Unconventional Wisdom

An interesting blog post from Gregory Tejada’s Chicago Argus.

Well this is a shocker. I would just assume that he would stay in the race because he’s nothing more than a gadfly. Perhaps I’m being too generous! From the Political Ticker.

Check out this post from a good blog AverageBro. Then I want to refer you to a recent column by former Clinton political advisor Dick Morris. He thinks the strategy the Clintons have going into South Carolina is part of a grand scheme.

From my local news station WBBM CBS 2…

At the Diva Beauty Salon on Tuesday, black women were talking politics like never before, because, for once, politicians are focusing on them.

“We have a lot of Barack Obama supporters. We have a few Hillary supporters. It’s kind of split,” hair stylist Nora Gause said.

“I don’t feel targeted, I do feel valued,” salon customer Joyce Buxton said.

African-American women register and turn out in larger numbers than African-American men. So they’re expected to make up 30 percent of the voters in Saturday’s Democratic primary, and polls show many are still making up their mind.

“The fact that large numbers of them are undecided means they’re going to be the crown jewel of this Democratic primary election in South Carolina,” Winthrop University assistant professor Scott Huffmon said.

That means both sides have set their sights on wooing them.

“As African-American women in South Carolina, we do realize our importance and the leverage that we hold,” voter Azora Anderson said.

The Obama campaign has won hearts and votes by sending field organizers to persuade black women in non-traditional settings, like beauty shops.

That gesture deeply impressed salon owner Sharon Robinson. “That’s why I’m supporting Obama, because he came to places other candidates never thought about going,” she said.

And when polls showed many black women backed Clinton because of their affection for her husband, the Clinton campaign sent the former president here to build support.

But most black women don’t see the election as a choice between race and gender.

“I’m black first, and then I’m a woman. This is history for us because this is the first time we’ve had a black run, and he’s a viable candidate,” Buxton said.

I heard some chatter that suggests that when Oprah chose to endorse Obama over Hillary Clinton she ran into some flack because she isn’t supporting a woman. If women are upset that she isn’t support Hillary then here’s the reality check. I could boil it down to Oprah supporting a fellow black person over a fellow woman. For some black females surely that trumps voting for a woman (of any race).

I’m sure there are other things at play such as age. The younger you are the more likely you vote for Obama. The older you are, the more likely you might vote for Hillary. This can get interesting really.

Damn it Fred! Now who’s gonna save the Republican Party. The guys in there now well maybe excepting Ron Paul doesn’t seem very likely to save it. From The Fix!

To be sure I’m very disappointed. Fred Thompson is my favored candidate. The men up front currently are not the Republicans I’d vote for. There just isn’t a very solid conservative for me to want to vote for. Right now it’s not enough for me to vote Republican. If I was to vote Republican perhaps I have to consider other qualities and not just the fact that not conservative. This is a tough but pivotal election I think.

From IlliniPundit who says that while not a Rush listener, he quoted Rush as saying…

I can see possibly not supporting the Republican nominee this election, and I never thought that I would say that in my life.

To him McCain, Huckabee, and Romney are Nanny-staters pretending to be conservatives. I have my reasons to not support these candidates the least reason I have to not vote for is Romney although I for some reason don’t care enough to vote for him. McCain is advanced in age, well not that advanced but old enough I see that as problematic. Huckabee bothers me because of his background as a Baptist preacher, he may get love from the Christian right, but that group isn’t a very favored group in American politics right now.You know I was looking at the Rush Limbaugh site yesterday and this lady called into the show to give reasons that she has a problem with Mitt Romney.

CALLER: Yes, thank you for taking my call. For weeks you’ve been telling us why we should not vote for McCain because he’s not a true conservative, or Huckabee because he’s not a true conservative, and you base that on their records as senator and governor. What I’d like to hear is why you feel that Romney is a true conservative, because I honestly don’t know a lot of about him. But I base –

RUSH: Before I answer the question, who are you for?

CALLER: Well, to tell you the truth, I’m not totally convinced about any of them. I really have not made up my mind. Honestly I haven’t. But my problem is, when I think of Romney, I think of someone who was elected governor, as he says in the bluest of the blue states, so to me that doesn’t equate with a conservative, and also he forces people to get health insurance, which doesn’t sound like a conservative. When he campaigns in Michigan, he says that when he becomes president, he’s going to pass governor mandates to help the auto industry, and that doesn’t sound like a conservative. So what I’d like to know is if you can tell us a few things he did as governor to show that he is a true conservative.

RUSH: In the first place, I have never said that he is the one true conservative in the race.

CALLER: Hm-hm.

RUSH: I haven’t. And, in fact, I recoiled when I heard his $20 billion annual subsidy to the auto industry in Detroit and I said, “Jeez, that’s just flat-out pandering.” My point on all this, Ann, from the get-go, and I even mentioned it today, and it’s an unfortunate position, but not one of these people totally fills the bill.

CALLER: No. Well, that’s one of Romney’s problems, is really we don’t know what did he do as governor to show us that he’s a conservative? You know, we never hear it. So is there anything that you can tell me that he did as governor to show me he’s a conservative? Honestly I’d really like to know.

RUSH: There are a couple things, and it depends on the credibility of somebody that, you know, what was their record prior to doing that, what is their record in the real world, as an entrepreneur and a businessman, what occasions are there from that record that you can draw conclusions. He cut taxes in Massachusetts, and he was amazingly able to get that done. He tried fighting this court business where they mandated gay marriage from the Supreme Court without going through the legislature. But, look, what you’re illustrating here is that nobody on our side fits the pure bill. But there are lessers. In fact, one of the lines I used earlier, not on today’s program, but in previous weeks, is this whole Republican primary is going to boil down to who we dislike the least.

CALLER: Hm-hm.

RUSH: And that’s sad.

CALLER: So why do you feel that he’s more of a conservative than McCain, based on the record?

RUSH: Oh, that isn’t hard.

CALLER: What record would you have for Romney to show us that? Because I tell you, truthfully I’m not a McCain supporter. So I’m not saying –

RUSH: Of course not, probably a Huckabee supporter.

CALLER: (laughter) Well, to tell you the truth I’d like to know more about Ron Paul, because I’m for as little government intervention as we can have.

RUSH: Enough said. Wherever you go here in this roster of candidates, you’re going to be able to point out “not conservative, what he did there is not conservative.” The one guy that has the least of that is Fred Thompson, that’s what I’ve said, but Fred Thompson was right in there supporting McCain on McCain-Feingold. That’s a red flag. I make my living with my mouth and what comes out of it, and that was a direct assault on what comes out of certain people’s mouths around election times. Once you chip away successfully the First Amendment, it’s easy to do it the next time, second time, third time, fourth time, and 50th time.

My advice is vote for who you’re happy with. If you’re not happy with the choice you’re going to make then I wouldn’t make that choice. That’s what I’m going to do in the future.

McClean County Pundit, a man with a plan!

If I were a Republican in Congress, or if I were the president, I would do following.

I would cut taxes on businesses and corporations to stimulate growth, increase supply and to make sure businesses do not lay off workers. This should also help businesses hire more workers to keep unemployment low.

I would then give Americans a tax rebate, a fairly hefty rebate at that, so they will go and spend that money.

I would keep welfare and social spending the same. Most economists say that in a poor economy spending on these programs needs to increase. The rebate hopefully will be enough to not let this happen. If the need to increase spending on these programs arises I would crack down on earmarks and other wasteful spending.

Once the recession is averted I would decrease spending on all fronts, save the defense, but I would not increase taxes on businesses or corporations, those need to stay low to keep the economy strong.