Republicans
From NBC’s Domenico Montanaro
Sarah Palin released the second leg of her “Going Rogue” book tour yesterday, including a stop in Fort Hood.
“I'm looking forward to seeing everyone in every stop on the tour, but I'm especially looking forward to meeting our brave men and women in uniform at Fort Hood,” Palin said on her Facebook page. “I'm joining the efforts of many others by donating my royalties from the book sales during our stop at Fort Hood to the families of the victims whose lives have been forever changed by the tragic events of November 5th. I am humbled to be able to join the larger effort called ‘Community Response to 11/5,’ which was established by the Central Texas-Fort Hood Chapter of the Association of the US Army (AUSA).”
Yesterday, Palin said, "I think that there were massive warning flags that were missed all over the place and I think that it was quite unfortunate that, to me, it was a fear of being politically incorrect to not -- I am going to use the word -- profile this guy -- profile in the sense of finding out what his radical beliefs were. … Now, because I used the word 'profile' I am going to get clobbered tomorrow morning. The liberals, their heads are just going to be spinning. They're going to say 'she is radical, she is extreme.' "
Palin did not specify what she meant by “profile,” widely and generally believed to be a reference to focusing on groups of people by race, religion or otherwise. There certainly was seemingly enough evidence that Army Major Nadal Hasan was not a competent psychiatrist without “profiling” him. But, NPR reported, that Hasan’s religion may have been a factor in him being passed – despite his poor marks. And the FBI has said it was aware of Hasan’s communications with a radical Imam prior to the shooting, but deemed them not necessarily evidence of so-called radical views.
Hardly “liberals,” Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen gave differing views than Palin on profiling.
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From NBC’s Kelly O’Donnell and Domenico Montanaro
In the Reid healthcare bill, there is a new 5% tax on elective cosmetic surgery.
Today, Oklahoma Republican Sen. Tom Coburn, who is a physician and staunchly opposed to this legislation, suggested on the Senate floor that a woman would be taxed if she had breast reconstruction surgery following cancer.
"In this bill is a 5% tax on cosmetic surgery,” Coburn said. “Just yesterday -- the day before yesterday, U.S. preventive task forces, services, recommended because it's not cost effective that women under 50 not get mammograms unless they have risk factors. Well, you tell that to the thousands of women who were diagnosed with breast cancer lat last -- last year under 50 with a mammogram. You tell them it's not cost effective. Also in this bill is a 5% tax on the breast reconstruction surgery after they had a mastectomy. They're going to tax having your breast rebuilt after your breast is taken off because it is elective plastic surgery. It is elective cosmetic surgery. We're going to have a tax on it because we've taxed elective cosmetic surgery. We're in trouble as a nation because we've taken our eye off the ball."
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From NBC's Mark Murray
CEDAR CREEK, Tex. -- Given that this year's Republican Governors Association meeting is taking place here in Texas, reporters today asked RGA Chairman Haley Barbour, the governor of Mississippi, to weigh in on the Rick Perry-vs.-Kay Bailey Hutchison GOP primary for Texas governor.
Barbour said that the RGA doesn't take sides in primaries, but that he was personally backing Perry. "I personally think Gov. Perry should be re-elected," he said.
And then he added this: "I hope Sen. Hutchison will stay in the United States Senate for the rest of my life."
Asked why he supported Perry over Hutchison, Barbour replied, "I thought he deserved re-election." He then went on to say: "I would hate to lose Kay Bailey in the Senate."
When asked if he has talked to Hutchison about staying in the Senate, Barbour responded simply, "She and I have talked."
From NBC's Mark Murray
CEDAR CREEK, Tex. -- More than a dozen Republican governors held a press conference at the Republican Governors Association meeting here outside of Austin, TX, to argue that both the House and Senate healthcare bills would end up shifting costs to the states -- negatively impacting their budgets.
South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds (R) explained that one of the tools congressional Democrats have adopted to cover uninsured Americans is by expanding Medicaid, which the states help finance. Yet Rounds said that expanding Medicaid in his state would cost $33 million a year.
"I can't afford that," he said.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) also contended that the legislation would only add to their budget shortfalls in this economic climate.
"This bill [the Senate] is debating is going to make it worse," Perry said. "That is an inarguable fact. ... It will be devastating. I don't think there's any other way to describe it."
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Sarah Palin, a former high school point guard, heads to the basketball-crazy Hoosier state today on the second day of her “Going Rogue” book tour. Here’s Andrea Mitchell’s report on NBC Nightly News last night from Grand Rapids, Mich., including Palin’s reaction to John McCain’s defense of his campaign.
The Washington Post says Palin’s return to Michigan yesterday “had all the trappings of a political campaign -- bus, advance team, security detail, political handlers, rope lines, satellite trucks and approximately 2,000 supporters and gawkers on site. A blue coach bus with ‘Going Rogue With Sarah!’ written on the front over the likeness of a moose pulled up outside the Barnes and Noble here at about 5:30 p.m. The campaign anthem ‘Only in America’ played on a speaker outside the store. When she got off the bus, wearing her familiar uniform of black skirt, high heels and red blazer, she waved with one hand and held her son Trig, dressed in a striped green sweater, in the other. The group erupted in applause. She walked to a small platform in the middle of the crowd, said ‘Thank you so much for showing up,’ and handed Trig to an aide.”
At the Republican Governors Association meeting in Texas, Palin was hardly a topic -- and if she came up, GOP governors went out of their way to say nice things, according to Politico’s Martin.”[W]hen asked about the party's buzz machine they took pains to choose their words, focusing on the energy she generates among her followers while at the same time offering clenched-jaw assessments indicating a great desire to discuss any other subject.”
The Washington Post says Democrats are calling Eric Cantor (R) a hypocrite on the stimulus.
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From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Sen. Ben Nelson sure sounds like he's leaning "yes" on a cloture vote with this statement below. He released the following after his meeting with Majority Leader Harry Reid this afternoon, and he sure goes out of his way to explain what a vote in favor or cloture would mean.
And these might be the key phrases in here: "In reality, the meaning of the motion to proceed is very simple: It’s a motion to commence debate and an opportunity to make changes. Let me say it again: it is a motion to start debate on a bill and to try to improve it."
Statement in full after the jump:
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From NBC's Mark Murray
John McCain today picked up the phone and called Reuters to defend Steve Schmidt and Nicolle Wallace -- who worked for him in the last year's presidential campaign -- from the charges that Sarah Palin has made about them in her book.
"There's been a lot of dust flying around in the last few days and I just wanted to mention that I have the highest regard for Steve Schmidt and Nicolle Wallace and the rest of the team ... and I appreciated all the hard work and everything they did to help the campaign," he said.
"I think it's just time to move on," he said.
[snip]
"Campaigns are high-pressure situations. The only more high-pressure situation that I've been in is combat and prison," said McCain, a Navy flyer shot down during the Vietnam War and held prisoner for 5 1/2 years.
"But you know, I'm proud of Nicolle and Steve and (senior campaign official) Rick Smith [sic] and (senior adviser) Mark Salter and I'll always have great affection for them," he said.
McCain, who has largely kept silent in the high-profile run-up to Palin's book release and tour, said he remained proud of Palin, whom he plucked from obscurity as governor of Alaska last year to join him in his campaign.
"I'm still really proud of her and the campaign she ran and I think it's pretty obvious that she has a substantial base and interest out there," McCain said.
*** UPDATE *** Reuters has since corrected its version -- with Rick Davis, not Rick Smith.
From NBC's Mark Murray
AUSTIN, Tex. -- Earlier today, we reported that Florida Gov. Charlie Crist would not be attending the Republican Governors Association meeting here. But an RGA official tells First Read that he will be attending the confab, and will arrive here later tonight.
Crist, of course, is now running for the Senate, and he's facing a competitive primary contest against the more conservative Marco Rubio, who has been endorsed by the Club for Growth.
From NBC's Domenico Montanaro, Kelly Paice and Ali Weinberg
With Attorney General Eric Holder testifying on Capitol Hill today, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani will take his shots on a conference call sponsored by the Republican National Committee (as we mentioned in First Thoughts today.)
But Rudy's hot rhetoric today is a far cry from his stance in 1994 after the verdict in the World Trade Center bombing trial.
The New York Times wrote on March 5, 1994: "Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani declared that the verdict 'demonstrates that New Yorkers won't meet violence with violence, but with a far greater weapon -- the law.'"
And: "It should show that our legal system is the most mature legal system in the history of the world, that it works well, that that is the place to seek vindication if you feel your rights have been violated," Giuliani said.
And from a 2006 Hardball interview about Zacarias Moussaoui not getting the death penalty: 2006: Giuliani on Moussaoui not getting death penalty:
“Yes, I'm disappointed. I believe that the death penalty was appropriate in this case, should have been applied. But then at the same time -- and maybe this is like the contradictory, complex feelings we all have about September 11 and everything that's come from it. At the same time, I have tremendous respect for our legal system. Maybe there is something good that comes out of this in showing these people that -- at least showing the ones that have any kind of an open mind that we are a free society, a lawful society ... that we have respect for people's rights and that we can have disagreements about whether the death penalty should be imposed on somebody like Moussaoui."
So, Mr. Mayor, what's changed?
From NBC's Mark Murray
AUSTIN, Tex. -- When GOP governors huddled at the annual Republican Governors Association meeting a year ago in Miami, the party had just suffered another thumping at the polls, Sarah Palin was the unquestioned star attraction, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty was urging his party to be more positive and inclusive, and Florida Gov. Charlie Crist was seen as a new hope for the GOP.
But as this year's RGA meeting begins in earnest here deep in the heart of Texas, things have certainly changed. Republicans are now celebrating their wins earlier this month in New Jersey and Virginia; Palin is no longer in office and is instead selling her controversial memoir; Pawlenty has become a frequent Obama critic and is emphasizing his conservative views; and Crist (who won't be in attendance) has gone from possible GOP hope to a conservative target in his race for the Senate next year.
Indeed, at least four stories will be on display here at the RGA meeting, which concludes on Thursday night. One, is the GOP poised for a political comeback? Two, looking ahead to 2012, who are the party's potential presidential candidates? (Pawlenty, Louisiana's Bobby Jindal, RGA Chair Haley Barbour of Mississippi, and Indiana's Mitch Daniels will be in attendance.) Three, who are their top gubernatorial candidates for the 2010 midterms? (Ohio's John Kasich, Pennsylvania's Tom Corbett, and Florida's Bill McCollum will be here.) And four, is there really an ideological split inside the party? (While Palin is selling her book today in Michigan, the RGA will be celebrating two Republicans who won, in part, by hugging the middle -- New Jersey Gov.-elect Chris Christie and Virginia Gov.-elect Bob McDonnell.)
It's also worth noting how the GOP rhetoric has changed from last year to this year. Here was Pawlenty a year ago in Miami: "People mostly want to follow positive leaders; they don't want to follow cranks." Here was Jindal: "We can't just be the party of 'No.'" Here was even Palin: "We are the minority party, but let us resolve not to become the negative party." Ironically, becoming the party of "No" has paid dividends -- so far -- for the GOP a year after Obama's historic win. The question to ponder is whether that's a sustainable long-term message for the party.
Today's RGA agenda: The public events kick off at 5:30 pm ET with a plenary session entitled "State-Based Solutions." It features Pawlenty, Jindal, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Kasich, Corbett, Christie, and McDonnell. Then, at 7:00 pm ET, there's a press briefing to discuss the 2009 campaigns. Speakers include RGA Chairman Barbour, McDonnell, Christie, RGA Executive Director Nick Ayers, and GOP pollster Glen Bolger and Jon Lerner. Finally, at 8:35 pm ET, Perry, Jindal, McDonnell, and Christie speak at a "Victory Barbeque."
