Archive
Reuters blog archive
from The Great Debate:
California v. Texas in fight for the future
It is not a national election year, but the “red state versus blue state” wars continue. Texas Governor Rick Perry's recent foray into California, to lure away businesses and jobs, signals more than a rivalry between these two mega-states. The Texas-California competition represents the political, economic and cultural differences driving American politics today – and for the foreseeable future.
Texas and California are robust political and economic competitors. We don’t know which will be the template for the future. As California emerges from its economic and fiscal doldrums and some of Texas' vulnerabilities become evident, it is now far from certain that Texas will emerge the victor.
California is a global hub for trade, tourism, culture and the manufacture of ideas and intellectual property. From high tech and biotech to entertainment, travel and logistics, the state’s brand transcends national boundaries. The Golden State tops the nation in agriculture. It also sets the pace on green energy development, which could lead to a dramatic increase in the state’s energy production.
The Texas economy has always been based on energy and agriculture. But the Lone Star State has been building a manufacturing and service base, attracting businesses with lower wage rates, weak unions, a friendly regulatory climate and large fiscal incentives. It remains to be seen whether it can maintain its economic momentum and overcome the inevitable obstacles to growth, such as a popping of the latest energy bubble.
from The Great Debate:
Dems shouldn’t mess with Texas
There has been much ado lately about the Democratic Party’s new project to turn Texas blue. What’s lost on the liberals in D.C., California and Manhattan who will throw money at this futile effort, however, is that the Texas Republican Party is different and far stronger than its counterparts in other states. And it’s not just because the Lone Star State under Republican control has become the envy of the nation in terms of job creation and economic growth.
One reason Democrats think the GOP’s hold over Texas is so precarious is demographics. Latinos make up 38 percent of the state population, a portion that is projected to rise to more than 50 percent by 2030. Since GOP nominee Mitt Romney got a dismal 27 percent of the Latino vote in November, it seems intuitive that a growing Latino population would spell trouble for Republicans. Yet Texas Republicans have done far better with Latinos than Republicans nationally because their approach to immigration has not been the antagonistic sort offered by Republicans in California, Arizona and other states.
from Tales from the Trail:
Washington Extra – Home alone
When it comes to fixing the housing market in this election year, it's a battle between the "ineffective" and the "do-nothing."
President Obama's relief measures for homeowners facing foreclosure have fallen far short of objectives. Republican candidates, meanwhile, prefer to let the marketplace work its magic. Prices will then hit bottom and begin to recover.
from Tales from the Trail:
Perry stands ground on Turkey
Given an opportunity to revise (back down or retract) his comments he made in Monday's Republican debate linking Turkey to "Islamic terrorists," Texas Governor Rick Perry stood his ground on Tuesday.
The Republican presidential candidate made no apology for nearly touching off an international incident with his take on the long-time U.S. ally. Perry defended his view in a CNN interview, hours after Turkey's response.
from Tales from the Trail:
Rick Perry lags in home state of Texas
Tuesday only got worse for Texas Governor Rick Perry whose comments about Turkey in a debate last night got him lambasted by foreign policy experts, the Turkish press, and the Turkish government in Ankara.
Perry, the longest serving governor in Texas history, polled only third in a survey of his fellow Longhorn Republicans, according to a poll released Tuesday.
from Tales from the Trail:
Reuters Washington Extra – Behind the numbers
At last night's debate, Mitt Romney said he'd be happy to release his tax returns in April. But today he disclosed a crucial piece of information as the clamor grew for him to come out with his returns. The frontrunner to clinch the Republican nomination has a tax rate that "is probably closer to 15 percent than anything."
That's a low rate, but it is in line with what is paid by wealthy Americans who earn much of their income from capital gains, which are taxed at 15 percent. So, now the number is out and we will see how American voters (and wage earners) react.
from Tales from the Trail:
Roemer camp pressures networks, pollsters in search of “Roementum”
Former Louisiana governor and Republican presidential hopeful Buddy Roemer is turning up the heat on his opponents: polling companies and national television networks. Roemer, who was in Congress longer than Michele Bachmann and was a governor for as long as Mitt Romney, has yet to be invited to a single Republican debate. That's because the national television networks determine who gets invited to their debates based on a shifting set of polling criteria, and they have yet to
from Tales from the Trail:
Perry attacks more conservative rivals, ignores Romney
Texas Gov. Rick Perry's latest ads don't even bother attacking Republican frontrunner Mitt Romney. With polls showing him in fifth place among Republicans in Iowa and seventh in New Hampshire, Perry's aim is now to emerge as one of the top two conservative options to Romney.
To get there, he needs to knock off some of the other candidates polling immediately in front of him -- which is why his latest TV ad in Iowa attacks Rep. Ron Paul, Rep. Michele Bachmann, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and ex-Sen. Rick Santorum, but doesn't mention Romney.
from Tales from the Trail:
Mitt Romney, car nut
Perhaps it's no surprise to know that Mitt Romney is a car nut.
After all, Romney grew up in Michigan, where his father, George, once ran American Motors Corporation before becoming the state's governor and launching his own failed bid for the White House.
Romney talked about his cars at campaign stops in Lancaster and Randolph, New Hampshire - and even offered to buy a classic car.
from Tales from the Trail:
Romney reveals his debate card, says inheritance given away
During Rick Perry's now infamous "oops" moment at a Republican debate last month, the Texas governor gave a panicked glance at his cue card to see if it held the name of the third agency of government he vowed to eliminate. It did not.
Today Mitt Romney told Reuters' Steve Holland and Jim Gaines about his own debate card. Romney says he writes "Dad" on his card "just to remember a person who, if he's able to watch, I'm sure he is."
