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[Stinkles]

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/sununu-obama-breaks-bill-clintons-legacy-shatters-it

Sununu: Obama Breaks Bill Clinton’s Legacy, ‘Shatters It With A Sledgehammer And Runs Over It With A Steamroller’


Can someone explain the GOP's love of the Clintions? They went from accusing Bill and Hillary of outright murder and impeachment to praising both almost every chance they get. This love fest, if my memory serves me right, even goes back to the 2008 Dem primaries.

These fucking guys. Not content with hagifying Reagan, they are now deifying everyone who isn't Obama.

That party spent five years trying to destroy Clinton, denied every achievement, credited his economy to every Republican in the last 100 years and framed him after a legendary snipe hunt. These fucking guys.

 

[pigeon]

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/sununu-obama-breaks-bill-clintons-legacy-shatters-it

Sununu: Obama Breaks Bill Clinton’s Legacy, ‘Shatters It With A Sledgehammer And Runs Over It With A Steamroller’


Can someone explain the GOP's love of the Clintions? They went from accusing Bill and Hillary of outright murder and impeachment to praising both almost every chance they get. This love fest, if my memory serves me right, even goes back to the 2008 Dem primaries.

After W., Clinton became so retrospectively popular that going after him would be like getting up at the DNC and calling Reagan a lying murderer. They're trying to drive a wedge to give people a non-racist excuse to vote against Obama after voting for Clinton. Also, they just miss the days when the Democrats still had to run Southerners instead of black guys and women.

 

[Dr. Pangloss]

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/sununu-obama-breaks-bill-clintons-legacy-shatters-it

Sununu: Obama Breaks Bill Clinton’s Legacy, ‘Shatters It With A Sledgehammer And Runs Over It With A Steamroller’


Can someone explain the GOP's love of the Clintions? They went from accusing Bill and Hillary of outright murder and impeachment to praising both almost every chance they get. This love fest, if my memory serves me right, even goes back to the 2008 Dem primaries.

When are we going back to Clinton tax rates and the evil socialism that brought us?

 

[Brinbe]

These fucking guys. Not content with hagifying Reagan, they are now deifying everyone who isn't Obama.

That party spent five years trying to destroy Clinton, denied every achievement, credited his economy to every Republican in the last 100 years and framed him after a legendary snipe hunt. These fucking guys.

Yep, pretty fucking hilarious. Let's see what they say if/when HilDawg makes a run for it in 2016.

 

[DynamicG]

Pretty sure Obama has a lever right at his desk where he controls the gas price, dude.

I think Newt Gingrich holds the patent on that, so Obama can't have that lever. Maybe he has a button or dial of some sort.

 

[richiek]

These fucking guys. Not content with hagifying Reagan, they are now deifying everyone who isn't Obama.

That party spent five years trying to destroy Clinton, denied every achievement, credited his economy to every Republican in the last 100 years and framed him after a legendary snipe hunt. These fucking guys.

I would not be surprised if the GOP tries to impeach Obama during his second term.

 

[cartoon_soldier]

Castro said Obama in his first line.

Christie...?

 

[tranciful]

Shame about the rain -- I always thought politicians sticking it out in the rain had a good visual. Guess you don't want to risk having the audience not showing up though

 

[Averon]

Yep, pretty fucking hilarious. Let's see what they say if/when HilDawg makes a run for it in 2016.

That's the thing. I can't imagine this sudden love for the Clintons would last if Hillary ran in 2016. I'd imagine they'll trout out Vince Foster, Monica, et all without hesitation. It'd expose how fake their admiration of the Clintons was.

 

[CharlieDigital]

I would not be surprised if the GOP tries to impeach Obama during his second term.

It will be interesting to see the dynamics of the aftermath of this election if Obama wins because as Obama said, it would no longer be about making him a 1 term president.

I feel that the Republican party would really have to change direction to show that they are a party of ideas and solutions. If the Republicans want to have a shot in 2016, they have to show that they can get things done. Clearly, 4 years of trying to sabotage the Democrats has not lead to the positive results for them.

They will have to embrace what Jon Huntsman, David Frum, and many other conservatives have been championing: the Republican party has to be more inclusive and move on from FUD and a few of their core issues like abortion in much the same way that the Democrats have largely ceded on gun control.

Shame about the rain -- I always thought politicians sticking it out in the rain had a good visual. Guess you don't want to risk having the audience not showing up though

Probably less about the audience than the logistics.

 

[Tim-E]

Castro said Obama in his first line.

Christie...?

Wasn't it like 16 minutes into Christie's speech before he mentioned Romney by name?

 

[thatbox]

with Billy at an approval of 66% that isnt just from dems, GOP knows he's not seen as a far lefty liberal by the public.

Presumably they're doing it as part of an effort to moderate themselves and appear bipartisan - look, this Democrat was fine, but Obama is not this Democrat.

 

[Clevinger]

It will be interesting to see the dynamics of the aftermath of this election if Obama wins because as Obama said, it would no longer be about making him a 1 term president.

That's right. But then it becomes about making Obama's Democratic successor unelectable, and ruining his legacy.

 

[cartoon_soldier]

Shame about the rain -- I always thought politicians sticking it out in the rain had a good visual. Guess you don't want to risk having the audience not showing up though

Agreed.

 

[CharlieDigital]

That's right. But then it becomes about making Obama's Democratic successor unelectable, and ruining his legacy.

The thing is, it's clear that the American public puts a lot of the blame on the Congress with the abysmally low approval ratings (in the single digits at one point!).

I cannot see the Republicans being that stupid that they will not see that they need to show that they can lead and not just sabotage and whine.

If they don't change course -- barring some major scandal of some sort for the Dems, they're not winning shit for the next several decades.

 

[Frank the Great]

my number one wish for obama's second term: for him to be able to replace one of the SCOTUS justices.

kennedy and scalia are both 76. scalia is too much of a stubborn bastard to retire or die during a democratic presidency but maybe kennedy will call it quits. i can't believe thomas is only 64. i feel like he's been around forever.

getting 5 liberal votes on the SC would be a gamechanger. much moreso than electing any president could be.

 

[Black Republican]

Poor Tim Kaine, i liked his speech but no one seems to remember it.

 

[CharlieDigital]

my number one wish for obama's second term: for him to be able to replace one of the SCOTUS justices.

kennedy and scalia are both 76. scalia is too much of a stubborn bastard to retire or die during a democratic presidency but maybe kennedy will call it quits. i can't believe thomas is only 64. i feel like he's been around forever.

getting 5 liberal votes on the SC would be a gamechanger. much moreso than electing any president could be.

This is pretty much my number one reason as well. To me, the SCOTUS seats are much more important than the presidency.

When liberals to the left of me complain about Obama or when apathetic, uneducated people complain about both parties being the same, I point out that all of that other stuff is small time compared to the SCOTUS noms.

Don't forget Ginsburg, 79, currently the oldest justice.

 

[RoninChaos]

Finally finished the Romney speech. Dear god, I wish I had those 37 minutes back.

Once he got past the personal anecdotes, he seemed less awkward, but just as ludicrous. There's no platform here. He talks about the military a lot, and seems to think we should get tough with Iran and Russia. He talks repeatedly about not allowing military cuts, to much applause. Yet he wants to balance the budget, and he also isn't willing to cut Medicare or raise taxes. There is no way he can balance the budget with this plan. It's not mathematically possible.

He seems to think that school vouchers are the way to improve American vocational skills. He blames Obama for a lot of trends (rising healthcare costs, rising fuel costs, unemployment) that were either well underway before he took office, or which he has zero control over. He's oblivious to the fact that we are, for the most part, better off than we were in January 2009. The whole thing is like a parody of a real political speech.

Frankly, I'm shocked that this guy is the best the Republican party could muster to go up against Obama.

There are going to be some salty tears the day after the election. I really can't wait. I want these fuckers to feel that God has forsaken them.

The scary part is that almost half the country is going to vote for Romney and his platform.

The part that bothers me the most is that Michelle Obama's speech perfectly highlighted the differences between the parties and some people will vote against their own interests. People that are the exact same people Obama is trying to help. We hear about his "failed leadership, Lysol wipes, auto pen bullshit and all the rest. But none of it matters.

I feel like this is really the first time where my vote wasnt just about a difference of opinion, I feel like my vote is the choice between right and wrong, love and fear. People like Romney and his party want to let our broken health care system get worse. People like Obama want to make sure kids don't lose their health insurance. People like Romney want to pound their chests and talk tough about what they'd do of they had power but we've already seen what they would do. 2000-2008 showed that.

I disagree with some of what Obama has done but I don't doubt that the guy is honest and is driven by what he feels is doing the right thing. I don't feel that way about Romney. I feel like he sees the presidency as a stepping stone that will make the lives of himself and his friends better rather than what he can do to make every American's life better.

And I'm officially deleting Facebook today. My brother in law was a democrat and is now a republican. He's off in Afghanistan and I started debating him and some of his friends on Facebook and had to stop. This shit is too much and it's fuckin up my relationships with people.

 

[Averon]

my number one wish for obama's second term: for him to be able to replace one of the SCOTUS justices.

kennedy and scalia are both 76. scalia is too much of a stubborn bastard to retire or die during a democratic presidency but maybe kennedy will call it quits. i can't believe thomas is only 64. i feel like he's been around forever.

getting 5 liberal votes on the SC would be a gamechanger. much moreso than electing any president could be.

Given Kennedy's disgust for ACA (he wanted the whole law thrown out), I doubt he'll retire with Obama still in office. But, yeah, Kennedy is probably the most likely (however remote that is) to willingly retire. I'm more concerned about Ginsberg, though. She's pretty old and I believe had some medical issues recently.

 

[ErasureAcer]

When do last night's ratings come out? The tweet rate has me excited for a much greater viewership than the Republicans.

 

[CharlieDigital]

The scary part is that almost half the country is going to vote for Romney and his platform.

This is false.

Nearly half the voting public is going to vote for Romney/Ryan.

I think if the entire US voted and the Presidency were determined by popular vote, the results would be much more skewed towards Obama.

 

[thatbox]

When do last night's ratings come out? The tweet rate has me excited for a much greater viewership than the Republicans.

I'm talking out of my ass but I have to imagine that Democrats are more likely to use twitter than Republicans.

 

[Brinbe]

This is false.

Nearly half the voting public is going to vote for Romney/Ryan.

I think if the entire US voted and the Presidency were determined by popular vote, the results would be much more skewed towards Obama.

Yep, those registered/likely voter splits in various polls bare that out. It's all about GOTV and that's why the GOP has been so insistent on those voter ID laws/restrictive voting hours/purging voter lists.

 

[gcubed]

Shame about the rain -- I always thought politicians sticking it out in the rain had a good visual. Guess you don't want to risk having the audience not showing up though

Rain = OK

Thunderstorms = Bad


but i'm sure Kosmo will come in here with the conspiracy that they moved it because they wouldn't be able to fill the stadium, even though they gave out an additional 65000 passes.

 

[Officerrob]

Rain = OK

Thunderstorms = Bad


but i'm sure Kosmo will come in here with the conspiracy that they moved it because they wouldn't be able to fill the stadium, even though they gave out an additional 65000 passes.

The Romney campaign has already put out a press release saying this exact same thing. They claim a lack of enthusiasm, I guess they were not watching last night

 

[coldfoot]

I feel like this is really the first time where my vote wasnt just about a difference of opinion, I feel like my vote is the choice between right and wrong, love and fear. People like Romney and his party want to let our broken health care system get worse. People like Obama want to make sure kids don't lose their health insurance. People like Romney want to pound their chests and talk tough about what they'd do of they had power but we've already seen what they would do. 2000-2008 showed that.

That is absolutely true. This year's election choices come the closest to the good/evil choice mechanics in video games out of any recent election I've seen.

 

[Puddles]

And I'm officially deleting Facebook today. My brother in law was a democrat and is now a republican. He's off in Afghanistan and I started debating him and some of his friends on Facebook and had to stop. This shit is too much and it's fuckin up my relationships with people.

What made him change?

 

[pigeon]

That's right. But then it becomes about making Obama's Democratic successor unelectable, and ruining his legacy.

This just isn't a sustainable course for them, though. Partly because, as noted, the GOP and Congress had the worst approval ratings they've had in the history of approval ratings in the last four years, but also because, as noted EARLIER, the current GOP base is moving more and more out of the mainstream. If the GOP want to have a chance at the Presidency in the next decade or so, they need to start thinking about moderation now, in the same way that the Democrats moved right with Nixon and again with Reagan. Obviously the Tea Party won't be doing that, nor the evangelicals, but people like Boehner and McConnell are perfectly capable of it -- and Boehner's actually been trying to do it for a couple of years now, with Ryan and Cantor blocking him. I think it's seriously possible that we'll see some seriously split votes in the House and Senate this year, with the long-time GOP politicians and the Dems voting together, and the Tea Party rejecting them.

 

[RoninChaos]

What made him change?

I guess he got money. That's the only thing I can think of. I stepped away from the conversation because I wasn't going to offer the same amount of respect I give to him to his friends, especially when they started coming in with republican talking points. I don't think my brother-in-law is unreasonable either. If we could have the conversation between ourselves, face-to-face, I know we could find common ground, even with a difference of opinions.

MY problem is I want to go full bore on people who just regurgitate dumb shit just to do it. It's bad enough we have to read Kosmo's bullshit. I don't want to argue with Kosmo Jr's when I'm talking to a family member.

 

[Stinkles]

Edit, answered above.

 

[RoninChaos]

This is false.

Nearly half the voting public is going to vote for Romney/Ryan.

I think if the entire US voted and the Presidency were determined by popular vote, the results would be much more skewed towards Obama.

You knew what I meant. It's assumed that when I say that almost half the country is going to vote for Romney, it means the people who CAN vote.

 

[Stinkles]

Do semantics get you hard? You knew what I meant. It's assumed that when I say that almost half the country is going to vote for Romney, it means the people who can vote.

He was just changing the flow of the conversation. He wasn't literally refuting your point.

 

[Puddles]

I guess he got money. That's the only thing I can think of. I stepped away from the conversation because I wasn't going to offer the same amount of respect I give to him to his friends, especially when they started coming in with republican talking points. I don't think my brother-in-law is unreasonable either. If we could have the conversation between ourselves, face-to-face, I know we could find common ground, even with a difference of opinions.

MY problem is I want to go full bore on people who just regurgitate dumb shit just to do it. It's bad enough we have to read Kosmo's bullshit. I don't want to argue with Kosmo Jr's when I'm talking to a family member.

Yeah, I used to reply all to my grandfather's chain emails and type out long, intricate rebuttals, but I've largely stopped. Most of the time it's not worth it when it comes to family.

Sometimes I'll still hit reply all and just paste a link to some politifact article though.

 

[CharlieDigital]

Do semantics get you hard? You knew what I meant. It's assumed that when I say that almost half the country is going to vote for Romney, it means the people who can vote.

Well, I wanted to put it into perspective that it's not literally half of the US population; it's just about half of the population that votes.

If you can fix that, you can pretty much guarantee Democratic victories across the board for decades.

Yeah, I used to reply all to my grandfather's chain emails and type out long, intricate rebuttals, but I've largely stopped. Most of the time it's not worth it when it comes to family.

Sometimes I'll still hit reply all and just paste a link to some politifact article though.

I rarely discuss politics with friends and family IRL unless someone else asks my opinion on a particular subject. Totally not worth the drama. Which is why I spend way too much time on PoliGAF around elections. I can't get anything done, man....

 

[coldfoot]

I have no problem with republicans that are 1%'ers. At least they are looking out for their own best interests. I have a problem with the others who act against their self interest.

 

[Drek]

Yep, pretty fucking hilarious. Let's see what they say if/when HilDawg makes a run for it in 2016.

I was saying to my wife the other night that I think if Warren wins this year it will push Hillary into running in 2016. No way she wants to see another woman win the presidency when she's still even remotely a viable candidate, and Warren would look like a very legitimate candidate by 2020 or 2024, with a dark horse shot at 2016.

 

[RoninChaos]

Well, I wanted to put it into perspective that it's not literally half of the US population; it's just about half of the population that votes.

If you can fix that, you can pretty much guarantee Democratic victories across the board for decades.

Fair enough. I apologize if I seem antagonistic. I'm pissed off at the current political climate. It seems like for every person out there who wants to have an honest conversation, there are 827 who don't. And they're the fucking problem.

 

[RoninChaos]

Yeah, I used to reply all to my grandfather's chain emails and type out long, intricate rebuttals, but I've largely stopped. Most of the time it's not worth it when it comes to family.

Sometimes I'll still hit reply all and just paste a link to some politifact article though.

Same here. Thank god my grandma doesn't have email. She's one of the best people I know, and smart as fuck, but god damn, sometimes she just falls for the shit she hears, hook line and sinker. ANd it drives me fucking nuts. We don't talk politics, but every once in a while she'll let something slip about the president or something like that and all that goes through my head is 'OMFG, you are a god damned GENIUS, so why don't you check this kind of shit instead of just saying it?"

I truly don't believe things are as black and white as some people make them, and it's beyond infuriating when people you care about, people you know are smart, don't examine what's in front of them. It goes to show that sometimes the belief of something is much more powerful than critical thought. It's like Politics have turned into the NFL. It isn't about ideas anymore for the most part, or working together. It's about stopping the other team from putting points on the board, even if you have to burn the stadium to the ground. It's maddening.

 

[pigeon]

Well, I wanted to put it into perspective that it's not literally half of the US population; it's just about half of the population that votes.

Yeah, I'm not sure whether moving Election Day to a weekend would be better, or federally mandating early voting hours, or even 24-hour voting the way we have 24-hour postmarking on April 15th, but opening up the franchise should be a huge priority for Democrats. And, in fairness, it's also morally right, so that's a plus.

 

[Chumly]

Im really surprised that they are indicating that Clinton did a good job because Clinton's going to fully endorse Obama

 

[Tim-E]

I was saying to my wife the other night that I think if Warren wins this year it will push Hillary into running in 2016. No way she wants to see another woman win the presidency when she's still even remotely a viable candidate, and Warren would look like a very legitimate candidate by 2020 or 2024, with a dark horse shot at 2016.

Warren will be 67 by 2016 and 71 in 2020. I don't think she's going to run for President.

 

[CharlieDigital]

Yeah, I'm not sure whether moving Election Day to a weekend would be better, or federally mandating early voting hours, or even 24-hour voting the way we have 24-hour postmarking on April 15th, but opening up the franchise should be a huge priority for Democrats. And, in fairness, it's also morally right, so that's a plus.

I have heard in passing that a few of the young Middle Eastern democracies have adopted national holidays for voting (too lazy to check right now and a conf call coming up >.<).

It seems strange to me that we do not have a similar practice given the importance of the act and history of the right.

 

[GhaleonEB]

I'd just like to note that this is quintessential Nate Silver:

The weather channel forecasts a 30% chance of rain tomorrow night. But it forecasts a 30%+ chance of rain about one-third of the time.​

 

[PantherLotus]

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/sununu-obama-breaks-bill-clintons-legacy-shatters-it

Sununu: Obama Breaks Bill Clinton’s Legacy, ‘Shatters It With A Sledgehammer And Runs Over It With A Steamroller’


Can someone explain the GOP's love of the Clintions? They went from accusing Bill and Hillary of outright murder and impeachment to praising both almost every chance they get. This love fest, if my memory serves me right, even goes back to the 2008 Dem primaries.

Here's what we need: a side-by-side comparison of what they used to say about Clinton with what they've said about Obama. On video. And then we can include Sununu's little rant. Might make for a little gotcha journalism.

Rain = OK

Thunderstorms = Bad


but i'm sure Kosmo will come in here with the conspiracy that they moved it because they wouldn't be able to fill the stadium, even though they gave out an additional 65000 passes.

Too late. He really did do this just several pages back, I swear to god.

 

[Zzoram]

In Canada, we typically have 12 hours to vote on election day and if your work schedule prevents you from having 3 consecutive hours within that period to vote, your employer must allow you to take time off to vote. Typically this is done by letting you come in late or leave early, the employer chooses. Also, this must be paid time off.

What is it like for election day in the USA?

 

[Tim-E]

I think today marks the first time that Fivethirtyeight has had Obama at a 70+% chance of winning in Colorado, Iowa, and Virginia.

 

[Blergmeister]

What is it like for election day in the USA?

Vote on Tuesday. Good luck!

 

[Suikoguy]

In Canada, we typically have 12 hours to vote on election day and if your work schedule prevents you from having 3 consecutive hours within that period to vote, your employer must allow you to take time off to vote. Typically this is done by letting you come in late or leave early, the employer chooses. Also, this must be paid time off.

What is it like for election day in the USA?

Every man for himself.
Some states have early voting, some states have mail in ballots.

 

[Stinkles]

What is it like for election day in the USA?

It is designed to be as difficult as possible, it is not a holiday, happens ona Tuesday for no good reason, it is almost universally unpaid, and lines are incredibly long.