Showing posts with label Republican Party. Show all posts

Oct 30, 2015

John Kasich Takes The Republican Party to School: The Columbus Dispatch on the ronnie re

John Kasich gets a surprise gift from Jeb Bush's campaign
By: Darrel Rowland

The Columbus Dispatch - October 30, 2015 12:52 PM

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Ohio Gov. John Kasich got a boost Thursday from an unlikely source: the campaign of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.

Bush's team, facing widespread questioning about the status of his campaign after a third straight desultory debate performance, prepared a 112-page memo for supporters on the state of the race. U.S. News & World report got a copy (see page 15).

Among the info contained in the detailed communique was a New Hampshire poll taken Oct. 19 and 20 by the Bush campaign. It showed him tied for third at 10 points - with Kasich.

While the survey matched public polling showing Donald Trump far ahead in the contest with Dr. Ben Carson second, it marked a return of Kasich to the top tier in the state holding the nation's first 2016 presidential primary.

Kasich, who has staked his campaign on a good performance in New Hampshire, had gotten as high as second in Granite State polling last month, but tumbled several places in more recent polls.

The memo did not detail how the survey was taken or its margin of sampling error, so voters will have to wait on a credible public poll to confirm its results.

Meanwhile, Kasich is taking a beating from some conservatives in social media for saying after Wednesday's debate that he thought the CNBC moderators did a "good job" and he was "very appreciative" they didn't let the debate devolve into the circus atmosphere of earlier matchups - and that they gave him time to talk The governor apparently didn't get the memo the other candidates on the prime-time debate stage received about going after the moderators in particular and the news media in general.

copied from The Columbus Dispatch    wwwdispatch.com

Because of all of the Republican candidates John Kasich seems to be the most reasonable with a proven track record.  He is more or less normal and that is saying a whole lot with the given GOP field.  Even though I am a dem and Hillary girl forever the state of the 2016 election is an embarrassment to our country with the likes of donald trump threatening to deport millions of people and Ben Carson suggesting to Wolf Blitzer the Jews would have had a better chance against the Nazis if they were armed.   There was a special recently on CNN where Wolf spoke of his grandparents going to Auschwitz--I guess Ben Carson did not see that show.

I admire John Kasich for calling out both of them at the debate.  Everyone was afraid to do it because the donald will lambaste the one who makes the comments with accusations which are often false and unfortunately in the long run, true or untrue, the population will only remember the outrageous claim of the donald.  Kasich did a good job in this tough area.

Kasich is not afraid to say his own accomplishments--you have to in this arena--he timed everything well considering his inevitable backlash.

If Jeb Bush meets his demise politically John Kasich has positioned himself well particularly in light of the fact that doanld and Ben know that will have to answer now for their ridiculous statements that would never hold in reality.

Jeb Bush must be very frustrated after the donald tried to go against him using his wife's Hispanic heritage.  Who does that?  No wonder he may want to get out of the race.

John Kasich must have been prepared for a personal attack but he stood up to it well--he has a good record and he has shown compassion--the donald cannot bust that down.

Good job and well done to John Kasich for timing and calling out the bad news bears of the Republican Party.

Oct 20, 2015

John Kasich: The GOP Meets Normal

Editorial:

John Kasich, the anti-Trump

Editorial Board

When the Trump fever breaks, Gov. John Kasich of Ohio could be a top GOP contender.

Thirteen weeks ago, Donald Trump shared with the Tribune Editorial Board an hour of his bombast, sarcasm and ... good-natured charm. Trump was a delight. And if that verdict surprises you, come sit here, because it surprised us too.

On Tuesday, Ohio Gov. John Kasich took a turn in the same chair. Kasich hadn't even announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination when we, like much of America, first engaged Trump. To the essay question that begins Compare-and-contrast:

If you want a rocking-good time on Saturday night, hop aboard Trump's helicopter or yacht or limo or jet. Bring your own quick wit or you'll soon fall behind. But if you're shopping for, say, a new president for your divided nation, a grown-up who has spent decades proving how capable he is at working the levers of government to deliver solutions, then skip Trump's entertaining show and pay serious attention to Kasich. If enough Americans do, you might see his name atop your election ballot on Nov. 8, 2016.

Even if he had a weak record in office, Kasich would wake up every day as a serious potential nominee. No Republican has won the White House without winning Ohio — something Kasich has done twice, most recently with 64 percent of the vote. GOP strategists get giddy at the prospect of pairing Kasich on a ticket with Marco Rubio (ascendant) or Jeb Bush (not really) of Florida, another gotta-have swing state.

But Kasich, even with his Ohio State diploma, is more than a dutiful Buckeye. His nine terms in the U.S. House gave him 18 years on the Armed Services Committee and six years as chair of the Budget Committee. An Associated Press synopsis of his career notes that in the latter capacity he was "the chief architect of a deal that balanced the federal budget for the first time since 1969."

As governor Kasich eliminated an Illinois-scale budget deficit and grew Ohio's rainy-day fund from 89 cents (true) to more than $2 billion. Ohio's economy is in growth mode and his state government is less bureaucratic than when he took office in 2011.

All of that said, there's something in Kasich's past for almost every voter to like or loathe. He's a conservative Republican who embraced Obamacare by expanding Medicaid. He boasts of cutting taxes more than any sitting governor in the U.S. yet believes in government "helping people get on their feet to live out their God-given purpose — that, to me, is America." He would put U.S. boots on the ground to defeat Islamic State in the Middle East. But he says that if battles are won with bullets and guns, wars are won with ideas — a liberal goal he thinks the U.S. hasn't tried hard enough to achieve. He supports a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution while admitting that he might tolerate deficit spending on tax cuts to spur growth and to build up America's military, adding briskly, "with reform of the Pentagon."

What struck us wasn't an urge to agree with everything Kasich says — we don't — but his willingness to speak straight and let listeners think what they will of him. This isn't a mesmerizing guy. He's a Midwesterner whose dad carried the mail. Some find him preachy: At a conference last year he scolded a woman who challenged his moral argument for expanding Medicaid. "I don't know about you, lady," Kasich said, pointing at her. "But when I get to the Pearly Gates, I'm going to have an answer for what I've done for the poor."

Maybe Kasich won't rise in this election cycle beyond the role Jon Huntsman Jr. played in 2012: the favorite Republican of liberal Democrats. But we also can see Kasich taking the mantle of the late Jack Kemp — smart on economics, conservative in outlook, with a moderate streak that creates crossover appeal.

We aren't sure whether the Trump bump has reflected the feelings of rank-and-file Republicans or of people from several ideological tents who share a revolutionary anger. When tempers cool, though, a strong array of GOP candidates awaits. We won't be surprised if Kasich works his way into the top tier.

One last observation on the two men who sat in the same leather chair:

Trump had an absolutely splendid necktie.

Kasich didn't bother to wear one.

copied from the chicagotribune.com

Dec 30, 2013

Juans Williams Talks Responsibility to the Republican Party

Bill O'Reilly to Chris Christie: May I ride on your train........

Juan, you are answering my question. It seems like Bill O'Reilly has the same idea--I do not know about house cleaning the whole republican congress but it seems like he is going more towards the middle in his recent negative comments about duck dynasty. The point being--that crazy right side cannot only not get anything accomplished in congress but they also cannot win a big election.

It seems like the big money people have spoken and said anyone who wants to survive as a republican or a television show better try to get a ride on that fast moving locomotive know as the Chris Christie Express.

It is about winning, being realistic, getting things done and standing up for the voters. I think Bill and his "folks," the ones he is looking out for, the 500 dollar a ticket gang on his bolder and fresher meet and greet tour around the country have spoken.

Get with the Chris Christie program and leave the whackadoodles behind or face death as a party, or worse yet as a television host. Unless Jeb Bush or Jon Huntsman jump in and take over Chris Christie is the ticket to ride and life for the GOP. Thanks and putting you in my blog......cl

Juans Williams Talks Responsibility to the Republican Party

copied from the hill:

Juan Williams: Republicans to blame for the public's disgust with Congress

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By Juan Williams - 12/30/13 06:00 AM EST

As the year ends, Gallup reports that public approval of Congress averaged 14 percent during 2013. This, the polling firm points out, is “the lowest annual average in Gallup’s history.”

The pollsters added: “2013 is the only year in Gallup’s history in which all monthly readings were below 20 percent.”

Yet this is “the new normal,” according to Gallup, because in each of the last four years the congressional approval rating for the year has been below 20 percent.

It was such a bad year for Congress that Gallup predicts the 2014 midterm elections will not, fundamentally, be a fight over which party controls the House and Senate.

Instead, the campaign could hinge on the overwhelmingly negative view of Congress and the sense “that more Americans feel that problems are with the institution itself rather than with the particular party or people who control it.”

This brings us to the quote of the year about political life on Capitol Hill. It came from Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), defending the Republican-led House.

“We should not be judged on how many new laws we create,” he told CBS in July. “We ought to be judged on how many laws we repeal.”

This Republican strategy is at the heart of why Congress is so unpopular. They will not work on the big issues, beginning with their failure to deal with the number one public priority: creating jobs and boosting the economy.

Instead, the GOP’s congressional focus, according to the influential Republican Study Committee, is on extracting what they term “reforms” — really, they’re talking about budget cuts — in “mandatory spending” programs including food stamps, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. There is practically no desire for those cuts reflected in any polling.

As Campaign 2014 gets underway, Republicans are threatening another government shutdown tied to refusal to approve a debt-ceiling hike to pay bills. Their demand is for President Obama to make major cuts to programs such as Social Security.

The reduced-government, reduced-spending, reduced-federal-power strategy extends to the Senate where Republicans have used an historic number of filibusters and threats to block nominees to Obama administration posts and judicial seats. That led Senate Democrats to the “nuclear option,” opening the door to simple majority votes on most nominees.

But even with rules changes intended to break gridlock, the economy continues to struggle partly as a result of the GOP strategy.

This is not winning Republicans friends or votes. Only after the awful start for the ObamaCare website did generic polls on voter preference briefly lean toward the GOP. But at year end, polling on the question of generic preference now swings back and forth between the parties.

Now the Speaker is disavowing his earlier desire to have his party’s success in Congress measured by how many laws it repeals. His new talking point revolves around the number of bills passed by the GOP House that the Democratic majority in the Senate has ignored.

But even if all those bills, about 150, are counted, it does not change Congress’ absurdly low approval ratings and this Congress’ ranking, at the mid-point of the 113th Congress, as the least productive in modern times.

Of course, about a third of those bills that did pass the House called for repeal or defunding of ObamaCare. They had no chance in the Senate and no hope of avoiding a presidential veto.

Even by the standards of a divided Congress, with Republicans controlling the House and Democrats in the majority in the Senate, there has never been such an unproductive session of Congress.

NBC’s “First Read” recently published a chart comparing the productivity of today’s divided Congress (57 laws passed) to the work undertaken by a divided Congress during President Reagan’s terms – when Republicans controlled the Senate and Democrats controlled the House. The 97th, 98th and 99thCongresses respectively passed 473 laws, 623 laws, and 663 laws.

The article concluded: “It’s not even a close call. That [Democratic] House got a lot more done with its GOP rivals than this GOP House has with its [Democratic] counterparts.”

The failure to deal with the nation’s big issues begins with the Republican refusal to help the economy get better. The public is aware of the damage the Republican majority in the House inflicted upon the country when they shut down the government in October — an action that came with a price tag of $24 billion, according to the financial services firm Standard & Poor’s.

The Republican strategy of congressional inaction has not even won fans among Republicans. According to Gallup, Democrats give Congress a 14 percent approval rating, Independents an 11 percent approval rating and Republicans a 10 percent approval rating.

There is constant attention in the news to Obama’s falling approval ratings in the polls — Real Clear Politics’ average of polls has him at 54 percent disapproval to 42.2 percent approval, near his all-time low.

But even if this is the darkest hour for the president, he still holds close to a 30-percentage point lead in approval over Congress.

At a Christmas party last week a Republican who owns several television stations came over to me with an idea: How about starting a movement to throw out the entire Congress and start over?

I thought he was joking and politely smiled. But he recounted how two radio personalities in California started the movement that led to the recall of Gov. Gray Davis (D) in 2003.

Now he wants he wants me and major television personalities, columnists and editorial writers to call for a “housecleaning” of all current members of Congress.

Well, this is the time for New Year’s resolutions.

Juan Williams is an author and political analyst for Fox News Channel.