First 2010 Republican Gubernatorial debate Charleston, SC
January 31st, 2010 in 2010 Elections, Videos ~ No CommentsMitch Baroody has a great analysis of the recent SC Gubernatorial Debate. While I do not support Andre Bauer (as Mitch obviously does), I found his analysis entertaining and insightful. I have extracted part of his commentary here:
First, I will start from the bottom with Gresham Barrett. As a Citadel colleague, I was really disappointed in his performance. Not that I was even supporting him, but you wish each other the best. Congressman Barrett was less than confident, and sometimes seemed more like a Southern Baptist preacher rather than someone ready to lead our state…amen?
What bothered me most was the defense of his vote for Socialism in the bailout/tarp saga. He consistently defended this vote and refused to back down. I am in disbelief that anyone claiming to be “The 4th most Conservative Congressman” could stand behind a vote like this.
Many in South Carolina’s conservative circles spoke with him the night before he voted and warned him…but he apparently knew best. Barrett went on to not answer questions, beat around the bush, and really did not establish himself as a credible candidate.
He seemed just like acurrent U.S. Congressman should: Uninformed and Out of touch. I am sure that is how many South Carolinians see him as well.
Well said. Who would you support? Cast your vote here.
Is Gresham Barrett a worthy Gubernatorial candidate?
January 14th, 2010 in 2010 Elections, Gresham Barrett ~ (5) CommentsBarrett has caught a lot of flak, especially from upstate Tea Partiers, over his TARP vote. One bad vote out of so many good ones. Should Barrett be forgiven for this vote, and accepted as a good and viable candidate for the South Carolina Governorship?
Here is a Facebook comment by Matthew Hilley, Anderson County Republican Party 2nd Vice Chair, and my response.
Matthew Hilley: Grooms never actually had a chance in this race! A lot of time good people get into a race they can’t win! This race will come down to Barrett and McMaster baring any big upsets or political blunders! Haley is a great candidate and she has some good ideas but she is not going to be standing at the end of the day.
Everyone knows my personal choice and favorite is of course Gresham Barrett for Governor! I think he has a great shot at this. The only worry I have is the amount of money the other one has! I encourage anyone who thinks badly of Gresham Barrett should research him a little better and actually get to know his voting record and look into what he has done for this state, this country and 3rd Congressional district! Gresham is a great man, an awesome leader and a wonderful friend! He is also a great friend to our men and women still serving in the military to defend our rights! I know this man PERSONALLY and I think he is Awesome! He is the right choice for SC and he is the right choice for Conservatives!
We need to STOP tearing down good people because we disagree with a very tiny percentage of the hundreds of decisions they have made! You tear down good people hoping for a long shot and at the end of the day you get stuck with the one you do not want because you tore down a good man!!
Research, ask questions and analyze the truth do not fall for the spin even when it comes from the right side of an argument!
Response:
Matthew, Matthew, Matthew. Why must it come down to Barrett and McMaster? Pray tell, why will Haley not be standing at the end of the race? Do you not “get” the tea party movement? Do you not know what it is that are getting people up off their lay-z-boys for the first time ever in their 50+ year lives? And do you not know that there are forces at work in this election that haven’t been present since possibly the Civil War?
By the way, the good ‘ol boy network is called that because they are all FRIENDS.
If the TARP vote of Barrett’s was an innocent mistake then there would be room for forgiveness. The problem is that he went into this thing with their eyes wide open. We have video footage of Barrett’s speeches on the house floor to prove it. He blatantly violated the Constitution, the supreme law of the land. THAT, my friend, is no small thing.
(Besides, I personally believe the sub-prime mortgage “crisis” was a lie, a scam, and could have been fixed simply by reversing the intrusive and negative influence that Congress had imposed years earlier. Our American markets are more resilient than our politicians give them credit for. But that is another story for another day.)
The second big problem I have with Barrett is that even though he mostly voted right, he is not a fighter. At least not compared to DeMint. If he were a fighter of that caliber we would not be able to help knowing it. Jim DeMint is in the news constantly because he’s causing such a ruckus.
IT IS NOT ENOUGH TO VOTE RIGHT ANYMORE! WE NEED PEOPLE WHO WILL FIGHT.
The third big problem I have with Barrett (and this one makes me mad) is that I feel he has been delinquent on his job and has avoided his constituents. He’s one of our Anderson homeboys, he should show his face more often. When was the last time he was at an Anderson GOP meeting? He didn’t show up at our Anderson Tea Party on 4/16/2009. Why, he has had the grand total of ONE townhall, in Seneca of all places, since the healthcare debate started up. Is he a coward? (Inglis, as unpopular as he is, had no less than 5 very controversial townhalls.) Or is he too busy campaigning? I dare say the latter, since he also missed 337 out of 971 house votes in 2009 (34.7%). I’m not paying him $174k/yr to miss one third of the votes. I know campaigning is hard, but if you’re not doing your job as a representative what makes me think he’s going to do a good job as a governor? (In contrast, Rep. Mike Wamp, who is running for governor of TN, only missed 8%.)
Grooms steps out of Governor’s race
January 12th, 2010 in 2010 Elections, Gresham Barrett, Republican Party, South Carolina ~ No CommentsLarry Grooms was my choice. While I am disappointed that he is dropping out of the race, I think that should he run for Congress this will prove to be a very smart and effective move:
Many in the Tea Party movement lately have been asking Grooms, deemed the Tea Party candidate, whether he could be as effective on the conservative issues facing the nation from the Governor’s Office in Columbia. Grooms says this has been another major factor playing into his decision.
Dean Allen, candidate for Adjutant General and a dedicated patriot who was fighting for freedom long before the tea party movement, had some interesting comments on the SC Congressional races. I find his comments ironic and significant since our Republican Congressional delegation held hands and jumped for TARP together, reasoning that “they can’t throw us all out.”
(I am convinced, and always have been, that things were not as bad as they were made out to be. I believe the sub-prime mortgage crisis was a deliberately engineered plot, and the people who supposedly represent our interests all fell for it. I have always said that true conservatives know better than to bail out business with taxpayer’s money, and I will never apologize for that.)
Now for Dean Allen’s comments:
Larry Grooms is a true patriot and I hate to see him out of the Governor’s race. His departure puts Congressman Gresham Barrett in dead last place. It is interesting that the man with the most name ID, and the most money, Barrett is dead last.
All six SC Congressmen voted for the $850 Bush Bailout. Brown and Barrett are not seeking re-election. Inglis and Spratt are in trouble for re-election. Looks like the voters are awake and in a mood to throw out the bums that can be thrown out starting with non-conservative Gresham Barrett.