Obama: ShortFormBlog

18:27 • 7 months ago

At the top of my list, I have to say that Gov. Christie throughout this process has been responsive. He’s been aggressive in making sure that the state got out in front of this incredible storm and I think the people of New Jersey recognize that he has put his heart and soul into making sure the people of New Jersey bounce back even stronger than before. So, I just want to thank him for his extraordinary leadership and partnership.

President Obama, returning the favor to Christie at a joint press conference today. Some have suggested that Christie is helping himself politically by embracing Obama, but that’s a dubious suggestion at best (just ask Charlie Crist). Regardless, it’s been heartening to watch this bromance emerge; here’s to hoping it sticks around after the storm is gone. source

(Source: usnews.nbcnews.com)

18:56 • 7 months ago

Tags: sm obama romney obama reelection romney president election 2012 hurricane sandy hurricane election storm election from gov 113 • Permalink

To be brutal, a certain amount of bad weather on election day helps conservatives in every democracy. In crude terms, car-driving conservative retirees still turn out in driving rain, when bus-taking lower-income workers just back from a night shift are more likely to give rain-soaked polls a miss.

The Economist, speculating on what effect—if any—Hurricane Sandy might have on the outcome of the election. “School closures are a particular problem for low-income families or single mothers scrambling to find childcare,” the columnist adds, and this could further surpress Democratic turnout. However, there’s also the possibility that Sandy could help Obama’s chances. The theory here is that the news coverage devoted to the storm will prevent any serious change in the media narrative of the race from taking hold, and because Obama is still the favorite for reelection, this could end up “freezing the election campaign, and Mr Romney’s perceived momentum, in place.” In truth, it’s anyone’s guess as to what effect Sandy will have on the polls. Thankfully, though, the storm is expected to clear up by November 6th, so it may ultimately be a moot point. —Seth @ ShortFormBlog (via election)

14:48 • 7 months ago

Tags: racism colin powell lawrence wilkerson obama GOP ct 454 • Permalink

My party, unfortunately, is the bastion of those people — not all of them, but most of them — who are still basing their positions on race. Let me just be candid: My party is full of racists. The real reason a considerable portion of my party wants President Obama out of the White House has nothing to do with the content of his character, nothing to do with his competence as commander-in-chief and president, and everything to do with the color of his skin. That’s despicable.

Retired Army Colonel and former aide to Colin Powell, Lawrence Wilkerson • Diving headfirst, in the most blunt terms possible, into the media dust-up kicked off last Thursday by Romney surrogate John Sununu. Responding to news that former Secretary of State Colin Powell had endorsed President Obama, Sununu suggested that Powell had a “slightly different” reason for doing it than politics – namely, his race. Sununu reversed course on this today, saying “I do not doubt that it was based on anything but his support of the president’s policies,” but not before Wilkerson unleashed this incendiary attack on some of his fellow Republicans. An attack which, frankly, seems destined to generate a lot more heat than it does light. source

22:30 • 7 months ago

Tags: xkcd elections electoral precedent 2012 election obama es 73 • Permalink

Today in political cartoons with an extra dash of clever: xkcd’s take on electoral precedent.

13:59 • 7 months ago

Tags: atlas shrugged ayn ayn rand do i make you randy baby election 2012 government libertarianism libertarians obama obama reelection paul ryan rand the foundtainhead sm 3747 • Permalink

Ayn Rand is one of those things that a lot of us, when we were 17 or 18 and feeling misunderstood, we’d pick up. Then, as we get older, we realize that a world in which we’re only thinking about ourselves and not thinking about anybody else, in which we’re considering the entire project of developing ourselves as more important than our relationships to other people and making sure that everybody else has opportunity – that that’s a pretty narrow vision.

President Obama, in an interview with Rolling Stone, when asked about Paul Ryan’s “obsession” with Rand. source

13:14 • 7 months ago

Tags: donald trump trump obama stupid things es 86 • Permalink

Dear Donald Trump: We dare you to donate the $5 million without bringing the president into the matter. Will you do it?

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20:55 • 7 months ago

Third presidential debate was least-watched of the trio

Tags: numbers presidential debate lynn debate romney obama ct 15 • Permalink

59.2MAmericans viewed last night’s third and final presidential debate — an affair which, while technically on the topic of foreign policy, was repeatedly dragged into the realm of battleground state politics by both candidates. This is the lowest viewership figure of the three, with the first debate notching the apex at 67.2 million. source

23:27 • 7 months ago

What the pundits think: Who won the debate, anyway?

Tags: who won the debate 2012 election lynn debate florida romney horses and bayonets es obama grabbags 68 • Permalink

Sully “He’s flawed; he’s made mistakes; but who hasn’t? If this man, in these times, with this record, against this opposition, does not deserve re-election, then I am simply at a loss for words. I have to believe the American people will see that in time.”
The Fix ”It was probably inevitable that a real discussion of America’s role in the world wasn’t going to happen amid polling that suggests that voters overwhelmingly care about the economy in this country.”
Hot Air ”Romney wanted to show the audience not just that he understands Afghanistan, Syria, and Iran, but that he’s unflappable even in a tense situation. Obama wasn’t facing that test so he could afford to be more aggressive, if only to impress his base. Because he was playing offense, I’ll bet that he wins the insta-polls. But that won’t matter; the bottom line is that Romney’s still on track.”
TPM “Obama seemed comfortable, happy. The visuals told the story. Romney was sweating a lot and looked like he was in pain. Into the second half of the debate Romney’s answers seemed more jumbled and unfocused. There was even that rambling and generally uncontroversial digression on Pakistan. Why? He seemed lost.”
Politico “Putting his disdain for Romney on vivid display, Obama said his challenger has been ‘all over the map’ on matters of war and peace and pushed back more aggressively than ever on some of Romney’s stock foreign policy attacks.”