Topic: Mississippi Governor Makes Moves to Run for President (Read 441 times)

Kev · « **on:** June 14, 2009, 01:55:52 pm »

Link http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31353259/ns/politics-more_politics/

Quote

JACKSON, Miss. - If the Republican Party is in danger of being marginalized as a conservative, white male Southern enclave, is Haley Barbour ? the longtime Washington power broker and current Mississippi governor ? the best person to turn things around?

Many rank-and-file Republicans and party leaders say yes, as the 61-year-old Barbour prepares to ramp up his national profile this month with back-to-back trips to the early presidential voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire.

Barbour will headline fundraisers in both states, but says the visits are part of his duties as incoming chairman of the Republican Governors Association. Both states have governors' races next year.
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"I've told everyone I know that every Republican ought to be focused on governors' races in 2009 and the 2010 elections," Barbour said in an interview with The Associated Press.

A former chairman of the Republican National Committee, Barbour has emerged as a leader of his party's efforts to retool for the future. His allies believe he could be a formidable presidential contender if he chooses to play.

"Haley's unique in that he's a brilliant strategist who led the party and has also run in and won a competitive governor's race," said Ed Gillespie, a former RNC chairman. "He commands a lot of respect from rank-and-file Republicans, as well as the leadership of the party and many Democrats. He's a happy warrior who stands up for conservative principles."

Questions about aspirations
Barbour typically sidesteps questions about his presidential aspirations, saying he will wait until after next year's elections to decide.

With his good ol' boy charm and a drawl as thick as Mississippi mud, Barbour at first blush might not fit anyone's idea of the standard bearer for a party looking to diversify. He's a former lobbyist who made millions representing tobacco and other business interests, even as lobbyists increasingly have become stigmatized by Democrats and Republicans alike.

But Barbour's political skills have been tested and proven in Mississippi, where he defeated a Democratic incumbent to become just the second Republican elected governor since Reconstruction, and at the national level, where he helped rescue the GOP during another low period for the party.

Barbour became RNC chairman in 1993 after Bill Clinton was elected president and Democrats held strong majorities in Congress. Led by Barbour and Newt Gingrich, another potential 2012 contender, Republicans rallied in 1994, claiming majorities in the Senate and in the House for the first time in 40 years.

The Republican gains that year were helped by the collapse of the President Bill Clinton's health care reform plan; President Barack Obama is making a politically risky attempt to reform the nation's health care system this year, with potential reverberations in next year's midterm elections.

Barbour left the RNC in 1997 and built a lucrative lobbying practice before returning to Mississippi to run for governor. He defeated Democrat Ronnie Musgrove in 2003 and was easily re-elected in 2007; term limits will require him to step down after 2011.

Raised cigarette tax
Barbour has governed as a conservative, which is sure to endure him with Republicans across the country. But coming from a state in the heart of the old Confederacy that hasn't voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1976, his appeal to independents and Democrats is open to question.

Barbour cut Medicaid costs by imposing renewal rules that led to thousands of people being dropped from the rolls. But he also signed into law this year a major cigarette tax increase, raising the rate from 18 cents a pack to 68 cents.

Sharp critic of stimulus spending
From the beginning, Barbour pushed legislators to trim the state budget by closing some state parks and cutting other expenses. While he claims credit for having fixed the budget problems "without raising anybody's taxes," local officials complained that they were forced to increase taxes because some state expenses were forced down on them.

Barbour has been a sharp critic of federal stimulus spending this year along with other a few other GOP governors, including Mark Sanford of South Carolina, Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and Sarah Palin of Alaska. All are considered possible 2012 presidential contenders.

Barbour has rejected some $56 million in federal stimulus money for unemployment compensation, saying he objected to the requirement that Mississippi extend unemployment benefits to people seeking part-time jobs.
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Barbour's first term as governor was shaped by Hurricane Katrina, which left a wide swath of destruction across his state in August 2005. His response to the storm was widely praised even as Kathleen Blanco, Louisiana's Democratic governor at the time, was panned for botching recovery efforts there.

Friends in high places
But many Democrats argued that Barbour's job was made easier by friends in high places.

Mississippi's senior senator, Republican Thad Cochran, was chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee when Katrina struck, and he helped steer billions of dollars to his home state. And officials in Louisiana said that as Republicans, Barbour and Cochran received unfair preferential treatment by the Bush administration in coping with the storm's aftermath.

Other critics, including the Mississippi chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, complained when Barbour won approval from the federal government in 2008 for his plan to divert $570 million from a $5.4 billion grant from a hurricane-recovery housing program and expand the state port.

Steve Holland, a Democratic legislator in Mississippi who has clashed repeatedly with Barbour, commended the governor's smooth handling of Katrina recovery, but said it was little more than a distraction from Barbour's overall record of opposition to social spending.

"You have to be a totally devoted far-right, conservative person to appreciate his zeal and zest for unbridling the government," Holland said. "He's always against every **** thing you bring up, especially quality of life issues, people issues, hard issues. He's one of the most cold-hearted human beings I've ever met."

Barbour's friends differ, calling him a personable, gifted politician who would make a strong candidate and good president. His biggest problem, they say, is the accident of timing ? despite his skills, would the party nominate a white, Southern former lobbyist to challenge the first black president?

"Haley is born to the job from a policy, intellectual and political standpoint," said Ed Rogers, Barbour's former lobbying partner. "He can go deep on issues and sincerely loves people. It would be fun for him to go to the pancake breakfasts in every county in Iowa."

I don't really know too much about Haley Barbour, but my God. The last election cycle easily lasted two years, right after the midterm elections. Are we already getting started? I love elections... but this is almost too much to handle, even for political junkies.

18 is # 1 · « **Reply #1 on:** June 15, 2009, 08:23:57 am »

I don't care about gender or ethnicity, just a real conservative. The Republicans won't win with a wishy-washy undifferentiated candidate.

Kev · « **Reply #2 on:** June 15, 2009, 11:04:57 am »

The problem is that everybody has a different idea of what a real conservative is. I mean, if you go back to 1964, Barry Goldwater was supposedly this harbringer of the new conservative movement... but he was also strongly libertarian and came out for things like gay rights in the future.

Ronald Reagan was the next one, but if you listen to conservatives now, its hard to see why they like Reagan. He absolutely destroyed the budget by spending big and really set the standard for deficit spending and deep debt that's coming home to roost now.

George W. Bush was touted as the next Reagan, but under Bush we saw huge ballooning deficit spending and even the partial nationalizations of privately owned companies, even though he was a staunch social conservative.

So, I guess my feeling is that for people looking for a "real" conservative are probably going to be disappointed. The Republican Party, like any political party, is very diverse and you're going to have different people pushing your candidates in very different directions.'

Still though... man, this election cycle is starting early.

18 is # 1 · « **Reply #3 on:** June 19, 2009, 01:46:17 pm »

Sean Hannity

Heather · « **Reply #4 on:** June 19, 2009, 02:16:37 pm »

Quote from: 18 is # 1 on June 19, 2009, 01:46:17 pm

Sean Hannity

Yeah he is a sweetheart... he loved the book The Aids Coverup - which basically stated all homosexuals should be tossed into camps to save the heterosexuals (it was so disgusting and hate filled it got him fired)

Oh and he told a lesbian called: "I feel sorry for your child". This is the voice of the true Republican? If so... thank God... most likely we wont see any more in office then as the younger generation evolves.

Yet his dating site... is for gays and heterosexual. I guess when it comes to making money on his site... gay is A-ok

I guess its a matter of while we don't like dem gays but their money is as green as anyone elses.

afordhere · « **Reply #5 on:** June 19, 2009, 05:44:55 pm »

We are all hosed now with TARP, doesn't matter who is elected.

Kev · « **Reply #6 on:** June 20, 2009, 07:26:56 pm »

Quote from: afordhere on June 19, 2009, 05:44:55 pm

We are all hosed now with TARP, doesn't matter who is elected.

Its easy to demonize TARP because its so unpopular, but its important to remember that the federal government did similar kinds of investments during the Great Depression and ended up making a profit after the economy turned around. I'm not saying that's what will happen this time, but I think its still too early to make judgments on a policy that really isn't even a year old.

18 is # 1 · « **Reply #7 on:** June 22, 2009, 03:20:18 pm »

We are fortunate to have our representative (JH) on the TARP committee. Unfortunately, he's the only conservative on the committee.

afordhere · « **Reply #8 on:** June 25, 2009, 09:39:54 am »

Quote from: Kev on June 20, 2009, 07:26:56 pm

Quote from: afordhere on June 19, 2009, 05:44:55 pm
We are all hosed now with TARP, doesn't matter who is elected.

Its easy to demonize TARP because its so unpopular, but its important to remember that the federal government did similar kinds of investments during the Great Depression and ended up making a profit after the economy turned around. I'm not saying that's what will happen this time, but I think its still too early to make judgments on a policy that really isn't even a year old.

I don't know, a trillion dollars here and there is nothing to worry about right? We can just pay that right back, hell it may be in my couch cushions...

What part of "A crap ass load of money we didnt have" are people not getting. Printing more money doesnt magically make it all better. If it did Zimbabwe would be in perfect shape.

Heather · « **Reply #9 on:** June 25, 2009, 12:16:26 pm »

Quote from: afordhere on June 25, 2009, 09:39:54 am

Quote from: Kev on June 20, 2009, 07:26:56 pm
Quote from: afordhere on June 19, 2009, 05:44:55 pm
We are all hosed now with TARP, doesn't matter who is elected.

Its easy to demonize TARP because its so unpopular, but its important to remember that the federal government did similar kinds of investments during the Great Depression and ended up making a profit after the economy turned around. I'm not saying that's what will happen this time, but I think its still too early to make judgments on a policy that really isn't even a year old.

I don't know, a trillion dollars here and there is nothing to worry about right? We can just pay that right back, hell it may be in my couch cushions...

What part of "A crap ass load of money we didnt have" are people not getting. Printing more money doesnt magically make it all better. If it did Zimbabwe would be in perfect shape.

Where were all the people bitching about money when Bush was spending money like it grew on trees?

afordhere · « **Reply #10 on:** June 25, 2009, 02:13:02 pm »

Sitting hered complaining about Bush putting us into more debt and us not having the ability to pay it back and explaining to people that printing more money is not the resolution....just like now

However, when Bush was in office, he was not federalizing private businesses.

Both suck though, regardless of your political leanings, unless you are a socialist

Heather · « **Reply #11 on:** June 25, 2009, 03:48:33 pm »

Quote from: afordhere on June 25, 2009, 02:13:02 pm

Sitting hered complaining about Bush putting us into more debt and us not having the ability to pay it back and explaining to people that printing more money is not the resolution....just like now

However, when Bush was in office, he was not federalizing private businesses.

Both suck though, regardless of your political leanings, unless you are a socialist

They took that route to save all the rich people's money. And even more so... because it saved their butts. They all had their money tied up in the institutions that were going under. Our government as a whole is a big fat sham. They didnt do anything for the People. They did it for themselves and their backers. Nothing they did was to help any of us. I detest the way this country is run and really the world. Unfortunately its the crap hole we are stuck with. Everyone is corrupt... and if you arent corrupt you get run over. The world is in such a sad state of affairs. But that is what money, greed, and corruption gets us. A congress full of people trying save their life savings at the cost of all the people they represent. But ... we can all breath easier now... they will all be saved!

I know it helps me sleep at night!

Kev · « **Reply #12 on:** June 27, 2009, 12:28:34 am »

Quote from: afordhere on June 25, 2009, 02:13:02 pm

Sitting hered complaining about Bush putting us into more debt and us not having the ability to pay it back and explaining to people that printing more money is not the resolution....just like now

However, when Bush was in office, he was not federalizing private businesses.

Both suck though, regardless of your political leanings, unless you are a socialist

You must haaaaaaaate Reagan, then. He was the one that really got us going down this path of unlimited debt. And, for the record, I am a socialist and I still agree with you. Unrestrained debt is a horrible idea, which is why we need a higher tax rate to help pay for the programs that a modern society needs.

We need to face facts. We cannot have:

1) The most powerful military in the world.
2) Protections for the elderly and disabled.

All while having low taxes. Its impossible. TARP is a drop in the bucket. Like I said, its fashionable to whine and complain about money that will in all liklihood be paid back because its politically convenient - its quite another to actually look at what's gotten us into this hole to start with. Its not TARP. Its not welfare. Its not education. When you look at any of those expenditures over the course of a few years, they're nothing compared to the trillions upon trillions of dollars we've handed over to the defense industry over the past few decades.

If you want to attack debt, fine. But be honest about it. Defense spending is what has gotten us into this problem, not TARP.

Twenty Peaceful Minutes

Author Topic: Mississippi Governor Makes Moves to Run for President (Read 441 times)

Kev

Mississippi Governor Makes Moves to Run for President

18 is # 1

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Kev

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18 is # 1

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Heather

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afordhere

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Kev

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18 is # 1

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afordhere

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Heather

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afordhere

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Heather

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Kev

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