Erick Erickson's Blog, page 75
January 18, 2012
Rick Perry's Final Act: King Maker?
Barring a miracle, this is Rick Perry's final act in the 2012 elections. On Saturday, he will come in last in South Carolina. It will be only the third time in a generation Rick Perry has lost an election, with the only other two times being Iowa and New Hampshire this year.
For a generation, Rick Perry was undefeated. Now he will go back to Texas and everyone who ever lost to Rick Perry will seek to settle old scores. It will be a tough, bloody fight. He will have to be ready for it.
Perry, however, has a potential trump card up his sleeve as he rebuilds political capital. It's simple: he can drop out today, and endorse someone else. Doing so today, before the CNN Debate tomorrow, gives the news time to sink in.
But who to endorse?Mitt Romney makes no sense. To endorse Romney would be to turn Perry's message throughout the campaign into a joke. It would buy Perry no good will. He would return to Texas a joke.
Rick Santorum makes no sense either. While closer to Perry than Romney on some points, Perry campaigned on reducing the size and scope of Washington, privatizing social security, and fixing entitlements. Endorsing Santorum may leave Perry in good stead with his fellow evangelicals, but it would fly in the face of the limited government principles he outlines both on the campaign trail and in his national bestseller Fed Up!
Then there is the man who wrote the introduction to Fed Up!, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.
I'm willing to bet that among activists in Texas, Newt Gingrich is more popular than Romney. His message has been rather consistent to Perry's, including a man on a mission to gut Washington, D.C. While Gingrich lacks Perry's limited government bona fides, he is the only other candidate in the race emphasizing that business as usual in Washington is not acceptable if the nation we love is going to survive – as Gingrich wrote in his introduction: "Devolving power out of Washington is critical to our long-term survival." And that's the truth.
If Rick Perry stays in the race, conservatives opposed to Mitt Romney will be legitimately able to blame Rick Perry for dragging down either Newt or Santorum. If the person he endorses doesn't win the nomination, it still doesn't hurt him as much as staying in to take a few deciding votes.
Huntsman has already done his part to help Romney. Perry's endorsement today or tomorrow morning could offset that, shifting undecideds and Perry's own voters to someone else and get them a leg up on Mitt Romney. With Newt Gingrich surging according to the latest Rasmussen poll and Sarah Palin saying she'd support him, Perry's withdrawal and endorsement before Saturday could ensure a Gingrich win.
Rick Perry's campaign has come to an end. But he could leave on an unexpected high note — helping conservatives unite around one not-Romney in a way no one else has been able to. Rick Perry could be the catalyst and kingmaker so many have been looking for, even as other conservatives have stood by, unwilling to endorse in the face of long odds.
Rick Perry has come this far motivated by his faith and his principles. He has fought the good fight. He has not forgotten what is due to his own honor and that of his country. But now he has a choice to make, and I wish him wisdom in it.
Either Rick Perry will leave the race Sunday with no political capital and no deposit of goodwill an endorsement would bring, or he will choose to strike one final blow for limited government conservatism.
Roy Blunt Withdraws His Name From Protect IP
Senator Roy Blunt of Missouri is one of those interesting Senators with whom I often find myself on the wrong side of him on fiscal issues, but who I tremendously, personally like. He really is quite a likable guy.
And today, joining Senator Rubio, Senator Blunt has withdrawn his sponsorship of PROTECT IP in the Senate.
His phone number is (202) 224-5721. Please consider calling and telling him thank you.
This is why Marco Rubio is a Hero on the Right
This morning I noted that we should primary Senators and Representatives on the left and right who refuse to back away from SOPA and Protect IP.
Included in the list, unfortunately, was Senator Marco Rubio. I would hate, hate, haaattttteeeee to primary such a great guy. We spent a lot of time, energy, effort, and money getting him elected. But SOPA/Protect IP is that bad.
Now, I've made clear that we wouldn't do this unless the left was on board too and I've only really heard crickets from them. But it was a threat so many of us felt needed to be made to emphasize just how bad this legislation is.
Today, about 40 minutes ago, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida showed again why he is a real leader and listener within the conservative movement. He is dropping his co-sponsorship of Protect IP.
I hope other Republicans in the Senate follow his leadership on this issue. and please call Senator Rubio's office and thank him for his leadership. His number is (202) 224-3041. We often fight. We should also often say thanks.
We're Not Going Dark. We're Fighting: Stop SOPA/Protect IP
Today many websites around the world are shutting down to protest the potential effects of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and its Senate companion, Protect IP.
At RedState, we are temporarily suspending publication of new content today to oppose SOPA and PROTECT IP.
Both pieces of legislation are overly broad and give too much power to the Attorney General to shut down websites that may be innocent of piracy, but are accused of being engaged in online piracy.
Both pieces of legislation are written by old men who need young staffers just to tweet and run their Facebook accounts. The sponsors probably have no idea how far reaching and damaging their legislation is.
As Heritage Action for America notes:
One of the main issues of SOPA and PIPA is that they force Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to block access to websites that have been accused of facilitating copyright infringement. Blocking access will likely slow down domain name resolution for the entire internet, while eroding the necessary trust the system needs. It would also set a dangerous precedent of allowing our government – and others – to filter domains. Fortunately, all sides have signaled this provision could be dropped.
Further, the legislation would put a tremendous legal burden on websites accused of third-party copyright infringement and would cause them to be removed from search engines. Opponents have compared the legislation to China's online censorship. Even if they made an honest mistake, they would be faced with litigation from the U.S. Attorney General. Fighting the accusations would cost so much time and money that smaller sites would likely go out of business fighting. Private lawsuits could also be brought against the websites. This would open up the potential for massive lawsuit abuse – even though the vast majority of online piracy occurs through a small number of websites.
Good friends of RedState like Marsha Blackburn in the House with SOPA and Marco Rubio in the Senate with PROTECT IP are on the wrong side of this issue. I personally, as much as I like them and so many of the other Republican sponsors, will make stopping both pieces of legislation a hill to die on and work to defeat them at their next election if this legislation passes.
They should remove their names from sponsorship.
And today, we are temporarily freezing new content on this site, standing with other sites on the internet in solidarity against both of these horrible pieces of legislation.
To get involved, you can click here to call your Representative about SOPA.
Click here to call your Senator about PROTECT IP.
Stop both pieces of legislation before it is too late.
Target These Members of Congress for Defeat. Yes, Even Good Friends of This Site.
The following are sponsors of Protect IP in the Senate originally introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont. Both Republicans and Democrats should pledge to unite and primary these members of the Senate, however much we may love them, for pushing such harmful legislation.
If they don't want to be primaried, they should stop sponsoring this crap. At the same time, I'm not going to primary my side unless the left primaries their side.
Next to each name is the date they signed on as a co-sponsor. Kudos to Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas for withdrawing as a sponsor:
Sen Alexander, Lamar [TN] – 5/25/2011
Sen Ayotte, Kelly [NH] – 6/27/2011
Sen Bennet, Michael F. [CO] – 7/25/2011
Sen Bingaman, Jeff [NM] – 10/19/2011
Sen Blumenthal, Richard [CT] – 5/12/2011 Sen Blunt, Roy [MO] – 5/23/2011 No longer a sponsor.
Sen Boozman, John [AR] – 6/15/2011
Sen Boxer, Barbara [CA] – 12/12/2011
Sen Brown, Sherrod [OH] – 10/20/2011
Sen Cardin, Benjamin L. [MD] – 7/13/2011
Sen Casey, Robert P., Jr. [PA] – 9/7/2011
Sen Chambliss, Saxby [GA] – 11/2/2011
Sen Cochran, Thad [MS] – 6/23/2011
Sen Coons, Christopher A. [DE] – 5/12/2011
Sen Corker, Bob [TN] – 6/9/2011
Sen Durbin, Richard [IL] – 6/30/2011
Sen Enzi, Michael B. [WY] – 9/7/2011
Sen Feinstein, Dianne [CA] – 5/12/2011
Sen Franken, Al [MN] – 5/12/2011
Sen Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [NY] – 5/26/2011
Sen Graham, Lindsey [SC] – 5/12/2011
Sen Grassley, Chuck [IA] – 5/12/2011
Sen Hagan, Kay [NC] – 7/5/2011
Sen Hatch, Orrin G. [UT] – 5/12/2011
Sen Isakson, Johnny [GA] – 11/2/2011
Sen Johnson, Tim [SD] – 10/3/2011
Sen Klobuchar, Amy [MN] – 5/12/2011
Sen Kohl, Herb [WI] – 5/12/2011
Sen Landrieu, Mary L. [LA] – 10/17/2011
Sen Lieberman, Joseph I. [CT] – 7/7/2011
Sen McCain, John [AZ] – 7/26/2011
Sen Menendez, Robert [NJ] – 10/31/2011
Sen Nelson, Bill [FL] – 9/23/2011
Sen Risch, James E. [ID] – 11/7/2011 Sen Rubio, Marco [FL] – 5/26/2011 No longer a sponsor.
Sen Schumer, Charles E. [NY] – 5/12/2011
Sen Shaheen, Jeanne [NH] – 6/30/2011
Sen Udall, Tom [NM] – 7/7/2011
Sen Vitter, David [LA] – 11/7/2011
Sen Whitehouse, Sheldon [RI] – 5/12/2011
The following are co-sponsors of SOPA in the House, originally introduced by Congressman Lamar Smith of Texas. Both Republicans and Democrats should pledge to unite and primary these members of the Senate, however much we may love them, for pushing such harmful legislation.
If they don't want to be primaried, they should stop sponsoring this crap At the same time, I'm not going to primary my side unless the left primaries their side..
Next to each name is the date they signed on as a co-sponsor.
Rep Amodei, Mark E. [NV-2] – 11/3/2011
Rep Baca, Joe [CA-43] – 12/7/2011
Rep Barrow, John [GA-12] – 11/14/2011
Rep Bass, Karen [CA-33] – 11/3/2011
Rep Berman, Howard L. [CA-28] – 10/26/2011
Rep Blackburn, Marsha [TN-7] – 10/26/2011
Rep Bono Mack, Mary [CA-45] – 10/26/2011
Rep Carter, John R. [TX-31] – 11/3/2011
Rep Chabot, Steve [OH-1] – 10/26/2011
Rep Chu, Judy [CA-32] – 11/30/2011
Rep Conyers, John, Jr. [MI-14] – 10/26/2011
Rep Cooper, Jim [TN-5] – 12/12/2011
Rep Deutch, Theodore E. [FL-19] – 10/26/2011
Rep Gallegly, Elton [CA-24] – 10/26/2011
Rep Goodlatte, Bob [VA-6] – 10/26/2011
Rep Griffin, Tim [AR-2] – 10/26/2011
Rep Holden, Tim [PA-17] – 11/30/2011
Rep King, Peter T. [NY-3] – 11/3/2011
Rep Larson, John B. [CT-1] – 11/30/2011
Rep Lujan, Ben Ray [NM-3] – 11/14/2011
Rep Marino, Tom [PA-10] – 11/3/2011
Rep Nunnelee, Alan [MS-1] – 11/3/2011
Rep Owens, William L. [NY-23] – 11/14/2011
Rep Quayle, Benjamin [AZ-3] – 12/13/2011
Rep Ross, Dennis [FL-12] – 10/26/2011
Rep Scalise, Steve [LA-1] – 11/14/2011
Rep Schiff, Adam B. [CA-29] – 10/26/2011
Rep Sherman, Brad [CA-27] – 12/7/2011
Rep Smith, Lamar [TX-21] – 10/26/2011
Rep Terry, Lee [NE-2] – 10/26/2011
Rep Wasserman Schultz, Debbie [FL-20] – 11/3/2011
Rep Watt, Melvin L. [NC-12] – 11/3/2011
Sarah Palin Says She'd Vote for Newt
This will probably be the biggest news of the morning. Millions have wondered who Governor Palin would actually support. She's making it crystal clear now.
On Fox News, Sarah Palin says if she lived in South Carolina she'd vote for Newt.
The next big question is whether Governor Perry decides to depart the race before or after Saturday. And if he departs, will he endorse Newt Gingrich, who wrote the introduction to Governor Perry's book Fed Up!
With Palin's endorsement, Rick Perry is now in a terribly awkward spot. If he departs before Saturday, he could be a hero for one of the non-Romney candidates. If he waits until Sunday and the race is close, as it appears to be, Rick Perry will rightly be remembered as the spoiler who handed Mitt Romney the nomination.
If Rick Perry and Sarah Palin both throw their lot behind Newt Gingrich, well, the Republican nomination might actually turn into a race instead of a coronation.
Morning Briefing for January 18, 2012
RedState Morning Briefing
For January 4, 2012
Go to www.RedStateMB.com to get
the Morning Briefing every morning at no charge.
Today is an unusual day at RedState.
Many websites around the nation and the world are going dark today in solidarity against SOPA, the Stopping Online Piracy Act (SOPA) pending in Congress. Many of this site's good friends, like Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Marco Rubio of Florida (a co-sponsor of the Protect IP Act in the Senate, which is the Senate version of SOPA) are supporters of this horrible legislation that would give Eric Holder and future attorneys general the right to shut down websites with minimal, if any, due process.
While it pains us to do so, we are committed to working against the re-election of each Republican co-sponsor of SOPA and Protect IP, including Rep. Blackburn and Sen. Rubio. Both pieces of legislation overreach their goals and will harm the internet.
We hope the Republican co-sponsors of these pieces of legislation will remove their names and we hope the legislation will die. In solidarity with those sites shutting down today to show you the potential impact of this legislation, RedState will suspend posting new content for much of today.
On the front page of RedState you'll find a tool you can use to contact your member of Congress and urge they oppose both SOPA and Protect IP.
1. Sarah Palin Says She'd Vote for Newt
2. SOPA and PROTECT IP/PIPA: An Update
3. What The Republican "Establishment" Really Means
4. Healthcare Doesn't Need European Style Austerity Measures; It Needs Free-Market
5. Union Bosses Showing Their True Colors in Wisconsin
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1. Sarah Palin Says She'd Vote for Newt
This will probably be the biggest news of the morning. Millions have wondered who Governor Palin would actually support. She's making it crystal clear now.
On Fox News, Sarah Palin says if she lived in South Carolina she'd vote for Newt.
The next big question is whether Governor Perry decides to depart the race before or after Saturday. And if he departs, will he endorse Newt Gingrich, who wrote the introduction to Governor Perry's book Fed Up!
With Palin's endorsement, Rick Perry is now in a terribly awkward spot. If he departs before Saturday, he could be a hero for one of the non-Romney candidates. If he waits until Sunday and the race is close, as it appears to be, Rick Perry will rightly be remembered as the spoiler who handed Mitt Romney the nomination.
If Rick Perry and Sarah Palin both throw their lot behind Newt Gingrich, well, the Republican nomination might actually turn into a race instead of a coronation.
Please click here for the rest of the post.
2. SOPA and PROTECT IP/PIPA: An Update
We celebrated Monday when House Majority Leader Eric Cantor effectively signaled the death of SOPA, the Stopping Online Piracy Act. Cantor said the Internet censorship bill would not see a vote until there was consensus on the matter. As long as Darrell Issa, Justin Amash, and Jason Chaffetz are on the case there will be no consensus on sweeping Internet censorship, so Cantor's position basically kills SOPA this Congress.
This was a well earned victory for conservatives, and we owe the above allies thanks for sticking up for our values against formidable opposition. Barack Obama refused to pledge a SOPA veto even in the face of a massive petition from his supporters. Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith sponsored the bill, and notable tech leaders like Marsha Blackburn co-sponsored it. Well-funded groups like AFL-CIO, MPAA, and RIAA all lined up behind it.
It took everything we had to be heard on this. Our movement could hold nothing back.
Please click here for the rest of the post.
3. What The Republican "Establishment" Really Means
There's been a lot of talk, maybe too much talk, about the struggle between the GOP "Establishment" and "Outsiders," sometimes – but sometimes not – meaning the Tea Party, however defined. There are many fault lines, wheels within wheels, that divide different groups on the Right, but it's time to clarify the core issue that has people of perfectly conservative temperament and ideology scratching their heads at their own constituents. After all, we're conservatives: establishments are a good idea, a necessary intersection of tradition and meritocracy, giving undue weight to neither and co-opting dangerous ideas about revolution and radical change. What's so bad about that?
The answer is a simple one: it's almost entirely about spending.
Please click here for the rest of the post.
4. Healthcare Doesn't Need European Style Austerity Measures; It Needs Free-Market
Nothing typifies the inane cycle of government dependency and poverty more than the issue of healthcare. Given that healthcare constitutes 18% of our economy and that millions of Americans are languishing under its crushing costs, it is important that we articulate healthcare reform from a position of strength. We must demonstrate how it is socialist interventions in the marketplace that are responsible for high costs. We must demonstrate how our policies will bring costs under control.
Please click here for the rest of the post.
5. Union Bosses Showing Their True Colors in Wisconsin
As the Recall Walker effort submitted their signatures to the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board today (claiming 1 million signatures), Wisconsinites deserve a serious analysis of this Big Labor, big money game to force a recall election on the people of this state. We will be shocked at what is yet to come. Evidence is already mounting to suggest that Big Labor has used underhanded, fraudulent and illegal tactics to pad their petition numbers. Major national labor organizations have dumped millions into Wisconsin to stop Governor Walker's reforms and with the integrity of these petitions being questioned; they have shown their true colors.
January 17, 2012
Newt Gingrich's Closing Argument: RedState Has It First
He is beginning to make his closing argument in South Carolina.
I did not see last night's debate, but the prevailing sentiment seems to be that he did a remarkably good job last night. It is close and, should Rick Perry stay in, Perry could legitimately be blamed for keeping Gingrich from beating Romney given the state of the polls.
But even with Perry in the race, Gingrich has done his best to come on strong at the end. And his latest ad, which we have first, is based on his debate performance from last night.
You can view his new advertisement right here. It goes live in South Carolina tomorrow.
Ameritopia
Perhaps the coolest part of my job is getting embargoed copies of best sellers and getting to read them well in advance of release.
Around Christmas this year, I received a small package in the mail and out came Ameritopia with a great big sticker on the front. "Pre-Publication Copy. EMBARGOED until January 16, 2012." Well, the problem was that it was Christmas time and I had no time to sit down and read a book. I put it on my desk and there it sat.
As luck would have it, I fell under the weather and started traveling all about the same time. In and out of airports, in and out of the doctor's office, in and out of bed — I had a little down time and I picked it up and started reading.
Let me first say that the cool thing about reading a Mark Levin book or an Ann Coulter book is that if you are in a crowded place you occasionally notice people who notice what you are reading getting up and moving away from you and others moving closer — the books alone are crowd control items and have also served to get me off jury duty.
As for the contents of the book? Fantastic. And I don't just say that because Mark is a friend.
Regular listeners of my radio show know I constantly refer back to to Men in Black when legal issues arise on the show. Mark has a unique ability to take complex subjects and boil them down to their essentials, which he then conveys in an accessible, easy to understand manner.
This time is no different.
Mark's subject is left wing utopia versus what America is actually. It's a breakdown of the typical view of what a utopia is and is not and what America is. Mark succinctly explains how the evolution of the concept of a utopia has built the intellectual framework for statism, how it does not work, and how the American founders broke with that intellectual framework with new ideas from the enlightenment to pursue a nation where the state did not control man's destiny into a utopian fantasy, but rather, as Lincoln said, let each man make himself.
Over time, of course, we know how the story goes. The checks and balances broke down, the constitution "evolved" under liberal jurisprudence, and the state has grown not just in budgetary size, but creeping more and more into our lives and personal decision making processes.
Part 2 of Mark's book should be read by every high school student. It is a great breakdown of the ideas that influenced our founders and how they applied them. From Locke to Montesquieu, Mark takes what could be difficult concepts and makes them so even a public school grad can understand them.
I really, really enjoyed the book and fully suspect you will too. Yet again, Mark Levin has another best seller. In all honesty, I have told Rush Limbaugh several times it is time for him to write another book. But, and no offense Rush if you read this, Mark has filled the void ably and, unlike a lot of talk radio hosts in America, fills that void with intellectual fire power, not pablum and crap.
Morning Briefing for January 17, 2012
RedState Morning Briefing
January 17, 2012
Go to www.RedStateMB.com to get
the Morning Briefing every morning at no charge.
1. Breaking the GOP Cycle of Capitulation
2. Requiescat in Pace, Jon Huntsman for President Campaign
3. Inside the Mind of a SEIU Political Activist & Insider
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1. Breaking the GOP Cycle of Capitulation
As we forge ahead to the new legislative session, it is important that we internalize the lessons of the dismal failures from last session.
Most of the dominant and sundry legislative battles last year can be explicated by the inane cycle of Republican capitulation. It goes something like this:
Democrats propose some odious and profligate legislative idea or budget bill. Conservatives advocate that we uproot the entire premise of the destructive legislation by drawing a line in the sand on the principles that got us elected. Republican leaders eschew conservative principles and acquiesce to the premise that the Democrat legislation or budget is a priority too big to fail. They telegraph the message to Democrats that they will never let the budget bill or stimulus proposal fail, but promise to make them pay for it with reforms or other spending offsets.
Inevitably, Democrats unite against the GOP leadership proposal, and we are left with the GOP caving on the spending without the offsets. Then they unequivocally swear to stick it to the Democrats during the next budget battle by finally utilizing their leverage. Repeat and rinse and needed. As the saying goes, the rest is history.
Please click here for the rest of the post.
2. Requiescat in Pace, Jon Huntsman for President Campaign
Well, it looks like Iowa and New Hampshire both get to claim one official victim in the 2012 GOP Presidential sweepstakes as Jon Huntsman is announcing today that he is going to be the first to follow Michele Bachmann out the door. Huntsman never managed to get off the floor nationally, and wasn't able to make enough of a dent in New Hampshire (the one state he actively campaigned in) to gain sufficient momentum and money to carry his campaign forward. So he made one of the few sensible political choices he's made in this run and decided to drop out while he's not too far behind.
Governor Huntsman was good enough to sit down and talk with me at relative length during the campaign season (see here), and I came away liking Huntsman much more than I did going in. However, even in that interview you could see the seeds of political tone-deafness that ultimately doomed Huntsman's campaign. For instance, Huntsman is the only Presidential candidate I am aware of who has kicked off his campaign by taking a job working for the incumbent he hopes to defeat. I cannot for the life of me understand why or how Huntsman was unable to perceive how this would play with the GOP primary electorate. Ultimately, I get how and why Huntsman took the job as ambassador to China; he should have understood, however, that it was a choice that would make it impossible for him to run for President in 2012.
Please click here for the rest of the post.
3. Inside the Mind of a SEIU Political Activist & Insider
Meet Jessica Shearer, Executive Director of the Healthcare Education Project at 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East.
In the 14-minute video below, Ms. Shearer, sitting in a panel discussion (with an unknown Tea Party activist beside her), discusses a variety of topics, such as:
The current excitement over the OccupyWallSt movement and what it means to the union movement
The inability of unions to motivate their own members
The half-empty buses to last year's One Nation rally
The election Barack Obama and the subsequent disappointment on his (and the SEIU's) "caving" on health care reform
The failure of Barack Obama's Organizing for America to realize its potential
…and much more
View the video in its entirety. It is an insightful look into the mind of a SEIU activist and insider…a collectivist.
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