The Big Ass 2012 Political thread: Part II - Let's Get It Own

[InspiredLebowski]

So I imagine no one but me cares, but Mitch Daniels isn't going to be VP. He's going to be named the new president of Purdue University on Thursday.

Just me speculating, but being an employee of a public state school obviously means he's not going to be doing any campaigning for Romney, Mike Pence during his run to eventually being the next IN governor (God help us), or Teabagger Richard Mourdock's run for IN's Senate seat. Both of those local guys are REALLY divisive, and clearly Romney's on a national stage. Daniels is 63, Purdue's got a limit of 65 on executives (reason why the previous prez is leaving), so it's a short term peddle your influence for funding gig. Then I think Daniels runs for POTUS in 2016 after what I see as an inevitable Romney loss. A lot easier then than against an incumbent.

[IcanzIIravor]

So I imagine no one but me cares, but Mitch Daniels isn't going to be VP. He's going to be named the new president of Purdue University on Thursday.

Just me speculating, but being an employee of a public state school obviously means he's not going to be doing any campaigning for Romney, Mike Pence during his run to eventually being the next IN governor (God help us), or Teabagger Richard Mourdock's run for IN's Senate seat. Both of those local guys are REALLY divisive, and clearly Romney's on a national stage. Daniels is 63, Purdue's got a limit of 65 on executives (reason why the previous prez is leaving), so it's a short term peddle your influence for funding gig. Then I think Daniels runs for POTUS in 2016 after what I see as an inevitable Romney loss. A lot easier then than against an incumbent.

I am not surprised. A lot of the heavyweights sat out and are hoping that Romney loses, because it is practically written in stone that if Obama wins then the next President will be a Republican.

[joe]

Romney and Obama = same person in different color suits. On all the big issues they're the same. During the campaign they'll tell a bunch of beautiful lies and make us all feel good, and whoever is elected will stick to the elite banker script.

[InspiredLebowski]

Romney and Obama = same person in different color suits. On all the big issues they're the same. During the campaign they'll tell a bunch of beautiful lies and make us all feel good, and whoever is elected will stick to the elite banker script.

shhhh

[IcanzIIravor]

Romney and Obama = same person in different color suits. On all the big issues they're the same. During the campaign they'll tell a bunch of beautiful lies and make us all feel good, and whoever is elected will stick to the elite banker script.

They are not the same. That is just cookie cutter talk. They have vastly different policies and strategies they believe in. Their foreign policy for one would be different as Romney projects a far more hawkish attitude with regards to Iran and Syria and I believe his view of China would point towards a trade war with China. I think it is pure laziness to say whoever takes power in either part = the same.

[joe]

They are not the same. That is just cookie cutter talk. They have vastly different policies and strategies they believe in. Their foreign policy for one would be different as Romney projects a far more hawkish attitude with regards to Iran and Syria and I believe his view of China would point towards a trade war with China. I think it is pure laziness to say whoever takes power in either part = the same.

You're thinking on a small scale. Rise above. They're both controlled by the same special interests. They both think the presidency is a dictatorship. Whether one is a little tiny bit more hawkish, or one is a little tiny bit more into capitalism, is not important. Once they assume office, they will treat it like a dictatorship. But they're the dictators in name only, it's the banking/corporate interests and the UN behind them, pulling strings.

Obama and Romney will talk a bunch of fuzzy-wuzzy junk for the next 5-6 months, about cutting gov. spending, making the gov. more transparent, creating jobs, fixing the economy, etc. And when whoever becomes President, the show will continue. More war, less civil liberties, less transparency, less capitalism, more debt, more gov. spending.

On a small scale I prefer Romney slightly, but if I HADDDD to vote for one, I'd pick Obama. Because he's such an over the top fascist that I feel millions more people would awaken if he was given a second term.

[KevinNYC]

So I imagine no one but me cares, but Mitch Daniels isn't going to be VP.

Rumors are that's the VP slot is going to Pawlenty.

[KevinNYC]

You're thinking on a small scale. Rise above. They're both controlled by the same special interests. They both think the presidency is a dictatorship. Whether one is a little tiny bit more hawkish, or one is a little tiny bit more into capitalism, is not important. Once they assume office, they will treat it like a dictatorship. But they're the dictators in name only, it's the banking/corporate interests and the UN behind them, pulling strings.

Obama and Romney will talk a bunch of fuzzy-wuzzy junk for the next 5-6 months, about cutting gov. spending, making the gov. more transparent, creating jobs, fixing the economy, etc. And when whoever becomes President, the show will continue. More war, less civil liberties, less transparency, less capitalism, more debt, more gov. spending.

On a small scale I prefer Romney slightly, but if I HADDDD to vote for one, I'd pick Obama. Because he's such an over the top fascist that I feel millions more people would awaken if he was given a second term.

You always bring a smile to my face, Joe.

But let me be clear here, your position is that Obama is a way "over the top fascist," but somehow he's been able to keep this the American people?

[magic chiongson]

misleading thread title, where's the big ass?

[KevinNYC]

Giant day in Politics today with the Supreme Court upholding the Affordable Care Act. Now that it is settled law, expect the Democrats to point all the popular stuff in the bill and point out that the Republicans really don't have an alternate health reform proposal.

Also Attorney General Holder was held in contempt of Congress today. This was related to the "Fast and Furious" ATF scandal.

The vote was 255 to 67. Most Democrats walked out of the vote in protest.

Coincendentally, Forbes just published an article based on a 6 month investigation into Fast and Furious where they say a lot of the "facts" of the scandal are distortions are outright lies.

Quite simply, there's a fundamental misconception at the heart of the Fast and Furious scandal. Nobody disputes that suspected straw purchasers under surveillance by the ATF repeatedly bought guns that eventually fell into criminal hands. Issa and others charge that the ATF intentionally allowed guns to walk as an operational tactic. But five law-enforcement agents directly involved in Fast and Furious tell Fortune that the ATF had no such tactic. They insist they never purposefully allowed guns to be illegally trafficked. Just the opposite: They say they seized weapons whenever they could but were hamstrung by prosecutors and weak laws, which stymied them at every turn.
Indeed, a six-month Fortune investigation reveals that the public case alleging that Voth and his colleagues walked guns is replete with distortions, errors, partial truths, and even some outright lies. Fortune reviewed more than 2,000 pages of confidential ATF documents and interviewed 39 people, including seven law-enforcement agents with direct knowledge of the case. Several, including Voth, are speaking out for the first time.
How Fast and Furious reached the headlines is a strange and unsettling saga, one that reveals a lot about politics and media today. It's a story that starts with a grudge, specifically Dodson's anger at Voth. After the terrible murder of agent Terry, Dodson made complaints that were then amplified, first by right-wing bloggers, then by CBS. Rep. Issa and other politicians then seized those elements to score points against the Obama administration, which, for its part, has capitulated in an apparent effort to avoid a rhetorical battle over gun control in the run-up to the presidential election. (A Justice Department spokesperson denies this and asserts that the department is not drawing conclusions until the inspector general's report is submitted.)

The core issue is whether or not the "whistleblower," Dodson, at the heart of the scandal is believable or if he is acting out of a grudge towards his boss, Voth. The Forbes article relies heavily on on his boss. In fact, it's the first time his boss is on the record.

Check out the whistleblower is described
[QUOTE]Dodson, 41, arrived one day before Voth from a two-man outpost of ATF's Roanoke field office, where he'd worked since 2002. He had joined the ATF from the narcotics section of the Loudoun County sheriff's office in Virginia, where his blunt, even obnoxious manner did not earn him friends. [B]He's "an asshole sometimes

[KevinNYC]

So no news so far on Romney's VP pick. The announcement should happen the week before the election. I thought it would happen earlier, but then learned both the Palin and Biden selections were announced just a few days before the convention.

But that's not what this post is about.

It's been obvious that the Democrats are going to campaign on Romney's business career and there was some big news about that today.

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 has said he left Bain in 1999 to lead the winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, ending his role in the company. But public Securities and Exchange Commission documents filed later by Bain Capital state he remained the firm’s “sole stockholder, chairman of the board, chief executive officer, and president.”

Also, a Massachusetts financial disclosure form Romney filed in 2003 states that he still owned 100 percent of Bain Capital in 2002. And Romney’s state financial disclosure forms indicate he earned at least $100,000 as a Bain “executive” in 2001 and 2002, separate from investment earnings.

The timing of Romney’s departure from Bain is a key point of contention because he has said his resignation in February 1999 meant he was not responsible for Bain Capital companies that went bankrupt or laid off workers after that date.

I just had the realization that while the Romney campaign is going to be having to deal with this, the next Batman movie comes out in one week.

See where I'm going this? No, just think for a second....OK. Now you're with me. I realized, I couldn't be the first one to think of this and I wasn't.






Get ready for five months of stuff like this







So, following the Obama as the Joker posters during the Tea Parties, we have the second use of Batman imagery in politics

Update: After the tragedy in Aurora, I would suspect, we won't see much of this.

[Jailblazers7]

Has Romney proven he doesn't have the political saavy to be President after these trips he has taken abroad? Dude seems like he is constantly putting his foot in his mouth.

[KevinNYC]

It's been a really strange experience watching this. The thing in Britain was a completely unforced error. He could have breezed through it, but he just couldn't help himself. The Romneyshambles tag on twitter is a good read.

It reminded me of Cookiegate.

“I’m not sure about these cookies,” Romney said, and continued to tease one of the women at the table: “Did you make those cookies? You didn’t, did you? No. No. They came from the local 7-Eleven bakery or wherever.”

[KevinNYC]

And so, far there's no change in the polls. It's still a race that is only 1.5-2% points apart.

[Jailblazers7]

It's been a really strange experience watching this. The thing in Britain was a completely unforced error. He could have breezed through it, but he just couldn't help himself. The Romneyshambles tag on twitter is a good read.

It reminded me of Cookiegate.

Lol that bakery is right by my house. Theyre cookies are phenominal btw.