Joe Barton Wins Over Tea Partiers

“Barton turned on the charm.

“‘I was Tea Party when the Tea Party wasn’t cool,’ said Barton. ‘I was the fifth member, I believe, to join the Tea Party Caucus.’

“Barton previewed the argument he’ll make tomorrow, before the steering committee that will decide whether or not to give him a waiver. He has the experience that other candidates lack and can get to work right away repealing ‘Obamacare’ and fighting other Democratic bills.

“‘I don’t think there’s any daylight between what I stand for, what my constituents in Texas stand for, and what the tea party movement stands for,’ said Barton.”

During the call, Tea Party Patriots opened up a text message vote for chairman. The results:

Barton - 53%
Stearns - 34%
Shimkus - 10%
Upton - 3%

– By Dave Weigel, Slate, Nov. 29

I like Ike

“If the Obama administration was hoping to see hints of bipartisanship from the Hill, it might want to skip over the House Energy and Commerce Committee. The committee’s ranking Republican, Rep. Joe L. Barton (Tex.), has a slide presentation that he’s e-mailing to colleagues, pledging to do for the administration what Gen. George Patton and company did for Germany.

“…He naturally touts his conservative credentials, saying, ‘I know the ropes and can hit the ground running immediately.’ He especially appeals to the newly elected members, saying he would make sure they are represented on the powerful committee.”

“Then comes the money slide, titled: ‘What's in Store for the Obama Administration,’ with photos of President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Generals Omar Bradley and George Patton in uniform. ‘Speaker Boehner is our Dwight Eisenhower in the battle against the Obama Administration. Majority Leader Cantor is our Omar Bradley. I want to be George Patton – put anything in my scope and I will shoot it.’”

– By Al Kamen, The Washington Post, Nov. 29

‘You want your best people on the field from Day One’

“…In his presentation to the Steering Committee, Barton will appeal on pure policy grounds, making the case that he's delivered key votes over the last six years for House GOP leaders as chairman and then ranking member of the Energy Committee, including opposition to cap-and-trade and health care legislation. ‘You want your best people on the field from Day One,” reads a line from Barton's presentation. “The Republican Majority has 3 to 6 months to prove to the American people that the second chance was worth it.’”

– By Darren Samuelsohn, The Politico, Nov. 29

‘Repeal the health law, undercut EPA climate rules,
and block FCC regulation of the Internet’

“…In numerous op-eds and speeches, he has promised to repeal the health law, undercut EPA climate rules, and block FCC regulation of the Internet. He’ll emphasize those points to Steering Committee members on Tuesday, according to a copy of his presentation. The crux of his pitch appears to be that only Barton is ready to chair the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee, a key venue for dueling with the Obama administration.”

– Dave Michaels, The Dallas Morning News, Nov. 29