Some consider the Nation’s Capital as “Fantasyland on the Potomac”. Other outsiders are “Fed Up” with the Federal City. It's better to consider D.C. as “the District of Calamity” (sic).
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie used his time in the prime time spotlight at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland to prosecute a case against the malfeasance of presumptive Democrat Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in the court of public opinion.
Ann Coulter's political raison d'etre for the 2016 election cycle is about immigration, hence her steadfast support of presumptive Republican Presidential nominee Donald Trump. This impetus impelled Coulter to eliminate her prior political heartthrob Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) along with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA).
Republican Presidential hopeful Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)'s rapid rise in the primary political polls has been premised on strong debate performances. Rubio is articulate, some say smooth talking, in giving upbeat bite sized morsels during his time on the debate stage.
Rubio surprised many political observers by his showing at the Iowa Caucuses, where he came in third as expected, but only 1.5% behind second place finisher Donald Trump.Thus his rapid rise made him a prime target at the Republican Debate held three days before the New Hampshire Primary. So he should have known what to expect.
After seven prior Republican debates, astute observers know candidates' patterns of behavior. Ex Governor Mike Huckabee always slung "canned ham", hokey pre-written one line zingers designed to make him seem like the funny every-man's candidate. The Iowa Caucus echo of Adele "It's Me" was expected but still amusing. Donald Trump (when he deign to show up for a debate) will start being subdued but eventually with squabble with Jeb! Bush. Dr. Ben Carson will joke about how little time he is being allotted and will do a data dump on questions not posed to him.Governor John Kasich (R-OH) will wildly flail his hands when speaking at the podium with occasional karate chops for rhetorical punctuation.
Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) inevitably will slip in a reference that he was a former Federal Prosecutor named just before the 9/11 terror attacks. Christie also loves to look directly into the camera and address the television audience. Christie's blunt, confrontational approach should appeal out the outsider aura, those who are fed up with the District of Calamity (sic) and presumably blue collar voters.
Senator Rubio was wont to retell his family's remarkable American Dream story, which loses its effectiveness after it has been used a few times. Rubio also had the habit of asking people for their vote in a close, which gets a bit cloying. Wisely, Senator Rubio has dropped both tacts. As for style, Senator Rubio shoots for the American Dream in some responses and then tries to focus attacks on Obama and Hillary, while subtly shivving other candidates in the back. This approach has given Rubio great favorability ratings. Along with his strategy of heavy paid media campaign advertising, it has precipitated his top tier status.
Governor Christie is staking the fate of his entire campaign upon doing well (placing in the top troika) in the New Hampshire Primary. For the week before the Republican Debate in Manchester, Christie had been gunning to take Rubio down a couple of notches, deriding him as "Bubble Boy", who was not accessible to voters or responding to tough questions. Other have ripped Rubio as being robotic. So the critiques were being telegraphed to Rubio. Yet the freshman Florida Senator displayed a glaring glitch.
It seems that Rubio got rattled after Christie repeatedly rubuked him for giving memorized 30 second speeches. Almost to prove his point, Rubio blurted out similar tracks about President Obama four times in four minutes. In post debate spin mode, Rubio claims that he is passionate about this position and wishes people would keep playing the clip. The episode inspired a parody Twitter account "Marco Rubio Glitch".
Unfortunately, that was not the only instance were over-preparation showed. In his answer about the military, Rubio began his answer, then stopped and began again because his memorized stump speech had to be delivered in that order. Again, this glitch contributes to the charge of being robotic and mars an otherwise good debate performance, with excellent responses about ISIS and defining conservativism.
I do not begrudge candidates doing preparation work prior to a debate. In fact, it shows some respect for an audience and hones a message, unlike Donald Trump's flippant definition of conservatism as "conserving money". However, it is most effective if the audience is unaware that you are prepared. For example, Huckabee's canned ham are groaners because you know there are not spontaneous and he stained to find the opening to launch the zinger.
Similarly, by regurgitating the same rhetoric several times in a short span sounds robotic and pre-programmed. Discerning viewers are prompted to question authenticity. It begs the question of how a candidate will stand stricter scrutiny in the General Election campaign.
Sometimes glitches underline growing perceptions. Ben Carson had developed a whiney reputation from the debates for not getting enough recognition or time allotments. The Carson campaign seized on a kerfluffle over a CNN news report at the start of the Iowa Caucuses that Carson was taking time from the campaign trail prior to the New Hampshire Pimary. Both the Cruz and Rubio campaigns spun this news to their grass-root leaders in the Caucuses to garner more votes. Carson took umbrage exclusively at Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX). Cruz quickly apologized for not passing along subsequent reports. Carson claimed as a Christian he accepted the apology but then priggishly seemed to require conditional forgiveness. Cruz apologized again at the Manchester Debate, but that did not seem to assuage Dr. Carson's animus.
But as the candidates were being introduced onstage at the Manchester Debate, there was a technical glitch to cue Dr. Carson so he remained waiting in the wings, even as a stage manager gestured for him to take his place. The ABC News Moderator David Muir had to invite Ben Carson for him to go to his podium. Afterwards, Carson complained about not being introduced second.
This strange stagecraft, combined with a perception of priggish prissiness in politics, made it seem like Carson was being stand-offish because of a pecking order failure. Along with Carson's standard complaint about being ignored and his refusal to accept Cruz's repeated apology, it gave a bad impression. The technical glitch may have be inadvertent, but the cascade of a candidate who stands on heirs and hardly seems like he is working to win was a tough impression to shake.
Most of the time, people do not remember the substance of a debate but their impressions. Famously, in the 1960 Presidential Debate, the radio audience thought that then Vice President Richard Nixon (R-CA) bested then Senator John Kennedy (D-MA). But the vast majority of the audience was on television, and they remember Nixon's five o'clock shadow vis-a-vis a tan, rested and telegenic Kennedy.
Or the 1992 Richmond Town Hall debate when President George H.W. Bush was caught on camera looking at his watch. It gave the perception that Bush looked bored.
Then there was Vice President Al Gore's audible sighs in the 2000 Debate, which in retrospect he may have wanted to keep in a lock box.
How much the Rubio Glitch or the Carson miscue sticks in the minds of Granite State primary voters remains to be seen. At the very least, Rubio's less than stellar Manchester debate performance has halted his meteoric rise in the media and may prompt another antagonizing reappraisal by the GOP establishment of which horse to back against insurgent outsider candidates.
It is curious how Republicans have been criticized for offering even the most benign criticism against the President while he is on foreign soil, but Mr. Obama exhibits no compunctions against insulting his enemy-- Republicans. To this end, Senator Ted Cruz issued a throw down to the lame duck Chief Executive.
Republican Presidential hopeful New Jersey Governor Chris Christie made headlines for pithily reiterating his intention to enforce federal laws regarding marijuana. This barb uttered on the hustings in New Hampshire echoes prior pronouncements about respecting federal supremacy on drug laws, though Christie also wants to encourage rehab for non-violent offenders.
Some pundits wonder about alienating the "Rocky Mountain High" vote in places like Colorado and Washington with legalized recreational marijuana. But such cynical campaign critics fail to appreciate the importance of the rule of law to the Republican party base. Moreover, such a staunch stance for law and order reinforces Christie's tough New Jersey persona as well as reminds voters that Christie got his start in public service by being appointed United States Attorney by President George W. Bush in 2002.
The indictment of Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) on corruption charges may create an opening in the United States Senate. Some political junkies who focus on the District of Calamity have wondered if Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) might forgo a nascent presidential compaign and appoint himself to an open New Jersey Senate seat.
Based on Governor Christie's response from October 2014, we should fuhgeddaboutit!
Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) gave a passionate colloquy with Laura Ingraham at CPAC. His comment illustrating the inanity of raising the minimum wage of being a world changing solution is Socratic irony at it's best.
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal (R-LA) traveled to London England to address the Henry Jackson Society. This British think tank, named after the anticommunist defense hawk Sen. "Scoop" Jackson (D-WA), is dedicated to support a strong military and a "forward strategy" (involving diplomacy, culture, economics and politics) to make the world safe for modern liberal democracies.
Jindal's speech before Scoop Jackson academics had the potential for promoting his political standing amongst aficionados of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, while contrasting world views with his prospective general election rival Hillary Clinton. However, Jindal chose to focus his remarks on the dangers of political Islamism both in global hot zones as well as within Western democracies.
Jindal alluded to no go zones in Europe.
After the speech, Jindal was pressed by a CNN reporter to name a No Go zone in London, the presumed Republican presidential hopeful refused to give specifics
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So instead of concentrating on the substance of the speech, a politically correct media inclined to destroy any rivals to the second coming of the Clintons to the Oval Office, played a media game of Gotcha'.
While progressive partisans may think that they have already won in taking down Jindal with no go zones, just like Gov. Chris Christie's prospects were impaired by the ersatz "Bridge-gate" scandal, they are too clever by half.
Jindal sought to properly define "Smart Power" to pursue American political and economic security. But since the two term Louisiana Governor is considered in the hunt for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination, the Lamestream Media will use political language to shape the race as they will.
Post Scriptus 01/21/2015 At Red State, Eric Erickson pointed to an earlier video from CNN which reported on Muslim patrols which sought to enforce ad hoc sharia law on the streets of East London.
Governor Christie has been seriously considering a campaign for President in 2016. Christie understood that he had to slim down if he had political aspirations beyond Trenton.
To assuage prospective political heavyweight donors, Governor Christie quipped about his prior "great relationship" with food. Christie's self deprecating humor certainly makes him relatable for Middle America. Alas, the Bridge-gate hatchet job, which the US Department of Justice cleared Christie after a nine month investigation, may hurt him in GOP primary positioning than subliminal public pocrescophia.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in his continued media charm offensive for his all but announced 2016 Presidential run. "Christie Kreme" showed off his moves doing the Dad Dance in honor of Father's Day.
It's too bad that neither the Garden State Governor nor Jimmy Fallon used the occasion to give props to Bruce Springsteen by doing "Born to Run", which would have really made news.
Bridge-gate burst into the public eye last week as emails from high level staffer of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) were exposed indicating that four days worth of lane closures which snarled the George Washington Bridge were intentional. Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Kelly sent a snarky text message intimating: "Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee". It has been speculated that the four days of lane closures which snarled the world's busiest suspension bridge was intended as a as punishment to Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich (D-Fort Lee), a Democrat who did not make a cross party endorsement of Christie in is wildly successful 2013 re-election effort.
For his part, Governor Christie conducted a grueling 102 minute press conference in which he insisted that he did not know about the intentional nature of the traffic jam. Moreover he fired Kelly along with his longtime friend and political aide Bill Stepien because of their involvement.
Despite Christie's unequivocal denial of prior knowledge and his swift action at disciplining wrongdoers, the Bridge-gate ballyhoo dominated the headlines for over a week, and inspired comedians to do funny satires such as Jimmy Fallons filique with Bruce Springsteen of the unoffical New Jersey anthem "Born to Run".
While there is no doubt that the story was newsworthy, as credible accusations of the use of public office for personal revenge is a serious charge, it seems like Bridge-gate is overblown as well as overwrought.
Firstly, consider the coverage. As Newsbusters reported, in less than 24 hours, the big three broadcast networks devoted 34 minutes 28 seconds to "Bridge-gate". This is 17 times more coverage than the Lamestream Media broadcast about the Obama Administration's alleged use of the IRS targeting Tea Party groups for excessive scrutiny over eight months. The coverage may also have been intensified because of its proximity to New York. Journalists often become much more interested when it is affecting their home turf rather than in "flyover" country.
Secondly, consider the target. Governor Christie has been generally considered an early front-running for the 2016 Republican Presidential nomination. Pre-Bridge-gate polls showed Christie leading presumed Democrat front-runner former First Lady/Senator (D-NY)/ and Obama Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
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Low information voters may be lured into believing where there is smoke there is fire, even if it is blue smoke and mirrors. Governor Christie's emphatic denials about involvement leave no wiggle room-- if he knew, then the fat lady sings ending his hopes for higher office. But those who take time to keep informed on current events should see the trend in law-fare, smearing front-runners and the actual use of public offices for partisan pursuits.
Most of the time, people do not remember the substance of a debate but their impressions. Famously, in the 1960 Presidential Debate, the radio audience thought that then Vice President Richard Nixon (R-CA) bested then Senator John Kennedy (D-MA). But the vast majority of the audience was on television, and they remember Nixon's five o'clock shadow vis-a-vis a tan, rested and telegenic Kennedy.
