toldailytopic: Prediction time: Which Republican candidate will be running against Ob

Delmar

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The TheologyOnline.com TOPIC OF THE DAY for December 16th, 2011 10:16 AM


toldailytopic: Prediction time: Which Republican candidate will be running against Obama in the 2012 election?






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Way too early to tell, in my book! It would not surprise me at all for it to be someone other than Newt or Mitt.
 

eameece

New member
The TheologyOnline.com TOPIC OF THE DAY for December 16th, 2011 10:16 AM


toldailytopic: Prediction time: Which Republican candidate will be running against Obama in the 2012 election?


Romney. I did predict that Gingrich would be the next right-winger to rise after Cain, Perry, Bachmann and Trump all fell (all of which I also predicted), and that Gingrich would be the most likely to beat Romney if anyone could. Ron Paul has some good aspects going for him too, but his appeal as a libertarian ideologue is too limited nationally.

And btw Obama will defeat Romney.
 

Delmar

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I think it will be Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, or Mike Huckabee.
 

The Barbarian

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I see where Rick Perry has now been caught double-dipping from state funds. He claims he's legally entitled to his retirement pay while still drawing his regular salary.

A while ago, he pushed through rules to financially penalize districts that hire retired teachers to fill open science and math positions.
 

annabenedetti

like marbles on glass
I see where Rick Perry has now been caught double-dipping from state funds. He claims he's legally entitled to his retirement pay while still drawing his regular salary.

"Has now been caught?" So are you saying what he's doing is illegal? Because that's the intimation that comes across by your choice of words.
 

annabenedetti

like marbles on glass
If true, it sure seems improper.


Perry is paid $132,995 to run the state of Texas, but he also collects a monthly annuity of $7,698.96 — more than $92,000 per year — in early retirement, according to disclosure forms filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Perry spokesman Ray Sullivan said the arrangement is "part of (Perry’s) standard financial planning" and "is consistent with Texas state law and Employee Retirement System rules," citing what’s known as the "rule of 80," which allows state employees to start drawing on their retirement if their age plus years of service credit totals at least 80.


http://www.bostonherald.com/news/us_politics/view.bg?articleid=1389127


So the thing to be determined is, is it legal? If it is, then couching it as "has now been caught" is disingenuous. Barbarian can argue the ethics of it or the PC-ness of it, but I don't think it's right to make it look something other than what it is.
 

Lon

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chucknorris1_13094554434.jpg
 

some other dude

New member
I see where Rick Perry has now been caught using the Texas State helicopter to travel on state business. He claims he's legally entitled to use the state helicopter to travel on state business while he's still the governor.
 

some other dude

New member
I see where Rick Perry has now been caught living in the Texas Governor's mansion. He claims he's legally entitled to live in the Governor's mansion while he's still the governor.
 

The Barbarian

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I see where Rick Perry has now been caught living in the Texas Governor's mansion. He claims he's legally entitled to live in the Governor's mansion while he's still the governor.

Actually, he doesn't.

AUSTIN, Texas — With the state facing a budget shortfall of at least $11 billion, Texas Gov. Rick Perry has spent almost $600,000 in public money during the past two years to live in a sprawling rental home in the hills above the capital, according to records obtained by The Associated Press.

It costs more than $10,000 a month in rent, utilities and upkeep to house Perry in a five-bedroom, seven-bath mansion that has pecan-wood floors, a gourmet kitchen and three dining rooms. Perry has also spent $130,000 in campaign donations to throw parties, buy food and drink, and pay for cable TV and a host of other services since he moved in, the records show.

The public spending on Perry's rental comes as the state grapples with a budget shortfall forecast to reach at least $11 billion over the next two years. Perry has asked state agencies to cut their budgets by 5 percent and the Republican House speaker has begun to consider furloughs and shortened workweeks for state employees.

Ethics watchdogs, meanwhile, say Perry's campaign may have violated state disclosure laws because of the vague way he's reported what his staff calls "incidental" spending at the mansion.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/17/rick-perry-rental-mansion_n_578311.html
 

The Barbarian

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So the thing to be determined is, is it legal?

Apparently, he's the first governor to try it.

If it is, then couching it as "has now been caught" is disingenuous.

There's already blowback from fellow republicans. Won't do his campaign any good.

Barbarian can argue the ethics of it or the PC-ness of it, but I don't think it's right to make it look something other than what it is.

Keep in mind, he worked hard to make sure other Texas public employees could not do this. So there's baggage.
 

annabenedetti

like marbles on glass
Apparently, he's the first governor to try it.

But is it legal, Barbarian? Because if it is, it's not right to paint it as if it isn't.

There's already blowback from fellow republicans. Won't do his campaign any good.

But is it legal, Barbarian? Because if it is, it's not right to paint it as if it isn't.


Keep in mind, he worked hard to make sure other Texas public employees could not do this. So there's baggage.

But is it legal, Barbarian? Because if it is, it's not right to paint it as if it isn't.
 

The Barbarian

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(Anna wants to know if Perry's "retirement" raise is legal)

Barbarian observes:
Apparently, he's the first governor to try it.

But is it legal, Barbarian?

At the moment, that's not clear. Perry claims a loophole that allows him to "retire" and get a massive raise, before he actually retires. That remains to be seen, pending a court decision (assuming someone challenges it)

Because if it is, it's not right to paint it as if it isn't.

True. Some have said it's illegal. I'm just saying he got caught doing it. The argument that he can legally get away with it is not likely to sway a lot of voters who have noted his cuts in education and his lavish lifestyle in a rented mansion in Austin.

Barbarian observes:
There's already blowback from fellow republicans. Won't do his campaign any good.

But is it legal, Barbarian? Because if it is, it's not right to paint it as if it isn't.

True. Some have said it's illegal. I'm just saying he got caught doing it. The argument that he can legally get away with it is not likely to sway a lot of voters who have noted his cuts in education and his lavish lifestyle in a rented mansion in Austin.

Barbarian observes:
Keep in mind, he worked hard to make sure other Texas public employees could not do this. So there's baggage.

But is it legal, Barbarian? Because if it is, it's not right to paint it as if it isn't.

True. Some have said it's illegal. I'm just saying he got caught doing it. The argument that he can legally get away with it is not likely to sway a lot of voters who have noted his cuts in education and his lavish lifestyle in a rented mansion in Austin.
 

annabenedetti

like marbles on glass
If there's controversy regarding the practice, put up an argument pro or con. He's doing what a lot of government workers are doing.
Unless and until it's illegal to do so, making it seem illegal isn't, IMO, the right way to disagree with the practice.
 
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