Tom Price: Begging and Buying Supporters…
by Bill Simon
Rumors have it that the Tom Price Campaign sent an urgent e-mail out last Friday offering ANYONE a free ticket to the Cherokee County GOP picnic held on Saturday if they would agree to put on a Price T-shirt and wear it throughout the event.
Reports are that there were about 15-20 folks wearing Price T-shirts in the crowd of about 150 attendees.
Perhaps Price will tap into the illegal immigrant work pool for his 4th of July activities…
June 26th, 2006 at 11:44 am
Is 150 a good turnout?
June 26th, 2006 at 12:12 pm
Rumors also have it that your buddy Brian L. is sporting a new short bleached blond hairdo and looked like an idiot.
June 26th, 2006 at 12:19 pm
Good question, Caroline…for this event, it probably was. The event held later that day at Wild Bill’s in Gwinnett County supposedly had 400. More political campaigns were at the Wild Bill’s event than the Cherokee County event, thus the bigger group of folks attending.
June 26th, 2006 at 12:47 pm
Bill,
A lot of the campaigns were at both. I think Wild Bill’s did a better job “marketing” it. 2 of 3 State Senators running statewide were in Cherokee. They didn’t personally attend Wild Bill’s, but Stephens did have a large presence at WB’s
June 29th, 2006 at 10:54 am
“Perhaps Price will tap into the illegal immigrant work pool for his 4th of July activities…”
Bill, in your anti-Price zeal you seem to have missed (at least) two important facts.
1. Anti-immigrant, single issue challengers to Republican incumbents aren’t having a great summer. Consider the case of Utah Rep. Chris Cannon’s well financed challenger, R/E developer John Jacob, who had very visible backing from Tom Tancredo’s PAC, Team America, and who attacked Cannon at every chance for his support of Bush’s immigration reform position. Jacob spent $400k, Trancredo spent $40k more on radio ads attacking Cannon, and Jacob lost by double digits this Tuesday.
2. Immigration-obsessed challengers have an even tougher time when the encumbent is on the same (wrong) side of the issue.
Best,
Bob
July 7th, 2006 at 4:28 pm
DID ANYONE ATTEND THE AARP TOWN FORUM YESTERDAY? TOM PRICE, STEVE SINTON AND JOHN KONOP WERE ALL THERE! TOM ACTUALLY TOLD THE CROWD OF ABOUT 150 PEOPLE “ONE MAN CANNOT MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN CONGRESS, AND IF ANYONE THINKS THEY CAN, THEY ARE MISTAKEN.”
The man admitted he could not do the joB. Steve Sinton stepped up and assured the group – He COULD MAKE A DIFFERENCE. SEND HIM TO WASHINGTON. HE WAS NOT IN DEBTED TO ANYONE!
July 8th, 2006 at 10:34 pm
You may be missing the real point, Bob. Are Jacob’s votes going to meekly and obediently to Cannon in the general? Will Konop’s votes go to Price or Sinton in November (assuming Konop loses)?
July 9th, 2006 at 10:52 am
“Will Konop’s votes go to Price or Sinton in November (assuming Konop loses)?”
I don’t think it’ll matter. If all of them go to Stinton, he still only has two chances – slim and none. 😉
July 10th, 2006 at 5:05 am
The fact that ANY Democrat has better than no chance in the 6th District is telling. 😉
BTW, his name is Steve SINTON. You would not want me to replace the ‘e’ with a ‘k’ in the incumbent’s last name, would you?
July 10th, 2006 at 11:13 am
I was being generous when I said “slim”, but sorry for the misspelling – I don’t listen to 96 rock or WGST, so I was only vaguely familiar with his name before now.
As for “You would not want me to replace the ‘e’ with a ‘k’ in the incumbent’s last name, would you?”, certainly not – that would be childish of you. Wouldn’t want that kind of behavior here. 😉
I will say that your guy looks like a modestly better candidate that the one Bill likes. At least he doesn’t try to tie every issue, including education, to “NAFTA/CAFTA” and spout a lot of protectionist, anti-immigrant nonsense on his issues webpage.
But his site is lacking a bit in policy specifics, errs in claiming Georgia has lost 100k jobs in the last 3 years, and says nothing at all about energy policy, national/homeland security or his position on the war. Though his involvement in Air America Radio certainly implies some sympathy with the likes of Al Franken and Janeane Garafalo.
I also think one should have some record of public service and familiarity with governing before seeking a US House seat. Being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and hosting radio shows isn’t quite the resume I think will win over many people in this district.
JMO, of course.
July 11th, 2006 at 5:55 am
Neither George W. Bush nor Ronald Reagan had held elective office before becoming governor of their respective states. Newt Gingrich’s first office was as a U.S. Congressman (though admittedly he had tried twice before). People with more free time than myself could research the current House and see how many members had no prior political experience.
Steve is definitely to the right of Franken and Garofalo; he made that very clear at Marietta City Hall (the GALEO forum Price ducked). Further, Steve says at every available opportunity that he supports a robust national effort to develop domestic renewable energy sources. Yes, he is unclear about the war in Iraq, but here’s a thought: ask him. His phone number is on his website http://www.stevesinton.com
July 11th, 2006 at 3:42 pm
Newt was a History prof, well versed in the philosophies and mechanics of government and economics, Bush grew up in a family where politics and public service were a way of life, and Reagan was president of a trade union as well as being involved in national politics, speaking publicly in support of Harry Truman, from the late 1940s. Oh, and Price was a state Senator and majority leader. All of that seems a bit better preparation for political leadership in Washington than radio DJ work and co-founding Anti-Bush Radio.
As for Sinton’s positions on energy policy and the war, I think these are big enough issues that he might want to take a public stance on his campaign website rather than expecting voters to call him if they are interested.
And who’s NOT in favor of renewable energy? I’m more curious about his positions on coastal drilling and similarly contentious issues.
PS: You might want to drop a line to the AJC. They called your guy “Steve Sinson” in today’s article on Konop. I know you are sensitive about such errors. 😉
July 12th, 2006 at 6:02 am
I would expect the AJC to have the occasional spelling error. With someone as educated as yourself, though, I figured your faux pas was intentional. Enough on this silliness, though.
We would all do well to look at the state of our country and determine whether political experience is in fact an asset. Where are we now, for all the experienced political leaders we have working on our behalf? Our long-term deficit projections remain bleak, despite the short-term book cooking we saw on display yesterday at the White House. We are bogged down in Iraq, leaving us no military option in either Iran or North Korea. We are importing more energy than ever. Climate change threatens the very bedrock of American agriculture. Education and transportation systems continue to founder.
The status quo is not acceptable. This is the reality seen by both Steve Sinton and John Konop. Tom Price’s unwillingness to see that reality is the ultimate disqualification, of far greater import than any title you could cite.
July 12th, 2006 at 11:58 am
Ooh…so, Bob? “Homeland security” is a BIG issue with you?
How many billions of wasted dollars did it take before you decided enough is enough? How many times did it take you watching Michael Chertoff speak, and Bush supporting him all the way, before you figured out he’s another incompetent boob appointed by the Bush Administration?
July 12th, 2006 at 2:01 pm
Caution, non sequitur above.
I thought we were talking about Price and his opponents qualifications.
July 13th, 2006 at 5:45 am
I don’t know if one can totally separate qualifications from ideology. If a voter believes in a total abortion ban, and candidate A is pro-choice, is not the candidate disqualified in the mind of the given voter?
Tom Price still believes, according the aforementioned AJC article, that Saddam Hussein had WMD’s, and that those weapons were smuggled into Syria. This is based on the word of one Saddam crony, in total contradiction with the findings of PRESIDENT BUSH’S weapons inspector, David Kay, as well as Hans Blix and everyone else involved. Given that Price will take the word of a Saddam crony above a presidential appointee, don’t you think it is a sign of excessive stubborness and an inability to tell reality from fantasy? Thusly, a policy disagreement becomes a disqualification.
When we look at votes for pork-laden boondoggles while running record budget deficits, the pattern of Price’s irrationality becomes more salient. As you can see, Bob, I welcome this discussion!
July 13th, 2006 at 9:59 pm
Hmm. I see you read the AJC article. Is it so inconceivable that Saddam could have done that. Or do you think, after all the he has them, he has them not back and forth, those weapons inspectors are infallible?
But I’m glad you welcome the discussion. So tell me, what qualifies Steve Sinton for the US House – besides not being Tom Price – and why should I vote for him – besides not being Tom Price?
July 14th, 2006 at 5:25 am
The vast preponderance of evidence suggests that Saddam Hussein did not have a WMD program of any signifigance, let alone the stockpiles listed by then-Secretary of State Powell at the U.N. Clinging to hope against hope that somehow, somewhere, somebody will find some shread of contrary evidence after 3 years is not a rational thought process, let alone a policy.
Let me give you the ultimate qualification, for Steve Sinton or anyone else; the capacity to put the interests of the masses over those who can directly benefit the political class. Steve Sinton can do that. Let me share with you a story I heard.
Steve was at the Atlanta airport, where he saw a soldier returning from Iraq. Steve didn’t have to take the time out for this person, but he did. He shook the soldier’s hand, thanked him for his service, and asked him how he was doing. Not well, he said. To make a long story short, this soldier needed counseling and pyschological treatment for serious battlefield trauma, and the Army wasn’t doing anything. 30 minutes and 2 phone calls later, that soldier was talking with a counselor, and Steve was content to take the next flight. That is who Steve Sinton is – a person with a capacity to put others before himself. This occured, by the way, well before he announced for Congress.
Steve believes tax loopholes for major corporations should be closed. He believes balancing the budget and paying down our debt rather than burdening our children and grandchildren is more important than the contributions those corporations could potentially funnel into his campaign. Steve believes in strict ethics legislation because people trusting the government is more important to him than the personal profit he could acquire from his office.
I could go on, but hopefully, you understand my reasoning, and can appreciate the fact that I was able to answer your question without mentioning his opponent.
July 14th, 2006 at 10:37 am
Yes, it doesn’t seem likely at this point, but there was enough of a possibility for the NY Sun to publish an article about it only seven months ago, quoting, among others, the top general in Israel at the time the war began. Oh, and there are two former top Iraqi commanders, not one, and a former US undersecretary of defense who have taken the same position the AJC attributes to Price. I’m not saying I believe it’s true, but then I’m not in a position to know for sure either way.
As for your Steve helps traumatized soldier in airport story, that’s a touching one, but if anecdotes about helping people were the main criteria for picking congressmen, I’m sure an orthopedic surgeon and educator of doctors has a few stories he could tell. So let’s talk issues instead.
Steve wants to raise taxes on businesses, huh? OK, does he really think businesses pay taxes? They don’t. Employees, shareholders and customers pay taxes – to businesses, it’s just another cost that must be passed on to consumers, eat into returns for shareholders, or be offset by cost cuts elsewhere – like payrolls. You make it sound like found money, raising business taxes – like it’ll have no other effect besides raising revenue. Well, you and Steve are wrong – raising taxes on businesses raises prices and reduces output and jobs. The only good reasons for closing loopholes, whether in business or personal taxes, are to simplify the system and create horizontal equity.
So there’s a good reason NOT to vote for Steve – he doesn’t understand basic economics. On taxes, Tom Price is firmly on the side of simpler and fairer taxes, not stopgap measures like loophole closing in hope of raising revenues without regard to the consequences.
Now, regarding cleaning up congress, would you agree that so-called “earmarks” are at the source of the problem? Do you know that Tom Price introduced legislation to force sponsors of earmarks to publicly attach their names to the amendments that contain their earmarks? Current rules allow them to be inserted essentially anonymously. See HR 662.
Then there’s the continuing need for serious reform of our health care system. As the AJC put it today in its endorsement of Price, he is in prime position to lead in that area in the next congress. Seems moving up the leadership ranks in one’s first term isn’t such a bad thing after all.
Then there’s the problem of an out of control tort system. What would Steve do about, for example, asbestos litigation reform? Will he stand up to the class action lawsuit industry to keep them from stealing money from the legitimately ill and stealing businesses from families to line their own pockets? Or will he do what most Democrats do and fatten his coffers with their donations while they milk asbestos for every penny and prepare their assault on the next industry?
And don’t forget the war. Tom stands behind the president while the Democratic left-wing – the part of the party including moveon.org and Air America Radio – attacks even leading Democrats who support the war. Where does Steve stand? Somewhere to the right of Al Franken, you say? He’s to some unknown degree less extreme than the radio station he co-founded? Oh, that’s reassuring.
Finally, while you cleverly avoided mentioning Price by name, you’re not fooling anyone by disclaiming any reference to him. The veil is way to thin on your implied assertions that he puts “the contributions those corporations could potentially funnel into his campaign” or “personal profit … from his office” ahead of ethics reform and sound tax policy. Tom earns a salary – a nice one for most people, granted – but if it were about money, Tom would still be a full time orthopedic surgeon. Maybe you can’t accept it, but it seems to me Tom is there to serve the 6th district, not to line his pockets.
Regards.
July 14th, 2006 at 10:52 am
PS: Is see Steve opposes private accounts for social security. What does he propose or support in the way of SS reform? His webiste isn’t really clear, except to say private accounts are out.
July 14th, 2006 at 2:32 pm
SS privatization has about 25% support in this country. Bush’s plan will probably cause quite a lot of Republicans to lose their seats or turn leaning GOP senate seats like Fl into solid Dem seats. Katherine Harris looked like she might pull it off in FL but now is trailing by 20-30 pts against Nelson.
July 14th, 2006 at 11:16 pm
Point by point….
I am satisfied that there was no viable WMD program in Iraq, and that those who said that there was (Chalabi, Mossad, the Bush administration, etc.) were either wrong or lying to promote their own interests. Period. If you beleive otherwise, vote accordingly.
I am aware that anectodes are not by themselves compelling. What is interesting is that you did not even try to respond with one regarding Price. Is there one you can cite? It does not mattter, as it would affect neither of our votes.
We need a balanced federal budget. You either believe that, or you don’t. In order to balance the budget, certain aspects of Bush’s tax cuts need to be rolled back. You either believe that, or you don’t. If you support borrow-and-spend policies, I respectfully submit that Tom Price has earned your vote, and I’m really wasting my time.
Which leads me nicely to earmarks. I am well aware of HR 662. You don’t seem to be aware that it went precisely nowhere. Why? The same Republican leadership that Price loyally supports killed it. Price does one thing with one hand, then happily negates it with the other. That’s called manipulation, not leadership. Maybe you like being manipulated. I do not.
As the party in power, the Republicans are accountable for the status quo. We spend more per capita on health care than any other nation, yet in quality, we are somewhere between Slovenia and Costa Rica (or is it Slovakia?). In any case, to say that the GOP’s policies, as dutifully supported by Tom Price, bear absolutely no responsibility for our health care mess is laughable.
What you call tort reform, I call total corporate immunity from any prosecution or legal repercussions. I respectfully submit that we lack enough commonality of definition to even discuss this further.
You say Tom supports our president on the war. Did you say that to reassure me, or youself? I hope I’ve made it quite clear that our current president does not have my trust on ANY issue, least of all this war. Regardless of his exact position, a vote for Sinton is a vote against Bush and those who trust him.
There is no maybe about it, I do not accept that Tom Price is a selfless public servant. If you do, what really is there to say?
As for Social Security, if we don’t first balance the budget, and generate high paying jobs in this country, as was the case in the late 90’s, it will not matter. The system will go broke regardless.
July 15th, 2006 at 10:25 am
Charley,
It’s beyond “borrow and spend”. The Republicans are now the “borrow and squander” party.
July 16th, 2006 at 5:34 pm
I agree completely; the squandering of money, lives, and time. There was nothing any Democrat could have said to GET me to switch parties. I had to see the utter, complete failure of Republican leadership (both state and federal) for myself, and make the conclusion thus made.
July 16th, 2006 at 10:23 pm
“I am aware that anecdotes are not by themselves compelling. What is interesting is that you did not even try to respond with one regarding Price. Is there one you can cite?”
Sorry. Tom hasn’t fed me any anecdotes.
“certain aspects of Bush’s tax cuts need to be rolled back.”
So, we can expect Sinton to push for tax hikes, then? Well, at least you’re honest about it.
“We spend more per capita on health care than any other nation, yet in quality, we are somewhere between Slovenia and Costa Rica (or is it Slovakia?).”
Hmm. Interesting factoid. From what orifice did you pull it? Yes, spending is high, but so is quality. Tom favors health savings accounts and other patient-centered solutions that address the disconnect between patient and doctor – consumer and provider – that drives up costs. What does Steve favor? We can only guess – his website says nothing.
“What you call tort reform, I call total corporate immunity from any prosecution or legal repercussions.”
Bull. No one is talking about immunity from lawsuits or corporate responsibility. The issue, if you care to consider it, is blatant manipulation of the tort system for the benefit of lawyers at the expense of genuinely injured parties, insurance carriers and small business owners. Do you (and Steve) really have no idea about the asbestosis and silicosis scams that have been going on for years?
Now, on the war, you say “a vote for Sinton is a vote against Bush”? Well, glad we finally cleared that up. Cindy Sheehan or John Murtha gonna be making any campaign appearances?
“As for Social Security, if we don’t first balance the budget, and generate high paying jobs in this country, as was the case in the late 90’s, it will not matter. The system will go broke regardless.”
Actually, Charley, balancing the budget has nothing to do with it – the SS system is already broke. It’s a giant pyramid scheme. Exactly what does Steve propose to do about that? Raise taxes? Cut benefits? What?
Oh, and speaking of jobs, when is Steve going to remove the … umm … erroneous Georgia job loss claim from his issues web page? Georgia has NOT “lost over 100,000 jobs in the past three years.” In fact, it has gained three times that amount. See for yourself, from the BLS:
July 16th, 2006 at 10:26 pm
Hmm. No pictures allowed. Well, see for yourself here: http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/surveymost?la
July 18th, 2006 at 5:04 am
I am simply a supporter of Steve Sinton, not a spokesperson or anyone in an official capacity. As such, I’ve already said too much with regards to his positions. Next time I see him though, I will urge Steve to add more specifics to his website, as you lack the sufficient motivation to contact him yourself.
You say you support the war in Iraq, yet you seem to hold in complete contempt those who actually have sacrificed for the country (John Murtha, John Kerry, Ron Kovic, etc.) as well as the families of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice (Cindy Sheehan, etc.). Apparently, in your world, an American hero is only that if he/she adheres to a narrow, ideological viewpoint. Liberal blood must not count. I write this as someone who voted for Robert Dole in 1996.
I know the factoid cited on health care was all over the news; I believe the source was the WHO, but don’t hold me to that. Our health care system is absolutely great for the wealthy. It sucks for everyone else. That is the reality you fail to see.
Another reality shrouded in political B.S. is the uselessness of official unemployment figures. The Labor Department deliberately excludes people from the unemployment rolls to rig the numbers. Further, they pay no attention to the problem of under-employment. These blue-collar eyes see a very grim economic picture indeed.
Health savings accounts? Where am I supposed to get the money for those? I can barely keep up with my 401(k) needs. Yes, I actually agree with you that Social Security has structural problems. Emphasizing that this is not a position taken by Steve, I believe the retirement age needs to be raised. Further, we need to look at how to raise the return rate on the entire trust fund. Social Security is a social contract, and it needs to remain that, not shattered into individual, privatized bits. Interestingly, privatization of Social security is more unpopular than gay marriage.
So, asbestos and silicone implants are safe after all. Please, go further into this. The laugh would do me good.
July 18th, 2006 at 12:29 pm
“So, asbestos and silicone implants are safe after all. Please, go further into this. The laugh would do me good.”
Yes, laughter is good for us. Thanks for this one. No one said asbestos is safe or – and this is the hilarious part – anything at all about silicone implants.
As for John Kerry and Ron Kovic, what do they have to do with anything? They gonna be campaigning for Sinton, too? Questioning John Murtha’s or Cindy Sheehan’s politics in no way implies contempt for his service in the Marines or for her son’s ultimate sacrifice. That’s a ludicrous notion, Charley. They are simply wrong on policy, over the top on rhetoric, and allied with a dangerous crowd in the extreme anti-war left. Cindy may also be a tad batty, but that’s beside the point.
PS: I’ll take official employment figures over totally made up ones like Steve’s any day.
July 19th, 2006 at 4:17 am
OK, so what ARE you talking about when you mention silicosis and asbestosis?
July 19th, 2006 at 3:15 pm
We’re getting a bit far into just one of many issues (and one that, unfortunately, few people care about), but try googling “asbestosis silicosis scam”. That’ll give you an overview of what the diseases are, and of recent developments and investigations of the law firms and their medical accomplices perpetuating this fraud.
But the asbestos story goes back much further. A handful of asbestos plaintif’s lawyers have been extorting the building products and home repair products industries for decades by flooding them with lawsuits in a legal system that is rigged in their favor such that they need not even prove that their plaintifs ever even used or got near any product a given target company ever made or that they are at all sick.
I know a 120+ year old small company – never over $5 mil in annual sales in its history – that, before filing a “prepakaged” bankruptcy, had over 18,000 lawsuit against it including thousands from states where they never sold a product. As a result of the BK, a plaintif trust now owns the company and in the 4 years or so since the trust took ownership it has paid out essentially nothing to injured parties (people actually sick from asbestos) while the lawyers who control the trust have been taking out large legal and trustee fees and putting their associates on the payroll drawing executive salaries without doing any work.
There are many other cases just like this one, too. It’s an extortion scam and they are not just ripping off shareholders of the small, medium and large businesses they target and often take over – they are ripping off the people who are genuinely sick from asbestos exposure by flooding the courts with plaintifs who are not, and likely never will be, sick in order to control the outcome of class settlements (and control the resulting trusts).
That’s just one example of out of control torts. Leaches, the lot of ’em… OK, that’s not fair. It’s only 98% of lawyers who give the rest a bad name. 😉
July 22nd, 2006 at 7:46 pm
OK, it sounds like a scam to me as well. I’ll take what you say at face value. That said, it seems to me that better educated juries and better defense attorneys would be more expedient remedies than unwieldy legislation that might have unintended consequences. I mean, if it is THAT clearcut………..
Just my opinion.
July 22nd, 2006 at 9:15 pm
Better educated juries and better defense attorneys? LOL. You don’t know much about mass torts, do you? Or the crooked tactics of some in the legal profession.
July 25th, 2006 at 7:40 am
One Issue Challenger? If Sinton chooses stem cells rather than immigration, Price is toast.
July 26th, 2006 at 3:41 am
I tend to agree, JP. That said, if Senate and House Republicans cannot get a compromise bill out, I don’t know how the immigration issue can help Price much. Steve should hit Price on stem cells, deficit, and culture of corruption. On all three, the ammo is plentiful. Disenchantment with GOP inaction on immigration will take care of itself.
September 21st, 2006 at 11:46 pm
I suggest you go to the Sinton web site. It has a lot on the issues, and Tom Price’s abysmal voting record. It says it all.