Rick raises money for conservative groups...

Rick has signed his name to a letter from one of my favorite tax watch dogs, ATR... Americans for Tax Reform (link). Wayne Slater is busy spinning this into some scandal about Bob Perry, but being affiliated with fundraising efforts for ATR and the RGA is a 100% good thing in my book.

Ever since I signed up for the conference call with Rick and Mark Sanford, I get emails from the RGA. They have a banner on its emails featuring Rick.

Rick is probably one of the biggest fundraisers they have ever had. The guy is a born salesman and the best pure politician of the four people featured there. Jindal and Sanford might be the most cerebral, and Palin might be the most interesting, but Rick has what you might call the whole package. He can raise money. He can give a really good speech. He is folksy yet urbane. He has solid conservative credentials. He has good political instincts and can go into a board room and have a Mitt Romney moment or a Denny's and have a Bill Clinton "I feel your pain" moment with equal comfort. Is Rick planning any trips to Iowa or New Hampshire anytime soon?

On a serious note, I think Rick reminds liberals a lot of Bush, which is why he is the target of so much MSNBC bashing.