Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Duane Oyen ·
January 3, 2013 at 4:27pm
Romney is one of the brightest, most capable, most admirable men ever to run for president. He would have been an excellent and pivotal president, I believe — the “turnaround artist” we needed. But, in a democracy, the people get what they deserve. They now have what they deserve, or at least a majority does.
“Hang on, Nordlinger, are you saying that Romney was better than the country?” Yeah, I guess I am. Not being a politician, I have the luxury of not having to flatter The People. He was also better than most of us who sit, scribble, and crab.
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Nov '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
:)
Jun '12
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
He wasn't perfect, and I was resistant to him intially, but as the campaign progressed I too became increasingly convinced that he was exactly what we needed for the jam we were in. A great opportunity missed, America, enjoy the next four years of avoidable damage.
Sep '12
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Romney was by far the finest man to have run for the office, at least since Reagan. Probably farther back than that!
He was not perfect on the policy front of course, but he seemed to be a genuinely nice, pragmatic, competent, and ultimately likeable man!
Dec '11
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
As Jonah Goldberg says, quoting former NYC mayor Ed Koch:
“The people have spoken … and they must be punished.”
Or, as another man put it here.
May '12
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Though not perfect, Romney had the right skills, experience, and temperament for the challenges that await the US. He would have/should have been the right man in the right place at the right time. Now? The US is sooooo screwed...To paraphrase the great philosopher Clubber Lang, "My Prediction for America? Pain...."
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Jay and Mona will be discussing this on their next podcast on Friday.
Jan '12
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Great article - he makes so many great points. Here are two more:
Republicans and conservatives are babies — maybe we need to be diapered. We’re always bitching that no politician is good enough to represent us. This is not only wrong, it’s ungrateful. We should be grateful that so fine a man as Mitt Romney wanted to throw his hat in the ring and carry the water for our sorry behinds.
At the moment, conservatives seem to be in love with Bobby Jindal, Paul Ryan, Marco Rubio, and a few others. Don’t worry. Let one of them be nominated, and his name will be mud. He won’t be able to do anything right. And if he loses the general — worse than mud.
Feb '12
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Excellent points, all!
Sep '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
I won't bash Romney, but he lost and he should have won. If ever there was an incumbent who was close to losing it was Obama. So something went wrong and everything is fair game. Since Romney was the CEO of his campaign, he has to take some blame, although personal attacks are not warranted. He may well have been the best the party had to offer this time around. But what does that say about the party?
I am of the opinion that if conservatives and Republicans don't devise a plan to take on the media, whether overt, covert or however, all this is moot. The media dragged Obama over the line, plain and simple, and this media has a monopoly on low information voters - the most threatening demographic of all.
Mar '11
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
If you lower the bar far enough I suppose any man will appear a titan.
Feb '12
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Those who still gripe about Romney, I offer this challenge:
Who do you envision having won against the President?
If you come up with what seems a plausible name, I say that you haven't been paying attention. It is not that Pres. Obama is a formidable person in both talent and capability but he is what the american people want, if not need. A more conservative candidate could not have beaten Santa without being Santa. The enemy is us.
May '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
BTConservative: Great article - he makes so many great points. Here are two more:
............
At the moment, conservatives seem to be in love with Bobby Jindal, Paul Ryan, Marco Rubio, and a few others. Don’t worry. Let one of them be nominated, and his name will be mud. He won’t be able to do anything right. And if he loses the general — worse than mud. · 1 hour ago
And, note, there is nothing wrong with those listed gentlemen- all good potential candidates. The key is that they will be reamed out as troglodytic proto-Mussolinis in the exact same way as Romney was. For the exact same reasons.
May '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
As usual, Jay nails it. Nails it! It's a continuation of his "Bitterfest" theme from right after the election, but I'm all on board with being bitter. I'm looking forward to the podcast.
Many excellent points in this Impromptus. Here's another quote I liked, after Jay notes how people are claiming that Romney failed to address the needs of the "middle class", even though I too remember him talking about them all the time:
"So, what did Romney offer the “middle class”? I’ll tell you what: He offered to avert financial collapse. To do something about the debt and the deficit. To reform entitlements. To reform the tax code. To foster the conditions in which economic growth occurs. To help put people back to work. To save the frickin’ country.
That’s not program enough for the “middle class”? What does he have to do, enter each of their homes and bake them muffins? Swab their floors?"
Preach it, Jay!
Now how do we get this point of view out there, beyond the Ricochet/NRO/Brietbart/PJMedia/Powerline bubble?
Edited on January 2, 2013 at 11:37pmSep '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
If he was so great, why didn't he win? What went wrong? Maybe he was too nice? Maybe he didn't pay attention to certain things. Maybe he didn't run a flawless campaign.
Here is what he had going for him:
He was a successful businessman with a proven track record.
He had a perfect family life and not a hint of scandal
He had plenty of money.
He was clearly qualified in every way for the job
His opponent had an under 50% approval rating was presiding over a failing economy and high unemployment, whose VP was Joe Biden, and who broke almost every pledge and promise he made to everyone in his 4 years.
What happened?
I have my own theories, but I'm interested in hearing from the people who think he was so great. Are conservatives somehow to blame? Is this the unspoken agreement here? Just wondering....
Feb '12
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
One message:
We face troubled times. It will be tight, but we can do it if we all coalesce and pull in one direction. It will require belt tightening, self discipline, contributions from all quarters. Help me and I will lead us to a better, brighter and more secure future for our children.
Second message:
You work hard. You deserve a better future. The money is there if the wealthy are made to pay their fair share. They want to take from you your rights for self determination (abortion), your ability to provide health care for your children (ACA), your ability to live comfortably in retirement (Social Security). THEY want to take that from you. WE will provide that to you.
Which one won?
May '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Franco: If he was so great, why didn't he win? What went wrong?
50+% of America went wrong is Jay's point, I think.
Still, Jay's partner Mona has the best answer: Romney didn't undo the misconception that a vote for him was a vote for "the policies that got us into this mess" -- that is, the 2008 financial crash.
"What got us into that mess" was a bipartisan failure in housing and banking policy and had nothing to do with the issues debated in the election -- taxes, entitlements, energy, etc.
Romney never spelled that out, and so America went on thinking the Romney/Ryan agenda had already been tried and led to disaster -- the Big Lie skillfully reinforced by Clinton at the DNC.
Sep '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Exactly right, my friend.
Sep '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
At moments like this, I turn to H. L. Mencken:
I believe that was Mr. Nordlinger's point, especially the good and hard part.
May '10
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Duane, you've spent too much time in a state where Republican losses are the natural order of things. This is very charming and all, but if it takes an SOB to win, we need to find our SOB. For instance, I have zero tolerance when people get all holier-than-thou about Lee Atwater. Disapprove all you wish, but hardball kept Mike Dukakis away from the Oval Office when Eastern Europe was putting paid to the Warsaw Pact, when the Soviet Union collapsed, and when Iraq invaded Kuwait. That was more important than someone's feelings. Shame on us for not searching out a brawler.
Mar '11
Re: Go, Jay! Mr. Nordlinger Gets It Exactly Right
Scott Reusser
50+% of America went wrong is Jay's point, I think. · 1 hour ago
I've noticed that when various enterprises begin to blame their customers for the company's poor performance that is always a good indicator to short the stock.