GOP '08 contenders trek to Memphis

Up in arms about spending
Rep. Tom Feeney, R-Fla., a leading fiscal hawk, won’t be in Memphis to hear the speeches but does keep his finger on the pulse of GOP voters in his state. He points to another issue the grassroots Republicans are up in arms about: soaring federal spending.

“On domestic issues it is vital that we have a nominee that will level with the American people and provide adult leadership when it comes to spending,” Feeney said. “As bad as the Democrats are, Republicans have not had the discipline” needed to stop the growth of federal outlays.

Feeney said the next Republican president “must be willing to veto appropriations bill after appropriations bill” — something Bush hasn’t done — until spending growth is brought in line with the growth rate of the economy.

He added that “McCain has been terrific on earmark reform,” but said conservatives give the Arizona senator low marks for McCain-Feingold campaign spending bill that in their view restricts freedom of speech. Feeney said conservatives also unhappily recall that McCain joined the Senate Gang of 14 “that refused to restore the Senate’s rule of 51 votes” to confirm a Supreme Court nominee.

With an anti-incumbent feeling on the rise, it’s not an especially good time to be a Washington figure, which may create an opening at Memphis for an outside-the-Beltway politico such as Romney.

Referring to all the contenders, Davis said, “I would not be surprised to see these men distance themselves from the ‘corruption’ in D.C. and try to occupy some of the ‘independent outsider’ space Sen. McCain is currently occupying,”

Time for an outsider?
While Huckabee, Brownback and Romney aren’t yet household names in many GOP domiciles, one name will be on the mind of almost every Memphis attendee. The contenders speaking in Memphis “have to leave the activists and the political pundits with the distinct impression that they can win the Republican nomination — and more importantly, defeat Hillary Clinton,” Davis said.

Republicans haven’t had this kind of free-for-all coming at the end of two-term GOP presidency since 1987. With President Reagan weakened by the Iran-contra arms-for-hostages scandal, his vice president, George H.W. Bush was the front-runner in a contest with Sen. Bob Dole, Rep. Jack Kemp and TV evangelist Pat Robertson.

As often happens in GOP presidential primary battles, much of the party hierarchy supported the Establishment figure, Bush, who ended up the nominee.

This time there is no Establishment-blessed frontrunner. And that makes the Memphis carnival of contenders all the more fascinating to watch.

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