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AUGUST 17,  2011

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 9:29 P.M. ET: 

RYAN FOR PRESIDENT – There is now a major, and apparently growing, push by some conservatives to get Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin to enter the GOP presidential race.  Originally pushed by journalist Bill Kristol, Ryan is also being urged by Governor Mitch Daniels of Indiana to jump in.  Another booster, significantly, is Jeb Bush.  It is hardly a secret that the Bush family has no great love for Governor Rick Perry of Texas, who succeeded George W. Bush when Bush became president.  As we theorized earlier today, a Ryan candidacy might be an attempt to attract consideration for the second spot on the ticket.  I dont know whether Ryan would have to give up his seat in the House to run for president, or whether he can run for both simultaneously.  Stay tuned.

NO TIME FOR GREEN EYESHADES – As even Hillary Clinton is warning about cuts in the defense budget, Russia reminds us that there's a real world out there, and not always friendly.  Today Russia unveiled its first stealth jet fighter, the Sukhoi PAK TA T-50.  It reportedly costs a third of what our F-22 costs, and so it's a hot export item.  India will buy 200, and the Russian air force will have an equal number.  Despite Barack Obama's much-vaunted "reset" of relations with Russia, the Russians continue to frustrate us all over the world, and especially in our attempt to shut down the Iranian nuclear program.  Not exactly enemies, but they're hardly friends.

LETTERMAN TARGETED? – A Muslim militant has called on American fellow travlers to assassinate David Letterman because of a joke Letterman told about a Pakistani member of Al Qaeda.  The FBI is taking the threat seriously.  The militant urgent Muslims to "cut the tongue of this lowly Jew and shut it forever."  Letterman isn't Jewish, but apparently some militants believe any American named David must be.  CBS has declined comment.  However, knowing the business, I'm sure some network honcho is wondering whether the threat will boost Letterman's ratings.  I can just imagine what Johnny would have done with this.  "You know you're in trouble when..."

TIN EAR – It's remarkable how President Obama, one of the best and most astute campaigners of recent times, has developed such a tin ear as president.  He seems to have almost no understanding of people and how they react to a national leader.  Of course, he didn't exactly have high-level experience before moving into the White House.  Now the president is catching heat, including some from within his own party, for jaunting off to Martha's Vineyard for another vacation, the "Vineyard," as it's called in chic circles, being a playground for the rich and very gainfully employed.  The critics are correct.  The president says he'll announce a new jobs program...but only after he vacations.  Oh, peel me a grape, would you?  The imagery is awful, as is the sheer number of getaways this president needs in order to function.  Please recall that both Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush had favorite vacation spots – their homes.

August 17, 2011     Permalink

PERRY SNAPS BACK – AT 10:18 A.M. ET:  As readers know, we were critical of the language Rick Perry used in denouncing possible actions by the Federal Reserve.  Words like "treasonous" are to be avoided.  Others on our side made the same point.

Perry has not apologized, but at least the man fights back.  Obama lectured Perry about language publicly, and Perry did not run to hide behind a tree.  From The Hill:

Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) fired back Wednesday at President Obama, who admonished the Republican presidential candidate to watch his words more carefully.

Perry said "actions speak louder than words" after Obama's public admonishment Tuesday on CNN for Perry's comments that an expanded money supply by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke would be "almost treasonous."

"Yesterday the president said I needed to watch what I say," Perry told a crowd in New Hampshire at a politics-and-eggs breakfast, which was broadcast online.

"I'd just like to respond, if I may: Mr. President, actions speak louder than words. My actions as governor are helping to create jobs in this country," Perry said. "This president's actions are killing jobs in this country."

Great comeback.

Obama joined other members of his administration — and a number of veterans of the George W. Bush administration — in chastising Perry for his comments about Bernanke on Monday in Iowa.

COMMENT:  Okay, Perry made a mistake.  Maybe he should have apologized.  But, as Lincoln said of Grant, "This man fights."  And we need a fighter in the ring next year.

I'm not sold on Perry, but at least there's no wimp factor. 

August 17, 2011       Permalink 

WHAT'S GOING ON HERE? – AT 9:35 A.M. ET:   Earlier in the week we pondered the possible plans of Hillary Clinton.  Will she be called upon to replace Biden to strengthen Obama's chances?  Will she retire to some college presidency, becoming an elder stateswoman available in 2016?  Will she just leave and fade away?  (Some chance.) 

Now Hillary has spoken out on possible defense cuts, and, you know, she sounds like someone trying to attract the center and the center right of American politics.  From AFP: 

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned Tuesday against budget cuts that could force an abrupt pullout of the US security presence in the Pacific at a time when China's power is rising.

The debate over reducing the US debt "does cast a pall over our ability to project the kind of security interests that are in America's interests," Clinton told officers at the National Defense University.

Hey, that's good stuff.

"We need to have a responsible conversation about how we are going to prepare ourselves for the future and there are a lot of issues that are not in the headlines but are in the trendlines," she said.

"We are asserting our presence in the Pacific. We are a Pacific power. That means all elements of our national security team have to be present," the chief US diplomat said in a conversation with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.

"And we can't be abruptly pulling back or pulling out when we know we face some long-term challenges about how we are going to cope with what the rise of China means," she said in the conversation moderated by CNN television.

Spoken like John McCain.

Experts said the deal to avert a US debt default should have little effect on the Pentagon's huge budget in the short term, but leaves the door open to sharp cuts that could force a strategy overhaul.

COMMENT:  She is right, of course, but her apparent need to speak out makes us wonder whether she's putting a bit of daylight between herself and Obama.   We haven't heard Obama speak this way.  There is no chance that she will challenge Obama for the nomination, and I really don't think Obama has it in him to decline a second term, which would be a smart move. 

But a Hillary running with Obama, but more centrist than he is, positions herself for 2016.  She can read the tea leaves, and she knows that northeast liberals aren't exactly a hot commodity. 

I suspect the poll numbers next summer will determine whether Obama asks Joe Biden to change places with Hillary.  In the meantime, Hillary watching is always fun.  And you always wonder how much advice is being given by her husband.

August 17, 2011       Permalink

MISCHIEVOUS SPECULATION – AT 9:08 A.M. ET:  Remember Sid Stone, who did commercials for Texaco some decades ago?  His catch line was, "You say you're not satisfied.  You say you want more for your money.  Tell you what I'm gonna do."

I thought of that when reading this morning's Politico piece on the possibility of more GOP presidential candidates:

What if Rick Perry isn’t the last one in?

The Texas governor’s late entry in the presidential race might have been expected to close out the GOP’s 2012 field. But, in some conservative circles at least, there’s evidence it’s had the opposite effect.

Karl Rove, the architect of George W. Bush’s political run, told Fox News’ Sean Hannity Monday night that he believes the field is still open—and named New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan as two who may take a second look.

The Weekly Standard reported Tuesday morning that Ryan is indeed “strongly considering a run” and is currently on vacation with his family discussing a prospective bid.

“We’ve got a good field. I don’t think it is the end, though, of the field,” said Rove. “I think we are likely to see several other candidates think seriously about getting in. And frankly, they have time to do so. November 22 is the first deadline to file papers to get on the ballot. That’s the last day somebody could get in without starting to lose a place in some of the early primaries and caucuses. I suspect we are likely to see in early September and late August.”

A candidate who joined the race at such a relatively late date would face daunting prospects, with time running short to launch an organization and some bundlers who had been on the sidelines moving toward Perry, whose supporters argue is the one who can best unite a party fractured into Tea Party and establishment camps. But in a volatile year, some top Republicans believe it’s possible that another heavyweight candidate—such as Sarah Palin, Christie, Ryan or even Rudy Giuliani—could still join in.

COMMENT:  I don't see anyone on that list who would be stronger than the cast already out there.  Sarah Palin, as much as I like her, is old news by now, and wouldn't stand a chance with Rick Perry in the race.  They appeal to the same constituency, and Perry didn't resign his governorship.  Chris Christie continues to beg off, and, frankly, he's so abrasive that I think his New Jersey manner wouldn't play well beyond Bayonne.  Good governor, not ready for the majors.  Paul Ryan is a terrific congressman, but his getting in might be a way of being considered for vice president.  He's incredible on budget matters, but doesn't hit strongly beyond that sector.  Rudy?  Ah, Rudy.  One of the best mayors in New York City's history, but that was years ago.  If he wanted in, he should have jumped a year ago and reintroduced himself to the American people.  I see him as Rick Perry's attorney general.  The two are longtime allies.

Oh, by the way, any of them would make a much better president than the incumbent.  We have a den of riches.

August 17, 2011       Permalink

BULLETIN:  OBAMA TO ADDRESS JOBS – AT 8:42 A.M. ET:  Are we not blessed?  Are we not truly blessed?  Our leader, Barack Hussein Obama Jr., who would be thoroughly justified in ignoring we mere, uneducated peasants, as we cling to our guns and our religion, will honor us by discussing jobs.  Here, the exciting details from Andrew Malcolm of the L.A. Times:

OK, let's see if we can sort out this White House jobs package hocus-pocus because President Obama is counting on us not to. And no one wants to fail to disappoint him:

Last winter in his State of the Union address, oblivious to the gathering storm over the nation's national debt, the Democrat proposed massive new spending and loan programs -- he calls it investments -- to extend unemployment benefits and payroll tax cuts and to rebuild the nation's roads, bridges and other union-made infrastructure kinds of stuff. He had a plan he would share soon.

When in trouble, give a speech. Say, early September. Before all this Rick Perry 40% of the nation's jobs come from Texas stuff really gets going.

The president has mentioned the plan often, despite widespread skepticism due to the lack of stimulus that came from spending $787 billion in stimulus money that was for sure going to hold national unemployment at 8%, but it's now 9.1%.

So, perhaps another such plan might work.

As this administration sees reality, those Republican tea party terrorists kind of hijacked the marathon talks about raising the national debt ceiling, stubbornly and unreasonably making the debt negotiations over reducing the debt and spending rather than over spending spending.

As a result, it's all their fault that Standard & Poor's lowered the federal government's credit rating for the first time because the rating agency didn't see sufficient cuts.

COMMENT:  Have you seen this dance before?  So, the president is going through the Midwest in an armored bus with darkened windows, the better he should not see the armies of the unemployed.  And he will give a talk in September presenting his new, improved jobs program, which apparently is still being developed on day 938 of his presidency.

Four more years?

August 17, 2011     Permalink

AUGUST 16,  2011

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:52 P.M. ET:

REALITY STRIKES HOME – There was much hubbub recently about a poll showing Obama' ratings in very blue New York falling like a rock.  A new poll out today confirms the other one.  Uh, unfortunately there's a little asterisk.  The poll also shows Obama beating all Republican comers.  This is an old story – polls that show states suddenly shifting, only to return to form by election day.  It happens every cycle.  In 2008 there were all kinds of stories saying that New Jersey could fall into the GOP column.  Never happened.  I'm concerned about Republican overconfidence.  New York is a good lesson. 

A PERRY MOMENT – We've been somewhat critical of Rick Perry's mouth here.  Even Perry boosters are cautioning him to be more careful about his comments, lest the MSM nail him as a political extremist to the right of Hitler.  Now Perry has something new hanging over him.  He has to decide, as governor of Texas, whether the state will issue license plates commemorating its Confederate heritage.  The decision gives Perry the chance to rise above localism and show he can represent the entire nation.  He should decide against the plates.  I happen to like the South.  One of my daughters is a Virginian.  A very large percentage of Urgent Agenda readers are in the South.  But there are dignified ways of recalling the sacrifice of Southern soldiers without license plates sporting a symbol of secession.  Indeed, the Texas heritage is actually mixed.  Some Texans fought for the South, many others resisted the Confederacy.  Perry must now become "President Perry."

WONDERFUL DORIS – Those of you of a certain age recall Doris Day, one of the truly great (and enduring) stars of American movie and music history.  She's 87 now, and it is announced that she's releasing a new album.  Actually, the songs were recorded some time ago under the supervision of her son, Terry Melcher, who died in 2004.  The album is a tribute to his memory.  Doris Day achieved musical stardom with "Sentimental Journey," a major hit of 1945, some 66 years ago.  She is one of the biggest-selling recording artists in history.  Between 1948 and 1964 her movies, including Alfred Hitchcock's "The Man Who Knew Too Much," were in the top ten every year.  When I worked on the Tonight Show, Doris Day was one of the stars we could never get.  She is incredibly independent, even turning down a Kennedy Center honor because she doesn't like to fly.  Welcome back, Doris.  We'll have a crush on you all over.

August 16, 2011     Permalink

POLL EARTHQUAKE – AT 8:16 P.M. ET:  A new Rasmussen poll, just out, shows the impact Rick Perry has already had on the GOP race. 

Texas Governor Rick Perry, the new face in the race for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, has jumped to a double-digit lead over Mitt Romney and Michele Bachmann with the other announced candidates trailing even further behind.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely Republican Primary voters, taken Monday night, finds Perry with 29% support. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor who ran unsuccessfully for the GOP presidential nomination in 2008, earns 18% of the vote, while Bachmann, the Minnesota congresswoman who won the high-profile Ames Straw Poll in Iowa on Saturday, picks up 13%.

Texas Congressman Ron Paul, who was a close second to Bachmann on Saturday, has the support of nine percent (9%) of Likely Primary Voters, followed by Georgia businessman Herman Cain at six percent (6%) and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich with five percent (5%). Rick Santorum, former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, and ex-Utah Governor Jon Huntsman each get one percent (1%) support, while Michigan Congressman Thaddeus McCotter comes in statistically at zero. 

Scott Rasmussen comments: 

“Governor Perry is enjoying a bounce from entering the race at precisely the right time”, said Scott Rasmussen. “Now the difficult part begins for the new frontrunner. It’s much easier winning support when people are hoping you will get in the race, than retaining support when you are the frontrunner.”

COMMENT:  Very impressive for Perry.  But what really stuns me is the fading back of Mitt Romney, who, just days ago, was the supposed frontrunner.  I think it indicates how little enthusiasm there is for Romney, at least right now.

Perry still has a tough job ahead, even within the Republican Party.  His 29% is far from a majority, and there are plenty of doubters.  He must run a presidential campaign, which would be the best strategy to push the doubters out of his path.  Sometimes the best way to run for the nomination is to act as if you already have it, and run against the guy in the White House.  The doubters argue that Perry is strictly regional, not presidential.  Show us, Governor Perry.

As for Michele Bachmann, I'm sure she'll remain a force.  But today she came out with another of the gaffes that have plagued her, asking a crowd in South Carolina to join her in wishing "happy birthday" to Elvis Presley.  Trouble is, it isn't Presley's birthday.  It's the anniversary of his death.  The media picked it up.

This is getting very exciting.

August 16, 2011      Permalink

THE TERROR THREAT – AT 10:50 A.M. ET:  The terror threat, especially from home-grown terrorists, is still very much with us, as two stories indicate.  From The Hill:

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is floating legislation that would mandate FBI background checks for employees at power plants, water treatment plants and other critical infrastructure.

Schumer cited a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) report last month that warned that extremists could seek to launch physical and cyber attacks from the inside.

The upcoming legislation, Schumer’s office said, would expand FBI testing that’s currently applied only to nuclear power plants.

The plan would “close this major security loophole that would make it mandatory for all major utilities and critical infrastructure plants to run FBI background checks on employees with access to the most sensitive areas of utilities,” according to a summary.

“Power plants and utilities present a tempting and potentially catastrophic target to extremists who are bent on wreaking havoc on the United States, which is why thorough background checks on all workers with access to the most sensitive areas of these operations are a must,” Schumer said in a statement.

Schumer is correct.  This should have been done a long time ago. 

And then there's this, from Fox:

The House Homeland Security Committee “has initiated an investigation” into the radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki and whether he was an overlooked key player in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, a letter from the committee chairman to Attorney General Eric Holder says.

The three-page letter, obtained exclusively by Fox News, makes the case that a decade after the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil, the full story of 9/11 has not been told.

“This congressional investigation will seek to determine:

"1. To what extent Anwar al-Awlaki wittingly or unwittingly facilitated the plot of the 9/11 hijackers; and

"2. to what extent al-Awlaki was an al Qaeda operative, offering support to acts of terrorism prior to 9/11.”

The letter to Holder, sent by Republican Rep. Peter King of New York on May 26, confirms that investigators believe the American cleric's contacts with three of the five hijackers on Flight 77, which slammed into the Pentagon, were more than a series of coincidences, but rather evidence of a purposeful relationship.

COMMENT:  We need confirmed facts here, but, if the suspicions bear out, then 9-11 was partially facilitated by an American-born terrorist.  Anwar al-Awlaki is now in Yemen, and is considered one of the most dangerous Al Qaeda operatives active in plots against the United States.

August 16, 2011       Permalink

SNIPPET OF THE DAY – AT 10:26 A.M. ET: 

From Reuters:   Fitch Ratings said on Tuesday it affirmed the United States' top-notch credit rating at AAA, giving the world's largest economy a reprieve after it was downgraded by Standard & Poor's little more than a week ago.  Fitch said the outlook for the rating was stable.

The has-been "filmmaker" Michael Moore suggested that President Obama have Standard & Poor's executives arrested after they downgraded the U.S.  Maybe the boys at Fitch got the message.

OH DEAR, OH DEAR – AT 9:23 A.M. ET:  In the last few days President Obama has compared himself to Martin Luther King Jr. and Abraham Lincoln.   In a way, it's a step down from the days when his delirious groupies were comparing him to the deity, but King and Lincoln will do.  Apparently, though, Obama believes that three's the charm, as he contemplartes adding another name to the list.  From the Daily Caller:

President Barack Obama is eyeing a 2012 campaign modeled on President Harry Truman’s 1948 successful re-election campaign against Congress. First, however, the White House will send to Capitol Hill an assortment of ‘economy-boosting’ legislation in a package that may include a major overhaul of the tax code.

“I’ll be putting forward, when they come back in September, a very specific plan to boost the economy, to create jobs, and to control our deficit,” Obama told a friendly audience at a Decorah, Minnesota campaign-event on Monday.

“My attitude is, get it done … [but] if they don’t get it done, then we’ll be running against a Congress that’s not doing anything for the American people, and the choice will be very stark and will be very clear.”

COMMENT:  Harry Truman did indeed run against the "do-nothing" Republican Congress.  The charge was false, as Congress had passed a remarkable package of bills, including the legislation that shaped our defense establishment in the Cold War.  But we were in a recession, so the charge resonated.

A new Gallup Poll puts Congress's approval rating at a mere 13%, so Obama's strategy may make sense.  However, there's a difference between Truman and Obama, and that's exactly Obama's problem – that difference.  He ain't Harry.  Truman wasn't particularly liked, but he was a fighter, and Americans admired that.   By contrast, Truman's opponent in 1948 was Governor Thomas E. Dewey of New York, who'd also been the Republican candidate in 1944 in a losing campaign against FDR.   In 1948, Dewey kind of sat around waiting to be crowned king, as almost every pundit predicted he would be.  Because of his pencil mustache, some came to describe him as "the man on the wedding cake."

The king never got to give his speech.  Feisty Harry won after a stunning whistlestop campaign through America.  The pundits punted, and Tom Dewey faded into history. 

Obama, like Truman, isn't particularly popular, but I doubt if he has Truman's fight in him.  He has more of Dewey's imperiousness.  But it will all depend on the Republican candidate.

August 16, 2011       Permalink 

A PERRY GAFFE? – AT 8:49 A.M. ET:  One of the things that worries conservatives about Rick Perry is his tendency to shoot off his mouth and say things that will come back to haunt him.  Example, musing out loud about Texas seceding from the Union.  Didn't we have a dustup about stuff like that circa 1861-65?

Now Perry has made a statement that is flashing around the internet, and even Republicans are asking whether he's gone too far.  In discussing the monetary policies of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, Perry said:

"If this guy prints more money between now and the election, I don’t know what y’all would do to him in Iowa, but we -- we would treat him pretty ugly down in Texas. Printing more money to play politics at this particular time in American history is almost treacherous -- or treasonous in my opinion."

Ugh!!

That is way over the top, and thoroughly un-presidential.  You don't talk about treating a public official "pretty ugly down in Texas."  And you certainly don't go near the word "treason."

Liberals are already having a field day with this, suggesting that Bernanke's life may now be in danger.  Indeed, if Obama wanted to, he could order the Secret Service to protect Bernanke, saying something like, "In light of Governor Perry's violent remarks, I am ordering federal protection for the chairman of the Federal Reserve." 

Can you just see the mainstream media go wild?  Can you imagine?

What should Perry do?  He should immediately call Bernanke and apologize, and then apologize for his statement, saying he was just speaking informally and not seriously. 

A few more like this, and Perry will be marginalized very quickly, and bring a good part of the GOP down with him.

We want to see good things from Governor Perry, and we think he has it in him to rise above his current status as a regional politician.  But he might recall the World War II admonition, "Loose lips sink ships."  They also sink presidential campaigns.

August 16, 2011       Permalink

I REALLY LIKE THIS STORY – AT 8:28 A.M. ET:  As the U.S. wallows, directionless, led by a president who rejects American exceptionalism and apologizes for this country during his overseas travels, other Western leaders are finally reasserting their national traditions and legacies, saying, in effect, "Be proud of your country." 

Two of those leaders are David Cameron in Britain and Steve Harper in Canada.  Now Canada takes another step in reasserting its history, and I think it's great.  From London's Telegraph:

Canada's Conservative government, stressing traditional ties to the Queen and the monarchy, is reinstating the names Royal Canadian Air Force and Royal Canadian Navy after a gap of 43 years.

The Liberals removed the "royal" designation in 1968 when they amalgamated the branches of service and called the military the Canadian Forces.

General Walter Natynczyk, chief of the defence staff, announced the decision to bring back the word "royal" for the official names of the two branches of the military in a memo posted on Monday on the military discussion site Milnet.ca.

The initiative to restore the names of Canada's former services "is aimed at restoring an important and recognisable part of Canada's military heritage," Gen Natynczyk said.

"These were the services that fought and emerged victorious from the Second World War and Korea and contributed to the defence of Europe and North America from the early days of the Cold War. These were also the services that paved the way in terms of international peacekeeping missions."

Peter MacKay, the defence minister, and other Conservative members of Parliament have scheduled what they describe as "significant" announcements on Canada's military history on Tuesday.

COMMENT:  Wonderful, wonderful.  Welcome back RCAF and RCN.  It's nice to have you back where you belong.   Maybe now Canadian kids will learn how much their country contributed to victory in World War II.  At the end of the war Canada had one of the largest navies in the world, despite a small population.  Today it is a shadow of its former self, starved by decades of "liberal" governments, led by the likes of leftist Pierre Trudeau and his party-loving wife, Margaret.  The libs also made Canada, during the Vietnam War, a haven for American draft dodgers.

Steve Harper's government is intensely pro-American, although not necessarily pro-Obama, is stalwart against the jihadist threat, and is restoring Canada to its rightful place.  Sadly, there are still plenty of liberal welfare staters and anti-Americans in Canada, and they are resisting Harper's policies.  It remains to be seen how much he can accomplish in his years in office, but we wish him the best.

August 16, 2011     Permalink