You can cross Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal off the list of potential GOP presidential or vice-presidential nominees for the 2016 election — at least in Iowa.
That’s because Jindal wants to kill the Iowa Straw Poll — which has generated million$ for the Iowa GOP — and, likely, he would do away with the Iowa caucuses as well.
It was in all the papers.
Well, maybe not in so many words. What Jindal said last month about Republicans was “We must stop being the stupid party.” http://www.businessinsider.com/jindal-gop-stupid-party-rnc-2013-1.
Putting an end to GOP stupidity means putting an end to the Straw Poll and the caucuses, as now configured and controlled by the Christian right.
Remember what the Straw Poll produced in 2011: The presidential candidacy of U.S. Representative Michele Bachmann, who paid the most to win the Straw Poll, and likewise the bizarre self-destructing candidacies of pizza czar Herman Cain and Texas Governor Rick Perry. To top that off, the Iowa GOP declared Mitt Romney the caucus winner only to have a more certain loser, Rick Santorum, be declared the caucus winner two weeks later.
That was in all the papers, too.
Jindal’s call for an end to GOP stupidity likely extends beyond the Straw Poll and caucuses, as far as irritating Iowa is concerned.
Consider House Study Bill 49 now in the Iowa Legislature. Introduced by Representative Clel Baudler, R-Greenfield, the measure would make it a felony for a woman to give birth to a child who tested positive for drugs — with a penalty of up to five years in prison and a fine of $7,500. Never mind that — as some have pointed out — the newborn could test positive even if the mother were “clean.” Each year would cost the state at least $30,000 for incarceration of the woman and thousands more for care of the infant and any siblings. So you’re looking at bills of up to $250,000 or more per conviction — better that than spending less money on education and support programs. http://www.radioiowa.com/2013/02/06/felony-for-women-who-deliver-drug-addicted-babies/. Not to worry, says Baudler “We know they’re not going to put ‘em in prison for something like this.”
So, it’s a lose-lose or stupid-stupid situation. You have a stupid bill proposed because its author says it will not be enforced! And you wonder why legislatures are called dysfunctional.
Not to be outdone, Iowa House colleagues of Baudler want to charge a physician and the patient with murder, anytime an abortion is performed or the person takes a so-called morning after contraceptive — House File 128. And a Senate colleague points out that, to the best of his knowledge, Jehovah has not rescinded His gift of the promised land to Israel so that settles any property disputes in the Middle East — Senate Resolution 2. http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20130208/BASU/302080101/?odyssey=nav%7Chead
Or consider whom the Iowa GOP has lined up to run for the U.S. Senate. The party of such former moderate leaders as Governor Bob Ray, Lieutenant Governor Art Neu, U.S. Representative Jim Leach and national party chair Mary Louise Smith now has its eyes on U.S. Representative Steve King.
King’s credentials are mostly that he says outrageous or stupid things. Like two years ago in Congress when he praised GOP leaders for being liars. What he said was, “I would make the point that the leader and the speaker have established… their mendacity for years in this Congress.”
Wonderful.
In fairness to Jindal, the full text of his comments said that the GOP had to focus on important issues and not on hot-button social issues dear to the hearts of the party’s evangelical right wing — like opposing evolution, gay rights and abortion under any circumstances.
"We must stop being the stupid party,” he said. “I'm serious. It's time for a new Republican party that talks like adults. It's time for us to articulate our plans and visions for America in real terms. We had a number of Republicans damage the brand this year with offensive and bizarre comments. We’ve had enough of that."
Unfortunately, it’s not only the GOP “brand” that is damaged by party stupidity. Political dialogue and Democratic leadership become less than they should be — thanks to the problems that worry Jindal.
In Iowa, on the Democratic part of the ledger, we have reports that former Governor Chet Culver is gearing up for a re-run — perhaps planning to set a record as the only person to be elected governor twice and not be re-elected either time.
It simply has to get better for us. Doesn’t it?
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