It's going to be a close race

[Denny Crane]

[video=youtube;lhXGkeMdOJs]

This is THE message.

 

[julius]

If thats "THE" message, then they need to change the message.

 

[Denny Crane]

I don't care if he goes on TV shows. Good for him. Makes him more a man of the people.

The thing is, it isn't about him going on the TV shows as it is him saying things like "I'm going to focus on jobs like a laser beam" and then going on a really ritzy/gaudy vacation the next day.

The message is that while he's saying one thing, he's really living it up while things aren't so great. Not so much a man of the people.

And it will resonante with independents and younger voters, who were a big part of his constituency in 2008.

 

[BLAZER PROPHET]

If thats "THE" message, then they need to change the message.

It's all about change. And we definitely got change. The question is, is the change good?

 

[julius]

It's all about change. And we definitely got change. The question is, is the change good?

I think a better question/message would be about what Mitt WILL do, not what Obama "didn't" do (or did, depending on your pov).

It's one of the things that is sapping a lot of political interest in people.

Instead of telling me over and over what your opponent did wrong, tell me what you'd do. (this doesn't necessarily only apply to this ad, I mean in general).

My biggest pet peeve of politics is politicians basically spewing the same old cliches over and over. If you say something that sounds scarey about your opponent, you don't have to actually say what you'd do (esp when it comes to Presidents, who constantly make hollow promises, and promises they have absolutely no chance in hell in realistically following through with).

 

[julius]

I don't care if he goes on TV shows. Good for him. Makes him more a man of the people.

The thing is, it isn't about him going on the TV shows as it is him saying things like "I'm going to focus on jobs like a laser beam" and then going on a really ritzy/gaudy vacation the next day.

I get you there, but it's not like they can't focus on stuff while on vacation. As much as Bush got railed on for being the "Vacation President", its not like he couldn't (or didn't) do stuff while on vacation.

I think it's because of how when the average person goes on vacation, their job doesn't go with them.

For the President, it doesn't stay home.

The message is that while he's saying one thing, he's really living it up while things aren't so great. Not so much a man of the people.

And it will resonante with independents and younger voters, who were a big part of his constituency in 2008.

It won't resonate with them. Maybe independents, but not younger voters. They're a totally different breed of voters than most people understand. Younger voters don't see issues the same way that older voters do.

Personally, I don't care if a president does what you're talking about. They have little to do with whether or not my life is better now than it was prior to their running for President. Especially when a lot of stuff gets stalled in our pathetic congress.

 

[Denny Crane]

Bush went home to his house a lot. He didn't go to NYC and go out to the fanciest restaurants, etc.

And this election is about Obama's record or it isn't. Obama doesn't want it to be, so I expect nothing but smear ads against Romney. When the facts aren't on your side, pound your fist on the table, after all. Romney does want it to be about Obama's record, and it rightly should be.

4 more years of the same? Or 4 years of at least a chance to be different. And different is likely to be better.

 

[Denny Crane]

A nice article from Obama's home town paper. Seems to echo my analysis.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/huntley/12147900-452/dems-cant-hide-obamas-failings.html

Dems can’t hide Obama’s failings


The no-holds-barred Democratic machine is laboring overtime to come up with reasons voters should re-elect President Barack Obama. He’s more likeable than Mitt Romney. The presumptive GOP nominee is a right-wing extremist. The cool, hip Obama has the women and youth vote locked up. In short, the White House strategy is to talk about anything but the economy.

Democrats gleefully cite polls showing Americans like Obama more than Romney. That harkens back to the 2004 race when President George W. Bush was seen as the guy you have a beer with rather than losing Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry.

But the economy was in good shape then, so it was easy to vote for the affable frat boy Bush over the dour Kerry. With unemployment above 8 percent for the longest time since the Depression and the economic recovery limping along at the most anemic pace in modern history, voters might reject the more popular guy in favor of the sober, get-the-job-done executive who has economic home runs like Staples and the Sports Authority on his resume.

To try to further paint Romney as less likeable, the Democratic propaganda apparatus intends to use the long, divisive GOP primary to label the former Massachusetts governor as a right-wing extremist. That ploy might run into trouble with all that videotape of Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum condemning Romney as “a Massachusetts moderate.”

On another front, the administration tried to build on the Democrats’ favorable gender gap with women by dragging the Catholic Church into a controversy over insurance coverage for contraceptives. That blew up when a Democratic strategist and frequent White House visitor alienated stay-at-home moms by saying Anne Romney “never worked a day in her life.” Romney used that to talk about how women are attuned to economic reality through daily household buying.

Making matters worse for Democrats was an analysis of White House pay by the conservative Washington Free Beacon showing pay for women employees to be 18 percent below that for men. That recalled a former top female official saying that when she worked at the White House, “It actually fit all of the classic legal requirements for a genuinely hostile workplace to women.’’

Obama then did a college tour touting his proposal to keep interest rates on student loans low. It turned out that Romney backs that too. Making matters worse for Democrats was an analysis by the Associated Press showing that the labor market in the Obama economy is so weak that half of 2012 college graduates were unemployed or working in jobs below their skill levels. Will young people vote for cool and hip, or for a better chance to get a job so they can pay off those loans?

The line of reasoning that voters might prefer competence to likability got a boost from, of all people, former White House chief-of-staff Bill Daley, though he obviously didn’t mean to. In a Chicago speech, Daley said, “The president has a very difficult time with the business community. Most people in business and most people who are successful are Republican. That’s just a fact of life.”

Considering that fact of life, who would you rather have in the White House, a charisma-deprived guy from the party of success or the likeable guy from the party of, well, not success?

 

[crowTrobot]

popular vote will be close. electoral might not be.

 

[STOMP]

I don't care if he goes on TV shows. Good for him. Makes him more a man of the people.

The thing is, it isn't about him going on the TV shows as it is him saying things like "I'm going to focus on jobs like a laser beam" and then going on a really ritzy/gaudy vacation the next day.

The message is that while he's saying one thing, he's really living it up while things aren't so great. Not so much a man of the people.

And it will resonante with independents and younger voters, who were a big part of his constituency in 2008.

the guy having a car elevator installed in his mansion is? Obama wasn't born into a rich political family with every advantage like Mitt was, he was raised in a single parent household... do you have a clue what man of the people means? Geez, how many years has it been since Mitt held a job? How many times has he run for office in the spare time when he wasn't vacationing in France? I'm aware of the billions lined up for carpet bombing Obama with negative attack ads like he ran on Ron Paul and the rest of the Right, but he's got all of Al Gore's charisma, a silver foot in his mouth, is thought of as having no core values by Americans across the voting spectrum, alienates a large section of the Republican base with his religion, and he's surrounded himself with Karl Rove and much of team Worst President ever

Do you really think it's going to be close? The general trend I've noticed in political races, is that the better public speaker wins. I'm sure the networks want it to be thought of as close so that they'll have people tuning in, but I'm not seeing it that way

STOMP

 

[Denny Crane]

A nice article from Obama's home town paper. Seems to echo my analysis.


The line of reasoning that voters might prefer competence to likability got a boost from, of all people, former White House chief-of-staff Bill Daley, though he obviously didn’t mean to. In a Chicago speech, Daley said, “The president has a very difficult time with the business community. Most people in business and most people who are successful are Republican. That’s just a fact of life.”

Considering that fact of life, who would you rather have in the White House, a charisma-deprived guy from the party of success or the likeable guy from the party of, well, not success?

Bill Daley.

 

[BLAZER PROPHET]

I think a better question/message would be about what Mitt WILL do, not what Obama "didn't" do (or did, depending on your pov).

It's one of the things that is sapping a lot of political interest in people.

Instead of telling me over and over what your opponent did wrong, tell me what you'd do. (this doesn't necessarily only apply to this ad, I mean in general).

My biggest pet peeve of politics is politicians basically spewing the same old cliches over and over. If you say something that sounds scarey about your opponent, you don't have to actually say what you'd do (esp when it comes to Presidents, who constantly make hollow promises, and promises they have absolutely no chance in hell in realistically following through with).

Well, I've yet to see a politician (recently, that is) who isn't a 'politics as usual' person. So while I feel Obama has been a bust, I have no thoughts Mitt can do any better.

 

[The_Lillard_King]

I don't know if Obama is a man of the people . . . but he is more a man of the people than Romney.

Mitt doesn't have a chance

 

[julius]

Well, I've yet to see a politician (recently, that is) who isn't a 'politics as usual' person. So while I feel Obama has been a bust, I have no thoughts Mitt can do any better.

Irritating, isn't it?

 

[BLAZINGGIANTS]

It's all about change. And we definitely got change. The question is, is the change good?

And that answer would be a resounding, "No."

 

[barfo]

This is THE message.

If that is THE message, then Republicans really have nothing at all.

So, let's see. Obama is a beer-drinkin', fly-killin', comedy-lovin' singing celebrity who is (supposedly) responsible for student loan debt?

News flash: Americans actually like celebrities a lot more than they like rich guys.

barfo

 

[Denny Crane]

If that is THE message, then Republicans really have nothing at all.

So, let's see. Obama is a beer-drinkin', fly-killin', comedy-lovin' singing celebrity who is (supposedly) responsible for student loan debt?

News flash: Americans actually like celebrities a lot more than they like rich guys.

barfo

You stopped watching the video half way through?

Too much empathy for the fly, I suppose.

 

[MARIS61]

I don't care if he goes on TV shows. Good for him. Makes him more a man of the people.

The thing is, it isn't about him going on the TV shows as it is him saying things like "I'm going to focus on jobs like a laser beam" and then going on a really ritzy/gaudy vacation the next day.

The message is that while he's saying one thing, he's really living it up while things aren't so great. Not so much a man of the people.

And it will resonante with independents and younger voters, who were a big part of his constituency in 2008.

It's untrue, but will clearly resonate with voters who have only double-digit IQ's.

The bottom line is nobody in any party thinks Romney is an honest person nor does he appear to have a spine or a brain.

This will be an Obama romp.

 

[BLAZINGGIANTS]

It's untrue, but will clearly resonate with voters who have only double-digit IQ's.

The bottom line is nobody in any party thinks Romney is an honest person nor does he appear to have a spine or a brain.

This will be an Obama romp.

Unfortunately, this is likely. Romney is not presidential material in my opinion. Neither is Obama. I think he's absolutely worthless. But if both candidates are terrible, I think most people will simply vote to keep the one already in office.

 

[bigbailes]

Unfortunately, this is likely. Romney is not presidential material in my opinion. Neither is Obama. I think he's absolutely worthless. But if both candidates are terrible, I think most people will simply vote to keep the one already in office.

the known evil is better than the unknown evil. gotta agree, neither are all that appealing but these races come down to being charismatic and able to sway peoples opinions and obama is 1000x better at that than mitt has shown to be.

 

[Blaze01]

This will be an Obama romp.

Keep dreaming....

 

[BLAZINGGIANTS]

the known evil is better than the unknown evil. gotta agree, neither are all that appealing but these races come down to being charismatic and able to sway peoples opinions and obama is 1000x better at that than mitt has shown to be.

Exactly. But I still don't understand how people think Obama is charismatic? He doesn't strike me as being all that intelligent, as far as someone running a country. He just seems like the dude next door, sometimes you chat and enjoy a beer outside on a summer evening. Other times, he annoys the hell out of you with his opinion. Romney strikes me more as a politician, which also scares me.

The Republican Party should be ashamed that Romney was the best candidate they could put up against Shobama. I mean, I really don't think it'd take much to beat him, but Romney was the best they could do? Really?

 

[Denny Crane]

Romney's strength is going to be raising equivalent money to what Obama raises.

 

[mook]

Romney strikes me as being in the same mold of Kerry and Gore. Guys born or married into money without much charm or ability to connect to the average stiff. Dubya may have been born into money too, but at least he wasn't born with his dad's personality.

You may not like Obama, but he's fits the ideal of the American self-made man. Without brains and charisma he'd be (at best) some mid level community college instructor in Hawaii. The odds of a single parent black kid growing up to have his kind of impact are pretty remote.

The key issue is that Obama can say practically whatever he wants and nobody on the left will bother him. Romney has no such luxury. Even if his biggest negative wasn't the whole Etch-a-Sketch thing, he simply won't be allowed by the right to distance himself from some pretty hardline stances he had to take to win. It's the same problem McCain had, and it's the same problem every Republican presidential candidate will have until the Tea Party loses its influence.

And frankly, I don't even know if in their heart of hearts the Republican establishment minds it. I think their calculus is to win Senate and House seats by motivating their base with extreme right stances. Concede the presidency and make big gains in non-presidential elections when the moderates don't show up. Better that than move to more centrist policies that actually stand a chance of passing. It's not a strategy to fundamentally change things, but it's a good one to prevent change. Which is a basic belief in conservatism.

 

[barfo]

Romney's strength is going to be raising equivalent money to what Obama raises.

The phrase "damning with faint praise" comes to mind here...

When your strength is that you have as much money as the other guy, you are in a pretty weak position.

barfo

 

[Denny Crane]

The phrase "damning with faint praise" comes to mind here...

When your strength is that you have as much money as the other guy, you are in a pretty weak position.

barfo

McCain having 1/2 the money Obama did was in a pretty weak position.

 

[barfo]

McCain having 1/2 the money Obama did was in a pretty weak position.

Absolutely.

Of course, he had bigger problems than cash, and it's hard to see how more money would have wiped away Sarah Palin or his reaction to the crash or the scarlet W on his chest.

Romney has bigger problems than cash too, although none as bad as McCain's (yet).

barfo

 

[Denny Crane]

Absolutely.

Of course, he had bigger problems than cash, and it's hard to see how more money would have wiped away Sarah Palin or his reaction to the crash or the scarlet W on his chest.

Romney has bigger problems than cash too, although none as bad as McCain's (yet).

barfo

Money buys ads and a ground organization to get the vote out.

When McCain first picked Palin, he gained in the polls and pulled ahead of Obama, 54-44. The lack of money and Obama's vast sum of it allowed obama to paint McCain and Palin as something they weren't, and they had little means to defend the attacks.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-09-07-poll_N.htm

 

[barfo]

Money buys ads and a ground organization to get the vote out.

When McCain first picked Palin, he gained in the polls and pulled ahead of Obama, 54-44. The lack of money and Obama's vast sum of it allowed obama to paint McCain and Palin as something they weren't, and they had little means to defend the attacks.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-09-07-poll_N.htm

Something they weren't? Ha ha.

They painted their own picture, and it was not a pretty one. Obama didn't pay to have McCain pick Palin, and he didn't pay Palin to reveal herself for the boob that she is.

No, I don't think that had to do with cash. That had to do with lousy candidates.

Yes, McCain got a bounce in the polls for picking an unknown female as VP. Naturally, once people found out who she was, the bounce evaporated.

barfo

 

[Denny Crane]

Palin was hugely popular. She drew crowds rivaling those Obama did, and up until the end. When she spoke in person to the people, they loved her (and apparently still do, she still draws big crowds). So yeah, they didn't have the money to buy airtime to counter the free airtime given by NBC and SNL to create a parody of her.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/story?id=6397572&page=1#.T59PCMRYtYg