Just how bad off is the Republican Party? Republicans know what they’re against: Barack Obama. They’re still figuring out what they’re for.
Erick Erickson, an important grass-roots voice and founder of the influential blog RedState.com, believes energy and leadership will come from House Republicans. “I think initially you’re going to see [energy] coming from House leaders — Mike Pence, Eric Cantor, John Boehner, Tom Price with the Republican Study Committee. There really hasn’t been a governor to step up to the plate yet, or at least one that everyone really rallies behind. And I don’t think it will be in the Senate because the Republican base is more conservative than the Senate Republican conference, so people are distrustful of senators other than senators like Jim DeMint and Tom Coburn.” Erickson did say, however, he thought Senate Republicans were wise to select conservative Texan John Cornyn to be in charge of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
Clearly, judging from Thomas Schaller’s numbers – Democratic presidential candidates for instance have won the popular vote in four out of the last five presidential elections – the country has always been more moderate then the Right’s noise machine would like everyone to believe. Know this, the ‘grass roots” of the Right thinks that the salvation of Conservatism ( something different then genuine Republicanism) lies in swinging even harder Right. In a country whose economy, environment, educational institutions and , military have been ravaged by Conservative social Darwinism, the nutroots thinks we just didn’t get a strong enough dose of anything goes deregulation and hey tough luck if you can’t pull yourself up by your broken boot straps. On the other hand Republican governors ( governorships being area where Republicans aren’t losing ground) might be a better direction. Unless some dynamics within the Conservative base changes, the Right will remain the party of Rush Limbaugh and the rabid fringe. Which works for me. Limbaugh is almost as unpopular as Bush, the president for who he faithfully carried water for eight years.
As the table above shows, Limbaugh’s unfavorable rating among all voters (59%) is higher than any other Republican except George W. Bush, although Sarah Palin (47%) and New Gingrich (48%) earn negative marks that fall within the margin of sampling error of Limbaugh.
If you’re a legacy Republican – you’re grandfather of father was an Eisenhower Republican or a William Buckley Republican – you take a hard look at the Limbaugh mentality – anti-science, misogynistic, elitest hypocrite, former drug addict, serial monogamist, pet hater, anti-environment, anti-labor – which is eaiser getting Democrats to be a little more classic fiscally conservative or to get the Limbaughnatics to moderate then views on a multitude of issues. Blumenthal suggest this poll might be why Democrats and some activists groups have made Limbie the face of the Republican party. Limbie has made himself the face of the Republican party – Republican pols scorn him at their own risk.
James Lieber on What Cooked the World’s Economy? – It wasn’t your overdue mortgage.
Starfish on Mushroom Coral wallpaper
Ancient reefs may win protection
Sixty miles off the coast of Cape Lookout, at depths of 1,200 feet and greater, ancient coral-reef mounds rise from the dark sandy bottom. The reefs teem with fish and other marine species — some of them new to scientists.
The deep-water reefs dot the continental slope from North Carolina to Florida and are thousands of years old. In places, mounds formed by the rubble of centuries of dead and living corals stand several hundred feet high.
To preserve the reefs, the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, a federal panel that regulates recreational and commercial fishing from three to 200 miles offshore, is proposing to designate more than 23,000 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean off the southeastern United States as protected areas.
There would still be some commercial fishing allowed, but fishing equipment and anchors that damage the reef would not be allowed.
The Long Goodbye 