Free Republic

Dear Iowa Caucus participants, You have been told for the better part of year now who it is that you must choose. Beltway insiders have insisted upon thrusting establishment candidates upon you. Libertarian anarchists have swopped into your state shouting that you must support Ron Paul, while toking on the marijuana they soon believe President Paul will make legal. You've been openly mocked by Governor John Huntsman from Utah--who ironically seeks your support. Ann Coulter has defied every conservative principal she's ever espoused by trying to brainwash you into thinking that Mitt Romney is the best that you have to...

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is a conservative. At least, that is the point the former Massachusetts governor is trying to make with a new TV ad airing in Iowa. The new ad, titled “Conservative Agenda,” shows Romney speaking on the stump and meeting with voters, as he makes a series of commitments. “I am going to do something to government. I’m going to make it ‘Simpler, and Smaller, and Smarter,’” Romney says. “Getting rid of programs, turning programs back to states, and finally making government itself more efficient.” Romney pledges to repeal President Obama’s health care overhaul and balance...

The “unlike some people” is merely implied, but this one’s so heavy-handed that he might as well have tacked on a few shots of Newt with his ex-wives framed by a torn “heart” graphic. I’m tempted to say this will do Romney as much harm as good simply because it stinks of desperation driven by Gingrich’s surge, but in truth it probably will help him a bit. For every Iowa political junkie who long ago priced Newt’s personal issues into his stock, there are probably two or three socially conservative caucusgoers who haven’t paid much attention yet and are just...

Could this be a watershed week in the Republican presidential primary? Joe Scarborough seems to think so. On today's Morning Joe, he said something remarkable: that in the last week, stalwart conservatives and "Republican leaders" have told him that they would rather lose" than elect Mitt Romney. View the video here.

This disarray in the Republican Party has reached some dizzying depth, Bill O’Reilly explained last night, as no candidate or public official has taken hold of the party. With several candidates as long shots or complete unknowns, O’Reilly concluded Mitt Romney had the best chance, but no one was going to defeat President Obama without having “a little Trump in them.” O’Reilly began his program last night with a quick evaluation of each candidate left: “Newt Gingrich is done as a serious candidate,” he explained, why Rep. Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain and Rick Santorum were “long shots.” Sarah Palin could...

I remember when I put a McCain sticker on the car and the sign went up in the yard. It was October of 08. It took of course him picking Sarah as his VP spot. (I remember just before that the buzz was Joe Lieberman was going to be the one). Now as I write Romney is in the lead of our pack. He of course is not the conservative favorite. Right not he has three strikes against him and they are big. Romneycare which was the model of Obamacare. Ethanol which is just the same old crony ways. And...

In an article for the Washington Examiner Byron York writes: “The bottom line is Sarah Palin is not going to run for president,” says a Republican adviser close to front-runner Mitt Romney. “She’s making money, she’s moved on, she’s kind of an entertainer rather than a politician. She still has some sway with the grass roots, but she is not going to run.”“I don’t think she’s going to run,” says a Republican close to Tim Pawlenty. “She has faded a lot in the last few months. I look at what she’s doing now and say that she’s found a way...

The insiders are largely agreed: Sarah Palin isn’t really running for president. She is more interested in making money and getting publicity. So her movie, bus tour, and poll numbers mean nothing. Zero. Nada. The best example of this is probably found in Byron York’s column today: “The bottom line is Sarah Palin is not going to run for president,” says a Republican adviser close to front-runner Mitt Romney. “She’s making money, she’s moved on, she’s kind of an entertainer rather than a politician. She still has some sway with the grass roots, but she is not going to run.”...

The 2012 Republican presidential nominee front-runner, Willard Mitt Romney kicked off his campaign today with a day-long fundraiser in Las Vegas. The day-long event features a large phone bank staffed by around 700 Romney supporters. Via a conference call, Romney informed supporters, "We're activating our campaign today." He will announce how much money was raised later today. With former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee declaring his intention not to pursue the Republican nomination, and Donald Trump bowing out today, Romney is the clear-cut front-runner for the 2012 Republican nomination. The former Massachusetts governor is joined by former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty,...

Unless things change, the man (or woman) elected in 2012 will be the last American president to preside over the world's leading economy. If things get really bad, he will find himself presiding over the early stages of American collapse. Not "decline" but "collapse." "Decline" is what happens when you're Britain in the 1940s and you cede global dominance to a major ally that shares your language, legal system, cultural inheritance and broad geopolitical objectives. That deal isn't on offer this time round. Nor was the United Kingdom circa 1948 in thrall to anything like the same levels of spendaholic...

Former President George H.W. Bush and former first lady Barbara Bush named Mitt Romney as their favorite Republican for the 2012 presidential nomination. "If you asked me, who was the nominee be, I couldn't tell you. We like Mitt Romney. We know him well and like him very much," Bush said in an interview with CNN's Larry King. The former president then joked about his support, saying: "Don't want to kill him off." "He's a reasonable guy. A conservative fellow, which is good. But, no, I think he'd be a good president, a very good president," Bush said of the...

Bush says Jeb is still his personal favorite, but if it's not him, he likes Romney http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/130495-bush-42-names-romney-as-favorite-gop-presidential-contenderFormer President George H.W. Bush wants former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney to be the GOP's 2012 presidential nominee. The elder Bush said that Romney would make a "very good president" in an interview with CNN's Larry King Monday night. Asked by King who his personal favorite in 2012 is, Bush said, "Well, I mentioned [my son] Jeb, but he’s not going to try. So, I don't. I don’t really. If you asked me, who will the nominee be, I couldn't tell you. We like...

Mitt Romney hasn't changed a bit, and carries even more damning baggage. The serious rumblings are already out there. Undaunted by the failure of one of the most expensive presidential primary runs in history, Mitt Romney apparently wants to take another shot at getting the GOP’s nomination. Utah Senator Orrin Hatch is “quite sure” Romney will run, and has said that the former Massachusetts governor “would be my preference.” Sadly, there’s a hoary tradition in the GOP that certain establishment-favored candidates, even though they’re not the best available, have somehow earned “their turn.” That belief has usually led the party...