Slappy Statist Candidates for US President 2016

[Chef Ramsay]

Jeb Bush’s tie to fugitive goes against business-savvy image he promotes

Jeb Bush was a young man building a real estate business in Miami in 1985 when health-care entrepreneur Miguel Recarey Jr. hired him to help locate office space in South Florida.

Bush, then the son of the vice president, later provided another service: opening doors in Washington, where Recarey had mounted an aggressive lobbying effort for a waiver from Medicare rules that would allow his fast-growing company to continue to expand.

Recarey got what he wanted. But two years later, the firm, International Medical Centers, was shut down as regulators searched for millions in missing federal funds. Facing charges of bribery and bilking Medicare, Recarey fled the country to avoid prosecution. He remains a fugitive in Spain, where a court denied U.S. requests for extradition.

The Recarey case illustrates aspects of Bush’s business record that are likely to resurface as he moves closer to a campaign for president. Time and again, he benefited from his family name and connections to land a consulting deal or board membership, sometimes doing business with people and companies that would later run afoul of the law.

In the case of Recarey, Bush has said over the years that he “made one call” to a mid-level official to seek a fair deal for a Florida businessman.

But new interviews and a review of congressional testimony show that Bush engaged in multiple calls on Recarey’s behalf to senior administration officials — and that his advocacy made a difference.

One recipient of Bush’s outreach on behalf of Recarey, C. McClain Haddow, then the chief of staff to the secretary of health and human services, Margaret Heckler, told The Washington Post that hearing from the vice president’s son “certainly altered the trajectory of the decision.”

More...http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/jeb-bushs-tie-to-fugitive-cuts-against-savvy-business-image-he-promotes/2015/03/18/0a627a84-c804-11e4-b2a1-bed1aaea2816_story.html

[Chef Ramsay]

Walker’s Pandering Problem

Carney is especially worried about Walker’s willingness to yield to lobbying and business interests in the GOP because these are responsible for the party’s extensive problem with crony capitalism. It is also easy to imagine the same thing happening on other issues involving other entrenched interests. As Carney says, this isn’t just a matter of Walker’s pandering as a candidate. It likely tells us something important about how he would govern if he were elected president:

But when the Wall Street lobbyists ask for special favors, or the manufacturers demand their subsidies — what do you think Walker will do?

More...http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/walkers-pandering-problem/

[Chef Ramsay]

Hillary Clinton: ‘We Really Need Camps for Adults’

As I have gotten older, I have decided we really need camps for adults. And we need adults camps that you all run. Really. None of the serious stuff. None of the life-challenging stuff… more fun. I think we have a huge fun deficit in America. And we need to figure out how to fill that fun deficit, certainly for our kids but also for the rest of us. We need some [garbled] from time to time, maybe some enrichment, certainly some time outdoors. Maybe actually spending time with people that we didn’t know before.

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/03/19/hillary-clinton-proposes-we-really-need-camps-for-adults/

LOL, state sponsored "fun camps" for adults of all things. Once again she knows what's best for people and stands there lecturing the numb nuts that adore her. Back in the 90s when Bill was president she came out with this mantra that it ''takes a village to raise a child" insinuating that the collective should have a say in one's parenting and now fast forward to this.

[Bit_Happy]

Hillary Clinton: ‘We Really Need Camps for Adults’

As I have gotten older, I have decided we really need camps for adults. And we need adults camps that you all run. Really. None of the serious stuff. None of the life-challenging stuff… more fun. I think we have a huge fun deficit in America. And we need to figure out how to fill that fun deficit, certainly for our kids but also for the rest of us. We need some [garbled] from time to time, maybe some enrichment, certainly some time outdoors. Maybe actually spending time with people that we didn’t know before.

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/03/19/hillary-clinton-proposes-we-really-need-camps-for-adults/

LOL, state sponsored "fun camps" for adults of all things. Once again she knows what's best for people and stands there lecturing the numb nuts that adore her. Back in the 90s when Bill was president she came out with this mantra that it ''takes a village to raise a child" insinuating that the collective should have a say in one's parenting and now fast forward to this.

Camps for adults are the next big thing!
Will there be special camps for Libertarians?
I am thinking "the greater good" will be enhanced if I get some re-education.

[Chef Ramsay]

Hillary Clinton: ‘We Really Need Camps for Adults’

As I have gotten older, I have decided we really need camps for adults. And we need adults camps that you all run. Really. None of the serious stuff. None of the life-challenging stuff… more fun. I think we have a huge fun deficit in America. And we need to figure out how to fill that fun deficit, certainly for our kids but also for the rest of us. We need some [garbled] from time to time, maybe some enrichment, certainly some time outdoors. Maybe actually spending time with people that we didn’t know before.

http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/03/19/hillary-clinton-proposes-we-really-need-camps-for-adults/

LOL, state sponsored "fun camps" for adults of all things. Once again she knows what's best for people and stands there lecturing the numb nuts that adore her. Back in the 90s when Bill was president she came out with this mantra that it ''takes a village to raise a child" insinuating that the collective should have a say in one's parenting and now fast forward to this.

Camps for adults are the next big thing!
Will there be special camps for Libertarians?
I am thinking "the greater good" will be enhanced if I get some re-education.

You guessed exactly what my thoughts were on this situation. The greater good isn't or shouldn't be part of my life, glad you see the same. The garbage goes on, BH. You're one of my favorite here.

[Chef Ramsay]

Hillary Clinton staffs up in New Hampshire

Hillary Rodham Clinton has lined up three Democratic staffers credited with helping Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) win re-election last fall to lead the emerging Clinton campaign operation in that state, Democratic officials said.

Clinton is expected to formally announce her presidential campaign next month, but top staff are already unofficially on the job in at least two states with early primaries, as well as in New York City where Clinton plans to house her campaign headquarters.

In New Hampshire, which has the nation’s second nominating contest, Democrats familiar with the hires said Clinton has selected Mike Vlacich, who ran Shaheen’s 2014 reelection, to be the state director. Harrell Kirstein, who was Shaheen’s 2014 communications director, will reprise that role for Clinton, and Shaheen political director Kari Thurman will be a senior political aide in New Hampshire, the Democrats said.

Democrats who confirmed the hires asked not to be identified because Clinton has not yet announced her candidacy.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/03/13/hillary-clinton-staffs-up-in-new-hampshire/

[Chef Ramsay]

In states with the first 2016 primaries, Democrats ask: Where’s Hillary?

In Iowa, Democrats want to see Hillary Rodham Clinton mingling in their neighborhood coffee shops, answering their questions and sharing laughs. In New Hampshire, they expect her on their living-room couches, listening to their tales of struggle. In South Carolina, they’re eager to hold hands with her and pray together.

And in each of the early presidential primary and caucus states, Democratic activists are asking the same question: Where is Hillary?

As Clinton slow-walks her way into the 2016 presidential race, many of the Democratic front-runner’s most active supporters are concerned that she’s not yet doing the kind of face-to-face politicking that is well underway by a cast of a dozen or more likely Republican candidates.

Clinton’s absence has stoked unease among her impatient supporters, who also worry about her reputation as someone uncomfortable with the nitty-gritty of retail campaigning.

“They’re anxious because so many Republican candidates are coming here, they’re flowing in, and it’s like a parade on the other side,” said New Hampshire state Sen. Lou D’Allesandro, a top Clinton backer in 2008. “Obviously she’s going to run. They’re hoping she’s going to be here so they can actually see her and engage with her and reinvigorate the campaign.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/in-states-with-the-first-2016-primaries-democrats-ask-wheres-hillary/2015/03/17/21283ba8-ccb1-11e4-8c54-ffb5ba6f2f69_story.html

[Chef Ramsay]

MD Gov - O’Malley steps up Wall Street critique in swing through Iowa

DAVENPORT, Iowa — Former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley stepped up his critique of Wall Street excesses here Friday as he began his first swing through Iowa this year with a populist speech to an enthusiastic crowd of close to 300 people attending a Democratic dinner.

O’Malley, who is aggressively positioning himself as an alternative to presumed Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton, said that his party “must not allow another Wall Street meltdown to bring down hard-working families.” In a speech broadcast live on C-SPAN, he called for tougher sanctions on banks that break the law and for reinstating the Glass-Steagall Act, the Depression-era measure that separated commercial and investment banking.

Many left-leaning Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), argue that the act’s repeal in 1999 under President Bill Clinton contributed to the 2008 global credit crisis. If O'Malley is to gain traction against Hillary Clinton, one key will be successfully courting Democrats who have been pining for Warren to run for president — something she has insisted she has no plans to do in 2016.

More...http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/03/21/omalley-steps-up-wall-street-critique-in-swing-through-iowa/

[Chef Ramsay]

Jeb Bush's Talk Radio Problem

He’s not a conservative.” That’s Rush Limbaugh talking about Jeb Bush. “The ideal, the perfect ticket, for the 2016 election: Hillary Clinton, Jeb Bush. Now, they can figure out who’s on top of the ticket on their own, but when you compare their positions, Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush, on the key, important issues, they are two peas in the same pod.” That, too.

“You know what Jeb Bush is? He’s an old-time liberal Republican.” That’s Mark Levin.

“If I had to bet right now, he’d be the nominee; and if I had to bet right now, he’ll lose.” And that’s Laura Ingraham.

This is what people mean when they say the man who would be the third Bush president has a talk radio problem. He has a talk radio problem, conservative activist and writer Brent Bozell said, because he has “a conservative problem.” He has a talk radio problem, Ingraham said, because he has an “electability” problem. “To me,” Ingraham told POLITICO, “Jeb is the easiest candidate for Hillary to beat by far because he divides the GOP at a time when we need a candidate who unifies the party. … He’s made it fairly clear that he believes he can win without conservatives.” The way Glenn Beck has put it: “I think Jeb Bush … despises people like us.”


Read more: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/03/jeb-bush-rush-limbaugh-talk-radio-116283.html#ixzz3VAQuPuQh

[Chef Ramsay]

Jeb Bush's Matt Drudge problem and why he ticks off so many conservatives

Jeb Bush has a serious Matt Drudge problem, and that points to a more fundamental electoral problem.

Among the most prominent DrudgeReport.com headlines Thursday evening: POLL: 54% WANT FRESH FACES IN '16....NH voters pan Bush...Jeb Still Refuses to Rule Out Tax Hikes...

The prior Friday, during his New Hampshire debut as a likely 2016 presidential candidate, much of the mainstream media was gushing over Bush's substance, his accessibility and his refusal to pander to the right on issues like immigration reform. But Drudge offered these headlines: RUBIO ON RISE...JEB STRUGGLES FROM WITHIN...Says his view on immigration is 'grown-up plan'...WALKER: 'WE NEED NAME FROM FUTURE, NOT PAST'...

Drudge, a Miami resident and registered independent voter, does not pick the Republican nominee, of course, although he was consistently kind to Mitt Romney in 2012. However, his immensely popular website helps shape the conversation among Republican activists and reporters covering the race.

Combined with the nearly universal skepticism or outright hostility to Bush from other Republican-leaning media outlets from the Weekly Standard to Rush Limbaugh and Hotair.com, Drudge's Bush treatment underscores a significant obstacle to the former Florida governor with the potential to grow even bigger.

More...http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/jeb-bushs-matt-drudge-problem-and-why-he-ticks-off-so-many-conservatives/2222158

[Chef Ramsay]

Digging on Walker has begun: Walker & Dark Money Politics

John Menard Jr. is widely known as the richest man in Wisconsin. A tough-minded, staunchly conservative 75-year-old billionaire, he owns a highly profitable chain of hardware stores throughout the Midwest. He’s also famously publicity-shy — rarely speaking in public or giving interviews.

So a little more than three years ago, when Menard wanted to back Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker — and help advance his pro-business agenda — he found the perfect way to do so without attracting any attention: He wrote more than $1.5 million in checks to a pro-Walker political advocacy group that pledged to keep its donors secret, three sources directly familiar with the transactions told Yahoo News.

Menard’s previously unreported six-figure contributions to the Wisconsin Club for Growth — a group that spent heavily to defend Walker during a bitter 2012 recall election — seem to have paid off for the businessman and his company. In the past two years, Menard’s company has been awarded up to $1.8 million in special tax credits from a state economic development corporation that Walker chairs, according to state records.

And in his five years in office, Walker’s appointees have sharply scaled back enforcement actions by the state Department of Natural Resources — a top Menard priority. The agency had repeatedly clashed with Menard and his company under previous governors over citations for violating state environmental laws and had levied a $1.7 million fine against Menard personally, as well as his company, for illegally dumping hazardous wastes.

Secret $1.5 million donation from Wisconsin billionaire uncovered in Scott Walker dark-money probe
John Menard Jr. at the NASCAR Busch Series Meijer 300 at the Kentucky Speedway in 2006 (Photo: Joe Robbins/NASCAR/Getty Images)

“This, in a nutshell, is what’s wrong with the dark-money world we live in,” said Bill Allison, senior fellow at the Sunlight Foundation, a Washington-based based nonprofit group that tracks the influence of money in politics. “Here’s somebody who obviously has issues before the state, and he’s able to make a backdoor contribution that nobody ever sees. My sense is [political] insiders know about these contributions. It’s only the public that has no idea.” Menard did not respond to email and phone requests from Yahoo News for comment about his contributions. (His company’s spokesman, Jeff Abbott, said he was not authorized to speak for the company’s owner and could not respond, either.)

More...https://www.yahoo.com/politics/wisconsin-gov-scott-walker-photo-charlie-114429739886.html

[Chef Ramsay]

Ted Cruz: Don’t let ‘anti-science zealotry’ shutdown GMOs

Sen. Ted Cruz said Saturday that the nation should push back against the “hysteria” over food made with genetically modified organisms, saying these innovations in science should be celebrated for the positive impact they’ve had both at home and abroad.

Speaking the Iowa Agricultural Summit, Mr. Cruz said he is sick of politicians “blowing smoke” in Washington and vowed that Iowans have no bigger ally then him when it comes to pushing back against the federal government.

Mr. Cruz said GMOs helped to provide food for people across the globe and strengthen farms across the nation. He said that people who oppose GMOs and want to buy organic food can do that.

Cont...http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/mar/7/ted-cruz-dont-let-anti-science-zealotry-shutdown-g/

While I agree with his statement that GMOs provide cheaper food for the poorer folks, I don't hold w/ the corporate games that the likes of Monsantos play on these people.

[Chef Ramsay]

Marco Rubio may have presidential announcement date: April 13 at Freedom Tower

Marco Rubio has reserved the Freedom Tower in downtown Miami for an undisclosed event April 13, which appears to be a potential, if not likely, spot for Florida’s junior senator to announce his candidacy for president.

A Rubio adviser stressed nothing has been nailed down for any kind of announcement, but the timing makes sense: Likely presidential candidate Rand Paul is expected to make things official April 7, followed by a five-day, five-state announcement tour, so Rubio presumably would not want to share the spotlight during that period.

All-but-announced candidate Jeb Bush appears to be in no rush to shift more formally into campaign mode, but Texas Sen. Ted Cruz made his announcement this week, and Democrat Hillary Clinton is expected to make her campaign announcement in April as well, though nothing has been set.

Rubio, 43, has been preparing for a potential presidential run for at least a year. While behind in most early polls, he has generated considerable buzz as a top-tier contender who offers the party a fresh face, foreign policy experience, charisma and substance.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/article16536494.html#storylink=cpy

[Chef Ramsay]

Marco Rubio's "supportive" Billionaire Buddy~

Braman, the billionaire philanthropist, history buff and civic activist who four years ago orchestrated the ouster of a Miami-Dade County mayor, plans to bet big on Rubio as the Republican senator prepares for a 2016 presidential run. Braman won't say how much he could donate to Rubio's likely campaign, but the number is said to be around $10 million.

This eye-popping investment could signal conservative groups, including the Club for Growth and uncommitted donors such as Las Vegas casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson, to keep open minds — and wallets — toward Rubio. Their support could give him the financial prowess to stay in the race for the long haul if, as expected, Rubio declares his candidacy next month.

"He knows the odds, and I know the odds, but when he comes in contact with individuals, he's impressive," Braman said in a recent interview at his office on the second floor of his Biscayne Boulevard car dealership. "I think he's catching fire already."

Rubio declined to be interviewed through spokeswoman Brooke Sammon, who said the senator has "known Braman for years, and he values their friendship and appreciates his support." Braman, through his charity foundation, also employs Rubio's wife, Jeanette.

Despite their age difference — Braman is 82 and Rubio is 43 — the two friends speak occasionally, either on the phone or by text messages, Braman said. He insisted he doesn't weigh in on policy matters, though Braman, who is Jewish, cares deeply about Israel, and Rubio, who is Catholic, has emerged as an outspoken Israel hawk.

http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/stateroundup/norman-bramans-support-could-prove-pivotal-for-marco-rubios-presidential/2222199

[Chef Ramsay]

Could Another Democrat Beat Hillary Clinton? Strategists Offer a Blueprint


She has been called inevitable. The can’t-be-stopped candidate. Hillary Rodham Clinton is such an overwhelming favorite in presidential primary polls that most prominent Democrats are taking a pass on challenging her.

But politics can be an unpredictable business, and those of us covering the campaign have been wondering: Is there any way a Democratic challenger could beat Hillary Rodham Clinton?

We asked three of the smartest Democratic strategists we know to imagine this situation: You are running the campaign of a liberal Democrat against Mrs. Clinton. You have $50 million to spend. What is your message? How do you run against her?

The strategists agreed to sketch out a blueprint anonymously, so as not to anger Mrs. Clinton. Some common themes immediately emerged.

More...http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/01/us/politics/could-another-democrat-beat-hillary-clinton-strategists-offer-a-blueprint.html

[Balthazar]

How big government does work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLAT79IV7vs

[Bit_Happy]

Could Another Democrat Beat Hillary Clinton? Strategists Offer a Blueprint


She has been called inevitable. The can’t-be-stopped candidate. Hillary Rodham Clinton is such an overwhelming favorite in presidential primary polls that most prominent Democrats are taking a pass on challenging her.

But politics can be an unpredictable business, and those of us covering the campaign have been wondering: Is there any way a Democratic challenger could beat Hillary Rodham Clinton?

We asked three of the smartest Democratic strategists we know to imagine this situation: You are running the campaign of a liberal Democrat against Mrs. Clinton. You have $50 million to spend. What is your message? How do you run against her?

The strategists agreed to sketch out a blueprint anonymously, so as not to anger Mrs. Clinton. Some common themes immediately emerged.

More...http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/01/us/politics/could-another-democrat-beat-hillary-clinton-strategists-offer-a-blueprint.html

"The strategists agreed to sketch out a blueprint anonymously, so as not to anger Mrs. Clinton."
^^^
Does anyone see a problem with that?
"Oh, we cannot risk getting the queen angry!"
Anybody remember Whitewater?

[bryant.coleman]

Clinton is going to be the Democrat candidate. And that is 99.9999% certain. The only speculation is about the GOP candidate. The GOP guys will fight with each other and indulge in mudslinging for the most part of 2016, and by that time Billary will be miles ahead.

[Chef Ramsay]

Marco Rubio wants to double down on the most disastrous decade in U.S. foreign policy history

On Monday, Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio kicked off his presidential campaign with a firm denunciation of the politicians stuck in the “ideas of the past.” Referring to Hillary Clinton as a candidate “promising to take us back to yesterday,” he declared that “yesterday is over, and we are never going back.” But in calling for “a new American Century” – the slogan of his campaign – Rubio is embracing a foreign policy that is both backward-looking and stubbornly resistant to historical insight.

“The American Century” is a slogan with a long history. Almost 75 years ago magazine publisher Henry Luce coined the phrase in an influential essay for Life magazine. In that essay, he upbraided Americans for failing to take up the mantle of global leadership that he believed was not only their right but their responsibility.
...
Yet by the mid-1990s, conservative foreign policymakers were anxious. The U.S. was the world’s sole superpower in the wake of the Cold War. Despite this, policymakers in Washington seemed unwilling to exert upon the world the full impact of American influence, as Luce had urged. So in 1997, a group of conservatives that included Jeb Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz, launched a new organization: the Project for the New American Century.

...It's statement of principles laid out three pillars upon which the new American century would be built: “a military that is strong and ready to meet both present and future challenges; a foreign policy that boldly and purposefully promotes American principles abroad; and national leadership that accepts the United States' global responsibilities.”

These are exactly the principles Rubio laid out in his speech on Monday. And that’s a big problem, because the authors of the Project for the New American Century's statement of principles were also the architects of America’s disastrous war in Iraq. There has never been a genuine reckoning with this legacy in the Republican Party. Though it cost the GOP the 2006 and 2008 elections, the party’s neoconservative wing has not only remained intact but has continued to dominate its foreign policy vision.

In calling for a new American century, Rubio is doubling down on those reckless principles. That he can openly embrace the ideas that led to the most disastrous decade in U.S. foreign policy history shows how little the GOP has learned from the failures of the last decade, and how calcified its foreign policy thinking has become.

What’s worse, there is little likelihood that Rubio will have to account for the disastrous effects of the foreign policy he is championing. ... as the leading neoconservative voice in the race, Rubio should explain how his policies would differ from those of Rumsfeld and Cheney, and how he will lead the nation into the future while still peddling the failed policies of the past.
...

http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/nicole-hemmer/2015/04/14/marco-rubios-2016-bid-double-down-on-neoconservative-foreign-policy

[Chef Ramsay]

That broad: Same Sex Marriage Should be a Constitutional Right

In an apparent shift from comments last summer, Hillary Clinton is urging the Supreme Court to rule to allow same-sex couples nationwide to marry, calling it a “constitutional right.”

In a statement reported in the Washington Blade and confirmed to NBC News, campaign spokesperson Adrienne Elrod said: “Hillary Clinton supports marriage equality and hopes the Supreme Court will come down on the side of same-sex couples being guaranteed that constitutional right.”

That seems to be a shift for Clinton, who made headlines in June of last year for appearing to suggest in a contentious interview with NPR that she believes the issue of same-sex marriage is best handled on a state-by-state basis.

In that interview, Clinton conceded that, like the president, she had not supported gay marriage during her previous presidential run.

But, she added, “just because you’re a politician, doesn’t mean you’re not a thinking human being. And you gather information. You think through positions. You’re not 100 percent set – thank goodness – you’re constantly reevaluating where you stand. That was true for me.”

http://www.infowars.com/hillary-clinton-same-sex-marriage-should-be-a-constitutional-right/