Month: March 2012

Categories
Democratic Ohio Politics

Democrats Lose Eight-Term Congressman Dennis Kucinich In Ohio

The Hill reports “Rep. Marcy Kaptur edged out fellow Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich (Ohio) in a primary on Tuesday, leaving no clear path forward for Kucinich to remain in Congress.

It was a humbling loss for the eight-term congressman, who built a national following, twice ran for president and established himself as a forceful voice for the liberal wing of the Democratic Party. But he faced a tough task in defeating Kaptur.

The swath of Ohio that brought Kaptur and Kucinich into battle runs along the coast of Lake Erie, spanning from Kaptur’s home base in Toledo to Kucinich’s stronghold in Cleveland. A last-minute change to the map, put into place by Republican state lawmakers, added more of Kaptur’s Toledo-area constituents to the new district, giving her a built-in advantage.

Neither Kaptur nor Kucinich sought out the fight. Drawn into the same district by GOP mapmakers, the two friends and House allies were forced to square off in the first of about a dozen redistricting-induced primary showdowns.

With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Kaptur captured 56 percent to Kucinich’s 40 percent. A third Democratic candidate, businessman Graham Veasey, placed last with 4 percent.

“This was a very intense campaign, because of the way the district was drawn,” Kaptur said on MSNBC. “We had to advertise in two media markets, the new one being five times more expensive than the existing one. It was just a real marathon.”

Kaptur said she had not yet spoken to Kucinich.”

Categories
Mitt Romney Politics

President Obama’s Message to Mitt Romney – “Good Luck Tonight… Really!”

In his first solo press conference of the year – held coincidentally on Super Tuesday – President Obama  was asked what his message to Mitt Romney was after Romney claimed that he [Obama] was “America’s most feckless President since Carter.”

The President answered confidently, “good luck tonight.”

One can only imagine what the presidential campaign have up their sleeves for Romney when the general election begins. And thanks to the Republican candidates and their almost record-breaking negativity, we know the President’s arsenal on Mitt has definitely grown.

Apparently, the President cannot wait for the general elections to start!

Categories
Politics Slut

Jon Stewart’s Take on Rush Limbaugh – Video

Jon Stewart went where no other man dares to go… well, not really. But his spin on this Rush Limbaugh/Sandra Fluke situation is priceless and funny.

Laugh a little.

Categories
Politics

Polling Report Double Issue Centerfold: Presidential Race and Super Tuesday Edition

Fans of the blog already know that on the 6th of every month I take a look at the polling for the 2012 presidential election. This month is like Christmas and Hanukkah falling on the same day because today is also Super Tuesday, so I’ve combined the two into one mega look at the race. No, it doesn’t get any better than this.

Obama Job Approval

February was a “what goes around comes around” month. President Obama saw a steady rise in his approval ratings through mid-February, due in large part to the improving economy and the viciousness of the GOP primaries. For the last 10 days, though, he’s come back to earth a bit.  The latest RealClearPolitics Index of his job approval is here. His approval rose from 46.6% to 48.1% and his disapproval numbers also rose slightly from 47.6% to 48%. There seem to be two outliers in the Index: The Rasmussen Daily Tracking, which at one time had Obama +4, now has him at -9, and the Politico/GWU Battleground, which has him +8. Take those two out and smooth the remaining numbers and you have a net plus for the president since February 6.

I suppose you could read the numbers two ways. In one interpretation, he is steadily climbing as he campaigns and runs ads, while in the other he’s in trouble because after 3 years, he still can’t claim a majority of the voters as approving of his performance. Allan Lichtman was sure about Obama’s reelection as far back as two years ago. We’ll see if he’s right about that.

Head-To-Head Match-Ups

My assumption is that Mitt Romney will be the Republican nominee, because he’s really their only hope. With that in mind, here are the latest numbers in that match-up showing Obama with an overall 49.1%-44.4% lead. This is an improvement over February when his lead was 2%.

The Ballots

The only change in the Electoral College map is that Wisconsin has moved into Obama’s column because of his +10 lead in the latest PPP poll, giving him a lead in states that add up to 227 electoral votes with the Republican at 181. Electionprojection.com has Obama winning 285 electoral votes this year according to their model. We’ll follow them throughout the campaign.

The latest NBC News/Marist poll has Obama beating Romney in both Virginia (+17) and Ohio (+12). If these numbers hold, there are very few scenarios for a Romney victory. If Obama wins Ohio, the assumption is that he’ll win Pennsylvania. Even if Romney wins Florida and North Carolina, that’s not enough. At this point, I would say that NBC’s numbers are a bit optimistic for the Obama campaign. Stay tuned.

Republicans now lead the Generic Congressional Ballot by. 0.2%, but that was before Olympia Snowe announced her retirement from the Senate. The Congressional numbers will fluctuate throughout the spring. When we get definite candidates for each race, it should come into sharper focus.

Super Tuesday

No matter how you slice it, this was a terrible week for the Republican candidates, the party and its message. The fallout from Michigan showed that Mitt Romney’s popularity took a hit. From the article:

The latest ABC/Washington Post Poll gives him a favorability of 33% and an unfavorability of 46%; a recent Politico poll puts his unfavorability above 50%.

Then of course there was the distraction of Rush Limbaugh’s remarks about Sandra Fluke, the ongoing debate about the contraception issue, which lost a Senate vote, Olympia Snowe’s retirement announcement, and the advancement of marriage equality bills in Maryland and Washington. This allowed President Obama to take the high road and appear presidential, which is the last thing the Republicans looked like.

So let’s get to the skinny.

It’s all come down to the delegate count now as Mitt tries to push his way to the magic number of 1,145. He’ll pick up a bundle on Tuesday and will separate himself from the field. I have a suspicion that if he does very well (defined below), GOP operatives will ask Santorum and Gingrich to step aside for the good of the party. Since neither one knows what that is, they might stay in the race.

Here’s a link to the states holding elections and the delegates at stake. Here’s my take on what will happen:

Gingrich wins Georgia. No surprise, doesn’t matter. Extra good day if he also wins Oklahoma and/or Tennessee.

Paul wins Alaska and Idaho.

Santorum wins Oklahoma and Tennessee (barely). If he doesn’t, goodbye.

Romney wins Virginia (the other two aren’t on the ballot, and neither is Rick Perry), Massachusetts, and Vermont. If he can pick off any of Alaska, Idaho or North Dakota, a good night. Tennessee or Oklahoma, a great night. Ohio, a super night. All of the above, lights out.

Which brings us to Ohio. This is the key to today. If Santorum wins, he can damage Romney even more and claim that, since he’ll win Pennsylvania, he should be the nominee (he won’t be). A Romney win ends the game.

Prediction:

Romney            38%

Santorum          35%

Gingrich            15%

Paul                  10%

Romney wins it sooner rather than later. GOP elites breathe easier. You can follow me at:

www.facebook.com/WhereDemocracyLives and Twitter @rigrundfest  

Categories
Politics Republican Slut

Republican George Will Calls Republican Leadership Cowards

“Republican leaders want to bomb Iran, but they’re afraid of Rush Limbaugh.” So says George Will… a Republican, who said that the Republican leadership dropped the ball with their non-response to the Rush Limbaugh debacle. Mr. Will called their non-response “depressing.”

So good (and true), we had to post the video. Here is the very well-respected Republican, George Will.

Categories
ObamaCare Politics

Mitt Romney Caught on Video Recommending RomneyCare As Model for ObamaCare

Hey Mitt Romney, exactly how are you going to repeal something when you actively called for its implementation? And the amazing thing is that these conservatives gleefully buy into the Romney lies.

Why are these people so easily fooled?

Video 1.

Video 2.

Video 3.

Source – Buzzfeed.

Categories
Israel

President Obama’s AIPAC Speech – Video

President Obama’s speech at AIPAC – American Israel Public Affairs Committee – reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to the safety of Israel.

But as you examine my commitment, you don’t just have to count on my words. You can look at my deeds. Because over the last three years, as President of the United States, I have kept my commitments to the state of Israel. At every crucial juncture – at every fork in the road – we have been there for Israel. Every single time.

Four years ago, I stood before you and said that “Israel’s security is sacrosanct. It is non-negotiable.” That belief has guided my actions as President. The fact is, my Administration’s commitment to Israel’s security has been unprecedented. Our military and intelligence cooperation has never been closer. Our joint exercises and training have never been more robust. Despite a tough budget environment, our security assistance has increased every year. We are investing in new capabilities. We’re providing Israel with more advanced technology – the type of products and systems that only go to our closest friends and allies. And make no mistake: we will do what it takes to preserve Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge – because Israel must always have the ability to defend itself, by itself, against any threat.

Categories
Politics presidential Republican

Poll Shows High Disapproval for Republican Presidential Candidates

As far as I’m concerned, these Republican primaries could go on till December. By then, President Obama would have already won the November elections and public opinion of the GOP would continue to erode.

But seeing that my wish for a December Republican primary debate is highly unlikely, I’ll settle for poll results like this:

Four in 10 of all adults say the GOP nominating process has given them a less favorable impression of the Republican Party, versus just slightly more than one in 10 with a more favorable opinion.

Additionally, when asked to describe the GOP nominating battle in a word or phrase, nearly 70 percent of respondents – including six in 10 independents and even more than half of Republicans –answered with a negative comment.

Some examples of these negative comments from Republicans: “Unenthusiastic,” “discouraged,” “lesser of two evils,” “painful,” “disappointed,” “poor choices,” “concerned,” “underwhelmed,” “uninspiring” and “depressed.”

And perhaps most significantly, the GOP primary process has taken a toll on the Republican presidential candidates, including front-runner Mitt Romney, who is seen more unfavorably and whose standing with independents remains underwater.

Categories
Energy Politics weekly address

President Obama’s Weekly Address – An All-Of-The-Above Strategy to Energy Independence

President Obama used his weekly address to talk about energy. He mentioned his recent speech at the United Auto Workers meeting, and reminded us that if nothing was done about the auto industry, “Detroit would have gone bankrupt. “I refused to let that happen, the President said, “these jobs are worth more than just a paycheck – they’re a source of pride and a ticket to the middle class.”

Mr. Obama also mentioned that over the last two and a half years, over 200,000 more jobs were created in the auto industry.

Today, GM is the number one automaker in the world.  Chrysler is growing faster in America than any other car company.  Ford is investing billions in American plants and factories, and plans to bring thousands of jobs back home.  All told, the entire industry has added more than 200,000 new jobs over the past two and a half years.

He also spoke of new fuel efficiency standards put in place by his administration, that would require automobile producers to build vehicles capable of 55 miles per gallon. This, the President says, would save the typical consumer over $8000 over time.

And although the new fuel efficiency standards are a step in the right direction , the President spoke about an “all the above strategy” where fossil fuel wouldn’t be our main source of energy.

 While we consume 20 percent of the world’s oil, we only have 2 percent of the world’s oil reserves.  We’ve got to develop new technology that will help us use new forms of energy.  That’s been a priority of mine as President.  And because of the investments we’ve made, our use of clean, renewable energy has nearly doubled – and thousands of Americans have jobs because of it.

 

Categories
Mitt Romney ObamaCare Politics

Romney To Obama – Use RomneyCare as a Model for ObamaCare

Ever heard this line, “…and if I’m given the opportunity to be your president, I will repeal ObamaCare.”

That is the line use by Mitt Romney in debates and at all his rallies,  as he tries to convince anyone listening that his Massachusetts health care plan – also known as RomneyCare – is somehow different from the health care plan signed into law by President Obama.

But before he decided to be “severely conservative” in order to get the conservative vote, Mitt Romney was more of a liberal moderate and in 2009, he wrote an opinion piece on healthcare, advising President Obama to use his Massachusetts RomneyCare plan as a model for what we now call ObamaCare.

“Health care cannot be handled the same way as the stimulus and cap-and-trade bills,” Romney wrote. “With those, the president stuck to the old style of lawmaking: He threw in every special favor imaginable, ground it up and crammed it through a partisan Democratic Congress. Health care is simply too important to the economy, to employment and to America’s families to be larded up and rushed through on an artificial deadline. There’s a better way. And the lessons we learned in Massachusetts could help Washington find it.”

The original article was posted on USA Today’s website, but is now unavailable. Thanks to the internet’s archiving abilities however, the entire article was found and is available once again to remind Mitt Romney of the man he once was… before this presidential thing that is.

Categories
Rush Limbaugh Slut

Rush Limbaugh Does The Unthinkable – He Apologize To Ms Fluke

For the past few days, the untouchable, invincible Rush Limbaugh took to the airwaves and criticized a private citizen for doing her duty as an American. Limbaugh chose to walk the only path he knows and called this private citizen some of the most despicable and deplorable names his puny little mind could think of, then sat back and watched as a national outcry began. Even President Obama placed a telephone call to the victim of Rush’s venom, offering her some words of encouragement.

But that was all fine with Rush Limbaugh. This is what he does – go on the air, and say some of the most reprehensible things ever heard on the national airwaves. He has used his program to attack blacks, Muslims, Women, Latinos and yes, Democrats. So when President Obama got involved and made his phone call to Susan Fluke, Rush Limbaugh knew that his plan to get as much publicity as possible, was coming together just as he planned.

But this time something was different. The Blogosphere and the Twitter machine came alive and calls for the end of Limbaugh’s radio career rang long and loud. And tweets and messages to sponsors and advertisers on Limbaugh’s show were too numerous to count. Then the advertisers began pulling their ads from Rush’s show and this, this was when Mr. Limbaugh did a double take.

One sponsor, two sponsor, three sponsor, four… Limbaugh imagined the worst and saw his $400 million contract evaporating before his very eyes. He couldn’t allow it, he wouldn’t. He decided to do what he never thought he’d do in all his 20 years as a radio entertainer – he decided to go against the pomposity his show is known for –  he apologized… to a woman!

For over 20 years, I have illustrated the absurd with absurdity, three hours a day, five days a week.  In this instance, I chose the wrong words in my analogy of the situation. I did not mean a personal attack on Ms. Fluke.

…My choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, I created a national stir. I sincerely apologize to Ms. Fluke for the insulting word choices.

On the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday editions of his talk show, Mr. Limbaugh loudly criticized Ms. Fluke as sexually promiscuous and politically motivated — “an anti-Catholic plant,” he said at one point.

On Wednesday, he called her a “slut,” and a “prostitute. On Thursday, he said she was “having so much sex, it’s amazing she can still walk.” And on Friday, the Republican spokesman continued his personal attack, saying Miss Fluke was “having sex so frequently that she can’t afford all the birth-control pills that she needs.”

Categories
contraception Rush Limbaugh Slut

Sandra Fluke May File Lawsuit Against Rush Limbaugh

The Daily News Reports: The Georgetown law student branded a “slut” by Rush Limbaugh may file a lawsuit against the conservative shock jock as he revs up his criticism against the woman who found herself at the center of the contraception coverage debate.

Limbaugh continued to rant on Friday that Sandra Fluke is a “prostitute” who is “having so much sex” she can’t pay for contraceptives as Fluke said she may consider legal action.

“I’ve certainly been told I might have a case,” the third-year student told the Daily Beast. “But it’s not something I’ve made any decisions about at this point.”

Limbaugh’s attack on Fluke began Wednesday after the Washington resident testified in front of Congressional Democrats.

She spoke in favor of President Obama’s health care mandate that would require all employers to cover the cost of contraceptives for women.

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