# Stupid Republican idea of the day **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 26, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897 "2009-03-26T18:48:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 204
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2011, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4061 "2011-12-28T23:54:17Z")
> [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](#): > > I hope you don’t mind that I borrowed this to share with my FB friends. I’m flattered, but I did not exhaustively research that post. I don’t know that Perry specifically has advocated state’s rights, etc., but they do seem to be positions held by Republicans in general. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4062 "2011-12-29T00:03:26Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > The story says they used _paid_ volunteers? Ummm… Yup. They only hire members of the athletic department from the University of Tennessee. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4063 "2011-12-29T00:16:23Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Yup. They only hire members of the athletic department from the University of Tennessee. Ya know, I heard there were some people from the Penn State athletic department looking for work. And, it’s closer to Virginia, AND they probably really like Virgins! ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4064 "2011-12-29T01:11:47Z")
> [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](#): > > I hope you don’t mind that I borrowed this to share with my FB friends. But if it’s already posted could you send me a link so I can bask in what passes for popularity these days? ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4065 "2011-12-29T03:48:14Z")
> [@The\_Tooth](#): > > Apparently, Rick Perry is suffering some confusion about which country he lives in. > > > [@](#): > > > > The audiences at Mr. Perry’s events seemed somewhat unmoved by parts of his speech that talked about job creation. But when it came to energy and oil, they perked up. > > > > **“Every barrel of oil that comes out of those sands in Canada is a barrel of oil that we don’t have to buy from a foreign source,”** Mr. Perry said in Clarinda, earning a loud round of enthusiastic applause. > > > > Later, the audience reacted again to Mr. Perry’s assertion that buying so much energy from foreign countries is “not good policy, it’s not good politics and frankly it’s un-American.” > > [What Moves Republican Crowds in Iowa - The New York Times](http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/28/what-moves-republican-crowds-in-iowa/?smid=tw-thecaucus&seid=auto#) > > For myself, I think he’d make a fine Republican nominee. Sounds like he has . . . plans . . . for Canada. ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4066 "2011-12-29T03:48:58Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I’m flattered, but I did not exhaustively research that post. I don’t know that Perry specifically has advocated state’s rights, etc., but they do seem to be positions held by Republicans in general. No worries. You’re good. Seems he’s [somewhat inconsistent](http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/29/us/politics/29perry.html?pagewanted=all) on that front anyway… [QUOTE=NY Times] Mr. Perry uses the issue of states’ rights to give his candidacy an overarching theme, tap into the frustrations that have fueled the Tea Party movement and highlight the substance behind his swaggering style. Though the governor has a claim to acting on these principles, he has come to publicly embrace states’ rights as a defining issue only in the past few years, a period when the 10th Amendment has been a rallying cry for many Tea Party supporters, libertarians and others who make up his party’s conservative base. And he has been inconsistent in applying those beliefs, drawing criticism from some states’ rights advocates and raising questions even among fellow Republicans about whether his stance is as much campaign positioning as a philosophical commitment. [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4067 "2011-12-29T07:35:47Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > I have no idea if it’s true, but I think it would be pretty damn funny if Virginia’s laws were put in place by a Republican dominated legislature in the name of preventing “voter fraud”. > That would just be tooooo good. It was a primarily Democratic legislature, but you can blame the Republicans anyway. Here’s why: First, the requirements for qualifying to appear on the VA ballot [have been in effect since the 1970s](http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2011/dec/24/1/tdmain01-perry-fails-to-qualify-for-virginias-gop--ar-1565544/). However, even though the law demands 10,000 valid signatures, it has always been up to the individual parties to establish the rules they use to “validate” the signatures, even if they do nothing at all to actually validate them. An Independent candidate running to be a state delegate [filed suit](http://www2.tricities.com/news/2011/nov/08/judge-postpones-hearing-osbornes-election-lawsuit-ar-1442331/) because: > [@](#): > > [T]he law simply requires that party-affiliated candidates present their petitions to the local party chairman … who is responsible for reviewing the petition signatures on their own. It does not dictate how thorough this review must be or give state officials any power to challenge it. Up until this election cycle, the VA Republican Party merely required candidates submit the required 10,000 signatures and never bothered to validate them. But because of this pending suit (_Osborne v Boyles_, btw), the party decided to err on the side of caution and this time they [sent out notices to all the candidates in October that they would need to collect 15,000 signatures](http://bearingdrift.com/2011/12/28/rpv-issues-statement-on-petition-certification/) to ensure that at least 10,000 of them were valid, which would get them out of actually having to sift through them one-by-one. Any candidate who brought in at least 15,000 signatures would be _presumed_ to be in compliance and automatically certified by the state party. Romney came in with well over 15,000 signatures and was automatically qualified by the party. Paul came in with just over 14,000, but because he didn’t meet the party’s _arbitrary_ threshold of 15,000, every one of his signatures was examined. Once he was found to have had at least 10,000 valid signatures, he too was certified. Perry & Gingrich each came in with around 11,000 signatures, and a line-by-line examination revealed that each had in excess of 1,000 _in_valid signatures, therefore disqualifying them. **[In every prior election](http://www.redstate.com/moe_lane/2011/12/26/did-the-va-gop-change-the-rules-on-primary-ballot-access-in-november-2011/) in every prior year, a submission of 11,000 signatures wouldn’t have been examined by the party, and the candidates would have been _presumed_ to be in compliance and certified by the party to be on the ballot.** So the only people Perry & Gingrich have to thank for not qualifying to appear on the ballot are themselves and the Republican Party of the Great State of Virginia. ---
**Author:** ![Oliveritaly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oliveritaly/32/15233_2.png) [@Oliveritaly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oliveritaly)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4068 "2011-12-29T08:50:46Z")
Mitt Romeny likes Big Bird, but he like Big Bird sponsored by Bud light a lot more. > **[Creative Jobs :: Careers for Graphic Designers, Copywriters, Social Media...](https://www.mediabistro.com/)** > > Explore creative careers in graphic design, copywriting, social media, marketing, communications, video. Post your creative job today and reach the best talent in media, advertising, and publishing. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4069 "2011-12-29T21:49:13Z")
So he wants to tell public tv stations what business model to use? I guess he doesn’t watch public tv. Even if they lost government money, they would try to live on viewer donations. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2011, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4070 "2011-12-29T21:51:07Z")
I’m curious as to just how long it will take for the Republican Party to go ahead and rename themselves the Ferengi Party. Chrissakes, if it ain’t made of money, they don’t seem to give a shit about it. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4071 "2011-12-30T00:34:43Z")
Well that’s not completely true. They also like their big military and toeing the party line no matter what. So they’re really the Klingo-Ferengi Collective. ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4072 "2011-12-30T03:15:26Z")
Here is you path to economic success- guaranteed! ““Do you know if you do two things in your life — if you do two things in your life, you’re guaranteed never to be in poverty in this country? What two things, that if you do, will guarantee that you will not be in poverty in America? Number one, graduate from high school. Number two, get married. Before you have children. If you do those two things, you will be successful economically.” Rick Santorum ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4073 "2011-12-30T03:17:54Z")
North Carolina Family Policy Council has a short memory about the whole [crosshair imagery](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/29/north-carolina-gay-marriage-sniper-image_n_1175221.html) = bad PR move thing. ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4074 "2011-12-30T03:20:00Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > Here is you path to economic success- guaranteed! > > ““Do you know if you do two things in your life — if you do two things in your life, you’re guaranteed never to be in poverty in this country? What two things, that if you do, will guarantee that you will not be in poverty in America? Number one, graduate from high school. Number two, get married. Before you have children. If you do those two things, you will be successful economically.” Rick Santorum I can’t wait to see the response to this one. High school education and gettin’ hitched guarantees success eh? I know a whole bunch of people right now who are evidence to the contrary. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4075 "2011-12-30T03:34:16Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > Here is you path to economic success- guaranteed! > > ““Do you know if you do two things in your life — if you do two things in your life, you’re guaranteed never to be in poverty in this country? What two things, that if you do, will guarantee that you will not be in poverty in America? Number one, graduate from high school. Number two, get married. Before you have children. If you do those two things, you will be successful economically.” Rick Santorum That’s hilarious. I should send him copies of my tax returns and my first husband’s medical bills during a few years. The one adds up higher than the others and… well… let’s just say that the higher number wasn’t my tax return. I wasn’t just a married high school graduate. I was a married college graduate. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4076 "2011-12-30T03:46:53Z")
Rick, I never got married, but on the other hand my name hasn’t become synonymous with the lubricant froth of anal intercourse. So I guess it kinda worked out. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4077 "2011-12-30T23:10:13Z")
Can I nominate Frothy’s line for stupid Republican idea of the year? ---
**Author:** ![PigArcher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@PigArcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PigArcher)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4078 "2011-12-31T00:54:20Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > Here is you path to economic success- guaranteed! > > ““Do you know if you do two things in your life — if you do two things in your life, you’re guaranteed never to be in poverty in this country? What two things, that if you do, will guarantee that you will not be in poverty in America? Number one, graduate from high school. Number two, get married. Before you have children. If you do those two things, you will be successful economically.” Rick Santorum Ugh, that’s stupid. Dog whistle politics at it’s most basic: if you’re poor you either didn’t graduate from high school (i.e., you’re stupid or lazy) or you had children out of wedlock (i.e., you lack traditional values). ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4079 "2011-12-31T01:01:38Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > Can I nominate Frothy’s line for stupid Republican idea of the year? Stupid as it is, there have been so many others that we’d have to do a careful review before granting that one. I mean, think of all those Sarah Palin comments on her bus tour. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/4080 "2011-12-31T01:07:26Z")
> [@Jenaroph](#): > > North Carolina Family Policy Council has a short memory about the whole [crosshair imagery](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/29/north-carolina-gay-marriage-sniper-image_n_1175221.html) = bad PR move thing. That one’s a bit of a storm in a teacup. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=203) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=205)