Radio shows

By Jen Green

GOP presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty came out against the budget compromise that both President Obama and John Boehner are trying to not only push, but take credit for. Like likely campaign rival Michele Bachmann did on Friday, Pawlenty says this compromise doesn’t cut far enough into our spending and debt. It seems that Pawlenty has attempted overtures into the tea party lately, and this declaration will help with that. But Pawlenty is also seen as a bit of an establishment candidate as well, so this might indicate that the rank and file are not happy with the compromise, either. Could it be that they’ve figured out if Obama likes it it’s NOT a good deal? Quick learners.

In a grudgingly complimentary article, The Atlantic dubs former gubernatorial candidate and president of the The Family Leader Bob Vander Plaats a “conservative kingmaker” for the Iowa caucuses. For the Atlantic to even take notice of Iowa for something other than the soy cheese they put on their veggie burgers, indicates just how important the Iowa caucuses are.  The discussion meanders through Vander Plaats campaign history, the victorious judge ouster vote, and now follows the Presidential Lecture series currently happening in the state. The fact that candidates such as Paul, Bachmann, Gingrich, and Pawlenty have committed to the series elicits a final paragraph declaration that Vander Plaats has a very big say in national picture.

Is South Carolina starting to follow Iowa’s lead? It seems the times they are a’changin’ in the old guard southern state. After a long history of crowing establishment candidates the winner of their primary, folks in the Palmetto state seem disinterested in the stale offerings of the same ol’ same ol’. This quotation from the Politico says it all, “Any discussion of Romney invariably brings up mention of healthcare, Pawlenty isn’t mentioned at all and Barbour’s name prompts a mix of awkward silence and shrugs.”

Because Herman Cain was a very popular talk-show host out of Atlanta, it’s probably not surprising his numbers are looking very good in Georgia. Until, we remember that Georgia is Newt Gingrich’s home state. It seems that Cain is surging in Georgia—to the detriment of Gingrich’s numbers. Mike Huckabee and Gingrich currently lead in Georgia, but Cain came in a very impressive third. If he is able to muster up the money and support structure for a serious presidential run, he’s showing he will be a force to be reckoned with in several key southern states.

Mike Huckabee isn’t the only conservative giving the GOP a pass for folding on the budget and not fighting to defund a billion dollar industry that admittedly doesn’t need any money from the government to continue to make a buck off of killing babies. National Right to Life is circulating a letter to Senators letting them know they’ll not make an issue of it if they vote for the appropriations bill (the one that both Boehner and Obama are taking credit for victories for their bases). Instead, in a “you wait until the next time” move, they are warning the Congress they are watching their votes on two upcoming “enrollment resolutions” that will also move to defund Planned Parenthood and the new health care law.