Mitt, Enjoy Yourself

For John, BLUF:  I'm with Treacher.  And I would like to know about Senator E Warren's brilliant plan to break the logjam and fix healthcare.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Mitt Romney Went Waterskiing, And The Boston Globe Is On It

This is from The Daily Caller and Blogger Jim Treacher, today, 26 July 2017.

America had a chance to elect Mitt Romney, and we blew it.  Back in 2012 he warned us about Putin, and a lot of other problems we’re facing in 2017, but we just laughed at him.  He tried to serve his country, and he was excoriated.  He was mocked for hiring women, because he said he had binders full of their files.  (To this day, nobody has ever been able to explain why that was bad.)  Hell, he was even accused of giving people cancer.  We treated a good, honorable man like dirt.  He doesn’t owe us a thing.

Or… does he?  Danny McDonald, Boston Globe:

While the Senate debated health care, Mitt Romney was waterskiing

It’s been a contentious week in Washington…

One Republican who appears to be unbothered by all the political tumult?  That would be Mitt Romney.

The former Massachusetts governor and two-time GOP presidential candidate looked quite carefree while showing off his waterskiing skills earlier this week.

What DOES Governor Mitt Romney owe us?

Better, what do we owe him?  And President Obama owes at least an apology over Russia.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Long Term Thinking

For John, BLUF:  Yes, Mr Trump can appear impulsive, but he also seems to be a person who invests for the long term.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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How Donald Trump came up with ‘Make America Great Again’

Surprisingly, this is from The Wash Post.  Not surprisingly, it is from the keyboard of Reporter Karen Tumulty, over the weekend.

In November 2012 Mr Trump plunked down $325 and copyrighted the slogan "Make America Great Again".  Within days of Candidate Mitt Romney going down in flames in his run against President Barack Obama.

That move suggests that Mr Trump is either very luck or is an insightful strategic thinker.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

You remember, the throwback who was warning that Russia was a strategic threat.
Of course there is the aphorism "Better lucky that good, because there is always someone better."

Trump Follows Obama Path to Victory

For John, BLUF:  Ah, what strange things we learn when we follow the numbers.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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This is from Law Professor Glenn Harlan Reynolds:

T’S JUST BECAUSE THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE THERE SUDDENLY TURNED RACIST:  Trump’s Key To Victory:  Counties Obama Carried.  “Of the nearly 700 counties that twice sent Obama to the White House, a stunning one-third flipped to support Trump.  Trump also won 194 of the 207 counties that voted for Obama either in 2008 or 2012. . . .  The Obama-Trump counties were critical in delivering electoral victories for Trump.  Many of them fall in states that supported Obama in 2012, but Trump in 2016.”

The original post, with comments, can be found here.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Whether the Republicans

For John, BLUF:  Nothing in the future is guaranteed.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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The Washington Post has an article on Republican fissures.  The title is "Some evangelicals in Republican Party are feeling left out, see no standard-bearer".

Maybe these two paragraphs say it best:

The disconnect between social conservatives and the GOP has become a “chasm,” said Gary Bauer, who ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2000 and is now head of the Campaign for Working Families.  He pointed to the party’s two most recent presidential nominees, Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, as examples of candidates who were touted initially as having broad appeal to centrists in the general election but ultimately never inspired evangelicals and lost.

“Values voters have been treated as the stepchildren of the family, while the party has wanted to get on with so-called more electorally popular ideas,” Bauer said.  “The Republican base will not tolerate another candidate foisted upon us as a guy who can win.”

That is my link embedded in the quote.

I would suggest that part of the reason Senator Scott Brown lost his second election was because those socially conservative voters stayed home the second time, while the Democrats turned out over 600,000 additional voters.

YEAR	BROWN	DEM	INDY	OTHER	BLANK	TOTAL
2010	1,168,178	1,060,861	22,388	1155	1145	2,253,727
2012	1,458,048	1,696,346	--	2,159	27,643	3,184,196

Senator Brown picked up less than half as much.  Not a good sign.  And the big uptick in "Blank" ballots, re Senator, is, to me, a telling sign.

So, is it Dr Ben Carson for the Republicans?  I hear from folks who say yes.

I think the deeper issue is whether or not the Republican Party can survive half social conservative and half libertarian.  And, if the Republican Party crashes, what will it do to Democrats?  Will they stay united, following the Reid/Pelosi line, or will there be fracturing?

Regards  —  Cliff

Obama vs. Romney on Russia

For John, BLUF:  This is a test.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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This is really a test for me to see if I can embed a video.  For you it is a chance to relive history as we contemplate an emergency meeting of the Russian Duma.

UPDATE:  It seems to work.  Nice.

UPDATE:  Romney, a man ahead of his time.  Russian artillery reported to be firing into Ukraine.

UPDATE:  No, I don't think Gov Romney should run again.  The Conservatives are distrustful of him because he is a Mormon.  And the Progressives sure don't trust him, because he is a Mormon.  That soft discrimination that is left over from 150 years ago.

Hat tip to the Instapundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Romney on Russia, 2012

For John, BLUF:  Mr Chris Matthews seems adrift.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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So, Chris Matthews vs Mitt Romney.  This is a pick you idiot. One quote:  "We need Russia."

My conclusion is that "Prediction is very hard, especially about the future."  Yes, Yogi Berra.  That said, it is easy to mock those who utter opinions that are out of the mainstream and the utterer is seen as out of the mainstream, e.g., Gov Sarah Palin or Gov Mitt Romney.

Regards  —  Cliff

Is Frank Luntz Giving Up On You?

For John, BLUF:  A bad shift in attitude.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Here is an article by Atlantic Reporter Molly Balljan, from back on 6 January of this year.  The focus is Pollster Frank Luntz and carries the title "The Agony of Frank Luntz".  The sub-title is "What does it mean when America's top political wordsmith loses faith in our ability to be persuaded?"

Mr Luntz has lost faith in the electorate.

It was what Luntz heard from the American people that scared him.  They were contentious and argumentative.  They didn't listen to each other as they once had.  They weren't interested in hearing other points of view.  They were divided one against the other, black vs. white, men vs. women, young vs. old, rich vs. poor.  "They want to impose their opinions rather than express them," is the way he describes what he saw.  "And they're picking up their leads from here in Washington."  Haven't political disagreements always been contentious, I ask?  "Not like this," he says.  "Not like this."

The other thing, per Reporter Balljan, that bothers Mr Luntz is the sense that we have become an entitlement society.

"You should not expect a handout," he tells me.  "You should not even expect a safety net.  When my house burns down, I should not go to the government to rebuild it.  I should have the savings, and if I don't, my neighbors should pitch in for me, because I would do that for them."  The entitlement he now hears from the focus groups he convenes amounts, in his view, to a permanent poisoning of the electorate—one that cannot be undone.

Actually, the Government pitching in works, until you run out of other peoples money.  For example, for the Greek nation.  They ran out of other Greeks money a while back and are now getting their third bailout from Germany.♠

If Germany is backstopping Greece, who is going to backstop the US?

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Based in part on the theory that the Germans owe it to them, for World War II.

Elections Have Consequences

For John, BLUF:  I fear we have health care by the wrong end of the stick.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Over at The Maddow Blog at MSNBC, Mr Steve Benen blogs "Elections used to have consequences".♠

We've all heard the "elections have consequences" adage many times, but let's be clear about what we're witnessing in 2013 Republicans are very clearly telling the country, "No, actually, elections don't have consequences.  We're still going to do as we please."

As Professor Althouse notes, the Republicans won the House of Representatives, and that has consequences.

There was a time when Obama said "I won." It was arrogant back then, and in a democracy, that kind of arrogance invites comeuppance.

But, arrogance should not be met with arrogance, in my humble opinion.  But, back to the Professor, who thinks back to Wisconsin a couple of years ago:

Benen ends with a line that resonates with us the people of Wisconsin:  "Democracies aren't supposed to work this way."  Back in 2011, we had weeks of loud protests with chanting over a drumbeat:  "This is what democracy looks like." And those were Democrats who'd lost the 2010 elections.  They were making all the noise they could because they didn't have the votes in the legislature, and yet they still shouted all day and night that what they wanted was democracy.  The idea — to the extent that it made any sense — was that the minority opinion also matters and free expression and dissent are part of the process, adding friction and restraint to the imposition of the will of the majority.

That is our form of democracy, with majority rule and minority rights and the minority not necessarily being a religious or racial grouping, but also an ideological grouping.

For the record, I believe Obamacare is a disaster on the order of the French Revolution imploding health care by closing the cloisters.  However, I don't believe it should be defunded, but it by God sure should be applied equally to Congress, including staff, and the IRS, including staff.  Then it should be replaced by something that provides health care professionals where needed.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) says that in 2010 there were 691,000 positions for physicians and surgeons.  Looking to the future, BLS says:

Job prospects should be good for physicians willing to practice in rural and low-income areas, because these areas typically have difficulty attracting doctors.

How much of our problem is summed up in those few words?

Then there are 83,600 physicians assistants.

Employment of physician assistants is expected to increase 30 percent from 2010 to 2020, much faster than the average for all occupations.  As more physicians enter specialty areas of medicine, there will be a greater need for primary healthcare providers, such as physician assistants.

There are 105,780 nurse practitioners out there.

So, that is some 880,380 providers, not counting nurses and the like and we are still underserving people in "rural and low-income areas".  Not being an economist of health care, I don't have a finely tuned number, but what if the US Public Health Service, one of the seven uniformed Services in our Federal Government♥ trained and deployed to rural and low-income areas some 10% additional health care providers?  That would be about 88,000 physicians, physicians assistants and nurse practitioners.  I am betting it would make a big difference, if for no other reason than it would provide early detection and treatment of diseases that could, untreated, become very expensive when they finally show up at the Emergency Room.  Even putting 10,000 more folks out there would be a big step forward.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  I wonder what exactly is going through his mind when Mr Benen uses the term "aggressive, right-wing agenda"?  I am doubting tennis courts come to his mind.  One wonders if maybe it is neo-cons.
♥  Like the Army and Navy and Air Force and Marine Corps and Coast Guard and NOAA.

Benghazi For Ever

For John, BLUF:  At our Department of State "resigning" doesn't necessarily mean leaving the building.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

I think the Department of State is factually correct here, but we allowed ourselves to be misled into thinking that some people were actually leaving State over the Benghazi Imbroglio.

What is that line Jeremiah used?

You duped me, ..., and I let myself be duped

Jeremiah said that around Chapter 20, Verse 7.

Oh well, at least some action was taken.  Some boxes on the org chart were exchanged.  Some people knew that they had messed up.

But, now is the time to get down to the serious work.  Retired Army Lieutenant General Jerry Boykin claims, in The Washington Times, "Congress asking the wrong questions on Benghazi".  Read it to see his spin.

Regards  —  Cliff

That Right Wing Media

For John, BLUF:  There are people who actually belief the Main Stream Media is Fox News and thus Right Wing Oriented.  The alternative explanation is that ABC, CBS and NBC are right wing oriented.

RFK, Jr, on Huffington Post, says the "Right Wing" dominates the media.

The Hot Air "Exit Question":

If conservative talk radio dominates the Republican mind, how’d we end up with McCain and Romney as the last two GOP nominees?

I will agree that Mr Kennedy might be on to something if you agree the House of Representatives counts for something and its Republican majority means that the People of these Uniteds States are sending a message to Washington by electing that Republican majority—aside from the message that they don't like DWS.  However, that would mean that the meme that "Elections have consequences" applies to the House of Representatives as well.

Regards  —  Cliff

What Might Have Been

For John, BLUF:  Mitt Romney failed, and failed us, because he could not or would not articulate a vision for America.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

Here is playwright Carla Seaquist writing about what might have been—if Candidate Mitt Romney had been prepared to give us a moral lesson on what it means to 100% of America to follow Republican principles.  Ms Seaquist is a Democrat, so she balances the scales differently from Republicans (Kad Barma's thoughts on the two parties being alike notwithstanding), but it would have been a better campaign if Governor Romney had talked about how these United States are who we are because we are the sum of the individuals who make up this government and not the clients of a benevolent central government there to help each of us.

There is a difference between help and facilitate.  But, that is not the point.  We did not get an articulation of the fact that the Republican Party is about creating taxpayers by creating jobs; and for those who lack the skills to work, about helping them develop the skills to work; and for those who just can't work, creating a safety net to ensure we protect all life; but for those who just wish to be left alone, to give them their space by not imposing on them what the majority embraces.

But, to the larger point about the election, we can always go to Proverbs 29:18a—"Where there is no vision, the people perish."  (KJV)

Regards  —  Cliff

Advice to Local Republicans

For John, BLUF:  Even the Democrats are offering Republicans advice.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

Over at the new Lowell Republican City Committee Blog Site I put up a post on a letter to the editor of The Sun from Ms Mary Sweeney.  I looked at the issues brought up and provided some comments.  Ms Sweeney isn't all wrong in her critique.

As background, the original letter was in response to a column by Mr Peter Lucas of The Sun and appeared yesterday.  I am quite sure that Ms Sweeney is a registered Democrat, so we are getting help from all sides as Republicans.

At the first link is my more expanded discussion of the letter and its main points.

Regards  —  Cliff

Republicans and Minorities

For John, BLUF:  Republicans need to stick to the facts.  They are sufficient.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

Renee Astee put this link in the comments to a previous post.  It is an important and powerful post.  I am sure there are a number of Republicans who feel betrayed by minorities who went with President Obama Tuesday last.  The flip side of that is minorities who felt they had to defend the President because he was being attacked personally and not for his failed policies.  The linked article explains this flip side, and here is the closer:

Obama hasn’t improved the lives of black folks.   We aren’t stupid!   But when the right demonized him rather than his platform they made him a living martyr who had to be defended at all personal cost!   Because what stood to be lost by delegitimizing “black” leadership was a higher price to pay than the unemployment rate!

We Republicans need to pay attention and meet minorities more than half way, so they understand that WE think we are all in this together—and we are.  One group fails and we all fail.

Regards  —  Cliff

One View On Republican Loss

For John, BLUF:  PJTV Commenter Zo Rachel says Republicans need a person of color up front.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

Does Alfonzo Rachel (Zo) remind you of Jack Mitchell?  He does me.  Here is Zo (Zonation)beating up on his fellow Republicans for picking the wrong candidates in 2008 and 2012.  Here is the comment at the YouTube site:

Zo is not surprised that President Obama won reelection. He is surprised that the Republicans cannot field a winning a candidate. Hear more as AlfonZo Rachel discusses Gov. Mitt Romney, Herman Cain and the future of conservatism and the Republican party.

Regards  —  Cliff

Voting Anomolies

For John, BLUF:  In some Philly Wards President Obama won 99% of the vote.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

On Tuesday President Obama didn't do that well in this Commnwealth, at least compared with Philly and its southern environs.

For those who think this is from The Onion, this is the web presence of The Philadelphia Inquirer, which has been around since I have known about newspapers.

Regards  —  Cliff

Prescription For The Morning After

For John, BLUF:  Conservatives need to work together now.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

The InstaPundit is married, thus we have The Insta-Wife, who is a psychologist (her name is Helen Smith).  Her post election advice for Conservatives is here.

Regards  —  Cliff

The Election Yesterday

For John, BLUF:  The election is over and it is time to renew friendships.

I was a substitute on City Life this AM, so this is a little late, but Congratulations to the winners and thanks to the challengers.

Regards  —  Cliff

Mitt Rommel

For John, BLUF:  Humor.

From The Duffel-Blog.

Voting can be confusing.

Regards  —  Cliff

Thinking of Voters as Groups

For John, BLUF:  Democrats are losing "non-college educated white voters".  Nothing to see here; just move along.

Talking Point Memo, a political blog more to the left than the right, has an editorial on how the Democratic Party does not gain the votes of "non-college educated white voters".  The OpEd makes sense up until the next to last and last paragraphs:

There's nothing wrong with studying these percentages in terms of demography. Nor is there anything wrong with Democratic strategists recognizing that their candidates need to win this or that percentage of white voters to win.  But creeping in the shadows of these conversations about how Democrats can no longer manage to win the white vote and are only saved from political oblivion by running up big margins among African-Americans is a little disguised assumption that African-American votes are somehow second-rate.

I don't think there's any getting around that.

This seems pretty obscure.  African-American voters are very important and Republicans should be coveting them, hoping for them to return to the Republican fold after a half century absence.  I am not sure what Mr Josh Marshall is trying to say there.

Regards  —  Cliff

The SECRET Ballot

For John, BLUF:  Unless you talk about it, what happens on your ballot is your business.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

In the Long Island Jewish Journal, Mr David Mamet writes an opinion piece titled "A note to a stiff-necked people".  In this OpEd he asks a series of questions of Jewish parents concerning the future of their children.  He concludes:

Please remember that we have the secret ballot and, should you, on reflection, vote in secret for a candidate you would not endorse in public, you will not be alone.

That is why we have a SECRET Ballot.  Massachusetts was the first State in the Union to use the SECRET Ballot.♠

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Also known as the Australian Ballot.