podesta_email_00570.txt

podesta-emails 8,584 words email

P22 P17 D6 V11 V14

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below and attached documents * Rudy Giuliani * *Event Details: * - Giuliani held one event in FL, one event in NH, one event in OK and three events in MO 12/113-12/19. - Giuliani released a 'holiday' ad this week: *MSNBC: 'Surreal' Giuliani holiday ad has to be spoof* Rudy Giuliani's new campaign ad features the candidate attempting to soften his tough-guy image by wearing a fuzzy red sweater vest while sitting in front of a Christmas tree. Speaking in jovial tones, he confides to the viewer, "I'll be working to get everyone the same gift: a safer America, lower taxes, secure borders, job growth, fiscal discipline, strict constructionist judges -- and probably a fruitcake or something …" Link to story and ad: http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Scarborough_slams_Rudys_new_Xmas_political_1219.html - At a speech in Tampa, FL on 12/15, Giuliani announced a new optimistic message for his campaign. (Quotes below) * * *Giuliani's new optimistic campaign message:* *On Leadership:* "America needs a leader. I am running for President of the United States because I believe that I can lead America into a new era …with bold leadership, optimism, determination, and distinctly American solutions." "If you are looking for perfection, you are not going to find it. Not in me and not in any candidate. But if you are looking for a leader who has been tested in times of crisis. … A leader who is ready to lead right now. … A leader who has achieved results – results that some people thought were impossible – a leader who believes that there is no problem too serious for American solutions and a free, American spirit … I believe I am that leader." * * *"We Can Do It" Attitude:* "As I travel across our country, I've begun to hear a murmur that somehow America has lost its ability to achieve great goals. - Some good people have come to believe that our country is on the wrong track. Middle Class families feel that the American Dream may be slipping away – they're worried the future might not be as bright as the past. - It does not have to be that way. We can decide America's direction. We determine America's future. That's what an election is all about." *On the War on Terror:* "We're at war. The American people want to see victory in Iraq and Afghanistan – not humiliation and defeat. They want their children to live free from the fear of Islamic Terrorism. They're telling us: Get it done. And we will." * * *On Immigration:* "The American people are angry that the federal government has failed to secure our border. They want to see legal immigration reconnected with Americanization. They're telling us: Get it done. And we will." (Major Speech; Tampa, Florida 12/15/07) *On liberal bias in the media:* "There is a media bias against, against Republicans that is very strong. There is no question that it exists. It is not the figment of anyone's imagination. It's just a reality. And the best thing for us to do as Republicans is just to, you know, those are the cards are dealt, deal with it. Don't have a chip on your shoulder about it. All it does, it means we have to communicate better. We got to do things like we're doing right now. Talk to people directly, explain to them how we deal with Islamic terrorism, how we deal with our military." (Town Hall; Cedar Rapids, IA 12/12/07) *Clip Available * Mitt Romney * *Event Details: * - Romney held three events in CA, 11 events in IA, one event in GA, one event in MA, three events in NH and four events in SC 12/13-12/19. - Romney appeared on NBC's Meet the Press on 12/16. Transcript here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22273924 - Romney hosted a webcast on 12/18. - At some events, Romney gives a powerpoint presentation with his economic plan. That plan is broken down into five main parts: fiscal discipline, lower taxes, open markets, innovation and immigration reform. - Ann Romney took to the stump this week in NH. She appeared nervous and uncomfortable and spoke primarily about the greatness of her husband and her job as a mother. - Our trackers' character observations on Romney are that he's elitist, stand-offish and just not comfortable with normal, everyday folk. He shakes hands because he has to – not because he's genuinely interested in the people he's meeting. He's nice, but has trouble connecting with people. This is in much contrast to Huckabee's charismatic, personable nature. - FUN FACT: The Romney campaign plays Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" at his Iowa campaign events. - Romney released a new ad this week: *New Spot: Romney "Helped Save My Daughter" (Washington Post, 12/19/07)* Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney will today begin airing a new ad in New Hampshire that will take the place of his attacks against rival Mike Huckabee as voters celebrate Christmas next week. The ad tells the story of the daughter of Romney's business partner, who disappeared for three days in New York City in 1996. http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2007/12/19/new_spot_romney_helped_save_my_1.html Link to ad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjwWVWkPr-4 * * *Romney's storytelling side:* "…Of course I came back, I came back to Iowa a little later, after I worked in a ranch in Idaho. Joan's dad, Joan's dad owned a ranch in Idaho and I worked on that in the summer time. I will tell you, its different faming in Idaho. At least in this part of Idaho, King Hill, Idaho. The ground is sort of sandy and kinda of a gray color. It doesn't rain very much, so you have uhh, to water the corn with, with uhh irrigation ditch water. And the corn doesn't grow real tall and the ears don't get real big. *After the summer there I came back on the train, and you look out the window when you get to Iowa, you see the black soil, big tall dark green corn, great big ears, the water comes from the sky like its supposed to. I said to myself, "God must love Iowa." You know that, don't you?"* (Speech; Muscatine, IA 12/13/07) *Clip Available * * *On Iran:* "*Q:* …You mentioned Chavez, Putin, and Ahmadijhad a few times. With regards to the Iranian issue, we're sort of at a cross-roads right now in what road may be taken in international relations with them. Where do you stand on relations with them? *A:* I would be tightening down as hard as we can, diplomatic and economic sanctions on Iran, so that they know that pursuit of nuclear technology and weaponry is unacceptable in the world. And that's us, that's the Europeans, its getting the Chinese to come along with us, trying to move the Russians to do that. That takes a lot of diplomatic effort, a lot of tongue twisting. But, it is, unacceptable to the world to have Iran develop a nuclear capacity. Now, umm I know that there are a number of reports that have come out recently that, most important is the National Intelligence Estimate. Don't, don't feel comfortable by virtue of just a quick headline reading of that. *The 16 agencies I read, in that National Intelligence Estimate, say that Iran is continuing to develop nuclear technology, that they are enriching uranium.*That they would be able to have a bomb as early as 2009, 2010. That means that, you know, that's not far off. You remember, this is almost 2008, in just a few days here. And that means 2009 or 2010, they could have a nuclear bomb. This is not a time for us to sit back and say ohh 'we got plenty of time.' *This is a time for us dramatically tighten our economic sanctions on that nation, as well as our diplomatic sanctions.* I would indite Ahmadijhad under the Genocide Convention for incitation of genocide. Let the world know and his people know, that he is unacceptable on the world stage." (Speech; Muscatine, IA 12/13/07) *Clip Available *On Reagan: * "I'm convinced that if we don't take a left turn, following Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, over the edge if you will. *If we instead stay on the path that Ronald Regan built*. Which is a strong economy, with strong values among our people, and a strong military to protect us, if we stay on that path our future will be bright." (Speech; Muscatine, IA 12/13/07) *Clip Available "Now some folks when they look at all those challenges, they ring their hands, and say 'well government is gonna have to take over.' If you listen to Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama and John Edwards, they want to take America on a sharp leftward tack. I think they're inspired by the Europe of old, big government, big brother, big taxes. In my view that is the wrong way to go. *The right way for America to proceed when we face the kinda of challenges we face is to pursue the strategy which Ronald Reagan pursued when we faced the challenges of the last century.* He said the right path forward is to strengthen America. He strengthened our confidence in ourselves. He rebuilt the optimism that America had lost under Jimmy Carter. He strengthened our families and values. He also made sure that we could compete with anybody in the world. *He brought our taxes down, a lot.** *That caused our economy to take off. And in turn allowed us to out-compete the Russians. And then of course, he strengthened our military. Facing the kind of military challenge that we faced then, he made sure that our military was second to none. And finally, the, the Soviets had to say 'enough already' and they threw in the towel." (Speech; Carroll, IA 12/14/07) *Clip Available "*America will follow the path Ronald Reagan chose*, as he faced the great challenge of the last century. And that's a path of strength… He said I'm going to strengthen the values of country, our optimism, our sense of future… He also strengthened our economy, by holding down taxes. And he strengthened our military, and produced what was without question the strongest military in the history of the world." (Meet and Greet; Spartanburg, SC 12/18/07) *Clip Available "We should take inspiration from the *strategy that Ronald Reagan talked about*… It was his view that the right way to approach challenges was to strengthen ourselves… He strengthened the values and the heart and the passion of the American people by calling on our optimism. He strengthened our economy by keeping our taxes down. He strengthened our military, so we could frankly out-compete the Russians on every single dimension." (Meet and Greet; Myrtle Beach, SC 12/18/07) *Clip Available "Now *Hillary Clinton says that, with all those challenges she's the candidate of change. And she would change America, wouldn't she. That's what we're afraid of*, exactly. We don't want to follow the pathway of Europe with big government, big taxes and big brother. We *instead want to pursue the pathway, frankly, that Ronald Reagan championed*. When he was facing challenges in that last century, the spread of the Soviet Union and their communism, he said, 'You know, the right way to proceed is to strengthen America with a strong military and a strong economy and strong values and strong homes. (Meet and Greet; Charlotte, SC 12/18/07) *Clip Available * * *On Veteran's Benefits:* "*Q:* What are you gonna do to improve veteran's benefits particularly what this administration has done, which really hasn't been very admirable, such as spending bills to gentlemen that had been wounded in Iraq, that they didn't fulfill their commitment. I hope this type of routine would not continue on… *A:* Kinda hard to believe isn't it? *Q:* Its almost sick…. * * *A: *I must admit, when I heard the story… that people who had been in Iraq, that had let's say a one-year commitment to follow through in order to get certain benefits. They got injured and were sent home because they got badly injured, and then they're told ok, because you didn't fulfill your one-year commitment, you're not gonna get benefits… That makes no sense at all… That's you're government at work… *Q: But that's done by this administration…* * * *A: That's done by government bureaucrats…* (Office Opening; Bettendorf, IA 12/13/07) *Clip Available *On Iraq:* *Q:* "What are *your* plans for ending the Iraq War?" *A:* "What are *the* plans for ending the Iraq War? *Q:* "*Your* plans?" *A:* "My plans*? My plans are the same as General Petraeus' plans at this point and that is to win. *How do we win? *The troop surge is working.* A lot of people didn't think it was gonna work. Umm, but it is working. And *the reason it is working is because the people in Iraq have recognized our commitment and our resolve*. The Sunnis have recognized how bad their life would be if Al Qaeda took over their community. And the Sunnis are working with us to get rid of Al Qaeda. For me the key to success in Iraq is making sure we do not leave behind a safe-haven for Al Qaeda or Hezbollah, or other terror groups. And we are successful at this stage in helping move those kinds of groups out of positions of power in Iraq. And I think what you're gonna see, is as General Petraeus has laid out, we are going to start bringing down our troops support by about a brigade a month until July, when we'll take a pause. We'll have gone from about 20 to 15 brigades. *We'll take a pause and see how well the Iraqis are doing, standing up their capacity to patrol the streets and secure the public safety. And then I think you're gonna see us start bringing troops down until we're down to a much more modest level.* I think you'll also see our troops playing more of a support role. Which means that we'll being being, doing aerial support, intelligence support, logistical support, and the Iraqi military will be playing a more primary front role. *Ultimately, I believe our troops should all come out Iraq.* *I think we'll have troops in Kuwait, or Cutter, or other places where we have permanent bases in the region.* But I think the Iraqis need to know that *we are not planning on staying in their country forever*. I believe you're going to see us successful there. And again, success for me is making sure we do not have safe-havens for Al Qaeda, from which they would launch uhh attacks, from which they would train, finance, or umm recruit people to go after us." (Speech; Carroll, IA 12/14/07) *Clip Available "It's been interesting over these past several months to watch the Democrats increasingly ratchet up their rhetoric attacking the President. And uhh, of course, as I've pointed out, the war in *Iraq has not been perfectly managed *. We did a great job knocking down Saddam Hussein and his military. But then after that we were under-prepared and under-planned, under-staffed; The President has pointed out those weaknesses. Tony Blair has. *There is no question we were not perfectly managed*. Although today we are making great progress with the surge, and its working. And we're helping the Sunnis reject Al Qaeda amongst them. And that being said, by the way, I must admit I was shocked to pick up the paper and read… One of my fellow Republicans said that this administration, he accused this administration of an 'arrogant Bunker mentality.' And I had to look again, did this come from Barack Obama? Or from Hillary Clinton? Did it come from John Edwards? No, it was one of our own, it was *Governor Huckabee*. He said [the]'Bush administration is guilty of an arrogant bunker mentality that's been counterproductive here and abroad. I simply can't believe that. I can't believe he'd say that. *I'm afraid he's running for the wrong party.* *The truth of the matter is, this president has kept us safe these last six years. And that has not been easy to do.* He went to Afghanistan and knocked down the Taliban there, and took out Al Qaeda's safe haven from which they could launch attacks against us. Instead of just listening to what happened around the world, in places like Iraq and taking one shot after another. You know, we got hit at the USS Cole, Cobar Towers was hit, our embassies in Africa were hit. One time after another we were hit with no response, other than negotiating. *This president finally said we are doing something about it. And responded aggressively, as he should have.* And here at home he made sure we passed the PATRIOT Act, so we could find out what the bad guys were planning on doing to us. And he also made sure that when Al Qaeda was calling, someone was listening. *And we captured a terrorist, we interrogated them.* And you know the story about Kahild Shiek Mohammed, he's the so-called mastermind of the 9/11 tragedy. *When he was captured, he said 'I'll see you in New York with my lawyer.' Can you imagine?* I'm sure he was thinking an ACLU lawyer would be provided at government expense. *Instead, he saw GIs and CIA interrogators in Guantanamo, just like it ought to be.* And so, I'm, yeah go ahead, that's fine… (Romney shamelessly asks for forced applause), thank you. *And so I'm of the view to say thank you to the president for keeping us safe these last six years. And I'm the last person to say that this administration is subject to an 'arrogant bunker mentality' counterproductive here and abroad.' * (Town Hall; Humboldt, IA 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On Iraq and Oil:* "I sure was surprised that we got in there and found the infrastructure was as terrible as it was. I think the plan was that we'd use the [Iraqi] oil to offset our costs." "And frankly, we are not getting as much oil out of that place as we expected." "The effort we have in Iraq is not going to pay for itself in dollars and cents. But hopefully, it will pay for itself in removing the safe-haven for Al Qaeda and Hezbollah from which they can launch attacks against us." (Meet and Greet; Early, IA 12/14/07) *Clip Available * * *On Huckabee and his 'arrogant bunker mentality' comment:* "What are some differences? Well I've described for instance with regards to military policy, I do not think the President's administration is an 'arrogant bunker mentality" administration. I believe that this President has done everything he could do to keep us safe. Does a president make mistakes? Of course. Will I make mistakes? Of course.* But the last thing you're gonna hear me say is that the President of the United States, George W. Bush, is a person who is arrogant with a "bunker mentality." That's simply wrong and uhhh not something I would ever do*." (Town Hall; Humboldt, IA 12/15/07) *Clip Available * * "You also heard my comments, my remarks today about uhhh Governor Huckabee's article in Foreign Affairs. *To accuse the President of an 'arrogant bunker mentality' is in my view more fitting uhh from a person running for the Democratic party than from our own. It sounds like something Barack Obama or John Edwards would say. *Not what you'd hear from someone running for President as a Republican. And I think it was uhh a very serious error. With that, happy to take any questions you may have." (Town Hall; Humboldt, IA 12/15/07) *Clip Available * * "But, I'm its one thing to say that your're gonna make changes, its one thing to say that there are things have been done wrong in the past, it's a very different matter to say that the administration is arro… it's a "arrogant bunker mentality", that's uh a very different accusation. Its sounds like it came from Barack Obama and John Edwards*. Its sounds like Governor Huckabee is running for the wrong party.*" (Town Hall; Humboldt, IA 12/15/07) *Clip Available * * *On Huckabee's FAIR Tax:* *Q:* "I know that Governor Huckabee has supported the FAIR Tax. I have one follow up, do you support that or not? I understand that is a national sales and use tax. *A:* Yeah, it has a lot of good elements to it. *It is not part of my presidential platform* and I'll tell you a couple of reasons why. One, I would like to uhh, thoroughly understand what its implications would be for seniors and for middle income folks. I do not want to raise taxes on middle income Americans. So I want to understand that thoroughly. Two, I want to get immediate action to encourage economic growth. And one of the aspects of the FAIR tax is it would require a complete restructuring of our entire tax system and probably a constitutional amendment. *And as you know, getting the Democratic Congress to amend our constitution and to eliminate the income tax and then to get three-quarters of the states to do the same thing, would take a long time. So I'm instead proposing immediately we take off the tax on savings. * *Q:* Uhh ok, that's good. I agree with you. The other thing, Huckabee talks about a 23 cent national sales tax. And everything I say, or read, says that 30 cents up to be revenue neutral. So I think you're right. *A:* And, uh, you know. We ought be…Truth in, Truth in lending here, as they say, is important. Which is, which is this is how they calculate the percentage. If something costs a dollar today, and you're probably, you're pretty good at math. This takes most of us a second to think about. *If something costs a dollar today, after the FAIR tax, it would, a 30 cent tax would be put on top of it, which is a dollar thirty.* But 30 cents is only 23% of a dollar thirty. So they call it a 23% tax. So it is either a 30% tax or a 23% tax depending on what's in the denominator. If anybody followed that, it has not been long since you were out of school." (Speech; Carroll, IA 12/14/07) *Clip Available * * *Attacking Huckabee:* "The great majority of Americans want a person of capability with the kinds of values and vision that will lead the country forward in a very difficult time. And I think Governor Huckabee's rise in the polls justifies him getting a close look by the voters. They take a close look at his record on his immigration *they'll see someone who is too liberal on immigration*. When they look at the 1,033 commutations he handed out *they'll see someone who is too liberal on crime*. When they look also on his record of spending, from $6 billion to $16 billion as governor *they'll see that's too liberal of a spending record and too liberal of a tax record*. So I'm convinced that as people take a closer look the good republicans of South Carolina will support a conservative candidate like myself, and *they won't be supporting Governor Huckabee*." (Meet and Greet; Columbia, SC 12/18/07) *Clip Available** * * *On Immigration:* "If there is a state in America that gives driver licences to illegals, I cut back on their federal highway funds. If there is a state that says were giving in state tuition credits (pause for clapping) or scholarships, I cut back on their higher education funds. And if there is a city that say its a sanctuary city and their not going to enforce the law, I am going to cut back on funds for those cities…" (Town Hall; Storm Lake, IA 12/14/07) *Clip Available * * "We year after year after year talk about the need to enforce our immigration laws and secure the border. But we simply haven't gotten the job done… Congress is cutting back funding for the fences… For me, completing the fence is Step One. Step Two is putting in place an employment verification system… And finally, you say to the people who got her illegally that they should get in line with everybody else." (Meet and Greet; Spartanburg, SC 12/18/07) *Clip Available "I like legal immigration, but I want to stop illegal immigration. And for me that means putting in place a fence and having enough border patrol agents to make sure we secure our border. It also means giving the *legal immigrants a card*, that shows that they're an immigrant, but they're a legal immigrant." (Note: Isn't that what a green card is?) (Meet and Greet; Myrtle Beach, SC 12/18/07) *Clip Available * * *On American being a "superpower":* *"There is one superpower. I think they'd all agree, there is one superpower on the planet, that is us right now.* And then there are nations which are one tier below that. And I've always said as well that they are great nations but they are not superpowers, as they once were. I don't think anyone of them would disagree with that actually. The French call us a 'hyper-power'. So, They recognize there is a difference in our military and economic capacity. And *in my view, it is important for us to remain as the world's economic and military leader."* (Town Hall; Humboldt, IA 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On Social Security:* "For our seniors today, it's not an issue, no one should frighten our seniors, *we're not gonna change the deal for seniors or near-seniors*. We're gonna rely on the program we have, that's, that's, and there's more money coming in to Social Security today, as you know, than money going out. So this is not matter for current seniors, but for people in their twenties, thirties, and forties, this is a matter of real concern." (Town Hall; St. Anselm College, NH 12/17/07) *Clip Available * * *On his financial investments:* "The answer is I will take a lead in our efforts to stop genocide in Darfur. I, I do not have funds these days in, uh, my investments are all managed by a blind trust. And that has been the case since I was governor, so it's been five years plus. So *I don't control any of the investments that I have*, but I have asked the trustee to make sure that my investments, to the extent humanly possible, can not involve things with which I disagree, and, um, and I trust that he has done just that. Or the company has done just that, that manages my investments." (Town Hall; St. Anselm College, NH 12/17/07) *On the deficit:* "Well right now, even with the cost of the War in Iraq, the budget deficit of last year is $161 billion dollars, much smaller than it was when President Bush took office. And it's gonna continue to decline, we are gonna see a balanced budget within 4 years." (Town Hall; Londonderry, NH 12/17/07) *On military spending:* "Our strong military is another one I should underscore… I also want to acknowledge a great need in this country. We need to add at least 100,000 active duty personnel to our military. I think as well, that we need to provide better funding so we can buy the equipment they need so they can be successful on the battlefield… So, as President of the United States, my *budget will include additional funding*. Will bring our funding level back up to about 4% of GDP. That's about $40 billion higher than it currently is." (Meet and Greet; Spartanburg, SC 12/18/07) *Clip Available * * *On Taxes:* "One thing you do is keep the tax burden down. You don't raise taxes if you want the economy to get stronger. I want to kill the Death tax once and for all. I also want to have a special savings tax rate… for people earning $200,000/year or less, my view is there should be a new tax rate on your savings…. At the rate of zero." (Meet and Greet; Myrtle Beach, SC 12/18/07) *Clip Available * * *Emotional Romney:* "I have five boys of my own, I imagine what it would be like to lose a son in a situation like that… "As I looked up there, every single hand was on every heart, and I recognized this is a nation that comes together and respects and reveres those who serve this great nation, and who joins in mourning when one of them is lost." (Town Hall; Londonderry, NH 12/17/07) *Clip Available * Mike Huckabee* * * *Event Details: * - Huckabee held two events in IA and six events in MH 12/13-12/19. - Huckabee appeared on CNN's Larry King Live on 12/17. Trancscript here: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0712/17/lkl.01.html - On 12/14 in NH, Huckabee announced that Republican strategist, Ed Rollins (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Rollins ), had joined his campaign as the "National Campaign Chairman and Senior Advisor." - The weekend of 12/15-15, Huckabee campaigned in NH with Chuck Norris. - In general, Huckabee is very interactive with the audiences at his events. For example, he'll ask for a show of hands to make a point. During his handshaking, he'll learn details about a few folks and then use those details later in his stump speech. On one occasion, he noted a couple in the audience celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. He's very good at making a connection with individuals in the room – asking their name, what they do, how's their job, etc – and people love it. This is in contrast to Romney – who often appears 'stand-offish' and elitist. * * - Huckabee released a new ad this week: *Ad Hawk: The Greatest Story Ever Told (Newsweek, 12/17/07)* …This might be the smartest ad of the cycle. For all the observers wondering how the candidates would manage the awkward holiday/caucus overlap, Huckabee delivers a master class. Link to article: http://www.blog.newsweek.com/blogs/stumper/archive/2007/ 12/17/ad-hawk-the-greatest-story-ever-told.aspx<http://www.blog.newsweek.com/blogs/stumper/archive/2007/12/17/ad-hawk-the-greatest-story-ever-told.aspx> *Link to ad *("What really matters"): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xn7uSHtkuA *Response to Romney's attacks:* "If the only platform I have is to tell you what is wrong with others, I don't have much of a platform." (Press Conference; Concord, NH 12/14/07) * * *On health care:* "One of the current problems with our healthcare and health insurance issues is that we have an intervention based system that waits until we are catastrophically ill before it kicks in. The real trend has to be that we *move to a prevention based system* so that the dollars are spent preventing the disease rather than treating the disease after we have already gotten it… "We started doing that in my state, ending the co-pays and deductibles on colonoscopies, mammography, prostate and cancer exam, paying 100% for the cost of smoking cessation programs, weight loss programs… "And let me say that I think some of the approaches by the Democrats and Republicans are both wrong headed. Democrats tend to say let's turn it over to the government and the Republicans tend to say let's just turn it over to the private insurance companies. *Well I don't know about you, but I don't trust private insurance companies anymore than I trust the government. I trust me.* "…even if you change jobs, you don't have to lose your insurance, it goes with you cause you own it." (Town Hall; Boscawen, NH 12/14/07) *Clip Available *On 'socialized medicine':* "But here's the problem, if we go immediately to coverage without a shared responsibility, without understanding, getting those issues of quality and affordability, imagine what would happen, because *the logic is nobody should be without health care*, everybody deserves it, it's a, it's a right, you hear those things. Sounds good. *Here's the problem. You could make the same argument about eating*. Everybody should eat in a very wealthy society like ours, nobody should be hungry, so to make sure that everybody has plenty, everyone is going to get a card, and that card will entitle you to get groceries. Whenever you want, any time you want, and you can have anything you want because universal groceries is now our new goal. Now imagine giving every American, all 303 million of them, a card that says any time you're hungry or want to go to the store just use the card, and you get anything you want. How long would it take for us to bankrupt America? What kind of shopping would we do? Would we compare shopping? How many of us would still coupon clip and actually say, hmm, boy, uh, this name brand is a lot more expensive, I'd better go with the generic and the store brand? None of us would do that anymore. We wouldn't be buying ground beef, we'd be buying ribeyes every time we shopped for meat. My point is that it would get completely out of control." (Town Hall; Berlin, NH 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On the military and how it should be like Chuck Norris:* "It is my position that we need to have *the strongest possible military on the face of the earth so no one wants to engage in a battle*. *The best way to have peace is to have a … military strength that is other nations who would think about touching it would take a second look and decide they don't want to do it. It's kind of like looking at Chuck Norris and saying, 'I don't think so.' And that's what we want*. *We want a military that is as tough as the idea of going up against Chuck Norris in a, in an alley*. And, uh, quite frankly, that's what America has always been able, uh, to have that is it's greatest source of its strength and it's peace. And if we have a weak military, one that is considered vulnerable or that doesn't have the resolve, that's the military that is likely to be engaged in a battle because somebody would believe they can take it out. I hope we never have another war. But realistically we live in a very dangerous, brutal, ugly world and some people are filled with hate and a desire to kill others and to destroy …. We have an enemy now, radical Islam, that really does believe that they need to annihilate the rest of us on this planet. And just never forget somebody would take a bomb and strap it to the belly of their own child and kill their own children for their cause, they certainly wouldn't mind taking your children or mine and killing them for their cause as well…" (Town Hall; Tilton, NH 12/14/07) *Clip Available *On his faith:* "I've never downplayed or up-played it." "People should vote for or against me because of my faith." "… my faith gives you a framework for what my convictions are." ((Press Conference; Concord, NH 12/14/07) * * *On God's role in the rise of his candidacy:* "…I'm not trying to say that God's registered to vote in any of the early primary states that I checked. You know, I'm simply saying that there is no reasonable explanation that I can offer." (Press Conference; Concord, NH 12/14/07) *On the economy:* "I sit on a stage with a lot of the other Republican candidates for president in Dearborn, Michigan during a debate, and they ask how's the economy doing? One by one across that stage, *my colleagues running for president, good men everyone of them*, anyone of them, I think, probably better than all of the guys, or any of the guys, on the other side. My personal perspective of it, that would be my feeling. But the fact is, as I listened to every one of them speak and ask how's the economy doing, *everyone said it's doing great*. And they rattled off the Republican National Committee talking points that we all get. 22 consecutive months of unprecedented economic growth and that we were hearing all these wonderful things about how great it was, it came to *me I was the only guy on the stage who said, well, for most of the guys on this stage, it's doing real well. But I said for a lot of people in this country, it's not doing that great*." (Town Hall; Berlin, NH 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On troop withdrawal from Iraq:* "… rule of war is whoever walks away from a battle, lost." (Radio Interview; Littleton, NH 12/15/07) *On a national service program:* "And there's just a real need for us to do two things. *One, is to raise a whole generation who have some skin in the game when it comes to America*. And the other is to give them an opportunity to advance their capacity to live the American dream." (Town Hall; Littleton, NH 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On Abortion:* "I'm a staunch believer in the sanctity of life, and I'm gonna explain why. I believe nothing gets closer to the heart of what our founding fathers understood than that every person has intrinsic value and worth that is worth protecting." (Town Hall; Berlin, NH 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On immigration and the 14th Amendment:* "Okay, the concept of the anchor baby, right? Right. *I think there's a lot of, um, merit to saying that just physical birth if a person isn't here legally is not automatically citizenship*. That's one of those things where we really need to take another look at the 14th amendment, is that what it says. Of course it's said that it does, so it would require court action to change that." (Town Hall; Littleton, NH 12/15/07) *Clip Available * Fred Thompson* *Event Details: * - Thompson held 10 events in IA and one event in TN 12/13-12/19. - At the kick off event for his Iowa bus tour, Thompson spoke for approximately 10 minutes, took no questions and left in a hurry. The event boasted one of the largest crowds we've seen to this point for a Thompson event, 100, which in comparison to the other candidates, is unimpressive. - In his Iowa bus tour this week, Thompson held three or four events where he drove his campaign bus into town, parked it and sat inside. Every now and again he would come out, shake a hand or two, but then go back in the bus. Such occurrences were billed as actual campaign events. - A recent article in the Politico sums up Thompson's campaign best: * * *"She e-mailed me back that Thompson "was so vague that I would be hard-pressed to write a story. Simply put, there is no news peg other than he came to the newsroom with his model wife and a beehive of staffers. When I asked him specifically what he would do as prez for farmers in Bremer County, he resorted to glittering generalities." So the sum total of Thompson's day in Waverly was meeting with a newspaper editor and saying nothing and then meeting about 15 people in a warm firehouse and saying nothing. When he was supposed to go out and find voters in shops and diners, talk to them and answer their questions, he decided to skip it and get back on his luxury bus instead. That's not retail politics. That's not Iowa. And that's not laconic. That's lazy."* http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1207/7474.html *On the Democratic Party:* "…my friends, the main reason I'm standing here before you today is because those fundamental principles are under attack in this country. They're under assault. *They're under assault from a left-wing, big government, high taxing, weak on national security, Democratic Party that's just licking its chops to take over the reins of government so they can lead us down the road to a welfare state.* But there are some things standing in their ways my friends, and a lot of them are standing in this room tonight. We're not gonna turn to keys this country over to that outfit. Not as long aas we have anything to say about it. And on January the third, the people of Iowa are gonna answer an important question: Who do we want to stand for us against this assault? Who do we want to lead us in preserving our value and our principles. Now, It's a little late in the process for me to be coy. So I want to tell you, that I believe I am that man and with your help I will be that man." (Bus Tour Kick Off; Dubuque, IA 12/17/07) *Clip Available *On Terrorism:* *"*We're electing a leader. We're electing a leader for a time that is gonna need serious leadership. *My friends, I've been there, I can tell you, that we are just one successful terrorist plan away from a nuclear attack in this country.* All the experts know that, that's the kinda of world we live in. It's not the time for on-the-job training." (Bus Tour Kick Off; Dubuque, IA 12/17/07) *Clip Available *On his record:* *"*When I left public service, I still continued public service in a private matter. Now although, I had a little television show called Law & Order, some of ya'll might of seen it, it got a little more publicity then some of the other stuff I've done. But the fact of the matter is while that was going on, some important things happened to me because it gave me a chance to continue my public service in a very quiet way. *When Condoleeza Rice, Secretary of State, needed someone to advise her on matters of international security, she called me, its a public record. When the President of the United States wanted to help get a good solid conservative judge on the Supreme Court, now he's chief justice on the Supreme Court, he called me, he called me. * My record is clear. My experience is clear. And that's why I asked folks, the other night at the debate, after it's all said and done, think about one thing. *If you're gonna think about just one thing, think about this. When the time comes where our worst enemy in the world is sitting across the table, thinking about what he can do to the United States of America, what he can get away with, who do you want sitting on the other side of the table representing us looking back across the table at him."* (Bus Tour Kick Off; Dubuque, IA 12/17/07) *Clip Available * John McCain * *Event Details: * - McCain held two events in IA, two events in MA, 16 events in NH, one event in NY and five events in SC 12/13-12/19. - A few anti-war protesters greeted McCain at events in SC. - On 12/17 at an event in NH, Sen. Joe Lieberman publicly endorsed McCain. *Link to video of endorsement:* http://youtube.com/watch?v=_nd_FczO-FM - McCain launched a direct mail attack on Romney this week. Our trackers in NH have acquired the piece. *McCain launches direct mail attack (Nashua Telegraph, 12/18/07)* CONCORD – Republican hopeful Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, launched an attack – a direct mail campaign labeling New Hampshire primary front-runner Mitt Romney as a serial flip-flopper that "voters can't trust.'' http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071218/NEWS08/78615490/-1/news08 *On health care:* "My whole philosophy is that we've got to put more decisions in the hands of the user, we've got to have a whole range of actions taken in order bring inflation down and among them are to give every American family 5000 dollar refundable tax credit so they can go across state lines which they cant now, to find an insurance policy of their choice…" (Town Hall; Davenport, IA 12/13/07) *Clip Available "My friends, there's never been a system in history that when the government paid for it, it wasn't more expensive than when the private enterprise system did it. So please don't listen to this siren song of let government take it over and it'll be cheaper. My friends, the cost will be much higher, but it'll just be coming out of a different pocket." (Town Hall; Salem, NH 12/18/07) *On SCHIP:* "First of all, SCHIP, I'm not, like I said, these things, sometimes I have to tell you things you don't want to hear as well as those that you want to hear. Um… The SCHIP program was designed to provide children with health insurance. We did that pretty well. There's still 8 million children that are not covered. 6 million of those are simply because we haven't signed them up. It's not a problem, we've simply got to find them and sign them up. We've got 2 million that we're going to have to expand the program to cover, and that would cost about 3 to 5 billion dollars. So what do they want to do in Washington? They want to expand it by 35 billion dollars. And they want it to encompass adults, and they want it to encompass the, uh, 300 people, 300 percent of the poverty line." (Town Hall; Concord, NH 12/17/07) *Clip Available * * *On 'mission accomplished':* "I understand the frustration, the anger, and the sorrow that people in this state and all over America feel because of nearly four years of 'mission accomplished,' 'last throes,' uh, 'few dead-enders,' these things that defied reality. *And I was angry about it, and I remain angry about it*." (Town Hall; Concord, NH 12/17/07) *Clip Available * ***FLIP FLOP* Senator McCain was asked "At what point will America be able to say the war was won?" McCain said there were oil fields to secure and "die-hards" to take care of but *"it's clear that the end is very much in sight*, and today I think Americans should be very proud of their leadership, their technology. There are still some foreigners, Syrians and others hanging around. But it won't be long. It will be a fairly short period of time, but this happens in wars. I'm confident that once they are confident the area is no longer a threat to the Marines and to or army troops that they'll start imposing discipline. In the meantime, we'll have a short period of chaos." [ABC News, Good Morning America, 4/9/03] "*This is a mission accomplished*. They know how much influence Saddam Hussein had on the Iraqi people, how much more difficult it made to get their cooperation." [This Week, ABC, 12/14/03] * * *On troop withdrawal:* "I would pull out troops as the situation warrants it on the ground … I will stay as long as necessary." (Town Hall; James Island, SC 12/14/07) *Clip Available "My timetable for Iraq is not distinct. My, my, my, *my view of Iraq and success in Iraq is what we are achieving now*. It's not American presence in Iraq that matters. What matters in Iraq is American casualties." (Town Hall; Salem, NH 12/18/07) *Clip Available *On the sacrifices of our soliders:* "Lindsey and I were over in Iraq over Thanksgiving. And we had a great opportunity to spend Thanksgiving dinner with a number of the troops. And they're so good and they're so brave and they're so professional that you're very humbled to be in their company. A lot of 'em are South Carolinians and a lot of 'em come over and say, 'Hi' to their senator and tell them [sic] *that they appreciate the fact that their senator is working to keep them on the path to success that they have embarked on with great sacrifice*. I have no doubt, I have no doubt that when you look at the beginning of this surge the casualties went up because we had to go into places we had not been in for a number of years. And this success has been purchased with America's most precious asset, and that's American blood that's been sacrificed." (Meet and Greet; Newberry, SC 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On Terrorism:* "I think we are fighting an enemy called radical Islamic extremism, who are willing to cut off the head of someone and televise it and broadcast it, because they happen to be Jewish and an American." (Town Hall; Greer, SC 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On Iran:* "I don't know where the intelligence came from… I have detected no change in the Iranian behavior. They are still dedicated to the destruction of the state of Israel. They are still supporting terrorist organizations, Hamas and Hezbollah. They are still exporting explosive devices, the most lethal kind, into Iraq and killing young Americans… I've changed very little in my view that the Iranians still pose a threat to peace in the Middle East and in the world." (Town Hall; James Island, SC 12/14/07) *Clip Available * * *On Putin and Russia:* "We all knew it's a puppet show, we just didn't know who the puppet was... He's insuring his perpetuation in power… I looked into Mr. Putin's eyes and I saw three letters, a "K," a "G" and a "B." If I were the President of the United States, I would make sure that he wasn't invited to the next G-8 meeting. I would make it very clear that he's using all these petro-dollars to stick his thumb in America's eye." (Town Hall; James Island, SC 12/14/07) *Clip Available *On President Bush:* "… after 9/11, every expert in the world believed there was going to be another attack on the United States of America. There hasn't been. Don't you think that President Bush deserves some credit for that?... Let's give the president some credit." (Town Hall; Greer, SC 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On Pelosi and Reid:* "… it's beneath their dignity for them to call the war lost, as Harry Reid did back in April. I think it's beneath their dignity to call for the cutting of the funds for a mission that is succeeding and has (inaudible) consequences for the future of America." (Town Hall; Greer, SC 12/15/07) *Clip Available *On immigration:* "My, my, my, uh, plan to deal with illegal immigration is that we have to secure the border first. My friends, there's no trust or confidence in Washington, and so when we said we'd secure the border, have a temporary worker program, and address the issue of 12 million people who are in this country illegally, they didn't believe us. And there's some legitimacy to that skepticism. I'm sure you may, many remember that in 1986 we passed a law where we said we gave amnesty to a couple million people, and we'd secure the borders. We gave the amnesty, the borders aren't secure, and we now have 12 million people here, who are here illegally. We have to secure the borders first, that's the message that we got from this last debate. I will secure the borders first, I know how to do it." (Town Hall; Hillsborough, NH 12/17/07) *Clip Available *On earmarks and pork:* "I have never asked for, nor received an earmark or pork barrel project for the state of Arizona in the 24 years I have been there. And I guarantee ya' I never will." (House Party; Concord, NH 12/17/07)