Super Tuesday Not So Super

Super tuesday was not the game changing test that it was in the 2008 election. There were no real surprise victories. Newt Gingrich won his home state of Georgia by a significant margin and Romney won Massachusetts by a large margin. Romney is also have said to have won the much coveted Ohio and will likely take home most of the delegates from Ohio because of his wins in the more populated areas and also because Senator Santorum failed to meet the requirements to be put on the ballot in some congressional districts in Ohio. Senator Santorum also did not file for all of the delegates in six districts, failed to file for all 18 of his at large delegates and also failed to appear on the ballot in the state of Virginia. It is likely that these ballot troubles will continue as he failed to meet the requirements to be placed on the ballot in Washington D.C. and in some districts in Illinois. Governor Romney has criticized Senator Santorum for his lack of organization, but Mr. Santorum has simply brushed it off. Instead, Senator Santorum has called for Newt Gingrich to throw in the towel, so the nomination can become a two man race, between a true conservative (Santorum) and a moderate (Romney). Gingrich having a strong base in the south may pose a threat to Santorum in upcoming primaries in Mississippi and Alabama. However, it is not likely that Gingrich will drop out before those key primaries on March 13th, but if he does not get much support in Mississippi and Alabama then that could likely be the end of his quest for the GOP nomination.

Although Santorum and Gingrich appeal more to the southern core of the Republican party Romney has not given up hope. His campaign is running the most expensive advertising campaign in the south out of all the candidates and hopes to increase his delegates count.

Big Speech, Tiny Crowd

On Friday, Mitt Romney intended to give a moving speech, speaking about ways to revive the American economy. Sadly, what he gave instead was "an unintended lesson about how poor visuals and errant words can derail a candidate’s message in this modern political news culture."

Romney gave his speech in Ford Field, a football stadium equipped to seat 65,000 seats, to a group of 1200 people. Romney's campaign staff states that they did not even choose the venue; the Detroit Economic Club did. However, this fact mattered little to the media, as they posted pictures portraying the empty stadium before Romney had even uttered a word.

Furthermore, despite the fact that this speech was supposed to be about policy, the media focused largely on the aesthetics of his presentation, leaving only one sentence about his actual policies.

Personally, I think it ties very well with our recent chapter, supporting the fact that the media gives little attention to actual policy and instead focuses on the material that will sell. A headline that could hurt Romney's campaign would catch more eyes than an article about his policies.

What are your thoughts on the media's portrayal? Do you think that this will impact Romney's campaign heavily?

Republican Debate Occurs in Florida

This Thursday, 4 republican presidential candidates entered a debate in Florida in which they talked about investments, health (specifically Ron Paul's), investing in health, and moon colonies, among other things.

The debate turned out well for everyone besides Gingrich, who had been losing the momentum gained by his South Carolina win.

I'm not going to summarize the linked article and video, but here's some additional information:

In one instance, Gingrich mentioned his belief that it is critical that the US invest in a colony on the moon. In response, Romney said "I spent 25 years in business. If I had a business executive come to me and say they wanted to spend a few hundred billion dollars to put a colony on the moon, I'd say, 'You're fired.'" Though Romney and Santorum both agreed that the private sector needs to be more explored in space, Santorum agreed with Romney that it is not a good time for the government to be paying for such an endeavor. He also called the proposal an attempt to get local votes from Florida's space-related constituency, and argued that they candidates should be focused on larger issues than arguing for local votes. Ron Paul did not believe that space exploration should be government funded for anything more than possible defense opportunities.

In response to an episode where Gingrich called Romney the most "anti-immigrant" candidate, Romney responded saying that he found the charge repulsive and that such over-the top-statements have characterized politics for too long. Santorum and Romney then agreed that blocking immigrants form jobs would get them to "self-deport," while Ron Paul though a better economy would keep out illegal immigrants (Though this seems counter-intuitive), but that we should patrol the borders more anyway.

I think that, as recent GOP debates go, this debate was more legitimate than some of the other ones, likely due to the lack of less-popular candidates. I also liked the fact that the candidates were open and willing to criticize the appeals to local votes and extreme statements that have made national political debates and campaigns less... intellectual... than they should be.

Also, I particularly liked Ron Paul's defense of his health status.

Romney and the flat rate investment income tax

Thanks to a flat invesment tax rate, Republican candidate Mitt Romney paid 13.9% of his 2010 income in taxes. His income for that year weighed in at about $21.6 milion and he paid $3 milion in taxes. His estimated figures for 2011 have his income at $20.9 milion and a tax rate of 15.4%. His average weekly income is equal to the yearly income of those near the bottom of the top 1%.

Possibly acknowledging the contrast in income tax proportion, Romney has "gone pretty light on his deductions,” according to tax attorney Ken Breir. It seems that Romney does not want to bring any attention to his tax record.

Romney has paid $7.5 milion less in taxes for 2010 and 2011 than what he would have if President Obama's tax plans had been enacted. Paying $7.5 million more in taxes over two years would double his tax rate.

How should investments be taxed? Is it fair that the rich can pay a much lower proportion of their income in taxes?

2-0 for Romney predicts a victory in South Carolina?

Being attacked as not a pure conservative and a heartless “corporate raider” did not stop Romney from finishing first, with a big margin of victory, in the New Hampshire Republican Primary. Speaking before the crowd, Romney declared, “Tonight, we made history.” Focusing on Obama, as always, Romney said to his opponents, “In the last few days, we have seen some desperate Republicans join forces with him [Obama]. This is such a mistake for our party and for our nation. This country already has a leader who divides us with the bitter politics of envy. We must offer an alternative vision.”

Days before the Primary, his Republican opponents seemed to have united on bringing him down. They questioned his work in Bain Capital, the private investment firm he co- founded and source of his wealth, and took out of its original context his remark: “I like to be able to fire people.”

Nonetheless, Romney garnered 39.4% of the votes last Tuesday. Santorum, Gingrich, and Perry were trailing far behind. With all the money he spent, Huntsman only finished third. On the other hand, Ron Paul continued to show a strong standing, with 22.8% of the overall vote.

However, many Republican candidates are hoping to turn the tides in the upcoming South Carolina Primary. Compared to Iowa and New Hampshire, this is a larger and more conservative state. Romney’s moderate views and Mormon faith may not be appealing to the voters. Only “14% of those who voted Tuesday said being a "true conservative" was the most important thing to them.” South Carolina is comprised of a large bloc of evangelical voters, who may pose some resistance against Romney. He also does not have a home- field advantage like in New Hampshire. Moreover, his rivals are more eager on attacking him than ever before. None of them are likely to back down. Huntsman, who is not fairing well, said, “I’d say third place is a ticket to ride. Hello, South Carolina!”

Still, Romney has some advantages. He has an edge in terms of funding, which is necessary as the primaries move toward larger states. Furthermore, most of his rivals only represent portions of the Republican base. For example, Paul appeals to independents while Santorum and Perry attract social conservatives. No one offers a “complete package.” Romney can also benefit a lot if the evangelicals and the tea party spit their votes.

Winning in South Carolina and Florida will be a great victory for Romney and will help him in moving ahead of the pack. But, it all depends on how he handles his opponents and uses his strengths.

Do you guys think that Romney will capture South Carolina? Will his not very conservative views and religion give him a tough time? Is his sole focus of removing Obama in office enough to carry him until November? *

*He said, “Nothing unites Republicans like these two words: Beat Obama."

Mitt vs. Mitt

During the recent Republican debates it seems that Republican candidate Mitt Romney has had different opinions on contradicting issues such as Pro-choice and Anti-choice. As a result, many voters have noticed and questioned his views, but more importantly, Democrats have noticed as well. For example, according to the The New York Times article "Democrats Take Aim at Romney in New Ad" (click on Link), Romney makes a complaint against "Obamacare" claiming that it is, "mainly focused on its mandate that individuals buy coverage, not on the exchanges." However, Romney is in no position to put down "Obamacare" when, "He has been on both sides of the individual mandate issue, too."

On the other hand, Andrea Saul, Romney's Spokesperson, says “Instead of focusing on the economy and creating jobs, President Obama and Democrats are focused on tearing down Mitt Romney.”

Well, then what? Is it the Democrats who are at fault for focusing to much on tearing down Romney? Or should Romney be targeted for his contradicting views?

(If the video doesn't work you can see it if you click on the link)