Month: September 2012

Why CEOs Are Not Presidential Material

Trish

MittHuffyRightSize

After living through two years of bumbling attempts by a former CEO to run state government like a business, I had a flash of recognition when I heard Mitt Romney’s take on the Israeli/Palestinian problem.

Tea Party Republican and former HCA Columbia Chair Rick Scott, who spent $75 million of his own money on his campaign, took over the Florida governorship confident he would use his business skills to root out waste, slash the state payroll, get rid of regulations that hold back business, and create jobs. One of his first moves was to turn down millions in federal assistance to build a high-speed rail line that would have employed Floridians, taken cars off the eight-lane parking lots that serve as commuter roads, and made the state a leader in the transportation technology of the future.

When Romney says there is no hope for peace in the Middle East, he’s really telling us he doesn’t have what it takes to be president

From there, he rolled out a series of privatization proposals, such as turning over prisons to corporate managers and allowing developers to build golf courses in state parks. Within weeks of taking office, Scott’s approval ratings hit record lows, along with Florida’s employment numbers, which under Scott’s leadership have remained worse than the nation as a whole.

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Rommey Admits He Isn’t Qualified to Be President

Trish

I don’t pay more than are legally due and frankly if I had paid more than are legally due, I don’t think I’d be qualified to become president.

Mitt Romney, talking about his taxes to ABC News in July. The candidate for president recently released his 2011 tax return, which showed that Romney intentionally claimed less in charitable deductions than he was entitled to in order to make sure he paid at least 13% in taxes, as he previously swore that he did. Romney’s income is almost totally from investments which are taxed, thanks to Republicans, at a much lower rate than work. His campaign admitted rigging the return in this statement: “Gov. Romney has been clear that no American need pay more than he or she owes under the law. At the same time, he was in the unique position of having made a commitment to the public that his tax rate would be above 13%. He directed his preparers to ensure that he is consistent with that statement.

How Much Does Obama Want to Hug Charlie Crist?

Trish

I can admit it now – I can hug him all I want.

— Pres. Obama, coming out of the closet about his affection for former Gov. Charlie Crist at a fundraiser in Tampa, site of the recent 2012 GOP convention. Crist went down in flames in his race for U.S. Senate against Marco Rubio as he switched from Republican to no party affiliation, married a New York socialite amid rumors that he is gay, and was dogged by a photograph of a clearly platonic shoulder hug with the president shortly after Obama was elected. Crist is said to be contemplating running for his old office of governor in 2014, but this time as a Democrat.

Wrong, Mitt, Eight Out of 10 States with the Most No-Income-Tax-Paying Moochers Are Voting for You, Not the President

Jon Ponder

map-moocher-states

The states in red are the 10 states where there are the most people who do not pay income tax. Mitt Romney, who described those who pay no income tax as people who are “dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what.”

Polling and conventional wisdom suggest that all of the red moocher states but two — New Mexico and Florida — are solidly voting for Romney. The states that are sure bets for Romney are, in order of percentage of moochers who pay no income tax: Mississipi, Georgia, Arkansas, Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana, Texas and Idaho. New Mexico, which leans Obama, ranks fourth and Florida, a swing state in which the president has led in recent polls, ranks ninth.

Ezra Klein at the Washington Posts predicts that these ten moocher states will provide 95 electoral votes for Romney and five for the president.

The Romney Campaign Has Had Weeks, At Least, to Prepare for Release of Devastating Video – Knowing the End Was Near Could Explain Its Infighting and Fumbles

Jon Ponder

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

It has been less than 24 hours since Mother Jones magazine released the video of Mitt Romney disparaging half the electorate as government-dependent freeloaders, and many pundits are already suggesting that Romney may not be able to recover from it, and they may well be right.

But, as Rachel Maddow reported last night, the national media has been aware of the video for weeks and even months. Excerpts were first posted anonymously on YouTube as long ago as May, not long after the fundraiser took place. They were also posted by someone using a couple different YouTube accounts in late August, around the time of the Republican National Convention in Tampa. If the media elite have known about this potentially devastating, game-changing video for three weeks and longer, then it’s a sure bet that both the Romney and Obama campaigns have known about it that long, too.

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Romney Says Obama is Wrong To Try To Put People Back to Work

Trish

His whole campaign is based on getting people jobs again, putting people back to work.

— Mitt Romney, criticizing Pres. Obama for his efforts to increase employment. In contrast, Romney said it’s the personal responsibility of the unemployed to change their job status: “My campaign is about helping people take more responsibility and becoming employed again, particularly those who don’t have work.”

Caught on Tape: Romney Says Half of Americans Are Lazy Free Loaders

Jon Ponder

Mother Jones has obtained secretly recorded audio of Mitt Romney at a fundraiser earlier this year with other 1 percenters in which he describes half the U.S. electorate as government dependents:

MITT ROMNEY: There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what.

He also said, “[M]y job is is not to worry about those people. I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.”

Paul Ryan Is Pushing Romney to Shift Campaign Focus from Economy to War on Women

Jon Ponder
Source: Guttmacher Institute
Source: Guttmacher Institute

The fact that the weak employment report for August did not notably depress support for Pres. Obama has spooked Mitt Romney’s campaign about its all-in “it’s the economy, stupid,” strategy for the 2012 election. According to a report from Buzzfeed Politics, Romney’s teavangelical vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan is urging the campaign to pivot to social issues, including the GOP’s efforts to put government in charge of women’s reproductive decisions:

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Latest Republican Dirty Trick Could Keep Democrats Home Voluntarily

Trish

DisguisedElephant

Florida Republicans are redefining the word “dirty” in the phrase “dirty politics.” Their latest trick is intended to keep Democrats away from the polls — voluntarily.

Mailers were sent to Democrats calling out candidates, like state Sen. Audrey Gibson, for not being progressive enough — especially for working or compromising with Republicans — and the pieces appear to come from fellow Democrats.

“Progressives” is run by a group of Republican operatives who are using mailers designed to look like they are from a Democratic-leaning group to attack Democrats across the state…

Guess who wins if Democrats stay home?

The group is chaired by Alachua County Republican Party Chairman Stafford Jones, who runs several other fund-raising groups that pay for political advertisements. It shares an address with the law firm of Richard Coates, general counsel for the Republican Party of Florida…

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