Republican Convention
September 1, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
As Scott has said, reasonable people can disagree about Clint Eastwood’s presentation to the Republican National Convention. I have stated pretty forcefully my mostly negative view of it. But, as Scott has shown, the theme being peddled by the pro-Obama MSM — that Eastwood indulged in incoherent rambling — is false. As such, it should be regarded as a mixture of denial and blatant partisan spinning, mostly the latter. Washington
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September 1, 2012 — Scott Johnson
The Washington Post looks into the politics of the musicians who performed at the RNC last week: The lineup of musicians scheduled for the big show or affiliated events include some of showbiz’s few vocal Republicans: Country star Trace Adkins and rock star Kid Rock, set to headline concerts at Tampa’s Liberty Plaza, have both endorsed Mitt Romney. Conventioneers inside the hall will hear from the likes of the Oak
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September 1, 2012 — Scott Johnson
The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza gives his coveted Worst Week in Washington award to Clint Eastwood. According to Cillizza, at the RNC “Eastwood did everything but stick to any sort of script that would have given the audience a shot at understanding whatever point he was trying to make.” Poltico has posted the text and video of Eastwood’s remarks here. The delegates in the hall didn’t seem to have any
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August 31, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
Having a mystery speaker at the Republican National Convention was a nice touch for the delegates and for committed Republicans planning to view the convention at home, and many of us had fun guessing who that speaker would be. But surely the bigger priority for the Party was to maximize the television audience for Thursday night. Listing Clint Eastwood as a scheduled speaker would have served this objective better than
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August 31, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
That’s what my friend Bill Otis calls Romney’s speech: I thought Romney’s speech was a bundle of wasted opportunities. If the idea was to introduce “Romney the good family man,” to soften his image as a rapacious Bain capitalist, the idea was all wrong and poorly executed to boot. It was wrong first because it buys into the Democratic idea that the country wants and needs a President “who understands
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August 31, 2012 — John Hinderaker
I agree with Paul’s brief comments last night about Mitt Romney’s acceptance speech. Under the circumstances, Romney was more than good enough. With the exception of the last moments of the speech, he wasn’t as impassioned as he is on the stump. His speech wasn’t as crowd-pleasing to the delegates as Paul Ryan’s or some of the others, because it was soft-edged and lacked red meat. But the delegates, and
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August 30, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
He sounds flat to me. Is it because I’ve heard him many times before, including some of the same lines? Is it because I’ve listened to too many speeches this week? Or is Rubio simply coming up short? What do you think? JOHN adds: I thought he was great. I had heard a lot of it before too, but I thought he came across very well. I think most people
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August 30, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
Actually, I would have preferred it if the Republicans had not tried this stunt. Eastwood is combining some solid common sense and some pretty good humor, with some howlers and poor taste. My position on actors in politics is the same regardless of which party tries to use them. They shouldn’t have speaking parts at this high level. But right now, the real question is how Eastwood went over with
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August 30, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
Excellent testimonials from Olympic stars. Mike Eruzioni captain of the 1980 Miracle on Ice team does a nice job of praising Romney. But Derek Parra, a speed staking gold medalist from the 2002 games that Romney saved, is the show stopper, with his recollection of the opening ceremony in which he carried the tattered flag that had flown at the World Trade Center. That’s two powerful themes — the Olympics
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August 30, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
Good testimony about Romney’s time as Massachusetts Governor from his former Lieutenant Governor and a former member of his cabinet. The first is female. The second is not only an African-American female, but a self-described liberal Democrat. She is talking about how authentic Romney is. It’s not a good sign when someone has to vouch for your authenticity, but if it has to be done, this woman isn’t a bad
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August 30, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
Now the Romney campaign is taking on the potential political problem posed by Bain Capital. And he’s doing it head-on. The head of Staples is testifying to Romney’s dedication to making that company the great success it became. He includes a nice reference to the importance Romney gave to providing day care for the children of Staples employees, at a time when this was not so common. However, the Staples
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August 30, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
The Romney campaign is dealing with the potential political problem raised by his Mormon faith the same way he’s dealing with all other potential political problems this year — head-on. A friend and close associate from his church has described how hard Romney worked to help those in their parish. Now an elderly couple is recounting what Mitt Romney did to help bring joy and comfort to their young son
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August 30, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
Jeb Bush has paid brief tribute to his brother and has politely ripped President Obama for blaming his predecessor for the current woes. After nearly four years, says the former Florida governor, a real leader would accept responsibility for the failure of his policies. Now Bush has turned to his favorite issue — education, the soft underbelly of the Democrats’ fake claim that their Party puts people first. He’s making
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August 30, 2012 — Paul Mirengoff
Newt Gingrich and his wife are talking about Ronald Reagan’s legacy and how the Romney-Ryan program fits well within that legacy. They are also comparing Barack Obama to Jimmy Carter. In some ways, they are being unfair to Carter, whose domestic policy was not particularly radical. In any event, this presentation represents a good use of Gingrich. — probably his highest and best use for purposes of this convention.
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August 30, 2012 — John Hinderaker
Once again, Power Line Live will be open for business at 7:00 central time tonight. (Actually, you can wander in any time; no doubt some people will be hanging out there before 7.) I will be there. It’s fun to share your impressions of the convention with like-minded conservatives and to see what others have to say, so stop on by: just go here. PS: The Firefox problem we were
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August 30, 2012 — John Hinderaker
These are the extensive excerpts from the speech that Mitt Romney will deliver tonight that have been distributed to the media. It looks like a relatively soft-focus, conciliatory speech: Four years ago, I know that many Americans felt a fresh excitement about the possibilities of a new president. That president was not the choice of our party but Americans always come together after elections. We are a good and generous
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August 30, 2012 — Scott Johnson
Reader Peter Rice lives near the site of the Republican National Convention and is attending as a guest. He has kindly sent us this brief set of observations of the convention so far: 1. Republican speakers continue to highlight and celebrate champions and to present themselves as champions, such as Condi Rice as the little girl in Jim Crow Alabama who grew up to become Secretary of State. 2. The
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