May 10, 2012

"15 Genuinely Interesting Things About Rob Portman."

Hey, that stuff really is interesting.

And let me add #16:

16. Meade once ran into him on a biking trail, and he was doing something with something in a tree, and he just very gregariously explained to Meade that someone had lost a mitten and he was just putting it in the tree hoping I'm putting it in a place where whoever lost it will see it. Meade rode on thinking "What a good guy."

37 comments:

Bob Ellison said...

"They each lay four eggs a day."

No. Nice try, but it makes me suspect that most of the rest is BS.

Shanna said...

someone had lost a mitten

People who run a lot sometimes leave things on the trail and come pick them up later, sometimes clothes sometimes water bottles, so it could be that's what was happening (although I suppose there should have been two mittens). I have to resist the urge to pick up what looks like trash when I'm on the trails.

Franklin said...

Portman would have to be the frontrunner, right? Or is the Romney camp using him to draw MSM attack machine fire from Rubio before the convention?

Or, are they simply waiting to see how polling is going in FL and OH closer to the election and will pick whichever helps them the most in those two states?

Awesome said...

Good heavens, that list is such a breath of fresh air after Obama the exotic.

I'm Full of Soup said...

I like this list.

The Repubs seem to be evolving into the normal person type while the Dems, to me, are getting more and more shrill and desperate-sounding.

BarrySanders20 said...

What's this about Portman putting Mitt-in a tree?

Must be some Morman VP-vetting exercise.

dreams said...

"The Repubs seem to be evolving into the normal person type while the Dems, to me, are getting more and more shrill and desperate-sounding."

Thats why the liberal media have to destroy them just as they did to Sarah Palin. I've heard born-again christian women say they can't stand Sarah Palin.

rehajm said...

Latest poll says Portman doesn't help

edutcher said...

#17. He's been a Senator for a little more than a year.

Too little time in grade.

Sorry.

Blue@9 said...

"They each lay four eggs a day."

No. Nice try, but it makes me suspect that most of the rest is BS.


Yeah, I was gonna say... maybe it means that the four chickens lay four eggs a day, which sounds right.

Meade said...

"Too little time in grade."

feature

Mary Beth said...

It was all good until I got to "his son and him".

damikesc said...

I love that Portman is boring, basically because he's white --- while Obama, who might be the least interesting person I've ever experienced, is cool because of his skin color.

Kinda ironic, don't you think?

#17. He's been a Senator for a little more than a year.

Too little time in grade.

Sorry.


He's might be VP. If noted imbecile Biden can do it, it really isn't that difficult.

Carol said...

Eh, kinda SWPL outdoorsy stuff.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

With hubcaps, you want to lean them against the curb.

Ann Althouse said...

"He's been a Senator for a little more than a year."

Check out his record. He was Director of the Office of Management and Budget (2006 – 2007), United States Trade Representative 2005 – 2006, and a Congressman from 1993 – 2005.

He also worked for President George H. W. Bush as Associate White House Counsel and was Director of the White House Office of Legislative Affairs.

traditionalguy said...

Portman appears to have the rare talent of being publicly rewarded for being himself, always in the spotlight showing off his continual humility over his rewards.

That is a good talent to have. It draws rewards for being such a good example. And who doesn't want to be good like Rob.? It almost seems like we are rewarding ourselves every time Rob gets another reward.

Let's reward him with the VP nomination next. He certainly must be worthy because he already has received so many rewards.

The Elder said...

"What a good guy."

Spending time in Lebanon, Ohio can do that to you.

Greg said...

If he's a nice guy, then he certainly must have been a bully as a teenager.

And as for those turbo charged chickens, if they lay a total of 3 eggs a day, I'll be surprised.

Snark aside, Portman sounds like a great guy.

tim maguire said...

An awful lot about chickens and kayaking. Maybe he is a great guy, but he sounds like just another child of privilege from that list.

Presumably we'll learn more about the 12 pieces of legislation signed by Bill Clinton. Not all of us would put that in the "brag about it" column.

Larry J said...

edutcher said...
#17. He's been a Senator for a little more than a year.

Too little time in grade.


About the same as when Obama ran for the presidency in 2008. Plus, he's done a lot more than Obama ever did in his entire life. If that little time in grade makes Portman unqualified for the vice presidency, it stands to reason that Obama was completely unqualified for the presidency. His dismal track record proves the point, doesn't it?

ndspinelli said...

I think they were really K-I-S-S-I-N-G. NTTAWWT.

MayBee said...

When he was my Congressman, I saw him shopping at Kroger. Gotta love that.

Especially compared to my current Congressman, Henry Waxman, who as far as I know never steps foot in the district.

ndspinelli said...

I believe you could land a small aircraft in just one of Henry Waxman's nostrils.

Pastafarian said...

Portman would be a good pick; he's really a great guy. Picking him certainly wouldn't hurt in Ohio. It's not like he's wildly popular here, or even widely known, yet. But the act of picking an Ohioan would put us on a pedestal, and that never hurts.

And the ticket Romney/Portman would have to be the most squeaky-clean, good decent human being ticket ever fielded. The contrast between Romney/Portman, versus Fast-and-Furious Community Organizer/Grabastic Moron, would be stark indeed.

That's like Jesus/Mother Teresa versus Ivan the Terrible/Cthulhu.

Pastafarian said...

rehajm at 1:38: That's because no one knows who he is...yet. From your own article:

"...Interestingly, 59 percent of Ohio voters say they don't know enough about Portman to have an opinion of him..."

When they realize who he is, yeah, he'll help. He'll give the ticket a bump of a couple of percent in Ohio.

And while Romney absolutely has to have Florida to win, I think he's better off just assuming that Florida is already won. If he can't carry Florida without adding Rubio to the ticket, then Romney will be in trouble in plenty of other places even with Rubio.

Picking Portman would be an offensive move, because there is no way in hell that Obama wins without Ohio. Obama's not going to get bizarre pickups like Indiana and North Carolina this time.

CWJ said...

Dayanm!!

I avoided this post all afternoon long, and just got around to reading it. As someone else said, what a breath of fresh air. Not saying anything about his "ticket" qualifications. Just saying that as politicians go, this is an interesting person about whom I want to know more.

Full disclosure: a little kid lost their zippered hood this winter on our local walking/biking trail and every time it blows away, I put it back on the bench nearest the entrance. Sadly, its still there.

CWJ said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
rcommal said...

That list made me smile. Love it! And anyone who didn't click the video of the chicken imitation might want to reconsider. LOL!

yashu said...

There was a post 2 weeks ago on NRO about Portman's friendship with Stuart Stevens, Romney's chief strategist: here. Went into a little more detail about his role in debate prep:

It’s also not a secret that Stevens openly admires Portman’s debating skills, particularly in a vice-presidential setting. Stevens, a former Bush adviser, worked closely with Portman during both of President Bush’s campaigns. During debate prep, Portman played the role of Joe Lieberman in 2000 and John Edwards in 2004.

In The Big Enchilada, Stevens’s book about Bush’s 2000 presidential campaign, the strategist describes his admiration for Portman’s ability: “Rob Portman had Lieberman down perfectly, capturing his funny but biting style.”

In her memoir, Now It’s My Turn, Cheney’s daughter Mary wrote about that prep session — and Stevens’s respect for Portman’s judgment.  It was Portman who predicted that Lieberman may ask Cheney to sign a pledge, on live television, not to run negative campaign ads. “Portman’s point,” she writes, “one strongly supported by political strategist Stuart Stevens . . . playing the moderator, was that just because something the rules say isn’t allowed doesn’t mean it won’t happen.”

Before Bush’s final general-election debate against Al Gore that year, Portman was asked to play the role of the incumbent vice president. He sparred with Bush during what Stevens calls a “typically informal affair at the governor’s mansion,” and predicted, once again, that the other candidate would break the rules, or at least try to intimidate Bush. Portman impressed the Texan with his ease at imitating Gore, Stevens writes, from his awkward mannerisms to his political rhetoric. And, “just as Portman predicted, Gore stalked Bush, moving right over to him like a drunken frat boy trying to pick a fight in a bar.”


Awesome. Oh, what I wouldn't give to see Portman's impression of Obama. I bet he is (or will be) doing some "Obama" for Romney's debate prep-- hahaha, what a role to sink his teeth into!

tim in vermont said...

I think the record for a laying hen is something like 360 eggs in a year, so those hens of his are something special!

I say Romney should go with Don Rumsfeld.

Ralph L said...

His wife needs to eat something (more nutritious than a mitten).

trumpetdaddy said...

Jane is tall and quite athletic for a 50-ish woman, so she looks "thin" in some photos. We live about a mile or so from the Portmans and she is a frequent runner on local streets. They are both very outdoors-y.

Rob is a great person and his family are very good folks. He has the best memory of just about any person I've ever met. Super smart and has the rare talent of being able to very pointedly disagree with you without coming across disagreeable.

I've known Rob for 16 years and would run through a wall for Romney if he picks him for VP. It would be an absolutely stellar choice on many levels.

Patrick said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Carnifex said...

@Pastafarian

That would make the main event at WWE Super Duper Slam!!!. I got a pretty good chuckle outta it.

Seems like a nice guy. Quiet...too quiet...AAAHHHHH!!!!!

So where are his warts...he's a person, he has them. He's a politician, he has douzzies!(doussies? dusies?)How do you spell doesie?

Carnifex said...

Just got another chuckle out of Carol's remarks vis a vie her avatar...A Templer knight...white outdoorsy stuff. :-)

Patrick said...

#17. On Althouse's Blog, a posting about him garnered 36 comments, whereas on the same day, a far more prurient story about John Edwards had only 26.

Rob Portman: More interesting than John Edwards, without the sleaze!