Perry says debating was his biggest mistake [Update]
Actually, his biggest mistake was saying that debating was his biggest mistake. It says so much about who Rick Perry is–unsure of himself and afraid to face the public except in situations he controls, and yet arrogant at the same time. Doesn’t he realize that refusing to debate would have been even worse than debating? Ducking debates sends the public a message that you do not think that their opinion matters and shows a lack of respect for the great quadrennial exercise of choosing a leader for the nation.
His comment on Fox News was, “All they’re interested in is stirring it up between the candidates instead of really talking about the issues that are important to the American people.” Damn right “they” are–”they” being the media. The value of stirring things up, of course, is that the public can see candidates in unscripted moments, as when Perry made his gaffe that people who don’t support the Dream Act “don’t have a heart.”
In his races in Texas, Perry could put the campaign engine in cruise control and leave it there. He could arrange things so that all his speeches were to friendly audiences. He could address the Realtors (as I heard him do) with full confidence that he would get a loud, enthusiastic ovation, and bask in the prearranged applause. He could surround himself with his security entourage, to ensure that he would not have to answer questions from impertinent reporters. He could refuse to visit with editorial boards and he could concoct phony excuses for refusing to debate, such as the failure of his 2010 Democratic opponent, former Houston mayor Bill White, to release his taxes.
Presidential campaigns are different. You can run from debates, but you can’t hide. No serious presidential candidate can get away with ducking debates these days. He would reveal himself or herself as someone with deep insecurities about how he matches up with his rivals. Perry would much prefer the kind of campaign he can run in Texas, where he can speak to friendly audiences and then head out the back door without answering questions from the pesky media. Just imagine if Perry had said at the start of the presidential campaign what he said in Texas in 2010: He wasn’t going to debate unless Bill White released his taxes, and he made such stipulations for Romney and Bachmann and Gingrich and Paul. In Texas, he could play out the farce in which Mark Miner’s daily press release was about how many days White had gone without releasing his taxes.
People who read or heard Perry’s remarks, made on Fox News, are going to draw the obvious conclusion that Perry didn’t want to debate because he wasn’t informed on the issues and was afraid that he would expose his lack of knowledge. In Texas, Perry was invincible. He controlled the entire government, right down to a compliant Supreme Court that would shield his travel expenditures from public view. He could refuse to debate his rivals–or, as in 2006, when he did participate in a debate, he left immediately afterward, without staying for what was supposed to be a Q and A with the media. State Senator Tommy Williams and a smirking aide stood in for Perry.
So here’s the question: Will Perry participate in the remaining debates? Do his remarks on Fox signal that he intends to run as he did in Texas, finding an excuse to avoid debates? It’s a Hobson’s choice, damned if you do, damned if you don’t.
[UPDATE]
POLITICO is reporting that the Perry campaign has said that he is going to the Nov. 9 debate in Michigan, but after that he is a question mark for some of the glut of face-offs after that.
From the POLITICO article:
Perry spokesman Mark Miner said the issue is using time wisely, and noted their campaign is not alone in that.
“I think all the campaigns are expressing frustration right now,” Miner told POLITICO. “We said we would do Michigan but the primaries are around the corner and you have to use your time accordingly.”
* * * *
The schedule does give Perry an excuse to skip some debates. But, having made his comment that his biggest mistake was debating, he will be under even more scrutiny when he next steps on a stage. And I stand by what I wrote above: “It’s a Hobson’s choice: damned if he does, damned if he doesn’t.”
What to look for: Perry will probably do something he should have been doing all along, which is to run positive media, particularly about the border. The downside is that, unlike a state campaign, paid media doesn’t accomplish much in a national campaign. The public has seen the candidates on live TV, and those images will be last longer in the voters’ minds than paid spots on television. Then he will do a lot of meet-and-greet events as the primaries approach. Perry is very good at these, but the best he can hope for from the networks is a few soundbites.
Julie says:
Perry’s unscripted comments can be quite telling. For example, in response to a reporter’s question on Tuesday, Perry said he didn’t really care that his flat tax plan would lead to income equality, with the wealthy getting huge tax cuts and the middle class getting nothing. To say he doesn’t care is another one of those moments where he showed he is an insensitive candidate who doesn’t have a clue about what’s inappropriate to say. Also, on his flat tax plan, Perry hasn’t bothered to say how much further his flat tax plan will drive up the federal debt. He owes us an answer on that point. For him to simply say he will cut spending doesn’t cut it. He needs to offer specifics on how much his flat tax plan would add to the debt and specifics on how he would cancel out that additional debt.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:10 pm
Excellent post, Mr. Burka! “Actually, his biggest mistake was saying that debating was his biggest mistake.”
There is a saying that the fish rots at the head. That means the problem is with Rick, not his campaign.
That little comment by Rick reveals a lot; it shows a desire to be completely unaccountable from the people in addition to his personal insecurities. So he does not want to do debates … the next thing Rick will be saying is why do even have ELECTIONS in the first place? Such a hassle, all that vote counting bullshit and you might even lose.
Can’t we just settle this “democracy thing” with these folks in the 19th hole at the Austin Country Club?
Perry’s Forbes billionaire contributors:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/clareoconnor/2011/07/20/rick-perry-for-president-meet-24-billionaires-whove-backed-him/
Perry reminds me of Rodney Dangerfield in the movie Caddyshack, except with none of the confidence and self-assurance. A clown with a fancy mechanized golf club who has to have the game rigged in his favor before he would even participate.
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paulburka Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 6:59 pm
To be fair to Perry, he said that he didn’t care that the wealthy would benefit most because the flat tax would spur the economy.
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Julie says:
I meant to say Perry stated he didn,t care that his flat tax plan would lead to income inequality. That comment shows Perry is clueless on what is an insensitive, inappropriate comment.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 7:12 am
“didn’t care that his flat tax plan would lead to income inequality.”
spoken like a real republican.
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Anonymous says:
Joe Scarborough, a Republican former congressman, said yesterday that Perry is Bush league. Quite the Freudian slip, but Perry’s not even in George W’s league. Scary that he could actually get to where he is on the national stage. Telling about the acuity of the people of Texas that he has been in elected office for 25 years.
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Willie James Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:07 am
Perry has been exposed for what he really is. Conservatives and their spin machines cannot make him what he is not: Presidential. Blame it on the media? I think not. Avoiding questions, avoiding journalists, avoiding debates and avoiding accountability: This is what conservatives value? Oh, heck just blame it on the liberal media, right?
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JohnBernardBooks says:
No true, Perry said what most Americans know. The liberal media is playing gotcha with these debates. Typical MSM tricks, who knew?
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Kenneth D. Franks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 8:55 am
The liberal media is a for the most part a right wing myth. I consider the afternoon and evening shows on M.S.N.B.C. liberal. From there it goes to the center to the right on the other “cable” networks. Fox is the biggest and the most right wing network on television. Radio is mostly right wing talk also. There is more right wing media than liberal media! The debates are a real reality show and that is why their ratings are so high. They reveal a lot about the candidates. they are helping Obama right now because what they are revealing the poor quality of the field of Republicans.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 9:56 am
“The liberal media is a for the most part a right wing myth”
who knew this?
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:15 am
everyone with a brain cult boy
Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 9:21 am
Debate Schedule
yep, look at all those liberal media outlets sponsering the debates. Fox news, daily caller, Teaparty, Americans for tax reform, Jim DeMint. Just one big liberal “gotcha” factory. I guess your mom’s basement must be a reality free zone, eh cult boy???
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Bill51 Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:26 pm
Perry screwed up at the Fox News debate as much as the CNN debate. It’s not the mainstream media that trip him up, it’s human interaction.
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Gillom Rogers says:
De ja vous all over again…Perry’s calling for Romney to release his tax returns. Gee, I wonder where this is going?
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Gillom Rogers Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 7:10 am
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/1011/Perry_campaign_calls_on_Romney_to_release_tax_returns.html?showall
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Bodhisattva Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:24 am
From Burka’s mouth (laptop?) to God’s ears …
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JohnBernardBooks says:
The debates are like the Tv show survivor, everyone putting someone else down, backstabbing and putdowns. Liberals eat this negative crap up, especially the MSM, who then use it as fodder for their sound bites or blogs.
What they don’t/can’t realize is the grownup see them differently, gleaming small bits of information and ignoring the negative crap.
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 9:09 am
Liberals aren’t watching this clown show you moron. Only nitwit teabaggers like yourself are watching. Don’t blame liberals because all your candidates are complete idiots. Oh that’s right, wingnuts never take responsibility for anything. It’s always someone elses fault. Wah, wah, wah.
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Bill51 Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:28 pm
Presidential elections were the pilot for the TV show survivor. Always have been, always will be. Perry had to know that going in.
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Businessman says:
What this speaks to even more than Perry is the absolute incompetency of the Texas news media.
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Brown Bess Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 8:32 am
MIA
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 9:12 am
Exactly. Perry should have been called out every day by the media for his refusal to debate but instead our crack “liberal media” just would repeat the lazy he said/she said crap about Bill White’s tax returns and continue to run Perry press releases as “news”. They have no one to blame but themselves for being ignored.
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hooah! says:
“Houston Chronicle – October 25, 2011
PERRY FALLS TO FIFTH IN NEW POLL, AHEAD OF ONLY BACHMANN, HUNTSMAN AND SANTORUM ”
…and slipping…and slipping…and slipping….and…
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Distinguished Gentleman says:
Like I said on Monday, it is the candidate himself or herself who makes it or breaks it–not the staff which the candidate hires and fires. Remember the old saying about the inability to create a silk purse from a sow’s ear.
Rick Perry is darn lucky that he has been Governor of Texas longer than any previous Governor (and he is too stupid to realize that fact). He should never have “pushed the envelope” to run for President of the United States. Doing so has exposed his flaws to a national spotlight.
It is a shame that Kay Bailey Hutchison threw herself under the bus in the gubernatorial race 2010. Perry was defeatable–even for the position of Governor and even in the year 2010.
One good thing which might result from all of this is that someone strong challenges him in 2014 for Governor and rids us of him. Perry is a poster child for term limits.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:44 pm
Distinguished Gentleman, Texas will NEVER have term limits.
Perry will NOT even run for governor again in 2014, so Greg Abbott is likely running for the Texas Governor’s Mansion.
You need to move to California and stay there.
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Distinguished Gentleman Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:30 pm
Blue Dogs, you have no assurance that Rick Perry will decline to run for Governor again in 2014. I would not put anything past Perry. If he DOES run for Governor again in 2014, I pray that someone strong opposes him and defeats him. Meanwhile, terms limits would help greatly, although you are probably correct that Texas will never institute term limits. Perhaps it is YOU who should move to California–and remain there.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 27th, 2011 at 1:44 pm
YOU need to move to California (hell, Jerry Brown managed to win a 3rd term by getting around the state’s term limit law).
I’ve been a lifelong Texan all of my life.
Julie says:
Perry has decided not to seek another term as governor if his presidential bid fails.
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Bill Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 8:53 am
But will he seek another term as governor if his presidential bid succeeds??
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:45 pm
Julie, Perry likely made the decision NOT running again in 2014 when he was confronted with the 4th term question back in February 2010.
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Jim says:
Julie, that is interesting but surprising. Do you have a link?
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:25 pm
http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/02/rick-perry-wont-say-if-14-year.html
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patriotone says:
“As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart’s desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.”
H.L. Mencken (1880-1956)
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Vernon Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:43 pm
Very interesting quote, if not somewhat cynical. I’ve always thought the people’s criteria for president (or any elected office) to be so full of contradictions.
- We want someone really smart, but not too smart so we feel dumb by comparison.
- We want someone who’s confident and self assured, but who is also a little humble.
- We want a guy who “goes with his gut”, but who also calmly deliberates.
- We want someone who understands how business works, but not a greedy corporate guy.
- We want a guy with government experience, but not a lifelong politician.
- He must be a guy with bold vision and big plans, but who won’t ask the people for any sacrifice.
- We want someone who can totally relate to the average citizens’ human experience, but we immediately discount anyone who’s had any life’s common experiences like drugs, infidelity or divorce.
The problem is we want someone perfect. We want someone who doesn’t exist with a personality that’s humanly impossible to possess.
Even if Jesus Christ came down from the Heavens to be president, we would be dismissed because he talks about God too much and wants to give handouts to poor people.
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Tracy Weinberg Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:07 pm
Read the novel, American Savior–it is about Jesus returning to Earth and running for President!
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AreYouKiddingMe says:
Mr. 6% (latest poll) telling the American public he shouldn’t debate tells us everything we need to know about this guy. He can’t stand on his own, can’t communicate effectively, can’t think on his feet without handlers telling him what to say, can’t effectively make points regarding policy, etc. Yet more reasons this guy shouldn’t even be allowed near Washington D.C. It is over, Rick. Stop embarrassing yourself, and Texas, and end this nonsense. You make yourself look worse every time you open your mouth…
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retrocon says:
Perry rails on the format of the debates as only seeking to stir things up between the candidates rather than talking about important issues — but Perry has played right into that format, spending nearly any moment he has to attack Romney, even dredging up old, asked-and-answered issues about a landscaping service’s hiring practices.
In the Parade magazine interview, Perry talks about being the target of criticism and then glories in his ability “to play that game”.
Perry aligns himself with the known quantity Rev. Jeffress, and yet he complains that he is unable to participate in a debate and stick to the issues? It’s someone else’s fault?
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anon-p says:
Question – How many unscripted, tear-down debates is a President going to be involved in?
I mean, how relevant is debating skill to the top job, anyway?
It’s not as if we’ve got “Prime Minister’s Questions” here.
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WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:45 pm
I can not even you imagine how poorly any of these guys would do in the UK House of Commons at Prime Minister’s Question time or any other real “debate”…They would all be chased out into the Lobby in 5 minutes….Not even a 515th cousin of Churchill in the group much less a Tony Blair or even a Margaret Thatcher…
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Anonymous says:
anon-p,
I hope you are kidding…if this line of reasoning is a defense please stop it.
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Kenneth D. Franks says:
Debating does show one’s ability to respond to issues in real time, think on your feet, and reveal a little about the intellectual capacities of the candidate. Some people just can’t cut it on a stage with other people.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:01 am
“Debating does show one’s ability to respond to issues in real time” no it doesn’t. The current clueless, inept president is probably good at debating but horrible at being president. Who knew?
Lawyers, professors and the MSM love someone with debating skills. What a chief executive need is communicating skills. A totally different set of skills and one the current president is sorely lacking.
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:21 am
In cult boy’s world, thinking is a liberal plot. Go with your gut man. That’s how the worlds greatest leader, shrub jr. did it. What could go wrong???
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:32 am
“In cult boy’s world, thinking is a liberal plot”
au contraire, no one will ever accuse you of that.
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Tom says:
I hope Perry stays in the race. With the economy the way it is, we need all the cheap entertainment we can get. And besides, we need to find out if his polling numbers can get any lower. Even Ron Paul is running ahead of Perry. Is this a great country, or what.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
Perry got it right, these aren’t real debates but simply entertainment for those who love to put republicans down, much like the format here.
Democrats thrive on putting others down.
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:19 am
Wah, wah, wah. Mom, the mean old liberal media is making my stupid candidates look stupid by showing them trying to speak in complete sentences. Wah, wah, wah.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:22 am
perfect example, thanks
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Mr. Smith Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:26 am
Johnnie. You just put Democrats down for putting Republicans down. You know how stupidfunny that is? Keep blogging clueless wonder. Like in It’s a Wonderful Life, every time you blog, a Democrat gets a campaign contribution.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:29 am
what don’t you democrats like being called out?
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Mr. Smith Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:58 am
I don’t mind being called out. I was just commenting on how stupidfunny your comment was. You are completely unable to be critical of your own, which places the value of your comments at zero. Zero. Like the taxes you’ve paid lately.
JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:37 am
“Like the taxes you’ve paid lately”
dms don’t like being called out but love taxing republicans. Says it all
Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:26 am
Repiglicans thrive on blaming others for their problems.
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Cow Droppings Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 5:38 pm
what do you think the constant use of that pejorative accomplishes? Do you think it wins people over to your way of thinking? “Gosh, I think I will vote for more Democrats because the Democrats do a good job of calling Republicans pigs.”
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Anonymous says:
“Stage fright” is no reason to deny this great and godly man the high office for which he was born.
Moses was slow of speech as well.
http://bible.cc/exodus/4-10.htm
God’s Own Party must install for us a Godly President to preside over the Armageddon He is impatiently waiting for one of His human agents to carry out.
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retrocon Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:12 pm
That makes three ways Perry and Moses are alike:
1) Call began with a burning bush.
2) Was/is slow of speech.
3) In the end, someone else leads the people into the promised land.
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7th Generation Texan says:
Yeah, but with Moses, you didn’t have to pay to play. No golden calf for him.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
Perry’s tax plan is hitting home runs with those in the know, from the American Enterprise Institute.
“If a President Perry could balance the federal budget by 2020 and cap spending at 18 percent of GDP — and if you buy the JDA analysis — the result would be a more financially stable America and a richer America than the current economic and budgetary trajectory would indicate.”
Perry’s plan stimulates growth, while cutting taxes, increasing money to Gvmt coffers, strapped by gvmt employee pensions..
Bad news, huh libs?
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ghostofann Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:07 am
“Perry’s plan stimulates growth, while cutting taxes, increasing money to Gvmt coffers, strapped by gvmt employee pensions..”
This statement makes no sense whatsoever.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:39 am
I know, how many democrats do you know got it?
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:07 am
Plus ponies and rainbows for EVERYONE!!
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Bodhisattva says:
I recall that, after the sheer venal depravity of the Nixon White House became known, bumper stickers appeared say, “Don’t Blame Me I Voted For McGovern.” I wonder if some enterprising soul is designing a “Don’t Blame Me I Voted For Bill White” bumper sticker as we speak.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:47 am
I bet you can get more for a “don’t blame me I didn’t vote for Obama” sticker.
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anita Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:05 pm
That’s a double negative, fool.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:26 pm
I was a joke idiot
Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:32 pm
truer words have never been spoken. but don’t sell yourself short cult boy. you’re still a joke.
JohnBernardBooks says:
Student loans are now the second biggest debt in the US following behind home mortgages.
Pres Obama’s powergrab during his early days as he moved all student loans under guvmt control, now becomes apparent. His new policies on student loans as announced yesterday. The gvmt will decide who’s loans are forgiven, both student and home mortgages.
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Anonymous says:
My guess is after getting through the interview with O’Reilly in relatively good shape, Perry now would like to switch his media strategy to eschew the debates and just do one-on-one interviews with selected TV news people. And I can see Allbaugh trying to explain to him why that option is a non-starter.
You can’t be like a college or high school coach football coach who bypasses tough teams in the pre-conference/pre-district part of the schedule in order to build up the win totals before the serious games begin. Perry can’t just throw his tax plan out there and then not go to the debates and defend his tax plan, the same way Herman Cain’s had to defend 9-9-9 in the last two Republican debates. It’s what the Republican primary voters are going to expect of Perry, if he wants to have a hope of winning them back again.
You can have a crappy debate performance and survive if people are happy with your record in office (nobody had a crappier debate performance than George W. Bush in El Paso back in October ’98 against Garry Mauro, and that held down his victory margin in the November election to a scant 49 percent because people in Texas were happy with the job he had done. Perry hasn’t done any job for the people in 49 states and he’s lost support because he couldn’t articulate at the first debates what he would do for them if elected president. The answer to winning them back is to articulate a vision at the debates between now and January, not don’t do the debates at all and hunt around for softball journalists to schmooze for the next 70 days).
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:46 pm
Anon, Bush Jr., got 69 percent of the statewide vote in 1998, he also carried 240 out of 254 counties.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_gubernatorial_election,_1998
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Anonymous Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:11 pm
Which is what the sentence says — the 49 percent was the victory margin — i.e. Bush beat Mauro by 49 percent, 69-20.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
Perry continues to ignore the Soros funded MSM.
Perry says Texans know me, they don’t need the Burka/Morrow blog telling them how to think.
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ghostofann Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:12 am
Yeah, Texans know him. A lot of them, to their credit, also know that he’s an even bigger empty suit than his predecessor.
But it’s not Texans who Perry needs to win over (most of them will vote for whomever has the letter “R” after their name anyway). Perry has to win over the hoopleheads in the other 49 states, JBB, and on that front he is failing miserably.
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Nick says:
This whole Perry campaign should make Texans take a long look in the mirror, but they won’t. Self-reflection isn’t really a trait most Texans possess. I’m not from here, but am married to one. When Rick Perry announced, my in-laws from Tyler were like “He’s great, everyone loves Texas and Rick Perry’s been a great governor. Plus he’s handsome.” I was like, “people in the rest of the country don’t really think Texas is all that great.” I mean, people in Texas really do live in a bubble. They think the whole world is looking at Texas as if it’s some paradise. I was at this Tea Party rally last year, and this woman came up to me with Rick Perry literature and said, “You’re voting for Perry, here’s some buttons and stuff.” I was like, “I’m not voting for that guy” and it was like she couldn’t believe it, that I disagreed with her. Conformity is the name of the game here in this state, and everyone else knows it but Texans. Sad.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
“Self-reflection isn’t really a trait most Texans possess.”
I’m telling you can’t make this stuff up.
Obviously the poster never heard of Matthew Mcconaughey playing the bongos naked while getting stoned and staring at his navel.
Yep it happened in Austin Tx, home of the self reflecting navel starers.
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Nick says:
You’re proving my point, bro. The idea that self-reflection is something that sissies or hippies do is typical of this place.
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Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:05 am
you’ll have to forgive cult boy. He’s not too quick on the up take.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:11 am
here in Texas we drink beer and deer hunt, and if you sleep with another man everyone calls you gayboy. I know, I know life ain’t fair.
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Nick Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:17 am
See, more of that conformity I was talking about. Where I’m from (Maryland) we don’t say stuff like “here in Maryland, we…”
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:23 am
exactly, you’re not in Maryland you’re in Texas. You can assimulate or remain an outsider.
Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:29 am
in other words, check your brain at the border.
JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:42 pm
“in other words, check your brain at the border.”
want feedback on how thats working for you?
hooah! Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:28 pm
“JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:26 pm
I was a joke idiot”
Well, you were right ONCE today….
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:36 pm
typo liberals won. Its good to let the liberals win once in a while.
John Johnson says:
If Perry were as good as Romney has become at debating, he would be all for them. Anyone debating this statement? JBB?
What I am also seeing is that, unlike Romney and Gingrich, Perry and Cain aren’t really “complete” candidates in the sense that important facts, figures, names, and knowledge on any given poltical subject are not there in their craniums for quick recall.
How they perform is based on their ability to quickly memorize facts and figures, and how good the handlers are who are providing these facts and figures. What we get in Perry and Cain are talking heads…a State Fair Big Tex type figure who spits out words that are pumped through them.
And like Big Tex, if you ask them questions when their “brains” are not standing right behind them and whispering in their ears, you get jibberish.
Romney and Newt have enough experience and intelligence…Romney in the business world and Gringrich in politics…to carry themselves well and make decisions and comments without prompting or teleprompters.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:27 am
“And like Big Tex, if you ask them questions when their “brains” are not standing right behind them and whispering in their ears, you get jibberish.”
you ain’t getting it. In Texas a man is judged by his character, what he’s made of, not by what he’s wearing or how he speaks. Once again style vs substance.
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The Mustache That Dare Not Speak Its Name Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:06 pm
Absolutely true. And that’s why here in Texas, JBB is looked down upon by pretty much everyone he meets, including other Republicans. That’s also why he overcompensates the way he does on the comment pages of this blog.
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Nick Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:32 pm
Well, I thank him for confirming my stereotypes that Texans are incapable of thinking for themselves. Cheers! It’s nice to be confirmed every once in a while.
Col. Mike Kirby Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:41 pm
you realize that part of “substance” is being able to speak in non-jibberish. It’s called jibberish because it makes no sense, because there is nothing in Perry’s empty head. That equals no substance. Even someone as dense as you should be able to figure that out.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:37 pm
“you realize that part of “substance” is being able to speak in non-jibberish”
how fascinating, please enlighten us.
JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:45 pm
Texans don’t have to think for themseves they have liberals who do that for them, and tell them what to eat, how to speak etc etc etc.
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Nick says:
The kind of self reflection I’m talking about is why Republicans nationally seem to be rejecting Perry, and why Texas Republicans can’t understand why this happening. I think it’s about conformity. In Texas, if you’re not a Republican, then you’re the enemy (and you only live in Austin, and/or you are a minority). If you are a Republican, then you have to support the guy we tell you to support. But people in other places aren’t as conformist as Texans are. Or maybe it’s deference to authority. Texans are amazingly deferential to authority (see the criminal justice system).
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:23 am
“The kind of self reflection I’m talking about is why Republicans nationally seem to be rejecting Perry”
turn off the MSM.
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paulburka Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:17 pm
JBB — You have exceeded any reasonable quota of comments in this thread. I don’t think it is fair to the other commenters to allow you to dominate the discussion. I’m going to request that you not get in these prolonged discussions that lead nowhere.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:46 pm
but I love the Burka/morrow blog
JohnBernardBooks says:
“If Perry were as good as Romney has become at debating, he would be all for them”
Romney is a rich unemployeed professional politician from the Northeast who has plenty of time to practice his debating skills. If he was any good he’d have a job instead of constantly looking for one.
Perry is too busy running the state to spend time polishing his “profession politician skills package”, like Newt and Romney.
You dems got you’re “he looks presidential guy” in Obama, hows that working out for you?
If you’re happy, then thats good and we’ll see you Nov 2012.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
You democrats don’t get it. You’re primaries are about race, gender and sexual orientation. Looks are more important than if the candidates can lead or execute.
Republicans place more value on issues and leadership.
I know I know its silly.
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Anonymous says:
In Texas the Governor does not run the state, JBB. You might want to consider boning up on your civics lessons. Dumb statements quickly cancel out anything meaningful….
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 11:52 am
ahh now you got me. So tell us who does Mexico?
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:48 pm
The Lieutenant Governor and Speaker both run Texas state government.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:57 pm
“The Lieutenant Governor and Speaker both run Texas state government” and you believe that?
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:22 pm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lieutenant_Governors_of_Texas
JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:29 pm
your link says it all
Tom says:
“Republicans place more value on issues and leadership.”
So that’s why Perry is polling nationally at 6%? Got it.
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John Johnson says:
I usually don’t get into debates with you, JBB, because you are locked in and nothing I could ever print here is going to change your mind, but I just want to respond….
In Texas, a man is judged by a perception that a man has character, not by the fact that he really doesn’t. Talking up your Christianity while allowing false ads to run does not show character;
appointing cronies to positions instead of people who can do the best job does not show character; taking advantage of loopholes that everyone knows should be illegal does not show character. Perry is a character; he does not have character.
Romney made his millions in the business world. Perry made his million in politics…with the help of “friends”. Surely, you don’t want to go there.
I’m not a Dem, and I don’t think that Obama looks “presidential”. He looks more like a Mr. Rogers type to me.
Lot’s of Repub’s just don’t like Big Rick (I think this is a good name for him since he and Big Tex are not capable of speaking or debating without someone else putting the words in their mouths) because he is the Peter Principle personified.
I know this is hard for you to accept. You are an honorable soldier and fully willing to take one for the Big Rick team, I am convinced. You’re going to have to. New “handlers” aren’t going to be able to put Humpty back together again.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:04 pm
“I’m not a Dem”, yes you are. But I understand if you’re ashamed to admit it.
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Nick Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:35 pm
Hey JBB, in Texas only blacks, mexicans, and fags are Democrats, right?
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:47 pm
“Hey JBB, in Texas only blacks, mexicans, and fags are Democrats, right”
spoken like a true democrat
John Johnson Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:36 pm
No, I’m not. Are, too. No, I’m not. Yes, you are.
What kind of dialogue is this????? 3rd grade… or was it 2nd? I would have expected a better retort, JBB. I’m truly disappointed.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
Mitt Romney 23%
Rick Perry 19%
Herman Cain 17%
How many of you Bozos have even seen this poll, let alone know who did it. Its the ONLY one that counts.
As I’ve stated previously its a 3 man race. Romney represents the NE liberals, Perry the moderates and Cain the Tea Party, the three groups that make up the rerpublican party.
One will win the republican primary, all three can beat Obama.
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paulburka Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:42 pm
JBB — If you have a link to this poll, please post it. Otherwise, I am not going to allow the mention of this poll to remain in your post. I’m not going to have the blog’s reputation, such as it is, sullied by an unsourced poll.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:47 pm
its on the pront page of Fix News. heard of them?
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hooah! Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:31 pm
The man said provide a link. Either do it or STFU.
JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:38 pm
“Either do it or STFU.”
wow panties in a wad?
John Johnson Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:44 pm
Big Rick, moderate??????? Where did you pull this out of? Since he stubbed his toe and had TP’ers boo’ing him…and since he let Cain pull the looney’s away from him…he is now a “moderate”?
Not going to work. We don’t want him.
It would also help if you named the poll, JBB. People will think it was the results of a poll taken with just your family members contributing since it has no name and you said it was the only one that counts.
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ghostofann Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:47 pm
“Its the ONLY one that counts.”
You mean it’s the ONLY one you like because it’s the ONLY one that tells you what you want to hear, right JBB?
I’m curious what poll that was, btw.
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paulburka Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:08 pm
Re the poll posted by JBB, above, on October 26 at 12:02 p.m.:
It took me awhile, but I found it. The numbers are correct, but there is one itty bitty problem. The date of the poll was September 28, and that is eons ago in Perrytime.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:49 pm
only if you live and die by the daily polls like democrats do. Once a month is sufficient for a trend.
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Jerry Only Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:31 pm
holy god. youve made yourself look like an idiot multiple times here, but never this badly.
WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:58 pm
Sorry, JBB, but that is exactly what the pollsters thought in 1948..and why they stopped polling 10 days to two weeks before the election…That is also why the Chicago Tribune had a slightly misleading headline the morning after the election…If a campaign can afford it, they are doing tracking polling virtually daily and going back to the same panels to see how things are developing….Counting the bags of popcorn sold in movie theaters with the candidates’ names on them does not work…as it did not in 1948..Polling and tracking have come a long way since then…but your understand of what it all means apparently has not.
JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:18 pm
I know you’re serious, but you’re a fool to think the MSM doesn’t influence with polls.
Turn off CNN.
Anon. says:
Looks like Perry’s new team is already trying to pull him out of crazy-ville: he said in an interview to a Florida paper that he believes President Obama is a US Citizen and that he opposes the Confederate flag license plates.
http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/content/rick-perry-obama-american-citizen
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Robert Morrow Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:42 pm
I am for the Confederate flag license plates and I am not crazy. It’s called “freedom.”
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paulburka Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:10 pm
Robert — I don’t think that being for the flag license plate on libertarian grounds is crazy. Perry’s problem is that he also has the rock at the hunting club to deal with.
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Cow Droppings Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:57 pm
Paul, I’m not sure how you missed the most glaring aspect of Morrow’s statement: “…and I am not crazy.”
JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:51 pm
There is no confederate flag license plate.
Its a logo of the sons of confederate soldiers.
Yeah I know its called facts.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:22 pm
Robert, you’re NUTS if you think supporting the Confederate flag will go well with folks who are people of color.
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WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:18 pm
Today I think those of us with Confederate ancestors who are reluctant to admit that they may have been on the “wrong side” (at least in moral terms) in the Civil War might be able to get a little solace from the words of Gen. Ulysses S. Grant describing his feelings when he received word that Gen. Robert E. Lee was ready to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia to Grant’s Union forces:
“I felt like anything rather than rejoicing at the downfall of a foe who had fought so long and valiantly, and had suffered so much for a cause, though that cause was, I believe, one of the worst for a people ever fought, and one for which there was the least excuse. I do not question, however, the sincerity of the great mass of those who opposed us.”
WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:33 pm
Unfortunately JBB, I never watch either CNN or Fox….Nor do I suffer from HASDD, as you apparently do.
Historical Attention Span Deficit Disorder (HASDD) “Short-termism has been the distinguishing intellectual vice of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.” says Christopher Andrew
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:40 pm
“Unfortunately JBB, I never watch either CNN or Fox….Nor do I suffer from HASDD, as you apparently do.”
you’re a dr?
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Anonymous says:
We might all need to take a poll on both of these points, Robert. I’m voting #1 – Against, and #2 – Yes you are.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 12:48 pm
Go ahead – take a poll …
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Bill says:
Regarding the UPDATE: if Perry drops much further in the polls, he won’t have to worry about any more debates: HE WON’T BE INVITED!! He’ll be sitting at home with Gary Johnson.
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Anonymous says:
Other than getting his act together at the debates and staying focused on 2-3 core issues without sidetracking himself with glib-but-ill-advised asides, Perry’s best bet right now is to take his strength at retail politics and basically become Iowa’s long-term guest between now and January 3.
He’s got to be able to gin up turnout at the caucuses and have a strong finish, if not win in Iowa, in order to get over the likely drubbing he’s going to take in New Hampshire and bridge to the southern state primaries. Perry’s fortunate to have enough cash on hand to push turnout in Iowa and that Iowa tends to be more about retail politics, but he’s not going to change the narrative among the voters he’s got to have but who he’s lost to Cain over the past three weeks if he decides that, instead of doing the debates and no interviews, he’s only going to do soft interviews and no debates after Michigan. He’s no longer playing from a position of strength and if he’s to come back with the GOP base riding on his touting of the flat tax plan, he’s going have to be willing to explain and defend that plan face-to-face against the other candidates.
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Whoa Nellie! says:
That Perry is a piece of work. Not only arrogant and self-sbsorbed, but at his core a weak and weasely girly-man, afraid of his rivals. Perhaps this stripping bare of his essence will give some of his zombified Texas constituency cause to re-think their continued support for his reign of error as governor-for-life.
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Blue Dogs Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 1:49 pm
You mean dictatorship right ?
Louisiana didn’t have a problem electing a corrupt criminal in Edwin Edwards 4 times as governor.
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WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:01 pm
But at least Edwards was truly entertaining…Let the good times roll!
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Tom says:
So, in hindsight, in looking at JBB’s poll numbers, Perry was near the top of the polls, until he opened his mouth. And then every time he opened his mouth, he dropped more. And has ever since. At least he figured out his problem. Just don’t ever say anything ever again.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:00 pm
only if you’re a democrats that lives for polls. Most polls by the MSM are skewed at best, to make news.
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Anonymous Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 2:38 pm
Don’t worry about it, JBB. Just cover your ears and go “Blah, blah, Blah” real loud and those nasty polls will exist. Who cares what those mean old voters think about your guy. They are irrelevant. Your own reality is good enough.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:24 pm
Voters? Did I hear voters? When a poll consists of “likely voters” and is split 50/50 R&D its has a chance of being somewhat telling.. When it a poll that says “adults” or is skewed toward the R or D its totally meaningless.
Learn about polling and turn of the MSM. Goodness do you people really believe Katie Couric, Dan Rather, Rachel Madcow and Keith Doberman?
ghostofann Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:29 pm
But JBB, didn’t those numbers you gave us come from YOUR outlet of MSM, Fox News? Can’t find anything more recent from them, or is it because that poll back in Sept gave you the only and last bit of good news for YOUR candidate?
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anita says:
I needed to take some time before commenting on Perry’s latest admission, a moment of lucid clarity. At first, I didn’t believe that he’d make such a statement, until I pulled his comments, and I wanted to understand the context.
Stating that debating was a mistake is akin to announcing disdain for the American electorate. Being involved in a campaign is about presenting yourself to the voters, allowing you to hear them and them to hear you. Debates have been the most fundamental element about campaigning for the presidency.
It’s one thing for him to say he’s disappointed in his performance, or the like — but to simply announce that you regret participating in debates demonstrates a fundamental disconnect with the electorate and the role of the presidency. It demonstrates a lack of respect toward voters.
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texun says:
I’m really sorry to see this website tank, but Paul has let JBB take it over. Now it has become a waste of time. Bye.
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WUSRPH says:
Now that we got all that out of the way…Let us get back to serious things:
The Birds in 7.
Robin Roberts pitched 305 COMPLETE GAMES and won more than 20 during 5 seasons..including 28 one season…He pitched until he was 39. Match that!
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Anonymous Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:02 pm
Roberts was one of the best. Here’s another one…Nolan Ryan is the all-time leader in no-hitters with seven, three more than any other pitcher. He is tied with Bob Feller for most one-hitters, with 12. Ryan also pitched 18 two-hitters. 222 complete games. Pitched until he was 46. The last pitch he threw, which tore a tendon, was clocked at 98 mph.
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WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:32 pm
Unfortunately Roberts never pitched a no-hitter..I personally saw him pitch 3 one-hitters, but that is as close as he got. Two of the 3 were the first two games he pitched in his short-term stay with the half-Astros at the end of his career. Both were SELLOUTS in the Dome. (The first one I saw was in 1960 in the old Candlestick Park in SF (cold,cold,cold in July)…It was a no-hitter, but the first baseman in the 9th inning bobbled the ball and the GD scorer called it a hit!
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John Johnson Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 5:54 pm
I got to go to a ’59 WS game between the Dodgers and White Sox at the L.A. Coliseum. Kofax, Drysdale, Snider, Hodges, Wills, Nellie Fox….
g.oeuf says:
Paul, maybe a rule of 3 comments per person per thread should be sufficient to allow for an intelligent exchange of ideas. Anything beyond that gets into ranting, JBB style. He’s ruining this blog. (which is probably his intent) I miss the old days when the commentary was as intelligent as Paul’s original posts.
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JohnBernardBooks says:
cheese with that whine libs?
Last week you guys wanted Burka to ban Morrow.
Here’s the deal you don’t read my posts and I promise they won’t offend your lack of tolerance.
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ghostofann says:
JBB, it’s not that people can’t “tolerate” folks like you. It’s that you have nothing constructive to add to the conversation. I think it is safe to bet that even other conservatives reading and commenting on this blog think that you’re a moron.
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:41 pm
then don’t READ them moron
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Businessman says:
Paul, as of 3:33 p.m. JBB has made 40 comments, some partially useful, most simply pathetic rants. If you are not willing to dismiss him, it’s painfully obvious that those of us who would like to have a discussion must now simply ignore him.
He’s only doing this kind of garbage to get a rise out of the group. Maybe if no one speaks back to him, he’ll leave the attic, take a bath, and go outside for a change.
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José Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 3:50 pm
Excellent suggestion. A few others have already adopted this practice. There is nothing to gain from firing back at someone who has nothing of substance to add to the discussion.
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WUSRPH says:
I think JBB has a good idea..We all agree NOT to read his posts and certainly NOT TO RESPOND…That way he will soon grow tired (we can hope) of being ignored and will go someplace else to see what he can stir up…He appears to be one of those people who just will do almost anything to get a reaction…No reaction..No JBB…(PS You can do the same to me if you think it is necessary)..>But I still say Birds in 7.
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John Johnson Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:03 pm
Two days ago, you were chirpping “6″.
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WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:22 pm
One lousy hit is the only difference between the Birds in 6 and he Birds in 7….They can not keep walking you know who forever.
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John Johnson Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 5:07 pm
Why not? Part of the game…primarily the NL game you love so much….and reducing what happened to one hit is not painting the whole picture. The throw outs at second, the “they didn’t understand me in the bullpen”, and couple of great Ranger defensive plays all deserve mention.
Cow Droppings Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 5:41 pm
and the best part is, now that the series is delayed a day, Wash can throw Holland in game 7 if he needs him.
John Johnson Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 7:00 pm
Can’t say that that doesn’t concern me a bit, CD…young Derek has pulled some good Jekyll and Hyde’s recently. Love him, but never know who is going to show up.
Anonymous says:
Nothing constructive to add and clearly nothing better to do.
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houtopia says:
If Perry and Romney get locked in a struggle to the death, this does not bode well for the eventual nominee, which is likely to be one of the two of them.
Do they do so much damage to each other during the primaries that it mortally wounds the eventual nominee?
I’m not sure Perry’s plan to preemptively nuke Romney is a good strategy. Why not just gently feed info on Cain to the press instead, and let the media take him apart? Perry would have a decent chance at winning back Cain’s soft supporters, who clearly don’t like Romney.
The Obama people have got to be hoping for the death struggle. That, and some job growth.
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Anonymous says:
Perry’s biggest mistake was not the debates, it was running for POTUS.
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Vernon says:
I’ll be the one to say this. Ignore him. Ignore him because he wants you to respond to his taunts. He loves it when you respond. He baits all of you and you bite on it. It thrills and validates him.
Stop responding lest you wish to tickle his fancy.
And I’m not referring to Paul Burka here. (I’m all for tickling Paul’s fancy.) I’m referring to “you-know-who”.
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Mr. Smith Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 6:06 pm
I agree, Vernon. I take the pledge.
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paulburka Reply:
October 27th, 2011 at 6:19 am
I have issued a warning to JBB that he cannot hijack the comments session. I will send his comments to trash if he continues to try to dominate the conversation, like the kid in the third grade who puts his hand up to try to answer every question.
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Businessman says:
Anyway, new CNN/Time polls from Fla., NH, Iowa and SC are out.
http://swampland.time.com/topline-results-of-oct-20-25-2011-cnntimeorc-poll/
I’ll put it this way…..Perry’s slip is showing.
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WUSRPH says:
In violation of my own suggestion—One LAST response to JBB:
You seem fixated on the idea that the media (MSM and others, including such things as this Blog) influence public opinion and, particularly, polls….Big deal…What else is new?
Many things including the media influence polling—including your comments to your neighbor who spreads them to his colleagues at work, one of whom gets called by a pollster. That is how public opinion is created and, yes, shaped.
What is important is that this all falls under the First Rule of Politics: Perception is more important than reality……
Rick Perry may be the best thing since sliced bread; he may be THE ANSWER to all of America’s problems; perhaps he should be the next president of the US…However, if the public becomes convinced that he is some sort of an ignorant, arrogant big-mounted lightweight…Than the result is that what he becomes to the voters and that is why they will not support him….
You can hurl insults at all those (very many) who disagree with you. You can yell “facts”, “facts”, “facts” and “it ain’t true” all you want…If a candidate has picked up the image is not up to being president; nothing you can do and will do is going to change that….
Perry is certainly not the first candidate who has suffered from this reality, nor will he be the last.
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Businessman Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:22 pm
You couldn’t resist it, could you ?
Fish. Barrel. Shoot.
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Businessman Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:23 pm
Sorry, should have been a grin in that last message!
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WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:25 pm
I promise to be good in the future. Especially if the Birds win…as I am not one of those who says: “I told you so” (more than 2,000 times).
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JohnBernardBooks Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 4:45 pm
well I’m glad you see things my way.
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John Johnson Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 5:09 pm
Lay low for awhile, Lone Ranger. This is Tonto speaking to you.
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WUSRPH Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 5:11 pm
And please no whining about “liberal media” doing evil to “conservative candidates”….I am certain that George McGovern, Gary Hart, Jimmy Cater, Adlai Stevenson and even B. Obama and many other Democrats back to James G. Blaine and before would disagree with that idea!…..As would folks on the other side like John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Winfield Scott, Herbert Hoover, Jerry Ford, Thomas A. Dewey and so on….All of whom in one way or another shared the same fate of being rejected by the voters because of their public image…whether valid or not. (LAST TIME FOR SURE!)
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Anonymous Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 5:53 pm
Don’t forget Edmund Muskie…
WUSRPH says:
Game 6 has been postponed because of rain in SL. This means I will have to postpone my celebration until Friday night….
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Julie Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 5:37 pm
You’ll have to celebrate the Rangers winning the World Series.
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John Johnson Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 6:02 pm
No need to change your plans for Friday. There won’t be anymore baseball this year after tomorrow night. Betcha a Marichal, M. Alou and McCovey card against your Moose Skowron, Bobby Richardson and Clete Boyer.
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ghostofann says:
No more feeding trolls from me.
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Kenneth D. Franks says:
Perry’s mistake was not debating previous candidates enough. Bill White would have won any debate with Perry. That is a personal opinion, but as I have written before it might not have cost Perry the election. Avoiding previous debates is now a big weakness for him.
I’ve watched some of the baseball World Series and would like to see the Rangers win but as Yogi Berra said, “It ain’t over till it is over.”
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Anonymous Reply:
October 26th, 2011 at 10:24 pm
As I posted above, Mauro killed Bush in the 1998 debate in El Paso, but it didn’t matter, because Texas voters in 1998 were happy with the job Bush had done (working with Bullock) and Mauro ended up losing by a 49-point margin.
Perry wasn’t going to win 69-20 last year, but even if he had debated White and lost, odds are pretty high he still would have won re-election, because he had a 10-year record, state voters looked at how Texas was faring in 2010, looked at the other 49 states and decided Rick may be kind of meh, but it wasn’t time to rock the boat.
The lesson Team Perry took out of the win though, was that debates don’t matter, if you run your campaign through new media and avoid the regular press. They really believed that rolling out a candidate to voters in the other 49 states who had only the most superficial knowledge of Perry’s 10 years as Texas governor, could be done in the same way as their campaign against White. That was the asinine part, because the debates were going to introduce Rick Perry to Republican voters in the other 49 states whether he liked it or not.
Since Republican voters are pretty meh about all their candidates, Perry can still come back, and he does at least have someone on staff now who has a clue about running a national election. But the jury’s still out on whether Perry has the discipline to be focused on his main issues and to learn them and other key facts well enough to do well at the next few debates outside of his full Mitt Romney attack mode.
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WUSRPH says:
Unfortunately—in a pattern I would follow thruout my life of misjudging future opportunites–I discarded my bb cards when I was a young adult back about the time the SL Browns won the pennant.(Don’t ask who? or when?..look it up)…But one STAN MUSIAL would be worth more than all of those…)
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rw says:
Congratulations to most of you! We can save a lot of money, time and effort by bypassing the primaries and the election. Thanks to a series of TV debates – there is no need to nominate any Republican – none of them are qualified. So let’s us all re-elect the President because he will run unopposed. A lot of elections in this country are decided this way anyway.
The next four years look promising. Gas prices should double or triple again. Unemployment should stay at 9% – 10%. The debt should go up by 5 trillion. Iran will cause Iraq problems. Obamacare will lead to doctor rationing and sky-high prices. Our taxes will go up.
Of course those problems are nothing compared to what’s happening in Texas. We’ve got a real bunch of incompetents running this state – We’re not smart enough to deficit spend. Our governor is incapable of giving interviews or debating. Who cares about actual governing?
I’m looking forward to four more years. The future is bright.
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paulburka says:
Oh, we deficit spend all right. We pay for highways with general obligation bonds, the most expensive means possible. We issued $12 billion in bonds to “cure” cancer. And what has that yielded? Where is the oversight report on how the money has been used? Our “pay as you go” budget is a joke. We budgeted money we don’t have. And we call it conservative, because we don’t raise taxes–as if debt service isn’t a tax.
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WUSRPH says:
And we push paying the bills for services (such as payroll) actually provided and goods purschased in one fiscal year over to the next fiscal year…That way we can say we spent less in the first year. (I have to plead guilty to having had a hand–small and large–in a few of these smoke and mirror budget schemes…They seemed to be “good ideas” at the time…basically because that was what the boss wanted..)
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WUSRPH says:
THE BIRDS IN 7!
Cardinals error themselves into a 7th game.
Altho I am happy tonight…I must admit that this is not the kind of baseball I was raised to believe was the BEST….In my family a GREAT GAME was a 3 to 2 PITCHER’S DUEL…not a 10 to 9 slugfest…However, I will take the win anyway I can get it…
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WUSRPH says:
The Birds in 7!
The Cardinals Win the World Series
And they did it the way it should be done—-with PITCHING
that shut the Rangers down and kept them down.
That’s Baseball the Way it is Supposed to Be!
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