Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH), at a dinner in Washington hosted by The
American Spectator last night, predicted that gas prices would be
the dominant issue in this election, called Barack Obama a
"transcendent figure" but a "blank page," ripped the tactics of
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and branded earmarks a
"fraudulent debate" that distracted attention from the entitlement
crisis.
"This is not going to be a foreign policy election, and I think
McCain is focusing to much on it," Gregg said. "This election will
be about gas."
Gregg said the public is more passionate about gas prices than
it has been about any issue in his political career, perhaps since
HillaryCare.
If he were advising McCain, he said he would "start every day
saying 'drill,' and end every day saying, 'drill.'"
He said Obama was not just another Jimmy Carter, but he was a
"transcendent figure," and people generally like him because he
represents something different at a time when the public wants
something significantly different from Republicans.
Unless people are convinced he can't handle the gas prices
situation, Gregg said, Obama will probably win.
Gregg endorsed Mitt Romney during the primaries.
When I asked him to describe his experiences with Obama as a
Senate colleague, he said they were limited. He used to see him in
the gym in the morning, and said Obama was in "great shape." But he
didn't see him on the floor much, because Obama started running for
president so soon into his freshman Senate term.
"I don't know who he is or what he stands for better than
anybody else," Gregg said. "He's a blank page."
He did concede, however, that one has to respect Obama for what
he's been able to accomplish having come out of nowhere.
Gregg also expressed concern about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,
explaining that because so many banks hold their bonds, if they
fail, it would reverberate throughout the financial system.
He had harsh words for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who he
said was turning the Senate into the House of Representatives by
using procedural mechanisms to stifle debate and the ability to add
amendments in an effort to stymie Republicans and prevent Democrats
from having to take tough votes.
By using a practice known as "filling the tree" Reid adds all
sorts of amendments to a bill, blocking Republican efforts to add
their own amendments. When Republicans filibuster, Reid will brand
them as obstructionists, so he sees it as a win-win. Gregg said
this was a troubling development for the Senate, and no other
Majority Leader -- Republican or Democrat -- has behaved
similarly.
Gregg was more optimistic about Republican prospects in the
Senate than most, insisting that all of the Republican incumbents
considered the most in danger would get elected including Susan
Collins of Maine, Gordon Smith of Oregon, Norm Coleman of Minnesota
and John Sununu in his home state of New Hampshire.
The two reasons he gave were that they were all "exceptional
candidates" and that McCain would do well in all of those states.
He also said there is an undercurrent of opposition to Obama, when
people get into the voting booth, they may ask themselves, "Do I
really want somebody three years removed from the state senate to
be president?" Gregg suggested that that's what happened when
Hillary Clinton upset Obama in New Hampshire.
Gregg acknowledged that Republicans are in danger in open seats
in Virginia, New Mexico, and Colorado and he also said a few
incumbents not normally seen as vulnerable, may prove to be, but he
wouldn't name names. In the end, he said he thought that
Republicans would end the year two or three seats down.
Asked about John McCain's views on earmarks, he said that it was
a "fraudulent debate" and a "straw dog" argument. Though they make
for good one-liners, in reality, they represent a small amount of
money compared to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, which
nobody has the courage to do anything about. He said a lot of
lawmakers can get away with voting for all sorts of spending by
opposing a small earmark here or there. But he's all for forcing
their disclosure, and for making the lawmaker who asked for the
earmark defend him or herself on the floor.
topics:
Foreign Policy, John McCain, Barack Obama, Harry Reid, Hillary Clinton, Earmarks, Social Security, Medicaid, Law, Medicare
