Then there were three: Trump, Cruz, Rubio [Maybe four: Christie]

[c]2016 Zorek Richards

I think there are only three (maybe four) Republican candidates that are still viable for the Republican nomination going forward after the last debate: Trump, Cruz, and Rubio.

Chris Christie, I will throw in as a wild card because he says a lot of the right things (and often say it very well) but doesn't always practice it and that's the kind of things the Republican Party likes (IMHO). It is unlikely that Christie could defeat Hillary Clinton, though.

Personally, I have been leaning Cruz, but Trump stepped up his game in this debate when it came to actually addressing issues...and his intelligence is underestimated by the people who time after time have said "well, Trump is not going to survive this." Trump's speaking skills are brash and not politically correct and leads to a lot of misinterpretation by a media that doesn't understand that kind of language, and it falls immediate prey to left wing ideologues who don't have a grasp of language nuance of anything to the right of them and are always looking for something to be offended by anyway. . . 

Though I still lean Cruz, I am OK with Trump. Rubio is a "maybe" on down the line, but a "maybe" that may be  irrelevant after Iowa. I believe that if Trump takes Iowa...he will sail to the nomination. States like New Jersey, Texas will likely not give it to Trump, but I think Florida is a maybe for him and...if Bush and Rubio haven't already dropped out....will have to concede defeat then. 

I have an issue with Rand Paul and his loyalties and it kind affirms to me that I was right to write him off months ago. When Paul did his "filibuster" I recollect there was one other Senator who aided him and that person was Ted Cruz. So I think it clarifies his loyalty when he has said what he did on the Cruz "eligibility" claim. 

I have much respect for Ben Carson and he was an early favorite. I don't think, however, that his time is now...but he would likely be viable for a future run should he attempt to do that. He has already put out sound bytes suggesting he might only be a one term president or that he might run for a congressional seat. That, to me, is a sign of a lack of commitment to this race. 

Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum both hold strong Christian values but not enough, it would appear, for them to grab the evangelicals (like Huckabee did last time around). If they stay in it will be only for sound bytes...but their survival viability is pretty much zero. 

Carly Fiorina is the antithesis of Hillary in many ways. That is good on some issues. but I  have seen too much of her pushing her way into debates or media time because she is "a woman." I'm for a candidate based more on substance rather then gender (or race for that matter). Fiorina might claim--and rightly claim--that Hillary's campaign is very sexist. But I don't think Fiorina's campaign can escape that label either.

Anyway..this is the way I see it today.

Cheap Seat Report: Republican Picks As of Today

1) Ted Cruz. Most of the  more important part of the debate this week was between Cruz and Marco Rubio.
Not sure about the "carpet bombing" strategy. I mean, what if it turns out they just have linoleum? 
Dana Bash purposely asked a question that is really irrelevant to national issues when she hit Cruz with the one about something that was recorded in private that he said about Trump.  Pretty low for Bash and CNN to be purposely picking fights. There were not many attacks against Hillary during the debate, but were quite a few against  Trump and Cruz.
Cruz: "All horse thieves are Democrats, but not all Democrats are horse thieves."

2) Mike Huckabee. Granted, he was at the small first debate, but he stayed to message and offered great insight. I think he is terribly underrated. He may not stand a chance to win, but I suspect he will stick around for awhile longer.  And I hope he does.
Huckabee: "If Islam is as wonderful and peaceful as its adherents say, shouldn't they be begging us" to surveil their mosques?"

3) Rick Santorum. Still at the smaller debate, but he and Huckabee have my interest for their appeals to religious liberties. I think Santorum did a great job in defending those issues but got a little flustered by Lindsey Graham. "The fact of the matter is, Islam is different ... the idea that that is protected under the First Amendment is wrong." said Santorum. I agree. Why do we keep extending Constitutional rights to non-Americans???
Santorum: "We have to stop worrying about offending some people and start defending all Americans."
 Santorum: "Not all Muslims are jihadist but "all jihadists are Muslim"

4) Donald Trump. My interest in Trump is falling somewhat. I would certainly still vote for him if he is nominated but there is a difference between conservatism and populism. Trump appeals to populism and to conservatives who find populism appealing .  Trump is strong on National security and I am not sure who interjected it, but the talk of "innocent civilians" being killed is the reason wars become politically correct and then people lose. Trump did not clarify very well (or at all) what he meant by "shutting down parts of the internet."
 I might be OK with shutting down part of the internet if that means cat pictures. Except for the fact that that would only leave 25% of the internet left. :-) 
The Mosques that were shut down in France weren't shut down for their message but because they were stockpiling weapons. I'm not so sure just listening to the message will cut it.Vladimir Putin pretty much unofficially/officially endorsed Donald Trump calling him "bright and talented" and the "absolute leader" in the 2016 race. Trump did say just after the debate that  he will NOT run as third party no matter what

 5) Ben Carson. Carson is about to drop off the radar. I hate to say it but I think he may have already peaked. I believe his support will likely shift to Cruz. Ben Carson just told the press that he would likely be a "one term president." I like the guy but I think making that kind of an announcement will more likely make him a no term president.
 Between naps, Ben Carson had some good responses.

6) Marco Rubio. If he would get his stuff together on amnesty and immigration reform he might be a candidate of interest.
This would have been a good night for Rubio to take a drink of water. Better Press.
Marco Rubio said this week that  we need a "top-down review" of our Immigration system. Yeah right, just what we need: another government committee to investigate the government.

7) Chris Christie.  He did perform strong on national defense. I will give him that. He referenced a couple times that because he was from Jerssey, he would be tough.
"A no fly zone is a no fly zone" --Old New Jersey Proverb
Christie will close down every bridge to the United States to keep out terrorists
Christie: "Terror threats "is the new normal" under Obama and Clinton."

8) Rand Paul. His libertarian ideas are some of the good things about him and his libertarian idea are some of the bad things about him. Rand Paul is terrible on foreign policy. Much like his dad. Paul also started out with an attack on Trump (again). He has tried it at every debate and it NEVER helps him. He is slow to learn.

9) Carly Fiorina: I am tired of this "because I am a woman" stuff from her. The review of her work history with HP is mixed....but mostly not good. And she claims to know all the world leaders.
 Carly Fiorina made a critical mistake when she mentioned Kim Jong Un and then didn't throw in that she knew him, too.

10) Jeb Bush. Not even a consideration any more.
 "________" - Jeb Bush's most memorable response tonight. 
They should have a moment of silence for Jeb Bush since this will likely be his last debate.
Shorter Jeb Bush: Refugees aren't a problem. Let them all in!

11) George Pataki. He talked strong on national defense, I was surprised. But he was governor of New York during 911.  

12)Lindsey Graham. 
Lindsey Graham needs to start using decaf stuff as he was over wound.
 If you took a drink whenever Lindsay Graham eye rolled at Rick Santorum. You wouldn't be awake for the 2nd debate.
Of ISIS, Graham said he  will "knock them off the internet" --What does that mean??
His most memorable line: "Princess Buttercup would not like this!" 
He would rate higher if the issue was entertainment value.


13)CNN  The biggest loser as they clearly showed their disdain for the Republican party. You won't see a performance like that when CNN moderates the Democrat debate. But perhaps Wolf Blitzer clarified it best when he said "CNN is America." They truly think they are. CNN also interpreted the Bible their own way as they asked about refugees. But I have never been able to find the Bible verse that says we should let terrorists in the country because you're supposed to love them. Neither did CNN.

Wolf kept saying"we're only just beginning" before each commercial break.
And in the first debate they were purposely  making Trump the subject when he was not there to defend himself.

Cheap Seat Report: Republican Presidential Picks As of Today 11.13.15

Following their last debate.

My picks up to now with information I have up to now: First off, I need to clarify that I am not a Republican, so I have no party loyalty to the Republican party and will never hesitate to throw the party under a bus. That said, I ID myself as more of a Constitutional conservative and the Republican party tends usually to have a better pick of candidates that lean that way. Also, my main focus is on religious liberty...and I have stated many times over the years that I dislike politics as a general rule....but will deal with it when it encroaches on religious freedom.. So, I look for the candidates who I think are most apt and able to address and protect that. Followed by illegal immigration, abortion, and the economy.

1)Ted Cruz. Another impressive debate with the right sound bytes in the right places. His simple flat tax plan would effectively end the IRS and, so, not only revising the tax code...but ending a lot of other federal tyranny with the same plan. The left is crying foul because such

a plan would cost the Fed money. There may be some initial cost......but in the long run.........the freedom to spend your own income goes back to you as a citizen. No one should be overly concerned with the gloom and doomers who feel the world would end if parts of the current governmental system would go bankrupt. Most of it should just by simple reaping what it has sown...but the rest of the Fed jumps in to bail it out. The federal government is a tyrannical monster with lots of evil tentacles.

2) Ben Carson. The attacks by the media have resulted in nothing except to reveal how crooked the media (like CNN and Politico) can be. But that really is not something we didn't already know.  Carson is a soft spoken outsider   and that is a large  part of his appeal. The attacks against Carson came just as he started to take leads in the polls. The Hillary Clinton campaign (aka, the mainstream media) did the best they could to protect their crooked leader but it all went awash.  Herman Cain got the same treatment from the media when he rose in the polls, but though he never admitted his involvement in the sexual harassment, his dropping his race left more questions than answers. As Carson has said, the media should vet candidates...they just need to quit lying about things when they do.   In comparison, though, the media still hasn't vetted Barack Obama and don't seem to be too interested in looking at Hillary.


3) Mike Huckabee. He hasn't polled up there with the big dogs yet, but his commitment is real. The former Baptist pastor has a strong commitment to religious liberty which is an important foundation to be addressing for America to remain the land of the free. When I observe strong Christian candidates I also see that the media tends to  avoid them altogether. But when they do they just don't seem to know how to handle it. It seems like if they suggest they understand then their piers would say they are not being objective. Big news media outlets tend to hire what they call "Religion Specialists" or "Religion Analysts." They tend to be as worthless as integrity in an Obama Department of Justice as they pretend to know everything about all the religions and after diluted analysis reveal they know nothing..and particularly nothing about Christianity.

4) Donald Trump. Last month he was at #3 but I see a few things deteriorating. Eminent domain, his tax plan, and his not so wise attacks on Ben Carson  suggesting Carson is "pathological." I still think Trump is the wild card and still the anomaly so I don't rule him out. Of all the candidates he is probably the one who would shake up DC the most and I don't see that as a bad thing. He is the best candidate on immigration and I concur with his views about Vladimir Putin and Syria.

5) Rick Santorum. He hasn't garnered the evangelical support like he did in his last run. Considering the state of flux "evangelicalism" is in right now I guess that's not to be unexpected. Santorum has a speaking platform as long as he stays in the race, but that's about it.

6) Bobby Jindal. I've liked him as a man of Christan convictions. I am beginning to have doubts about him as man of Christian convictions in a nationally elected position. Issues in Louisiana like unemployment and budgets are increasing as concerns. It gets a little hard to sort, though, since Louisiana--like Mississippi--runs ever  mean, vicious and corrupt campaign seasons. As Louisiana has been in the  process of electing a new governor, a lot of dirt got thrown Jindals way.

 7) Rand Paul. His libertarian ideas are some of the good things about him and his libertarian idea are some of the bad things about him. Like his dad, though, it would appear he would be weak on defense. He would be strong on a social issue like marijuana...but, frankly, no one should care what a candidates position is on marijuana. I certainly don't.  To me it's like asking the "boxers or briefs" question. There's far more important issues to address.

8) Marco Rubio. If it had to come down to it, he is probably the only establishment connected Republican I would be OK voting for. His immigration ideas are weak but not the weakest. (That designation goes to John Kasich).

9) Chris Christie. He can quite frequently talk the impressive talk. It's walking that talk that leaves some doubt in my mind. I don't think DC would be anything he would be interested in changing and would likely just assimilate within it.

10) Carly Fiorina. She is the Republican answer to Hillary Clinton: A female who talks out of both sides of her mouth. Her "I'm a victim because somebody said something bad about me and I am a woman" media tours are tiring.

11) Jeb Bush. What can be said about Jeb Bush that can't be summed up in a pretty lame retool of a failing political campaign that says "Jeb Can Fix It." If Jeb could fix it he could fix his campaign.

12) John Kasich. Nada. I'd take more time to write more about him but that's just "too much to do."

 13) Lindsey Graham, George Pataki and Jim "who???" Gilmore. [expletive deleted)

---------------------------

MEME REPORT:
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Cheap Seat Report: The FBN/WSJ Republican Debate 11.10.15

CNBC has just announced that Hillary Clinton has won tomorrows GOP debate

 All the Republicans going into tonights debate all have one bright shared consolation: None of them are David Vitter.

 Looks like the new season of "The Voice" is going to get a new viewer tonight. That George Pataki supporter has to do something....

 Hillary"s campaign is saying they will not watch the debate and instead are going to be "moving our country forward." They didn't explain what country is hers and where they are gong to move it, though.

 Only 35 more days til the next GOP debate

 If the first question to all the candidates is "would you sign a pledge to not stab anyone?" then you know Fox Business is gunning for Carson.

 "The reason we lose nationally is because we try to be a cheaper version of the Democratic party." --Bobby Jindal

 So far Fox Business isn't fueling a cage match between personalities. A debate that stays on topic seems rather bizarre just for not being bizarre.

 Christie has deflected a question about himself 3 times now and diverted it toward Hillary twice and Obama once.

If there's a drinking game where you drink every time a candidate says "I'm the only one", then those playing will pass out long before round two on the big stage.

 Jindal wants to fire everybody in DC. Personally, I lean more toward a straight out deportation.

 Megyn Kelly just blamed the candidates for the Fox News debate kerfuffle. She says she was trying to do it like Fox Business just did it.

 FBN pundits are giving the win to Christie for first debate. I have to lean toward Huckabee. Christie avoided directly answering the most questions..followed by Santorum. .

"We need more welders instead of philosophers." --Marco Rubio

 Kasich doesn't care who's here if they are already here.

 Who cares what the Clinton campaign high fives, Jeb. Hillary high fived her staff after the Benghazi hearing.

 WINNER: "We would see stories about the economic calamity" of illegal immigration if journalists' wages were affected" --Ted Cruz

 "I want a government so small you can't even see it." --Rand Paul

 So far so good: Half way through the debate and Ben Carson hasn't stabbed anyone yet.

 "If Republicans join Democrats as the party of amnesty, we will lose" --Ted Cruz

"More words in IRS code than in the Bible." --Ted Cruz
and in may respects they have the same penalties.

 "We should vet all candidates. I have no problem with being vetted. What I do have a problem with is being lied about and then putting that out there as truth." --Ben Carson


 Score again:
"If you think defending this country is expensive, try NOT defending it." --Ted Cruz

 Trump playing the peacemaker among the candidates?

 I think I'm with Trump on this one. (His views on Russia and Putin)

 "We shouldn't have another financial crisis".-- Jeb Bush
.
Whats scary is that I think that is the complete Jeb Bush economic plan.

 Shorter John Kasich: I would let the government do what it has always been doing. I would just let it do what its always been doing better.

"Thank you for not asking me what I said in the 10th grade" --Ben Carson


 Fiorina has already started her "Trump picked on me " media tour. I didn't think she would start on it til tomorrow.

 "You can never say something is never going to happen" --John Kasich.
Actually you can: Kasich will never be president.

 Whine of the Night:
"We Can't deport illegals, there are too many of them." --John Kasich


 "In the two hours of this -- of this debate, five people have died from drug-related deaths, $100 million has been added to our national debt, 200 babies have been killed by abortionists, and two veterans have taken their lives out of despair. This is a narrative that we can change, not we the Democrats, not we the Republicans, but we the people of America, because there is something special about this nation, and we must embrace it and be proud of it and never give it away for the sake of political correctness." --Ben Carson closing remarks

 Over all, I think FBN did a good debate and stayed mostly on target with important issues and not personality driven. A few times I think moderators started to lose control but they reeled it back in and with that many egos on a stage I could see why that would happen.. I thought Cavuto was taking the Bank of America question to Cruz a little personal...but otherwise OK. IMHO

From the Cheap Seat: My Republican Picks as of Today 10.31.15

 I need to clarify again that I am not a Republican, so I have no party loyalty to the Republican party and will never hesitate to throw the party under a bus when necessary. That said, I ID myself as more of a Constitutional conservative and the Republican party tends usually to have a better pick of candidates that lean that way. Also, my main focus is on First Amendment issues like religious liberty and free speech. I have stated many times over the years that I dislike politics as a general rule....but will deal with it when it encroaches on religious freedom and free speech.. So, I look for the candidates who I think are most apt and able to address and protect that.

1) Ted Cruz. Before the CNBC Debacle they called a debate,  I was thinking Cruz would likely not be in 1st place. I was kind of frustrated with what appeared to be a "lead from behind" mentality with the idea that IF Donald Trump drops out that he stands to gain. Trump may not be dropping out any time soon and more likely not at all.  If he did in the future at all it will be too late for Cruz to mount an offense..based on money more than time. However, when he called out the moderators at CNBC for their debate debacle I think he caught a second wind and changed the direction of the debate and the audience knew....even the audience across the country.

2. Donald Trump. Still a wild card, but he has done enough shaking up of DC with just his campaign that I suspect he could do the same in DC. The common enemy most of us face right now is the DC machine and the way it is run year after year after year after year. Anyone going to DC who promises the same old same old should be ignored immediately. Would Trump shake DC up good or bad? I don't think there's any such thing as a good or bad shake. A shake is a shake. The alternative would be to tear it all down and start over. And though that would probably be the best option...a good shake up would work as well.

3) Ben Carson. The top three candidates on this list could be interchanged based on the strength of various subjects, but Carson has my interest for religious liberty issues and as an outsider from DC he would be an asset. He may be soft spoken, but I think he has hard convictions.

4) Mike Huckabee. He's probably a long shot in the scheme of things, but for his stand on religious liberty he is one of the best. There's still some uncertainty on his Common Core position based on some things he has said in the past. However, in a presidential market where a  candidate like Hillary Clinton can change her position on an issue within a matter of minutes in the same debate, a change over a few years by Huckabee is politically  laudable (at least to me)

5) Marco Rubio.  He's very likable.  He's just wrong on some issues, like amnesty. His CNBC Debacle remarks were well thought out and his counter against Jeb Bush's attack was successful.

6) Rand Paul. I  cant separate him from Ron Paul and I was not a fan of Ron Paul. Rand didn't try any misguided attack this time around, so he is teachable.

7) Bobby Jindal. I was gong to put Jindal and Santorum at the bottom of the list.  Not because I don't like their positions on many things, but just because they are long shots at this point...in fact more likely impossibles. However, I am rating all the candidates and once I get past #8, it would take some convincing to support any of them.  So #8 is, in many respects, the bottom of my list. Jindal is strong on religious liberty. In may respects right up there with Huckabee. I had high hopes for him and waited for his entrance into the campaign, but I dont think he is going anywhere.

8) Rick Santorum. Same as Jindal, just not quite up there with Huckabee. Jindal is a bit more personable.

9) Chris Christie. He is still here based on his performance at the CNBC Debacle. Otherwise he's still the same.

10) Carly Fiorina.  I don't trust her. She has taken positions initially and then changed them when it appeared the conservative trend was going another way. .The media, even at the CNBC Debacle were throwing soft ball questions at her. Being a media darling comes with it's own warnings.

11) Jeb Bush.  I cant figure out why he would admit to modeling his campaign after John McCain's campaign. Does he remember that McCain lost???? He tried a cheap shot at Rubio, but Rubio blew it off. Rick Perry's failed campaign sent him RNC establishment clone Austin Barbour from here in Mississippi, which by itself is enough to "just say no" to Bush.  But there was already plenty of other reasons to just say no to Jeb Bush.

12) Lindsey Graham. One of the worst Republicans I know, but he  got in a few humorous lines at the early debate. He's here for entertainment value.

13) George Pataki.  Pataki-who??

14) Jim Gilmore.  See comments at  13

------------------------------------------

MEME REPORT:
DNC IS PROBABLY RUNNING A HALLOWEEN SPECIAL ON MEMBERSHIPS

 

My View of the CNBC Republican Debate from the Cheap Seat 10.29.15

Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that Jeb Bush will find anything "cooler" to do than show up at the debate tonight.




 The loser of tonight's debate gets to be stabbed by Ben Carson.




  Another  famous Boulder resident shows up for the debate.

CNBC has probably never had this many people watch it at the same time ....ever.

 Not much of a debate between candidates as it is between the candidates and the three CNBC moderators.

 A desperate move by Jeb against Rubio backfired. He should have learned from Rand Paul's first debate performance to know not to do that.

 "This is not a cage match. And you look at the questions: Donald Trump, are you a comic book villain? Ben Carson can you do math? John Kasich will you insult two people over here? Marco Rubio why don't you resign? Jeb Bush why have your numbers fallen? How about talking about the substantive issues that people care about?" --Ted Cruz

 Score one for Cruz!!Cruz is the man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After Cruz said what he did, they should have all walked off the stage and went home.

 Good response by Huckabee. he didnt take the moderators bait.

 "The Democrats have the ultimate super PAC, it's called the mainstream media." --Marco Rubio

 They seem to give Fiorina a lot of softball questions compared to the rest.

 "Even in New Jersey what you're doing is called rude." --Chris Christie

 Dear John Harwood,
you lied.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-gets-his-way_56210ecbe4b06462a13bb2ca

  For Halloween CNBC anchors are going out as legitimate intelligent news reporters because no one will be able to guess it is them.

I havent decided who won yet, but am pretty sure the big loser was CNBC's John Harwood.

Word Slinger Files Republican Presidential Picks As of Today:

My picks up to now with information I have up to now:

First off, I need to clarify that I am not a Republican, so I have no party loyalty to the Republican party and will never hesitate to throw the party under a bus. That said, I ID myself as more of a Constitutional conservative and the Republican party tends usually to have a better pick of candidates that lean that way. Also, my main focus is on religious liberty...and I have stated many times over the years that I dislike politics as a general rule....but will deal with it when it encroaches on religious freedom..  So, I look for the candidates who I think are most apt and able to address and protect that. Followed by illegal immigration, abortion, and the economy.

1) Ted Cruz  His knowledge of constitutional law and issues is impressive.And he is concerned about religious freedom. He would make a great addition to the Supreme Court some day.....or, if not elected president,   attorney general.

2) Mike Huckabee  He has moved up in my interest since the last debate, particularly because of the Kim Davis issue. I see him as a long shot, but he polls OK for a long shot candidate. Huckabee rocks on religious freedom

3) Donald Trump. He is a wild card and still an anomaly. The Republican Party needs someone to kick that shoddy foundation they have laid underneath them. He mentioned the vaccine issues in the debate last night, and issues with autism..which even Ben Carson agreed with...in spite of the fact that Megyn Kelly says vaccines are a settled issue scientifically.

4) Rick Santorum. For his stand on religious freedom, abortion, etc. I thought he did a good job of defending his positions in the earlier CNN debate.

 5) Bobby Jindal. I had high hopes he would be a good candidate, particular in the area of religious freedom. His campaign has not taken off yet...and it may not.


 6) Ben Carson. Very likable and smart guy. Soft spoken, but I think he gets his points across better that way. I am a bit confused on some of the issues with him like minimum wage and immigration. His inclusion, though, for immigrants to come and do jobs Americans don't want to do just wreaks so close to the Democrat philosophy of immigration support as cheap labor. Democrat party was pro slavery in 1800s, Still pro-slavery to be pro-immigration and justify it by claiming we can use Mexicans as cheap labor force. So if that's a position he will stick to, then he will being sliding to the bottom of this list very soon.

7) Rand Paul. I think he is very Libertarianesque which is not entirely bad. I am not for marijuana legalization for recreational purposes, but I do agree with him that it should be left to the states to decide. I have no problem with medical usage. Here in Mississippi we have an attempt to get a marijuana initative on the ballot--which it looks like it will fail to get enough people to sign their petition, but I really dislike the way its being promoted. They are pushing it under the guise of being used for medical purposes. and underplaying the fact that they want it for recreational use.  In debates, Paul has tried too hard to go after Trump or even Christie and it, with maybe once exception, blows up in his face.

8) Marco Rubio. He is getting better at verbalizing his positions.

9) Chris Christie. I would not have ever expected to put him higher than Jeb Bush, but his performance at the debate was actually pretty good. I still don't see him as "conservative" but more time will tell.
When he started to explain what female he would like on the $10 bill, it sounded like he was going to nominate Morticia Addams.

10). Carly Fiorina. I don't have all the "like" for her that other people see. She has flip flopped a several issues, including religious freedom, and sometimes it seems like she says what she says depending on who she is talking to. Carly Fiorina is very wrong on  her understanding of the 14th amendment and seems OK with judicial tyranny.

Jeb smoked what??

11) Jeb Bush. Much better performance in last nights debate  I still see him as playing both sides of the issue on immigration. He is, as Trump mentioned, pro-Common Core. He also does not have a great pro-life record in spite of what he tried to say last night.

12) Scott Walker  His performance can be summed up with this: Oh, was he there?

13) John Kasich. In his opening intro, Shorter Kasich: I am Ronald Reagan. Umm. no.

14) Lindsey Graham. "In my world, Hispanics are Americans" --Lindsey Graham. What can be said about Graham that hasn't been said about a bad case of influenza. I would say Lindsey Graham is dead to me, but that would be an upgrade to the status I already held about him.

15) George Pataki .  "just give them all legal status" --George Pataki on immigration. George Pataki plays the Reagan card right out of the gate. Dead to me starting with his position on religious freedom. His last name is still fun to say, though. (Try saying "President Pataki" 5 times very fast. ) 

16) Jim Gilmore. Gilmore who?? CNN excluded him from the debate.

I think the debate at CNN was much better than the charade that Fox news tried to pass off as a debate last month. This one actually had exchanges between the candidates. The few that Fox had were in spite of Fox and not because of it,. Jake Tapper was clearly gunning fro Trump and for a few moments he kind of morphed into Megyn Jelly.

A quick word on the polls, a practice which is central to modern analyses of political races. I believe that polls are far more scientifically unreliable than they are generally made out to be, and think that wild inductions are not the safest way to go. Talking to 200 people and deciding what 200 million are thinking is . . . risky. --Doug Wilson

Despite Des Moines Register Hit Piece, Trump Polls High in Iowa & New Hampshire

Donald Trump is running strong in the early nominating states of Iowa and New Hampshire, according to two new NBC News-Marist polls.

Trump leads the Republican presidential field in New Hampshire, getting support from 21 percent of potential GOP primary voters. He's followed by Jeb Bush at 14 percent, Scott Walker at 12 percent and John Kasich at 7 percent.
Chris Christie and Ben Carson are tied at 6 percent in the Granite State, and Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz are at 5 percent each.

I n Iowa, Walker and Trump are in the Top 2 - with Walker at 19 percent among potential Republican caucus-goers and Trump at 17 percent. They're followed by Bush at 12 percent, Carson at 8 percent, Mike Huckabee at 7 percent and Rand Paul at 5 percent.

PDF Files of Iowa and New Hampshire Poll:

 http://www.view-pdf.com/ViewPDFFile.aspx?file=http://www.htmlpublish.com/newTestDocStorage/DocStorage/338db9aa727f427ab536da0129eb51f5/NBC%20News_Marist%20Poll%20Iowa%20Annotated%20Questionnaire_July%202015.pdf

 http://www.view-pdf.com/ViewPDFFile.aspx?file=http://www.htmlpublish.com/newTestDocStorage/DocStorage/338db9aa727f427ab536da0129eb51f5/NBC%20News_Marist%20Poll%20Iowa%20Annotated%20Questionnaire_July%202015.pdf

 MEME REPORT:
OBAMA PROMISES TO PROTECT ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN SANCTUARY CITIES AND VOWS TO VETO EVEN THE MURDEROUS.

Every 2016 Republican Presidential Candidate has turned against Common Core Except for Jeb Bush

Politico writes: 

• Virtually every 2016 Republican presidential candidate has turned against the education standards, other than former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.

• “The truth is that it’s simply not working,” Christie said during a speech at Burlington County College in Pemberton, N.J. It wasn’t so long ago that Christie was an ardent supporter of the standards himself.

• Like nearly every other governor in the country — Republican or Democrat — he agreed to adopt them in 2010. But Common Core has come under a withering grass-roots attack from conservatives who believe the standards are an attempt to nationalize education, and it has become a litmus test for Republicans with national ambition. To be sure, many on the left despise the educational standards, but conservatives ranging from Rand Paul to Christie now feel compelled to abandon any association with Common Core.

Chris Christie back in Mississippi? Careful Gov Bryant or You'll Blow Your "Conservative" Cover

On Tuesday,  Governor Phil Bryant and Governor Chris Christie will be at Primos Café in Flowood to meet supporters.
The event will begin at 1 pm and will last until 1:30 pm.

MSGOP Still The Same Old Same Old: Go to lunch with them and Chris Christie on May 5

If you are a Democrat or a Left leaning Republican, the idea of meeting Chris Christie might put a chill up your leg. 

Their announcment:
The MSGOP request that you consider joining them on Tuesday, May 5, 2015, in Jackson, for a lunch with special guest, Gov. Chris Christie. The lunch will benefit the 2015 Victory Fund, a targeted fundraising effort by the MSGOP to, among other things, retain the Party's hold on seven of the eight statewide offices, win the Attorney General's seat, protect and expand our legislative majorities, and take over county offices long held by Democrats. The formal invitation to the lunch--including additional details--is attached below.