Day: July 11, 2012

Can Romney Win the Presidency with Favorable Ratings in the 30s?

Jon Ponder

graph-washpost-poll-romney-likability

As you watch cable news coverage of the presidential race, keep in mind the fact that news organizations have a vested interest in keeping the race tight. Logically, a close race produces much better ratings than a race in which the outcome is a foregone conclusion.

With that in mind, here is a factor that I have yet to hear mentioned in the coverage I’ve seen: Voters don’t like Mitt Romney.

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Mitt Romney — The Artful Tax Dodger

Buck Banks

Paying taxes forthrightly has long been a matter of civic pride for most American politicians, a demonstration of honesty and of a willingness to share in society’s burdens. Since the Watergate era, presidential candidates have released several years of tax returns, allowing voters to peer at their financial choices and discern their entanglements. … Mitt Romney has upended that tradition this year. He has released only one complete tax return, for 2010, along with an unfinished estimate of his 2011 taxes. What information he did release provides a fuzzy glimpse at a concerted effort to park much of his wealth in overseas tax shelters, suggesting a widespread pattern of tax avoidance unlike that of any previous candidate.

— A New York Times editorial, slamming Mitt Romney for not disclosing his tax returns.

When It Comes to Replacing Obamacare, Republicans Have Got Nothing – Which Is Not Surprising Since the ACA Is Based on the Conservatives’ Own Plan

Jon Ponder

Rep. Phil Gingrey, a physician, promising to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act
Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.), a physician, promising to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act
As Republicans in the House prepared to vote for the 33rd vote — we said it was only the 31st vote earlier and apologize for the error — the Los Angeles Times interviewed leading lights in the congressional GOP and have confirmed the obvious.The Republicans’ campaign promise in 2010 to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act was bogus. They don’t have the votes in the Senate to repeal it — and the president would veto it, even if they did — and when it comes to replacing Obamacare, they simply do not have a plan.

That fact becomes clear when you read the laughable excuse-making in these quotes from Republicans in Congress:

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