The Politics Thread

[Roman]

Romney is destroying himself each and every day. And with Newt on the bandwagon now?

This is some truly funny stuff.

[DRW50]

With his money, and the media on his side, he's been very lucky - too bad he keeps making such stupid comments.

This type of thing makes me very uneasy.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/12/mitt-romney-pressure-adoption-book_n_1200865.html

[Roman]

What is coming out about him now is more frightening than what has been out for years about the others.

[Max]

His saying that he likes to fire people was taken totally out of context. But, since these bullshit political games are going to be played, I guess it's OK for the GOP to take Obama's comment that "we've gotten a bit lazy" out of context as well (and generalize it to mean that Obama feels all Americans are lazy). And what about Barry's comment that people who live in rural areas "cling to their guns and religion"? I guess this must mean he feels he is so superior to the people who live in such places.

I guess Romney (who knows there are 50 states in the union as opposed to the 57 Obama thinks we have) is the only candidate who says foolish things.

Edited January 13, 2012 by Max

[DRW50]

I seem to remember a lot of Republicans also criticizing Romney for his firing comments.

Are they foolish, or are they what he truly feels? This is the third or fourth comment he's made that casts him as a man of comfort, either looking down on the struggling or trying to pretend he's not looking down on them. I think "jokes" like saying he's unemployed or "jokes" like saying he enjoys firing people are more revealing than any Dan Quayle-esque blunder.

[Roman]

Whden did Obama say we have 57 states?

[Max]

At a 2008 campaign event in Oregon:

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/EpGH02DtIws" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I realize, Roman, that only "idiots" like Bush are supposed to make mistakes like this, and not your beloved Obama. (To be technically correct, however, Obama actually indicated that there are 60 states, since he had yet to visit AK, HI, and another state.)

I can't imagine the s#itstorm the "conservatively biased" media would have made if Quayle or Palin made such a remark.

Edited January 13, 2012 by Max

[DRW50]

The problem is that people like Palin not only make stupid remarks, they are extremely proud of them. There's a strange sense of pride in ignorant views. If Obama went around constantly making stupid comments and then going on about "lamestream media," then politically speaking, he'd be where Palin is now.

Edited January 13, 2012 by CarlD2

[Roman]

I'm glad you realize Bush was an idiot. Thank you for saying that.

[juppiter]

Yup. Palin is proud of what she does not know, and it's really caught on among Republicans in general. Look at this: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/gingrich-hits-romney-knowing-speak-french-150300235.html

And of course the attack on Huntsman for adopting Chinese daughters. Apparently adopting Chinese and speaking French is not conservative? lol.

[DRW50]

There's an interesting controversy surrounding Haley Barbour, the governor of Mississippi until recently (he served his two terms). On his way out he pardoned hundreds of people, some of whom committed very serious offenses. This is the man who has been breathlessly hyped for years as a true conservative, the ideal Presidential candidate if only people didn't have an issue with Southern Republicans with somewhat tainted racial history - he was one of those, along with Mitch Daniels and media darling Chris Christie, who were pushed and pushed by the press and the GOP elites.

http://swampland.time.com/2012/01/14/barbour-at-peace-with-pardons-but-scandal-rages-on/

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0112/71374.html

http://www.wlbt.com/story/16522312/family-reacts-to-barbours-news-conference

Some have said, "Bill Clinton did the same," but I am not sure conservatives want to be the new Bill Clinton.

[Roman]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/13/mike-oneal-obama-death-prayer-psalm-109_n_1205059.html?ref=politics

More of those open-minded Republican conservative values hard at work.

[quartermainefan]

This is the difference btw Obama's verbal gaffe and what Republicans do. Clearly he knows there are 50 states, he was just in the midst of campaigning and his mind slipped. Republicanism is anti-intellctualism. To speak french is somehow a flaw in the mind of a republican. To go to college proves you are not a real American and don't share real American values. Real Americans are ignorant boobs we are told, they must shun science, sneer at advanced education, and just like Obama said--cling to Jesus. If you don't cling to Jesus you are not filled with real American values. Anyone who does anything which deviates from this Green Acres/Petticoat Junction paradise is a liberal elite, part of the lamestream media. If they live in NYC they live in the belly of the beast. They're not the real folk who in Sarah Palin's fantasy world all sound like Jim Nabors as they cast their vote for her and her ilk.

And when the republicans wind up with Perry, Palin, Cain, Bachmann and Trump as the people they have to choose from, they wonder where are the real candidates. You reap what you sow.

[Max]

Huntsman will drop out tomorrow and endorse Romney. While this is sad news, it was the right decision to make as the former Utah governor had to do much better in New Hampshire in order to have any chance to win the nomination. The only thing that surprises me is that Huntsman did not drop out on Wednesday, instead insisting that his chances were still good. (In my opinion, this about-face seems very strange on his part.)

[ReddFoxx]

For the record, there are 57 primaries and caucuses, which is what Obama was refering to. He clearly did not actually believe that there were 57 states.