Massachusetts under the microscope
May 30, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Greg Sargent reports at The Plum Line today that the Obama campaing is opening a new front against the Romney campaign by putting his record as governor of Massachusetts under the microscope. Romney has studiously avoided his tenure are governor and does not want to talk about it, so this should get interesting:
Job One for the Obama campaign is to undermine what appears to be a widespread presumption of Romney’s economic competence, and ABC News reports that the Obama team is redoubling their efforts on this front, by launching a new and aggressive campaign targeting Romney’s economic tenure as Massachusetts governor:
The Obama campaign is opening a new front in its war against GOP rival Mitt Romney, ABC News has learned, with planned attacks to begin this week on Romney’s record as governor of Massachusetts and the campaign promises Democrats say he left unfulfilled.
Team Obama will point to Romney’s rhetoric on job creation, size of government, education, deficits and taxes during the 2002 gubernatorial campaign and draw parallels with his presidential stump speeches of 2012. The goal is to illustrate that Romney has made the same promises before with unimpressive results, officials say…the latest line of attack will be a major focus from now through the election.
This again points to Obama’s core challenge. Romney wants the election to be all about the President. As Steve Kornacki put it recently, Romney’s pitch is: “If you don’t think the economy’s in good shape, don’t ask questions – just vote the guy in charge out.” Obama needs to persuade voters to do more than simply accept Romney as an alternative to the economic status quo who’s worth taking a flyer on. He needs to get them to look past general impressions of Romney’s competence and to realize that Romney is offering an actual set of policies and ideas about the economy that have been tried before. His “Mr. Fix It” aura — which is rooted in the pitch that he can translate private sector know-how to the public sector — is belied by his actual record as a public official.
The point the Obama campaign needs to drive home is that Romney has already tried to bring his private sector experience to bear on the public sector, even if he isn’t eager to talk about it. Hence the broadening of the case against Romney that we’re about to see.
‘The Donald’ dog whistle: Leave no racist voter behind
May 30, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: Lawrence O'Donnell nailed it on Tuesday night: "My view is very simple here. The Republicans and Mitt Romney have made the cold calculation that they may win with 50.1 percent of the vote [the Karl Rove formula], but they want 100 percent of the racist vote in America. They don't want a … Read more
Keep the press free: We can’t let Democrats become Republicans
May 30, 2012
by Pamela Powers Hannley For years, the Republican campaign style has been increasingly restrictive. George W. Bush started it all. McCain, Palin, and others who followed fine-tuned the information control tactics– requiring pre-registration and tickets for political events, banning political signs, and requiring pre-approved questions. During the 2010 elections, this trend evolved into paid admission for … Read more
Eli Broad, “ed reform” philanthropist, doesn’t know squat about public education
May 29, 2012
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by David Safier Eli Broad comes from the "I have more money than you, so I know more about everything than you do" school of thought. He's one of the gazillionaires funding the conservative/neoliberal "education reform" movement with his Broad Foundation. Broad has a commentary in Ed Week (subscription only) where he makes an ass … Read more
Saguaro Eastside Democrats: A Summer Miniature Golf Challenge and Continental Breakfast
May 29, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: Event announcement from the Saguaro Eastside Democrats: SAGUARO EASTSIDE DEMOCRATS present A SUMMER MINIATURE GOLF CHALLENGE and CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST SATURDAY, JULY 7, 8-10 AM at GOLF N’ STUFF, 6503 E. TANQUE VERDE Rd. Tickets $20 / $25 at the door Children under 12 $5Must be accompanied by an adult – No drop-offs! … Read more
Strange budget numbers at Imagine Prep at Superstition
May 29, 2012
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by David Safier I've written two posts about the staff turnover at Imagine Prep at Superstition in Apache Junction — 10 or 11 of the 14 teachers either let go or quitting. (Here's the most recent post and the original. You'll find interesting and revealing comments from students and parents on both posts.) Since then, … Read more
Romney: Take a bayonet to the safety net
May 29, 2012
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by David Safier Romney made it clear yesterday. We have to gut social programs so we can maintain or grow our military. He spoke of a clear choice — military spending or social programs: Romney, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, said the nation had two options: shrink the military to pay for social programs, … Read more
Americans for Tax Fairness
May 29, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
More than 30 progressive groups have launched 'Americans for Tax Fairness', a group dedicated to ending the Bush tax cuts on the upper 2 percent of Americans, those making more than a $250,000 annually. Labor Unions and Progressive Groups Launch 'Americans for Tax Fairness':
Americans for Tax Fairness announced their principles (via press release):
1. America needs an economy that grows jobs and works for all. Our nation has urgent needs, including creating sufficient jobs, investing in education and making college affordable, rebuilding our deteriorating infrastructure, shoring up Social Security and Medicare for the long term, reducing poverty and protecting the most vulnerable, and reducing the federal deficit in a balanced way as the economy recovers.
2. Everyone must pay their fair share. We need to reform our tax code so it raises adequate revenues to meet critical needs in a fiscally responsible manner — starting with wealthy Americans paying their fair share. This includes ending the Bush tax breaks for the richest 2 percent of Americans.
3. Put American jobs first by closing corporate tax loopholes. We also need to eliminate tax breaks and subsidies that allow some corporations to pay very limited amounts of taxes, or avoid paying taxes altogether, while encouraging multinational corporations to ship jobs overseas. Corporations’ share of federal taxes has declined dramatically over the years; therefore, any corporate tax reform should require the corporate sector to contribute more in federal income-tax revenue than it does now, not less.
