Coming off huge victories in Florida and Nevada, Mitt Romney has taken the undeniable front-runner spot in the GOP primary. But, the real news is after months of looking for a “non-Romney”, it seems the tea party has begun to embrace the former Massachusetts Governor.
After losing to Newt Gingrich in South Carolina, a stellar debate performance propelled Romney to double digit victory in Florida. This was a turning point in the race that began to see the Governor fading out after a disappointing showing the week prior.
The sentiment in Florida amongst voters the favor the tea party was positive for Romney.
Out of the 66 percent of Florida voters who said they supported the small-government Tea Party movement, 41 percent cast their ballots for Romney and 38 percent for Gingrich, according to the data compiled for U.S. news organizations.
That momentum carried into Nevada this past weekend. Romney’s strong organization on the ground resulted in another huge victoryin The Silver State.
Conservatives accounted for around 4 in 5 voters Saturday as Nevada Republicans chose their presidential candidates, a poll of people entering the caucuses showed, tying Iowa as the most conservative group of GOP voters so far this year.
Around 3 in 4 Nevada voters said they were tea party supporters, according to preliminary results of the survey. That was the highest proportion of the five states that have now held their GOP presidential contests.
The overwhelming conservative turnout delivered Mitt a 50.1% majority and a head of steam entering the February caucuses.
But, despite the recent success, Mitt is not out of the water. There is still a chance that Rick Santorum can once again rise in the polls if Gingrich continues to falter. The best opportunity for Santorum is today in the non-binding Missouri primary. There he will be head to head with Romney as Gingrich failed to make the ballot.
This primary is not over by a long shot but we are starting to see more clarity after every primary and caucus. If Romney can continue to deliver and convince tea party voters he will govern with their interests in mind, the long battle to take back the White House may begin sooner rather than later.
This week the NJ legislature began it’s new session. Among the most important issues for New Jersey today: Uneployment well above the national average, failing inner-city schools, astronomical property tax rates, Vinny leaving the Jersey Shore…
All legitimate concerns say the NJ Senate President Steve Sweeney but what New Jersey needs to focus on now is… gay marriage?
Sweeney said he wants the bill to be sent to committees for vetting “right away” and expects the measure be ready for full legislative votes by March.
This is another political stunt by the Democrats to take the spotlight off of Governor Christie’s prioritization to tackle the real problems New Jersey faces.
Let’s not forget to mention that this bill came up for a vote during the Jon Corzine lame duck session, and failed. And if the Democrats had a brief moment of amnesia, the Governor has repeatedly vowed to veto any such legislation [video].
In 2006, the NJ Supreme Court “directed the state to provide same-sex couples with marriage rights or their equivalent” and the legislature answered with a civil union bill. Equal rights, right?
Now, in 2012, the LGBT lobby wants to take their quest for “equal rights” to redefine the term marriage.
Setting aside my deep disagreement with this idea for a moment. Why are 7 judges and a few dozen legislators making decisions to remove a centuries old institution? Shouldn’t this be decided by the voters?
Governor Christie agrees. In 2009 after his election he said:
If societal change like that is to occur. It has to be approved by the voters, by the people of this state. Not by 7 men or women in black robes and certainly not by 120 people in the state legislature. It should have to be done, if its going to be done, it has to be done by the voters. Not by elected or appointed people.
Before allowing the Democratic leadership to whip their caucus into voting on such a ”significant, historic societal change” that they may not subscribe to, Governor Christie should announce once again, he will veto any legislation and that this should be put on a public referendum.
Thirty-one other states have decided to let their citizens decide same sex marriage laws. If New Jersey wants “marriage equality” then the people should do it the most democratic way possible.
Until that happens, the legislature should be focusing on the real problems facing New Jersey. Like will Vinny get over his anxiety and return to Seaside before the summer ends.
By the time 2012 is over, America will have reached many historic milestones. Our national debt will have reached over $16 trillion dollars, the Supreme Court will have ruled on Obamacare, Israel may have attacked Iran and my prediction: Congress will be at an even lower approval rating.
On November 6, 2012, we must elect a President who can successfully tackle these challenges from day one. That man is Mitt Romney.
There is no such thing as a perfect candidate. No second coming of Ronald Reagan (or Margaret Thatcher). There is the best person for the job at this moment in time and we must support him.
Governor Romney’s flaws are well documented: consistency, ability to connect with voters, robotic like mannerisms, etc etc… but there is also much to be desired from a Romney candidacy and Presidency (in no particular order):
Nationwide infrastructure - The Romney campaign has basically been building on its 2008 campaign structure for 5 years. A Romney candidacy will not lack the organizational problems other possible candidates would face. He has been preparing for this battle.
Experience - Not only as Governor but as a successful businessman in the real economy. He also has the experience running a national campaign - something a Congressman cannot boast.
Money - Besides Rick Perry, no other candidate can come close to Romney’s fundraising ability. When you’re up against a machine preparing to raise $700 million, money is extremely important to compete in swing states.
Little chance of going rogue - A Romney Presidency would compliment a Senate and House Republican majority. Our number one priorities will be approved by a President Romney and he can be held in check by Congressional leaders.
He’s right on the most important issues - Obamacare, immigration, America First foreign policy. Despite some changes of heart, he is right on the issues of the day.
Equally as important as his candidacy and Presidency is Romney’s ability to secure a Senate majority for the GOP. Democrats will be defending 23 seats this year; at least 10 or 11 shaping up to serious battleground states. Romney will be able to aid the Republican candidate in states like Michigan where he enjoys high name recognition thanks to his father. His perceived moderate views can help the GOP in states like Pennsylvania and New Mexico.
We have only one chance to right the wrongs of the Obama-era. This election will be the most important of our lifetime. While all of our candidates would most certainly undertake an agenda as President we can be proud of, we can not afford to conduct any on-the-fly experiments this year on the campaign trail. Governor Romney has proven himself in business, in government and as a candidate fore President. Republicans from right to center would help our party greatly by uniting behind Mitt and preparing for a long and dirty fight ahead.
This past year our representatives in Washington continued on their road to the status quo - basically doing nothing to change America’s course to economic destruction. Supercommittees, debt deals, few billion cut over a 10 year period… failures on all fronts, from both parties.
But if Congress is bad, the regulations that poured out of the White House in 2011 were the worst.
The Heritage Foundation narrowed these economy killers down to a top 10. Billions of dollars will be lost, tens of thousands of jobs lost or not created.
In the face of prolonged high unemployment, rampant underemployment, devastating energy prices and amid growing uncertainty in the Middle East, there is no rationale for excessively burdensome regulations. This leaves any common sense thinker to believe Obama just doesn’t care about unemployment rates or energy prices — at all.
6. The Bring on the Blackouts Rule. The EPA is proposing to force power plants to reduce mercury by 90 percent within three years—at an estimated cost of $11 billion annually. A significant number of coal-fired plants will actually exceed the standard—by shutting down altogether. Indeed, grid operators, along with 27 states, are warning that the overly stringent regulations will threaten the reliability of the electricity system and dramatically increase power costs. Just like candidate Obama promised.
But why stop there? The bureaucrats in Washington must spend days trying to find more idiotic rules to lay on businesses and people.
Remember reading the dumbest laws in America and you learned in Ocean City, NY that you could not play pinball machines on Sunday? I swear the overpaid “rule makers” in DC sit around and try to find even more ridiculous policies to lay on us.
For example:
4. The Equine Equality Rule. As of March 15(the Ides of March, no less), hotels, restaurants, airlines, and the like became obliged to modify “policies, practices, or procedures” to accommodate miniature horses as service animals. According to the Department of Justice, which administers the rule, miniature horses are a “viable alternative” to dogs for individuals with allergies or for observant Muslims and others whose religious beliefs preclude canine accompaniment.
This is what we are paying our government to do. And this is why they are the Worst of the Worst in 2011.
Most websites spend this week highlighting their best stories or what their favorite videos of the year. Not here.
In 2011, there were no YouTube videos that made me sicker to watch than “Friday” by Rebecca Black. But as horrible as her voice and this video was, what was worse than knowing she thought it was ok to post such an atrocity is knowing millions of people watched it.
This year proved once again that even after suffering through sad reality shows and the Kardashians, Americans are still in love with talent-less people. There is little hope this changes in 2012.
P.S. - Please follow me on Twitter in 2012 for up-to-the-second updates from the latest Keeping Up With The Kardashians episode
Whew! Working folks around the country can breath a sigh of relief this evening knowing they won’t be seeing a tax hike come January 1. The House Republicans have caved on a two month extension to the 2% payroll tax “holiday” cut. An early Christmas gift from DC.
Earlier today, the Obama Administration rolled out it’s scare machine (aka The Wahhhmbalance) letting Americans know their neighbors will be in dire straits come the new year. Americans like ”K.Z” from Maryland wouldn’t of been able to have her “Friday Family Pizza Night”.
A mere $40 a week extra taken out of their checks would seriously harm them and their families. One thousand dollars per year is not chump change. Politically, Republicans could no longer take the heat for wanting a fiscally sane compromise and caved.
But what about 8.4%? That’s the average portion of an American family’s budget spent on gasoline —$4,155 — a 30 year record. Where is the request for sob stories from the White House (George Bush is in the pocket of oil companies, remember)?
Thanks to Obama’s policies, those Americans who are lucky enough to work have seen energy prices skyrocket under his administration.
Obama’s environmental and energy policies are also a key reason why prices are constantly heading higher. The American oil and gas industry is producing record domestic yields these days, thanks to the vastly increased efficiency made possible by technological advances like horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing.
That ought to be good news because increased supply normally means lower prices. But the energy industry’s ability to process oil into gasoline is greatly handicapped by environmental regulations that are so stringent that it’s been nearly four decades since a new refinery was built in this country.
Americans should be demanding common sense regulations that do not destroy economic growth and jobs. We should be fighting against permitoriums and rules that will put energy companies out of business.
Obama continues to play politics of fear and class warfare with relatively small “tax cuts” while Americans continue to suffer record high unemployment and difficulty affording to heat their homes and drive to work.
How many pizzas has this Administration costed us already?
Members of Congress recently filed their quarterly campaign-finance reports, which detail their political fundraising, spending, cash on hand and debts. The Center for Responsive Politics posted the totals for all House and Senate members yesterday. This map shows fundraising totals by state:
Here’s a per-capita version:
The interactive version lets you toggle views between fundraising, spending, debt and cash.
This week the NJ legislature began it’s new session. Among the most important issues for New Jersey today: Uneployment well above the national average, failing inner-city schools, astronomical property tax rates, Vinny leaving the Jersey Shore…
By the time 2012 is over, America will have reached many historic milestones. Our national debt will have reached over $16 trillion dollars, the Supreme Court will have ruled on Obamacare, Israel may have attacked Iran and my prediction: Congress will be at an even lower approval rating.
Whew! Working folks around the country can breath a sigh of relief this evening knowing they 
