July 11, 2008
Another One Under (Our) Bus
This time, it's the Straight Talk Express -- and my favorite politician in the world hanging on to the driveshaft.
I thought I could ignore it until Friday at 7:00, and then put out a short post like a Clinton Press Release. But the 'net is getting antsy and accountability has been demanded: someone writes to Jonah Goldberg:
Anyway, the Corner's silence on yesterday's Phil Gramm remarks is
deafening. Here it is 24 hours into a pretty-decent sized story (I
don't know how you sign into AOL mail, but I saw it listed as one of
the top news stories when I signed in through the web), and not even
one comment on his "whiner" remarks? I expected at least a Larry
Kudlow defense or something.
Don't wait for Larry to step up, unless it is on Gramm's side -- he was pretty clear on his show last night that he agrees with Senator Gramm.
Goldberg nails it:
Anyway, this is just another example of why I've always wanted Phil Gramm to be president of the United States and why that can never, ever, happen.Because it's a peeve of mine, my ears always seem to be catching people talking about how much we need straight talkers in this country who won't cave to their handlers, won't spin, won't poll-test their views. And yet, whenever somebody speaks honestly, down comes the thunder.
Hat-tip: Instapundit, who also links to another superb post at ChicagoBoyz
UPDATE: In Who's Right, McCain or Gramm? James Pethokoukis worries that the political rush to "fix" the economy will lead us into European economic models -- how's that working out for you, Sven? Pierre? Helmut? A British economics professor is quoted:
Paul Krugman once observed that 3% per year is about as good as it gets for GDP growth in advanced economies. While the United States has achieved this since 1995, the EU15 have fallen well short—averaging only 2.3%. The real European problem is in sluggish labour productivity growth—over the same period it averaged 1.4% per year compared with 2.1% in the United States—so that Europe has been falling behind rather than catching up during the last decade, in contrast with the whole of the post-war period until the mid-1990s
GOP2008 Primary Posted by jk at July 11, 2008 1:47 PM
I worry that McCain is so worried about offending anyone that he'll soon wear a similar "wishy-washy flip-flopper" tag to the one he's trying to pin on his opponent. But McCain's more expert at politics than I am, and probably than Gramm as well.
As I write this I hear former Rep. Harold Ford Jr. advising his "friend" Obama to "lean into these arguments a little more" because "there's no be ashamed, afraid or embarrased about - sharing your views and talking forcefully about where you're going to take the country."
Clearly some think it takes a man with a bite-resistant tongue to run for president these days. I still think Reagan would trounce them both.
Posted by: johngalt at July 13, 2008 11:50 AMOh yeah, Gramm would be the world's best president but he has proven to be the world's worst candidate. He had a commanding lead in New Hampshire when he told religious leaders "I'm not running for pastor." End of campaign.
I know Senator McCain's in a pickle and even I have to agree that some of Gramm's comments were impolitic, but it is disappointing to see his quick reflex to the center. He has to think hard about adopting conservative or libertarian positions, but the consensus view can be reached in milliseconds.
Posted by: jk at July 13, 2008 6:56 PM | What do you think? [2]