Tag Archive: 2012 election


Acceptable? Obama paints targets on Romney donors

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May 12, 2012

Frank Vandersloot, pictured above, is just one of several private citizens that have been crucified by the Obama administration for their financial support of Mitt Romney.

Three weeks ago, the Obama campaign dove headlong into the very depths of dirty politics by publicly naming and libeling eight of Romney’s most prominent donors. The campaign even called these donors “wealthy individuals with less-than-reputable records,” with the campaign’s only real reasoning for this statement being that this assortment of people supported Mitt Romney.

This attack by the Obama administration was intended to discourage people from donating to Romney and to keep those on this short list of donors from speaking out. However, one of the donors on the list, Mr. Frank Vandersloot, has spoken out about the impact that President Obama’s defamation has had on his life. According to the Obama campaign, Mr. Vandersloot is “litigious, combative and a bitter foe of the gay rights movement.” According to Frank, however, this could not be further from the truth.

Mr. Vandersloot, the CEO of a health and wellness company called Melaleuca, said in an interview with the Weekly Standard that his company has lost “a couple hundred [memberships]” from customers. Frank bitterly resents the Obama campaign’s vicious portrayal of his character, and he is considering filing a lawsuit.

This entire story is deeply concerning to me. President Obama may be desperate to win reelection, but if he is willing to stoop so low as to directly target Mitt Romney’s donors to scare them out of giving money, that is a new (and quite frightening) level of desperation. If he is willing to target private citizens for public defamation, what else might he be willing to do to suppress Romney’s reelection chances?

Desperation can drive people to do extraordinary things. If President Obama becomes desperate enough, is it possible that he would take advantage of the powers of his office to suppress those that support Mr. Romney? This would be a frightening occurrence, and one that I hope will not present itself during this election cycle.

I have faith in America’s democracy, and I believe that President Obama will not abuse his power to further his reelection. However, I hope that the Obama campaign issues an apology for defaming these eight donors, because it is not democratic to threaten your opponent’s donors.

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Obama’s trump card: throw out Joe Biden

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May 5, 2012

If his situation becomes dire, President Obama might throw Joe Biden under the bus in a last-ditch effort to shake up the November election. Photo credit: Hugh Dillon/WENN.com.

At Ohio State University today, President Obama officially kicked off his 2012 election campaign. However, he did so in an utterly unspectacular fashion. Despite his high hopes for the November election, President Obama failed to attract a large enough crowd to even come close to filling the 20,000-seat stadium, with estimates by the campaign itself showing only 70% attendance there. Clearly, the president’s campaign is suffering from a major enthusiasm gap, and if Obama has any hopes of surviving the election, he will have to address this gap. Ironically, he may decide to take a leaf from the book of his 2008 general election challenger John McCain and attempt to invigorate the Democratic base by tossing Vice-President Joe Biden just before the election.

President Obama could benefit slightly from such a move, but he could also suffer tremendously. For some voters, the elimination of Joe Biden would be a refreshing change, a sign of new life in the clearly stagnant Obama administration. However, for others, such a move would indicate the utter desperation of the Obama campaign for a victory in November. Biden has worked very hard for President Obama, even earning the nickname “campaigner-in-chief” for his extraordinary work on the campaign trail for Mr. Obama. Although certainly not without his gaffes (don’t even get me started…), Biden has been a crucial asset for the president, and his dismissal would clearly indicate to educated voters that the Obama administration is resorting to desperation to win the election.

If you were wondering why I think Biden’s dismissal is on the table, it is because he has been increasingly cut off from the administration in recent weeks. Biden is no longer included in President Obama’s Sunday campaign meetings, which are – according to the New York Times - reserved for “trusted confidants.” I, as well as the writers at the Weekly Standard, think that this indicates that Biden potentially is not considered to be a trusted confidant by the administration and therefore has been deemed expendable. It is entirely possible that the president will drop Biden to gain political points, but I sincerely doubt the effectiveness of this tactic. If Biden is fired, you can rest assured that the Obama administration is in its death throes.

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President Obama struggling with blue collar Democrats

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April 27, 2012

Obama's constant vacationing during our economic meltdown has left many Democrats wondering where their president's heart truly is.

Out of touch.

These are the words that blue collar Democrat voters are using to describe President Obama, and these are the words that will spell doom for the president come November. Thanks to his “do as I say, not as I do” mentality about taxpayer dollars, President Obama is falling far short with blue collar voters.

These voters are very resentful of Mr. Obama because he is so disconnected from their respective plights. Long, costly vacations to Spain, Hawaii, and Martha’s Vineyard on the taxpayer dime have certainly raised eyebrows in this crucial voting block, as most blue collar workers are not in a financial position to take long vacations or even to enjoy some time off from work. As Obama vacations, many of these voters reason, the rest of the country suffers, and this disconnect is deeply unsettling.

President Obama is facing some serious difficulties with his image. Republicans have successfully portrayed him as an obstruction to economic improvement, and anemic economic growth has continued to back this portrayal. However, Obama’s greatest strength has always been his personal image, not his political one. During the 2008 election, Mr. Obama was warm, charismatic, forceful, and articulate. Today, with an election looming, the president will need to at least maintain this image if he is to have any hopes of being competitive in November. Unfortunately for the president, however, his vacations and other forms of extravagance during an economic downturn will do little to preserve his image, as they will work against it. Extravagance in the face of catastrophe is viewed by the American people as cold, hypocritical, and just plainly insensitive. Such a mentality about President Obama, especially when held by members of his base, will be lethal for President Obama’s reelection chances.

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Give up, Rick!

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April 2, 2012

Voters just want to get the primary process over with. This does not bode well for Rick Santorum and the other second tier candidates, who have promised to wage a protracted nomination battle with Mitt Romney. Pictured: Rick Santorum.

Whenever my family gathers for a holiday, there is an inevitable point during the night at which the conversation turns to politics. However, I can assure you that the primary election will not be a subject of conversation at the dinner table come Easter. Simply put, my family is downright sick of hearing about and talking about the GOP primary.

And this is how a great many voters currently feel about the primary thus far. Constant, exhausting coverage of the latest states won and the latest controversial comments by candidates has destroyed the collective desire of Americans to hear about the primaries at all, and debate after debate has firmly planted every single candidate’s positions into our minds. As a result of this overcoverage and repetition, voters are absolutely sick of hearing about the primaries. Fortunately, however, this disgruntled feeling is translating into a grudging unification of the Republican Party behind none other than former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. According to RealClearPolitics, Mitt Romney holds a comfortable nationwide lead over Rick Santorum, the momentum of whom has utterly disappeared over the past couple months. On the delegate front, neither Santorum nor the other second-tier candidates have any real means of challenging Mr. Romney in the August GOP convention. Yet, both Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul have publicly announced that they will stay in the GOP race despite the fact that it is statistically impossible for either of them to win the nomination. That leaves Mr. Santorum, who would have to sweep nearly every remaining primary state in order to pull in enough delegates to win the GOP nomination. In other words, Santorum has no chance.

Rick Santorum claims that his deepest concern is defeating Barack Obama. If this is indeed the case, he should drop out of the GOP race and pledge his support for Mitt Romney. These actions will stop this already protracted primary from going any further and will give voters time to regain their enthusiasm and overcome their primary sickness before the general election. Defeating President Obama is the priority here, and Santorum should not risk jeopardizing a Republican victory for the sake of his own long-shot hopes of being the GOP nominee.

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Obama: “More flexibility” after the election?

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March 26, 2012

At the end of his meeting with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev in Seoul, South Korea today regarding US-Russian relations, President Obama made a private comment to his Russian counterpart regarding US missile defense plans. This comment was picked up by the microphones in the room and has ignited outrage among many conservatives, who view the president’s comment as a reflection of his desire to scrap missile defense and to dangerously shrink America’s global military and defensive presence. The video of the president’s comments, as well as a text transcript, are visible below:

OBAMA: On all these issues, but particularly missile defense, this, this can be solved but it’s important for him to give me space.

MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I understand. I understand your message about space. Space for you…

OBAMA: This is my last election. After my election I have more flexibility.

MEDVEDEV: I understand. I will transmit this information to Vladimir.

These comments are extremely alarming for a few reasons. Firstly, they demonstrate that President Obama is afraid of executing his foreign policy plans for fear of being ousted in the November elections. This timidity, of course, brings up all sorts of issues. What if President Obama decides to completely scrap the plans for a US missile defense shield over Poland after his election? What if he begins a dangerous drawdown of American military power? All of these radical options could be on the table for Mr. Obama, but unfortunately, we will not really know what our president is planning to do until he retakes his office in November. Republican Michael R. Turner, chairman of the House Armed Services subcommittee on strategic forces, has demanded answers from the Obama administration on this odd quote for this very reason. If President Obama is afraid of revealing his plans for US missile defense to the American public before his election, Turner reasons, the president must believe that his plans will hurt him with voters. If this is indeed the reasoning behind President Obama’s comments, we should be extremely concerned, to say the least.

President Obama’s comments illuminate a growing trend in his foreign policy. Instead of standing up for US allies and interests, our country’s leader backs down and gives ground to dangerous peoples and countries. Iran is a fine example of this, as President Obama’s dilly-dallying on a military strike has given Iran the golden opportunity it needs to complete its nuclear weapon and eventually to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Meanwhile, Israel grows increasingly nervous, waiting for US aid and approval for an strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities that would save millions of lives in the long run. Similarly, President Obama is indicating that he will abandon Poland, one of the primary beneficiaries of the proposed missile defense shield, by making dramatic concessions to the Russians regarding the existence of the shield itself and the armaments with which such a shield would be equipped. The Poles are understandably nervous, of course. A major Polish tabloid posed the question “were they trading Poland?” in large print on its front cover today.

President Obama’s comments reveal a startling flaw in his character as well. Instead of letting the American people know who he is and what he truly wants for our country, President Obama wishes to deceive the American people and put off his big (scary) plans for foreign policy until after his reelection. This frightens me immensely, and I sure hope that Americans are not fooled by this latest episode of deceit and deception by the Obama administration.

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No love for the Obama administration

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March 15, 2012

There are only so many wealthy Democrats. In mere months, President Obama will have great difficulty raising the money he needs from them.

As President Obama’s approval numbers continue to plummet, his fundraising is proving to be much less bombastic than that of last year. In his Wall Street Journal op-ed this morning, Karl Rove provided some heartening insight into President Obama’s fundraising.

Rove pointed out that President Obama is falling far short of his fundraising goal of a billion dollars. He attributed this to several factors, but he focused in particular upon the unwillingness of mainstream Democrats to donate to the Obama campaign. This is extremely evident when one takes a look at President Obama’s fundraising patterns. Our president has spent the majority of his fundraising time with wealthy Hollywood Democrats who have money to spend on $10,000 a plate dinners and such. However, the day will come when this source of easy money will dry up, and President Obama will be forced to turn his fundraising to everyday Americans (who are less than willing to donate to his campaign).

The fact that few Democrats are willing to donate to their incumbent president reveals the biggest problem for the Obama campaign thus far. Most Democrats that still support Obama feel that he is doomed to lose the November election. Because of this, few of these Democrats are willing to open their pocketbooks for the president for fear of losing their money in vain. This resignation on the part of Democrats could also play into voter turnout. If Democrats don’t even donate to their candidate for fear that he may lose, it is entirely possible that these Democrats might not even show up to the voting booths in November if they believe that their candidate cannot win.

President Obama has a massive enthusiasm gap to deal with, and I believe that this gap will lead to his downfall in November. While Republicans are itching to get to the voting booth in November to resoundingly crush President Obama, Democrats are resigning themselves to a Republican victory. Unless the Obama campaign can convince Democrats that Mr. Obama can in fact win his bid for a second term, our president will surely lose in November.

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Romney needs to wrap up the GOP race

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March 10, 2012

It's now only a matter of time before Romney becomes the GOP nominee. Pictured: Romney campaigning in Mississippi (Evan Vucci/AP)

After Super Tuesday, Mitt Romney made it clear that he was going to be the eventual victor in the GOP primary. Conservatives are finally joining the former governor’s ranks, thanks to growing disappointment in the lack of depth of the other candidates in the race. Although Mr. Romney’s opponents will put up a fight and take important states and delegates, Romney will be in a dominant position when the Republican National Convention rolls around in late August.

However, many conservatives are still looking for an alternative to Mr. Romney. The fundamental weakness of the current crop of candidates is precluding these voters from making a lasting decision on any other candidate in the race. This is a plus for Mitt Romney, as no candidate will ever gain enough ground to truly challenge him  for the nomination. At the same time, however, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich are steadily chomping away at Mitt Romney’s delegate count. A last minute surge by either candidate could cause Romney to fall short of the 1,144 delegates he needs to win decisively at the Convention this summer.

By the looks of it, all of the candidates that are currently in the race will stay in for quite awhile. Newt Gingrich said yesterday that he plans to stay in the race until the Convention, regardless of his delegate count, and Ron Paul plans to do the same despite the fact that he has failed to win a single state thus far. Rick Santorum, the current not-Romney, will also stay in the race until the Convention. Since there are 2,286 delegates up for grabs and 1,144 needed to win, Mr. Romney must acquire more than 50% of the delegates in every state. With three other candidates in the race, however, this majority vote will be difficult to maintain.

The dilemma that faces Mr. Romney is simple yet extremely concerning. If the GOP race continues until the Convention in late August, Romney will have only two months to raise money and to execute his general election strategy against President Obama, and this lack of time could give President Obama the advantage he needs to take back the White House this November. This, of course, is not a viable option for the GOP at all.

Romney needs to campaign vigorously and shut out his fellow candidates. If he can secure the necessary delegates a month or two before the Convention, Mr. Romney will have plenty of time to prepare his political machine to take on the monstrous one that President Obama currently possesses. Otherwise, a prolonged primary battle will cost Romney dollars, time, and possibly the White House itself.

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Webcast: Rick Santorum’s electability and the food police

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February 20, 2012
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Broken promises: Obama fails to halve the deficit in his new budget

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February 11, 2012

Obama's fiscal responsibility in a nutshell. Source: USDebtClock.org

Last night, the White House officially released President Obama’s budget proposal for the year. Sadly, under this plan, excessive spending will continue, and the wealthy will be forced to bear the costs of our government’s voracious appetite for tax dollars. Despite his pledge to soak the rich, President Obama has failed to cut the deficit and has thus broken his promise with the American people. Back in 2009, our leader promised to “halve the deficit” by the end of his presidency. However, under the president’s proposal, the deficit will actually grow from that of the 2011 budget.

President Obama has failed in two main ways. Firstly, he has proven utterly incapable at cutting spending. The president’s proposal cuts $360 billion from entitlements but does so over the course of ten years. Once President Obama is reelected, he could easily pass a second budget that eliminates or reverses these cuts altogether, as a one-year budget plan has no real authority over an entire decade of spending. Beyond this, however, no real cuts exist in his plan. More government subsidies and massive “shovel-ready” infrastructure programs eat up the savings from crippling defense cuts and the end of the Afghanistan War.

President Obama has also failed to create jobs. In spite of his growth of government entitlements and infrastructure projects, the number of people not participating in the labor force has skyrocketed, and officially measured unemployment numbers have only slightly decreased. To top this off, Obama’s stimulus programs and government bailouts have only made the situation worse for the industries they were intended to save. The economy is now sicker than ever, yet President Obama keeps prescribing the wrong drug.

I think that President Obama should try a new approach. He should slash entitlement spending and preserve the integrity of our nation’s defense by keeping defense cuts to a minimum. Along with reiterating his promise to halve the deficit, President Obama should promise to cut taxes across the board and to support a balanced budget amendment. Unfortunately, our liberally-minded president will never do any of this, but we always have 2012 to look forward to.

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Obama’s election prospects dim

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February 1, 2012

This election prediction is based upon President Obama's current approval numbers. Clearly, there's a lot of red.

On the left is an election prediction based upon President Obama’s current state-by-state approval numbers. Clearly, as the sea of red indicates, our president will have some seriously difficulties when the election arrives this November.

In a new Gallup poll, state-by-state results show a dismal situation for President Obama. His approval number, averaged across all the states, is an abysmal 44%, and in swing states, things are similarly awful. In Pennsylvania and Florida – crucial swing states – the president’s approval numbers are 45% and 43% respectively. And it even gets worse for the president: in my notoriously-liberal home state of California, President Obama’s approval barely ekes out a majority, with 50.1% of poll respondents approving of Obama’s performance as leader of the free world. Ouch!

The Gallup poll also made comparisons between President Obama’s approval ratings last year and his ratings this year. Below is an excerpt from the Gallup’s poll analysis:

Overall, Obama averaged 44% job approval in his third year in office, down from 47% in his second year. His approval rating declined from 2010 to 2011 in most states, with Wyoming, Connecticut, and Maine showing a marginal increase, and Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Minnesota, New Jersey, Arizona, West Virginia, Michigan, and Georgia showing declines of less than a full percentage point. The greatest declines were in Hawaii, South Dakota, Nebraska, and New Mexico.

Even in home-front states like Hawaii, President Obama is having great difficulty holding on to his devoted followers, and only three states posted “marginal increases” from his approval numbers last year. Clearly, what Republicans are doing is working very well thus far. By revealing the utter failures of President Obama’s economic policies, conservatives have greatly increased the knowledge of concerned voters and have put President Obama in a very difficult position. Hopefully, the downward trend of Obama’s approval numbers will continue until he is ousted from office this coming November.

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