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May 25, 2012
Mark Clayton: Is Hillary's State Dept. hacking Al Qaeda? Not quite
Erika Bolstad: Temple cancels Wasserman Schultz speech
The Kosher Gourmet by Ethel G. Hofman: The former president of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, whose members included the likes of Julia Child, is back with contemporary Shavous cuisine: Ruby Fruit Soup, Sweet Noodle Kugel with Cheese, Key Lime Curd, Calsone Casserole Frittata with Wild Mushrooms, Sun-dried tomatoes and Olives, Baked Tilapia with Pepper Cheese Cream and Brown Sugar Shortbread
May 24, 2012
Jeff Jacoby: The peace process battered Israel's reputation
Michael Muskal: 'Pro-choice' position hits record low, according to poll
Chris Farrell: Are We in a Tech Bubble?
The Kosher Gourmet by Penelope Wall: PHILLY CHEESE STEAKS --- hold the steak!
May 23, 2012
Tony Pugh: More private colleges offering tuition discounts
Mary Beth Franklin: How to Choose the Right Annuity for You
Tina Susman: The wig wasn't enough: Man gets 13 years for posing as his dead mom
The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen:A simple way to do fish right
May 22, 2012
Warren Richey: Can US group challenge overseas surveillance act? Supreme Court to decide
Thomas M. Anderson: Walking Away From a Mortgage
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: Enjoy a celebration of the most rich and layered flavors: Black bean, sweet potato and quinoa chili
May 21, 2012
Mark Clayton: Cybersecurity: How US utilities passed up chance to protect their networks
Howard LaFranchi: NATO summit: Who will foot the bill for long-term Afghanistan security?
Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Stephen Whiteside, Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Social anxiety disorder --- or just shy?
Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: Famed chef's veal shoulder farsumagru: A festive meat course for late spring
May 18, 2012
Rabbi Berel Wein: Striving: The People of the Book's Book for (All of) the People
Steven Goldberg: 5 Great Stock Picks and the Exchange-Traded Fund that Owns Them
Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
Steven Goldberg: Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Amina Khan: Research links coffee to lower death rates
The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
Carmen Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: A variety of exercises can help improve balance
Melissa Healy: National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025
The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
Pat Mertz Esswein: Homes are now affordable again and mortgage rates are low. What you need to know before you buy
Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
Sue Hubbard, M.D.: The Kid's Doctor: Lactose intolerant young child? Check again
The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Hunt: Spread a Little Excitement with EXOTIC CONDIMENTS (4 RECIPES)
May 14, 2012
Lisa Gerstner: How to Protect Your Identity, Finances If You Lose Your Phone
Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
Jeff Bertolucci: Get Home Phone Service for Less Than $10 a Month
The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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Jewish World Review
Jan 31, 2012/ 7 Shevat, 5772
The Gaffe Patrol abandons Newt
By
Wesley Pruden
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
The Gaffe Patrol keeps its Nieuports, Spads and Sopwith Camels lined up wingtip-to-wingtip just off the runway at a secret base somewhere deep in Shangri-La, eager to pounce on a politician whose tongue slips. Only the valiant fly with the Gaffe Patrol.
But not always. Mitt Romney seemed to be asking for a visit from the Gaffe Patrol this week when he told a cable-TV interviewer that he "wasn't concerned about the very poor" because they have "the safety net," the middle class doesn't, and the rich don't need one. Taken in the context of the interview this was unremarkable stuff. Mitt has from the start aimed his campaign at middle-class voters, the overtaxed and underappreciated majority.
But context, as any journalist could tell you, is for sissies, and CNN decreed that Mitt had made "a potential speaking gaffe." The brave and resolute men of the Gaffe Patrol buckled their chinstraps, adjusted their goggles, threw a silk scarf jauntily against the wind and waited for the phone to ring in the ready shack.
Only this time it didn't ring. Mitt "clarified" his remarks and there seemed to be no damage, collateral or otherwise. The next day, when Newt said he cared about the "very poor" even if Mitt didn't, there was still no co-ordinated strafing of the Romney campaign. Newt, no doubt puzzled by the silence in the skies, reached for a stretch. The "safety net" was not enough, anyway. "What the poor need," he said, "is a trampoline so that they can spring up."
With Newt off to the sporting goods store in search of a trampoline, the campaign lurched on toLas Vegas, where The Donald, king of reality television, waited to reveal his favorite in the race to the Republican nomination. Would it be Newt Gingrich? The Associated Press, the New York Times and Politico all said so. Or would it be Mitt? Nobody said anything about Rick Santorum or Ron Paul, or even Buddy Roemer, the former governor of Louisiana who was last seen in his pirogue adrift on Bayou Bartholomew. The Drudge Report, right as usual, said Mitt was the man.
You couldn't blame Newt for thinking the Gaffe Patrol was a squadron of malingerers. There was no pursuit of Mitt earlier when Newt accused Mitt, as governor of Massachusetts, of vetoing legislation "paying for kosher food for seniors in nursing homes -- Holocaust survivors." Surely, Newt thought, this accusation would be enough to darken the skies over Miami Beach with flights of Spads and Nieuports, eager to avenge Mormon hypocrisy on religious freedom. When it didn't happen Newt glumly withdrew the accusation.
Newt couldn't even tempt the Gaffe Patrol to the skies with the resurrection of the tale of the dog on the roof. He put up an advertisement on the Internet telling again the story of how, 25 years ago, Mitt put the family dog Seamus, an Irish setter, in his kennel and strapped it to the roof of the car for a 12-hour trip to Ontario for a family vacation. Seamus, who has long since been scouting the heavenly meadows for mischief with Lassie and Rin Tin Tin, survived. So did Mitt, though it was the gravest national dog crisis since Lyndon Johnson picked up his beagle by its ears, and animal-rights fanatics were eager to sic a pit bull on Mitt. Newt never put up the ad on television, probably because he didn't have the money to do it.
Newt is learning the painful lesson that once your campaign begins losing altitude, nothing works. The Gaffe Patrol rarely avenges gaffes, and never what CNN calls "potential gaffes." Even the Gaffe Patrol must save fuel in these straitened times. Newt thus feels driven to saying ever more absurd things, like statehood for the moon (the moon could be "paired" for admission with the District of Columbia), dogs on the roof, and the absence of kosher brisket in Jewish nursing homes, or Mitt's forging campaign alliances with George Soros and Goldman Sachs. The absence of grace and tact in politics accelerates. When Rick Santorum left the campaign after the Floridaprimary to be with a gravely ill daughter, Newt suggested it would be a good time for him to drop out permanently and endorse Newt. This absence of grace is of a piece with his treatment of his wives and other women he leaves wounded in his wake.
Newt can't help himself. The ego and narcissm that crippled a first-rate mind is the legacy of the '60s. The rest of us are paying now for the damage inflicted by that dreadful decade, the great gaffe of history. Alas, there was no Gaffe Patrol to avenge that one.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Wesley Pruden is editor emeritus of The Washington Times. Comment by clicking here.
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