Wish that wasn’t the way life worked, and that we could get a good candidate for ’12. At any rate, it’s extremely doubtful that we’ll take back the Presidency until ’16, so it’s still probably an unfruitful discussion until ’16.

as that sort of thing tends to be quite divisive and unproductive in moving forward. It’s doubtful that Rudy will run in ’12, anyways, so in that sense, there’s nothing for you to worry about. That said, there really wasn’t much that social conservatives had to fear from a President Rudy; he campaigned for Scalia, Roberts, and Alito (particularly Alito) in the early phases of their nominations, had a top-notch team of advisors for judges, made remarks in a prepared speech to the Federalist Society that were very much in line with originalist thought, and had an admirable record working in Reagan’s DoJ. As far as I’m aware, the only controversy surrounding Rudy on judges concerns a statement that he made where he states his belief that stare decisis is a valid tool for the Supreme Court to use, which some took to mean that he wouldn’t appoint judges who would overturn Roe vs Wade.

Huckabee, on the other hand, has a moderate to terrible record on judges and SC decisions, and based on my findings, seems to prefer a more results-based method of Constitutional interpretation more at home in the progressive side of politics than among conservatives. He, for example, thought that Lawrence vs Texas was correctly decided (http://archive.redstate.com/blogs/mahler/2007/dec/09/huckabee_and_judges), and appointed a rather lacklustre judge to the 8th circuit described as “left of center” (http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/1940006/posts).

I understand how a social conservative would have had qualms about electing a social moderate like Rudy, but I can’t for the life of me think of why one would prefer Huckabee’s record on judges to Rudy’s. TBH, Rudy had, by far, the most conservative record on judges out of all of the major candidates (with the exception of Fred Thompson, of course). At any rate, it’s all over now… on to 2010!

You don’t even have to be pro-life to see that Roe v. Wade is both asinine and extremely dangerous.

It is ridiculous that the courts can just “make up” stuff, and pretend it is in the Constitution, in order to impose their personal values on the public.

relative to any of the other members of the coalition on domestic issues, they most definitely have had the most bones tossed their way by leadership.

They, (WE) have had a lot of promises and platitudes sent our way…but you tell me what bones have been thrown our way since 2004? With the exception of the Terry Schiavo thing, I would argue there wasn’t a whole hell of a lot thrown our way before that…and most of us didn’t like the things that were done on Schiavo and the faith based initiatives…we wanted the underlying problems we were trying to point out fixed…but the majority of us were horrified at the idea of the Congress passing a law that applied to one citizen in this country and didn’t like the idea of a faith based initiative because we knew the government would use the money given as an excuse to regulate the church.

ALL THAT is compkletely besides the point anyway…my point is…Rudy is unacceptable to values voters. Huckabee is unacceptable to FisCons, Romney is becoming increasingly unacceptable to both. Now I’m hearing the same insults and cutting rhetoric from the libertarian wing of the party that trashed Huckabee aimed at Palin…an all they have to show as a standard bearer is Ron Paul…and noone takes him seriously at all…

My whole point is…We….(and I mean all of us) have to stop attacking each other…The Republican Party can’t win squat without SoCons…and the party has proven that in the last two elections…we’ve consciously down played social issues…The Party can’t win if they do likewise to FisCons…(a group which includes most SoCons)…and the Party definitely can’t win without national security Conservatives…We all have to pull together and stop attacking each other.

That said, name for me one single other Republican that has been as effective as Palin at scoring on Obama in the last year and let’s talk about coalescing around him/her…but right now…Sarah is it! If there are policy issues we need to discuss about her…let’s talk about them by all means…but let’s leave the snobbish insults about her lack of a political pedigree, or her lack of an ivy league education where they belong. and as far as the pure as the wind driven snow Republicans she took down in AK…my question is…was there cause or not? Stevens may have been a bridge too far it can be argued…but what about the rest of those you seem to be mourning?

and before I am barraged with poop from the peanut gallery…let me put the arguement that I attack fellow Republicans as much as anyone to bed before anyone wastes time making it.

I am on a crusade against a specific Demographic of the Republican Party which is an active fifth column …specifically the RMSP is an example of one organization among many others in the party who is the favorite of Acorn, SEIU, George Soros and the Rathke brothers….recent recipients of a fat $50,000 contribution from Andy Stern and the SEIU. They are the Republicrats like Snowe, Kirk, Collins, McCain, Specter (before he switched), etc who enable the Democrats and always pull the trigger at the worse possible moment when they decide they’re going to betray the party!

The “Big Tent” analogy isn’t the correct one…the correct one is a MAGNET…we need to be a MAGNET that draws these independents in who are sick and tired of what’s going on in Washington—Fred Thompson

while the rest of the Republican team in playing footsie with the other team under the basket and refusing to even shoot the ball let alone pass it out to someone who will!

Let me be clear…I’m not a Sarah Sycophant…and I’m not about to go all in on her yet…but two things bother me on this…first is the Brookes and Schmidts in this party who are be-clowning themselves and sound like Democrats in their petty and vindictive caterwauling about how unsophisticated and under educated Palin is…and I’m doubly concerned seeing people I admire and normally agree with on 98% of issues taking up the call of the Brookes and Schmidts.

The “Big Tent” analogy isn’t the correct one…the correct one is a MAGNET…we need to be a MAGNET that draws these independents in who are sick and tired of what’s going on in Washington—Fred Thompson

If Mike Huckabee, or any other Republican governor in the history of the Party, had gotten half the flack and grief from crazed liberals and moonbats that Palin got, every single one of them would have bailed too. You can’t show me any R gov that’s gotten anywhere near that kind of crap and stuck it out. So give the ‘quitter’ line a rest already, it just makes you sound like you’ve got Palin Derangement Syndrome.

We can find agreement on the first paragraph you wrote…and I’m still waiting for you to write a substantive, thoughtful and substantive piece detailing the thinks you’ve given us glimpses of over the last 9 months…but then you do what you always do…you let your contempt for her pour out in a snobbish rant about how unsophisticated she is…and how she didn’t go to all the right schools to get her philosophies from a bunch of under worked, over paid, bubble headed Ivory tower professes.

I’m begging you…and have for months to lay out your case and leave your personal animosities out of it…because I’m hungry to know more. I don’t want the polished version of who she is to sway me…I want to see the tarnish and blemishes in all their glory so I can decide on her from an informed position…but that last bit does nothing but push me toward her because snobbery is so offensive to me and those like me.

The “Big Tent” analogy isn’t the correct one…the correct one is a MAGNET…we need to be a MAGNET that draws these independents in who are sick and tired of what’s going on in Washington—Fred Thompson

You people need to get over She Who Was Once Governor. She’s now a millionaire on a sweet book deal; just let her go.

I’m tempted to say your envy is unbecoming but I won’t go there…I want you to make your case Art…I couldn’t be more sincere in saying that…make your case in a calm, rational and reasoned way and leave the rebid foaming at the mouth insults to the KOSites!!!

The “Big Tent” analogy isn’t the correct one…the correct one is a MAGNET…we need to be a MAGNET that draws these independents in who are sick and tired of what’s going on in Washington—Fred Thompson

He’s more than willing to put Cindy’s money into his campaign if he needs to. He just won’t need to. He’ll get all he needs from the K Street crowd and the DC insiders. He won’t need to raise $10 here in AZ.

And I’ve only flown into AZ once. Watching and hearing him refer to Ronaldus Maximus as if McCain was ever a conservative has always nauseated me. Reagan’s introduction of him in his Shining City on a Hill speech always makes me cringe.

I think we’ll learn alot as we go through the 2010 election cycle. The power available to us through the Precinct Committeeman Project is a new variable. At least for us. Membership in the local county GOP is growing by leaps and bounds, most of the people I talk to get their news and daily info from the net. Those who don’t get links in their emails and exposure to the vast array of info here, and other places like this. The ability to sway opinion, plan and compare courses of action on the net could result in completely unforeseen results. If we can figure out how to use it. I have no doubt Cold Warrior is going through the MDMP right now on exactly these ideas. This is just the “conduct necessary reconnaissance” step in my TLPs so I’ll be ready.