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A battle over Social Security launched last week between the top two GOP presidential contenders doesn’t show any signs of quieting down as candidates prepare for round two at the first-ever CNN/Tea Party Republican Debate on Monday night. The debate, being held at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa, will also give the six other … Continue reading
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Iowa) believes Social Security, while troubled, needs to be retained for current beneficiaries and future generations. The presidential candidate said Friday that while the program is “in trouble,” the federal government has made a commitment to senior citizens that it must keep. “The United States made a decision 80 years ago about … Continue reading
The full-throated sparring between Mitt Romney and Rick Perry during the Republican debate on Wednesday night provided an early glimpse of the very different strategies that will propel their presidential campaigns forward in the next several months. Mr. Perry, the governor of Texas, made clear in his first national appearance that he would campaign as … Continue reading
Twenty minutes into last night’s Republican presidential debate, Texas Gov. Rick Perry attacked the Massachusetts health care law signed by then-Gov. Mitt Romney. Perry said the program showed “what will not work, and that is an individual mandate in this country.” People “don’t want a health care plan like what Governor Romney put in place … Continue reading
During Wednesday night’s Republican debate, Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minn.) stood at a podium flanked by seven men. She articulated her plan to repeal “Obamacare” and to slash gasoline prices when the moderator addressed her, but she generally faded into the background as Rick Perry and Mitt Romney pulled ahead of the pack. Notably, she failed … Continue reading
Most of the post-debate media chatter centered on the sparks that flew between top-tier candidates Mitt Romney and Rick Perry. That’s to be expected, of course — that’s precisely the way the media framed the debate going in to last night. And for the most part, that’s the story today, with the addition of some … Continue reading
She didn’t get a lot of camera time in [Wednesday] night’s Republican presidential debate, but Rep. Michele Bachmann may be in the spotlight Thursday night, following President Obama’s jobs speech in front of Congress. The three-term congresswoman from Minnesota and GOP White House hopeful announced Thursday morning that she will hold a news conference on … Continue reading
On Saturday, not-yet-a-presidential-candidate Sarah Palin previewed an enticing line of attack against Texas Governor Rick Perry: “crony capitalism.” Although she didn’t mention the latest Republican frontrunner by name, Palin warned Iowa tea partiers that when candidates accept million-dollar donations, you should expect a few strings to be attached. On that front, the numbers seemingly speak for themselves. A full 20 percent … Continue reading
Rep. Michele Bachmann still hasn’t won over any converts among her presidential rivals with her pledge to get gas prices below $2 a gallon. At Wednesday’s POLITICO/NBC Republican presidential debate, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman splashed the biggest bucket of cold water on the idea. “Of course not,” Huntsman said when asked if Bachmann’s plan … Continue reading
Incumbent Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) holds an early 9-point lead over possible Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren in the 2012 race for the Massachusetts Senate seat. According to a WBUR poll released Tuesday, 44 percent of likely voters said they would choose Brown over Warren in a hypothetical matchup between the two. Thirty-five percent of likely … Continue reading
The organizers of Wednesday night’s debate did their best to turn the eight person debate into one that was really about two people: Perry and Romney. And, in that match-up, Romney came out the winner. He was confident and solid throughout the entirety of the debate, a benefit of being a two-time presidential candidate. He stuck … Continue reading
Rick Perry and Mitt Romney clashed from the opening bell of a Republican presidential candidates’ debate Wednesday, challenging each other on job creation, health care and Social Security in pointed exchanges that signaled their burgeoning rivalry is likely to dominate the contest in the months ahead. Mr. Perry, the governor of Texas, used his first … Continue reading
In Wednesday night’s Republican presidential debate, moderators Brian Williams of NBC and John Harris of Politico grilled the candidates a range of hot-button issues, lingering longer on some—immigration, for instance—than others. But plenty more issues got neglected altogether, including the GOP candidates’ positions on the growing power of money in politics and red-hot social issues such as … Continue reading
Wisconsin Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D) has made it official — she’s running for the Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Herb Kohl (D) next year. If she wins, Baldwin will make history as the the first openly gay member of the Senate. But how much will her sexuality factor into the race (if at all)? Baldwin was … Continue reading
Fred Karger is openly-gay, a life-long Republican, Jewish, and running for the GOP nomination for President of the United States of America. Long shot? Hey, you never know. “I am a unique individual, living as a gay man, who believes in basic fundamental principles that are at the core of the Republican Party,” said Karger. “Living in … Continue reading
As he unveiled his plan to jumpstart the American economy at a North Las Vegas trucking company Tuesday afternoon, GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney kept brandishing his iPhone 4. The smartphone symbolized America’s global, 21st-century economy, while President Obama’s economic policies, Romney explained, were backward, ineffective, stuck in the past. “President Obama’s strategy is a pay phone … Continue reading
Could it be that Barack Obama’s very maladroititude (maladroitness? maladroitosity?) could be just what saves his campaign come general election time? I realize that premise seems very oh-god-please-i’ll-believe-anything-rather-than-deal-with-the-concept-of-a-Perry-presidency, for sure. But, I gotta say, Bloomberg’s Ramesh Ponnuru makes a decent case… In any presidential primary there’s a tension between the voters’ desire for a candidate who can … Continue reading
The Brandt Standard 