Posts Tagged christopher rants

Politics P.G.

Oct 20

Posted by Parched in Governor, In the states | No Comments

Yes, there was a time when opposition research didn’t include sitting down, opening up Internet Explorer, or Firefox, or Safari, and firing up your search engine to look for tidbits on a political candidate.  This time shall be known as P.G. (Pre Google).  Kind of a funny thing when you think about it, and according to Ed Tibbets, Republican candidate for Iowa governor Chris (or Christopher) Rants thought about it and is drawing attention to the fact that one of his opponents, former Iowa Governor Terry Brandstad, last made news in the P.G. era of politics.

He has a good point. Today’s politics is a lot different than it was in Branstad’s hey-day. Today, opposition research is pretty easy. Google makes it so. Even looking for the really embarrassing courthouse stuff is easier, thanks to the Internet and the increasing willingness of courts to post documents online.

But, as Rants pointed out, Branstad is shielded from some of this because the stories written about his four terms are all pre-Google.

Well, today it looks like Rants is trying to even the scales. He’s added a new feature to his web site — an archive in which he’s scanned “news from the 80s and 90s,” as he puts it.

Don’t expect a lot of stories about Duran Duran, Big Hair or the A-Team.

Man who couldn’t do with a dose of some B.A. Baracus! See all of Ed Tibbetts’ post here.

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Cool Building…Clueless Governor

Aug 21

Posted by Parched in Uncategorized | No Comments

Iowa Governor Chet Culver gets caught being unprepared for class.

It’s a safe bet that whoever did the governor’s briefing book on this event got an earful.  This episode creates an opportunity for Republicans Christian Fong, Paul McKinley, Christopher Rants, Rod Roberts, and Bob Vander Plaats to paint Culver as not all that engaged, and gives more questions likely to be raised about his management on other issues a better chance at sticking.  Bet Iowans hear about this one once the primary is all settled again.   Of course, they’ll hear about it nonstop prior no doubt.  UPDATE:  Had to replace the original story since the local T.V. station pulled the story off the web…but, you do have the raw footage now…little bit longer, but just as fun.

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Got Iowa on the brain

Jul 9

Posted by Parched in Governor | No Comments

Came across this headline earlier today: 53% of Iowans Want a New Governor and thought, well that’s a pretty not nice thing to say about a mid-western governor.  Then after reading the article you start to think, well, Governor Chet Culver hasn’t exactly been a pillar of leadership on the really rock-hard place issues so far for 2009.

A lot of his problems stem from fiscal matters, whether it’s hoping for the best on the $161 million budget deficit instead of making cuts and upsetting some core political allies, not standing up for taxpayers thrown out of a public hearing because they demanded their voices to be heard (literally hundreds of Iowans were escorted out of the House chamber by state police), and a little splash of social issues by folding on a key family values issue he had earlier pledged to stand strong on (he said he’d do whatever it took).

Some other little bits and pieces that make the case against Culver stronger.  Iowa families impacted by flooding continue to feel a real tax pinch because Democrats under Culver’s leadership blocked giving flood victims the ability to deduct their losses.  That cuts in a poll like this one.  Or jobs missed by Iowans that could’ve been had by offering tax incentives to green companies that can build components for wind farms.  Others states need the business more than Iowa one would surmise.  That also cuts pretty good.

So right there, 5 real issues that will continue to drive Chet Culver’s numbers down, and give Republicans like former House Speaker Christopher Rants, and Bob Vander Plaats the opportunities to offer Iowans real change in the office of Governor.

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