Ted Cruz to Announce Presidential Bid Tomorrow; Patterico Announces Support for Ted Cruz Today
None of this exploratory commitee crap for Sen. Cruz. As Dana notes below, Sen. Cruz’s announcement should come tomorrow. Here’s the Washington Examiner:
Sen. Ted Cruz will announce Monday that he’s running for president.
The Texas Republican plans to make the announcement while speaking at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., the Washington Examiner confirmed. Sources told the Houston Chronicle, which first reported the news early Sunday morning, that he’ll skip over the traditional step of creating an exploratory committee and go straight to a full-on presidential run.
The move will make Cruz, who came to national prominence in part for his 2013 filibuster on the Senate floor against Obamacare, the first GOP presidential candidate. Possible challengers in his field may include former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Texas Gov. Rick Perry.
I’m pleased as punch about this, and I’ll say it now: I endorse Ted Cruz. This is the first opportunity I have had, hell, probably since I started this blog to endorse a presidential candidate whom I support wholeheartedly. If he has decided not to wait to announce, then why should I wait to endorse him?
P.S. If you’re on Twitter, please retweet this:
I support @SenTedCruz for President. Go Ted! http://t.co/uMvfg6tX5z
— Patterico (@Patterico) March 22, 2015
Here’s my proud DING.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:00 pmP.S. If you’re on Twitter, please retweet this:
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:10 pmI dunno, it seems kinda reckless to give a meta-anouncement without giving a meta-meta-announcement. I’m not sure I can support a candidate who doesn’t announce that he will announce that he will announce that he’s running for president before he announces that he will announce that he’s running for president.
(I’m sure there are several good reasons for the meta-announcement that I’m too lazy to think of. But just because it’s a good idea doesn’t mean we can’t have fun with it.)
CayleyGraph (dfcefe) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:30 pmoh my goodness a harvard boy with a whole half a senate term under his belt
how do we keep getting so blessed
we’re the luckiest electorate in the whole whirl
happyfeet (831175) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:35 pmAre you contending that this actually makes a difference or that it is merely something people can use against him?
Put another way: if you’re on the left, are you happy with Obama? If the answer is yes, then why would the right be likely to be unhappy with Cruz?
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:41 pmI have come to see “experience” as much less important than a) what you claim to be for and b) whether you will actually stick with that when you get elected.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:43 pmFor the same reason, I couldn’t care less at this point about “governing” experience. What matters is what bills you sign and which ones you veto.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:44 pmyes i do think we keep dipping from the same well, and without a whole lot to show for it
but further i think food stamp lowered the bar, and the cruz paul carson fiorina candidacies are symptoms of this
Mr. Governor Scott Walker’s up all night for to draft plans to save America
Ted’s up all night to get lucky
happyfeet (831175) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:49 pmWhat about experience do you find important, happyfeet?
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 4:53 pmi think there’s such a thing as being tested
but what i like most about experience is that it results in a record of governance that speaks to not only their priorities but also their ability to prioritize, and people can decide whether or not this person’s priorities matched the challenges of their milieu
also I kinda like the idea of Team R having a higher standard for candidates than the fascists
but that went out the window with all that run sarah run nonsense
happyfeet (831175) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:00 pmI will speak for most of my fellow Independents. We like Cruz and Walker. If you guys can get one of them the R nomination, you can count on most of our votes.
felipe (56556d) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:08 pmDing! Another vote for Cruz.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:11 pmI think Cruz is an excellent candidate except for his position on climate change. 🙂
daleyrocks (bf33e9) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:13 pmTune in at Midnight on Twitter.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:14 pmI marvel that people are willing to publicly endorse any candidate in March of 2015 for an election that will not be held until Nov. 2016. I don’t even early vote in primaries because I want to reserve my right to change my mind at the last minute should circumstances or events warrant.
elissa (a1df99) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:19 pmwell we see what we like, and vote accordingly, not the narrative, because that is deliberately wrong,
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:22 pmCruz is a one-half term Senator. I think the candidate needs to be a governor or former governor, like Mitch Daniels. I don’t dislike Cruz. It’s just that we are involved in the postgraduate education of a president right now who refuses to be educated. Walker and Jindal have experience. Christie won’t translate to a national candidate. There are some others and Bush seems to be leading right now. There is a sympathetic piece at the Weekly Standard but I think he has too much baggage. Bush baggage.
Serious foreign policy issues are coming fast, like this and I’m not sure there is time for Cruz to catch up. Walker, of course, is in the same boat.
Mike K (90dfdc) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:23 pmPeople endorse candidates early… in part at least, so they can begin to buy a seat at the table.
steveg (794291) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:26 pmReservations are being accepted now.
Pay upfront please because the expensive consultants have had their beaks in the carcass for a few months now
well professor Doran, who was denied tenure at Princeton, has a very persuasive analysis, but who is more likely to be up to speed on this issue?
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:29 pm==People endorse candidates early… in part at least, so they can begin to buy a seat at the table.==
Are you saying that Patterico and DRJ are endorsing because buying a seat at the table? Frankly I highly doubt that.
elissa (a1df99) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:36 pmThat’s right, elissa. I don’t expect Cruz to do anything that benefits me individually. I support him because I believe he is the best choice for America and most Americans. I also think he will be a formidable candidate and nominee.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:41 pmTo put this in perspective, we as a nation will have to get through two entire baseball seasons before we elect a new president. That’s a very long time and much can happen in the interim to alter the field both for baseball and for presidential politics..
elissa (a1df99) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:42 pmI’m glad he’s running but time will tell who will impress voters the most. I hope it’s Cruz but it is way too early to tell how things will turn out.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:44 pmCaution: trigger alerts! (file under racist, racism, dog-whistles, misogyny)
Now that Obama has been elected POTUS, the bar has never been lower.
felipe (56556d) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:52 pmMy feelings, similar to happyfeet’s, are best summed up in this 3-second, safe, video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGLh9hRmRcM
nk (dbc370) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:55 pmHe does speak for most of us.
Dustin (2a8be7) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:08 pmYep, Mike K… coming fast and furious as the world around us falls apart. Of the two – Cruz and Walker – I like Walker a little more at this point because I think he connects with most people better and doesn’t have the affectations that saddle Cruz. Both are sharp people, but Cruz just needs to work at being genuine… leave the pregnant pauses and smarm behind when he speaks. Bush and Christie are non-starters, at least for me and all the folks I come in contact with.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:24 pmMrs Christie said one morning in bed, “Chris, I can’t get over you. I’ll have to walk around…”
Gazzer (8a265e) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:28 pmI heard a pundit say Lindsay Graham was one to watch because he is a foreign policy hawk.
Dana (86e864) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:33 pmNow that was just plain mean, Gazzer!
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:38 pmfacepalm, dana,
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:39 pmHeh.
Dana (86e864) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:39 pmYou misheard, Dana. Graham is a foreign policy fop.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:41 pmFunny, though.
Gazzer (8a265e) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:46 pmindeed.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:51 pmoh my goodness a harvard boy with a whole half a senate term under his belt
While a agree with the sentiment, to be fair he had a better run that Obama after HLS. Clerking for Luttig and Rehnquist as opposed to being a black Saul Goodman.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 6:56 pmI heard a pundit say Lindsay Graham was one to watch because he is a foreign policy hawk.
What about Kasich?
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:00 pmUntil proven otherwise, I’m still with Walker, but we could do worse than Cruz. I’d like him better if he showed me he could get results rather than get cameras.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:02 pmwith a leadership in full turtle mode, on Obamacare, Amnesty, how do you propose he does that,
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:05 pmConservatives may have a voice yet. Can’t wait for his first right cross to some media ingrate.
mg (31009b) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:08 pmGee, I don’t know, but then again, I’m not running for President.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:09 pmLindsay Graham was one to watch because he is a foreign policy hawk.
McCain is speaking out these days and could be a Sec State for a Walker. Cruz would be an outstanding Supreme Court Justice. Bolton is also great for State.
As far as “professor Doran, who was denied tenure at Princeton” that might be a recommendation. Read the responses from others.
An internet friend of mine, a microbiology professor was denied tenure at Occidental because of his political views. Imagine what they would do in a policy area ?
Mike K (90dfdc) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:10 pmCan you imagine the head-exploding that replacing Ginsberg with Cruz would cause?
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:15 pmSomeone like that would be a good choice, Mike K.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:25 pmThere is nobody else in the field who comes close to Cruz in terms of the mix of integrity, intelligence, and principle. I have no doubt that his political fortunes will rise and fall and Big Media will do its best to bring him down, but none of that matters to me.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:43 pmTexas Solicitor General for four years.
Assistant Deputy Attorney General, DOJ
Domestic Policy Adviser to George W Bush (granted, this is not much of a credential given Bush’s domestic policy record)
Adjunct Professor at UT Law
Director, Federal Trade Commission Policy Planning
And yes, he’s a US Senator
Do any of those things qualify him for the Presidency? Not really. Mike K has a strong point that a good governor blows all that away. Except that the presidency is not merely a technical job. You need more than a skillset. What is also important is being principled and capable of persuasion. That’s why Tea Partiers get excited about one of the few Tea Party politicians who appears to really believe in it, is great at explaining it, and has a strong background.
Dustin (2a8be7) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:44 pmYeah, if I were the head of the Havana section of the KGB, that’s pretty much a cursus honorum I’d approve of for my Little Nikita.
nk (dbc370) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:49 pmCruz was Associate Deputy Attorney General.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/22/2015 @ 7:53 pmBush and Christie are non-starters, at least for me and all the folks I come in contact with.
In the other thread on Cruz, I mentioned I’ll vote for any candidate who isn’t a Democrat/liberal/squish-squish. When Jeb Bush’s name popped up, I at first sensed that meant I hadn’t qualified my criteria to include a wide enough parameter. But given Bush’s foolish stance on illegal immigration and — almost like a strange variation of his father’s infamous “read my lips…” — refusal to say he won’t raise taxes — Jeb Bush certainly is squish-squish and therefore nope-nope to me.
His mother said a few years ago that she didn’t think this country needed any more Bushes in the White House (not sure if that was in spite of her ideological leanings or a sign of her disquiet about conservatism—some people start to tilt left when they become very old). I agree with her.
Nonetheless, if the election in 2016 comes down to any Democrat against just about any Republican (including junk like Jeb Bush) I’ll still punch the chad for a Republican. IOW, desperate times require desperate measures.
Mark (c160ec) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:01 pmQuestion for both Patterico and DRJ:
kishnevi (adea75) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:04 pmMaybe I missed earlier comments on your part, but why pick Cruz over Walker? Preferring Cruz to Jeb, Christie, etc. needs no explanation, but at the moment I see no reason to pick Cruz over Walker. In fact, I see a reason to favor Walker…he can handle an unruly legislature, a skill definitely needed with Congress no matter what its makeup might be in 2017, as evidenced by his record in Wisconsin, whereas Cruz’s record boils down simply to being an unruly legislator himself.
Texas
elissa (a1df99) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:08 pmThere is nobody else in the field who comes close to Cruz in terms of the mix of integrity, intelligence, and principle.
I agree and would prefer Cruz to most other potential candidates.
If my sole vote determined the outcome of the next presidential election — and I didn’t have to worry about all the “centrists” and other ideological chameleons out there — I’d have no problem choosing Cruz. My only concern, therefore, is having to deal with the “bread and circuses” voters throughout America, who love pretty faces, pretty families (ie, the silly phenomenon of John Kennedy’s popularity over 50 years ago and still today).
I can easily see squishes (much less closeted liberals) being most uneasy about Cruz’s right-leaning confidence, but Cruz’s not-too-photogenic face may be what seals the deal for them. Yea, a stupid criterion, I know, but this is America in the 21st century, in an era of Kardashian-reality-TV-show sheeple.
Mark (c160ec) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:10 pmI don’t think Walker is a good communicator or that he thinks well on his feet, and he has expressed support for ethanol supports, which to me is a litmus test for economic knowledge and willingness to pander. He’s probably my second choice, though. Nobody is perfect.
Nobody can “handle” a house of Congress dominated by Democrats, in my opinion. State politics are not the same as national politics, and governor after governor gets fooled, thinking that they understand the latter when all they know is the former. What we need, if Democrats take over, is somebody “unruly.” Cruz has shown spine. It’s rare. He’s smart and he knows how to speak. He’ll make dumb mistakes, but fewer of them.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:11 pmThat’s a question of electability. I’m not good at that. I’ll leave such questions for others. As I mature, I have learned my limitations, and I simply have no expertise in figuring out who is “electable” or why.
I know something about economic policy, though, and about constitutional law, and Cruz is as solid on both as they come.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:12 pmThere are many things I like about Ted Cruz but one thing I haven’t seen mentioned is his impressive appellate law practice and his significant wins in the Supreme Court as Texas Solicitor General. Among others, he drafted the amicus brief for 31 stares in Heller, defended Texas redistricting, and I still have a hard time believing he won Medellin and the 10 Commandments case. He’s a smart guy.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:17 pm“Nevertheless, if the election in 2016 comes down to any Democrat against just about any Republican (including junk like Jeb Bush) I’ll still punch the chad for a Republican. IOW, desperate times require desperate measures.”
Mark (c160ec) — 3/22/2015
Yes, if push comes to shove, I’d do the same for Bush, Christie or Rand Paul, for that matter. I just hope it doesn’t come down to that.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:17 pmRick Perry is not considered as a candidate?
seeRpea (1925e7) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:17 pmdid he do something to get kicked out of the right wing?
Is Cruz announcing now in order to get management people on his team? I think it would be a better idea to wait to see who he hires before endorsing him.
seeRpea (1925e7) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:19 pmWhy?
Who cares who he hires?
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:23 pmkishnevi,
I like Cruz more than Walker for three reasons. First, I know more about Cruz and, from seeing him in Texas, I trust him to keep his promises. Walker may be just as trustworthy so I understand other people might rate Walker higher on that count. Second, I believe Cruz is smarter and more articulate than Walker. I guess the campaign will show us if I’m right. Third, for me, Cruz is far better on policy issues (especially foreign policy) than Walker or any of the other potential candidates.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:25 pmit’s mostly an inhouse operation, probably David Panton, who he’s known since Princeton will join it, but it will be bereft of Top Men like Stevens, FEhrnstrom and the like,
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:25 pmThat’s a question of electability.
What’s sad is that everyone in America (who isn’t a leftwing nitwit) is grappling in the dark, still appalled by how so much of this country’s electorate, by pushing things quite far to the left and, in effect, committing a form of socio-economic suicide, can no longer be relied upon.
Over 8 years ago I never thought the basic wisdom of the US public (at least a majority of it) would ever be so feeble — at least as early as the first quarter of the 21st century — to the degree that it would be reminiscent of what’s found in any two-bit, run-of-the-mill Euro-sclerotic, South-American-tin-horn, Third-World-ish society. I was wrong.
I shudder to imagine what things will be like during the last quarter of the 21st century.
Mark (c160ec) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:25 pmI think Cruz is announcing now to solidify the Tea Party support and money. That is his base.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:26 pmSo if he hires a Karl Rove or a Mary Matilin or a David Gergen or a Grover Norquist , you don’t think people would care?
seeRpea (1925e7) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:29 pmokay………
he’s not going to do that, therein lies much of the contempt by the powers that be,
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:30 pmI think Cruz is announcing now so that Walker doesn’t get too far ahead. Both Cruz and Paul have been ignored these last few weeks as the new guy infiltrated the media mindset. Ted is probably happy that fools are dissing him again rather than Walker.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:30 pmCruz already has his core campaign staff. He also has a headquarters in Houston with a pink playroom for the staffers kids.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:32 pmThe last thing Cruz needs is ‘help” from perennial loser Rove.
Gazzer (8a265e) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:36 pmThat’s a question of electability.
I don’t think that Cruz is as easily elected as Walker. I also don’t think — and this is more important — that Cruz can unify the party nearly as well as Walker can. Cruz has alienated many in the mainstream, and we need them on board or we lose again.
Having said that though, predictions of electability are like reading tea leaves. No one knows what the public mood will be on election day. A hurricane could hit and make everyone scurry to the government teat. So far as who the nominee is, we each have to go with what of our gottahaves each candidate brings to the table, along with out estimate of how effective he or she will be in getting things done.
I think Walker would be better, saner and more deliberate, and has a proven track record for dealing with underlying issues. The power of the government employee unions in Wisconsin is broken, and that allows all kinds of changes.
I think the country would feel whipsawed by a Ted Cruz presidency and see no evidence he can get the Senate behind him. He seems more likely to attack symptoms than causes. Maybe he will surprise me. Gingrich totally did in 2012.
But I refuse to play the electability game ecuase who tf really knows?
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:40 pmthe media, will make it look that way, look at their screeching Koch fit, and the witchhunts against the Club for Growth, all they do is ‘rub raw, the sources of discontent’ or make them up, where there are not,
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:44 pmSo if he hires a Karl Rove or a Mary Matilin or a David Gergen or a Grover Norquist , you don’t think people would care?
Just so long as he doesn’t hire Mike Murphy.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:46 pmI just hope it doesn’t come down to that.
I was reading about today’s election in France and have to admit that ongoing circumstances there and throughout the world did make me, yea, a bit bothered that Marie Le Pen (“hard right”) didn’t do as well against Nicolas Sarkozy.
I’m a conservative, but I’ll always want some dispassionate biases to be the ultimate determinant of my preferences. Nonetheless, Le Pen (and, yep, she oddly enough is okay with the take-no-prisoners ultra-liberals now in charge of Greece—but, psss, I kind of relate to her desperation) and her peculiar brand of nationalism, populism, rightism and dogmatism wasn’t as off-putting to me as it would have been in the distant past, under a different context. In turn, Sarkozy comes off to me in 2015 as squish-squish, same-old-same-old, a big bore. (It doesn’t help that, in the ultimate sign of modern-day politically-correct extremism run amok, he said French people should favor having offspring with folks from other races or nationalities.)
The loony liberalism pervasive throughout the world in the 21st century is admittedly pushing me further to the right, so I’ll admit that I may find myself in the company of strange bedfellows in the future.
Mark (c160ec) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:47 pmP. and DRJ, thanks for the explanations. Although my own feelings about Cruz and Walker are close to what Kevin M. said in comment 69.
kishnevi (adea75) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:47 pmelissa
No
steveg (794291) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:49 pmmaybe she’s too pro Volodya, the Russian loan, was a signifier, UMP has been mostly silent, on these issues
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:50 pmI believe this is a link to a current list of the main staffers for Cruz’s 2016 presidential campaign (at the top) and it also lists staffer for his Senate office (below).
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:54 pmre #72: French is a race???
seeRpea (1925e7) — 3/22/2015 @ 9:01 pmand le Pen has a LOT of baggage. surprised the party did that well.
Interesting tidbit: Cruz’s chief counsel is a former law clerk for Judge Kozinski.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/22/2015 @ 9:04 pmit’s become more like it’s roots in the Poujadists, there maybe a similar dynamic to Netanyahu, with center right unity, they are still the second largest party,
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/22/2015 @ 9:05 pmre #72: French is a race???
seeRpea, I’m fairly certain you’re being purposefully obtuse. If so, then you may be the type who will — even more so in the context of 2015 — deem the ideology and ideas of someone like Marine Le Pen as oh-so-controversial, oh-so-inflammatory, oh-so-RACIST! Yea, okay, maybe they would have been under the prevailing socio-political trends and standards in France (etc) of over 60 years ago. But today? Today in an era of Nidal-Hassan-ization in no less than the US military—and if it’s that bad on this side of the Atlantic, imagine what things are like in Eurosclerotic France. Sorry, I don’t think so.
Again, we in the Western World are now living under the insanity of Nidal Hassan-ization, and if any politician, policymaker or modus operandi needs to be judged as having a “LOT of baggage,” that should be it—that has to be it.
Mark (c160ec) — 3/22/2015 @ 10:49 pmre #80: you talk a lot about the baggage but nothing about how French is a race.
seeRpea (1925e7) — 3/22/2015 @ 11:21 pmBeing French is not a race.
Cruz needs to isolate himself from nitwits like Eric Fehrnstrom, This clown let mittens get beat by a plump broadcaster.
mg (31009b) — 3/23/2015 @ 2:16 amI enjoy Cruz when he speaks, he tells a story which fits the narrative. Walker does not have the quick wit of Cruz. Cruz makes me feel as if I have a right to feel the way I do. Where as most of team r wants me to feel the way they want me to. Commie like.
Ted Cruz holds mostly the right positions and speaks well on them; Scott Walker holds mostly the right positions, speaks well on them, and has actually gotten some of them put into law and governing policy.
The realistic Dana (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 4:20 amCruz vs Warren
mg (31009b) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:10 am2016
Ted Cruz debating Warren and the media jockey du jour would be perfect.
Our host asked Mr Feet:
Not to speak for Mr Foots, but, for me, I like to see a record of actually having gotten things done. Past performance is no guarantee of future success, as any honest mutual funds salesman will tell you, but past performance sure gives people more confidence, if it has been earned, or less, if it has not.
If Senator Cruz is our nominee, I will vote for him, and be happy about it, but I believe that we have better options.
The practical Dana (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:11 amI like Scott Walker. But some of the right ideas he’s put into practice, weren’t his. And he was initially sour on them.
But, and this is an important but, and I think it speaks well of him, he came around.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/scott-walker-signs-right-to-work-bill-b99457819z1-295609181.html
Walker didn’t come into office wanting to take on private sector unions. Public sector unions, yes. He had to be persuaded. And thumbs up for being open to persuasion.
Ted Cruz just seems to more naturally align with my preferences.
Six of one, half dozen of the other, I guess. You say tomay-toe, and I say tomah-toe.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:28 amGov. Walker has many great accomplishments and will probably get my vote if he becomes the nominee.
mg (31009b) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:28 amCruz has provén he will stand up for his voters. Doing it in Wisconsin is one thing, standing up to Washington on your own, in a first term, makes my leg tingle.
Here’s hoping that Scott Walker becomes our next President, and that he appoints Ted Cruz to the Supreme Court! That’s a win-win!
The wishful Dana (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:35 amSenator Cruz’s campaign website is http://www.tedcruz.org
The helpful Dana (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:37 am45, 52. Cruz is in of necessity, independent of his chances, to bring light to darkness, the obfuscation of issues by the managers of the campaign narratives.
I like him because i hate his party, and would prefer its destruction and replacement.
How that can be effected in a stroke in an election for POTUS would appear problematic, thus my support for Walker, but at my age one prefers a play for the miracle.
DNF (7d551e) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:37 amNational Soros Radio says the number one thing you need to know about Mr. Senator Ted Cruz is
He was born in Canada.
You can tell he’s Canadian cause of National Soros Radio illustrates this point with a picture of Canadian Hockey Fans brandishing no less than three Canadian Flags.
Pop Quiz:
Where was Mr. Senator Ted Cruz born?
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:39 amCANADA!!
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:40 am(which isn’t even in America)
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:44 am“Being French is not a race.”
dire aux Français
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:08 amhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1awwAgU_t8
Ferkin’ Canucks.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:12 amThanks a heap #22 for pointing out that my personal odometer will click over two more times before Obama is history.
Mark Johnson (5c2d01) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:15 amhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goy-_lmuDEE
I think the Canadian Navy was involved.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:22 am“There’s a chance Hillary saw the Cruz announcement in one of the six times a night she gets up to pee.”
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:25 am“I am Woman, hear me snore.”
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:26 am“In volume too loud to ignore.”
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:27 amHow I see myself.
http://masterhatters.com/
The guy with the lasso, second from the right.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:42 amLast candidate to win by running against his party was……
Jimmy Carter
EPWJ (29d77c) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:45 amIndeed it is, because apparently tedcruz.com was taken.
Rookie mistake. And, like I said: he will make mistakes.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:57 amThe Colonel non-Haikued:
Why, does she have an enlarged prostate?
The Dana who isn't a physician (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:02 amwalnut-sized bladder.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:11 amIf his announcement causes only one lefty head to explode, it will have been worth it. And would a Walker-Cruz or Cruz-Walker ticket be asking too much?
Beasts of England (a08064) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:20 amNo Canucks were involved. I have what I consider iron clad testimony.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EunDiDKOLk8
That other boat, I never knew. This one I did. I have mixed feelings about her end.
Ships belong to their crews. Somebody loved her.
But they can’t all be museum ships.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:29 amIt’s all a bit unfair, doncha think?
Nobody is fighting back.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:31 amOur esteemed host wrote:
That’s a rookie mistake by his minions, I’d say, but this should have been taken care of before his 2012 Senate campaign; how did tedcruz.com not get found/bought several years ago?
The Dana who lacks sympathy (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:33 amWhoa, whoa, whoa.
Mebbe after I die you’ll be the biggest d*** on the planet
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:38 amI called Ted Cruz’s office. Because I want to toss a little business a Texas company way.
http://www.airtractor.com/
Air Tractor makes what has to be the world’s most heavily armed crop duster. I think the Kurds could use some. If there’s a legal way to provide them, I’m for it.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:43 am101.
I am a city slicker, so fedoras for me: http://www.stetson.com/hats/fedoras?show=all
I wear their less expensive ones, which are carried by the store where I work.
As to Walker, his attitude to private sector unions was simply a judgment that other matters should be higher priorities.
kishnevi (adea75) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:46 amDon’t tell the Canadians.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:48 amhappy,
The NPR headline calls him a “Republican thorn” and has a picture of Cruz and his family in an empty auditorium, practicing waving. (It also looks like his jeans might be ripped in the crotch area, but maybe that’s some kind of optical illusion or I am seeing it wrong?)
The media knives are already out.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:48 amtrue fact: nobody whose name rhymes with “lose” has ever won the presidency in america ever in all of historical history
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:49 amTed Cruz holds mostly the right positions and speaks well on them; Scott Walker holds mostly the right positions, speaks well on them, and has actually gotten some of them put into law and governing policy.
This.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:50 amkishnevi, don’t tell the Canadians or Mr. feets but…
but…
I wear Panama hats.
And in the winter I wear a wool Filson packer.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:52 amI just liked the picture.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:53 amNPR is in quite a tizzy Mr. P
they even use their political analysis skills to show how it’s important that Mr. Cruz’s campaign be seen in context of Pat Robertson’s ill-fated 1988 campaign
sweet holy mother of stupid
I’ll say this
of all the candidates running Mr. Cruz is the one I most trust to cut NPR off the public money teat
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:53 amWhere was Mr. Senator Ted Cruz born?
If Barack Obama had been born in Kenya to an American mother, in or out or wedlock, he would still be a natural-born US citizen.
McCain was born in Panama. George Romney was born in Mexico. Chester Alan Arthur was probably born in Canada. So what? They were all born to US citizens and are therefore US citizens by right of birth, which makes them “natural-born”.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:57 amMr. M did you not see the picture of the Canadian Hockey Fans?
it’s very compelling when you see it laid out like that
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:58 amPatterico, to me it looks like a distortion of light blameable on the camera, like redeye.
Steve, I have a panama. Made in Colombia.
kishnevi (91d5c6) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:59 amRookie mistake. And, like I said: he will make mistakes.
The tedcruz.com site was taken by a lawyer with the same name back over a decade ago, and used to promote his practice. I would guess he got an offer he couldn’t refuse.
http://web.archive.org/web/20080328224523/http://www.tedcruz.com/
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:00 amtedcruzforamerica.com
is redirecting to food stamp’s health care site
rickrolling is so
2007?
I can’t even remember
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:05 amHappy,
If Cruz was the love-child of Leon Trotsky and Salma Hayek, born in Mexico, he’d still be a natural-born US citizen because Hayek had been naturalized before that film was made.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:07 amHappy,
obozo.com is available. obongo.com may be take, redirect to AOL.
Shame on Obama for not buying those up.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:09 ammay be taken, redirects to AOL.
might need a new keyboard.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:10 amMr 57 challenged me!
Mr 57, I’m the one who said, in public, many times, that people who cannot pay for their own health care shouldn’t get it, even if it means that they die in the street! I am the biggest d*** on the planet, and don’t you forget it!
The Dana who's up for the challenge (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:11 amif Cruz was the love-child of Leon Trotsky and Salma Hayek, born in Mexico
he’d never have gotten to join up with that canadian biker gang in the early 80s what was so instrumental in raising awareness of and money for Trans-Canada Highway beautification efforts
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:13 amIt probably is is a rookie mistake not to get that website but it was first created on April 20, 2004. That’s one year after Cruz became Texas Solicitor General. It’s also at the end of the Spring semester and Cruz was teaching Supreme Court litigation in his first year as an adjunct at UT law School, which strikes me as curious timing. Weren’t students among the first to see the value of buying other people’s names?
In 2004, it wasn’t as common to be obsessed about domain names and neither of those jobs were political enough to cause Cruz to buy his name. Nevertheless, Cruz obviously knows it’s important now and he’s undoubtedly known that since he decided to run for Senator. But if someone else owns the website, the only way I know to get it is buy it. Maybe Cruz should spend whatever it takes to buy it but what if they won’t sell?
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:17 amDRJ it looks like maybe someone already bought it
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:21 amKevin M,
I wish I had seen your comment before I posted my comment. That does suggest someone bought the website just to taunt Cruz, probably back during the Senate race.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:22 amhttp://www.tedcruz.com/
did you do the clickings?
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:22 amoh. nevermind.
meanwhile the snows gods are very very angry with my new city
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:25 am*snow* gods i mean
meanwhile
Twitter preps for Ted Cruz presidential announcement with hilarious #TedCruzCampaignSlogans
sample:
You voted for a Kenyan! You can vote for a Canadian!
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:33 amDid Cruz teach at UT at the same time as Hiawatha Warren?
LASue (3733c1) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:37 amThe fact I’m giving you fair warning about my claim to the title works against me, huh?
I can’t win for losing.
Ok, you win.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:42 ami can’t really see a re-incarnation of pat buchanan who makes his announcement at jerry falwell ‘university’ (of all places!) being the guy america wants in 2016. there’s a lot to be said for his moxie and fight but he may just be fighting for things that don’t have much national appeal. if he does become the candidate, i fear we are still looking at a hillary (or warren -yikes!) presidency.
el polacko (322426) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:44 amAlso, I have all my Christmas shopping done.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:45 ammeanwhile the snows gods are very very angry with my new city
? It’s just a few flurries, and it is only March 23.
nk (dbc370) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:48 amLAsue,
No. Cruz was an adjunct professor (part-time, apparently one course a semester) at UT Law while he was Solicitor General from 2004-2009. Warren taught there full-time from 1983-1987. At UT, she wrote the book that IMO started her career — As We Forgive Our Debtors — which she wrote with Jay Westbrook. He still teaches at UT Law.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:53 amhttp://destroyerhistory.org/flushdeck/green_dragons/
Green dragons and black cats.
I’m writing the book.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:53 amMr 57 conceded:
My work here is done. 🙂
The smugly satisfied Dana (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:56 ami think people might be in for a really hard time going home
in related news i need to buy an umbrella ay ay ay
in los angeles i was never an umbrella-owner, which proved to be a good call
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:57 amUmbrellas are not practical 90% of the time in the Windy City. Get a cheap one, one that folds into a stout truncheon too.
nk (dbc370) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:59 amMr Foots wrote:
What, you deliberately beat feet — sorry, but just had to do that! — for Rahm Emanuelsville?
The very punny Dana (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:59 amI concede, the smugly satistfied Dana.
What more do you want?
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:01 amhappyfeet 135,
Really? I like good political jokes, even jokes about my guy Cruz, but don’t tell us it’s a Twitchy link when it’s to Raw Story. That’s very bad form.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:01 ami am chastened
also i just found a DrizzleDuck umbrella on amazon for not a whole lot Mr. nk so I got it cause it says DrizzleDuck on it
later on i’ll maybe get a more fancy one but this one should be fine for now
happyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:12 amNo harm done, hf, because I didn’t actually go there. But I don’t think P would want to give them a link or traffic.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:34 amHappyfeet – Ullr – The Snow God
mg (31009b) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:37 amhttp://www.gobreck.com/events/ullr-fest
It was never this tame in the late 70’s, early 80’s
Oh wow, a conservative candidate for president for the first time in 11 years!
CrustyB (69f730) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:49 amI’ll vote for the Republican candidate regardless. But Cruz I will be EXCITED to vote for.
Georganne (e37667) — 3/23/2015 @ 10:14 amDon’t get too pleased with yourself. Maybe your work isn’t done.
Pick yourself up and get back to work.
Quitter.
(Said my drill instructor).
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 10:26 amJust in case anybody thinks I’m too entirely full om myself, my friend’s dad’s Silver Star citation.
http://valor.militarytimes.com/recipient.php?recipientid=6753
My parish priest captured 11 NORKs at the point of his .45.
When you get down to it, I haven’t done Jack.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 10:41 amOMG, how can this happen…..
CRUZ DIDN’T USE A TELEPROMPTER!
I wonder if he worked off of an outline of what he wished to say scribbled on 3×5 cards?
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:03 amWhy, no one of note has done anything like that except “40”.
Mike K (90dfdc) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:23 pm
Doc, much as I respect your opinion on many things, to compare Ted Cruz to Selfie leaves a lot to be desired.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:08 amOne is stuck in a 60’s time-warp, the other is trying to deal with the reality that the Narcissist-in-Chief has created.
elissa (a1df99) — 3/22/2015 @ 5:42 pm
Heaven help the Denizens of the Beltway, if the Cubbies win the Series either year –
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:11 amfor the Millennium will have arrived.
I heard a pundit say Lindsay Graham was one to watch because he is a foreign policy hawk.
I don’t want an FP hawk…..
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:13 amI want an American Hawk.
Ted Cruz is that bird.
Just so long as he doesn’t hire Mike Murphy.
Kevin M (25bbee) — 3/22/2015 @ 8:46 pm
Or Nicole Wallace.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:24 amThe realistic Dana (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 4:20 am
Cruz didn’t have to do that in TX, as Perry was doing it, which is why he ran for Senate.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:28 amhappyfeet (a037ad) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:40 am
and John McCain was born in Panama!
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:32 amCongrats, Steve,
don’t be diving in to the death eater’s pen, Raw Story, or you’ll get salt in your Nespresso,
narciso (ee1f88) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:33 amnarcisso, I don’t know what you’re congratulating me for.
If you go back and read why Jack Macy earned his Silver Star, I really didn’t earn Jack.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:37 amSomebody you should know.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:38 amThe Dana who’s up for the challenge (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:11 am
Battle of the rulers to follow.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:39 amDRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:53 am
Thanks!
LASue (3733c1) — 3/23/2015 @ 11:44 amaskeptic wrote:
And running for the Senate leaves him with almost zero executive experience.
This is the problem for Senators running for President: they have a great deal of difficulty pointing to anything that they’ve actually accomplished, because the job of legislators is to find some sort of common ground that can pass both Houses of Congress.
Think back to when Dan Quayle was running for Vice President in 1988: the only accomplishment he could name was the Job Training and Partnership Act, about which nobody cared. Candidates who have been Governors can say, “I balanced the state’s budget” or “I cut wasteful spending” or “I reduced the welfare roles,” and that means a lot more to the voters. But Mr Cruz’s record is even thinner than Mr Quayle’s! He’s been great at pissing off people, but not so hot at getting much done.
Senators have won very few presidential elections, and the last time, it was one senator running against another. Senators who have become Presidents have generally performed poorly — think Lyndon Johnson and Barack Hussein Obama — and even John Kennedy didn’t accomplish all that much, though his term was cut too short to really give a fair assessment.
The obvious question for me is: if he is elected, would Ted Cruz make a good President? He’d have the right positions, certainly enough, but that doesn’t mean he’d be any good at getting them put into governing policy.
The Dana who notes the difference (f6a568) — 3/23/2015 @ 12:05 pmWhen in Yokosuka.
http://morrigans-yokosuka.com/
Because, really, 弊社へのお問い合わせは下記フォームからお願いいたします。
なお、お問い合わせに入力していただいた情報は、お客様への返答以外に使用することはございませ.
And I mean that.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 12:06 pmDana, that he makes the heads of The Left and Media (Yes, I repeat myself) explode as if on cue tells me that he would be very effective – because he is a LEADER.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 12:13 pmSome of us are old enough to remember the run-up to the ’80 election, and there are more than a few similarities beginning to take shape.
My sisters in law say that if I make reference to being, well, not a nice human being, they’re going to slap the smile off my face.
I wish they were kidding.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 12:37 pmOooohh our first Canadian running for President…..
EPWJ (775325) — 3/23/2015 @ 12:44 pmWell he seems like a least-bad option so far. We match up on everything except my #1 issue, but it’s hard to tell if he’s so far gone it’ll be a deal breaker. Seems I’m never going to find a candidate that actually espouses a policy of 100% enforcement and deportation for all illegal aliens and a streamlining/expansion of the legal immigration process. But I can dream.
Captain Obvious (14cc4d) — 3/23/2015 @ 12:48 pmI got up. The gods said go back to bed.
Steve57 (ab9703) — 3/23/2015 @ 1:02 pmI don’t want an FP hawk…..
I want an American Hawk.
Ted Cruz is that bird.
He sho’ do got teh beak for it!
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 1:25 pmIsn’t that Anti-Semitic or something?
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 1:49 pmI wonder, in contrast to iWon, whether anyone will recall Cruz in class at Princeton?
DNF (8028c5) — 3/23/2015 @ 1:57 pmOr at Hahvahd.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 2:00 pmI really regret that my bud in Houston never sent me a Cruz for Senate yard sign that I could recycle for next year’s event with a notation “For Ted Since the Beginning”.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 2:03 pmOnce Walker mania is over – Cruz has a chance as long as Rand self detonates like his dad and the others never get out of the gate
EPWJ (8f5c4e) — 3/23/2015 @ 2:21 pmEPWJ – which ones aren’t true conservatives, and which ones are just trying to raise money and sell books?
JD (86a5eb) — 3/23/2015 @ 2:31 pmSeems it never rains in Southern California. Seems I’ve often heard that kind of talk before.
Chuck Bartowski (11fb31) — 3/23/2015 @ 2:34 pmWell, it never does, unless it does, and then we just stay indoors.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 2:36 pmAn L.A. freeway is no place to be in the rain.
Huh, who’da guessed it. NPR has found its 2nd “white Hispanic.”
From Instapundit.
Walter Cronanty (f48cd5) — 3/23/2015 @ 4:03 pmReason has reasonable response to Cruz announcement.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 4:11 pm180. Walker is not a flash in the pan. OTOH Republican domestic hope for change is in actuality chimeral & misbegotten.
Foreign policy will loom ginormous in the debates as events now portend. We will see who the quick studies be.
DNF (8028c5) — 3/23/2015 @ 4:15 pmHaven’t listened to his “Liberty” speech yet, but Cruz did quite well w/Bret Baier. I would absolutely love to see him in Mitch McConnell’s spot, how awesome would that be?
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:06 pmreally, askeptic, I’d expect something like that from a weak-kneed lefty, but you? Just an observation from a guy who is also be-beaked.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:09 pmIn a state. I understand it’s not a red state, but it’s a state.
Again, these governors think their success in a state will translate on a national level.
It never does.
That offer came from someone who hates Cruz. When I said it was a rookie mistake, my feeling was: it should have come from Cruz. (I assumed someone owned it; a domain like that would not generally be up for grabs in the late 2000s or early 2010s.)
Then again, I am making some assumptions here that may not be warranted. Maybe Cruz tried and the owner was a lefty.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:30 pmJD
When Cruz unveils a platform that consists of something other than eliminating a department and sending them enmass to the border – thenn he’s a candidate, otherwise as the news and internet said today
Yaaaawn
EPWJ (e66119) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:34 pm“Again, these governors think their success in a state will translate on a national level.
It never does.”
– Patterico
Is having executive experience as a state governor better than having no executive experience whatsoever?
I understand that the answer may be “Yes, marginally” and that benefit outweighed by costs (or by other benefits of another candidate’s experience), but it’s an honest question.
Leviticus (087a4a) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:35 pmAfter watching past Presidents like Carter, Reagan, Bush 41, and Bush 43, I’ve decided an executive’s experience, intelligence, ideology, and knowledge matters when there are extremely important decisions to be made. But what matters on a daily basis is whether an executive has put people in power who exercise that power effectively and conservatively. I think Reagan did this and he was an effective leader. I think Bush 43 was similar, although he wasn’t as conservative as Reagan. Both were labeled as dumb. Both were willing to delegate authority to strong, effective people in positions of power, and I think that made their Administrations successful.
On the other hand, Carter was a micromanager who was loathe to delegate and relied on his cronies to support him. I don’t think it’s a coincidence he wasn’t an effective leader, even though I think he was a very intelligent man. Some might say Obama is similar to Carter. I’m ambivalent about Clinton and Bush 41, both of whom I view as mediocre in intelligence and inconsistent in their decisions and appointees.
From this perspective, what kind of presidents would Walker, Cruz, Rubio and Bush be? I’m sure each would bring trusted advisers with them and that’s to be expected, so I will be looking to see if they are surrounded by people who have conservative leanings and good judgment. I think Governors, who have experience as executives, realize the importance of delegating authority to effective subordinates — and that favors Walker and Bush. I also think it’s important to have someone familiar with the pitfalls of working in Washington DC — which favors Cruz and Rubio.
Having said all this, I trust the primary voters to decide who will be the best nominee.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:40 pmMy last comment is from the standpoint of someone who favors conservative leadership. Obviously a liberal would prefer someone who appoints and delegates authority to people who are effective and liberal in their ideology.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:43 pmColonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:09 pm
I used to have the “Map of Italy” between my mouth and eyes, but ran into the bottom of a swimming pool once, and the plastic-surgeon changed everything (we couldn’t find a pix of “before”) –
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:47 pmand I am stingy with the sarc tags.
Delegation of authority is fine if you’ve chosen the right people, but it must be back-stopped with the ability to hold them responsible when they (and they always will) screw up.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:53 pmThat does not mean that you hold the Sword of Damocles over their heads, but they must know that you will brook no gross mismanagement, and will rearrange the furniture if called for (Sec. Sibelius is a text-book case in how not to hold mid-level managers accountable).
I can tolerate some positions I disagree with, so long as I feel they are well reasoned and heartfelt.
Walker’s Iowa panders were neither.
ThOR (a52560) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:53 pmCruz is a very effective speaker, much like Newt Gingrich was in the run-up to the 2012 nomination. He does talk the talk, solid principles, but what has he accomplished? That is something that Walker, at the very least, will exploit to his advantage. This will be an embarrassment of riches campaign season, especially compared to the shallow-benched Democrats.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:54 pm194… askeptic… hard enough to chip the plaster?
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 5:57 pmJust what in Hell has any Republican in Congress accomplished the last 8-years?
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:03 pmWalker is fortunate that his PE union opponents over-reached and publicly demonstrated what despicable people they are.
Jeb has Amnesty and Common Core hung around his neck.
Rubio has destroyed himself FTMP by his comity with Chuckie Schumer.
Perry has a record, but still has to overcome the memory lapse of ’12.
Graham is nothing more than a poor joke.
Christie needed to put his arms around the real problems facing the people of NJ such as the PE unions, a spend-thrift legislature, the complete disregard for the 2nd-A and other Rights; not Obama.
Kasich I liked when he was the House Budget guy, but as governor he’s just too Purple – reminds me too much of David Stockman in his appreciation and consideration of Conservative Principles.
YMMV!
Yes, Colonel, I think GOP voters have historically chosen experience over ideology, and with good reason. Unfortunately, I think that’s a mistake after 8 years of Obama. It seems more like rearranging the chairs on the Titanic than righting the ship.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:05 pmI had blue bottom paint at the point (concave point) where my nose and forehead joined between my eyebrows – that hard.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:05 pmIt isn’t now. Someone must have gotten it after you pointed it out.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:17 pmHe has kept his promises.
That is enough. It is, in fact, shocking to see a politician who does.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:19 pmI’m not sure it is. I think, as I have said a couple of times, that it gives candidates a deceptive confidence in their ability to effect change in the national Congress.
Ted Cruz will move the Overton Window. That’s what we need.
Clear-eyed leadership. I’m listening to his speech (which I plan to blog momentarily when I am done listening) and I am inspired. For the first time in a long time.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:21 pmAlthough I am a little nauseated by his citing anything said by FDR, perhaps the worst cretin to occupy the Oval Office ever.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:23 pm201… askeptic… Good Lord! Lucky you remained conscious and didn’t do more damage to your face and sinuses.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:24 pmDr. Larry Sabato… gives a thumbs-down on Cruz’s chances, chiefly because he’s a one-term senator and, I’ll paraphrase, “we all know how well that worked out”. I never have liked Sabato. He kicked Warren in teh gones as well.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:26 pmthat last part I did like.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:27 pmPat,
I don’t know what promises he kept, I do want to see him debate his statement on sending the entire 125,000 strong IRS to the border – overnight, this is what this guy says everyday, now it will make the news, and it won’t be pretty.
EPWJ (e66119) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:27 pmIf’n ya like rhetoric, you’ve got a choice. If you’re more disposed toward action and accomplishment, you have a choice, too.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:31 pmI’m not going to argue with you, Colonel. To me, his actions in trying to shut down ObamaCare, damn the hurt feelings among his colleagues, damn the hits to his reputation, speak well of his character. I’m not inclined to run down Walker, but I think his willingness to favor ethanol supports bespeaks either a lack of economic knowledge and/or a certain spine. I put it in the same category as, say, supporting a minimum wage hike, like Mitt Romney does. You can’t say something like that and have my complete and total respect.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:36 pmAs for the comment: “abolish the IRS, take all 125,000 IRS agents and put them on our southern border.”
Lighten up, man.
Patterico (9c670f) — 3/23/2015 @ 6:39 pmPat,
I actually listened to a brilliant lawyer argue in front of the Texas Supreme Court, years ago with Dan Patrick Broadcasting it, he needs to return to that Ted Cruz, the one that convinced a panel to do something they clearly didn’t want to do
He really needs to be on the Supreme court, the real Ted Cruz
EPWJ (c12453) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:01 pmTed Cruz on Supreme Court would be awesome
steveg (794291) — 3/23/2015 @ 7:49 pmCol, my sinuses are still a bit screwed, and this is 50-yrs on, 40 after surgery.
askeptic (efcf22) — 3/23/2015 @ 8:13 pmThink, people. How could anyone at this fine website write that the American public wouldn’t elect Cruz to be President but, at the same time, write that the Senate would confirm Cruz to the Supreme Court? This doesn’t make sense. The public is much more open to Cruz’s conservative ideas than the Senate ever will to the idea of putting Cruz on the Supreme Court.
DRJ (e80d46) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:17 pmI’m going to sin a bit. Walker chapped my hide a bit when he equated taking on the unions with taking on ISIS. One of these thins is not like the other.
I don’t think anything shapes you up for the job.
Steve57 (a8e3e8) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:54 pmI don’t know what the deal is with the keyboard but it’s skipping whole words.
Steve57 (a8e3e8) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:56 pmDRJ, I remember a lot of this in 2012. Someone would argue against a candidate, but toss in some sort of conciliation prize thought, like, “Oh, yeah, Governor Perry would do great as Secretary of the Interior!”
And no, Murkowski, Graham, Mccain, and Cornyn are not going to make Cruz the Senate Majority leader. Cruz would be Borked out of a nomination. And that all skips past the big truth: Cruz would have a bigger impact on the judiciary as President, appointing hundreds of judges, and probably a couple of Justices.
I get it, though. The conciliation prize fantasy is meant to be a nice rejection. It’s the ‘I like you as a friend’ approach.
I think a lot of voters would be more interested in how Cruz really believes in something than they are in the details. I would love to see a Cruz vs Warren debate, preferably hosted at UT! The country deserves an honest choice about the direction we’re going to take. Obama’s Paygo deficit slashing 2008 campaign was just as much a lie as the campaigns he ran against, and it’s embarrassing that both political parties act ashamed of what they believe in.
Dustin (2a8be7) — 3/23/2015 @ 9:58 pmI don’t know about this. I’m thinking JFK.
Starting with PT109. Somebody was asleep at the switch. I’m guessing the skipper. Who was?
I’m not being unduly harsh. For the Amagiri to run down a motor torpedo boat…
It’s like driving a Ferrari, and getting thrashed by a Yugo.
He made up a lot by swimming out every night to try and effect rescue. But his later infidelities cancelled that out.
LBJ was at least as much as a jerk as FDR.
He was an observer on a plane with actual, I dunno, aircrew. Nobody else on the plane got a medal. But the observer? Silver Star.
Steve57 (a8e3e8) — 3/24/2015 @ 4:49 amMark your calendars. The Valdez Air Show and Fly In is May Ninth and Tenth.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9EnVah07k0
Book your rooms before it’s too late.
http://valdezalaska.org/stay/hotels
Steve57 (a8e3e8) — 3/24/2015 @ 4:54 amIn all fairness to John F. Kennedy I don’t know what his circumstances were. The Solomons in the early 1940s were no doubt a painful place to fight a war.
Steve57 (a8e3e8) — 3/24/2015 @ 5:07 amIt’s early to argue against the best in the field (Cruz, Walker), by mentioning their attributes, stellar qualitles and perceived strengths, but never too early to start spreading dissension, back-biting, malevolence or to confuse admiration with bad intentions.
At least for some, it isn’t.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/24/2015 @ 6:06 amOur esteemed host wrote:
It doesn’t?
I understand that you might not like all of the policies those gentlemen put in place, but it’s obvious that they were very successful in getting things done. Even James Earl Carter, former Governor of Georgia, got a lot of his agenda passed, and was fairly successful in foreign policy — the Camp David Accords, and getting the Panama Canal Treaty actually passed by the Senate — up until he was emasculated by the Ayatollah Khoumeini.
The historian Dana (f6a568) — 3/24/2015 @ 6:21 amAlthouse loved the speech… http://althouse.blogspot.com/2015/03/ted-cruz-goes-all-john-lennon.html
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/24/2015 @ 6:36 am