Santorum, Duggars, And Fundraising As The Deadline Looms

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by Smitty

Stacy is getting down to crunch time, somewhere in the corner of an Iowa deli. He asks that I call your attention to something he put up in the Green Room, over at Hot Air:

For months, Santorum has been the only Republican presidential candidate whose campaign didn’t have a big custom bus – and he still doesn’t, because this bus actually belongs to the famous Duggar family of Arkansas, who arrived in the Hawkeye State this week to join their favorite candidate’s final push in the Iowa caucuses. I interviewed John Duggar, one of the family’s 20 children, at the event in Boone:


Read the whole thing.

Also over at Hot Air, Tina Korbe quotes Political Ticker’s note from Rick on finances:

“I would just stay this: We have raised more money in the last few days than we have in the last few months. And going from zero to 60 in the polls, if you will, will help those resources a lot,” said Santorum, in response to a question from the town’s mayor, asking if the candidate had the financial resources to take on President Barack Obama.

Nothing succeeds like success. Tomorrow’s caucus vote is rather clearly as crucial to Santorum’s campaign viability as, say, the 2010 election was the the survival of this country.

While falling short of saying that other candidates have not also worked hard, one might venture that a candidate who has had to scrape by, and spend more time pressing the flesh could have a better finger on the pulse of the Tea Parties than the more insider, elite, well-heeled, deep pocketed, fully staffed, focus group tested, hung out in the queue and now it’s their turn, dol burn it, ones.

Rule 5 Monday: Apocalypse Edition

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— compiled by Wombat-socho


So here we are in 2012, when according to a bunch of people who don’t understand Mayan the ancestors of today’s Guatemalans say the world is going to end. Whatever; we have pulchritude to post! On the off chance that your HR department gets to you before the Rapture happens, though, I remind you that the following links contain a vast selection of pictures which are not even remotely work safe despite containing no soft-core or hard-core pr0n. Tits may bring hits, but they also bring the hairy eyeball of HR, so don’t read this at work, mmmkay? On with the show!


First out of the inbox this week is Laughing Conservative with Emily Ratajkowski (and more Emily), followed by the Rio Norte Line with Zoe Saldana and Fishersville Mike with Lauren Alaina. Randy’s Roundtable lists his top five Rule Five draws of the year, also, Heather Jo Hughes. Reaganite Republican goes With Miss Albania 2011, the toothsome Xhesika Berberi, while Three Beers Later points to Karla Luna as evidence of gorbal warmening. Or something.


Proof Positive had Melissa Adams, vintage babe Claudette Colbert, and some sex in advertising starring Scarlett Johansson.


A View From The Beach kicked off his week of Rule 5 with some Seven of NineJeri Ryan, the “Did You Just Look At My Breasts?” video, and some Christmas cuties from Vargas and others.


Soylent Green’s inter-holiday Monday Motivationer was Erika Zivovic, followed by Karen Elaine Price, some British birds, Happy Hour Hotness, Friday’s corset brief, and an apology for sleeping in.


Dustbury went with the interesting duo of Benazir Bhutto and Jessica Stam, while Maggie’s Notebook stuck to her musical theme with Yesica Toscanini and Troglopundit offered the extremely useful PSA “A Very Zombie Holiday”. The Camp of the Saints was away from the Intertubes this holiday season, and only has Carol Alt and Alice Eve for us. Valley of the Shadow rattles the tip jar with Siouxsie Sioux and Postaldog barely makes it under the wire with xoxo Leah.


The Daley Gator’s Megahit Megababes last week were India Arie, Beyonce, Meagan Good, Jennifer Allen, Lisa Marie Scott celebrating the one millionth hit, and Crystal Leigh.


Thanks to everyone for their links! Deadline for next week’s Rule 5 roundup, which will actually be on Sunday for once, is Saturday, January 7; please make sure all your Rule 5 linkagery goes to Rule 5 Wombat and NOT the e-mail address at the top of the post!

More Of This, Less Of Its Cause

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by Smitty

I didn’t bother posting on Alan’s earlier remark. But the apology, and forgiveness, are two of the most powerful and under-utilized tools in our culture. The former, because hearts are so hard that ‘New Tone’ is mostly honored in the breech, and the latter, because politics is blood sport set to something off of No Remorse, say Steal Your Face:

That Shaggin’ Was In The Line Of Duty

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by Smitty

It’s an interesting call. Seriously. As a military member, lawful orders place one in life threatening situations. Can lawful orders include sexual acts as part of a cover story, as in this bit from the U.K.?

An undercover police officer has defended having sexual relationships with unsuspecting eco-activists, saying they were ‘essential’ to maintaining a convincing cover story.
Mark Kennedy, who spent eight years posing as eco-warrior Mark ‘Flash’ Stone, has spoken out after learning that three women plan to sue the Metropolitan Police for emotional distress, saying he ‘duped’ them into sex.

Later in the article:

Kennedy’s cover was blown a year ago and he has since left the police and moved to America, where he is working on a book and has signed a lucrative film deal. A Channel??4 documentary about him, Confessions Of An Undercover Cop, aired in November.
In 2002, Kennedy, 42, was recruited by the Met’s National Public Order Intelligence Unit and travelled throughout Britain and Europe, infiltrating activist groups as long-haired, tattooed protester Stone.
Kennedy, who is now getting divorced, insists he was celibate during his first year undercover. ‘I avoided sexual contact, despite the fact that free love is part of that lifestyle,’ he says. ‘I was a new face with money and a van, so I was a catch but I said I’d just ended a relationship and was recovering emotionally.’
In fact, Kennedy was married to Edel, mother of his 12-year-old son and ten-year-old daughter, though he claims he and his wife stayed together only because of the children.

Now, wait a minute: as far as the women go, what is the effective difference between these women fornicating with Flash Stone (really?) and then suing him for money, and just selling themselves as prostitutes? Is it that the notion of charging for the protein transfer did not occur until later?

And Flash boy? Look, if you’re a good enough actor to pull off an undercover gig, why can’t you come up with a better line than “I’d just ended a relationship and was recovering emotionally.’” There are plenty of medical reasons for celibacy. Now you’ve got a failed marriage as an albatross hanging about your neck.

But really: are these environmental outfits really so dangerous that governments need to place undercover operatives within them? What, are they smuggling explosives? May this pulp fiction story not do well in the market, say I. There is no way that the government should have people committing immoral acts. Furthermore, it’s medically dangerous to be engaged in sexual gymnastics like that, and the taxpayers should not be on the hook.

The whole thin smacks of a hoax.

via Digg

You Can’t Outlaw Beclownment

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by Smitty

No, no, no:

Legislation introduced to the Indiana Senate would make it a crime to stray from approved lyrical or melodic guidelines while performing the national anthem at any event sponsored by public schools and state universities.
The bill was proposed by Sen. Vaneta Becker (R). She told The Indianapolis Star that it was inspired by a constituent who emailed her after being upset by a parody of the “Star-Spangled Banner.”
“Sometimes it’s just done in a joking manner,” Becker said. “But I don’t think the national anthem is something we ought to be joking around with.”

I cry tears of pride when the anthem is sung correctly, and my jaw tightens when a Roseanne Barr makes a fool of herself with it.

But making a law barring Barr’s idiocy? No. Doesn’t Indiana have actual issues to manage, and doesn’t Becker look nannyish for even proposing this?

via Memeorandum

Update: linked at The Daley Gator

Media Scrum Is Heavy At Santorum Event

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by Smitty

BOONE, Iowa
Stacy called to say that he can’t get anywhere near Rick Santorum, due to the amount of media there in Boone for the 2 PM CT event. The Duggar family is here, and have loaned their bus to the Santorum campaign. Stacy has an interview to transcribe later.
Thanks to Three Beers Laterfor this fake but accurate depiction of the scene:

car
Mostly accurate, except the car is a black Mustang and the skyscrapers should be cornstalks and people.

TBL was reacting to the Village Voice story which actually noticed Stacy’s reporting, and then turns up the snark on the dextrosphere.

Other reactions:

  • Don Surber: Iowa holds its caucuses in 24 hours and the pollsters have agreed that Mitt Romney and Ron Paul are tied — maybe with Rick Santorum.
  • Legal Insurrection: Both polls show Santorum surging. What happens if Romney ends up in 3rd, as now seems a possibility? Also, does Perry continue if he doesn’t break 10%?
  • American Power: The Financial Times reports that 41 percent of Iowa caucus-goers are still undecided. See, “Final Iowa polls show fragmented field.”
  • Daily Kos: It’s anybody’s guess who will win Iowa, but it certainly looks like Santorum, Romney, and Paul are the only three candidates seriously in the running. And while Romney may yet still win, he has to be worried about his nightmare scenario: coming in third place in a race he was supposed to win—and the emergence of a single Not Romney who has done more than lead a poll, but has actually won an election.

via Memeorandum

Update: linked at Da Tech Guy, who calls it a “A ‘Sarah Palin like’ press scrum” and Maggie’s Notebook.

Update II: Troglopundit applauds his personal lack of an attention span, whereas The Lonely Conservative sounds more upbeat.

Ron Paul Is Out To Flog Mitt Romney With The Hillary Stick

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by Smitty

Now there is a provocative read:

Ron Paul — poised to finish strong in the Iowa caucuses – has begun to implement a quiet, complex plan to force a long battle with Mitt Romney for delegates to the Republican National Convention in August. His advantages: Experience, organization, and the legacy of the 2010 Tea Party revival, which convinced Republicans that anti-government figures like Paul just aren’t as weird as they’d thought.
Paul is following the roadmap set by Barack Obama’s 2008 strategy: Start early, learn the rules, and use superior organization and devoted young supporters to dominate the arcane but crucial party procedures in states your rivals are ignoring — states where caucuses and conventions that elect the delegates who will ultimately choose the Republican candidate. The plan begins in places like Minnetonka, Minnesota, a Minneapolis suburb where Paul has based his state headquarters, and where staffers have already begun running “mock-auses” — practice runs for Minnesota’s February 7 caucuses.
Paul’s rivals dismiss his chances. “Ron Paul’s not going to be our nominee,” Mitt Romney said flatly in December.

This is really an argument against “Arcane Rules”. We all love to hate on professional politicians, but it is truly a full-time job just to understand the basics of how the sausage is made. Complexity favors the insiders. We love to hate the IRS, but no one is really talking about killing the 16th Amendment or offering a tax code other than one putting the ‘b’ in Byzantine.

The two things we have to do, going down the road, are: involve more people, and stamp out complexity. Systems need to be as simple as possible, but no simpler.

As for the Paul candidacy: irrespective of anyone’s personal opinion of the newsletter utterances, you have to know, with total clarity, that the MSM would utterly, endlessly pillory Paul over that issue, while simultaneously touting an unexpected new hip-hop release by Jeremiah Wright as some sort of cultural achievement, just for the recreational hypocrisy of it all. Also, Ron’s foreign policies are unworkable, and would cause a big fat war, into which we’d be dragged.

So, even though Virginia’s primary is going totally South Park, I’m left to pray for a Santorum triumph, as a way to avoid the centrism of Romney, and the left-libertarianism of Paul.

via Huffington Post