health care

The Negatives Of Mitt Romney Growing, Making His Nomination For President Less Likely Scenario!

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Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has long been thought to be the frontrunner for the Republican Presidential nomination, but as we get closer to the Iowa Caucuses and New Hampshire primary, about a month from now, his problems and challenges are growing rapidly!

Romney is now seen as very vulnerable in many different ways, including:

1. Romney may be respected, but is not loved, as Time Magazine reports this week.

2. Romney, being a Mormon, a subject he tries to avoid discussing, is becoming a growing issue to many evangelical Christians and other Protestant religious groups, who feel that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a cult, and not Christian, but instead a phony religion.

3. Romney, being extremely wealthy (estimated $250 million minimum) comes across as part of the elite, the one percent, as one of “them” against the rest of us, and with his comments advocating the destruction of the auto industry in Michigan and elsewhere, his support of accelerating home foreclosures, and his bad joke about being “unemployed” , that image is hard to overcome.

4. Romney, being from the Northeast, and specifically Massachusetts, a Democratic state, is unappealing to a party which gets its major support from the South, Midwest and Mountain West.

5. Romney has an image of being a moderate, in fact to some as liberal, due to his support of a state health care plan in Massachusetts, which became a model for Barack Obama’s push for health care reform, and Romney cannot escape that image and advocacy no matter how hard he tries.

6. Having moved from liberal to moderate viewpoints when first running against Senator Ted Kennedy unsuccessfully in 1994, and then successfully for Governor in 2002, and now claiming to be a conservative who has completely transformed himself and his views, he comes across as a massive “flip flopper”, possibly one of the greatest such cases in American history, and therefore, is seen as not genuine, not honest, not believable, not reliable that he will keep the views he now professes.

7. Romney comes across as arrogant, haughty, not liking to be challenged, snobby, and seemingly believing he is “entitled” to be the next Repubiican nominee as the so called “next in waiting” runner up candidate in the past, just like John McCain in 2008 and Bob Dole in 1996.

So Mitt Romney is in deep trouble, and many are starting to think he may not be the GOP nominee for President in 2012!

Newt Gingrich: Flip Flopper Par Excellence!

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Many political observers have pointed out that Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts Governor, is a “Flip Flopper” on almost every issue, which he most certainly is!

But his new major rival, Newt Gingrich, who is surging in the polls, has also proved to be a major “Flip Flopper” par excellence.

He has changed his views on:

1. Climate Change
2. Paul Ryan’s plan for Medicare
3. Mandates for Health Care legislation
4. Libya Policy
5. Education Reform
6. The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP)
7. His religious beliefs
8. His Views on Lobbying and Earmarks
9. His opposition to torture
10.His views on the environment

Gingrich has proved that there is no issue that he will not change his views if it will advance his lust for power and influence and public attention. He is a man without principle except his own advancement!

The “Near Poor”: A New Category Of Poverty

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In the past, we have known that poverty existed, and the fact that about 49 million people, one out of six in this country, are in that sad state, a large percentage of them being children.

But now the Census Bureau, through gathering of new data, has come up with a new category, the “near poor”.

This category is approximately 51 million people, making for a total of about 100 million people, one out of THREE, who are either in poverty or in “near poverty”!

Of course, the “near poor” are better off than those defined as “poor”, in the sense that they work and own a car, but they own a car with a lot of mileage, do not make enough to have a sense of “getting ahead”, and often do not have health care coverage, which means if they get sick or have an accident, it sets them back with heavy bills that can push them over the line into poverty.

There is no room for error among this group, as they teeter on the verge of bankruptcy from unexpected bills that may crop up, and they are unable to have much hope about the future.

One third of the “near poor” are elderly, and 39 percent are children. The “American Dream” is not coming through for these people at both ends of the age spectrum! The group of 51 million people is just “scraping by”, and there is a sense of hopelessness.

If one has an income under $50,000 in major metropolitan areas, he or she fits into this group if part of a family of four, and they have suffered from a decade of flat wages, as well as the economic collapse of the Great Recession. The fact that many live in the suburbs is misleading, as we are witnessing the growing poverty of many suburban communities, and the foreclosures on many homes, decimating what were once middle class neighborhoods.

As the saying goes, there is no “wiggle room” for this category of “near poor”, as they struggle every day to stay “above water”, with the danger of “drowning”, falling into poverty.

The Chris Christie Endorsement Of Mitt Romney: An Attempt To Outflank The Tea Party Movement In The Republican Party!

Ronald 1 Comment

The decision of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, fresh off a choice NOT to run for the GOP Presidential nomination, to endorse former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney for President is a major victory for Romney in his battle with Rick Perry and other conservatives in the party.

Christie adds legitimacy to Romney as someone who can appeal across the political spectrum within the party, and certainly puts Christie on a short list of potential Vice Presidential choices for Romney, if he ends up the nominee, even though it seems likely that Christie would not wish to be a “second fiddle”, when he is the powerful Governor of a state which makes that office very consequential in the state constitution.

However, it can also be seen as the “Establishment” Northeastern Republicans trying to co-opt the Tea Party Movement, which is the extreme right wing within the party, and secretly terrifies many in the party.

Since so many Wall Street types and Establishment people were pushing Christie to run, it is assumed that they are now switching to Romney, even if with some reluctance and doubt, in order to stop Perry and other conservatives from taking over the party apparatus.

The question still is there: Will the Tea Party Movement be willing to back Romney, with his changing views on social issues, on health care, and with his Mormon faith? If not, it means a threat of a third party movement which could defeat Romney. So will Romney move to the right further, or ignore the Tea Party Movement and attempt to run as a centrist candidate to win independents, moderates, and conservative Democrats?

It will be interesting to watch tonight’s debate in New Hampshire, sponsored by Bloomberg Television and the Washington Post, as to how Romney answers questions, and deals with attacks by Perry, Herman Cain, and others, including Jon Huntsman, who wants very much to start to be a real moderate alternative to Romney!

The Flaws Of A Mitt Romney Presidential Candidacy

Ronald 1 Comment

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has many virtues, many positives, that should make him a model candidate for the White House, including:

1. Strong business background with Bain Capital and as head of the Salt Lake City Olympics Committee for 2002.
2. Promoted a health care plan in Massachusetts which is seen as a major success by many.
3. Bright, intelligent, photogenic candidate, with great family image, including his wife and five sons.
4. Knowledgeable about economic matters, and seen as Presidential caliber in many people’s minds.
5. Has presented good body language in debates and has greater potential to appeal to moderates, Independents, and conservative Democrats.

Despite all of the above, there are a long list of flaws that will make it difficult for Romney to win the GOP nomination for President, and if he does, to win the election over President Barack Obama. Among them are :

1. Romney comes across as a chameleon, a person who is constantly over the years changing his views on many issues, seen as originally a moderate and trying to paint himself as a conservative–therefore perceived as a phony candidate, and a “flip flopper”!
2. Romney was not well liked personally by his opponents in the 2008 Presidential race, particularly John McCain and Mike Huckabee, and is not even now well liked by the Bush clan and other Establishment Republicans.
3. Romney is not well regarded by evangelical Christians, a large group in primaries and caucuses, because of his Mormon faith, and one wonders could he win the “Bible Belt” South and Great Plains, areas usually Republican. but seeing Mormons as a cult, and not Christian!
4. All through the race for the GOP nomination, despite Romney showing the best ability in polls to compete with President Obama, there has been a constant search for an alternative, whether Donald Trump, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Jon Huntsman, and now Chris Christie, not a sign of much feeling of emotion or passionate feelings of love for Romney.
5. Romney has shown insensitivity toward average people, by joking that he is unemployed; by talking about his Cadillacs collection; and by having a project to increase the size of his home to a mansion at a time when many are losing their own homes. Being the richest candidate in the race may give him a money edge, but he comes across as not understanding the problems of the middle class!
6. Despite his recent improved debate performances, Romney still has an image of being stiff, uncomfortable in his own skin, not totally relaxed, and not truly knowing how to deal with irate questioners at rallies, and with strong criticism. It makes one wonder would he be able to work well with Congress, whether his own party or the opposition, with so little political experience, only one term as Governor, and thinking his lack of a career in politics is a plus, which it really is not!
7. Romney’s ability to get people out to vote for him is doubtful, since he does not evoke strong feelings of support, and his poll numbers are still seen as very soft.
8. Romney’s attempt to steer clear of the Tea Party Movement makes one wonder if he could ever work well with fellow Republicans, who in many cases would be much further to the right politically than he would feel comfortable being himself, once in office.
9. Can a candidate from the Northeast, the stronghold of Barack Obama, have any opportunity to defeat him in any scenario that would add up to 270 electoral votes? That seems highly doubtful, as in many ways, Romney comes across as somewhat distant in the same way as two past Massachusetts Democrats who ran for President had trouble overcoming–Michael Dukakis in 1988 and John Kerry in 2004. Those two who lost to father and son Bush did not face a man with the charisma and emotional feelings of support that Barack Obama has had, and even in bad times, still has to some extent today!
10. By coming out hard line against immigration reform that allows illegal immigrants and their children a path to citizenship, Romney, like other Republicans, is losing the future, as Hispanic population and voter participation is growing in the Southwest and across the nation, and they are not likely to throw support to a candidate who demeans them and treats them as not deserving of respect and empathy for their futures in America!

There are probably other points that could be made, but it is clear that Mitt Romney has major flaws in so many ways that his candidacy for President is going to require a lot of luck and good fortune for him to end up in the Oval Office!

The Obscenity Of GOP Debate Audiences: What Is Wrong With These People?

Ronald 1 Comment

In the past two weeks, we have seen three Republican Presidential debates, and we have witnessed the obscenity of debate audiences.

What is wrong with these people?

In the first debate, the audience cheered at the mention of Rick Perry’s all time record of 234 executions of prison inmates while Governor, as if this is a great accomplishment!

In the second debate, when the idea of a person in a coma needing medical care but having no medical insurance was brought up, a few in the crowd yelled that the unfortunate gentleman should just die!

Yesterday, in the third debate, when a question came up about the end of “don’t ask, don’t tell”, and a gay member of the military was shown on screen, a portion of the audience booed him, and then Rick Santorum added insult to injury by suggesting that he would re-institute the policy if he became President! Why was there no respect for this man serving in the military and recognition of his sacrifices fighting for this nation, so that wealthier, privileged people do not have to serve?

What is wrong with these people,who have such hate, and take such SICK stands on capital punishment, health care, and gays in the military? Is this what we face if the Tea Party radicals gain control of the Republican Party?

Does the party of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan really want to gain the support of these whackos?

It is time for the party to repudiate these hate mongers, and for any further outbursts at future debates to witness ALL the candidates make it clear that they consider it reprehensible!

If they do not, then all of them deserve to be repudiated overwhelmingly by the American people!

The Republican Culture: Death, Hate, Selfishness, Lack Of Compassion!

Ronald 2 Comments

The Republican Party, in its mad dash to the far Right with Texas Governor Rick Perry in the lead, is demonstrating its ugly side, arguably the most despicable agenda since the creation of the party in the Civil War era!

Always a major backer of corporations and the rich upper class, the party always maintained some sanity, and while not promoting the social safety net as a principle, we saw members of the party in different northern states and in Congress who worked in unison with Democrats to support the Progressive Era reforms, the New Deal, and the Great Society, and reforms under Richard Nixon.

The one time the party went this far to the Right, they suffered a massive defeat under Barry Goldwater a half century ago. When Ronald Reagan became President on much of the Goldwater agenda, he managed to work across the party lines and take away the rough edges of the right wing, mouthing support but not pursing much of their agenda.

But now with the advent of the Tea Party loonies, the party is adopting a new culture, that should sicken any civilized, decent American citizen!

Unfortunately, as witnessed at the recent Republican debates in California and Florida, there are many Americans who fail to act and believe in a dignified manner of behavior!

Now death, in the form of capital punishment endorsement and advocacy of letting people without health insurance die, has been endorsed enthusiastically by right wing Republican whackos!

Now, hate of illegal immigrants and their children, and wishes to deny them basic education, health care and ability to work and contribute to American society, is endorsed wholeheartedly!

Now, selfishness, including desire to destroy labor organizing, and lack of respect and appreciation of the contributions of public workers, including police officers, firefighters, prison guards, teachers, nurses, librarians, social workers and others is endorsed!

Lack of compassion for the poor, the sick, the disabled, the elderly, and for minority groups in America is hailed as a virtue!

One day, when this sickness in the psyche of the Republican Party is finally expunged, we will look back on this period with shock and regret, and wonder why a major political party would allow itself to engage in such insane behavior!

The great Republican heroes of the past–Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan–would be shocked and embarrassed by what the party has allowed itself to become!

But even the lesser Republican Presidents–William Howard Taft, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush–would, and in the case of the two Bushes, are very disturbed at what their party has become. This is the reason why Jon Huntsman and Mitt Romney are seen as mainstream by the Bush family, and why they are clearly against the horrible message of Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann!

Even the great heroes of the conservative Republican movement in the past–Robert Taft and Barry Goldwater–were not as ugly as these Tea Party Republicans are today!

Hopefully, this poison in the political debate going on, will be soundly defeated in 2012, by sane, intelligent people, who realize what the Tea Party control of the GOP has done is to make America far worse off than it was just nine months ago when they took power in the House of Representatives and declared war on basic values of decency!

Rick Perry: Dangerous For The Republican Party And America’s Future! He Must Be Stopped!

Ronald 1 Comment

Texas Governor Rick Perry may have flubbed a bit in his debate performance in Tampa on Monday, but he remains the front runner for the Republican Presidential nomination as of today, and it is looking more likely that he really could end up as the nominee of the party of Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and Reagan!

This is dangerous for the party and the nation, as Perry has many shortcomings, as well as dangerous aspects in his background and viewpoints!

For the party, Perry represents a threat to the Establishment Republicans, the middle, the mainstream of the party in the past, and gives power to the extremists of the Tea Party Movement!

With Jon Huntsman apparently floundering, even though the author feels he came across very well in the past two debates, the only hope in the field of candidates is Mitt Romney, with all of his shortcomings and faults, but it will not be easy to overcome the Tea Party takeover of the party!

One could say that if the party nominates Perry, they will lose, and that will be, therefore, only their problem as to how to recover from a disastrous defeat in 2012.

But with the economy so bad right now, the idea is starting to develop that maybe, just maybe, Barack Obama COULD lose in 2012, giving us President Perry, and possibly a Tea Party Congress, enough to make one hysterical and give one nightmares, and the purpose here is NOT to joke, but be very serious!

Were Perry to win, we would face the following, with and without a Tea Party majority in Congress:

1. We would have a President who is not very smart, not very curious to learn, not open to new ideas, very rigid in his right wing beliefs, unwilling to compromise, arrogant, cocky, with a swagger about him, and not willing to be transparent in his activities in the White House!

2. We would have a complete takeover of right wing conservatism, leading to total deregulation, cutting of taxes even further on the rich, attempts to destroy several government agencies or make them ineffective in their work, and resulting in widespread corruption due to “cronyism”!

3. We would have a President who would be arrogant toward the outside world, create crises and possible interventions in other countries, and boast about “American exceptionalism”, undermining relations even with our allies and friends around the world.! The neoconservative view of foreign policy would dominate.

4. Civil Liberties would be violated worse than any President in modern times, and civil rights enforcement for Latinos, African Americans, women and gays would end!

5. We would see a theocracy develop, as Rick Perry would constantly invoke Jesus Christ, talk about God and religion more than any President, including Woodrow Wilson, Jimmy Carter, and George W. Bush, and promote as much combination of church and state as one can imagine might happen.

6. The economy would NOT get better, and instead we would have more poverty, deprivation, and human suffering, similar to the reality in Texas under Governor Perry.

7. War would be declared on environmentalists, and scientists, in the name of industry and religion, undermining our education system nationally, as well as our health care programs.

8. Justice and fairness in the law would be undermined, as capital punishment would become a virtue, and the courts, including the Supreme Court, would become the most right wing in American history since the Gilded Age of the late 19th century.

9. The goal of a Perry Administration would be the destruction of Social Security, Medicare, and all other social safety net programs, and basically the repeal of the Progressive Era of Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Great Society of Lyndon B. Johnson, and the other reforms under Richard Nixon in the early 1970s.

10. Fundamentally, America would go back a full century to the Gilded Age, with the total or near total repeal of the 20th century, which made America the envy of the free world!

This is serious stuff here, no joking, and all efforts must be made in the Republican Party to defeat Rick Perry, and if that fails, and even if it succeeds, do everything necessary to reelect Barack Obama as the only hope for moving forward in the second decade of the 21st century!

Rick Perry: An “Enviable Record” Of Accomplishments and Beliefs?

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Does Rick Perry have an “enviable record” of accomplishments and beliefs as Governor of Texas for the past eleven years?

Education–The absolutely worst record of educational accomplishments and graduation rate from high schools, and a massive budget cut this year,

Health Care–One out of four Texans have no health care coverage at all, not seen as a problem by the Governor.

Capital Punishment–The highest rate of executions of any Governor, including many questionable cases of miscarriage of justice.

Social Security–Calling the program a “Ponzi Scheme”, totally off the wall, and undermining its future by scaring young people who are paying into the system, along with those getting it and near to eligibility for it.

Employment–Bragging about the most jobs created, without revealing most are minimum wage or below, or are government or military jobs, which he has no right to give himself credit for.

Immigration–Claims that there is a crisis on the border, when statistics show there is NOT a crisis.

Much more could be delineated, but the point is clear: Rick Perry is himself a “Ponzi Scheme”, a charlatan, a liar, a phony of major proportions!

The “Social” Issues In The Presidential Campaign Of 2012: Are They Really Gay Marriage, Abortion, Affirmative Action, Gun Rights, School Prayer, And Immigration?

Ronald 2 Comments

If you listen to Republican Presidential candidates and “social” conservatives, many of whom claim to be “good Christians”, one would conclude that the social issues for the nation in 2012 are:

1. Gay Marriage
2. Abortion
3. Affirmative Action
4. Gun Rights
5. School Prayer
6. Immigration

All of these issues are extremely controversial, but what are the REAL social issues in America?

1. Homelessness of so many Americans, including those once middle class citizens.
2. Hunger, where many Americans, millions of them children, have inadequate nutrition, which will affect them long term.
3. Unemployment long term of millions, many of them over 40 and through the 50s and early 60s in age, who will never be able to gain employment at all at any time, or at the most, never make anywhere near the same income they had been earning in good times.
4. The destruction of the retirement funds and plans of millions of senior citizens, who now have to work many more years than planned just to survive.
5. The lack of health insurance and coverage of many millions of people who cannot afford to go to a doctor or hospital, or afford extremely expensive medication that would prolong life.
6. The lack of educational opportunity for those who are in poverty stricken neighborhoods, and receive an inferior education due to local property taxes being the main source of educational funding.
7. The discrimination against the children of undocumented immigrants, who discover when becoming adults, that they cannot attend college or join the military, and are threatened with deportation, along with discrimination visited against them and their parents and family members in states, such as Alabama and Arizona, because of illegal immigration laws which are being challenged in the federal courts.
8. The continuing challenge for disabled Americans, whether from birth or as a result of accidents or health problems, who, despite the Americans With Disabilities Act passed under President George H. W. Bush in 1990, still face barriers to equality of treatment.

These eight problems listed above are the REAL social challenges, but the Republican Party and so called “religious” people totally ignore these issues, instead promoting a new version of the old Social Darwinism and Laizzez Faire Economics prevalent in the Gilded Age of the late 19th century!

In other words, they want to go back to the 19th century, wipe out the 20th century, and promote good old “Christian” and “Unbridled Capitalism” values, which made America a nation ripe for reform and change, including the Progressive Era, The New Deal, and The Great Society!

This attempt to return to the old conservatism is a great evil which must be defeated by all good, really “religious” people of all faiths, who believe in equality of opportunity and fairness and consideration of others less fortunate than those of us who are lucky and successful, and do not experience the hardships of others!

The past is the past, and we need to look to the future, and realize if one American is homeless, hungry, denied health care and education, or discriminated against, then we are all worse off because of those realities!

This must be a country of WE, rather than simply ME!