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Team Obama addresses the NAACP Convention
July 12, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
What a difference a day makes. A day after Willard "Mittens" Romney insulted the NAACP Convention and used them as a photo-op stage prop to rally the "white, old, fat" people of FAUX Nation, Team Obama addressed the organization with respect and to raucus applause. Videos below the fold.
Romney’s past the Bain of his existence
July 12, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Willard "Mittens" Romney really wants you to believe that he left Bain Capital in 1999 and has had nothing to do with its business transactions ever since. Romney even got fact checker Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post and FactCheck.org to just take his word for it. Only the real facts don't support his claim.
I posted last week about David Corn's investigative report for Mother Jones, Romney Invested in Medical-Waste Firm That Disposed of Aborted Fetuses, Government Documents Show that includes this passage:
[T]he document Romney signed related to the Stericycle deal did identify him as a participant in that particular deal and the person in charge of several Bain entities. (Did Bain and Romney file a document with the SEC that was not accurate?) Moreover, in 1999, Bain and Romney both described his departure from Bain not as a resignation and far from absolute. On February 12, 1999, the Boston Herald reported, "Romney said he will stay on as a part-timer with Bain, providing input on investment and key personnel decisions." And a Bain press release issued on July 19, 1999, noted that Romney was "currently on a part-time leave of absence"—and quoted Romney speaking for Bain Capital. In 2001 and 2002, Romney filed Massachusetts state disclosure forms noting he was the 100 percent owner of Bain Capital NY, Inc.—a Bain outfit that was incorporated in Delaware on April 13, 1999—two months after Romney's supposed retirement from the firm. A May 2001 filing with the SEC identified Romney as "a member of the Management Committee" of two Bain entities. And in 2007, the Washington Post reported that R. Bradford Malt, a Bain lawyer, said Romney took a "leave of absence" when he assumed the Olympics post and retained sole ownership of the firm for two more years. All of this undermines Bain's contention that Romney, though he maintained an ownership interest in the firm and its funds, had nothing to do with the firm's activities after February 1999.
Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo published more evidence this week that Romney didn’t leave Bain Capital in 1999 as he now claims. No, Romney Didn’t Leave Bain in 1999:
I’ve found yet more instances where Romney made declarations to the SEC that he was still involved in running Bain after February 1999. To the best of my knowledge, no one has yet noted these.
The documents go into different aspects of Romney’s ownership of various Bain and Bain related assets. But in both Romney had to say what he currently did for a living.
Here are two SEC filings from July 2000 and February 2001 in which Romney lists his “principal occupation” as “Managing Director of Bain Capital, Inc.”
Someone noticed. Today, the Boston Globe reports Mitt Romney stayed at Bain 3 years longer than he stated:
Government documents filed by Mitt Romney and Bain Capital say Romney remained chief executive and chairman of the firm three years beyond the date he said he ceded control, even creating five new investment partnerships during that time.
Romney insults the NAACP Convention, gets lustily booed
July 12, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
The Arizona Daily Star today published a condensed version of this McCaltchy News report by Maeve Reston of the Los Angeles Times on Willard "Mittens " Romney's speech to the NAACP Convention on Wednesday. Romney's speech to NAACP draws boos from audience. I was struck by a key passage in Reston's reporting:
But murmurs of disagreement ran through crowd when he argued that his policies would help "families of any color more than the policies and leadership of President Obama." And he was met with loud boos when he said he would reduce spending in part by eliminating "expensive, nonessential programs" and repealing the health care law. For 15 seconds, Romney stood quietly, smiling at the audience as they voiced their disapproval.
Here is how another McClatchy News report by William Douglas and David Lightman of McClatchy News accurately reported this key moment in Romney's speech. As Romney courts NAACP, audience boos vow to repeal health law:
The overwhelmingly Democratic group roundly booed him, however, when he declared that he'd repeal the health care law.
"I'm going to eliminate every nonessential, expensive program I can find; that includes Obamacare," Romney said to a long chorus of jeers. A woman in the back of the hall shouted, "You mean Romneycare?"
The Arizona Republic published an AP report by Kasie Hunt that also accurately reported this key moment in Romney's speech. Romney makes NAACP economy pitch, is booed:
[Romney]was booed when he promised to get rid of the Obama administration's health care overhaul.
"I will kill every expensive and unnecessary program I can find, and that includes Obamacare," Romney said, then waited and smiled through the crowd's disapproval.
So it was Arizona Daily Star readers who were treated to the "softened" reporting by Maeve Reston of the Los Angeles Times. A reader who did not see this moment of the speech (video below the fold) would not understand why the NAACP was booing Romney.
“Tucson Freedom Summer Community Education” events continue
July 12, 2012
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by David Safier The Freedom Summer Community Education events have already begun. Sorry for not mentioning them here earlier. The first was last Sunday, "The Academic Benefits of Ethnic Studies and Mexican American Studies for Tucson Students." According to Curtis Acosta, about 80-100 people attended the event. Here are the next two events, to be … Read more
Arizona Representative Trent Franks Accuses Obama Administration of Being Infiltrated by Muslim Brotherhood
July 11, 2012
By Michael Bryan This is just embarrassing. Trent Franks (abortion criminalizer and American Taliban member) has signed on to a letter with wackadoodle conspiracy theorist and former GOP Presidential Reality Show contestant Michelle Bachman claiming that the Obama Administration has been infiltrated by the Muslim Brotherhood. The evidence? Well, several agencies have been engaging in … Read more
Here We Go Again
July 11, 2012
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Posted by Bob Lord Obama's proposal to extend the Bush tax cuts to the first $250,000 of taxable income brought back the same tired and wildly inaccurate arguments from the right. This morning, watching freaking Joe Scarborough while on the treadmill, I heard him speculate how a small business owner / "job creator" who has … Read more
District 10 House Democrats Citizens Clean Elections Debate
July 11, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
The District 10 House Democratic candidates held their Citizens Clean Elections debate last night. Naturally, it received no media attention. The video replay is below the fold.
You can catch the LD 10 Democratic candidates tonight at Drinking Liberally, at the Tanque Verde Valley Democrats club house party on Sunday, and the LD 10/Saguaro Eastside Democrats club candidate forum on Monday. See the Political Calendar for details.
UPDATE: Better late than never, I guess. The Arizona Daily Star reports on the debate on Friday. District 10 candidates differ on Legislature's top priority.
Joe Biden at the National Conference of La Raza
July 11, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
For the past few days, the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) held its annual conference featuring workshops, townhalls, and networking events for the Latino community. This year’s gathering in Las Vegas provided the presidential campaigns with another opportunity to address a captive audience of Latino leaders. Biden at La Raza: Mitt Wants You to Show Your Papers But He Won't Show Us His:
[Y]esterday, Vice President Biden represented President Obama at NCLR and highlighted the differences between the President and his opponent. Biden talked about how Romney wants to maintain the Bush tax cuts, how Romney supports a budget that cuts Head Start and restricts Medicaid, and how Romney casts the President as being out of touch.
Vice President Biden then threw a zinger when he addressed Governor Romney’s failure to release multiple years of his tax returns, which is something that the presumptive GOP nominee’s father had done during his pursuit of the presidency. Biden said, “He wants you to show your papers, but he won’t show us his,” in reference to Romney’s support of the Arizona immigration law while refusing to release his own tax returns.
Check out the clip of Biden at NCLR below the fold:
