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A Long Record of Obamite Thuggery
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The Spectacle Blog
This devastating You Tube video captures many of the times that Mitt Romney took positions as far left as, or even further left than, Ted Kennedy and Barack Obama. It’s rather bracing to see it in person — but, in truth, I sorta knew most of it. What I somehow had missed was that Romney didn’t just support TARP — in a crisis, so did some other mistaken conservatives — but, later, he also supported the “stimulus” package. In fact, he said his regret was that the old Congress hadn’t already passed a $700 billion package for GW Bush to sign. I know of no other evem semi-conservative major figure who supported that monstrosity. But in this video, from about the 3:29 mark to about the 4:10 mark, Romney did just that. He also showed himself so far left on abortion and gun control that it went beyond what I already had known about him on those subjects as well. It’s really amazing, politically, that a supposedly conservative party is, according to conventional wisdom’s projections, about to nominate a presidential candidate whose recent past was so profoundly unconservative.
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More Blog Posts by Quin Hillyer
http://spectator.org/blog/2012/01/17/i-didnt-know-romney-supported
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Winghunter| 1.17.12 @ 11:49AM
Willard Romney “My views are Progressive”
The Romney Scorecard: RINO http://bit.ly/706p7k
Romney’s Record on Appointing Leftwing Lunatic Judges http://bit.ly/sOdOuF
JP| 1.17.12 @ 11:59AM
There were many Republicans who thought that the Stimulus was the most important piece of legislation since 1789. Most were either cowed by the Obama Machine, or they wanted in on the lute.
Bill Hussein O'Stalin| 1.17.12 @ 12:05PM
More cheese cake from AMSPEC.
First, the Republicans have never been that conservative and that is a big problem, for everyone.
Second, TARP was supported universally by many prominent economists and the Bush Treasury who invented it. Bush was no conservative but he's still welcome in all Republican circles.
Lastly, many alleged conservative Republicans condemned the Obama Stimulus, yet they supported it by taking the money. I have no problem with that but it's pure AMSPEC hypocrisy to pretend that Romney is the only one.
In fact, Romney's in the minority because HE NEVER took the money. Unlike those governors Romney stated he believed in cutting government and NOT depending on federal largess:
Romney, From a CNN interview:
I can’t say that I would turn away any money that came from Washington. And last time we had a downturn — and I’d just come in as governor — Congress passed a bill to provide additional Medicaid funding to the states. And I was only so happy to receive those funds. But I can tell you that we put together our budget — and when I say “we,” I mean Republicans and Democrats. We put our budget together cutting $3 billion out of our budget without any expectation that money would come down the road. It was like a windfall. We took the opportunity to cut our costs. And as a result, we were able to put away hundreds of millions of dollars into our state rainy-day fund. So I’m — you know, I’m encouraging governors and legislators to take advantage of a very difficult time to cut out programs that really aren’t necessary, that are inefficient, that are ineffective, and to start living within the means that we have.
An incomplete list of Republicans (Including Rick Perry) who condemned the Stimulus but supported it by taking the funds:
http://www.salon.com/2009/02/20/gop_governors_2/
But despite the protests, the governors will almost certainly wind up taking the money anyway, just as states do with federal aid all the time. Some of the states whose governors have been the loudest voices against the stimulus cash already benefit heavily from federal spending or from lucrative private use of federal land for oil. So perhaps it shouldn’t be a surprise that Texas Gov. Rick Perry decided Thursday to accept the $17 billion his state has coming to it, after days of hemming and hawing about the handout. South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, who wrote an article for the Wall Street Journal Op-Ed page in November titled “Don’t Bail Out My State,” did the same. They’re in good company; Minnesota’s Tim Pawlenty criticized the plan loudly while Congress debated it, then said he owed it to his constituents to take it. Alabama Gov. Bob Riley stepped up his criticism of the bill after announcing he would take the $2 billion his state gets from it. Republicans in the House even boasted about the bacon the bill would bring home, after engineering a unanimous vote against it. When just about every state is in a financial crunch, thanks to the collapsing economy, it’s hard to hold the line and actually turn down the cash. “It’s *ucking stupid,” said one Republican consultant in Washington. “If the money’s there, they’d be nuts to not take it … If it’s a question of, ‘Hey, the money’s going to be spent, so we might as well spend it in our state,’ that’s just nuts to turn it down.”
Pete| 1.17.12 @ 12:24PM
When your constituents are paying for it, maybe it makes sense to get some of it back. Unless of course you favor spreading your wealth around.
Bill Hussein O'Stalin| 1.17.12 @ 1:01PM
If conservatives took it and Romney did not take it, then how is he somehow worse than "real conservatives?"
aware| 1.17.12 @ 4:14PM
What do you mean by Romney "didn't take" what money? TARP and "Stimulus" happened after he was governor didn't it? That he fully supported such anti-capitalist ram downs by the State is certainly true and unsurprising.
I hate to say it but I think he will be the nominee.
I can hardly wait for Romney's metamorphosis into the "conservative" alternative to the current Goldman puppet. Sure, he's a Goldman puppet too, but he's "our" Goldman puppet right?
TARP support is an instant pointer to either a banker owned patsy or a weak minded fool willing to be stampeded by bankers. Any who supported shouldn't just not ever hold office again, they should either be hanged or in prison. It didn't "save the world", just the cronies' world.
Pete| 1.17.12 @ 4:20PM
Add the support for AGW and Cap and Trade and you see that only the letter behind the name is different.
Pete| 1.17.12 @ 4:20PM
Add the support for AGW and Cap and Trade and you see that only the letter behind the name is different.
Pete| 1.17.12 @ 4:19PM
He is worse for being a fool who is willing to let the people who elected him pay for the benefits paid by other states.
Quin| 1.17.12 @ 2:04PM
Romney didn't "take" anything. This was the Obama stimulus, long after he left office -- and he endorsed it on TV!
Bill Hussein O'Stalin| 1.17.12 @ 3:57PM
Ok. I get it. Now explain in 25 words or less how that is bad for him who endorsed it but never took any money as opposed to the alleged "real" conservatives who bashed it and took all the money with no qualms whatsoever.
Quin| 1.17.12 @ 4:06PM
He had no chance to take the money. He wasn't in office. Meanwhile, several conservative governors -- Jindal among them -- did indeed refuse to take the money.
Bill Hussein O'Stalin| 1.17.12 @ 5:02PM
Quin: That is weak. It doesn't explain why Romney is somehow more liberal or less worthy than the conservatives who took the money. The whole argument is ridiculous.
aware| 1.17.12 @ 4:30PM
Perry opposes it now but he didn't then. Typical political class behavior. It's called weaseling and the gifted at it usually go far indeed in American politics.
Rick Perry, as Chairman of the Republican Governor’s Assocation, teamed up with Joe Manchin, who was then the head of the Democratic Governor’s Assocation. Perry and Manchin wrote and sent a letter to Pelosi, Boehner, Reid, and McConnell on October 1st, 2008 urging them to come together and pass the $800 billion bailout, which ended up costing trillions.
This after the the failure to pass the first time and all the political class was in high panic.
Anybody who could not see TARP for exactly what it was at the time, a blatant robbery by the State at the behest of the banking cartel of middle and upper middle class citizens, can never claim to have any understanding of what is going on. Certainly such a person cannot ever claim to possess "leadership" qualities.
Oldefarte| 1.17.12 @ 2:07PM
I missed the debate due to viewing Alcatraz, but the repeated segments of Ginguich presenting his arguments regarding WELFARE are mind-boggling and outstanding. Possible Newt would be the best candidate, if he unabashedly gets in the faces of Obama/Democrats over their historical liberalism absurdities!!!!!
daboss| 1.17.12 @ 3:25PM
i missed Alcatraz - was it any good?
Oldefarte| 1.17.12 @ 5:01PM
Okay though confusing plot. Scenes of the prison were typically outstanding [I visited the prison several years ago while in SF]. Think it's going to be a continuing series in the fashion of '24', and will feature returning and captured former inmates of 1963 who are all yet unexplained the same age as when then disappeared that same year. You might be able to view the episode on your cable network possibly or maybe google search same for viewing!!!!!
Dixie Pixie| 1.17.12 @ 2:31PM
Huntsman and Mittens Romney were flat out lying when they said they were “Conservative”
As a general rule of thumb a North-Eastern “Conservative” is a South-Eastern Liberal Democrat.
Frankly, the word “Conservative” has been so misused the term has become a mere meaningless decorative label.
PattyMor| 1.17.12 @ 2:41PM
Why would you be surprised at anything Mittens has said over the year. Goggle it, he has said he was a moderate...actually a progressive. Bingo!!
Me, I'll take Newt as imperfect as he is. At least he's mostly conservative and balanced the budget.
Bill Hussein O'Stalin| 1.17.12 @ 4:02PM
Gingrich is only a conservative when he's not sitting on a bench endorsing global warming or not getting paid millions to work behind the scene to keep Fannie/Freddie open, or making comments about the Ryan plan calling it "righ wing social engineering."
Pete| 1.17.12 @ 4:23PM
Romney also endorsed AGW. Ryan's plan is too weak. It never cuts a budget.
aware| 1.17.12 @ 4:32PM
Yes.
Shelly | 1.17.12 @ 4:38PM
Please go to YouTube and search for "Newt Gingrich progressive" & "Newt Gingrich Wilsonian."
If you have a problem with progressives (like Romney & Obama), you'll have a problem with Newt, too.
Clint| 1.17.12 @ 4:38PM
Who Is This Cat Named Mittens ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1wPrsEP2nc
The Tea Party Rebellion Is In South Carolina.
Oldefarte| 1.18.12 @ 10:56AM
Maybe instead you should be asking WHO IS THIS CAT NAMED BARRY??????????
Shelly | 1.17.12 @ 4:43PM
If you want to see a truly devastating video about how much Romney SUCKS, go here:
"Not Romney" (on YouTube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARnzBOkKAiE
Mitt should not be president. Ever. No matter how bad he wants to be.
For those on the fence about Newt:
Newt Gingrich Progressive Ideals
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zex6qptVIPU
Since I'm only allowed to post "2 links" here, you'll have to manually search for these titles on YouTube:
-Newt Gingrich the Big-Government Progressive
-Newt in 1999 "Theodore Roosevelt La Follette Progressive tradition"
-Newt Gingrich Admits He's a Progressive in the Theodore Roosevelt Tradition
-Newt Gingrich: Progressives took over both parties
-Who is Newt's favorite President?
-Newt Gingrich: I'm a Wilsonian
-Newt Gingrich: "I'm a BIG FAN of FDR & Woodrow Wilson"
-Newt Gingrich is a Progressive Rockefeller Republican
Newt may be a great debater...but, they said the same about Obama (another progressive).
Quartermaster| 1.17.12 @ 7:04PM
The GOP has never been a conservative party. It started as a left wing party, put up a left winger to be elected in 1860, and with the exception of a very bright spots (e.g. Coolidge) has put up moderates or flaming libs. Romney and Newt are well within the GOP mainstream. Frankly, most of the complaining about the leftist midgets the GOP keeps putting up is just whining. It has always been thus.
aware| 1.17.12 @ 7:17PM
Coolidge, the greatest president of the 20th century and the last sentinel of the Republic to occupy the White House. He came, he saw, he cut.
Since then elections are just about velocity, not direction.