Article VI Blog

Molly Ball @ The Atlantic:

If you thought the confusion surrounding the Iowa caucuses was bad, wait until you see Nevada.

When the traveling Republican circus moves on after Tuesday’s Florida primary, it will head for the Silver State — giving Newt Gingrich’s most generous backer, casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, a chance to cast a vote for his candidate.

But with the caucuses scheduled for a Saturday morning, Adelson, an observant Jew, originally would not have been able to participate. So, largely at his urging, the state’s Republicans will hold a special extra caucus, hours after the rest of the state has finished voting and reporting its totals.

In case the symbolism wasn’t clear enough, the extra caucus, scheduled for 7 p.m. Pacific time, is being held at the Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Educational Campus, an Adelson-funded private school in Las Vegas.

Party officials insist that’s just a coincidence, but insiders say without the influence of Adelson, a generous donor to local candidates and causes, the rogue caucus almost certainly would not exist.

Here’s how it is supposed to work, according to a conference call with Nevada GOP officials Friday afternoon. Nevada has 17 counties, but more than half the Republican voters are in Clark County, which encompasses Las Vegas.

Each county was allowed to set its own caucus procedures this year, leading to a divergent array of start times and rules across the state. Some precincts will open their doors as early as 8 a.m.; others won’t get under way until noon. But all must wrap up the action by 3 p.m.

At 5 p.m., the party will publicly announce the results of the caucuses for the 16 smaller counties. (Since these results will have been announced at the precinct level, the campaigns and media likely will already have a sense by then.)

At 7 p.m., just as the special evening caucus is getting under way, the results for the rest of Clark County will be announced.

Now, dear friends, this blogger has not one lick of trouble holding a late caucus or two to accommodate our Jewish friends – BUT ANNOUNCING THE RESULTS OF THE OTHER CAUCUSES FIRST?!?!?!?!?! Please – particularly when the population figures stack up like they do.  Never in all my born days have I seen such a naked and public set-up to cheat an election.  If it is anywhere near close, all our colleagues at the Adelson  caucus have to do is go out and drum up some more Gingrich voters to show up at their caucus.

The RNC has no choice but to threaten Nevada with withholding credentials from all Nevada delegates to the convention unless the results of all caucus’ are withheld until all the caucus’ are complete.

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I know Erick Erickson is busy on CNN telling folks about what the outsiders think and I am a Romney man blogging at this web site captive to elites.

I know my Internet stature compared to his is like comparing Nathan Fillion’s coolness to my own.

He is a lawyer trained in debate and I learned to argue defending Bart Starr’s Packers in junior high from Steeler fans.

Still I would enjoy debating him on the notion of Mr Gingrich’s fitness for office. I would let him set the rules.

What do you think Mr Erickson?

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Conservatives have done a good job in new media. One “go to” site for me in the past has been “Red State.” However, I have not agreed with the direction of Mr. Erickson there . . . much as I appreciate any conservative voice and his willingness to take on the status quo.

Since they are all the rage: let me challenge Mr. Erickson of Red State to an online Lincoln-Douglas debate on the question: “Is Newt fit to serve?” An alternative question might be: “Is Mitt Romney a conservative?”

If he agrees, I promise a civil argument between allies in the bigger political fight. Perhaps this would help our community makes some decisions in the weeks ahead.

I am open to variations that he finds better. Of course, his on-line status is larger so perhaps he can find a foe more his equal, but I would love to see such a debate. Since I am not a political expert, I would be willing to defer to a better choice for the chance to see this issue discussed.

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Looks like Rick Perry is going to announce his withdrawal from the campaign before tonight’s debate – and endorse Gingrich.  This is unquestionably a “Stop Romney” move akin to the Huckabee-McCain deal at the West Virginia convention on Super Tuesday in 2008 – with one major difference.  That move was from strength and designed to seal the deal for McCain – this move is from weakness and desperation – more Hail Mary pass than electoral strategery.

Is there a religious angle?  Well, given that Perry’s campaign more or less launched with the long-echoing Robert Jeffress Mormon shot – What do you think?

Watch this space.

An Oh! – By The Way A couple of hours later – Do you think it is possible that Gingrich added to the pressure on Perry to get out given what is going to happen to him tonight?  Distraction perhaps?

New News at 9AM – There are the first leaks from the Gingrich ex-interview:

Marianne Gingrich is going public with personal details of her marriage to Newt Gingrich, telling ABC News in an interview to be aired Thursday night that the former House speaker “was asking to have an open marriage.”

That’s gonna leave a mark.  And Perry has made it official – here’s the speech – note this:

The fact is, there is forgiveness for those who seek God and I believe in the power of redemption, for it is a central tenet of my own Christian faith.

Veiled reference (Perry said it in regards to his and Gingrich’s differences in the campaign) to the bombs that are dropping on ABC tonight?  Reference to his/Newt’s faith as compared to Romney’s?

Hewitt has the best take-away of the moment: (and things are changing on a momentary basis)

This is a 13 state election: Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico. These are the states into which will pour perhaps as much as two billion dollars in advertising and campaign ground game for they are the states “in play” in the fall.

[...]

But if your life, the lives of your family, your fortune and future prospects all depended on the data before you, and you knew how the media would be aggressively assailing whomever is the GOP nominee, which candidate would you support? Got an answer? Then ask if your answer would be the answer of a majority of voters in those 13 states.

Are they even watching this drama?

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I am an eighth generation Republican watching a debate of my party’s candidates on Martin Luther King Day.

Am I the only one horrified at the racist dog whistles?

In South Carolina, where rebellion against the Union began, the Governor of Texas could not be bothered to defend the Voting Rights Act and gave a full throated defense of state’s rights. He ignored a question on voting rights to do so.

I am for state’s rights, a strong federalist, but the party of Lincoln knows that when states refuse to grant the right to life, liberty, or property the Federal government must intervene. As Bill Buckley admitted, conservatives were wrong to oppose the Civil Rights bills. African-Americans had no recourse, because state power was tyrannical and abusing them.

Tonight I heard, at least I think I did, “rebel yells” at a Republican debate.

Newt was the worst offender apparently unaware that working as a janitor, being forced to work as a janitor, feels differently to his kids than to the children of African-American parents. Is he unaware that racism continues? I am for work and for some of his ideas, but he showed no sensitivity, no nuance, and risked pandering to the worst in us.

A Southern politician like Gingrich must do better and I am calling him out for it. He was race-baiting and that disqualifies a man from office.

And then he quoted the founder of the Democratic Party, Andrew Jackson, on terrorism.

Slave owning Jackson ignored the Courts to launch the Trail of Tears one of the worst moments in American history. He brought on a national depression by his economic ignorance.

Does Newt the historian know these truths? It is not o.k. to glorify this man and his lawlessness that my party was founded to oppose.

I hated those dog whistles in my party. Call me a RINO if you must, but that is not my party at her best and I refuse to be silent.

Newt Gingrich did not represent me tonight and will never represent me.

I thank God the competent conservative Mr. Romney was there.

I blogged the whole debate at www.johnmarkreynolds.com.

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We have all been in meetings with the fellow so pure, so noble, that he can get nothing done. In the board meeting, he proposes the undoable and so prevents the possible. He is Don Quixote.

Don Quixote is amusing and sometimes inspiring, but he would make a bad President. The perfect become the enemy of the good and the Quixote serves as the clown for the ruling class. We might learn from him, but we cannot be governed by him and live in the world as it is.

Perhaps that is a problem with the world, but the world will not be as it should be if we indulge in Utopian dreams.

And yet a certain kind of Pancho loves following Quixote, because it delivers them from any responsibility to govern. Whatever happens in a culture, they stayed pure. Certain fringe Evangelicals hold themselves from the arena so that they can comment safely on the sidelines. Theodore Roosevelt was right that such men who refuse to enter the arena can be ignored.

If you are tempted to follow the voting advice of our Evangelical political leaders ask a version of Reagan’s question:

“Are we better off now, than before we were led by such men?”

Cowardice is not just refusing a necessary fight, but choosing sham fighting in a fool’s cap for the amusement of the ruling classes.

Rick Santorum has suffered for our causes. He is a good man, even a noble man, but he is not equipped by character or experience to govern a nation where his views are in the minority. If a Presidential nomination were given for suffering for our cause, then Rick Santorum would be our nominee, but there are not enough conservatives simply to nominate one of our own. Rick Santorum offends his friends, let alone our enemies.

President Obama inspired many moderates to vote for a progressive, but Santorum would inspire many young conservatives to bolt. He has a habit of saying the right thing in the wrong way. Theodore Roosevelt’s bully pulpit can not be safely left to Santorum. He is right, but sounds wrong and we cannot afford giving up any cultural advantage.

Even if conservatives were a simple majority, then Rick Santorum would not be the best choice for our executive.

Senator Santorum has no executive experience and no great success as a legislator. Senator Santorum has not built a sound campaign and while some good candidates are bad Presidents no bad candidates ever become President.

Rick Santorum is running a Quixotic campaign and support for him is not noble, but a waste of valuable resources. He could not even get on the ballot for every state. How will he defeat President Obama’s billion?

I fear that bigotry against our LDS friends may be a root of the refusal to accept Governor Romney’s political evolution. Why is Gingrich a “conservative” and Romney not? Why is Senator Santorum’s “earmarks” given a pass and Romney’s attempt to work with a Democratic legislature in Massachusetts not?

Is it that Romney is a Mormon? Some of the fringe characters in the Evangelical world whisper such bigotry to me, but Evangelicals are people of the Golden Rule. We will treat Mormons as we wish to be treated in the political sphere.

If Rick Santorum is the nominee of my party, then I will vote for Senator Santorum. His vision is preferable to that of President Obama. He may not be a good executive, but we know the President is not. But we need not make that choice.

We have the choice of a man with executive experience in the private and public sphere. We have the choice of a man of personal integrity who has chosen to associate himself with our unfashionable causes. He has made mistakes, but every politician, including Senator Santorum, has made mistakes.

We do not have time to confuse windmills with giants, the Mormon faith with our political foe. Instead, we will embrace our fellow citizens and make common cause to defend the Constitution of 1789 against expanding government. We will vote our conscience, but not our fantasies.

He is a conservative of the heart.

Let’s tell Evangelical leaders that competence and character trump quixotic idealism in the race for President and vote for Mitt Romney. Governor Romney is no sliver knight, no Quixote off to slay giants of secularism, but he is a gentleman and a competent executive. Republican have never asked for more from their leaders. We are not Pancho, but we are Republicans.

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