Month: October 2012
Nobody’s Buying Memoir by Disgraced Former California Governor
21,000
Number of copies sold in first week of memoir by disgraced former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, despite aggressive promotional campaign that included a “60 Minutes” interview in which Schwarzenegger admitted to all his extramarital affairs that have been made public so far.
Smart Phones Top a Billion
+1 billion
A study released by research firm Strategy Analytics on Wednesday found that the number of smartphones being used worldwide surpassed one billion units for the first time in history over the third quarter of 2012, some 16 years after the format was introduced in 1996.
Debates the Most Important Influencer on Voting Decision for Young Voters
32%
Of young American 20-29 year-old voters — a plurality — said the debates were the most important influence on their voting decision, according to a new poll conducted by YouGov.
Ryan Totally Faked Charity Event
The photo-op they did wasn’t even accurate. He did nothing. He just came in here to get his picture taken at the dining hall.
— Brian Antal, the head of an Ohio charity, says that the Romney campaign last week “ramrodded their way” into the group’s Youngstown soup kitchen so that Paul Ryan could get his picture taken washing dishes in the dining hall, the Washington Post reports. Said Antal: “We’re a faith-based organization; we are apolitical because the majority of our funding is from private donations. It’s strictly in our bylaws not to do it. They showed up there, and they did not have permission. They got one of the volunteers to open up the doors.”
George Romney Aide Disparages Mitt’s Lack of Character
While it seems that Mitt would say and do anything to close a deal – or an election. George Romney’s strength as a politician and public officeholder was his ability and determination to develop and hold consistent policy positions over his life.
— Walter DeVries, a longtime aide to George Romney, “issued a harshly worded critique of Mitt Romney, accusing him of shifting political positions in ‘erratic and startling ways’ and failing to live up to the distinguished record of his father, the former governor of Michigan,” the New York Times reports. De Vries, who worked for the senior Mr. Romney throughout the 1960s, wrote that Mitt Romney’s bid for the White House was “a far cry from the kind of campaign and conduct, as a public servant, I saw during the seven years I worked in George Romney’s campaigns and served him as governor.”
Clinton Takes Full Responsibility for Security Debacle in Benghazi
I take responsibility.
— Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, telling CNN the buck stops with her when it comes to who is to blame for security ahead of a deadly assault on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya. She also insisted President Obama and Vice President Biden are not involved in security decisions adding, “I want to avoid some kind of political gotcha” just before an election.
This Could Be the ‘Willie Horton’ Ad of This Campaign
Just when you thought the Tea Party had shriveled up and died, their super PAC comes out with this piece of vileness that panders to the whitest part of the GOP base.
Another Romney Lie: Obama Has Not ‘Doubled’ the Federal Deficit, He Has Reduced It by Billions of Dollars
In the presidential debate, Mitt Romney said, “The president said he’d cut the deficit in half. Unfortunately, he doubled it.”
Unsurprisingly, the notion that the deficit has doubled over the last three years is a lie:
Late Friday afternoon, the Treasury Department published the official report on the U.S. budget deficit for the most recent fiscal year: $1.089 trillion. While that’s obviously still a very large budget shortfall, the deficit is $200 billion smaller than it was last year, and is nearly $300 billion smaller than when President Obama took office.
Even Politifact agrees, FWIW.
