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Mitt Romney, who is the GOP insiders' favorite to win the GOP nomination in 2012, went on Greta Van Susteren's show the other night to talk about how much better a job he would be doing than President Obama. But Greta also brought up the, um, *delicate* subject of the Tea Parties.

Of course, we're now becoming accustomed to the Romney flip and flop maneuver. He had it on display here.

First, he was for the Tea Parties ...

Romney: I think it shows a great deal of energy and passion on the part of the American people to say stop, we're going the wrong way, enough already, let's get things right in America. And America is headed in the wrong direction -- this growing government, the increase in taxes, the more intrusivesness of government has made a lot of people very angry, and they want to see change in Washington. They want to see the Washington politicians that have been voting for this kind of intrusive government thrown out of office. And I think it's a good thing. I think Washington politicians need to understand, there's a lot of focus and energy around what's happening, and people aren't going to take it a lot longer.

Afore he was agin' 'em ...

Romney: Well, if there were a third party, and a real intent to create a strong third party, that would obviously be very damaging to the party it drew the most votes from, and if it were a Tea Party party, why, that would certainly be from conservative Republicans. I don't think that's going to happen. I think people recognize right now we're not talking about politics, we're talking about the country.

This is a really critical time for the country, both globally and in terms of our safety and security, but also economically. And if we divide the conservative vote, and therefore hand over to the Democrats more years of single-party rule and Barack Obama another four years, we would have a very different country at the end of eight years of Obama rule.

And I don't think in the final analysis that anyone is going to put their personal political aspirations above the needs of the country.

Maybe I need to clean out my ears or something, but it sure sounded to me like he was saying that voting out Obama transcends politics -- it's a national-security issue. If that's what he said, well, wow.

Republicans blaming the Obama administration for this horrendous recession is like an arsonist blaming the fire department - and yet, there's a certain usefulness to their attacks. After all, liberals complaining about the administration's economic policies got us nowhere. Maybe they'll actually listen when Republicans do it!

Growing discontent over the economy and frustration with efforts to speed its recovery boiled over Thursday on Capitol Hill in a wave of criticism and outright anger directed at the Obama administration.

Episodes in both houses of Congress exposed the raw nerves of lawmakers flooded with stories of unemployment and economic hardship back home. They also underscored the stiff headwinds that the administration faces as it pushes to enact sweeping changes to the financial regulatory system while also trying to create jobs for ordinary Americans.

President Obama's allies in the Congressional Black Caucus, exasperated by the administration's handling of the economy, unexpectedly blocked one of his top priorities, using a legislative maneuver to postpone the approval of financial reform legislation by a key House committee.

Two buildings away, at a session of the Joint Economic Committee, Republicans escalated their attacks on Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner, including a call for his resignation.

"Conservatives agree that as point person, you failed. Liberals are growing in that consensus as well," said Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Tex.). "For the sake of our jobs, will you step down from your post?"

Rep. Michael C. Burgess (R-Tex.) took a different tack. "I don't think that you should be fired," he told Geithner. "I thought you should have never been hired."

The Democrats are also fed up with the president's economic policies. Rep. Pete DeFazio, progressive:

"I have had a number of people say to me, 'I feel the same way you do but I'm not going to say it.' People are worried it will rub off on the president who still enjoys popularity," he said. "I tell them I still support the president. I just think he is being poorly served by his economic team."

"The truth of the matter," DeFazio added, "is that we have not changed the way the money is being used. It is not being used for the purpose it was supposed to be used for. We are not creating jobs and we have not aggressively taken on the culture of Wall Street."

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I know putting together a convention of this magnitude is no small task.

There have been many glitches and complaints, which is par for the course and I know the DNC have tried to do the best they could with parking and credentials and whatnot. But I have asked the DNC for weeks and weeks how they could help me get around during the convention because I have a handicap placard in California due to a real problem walking distances from my nerve damage. I got no response.

I didn't see this link on their website. I wish it was more prominently placed. Obviously, there is a tremendous amount of security and many checkpoints, but there is no assistance available for those that are elderly or not in the best of health, who would not be able to walk miles and stand in the blistering heat waiting to proceed to the Pepsi Center. It's hot and the high altitudes have many people flustered. How many of them knew that Denver would be so hard to maneuver in? I certainly didn't.

When I finally got to the first check point, I asked if there were any carts to take the elderly and handicapped to the next stop. I was told that they were only there to get water for the Secret Service. Hey, they did an amazing job and needed the help too, but what about all the elderly people that came here, dressed to the nines and high heels, because this is an important event to them and they had to travel miles and stand for hour long check points to even see the Pepsi Center? I saw some almost passing out.

I made many calls, not asking for special treatment, but for decent treatment of a handicapped person. When I called ten times on Tuesday, I got voice mails and then was told I would be called back. Nothing happened. I left an angry message yesterday telling them I'd write about it and now suddenly I find out that there is help available. Really? Well, it's too late now. I'm already devastated. I'm pretty good at putting on a happy face when I'm being interviewed and never want to make it much of an issue to my readers, but I just couldn't handle the pain of trying to go out any more.

I have to take some of the blame too. I had people helping me and they came up short too in finding out all that could have been done. I'm writing this to voice a complaint so that the next time an organization puts on a huge event, they seriously take into consideration what all handicapped and elderly folks have to go through to even show up to support or cover that event. I promise to do a better job in finding out how to help those in need of assistance for future events. And I don't think this is only a DNC problem. They are being very kind now and said they misunderstood my situation. I believe them, but I think it's a systemic problem that needs more attention. Telling someone that you are handicapped is not always understood and I get that that's why my calls were misinterpreted. I hope to help those in need in the future because this is a serious issue for many people.

The Convention still has been a blast and I think it's been a valuable experience.

...are we allowed to examine it? I'm not talking about a swiftboating, but actually take a look at his flight record as a pilot before Vietnam. Is that fair game? I'm just asking because the Media will report on what his campaign feeds them and call it the 'Re-branding of John McCain' or something like that instead of a political maneuver before the general election.

Here's the full text of the speech.

Matt hears a little dog whistle politics.

Update: Jane writes about his speech:

He goes on to admit that he was "surprised" by developments in Iraq. Kind of like Dick Cheney was "surprised" when we weren't greeted as liberators.

(Chocolati mocha photo via ChrisB in SEA.)

The Sunday Talking Head line-up is ready for perusal.

Wonder if there will be any questions about President Bush's obstruction of justice maneuver with the Libby commutation? If nothing else, I am looking forward to the Sen. Pat Leahy interview. Bob Geiger has some great weekend cartoons for everyone -- do not miss the Handelsman animation.

What is catching your eye on the blogs or in the news this morning?

Former GOP Sen. Hecht owes life to Democratic candidate Kerry

Former U.S. Sen. Chic Hecht of Nevada is a staunch Republican, but he thanks his lucky stars for Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts.

On July 12, 1988, Hecht was attending a weekly Republican luncheon when a piece of apple lodged firmly in his throat.

Hecht stumbled out of the room, thinking he might vomit but not wanting to do it in front of his colleagues. Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., thumped his back, but Hecht quickly passed out in the hallway

Just then, Kerry stepped off an elevator, rushed to Hecht's side and gave him the Heimlich maneuver -- four times.

The lifesaving incident made international news, and Dr. Henry Heimlich, who invented the maneuver in 1974, called Hecht to say that had Kerry intervened just 30 seconds later Hecht might have been in a vegetative state for life.

"This man gave me my life," the 75-year-old Hecht said Thursday.

Hecht said he was amazed that Kerry acted so quickly -- some people were assuming that he was having a heart attack.

"He knew exactly what to do," he said. "But a lot of people know what to do. They just don't size up the situation immediately."

Hecht, who prides himself on having one of the most conservative records on the books during his six years in the Senate, said he and his wife, Gail, see politics as "a secondary issue" when it comes to Kerry.Every year the Hechts call Kerry's longtime personal secretary, who tracks down Kerry wherever he is.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/lv-gov/2004/feb/06/516309920.html

Frist and Hastert rig drug bill: What a team

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and House Speaker Dennis Hastert engineered a backroom legislative maneuver to protect pharmaceutical companies from lawsuits, say witnesses to the pre-Christmas power play.

The language was tucked into a Defense Department appropriations bill at the last minute without the approval of members of a House-Senate conference committee, say several witnesses, including a top Republican staff member...read on

by blogswarm
Sun Oct 3rd, 2004 at 19:06:32 GMT

If you haven't heard the news yet, don't worry you aren't alone. This broke online late on a Friday (which happened to be the Friday after the debate). dKos12 candidate Ginny Schrader had her campaign hacked. The firewall "caught" Campaign Solutions, internet firm to Bush, the RNC, the NRCC and about a third of the Republican caucus. Then the lying began:
Denying hacking Ginny