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-- New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg from his just released endorsement of President Obama
Showing posts with label Barack Obama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Barack Obama. Show all posts
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Worth Repeating
Nov 1st, 2012
"If the 1994 or 2003 version of Mitt Romney were running for president, I may well have voted for him..."
-- New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg from his just released endorsement of President Obama
-- New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg from his just released endorsement of President Obama
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Things We Can't Make Up
Sept 19th, 2012
The world sure is going to hell.
Lately, it seems like just about anything is possible provided, of course, that it's miserably ill-conceived and will lead to more misery. It was with this in mind that I avoided the morning presser with Jay Carney. I just couldn't do it. I needed a break from it all while I deal with more immediate crises such as the looming prospect of living in my car while thousands of people steal my music on the internet.
Upon my return to the computer, this was the first thing I saw...
Well. Okay then.
Along with most folks, I wondered if some new Onion/Politico nexus had formed.
Then it struck me. Not everyone would find this absurd. So devoted are the haters, the reactionaries and the outright loons that debate has probably already begun in earnest somewhere over when the attack will begin.
"Yeah, laugh now. You won't be laughing when the tanks roll through WaWa, Ontario and the bombs start falling on Dildo, Newfoundland."
Yes. There is a Dildo, Newfoundland.
Sleep tight and, as Abraham Lincoln so wisely warned, "don't believe everything you read on the internet."
The world sure is going to hell.
Lately, it seems like just about anything is possible provided, of course, that it's miserably ill-conceived and will lead to more misery. It was with this in mind that I avoided the morning presser with Jay Carney. I just couldn't do it. I needed a break from it all while I deal with more immediate crises such as the looming prospect of living in my car while thousands of people steal my music on the internet.
Upon my return to the computer, this was the first thing I saw...
Along with most folks, I wondered if some new Onion/Politico nexus had formed.
Then it struck me. Not everyone would find this absurd. So devoted are the haters, the reactionaries and the outright loons that debate has probably already begun in earnest somewhere over when the attack will begin.
Yes. There is a Dildo, Newfoundland.
Sleep tight and, as Abraham Lincoln so wisely warned, "don't believe everything you read on the internet."
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Mitt Watch - The Man Without A Plan
July 1st, 2012
While everyone is justifiably preoccupied with the SCOTUS decision regarding the ACA in its potential political impact, it's worth remembering that the upcoming election is meant to select our Commander in Chief. On that count, we are still faced with a choice between Obama's frustrating pragmatism and absolute disaster.
Fred Kaplan writes:
While everyone is justifiably preoccupied with the SCOTUS decision regarding the ACA in its potential political impact, it's worth remembering that the upcoming election is meant to select our Commander in Chief. On that count, we are still faced with a choice between Obama's frustrating pragmatism and absolute disaster.
Fred Kaplan writes:
"What is Romney’s position on drone strikes? What’s his position on Afghanistan? During the Republican debates, he once said that his position was not to negotiate with the Taliban but to defeat them. What does that mean? Does he want to keep tens of thousands of U.S. troops there after NATO’s 2014 deadline? To what end? Doing what? He also once said that military spending should consume at least 4 percent of gross domestic product. Obama’s most recent military budget ($525 billion, not counting the cost of the war in Afghanistan) amounts to 3 percent. So Romney intends to raise the budget by one-third, or by about $175 billion a year—by more than $1 trillion in the next six years. Where is he going to get the money? What’s he going to spend it on? No details. None.
Is Romney an extremist? Or, in keeping with the GOP approach to politics in general these days, has he simply calculated that it’s best not to agree with Obama on anything? Either way, one thing is clear: He is not a serious man."You don't have to support Obama's foreign policy. You just have to be smart enough to reject its opposite. And vote accordingly.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
The President's Full Statement On Immigration
June 16th, 2012
The full transcript of POTUS' remarks is below the video.
Transcript via the NY Times:
The full transcript of POTUS' remarks is below the video.
Transcript via the NY Times:
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
The GOP's Phony Bin Laden Outrage, cont...
May 2nd, 2012
My, my. The GOP sure has its collective panties in a bunch over Obama actually making political hay from his successful operation to get Bin Laden last year. There are so many reasons their hypocrisy on this represents a new achievement in willful, collective self-delusion that its hard to know where to begin. That said, let's start with Jon Stewart's take.
My, my. The GOP sure has its collective panties in a bunch over Obama actually making political hay from his successful operation to get Bin Laden last year. There are so many reasons their hypocrisy on this represents a new achievement in willful, collective self-delusion that its hard to know where to begin. That said, let's start with Jon Stewart's take.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Obama's Poll Numbers
April 10th, 2012
The latest WaPo/ABC Presidential polling is out this morning and Team Romney ought to be heading into crisis mode right about now.
Dan Balz and Joe Cohen write:
Romney's unlikables are at the most dramatic levels of any candidate since Michael Dukakis in 1984.
Obama is definitely vulnerable in certain areas, however, as the report notes:
"If Obama’s views on the role of government are seen more negatively than positively, he has the edge on another aspect of this key debate: Americans by 52-37 percent see "unfairness in the economic system that favors the wealthy" as a bigger problem than "overregulation of the free market that interferes with growth and prosperity."
This is bad news for the GOP brand itself.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know a lot can happen between now and November.
But this is Mitt Romney. I think the over/under is becoming pretty clear.
The latest WaPo/ABC Presidential polling is out this morning and Team Romney ought to be heading into crisis mode right about now.
Dan Balz and Joe Cohen write:
"Obama has double-digit leads over the likely Republican presidential nominee on who would do a better job of protecting the middle class, addressing women’s issues, handling international affairs and dealing with health care."That pretty well covers most of the issues. Sure, there are tremendous risks, which the GOP continues to attempt to exploit, that might derail the economy. Nevertheless, in America, the personal is political. On that count, Team Romney has every reason to be preparing for disaster.
Obama is definitely vulnerable in certain areas, however, as the report notes:
"If Obama’s views on the role of government are seen more negatively than positively, he has the edge on another aspect of this key debate: Americans by 52-37 percent see "unfairness in the economic system that favors the wealthy" as a bigger problem than "overregulation of the free market that interferes with growth and prosperity."
This is bad news for the GOP brand itself.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know a lot can happen between now and November.
But this is Mitt Romney. I think the over/under is becoming pretty clear.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Southern Voters "Unsure"
March 12th, 2012
A new PPP survey of Southern GOP voter opinions ahead of the next round of primaries is raising a few eyebrows. Yes, a staggering number are "unsure" about whether or not President Obama is a "Christian."
More depressing still, Benjy Sarlin notes something else they are "unsure" about:
"Interracial marriage laws were overturned by the Supreme Court in 1967, but a significant minority of Mississippi and Alabama apparently still long for their return, or are at least ambivalent about the idea. In Alabama, 67 percent of respondents said interracial marriage should be allowed, but 21 percent said it should be illegal and another 12 percent were not sure. Mississippi Republican voters were even more divided: Only 52 percent said such marriages should be legal, versus 29 percent who said they should be banned and 17 percent who were unsure."
One more time, it's 2012... not 1812. We are "unsure" if some of these folks have factored that into their thinking.
A new PPP survey of Southern GOP voter opinions ahead of the next round of primaries is raising a few eyebrows. Yes, a staggering number are "unsure" about whether or not President Obama is a "Christian."
More depressing still, Benjy Sarlin notes something else they are "unsure" about:
"Interracial marriage laws were overturned by the Supreme Court in 1967, but a significant minority of Mississippi and Alabama apparently still long for their return, or are at least ambivalent about the idea. In Alabama, 67 percent of respondents said interracial marriage should be allowed, but 21 percent said it should be illegal and another 12 percent were not sure. Mississippi Republican voters were even more divided: Only 52 percent said such marriages should be legal, versus 29 percent who said they should be banned and 17 percent who were unsure."
One more time, it's 2012... not 1812. We are "unsure" if some of these folks have factored that into their thinking.
Obama's Numbers Hold Steady
March 12th, 2012
As The GOP presidential hopefuls (and the "conservative" movement in general) continue to alienate voters with their social issues obsession, Obama's numbers are stabilizing following months of fluctuation.
As The GOP presidential hopefuls (and the "conservative" movement in general) continue to alienate voters with their social issues obsession, Obama's numbers are stabilizing following months of fluctuation.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Obama's "Most Dangerous" GOP Opponent?
Feb 29th, 2012
In light of the news that Israel would "not warn" the U.S. prior to a pre-emptive attack on Iran, Sullivan fumes:
"I don't think you can understand the Republican strategy for this election without factoring in a key GOP player, Benjamin Netanyahu.
He already has core members of the US Congress siding openly with him against the US president and the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman - like McCain, Lieberman and Butters.
In light of the news that Israel would "not warn" the U.S. prior to a pre-emptive attack on Iran, Sullivan fumes:
He already has core members of the US Congress siding openly with him against the US president and the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman - like McCain, Lieberman and Butters.
Friday, February 24, 2012
One More Time... Gas Prices Edition
Feb 24th, 2012
It's the speculation in commodities markets which is to blame for the recent explosion in gas prices.
Period.
While the "conservative" media is blaming the President, the irony here is that the solution is the exact sort of regulation his detractors would scream bloody "Communism" over.
Kevin G. Hall lays out the facts:
"U.S. demand for oil and refined products — including gasoline — is down sharply from last year, so much that United States has actually become a net exporter of gasoline, unable to consume all that it makes.
Yet oil and gasoline prices are surging.
On Tuesday, oil rose past $106 a barrel and gasoline averaged $3.57 a gallon — thanks again in no small part to rampant financial speculation on top of fears of supply disruptions."
It's the speculation in commodities markets which is to blame for the recent explosion in gas prices.
Period.
While the "conservative" media is blaming the President, the irony here is that the solution is the exact sort of regulation his detractors would scream bloody "Communism" over.
Kevin G. Hall lays out the facts:
"U.S. demand for oil and refined products — including gasoline — is down sharply from last year, so much that United States has actually become a net exporter of gasoline, unable to consume all that it makes.
Yet oil and gasoline prices are surging.
On Tuesday, oil rose past $106 a barrel and gasoline averaged $3.57 a gallon — thanks again in no small part to rampant financial speculation on top of fears of supply disruptions."
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Quote Of The Day - Here and Now Edition
Feb 23rd, 2012
"Folks, I have often warned you that President Obama is an anti-religious zealot, which is surprising since he is also a devout secret Muslim."
-- Stephen Colbert
-- Stephen Colbert
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Santorum Watch - Obama Equals Hitler Edition
Feb 21st, 2012
Way back in 2010, while stumping for Republican candidate Pat Toomey, GOP darling and potential 2012 Presidential nominee compared the sitting President to a schoolyard drug dealer and argued that he posed the same threat to the world as Hitler. I shit you not.
Way back in 2010, while stumping for Republican candidate Pat Toomey, GOP darling and potential 2012 Presidential nominee compared the sitting President to a schoolyard drug dealer and argued that he posed the same threat to the world as Hitler. I shit you not.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Charting The Political Climate
Feb 20th, 2012
Brian Beutler highlights two sets of indicators that bode very well for Obama over at TPM:
Brian Beutler highlights two sets of indicators that bode very well for Obama over at TPM:
Sunday, February 12, 2012
The GOP Mission To Re-Elect Obama
Feb 12th, 2012
First, there was the Ryan Medicare debacle. Then came the GOP-driven debt ceiling disaster. Now, we have the "conservative" movement waging open war on contraception, a strategy which the vast majority of Americans aren't buying no matter how they frame it. In between these iconoclastic moments, we've had no meaningful legislation drafted in the House, demonization of the working poor, defense of corporations as people and an adherence to a social and economic orthodoxy so rigid that even a majority of registered Republicans oppose it point by point.
Perhaps, Team Obama should be thanking these guys.
Jonathan Chait writes:
"...President Obama has rehabilitated his own political standing in large part by highlighting the opposition of congressional Republicans. The Republican strategy has been to block and delay Obama’s agenda at every turn, and Obama has absorbed most of the backlash from a public that tends to hold the president singularly responsible for all political outcomes. Obama’s campaign of publicly highlighting Republican opposition has simultaneously helped to absolve him of at least part of the blame and made him look more like a strong leader.
First, there was the Ryan Medicare debacle. Then came the GOP-driven debt ceiling disaster. Now, we have the "conservative" movement waging open war on contraception, a strategy which the vast majority of Americans aren't buying no matter how they frame it. In between these iconoclastic moments, we've had no meaningful legislation drafted in the House, demonization of the working poor, defense of corporations as people and an adherence to a social and economic orthodoxy so rigid that even a majority of registered Republicans oppose it point by point.
Perhaps, Team Obama should be thanking these guys.
Jonathan Chait writes:
"...President Obama has rehabilitated his own political standing in large part by highlighting the opposition of congressional Republicans. The Republican strategy has been to block and delay Obama’s agenda at every turn, and Obama has absorbed most of the backlash from a public that tends to hold the president singularly responsible for all political outcomes. Obama’s campaign of publicly highlighting Republican opposition has simultaneously helped to absolve him of at least part of the blame and made him look more like a strong leader.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
The Latest WND Poll
Feb 11th, 2012
Perhaps it is time for the GOP to simply admit that they have gone horribly, terribly and, perhaps, irreversibly off-course.
Of all the prominent birther outlets to have piled onto the sitting President, none can compare to World Net Daily. They have left no conspiracy theory unutilized in their quest to destroy him. Obama is a 'socialist?' Check. Obama is a 'Kenyan?' Check. Obama is a 'Nazi-Communist?' Check. Obama is a 'Mau-Mauing Anti-Colonialist?' Check.
This is what makes their latest poll, performed by the ultra-rightist Wenzel Strategies, a stunning development:
"In every case except the match-up against Ron Paul, more than 20 percent of Republican voters said they are more likely to support Obama than the Republican challenger. And Ron Paul is close, as 19 percent of Republicans said they are more likely to support Obama than Paul."
Is anyone actually surprised by this?
Perhaps it is time for the GOP to simply admit that they have gone horribly, terribly and, perhaps, irreversibly off-course.
Of all the prominent birther outlets to have piled onto the sitting President, none can compare to World Net Daily. They have left no conspiracy theory unutilized in their quest to destroy him. Obama is a 'socialist?' Check. Obama is a 'Kenyan?' Check. Obama is a 'Nazi-Communist?' Check. Obama is a 'Mau-Mauing Anti-Colonialist?' Check.
This is what makes their latest poll, performed by the ultra-rightist Wenzel Strategies, a stunning development:
"In every case except the match-up against Ron Paul, more than 20 percent of Republican voters said they are more likely to support Obama than the Republican challenger. And Ron Paul is close, as 19 percent of Republicans said they are more likely to support Obama than Paul."
Is anyone actually surprised by this?
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
The GOP War On The Separation Clause
Feb 8th, 2012
by F. Grey Parker
I regard myself as a Christian. I believe in the Gospels. I generally keep it to myself and out of my writing because I have the right to do so. In America, no one may tell me what, how, when or where to worship.
I am protected from litmus tests or societal demands to prove my faith by the Constitution. That's what the separation clause provides for.
What I am not guaranteed is special status to impose my religion when I participate in public markets. I am also (supposed to be) Constitutionally disallowed access to taxpayer monies while simultaneously demanding the right to implement policies driven by a theological agenda in those markets.
Period.
Contrary to popular GOP propaganda, there is no war on religion in the United States. That is absurd. What we do have currently is a coordinated effort to attack the bedrock principle of separation. Nothing illustrates this more than the current brouhaha over the Obama Administration's new birth control guidelines.
by F. Grey Parker
I am protected from litmus tests or societal demands to prove my faith by the Constitution. That's what the separation clause provides for.
What I am not guaranteed is special status to impose my religion when I participate in public markets. I am also (supposed to be) Constitutionally disallowed access to taxpayer monies while simultaneously demanding the right to implement policies driven by a theological agenda in those markets.
Period.
Contrary to popular GOP propaganda, there is no war on religion in the United States. That is absurd. What we do have currently is a coordinated effort to attack the bedrock principle of separation. Nothing illustrates this more than the current brouhaha over the Obama Administration's new birth control guidelines.
Monday, February 6, 2012
Obama Pulling Away From Romney
Feb 6th, 2012
After events like THIS, THIS and THIS all in the last week alone, is anyone surprised by the results of the latest WaPo/Pew data?
"Overall, 55 percent of those who are closely following the campaign say they disapprove of what the GOP candidates have been saying. By better than 2 to 1, Americans say the more they learn about Romney, the less they like him. Even among Republicans, as many offer negative as positive assessments of him on this question."
Barring a catastrophe of epic proportions, this is Obama's to lose.
After events like THIS, THIS and THIS all in the last week alone, is anyone surprised by the results of the latest WaPo/Pew data?
"Overall, 55 percent of those who are closely following the campaign say they disapprove of what the GOP candidates have been saying. By better than 2 to 1, Americans say the more they learn about Romney, the less they like him. Even among Republicans, as many offer negative as positive assessments of him on this question."
Barring a catastrophe of epic proportions, this is Obama's to lose.
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