OFFICIAL: President Obama WINS Re-election with 332 ELECTORAL VOTES
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Even though 3Chics Politico is written and curated by three women: Ametia, Rikyrah, and SouthernGirl2, I must nominate this as one of the most engaging blogs I've found. Devoted to politics and culture, these three shine a light on contemporary life with humor and spirit.
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BREAKING NEWS
Ohio Early Voting Cleared By U.S. High Court in Obama Victory
http://www.bloomberg.com/
Editorial: Obama for president: A second term for a serious man.
http://danny6114.visibli.com/share/r2GnpX
Four years ago, in endorsing Democrat Barack Obama for president, we noted his intellect, his temperament and equanimity under pressure. He was unproven, but we found him to be presidential, in all that that word implies.
In that, we have not been disappointed. This is a serious man. And now he is a proven leader. He has earned a second term.
Mr. Obama sees an America where the common good is as important as the individual good. That is the vision on which the nation was founded. It is the vision that has seen America through its darkest days and illuminated its best days. It is the vision that underlies the president’s greatest achievement, the Affordable Care Act. Twenty years from now, it will be hard to find anyone who remembers being opposed to Obamacare.
He continues to steer the nation through the most perilous economic challenges since the Great Depression. Those who complain that unemployment remains high, or that economic growth is too slow, either do not understand the scope of the catastrophe imposed upon the nation by Wall Street and its enablers, or they are lying about it.
To expect Barack Obama to have repaired, in four years, what took 30 years to undermine, is simply absurd. He might have gotten further had he not been saddled with an opposition party, funded by plutocrats, that sneers at the word compromise. But even if Mr. Obama had had Franklin Roosevelt’s majorities, the economy would still be in peril.
More…
http://youtu.be/UVKED6SjW9g
Where Change Comes From
President Obama Now Leading Romney in North Carolina
http://thepoliticalcarnival.net/2012/09/21/poll-itics-president-obama-now-leading-romney-in-north-carolina/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
Mitt Romney: More Severely Conservative than Rick Santorum
Steve Benen has a great piece up today on just how Republicans seem to have missed the point on the Life of Julia: http://on.msnbc.com/LFRCQA
And Eclectablog has a great piece on why you shouldn’t try to criticize the President’s crowd size when you speak to empty stadiums: http://bit.ly/JdKTZl
The RNC just tried to claim that Mitt Romney is still deciding what his immigration policy is, despite his prior policies of “self-deportation” and opposition to the DREAM Act: http://bit.ly/KKcotz
Also, Mitt Romney is now taking credit for the auto industry bailout, which he opposed: http://bit.ly/K8Tv86
Mitt Romney is speaking at Lansing Community College today, the day the Senate votes on whether to double student loans.
Will Mitt Romney ignore his out-of-touch comments on college affordability, like calling student loans “free stuff” http://bit.ly/JcM7pf
Or telling students they should just borrow $20,000 from their parents? http://bit.ly/IWsVcL
This chart breaks down the difference between President Obama and Mitt Romney on college affordability: http://bit.ly/LFS2Gz
And campaign spokeswoman Lis Smith released this statement today:
“Mitt Romney will have a lot of questions to answer when he visits Lansing Community College today. Just yesterday, he equated the President’s support for keeping the interest rate on student loan rates low with giving away ‘free stuff’—an assertion that millions of hard-working students would likely contest. These out-of-touch comments come after Romney told students struggling with the cost of tuition that their only answers were to ‘shop around’ for lower prices and ask their parents to lend them money, proposed ending the college tax credit, and endorsed the Ryan budget, which would cut Pell Grants and let the student loan interest rate double. His record in Massachusetts is equally troubling- amidst tuition and fee hikes, he cut funding for higher education. With a record of statements and actions like that, why should young Americans trust any support he claims to offer now?”
—Lis Smith, campaign spokeswoman
Things not to miss:
The Republican version of the Violence Against Women Act Would Open Up Undocumented Victims To More Abuse: http://huff.to/KPJiLe
And your daily reminder that Mitt Romney’s familiar and troubling economic scheme would mean budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy and fewer rules for Wall Street–the same formula that benefited a few, but crashed our economy and punished the middle class: Bloomberg: Romney Economic Outsider Image Backed by Bush-Era Policy: http://buswk.co/Lwk2wk
“Go,” running in nine states today: http://abcn.ws/IyAzvl
Obama Swing State Ad Touts First-Term Record
The Obama campaign is going on the air in nine battleground states this week with a new TV ad that focuses solely on the president’s record and the four accomplishments of which Democrats are most proud.
The entirely positive spot — titled “Go” — is the first attempt by President Obama to encapsulate his three and a half years in office and use it as a second-term sales pitch in targeted markets.
Fired up! Did you attend the rallies this weekend? Or watch the livestream? Share your pictures! If you missed the rally, catch the photos and video of the President’s and First Lady’s remarks here: http://bit.ly/K6u5Ib
Or check out these great posts from ·
Jed Lewison at the Daily Kos: http://bit.ly/IS0C5y
3ChicsPolitico: http://bit.ly/KzVRhr
Blue Virginia: http://bit.ly/IyACHD
Jack and Jill Politics: http://bit.ly/J8SV7s
Delaware Liberal: http://bit.ly/JjBq5Q
It’s on & poppin! Campaign kickoff 2012! Go get’em, baby!
Theres a pop-up shop for Obama 2012 gear onsite, but never fear, livestreamers—you can stock up at the online store: http://OFA.BO/4oVod1
http://www.barackobama.com/live
Your daily reminder that Mitt Romney’s familiar and troubling economic scheme would mean budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy and fewer rules for Wall Street–the same formula that benefited a few, but crashed our economy and punished the middle class: Jamelle Bouie at the American Prospect writes about the endless arrogance of Wall Street, and the influence that has on Mitt Romney’s economic policies: http://bit.ly/K45T6g
Today, Mitt Romney will be doubling down on his extreme views on women’s health and economic security, by campaigning with VA Governor Bob McDonnell: http://abcn.ws/KXNECt
And Romney is expected to be endorsed by Michelle Bachman: http://lat.ms/Ju14jC
VOTE …like your life depends on it!
U.S. Job Creation Nears Four-Year High
http://www.gallup.com/poll/154406/Job-Creation-Nears-Four-Year-High.aspx
PRINCETON, NJ — Gallup’s Job Creation Index increased to +20 in April from +18 in March. Net new hiring is now at its best level since July 2008 and is near +26 — the highest score Gallup has recorded since tracking began in January 2008.
New Online Tool and Policy Memo Highlight Mitt Romney’s Vulnerabilities with Women
CHICAGO, IL — As Mitt Romney campaigns alongside Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell today, Obama for America released “The Life of Julia”, an online interactive tool where every woman can see for herself just what is at stake in this election. The tool tracks how President Obama and Mitt Romney’s policies will affect Julia, a typical middle-class woman, at each step in her life–from early childhood, through her school years, until she has a child of her own, starts a business and retires.
Obama for America is also releasing a new memo this morning that details how Mitt Romney’s policies undermine women’s economic security. Mitt Romney and Bob McDonnell have some explaining to do to American women about their extreme agendas: both would refuse to stand up for equal pay for equal work and take women’s critical health care decisions out of their hands.
Using this new online tool, moms can see what President Obama and Mitt Romney’s contrasting policies will mean for their daughters. Students and recent graduates can see what they will mean for them, their sisters and their friends. Working women and seniors can use this online tool to see what this election will mean for their ability to earn a living, support their families and retire comfortably.
President Obama believes that women like Julia should have access to the resources they need to advance our common well-being — from equal pay for equal work to expanding access to quality, affordable health care, child care and education. Supporting women in every stage of their lives is not only the right thing to do—it is an investment in building an economy that is built to last.
This week Mitt Romney said that when people ask him what he’ll do for the economy, he would “look at what the President’s done, and do the opposite.” When individuals go online and see “The Life of Julia”, they’ll see exactly what he means – and what that would mean for women.
Please click here to use the online tool.
Please click here to read OFA’s new memo: Mitt Romney Puts Women’s Economic Security At Risk.
Romney’s Big-Dollar ‘Bundlers’ Stay Anonymous
http://www.npr.org/2012/04/30/151539520/romney-lets-big-dollar-bundlers-stay-anonymous
Every presidential nominee going back to 2000 has revealed the names of influential supporters known as “bundlers” because of the way they persuade others to give money to a candidate. Every nominee, that is, until Mitt Romney.
The most anyone can give directly to any presidential campaign is $5,000, and everyone who gives that much is listed in the Romney campaign’s monthly disclosures.
When it comes to the bundlers, though, the campaign chooses to keep those names secret.
More…
Romney’s former Bain partner and top donor is in the NY Times Magazine this weekend, trying to make the case for an unequal society: http://nyti.ms/IqA61X
And your daily reminder that Mitt Romney’s familiar and troubling economic scheme would mean budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy and fewer rules for Wall Street–the same formula that benefited a few, but crashed our economy and punished the middle class: Boston Globe: Mitt Romney wants to repeal Dodd-Frank financial regulations and is mum on how to regulate big banks: http://bo.st/K1Ocp5
And yet another top Romney supporter and endorser, PA Governor Tom Corbett, is doubling down on restrictions on women’s health – this time mandatory ultrasounds in Pennsylvania. Obama For America in Pennsylvania has the video, and their response, here: http://bit.ly/KuJoWo
“While Corbett is trying to pass legislation to limit women’s rights, Romney is ‘extraordinarily proud’ of his endorsement and is campaigning on a platform that would be damaging to Pennsylvania women. Romney supports the Blunt-Rubio Amendment that would hand women’s health decisions over to their bosses; thinks that Roe v. Wade should be overturned; wants to ‘get rid of’ Planned Parenthood, a vital health care provider for millions of women; and refuses to say whether he would have signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law. There is no question Romney and his allies like Tom Corbett are working to turn back the clock on issues important to women.”
“Newt Gingrich: Frankly, not Mitt Romney’s biggest supporter.” Newt Gingrich is scheduled to suspend his presidential campaign later today and throw his support behind Mitt Romney, But Gingrich’s support comes with some awkward memories: http://bit.ly/IVVols
Newt Gingrich: Frankly, not Mitt Romney’s biggest supporter
Stephanie Cutter: Get the facts on Mitt Romney, Big Oil, and the Koch Brothers
Go Stephanie! Go!
Talking Points Memo @TPM:
POLL: Obama opens up 8 point lead in Virginia http://tpm.ly/IF14AQ
How ‘Obamacare’ Is Saving Seniors Billions On Meds
“In the first two years after “Obamacare” was signed, Medicare reforms in the law saved seniors a total of $3.4 billion in prescription drug costs by bridging a coverage gap, according to official figures. Over 220,000 beneficiaries have saved an average of $837 in the first three months of 2012, the Medicare agency said Monday. That’s on top of $3.2 billion in savings enjoyed by some 5.1 million seniors in 2010 and 2011 thanks to the Affordable Care Act, according to the advisory on the new figures:” http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/05/how-obamacare-is-saving-seniors-billions-on-meds.php?ref=fpnewsfeed
Ezra Klein on Romney bringing back the Bush economic advisors: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/has-team-romney-forgotten-about-the-bush-years/2012/05/01/gIQAgQsvtT_blog.html
The Obama Campaign released a new video, “Swiss Bank Account” today, highlighting that Mitt Romney’s belief that a strong economy is built on outsourcing, loopholes and risky financial deals: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5e0QoUdPJM
BWA HA HA HA YOU’RE KILLING ME, SG2!
Swiss Bank Account
TIMELINE: The Hunt For Osama Bin Laden
http://thkpr.gs/qNbKyE
Bush: Truly not concerned about bin Laden
One Chance
ThinkProgress @thinkprogress:
Obama: “I assumed” Romney meant it when he said he wouldn’t go after Bin Laden in Pakistan http://thinkprogress.org/security/2012/04/30/473934/obama-romney-bin-laden/?mobile=wp
President Obama gave a resolute speech to the Women’s Leadership Forum on Friday, captured in this image “Women across America aren’t closing their eyes. As long as I’m President, I won’t either.” http://bit.ly/IE9i93
And your daily reminder that Mitt Romney’s familiar and troubling economic scheme would mean budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy and fewer rules for Wall Street–the same formula that benefited a few, but crashed our economy and punished the middle class: Jonathan Chait has this fantastic piece about Paul Ryan, and the resulting economic strategies that Romney is pushing: http://bit.ly/IkkgWS
Forward
Highlighting President Obama’s accomplishments during his first three years in office:
Meanwhile, Romney Campaign spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom this weekend bizarrely claimed that the auto rescue—which Mitt Romney opposed—was actually Mitt Romney’s idea: http://bit.ly/IOYWqW
Which, of course, led to the hashtag #Fehrnstroming: http://bit.ly/JJ2fOj
Barack Obama: The Voter Registration Weekend of Action is getting started right now. Find an event near you: http… http://bit.ly/J8xJOj
Claude Gauvin @JeffersonObama:
Pres.Obama leads in 16 National #POLLs now and tied in two. Leads in every Electoral College Count & BattleGround State
Romney’s Advice To Students: Borrow Money From Your Parents
http://thinkprogress.org/special/2012/04/27/473096/romney-borrow-money-parents/
Jesus Christ!!!!!!!!!!
Mitt Romney: Who’s he listening to?
Pres. Obama: When the GOP rejects the VAWA, something has really gone wrong. As long as I’m President, we’re going to pass that bill.
Pres. Obama: When it comes to equal pay for women, I don’t have to get back to you on that, it’s the 1st law I signed!
The Democrats @TheDemocrats:
Valerie Jarrett: “As President Obama said, ‘If we can get the truth out, we win.’ The only way we get the truth out is with you.”
The Senate passed the Violence Against Women Act yesterday, though for the first time in history some Senators voted no: http://nyti.ms/Jxh9XG
Who was one of the Senators? Top Romney endorser Marco Rubio: http://bit.ly/InXgWx
As did Romney endorser and advocate Roy Blunt: http://bit.ly/IwpGfh
The rest of the no votes?
Steven Dennis @StevenTDennis:
All 31 votes against Violence Against Women Act came from Republican men. #VAWA
Women of America, What does that tell you? Republican men don’t give a rats ass if your spouse/boyfriend kill you or beat the living hell out of you. But you can fix it. Vote these mofos out of office!
Meanwhile, President Obama will be speaking today at the Women’s Leadership Forum in Washington, DC tonight: http://huff.to/IwpzQJ
Also, Mitt Romney and Governor John Kasich of Ohio will be speaking at Otterbein College, which, as Josh Dorner of Think Progress points out, received $80,689 in Recovery Act funds for the Federal Work-Study program: http://huff.to/K8S7BZ
And your daily reminder that Mitt Romney’s familiar and troubling economic scheme would mean budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy; fewer rules for Wall Street–the same formula that benefitted a few, but crashed our economy and punished the middle class: Lawrence Summers writes in the Washington Post on Romney’s Budget Math: http://wapo.st/KgYiPz
The Obama Campaign released this video this morning, with unseen footage of Bill Clinton discussing the decision to authorize the mission to get Osama Bin Laden.
One Chance
davidaxelrod: This is sad, appalling but not terribly surprising. A GOP plan to obstruct from day one. http://huff.to/K6hEHx
Mitch McConnell: Top Priority, Make Obama a One Term President
The republicans number one goal was to obstruct the black President in EVERYTHING. And country be DAMNED!Treasonous bitches!
Vice President Biden on the President’s Commitment to Keeping Americans Safe and our Nation Secure
For Immediate Release:
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Contact: Obama for America Press (312) 985-1198
SECRETIVE OIL BILLIONAIRES MAKE GOOD ON THEIR PROMISE TO PROMOTE THEIR SPECIAL INTERESTS, BANKROLL MITT ROMNEY
“Secretive oil billionaires are making good on their promise to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on Governor Romney’s behalf attempting to defeat the President. After all, Governor Romney has introduced a tax plan which charges taxpayers $4 billion in year to provide subsidies to oil and gas companies making record profits, he opposes increased fuel economy standards that will save consumers thousands of dollars at the pump, and he supports repealing the reforms the President passed to prevent manipulation of our oil futures market. While the President fights everyday to build an economy where everybody gets a fair shot and does their fair share, special interests across the country are mobilizing to buy the election for Governor Romney to try to promote their interests over the interests of the American people.” – Ben LaBolt, National Press Secretary
SPECIAL INTERESTS MOBILIZING AGAINST THE PRESIDENT ON ROMNEY’S BEHALF
Ninety Percent Of 2012 Ad Spending Has Been By Groups That Don’t Disclose Their Donors. “Nearly all of the independent advertising being aired for the 2012 general-election campaign has come from interest groups that do not disclose their donors, suggesting that much of the political spending over the next six months will come from sources invisible to the public. Politically active nonprofit groups that do not reveal their funding sources have spent $28.5 million on advertising related to the November presidential matchup, or about 90 percent of the total through Sunday, a Washington Post analysis shows. Most of the ad spending has come in swing states from conservative groups that criticize President Obama’s policies, the data show. Secretive groups have spent tens of millions more targeting congressional races, again mainly in support of Republicans.” [Washington Post, 4/25/12
SECRETIVE OIL BILLIONAIRES MAKING GOOD ON THEIR PROMISE
Americans For Prosperity Will Spend As Much As $200 Million On The 2012 Campaign. “American Crossroads alone hopes to raise and spend $240 million during the 2012 elections; groups financed by the Kochs or conservative donors close to them, like Americans for Prosperity, will reportedly spend as much as $200 million.” [New York Times, 10/29/11]
Washington Post: 2012 Election “Likely To Be Dominated By A Shadow Campaign.”
“The numbers signal a shift away from super PACs, which are required to disclose their donors to the Federal Election Commission and which have overwhelmed spending in the Republican primary contest. Instead, the battle between Obama and presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney appears likely to be dominated by a shadow campaign run by big-spending nonprofits that do not have to identify their financial backers. Under tax and election laws, most nonprofits, including many that spend money to run ads during election season, are not required to publicly reveal their donors, unlike more purely political groups. The pattern underscores the growing influence of corporations and wealthy individuals in the wake of a Supreme Court decision that made it easier to spend unlimited money on elections. The numbers also suggest that many well-off donors are increasingly opting for the confidentiality of nonprofits rather than allowing the public scrutiny that comes from giving to super PACs or candidates.” [Washington Post, 4/25/12]
LOBBYING TO PROMOTE THEIR SPECIAL INTERESTS AT THE EXPENSE OF CONSUMERS AND TAXPAYERS
Koch Industries Spends Millions Lobbying To Protect Tax Breaks For Oil And Gas. “Koch Industries, the oil and industrial conglomerate run by the conservative-activist Koch brothers, has multiplied its spending to lobby for tax breaks and lax environmental regulation in recent years, according to a report published Wednesday. The report, from the Washington-based Center for Public Integrity (CPI), says Wichita, Kansas-based Koch raised its lobbying budget by more than 23-fold between 2004 and 2008, when it spent $20 million. That year marked a major push by Koch to convince Congress to limit EPA’s mandate to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, the report said. ‘(T)he company’s lobbyists and officials sought to mold, gut or kill more than 100 prospective bills or regulations,’ CPI reported, drawing on public lobbying disclosures and other sources. Koch declined comment for the report, CPI said. […] Since 2008, Koch has cut its direct lobbying budget to an average $10.25 million a year, the report said. But the Koch brothers have spent additional millions to back anti-regulation U.S. lawmakers and politicians, and to fund groups whose lobbying dovetails with Koch’s money-making agenda, CPI said.” [Reuters, 4/6/11]
Koch Industries Lobbied To Extend Tax Breaks For Oil And Gas Production. “In the oil patch, Koch has lobbied for the United States to maintain some tax breaks and credits for oil and gas producers that the Obama administration wants to end, CPI said. As a major trader of financial derivatives, Koch has also lobbied against regulations that could curb derivatives trade.” [Reuters, 4/6/11]
ROMNEY WOULD MAINTAIN SUBSIDIES FOR HIS FRIENDS IN THE OIL INDUSTRY
Romney Claimed Obama Blamed Him For High Gas Prices, “Because I Don’t Want To Raise Taxes On Oil Companies” And Said Obama Just “Tries To Find Some Group Of Americans That Other Americans May Not Like A Lot, Or May Not Trust A Lot” And “He Says, ‘Let’s Tax Them. It Is Their Fault.’” Romney said, “This president – he has an ad out, it’s very interesting. You may not have seen it. He has an ad out, talking about how production – oil production has risen during his presidency. Not thanks to him, of course. Thanks to the decisions of the prior president. And then he blames someone for the high price of gasoline. Guess who he blames? He’s very good at blaming, by the way. It’s a characteristic of this administration. He blames me, alright, for the high prices of gasoline – because I don’t want to raise taxes on oil companies. I don’t like raising taxes on anybody! See, this president goes around and tries to find some group of Americans that other Americans may not like a lot, or may not trust a lot. And then he says, ‘Let’s tax them. It is their fault.’ This blame, this populism of going to try to divide America, is not only wrong, it’s dangerous. We are one nation under God and united we will stand and lead.” [Romney town hall, Wilmington, DE, 4/10/12]
ROMNEY WOULD REPEAL WALL STREET REFORM THAT CRACKED DOWN ON OIL SPECULATORS MANIPULATING THE MARKET
Romney: “I’d Like To Repeal Dodd Frank.” “Today, he went further and said he would repeal Dodd-Frank, if he were elected president. ‘The extent of regulation in the banking industry has become extraordinarily burdensome following Dodd-Frank,’ Romney told a roundtable of 18 businessmen at The Common Man Restaurant. ‘I’d like to repeal Dodd Frank, recognizing that some revisions make sense,’ Romney said.” [Boston Globe, 8/24/11; Romney Town Hall, Claremont NH, 8/24/11]Wall Street Reform Created New Restrictions On Speculative Trading In Energy Futures Markets. “A divided Commodity Futures Trading Commission voted along party lines Tuesday to impose new restrictions on speculative trading in energy futures markets. The rules, required under last year’s Dodd-Frank law, are aimed at reigning in speculative Wall Street trading that some allege has driven up oil prices and worsened market volatility in recent years. The rules impose ‘position limits’ on the amount of futures and swaps contracts for oil and other commodities that traders hold.” [The Hill E2 Wire Blog, 10/18/11]
Romney’s false attacks on the President’s foreign policy accomplishments are just another round in the ongoing battle of “Mitt Romney vs. Reality: http://bit.ly/I7ZqF2
And your daily reminder that Mitt Romney’s economic scheme is familiar and troubling: more budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy; fewer rules for Wall Street–the same formula that benefitted a few, but crashed our economy and punished the middle class: http://bit.ly/KeQJcO
Vice President Biden spoke on foreign policy today at NYU:
“Governor Romney is counting on our collective amnesia. But Americans know that we cannot afford to go back to the future. Back to a foreign policy that would have America go it alone… shout to the world you’re either with us or against us… lash out first and ask the hard questions later, if at all… isolate America instead of our enemies…waste hundreds of billions of dollars and risk thousands of American lives on an unnecessary war… and see the world through a Cold War prism that is totally out of touch with our times.”
· Meanwhile Romney is conjuring up bizarre attacks on President Obama’s foreign policy– like when a Romney advisor today went after the President’s strategy on “Czechoslovakia” – a country that hasn’t existed in decades: http://bit.ly/JIJfBf
And let’s not forget that Mitt Romney has yet to outline a coherent foreign policy vision — he was for and against the removal of Qaddafi, for and against setting a timetable to withdraw our troops from Afghanistan, for and against enforcing trade laws against China, and while he once said he would not move heaven and earth to get Osama bin Laden, he later claimed that any president would have authorized the mission to do so.
Associated Press: Romney Criticized President Obama For Setting A Timetable For Ending The War In Afghanistan But Has Not Said “Whether His Own War Strategy Would Keep The U.S. Fighting In Afghanistan Past” 2014: http://pojonews.co/JIJe0e
Wall Street Journal: “Over The Course Of A Campaign [In 2012] That Has Mainly Skirted Foreign-Policy Issues, Mr. Romney Has Backed Remaining In Afghanistan Until The U.S. Can Claim Victory There.” http://on.wsj.com/JsVcZX
And in case you missed it, here are five times Mitt Romney flunked on foreign policy: http://bit.ly/If2lzz
Romney is still too extreme for women, and wants to give millionaires tax cuts at the expense of every day Americans:
If Romney’s fumble yesterday on whether or not he thinks women should be able to enforce their right to equal pay wasn’t enough: http://bit.ly/I6hRMe
He’s been trotting out women surrogates to try and boost his cred on women’s issues…who voted against the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and went off against feminism: http://huff.to/HA2bU6
If you know anyone who needs a reminder of all the severely conservative things Romney has said, this video has the some of the greatest hits: http://bit.ly/HDOukn
And here’s a shorter, five things you need to know about Mitt Romney: http://on.fb.me/IHHz7V
The Vice President will be speaking about the President’s efforts to promote tax fairness by ensuring millionaires and billionaires do not pay less in taxes than middle-class families at an event in New Hampshire today.
watch the event live at 12:15 PM EDT, please click here: http://bit.ly/IpFMbC
A SNEAK PEEK at early excerpts from what he will say today:
“Just look at what Governor Romney wants to do. The Bush tax cuts for the wealthy, the ones that were intended to expire, the ones that will expire this December—he wants to extend them. That will cost about a trillion dollars over the next ten years. And $800 billion of that trillion will go to people who make a minimum of a million dollars a year. And to add insult to injury, he proposes to give another $250,000 in tax cuts to the average millionaire. That’s another trillion dollars to the top 1 percent—on top of making permanent the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy.
Look, these are tax cuts to people who didn’t ask for them, who don’t need them, and who know the nation can’t afford them. And it matters. There’s a stark choice we have to make. The Buffett Rule says that multi-millionaires should pay at least the same percentage of their income in taxes as middle-class families do. The Romney Rule says the very wealthy should keep the tax cuts and loopholes they have, and get an additional, new tax cut every year that is worth more than what the average middle class family makes in an entire year.”
For more information on the Buffett Rule, and the cool calculator that lets you see your tax rate vs. Romney’s before and after the Buffett Rule, go here: http://bit.ly/Hurbgk
For Immediate Release:
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Contact: Obama for America Press
(312) 985-1198
CHICAGO, IL — Today, Obama for America released a new video highlighting the sixth anniversary of the Massachusetts health care law, or Romneycare, which Governor Romney said he wanted to serve as a national model for health care reform. And it did: Massachusetts health care reform served as the model for the Affordable Care Act. Mitt Romney even included an individual mandate in his health care reform plan.
Now that Romney is running for president, apparently he doesn’t believe in taking on rising health care costs or providing affordable accessible health care to all Americans. He advocates letting insurance companies go back to dropping Americans’ coverage when they get sick, discriminating against those with preexisting conditions, and making women pay more for their health care. The video features John McDonough, an architect of Massachusetts health care reform and the Affordable Care Act; Jonathan Gruber, consultant to both the Romney and Obama administrations; and Madelyn Rhenisch, the first Massachusetts resident to enroll in Romneycare.
For Immediate Release:
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Contact: Obama for America Press
312-985-1198
New Digital Calculator Compares American’s Tax Rates to Mitt Romney’s
CHICAGO, IL — Today, Obama for America released a new digital calculator that individuals can use to see how their tax rate stacks up against Mitt Romney’s – and then see what the Buffett Rule would do to make the tax code more fair so that we can help reduce the deficit and grow the economy. The calculator highlights President Obama’s efforts to close loopholes and end special tax breaks that let some of the wealthiest pay a lower tax rate than many middle-class families. Mitt Romney defends a system that rewards people like him at the expense of the middle class and the economy as a whole by allowing him to pay a lower tax rate than the average middle-class American. The digital calculator helps Americans see how if the Buffett Rule were enacted, everyone would pay their fair share, helping to reduce the deficit and continuing investments in programs that create jobs, grow our economy and strengthen the middle-class.
To use the calculator and read more about the Buffett Rule, please click here: http://barackobama.com/buffett-rule
Statement from Jim Messina on Today’s Developments in the Campaign
CHICAGO, IL – “It’s no surprise that Mitt Romney finally was able to grind down his opponents under an avalanche of negative ads. But neither he nor his special interest allies will be able to buy the presidency with their negative attacks. The more the American people see of Mitt Romney, the less they like him and the less they trust him. While calling himself the ‘ideal candidate’ for the Tea Party, he has promised to return to the same policies that created the economic crisis and has alienated women, middle class families, and Hispanic Americans. Americans value a President who will fight every day to rebuild an economy in which hard work will pay, responsibility is rewarded and everyone plays by the same rules. And that President is Barack Obama.”
– Jim Messina, Obama for America Campaign Manager
It’s safe to say we’re starting to get a taste of what this election will look like in the months to come: well-funded distortions from many different right wing groups.
Think Progress reports that Charles Blahous, who works for the Koch-funded Mercatus Center, is revising the way we calculate the deficit in order to claim that Obamacare would increase the deficit: http://bit.ly/HHEaVM
Not only are these claims completely false, but they’re being made by a think tank that is very closely connected to the Koch Brothers. Charles Koch launched the Mercatus Center, and still sits on their board of directors: http://bit.ly/HuuBdJ
And the founder of the Mercatus Center heads the Koch lobbying operation in Washington, and is the head of The Charles Koch Foundation: http://nyr.kr/Hy4eXI
And the Koch Family Foundations have contributed millions to the Mercatus Center: http://nyr.kr/Hy4eXI
The Truth Team put it this way:
Republicans are touting a report that makes false claims about Obamacare and the deficit: http://OFA.BO/2JfLpPhttp://bit.ly/IIj2Pt
Officials and nonpartisan scorekeepers agree, the Affordable Care Act actually reduces the deficit by billions: http://OFA.BO/Kn7Dwbhttp://bit.ly/HHDTSF
Just last month, CBO said that coverage in Obamacare costs $50 billion less than it originally estimated: http://OFA.BO/XsdVtKhttp://bit.ly/Huuv5D
Mitt Romney’s plan, however, means Medicare reaches insolvency in 2016 and forces seniors to pay more out of pocket: http://OFA.BO/cqP5EVhttp://bit.ly/HwY0JU
And finally, Romney is still refusing to release his tax returns, prompting the Prospect to ask, “Just What Does Romney Have to Hide?” http://bit.ly/Hy40Qm
The focus will stay on Romney when it comes to tax fairness, especially since, as Jim Messina put it yesterday, “Romney is the beneficiary of a broken tax system and he wants to keep it that way”: http://bit.ly/HwXVWo
Pres. Obama’s Approvals:
CNN 51%
ABC/Wash Po 50%
Suffolk 52%
NBC/WSJ 50%
Reuters 50%
Pew 50%
Politico 53%.
President OBAMA is WELL LOVED. despite the attempts at every turn to paint him as the DEVIL. YOU ROCK PBO!!1 3 CHICS LOVES YOU!
AMEN!
The Obama campaign has launched a comprehensive website this morning, explaining what the Buffett rule does and why it’s so important for America: http://bit.ly/Hurbgk
“Do we want to keep giving tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans like me, or Warren Buffett, or Bill Gates – people who don’t need them and never asked for them? Or do we want to keep investing in things that will grow our economy and keep us secure? Because we can’t afford to do both.” – President Obama on why the Buffett Rule is important: http://bit.ly/IgyqUn
What would the Buffett Rule do? Look at all the programs we could fund if we eliminated tax breaks for millionaires: http://bit.ly/HvA85D
And it’s not just President Obama who’s on board. Check out everyone who has called for tax fairness – from Warren Buffett to Ronald Reagan: http://bit.ly/IiZeWG
Vice President Biden, who just relaunched his twitter account, tweeted about the Buffett Rule this morning: http://bit.ly/IaVUxw
And announced that he will speak on the proposed rule this Thursday in New Hampshire: http://bit.ly/IiZbdt
And Ed Kilgore talks about the benefits of progressives reclaiming the conversation about taxes: http://bit.ly/HuqXpr
Though don’t expect Mitt Romney, who personally benefits from the tax code that the Buffett Rule would undo, to get on board with ending tax breaks for Millionaires: http://wapo.st/HvA1XJ
Instead, as the NY Times reports, the American Crossroads PAC, founded by Ed Gillespie who Romney just hired to lead up his campaign strategy, will begin its blitz against President Obama this week: http://nyti.ms/Igy7ca
on an economic note, jobs numbers show steady growth this morning, for the 25th month in a row of growth (strongest since the 90s). There have been 4.1 million new jobs added since the recovery started: http://reut.rs/HvaeMg
There is increasing demand for Mitt Romney to release his more of his tax returns. This is a huge issue, and has been getting a lot of media attention. It won’t go away until Romney comes clean – here’s why it is so important.
We know that Romney is taking advantage of an obscure ethics exception to avoid disclosing his Bain holdings: http://wapo.st/I269kC
And we know that he has practiced “unusual” accounting techniques, like rolling buyout profits into a $100 million IRA: http://bit.ly/I5ukkz
And setting up offshore accounts all around the world: http://bit.ly/HnIufk
We know, too, that his tax plan would give the average millionaire a $250,000 tax break while actually raising taxes on millions of hardworking families making less than $40,000 a year: http://bit.ly/HkWlEF
Even though he gave 23 years of his tax returns to John McCain during the 2008 Vice Presidential vetting, a Romney advisor says the what he’s released to the public “are sufficient” http://bit.ly/HlRzJ3
This is about making sure everyone plays by the same rules. From what we’ve seen so far, not only is Mitt Romney not playing by the same rules, he wants to continue to make sure that our country’s top 0.1% wealthiest get special privileges paid for by average working Americans.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, April 5, 2012
CONTACT: Obama for America Press
(312) 985-1198
MITT ROMNEY HAS PUT HIS PERSONAL FINANCES IN A BLACK BOX AND HID THE KEY
Americans Have a Right to See the Tax Returns He Shared with the McCain Campaign
CHICAGO, IL — Obama for America Campaign Manager Jim Messina released the following statement on today’s Washington Post report:
“Mitt Romney has asked Americans to elect him President based on his experience as a corporate buyout specialist. Each week, new questions are raised about whether he took unusual steps to avoid paying his fair share in taxes. Today’s report suggests that Governor Romney is exploiting a loophole in order to shield his assets and investments from public review.”
“Mitt Romney has put his personal financial assets in a black box and hid the key, attempting to play by a different set of rules than any candidate in recent history. In fact, Mitt Romney’s own father released 12 years of tax returns when he ran for president. President Bush released his tax returns dating back to 1991. And President Obama released his returns dating back to 2000 when he ran for president.”
“Governor Romney provided 23 years worth of tax returns to the McCain campaign so they could determine if he would make a suitable Vice President. He must meet that same standard now so that the American people may judge whether he would be a suitable President, and whether there are any conflicts of interest that could cloud his judgment.”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/romney-using-ethics-exception-to-limit-disclosure-of-bain-holdings/2012/04/05/gIQARcVmxS_story.html
In Case You Missed It: our video yesterday of Governor Romney attacking policies that no one proposed. Given Governor Romney’s history of reinventing his own record and positions, this should come as no surprise. Watch our new video, Mitt Romney Versus Reality: http://bit.ly/I6G2ag
And finally, Ed Gillespie, who started the American Crossroads Super PAC with Karl Rove, is now joining team Romney as a top advisor: http://politi.co/HQwjuX
As Ari Berman put it: Ari Berman @AriBerman First thing Romney does after becoming de facto nominee is name top lobbyist as campaign adviser. How fitting! http://bit.ly/HS5h5f
Here’s a standup with CBS news Ed Gillespie did in February on how the power of Super PACs is no surprise: http://cbsn.ws/I8dosS
The GOP keeps pushing women away:
This morning, RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said that the so-called Republican assault on women’s rights was as fictional as a “war on Caterpillars” http://bloom.bg/HYvfRt
Amanda Terkel reacted: Amanda Terkel @aterkel I’m a caterpillar! http://bit.ly/HhtqOB
What’s not fictional? The actual GOP assault on women’s rights. Current TV does a roundup of 101 of the worst measures: http://bit.ly/HxnHCT
What’s also not fictional: the incredible gender gap between parties: http://usat.ly/HS5x41
Republicans Compare Women to Caterpillars
Priebus Says Gender Battle as Fictonal as Caterpillar War
Republican overtures to women:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-05/priebus-says-gender-battle-as-fictonal-as-caterpillar-war.html
The leaders of the two political parties clashed over the role of gender in U.S. elections, with the Democrat saying her opponents have been “shockingly out of touch” on women’s issues and the Republican saying Democrats and the media have created a phony conflict. “If the Democrats said we had a war on caterpillars and every mainstream media outlet talked about the fact that Republicans have a war on caterpillars, then we’d have problems with caterpillars,” Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said in an interview on Bloomberg Television’s “Political Capital with Al Hunt” airing this weekend. “It’s a fiction.”
Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus before speaking at the Harris School of Public Policy Studies at the University of Chicago on Nov. 16, 2011. Photographer: Scott Olson/Getty Images Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and fellow party leaders have been hammering Republicans for supporting policies such as requiring women seeking abortions to get an ultrasound. “The jury of women across America have ruled that the Republicans have been unbelievably extreme and out of touch and hyper-focused on cultural issues,” Wasserman Schultz said on “Political Capital.” That’s reflected in polling showing President Barack Obama beating former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney or other Republican presidential contenders by 18 points, she said. That gender gap showed up in a survey of swing states published April 2 by USA Today/Gallup.
Making the Case
While Priebus rejected the idea that Republicans are waging a war on women, he said they can combat the perception by focusing on their plans for the economy. He said they will be making their case “to women and everyone in this country.” “This president hasn’t fulfilled his promises,” Priebus said. “We can do better in this country in regards to jobs and the economy.” The two leaders, in separate interviews, also disagreed over the likely outcome in the Supreme Court challenge to Obama’s health-care law, with Wasserman-Schultz saying she is confident it will be upheld. The court heard three days of arguments last week over the constitutionality of the law, which requires Americans to buy health insurance. Priebus said he expects the court to strike down the law, which he said would be “good for our country.” He criticized Obama’s recent suggestion that such a move would amount to “judicial activism.” “It makes him look foolish as a lawyer,” Priebus said.
Money Advantage
Both party leaders suggested the other will have an advantage when it comes to fundraising. Priebus said he doesn’t know if Republicans would be able to take in as much as Obama, though he said the election will boil down to ideological issues, not the $1 billion likely to be raised by either side. Wasserman Schultz focused on Obama’s ban on taking money from lobbyists and other special interests. “President Obama’s campaign and the Democratic Party is fueled by people,” she said. Both expect a tough race for the White House. Priebus said Romney’s three primary wins on April 3, including in Priebus’s home state of Wisconsin (BEESWI), represent a “big night” for the party. “Obviously I have to be neutral, but I don’t have to avoid the facts,” he said. “It was a good night for Mitt Romney.” Wasserman Schultz said she expects Romney to have trouble in the general election because he has shifted positions on issues. “None of his positions have any conviction because he’s willing to change them at the drop of a hat,” she said. The chairwoman disagreed with her rival when it came to predictions for congressional races, saying she expected Democrats to hang onto the U.S. Senate, while Priebus said Republicans can claim the chamber for their party. “We’ve got so many opportunities in the Senate,” he said, predicting that Republicans will take over Democratic seats in Ohio, Virginia, Florida, Wisconsin and Hawaii. That would give Republicans a majority, overturning the Democrats 53-47 control.
ThinkProgress @thinkprogress:
BREAKING: @CocaCola withdraws support from ALEC after @ColorOfChange highlights voter suppression efforts http://thkpr.gs/HO88fx
“In the classic swing state of New Hampshire, Romney closed his only office immediately after the January 10 primary. To the astonishment of local Obama organisers, a “for lease” sign was hung outside the Romney headquarters four days before the vote was held. Obama, by contrast, has seven offices up and running in the state, with more than 25 paid staff.”
Mitt Romney versus reality
Now that he has more than half of the GOP delegates he needs to be the nominee, Mitt Romney has revealed his general election strategy: hope that American voters, particularly women and those in the Latino community, have short-term memories.
Mitt Romney’s Maryland campaign chair, Robert Ehrlich, announced Romney will now try to Etch-A-Sketch away his stance on women’s issues: http://bit.ly/HqK6Sh
And Romney’s hoping that voters won’t remember when he told them he wanted to get rid of Planned Parenthood, or that he supported women having to ask their employers for permission to access birth control, or that he thought immigrants should self-deport: http://bloom.bg/HeNm4A
We’ll be keeping Mitt Romney honest as we move into the general election, making sure he can’t Etch-A-Sketch away the times he:
Would end health care for millions of families: http://bit.ly/I0Qd0O
Called a plan to drastically cut taxes for the wealthy, at the expense of the middle class, “marvelous”: http://bit.ly/HkWlEF
Pledged to get rid of Planned Parenthood: http://bit.ly/HgaXaN
Fought against Unions and working Americans: http://bit.ly/Hgd6Pf
Endorsed extreme immigration policies: http://bit.ly/HcVMOd
Failed to stand up for women: http://bit.ly/HQ1Qsq
BREAKING NEWS!!!! President Obama clinches the Dem presidential nomination by winning primaries in D.C.& MD. http://www.cnn.com/
Mitt Romney is trying to completely etch-a-sketch his immigration stance: http://bit.ly/HcgbPh
While Romney may have been campaigning hard against unions and the middle class in an attempt to win over Wisconsin Republican voters, look for him to abandon the state once the primary is over: http://bit.ly/HbFosG
As the LA Times reported, most of his money has been poured into advertising, in contrast to the Obama campaign’s priority of organizing people on the ground: http://lat.ms/Hl5h8S
Like these hundreds of Obama campaign volunteers who gathered last week just to hear Joe Biden speak at a campaign office: http://bit.ly/HdKef1
And this new organizing tool the Obama campaign launched last week, Own Your Vote, dedicated to organizing voters and educating them on Wisconsin’s new Voter ID laws: http://bit.ly/HVkZZ2
And finally, last night the Obama campaign put out an ad, “Remember,” to run in Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio and Virginia, emphasizing President Obama’s historic energy accomplishments: http://bit.ly/HRqjhb
Wisconsin’s primary is tomorrow:
Romney doubled down on his anti-labor stance by calling Scott Walker – a union-busting ally of the Koch brothers, a “hero”: http://on.msnbc.com/H7tbd8
And got a “ringing” endorsement from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, noting that: http://bit.ly/Hfm7oS o His [tax] plan overall would add $3 trillion to the deficit over the next 10 years.
o Romney’s finger-to-the-wind tacking across the political sea leaves us to wonder if he is anchored anywhere.
And finally, what you shouldn’t miss: Romney-tied PAC has a taste for secrecy, often hiding the source of major donations through dummy LLCs and twice having to modify its FEC filings: http://bo.st/HATqcM
The polls are in, and they say that women just don’t trust Romney.
USA Today is out with a new poll that shows Romney trailing with women in swings states, by as much as 25% in Wisconsin: http://usat.ly/HaJtmY
That’s following a Pew poll out on Friday that showed the gender gap was as large (and significant) as ever: http://bit.ly/HATGZw
Meanwhile, as Steve Benen points out, as the GOP is alienating women by pledging to get rid of Planned Parenthood and eliminate protections for preventive care; Obama is reaching out by standing up for Planned Parenthood, and stating that women’s health is too important to play politics with: http://on.msnbc.com/HC25dH
All of this was featured in a make-sure-you-don’t-miss-it great segment on Friday night’s Rachel Maddow show: http://on.msnbc.com/HOU2aw
Paul Ryan has endorsed Mitt Romney, launching the Bromance that would break the backs of the middle class if they win in November:
Paul Ryan endorsed Mitt Romney this morning on Fox and Friends: http://bit.ly/H4eCs6
In fact, the DNC just made a video about the bromance between Romney and Ryan—both want to end Medicare as we know it to cut taxes for the rich: http://bit.ly/H3TCS5
And Jamelle Bouie points out that possibly more important than Paul Ryan’s endorsement of Romney is the fact that Romney is just as radical as Ryan: http://bit.ly/HttoHw
Or as LOLGOP puts it: LOLGOP @LOLGOP Paul Ryan: Everyone knows the lessons of the 2008 crisis were seniors pay too little for Medicare and rich people pay too much in taxes. http://bit.ly/H8BK6d
Does this mean Mitt Romney will win Wisconsin next week? He is phonebanking for Scott Walker: http://bit.ly/H1ZZDx
And speaking at a Faith and Freedom Coalition event in Wisconsin on Saturday. The group, run by Ralph Reed, is known for its hardline Christian conservative stances: http://bit.ly/GY9YHi
And finally, your Friday awwww – watch this video of the Dinner with Barack and Michelle, where they talk about what means the most to them talk about being in the position of President and First Lady (how much you can help people) and Barack share the story of the disastrous time he tried to do Malia’s hair: http://bit.ly/H3TsKq
Did Romney manipulate tax laws to drive up the value of his $100 million IRA?
We’re calling on Mitt Romney to disclose his tax returns, so we can find out: http://bit.ly/HttZJn
Ben LaBolt @BenLaBolt @MittRomney should disclose his tax returns to answer questions about whether he manipulated tax laws: http://on.wsj.com/H6lldM
http://bit.ly/Hqy0u6
As the Wall Street Journal reports, Mr. Romney’s filings so far show he invested his IRA money in Bain deals, but don’t make clear whether he used the special share class to direct more of the gains into his IRA: http://on.wsj.com/H0gqwJ [paywall]
If you’ll recall, the Wall Street Journal reported two days ago that Bain’s co-investment arrangements, not previously reported in detail, allowed for “the sort of aggressive tax planning” not available “to ordinary taxpayers” and possibly helped Mitt Romney grow his retirement account to such an unusually high amount: http://on.wsj.com/Hl9UB7
Full Statement from Ben LaBolt, Press Secretary: “Yesterday’s report raises additional questions about Governor Romney’s manipulation of the tax laws. First, we learned that Governor Romney may keep his investments offshore in order to claim special tax breaks. Now, we found out that he may have engaged in questionable maneuvers to drive up the value of his IRA. Governor Romney could help answer the questions that have been raised by releasing his tax returns beginning with the year he became a corporate buyout specialist. He provided the McCain campaign with 23 years of returns – more than 20 years of which have not been shared with the American people – so we know they are readily available for public review.” –Ben LaBolt, Press Secretary
Keeping His Word: Creating Manufacturing Jobs
Mitt Romney: Wrong for Women, Wrong for Wisconsin
I hope his MITNESS loses WI tomorrow.
This morning, President Obama gave a passionate speech calling on Congress to end oil subsidies today (the Senate will vote on S. 2204, the Repeal Big Oil Tax Subsidies Act, this morning) Or, as President Obama put it: They can stand with big oil companies, or they can stand with the American people.
The Obama 2012 twitter account live-tweeted it
Obama 2012 @Obama2012 President Obama: “Right now, the biggest oil companies are raking in record profits.” http://bit.ly/GYtoiL
Obama 2012 @Obama2012 “Every time gas goes up by a penny, these companies usually pocket another $200 million in quarterly profits.” http://bit.ly/Hs7G4W
Obama 2012 @Obama2012 “But on top of these record profits, oil companies are also getting billions a year in taxpayer subsidies.”—President Obama http://bit.ly/H0AbWQ
President Obama has been pushing ending oil subsidies, alternative energy solutions, higher efficiency standards, and an all-of-the-above energy strategy: http://bit.ly/H3Dg54
While Romney’s Big Oil alliance means billions in subsidies for oil companies: http://bit.ly/H14f8z
The Romney-Ryan budget, which would end Medicare as we know it, is expected to pass in a House vote today: http://bit.ly/HlNcve
As a reminder, the Romney-Ryan budget not only guts Medicare and Medicaid, it also gives tax cuts for the wealthy at the expense of the middle class: http://bit.ly/GXU7aM
So it shouldn’t be any surprise that Romney applauded it last night: http://n.pr/HikqO0
Romney thinks closing factories is humorous, and we that ending Medicare as we know is “marvelous”. President Obama supports Planned Parenthood, and wants to end subsidies to big oil. Any questions?
In case you missed it, last night Mitt Romney had a chuckle about his dad closing down factories in Michigan: http://bit.ly/H3FV2L
Steve Benen has the audio here: http://on.msnbc.com/GVKpH0?tipsheet
And don’t forget: David Shepardson @davidshepardson Then American Motors CEO George Romney’s decision to close the Hudson plants on Detroit’s East Side in 1954 cost 4,300 workers their jobs
All of this inspired the DNC to start the #LOLMitt hashtag: http://bit.ly/H3L47r
And the #LOLMitt Quickmeme: http://bit.ly/Hl9NWa
Of course, it’s easier to laugh about factory closings when, thanks to Bain’s accounting, you have $100 Million in your IRA: http://on.wsj.com/Hl9UB7
A message to Planned Parenthood Supporters from President Obama
“Women are not an interest group. They are mothers and daughters and sisters and wives. They are one-half of this country, and are perfectly capable of making their own choices about their health.”
“If you truly value families, you shouldn’t play politics with women’s health”
“I know you’ll never stop fighting to protect the healthcare and choices that women deserve. And as long as I have the privilege of being your president, neither will I.”
Last night on the Jay Leno show, Mitt Romney said he wants insurance companies to be able to deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.
“If they are 45 years old and they show up and say I want insurance because I have heart disease, it’s like, ‘Hey guys. We can’t play the game like that. You’ve got to get insurance when you are well and then if you get ill, you are going to be covered,’” Romney responded.” http://on.msnbc.com/GYl5oz
Video is here: http://bit.ly/GZXCMt
Who would that affect? For one thing it would affect Spike, a mom whose life was literally saved by the Affordable Care Act’s pre-existing condition fix: http://bit.ly/GX5F3u
What does the pre-existing clause mean in real life? http://bit.ly/GTwIZ1
Before the Affordable Care Act:
Insurance companies could deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions, from asthma to cancer.
Today:
Insurance companies can no longer deny coverage to children under 19 with pre-existing conditions, and adults with pre-existing conditions who haven’t found affordable insurance can now get coverage through the Pre-existing Condition Insurance Program.
In 2014:
This program serves as a bridge until 2014, when insurance companies won’t be able to turn anyone down or charge more due to a pre-existing condition.
Affordable Care Act
This chart details the difference in what women pay before and after the affordable care act (hint – it’s better after) http://bit.ly/Hne657
And a roundup of all the good the law has done around the country:
Blogging While Blue – Seven Ways Obama Changed Healthcare: http://bit.ly/GWHaRZ
Blue Mass Group – I Like Obamacare: http://bit.ly/HhGPu0
Left in Alabama – Obamacare in Alabama: http://bit.ly/Hfuoxz
Fired Up Missouri – Happy Birthday Obamacare! http://bit.ly/HncAQx
Blog for Arizona – Second Anniversary of the Affordable Care Act: http://bit.ly/GYfGd9
MN Publius – The Affordable Care Act at two years: http://bit.ly/GYnA9o
Did you know? Mitt Romney supports tax cuts for corporations that move businesses overseas – and his record of outsourcing as MA governor shows what he’d do as President.
Vice President Biden will address this in his speech in Iowa today: http://yhoo.it/GWGRqi
And will say that Romney is “consistently wrong” on manufacturing: http://dmreg.co/GYjsU5
Here is a map that details all the places Romney has outsourced jobs: http://bit.ly/Hg8fN2
The Atlantic details what’s left of the manufacturing industry in America: http://bit.ly/H0BANx
Mitt Romney: out-of-touch on foreign policy, domestic policy, and home décor
Mitt Romney last night called Russia our #1 Geopolitical Foe: http://huff.to/HcAHDo
And as TIME points out: “Romney, not previously known as an expert in strategic arms reduction, was also one of the most vocal critics of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty Obama reached with Russia in 2010; TIME: Romney’s Well-Rehearsed Case Against Obama and the Russians: http://ti.me/GThF0C
Don’t forget, Romney was extolling the virtue of keeping his positions vague a few days ago: http://bit.ly/HaxrXP
And has been extremely vague on his plans for Afghanistan: http://bit.ly/HblRwH
Four-star general Wesley Clark criticized Romney’s comments: http://bit.ly/Hf5kn1
The internet is buzzing this morning about Mitt Romney’s Four-Car Fantasy Dream Home: http://politi.co/GU556w
Brad Woodhouse @woodhouseb Obama lifts car industry out of bankruptcy; Romney lifts cars out of his mansion’s basement.: http://politi.co/GR1ba0
LOLGOP @LOLGOP Cars are people too, my friend.http://bit.ly/HhDwBj
And in exciting internet news, the campaign now has a Pinterest: http://bit.ly/H8Zt8m
OBAMA FOR AMERICA TO RELEASE BILINGUAL REPORT ON THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT’S IMPACT ON HISPANICS AND NEW SPANISH-LANGUAGE HEALTH CARE PERSONALIZATION TOOL
Chicago, IL – Tomorrow, Gabriela Domenzain, Director of Hispanic Press for Obama For America and Nurse Practitioner Claudia Sanchez will hold a conference call to announce the release of a new Obama For America report detailing how Hispanics have already benefitted from the President’s landmark health reforms and a Spanish-language health insurance personalization tool which allows users to identify how they do and will benefit from the legislation. Both Spanish and English language press will be accommodated.
WHO: Gabriela Domnzain, OFA Director of Hispanic Press, Claudia Sanchez, Nurse Practitioner
WHAT: Press Conference call to announce a new report highlighting how Hispanics are benefiting from President Obama’s historic health reform and to launch Spanish-language health care personalization tool
WHEN: Monday, March 26, 2012 at 1:30 P.M. CT/2:30 P.M. ET
Today, the Senate votes on ending billions in tax breaks for Big Oil. Republicans are lining up to protect their friends, and we know where Romney would stand – he has supported these subsidies in the past and has spent the primaries pandering to his Big Oil donors and telling them exactly what they want to hear.
In this election alone, Romney has raised more than $2.29million from oil and gas special interests. Romney would maintain $4 billion in taxpayer subsidies to oil and gas companies that are posting record profits, and he opposes President Obama’s all-of-the-above energy strategy to help decrease our dependence on foreign oil: http://politi.co/GHKC0j
In case you need to break it down further, check out this handy side-by-side chart on Romney’s big oil connections: http://bit.ly/GTyyXZ
And as Think Progress reported this weekend, the Rove-linked Crossroads GPS launched a $650,000 false campaign on gas prices: http://bit.ly/H7A0er
Ryan says Romney would adopt Republican Budget to End Medicare
Warren takes center stage in Obama campaign video
http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/24/10842939-warren-takes-center-stage-in-obama-campaign-video
President Obama’s re-election campaign unveiled a new video this morning, which has a similar look and feel to the recent “The Road We’ve Traveled” documentary, but features a different message and messenger.
Note, for example, that aside from some brief narration at the beginning, the only voice in this video is Elizabeth Warren’s, the Democratic U.S. Senate candidate in Massachusetts. That’s interesting in and of itself — the campaign clearly sees Warren as a key progressive voice, with enormous credibility on these issues, particularly with the Democratic Party’s base.
And the fact that shining a spotlight on Warren during his very competitive race probably doesn’t hurt the party’s larger goals, either.
But also note the message of the video itself. Whereas the recently-released documentary was largely focused on reminding the public about the severity of the crash Obama inherited from his Republican predecessor, and the improvements seen over the last few years, the message of this video is looking forward. As Warren says in the clip:
“This next election is about the direction our country takes. It’s about whether or not we are going to be a people who say, ‘I got mine; the rest of you are on your own,’ or whether we’re going to be a people who say, ‘We can invest in our future.’
“And we can build a real future for ourselves and for our kids, so that when the next kid comes up with a good idea, they got a shot to make it big, and so does the kid after that and the kid after that.
“This election is going to affect everyone. We really have come to real choice and what our future looks like is going to be very different depending on who’s governing.”
Please sign the petition, if you like OBAMACARE! Thank you.
http://www.barackobama.com/i-like-obamacare
Need more proof that all Romney’s talk about gas prices is hypocritical?
Glenn Thrush reports: “Romney has been touting his understanding of the industry on the trail, but his ties to Big Oil – and a handful of wealthy investors who have made cash on the rise in oil prices — could come back to bite him”: http://politi.co/GHKC0j
And a number of people are tweeting out what the Affordable Care Act does for them using the hashtag #HealthcareWorks: http://bit.ly/GRoDHa
Meanwhile, Mitt Romney used today to call for repeal of health care reform. We detail what that would mean here: http://bit.ly/GHKBtc
Here’s a quick roundup of some of the great blog posts today to mark the anniversary
Crooks & Liars: Happy Birthday Affordable Care Act! http://bit.ly/GKUQ2c
Think Progress: Infographic – Affordable Care Act turns Two: http://bit.ly/GS7UTd
Balloon Juice: Observing the Anniversary: http://bit.ly/GJ0bpu
Eclectablog: Why the Affordable Care Act is a Fight for Women: http://bit.ly/GKUVmB
The Mudflats: The Affordable Care Act Brings Relief to Alaskan Families: http://bit.ly/GRoljv
Above Average Jane: ACA Videos: http://bit.ly/GSX6CW
Blue Virginia: Health Care Works by Helping to Control Costs for Small Businesses and Families: http://bit.ly/GL5Hf0
Burnt Orange Report: Health Care Working in Texas: http://bit.ly/GKyPMZ
Progressive Pulse: Happy Birthday Healthcare Law: http://bit.ly/GKlK5v
Blogging Blue: Life Without Limits: http://bit.ly/GKlKmf
Happy Two-Year Anniversary of the Affordable Care Act!
You’ve seen a number of videos from us lately. To help you out, we’ve compiled them all in one place: http://bit.ly/GJRObo
There you’ll see a story attached to each important provision of the Affordable Care Act – whether it’s striking down pre-existing conditions, or holding health insurance companies accountable.
We’re also kicking off our women’s week of action around health care: http://bit.ly/GR5GWn
This includes a cool tool that allows you to send hard-copy postcards to anyone you want talking about all that the Affordable Care Act has done for women specifically: http://bit.ly/GL5zw7
Mitt Romney: Unshakably Extreme
Mitt Romney still can’t shake the Etch-A-Sketch reference:
Boston Globe: Boston Globe: Words boost, bedevil Romney: http://b.globe.com/GHMvih
Washington Post: Mitt Romney camp’s latest gaffe may be etched in history: http://wapo.st/GMNO8G
WSJ: After ‘Etch-A-Sketch Gaffe,’ Romney Reasserts He’s a Conservative: http://on.wsj.com/GGf66c
The DNC has this new video:
Even Mitt Rommey Knows an Etch A Sketch Can’t Erase his Extreme Positions
Mitt Romney, on the other hand, would end protections and programs to protect health care and Medicare:
Romney wants to repeal the health care law, which would mean enormous consequences for Americans: http://bit.ly/GQn6j1
The Romney-Ryan plan would eliminate Medicare as we know it. Here’s a side-by-side graphic (pdf): http://bit.ly/GMiQDY
This morning, we also released this detailed memo, breaking down what the plan does: http://bit.ly/GMiRYC
And even Mitt Romney’s top endorse Governor Bob McDonnell considers the War on Women political theater: Huffington Post: Bob McDonnell, Virginia Governor: ‘War On Women’ Is ‘Political Theater’: http://huff.to/GQxuFY
Tomorrow is the two-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act.
Ahead of the anniversary, the campaign has released a series of videos to show how health care is helping you, and people in communities across the country.
Do you know what the Medicare doughnut hole is? http://bit.ly/GGsS4o
Or that 2.5 million young people now have health insurance? http://bit.ly/GMrGjU
Or that you soon won’t have to pay a co-pay for preventative health care? http://bit.ly/GIZeOp
Or that those on Medicare can already get mammograms and bone screenings for free? http://bit.ly/GGV5eO
Or that soon you can’t be dropped from health insurance for a pre-existing condition: http://bit.ly/GFRT1y
Learn all the ways the health care law is benefitting you: http://bit.ly/GGeRYV
Or just go to the site and try out our tool yourself: http://bit.ly/GMNruV
Or visit Burnt Orange Report, which has been running a fantastic video of the day series on health care reform: http://bit.ly/GHtauX
Keeping His Word: Health Coverage for Young Americans
Mitt Romney: Some Things You Can’t Shake Off
David Axelrod:
3Chic’s SouthernGirl2 Participates In State Of The Race Conference Call
a lot of damage has been done in this Republican race. And again you know I think there is this attitude on the part of some over there in the Romney camp that they can just wipe the slate clean, that they can get the nomination and that all that was said in the past just goes away. That’s not the way this works. I think they’ve done real and lasting damage and frankly they deserve it.
Jeb Bush endorsed Romney today: http://usat.ly/GFb1xo
Or as LOL GOP put it: LOLGOP @LOLGOP BREAKING: Jeb Bush endorses the Etch-A-Sketch. http://bit.ly/GEdfhl
Bad News for Governor Bob McDonnell:
Politico: Virginia poll: 52% oppose ultrasound law: http://politi.co/GErUZN
And as Blue Virginia points out, Virginia voters disapprove of the GOP social agenda: http://bit.ly/GIrYGc
Bye Transvaggie, McDonnell!
Take the cotton outta your ears GOP. We aren’t backing down from your BIG GOVERNMENT reach into our Vaginas!
Ryan Plan: Dangerous and Intentionally Vague
The Washington Post called the Ryan budget plan “Dangerous and Intentionally Vague” http://wapo.st/GEd45N
Meanwhile, Romney praised it: http://lat.ms/GDYKvM
David Dayen breaks it down: http://bit.ly/GEezvR
And Eclectablog has a great comparison: The Real Bravery: Ryan/GOP Budget VS. the Affordable Care Act: http://bit.ly/GHIaK3
GO ELECTABLOG!!!
Mitt Romney is like an Etch-A-Sketch – Easily Changeable depending on who’s drawing, and will disappear when things get shaky.
This morning, a Top Romney Adviser Says Romney Can Change His Positions After The Primaries: ‘It’s Almost Like An Etch A Sketch’: http://bit.ly/GEKPiW
Oliver Willis @owillis mitt romney campaign demonstrates their candidate’s rock solid positions by comparing him to an etch-a-sketch. http://bit.ly/GEdO5Y
pourmecoffee @pourmecoffee Congrats to Romney campaign for introducing “Etch-a-Sketch” as perfect metaphor for opportunism of its own candidate. http://bit.ly/GDYsFg
Keeping His Word: Lowering the Cost of Medicare Prescriptions
Mitt Romney to Women: You’re On Your Own
ThinkProgress @thinkprogress:
FACT: Under the House GOP budget, 30 million people would lose health care coverage http://thkpr.gs/GBwlAd
This is Paul Ryan and nem’s plan to gut PASSED Heath care bill, that the Obmama admin inacted, plus the ACA. Because, gosh darnit, IT’S WORKING FOR REAL AMERICANS, and lawdy knows, the GOP can’t have that! Paul Ryan’s still trying to push grannyin the wheelchair over the cliff.
Mitt Romney is against the DREAM ACT, need I say more? http://bit.ly/GD1p5i
“If one candidate is trying to scare you and the other one is try get you to think, if one candidate is appealing to your fears and the other one is appealing to your hopes, you better vote for the person who wants you to think and hope.” http://bit.ly/GB5qZZ
He understands the financial struggles that are afflicting our nation and is seeking ways to restore equal opportunity to its people, rather than make jokes out of it or throw $10,000 around like its pocket change. http://bit.ly/GCLXti
I’m voting for President Obama again because four years isn’t enough to undo eight years of mistakes. http://bit.ly/GCFkRz
I’m voting for Obama because too many people had to drop out of school because of educational costs. I’m voting for Obama because he knows how to pray and not force his beliefs on the rest of the country. http://bit.ly/GCHUMh
His health insurance reforms saved my dad’s life when he had an untimely stroke after he was unemployed, and without health insurance. http://bit.ly/GBm5Mw
He understands that in order for our economy and country as whole to get back on track, you need to make difficult and sometimes unpopular decisions. He also isn’t discriminatory against any group of people, unlike some current Republican candidates. http://bit.ly/GC7OBE
What did Eva Longoria say? ROMNEY IS AGAINST EVERYTHING LATINOS STAND FOR
We put it to our Tumblr, to ask young people why they were voting for President Obama: http://bit.ly/GBGPTT
And they responded:
I have tens of thousands of dollars in student loans to repay and I rely on health insurance from my parents. In addition, I have a uterus that I would like to continue to have control over, why would I vote for anyone other than President Obama?: http://bit.ly/GC6TRX
No self respecting woman should wish or work for the success of a party that ignores her sex: http://bit.ly/GCHyW5
Why these responses sound pretty damn COGENT to me.
Romney in Ohio two weeks ago: Want College? Can’t Afford It? Too bad. http://nyti.ms/GAL14I
Romney yesterday said he didn’t see how a young American could vote for a democrat:
TIMEPolitics @TIMEPolitics Romney: “I don’t see how a young American can vote for a Democrat.” http://bit.ly/GCyNGl
Paul Ryan announced the House Republicans’ budget today, doubling down for the GOP on ending Medicare as we know it and cutting taxes for millionaires and billionaires. Their plans are paid for by deep budget cuts that would cost jobs and hurt average Americans across the country.
Washington Post: Paul Ryan’s budget is bad politics. Just ask Republicans: http://wapo.st/GB5bhj
Romney Said He Had Been “Fighting” For The “Paul Ryan Plan” And Called It “Bold And Right NBC Florida Debate, 1/23/12 http://bit.ly/GB3AtY
Romney Said He Had Been “Fighting” For The “Paul Ryan Plan” And Called It “Bold And Right NBC Florida Debate, 1/23/12 http://bit.ly/GB3AtY
What Mitt Romney’s America Would Mean for Us:
A Single Mother in Florida writes a letter to Mitt Romney: What “Getting Rid” of Planned Parenthood Would Really Mean: http://huff.to/GAHcjF
Another mother of a 2-year-old writes to Mitt Romney: “Without Planned Parenthood, I wouldn’t be Here”: http://trib.in/GDHh3H
Keep in mind, Mitt Romney would get rid of Planned Parenthood to pay for tax cuts for billionaires: http://bit.ly/GAZKgJ
Keep in mind, Mitt Romney would get rid of Planned Parenthood to pay for tax cuts for billionaires: http://bit.ly/GAZKgJ
And he reaffirmed this yesterday (video) http://bit.ly/GC6vmr
And here’s a side-by-side of President Obama’s and Mitt Romney’s statements on Planned Parenthood: http://bit.ly/GAJSr9
Mitt Romney Vows to Get Rid of Planned Parenthood
Yes We Can Can
OBAMA/BIDEN 2012
Eva Longoria on MSNBC: Romney on Wrong Side of Every Issue Pertaining to Latinos
Not only beautiful, but BRAINY too. Thank you, Ms. Longoria!
Meanwhile, the Boston Globe reports that Mitt Romney’s Defense budget target is lofty: http://bo.st/z1Mf3z
“The cost appears to be far greater than when Romney first broached the idea several years ago, when the nation was spending closer to 4 percent of GDP on defense. Under next year’s budget, defense spending is projected to be about 3.2 percent – yet Romney has stuck by his 4 percent vow. Put another way, that means Romney proposes spending 61 percent more than Obama at the end of a decade-long cycle, according to the libertarian Cato Institute.”
Today is the anniversary of the Iraq war. As a candidate for President in 2008, Barack Obama pledged to bring the war in Iraq to a responsible end. When he took office in January 2009, there were 142,000 U.S. troops stationed in Iraq. Now, the last of our troops have left Iraq and the Iraqi people have assumed full responsibility for the security of their nation.
3 Chicspolitico: Nine Years Later President Obama Ends the War: http://bit.ly/zx6zxD
First Lady will be releasing a video welcoming home the troops.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvc5yLjpFWs&feature=player_embedded
Now that the war is over, what are our troops coming home to?
Here are five things President Obama has done to support the troops as they return: http://bit.ly/z6azW8
1. President Obama implemented the most comprehensive veterans benefits for education since the original G.I. Bill of 1944. [Source: LA Times] link: http://lat.ms/FPJMgy
2. The President signed the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act two years ago, improving care for 1.8 million women who served in the Armed Forces. [Source: White House] link: http://1.usa.gov/y1mLDO
3. The President signed two tax credits into law—the Returning Heroes Tax Credit and the Wounded Warriors Tax Credit—which encourage businesses to hire veterans and those with disabilities. [Source: White House] http://1.usa.gov/yYYaBS
4. He also called for the creation of a Veterans Jobs Corps that will put up to 20,000 veterans back to work. [Source: White House] link: http://1.usa.gov/zi4YP9
5. President Obama will boost the Veterans Affairs budget to ensure that veterans receive timely access to the quality health care and services they’ve earned. [Source: Washington Post] link: http://wapo.st/wQcFbR
You can see more information on the Veterans for Obama page: http://bit.ly/FQxIeP
Health Care has a Gender Gap, and the GOP wouldn’t end that:
Every Republican running for President would repeal the Affordable Care Act. What would that mean? Ensuring that the gender gap in health insurance continues unabated: http://nyti.ms/FQXkMX
“Women still pay more than men for the same health insurance coverage…The new health care law will prohibit such “gender rating,” starting in 2014. But gaps persist in most states, with no evidence that insurers have taken steps to reduce them.”
President Obama takes those who are anti-clean energy to task
President Obama Skewers Anti-Clean-Energy Flat Earthers: http://bit.ly/FO5cOq
https://twitter.com/#%21/drgrist Obama: “They can either place their bets on a fossil fuel from the last century, or they can place their bets on America’s future.” http://bit.ly/wHayR6
Matt Ortega @MattOrtega Any time I hear of @BarackObama’s mother, grandparents, I lose it. I lost my mom to cancer and had a grandparent step in. I know that life.
http://bit.ly/FPKE3n
“The Road We’ve Traveled” by Davis Guggenheim aired last night
In case you missed it, you can watch it again here: http://bit.ly/FOcEp6, and afterwards there was a live Q&A with David Axelrod, which you can view here:
http://bit.ly/FO5c0J (starts at ~40:00)
Valeria Carranza @CarranzaValeria 17 million kids can no longer be denied healthcare coverage because of pre-existing conditions. That’s not nothing.#RoadTraveled
http://bit.ly/Ac4IuY
Here’s you daily dose of Election news:
Mitt Romney and Bain Capital Profiting off of Chinese Government’s surveillance program:
The NY Times reports, Bain Capital has been profiting off of the Chinese government’s surveillance program:
http://nyti.ms/FO5LJ5
Mitt Romney: Wrong for Women & Wrong for Illinois
Today, in election news: Mitt Romney is embracing the far right:
On women:
Virginia Democrats have a new video out: how top Romney endorser VA Governor Bob McDonnell is too extreme on women:
Bob McDonnell: Turning Back the Clock on Women’s Health
Greg Sargent – Romney still hugging extremism: http://wapo.st/AkKfVF
A side-by side comparison of access to health care under Romney: http://bit.ly/xrbPna
And five ways Romney has failed to stand up for women: http://bit.ly/xFaCWF
On immigration:
Today in Politico: How Mitt Romney lost Latinos by embracing advice from Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who said that Mexican immigrants were no different than terrorists : http://politi.co/xd548R
Republicans had high hopes of eroding President Barack Obama’s dominance among Hispanic voters in 2012 — so great was Latino frustration with Obama’s tough deportation policy and his failure to fulfill the promesa of immigration reform.
Instead, with eight months to go before Election Day, Obama is on pace to match the 76 percent support he got from Latino voters in 2008 — and the GOP may be undoing a decade of work to attract Hispanics, thanks to its election-year rhetorical sprint to the right on immigration, a charge led by front-runner Mitt Romney.
Don’t forget Mitt Romney also supports Alabama’s and Arizona’s extreme immigration laws: http://bit.ly/AbAbjj
And on LGBT rights:
His finance chair, Frank Vandersloot, has a history of anti-gay activism: http://bit.ly/yJdeG7
TODAY is the premiere of the Davis Guggenheim documentary, the Road We’ve Traveled, about the President’s first term. Make sure you get to a premiere!
Sign up here: http://bit.ly/xOoGej
Pew: Obama Up Twelve On Romney Nationally | TPM Livewire http://bit.ly/xft1QJ
As a reminder, you can find out about all the things the Affordable Care Act does for you here: http://bit.ly/yO09a7
ICYMI: Health Care Reform anniversary is approaching:
This powerful video features a health care reform skeptic who’s now benefitting from health care reform:
https://twitter.com/#!/truthteam2012/status/179753748942426112?tipsheet Romney’s desire to get rid of Planned Parenthood is just one more way Romney is failing American women: http://bit.ly/wTeIKR
Obama team hits Romney for ‘get rid of’ Planned Parenthood comment
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/03/13/obama-team-hits-romney-for-get-rid-of-planned-parenthood-comment/?tipsheet
President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign slammed Mitt Romney on Tuesday, saying his comments about defunding Planned Parenthood were evidence that women couldn’t trust him.
“Of course you get rid of Obamacare, that’s the easy one, but there are others,” the Republican presidential candidate said during a campaign stop in Missouri. “Planned Parenthood, we’re going to get rid of that. The subsidy for Amtrack, I’d eliminate that. The National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities.”
Obama for America Deputy Campaign Manager Stephanie Cutter said the remark showed “how low he is willing to go to pander to the most extreme elements of the Republican base.”
“Planned Parenthood is a vital health care provider for millions of American women, giving them affordable access to life-saving services like mammograms and cervical cancer screenings,” she added. “Even more offensive is that he would justify on fiscal grounds the elimination of Planned Parenthood, which represents 0.01% of the federal budget, even as he proposes a $5 trillion tax plan that would give massive tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires.”
“Whether it’s his support for the Blunt amendment, which would allow any employer to drop coverage for health care services like contraception because of personal beliefs, or these extreme comments today, it’s clear that American women cannot trust Mitt Romney to stand up for them.”
Romney attended a fundraiser for Planned Parenthood in 1994 and his wife donated to the group from their joint checking account.
Romney would eliminate Planned Parenthood:
If you haven’t seen this already: yesterday in Missouri, Mitt Romney said he wanted to get rid of Planned Parenthood:http://bit.ly/zSZGXV
Jed Lewison points out that nobody ever thought Mitt Romney could win Mississippi and Alabama…. Except for Mitt Romney: http://bit.ly/yNNm9X
Kombiz:
@kombizIf an executive came to me and said lemme spend $100M to be 3rd in GOP primaries, I’d say You’re Fired. #BusinessMitt
Zeke Miller helpfully rounds up Romney’s spending dominance in one chart:
Note: The above chart only includes television spending supporting the candidates. For instance, the pro-Ron Paul Endorse Liberty Super PAC has spent over $3 million this cycle, but on online and direct mail campaigns.
Left in Alabama asks: How much money does it take to buy the Alabama primary? http://bit.ly/xUExnN
Mitt Romney and his allies outspent Santorum 3-to-1 in Mississippi and 5-to-1 in Alabama, and he still lost those primaries. Voters in Mississippi and Alabama learned what voters across the country have learned: Mitt Romney has no core and someone with no core can’t be trusted to lead.
Despite outspending Santorum 3-to-1 in Mississippi and 5-to-1 in Alabama, Mitt Romney lost Alabama and Mississippi yesterday: http://bit.ly/wsbUiS
Don’t forget! TOMORROW is the premiere of the Davis Guggenheim documentary, the Road We’ve Traveled, about the President’s first term. There are premiers all across the country – to see the trailer & attend one go here: http://bit.ly/xOoGej
A Mitt Romney proposal for cutting the budget
I love that i came across the website , there are so many out there with such lies it just ub-real two thumbs up girls keep up the great work , it was a pleasure being on this page ,
Hi ester. Welcome to 3 Chicas, and come on back, when the spirit hits ya!
WaPo: “Fact Check: The claim that won’t die: Did Obama want higher gas prices?”
https://twitter.com/#%21/jesseclee44
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/the-claim-that-wont-die-did-obama-want-higher-gas-prices/2012/03/13/gIQAf0EW9R_blog.html
President Obama said he would prefer a gradual adjustment to near $4 a gallon gasoline. President Obama said that. And, unfortunately, the president has put policies in place that have gotten us now to $4 a gallon, or almost, in gasoline prices. We’ve seen it. It was $1.83 when he started as president; it’s over $3.70 now. So the president’s got his wish, and people are furious about it.”
— Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) during hearing of House energy committee, March 8, 2012
********************************************************
Louisiana Congressman Steve Scalise is toeing the Republican Party line here, accusing the president of consciously trying to raise gas prices to wean Americans off carbon fuels. Earlier this month, we determined that Indiana’s Gov. Mitch Daniels deserved three Pinocchios for making similar claims.
We mentioned in our previous column that we hadn’t found a single instance in which President Obama advocated higher gas prices. A reader later mentioned that he’d found an example, pointing out a June 2008 interview in which then-Sen. Obama discussed energy policy on CNBC. The trading and investment blog TownHallFinance.com used that same video to suggest we’d missed the mark with our analysis of Daniels’s remarks.
We reviewed the 2008 interview (which you can view below) and took yet another look at the current state of U.S. oil production to determine whether anything should change about our previous determination. If not, Scalise would deserve just as many Pinocchios as Daniels.
The Facts
First, we’ll discuss the interview between then-Sen. Obama and CNBC’s John Harwood. Here’s an exchange from that meeting:
Obama: I think that we have been slow to move in a better direction when it comes to energy usage, and the president frankly hasn’t had an energy policy. As a consequence, we’ve been consuming energy as if it’s infinite. We now know that our demand is badly outstripping supply with China and India growing as rapidly as they are.
Harwood: So, could these high prices help us?
Obama: I think that I would have preferred a gradual adjustment. The fact that this is such a shock to American pocketbooks is not a good thing. But if we take some steps to help people make the adjustment, first of all by putting more money into their pockets, but also by encouraging the market to adapt to these new circumstances more quickly, particularly U.S. automakers, then I think, ultimately, we can come out of this stronger and have a more efficient energy policy than we do right now.
You’ll notice Obama doesn’t expressly state that he opposes high gas prices but says he doesn’t think cost hikes should happen suddenly or dramatically. This is what the president’s critics cite as damning evidence of his true intentions.
But these comments deserve some context. (View the entire transcript here). Obama was discussing gas prices that had already hit about $4 per gallon. He proposed a holistic solution that would include investments in alternative fuels and higher auto-efficiency standards, complemented by immediate financial relief through temporary tax cuts.
Does that mean the president thinks higher gas prices make good energy policy? He didn’t exactly answer directly during the CNBC interview, even though Harwood asked the question twice. But Obama made his position perfectly clear on March 6, when he faced a similar question during a White House press conference.
Here’s what the president said:
“Look, here’s the bottom line with respect to gas prices. I want gas prices lower because they hurt families, because I meet folks every day who have to drive a long way to get to work. And then filling up this gas tank gets more and more painful, and it’s a tax out of their pocketbooks, out of their paychecks. And a lot of folks are already operating on the margins right now.
And it’s not good for the overall economy because when gas prices go up, consumer spending oftentimes pulls back.
And we’re in the midst right now of a recovery that is starting to build up steam, and we don’t want to reverse it.”
In both instances we’ve cited, Obama suggested he’s averse to letting gas prices shock families’ finances. In his White House remarks, he said point blank: “I want gas prices lower.”
Has the president taken adequate steps to make that happen?
Read more here:
Today is primary day in Alabama, Mississippi, and Hawaii. Mitt Romney is doing what he usually does – vastly outspending all of his rivals in an attempt to win the primaries:
Romney Vastly Outspends His Rivals In The South
http://www.buzzfeed.com/zekejmiller/romney-vastly-outspends-his-rivals-in-the-south
Romney is keeping it close in the Bible Belt and this is a big reason why. A source sends along these figures for media-buying in Alabama and Mississippi before tomorrow’s primaries.
All that money and willard lost anyway!!!
Hee hee hee :-)
If you’re into basketball, you can now take the Obama Bracket challenge
http://www.barackobama.com/obama-bracket-challenge
Maybe this is just another reflection of what Steve Benen started calling Romney’s tim-Mitt-ity:
The tim-Mitt-ity of Romney
He lacks the courage to state his convictions, whatever they may be
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/tim-mitt-ity-romney-article-1.1036316
Every year, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston presents a Profile in Courage Award to someone in politics who’s displayed uncommon bravery. If this is an honor Mitt Romney ever hopes to win, he should give up now. The cowardly lion of presidential politics seems to have developed an extreme allergy to valor.
Late last month, Republican media personality Rush Limbaugh lashed out at a Georgetown law student who supports contraception access, needlessly calling the young woman, among other things, a “slut” and a “prostitute.” As the controversy garnered national attention, reporters pressed Romney for his take.
“It’s not the language I would have used,” the presidential hopeful said, after avoiding the issue for days.
This wasn’t much of an answer. Romney could have used this as a fairly easy “Sister Souljah” opportunity, distancing himself from an ugly wing of his party. Worse, the response suggested Romney agreed with the sentiment of Limbaugh’s attack, but not the host’s specific choice of words.
Even Romney’s top endorsers are too timid to stand behind their own anti-women’s health bills
This weekend, top Romney endorser Virginia Governor McDonnell got taken to task by Maryland Governor O’Malley for his restrictive ultrasound bill:
http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entries/david-gregory-takes-gov-mcdonnell-to-task-over
Martin O’Malley (Cordially) Demolishes Bob McDonnell’s Record as Governor of Virginia
I <3 Governor O'Malley!
Learn how the Affordable Care Act Benefits You:
http://www.barackobama.com/health-care
Health Care Reform is saving you lots of money (and here’s how!)
It’s almost the anniversary of the Affordable Care Act
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/us/politics/obama-campaign-plans-big-effort-to-court-women.html?_r=2&scp=3&sq=Health%20Care&st=cse
President Clinton speaks about President Obama’s decision on bin Laden
Tough Decisions: “The Road We’ve Traveled”
Romney Reverses on Mandates
MITT WATCH: As if you needed any more proof that Mitt Romney would stand for anything just to appeal to the far right: Mitt Romney used to be for individual mandates, before he was against them.
In this stunning video out from the DNC today, watch Mitt Romney turn against his own health care plan when it fell out of favor in the heated 2012 Republican primary.
Romney: “I Opposed The Idea Of A Federal Mandate From The Beginning.” [Morning Joe, MSNBC, 12/20/11]
Romney Said That The Massachusetts Plan “Will Be A Model For The Nation.” [Newsweek, 4/16/10]
In An USA Today Op-Ed, Romney Touted The Individual Mandate In His Massachusetts’ Plan Saying It “Encourages ‘Free Riders’ To Take Responsibility For Themselves Rather Than Pass Their Medical Costs On To Others” And “Doesn’t Cost The Government A Single Dollar.” [Romney Op-Ed, USA Today, 7/30/09]
In An 2010 Interview, Romney Said That “There Are Similarities” Between His Health Care Plan And Obama’s And Some Of The Best Features Are Alike Including The Individual Mandate. [Emory Wheel, 4/2/10]
Let’s keep at it. We’ll have a treasure trove of MITTENS LIES!
New Jobs Chart
ECONOMY: February marked two straight years of private-sector job growth—including the first year-over-year gains in manufacturing jobs since 1997: http://www.barackobama.com/news/entry/two-years-of-job-growth
The documentary (which did we mention is narrated by Tom Hanks) includes appearances by Vice President Joe Biden, First Lady Michelle Obama, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Elizabeth Warren and others, has already been making waves. A twitter roundup:
https://twitter.com/#%21/owillis so obama’s *not* going to roll over and give the white house keys to mitt romney? hm.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXtJhLUOFXE&feature=player_embedded
https://twitter.com/#!/owillis/status/177767128890486784
https://twitter.com/#%21/ZekeJMiller Is Tom Hanks narrating the Obama documentary? It sure sounds he is.
buzzfeed.com/zekejmiller/ob…
https://twitter.com/#!/ZekeJMiller/status/177751701976121346
https://twitter.com/#%21/HuffPostPol Obama campaign release Tom Hanks-narrated trailer for upcoming documentary on first term
huff.to/AwP0bQ
https://twitter.com/#%21/Eclectablog “The Road We’ve Traveled” – Trailer for a 17-minute film on the first term of Pres.
https://twitter.com/#%21/theonlyadult
https://twitter.com/#!/Eclectablog/status/177756437391486976
Also Don’t Miss: John Kerry Op-ED in Washington Post: Romney’s wrong-headed assertions about Iran “While wise Republicans stress the perils of loose war talk and the value of engagement to isolate Iran, Romney seeks to create political division with an attack on the Obama administration’s Iran policy that is as inaccurate as it is aggressive…The stakes are far too high for it to become just another applause line on the stump. Idle talk of war only helps Iran by spooking the tight oil market and increasing the price of the Iranian crude that pays for its nuclear program. Creating false differences with President Obama to score political points does nothing to move Iran off a dangerous nuclear course. Worse, Romney does not even do Americans the courtesy of describing how he would do anything different from what the Obama administration has already done. Case in point: He calls for ever-tightening sanctions on Iran. What exactly does he think we’ve been doing for the past three years?.. And Obama has provided record amounts of security funding to help Israel maintain its qualitative military edge. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said, ‘Our security cooperation is unprecedented . . . and [President Obama] has backed those words with deeds.’.. We have to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. That is why President Obama keeps reiterating that all options are on the table, even as he builds pressure for a diplomatic solution. Every word on this subject is scrutinized by our allies and our enemies. There is no room for misinterpretation.”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/romneys-wrong-headed-assertions-about-iran/2012/03/07/gIQAcKCvxR_print.html
And today for International Women’s Day, make sure you’re following Women for Obama for updates all day: https://www.facebook.com/WomenforObama
Greg Sargent: The Question that will Define the Campaign:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/the-morning-plum-the-question-that-will-define-campaign-2012/2012/03/08/gIQApoGyyR_blog.html
New Documentary by Davis Guggenheim and Narrated by Tom Hanks Tells Story of Obama’s First Term
Definitely don’t miss the trailer for “The Road We’ve Traveled” – to be released next Thursday.
http://www.barackobama.com/road-traveled
ANALYSIS: In almost every primary, Romney wins big among the rich, loses the working-class vote http://thkpr.gs/yLTxiM
Obama Super Tuesday sneak attack focuses on foreign policy
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/73691.html
Barack Obama spent his Super Tuesday barking back at the GOP dogs of war.
Planting himself defiantly in the middle of a day that might (or might not) end with Mitt Romney’s coronation as his presidential rival, Obama railed against Romney, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum. Without ever naming them, he denounced their collective claim that he’s been a weakling on Iran, willing to sell out Israel for a few months of pre-election tranquillity.
“[T]hose folks don’t have a lot of responsibilities. They’re not commander in chief,” said Obama, in the cramped confines of the White House briefing room
Obama’s none-too-subtle suggestion was that they never, ever should be commanders in chief, a sentiment he expressed repeatedly during an hour of election-year politics that might have appeared, to a midday national TV audience, to be a mostly sober discussion of war, peace and diplomacy.
In Obama’s performance were the unmistakable echoes of 2008, when Hillary Clinton made a similar argument against him, playing the responsible veteran to his inexperienced newbie on the international stage.
Team Obama ties Mitt Romney to Rush Limbaugh
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/73735.html
The Obama campaign wants to make Rush Limbaugh a weapon of Mitt destruction.
Obama adviser David Axelrod and campaign manager Jim Messina were in a gleeful mood the morning after Super Tuesday, reflecting on Romney’s squeaker win over Rick Santorum in Ohio — and exit polls showing Romney losing independent and youth voters in every state other than his home turf of Massachusetts. That’s proof, they say, that Romney’s heading into the general election damaged both with his base and independent middle class and female voters.
But nothing tickled Axelrod so much as Romney’s less-than-forceful denunciation of Limbaugh’s “slut” and “prostitute” comments, which are fast becoming a cultural touchpoint, a commercial headache for Limbaugh and an Obama campaign rallying point.
“If you can’t stand up to the most strident voices in your party, how are you going to stand up to [Iranian President Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad?” said Axelrod, who left the White House a year ago to take over the campaign’s messaging operation.
A sampling of today’s headlines:
Washington Post: Super Tuesday voters frustrated with Republican campaign, candidates
ABC: Mitt Romney Wins the Night, But Not the Momentum
Washington Post: GOP race takes toll on front-runner Romney
Politico: Super Tuesday Ohio primary: Mitt Romney fails to deliver knockout punch
Bloomberg: Romney Racks Up Delegates Even as Campaign Underscores Candidate Weakness
The New Republic: The Unbearable Weakness of Mitt Romney
Tweets from Today’s Super Tuesday Wrap Up Call with David Axelrod and Jim Messina
Josh Dorner @JoshDorner .@davidaxelrod: Super Tuesday “became super glue day” for Romney camp, as they can’t put away the contest.https://twitter.com/#!/JoshDorner/status/177435035622834176
Ari Berman @AriBerman Jim Messina says that in six Super Tuesday states GOP turnout fell compared to 2008https://twitter.com/#!/AriBerman/status/177434013718421504
Edward-Isaac Dovere @IsaacDovere Messina: on super Tuesday voter “dissatisfaction got super-sized” https://twitter.com/#!/IsaacDovere/status/177434058190635008
Josh Dorner @JoshDorner .@Messina2012: “The lack of enthusiasm among Republicans is real and it’s unmistakable.https://twitter.com/#!/JoshDorner/status/177434130986967040
Ali Weinberg @AliNBCNews At top of Obama campaign call, manager Jim Messina said camp registered over 3,000 voters in NC over the weekend (where Obama visits today)https://twitter.com/#!/AliNBCNews/status/177436407042809856
John Harwood @JohnJHarwood Axelrod: while Repubs “are destroying themselves, we continue to build a campaign”https://twitter.com/#!/JohnJHarwood/status/177435864543141888
Ohio’s Republican presidential primary was Super Tuesday’s highest-profile contest, but Ari Berman raised a largely-overlooked point about the results: “Obama got more votes in Ohio than Romney last night.”
On the other hand, there are already clear signs of the strength from the grassroots campaign backing the president:
In Ohio:http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/03/how-ohio-democrats-got-their-groove-back/253982/
And Virginia:http://www.nationaljournal.com/magazine/why-romney-s-ground-game-is-lacking-20120301
Ari Berman: Super Tuesay’s Big Winner – Obama:http://www.thenation.com/blog/166650/super-tuesdays-big-winner-obama
Steve Benen: The incumbent’s organizational strength:http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/07/10600854-guess-who-won-ohio
Yesterday was a tale of two campaigns. On one hand, Mitt Romney had a rough night as he continues to struggle to win over the GOP base:
Joan Walsh: Mitt Romney’s Worst Night Yet: http://www.salon.com/2012/03/07/mitt_romneys_worst_night_yet/
Romney lost Independents in every state but Massachusetts:AP: Analysis: Romney must ease independents’ concerns
Romney beat Ron Paul in VA, with barely 5% voter turnout:http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/news/2012/mar/07/tdmain01-romney-easily-carries-va-as-only-5-of-vot-ar-1745799/
Plunderbund: Trends Not Good for Romney in Ohio:http://www.plunderbund.com/2012/03/06/analysis-trends-not-good-for-romney-in-ohio/
Or as Blue Mass Group puts it: Romney Outspends Santorum 4-1 in Ohio and Just Barely Squeaks By Him:http://bluemassgroup.com/2012/03/romney-outspends-santorum-4-1-in-ohio-and-just-barely-squeaks-by-him/
John Kerry: Mitt rhetoric plays ‘in Iranian hands’
http://www.politico.com/blogs/burns-haberman/2012/03/kerry-mitt-rhetoric-plays-in-iranian-hands-116526.html
The Obama Campaign’s Attack Watch guide to AIPAC speeches
AttackWatch
The NYT: Candidates Hammer Obama Over Iran, but Approaches Differ Little
“Though advisers to Mr. Romney say they see significant differences between his Iran policy and Mr. Obama’s, other Iran experts and former officials in Republican and Democratic administrations say they do not see how the Iran policies being espoused on the Republican presidential campaign trail would do much more to stop Tehran from getting a nuclear weapon. In the case of Mr. Romney, they said, his Iran policy is essentially Mr. Obama’s Iran policy.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/06/us/politics/republican-policies-for-iran-differ-little-from-obamas.html?_r=1&ref=politics
Romney spoke at AIPAC today, pushing out-of-touch, blustering rhetoric.
The DNC video calling him out on his flat out untruths and distortions on the President’s record and positions on Iran:
The Atlantic: Romney’s Rise Today Comes With A Steep November Price Tag
“But one final result from the NBC/Marist polls underscores the challenge he will face in trying to reposition himself after a primary contest in which he’s moved steadily to the right on both economic (tax cuts, transforming Medicare into a premium support system) and social issues (like contraception and immigration): in both Ohio and Virginia the surveys found Obama attracting almost exactly three-fifths of moderates — the same dominant share he won in capturing both states last time.”
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/03/romneys-rise-today-comes-with-a-steep-november-price-tag/254006//
Happy Super Tuesday! Even if Romney comes out ahead today, it’ll be at a steep price come November:
New DNC Memo: With Super Tuesday Looming, Mitt Romney’s Vast Spending Advantage Gives Him an Edge but His Blatant Hypocrisy and Extreme and Out-of-Touch Positions Will Be His General Election Kryptonite“
But Mitt Romney ought to be more worried than anybody. Results of the new poll show Romney’s favorability rating has dropped to an anemic 28 percent, with 39 percent having an unfavorable impression of Romney. He’s faring even worse among independent voters, with just 22 percent having a favorable impression of Romney while 38 percent view him unfavorably. What might cause such a strong unfavorable view of Mitt Romney in the last few weeks? Perhaps it’s the fact that he’s running an almost entirely negative campaign; or, that he’s pandering to the far right and in the process demonstrating that no one can trust him; it may also be attributed to his being incredibly out of touch.”
http://assets.democrats.org/pdfs/PatrickGaspard_SuperTuesday_DNC_Memo.pdf
Tomorrow, the Senate will vote on the Blunt/Rubio Amendment, which if passed would allow any employer to deny women the ability to have contraception coverage from her insurance: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/29/us/politics/in-senate-contraception-policy-appears-set-for-showdown.html?_r=2
I hope the women VOTERS from Missouri and Flroida are keeping an eye on these two nutjobs.
Mitt Romney At 2012 Repubican Debate: I’m Happy Ted Kennedy Had To Take Out A Mortgage In Senate Race
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/08/mitt-romney-ted-kenney-gop-debate-new-hampshire_n_1192326.html
CONCORD, N.H. — Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney responded to attacks that he is a career politician with long-standing political ambitions by relaying some advice given to him by his father.
“I happened to see my dad run for governor when he was 54 years old,” said Romney. “He said, ‘Mitt, never get involved in politics if you have to win election to pay a mortgage.’ If you find yourself in a position when you can serve, you ought to have a responsibility to do so if you think you can make a difference. He said also don’t get involved in politics when your kids are still young because it may turn their heads.”
Romney’s advice was meant to warn against the idea of a career politician who is simply interested in staying in office no matter what. But it also seems to mean that less-affluent members of the public, who might not be as financially secure and wealthy as most of the people running for president, should also be excluded from being candidates.
Romney then told a story about when he was running to unseat the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), saying he was glad Kennedy suffered financially during their race.
“When I saw Ted Kennedy running virtually unopposed, a man who I thought by virtue of the policies of the liberal welfare state had created a permanent underclass in America, I thought somebody has to run against him,” said Romney. “I happened to have been wise enough to realize I did not have a ghost of a chance of beating him. … I told my partners in my firm, I will be back in six months, don’t take my chair. I was happy that he had to take a mortgage out on his house to ultimately defeat me. I am very proud of the fact that I have stood up as a citizen to battle where I felt it was best for the nation, and we’re talking about running for president. I am in the race because I care about the country.”
[wpvideo 3aQU3cDQ]
2012 Presidential Election: Volunteer for BarackObama’s Campaign – “It Belongs to You”
Andy Rooney on Obama’s Election 11/9/08
[wpvideo XsVy5O1C]
Top 10 Things Herman Cain Doesn’t Want You To Know About Him
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2011/10/06/334170/herman-cain-top-10/
(1) PLEDGED THAT HE “WILL NOT” APPOINT MUSLIMS IN HIS ADMINISTRATION: In an interview with ThinkProgress earlier this year, Herman Cain declared that he “will not” appoint a Muslim in his administration if he were elected president. In the months that followed, Cain qualified his position a number of times – at one point even telling Glenn Beck that he would appoint Muslims but only on the condition that they take a special loyalty oath – before finally recanting this unconstitutional stance and issuing an apology to Muslim-Americans. Unfortunately, since that time Cain has continued to peddle the ridiculous notion that Sharia law is a threat to the American legal system.
(2) TOLD THINKPROGRESS, “I DON’T THINK THE CURRENT MINIMUM WAGE IS NECESSARY”: During his time as the top lobbyist for the restaurant and fast food industry, Cain fought against an increase in the minimum wage. During a recent ThinkProgress interview, Cain went further, saying “I don’t think the current minimum wage is necessary.” As Greg Sargent noted, not even conservative icon Barry Goldwater supported eliminating the minimum wage.
(3) CONFUSED BY BASIC CONCEPT OF ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN PEACE PROCESS: In an interview on Fox News Sunday, Cain was asked his opinion on the right of return for Palestinian refugees. Cain was clearly confused by the question, responding, “The right of return? [pause] The right of return?” When host Chris Wallace explained the issue to him, Cain suggested that Israel wouldn’t have a problem “with people returning,” a prospect Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu fiercely opposes. The incident was not the first time Cain displayed lack of familiarity with international affairs. Previously, Cain said he doesn’t know enough to say what he thinks about the war in Afghanistan.
(4) IMMIGRATION PLAN INVOLVES A “GREAT WALL OF CHINA” AND A “MOAT [WITH] ALLIGATORS”: In a speech to Iowa Republicans, Cain called for building a fence along the entire U.S.–Mexico border, comparing the effort to the Great Wall of China. Building a fence along the nearly 2,000-mile border not only wouldn’t work, it would cost the U.S. hundreds of billions of dollars in the process. Cain also suggested building a moat next to the fence and filling it with alligators.
(5) BELIEVES “WE ALREADY RECOGNIZE” THE GOVERNMENT OF TAIWAN: Discussing U.S.-Chinese relations with ThinkProgress, Cain confirmed fears that he lacked a firm grasp on foreign policy matters when he declared that “we already recognize” the government of Taiwan. In fact, the United States stopped recognizing Taiwan in 1979. Cain, visibly confused about relations between the U.S, China, and Taiwan, refused to say whether this belief meant he planned to send an ambassador to Taiwan, saying instead, “President Cain will get back to you!” Lest the matter seem trivial, Chinese-Taiwanese relations are extraordinarily tense and the matter of diplomatic relations with the United States carries enormous implications for the billions of people living in southeast Asia.
(6) WANTS TO PUT DIRTY ENERGY CEOS IN CHARGE OF EPA REGULATIONS: After an Iowa voter asked about increasing domestic oil production, Cain proposed creating a commission consisting of businessmen from the coal, oil, shale oil, and natural gas industries to gut environmental protections. Cain even said he would appoint the CEO of Shell, claiming the company had been “abused” by the EPA. Cain has close ties to several top oil executives.
(7) BELIEVES IRAQ SHOULD PAY U.S. BACK FOR INVADING THEIR COUNTRY: Cain suggested in a 2008 interview that Iraq should pay the United States back for invading and occupying their country. Even Rick Santorum, who nobody would confuse as a moderate, strongly disagreed with this idea, saying, “I think that would send every possible wrong signal.” Since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq began, hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians have died and millions have been displaced.
(8) TRIED TO HIDE HIS GAY TREASURER: A former staffer to Cain, Kevin Hall, testified in court that Cain attempted to cover up the involvement of his openly gay PAC treasurer Scott Toomey. According to Hall, the campaign was trying to cover up Toomey’s involvement due to his sexuality. Cain’s lawyers declined to dispute the allegations.
(9) SAYS HE WOULD SUPPORT A NATIONAL PHOTO ID LAW: With an increasing number of conservative governors implement new requirements for voters to present photo identification at the polls, Cain told ThinkProgress he’d support such a bill on a federal level. “If you need a picture to get on an airplane, why shouldn’t you need one in order to be able to vote?” Cain asked. To be clear, voting is not like getting on an airplane – only one is the basis of our very democracy – and requirements that citizens present photo IDs instead of other forms of identification has the potential to disenfranchise millions of voters, especially minorities and poorer individuals.
(10) BELIEVES THAT AMERICANS HAVE THE RIGHT TO BAN MOSQUES: During a Fox News Sunday interview, Cain professed his belief that if a community wants to ban a mosque, “they have a right to do that.” Rather than idle banter, Cain’s comments came fresh off his speech blasting the proposed expansion of an existing Islamic center in Murfreesboro, Tennessee because it was, in the former pizza executive’s estimation, “not an innocent mosque.” Cain’s view is squarely at odds with not only the Constitution, but basic precepts of tolerance and diversity as well.
Dems Launch Campaign To Counter Alleged GOP Voter Suppression
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/05/democrats-campaign-gop-voter-suppression_n_997286.html
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats alarmed by reports that new voter laws could bar some five million people from the polls are launching an ambitious online effort aimed at countering what they call Republican voter suppression.
According to a study published Monday by the Brennan Center for Justice, a string of laws passed in 13 states — and proposed in 21 more — could disproportionately suppress turnout of younger voters, minorities and lower-income voters. Those groups tend to pull the lever for Democrats.
The Brennan Center estimates that the new laws could affect some 171 electoral votes, including those of five swing states.
All but two of the new laws were signed by Republican governors and generated by Republican legislatures, prompting the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to cry foul — and start an effort set to launch Thursday aimed at preserving ballot access for voters who would normally be eligible to vote.
This is what I don’t get about the GOP, they are all for curbing spending, yet they want to waste so much money on such laws as making it illegal to be an illegal immigrant (????), make it illegal for a doctor to perform an abortion based on sex or race???? and numerous other stupid, unnecessary but costly directives. Oh, and they want government to stay out of our, oops, I mean “their” lives, yet are freakishly aggressive proponents of telling a woman what she can and can not do with their body. It’s been a while since I have been so incensed by one party.
HI Rebecca. You’re spot on. The GOP want the laws to bend at their will, spend our money the way they see fit; and oh BTW, they are part of the government. A bunch of POWER HUNGRY LOON, the lot of them.
A first-rate abyss
http://pmcarpenter.blogs.com/p_m_carpenters_commentary/2011/06/a-first-rate-abyss.html
That the question should be asked — is “Michele Bachmann a first-tier candidate” for the presidency of the United States? — is unquestionably the preeminent sign of abysmal direction on the desolate road of the GOP’s intellectual wasteland.
The woman knows less about her own country’s history than a chronically fidgety, inattentive fifth grader, and her witless McCarthyite proclivities make Joe look like a card-carrying ACLUer. The political “philosophy” in which she’s steeped could be expatiated on one side of a tea bag, and “complexity” is a concept she has yet to encounter in this endlessly complex world.
That I exaggerate not, or at least not much, is perhaps the saddest comment of them all.
What about the 35W Minneapolis BRIDGE collaspe, Tim Paw?