Meet Your Next. U.S. President

[Imran Siddiqui]

Only after he was made Chief Justice. He felt he owed it to FDR.

Why exactly do you think FDR made him Chief Justice? What, might as well?!

[Ben Kenobi]

Why exactly do you think FDR made him Chief Justice? What, might as well?!

Because he was the fifth horseman and it was a way to get a majority of the justices on his side.

Funny how you leave out Butler who's just about my favourite justice.

Anybody who's hated by liberals, labor and the KKK, can't be all bad.

[Ben Kenobi]

Gribbler:

Perry's not even my candidate...

[Lorizael]

Polls mean dick all this far out from the election. Wait until the Republican party has an actual candidate and then you can measure him/her/it against Obama.

[Lorizael]

BK's response: It's telling that you would say her after him. It confirms what I've always known about democrats: that they make say they're feminisists, but deep down inside they think a woman like Sarah Palin can't be president. It's no wonder Barry gave Hillary state instead of the vice presidency. His muslim traditions would make him think a woman waiting in the wings to be president is a dangerous thing.

[Ben Kenobi]

It's telling that you would say her after him. It confirms what I've always known about democrats: that they make say they're feminisists, but deep down inside they think a woman like Sarah Palin can't be president. It's no wonder Barry gave Hillary state instead of the vice presidency. His muslim traditions would make him think a woman waiting in the wings to be president is a dangerous thing.

Uh, considering how I asked DD, "who's your man?" I think you're safe.

I generally don't nitpick laudable sentiments.

[Al B. Sure!]

His muslim traditions would make him think a woman waiting in the wings to be president is a dangerous thing.

Female elected heads of government in Muslim nations: 7*
Female elected heads of government in the United States: 0

*Megawati Sukranoputri (Indonesia), Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan), Khaleda Zia (Bangladesh), Sheikh Hasina (Bangladesh), Tansu Ciller (Turkey), Atifete Jahjaga (Kosovo), Roza Otunbayeva (Kyrgyzstan).

[Ben Kenobi]

Female elected heads of government in Muslim nations: 7*
Female elected heads of government in the United States: 0

*Megawati Sukranoputri (Indonesia), Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan), Khaleda Zia (Bangladesh), Sheikh Hasina (Bangladesh), Tansu Ciller (Turkey), Atifete Jahjaga (Kosovo), Roza Otunbayeva (Kyrgyzstan).

Good thing we have the assuredly non-muslim atheist to interject a shill for Islam.

[Lorizael]

Female elected heads of government in Muslim nations: 7*
Female elected heads of government in the United States: 0

*Megawati Sukranoputri (Indonesia), Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan), Khaleda Zia (Bangladesh), Sheikh Hasina (Bangladesh), Tansu Ciller (Turkey), Atifete Jahjaga (Kosovo), Roza Otunbayeva (Kyrgyzstan).

I may not have been serious.

[Asher]

Rick Perry has shockingly expressed that he does not believe in global warming.

What a winning candidate.

[giblets]

Does Rick Perry really think another quantitative easing would be treason?

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

http://twitter.com/#!/genesimmons/st...17066467872768


It's a done deal. Man with connections to the dark one himself guarantees it.

All over but the wailing and gnashing of teeth.

[C0ckney]

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[Docfeelgood]

Some on political right doubt Perry's bona fides Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/met

WASHINGTON — Rick Perry has counted on the staunch support of Texas conservatives during his two decades of statewide triumphs in Texas. He's an anti-tax, anti-spend, anti-regulation, anti-Washington stalwart.

So why are some conservative bloggers and activists warning others on the political right about a Perry presidential candidacy?

"Before Republicans start salivating too heavily, it is important to examine Perry closely," says conservative talk-show host David Zublick. "His conservative bona fides leave much to be desired."

That view is a distinct minority on the right, and it is a situation that Perry advisers find laughable.

"I find it humorous that anyone who looks at the governor's record could doubt his conservative credentials," says Dave Carney, Perry's top political strategist. "Those folks really need to get out of the sun, hydrate and seek medical assistance if this condition continues."

Here are ten things about the Texas governor that cause at least some conservatives to turn red:

1. The 10th Amendment conundrum

Perry has often spoken - and written - about his fundamental belief that all powers not explicitly granted to the federal government in the Constitution belong to the states.

"You either have to believe in the 10th Amendment or you don't," the governor said last month at a ceremonial bill-signing in Houston. "You can't believe in the 10th Amendment for a few issues and then something that doesn't suit you say, 'We'd rather not have states decide that.' "

That's fine with conservatives when he's talking about environmental regulation or health care mandates. But when Perry crossed the line and said he was "fine" with New York adopting a law legalizing same-sex marriage, the Religious Right erupted, saying the federal government had the power to trump states' rights on abortion and gay marriage, among other social issues.

"His comments were inartful and disappointing," Gary Bauer, president of American Values, told Real Clear Politics.

Perry quickly amended his Houston declaration, saying he favored constitutional amendments outlawing same-sex marriage and criminalizing abortion, but the entire episode left some conservatives uneasy.

2. Immigration

Perry has managed to anger some on the left and the right on the hot-button subject of immigration. Liberals complain about his support for legislation cracking down on so-called "sanctuary cities" and his demands for additional troops along the Mexican border. But he's been blasted by conservatives, too, for what they see as being insufficiently tough on illegal immigrants. Among their complaints: Perry's support for undocumented immigrants paying in-state tuition at Texas' state colleges and universities.

"To punish these young Texans for their parents' actions is not what America has always been about," Perry told the New Hampshire Union Leader on July 24.

According to some of his immigration critics, Perry's cardinal sin was his 2010 comment that he had concerns about portions of Arizona's tough immigration enforcement law and "it would not be the right direction for Texas."

"Governor Perry is very eager to appear tough on illegal immigration, but upon closer inspection he's part of the problem," said William Gheen, who runs the North Carolina-based political action committee Americans for Legal Immigration.

3. Some higher taxes

Although he signed an anti-tax pledge in 2009 and now says he's against all tax increases, Perry has raised taxes in the Lone Star State a half-dozen times since becoming governor, though several of the tax increases were part of larger tax reform measures that lowered other taxes. Those paying higher taxes after Perry became governor include some Texas companies, cigarette and smokeless tobacco users, and fireworks purchasers.

Steven E. Schier, a political scientist at Carleton College in Minnesota, says the tax issue could hurt Perry if primary rivals make it stick.

"Expect this to be used against Perry frequently," said Schier.

4. Toll roads

Yes, the Texas governor is against taxes. But what about user fees?

Some conservatives chafe at Perry's endorsement of expanded toll roads in Texas, a concept they consider a back-door tax increase.

5. The Trans-Texas Corridor and private property rights

Property-rights purists have never forgiven Perry for supporting the ill-fated Trans-Texas Corridor. Not only was it another toll road, they say, it would have resulted in the government seizing about 81,000 acres of rural land through its "eminent domain" powers.

6. Forced immunizations

Some anti-government types wonder how Perry can square his condemnation of Washington power grabs with his own 2007 executive order requiring that sixth-grade girls in Texas be vaccinated against the human papilloma virus, a sexually transmitted disease that has been found to cause cervical cancer.

Perry now describes his action as a mistake.

"That particular issue is one that I readily stand up and say I made a mistake on," he said. "I listened to the Legislature … and I agreed with their decision (to overturn the order). I don't always get it right, but I darn sure listen."

7. The state's debt

The governor rails against government borrowing in Washington. But during his time in charge of the state government in Austin, state borrowing has more than doubled.

According to Politi*Fact, a nonpartisan fact-checking website, "Texas had $34.08 billion in outstanding bonds and notes" at the end of the 2009 fiscal year, up from $13.7 billion at the end of fiscal 2001, Perry's first year as governor.

8. Rudy Giuliani

Given a choice of true conservatives - including former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee - Perry chose Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor, as his 2008 presidential favorite.

Yes, Giuliani is a tough-on-terror, tough-on-crime fiscal conservative. But he's a strong advocate of gay rights. He once even dressed up in drag. And he's pro-choice.

9. Democratic days

If endorsing a pro-choice, pro-gay-rights Republican from New York City isn't enough to raise conservatives' hackles, how about this: Perry once was a Democrat. Yes, he was a conservative Democrat. And yes, almost everybody in West Texas not named Bush was a Democrat back then.

"I never met a Republican until I was 25," Perry explained to Iowa Republicans on Monday.

10. Al Gore, Version '88

Not only was Rick Perry a Democrat, he actually endorsed Democrats for president. Like Al Gore. He even served as Gore's Texas presidential campaign chair.

"This was Al Gore before he invented the Internet and got to be Mr. Global Warming," Perry said Monday in Iowa. "In 1988, when you looked at the candidates, Al Gore was the most conservative candidate that was out there."

Despite his occasional disagreements with others on the right, Perry won the votes of almost every Republican conservative in his 2010 re-election race against Democrat Bill White.

"I had questions about some of those positions," said Cathie Adams, former chair of the Texas Republican Party. "But when you are looking at a country in crisis, as we are, you have to have a broader perspective."

Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/...#ixzz1VNftUCVq

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/...n/7701971.html

[Lorizael]

9. Democratic days

If endorsing a pro-choice, pro-gay-rights Republican from New York City isn't enough to raise conservatives' hackles, how about this: Perry once was a Democrat. Yes, he was a conservative Democrat. And yes, almost everybody in West Texas not named Bush was a Democrat back then.

"I never met a Republican until I was 25," Perry explained to Iowa Republicans on Monday.

For a Republican, the only skeleton in the closet worse than a sex scandal: being a Democrat.