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Republican mega-donor Foster Friess
In the 2012 race for the Republican presidential nomination, several candidates enjoyed the backing of their very own rich guy to help bankroll their campaigns. For Rick Santorum, it was Foster Friess, who made quite a public impression.
It was Friess, you'll recall, who told MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell, "Back in my days, they used Bayer Aspirin for contraceptives. The gals put it between their knees and it wasn't that costly." Soon after, he proclaimed, "Now that [Republicans] have trained their barrels on President Obama, I hope his teleprompters are bullet-proof."
Friess has not, however, gone away. Indeed, he spoke with reporters late last week, arguing that despite President Obama's decisive victory, the expanded Senate Democratic majority, and House Democrats getting more votes than their GOP counterparts, "the American people gave the Republicans a mandate in this last election." The political world would recognize this GOP mandate were it not for the fact it "got masked" by the actual election results.
And how is it, exactly, that Friess sees a Republican mandate? As he sees it, votes from "center cities" don't really count when considering who has genuine public support. Robert Schlesinger reported:
Obama won by five million votes. But Friess dismissed that margin, arguing that a 350,000 vote flip across four states (which he couldn't name) would have given Romney the election.
To me, 350,000 votes is not a huge mandate, even though the total numbers, which take into account a lot of those center cities, went for Obama.
When I asked him if he was saying that votes from "center cities" should be discounted, his answer, in full, was: "Yes."
Friess went on to say that there is a lack of entrepreneurship in "these center cities."
I have to admit, "center cities" is a euphemism I haven't heard before. I suppose Friess assumes that if he said he doesn't want to count votes from "inner cities," he'd be accused of racism, so he uses "center cities" to make the racism more oblique. How gracious of him.
Friess added that he believes in supporting gay rights by preventing "Sharia law"; the gender gap would be smaller had Democrats not "seduced" women voters; and he's looking forward to investing heavily in Republican candidates during the 2014 midterms.
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Whack jobs like this exist among all political persuasions as a generally consistent though (fortunately for democracy) relatively small portion of the population. The difference here is that in the GOP they are not only tolerated, but actually given sway in the political process. Where is the conservative outcry against such ignorance and racism?
#26, progressivejustlikeJesus, "Where is the conservative outcry?"
It is nonexistent. Nor are they willing to accept that their policies are largely responsible for the proliferation of poverty among those in the inner cities. Nor can they agree that their policies are responsible for the de facto segregation and crime in the inner cities.
Their ignorance and racism have blinded them to the truth. Sadly, we are still being held hostage, as a country, to their extreme and egregious policies. If they had their way entirely, such as the austere Ryan plan, things would go from bad (very bad) to much worse.
People like Foster Friess have a lot to account for, A LOT. Their sense of "rightness" and self confidence is sorely misplaced.
I guess he never heard that retirees and twenty somethings are moving back to the very cities he dismisses so easily. We are getting a real look at the ethics of the 1%.
Or lack thereof.
Re stupid old rich guys: I think maybe they're smarter when they're young and make the money. Then they surround themselves with flunkeys who tell them they're wonderful. After a couple of decades in that bubble, they come to believe all the flattery, and that they're incapable of a dumb thought.
They are certainly so full of themselves, so secure in their "correctness", that they are incapable of seeing the monsters they have become.
They are incapable of seeing the truth, too. Sadly, they force their lies down people's throats and their damaging laws keep getting passed as a result. We can't even vote these people out anymore. They have no one to fear, as the people who put them into power are as nuts and ignorant as they are.
Foster is a twofer -- a walking, talking advertisement for both campaign finance reform AND tighter Wall Street regulation.
One could equate suburban votes as "quality votes" with his logic.
I get why the GOP doesn't care for women, gays or minorities, as they don't vote for them. But what did logic and common sense ever do to deserve the constant attacks the Republicans are always leveling at them?
What happened here is a classic example of an ultra wealthy person that is used to getting things their way because they paid for it. Mr. Friess appears to be experiencing a temper tantrum because he didn't get his way and he is trying to focus the blame on others instead of himself.
"so he uses "inner cities" to make the racism more oblique."
I'm pretty sure you meant to write " center cities" there.
Why is it that whenever I hear this guy's name, I start to think about ice cream?
http://www.cbs47.tv/media/lib/24/7/f/e/7fe69723-c312-4a0b-a874-ef11251c8dc7/Story.jpg
Friess: snow cones? LOL
Nothing as benign as ice cream or snow cones crosses my mind when I see that self-satisfied, smug, obnoxioous face.
What I think is against my religion and the law of the land.
I take comfort in knowing his kind is a dying breed. Those not willing to move with the changing America will be left in the dust, and without a party to call their own.
It is nice to see a good old fashioned degenerate racist come out and embrace his fascist roots. So many times they try and pretend that they are actually capable of rational, moral thought.
George,#35
They are only fooling themselves with that idea! They are beyond the ability to see how immoral and monstrous they have become.
They are moral degenerates; beyond any understanding or grasp of Truth. They live in their ivory towers, away from reality, blinded by their own self-satisfaction.
It is not for nothing that pride is considered the great sin. It is the one which warps one's understanding of all the others.
More proof that money doesn't care who it belongs to!
seriously, what is wrong with these people?
#37,
See #35.1.
So our votes from those "center cities" should be discounted to what? 3/5 that of his vote?
Life must be good on Planet Friess.
"Shea McGeehan -I have had dealings with this man. He is great fun in a group because he is so dumb and so unaffected by it. But he is also corrupt and cruel. And old. I console myself with the knowledge that he won't be around much longer."
I was thinking the same thing (about the being old part). Guess we just have to wait these guys out because, regardless of the amount of money they have, they won't live forever!! I wish I understood how peoples' brains work, especially conservatives, and why people seem to get more conservative as they age. I'm way more liberal now than when I was in my 20's!!
It's just that racism thing again. Republicans get their mandate from the "real" Americna voters... you know, the white ones.
What does he mean a lack of entrepreneurship in "these center cities? Every drug dealer and pan handler is an entrepreneur. They are just closed off to legitimate entrepreneurship like big pharma and wall street.
This proves my point, the oxymoron's are old grey butt men whose purpose in their miserable lives is to assure everyone that being a buffoon is still a viable career.
I think the "C" word should only used for old white rich men who think they are God's gift to man.
If you look back at ancient political history, especially in the Bible, not much has changed. Whether you are a “believer” or just look at the Bible as a good book, politics has remained the same for ages. The “average” man was suppressed & repressed, and the loudest, most violent voices were heeded. As in the story of Jesus and Barabbas; when the wealthy political leader asked the people who should live, the loudest voices were the followers of thieving, murderous, war-mongering Barabbas. Not that there were more of them, they were just louder.
And now, the average man is making his voice heard loudly enough to be a threat to the status quo and we must continue to do so.
Foster's Freeze at least provided a product of benefit to society--frozen custard. In this case, the only thing frozen seems to be this guy's mind.
Let's hope he keeps talking and spending on clueless candidates. The more Friess talks, the better it is for the Democrats.
You can't fix stupid and you can't enlighten the narcissistic sociopath, you can however do your part however small to strengthen the progressive movement, encourage like minded thinkers to actually get out and vote for people who will advance an agenda that will actually do something good for the American people.
Hey!! In mentioning some of the entrepreneurial areas of the U.S. I noted one stark omission---Seattle, home of Microsoft, Amazon, Nordstrom's, Costco and Starbuck's, to name just a few...A little farther south, there is a small company called Nike.
Isn't racism what it's all about. We looked at the president being elected as a sign that prejudice was on the decline. What we didn't realize at the time was who exactly was a bigot. People that we didn't expect came out of the wood work shouting racist words with a fear in their voice. I find this unbelievable. They are afraid that these minorities are going to in some way harm them and their way of life. In Michigan the state congress is on an all time rush to destroy the cities governments and not provide education or police, firemen, ect for what they deem minority. I am white and democratic. I have never seen anything like what is going on in this state. The dutch influenced west side of the state is turning it into a small version of South Africa. The small communities that are totally afraid to wonder into a city, like it is diseased crack me up. They don't want their children touched by influences be it gay or black. I am ashamed of this state and it's congress and their march to white supremacy. It is the De Vos and the Friess's that stir up this fictional fear to satisfy their own prejudice. They need to be sent to Texas and have it abdicate