THE TYGRRRR EXPRESS

At 7pm PST on June 30th, I will be guest hosting the Rick Amato show.

http://amatotalk.com

My guests will include Wisconsin Lt. Governor Rebecca Kleefisch and Nevada State Senator Elizabeth Halseth. A good chunk of time will be dedicated to the flooding in Minot, North Dakota, and how we can help.

Given that I am loathe to try and gain partisan advantage out of a natural disaster, I would never make it as an employee in the Obama White House. Rahm Emanuel would have cursed at me and fired me for letting a crisis go to waste.

Yet a disturbing pattern seems to be emerging with regards to Barack Obama and natural disasters. While it is absolutely possible that he is being helpful behind the scenes, the man who has an opinion about virtually everything seems to go silent when human empathy in the form of comforting words is required.

Minot, North Dakota has been devastated by floods.

http://rallyminot.com/

http://www.minotnd.org/

http://www.mavensearch.com/synagogues/C3331

http://www.northdakotagop.org/2011/06/dalrymple-asks-president-for-additional-help/

The state is mostly conservative Republican and mostly white. The outward response to the floods from the Obama Administration seems to be “Tough Luck Cracker Honky Whitey.”

From floods in Tennessee to tornadoes in Joplin, Missouri to the North Dakota floods, Mr. Obama seems to be at his quietest when Caucasians are suffering. He was certainly very vocal about Hurricane Katrina.

Liberals have spent the last several decades calling conservatives racist for existing and breathing air. So turning the tables would really be fun. Yet we must be better than that.

Barack Obama is not a racist. He is just a bigot. He does not practice racial bigotry. He practices ideological bigotry.

Every decision Barack Obama makes is about getting to 270 electoral votes. Doing the right thing and letting the chips fall where they may is lost on this man. The people of North Dakota are simply not important to him.

North Dakota is a reliably Republican state in presidential elections despite having had two Democratic Senators for a long stretch until recently. They only have three electoral votes, giving them the worst combination in terms of getting attention. They are small and not a swing state.

After Hurricane Katrina it was trendy to attack George W. Bush as not caring about black people.

Rather than make the same vicious, insidious argument against Mr. Obama, let’s compromise and just say he is willing to let conservatives suffer.

He is on the golf course and holding fundraisers around the country. Would it kill him to hold a fundraiser in North Dakota?

Where are the Hollywood celebrities? Surely they could help, especially if he summoned them.

In the same way George W. Bush never received the benefit of the doubt despite noble actions, Barack Obama always gets a free pass despite perceived inactions.

He has to be doing something because that is the predetermined narrative of him.

Well the people of Minot, North Dakota need our help now.

So for those who can give, do it. Give money, food, and time if you have it. Many people already have shelter not because of the government, but because people preaching  “love thy neighbor” are extending their hands, hearts, and homes.

It is time for Mr. Obama to show an outward display of human empathy. Maybe he can send former presidents Bush 41, Clinton, and Bush 43 to the scene. That way he can go back to the golf course.

Being president is not just about policy and politics. It is about people, and showing them that when the chips are down, the president gives a d@mn.

The people of North Dakota are people first, white conservative Republicans second.

They are human beings. They are creatures of God. They need our help.

We individuals will rise to the occasion.

Just once it would be nice if the federal government under this administration did as well.

eric

The Washington Times Communities has my column where I explain the conspiracy between the North Dakota floods, the Boeing labor issue in South Carolina, and gay marriage in New York. I connected the dots.

http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/tygrrrr-express/2011/jun/29/corrupt-gay-union-conspiracy/

eric

Last weekend I had the pleasure of attending the 2011 Utah GOP Convention. This was an honor and a privilege.

Utah may be the most conservative state in America. The Governorship and both Senators are Republicans, as are most of their house seats.

This was one of the shorter conventions in the country. Utah has a large share of religious Mormons, so no business will be conducted on Sundays. Do not expect after-parties in the suites because the Mormon religion forbids alcohol.

Yet for those who are either afraid or ignorant of Mormon religion and culture, go to Utah. Meet these people. They are as nice as can be, and among the most tolerant, loving accepting people I have ever met.

Were there people at the convention relentlessly proselytizing their religion and refusing to leave people alone until they either converted or walked away in anger?

Yes, but enough about Ron Paul supporters.

(Actually, to be fair, even the Ron Paul supporters in Utah are more polite than in other states.)

I was brought to the convention by Sarah Nitta, who is affiliated with the Utah State GOP. She is also active with the Republican Women and the Young Republicans. In short, she is Mrs. Utah GOP.

I was brought in for the Friday Red, White and Blue Jeans Convention Kickoff Barbecue.

I wanted to bring the Mormon faith into my routine because whenever I am anywhere I want the local people to feel part of the fun. The respectful way as an outsider to do this is not to make fun of Mormons. It is to make fun of others who misunderstand them. Mormons make fun of themselves and turn inward like any other people, but outsiders should take a lighter approach.

When I met Senator Orrin Hatch, a devout Mormon, I said to him one of my jokes. “Senator, I will not blame the entire Mormon faith for Harry Reid if you don’t blame the Jews for Barbara Boxer.”

Senator Hatch is one of the most decent, kind, thoughtful men a person will ever meet. The Utah GOP saw their other Republican Senator Bob Bennett go down in a primary challenge to Mike Lee. Mr. Lee was at the convention but I did not have the ability to meet him. Senator Hatch may face a primary challenge in a state where the GOP primary usually means a general election victory. Popular Congressman Jason Chaffetz is rumored to be considering a challenge. I met Mr. Chaffetz and like him very much, but I do not get involved in primary fights. I usually tend to side with GOP incumbents rather than roll the dice. So with no disrespect to Mr. Chaffetz, I hope he stays and becomes a great Congressman because Senator Hatch is one of the best human beings in political office I have ever met.

(For those who do not know, the late Ted Kennedy credited Orrin Hatch with saving his life by getting him to quit drinking.)

As for my routine, one joke I practiced before the barbecue was “There is a difference between Utah and California. Utah has a religion and belief system centered around a man named Joseph Smith. California has a belief system and religion centered around a man named Joseph Stalin.”

People who hear the joke like it, but I confess that at the barbecue i messed up the line. I said that in Utah they “worship” Joseph Smith. So to the two or three people who expressed concern, I rehearsed the joke all day and still messed it up. Most of the crowd got what I was saying and laughed. Nevertheless, I am all about personal responsibility. I bollixed it.

One joke I forgot to tell was “In Utah many people belong to LDS, the Latter Day Saints. In California they worship a cult of BDS, Bush Derangement Syndrome (Now PDS, Palin Derangement Syndrome).

One other line I said throughout the weekend was that “The bigotry against Mitt Romney has to stop just because he belongs to a sect that is misunderstood and demonized. It is not fair to attack Romney just because he is tall with perfect hair.”

“This is why people attack the Mormons. Forget that Romney’s hair is perfect. Forget that his jaw is perfect. Forget that his wife is perfect. Any man with five children, the law of averages says that one of them has to be a screwup into drugs or something else. They’re all perfect. If anything was wrong, the media would have found it. Yet what really bothers people about the Mormons…look at Romney’s five sons. Their hair is all perfect. People just want to go up to them and muss up their hair. Can’t you Mormons have bad hair days like the rest of us?”

One interesting note was a different gentleman who happens to be Mormon, also has very good hair (not Romney good but still pretty good), but was not at the convention. Jon Huntsman was about to enter the presidential race, so it seemed strange that the former Utah Governor was not at his own state convention.

As for the people who were there, they were well received.

I had the privilege of meeting the current Governor Gary Herbert. He is nice, likable, conservative, and very well respected in his state. He has a friendly legislature, but he is also very good at working with people. He has a pleasant nature that just instantly comes across as likable. Like most of the people I met at the convention and throughout the state of Utah, he was down to Earth and genuine.

On person who lit up the convention was Grover G. Norquist. Grover has been very nice to me personally. I am Jewish and he is married to an Arab woman. Yet we both care about our other religion with fervor and passion. That other religion is supply-side economics.

Grover knows how to light up a crowd. My nickname for him is “Raid.” Like bugs, he finds taxes and kills them dead.

Unlike other states, there was less diversity among the delegates simply because the population in Utah is fairly homogeneous. This should be a non-issue since liberal lily-white states like Rhode Island and Vermont seem to get a free pass where conservative white states like Utah get attacked. The convention chair was a woman, and a very telegenic Latino Man named Mr. Reyes is running for Attorney General.

The convention lasted until late afternoon on Saturday. I had dinner Saturday evening with the Utah Young Republicans. Given that I do not drink alcohol, I fit in perfectly. They were all incredibly nice. One of them told me how he and his wife had adopted a child who happens to be black. I identified because my close friend had adopted one from Guatemala.

So for those who want to label Utah and its people, again I implore that people go there. Meet these people. They are kind, warm, friendly, loving people who just want to leave America better than they found it.

The number of people who proselytized to me about Mormonism was exactly zero. They were live and let live, the same as I am with my Judaism.

After experiencing the Utah GOP Convention, there is only one label I will stick on the people I met. It crosses all races, creeds, and social strata.

They are proud conservative Republicans.

I look forward to many return trips to Utah.

eric

Last week I had the pleasure of speaking at the Montana GOP convention in Butte.

I had never been to Montana before, so this was exciting. I can say with certainty that I look forward to going back to Montana many times.

Butte is considered the most liberal part of Montana. It is also the smallest known city in the state. So why on Earth would the GOP choose Butte to have their gathering?

The decision actually made perfect sense. The Montana GOP correctly reasoned that rather than preaching to the converted, coming to an area with divergent opinions could result in “flipping” new people to the GOP. People vote with their wallets, and the local store owners were very appreciative of the traffic. More than one person expressed how much more action was taking place than usual. When it was pointed out to them that the Republicans were in town, they seemed glad that it resulted in a spike in business.

For those who had never been to the Butte airport, it is smaller than some (very) large homes. I asked which gate I was supposed to go through, and the security person required, “the gate.” While waiting for the plane I read a copy of the local paper, the Montana Standard.

(In my home of Los Angeles we have the LA Times, forever now known as the “sub-standard.”)

The convention itself was held at the Copper King Hotel. Convenience is an understatement. The Copper King is literally across the street from the airport. It is a short walk, although a 60 second car ride also gets the job done. The Copper King is a great place to stay on vacation. It is family friendly, and the indoor pool has one of the best water slides I have ever been on outside of a theme park.

As for the people of Montana, they were every bit as friendly as I expected. This is Western Country, and cowboy hats, buckles, and handlebar mustaches were in attendance. Yet these people were not all hat and no cattle. They were there for serious business.

People think of Montana as a “red” state. Yet while there are many conservatives in Montana, the Governorship and both Senate seats are controlled by the Democrats. The lone congressional seat is held by Republican Denny Rehberg. Congressman Rehberg is running for the Senate seat currently occupied by John Tester. Tester has a reputation outside of Montana as a “Montana Democrat,” which means moderate. Yet his voting record is quite liberal. Mr. Rehberg is considered a serious challenger.

Some conventions claim to be three days, but usually that means arriving very late the first night just to check in, having one day of business, and then checking out very early the third morning. This was a real three day convention. There was a ton of business to get done.

The first evening contained a welcome celebration put together by State Chairman Will Deschamps. Mr. Deschamps is very respected, and his reelection as Chairman occurred during the convention. I was the main speaker at this event, and the crowd was boisterous and ready for red meat.

(Oh and for those who don’t know, recently retired LA Lakers Coach Phil Jackson is known for driving his motorcycle around Montana. He did not crash the convention, which was good. Given that he is a socialist and much bigger than me, it would not have ended well for me. My anti-Laker comments would also not have pleased him.)

After my remarks, there were different options for people. I attended a dinner where the keynote speaker was RNC honcho Saul Anuzis. Mr. Anuzis remarks shall remain off the record (I never asked him either way, so I am erring on the side of caution).

One misconception about American politics is that the parties are dead and that everything is about individual candidates. The term “party hacks” is bandied about unfairly. Mr. Anuzis explained very well why the RNC and the GOP matter. He made it clear that candidates who take GOP money and then bolt the GOP to run third party races will face consequences. He also made it clear that liberal news media will not get to decide where and when Republicans have their primary debates. The dinner discussion was very substantive. Mr. Anuzis is passionate about strengthening the GOP as a whole.

One thing that was palpable throughout the weekend was that 2012 will bring a national relevance to Montana that it has not experienced in a very long time. Montana is not a swing state. While Democrats do hold the top political positions, it is still a conservative state. It is seen as fairly safe in the Republican column at the presidential level. It is also a small state, so the three electoral votes will not be fought over in itself. So under normal circumstances, presidential candidates and the current president would ignore the state.

Yet 2012 is different. A perfect storm of events has the Governership, Tester’s Senate seat, and the Congressional seat all up for grabs. Republicans are well positioned to sweep everything back into their column. This could bring visits for some very important fundraisers on both sides of the aisle. Control of the Senate could make Montana a major national battleground.

The Governorship is an open seat. I saw 7 or 8 different GOP candidates vying for the seat. The candidates I met were pleasant. They seemed determined not to turn the convention into a circular firing squad. Lobbying the 300 delegates in attendance took place during convention business and during the social events. All three nights of the convention had a dinner with a different speaker. Hospitality suites were buzzing with competing meet and greet candidate events. The hotel bar had delegates enjoying comedy night and politics into the night.

My only regret is that I had to leave during the second day. I was in Montana for less than 24 hours. Yet thanks to Chairman Deschamps and Executive Director Bowen Greenwood, I made friends that I look forward to seeing many times over. At this convention the Tea Party and GOP seemed harmonious. The Bozeman Tea Party in particular has a strong presence.

Next year the Montana GOP Convention will take place in Missoula. Missoula is also fairly liberal, but is a much bigger city.

Until then, I can only wish the Montana Convention attendees well. I got to have fun. After I left they had two days of heavy lifting. As expected, it was mission accomplished. The state party leadership is in place, and next comes the intense primaries on the way to flipping the state back to the GOP. Based on the dedication of the delegates I met, this is very doable.

eric

Barack Obama announced to the nation that he will continue the policy of simply being against anything his predecessor was in favor of. George W. Bush was against killing puppies and kittens. This means Mr. Obama is most likely in favor of it. Hide your pets now.

Mr. Obama is obsessed with withdrawal, and he finally was able to leverage the killing of Osama bin Laden with his greater goal of surrendering faster than one could yell “Vive La France!”

On the subject of withdrawal, it is now clear that America and the world would have been better off if Mr. Obama’s father had withdrawn in time.

I have no idea how religious Christians can be pro-life and against contraception knowing that people like Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi roam free. I am amazed that the NOW do not cite them in their desire to preserve Roe vs Wade.

Now, that I have offended virtually everybody, let’s get down to why Mr. Obama is surrendering in a war his military generals desperately want to win.

One more thing must be ingrained into every American’s skull. This is now Barack Obama’s foreign policy. There is no more blaming George W. Bush allowed. Any people who get murdered in the Middle East can now thank Barack Obama.

In Syria, Assad is murdering with impunity because he knows he can.

In Libya, Khadafi has zero respect for Mr. Obama. He feared Reagan and Dubya. He laughs at Obama.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban is ready to reassert dominance the moment America leaves Afghanistan. Time is on their side.

The price of oil is skyrocketing because our enemies…real enemies, not Republicans or American corporate executives in blue suits and red neckties…know that Barack Obama will cave.

This is not “peace with honor.”

This is not “winding down” an operation.

This is absolute surrender.

Mr. Obama is tired of foreign policy. It distracts from his domestic agenda.

He wants Israelis and Palesimians to come together and share high speed rail trains.

He wants the Taliban to put down their guns and “embrace green collar jobs.”

He wants Iran to stop threatening to blow up Great and Little Satan so he can focus on universal health care.

How dare OPEC make him look bad! Don’t they understand he is trying to get them gay marriage?

This is not about terminology, whether it be called isolationism, non-interventionism, or defeatism.

It is about reality. The reality is that the rest of the world is not going to stop being crazy just because Barack Obama wants to get reelected.

The decision to withdraw troops is nothing but naked electoral politics. It is not about 33,000 soldiers risking their lives. It is about 270 electoral votes.

Barack Obama is willing to lose a war to win an election.

Like Vietnam before us, we have told the world that if our enemies just wait long enough, a liberal American president will win the White House and encourage…make that discourage…Americans to lose their resolve.

The military will do its job. The civilian leadership didn’t do theirs.

Killing bin Laden did not end the conflict. Sadly enough, tough polls at home did.

For those who are “war weary,” I just thank the heavens that you were not consulted during World War II. We would all be speaking Russian or German now.

Today is a bleak day for Afghanistan and America. It is a victory for terrorists everywhere.

If only liberals had hijacked the schools and taught about contraception decades ago, Mr. Obama’s father would have spared us this indignity.

We would not be withdrawing our best had he just withdrawn his mediocre (redacted).

eric

If Jon Huntsman were to enter a presidential race and fall in the forest, would he make a sound?

Mr. Huntsman is tall, has good hair, and is inoffensive. Yet that is only three out of the four qualities necessary for him to be elected. The fourth issue is the one question that I am not sure he answered in his introductory press conference. Maybe I blinked and missed it, but something seems unknown to me.

Why is he running?

I have nothing against the man. He seems affable enough. Yet every other candidate running has a clear rationale for running.

Mitt Romney is the front-runner. He is the businessman who will focus on the economy. He was a successful governor in the most liberal state in the country.

Tim Pawlenty is the successful governor of a liberal state.

Both of these men already fill the tall, good hair, inoffensive quota.

Mr. Huntsman was considered a good chief executive running Utah, but with all due respect, that is a much easier job. Utah is the most conservative state in America. He had a friendly legislature. This was not the same as what Chris Christie has to go through. That is not Mr. Huntsman’s fault, but his job was to not mess things up, and he succeeded.

Rick Santorum is the socially conservative candidate.

Michele Bachmann  and Herman Cain both bring diversity to the race in addition to successful careers as entrepreneurs. Congresswoman Bachmann ran a tax service while Mr. Cain ran a major pizza chain.

Ron Paul brings a foreign policy approach that differs from the interventionist wing of the GOP. I totally disagree with him, but he does fit a niche.

Newt Gingrich brings the intellectual heft. He is the ultimate policy wonk. His campaign has been besieged with staff defections but that does not diminish his distinguished career. He did play a major role in helping the GOP gain the House after 40 years in the minority.

Even the fringe candidates have told us why they want the job. Gary Johnson wants to legalize drugs and Fred Karger wants to legalize gay marriage.

The only thing even political junkies outside of Utah may know about Governor Huntsman is that he is the son of a billionaire. His father is friends with Glenn Beck.

There is not a single angle to Mr. Huntsman that appears unique.

Is he the Mormon candidate? Mitt Romney has that covered.

Is he the Mr. Rogers candidate? Tim Pawlenty has that down. Bill O’Reilly compared Pawlenty to Bob Newhart, but Pawlenty is like Herman Cain in the fire department compared to Huntsman.

None of this is meant to denigrate Mr. Huntsman, and I regret that it appears this way. Yet a person who announces their candidacy needs to tell us why we specifically need them.

His billion dollars makes him an automatic player, but I am not sure what his record of success is. He was the Ambassador to China, which means he most likely learned how to bend over.

The race still does not have a Southerner. With Haley Barbour opting out, Rick Perry is eyeing the race. Perry is bragging about creating half of the jobs in the nation. Huntsman does not have the other half.

There is still room for a foreign policy candidate to enter the race. Both Rudy Giuliani and John Bolton are weighing runs. Right now economics is dominating the race, but a foreign policy crisis could change things in a heartbeat.

It seems that Huntsman may want to run as a liberal Republican. Yet he is socially conservative.

By coming across as a nice guy, Huntsman could become the darling of the liberal media. He will be one of the “good” Republicans as opposed to all those mean, evil, nasty Republicans who dare to be conservative. For those who think this will benefit him in any way, remember John McCain. The media lamented that he changed, but this is nonsense. Once he became a threat to Barack Zeus Obama, McCain was considered as evil as any right-winger. Huntsman would be demonized in the general election as quickly as he may be adored by the left now.

Jon Huntsman comes across as a decent, calm, thoughtful man. Yet if he is going to run for the highest office in the land, he needs to let us know why he wants the job.

If his plan is to just be a calm, likable technocrat, that strategy does not work. Ideology and vision defeat competence every single time.

Maybe after four years of speeches, a calm sober adult could win the job. Yet even calm adults need to inspire people. When a man is too generic to appear on the cover of the fictional “Average Non-Descript White Guy Monthly” magazine, that is problematic.

I cannot think of a single bad thing to say about Jon Huntsman. I was just at the Utah GOP Convention, and he seems to be a respected individual.

There is plenty of time for him to tell his story to the American people. Yet time goes by fast, and in a crowded field, the ability to gain traction starts with name recognition.

Mr. Huntsman may just be the calm, normal guy from across the street (with a billion dollars of course).

That is not enough. He needs to tell us who he is. It is not up to us to guess.

eric