Day: April 27, 2015

Ryan Advises Clinton Not to Be a Campaign Robot

Buck Banks

You can’t let the process numb you to the point where you’re just a robot. Even though all the pressure is ‘Don’t gaffe, don’t deviate, be prepared, give the prepared thing,’ you’ve got to watch that, because you can just be boring and you can be vanilla and you can so sanitize yourself that you’re not yourself.

— Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), quoted by Politico, on running for national office.

‘It’s Not About French Fries; It’s About Freedom’

Buck Banks

I have proposed a new rule to allow school districts to install deep fat fryers and sell beverages like diet soda. I believe each school district – not the state or federal government – should decide what foods are offered to students … If a school district doesn’t agree with any of these changes, then the district doesn’t have to implement them. That’s the beauty here. It’s not about French fries; it’s about freedom.

— Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, in a letter to the Houston Chronicle.

The Backlash Against Religious Freedom Laws Is Significant

Buck Banks

57%

Of Americans think businesses should not be able to refuse service to gay weddings on religious grounds, while 41% do, according to a new CNN/Opinion Research poll. That’s a significant shift from a Pew Research poll last September that found 47% in favor of religious freedom laws and a January AP-Gfk poll that found 57% in favor. “One of the apparent side effects of the religious freedom controversies in Indiana and (to a lesser extent) Arkansas: More Americans now oppose such laws than before,” the Washington Post reports.