2016 Presidential Election Thread

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Mitt's Top Adviser Stu Stevens: I’ve Discussed Possibility Of Brokered Convention With Romney

Mitt Romney’s top political adviser says he has talked about the possibility of a brokered convention with the 2012 presidential contender — but not in the way one might think.
Stuart Stevens explained the context of his brokered convention conversation with Romney during an interview on Hugh Hewitt show Wednesday, guest-hosted by this writer.
“We have talked about that, but not about some scenario where he would pop out of a hat,” Stevens said when asked whether he has heard the words “brokered convention” cross Romney’s lips.
Some on the right have speculated about the possibility of Romney re-emerging as a contender at the Republican National Convention if no current 2016 Republican candidate is able to win enough delegates to win the nomination on the first ballot.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...

[Burnsey]

For years, Republicans have run for office on promises of cutting taxes and bolstering business to stimulate economic growth, pledging allegiance to a Reaganesque model of conservatism that has largely become the party’s orthodoxy.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/0...p-s-Tax-Plans#

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Religious Leaders Meet, Pray with Donald Trump
The Brody File/CBN News ^

GOP presidential frontrunner Donald Trump met and prayed with about 40 religious leaders and pastors in his Trump Tower office Monday afternoon.
Among the attendees were televangelists Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, conservative evangelical Christian Pastor David Jeremiah, TBN religious broadcaster Jan Crouch, Pastor Paula White, Jews For Jesus Rabbi Kirt Schneider and Pastor Darrell Scott.
The meeting lasted roughly two and a half hours and ended with pastors gathering around Trump and laying their hands on him in prayer. Kenneth Copeland, Paula White, and Rabbi Schneider prayed during that time, asking the Lord to give the GOP presidential frontrunner wisdom, stability and knowledge necessary to pursue this endeavor. They also prayed for America and for God's will to be done.
During the meeting, he talked about his Christian faith. At one point he admitted that he may not have read the Bible as much as the pastors in the room. As the conversation continued, a few of the ministers implored Trump to tone done some of his harsh rhetoric.
Pastor Scott, who was present in the meeting and is neutral in this presidential race, said Trump humbly received the message by nodding his head, listening attentively and not being combative at all.
“He has a very high regard and a very deep respect for men and woman of the cloth,” Scott tells The Brody File.
As for additional subject matter, Trump told the religious leaders and pastors that he will be a strong supporter of Israel and that defeating ISIS would be a strong part of his agenda. He also discussed trade, balancing the budget, eliminating the deficit and tax reform.
As for faith issues, he talked about how religious liberty and Christianity is under attack in America and that there is a lot of religious intolerance for Christianity in today’s society.
The subject of race relations also came up when some of the African-American pastors in the room mentioned that there seems to be some detachment between him and the black community. While citing some polls to the contrary, Scott told The Brody File that Trump agreed with the overall assessment and would try to do a better job.
Scott believes the GOP presidential frontrunner made headway during the meeting.
“I think Donald Trump changed the opinions of the African-American pastors that were in the room. They saw a side of him outside of the media depiction, and that they would give strong consideration in regards to supporting his candidacy."

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Donald Trump Goes Ballistic...Journalist Uses Lewd Insult Against Him On Fox News

Real-estate magnate Donald Trump fired off multiple furious tweets Wednesday night after a crude remark was used against him on Fox News.
Rich Lowry, the editor of the conservative magazine National Review, declared that the Republican presidential front-runner is attacking rival Carly Fiorina because she emasculated him at last week's presidential debate.
"Part of what's going on here is that last debate. Let's be honest: Carly cut his balls off with the precision of a surgeon and he knows it," Lowry said during a Fox News interview, according to video posted by Mediaite.
Host Megyn Kelly was shocked.
"What did you just say?!" Kelly said. "You can't say that."
But Trump, who has fiercely feuded with both Fox News and Kelly, wasn't satisfied with her admonishment.
He trashed Lowry on Twitter as "incompetent" and "clueless," demanded an apology, and suggested that the Federal Communications Commission should fine Lowry as a result.
(snip)

(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...

Trump Tweets Outrage over ‘Balls’ Comment: Fox ‘Owes Me an Apology’

The media world was waiting for it and Donald Trump delivered Wednesday night, performing his now nightly Twitter assault on Fox News after announcing his boycott of the network earlier in the day.
This time, the GOP frontrunner’s outrage came after the National Review’s Rich Lowry suggested that Carly Fiorina “cut [Trump’s] balls off with the precision of a surgeon” at the CNN Republican debate, much to host Megyn Kelly’s shock. “You can’t say that,” Kelly said. For once, she and Trump agreed.

(Excerpt) Read more at mediaite.com ...

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Ben Carson's Warning
Townhall.com ^


"Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits." (Matthew 7:15-16)
Major newspaper editorials and some columnists have their knickers in a twist over remarks by Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson. Appearing last Sunday on "Meet the Press," Carson was asked by host Chuck Todd whether he believes Islam is consistent with the Constitution. "No, I don't," he said. "I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation." Asked whether he could vote for a Muslim for Congress, Carson said Congress is a different story, but that it "depends on who that Muslim is and what their policies are."
Carson critics are quick to mention Article VI of the Constitution, which prohibits a "religious test" for office, but that means no one can be barred from office because of their faith; it does not and could not prevent citizens from voting for or against someone for religious reasons.
Two years ago, The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom reported that 10 of the 15 "worst violators of religious freedom" in the world are nations in which Islam is the dominant religion.
If you prefer the thoughts of a cultural icon, consider what singer Art Garfunkel said. As reported on Daily Mail.com, Garfunkel noted that Muslims are transforming Europe. He referenced "Reflections of the Revolution in Europe," a 2009 book by Christopher Caldwell, which argues, "that mass immigration by Muslims is altering the culture of Europe because of their reluctance to join the culture of their new homelands." The book claims Muslims do not so much enhance European culture as supplant it, and are "patiently conquering Europe's cities, street by street."
Is that bigotry, or reality? Is it bigotry to quote what various Islamic leaders say are their intentions when it comes to establishing a worldwide caliphate and replacing the U.S. Constitution with Sharia Law, or is it a warning we should take seriously and respond to as we would react to any other invasion?
"Mina" (not her real name to protect her family) is a U.S. citizen and longtime friend who was born in Tehran and still has family there. She wrote me about the intentions of the mullahs and their nuclear deal with the U.S. and five other nations: "The mullahs are buying time ... (to) finish their nuclear program. Americans underestimate these people. It will be Hezbollah, ISIS, or al-Qaida doing their dirty work. They will give them the nuclear bomb. They are very shrewd. They'll sit back and watch."
"Mina" says the Iranian regime has been a huge supporter of President Obama, whose name in Persian, she notes, translates as "he is with us." She asks why Arab and Muslim countries don't take in the migrants now fleeing their native lands for Europe (and now thanks to President Obama the U.S.). It's a good question and the answer ought to be obvious to anyone not afraid of being labeled a "bigot." They support the invasion.
While not all Muslims are terrorists, Breitbart recently revealed a startling statistic. "In a recent survey conducted by AlJazeera.net, the website for the Al Jazeera Arabic television channel," it writes, "respondents overwhelmingly support the Islamic State terrorist group, with 81 percent voting 'YES' on whether they approved of ISIS's conquests in the region." Eighty-one percent.
We are at war with a radical ideology that wishes to destroy the West and drastically alter our way of life. That is what Ben Carson was getting at when he made his remarks about a Muslim president in the White House.

[Burnsey]

There's plenty to make one wonder about Bernie Sanders, a self described Democratic Socialist. But his pitch hasn't changed since got into the race for the Democratic nomination.......a rare attribute for a politician, right? The man has courage too, selling it at Liberty??????????

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fOPBIc56gU

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Wall Street's latest panic: Trump could win
Politico ^ |


NEW YORK — Wall Street is growing increasingly terrified that Donald Trump — once viewed as an amusing summertime distraction — could actually win the Republican nomination for president.
The real estate billionaire, who took another populist shot on Sunday by ripping into lavish executive pay, continues to rise in the polls. Would-be Wall Street saviors like Jeb Bush are languishing in single digits. The belief that Trump's candidacy would quickly fade is now evaporating in a wave of fear.
“I held four lunches for investors in August and at the first one everyone assumed Trump would implode,” said Byron Wien, vice chairman of Blackstone Advisory Partners and a senior figure on Wall Street. “By the fourth one everyone was taking him very seriously. He taps into frustrations that are very real and he is a master manipulator of the media.”
The CEO of one large Wall Street firm, who declined to be identified by name criticizing the GOP front-runner, said the assumption in the financial industry remains that something will eventually knock Trump off and send voters toward a more establishment candidate. But that assumption is no longer held with strong conviction. And a dozen Wall Street executives interviewed for this article could not say what might dent Trump's appeal or when it might happen.
"I don't know anyone who is a Donald Trump supporter. I don’t know anyone who knows anyone who is a Donald Trump supporter. They are like this huge mystery group,” the CEO said. "So it's a combination of shock and bewilderment. No one really knows why this is happening. But my own belief is that the laws of gravity will apply and those who are prepared to run the marathon will benefit when Trump drops out at mile 22. Right now people think Trump is pretty hilarious but the longer it goes on the more frightening it gets."
"Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton will continue to let Wall Street and the 'hedge fund guys' rip off the people by paying no or very little in taxes," Trump said. "They have total and complete control of Hillary, Jeb and others running. My campaign is self- funded. The only people that have control of me are the people of the United States."
The comments on Wall Street were relatively tame in comparison with his fiery rhetoric about deporting 11 million undocumented immigrants within two years and building a giant border wall with Mexico. The billionaire also recently ripped former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina’s looks, saying they would make her unelectable.
But Trump’s skill at tapping into populist discontent with all major U.S. institutions — including Wall Street — has financial executives increasingly dismayed at the GOP front-runner’s staying power and long-term impact on the party even if he doesn’t get the nomination.
“I don’t think Trump is going to win, but I do worry about all the damage being done to Republicans among Hispanics and women by him being such an idiot,” said a senior executive and major GOP fundraiser at a large bank who also declined to be identified by name. “Everyone thinks he is a buffoon and a bombastic loudmouth who won’t be around at the end. But the concern is that he is still at 30 in the polls and he is going to hang around for a while and do a great deal of damage.”
So far there is no organized effort on Wall Street to mount a “stop Trump” campaign.
Mostly such efforts entail funneling even more money to Bush, whose super PAC, Right to Rise, raised more than $100 million through the first six months of the year. To a lesser extent, Wall Street money continues to flow to Rubio, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, though Walker is largely viewed as increasingly marginalized in the race.
Supporters of Bush say they still believe that the former Florida governor’s numbers will begin to move when the campaign starts deploying some of its huge war chest to run television ads in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and other early primary and caucus states. And while they say Bush needs a strong performance at Wednesday night’s debate, they don’t expect Bush to throw haymakers Trump’s way.
“Yes I’m a little worried about how poorly Jeb is doing,” said a second Wall Street CEO who is backing the former Florida governor but would not speak on the record. “Hopefully it will get better over time. But there is no point trading insults with Trump. There is a saying that you don’t wrestle with pigs because you just get dirty and the pig loves it.”
Part of the reason Wall Street executives won’t go on the record about Trump is that they believe criticizing him will only drive his numbers higher. Americans continue to hold big banks in low regard following the financial crisis. And Trump’s momentum is built on a generalized hostility to the political and corporate establishment.
Trump can rip into executive compensation in part because he built his own empire and brand and his Trump Organization is privately held, so he can’t be accused of using shareholders' money to enrich himself, a cudgel often used to attack high executive pay at public companies. And establishment attacks would likely just make him stronger.
“Most people in the New York business community don’t really like to speak publicly about politicians and especially not Trump, because he will just jump ugly all over them,” said Kathryn Wylde, president and CEO of the New York City Partnership, a group that includes many of the city’s top business leaders. “Trump has never really been part of the New York City business community or particularly engaged with the real estate community. There’s certainly no close set of relations there. He’s really a lone wolf. And a lot of these people thought Jeb Bush was a shoo-in and they are upset now because they have already thrown in with him and he is looking a little wilted.”
Trump is not entirely without Wall Street support.
He has regularly praised Carl Icahn and said he would make the billionaire investor his first Treasury secretary. Icahn tweeted recently that he would accept the post. He did not respond to a request for comment on Trump. The frustration on Wall Street goes beyond just Trump’s rise and staying power. The industry’s other preferred candidate, Clinton, is also suffering under the populist wave, losing ground to independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, a self-described socialist and outspoken Wall Street critic.
The industry began this election cycle confident that a GOP candidate like Bush would win, and offer some reprieve from populist anger. And if that didn’t happen they would at least get Clinton, who has long and deep ties to the industry and is viewed as largely moderate on financial regulation.
Both Bush and Clinton have tacked populist with pledges to increase taxes on some wealthy investors. But they are still both establishment-friendly, with policies on trade, immigration and other issues that line up closely with elite opinion. And Wall Street does not view either candidate as likely to use the office to further stoke populist resentments.
“Neither of them are doing very well right now,” said one Wall Street Democrat of Bush and Clinton. “Both Trump and Sanders have done a pretty great job tapping into this sense of frustration not just with Wall Street but with all of the establishment.”
One person who might benefit from Trump’s rise and Bush’s current stagnation is Kasich, who worked for seven years at Lehman Brothers — though in an Ohio office — and is viewed as something of an establishment-populist hybrid given his folksy demeanor and heartland background.
“Kasich is a true businessman in contrast to Trump. He is the businessman candidate and he’s pretty compelling in part because Jeb has taken such a beating,” said Wylde. “I’ve set up a meet- and -greet with Governor Kasich and I’ve already got a sellout crowd.”

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Cali Psychic Medium Says Donald Trump Will Not Be President

Rolling Stone writer Paul Solotaroff said this week that Donald Trump has superpowers along the lines of a clairvoyant.

If so, Trump may already know what renowned psychic medium Bill Philipps told The Mirror during an extensive phone interview Friday upon the release of his new book, Expect The Unexpected: Bringing Peace, Healing, and Hope from the Other Side.

Which is that Trump will not be president.

Philipps didn’t address Trump’s candidacy for president. Nor is the Orange County-based psychic medium too well-versed in politics considering he never watches TV or follows online reports about the campaign trail. But he does do something that is perhaps one step better — he communicates with the dead.

And the spirits, at least according to Philipps’ intuition, say the White House is a no go for Trump.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...

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FINALLY, A REPUBLICAN STANDS UP AGAINST TRUMP

Bobby Jindal (R LA) is a smart -- even brilliant -- and accomplished man who will almost certainly not be our next president. So he doesn't have much to lose by speaking from the heart. Speaking at the National Press Club on Friday, Jindal launched the first full-fledged Republican assault on the political tumor that is Donald Trump. The video is a must-watch just to hear someone, anyone, give a lengthy description of the true nature of the current Republican front-runner.
Jindal followed the speech with a fund-raising e-mail which highlights that his speech was "about Donald Trump" and quoting some of his own speech:
"(W)e are flirting with nominating a non-serious, unstable, substance-free narcissist. Nominating Donald Trump is a certain way for us to miss our opportunity to make America Great Again. Summer is over, it's time to get serious about saving our country. It's time to send Donald Trump back to reality TV - it's time to tell Donald Trump - it's been great, you've been great for ratings, you are almost as fun as Don Rickles, the show has been a blast."
And on Twitter, Jindal keeps on pressing: "I said about @realDonaldTrump what other candidates are thinking but don't have the guts to say" and "The reason @realDonaldTrump has never read the Bible is because he’s not in it."
Good job, Bobby. Keep it up. And the rest of you Republicans, grow a pair and stand up more aggressively against the foolishness and bombast that is the Trump candidacy.

(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...

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No Movement That Embraces Trump Can Call Itself Conservative

Dear Reader (if there are any of you left), Well, if this is the conservative movement now, I guess you’re going to have to count me out. No, I’m not making some mad dash to the center. No, I’m not hoping to be the first alternate to Steve Schmidt on Morning Joe, nor am I vying to become my generation’s Kevin Phillips. I will never be a HillaryCon. And I have no plan to earn “strange new respect” from the Georgetown cocktail-party set I’m always hearing about but never meeting.
But even if I have no desire to “grow” in my beliefs, I have no intention to shrink, either. The late Bill Rusher, longtime publisher of National Review, often counseled young writers to remember, “Politicians will always disappoint you.” As I’ve often said around here, this isn’t because politicians are evil. It’s because politicians are politicians. Their interests too often lie in votes, not in principles.
That’s why the conservative movement has always recognized that victory lies not simply in electing conservative politicians, but in shaping a conservative electorate that lines up the incentives so that politicians define their self-interest in a conservative way. But if it’s true that politicians can disappoint, I think one has to say that the people can, too.
Trump Has Succeeded in Convincing Conservatives to Discard Their Principles Overnight And when I say “the people” I don’t mean “those people.” I mean my people. I mean many of you, Dear Readers.

(Excerpt) Read more at nationalreview.com ...

[minnix]

This will definitely be an interesting election. I hear the white nationalist movement has thrown their support behind a presidential candidate for the first time since David Duke. Surprise, it's Trump. Interesting article in the New Yorker about it. I'm not sure how far that can carry him though as 90% of Romney's voters were white, you see how that turned out, and that demographic is rapidly shrinking in America today. Alienating minorities is something the Repubs have been trying to get past for a while now since the key to winning is to get their vote, and Trump's not making it any easier.

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Hillary, Champion of Everyday Americans, Needed Two Aides to Bring Her Iced Tea





If I were to approach a person on the street and list off traits like “doesn’t drive,” “needs food prepared,” “needs help with the remote control,” “needs people to bring her beverages,” “has trouble remembering things,” and “doesn’t pay her own bills” about someone anonymously, he wouldn’t think I was referring to current presidential front-runner in the year 2015. He would think I was referring to his poor nana, whom he had to place in a home because she wouldn’t stop yelling at the lamp and was at risk of accidentally microwaving her dentures.



But, as we now know courtesy of the ongoing FOIA e-mail dump, all of these traits accurately describe the current Democratic front-runner and (as she is always eager to remind us) doting grandmother, Hillary Clinton. Amidst the e-mail revelations, an alarming pattern is developing about Clinton’s personal dependency on those inside her inner bubble.

She isn’t just delegating important tasks to underlings, as any executive might; these aren’t urgent matters of national security, such as aides’ fetching satellite intelligence or the latest reports relevant to a managing executive. Rather, it appears that Hillary is either helpless or unwilling to perform even the most menial and trivial of daily tasks.

Email 1/03/10

"I’d like to work w you to prepare a menu for Jason. Also does he give me a monthly bill for the food he buys and prepares for me? Could you or he buy skim milk for me to have for my tea? Also, pls remind me to bring more tea cups from home . . . Can you give me times for two TV shows: Parks and Recreation and The Good Wife?"

(Excerpt) Read more at nationalreview.com ...

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Donald Trump On Ben Carson: Doctors Don't Create Jobs
Daily Caller ^ |

Donald Trump says he has great affection for Ben Carson, but he’s not so sure Carson has the right experience to be president.
The billionaire businessman and Republican presidential frontrunner explained why in an extensive interview with The Daily Caller that covered a wide array of subjects. The interview will be published in sections over the coming days.
A Monmouth University poll of Iowa released Monday showed Trump tied with Carson for first place — though Trump is quick to note that it was just one poll and that he leads the field, including Carson, in all the other recent polls.
But despite the rising threat of Carson in Iowa, Trump has not yet attacked the world-renowned neurosurgeon. Asked by TheDC whether being a doctor provides the necessary experience to be president, Trump said while Carson is “a wonderful guy,” he thinks it would be “very tough” for someone who spent his life as a surgeon to handle the job.
“I think it’s a very difficult situation that he’d be placed in,” Trump elaborated. “He’s really a friend of mine, I just think it’s a very difficult situation that he puts himself into, to have a doctor who wasn’t creating jobs and would have a nurse or maybe two nurses. It’s such a different world. I’ve created tens of thousands of jobs over the years.”
In the past Trump has questioned whether Ted Cruz is eligible to be president because the Texas senator was born in Canada to an American mother and a Cuban father. Cruz and Trump have since become something like BFFs on the campaign trail, refusing to criticize each other and even scheduled to appear together at an upcoming rally in Washington against the nuclear deal with Iran. Asked whether he still thinks Cruz might not be eligible to be president, Trump said, “based on everything I see, there’s no problem.”
“Because other people have brought it up, and it seems like the legal scholars have all been satisfied,” he went on. “It was never a big point for me, but I have watched other people question him, and the legal scholars have been satisfied.”
President Barack Obama has been criticized by many Republicans, including Trump, for his regular golf outings. But would Trump, who is an avid golfer and owns many golf courses throughout the world, regularly hit the links if he makes it to the Oval Office?
“The problem with the president, he’s played more than people on the PGA tour,” Trump quipped. “He plays a lot. He’s like a touring professional in terms of the amount of play.”
“Golf can be a great tool for making deals, but you can’t play with your friends, you have to play with people that you’re looking to — for instance, playing with [House Speaker] John Boehner and playing with [Senate leader Mitch] McConnell and playing with people that you need to make deals with,” Trump argued. “It can be an amazing tool for getting things done and for making deals.”
“With that being said, you want to play it the proper number of times,” he went on. “If the president would use golf as a tool more than he does, I think it would be very positive.”
Trump often cites how rich he is as a sign of his success and, in turn, a qualification to be President of the United States. By that standard, would someone richer than him, like Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, be more qualified for the presidency?
“That’s different,” Trump replied. “Honestly, I don’t think I’d swap assets, to be honest with you. I’ve seen that stuff go up and down. I have very, very solid stuff. To me, I love real estate because you can feel it. A lot of people, they’ll make five hundred million dollars by doing some new computer game, but I don’t consider that — I consider that sort of different. I consider that paper.”
“I did it in real estate,” he explained, “and as real estate goes, this is about as high as you go.”

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John Boehner Calls Ted Cruz A ‘Jackass’ At Fundraiser

Speaker of the House John Boehner stunned audience members Wednesday evening at a Colorado fundraiser by referring to Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz as a “jackass,” two people in attendance tell The Daily Caller.
At a Steamboat Springs event for GOP Rep. Scott Tipton, the Ohio Republican quipped that he likes how Cruz’s presidential campaign keeps “that jackass” out of Washington, and from telling Boehner how to do his job.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...

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