Category: Politics

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Immigration Immigration Reform Politics

President Obama Scores Huge Endorsement from “The Hispanic Oprah”

President Obama, hoping the Latino vote can make the difference in key swing states, secured an endorsement today from a prominent Hispanic talk show host.

Cristina Saralegui, who has hosted The Cristina Show for 21 years, said Obama “understands the Hispanic community and has supported it unconditionally and that is why I was moved to endorse and campaign for our president’s re-election.”

Saralegui also cut an ad for the Obama election team.

In its announcement, the Obama campaign described Saralegui as “a seasoned journalist who is recognized as one of the most respected and influential role models in the Hispanic community.” She’s also been called the Hispanic Oprah.

“Cristina is one of the most trusted names in the Hispanic community,” said Obama campaign manager Jim Messina. “We’re honored to have Cristina be a spokesperson for the campaign, speaking directly to Hispanic voters about the president’s accomplishments.”

The endorsement comes just a few days after Obama announced a new immigration/work permit policy for the children of illegal immigrants.

[More]

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George Bush Mitt Romney pay Politics tax cuts

Mitt Romney Cannot Explain How He Will Pay for $5 Trillion More in Tax Cuts for Rich People

Rich people were rich before George Bush decided to give them trillions in two massive tax cut. The idea back then was that giving rich people more money would automatically result in the middle class and the poor getting more jobs. The idea was not a new concept, it was also tried over 30 years ago in the Reagan administration, thus bearing the name Reaganomics also known as Trickle-Down Economics. But all Mr. Bush succeeded in doing was a huge transfer of wealth from middle class America to the rich. And the country plunged into a massive recession comparable to the Great Depression of the 1930’s.

So naturally, Mitt Romney’s goal is to try the same tactics Bush failed at if he become president.

Mitt Romney is promising to extend the Bush Tax Cuts for the wealthy, in hopes that history would not repeat. His hope is under a Romney administration, wealthy Americans earning millions and billions of dollars would see the light and hire more people. Americans already lived through this disaster, but Romney is promising to do it all again.

In an interview with Bob Schieffer which aired on CBS, Romney was asked to explain how he plan to pay for yet another colossal tax cut to people who don’t need it. His answer basically amounted to – I don’t know how I’ll pay for it, but just trust me.

SCHIEFFER: You haven’t been bashful about telling us yo want to cut taxes. When are you going to tell us where you’re going to get the revenue? Which of the deductions are you going to be willing to eliminate? Which of the tax credits are you going to — when are you going to be able to tell us that?

ROMNEY: Well, we’ll go through that process with Congress as to which of all the different deductions and the exemptions —

SCHIEFFER: But do you have an ideas now, like the home mortgage interest deduction, you know, the various ones?

ROMNEY: Well Simpson Bowles went though a process of saying how they would be able to reach a setting where they had actually under their proposal even more revenue, with lower rates. So, mathematically it’s been proved to be possible: We can have lower rates, as I propose, that creates more growth, and we can limit deductions and exemptions.

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Politics weekly address

Presidential Weekly Address – Republicans Are Willfully Doing Nothing To Win An Election

President Obama spoke about our economic future, claiming that we have all the answers to our problems, but because of Republicans’ lack of interest in doing anything to help the economy, things are at a stalemate.

Right now, we’re still fighting our way back from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.  The economy is growing again, but it’s not growing fast enough.  Our businesses have created 4.3 million new jobs over the last 27 months, but we’re not creating them fast enough.  And we’re facing some pretty serious headwinds – from the effects of the recent spike in gas prices, to the financial crisis in Europe.

But here’s the thing.  We have the answers to these problems.  We have plenty of big ideas and technical solutions from both sides of the aisle.  That’s not what’s holding us back.  What’s holding us back is a stalemate in Washington.

Last September, I sent Congress a jobs bill full of the kinds of bipartisan ideas that could have put over a million Americans back to work and helped bolster our economy against outside shocks.  I sent them a plan that would have reduced our deficit by $4 trillion in a balanced way that pays for the investments we need by cutting unnecessary spending and asking the wealthiest Americans to pay a little bit more in taxes.

Since then, Congress has passed a few parts of that jobs bill, like a tax cut that’s allowing working Americans to keep more of your paycheck every week.  But on most of the ideas that would create jobs and grow our economy, Republicans in Congress haven’t lifted a finger.  They’d rather wait until after the election in November.  Just this past week, one of them said, “Why not wait for the reinforcements?”  That’s a quote.  And you can bet plenty of his colleagues are thinking the same thing.

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Illegal immigration Immigration Reform Politics

President Obama Eases Immigration Rules on Young Illegal Immigrants

The Obama administration will stop deporting and begin granting work permits to younger illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children and have since led law-abiding lives. The election-year initiative addresses a top priority of an influential Latino electorate that has been vocal in its opposition to administration deportation policies.

The policy change, announced Friday by Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, will affect as many as 800,000 immigrants who have lived in fear of deportation. It bypasses Congress and partially achieves the goals of the so-called DREAM Act, a long-sought but never enacted plan to establish a path toward citizenship for young people who came to the United States illegally but who attend college or join the military.

The extraordinary step comes one week before President Barack Obama plans to address the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials’ annual conference in Orlando, Fla. Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney is scheduled to speak to the group on Thursday.

[More]

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Mitt Romney Politics

John McCain Says Foreign Money Going to Romney’s Campaign

Senator and Romney presidential campaign surrogate John McCain (R-AZ) said Thursday that casino magnate Sheldon Adelson is indirectly injecting millions of dollar in Chinese “foreign money” into Mitt Romney‘s presidential election effort.

“Much of Mr. Adelson’s casino profits that go to him come from his casino in Macau, which says that obviously, maybe in a roundabout way foreign money is coming into an American political campaign,” McCain said in an interview on PBS’s News Hour.

“That is a great deal of money, and we need a level playing field and we need to go back to the realization… that we have to have a limit on the flow of money and corporations are not people,” he said.

Adelson announced Thursday he would be giving $10 million to the pro-Romney Super PACRestore Our Future, and reports stated his future contributions to pro-Romney groups could be “limitless.”

[More]

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Politics Republican

Michael Stafford Explains Why He Left The Republican Party

I’m a life-long Republican. My political affiliation has been woven intrinsically into the very fabric of my being.

When I was young, Ronald Reagan bestrode the world like a colossus. I grew up watching the Cold War end-game play out as Reagan faced down the Soviet Union- which really was evil- and helped break the long night of communist repression in Eastern Europe. He was my hero.

Indeed, my first political act was passionately lobbying my fourth-grade classmates to vote for Reagan over Walter Mondale in a mock election in 1984. As an adult, I continued to be a rock-solid Republican- I helped run my law school’s chapter of the Federalist Society and its Republican club. And after the election of President Obama in 2008, I served as an officer in my state Republican Party. For the next two years, I devoted substantial amounts of my time, my talent, and my treasure to supporting local candidates running for office and to building the Party organization.

Today, however, I am a registered Republican no longer.

I came to the decision to leave the GOP not with a heavy heart, but with a broken one.

I reached this point through a long series of awakenings and realizations- a path marked by literally years of wrestling with, and finally accepting, the political implications of a number of difficult truths. It involved ever-increasing levels of cognitive dissonance, as I tried to square my experiences, concerns, and knowledge, with my continued loyalty to the GOP.

As a local GOP official after President Obama’s election, I had a front-row seat as it became infected by a dangerous and virulent form of political rabies.

In the grip of this contagion, the Republican Party has come unhinged. Its fevered hallucinations involve threats from imaginary communists and socialists who, seemingly, lurk around every corner. Climate change- a reality recognized by every single significant scientific body and academy in the world- is a liberal conspiracy conjured up by Al Gore and other leftists who want to destroy America. Large numbers of Republicans- the notorious birthers- believe that the President was not born in the United States. Even worse, few figures in the GOP have the courage to confront them.

Republican economic policies are also indefensible. The GOP constantly claims that its opponents are engaged in “class warfare,” but this is an exercise in projection. In Republican proposals, the wealthy win, and the rest of us lose- one only has to look at Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget to see that.

[More]

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Ohio Politics

President Obama Speaks in Ohio – Mitt Romney Was There Somewhere

Both President Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney are in Ohio today giving campaign speeches. It was a hard decision figuring out which speech to broadcast, but it all boiled down to the fact that here at EzKool, we are in your face with the truth, and broadcasting Mitt Romney’s speech completely contradict our tagline.

Ladies and gentlemen, President Obama…

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Mitt Romney Politics

Multiple Ways to Say ‘No’ To Being Romney’s Vice President

Mike Huckabee: His talents are best used elsewhere
Why he’s in the veepstakes: Huckabee is already a household name, thanks to his 2008 run for president and subsequent Fox News show, and he’s popular with social conservatives and right-leaning economic populists. He’s also an ordained Baptist minister with a sunny public disposition.

Why he won’t be chosen: “I think there’s a greater likelihood that I’ll be asked by Madonna to go on tour as her bass player than I’ll be picked to be on the ticket,” Huckabee told ABC News on June 10.

2. Jeb Bush: Not interested in toeing the party line
Why he’s in the veepstakes: The former Florida governor, and younger scion of the Bush clan, is a Republican’s Republican, a uniting figure who can bring together different factions of the GOP — and could help Romney win Florida.

Why he won’t be chosen: Being Romney’s running mate is “not in the cards for me,” Bush told ABC News on June 1. “I don’t know how many times I have to repeat this. I have been repeating it for the last two years. I’ve been pretty consistent…. I am not a candidate. I’m not going to be asked…. This will prove I’m not running for anything: If you could bring to me a majority of people to say that we are going to have $10 of spending cuts for $1 of revenue enhancement, put me in, coach.”

3. Marco Rubio: The Freudian slip
Why he’s in the veepstakes: The freshman senator from Florida is Latino, photogenic, and popular with the Tea Party, and he is popular at home, in the biggest of the swing states.

Why he won’t be chosen: “I don’t want to be the vice president,” Rubio told National Journal in April. “But you know he’s not going to ask. That doesn’t work. He’s watching this interview right now…. Three, four, five, six, seven years from now, if I do a good job as vice president — I’m sorry, if I do a good job as a senator instead of a vice president, I’ll have a chance to do all sorts of things, including commissioner of the NFL, which is where the real power is.”

4. Chris Christie: Too big to make the cut
Why he’s in the veepstakes: The tough-talking New Jersey governor has been campaigning for Romney since last fall, and he’s endeared himself to the Republican base by taking on public service unions as policy and politics — Christie’s short videos of himself verbally smacking down critics at town hall events have gone viral on YouTube.

Why he won’t be chosen: “Do I look like somebody’s vice president?” the famously portly Christie said at a December 2011 Romney rally in Iowa. “If you were a betting woman, I wouldn’t bet on Romney-Christie. I wouldn’t lay any money on that.”

[More]

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Mitt Romney Politics

How to Purchase a Presidency – Mittens Gets a Huge Donation

Billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson is pumping $10 million into an outside group supporting GOP presumptive nominee Mitt Romney, the Associated Press and other news outlets report.

Adelson’s donation went to Restore Our Future, which has run ads to support Romney’s campaign and attack his opponents, the AP reports, citing anonymous sources. Charles Spies, Restore Our Future’s treasurer, declined to comment on donors. Adelson spokesman Ron Reese did not return telephone calls.

The donation is the latest sign deep-pocketed Republican donors are prepared to spend heavily to defeat President Obama through independent groups that can raise and spend unlimited amounts. Restore Our Future, a super PAC run by former Romney campaign aides, has collected $56.5 million between Jan. 1, 2011 and April 30 of this year, more than five times the amount raised by Priorities USA Action, a pro-Obama super PAC.

[USA Today]

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eric holder Eric Holder Politics

John Cornyn Pulls a Political Stunt – Demands Eric Holder Resign

On Tuesday, Republican Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) demanded that Attorney General Eric Holder, a member of the Obama Administration, resign. “So, Mr. Attorney General, it’s more with sorrow than anger that I would say you leave me with no alternative but to join those who call upon you to resign your office,” Cornyn said.

The Republican Senator is calling on Mr. Holder to resign because of a program that started in 2007 under the Bush Administration called The Fast an Furious. The object of the program was to allow traceable guns to be smuggled into Mexico with the intention of pinpointing their locations and capturing some very bad people associated with the drug cartels . Unfortunately, an American Border Patrol Agant Brian Terry, was killed in December 2010 by a criminal using one of these guns and now Mr. Holder is in the hot seat.

Cornyn continued;

“You still resist coming clean about what you knew and when you knew it with regard to Operation Fast and Furious,” Cornyn charged. “You won’t cooperate with a legitimate congressional investigation, and you won’t hold anyone, including yourself, accountable. Your department blocks states from implementing attempts to combat voter fraud. In short, you’ve violated the public trust, in my view, by failing and refusing to perform the duties of your office.”

“So, Mr. Attorney General, it’s more with sorrow than anger that I would say you leave me with no alternative but to join those who call upon you to resign your office,” Cornyn said.

Calling Cornyn’s performance a political stunt, Holder replied that he is not resigning;

“With all due respect, senator, there is so much that’s factually wrong with the premises that you started your statement with, it’s almost breathtaking in its inaccuracy, but I will simply leave it at that.”

“… I don’t have any intention of resigning. I heard the White House press officer say yesterday that the President has absolute confidence in me. I don’t have any reason to believe that that, in fact, is not the case.”

And in reference to the documents Republicans are demanding, reports claim that Tuesday’s appearance marked the ninth time [Holder] has testified before Congress on Operation Fast and Furious. Holder said he was the one who ended “the misguided tactics” in that operation and who tapped an inspector general to investigate any wrongdoing. His staff has also provided Congress with more than 7,600 documents, in 46 separate installments, relating to the issue.

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Politics

Panic! At The Obama Campaign? Really?

Did you know that the Democrats are panicking? It’s true. I know it because I read it in the media. Obama’s campaign is panicking. FOX News says that Obama’s panicking. Even Jim Messina, Obama’s campaign manager (and I’m pretty sure the other half of Loggins and Messina) worries about Democrats panicking.

Why the panic? Jobs numbers, dumb comments about the private economy being fine and a general sense that Obama just isn’t on his game obviously have the progressive left in a panic about the president’s chances in November. A closer look at what’s actually happening with the campaign shows that there is no need for panic, and, indeed, there is reason for optimism.

The conventional wisdom, until last week that is, was that Obama’s ads attacking Romney’s record at Bain Capital were doing more damage to Obama than to Mitt. Surprise! That’s not the case. In fact, the attacks have had their intended effect. More people have a negative view of private equity firms according to the latest polls. Imagine that; negative ads that produce negative responses towards your opponent. Perhaps the Republicans should try that.

The real wonder is that Democrats would entertain the idea that a negative ad aimed at Romney highlighting his past actions would somehow be off limits (do you hear me Bill?). This is the point in the campaign where you’d better define your opponent or they will define themselves. It’s exactly what the Romney campaign is trying to do on the economy and it’s what Obama needs to continue to do until the conventions.

The blabbering media narrative from last week also focused on the effects the dismal job numbers and Scott Walker’s win in Wisconsin would have on the president. What’s the reality? The latest polls show Obama holding on to his lead, though it is reduced from a month ago. Obama’s approval ratings? Gallup has him +4 and Rasmussen at -4, which are pretty much where Obama was a couple of days after the economic reports were released. Conclusion? The president is in decent shape. Even the folks at Intrade have Obama with a more than 52% chance of reelection. That is hardly a reason to panic.

The latest state polls also provide good news for Obama. He’s +6 in Pennsylvania, and a poll on Wednesday showing Romney ahead in North Carolina by 2 was really good news for the president because it also showed him inexplicably with only 78% of the African-American vote. Really? Anybody who believes that Mitt Romney is going to rack up 20+% of the African-American vote in November is either dreaming or on bath salts.

Ultimately, this race will be about the economy and jobs, and right now Obama has a jobs plan and Mitt doesn’t. Obama has a pragmatic foreign policy record and Mitt just wants to throw bombs at the world. Energy prices are down, marriage equality is up, and even Obama’s gaffe might help him in the long run.

I’m not panicking. This was always going to be a close race for a variety of reasons, and for all of the problems the president is currently having this month (with the health care ruling still to come), Obama is in good shape entering the summer. Romney has yet to tell us what he’d do as president and most polls say the public sides with Obama when it comes to balancing cuts with revenue and long-term investment in America.

Still, we all have those nervous moments. If you feel a panic attack coming on, let me soothe you at: www.facebook.com/WhereDemocracyLives and on Twitter @rigrundfest 

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Mitt Romney Politics teachers

Doubling Down on Stupidity Is The Romney Way

I have a sinking suspicion that Romney believes voters aren’t terribly bright.

The main problem with Romney’s new line is that it doesn’t make any sense. “The federal government doesn’t pay for teachers, firefighters or policemen”? Well, actually, the federal government can provide resources to states and municipalities to either hire new teachers and first responders, or prevent layoffs that would otherwise be made. If Washington would do this, we’d see an immediate drop in the unemployment rate, but Republicans refuse to even consider the idea.

What’s more, when Romney says President Obama’s “new idea … didn’t work the first time,” that’s the exact opposite of reality. Obama’s new idea isn’t exactly new — the last three Republican presidents strengthened the national economy through public-sector hiring— and it worked perfectly when Obama protected these jobs in 2009. Here’s a possible follow-up question for Romney: when you say public-sector hiring didn’t work the first time, what in the world are you talking about?

And finally, Romney’s position from Friday hasn’t changed. He sees President Obama fighting for school teachers, police officers, and firefighters, and Romney’s still convinced the economy will be better off if those teachers and first responders are unemployed.

That’s not “completely absurd”; that’s just Romney’s stated position.

[The Maddow Blog]

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