Happy FRY-day, everyone!
UNFORGETTABLE
The U.S. economy expanded at a slightly faster 2 percent annual rate from July through September, buoyed by an uptick in consumer spending and a burst of government spending. Read more here.
—By Kevin Drum
So what would Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan do for the poor and the working class if they were elected? Let’s recap:
- They would allow the payroll tax holiday to expire. This would immediately raise taxes on everyone, and would hit the working poor especially hard. Read the rest here at Mother Jones.
Romney-Ryan Plan for the poor?
LMBAO@ $2 HAIR CUT
From John Sununu to Sarah Palin, Racism is the Lexicon of the Right
By: Tim From LAOctober 26th, 2012
Here we go again. The former governor, former 2008 Vice President candidate and former Miss Alaska pageant entrant, opening up her mouth and trying to defend herself from racist comments she posted on her Facebook page…for ALL to read.
The controversy started when Sarah Palin posted the following comment:
Obama’s Shuck and Jive Ends With Benghazi Lies
by Sarah Palin on Wednesday, October 24, 2012 at 8:39am ·
As I mentioned on “On the Record”
last night, there is breaking news that just two hours after the September 11th attacks on our consulate in Benghazi, the White House and State Department knew that an Islamic terrorist group with ties to al Qaeda claimed credit for the attack. We now know that the State Department sent an email to the White House, the Pentagon, the FBI and others in the intelligence community about this Islamist group claiming responsibility. And yet for days afterwards the White House and State Department led everyone to believe that the attack was the result of a spontaneous protest over an obscure YouTube video that had been uploaded months prior. Anywhere from 300 to 400 people from the administration and our intelligence community would have seen that email. Why the lies? Why the cover up? Why the dissembling about the cause of the murder of our ambassador on the anniversary of the worst terrorist attacks on American soil? We deserve answers to this. President Obama’s shuck and jive shtick with these Benghazi lies must end.
– Sarah Palin
http://www.politicususa.com/john-sununu-sarah-palin-racism-lexicon.html
Black voters in Georgia casting ballots at higher rate than ‘08
11:17 am October 26, 2012, by jgalloway
Even without any major statewide candidate contests to encourage turnout, African-American voters in Georgia are on track to cast a larger share of the presidential vote than in 2008, according to the latest figures from the secretary of state’s office.
As of today, 780,545 Georgia voters have cast their ballots for the Nov. 6 election. Of those, 33 percent have been African-American.
In 2008, when drawn to the polls by the prospect of electing the nation’s first black president, African-Americans cast 30 percent of 3.9 million votes in Georgia.
The question is whether this year’s participation statistic will shrink between now and Tuesday week. Even if it drops slightly, it could be taken as a sign that President Barack Obama’s political base remains enthusiastic, and hasn’t been discouraged by the ups and downs of October.
http://blogs.ajc.com/political-insider-jim-galloway/2012/10/26/your-daily-jolt-black-voters-in-georgia-casting-votes-at-higher-rate-than-%E2%80%9808/?cxntfid=blogs_political_insider_jim_galloway
BREAKING NEWS: Sandra Fluke endorses Jerry Tetalman vs. Darrell Issa for Congress! RALLY TODAY **
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/10/26/1150462/–BREAKING-NEWS-Sandra-Fluke-endorses-Jerry-Tetalman-vs-Darrell-Issa-for-Congress-RALLY-TODAY
I need not remind you guys of a very important development happening within Rep. Darrell Issa’s own turf, California’s 49th Congressional District:
NONE other than Darrell Issa’s worst enemy, Sandra Fluke, is endorsing Issa’s Democratic challenger, Jerry Tetalman, for Congress!
Below are the details, per the Tetalman campaign:
Sandra Fluke Supports Jerry Tetalman for Congress
Carlsbad, CA – Sandra Fluke today endorsed Jerry Tetalman for Congress, saying he should replace Rep. Darrell Issa in the 49th District.
“I really encourage folks from San Diego to get out to vote this November and put their vote behind Jerry Tetalman, who will be a much more progressive voice and will stand with women, rather than Darrell Issa,” Fluke said in a KPBS radio interview broadcast today.
The former Gerorgetown University Law School student gained national attention last spring when Issa refused to let her testify on birth control and women’s health issues before his House Oversight Committee. She will appear with Tetalman on Friday at the Planned Parenthood Action Fund rally at noon in Balboa Park.
Note to Chris Matthews: When you have Joy Reid on your show; shut the fuck up, and let her speak. UGGGGGGGGGGGGH.
TJsMind@TJsMind
BREAKING: Nate Silver, who got 49/50 states and all 35 senate races RIGHT in 2008, raises Obama’s victory odds to 74.4% http://fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com/
The math never added up for Mitt Romney-NEVER.
Lets Stay Together
Sooky! Sooky! ;)
Georgia on pace for RECORD black turnout!!
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1251180350
More than a quarter million African American voters in Georgia have already cast ballots for the November elections, the highest participation rate ever recorded by the secretary of state’s office.
According to state elections officials, 780,545 Georgians, of which 33 percent were black, had already voted in the presidential contest as of Friday.
Should the preliminary rate of participation remain steady through the close of polling on November 6, this year’s election will be recorded as the single largest black voter turn out event in state history.
______________
Go Georgia!
LMBAO Bashir’s a riot.
lol
Huge racial disparities in political journalism
93 percent of front-page election articles have been written by white journalists
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/25/huge_racial_disparities_in_political_journalism/
Statistics highlighted Thursday by election media analysts 4th Estate show a vast lack of racial diversity in political reporting. The infographic series “Bleached: lack of diversity on the front page” showed that “93 percent of front page print articles, covering the 2012 Presidential Election, were written by white reporters.”
Based on data collected from U.S. national print outlets, 4th Estate reported:
The percentage of [front page election] articles written by Asian American reporters is 3.3%, by African American reporters is 2.9%, and by Hispanic reporters is 0.7%. This under-representation of minorities reporting on the front page holds true across most media outlets for most ethnic groups. The Dallas Morning News stands out as an exception where 18.8% of their front page stories were written by African Americans. The most striking under-representation of minorities in our data is that of Hispanic journalists, considering the Hispanic population stands at approximately 16.3% of the U.S. population (according to the 2010 Census).
Sen. Harry Reid taken to hospital after Las Vegas rear-end car crash involving 6 vehicles
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/sen-harry-reid-taken-to-hospital-after-las-vegas-rear-end-car-crash-involving-6-vehicles/2012/10/26/29bbf63a-1faf-11e2-8817-41b9a7aaabc7_story.html
LAS VEGAS — Troopers say Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has been taken to the hospital after what appears to be a rear-end crash on an interstate through Las Vegas.
Nevada Highway Patrol Office spokesman Jeremie Elliott says he doesn’t know Reid’s condition after the crash, which happened about 1:10 p.m. Friday on Interstate 15.
The freeway runs parallel to the Las Vegas Strip.
Elliott says six vehicles were involved in the apparent chain-reaction crash, including two Las Vegas police vehicles, two civilian vehicle and two Capitol Police vehicles.
Breaking Politics @breakingpol
US Senate Majority Leader Reid said to be ‘OK’ after motorcade is involved in 5-vehicle accident – @LasVegasSun http://bit.ly/TKZq2u
Hmmm, what’s up with that accident? Harry’s been very vocal about Romney this year.. Just sayin.
Priorities USA Action: Same Promises
“This was a booming place, and Mitt Romney and Bain Capital turned it into a junkyard.”
Mike Blasky@blasky
BREAKING: Harry Reid transported to UMC. No word on injury. His caravan involved in accident on I-15 nbound. 6-car accident.
Mike Blasky@blasky
Hearing four of the six cars involved in Reid’s accident were part of his caravan. #reid via @reviewjournal
Sophia A. Nelson@IAmSophiaNelson
On election night VA, NC, IA all close early polls 7pm ET! If all 3 go RED Romney, POTUS in 4 long night, if they GO BLUE Obama. Game over!
CNN Poll: Obama 50%-Romney 46% in Ohio
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/10/26/cnn-poll-obama-50-romney-46-in-ohio/?hpt=hp_t2
(CNN) – With a week and a half to go until Election Day, a new poll indicates the race for arguably the most important battleground state remains very close.
According to a CNN/ORC International survey released Friday, President Barack Obama holds a four point advantage over Republican nominee Mitt Romney in the contest for Ohio’s much fought over 18 electoral votes.
Wisconsin’s Rep. Gwen Moore slams Richard Mourdock’s rape comments
by Abdul Sada | October 25, 2012 at 5:48 PM
VIDEO
http://thegrio.com/2012/10/25/wisconsins-rep-gwen-moore-slams-richard-mourdocks-rape-comments/
A Fan Letter to Certain Conservative Politicians
October 25, 2012 By John Scalzi 487 Comments
WARNING: this post is going to be oh-so-very-triggery for victims of rape and sexual assault. I am not kidding.
Dear certain conservative politicians:
Hi! I’m a rapist. I’m one of those men who likes to force myself on women without their consent or desire and then batter them sexually. The details of how I do this are not particularly important at the moment — although I love when you try to make distinctions about “forcible rape” or “legitimate rape” because that gives me all sorts of wiggle room — but I will tell you one of the details about why I do it: I like to control women and, also and independently, I like to remind them how little control they have. There’s just something about making the point to a woman that her consent and her control of her own body is not relevant against the need for a man to possess that body and control it that just plain gets me off. A guy’s got needs, you know? And my need is for control. Sweet, sweet control.
http://whatever.scalzi.com/2012/10/25/a-fan-letter-to-certain-conservative-politicians/
PBO gonna be on Moaning Joke next Monday, 10-29.
http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/obama-interview-with-morning-joe-to-air-monday
Note to Rethugs who are calling my house #. If you’re going to plug your party’s candidate, don’t start off the call with THE DEMOCRATS ARE BAD BUSINESS.
How about your stating what the Republican Party candidate has to offer in the way of service to ALL CONSTITUENTS. Yeah that’s what I thought. NOTHING.
Paul Krugman:
…. If you’re new to this, there are two basic approaches to election analysis at this point. One is the campaign reporter style, full of impressionist reporting about who won the news cycle and who has “momentum”, whatever that means ….. The other is poll-based. And that mostly means state-level polls at this point: there are more of them, and we have an electoral-college system, not a popular-vote system.
The impressionistic style has been all about Romney on the rise, a narrative that is to a large part being fed by the Romney campaign itself. But the state-level polling doesn’t show it…..
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/25/triumph-of-the-electoral-nerds/
http://youtu.be/fH7g6ip7V3A
http://youtu.be/3avJucRbUd0
Kleenex please…
***tears***
Valerie Jarrett Versus The Haters
Valerie Jarrett is one of the most influential women in America. Protective, fearless, dedicated: the controversial White House figure and Chicago titan is now yolo’ing on the homestretch to get her “little brother” re-elected.
Michael Hastings
BuzzFeed Staff
Posted Oct 26, 2012 7:15am EDT
Valerie Jarrett is hard to find. Outsiders catch only short glimpses of her — a public conversation with Natalie Portman at a campaign event for women in Las Vegas, a wire photo with Will.i.am on the convention floor, a rare television appearance on Morning Joe. She’s not one of the administration’s leading public faces, but her low profile belies her importance. She holds the title of senior advisor to President Barack Obama; she is a best friend to Michelle. She is one of the most powerful black women in American history.
……………………………..
But she has her haters. She’s butted heads with some of the biggest male egos in the administration, including Rahm Emanuel, Robert Gibbs, David Plouffe, Larry Summers, Peter Orszag, and even the relatively mellow David Axelrod. And in the final stretch of the president’s reelection campaign, Jarrett’s position has come under persistent attack from both inside and outside the White House. A piece in the New York Times gave her the nickname “the Night Stalker” (for allegedly playing the family-friend card to access the White House’s residential wing and lobby the president after work hours) and reported that some anonymous fellow staffers said she enjoyed “the trappings of power” to an unbecoming degree. In the piece, Axelrod was quoted on the record describing Jarrett’s powerful but not strictly defined place within the White House’s organizational hierarchy as a “manageable problem” — not exactly a ringing endorsement.
Meanwhile, Bob Woodward gave her an unflattering portrayal in his new book, The Price of Politics. In chapter nine, former economic adviser Larry Summer blames Jarrett for the White House’s frayed relationship with Wall Street. In chapter six, the former CEO of Verizon complains Jarrett didn’t arrange enough time with him for the president at a Super Bowl party. “15 seconds,” the CEO is quoted as saying. Jarrett is alleged to have responded by telling him he was lucky just to be in the room.
…………………………………
What makes Jarrett such a contentious figure inside the White House? Some friends and colleagues say it’s the envy provoked by her powerful bond with the First Family. What terrifies Jarrett’s internal critics most, her friends say, are the moments that only she shares with Barack and Michelle, and the idea — real or imagined — that those discussions may have more sway than the conversations the president and first lady hold with other top advisors in the court. That those private moments between Jarrett and the president are essentially unknowable, even to the inner circle, makes her presence a threat. “There’s a certain parlor game about people who have pre-existing relationships with the First Family or with the president — people whose jobs you can’t necessarily put in a neat box,” says a former White House aide who worked with Jarrett. “There’s a natural curiosity about that, and for people, there’s a natural insecurity about that.”
There’s also the fact she’s not from the Beltway. She had already established a separate universe of power before coming to Washington, which might intimidate those political creatures whose resumes include little achieved beyond the Acela corridor. And then there’s the fact that, however liberal the ideals of the Democratic Party might be in theory, she’s still a black woman in a world of white men. Jarrett’s friends and allies suspect the recent attacks stem not just from resentment over her close relationship to the president but from blatant sexism. “If she wasn’t a woman, it would be different,” one close friend and former White House official told BuzzFeed. “Sexism is there.”
http://www.buzzfeed.com/mhastings/valerie-jarrett-versus-the-haters
best sentence in the entire article:
LOL I concur. POTUS & FLOTUS are very blessed to have a FRIEND like Ms. Jarret.
Bottom line to those in and out of this administration: Ya betta check your self, before you wreck yourself.
Republican Housing Appointees Sabotaged Mortgage Assistance Programs to Stop ‘Backdoor Economic Stimulus’
By Travis Waldron
Republican appointees at Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored mortgage giant, resisted mortgage programs aimed at helping homeowners and alleviating the nationwide housing crisis because they feared the programs were an effort at “backdoor economic stimulus,” according to sources who spoke to ProPublica.
Read on: http://www.nationofchange.org/print/30526
ECONOMIC TREASON AGAINST THIS COUNTRY
Repost
LOL Lawrence and crew blowing that Romney momentum bullshit out the window.
I want to see this movie:
CLOUD ATLAS with Halle Berry & Tom Hanks
http://www.washingtonpost.com/gog/movie-trailers/cloud-atlas,1233357.html
Why Romney’s bogus Jeep claims matter
By Steve Benen
Fri Oct 26, 2012 10:45 AM EDT.
Mitt Romney campaigned in Defiance, Ohio, last night, and rolled out a new argument. “I saw a story today that one of the great manufacturers in this state, Jeep, now owned by the Italians, is thinking of moving all production to China,” he said. “I will fight for every good job in America, I’m going to fight to make sure trade is fair, and if it’s fair, America will win.”
There are a few problems with this line of attack, starting with the simple fact that Romney wasn’t telling the truth. As Chrysler itself explained, the company intends to build Jeeps in China to be sold in China, but isn’t moving American jobs abroad.
……………………..
All of this, incidentally, is rather ironic given the successful efforts of the Obama administration when it comes to China and Jeeps, specifically.
Greg Sargent explained well why this matters: “Romney may very well be the next president. That’s a position of some responsibility. Yet he and his campaign rushed to tell voters a story designed to stoke their fears for their livelihoods without bothering to vet it for basic accuracy. This is not a small thing. It reveals the depth of Romney’s blithe lack of concern for the truth — and the subservience of it to his own political ambitions.”
Indeed, we can take this a step further.
——————————————————————————–
Romney specifically urged business leaders to give their employees voting instructions — many took Romney’s suggestion seriously — and as a consequence, workers in a growing number of businesses are being told their jobs may be dependent on the outcome of the election.
Romney’s comments in Defiance are part of the same kind of fear-based argument: vote the right way or you’ll be unemployed. Your livelihood is at stake, so support the candidate who opposed President Obama’s successful rescue of the auto industry and got rich laying off American workers.
For additional context, it’s worth noting that the Detroit News reports today that Chrysler is adding an additional 1,100 new jobs. Why? To build more Jeeps right here in the United States.
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/10/26/14721560-why-romneys-bogus-jeep-claims-matter?lite
John Sununu’s History Of Racial Remarks About Obama
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2012/10/26/1094491/john-sununus-history-of-racial-remarks-about-obama/
On Thursday, Romney campaign co-chair advanced the theory that Gen. Colin Powell endorsed President Obama because he’s black. But this isn’t the first time Sununu or even Mitt Romney’s campaign have introduced Obama’s race into the election. The former New Hampshire governor has repeatedly suggested that Obama or his policies are “foreign,” European, and something less than American. Here are some of his greatest hits:
– Obama is foreign. Obama doesn’t understand the “American system” because “he spent his early years in Hawaii smoking something, spent the next set of years in Indonesia, another set of years in Indonesia, and, frankly, when he came to the U.S. he worked as a community organizer, which is a socialized structure.” [Fox News, 7/17/2012]
– Obama doesn’t know how to be an American. During a conference call, Sununu claimed, “The men and women all over America who have worked hard to build these businesses, their businesses, from the ground up is how our economy became the envy of the world. It is the American way. And I wish this president would learn how to be an American.” [Conference call, 7/17/2012]
– Obama is a lazy idiot. Sununu described Obama’s debate performance as “babbling,” “lazy,” and “disengaged,” and dismissed the possibility that he could do better in the future. “When you’re not that bright you can’t get better prepared.” [Fox News, 10/4/2012]
– Obama has no class, just wants to be cool. “That moment of using the B.S. word was kind of a self-defining moment for the president,” he told Sean Hannity. “No class, wants to be cool. Sacrifices the dignity of the presidency for appearing cool to a magazine that works for some of his base.” [Fox News, 10/25/2012]
John Sununu—racist prick!
At Least 15 GOP Senate Candidates Oppose Abortion For Rape Victims
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/25/richard-mourdock-abortion_n_2018934.html#comments
Bob “Trans Vaggie ultrasound” McDonnell?
U.S. Economy Grew at 2% Rate in 3rd Quarter
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/27/business/economy/us-economy-grew-at-2-rate-in-3rd-quarter.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0
The United States economy grew at an annual rate of 2 percent in the third quarter, slightly better than expected, with help from a healthier housing sector and a pickup in defense spending. But economists warn that growth could slow in the final quarter of the year if weakness in exports persists and businesses remain cautious because of fiscal uncertainty in Washington.
ALL.OF.THIS. Colin Powell’s not bending over for the neocons. Fool me once…. He’s got their #, after the Iraq fuckery.
The GOP might not want Colin Powell in their party after this. He can switch parties. Democrats gain!
indeed and Powell can vote for whomever he wants.
Posted at 08:57 AM ET, 10/26/2012
The Morning Plum: Romney’s false scare story in Ohio
By Greg Sargent
This created a stir last night on Twitter that has subsided. But it wouldn’t be surprising if the Obama campaign seizes on it in coming days to close out its argument in Ohio. From the Detroit News:
Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney told a rally in northern Ohio on Thursday night that Chrysler was considering moving production of its Jeep vehicles to China, apparently reacting to incorrect reports circulating online.
“I saw a story today that one of the great manufacturers in this state, Jeep — now owned by the Italians — is thinking of moving all production to China,” Romney said at a rally in Defiance, Ohio, home to a General Motors powertrain plant. “I will fight for every good job in America. I’m going to fight to make sure trade is fair, and if it’s fair America will win.”
Romney was apparently responding to reports Thursday on right-leaning blogs that misinterpreted a recent Bloomberg News story earlier this week that said Chrysler, owned by Italian automaker Fiat SpA, is thinking of building Jeeps in China for sale in the Chinese market.
Romney told Ohioans that a major manufacturer is on the verge of moving all its jobs to China — but it isn’t true. Chrysler is looking to build Jeeps in China for the Chinese market, not to move American jobs there. In fairness to Romney, the news story that gave rise to this tale seems to have been sloppily written. But all the relevant facts were in the original article. And in any case, there are no indications the Romney campaign bothered to check out its preferred story before working it into his stump speech.
In political terms, this goes directly to the heart of the argument Obama has been making about Romney to Ohioans about trust: That Romney can’t be trusted in a very fundamental way to level with them or genuinely look out for their interests, that he’ll tell them anything to win the election. The auto bailout has been central to that case. Obama has argued that not only did Romney fail to support the auto rescue at a time when Ohioans needed it; he doesn’t even have the integrity to admit it. He’ll claim he favored rescuing the auto industry in the manner Obama ultimately did in order to get elected, even though it’s false. This is more of the same.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line
It’s always been a matter of trust
By Steve Benen
Fri Oct 26, 2012 10:03 AM EDT.
I suggested yesterday that President Obama’s closing theme appeared to be “trust.” Increasingly, the pitch is coming without subtlety.
As part of his multi-state blitz yesterday, Obama began telling supporters, “We joke about ‘Romnesia,’ but the reason I bring this up is because it speaks to something serious and that is the issue of trust…. There’s no more serious issue in the presidential campaign than who can you trust. Trust matters…. And here’s the thing — you know me by now. You know I say what I mean, and I mean what I say.”
And what about his rival? Obama shared some candid thoughts with Rolling Stone
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/10/26/14721027-its-always-been-a-matter-of-trust?lite
Ametia, I’m loving Unforgettable this morning! Natalie & Nat! Love it!
:-)
I love it too…thank you
My pleasure; There will never be another crooner like NKC. Did you watch Scandal last night?
Pro-Romney business leader’s ironic Obama criticism
By Steve Benen
Fri Oct 26, 2012 9:37 AM EDT
We’ve noted several recent incidents involving business leaders using heavy-handed election tactics, pressuring their employees to support Mitt Romney, apparently at the candidate’s behest. Jack DeWitt, the president of Request Foods, however, is a little different than most.
DeWitt, like the other pro-Romney businessmen, is using his position of authority to pressure his employees to vote Republican. In this case, Request Foods’ internal newsletter featured a condemnation of President Obama from DeWitt, who argued, “[I]t’s obvious that Washington needs to become smaller and spend less of our hard-earned money.”
For now, let’s put aside the fact that federal spending under Obama has actually gone down, not up, and instead note the irony of DeWitt’s complaints.
Request Foods obtained $5.5 million under a federal grant program that Obama’s stimulus bill increased by $1 billion. Last year, the company greatly expanded its footprint in Holland, Mich., where it used the money for a water treatment plant to serve a new facility. The company has also seen a strong increase in sales during the Obama administration. […]
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/10/26/14720613-pro-romney-business-leaders-ironic-obama-criticism?lite
Has There Ever Been A Candidate Like Mitt Romney?
Waldman asks:
As the end of this election approaches, it’s worth taking a step back and asking this question: In the entire history of the United States of America, from George Washington’s election in 1789 on down, has there been a single candidate as unmoored from ideological principle or belief as Mitt Romney? I’m not just throwing an insult here, I ask this question sincerely. Because I can’t think of any.
I can’t myself. Politicians change – but not so completely and back again without even a hair out of place. I find it chilling. And how, as president, in those inevitable moments of crisis will anyone be able to believe you? Because you could simply etch-a-sketch into another argument just as swiftly. I think the strategy to pull the Etch-A-Sketch just as vast numbers of low information voters tune in to the first debate was a stroke of cynical genius. But because it’s so obviously pure cynicism, the great initial taste begins to have a bit of a bitter after-taste. Who on earth is this man, and what would he do in office? I thought he had effectively remade himself into the leader of the Tea Party GOP. But since October 3, I’m just bewildered. And alarmed.
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/
The Dem Half Of The Grand Bargain
Anticipating the coming fiscal cliff negotiations, Jared Bernstein points out something important:
When writing about a balanced approach to fiscal policy, one that involves both spending cuts and new revenues, it should be noted that Congress and the President have actually already cut $1.5 trillion ($1.7t including interest savings) in discretionary spending, not including war costs, over the next decade.
That’s 70% of the Simpson-Bowles discretionary spending cuts! Without that point, I suspect many readers will think we need to start with spending cuts and then we’ll talk taxes. But … a big start on the spending cuts has already materialized … so it’s tax revenue time, right?
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/
It’s The Healthcare, Stupid
Ezra Klein thinks so at least:
[Y]es, this election matters more than most. It matters more politically because the party in power will probably see its agenda affirmed by a cyclical recovery. But it matters more to actual people because the Affordable Care Act is poised to reshape American health care in two years. A vote for Obama is a vote for the law to take effect and for 30 million Americans to get health insurance they won’t get otherwise. A vote for Romney is a vote for the law to be repealed. There are few elections in which the stakes are so clear.
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/
Gaming Out The Ground Game, Ctd
Like Molly Ball, Seth Masket notes Obama’s field office advantage:
[I]t’s not entirely clear what this means. Yes, I have a paper showing that field offices matter — they helped Obama win three states he’d have otherwise lost in 2008. But that, of course, is no guarantee that offices will have the same sort of effect this time around. And I don’t fully comprehend Romney’s approach to field offices here. I have a few ideas, though:
1. He doesn’t think they’ll yield him the same sort of electoral payoff that the Obama folks are counting on, so he’s investing more in ads.
2. He believes his offices can each cover more territory than the Obama offices can.
3. He’s counting on field organizational efforts from the parties, church organizations, and other allied groups to do the same sort of things that the Obama offices are doing.
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/
Economic growth exceeds expectations, picks up steam
By Steve Benen
Fri Oct 26, 2012 8:50 AM EDT
In the final report on the state of the overall economy before the presidential election, it appears economic growth not only picked up a little steam in the third quarter, it also exceeded expectations.
The U.S. economy grew 2.0% in the third quarter, fueled by higher consumer and government spending and more home building, according to a preliminary government estimate. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch projected gross domestic product would rise to 1.7% from 1.3% in the second quarter.
Consumer spending, which has the biggest impact on GDP, rose 2.0% in the July-to-September period, compared to 1.5% in the second quarter. Real final sales of U.S.-made goods and services advanced 2.1%, compared to 1.7% in the prior three-month period. Government spending jumped 3.7%, the biggest increase since mid-2009, mainly because of higher defense outlays. Also, investment in housing surged 14.4%.
For those keeping score, the United States has now seen economic growth in 13 consecutive quarters, which represents a sharp turnaround from the economic contraction we saw at the height of the Great Recession four years ago. The news also contradicts the notion that “uncertainty” out of Washington is leading to slower growth.
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/10/26/14719814-economic-growth-exceeds-expectations-picks-up-steam?lite
Romney campaign chair: Powell motivated by race
By Steve Benen
Fri Oct 26, 2012 7:59 AM EDT.
Four years ago, when former Secretary of State Colin Powell endorsed Barack Obama, Rush Limbaugh led the charge, accusing Powell of only supporting the Democrat because of race.
In 2012, the same argument is being pushed by the national chairman of Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign
http://youtu.be/ta-VcM7UFu0
John Sununu told CNN last night, “When you take a look at Colin Powell, you have to wonder whether that’s an endorsement based on issues or whether he’s got a slightly different reason for preferring President Obama?”
Asked what that other reason might be, the Republican added, “Well, I think when you have somebody of your own race that you are proud of being president of the United States, I applaud Colin for standing with him.”
First, I rather doubt Mitt Romney’s campaign chairman “applauds” the fact that a respected national figure endorsed President Obama on national television.
But putting that aside, Sununu’s comments help capture a narrow, ignorant worldview. From the Romney aide’s perspective, if an accomplished American with a celebrated record of public service endorses a successful president, the logical explanation is to assume it’s motivated by race. For Sununu, the tired “blacks stick together” caricature is easier than thinking.
This from the same Republican who believes Obama is “lazy” and who pushed the odious and racially charged welfare lie.
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/10/26/14718721-romney-campaign-chair-powell-motivated-by-race?lite
I’ll REPEAT this again from 2008. YES, I’M VOTING FOR BARACK OBAMA BECAUSE HE’S BLACK, BECAUSE THERE ARE MILLIONS OF AMERICANS WHO WILL NOT VOTE FOR HIM BECAUSE HE’S BLACK. See how this works white folks?
Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, Here are the main reasons I voted for Barack Hussein Obama
1. He’s a Statesman
2. He’s Intelligent
3. He’s a devoted husband and father
4. He’s repectful & respected
laughing—& he’s BEYOND tolerant…i SURE wouldn’t have put up with the crap thrown @ him–
Marla, PBO didn’t get to be president by absorbing the STUPID. LOL
John Sununu, IF you applaud Colin Powell for standing with President Obama b/c YOU think he is proud of the President, then why are you mad?
Rachel Maddow did a really good segment on how the Obama Campaign never left Ohio, and what that could mean for this election.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/#49562256
Pro-Romney employer warns workers of ‘personal consequences’
By Steve Benen
Thu Oct 25, 2012 1:19 PM EDT.
We’ve talked a bit lately about business leaders using heavy-handed election tactics, pressuring their employees to support Mitt Romney, apparently at the candidate’s behest. A new example out of Wisconsin is one of the more striking cases to date.
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/10/25/14698221-pro-romney-employer-warns-workers-of-personal-consequences?lite
LOL Heads are exploding over Dunham’s AD. LOVE IT!!!
What America will we pick?
By Eugene Robinson,
Oct 26, 2012 12:04 AM EDT
The Washington Post Published: October 25
This election is only tangentially a fight over policy. It is also a fight about meaning and identity — and that’s one reason voters are so polarized. It’s about who we are and who we aspire to be.
President Obama enters the final days of the campaign with a substantial lead among women — about 11 points, according to the latest Washington Post/ABC News poll — and enormous leads among Latinos and African Americans, the nation’s two largest minority groups. Mitt Romney leads among white voters, with an incredible 2-to-1 advantage among white men.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/eugene-robinson-what-america-will-we-pick/2012/10/25/4113b338-1ed6-11e2-ba31-3083ca97c314_story.html?wpisrc=nl_opinions
Good Morning, Everyone! :-)
Good Morning, Ametia, SG and Everyone :)
Morning, everyone!
Yum Yum! Give me some! Just what I wanted!