substantive policy grounds correct, you can actually create bipartisanship. I probably am the squishiest conservative on the face of the earth, but even I couldn't stomach the stimulus bill or the health-care bill. So, the policy just wasn't there for any kind of centrist alternative. All Things Considered http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2419244/posts#comment Sat, 2 Jan 2010 00:15:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2416251/posts Clearly, this is my month to really annoy liberals. After picking Rush Limbaugh as Man of the Year, I pick the liberal version of Satan as man of the decade. But again, I ask you, read my arguments, and then make up your mind... Most decades are defined by the Presidents who dominate them. FDR dominated the 30s and 40s. Eisenhower the fifties, LBJ the sixties. The Seventies were the decade of incompetence. The eighties clearly was Ronald Reagan's, and Clinton dominated the nineties. In the same way, for good or ill, President George W. Bush had the most profound... Neoavatara http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2416251/posts#comment Mon, 28 Dec 2009 15:04:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418219/posts WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Michael Castle is a member of an endangered species in the U.S. Congress: He's a moderate Republican. He's also a key figure in next year's election.Castle is running to fill the Senate seat for Delaware formerly held by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, and his likely Democratic foe is Biden's son, Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden.Castle, a member of the House of Representatives since 1993, is seen as among the Republicans' best bets to end the Democrats' 60-vote super-majority in the 100-member Senate.Sixty votes lets Democrats pass legislation without Republican support in that chamber, including a landmark... Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418219/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 08:37:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417914/posts HotAir is a big voice in the conservative blogsophere and has done much to advance the cause of those wishing to stop and reverse the growth of a large central government. Unfortunately Hot Air's Ed Morrissey has brashly thrown his weight behind Scott Brown in the Massachusetts special election. This is disturbing and disheartening for every tea party, small government loving soul in America. While I certainly cannot blame casual Massachusetts Republicans for getting excited over Brown's possible win over Martha Coakley, it becomes much harder to justify it in the case of Ed whose life revolves around politics and... Right Condition http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417914/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 22:02:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417286/posts Barack Obama's reaction to bad news is to play it so cool that Americans yearn for a bit more drama - and some even for his predecessor, writes Toby Harnden in Washington. ### During the election campaign, Barack Obama's cool detachment was a winning quality, the "No Drama Obama" a welcome contrast with the "Mr Angry" John McCain, never mind the hot-headed "I'm the decider" President George W Bush. A year into his presidency, however, Mr Obama seems a curiously bloodless president. If he experiences passion, he seldom shows it. It is often anyone's guess as to whether an event... UK Telegraph http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417286/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:20:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417943/posts PHOENIX (AP) - Arizona Sens. John McCain and Jon Kyl are criticizing President Barack Obama and his administration's response following the attempted Christmas Day terrorist attack on a Detroit-bound airliner. With Kyl by his side, McCain told reporters at his Phoenix office on Tuesday that Obama should have addressed the nation earlier than three days after the attempted attack and that the 23-year-old Nigerian man arrested in the incident should be tried in a military court. Kyl says he now doesn't feel "totally safe" with Janet Napolitano as Homeland Security Secretary. AP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417943/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 22:39:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417757/posts Anyone not alarmed by the state of the U.S. economy is not paying attention. As our Dear Leader begins his term, the theory of very big government has the support of an alarmingly broad political consensus. Despite the obvious dangers—devastating inflation and the ruin of the dollar—the United States seems pledged to a debt-funded spending spree of gargantuan proportions. In opposing this trend, critics face the problem that the perils to which they point sound very theoretical and abstract. Perhaps Zimbabwe prints its currency in multi-trillion units, but that’s a singularly backward African dictatorship: the situation has nothing to do... American Conservative Magazine http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417757/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 17:48:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417585/posts Ever since Mark Kirk announced his campaign seeking the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate seat in Illinois currently held by Roland Burris there have been many "rumors" regarding Kirk's sexual preferences. Indeed, these "rumors" have been around for years concerning Mark Kirk, but they have been dismissed because of Kirk's relatively low political profile. Journalistically, it would have been irresponsible of me to go with the story for a number of reasons. Some have asked me why I did not address the allegations Kirk was possibly a homosexual and, for any honest journalist, the answer should be obvious. My... RFFM.org http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417585/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 13:59:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416829/posts Friends, it is important for me to keep harping on this issue because we have really been betrayed in the Senate by the Republican leadership. It is abundantly obvious now that the Senate GOP played to beat the spread, not to beat the bill. Yesterday, I noted Jake Tapper asked Mitch McConnell a plainly worded question: “[W]ill that be one of your first items should you regain control of the Senate, repealing what you guys call Obama-care?” McConnell refused to say yes or no. In fact, he never answered the question. There was, however, another nugget in the interview with... Redstate.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416829/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 11:51:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416862/posts Washington (CNN) – Although he called the Senate health care bill a "budget buster," Republican Sen. John Cornyn said Tuesday that there are some parts of it that he can get behind. The Texas lawmaker told CNN's Suzanne Malveaux that "there are some good things about the (health care) bill," like some wellness and prevention initiatives, delivery system reforms and requiring insurance companies to cover people with pre-existing conditions. "Absolutely. There's bipartisan support for eliminating the pre-existing conditions exclusion," Cornyn said. CNN - Political Ticker http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416862/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 13:15:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416796/posts (snip) The long-odds contender for the right to wage an up-hill fight against Teddy Kennedy bases his campaign on something rare among current Republican office-seekers: a positive, innovative and daring proposal. Tuesday in historic Faneuil Hall, at the fourth debate between the two contestants in the Sept. 20 GOP primary, heavily favored Mitt Romney mixed Republican boilerplate with me-too liberalism ("Sometimes I'll vote with Ted Kennedy"). His opponent, John Lakian, opened by commenting that Romney, in emphasizing crime and welfare, did "the traditional things that politicians do." (snip) When other Republican stars also proved reticent, the 47-year-old millionaire business-consultant son... The Chicago Sun-Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416796/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 06:53:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2233304/posts The government should have no say about marriage, and the plank in the Republican Party platform that calls for preserving marriage between a man and a woman should be scrapped, former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman (R) told CNSNews.com. Furthermore, the U.S. military should not differentiate between homosexuals and heterosexuals, said Whitman. The former governor spoke Friday at the Log Cabin Republicans’ (LCR) 2009 convention and symposium in Washington, D.C. The Log Cabin Republicans are a group that seeks to promote homosexual and lesbian concerns within the GOP. In her speech, Whitman spoke about how inclusion can help the... cnsnews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2233304/posts#comment Mon, 20 Apr 2009 12:21:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-gop/2416490/posts In GOP-rich Placer County, the Placer County Republican Central Committee chairman views himself as a brand manager of sorts. "We need to protect our brand," said Tom Hudson. "We need to stand for something." Hudson, 42, takes pride in unmasking and ousting people he says are liberals posing as Republicans. With the elected committee's backing, Hudson has drafted candidates to run against sitting GOP officeholders he views as not conservative enough, orchestrated a controversial endorsement during the primary for the 4th Congressional District seat, and played a role in the decision by two Placer County officeholders to drop their Republican... Sacramento Bee http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-gop/2416490/posts#comment Mon, 28 Dec 2009 20:25:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416139/posts Feingold, McCain, Lieberman Introduce Resolution to Reverse FEC’s Action to Gut Corporate Jets Provision. WASHINGTON, DC – A bipartisan group of senators has introduced legislation to reject a Federal Election Commission regulation that would effectively gut Congress’ work to crack down on Senators accepting rides on corporate jets. Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI), John McCain (R-AZ) and Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) introduced a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act to overturn the FEC’s decision and require it to redraft the regulation. In the regulation published in the Federal Register on December 7, the FEC undermined Congress’ decision in 2007 to... U.S. Sen. John McCain, RINO-Ariz. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416139/posts#comment Mon, 28 Dec 2009 08:54:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415927/posts U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is backing president-elect Barack Obama’s apparent pick of Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano as secretary of homeland security. “Gov. Napolitano’s experience as the former U.S. attorney for Arizona, Arizona’s attorney general and as governor warrants her rapid confirmation by the Senate, and I hope she is quickly confirmed,” McCain said in a statement Thursday. If Napolitano takes the federal position, Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer will become governor. Phoenix Business Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415927/posts#comment Sun, 27 Dec 2009 22:24:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2415743/posts Animal shelters across the country have reported a sharp surge in abandoned animals, many cut loose by owners who can no longer afford to care for them. Now, Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R., Mich.) has introduced a bill that would use the federal tax code to help. The Humanity and Pets Partnered Through the Years (HAPPY) Act would allow pet owners to deduct the cost of food, veterinary care, and other pet-related expenses from their income taxes—up to $3500 per year. McCotter says the bill would provide tax relief for pet owners while at the same time strengthening “the human-animal bond.”Leo... Parade Magazine http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2415743/posts#comment Sun, 27 Dec 2009 15:31:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415585/posts As haggling between House and Senate versions of national health care reform gets under way in Washington, Massachusetts residents may be feeling a bit of dejà vu. The insurance mandates and cost controls being negotiated on Capitol Hill are the same polarizing issues that echoed in Beacon Hill chambers three years ago. In 2006, then-Gov. Mitt Romney signed the nation's most ambitious and complex health reform initiative with the goal of providing universal health care coverage to all Massachusetts residents. Like the bill taking shape in Congress, the state's health legislation required all residents to obtain health insurance or face... The Sun Chronicle, Attleboro, Mass. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415585/posts#comment Sun, 27 Dec 2009 03:21:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-gop/2415277/posts SUGGESTION FOR A NEW TERM TO HELP IDENTIFY THE TYPE OF REPUBLICAN I THINK WE SHOULD BE ELECTING TO ALL LOCAL, STATE AND FEDERAL OFFICES - RRROC - Real Republican who Relies On the Constitution! Unlike the whimpy, whiny, always-compromising RINOs, these guys and gals are like ROCKS! Be sure to sound your RRRs, as in GRRRRRRRR! I'm tired of being labeled by WHAT I'M NOT. (Well, at least I'm not a RINO!) I'm proud to be a RRROC! 2010 - 2012 (1) NO VOTES FOR RINOs (2) ALL VOTES FOR RRROCs (3) NO REPUBLICAN PARTY SPLIT All "Libertarians", "Independents"... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-gop/2415277/posts#comment Sat, 26 Dec 2009 14:00:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415268/posts Pity Ben Bernanke. The guy was named Time magazine’s Person of the Year and the reaction rivaled fish sticks in the enthusiasm category. Old Ben might well be the guy of 2009, but few know who he is or understand what he does. Being chairman of the Federal Reserve may have advantages, but public visibility is not among them. Here’s all you need to know: After being honored by Time, Oprah did not call Ben. When you think about people of the year, the list is short. Perhaps, Lady Gaga, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ... maybe the late U.S. Sen.... The Ventura County Star http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415268/posts#comment Sat, 26 Dec 2009 13:26:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415239/posts (snip) The bill to watch will come from Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Senate Immigration Subcommittee. Schumer, who has been working with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), has already set out principles for reform that include rigorous workplace and border enforcement, a realistic assessment of the nation's need for skilled and unskilled labor, a commitment to controlling the future flow of illegal immigration and bringing millions of people away from the edges of society. The Schumer-Graham proposals have promise; we hope 2010 will see the immigration reform the nation so badly needs. (snip) The Los Angeles Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415239/posts#comment Sat, 26 Dec 2009 11:09:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414969/posts Link only, per FR copyright rules The Arizona Republic, Phoenix, Ariz. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414969/posts#comment Fri, 25 Dec 2009 15:54:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414772/posts George W. Bush is gone from Washington but his legacy, like an abandoned toxic waste dump, lingers on. Like President Franklin Roosevelt before him, President Bush helped redefine American freedom. And like Roosevelt's, Bush's changes were perversions of the clear vision the Founding Fathers bequeathed to us. What did freedom mean in the era of George Bush? In Iraq in September 2004, the U.S. military constructed Camp Liberty, a tent compound to house Iraqi detainees next to the Abu Ghraib prison. (The torture scandal and photos had been revealed in late April.) Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller declared that Camp Liberty... Campaign for Liberty http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414772/posts#comment Fri, 25 Dec 2009 01:02:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414308/posts California's Democratic congressional leaders said Wednesday they hope to address concerns raised by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger about the cost of health insurance legislation moving through Congress. Schwarzenegger wrote members of the state's congressional delegation this week and asked them for more flexibility to deal with the state's financial woes instead of imposing new costs through an expansion of Medicaid. He estimated that the health care legislation being debated in Congress would cost the state an extra $3 billion to $4 billion annually. “This crushing new burden will be added to a safety net that is already shredding under billions of... San DIego Union Tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414308/posts#comment Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:22:07 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414076/posts Republicans are stepping up their efforts to persuade more House Democrats to switch parties and are zeroing in on a second-term Pennsylvanian who is not ruling out such a move. Democratic Rep. Chris Carney received a phone call Wednesday from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) asking him to consider becoming a Republican, a top GOP official told POLITICO. A spokesman for Carney declined to say if the congressman was considering such a switch. “No further comment at this time,” said Carney spokesman Josh Drobnyk, who would only confirm that the call took place. In a brief interview, McCain declined to offer... Politico.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414076/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 22:58:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414019/posts A few weeks ago, at the end of a 40-minute Oval Office huddle on climate change between President Barack Obama and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham — one of many tête-è-têtes on various subjects between the two this year — Obama leaned forward. "Look Lindsey, I'm ready to play," he said. "I'm for nuclear power. I'm for responsible offshore drilling. I'm for clean coal. I just need a reasonable emissions standard." "Count me in," Graham replied. "Let's see if we can do it." Wait, you may ask, a conservative Republican is seriously negotiating with the President? And on global warming, of... TIME http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414019/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 21:19:54 GMT