[PhoenixPause]

Obama is certainly awkward and a bit out of touch, but he gets away with it due to being charasmatic and being rather handsome. Romney comes off like a robot whereas Obama is like a lit professor who hung around jazz clubs

[markatisu]

Obama is certainly awkward and a bit out of touch, but he gets away with it due to being charasmatic and being rather handsome. Romney comes off like a robot whereas Obama is like a lit professor who hung around jazz clubs

I don't think Obama is so much awkward as he is intellectual. I work in a University and a lot of our professors have that weird "we overthink everything" aspect that normal people just don't concern themselves with

But luckily for him as you say the charisma overpowers that, if you have ever met him he can turn on the charm instantly even if it is just pandering.

I really wonder what Romney is like in private, he can't be that aloof and out of it as he appears. Even if he was just a plain asshole that would be better than his neutral robot personality.

[Dr. Pangloss]

That is the key difference in ideology, though. Democrats believe the state is responsible for the welfare of the people, should take care of everyone's needs, etc. Republicans believe that people, communities, and families should be responsible for the people's welfare and that government in an unnecessary and intrusive organization in people's lives. Hardline conservatives believe that Government should only serve to do what is delineated in the constitution. regulate commerce, military, etc. Republicans are stuck on King George as if government will always be an enemy to the people and to freedom. Which I can agree with many times (especially in the age of warrantless search and seizure, drones, etc) but on an overarching sense I do not. I think that Romney believes he would be an efficient and successful president, I doubt he just wants to do it just to do it. True believer and all that

Does Romney want to be successful? Sure, who doesn't want to be good at what they do? But don't attribute success to beliefs. Ron Paul obviously believes everything you stated. Perry obviously believes what common social conservatives do. Let's not forget that Romney not only increased state fees on his constituents but also implemented a government mandate for health insurance. Those run counter to get government out of my life. He did those things because his constituents asked him to. His beliefs didn't play a role.

Romney is playing a role at the moment. He has for most of his career. He has not implemented conservative ideology whenever he had the reins of power. This is not to say he won't if he wins the presidency. After all, Massachusetts is a different ballgame from the rest of the country. I just think he doesn't hold core convictions. He is more of politician that looks at where the wind is blowing. Not a leader.

[GaimeGuy]

No, Obama's not out of touch.

Just because you're rich doesn't mean you're out of touch.

Whatever happened to Romney, you can bet he had the door to high management open to him due to the amounts of wealth his family had and their connections. Even had he flunked out of college due to being a party animal, he would have easily been able to ascend the corporate ladder because of his connections.

That's what makes him out of touch. He's never had to deal with the worries other people did. He's never lived the way other people do. It isn't necessarily entirely his fault, or a bad thing itself, but it isn't something you want in someone dedicated to public service. Elected officials need to be able to relate to their constituents in order to act on behalf of improving the lives of their constituents.

Warren Buffett is the 3rd richest person on the planet, but I wouldn't call him out of touch. He lives a humble lifestyle, eats out only once or twice a week (He is a regular at a saturday breakfast joint near his home for pancakes), and the only extravagance he indulges in is a new corvette every year.

Is he rich? Yes. Does he have the luxury of not having to worry about being able to afford personal debts and bills? Yes, that's what it means to be rich. It means you have a large buffer to work with and plenty of moving room.

But it doesn't make him out of touch.

[Stinkles]

In regards to what?

Everything. Romney isn't simply out of touch, he also seems almost willfully ignorant about even the simplest social things. His comment on 711 baked goods was completely bizarre. The comment about firing people. Horses. Everything that falls out of his head.

Look, this whole false euqivalency thing is beyond fucked up. Obama is nowhere near as out of touch as Romney. It's not an opinion, it's demonstrated every time Romney opens his mouth. Obama is the most powerful man in the world, he has the most sophisticated private jet in the world, he probably hasn't cooked a meal in six years, but to even BEGIN to compare his personal approach to human things with Romney's is hilarious.

It's OK to prefer Romney's policies or philosophy to Obama's, but do we have to maintain this absurd pretence that there is equivalency for every negative or positive aspect?

[RustyNails]

There's a new Poll out that has Obama +1 over Romney in Michigan, but the fine print caught my eye:

Our polling sample was very consistent with the projected voter demographicconsiderations for a Michigan November General election. We have a number of variance items that we will report. Age: Our study skewed significantly higher with voter cluster of persons over the age of 51.This sampling was 83.03% of all polling study respondents. Despite efforts to adjust thecall volume to move the weight of this group closer to the projected 59% weight that theywill have in the General election, we were not successful. Our data also skewedsignificantly lower among the voter cluster of persons ages 18 to 30. This cluster wasroughly 12 points lower than their projected November General turnout weight. Onechallenge could exist from the disconnect from younger respondents usingcommunication tools outside of traditional landline and cell phone. Despite the variance, we believe the overall polling study’s quality of pooling sample and reporting effectiveness will not be hampered. The potential exists for a higher weight of personsover the age of 51 in the 2012 November General election Nationality/Heritage: Our aggregate respondent pool skewed higher for White voters then our predictive voterbehavior analysis model projects for the 2012 Michigan November General election. Ourrespondent pool was 83.58% white, while our predictive voter behavior analysis model projects that 74.5% of Michigan’s Presidential General election will be white. African American respondents were correspondently skewed lower than our predictive voterbehavior analysis model projects for the 2012 Michigan November General election. Ourrespondent pool was 9.32% African American, while our predictive voter behavior analysis model projects that 17.5% of Michigan’s Presidential General election will bewhite. In spite of these two variances, we believe the quality of the sample pool andquantifiable data derived is statistically accurate to the 2.32% margin of error factor

I dont understand why it was highly skewed. What gives? If they weren't successful in getting the proper demographic, why release the poll

[Kosmo]

There's a new Poll out that has Obama +1 over Romney in Michigan, but the fine print caught my eye: I dont understand why it was highly skewed. What gives? If they weren't successful in getting the proper demographic, why release the poll

I'm telling you, Obama is going to have to WORK to stay ahead of Romney in Michigan. Snyder has been kicking ass, getting our books in order and not getting bogged down in "politics for politics sake." I think many voters will view Romney/Obama as analogous to Snyder/Granholm - which wouldn't be good for Obama.

[ToxicAdam]

I dont understand why it was highly skewed. What gives? If they weren't successful in getting the proper demographic, why release the poll

Because it catches people's eye. Like it caught yours.

[Dr. Pangloss]

I'm telling you, Obama is going to have to WORK to stay ahead of Romney in Michigan. Snyder has been kicking ass, getting our books in order and not getting bogged down in "politics for politics sake." I think many voters will view Romney/Obama as analogous to Snyder/Granholm - which wouldn't be good for Obama.

If only you had been around in 2008. I would have loved your comparisons back then of Obama and Kwame Kilpatrick.

[quadriplegicjon]

I'm telling you, Obama is going to have to WORK to stay ahead of Romney in Michigan. Snyder has been kicking ass, getting our books in order and not getting bogged down in "politics for politics sake." I think many voters will view Romney/Obama as analogous to Snyder/Granholm - which wouldn't be good for Obama.

Did you read the quote? Obama is still ahead of Romney even though the poll's internals skew majorly towards Replican strengths.

[gcubed]

the bigger news here is that a predominantly over 51 poll of over-represented white people is STILL +1 Obama in Michigan.

Romney should just walk away

[quadriplegicjon]

the bigger news here is that a predominantly over 51 poll of over-represented white people is STILL +1 Obama in Michigan. Romney should just walk away

83% of that poll was over 51 and white. lol

[reilo]

PRINCETON, NJ -- Americans continue to place more blame for the nation's economic problems on George W. Bush than on Barack Obama, even though Bush left office more than three years ago. The relative economic blame given to Bush versus Obama today is virtually the same as it was last September.

http://www.gallup.com/poll/155177/Am...d-Economy.aspx

[Hobbestetrician]

I'm telling you, Obama is going to have to WORK to stay ahead of Romney in Michigan. Snyder has been kicking ass, getting our books in order and not getting bogged down in "politics for politics sake." I think many voters will view Romney/Obama as analogous to Snyder/Granholm - which wouldn't be good for Obama.

Doesn't Snyder have pretty low approval ratings?

Edit: I see it has gone up since I last checked.

[Cyan]

http://www.gallup.com/poll/155177/Am...d-Economy.aspx

The Republicans are gonna have to work a little harder. Apparently just bleating "Obama economy" over and over again isn't enough.

[FyreWulff]

As someone who lives in the Council Bluffs / Omaha area, where most of us clean off our tables before even letting the waiter do anything at a restaurant, a staff trashing a place like that and leaving it to be cleaned up later is seen as disrespectful.

He done pissed off a lot of Republicans around here that I've talked to today. Especially the Dixiecrats in CB.

[Dave Inc.]

As someone who lives in the Council Bluffs / Omaha area, where most of us clean off our tables before even letting the waiter do anything at a restaurant, a staff trashing a place like that and leaving it to be cleaned up later is seen as disrespectful. He done pissed off a lot of Republicans around here that I've talked to today. Especially the Dixiecrats in CB.

I have to wonder how effective a cut and dry campaign of "Romney: He's just a lousy guy" would do.

[AlteredBeast]

As someone who lives in the Council Bluffs / Omaha area, where most of us clean off our tables before even letting the waiter do anything at a restaurant, a staff trashing a place like that and leaving it to be cleaned up later is seen as disrespectful. He done pissed off a lot of Republicans around here that I've talked to today. Especially the Dixiecrats in CB.

As someone who lives in Omaha, I know that people in CB clean off their tables with their tongues. :P

I have talked to a lot of people on this side of the river and not one heard anything about this. Must be a CB thing.

[FyreWulff]

As someone who lives in Omaha, I know that people in CB clean off their tables with their tongues. :P I have talked to a lot of people on this side of the river and not one heard anything about this. Must be a CB thing.

Dunno. I live in South O, so we're literally a bridge hop away from CB, so there's a lot of CB/Omaha resident intermingling down here.

Good ol' Counciltucky.

[AlteredBeast]

Dunno. I live in South O, so we're literally a bridge hop away from CB, so there's a lot of CB/Omaha resident intermingling down here. Good ol' Counciltucky.

Admittedly, I work in North O and live in Papillion, so who knows. Most people up north don't read newspapers or watch the news, and Papillion is white suburbia to a T

[FyreWulff]

Admittedly, I work in North O

GODSPEED

and live in Papillion, so who knows. Most people up north don't read newspapers or watch the news, and Papillion is white suburbia to a T

If I usually have to go to a Wal Mart, I go to the Papillion one. I can feel the whiteness wafting off the ground. Same with Ralston and La Vista. Actually, let's just say "Sarpy County"

But either way, yeah, Romney should probably just shut up and let his PR people talk for him sometimes.

[Kosmo]

If only you had been around in 2008. I would have loved your comparisons back then of Obama and Kwame Kilpatrick.

Solyndra, Bobby Ferguson, not a huge difference, IMO. Then again, all Presidents enrich their donors.

I give Obama credit for not sleeping around on his wife recklessly.

[PhoenixPause]

I'm telling you, Obama is going to have to WORK to stay ahead of Romney in Michigan. Snyder has been kicking ass, getting our books in order and not getting bogged down in "politics for politics sake." I think many voters will view Romney/Obama as analogous to Snyder/Granholm - which wouldn't be good for Obama.

I don't think Obama can take Michigan for granted (like say, Minnesota) but I don't see it being in danger, sorry. That poll's internals has problems you'd probably be pointed to if it was a Virginia or Florida poll.

I do believe some of Obama's "saved Detroit" rhetoric rings a tad hallow for people who actually live in Detroit or have to deal with it, considering it's imploding by the second. But still, most people recognize if it wasn't for the bailout, a lot of jobs would have been lost in and outside of Detroit.

Even my pro-Obama slappy, state employee dad is becoming a Snyder fan. He's rather concerned about talk of privatizing prisons (he works part time as a dentist at a women's facility) but overall seems to have completely come around on Snyder. He, like most people in Michigan, couldn't stand Jenny from the block.

[Diablos]

Obama is certainly awkward and a bit out of touch, but he gets away with it due to being charasmatic and being rather handsome. Romney comes off like a robot whereas Obama is like a lit professor who hung around jazz clubs

Talk about trying to hard, lmao

83% of that poll was over 51 and white. lol

Polling seems to all the more increasingly fall victim to politics and not striving to get a realistic sampling of the electorate. Sad.

[Kosmo]

I don't think Obama can take Michigan for granted (like say, Minnesota) but I don't see it being in danger, sorry. That poll's internals has problems you'd probably be pointed to if it was a Virginia or Florida poll. I do believe some of Obama's "saved Detroit" rhetoric rings a tad hallow for people who actually live in Detroit or have to deal with it, considering it's imploding by the second. But still, most people recognize if it wasn't for the bailout, a lot of jobs would have been lost in and outside of Detroit. Even my pro-Obama slappy, state employee dad is becoming a Snyder fan. He's rather concerned about talk of privatizing prisons (he works part time as a dentist at a women's facility) but overall seems to have completely come around on Snyder. He, like most people in Michigan, couldn't stand Jenny from the block.

Objectively, I think Snyder is what we should be looking for from politicians - he doesn't really pander for votes and the only times we really hear from him is when he is doing something to get the State back into good fiscal shape. We'll see if he can keep it up.

[quadriplegicjon]

Solyndra, Bobby Ferguson, not a huge difference, IMO. Then again, all Presidents enrich their donors. I give Obama credit for not sleeping around on his wife recklessly.

"Solyndra loan guarantee was a multi-year process that the Bush Administration launched in 2007."

lol

[PhoenixPause]

Objectively, I think Snyder is what we should be looking for from politicians - he doesn't really pander for votes and the only times we really hear from him is when he is doing something to get the State back into good fiscal shape. We'll see if he can keep it up.

I must admit I find it interesting that despite pure republican control of the state, he hasn't truly gone full right wing like Walker and some other governors. His budget certainly made bad cuts but that's to be expected of republicans. But he also ended some tax exemptions for higher income folks

[Kosmo]

"Solyndra loan guarantee was a multi-year process that the Bush Administration launched in 2007." lol

As soon as Obama get in, his administration quickly moved and gave them $500M+.

You really shouldn't quote thinkprogress.com - they miss things like this

The results of the Congressional probe shared Tuesday with ABC News show that less than two weeks before President Bush left office, on January 9, 2009, the Energy Department's credit committee had voted against offering a loan commitment to Solyndra...the Office of Management and Budget wrote that "the risk rating for the project sponsor [Solyndra] … seems high." Outside analysts had warned for months that the company might not be a sound investment.

[AlteredBeast]

"Solyndra loan guarantee was a multi-year process that the Bush Administration launched in 2007." lol

As soon as Obama get in, his administration quickly moved and gave them $500M+. You really shouldn't quote thinkprogress.com - they miss things like this

One thing Kosmo gets right. That was an odd comment, Quad.

[Measley]

Can someone please explain why anyone should objectively give a fuck about the Solyndra deal?

[Black Republican]

i suspect we wont be seeing Mr Alter on msnbc for a while heh

[Copernicus]

Can someone please explain why anyone should objectively give a fuck about the Solyndra deal?

It was a lot of money?

[Invisible_Insane]

i suspect we wont be seeing Mr Alter on msnbc for a while heh

I suspect your referencing things obliquely without providing links is only going to get more annoying.

It was a lot of money?

Relative to what?

[Copernicus]

I suspect your referencing things obliquely without providing links is only going to get more annoying. Relative to what?

Relative to regular people's income, maybe?

Solyndra went tits up and it was a loss of money. Nobody should be just brushing it off as "oh it wasn't that bad".

[Arde5643]

Relative to regular people's income, maybe? Solyndra went tits up and it was a loss of money. Nobody should be just brushing it off as "oh it wasn't that bad".

I really don't see how you can compare deals like that to regular income.

While even the comparison of CEO pay and regular people income can be tenuous given what is being compared, this is really really stretching it.

[codhand]

Palin on Michigan 2008 "I want to try."

[empty vessel]

It was a lot of money?

What happened to that money?

[Cyan]

Can someone please explain why anyone should objectively give a fuck about the Solyndra deal?

It shows how global warming is a hoax.

[Copernicus]

What happened to that money?

I'm sure some of it was injected back into the economy, but some if it is sitting idle in a closed factory. Potentially better off elsewhere.

I'm not opposed to using monies to fund things like solyndra and such, but you can't just brush it aside either.

[empty vessel]

I'm sure some of it was injected back into the economy, but some if it is sitting idle in a closed factory. Potentially better off elsewhere. I'm not opposed to using monies to fund things like solyndra and such, but you can't just brush it aside either.

Well, I may be more opposed to it than you, then, but not because of the spending or "lost" money (which isn't lost so much as misdirected). I think if the government wants to invest in technological progress, it should spend money on public research from which the whole public benefits, instead of handing money over to (or guaranteeing loans for) private profiteers. It's stimulus, but neither efficient nor equitable stimulus.

I have no idea why conservatives would be up in arms about it, apart from the obvious political leverage. Seems like the kind of government spending they normally wholesale support--the kind from which private investors can directly profit.

[Lambtron]

At least it's $500 million that isn't spent building drones & bombs to kill people in the middle east with. For that I'm thankful.

[ToxicAdam]

Can someone please explain why anyone should objectively give a fuck about the Solyndra deal?

George Kaiser?


http://www.washingtonpost.com/politi...Z2K_story.html

[ezekial45]

"I like things."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=812fbaau7qQ

Auto Tune The News did another Mitt Romney song.

[ErasureAcer]

Obama only up 1 in Michigan? Electoral Vote still looks in his favor if he takes Ohio/Virginia.

[The Technomancer]

Obama only up 1 in Michigan? Electoral Vote still looks in his favor if he takes Ohio/Virginia.

Obama 1 up in Michigan among white voters over 51 :P

[AlteredBeast]

Obama only up 1 in Michigan? Electoral Vote still looks in his favor if he takes Ohio/Virginia.

LOL. The sample was all sorts of messed up. In reality, he is probably up 5 or 6...

[quadriplegicjon]

One thing Kosmo gets right. That was an odd comment, Quad.

No, I'm sorry. Kosmo is retarded. Was Solyndra a stupid loan? Yes. Was there some grand conspiracy from the Obama administration? Considering Bush's administration was also pushing for them to get a loan..... Kosmo is retarded. Overall it was something like 1% of the loans given from the program, and it seems to be the only example of some possible mistake with the loans given out.

As soon as Obama get in, his administration quickly moved and gave them $500M+. You really shouldn't quote thinkprogress.com - they miss things like this

Maybe you shouldn't be taking your news from the nation.foxnews.com ?

http://nation.foxnews.com/solyndra/2...-solyndra-loan

?


because...

January 2009: In an effort to show it has done something to support renewable energy, the Bush Administration tries to take Solyndra before a DOE credit review committee before President Obama is inaugurated. The committee, consisting of career civil servants with financial expertise, remands the loan back to DOE “without prejudice” because it wasn’t ready for conditional commitment. March 2009: The same credit committee approves the strengthened loan application. The deal passes on to DOE’s credit review board. Career staff (not political appointees) within the DOE issue a conditional commitment setting out terms for a guarantee.

Oh what? What happened in March? Let's ignore that stuff. Let's also ignore that this was a long ongoing, multi-year process, and was not pushed through by Obama's administration in a few days like you implied.

EDIT

I had to bold the key words, cause I figure you'll have a bit of trouble with it.

[Matthew Gallant]

http://www.gallup.com/poll/155177/Am...d-Economy.aspx

And if you look at the full data, you can see that 14% blamed Obama "a great deal" six months after he took office, compared to 23% who do now. Without that Tea Party effect, you've got 9% currently, compared to Bush's 35%.

[Jackson50]

Because it catches people's eye. Like it caught yours.

Lamentably, the general public lacks the understanding of valid survey methodology to contextualize polls with peculiar skews. And the media frequently fails to provide the proper analysis. The reaction to PPP's latest survey of NC encapsulates this problem. The results suggest Obama's position in NC, especially with black voters, is foundering. Yet his support among white voters is indistinguishable from 2008. Moreover, as PPP noted, the sample size for black voters was small producing a considerable margin of error. Thus, it's likely noise is responsible for the results instead of a shift in the black electorate.

[RustyNails]

So..Egypt just witnessed the most silent and smoothest coup d'etat today. Supreme council court declares Parliament invalid, SCAF says it will command total legislative authority, dissolve the parliament and create a new legislative assembly. That historic election couple of weeks ago? lol