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A late dose of Brummett

In the event you like to read Brummett -- and in the event you forget to check the Stephens Capitol Bureau website or if, like me, you do check but are often frustrated because it's not been posted -- I offer you a couple of catchup links.

Brummett Saturday writes about the governor taking a plane ride from a patron who receives millions in state money. (Brum too readily buys the Huckster's explanation that the gift of the plane ride is acceptable because it went to the PAC, not him. Forget for a minute that it wasn't a PAC that Huck and pals flew to North Carolina. It was a plane owned by the contractor. Be advised we did check this theory with state ethics authorities. They could not talk about specific cases, of course. But they did tell us that state law provides for no federal overrides of state ethics laws. If a gift is less than $100, it's not reportable. If it's worth more than $100, it must be reported on state forms. And it is also then subject to a list of rules on whether it is a legal gift or not, whether from a state contractor, a mother-in-law (legal) or a federal PAC. This issue is far murkier than the guv would have you believe. Plus, he's not so far reported any "in-kind" contributions to his PAC in two previous reports.) But Brummett got to the central point:

Taking a plane ride to buoy your presidential exploration from a group with interests before a state government you lead certainly smells. Real ethics would give a politician pause. But a man has to find some way to run for president, and, for now, since he's officially undeclared, this PAC is an allowable way.

Huckabee's problem was his needlessly stubborn, bratty, huffy, combative response - or lack thereof - to fair and simple questions.

That's his pattern, especially on questions about ethics from critics. It's like Clinton's slickness and womanizing and George W.'s trying to say nuclear.
 

Monday, Brummett mused on whether George W. Bush is on the comeback trail with the public, assisted by K. Rove.

Comments

Brummett ain't been on his game lately.

I appreciate him doin' what he can for our party and all, but he's gotta tighten it up a little bit, he's gettin' a little too fast and loose with his logic/facts...

I remember a certain presidential candidate who road around on an Enron plane.

"I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country. . . . Corporations have been enthroned, an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money-power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until the wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the Republic is destroyed."
Unknown, often attributed to Abraham Lincoln

"I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country. . . . Corporations have been enthroned, an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money-power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until the wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the Republic is destroyed."
Unknown, often attributed to Abraham Lincoln
Posted by: Ninjakai

That could certainly have been said by anybody in any republic since the ancient Greeks. Sad commentary. Some things never change.

Ron's & anyone in Fayetteville, Spdle, Rogers, etc Brummett will be speaking tomorrow to Senior Democrats, Western Sizzlin on W. Sunset, Springdale at 11:30 am. Arrive early for a good seat, first choice of the buffet ($7.00).

Mr Brummett, look at this:
http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/2522/1130/1600/Beebe%20Cartoon.0.jpg

Please try applying the same scrutiny/logic to Mike Beebe.

I doubt you will.

Our mighty C in C's approval ratings have risen seven points in the past week or so, according to Big John. Why? Because of a fast trip to Baghdad, along with a gander at and on-sight-approval of an Iraqi politician? The killing of al-Zarqawi and the grotesque display of his remains?
Are so many of our fellow Americans really so fatuous and gullible?
Perhaps al-Zarqawi's death can be counted as a coup. But can it overcome the blunder after blunder that our "war on terror" has been? Much of Iraq is on the verge of civil war. The Taliban is experiencing a resurgency in parts of Afghanistan.
But our fearless leader slips in and out of Iraq at lightning speed -- not that I can really blame him, except that he's the one who started this mess -- and his approval rating jumps seven points?
Are we Americans really that stupid?

If you notice dear Doigotta, since Bush-Cheney made elections meaningless in 2000, all else has become meaningless.

When Bush's numbers were 7 points lower, did it matter? I didn't see him crying crocodile tears. I didn't see him letting up with the lies. I didn't seen a whit more intelligence applied to the War for Oil in Iraq or to any of our domestic problems.

When Katrina was fresh in our minds and bodies were still being pulled from the nasty water, I didn't see Bush get a slap on the wrist or sent to bed without his supper. Remember back early in the war when we let the bad guys steal tons of lethal weapons in an unguarded part of Iraq? Nothing happened, no one was fired. And later when the bad guys used this stuff to kill hundreds of our soldiers, nothing happen, no one was fired. Bush had a whole series of happy meals while Cheney was out shooting his own friends.

Jack Abramoff sunk a few expendable Republican ships, but anyone heard a peep out of him? Where is Pat Robert's investigation of Bush lying us into war? Harry Reid shut down the Senate and screamed bloody murder.....and what did that get us?

Bush as much said go torture the enemy and anyone else you pick up and nothing happened, he got away with it clean. A decade from now, if we're still here, we'll find out how many people Bush tortured, kidnapped, killed...will it matter to anyone then? Haditha is well on it's way to not mattering one damn bit. Murtha will probably slip in the tub and Pat Roberts will be in charge of investigating that too.

I'm so sorry Doigotta, but nothing appears to matter. Next time Huckabee can leave the wife and kids at home and take him some purty boys on the Lord's Ranch jet.....it won't matter. The Republicans tell us cutting taxes is what matters. Exterminating gays is what matters. Scaring people with Mexicans is what matters.

Taking a whole day to take a vote on supporting our troops that they are killing in Iraq.....now that matters. Putting Jesus on Mt. Rushmore matters. Hiding flag draped coffins matter. What Laura thinks of the Clinton's decorating tastes matter.

Since Thursday four more American families will get their kids back in parts, does that matter or not matter? I can't tell any more to be honest. It appears we're too busy supporting our troops with stick-on car things, we're too busy tying up Congress debating if we support or troops or not to notice the body bags coming home as steady as a summer rain.

We've got us a sick country. But look around.....nothings happening....it doesn't matter.

I have it on very good authority that the Huckster contacted several businesses with access to corporate planes requesting that they be made available to him for his pre-announcement trips. Obviously, this contractor couldn't say no.

ARK. BLOG No way. No way, that is, that Huck would do the calling himself. Chad Gallagher, maybe?

Of course not. I misspoke and I apologize. The Huckster did not make the calls himself, but they were specifically made on his behalf. I honestly do not know who made them, I just know that at least one company pondered the request. And that it was said by the caller that other companies were receiving similar requests (I guess to make it seem more palatable to say yes).

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