Oh-eight (R): Bartlett's tough love

Posted: Wednesday, October 10, 2007 9:18 AM by Mark Murray
Filed Under: Republicans

Nothing like having your speaker's bureau post your initial paid stump speech online, which is what apparently happened to former White House adviser Dan Bartlett. His analysis of the GOP presidential field, particularly the tough, um, love he had for Thompson and Romney is getting lots of play this morning.

Bartlett went on TODAY to clean up the damage since many MAY have read Bartlett's quotes and wondered if he was channeling the White House. He stood by his analysis, but made sure to find nice things to say about all three frontrunners: Romney, Giuliani and Thompson.

HUCKABEE: No one gets off better one-liners than Huckabee but a joke about suicide seemed to fall flat with some. There's not really anything funny about suicide.

MCCAIN: Per NBC/NJ’s Carrie Dann, McCain hits the road today for a three-day swing through Iowa, where he'll focus on an issue that other Republican front-runners have largely kept on the backburner. McCain will propose his solutions for health care here in a state where older caucus voters with big concerns about medical insurance abound. It's noteworthy because the GOP's front-runners in the state haven't really made health care "their" issue because of previous baggage (Romney) and a reliance on market solutions (Rudy and Thompson). If McCain is rewarded for his attention to the issue, it will prove groups like the powerful AARP/SEIU Divided We Fail organization right; they believe that health care is a crucial issue that crosses party lines, and that candidates who harness health care voters will see healthy support on caucus night.

ROMNEY: The Log Cabin Republicans are running a 30-second ad in Iowa and on FOX that portrays Romney as a flip-flopper on abortion, gun rights, and his opinion of Ronald Reagan, the Washington Times reports. “The ad closes with the narrator saying: ‘A record fighting the religious right, a pro-choice record, Massachusetts values — Mitt Romney.’ The Romney camp fired back after the ad debuted, calling it a ‘personal, negative attack.’”

Be sure to check out Harry Reid's speech to BYU students Tuesday. Could it end up being the model for how Romney will handle questions about his faith?

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Comments

its time to get off this road to nowhere

CK (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 9:45 AM)

"Suicide is Painless" -- theme from M*A*S*H

nuanced (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 10:29 AM)

Where to start?Impeach?Censor?Protesting just makes this whitehouse more dangerous.I cannot believe that over 20% of the people STILL support this evil genius in the white house.This administration has handily destroyed every vestage that the U.S. stood for.Along with our economy,our livelihoods and the bllod still flows in Iraq---an american shooting gallery.

HMT-MI (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 10:38 AM)

HMT-RIGHT ON! THEY ARE THE IGNORANT MASSES

juan,ft lauderdale,fl (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 11:00 AM)

evil genius? i think that's giving him a little too much credit

jh (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 11:01 AM)

I can't see how the Romney ad is a personal attack. It is basically the same ad they ran in 2002 in favor of Romney. It never once says he flip flops. That is for the listen to figure out.

J. Susskind Waterloo, IA (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 11:37 AM)

The buzzards are circling the shrub carcass. No hope for America with this Bartlett stooge, the garbage is still overflowing and no end in sight. I often wish we could just find out where they got their lobotomies and we could join them, like drunks at the bar. A "When in Rome attitude"?? Or if "You can't fight 'em join 'em." and "MISERY LOVES COMPANY!"

H P Boston (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 11:41 AM)

So Huckabee get an un-honorable mention.

BORRINGGG!

MEDIA: Let's get into the crux of what these candidates are really all about. Forget the one-liners!!! They tell us little to nothing about the candidate's proposed policies for our nation.

I hope to goodness somebody starts talking about their plans for healthcare, Social Security, Medicare. These issues face all of us, one way or another. Let's hear more than, "they're broke." We already know that...voters ARE that smart! Go McCain! Let's hear it!

YEAH LOG CABIN REPUBLICANS!! goto: http://www.massreisitance.org to find out the LOWdown on the REALROMNEY! Click on The Romney Deception. (pass the word!)Check out the letter written on gov. letterhead! I am so thankful Log Cabin Rebubs are pulling the plug...finally on this guy!

Maybe Romney needs Some kind of Model to talk about this "faith" he claimed to be so happy to be proud of. He sure can't seem to cough it up!

Jaye (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 11:47 AM)

"evil genius" are u kidding, clueless and infantile certainly no genius evil or otherwise

Ronnie Denn, Boca Raton, Florida (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 12:26 PM)

Bartlett says the flip-flop is really about the Mormon thing. I guess people have a hard time seeing the bright, intelligent guy as a Mormon. Having lived in Utah for a dozen years, not being LDS, it's not a surprise. It's a pretty elitist religion, with a mix of costs and benefits. It's a pretty 'free' place if you are part of the elite. Certainly the oddities of the Mormon faith are no worse than eating crackers that are sort of made from Jesus, that sort of thing.

He could certainly point out that Mormons like their kids to actually grow up. There is the missionary thing, the marrying young, and having kids. Brooks is writing about some New Adolescence that extends to age 30. Well, not so much, in Utah. There's a discipline to Mormonism.

(Apparently the email addresses for the old Times Select columnists are gone. Huh.)

I think it's the lack of discipline in the GOP that is the huge negative. Why the spending, why the messy use of force, whatever. I don't know if there are grand economic ideas that revitalize America, but certainly Romney could present some. He is part of an elite and he won't bring economic policy that represents the lower class. It's not easy to see how this would work, if it's just crafting ways to get more money to the top 3%.

On the Dem side, you don't get a sense of any ideas. They had Iraq, got outflanked. They needed a real vision of the world, of foreign policy, but Bush has defined them. There is not much of an economic vision. I don't know why Dems are not more scared about Clinton and the whole future of the party. They can't define any issue. They want to help people, but the ideas don't really go very far, don't reflect a big vision.

George Sears, Cedar City, Utah (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 1:12 PM)

Not a single one of the candidates in the debate last evening offered any SPECIFIC answers to any of the questions posed. It was such a dumbed-down version of what we should have at a debate. The only specifics that I recalled were those given between the Mitt/Rudy mess about who raised taxes. Fact-checking reveals that it was Rudy who blatantly lied about his and Mitt's tax data. Blatant, and he was not even called on it. It is as if the R contest is to see which person can "act" the most like a president, not the one who has the leadership skills and intelligence to BE president.

Isn't choosing this type of president how we found ourselves in the mess we are in today?

jjg, ms (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 1:16 PM)

I cannot remember anytime in the past that any former or current member of an administration has spoken against any members of their own party during an election campaign. Bartlett's comments add to my suspicion of what this administration will do to keep Bush's policies going in 09.

Before the end of October Chaney will go for a routine doctor's appointment and a few days later will come out with a big announcement. Per orders from Chaney doctors, Chaney will announce his resignation from the Vice Presidency due to medical conditions. This will allow Bush to appoint a new VP that will rejuvenate the Far Right and Neocons. Before I thought it would be Fred Thompson, but James Dobson (Focus on the Family) and now Bartlett eliminates Fred. The individual that the Prez will nominate will be NEWT GINRICH.

Before I get yelled at, I know Newt is not the poster boy for family values especially when he divorced his wife battling cancer just to marry his intern/secretary/whatever. But Newt did go on Focus on the Family and told James Dobson he was wrong and James boy forgave him which gives him a free pass for Right Wing Christina people to like him again. With Newt as the VP, he will announce his candidacy for president of the US which puts him above all other republican candidates. Then the smear campaign will really start.

Watch for it.

Terry CC Iowa (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 1:20 PM)

In regard to Dan Bartlett's assertion that the flip-flopping position is just a cover for the Mormon thing. While there are undoubtedly many voters who do not support Mitt Romney based on his religion and are willing to hide behind the flip-flopping argument, for many religious/social conservatives, Mitt Romney's conversions on the pro-life and gay marriage questions are just too politically convenient. Those issues are of so bedrock a nature to true religious/social conservatives that Mitt Romney's relatively-recent conversion (from having been in favor of abortion rights and gay marriage) is a legitimate grounds for viewing him with suspicion and as an opportunist who is willing to say whatever he thinks will get him elected. Likewise, if his former positions were not his true beliefs, than his having advocated those former positions is just more evidence of his opportunistic nature. In short, Dan Bartlett's criticism seems to be just his own cover for supporting a candidate whose actions have failed to be consistent with the positions continuously espoused by true religious/social conservatives.

MIke RC, Rockwall, Texas (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 2:03 PM)

Interesting blogs...I agree that the debates have been trite personality contests as the candidates haven't been given much time/questioning to delve into the meaty issues of HOW they are going to do what they propose or to move this country forward/in a different direction, etc. I'm quite confused however as to why the 'right wing Christians/Dobson' or social conservatives have so readily written of or not acknowledged Mike Huckabee...are they scared by another "man from Hope, AR???"

Kit, St. Louis, IL (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 2:18 PM)

Hey, Republicans... if you didnt want another Clinton, why'd you vote for another Bush??? Havent we had enough political dynasties in this country? Didn't we settle this question in 1776?? Well, you reap what you sow... and I can't wait to hear you guys screaming when a DEMOCRATIC prez flouts the Constitution and says "well, Bush did it before, didn't he?".

Radical Centrist, Virginia (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 2:55 PM)

Well, Terry CC Iowa, if you're such an astute observer of American politics that you can spin such conspiracies from whole cloth, you might want to learn how to spell the Vice President's name.

Get a Grip (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 4:04 PM)

Danny boy attacks candidates of his own party, Ronnie would be very mad that he broke the 11th commandment. Seems like the party of the elephant is falling apart and looks more like the party of jackels. Keep it up boys, we americans love a good family fight. We dems are united in defeating this party of the GRAND OLD POOPHEADS. Thanks George Bush for all your obstinant, ignorant, thoughtless and stupid moves, we will always think of you as a hero of the donkey.

John S. Alexander, Edinboro, PA (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 4:48 PM)

Sorry Get A Grip.

Dead Eye Dick.

How's that.

Terry CC Iowa (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 4:58 PM)

Huckabee said we need a national sales tax because Pimps don't pay tax - who's going to be against a Pimp Tax?

Tom C, Castro Valley CA (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 6:24 PM)

I see only one way for another Repugnican to get elected next year. Simply put, Monkey Bush will roll out the string of terror warnings like he did in the lead-up to the '04 election. That only if he decides not to say that the grand terror threat constitutes a national crisis and declares martial law, postponing the elections indefinitely.

Liam SoCal (Sent Wednesday, October 10, 2007 6:27 PM)

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