Barack Obame elected 44th President of United States

Congrats Obama!
 

Paul Wolfowitz on Benghazi: U.S. did almost everything possible to protect our people

In a blog post posted in American Enterprise Institute (a conservative think-tank), Paul Wolfowitz a Republican and a former deputy defense secretary wrote that US did almost everything possible to protect our people once the attacks had started. Contrast this with what Romney and his campaign have been saying about U.S response and it looks to me that they did not dig deeper and kept attacking Obama to score political points.

Excerpts from his blog

The Consulate was overrun in a matter of minutes, before any help was possible.

 

A team that appears to have been CIA personnel deployed quickly (and bravely) from the Annex to the Consulate and rescued everyone they found alive there. (It’s not clear whether Ambassador Stevens had already been taken by Libyans to the hospital or whether they simply failed to find him.)

 

A mainly CIA response force deployed quickly from Tripoli to reinforce the Annex and facilitate its successful evacuation.

 

Decision makers in Washington appear to have been leaning forward, as they should have been. The military’s most capable rescue force, based on the East Coast, was deployed immediately (something that is very rarely done), but – given the distances involved – arrived at Sigonella only after the crisis was over.

 

Also, the European command (EUCOM) deployed its number one counter terrorism force, which was training in central Europe, as quickly as possible, but it arrived in Sigonella after the evacuation of the Annex was complete.

 

Other special forces deployed to Sigonella but arrived on the 12th after it was too late to make a difference in Benghazi.

 

There was no AC-130 gunship in the region.

 

The only drone available in Libya was an unarmed surveillance drone which was quickly moved from Darna to Benghazi, but the field of view of these drones is limited and, in any case, this one was not armed.

 

The only other assets immediately available were F-16 fighter jets based at Aviano, Italy. These aircraft might have reached Benghazi while the fight at the Annex was still going on, but they would have had difficulty pinpointing hostile mortar positions or distinguishing between friendly and hostile militias in the midst of a confused firefight in a densely populated residential area where there would have been a high likelihood of civilian casualties. While two more Americans were tragically killed by a mortar strike on the Annex, it’s not clear that deploying F-16’s would have prevented that. In any case, the decision not to do so was made by the tactical commander, General Ham, as it should have been

Read Bloomberg's take here
 

The Private Service Sector Has Now Recovered All The Jobs It Lost During The Recession

Full Story: http://www.businessinsider.com/private-service-sector-employment-has-completely-recovered-its-recession-losses-2012-11

Do we need anything more to say that our current President has done a phenominal job?

Conservatives Are Seeing the Beginning of the End for Romney

Full Story: http://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2012/Pres/Maps/Nov04.html#item-7
Excerpts:

One of the more popular conservative blogs is redstate.com. It is getting roughly the same traffic as this site (about a quarter of a million hits a day). The founder and chief cook and bottle washer, Erick Erickson, is way to the right of Rick Perry. During the run-up to the primaries he was wildly against Romney. On Nov. 8, 2011, he wrote an editorialthat is definitely worth reading if you are interested in knowing what conservatives were thinking a year ago. In part, he wrote:

"Mitt Romney, on the other hand, is a man devoid of any principles other than getting himself elected. As much as the American public does not like Barack Obama, they loath a man so fueled with ambition that he will say or do anything to get himself elected. Mitt Romney is that man.

I've been reading the 200 pages of single spaced opposition research from the John McCain campaign on Mitt Romney. There is no issue I can find on which Mitt Romney has not taken both sides. He is neither liberal nor conservative. He is simply unprincipled."

Liar Liar Pants On Fire

The dishonesty is reaching new heights in Romney's campaign. I thought Republicans are for smaller and efficient government. Apparently not. It seems any idea is a good idea if it comes from Republicans and not so when a Democrat proproses it!

Here is what Obama actually said

“We should have one Secretary of Business, instead of nine different departments that are dealing with things like giving loans to SBA or helping companies with exports,” Mr. Obama said in an interview that aired Monday on MSNBC. “There should be a one-stop shop.”
 

Consolidating departments would increase efficiency, reduce cost and also reduce bureaucratic red tape. Apparently not so since the idea comes from a democrat. Instead of understanding the context and the reason, Romney campaign is now running ads saying he wants to add additional bureacracy!!!! How is that? It looks like Chamber of Commerce is in favor of this idea!!!

 As for Paul Ryan mocking the president for not having appointed the commerce secretary, we do have one. Here is how Washington Times put it

John Bryson resigned his post as Commerce Secretary in June after he crashed into two cars on the same day, which he attributed to a seizure. Rebecca Blank is serving as acting Commerce Secretary until the president nominates a replacement.

Republicans wanted the President to go through the whole nine yards in the last few months of his first term just to be potentially replaced my another one? Also, imagine the grid lock and potical theater that this would have caused

Romney Admits His Decisions Are Based On Mormon Teachings

I absolutely have no problems with him being a mormon. However I am pretty sick of hearing him say that it would dictate his public policies though majority of this great nation do not believe or practice his faith. Public policy should be dictated by sound reasoning, judgement, inclusive and backed by data. However he made it extremely clear that he is pro-life and anti-choice.

 

Lastly, it is very refreshing to see Presidential candidate go off the script and portray the true self.

A collection of cartoons about the former Massachusetts governor

WP: Toles draws Mitt Romney

Dishonest Mitt: Jeep in China

Gov. Romney's Jeep gaffe is the last straw. If I had any respect for him or had any thoughts of voting his way, it ain't going to happen! I have not seen anyone so dishonest in my life, period. Why am I so upset about that? Because even after his reading of bloomberg article was proved to be completely false, he continues to build upon the lie. Here is what Chrysler's official blog responded to his claim

"It is a leap that would be difficult even for professional circus acrobats."
 

Here is the Ad in question

This article lists the press coverage where everyone is calling it a lie and Romney campaign appears to be silent about it.

 

If you still have any doubt about who is right, read Mitt Romney's op-ed "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt"

Can Romney make North America Energy-Independent?

The last eight presidents have gone on television and promised to move America towards an energy-independent future. So how much do you believe when Mitt says he could?

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

If our goal is to reduce the gas price that people pay, as one redditor put it, that is simply not achievable. Here is why

People seem to think that life would be wonderful if we got off of foreign oil and the United States was energy independent. They think somehow this would mean the oil companies would suddenly let us pay $1 a gallon and we wouldn't have to worry about energy anymore if this happened even if all we did was trade foreign oil for domestic oil.

NPR did an interesting story the other day about how Canada is considered energy independent but they still end up paying about the same as the United States for gas. This is mainly because oil prices are determined by trading on international markets and since the private companies who get the oil out of Canada can get away with selling it off to whoever in the world will pay them the most.

I think this shows that the United States would still be paying $4+ for gas (even if there was an endless supply here) if there were countries around the world that were still willing to pay that price to private multinational oil companies who are selling it. You would probably only see a major change if the government controlled the prices or the supply of the oil and could demand that domestic consumers be allowed to pay a certain amount at the pump.

Mitt Romney’s 5 Point Plan is the Same Plan as McCain in ’08 and Bush in ’04

Full Story: http://www.politicususa.com/mitt-romneys-5-point-plan-plan-mccain-08-bush-04.html

I guess republicans don't have anything new to offer beyond the tried, tested and proven to not work as great as it was promised!

Was Obama Administration's Renewable energy bet a bad investment?

Romney ticket loves to talk about how current administration squandered the tax payer money by financing renewable energy projects and how half of them went bankrupt. You didn't expect Romney campaign to the completely factual right? As expected, it appears only 8% of the companies funded by DoE went bankrupt. However it is better than Mr.Romeny's record on investing where is failure rate is 22%. So who picked winners better? Talk about government being the problem!

Watch it for yourself as Jon Stewart tears Romney apart

The Daily Show
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

Moderate Romney Wouldn’t Make It Past Inauguration Day

Full Story: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-25/moderate-romney-wouldn-t-make-it-past-inauguration-day.html

Jonathan Alter writes

You have to hand it to Mitt Romney and his team. Starting in the first debate, he pivoted almost effortlessly to the center, which is where elections are won. If he beats President Barack Obama, it will be because he Etch-A-Sketched his earlier positions and convinced enough people that he would be a moderate president.

Unfortunately, he has little chance of governing that way. We don’t know which Romney will show up on a given day, but we sure know which Republican Party would be in charge in Washington every minute. The Republicans have become the most extreme major political party in generations. They are tolerating Romney’s heresies this month only to gain power.

Romney would spend $2 trilllion that the military hasn't asked for

PolitiFact's Truth-O-Meter says that is true. Kiss deficit/debt reduction a good bye Gov. Romney.

Top U.S. CEOs urge increase in tax revenue

Full Story: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/top-us-ceos-urge-increase-in-tax-revenue-wsj-2012-10-25

It is time for Gov. Romney to pretend that he has never heard this :-) Across the board tax cut to 20% isn't going to help us dig out of the debt/deficit. Romney's plan doesn't add up and is mathematically not possible in my opinion. Increasing the tax revenue while simultaneously cutting spending is the way to go. Can't wait to hear Romney's spin's if at all he would entertain/respond to this...

Romney wants 8-10 years to Balance budget but expected Obama to do it in 4!

Full Story: http://www.eclectablog.com/2012/10/romney-says-hell-balance-the-budget-in-eight-to-ten-years-slams-obama-for-not-doing-it-in-four.html

Basically Gov. Romney is saying that he won't be able to balance budget even if he served 2 terms as President! Looks like we can only ask him after he has left the office. Great strategy.

Want a Better Economy? History Says Vote Democrat!

Full Story: http://www.forbes.com/sites/adamhartung/2012/10/10/want-a-better-economy-history-says-vote-democrat/

Some highlights

Personal disposable income has grown nearly 6 times more under Democratic presidents

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has grown 7 times more under Democratic presidents

Corporate profits have grown over 16% more per year under Democratic presidents (they actually declined under Republicans by an average of 4.53%/year)

Average annual compound return on the stock market has been 18 times greater under Democratic presidents (If you invested $100k for 40 years of Republican administrations you had $126k at the end, if you invested $100k for 40 years of Democrat administrations you had $3.9M at the end)

Republican presidents added 2.5 times more to the national debt than Democratic presidents

The two times the economy steered into the ditch (Great Depression and Great Recession) were during Republican, laissez faire administrations

Romney Caught Encouraging Business Owners to Tell Employees How to Vote

Full Story: http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2012/10/romney-bosses-should-tell-employees-how-to-vote.html

Watch it yourself!!! The relevant comment starts around 26 minutes

 

Mitt’s “binders full of women” Lie

Full Story: http://www.salon.com/2012/10/17/mitts_binders_full_of_women_not_even_true/

Here is what Governer Romney said during second presidential debate

According to Boston Globe

But that story turns out to be not quite true, according to veteran Boston Phoenix journalist David Bernstein. As Bernstein pointed out last night, what actually happened is that a bipartisan coalition of women’s groups came together to compile lists of eligible female candidates for office before the 2002 gubernatorial election had even occurred. Romney says he “went to a number of women’s groups” and asked them for the binders, but the opposite is true — they went to him. Bernstein also notes that many of the senior-level women Romney hired were given control of departments and agencies that were not a priority for the governor, while there were almost zero women working on the budget or businesses development, areas that Romney cared more about.
 

WSJ Reports

“[The women's group not Romney] took a concerted effort to go out and find women who had backgrounds that could be qualified to become members of our Cabinet,” Romney said in the town hall. “I went to a number of women’s groups and said, ‘Can you help us find folks,’ and they brought us whole binders full of women.”
 

 

Mitt Romney's Tax Plan - Details Finally Coming to Light

http://www.romneytaxplan.com/

Please take time to read and leave a comment.
 

1929-2011: Real Stock Mkt gain = 300% under Democrat presidents; 0% under Republican presidents

Full Story from none other than Economist: GOP Smacked

U.S. crude oil production reaches 17-year high in October, net oil imports are lowest in 20 years

Full Story: http://www.aei-ideas.org/2012/10/americas-energy-bonanza-u-s-crude-oil-production-reached-17-year-high-in-october-net-oil-imports-are-lowest-in-20-years/

Is Romney going to write this off as bogus as usual? If crude production is at an all time high and imports are the lowest in 2 decades, what does he got against Obama's policies?

PolitiFact's Lie of the Year: 'A government takeover of health care'

Full Story: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2010/dec/16/lie-year-government-takeover-health-care/

Romney and Ryan continues to spread the lie that the Obamacare is government takeover of healthcare. If regulating and setting standards in an industry is considered government takeover, every industry is run by government effectively. Here is why it is a lie perpetuated by Republicans

"Government takeover" conjures a European approach where the government owns the hospitals and the doctors are public employees. But the law Congress passed, parts of which have already gone into effect, relies largely on the free market:

• Employers will continue to provide health insurance to the majority of Americans through private insurance companies.

• Contrary to the claim, more people will get private health coverage. The law sets up "exchanges" where private insurers will compete to provide coverage to people who don't have it.

• The government will not seize control of hospitals or nationalize doctors.

• The law does not include the public option, a government-run insurance plan that would have competed with private insurers.

• The law gives tax credits to people who have difficulty affording insurance, so they can buy their coverage from private providers on the exchange. But here too, the approach relies on a free market with regulations, not socialized medicine.

PolitiFact reporters have studied the 906-page bill and interviewed independent health care experts. We have concluded it is inaccurate to call the plan a government takeover because it relies largely on the existing system of health coverage provided by employers.

It's true that the law does significantly increase government regulation of health insurers. But it is, at its heart, a system that relies on private companies and the free market.

The Lying Precedent

Full Story: http://takingnote.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/10/the-lying-precedent/

If Mr. Romney wins, he’ll set a nasty precedent. Candidates will be justified in assuming not only that they can lie, but that they can tell different lies to different audiences from week to week, and voters will actually reward them.

We Don’t Have People Who Die Because They Don’t Have Insurance

Full Story: http://thinkprogress.org/election/2012/10/11/990281/romney-uninsured-hospital/

Romney the multi-millinaire continues to live in parallel universe and can't see the problems facing middle class and poor americans. He recently claimed that no one in America has died because they didn't have medical insurance. However Reuters article talks about the Harvard Study that linked nearly 45,000 deaths linked to lack of medical insurance. Does Romney have the ability to understand the truth past what is being fed to him?

Mitt Romney Leads Us Into An Age Of Stupidity

Full Story: http://www.villagevoice.com/2012-10-10/columns/mitt-romney-stupidity-Michael-Musto/

It is a great opinion piece that goes into lengths. The following from the column summarizes my belief as well as his opinion

But with Mitt Romney, there don't seem to be any beliefs! He appears to spout whatever is convenient for him at the moment, without an ordinate amount of backbone, realism, or sense of responsibility as to what he has said before. He's the perfect candidate for an era of drive-by news hits that are quickly consumed and expectorated by an ADD-addled populace.

Mitt Romney Agrees With Everyone

Check out http://www.roboromney.com/

Mitt Romney Debates Himself

Romney the flip-flopper



Here is another one from Ron Paul's supporters about his flip-flops. I am starting to suspect if flip flopping is characteristic of MA politicians!

Newt Gingrich acknowledges the clear inconsistency, saying "I think it’s clear he changed." He described the change as "good politics.". Watch it  

Mitt Romney’s Self-Destruct Button

Some weekend humor :-)

First Presidential Debate: Half Truths And Lies

Congratulations to Gov. Romney for giving a better than expected performance. However he reversed his position on tax cuts & regulation, details were shallow and stuck to half truths and lies.

NPR's column summarizes it pretty well.

Bloomberg.com says "On taxes, Mitt Romney is long on promises and short on details."

Fact-checkers say Obama told the truth more often in Denver debate

Here is the joke floating around in the interwebs courtesy of DailyKos

Snow White, Superman and Pinocchio are walking along.

They see a sign: "Contest for World's Most Beautiful Woman." Snow White goes in, later comes out smiling, wearing a crown.

They walk along and see another sign: "Contest for World's Strongest Man." Superman goes in, later comes out smiling, wearing the belt.

They walk along and see a sign: "Contest for World's Greatest Liar." Pinocchio goes in, later comes out with his head down crying. "Who the hell is Mitt Romney?" Pinocchio sobs.

 

Mitt Romney plan leaves 72M uninsured

Full Story: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1012/81900.html

Highlights

The analysis by the Commonwealth Fund, a New York-based health care research foundation, found that under Romney’s health care plan, the uninsured population would soar to 72 million by 2022 — 12 million higher than if nothing had been done at all.

By contrast, if President Barack Obama’s health care law is fully implemented — including complete state participation in the now voluntary Medicaid expansion — the number of uninsured people would drop from 47.9 million in 2011 to about 27.1 million people in 2022, the report estimated.

Wherever Romney campaigns, he does worse

Ouch! Full Story: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/july-dec12/shieldsbrooks_09-28.html

Here is what Mark Shields said in the PBS Interview:

And the theory is that Mitt Romney is the first presidential candidate in -- certainly in the last 35 years who wherever he campaigns does worse. And I think that's his real problem.

I mean, for example, in Florida, his personal unfavorable rating in January was 29 percent. It went up to 35 percent in May. It's now at 48 percent.

In Ohio, the same thing. It went from 34 percent unfavorable in January, to 37 percent in May, to 49 percent in September.

The more they see him, the less they like him. And this is a real problem. It happened to Gerald Ford, the president of the United States, in 1976 in a marvelous campaign, a great campaign.

Oil firms do better under Democrats

Full story: http://qz.com/9349/why-do-oil-companies-spend-so-much-on-republicans-when-they-fare-better-under-democrats/

Romney: If I'm Elected, Don't Expect Huge Tax Cuts

Story: http://www.cnbc.com/id/49193890

Here is what he said

"Don't be expecting a huge cut in taxes, because I'm also going to be closing loopholes on deductions," Mr. Romney said Wednesday in Westerville, Ohio, flanked by a national debt clock, chronicling the nation's rising burden on future taxpayers.
 

The trillion dollar question is what loop holes would he close that would compensate for the not-so-huge tax cuts? The devil is in the details but he won't say.

Romnesia

From http://www.monbiot.com/2012/09/24/romnesia/

Romnesia: the ability of the very rich to forget the context in which they made their money. To forget their education, inheritance, family networks, contacts and introductions. To forget the workers whose labour enriched them. To forget the infrastructure and security, the educated workforce, the contracts, subsidies and bail-outs the government provided.

Study: PolitiFact Rates GOP As Biggest Liar

Full story: http://www.cmpa.com/media_room_press_9_21_12.html

Excerpts

However, PolitiFact rated Democratic statements as “mostly true” or “entirely true” about twice as often as Republican statements -- 42% true ratings for Democrats vs. 20% for Republicans.

Conversely, statements by Republicans were rated as entirely false about twice as often as Democratic statements – 29% false ratings for GOP statements vs. 15% false ratings for Democrats. (This includes categories labeled “false” and “pants on fire.”)

Romney just disqualified himself :-)

Romney a while ago on record said

“I pay all the taxes that are legally required, not a dollar more. I don't think you want someone as the candidate for president who pays more taxes than he owes.”
 

However his 2011 tax return reveals that he paid more than legally required

Mitt and Ann Romney donated a whole heck of a lot of money to charity in 2011 — $4,020,772, to be exact, or about 30 percent of their total income. But they chose only to claim $2.25 million of that total as charitable deductions, because, well, otherwise their overall tax burden would have been a little, shall we say, light.
 

Did he disqualify himself? :-)

Source: http://www.salon.com/2012/09/21/romneys_tax_return_comedy/ 

Mitt Romney Has the Lowest Favorability Rating Of Any Presidential Nominee In Modern History

Original Story: http://www.thedailydolt.com/2012/09/21/people-really-dont-like-mitt-romney/

 

The image says it all!

 

Romney's Gaffes

There is a whole sub-reddit called "Shit Romney Says" and be sure to check it out!

Here
“Corporations are people, my friend.”

“I like being able to fire people.”

“I’m not concerned about the very poor.”

“I’m also unemployed.”

“Ann drives a couple of Cadillacs.”

“Ten thousand bucks? $10,000 bet?”

“I have some great friends that are NASCAR team owners.”

“There were a couple of times I wondered whether I was going to get a pink slip.”

I intend to update this post as new gaffes come to light. Source Credits: 1

"You People"

Ann Romney's "You People" gaffe 2 months ago wasn't enough. She did it again. What's up with the rich people looking down on us and calling us like that and tell us how lucky we are to have Romney as our savior?! The way Ann Romney puts it is condesending and it continues to be the case. Can the lady show bit more humility?

During an interview early this evening with Radio Iowa, Mrs. Romney directly addressed her fellow Republicans who’ve criticized her husband.

“Stop it. This is hard. You want to try it? Get in the ring,” she said. “This is hard and, you know, it’s an important thing that we’re doing right now and it’s an important election and it is time for all Americans to realize how significant this election is and how lucky we are to have someone with Mitt’s qualifications and experience and know-how to be able to have the opportunity to run this country.”

STOP IT! is an attempt at humor. I hope it goes viral!

To Be Presidential, Romney Must First Be Truthful

Jonathan Alter wrote the following in his Bloomberg opinion column recently

Now we have Mitt Romney, with astonishingly poor timing, trying to profit politically from tragic events in the Middle East. His remarks on Libya and Egypt at a news conference in Jacksonville, Florida, might or might not hurt his chances with pivotal independent voters in November. But we do know that he has managed to be simultaneously unpresidential, untruthful and unwise...Americans recognize that judgment, prudence, instinct and a sense of what the moment demands are all job requirements for the presidency. Romney met none of them this week.
 

Ouch! 

Romney believes half the nation are parasites/free loaders

This is explosive! I cannot believe a Presidential candidate said the following

"...There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what…These are people who pay no income tax."

Here are the videos if you don't believe





 

Republicans/Romney isn't offering anything new

Romney Will Solve the Crisis with the Exact Same GOP Plan of 2008, 2006, 2004...

Mitt Romney’s confession

Full story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/mitt-romneys-confession/2012/09/15/863d2c14-febf-11e1-b153-218509a954e1_print.html

Mitt's math never added up and we now know for sure since he admitted it. He solution to our nation's debt problem is "Growth" which is based on trickle-down economics. Quoting the editorial, he said

“The biggest source of getting the country to a balanced budget is not by raising taxes or by cutting spending,” he said. “It’s by encouraging the growth of the economy.”
 

 

Romney's claim that five studies back up his tax plan is mostly false

Full story: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/sep/14/mitt-romney/romney-claims-5-studies-back-his-tax-plan/

Excerpts:

"Romney is using the word "studies" generously. Two items on his list are newspaper editorials that can be analytical but are rarely treated as independent research. One article comes from a campaign adviser, a connection that generally suggests a less than independent assessment. That leaves just two reports out Romney’s five...We see no more than two independent studies out of the five claimed. We rate the statement Mostly False."

Don't you love it when politicians include the editorials that quote studies as studies themselves!! And we aren't talking about independent research here but mostly partisan (e.g. AEI).

The problem with Mitt

Joe Scarborough a republican wrote the following in an opinion column for politico  yesterday.

Voters who like moderates can’t trust him. Conservatives who are desperate for victory don’t believe him. And the election Republicans should be winning seems to be slipping further from their grasp.

...who decided that Romney would use his general election campaign to stand for absolutely nothing? The Wall Street Journal described this ideological listlessness as a “pre-existing decision.” The question conservatives should be asking is whether that strategy was hatched by a misguided consultant or the candidate himself.
 

I really liked the Mitt before he started running for President.  He was mostly consistent and stood for something. Now he seems to move in the direction the wind is blowing on any given day!

Democratic presidents top Republican presidents in job creation

Story: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/sep/06/bill-clinton/bill-clinton-says-democratic-presidents-top-republ/

Yes it is hard to believe if you don't want to believe it! Here is the score:

Republicans

Richard Nixon: Increase of 7.1 million jobs
Gerald Ford: Increase of 1.3 million jobs
Ronald Reagan: Increase of 14.7 million jobs
George H.W. Bush: Increase of 1.5 million jobs
George W. Bush: Decline of 646,000 jobs

Total: Increase of 23.9 million jobs under Republican presidents


Democrats

John F. Kennedy: Increase of 2.7 million jobs
Lyndon B. Johnson: Increase of 9.5 million jobs
Jimmy Carter: Increase of 9.0 million jobs
Bill Clinton: Increase of 20.8 million jobs
Barack Obama: Increase of 332,000 jobs

Total: Increase of 42.3 million jobs.
 

A Dangerous Mind

Full Story: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/08/30/a_dangerous_mind_mitt_romney?page=full
 Excerpts:

...Whereas President Barack Obama has claimed the middle ground and crafted a strategy based on principled pragmatism, Romney is following in the footsteps of George W. Bush, relying more on bluster than strategy and veering to ideological extremes.
 

It's not just Romney's positions on particular issues, however vague they may be, that are cause for concern. It's his core world view. Guided by a Republican Party virtually devoid of moderate centrists, Romney has embraced a global assessment distorted by ideological excess, pledged to wield power in a way that will leave the nation weakened and isolated, and demonstrated a failure to appreciate the key linkages between strength at home and influence abroad...
 

 

Paul Ryan’s RNC Speech: Lies, Lies and More Lies

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/08/30/1125935/-LYIN-RYAN-ALL-THE-MEDIA-PUSHBACK?detail=hide lists all the media coverage and critisism of Paul Ryan's lies, more lies and nothing but lies.

Here is how factcheck.org summarized his lies

Paul Ryan’s acceptance speech at the Republican convention contained several false claims and misleading statements. Delegates cheered as the vice presidential nominee:

• Accused President Obama’s health care law of funneling money away from Medicare “at the expense of the elderly.” In fact, Medicare’s chief actuary says the law “substantially improves” the system’s finances, and Ryan himself has embraced the same saving
• Accused Obama of doing “exactly nothing” about recommendations of a bipartisan deficit commission — which Ryan himself helped scuttle.
• Claimed the American people were “cut out” of stimulus spending. Actually, more than a quarter of all stimulus dollars went for tax relief for workers.
• Faulted Obama for failing to deliver a 2008 campaign promise to keep a Wisconsin plant open. It closed less than a month before Obama took office.
• Blamed Obama for the loss of a AAA credit rating for the U.S. Actually, Standard & Poor’s blamed the downgrade on the uncompromising stands of both Republicans and Democrats

Slate.com's coverage
WashingtonPost's Opinion Column 

A storm inside the GOP convention

Dana Milbank covers the chaos while seating the delegates in Washington Post opinion column here

 

Romney Campaign: We’re not going to let our campaign be dictated by fact checkers

Full Story: Romney Camp Bets On Welfare Attack

Here is the attack ad in question



The Washington Post's "Fact Checker" awarded Romney's ad "four Pinocchios," a measure Romney pollster Neil Newhouse dismissed.

Romney Campaign's response

"Fact checkers come to this with their own sets of thoughts and beliefs, and we’re not going to let our campaign be dictated by fact checkers" he said

Here is Obama Campaign's response

“This is a common sense reform to give governors — including some of Romney’s supporters — flexibility to live up to the goals of the welfare reform law. Romney should know: He used to support these kinds of waivers. In 2005, he joined other Republican governors in a letter to Senator Frist, urging the Senate to move quickly on ‘increased waiver authority’ for the welfare program.”
 

And the truth - who cares?
 

Economist: So, Mitt, what do you really believe?

Full Story: http://www.economist.com/node/21560864?frsc=dg%7Ca

Excerpts:

WHEN Mitt Romney was governor of liberal Massachusetts, he supported abortion, gun control, tackling climate change and a requirement that everyone should buy health insurance, backed up with generous subsidies for those who could not afford it. Now, as he prepares to fly to Tampa to accept the Republican Party’s nomination for president on August 30th, he opposes all those things. A year ago he favoured keeping income taxes at their current levels; now he wants to slash them for everybody, with the rate falling from 35% to 28% for the richest Americans.

All politicians flip-flop from time to time; but Mr Romney could win an Olympic medal in it (see article). And that is a pity, because this newspaper finds much to like in the history of this uncharismatic but dogged man, from his obvious business acumen to the way he worked across the political aisle as governor to get health reform passed and the state budget deficit down. We share many of his views about the excessive growth of regulation and of the state in general in America, and the effect that this has on investment, productivity and growth. After four years of soaring oratory and intermittent reforms, why not bring in a more businesslike figure who might start fixing the problems with America’s finances?

Mitt Romney doesn't have any principles - ARC President Yaron Brook

Yaron Brook is the current president and executive director of the Ayn Rand Institute. He is what he had to say about Presidential Candidate Romney

Did Mitt commit voter fraud?

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/brendancoffey/2011/06/15/did-mitt-romney-live-in-his-sons-unfinished-basement-last-year/

Excerpts

Of course, as Karger argues to the Massachusetts Secretary of State, Romney likely didn’t live in the basement, so it appears like voter fraud, a crime punishable by up to five years in jail and a $10,000 fine.

So it’s voter fraud if they were living in California but voting for Scott Brown in Massachusetts. In my (very) brief conversation with a spokesman for Bill Galvin, the Massachusetts Secretary of State, whose office oversees elections, the spokesman said Karger’s complaint was more of a letter “asking for an investigation.” No word yet on if such an investigation will happen. A spokesman for Romney wasn’t immediately available for comment.

Did Romney avoid military service?

Source: http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/06/06/12085094-the-war-romney-longed-for?lite

From the blog:

Though an early supporter of the Vietnam War, Romney avoided military service at the height of the fighting after high school by seeking and receiving four draft deferments, according to Selective Service records. They included college deferments and a 31-month stretch as a "minister of religion" in France, a classification for Mormon missionaries that the church at the time feared was being overused. The country was cutting troop levels by the time he became eligible for the draft, and his lottery number was not called. [...]
[B]ecause Romney, now 65, was of draft age during Vietnam, his military background -- or, rather, his lack of one -- is facing new scrutiny as he courts veterans and makes his case to the nation to be commander in chief.
Many years later, in 1994, Romney said, "It was not my desire to go off and serve in Vietnam, but nor did I take any actions to remove myself from the pool of young men who were eligible for the draft." That wasn't true -- he took several steps to remove himself from the eligibility pool.

The oddest part of the story is that he was pro-vietnam war at that time but chose not to take the next step and serve the country?

Rupublican Hypocrisy In 10 seconds

Let us see if you can catch it! If not, check out the comments for the spoiler

Is Romney a RINO?

According to McCain campaign's file on Romney, he seems to be a liberal's ideal candidate at least on social issues. I am sure he has changed his views now that he is running for President :-)

Here is where Mitt stood on social issues according to the document

Abortion

• Romney says he changed his mind on abortion meeting with Harvard stem cell researcher – Romney claimsthe doctor said scientists “kill” embryos after 14 days, but doctor later said Romney “mischaracterized myposition.”
• Months after his “conversion,” Romney stated his commitment to upholding Massachusetts’ abortion laws andappointed pro-choice judge to state district court.
• In October 2005, Romney signed bill expanding family planning services, including abortion counseling andmorning-after pill.
• In December 2005, Romney “abruptly ordered his administration to reverse course … and require Catholichospitals to provide emergency contraception medication to rape victims.”
• Romney health insurance plan expanded access to abortion, required Planned Parenthood representative onstate panel.
• Romney endorsed legalization of abortion pill RU-486 access during his 1994 Senate race and backedfederal funding of abortion, saying “I think it’s important that people see me not as a pro-life candidate.”
• In 1994 and 2002, Romney confirmed his support for Roe v. Wade decision and forcefully positioned himselfas pro-choice in 1994 Senate race, saying “you will not see me wavering on that.”
• Romney has refused to comment on bill pending in South Carolina legislature requiring that abortion doctorsoffer pregnant women option of viewing ultrasound.

Gay Rights

• Romney endorsed Rep. Barney Frank’s Employment Nondiscrimination Act in 1994.
• In 1994, Romney called “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy first step toward having gays and lesbians “able to serveopenly and honestly in our nation’s military” and said he would provide “more effective leadership” on gayrights issues than Ted Kennedy.
• In 2003, The Washington Times reported Romney “would support a Vermont-style civil union law inMassachusetts.”
• As governor, Romney said health coverage benefits and hospital visitation rights should be provided to gaycouples.
• Romney promised to make gay partnership benefits a “hallmark of my leadership as governor” and has saidhe would attend gay weddings if invited.
• Romney publicly opposed Boy Scouts’ ban on homosexuals in 1994 and 2002 campaigns.
• In 2002, Romney backed hate crimes legislation that included sexual orientation provisions.
• In 2007, Romney praised gay parent who confronted him over gay marriage issue, but in 2005 remarked toSouth Carolina audience that some gay couples “are actually having children” and called it “wrong.”

Gun Control

• In 1994 Senate race, Romney backed Brady bill and assault weapons ban, saying “I don’t line up with theNRA” and “that’s not going to make me the hero of the NRA.”
• Romney called Clinton crime bill “a big step forward.”
• As governor, Romney quadrupled gun licensing fees and vowed not to “chip away” at tough gun laws
• In 2004, Romney signed permanent state-level ban on assault weapons that was mirrored after federalassault weapons ban.
• In January 2006, Romney said he owned a gun – then two days later admitted he did not and the gunbelonged to his son.
• Romney bragged about being member of the NRA but later revealed he didn’t join until August 2006, justbefore launching his presidential campaign.
• Romney recently said he’s “been a hunter pretty much all my life” but later admitted he hunted only twice inhis life, later clarifying remarks by claiming he has hunted “small varmints … more than two times.”
• In 2006 press conference, Romney claimed he had been hunting “many times” after returning from quail huntin Georgia.

Did Romney own a fetus disposal company?

No I am not making this up!

Read http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2012/07/romney-invested-in-a-fetus-disposal-company.html
According to this, he owned Sericycle at some point. Even more awesome is the fact that he claimed that he was no longer in Bain where as the document proves he was.

This article dated 1999 clearly says Mitt was still working part time during 1999-2002. TYT summarizes the issue pretty well

The truth lies somewhere in between for sure.