2012 election

[Chronos]

I still don't get it...is it different from state to state? When I registered to vote (at the DMV) here in Tennessee, no one asked me if I was Republican or Democrat. It doesn't mention any affiliation on the card...did Strategic Allied Consulting ask people to register as either Democrat or Republican? Is that legal? Normal? How come no one asked me? Why doesn't my card even have a spot to identify my political leanings?

Yes, registration varies by state. In some states you declare a party affiliation when you register, in other states you just register. The states that don't have you declare affiliation when you register normally request your affiliation right before you vote (in a primary election to know which ballot to give you). I believe Romney stated that he once affiliated as a Democrat to vote against Ted Kennedy (in a primary election). So, Massachusetts must be a state where you announce your affiliation right before you pick up a ballot.

I have only registered to vote in states in which you declare your affiliation at registration.

[Nick]

That can't be.  Are you suggesting Romney was less than truthful?  He is a servere conservative.

[screwtape]

Again, the last debate may have reflected Romney's true colors. 
... I'm sure I could be wrong.

I have no idea whether you are wrong, jet, because I truly have no idea what Willard's true colors are.  He changes them from moment to moment.  He described himself as "severely conservative"[1] and then mirrors Obama's policies.  I have no idea who he really is.  I am genuinely confused.  But I suspect his only true colors are the colors of money. 

1.	http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mitt-romney-reframes-himself-as-a-severely-conservative-governor/2012/02/14/gIQAaMiqHR_story.html

[Nam]

In 2008 there were McCain/Palin signs all over my neighborhood (a couple Obama/Biden) now there are none. Not for Obama and not even for Romney, 'til yesterday, when across the street I saw a Romney/Ryan sign. I thought, "They are Republicans, really?" And then I remembered that ditsy blonde video someone posted and I thought, "I guess it's possible." Then I went to smoke a cigarette last night, and the neighbor across the street came home, saw the sign, removed it and put it in the trash while saying, "Dumb Republican bastards!" really loudly. I guess he wasn't Republican. Which means some Romney supporter went around innocuously choosing other peoples houses and placing the sign there in their yards.

I actually have hope, for at least my neighborhood, in which way they are going. I mean, if they don't have signs in front of their houses this election (and they don't) then that could be hope for Obama in a couple of weeks.

Or not.

-Nam

[Jag]

Ever since I saw this thread, I've been paying more attention to signs. I'm relatively new to this part of the 'burbs, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

Not at all like I would have thought. Like most of you, I'm not seeing many signs at all. Of note to me, in the places I do see political signs, the vast majority of them are "Vote No" for the marriage amendment. I was all over St Paul one day last week and saw about the same proportion as there are in the outskirts. Without actually counting, my impression was that there were slightly more Obama/Biden, but not by a large margin. What struck me most was how few there were.

Minnesota, despite Michele Bachmann, is generally pretty democratic, but I've never seen a political season with so few signs of any kind.

[Jag]

OMFSM!

Beck was clearly disgusted with the Republican nominee’s performance, tweeting, “I am so glad mitt agrees with Obama so much. No, really. Why vote?”
Raw Story (http://s.tt/1qUAk)

But it's still okay. According to Beck, God is guiding Romney, so all is well.

I must admit a bit of concern for Mr Beck though. I understood him to have won a battle against cocaine addiction (and all BS aside, good for him), but I fear he may have moved on to hallucinogenics - apparently he thought he saw George Washington on stage during the debate.

[Nick]

Well, Joseph Smith was a founding father.

[Chronos]

I must admit a bit of concern for Mr Beck though. I understood him to have won a battle against cocaine addiction (and all BS aside, good for him), but I fear he may have moved on to hallucinogenics - apparently he thought he saw George Washington on stage during the debate.

Religion is a socially acceptable hallucinogenic.

Republicanism is merely okay as a hallucinogenic. Apparently most don't really like the trip it provides.

[Nick]

So Beck just traded one crutch for another.

[Nick]

I was watching TYT tonight and they had a report where Romney (thru his wife cashing the check) benefited from the auto bailout by 100 million bucks by having a stake in a auto parts business GM could not do without and the business told GM to pay them billions or they would break them.

MItt is such a nice guy.  No wonder he does not want to show taxes from back then.

[Nam]

Hey, didn't he show last years? I mean, what else do you want from the guy?



-Nam

[HAL]

I voted today - for Obama - even though in my state it won't matter a bit.

I did my civic duty.

[JeffPT]

Ever since I saw this thread, I've been paying more attention to signs. I'm relatively new to this part of the 'burbs, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

Not at all like I would have thought. Like most of you, I'm not seeing many signs at all. Of note to me, in the places I do see political signs, the vast majority of them are "Vote No" for the marriage amendment. I was all over St Paul one day last week and saw about the same proportion as there are in the outskirts. Without actually counting, my impression was that there were slightly more Obama/Biden, but not by a large margin. What struck me most was how few there were.

Minnesota, despite Michele Bachmann, is generally pretty democratic, but I've never seen a political season with so few signs of any kind.

I can't believe I am going to say this, but here in South Carolina lately, I have seen more Obama / Biden stickers and yard signs than Romney / Ryan.  No joke.  Maybe I'm just more shocked at seeing them and that's why I'm remembering them more, but just tonight we took our kids to get flu shots and I saw 3 for Obama and not a single Romney sign. 

On the other hand, almost every other license plate has "In God We Trust" on it, and every third car has some sort of religious icon stuck to the back.  I guess it's one step at a time.   

[Nam]

They go to political AA meetings, for that.

-Nam

[Nick]

Ever since I saw this thread, I've been paying more attention to signs. I'm relatively new to this part of the 'burbs, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

Not at all like I would have thought. Like most of you, I'm not seeing many signs at all. Of note to me, in the places I do see political signs, the vast majority of them are "Vote No" for the marriage amendment. I was all over St Paul one day last week and saw about the same proportion as there are in the outskirts. Without actually counting, my impression was that there were slightly more Obama/Biden, but not by a large margin. What struck me most was how few there were.

Minnesota, despite Michele Bachmann, is generally pretty democratic, but I've never seen a political season with so few signs of any kind.

I can't believe I am going to say this, but here in South Carolina lately, I have seen more Obama / Biden stickers and yard signs than Romney / Ryan.  No joke.  Maybe I'm just more shocked at seeing them and that's why I'm remembering them more, but just tonight we took our kids to get flu shots and I saw 3 for Obama and not a single Romney sign. 

On the other hand, almost every other license plate has "In God We Trust" on it, and every third car has some sort of religious icon stuck to the back.  I guess it's one step at a time.

Do a lot of people get flu shots in S. Carolina?  I thought they would just pray the flu away.

[Nick]

I voted today - for Obama - even though in my state it won't matter a bit.

I did my civic duty.

Congrats.  I did the same a few weeks back. Also, prob won't matter in my state  either but I'm glad it is done.  This thing can't be over soon enough.

[Nam]

I am voting Saturday, which is the first day of early voting.

-Nam

[Chronos]

"This election feels like it's tighter than Mitt Romney's ass in a prison shower."
-- Bill Maher, speaking with Nate Silver on Real Time

[Nick]

I saw that also. Pretty funny.  I hope that Nate Silver guy knows what he is talking about.  It is hard to argue with numbers and facts but I'm not sure he has calculated in the dishonesty factor (Karl Rove and his band of merry billionaires).

[ParkingPlaces]

As of today, Nate Silver gives Obama a 74% chance of winning. This is predicated on the assumption that we will all get out there and vote, so don't let that number cause you to think you don't have to bother.

An interesting idea has been put forward that would change the election process a bit. Rather than depend entirely upon the Electoral College, an additional 29 points would go to whichever candidate had the most popular votes. That would cause candidates to do things like, oh, I dunno, go campaign in non-swing states and stuff. Methinks it may be a great idea. Not this year, of course, because Romney could still get the most votes. But you know, whenever it would be to the advantage of whoever I want to have win. 

The story is here: http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/264227-israel-offers-amendment-to-give-popular-vote-winner-29-move-electoral-votes


PS- Good point Nick. I don't think he can factor in vote flipping and other bits of election dishonesty. But he has such a good track record that if things turn out markedly different from what he is predicting, I think we can give serious thought to questioning the results rather than Nate Silver's veracity.

[Nam]

I am not voting Saturday. Weather forecast is: high wind, and some rain. I will go Monday.

-Nam

[jetson]

I am not voting Saturday. Weather forecast is: high wind, and some rain. I will go Monday.

-Nam

whew...I was worried for a sec...

[Nam]

It's actually really cold, too.

-Nam

[relativetruth]

I saw that also. Pretty funny.  I hope that Nate Silver guy knows what he is talking about.  It is hard to argue with numbers and facts but I'm not sure he has calculated in the dishonesty factor (Karl Rove and his band of merry billionaires).

But the Polls have not properly accounted for Early voters, Latinos [due to survey mechanics], Democratic GOTV in key states, and failed GOP voter suppression initiatives.

You have got to keep the FAITH!!     

[shnozzola]

Rachel Maddow had this video on last night:

Vice President Joe Biden at George McGovern's funeral:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/10/26/1150988/-Rachel-Maddow-Biden-s-Eulogy-for-McGovern-Demonstrates-Character-and-Trustworthiness

[Nam]

I just read in The Economist that they think Indiana will go to Bill Clinton as a "write-in".[1]

-Nam

1.	not really but it seemed implied.

[Nick]

Rachel Maddow had this video on last night:

Vice President Joe Biden at George McGovern's funeral:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/10/26/1150988/-Rachel-Maddow-Biden-s-Eulogy-for-McGovern-Demonstrates-Character-and-Trustworthiness

The right can make fun of Biden all they want.  The man is class.  This address and the one he gave to parents of those who lost children in Afghanistan was from the heart and was so comforting.  You would never hear or FEEL words like that from anyone on the right.  Thank you Joe for being who you are and helping to get this country back to some kind of civility.

[Nam]

Biden in 2017!

-Nam

[kin hell]

Being an atheist republican must generate some weird conflict of interest/cognitive dissonance at times.


http://www.politicususa.com/bill-maher-if-mittmobile-roll-washington-towing-anti-intellectual-anti-science-freak-show.html

“This is what you get with today’s Republican Party, and a new Republican administration would be an open for business sign to all the bizarre Bible thumping bulls**t that the Obama administration has given us a break from. And to those who say oh, don’t worry, Mitt Romney will stand up to the extreme elements of his party. There’s just one problem with that. It has the name Mitt Romney, and the words stand up in the same sentence.”

This may come as a shock to some people, but Mitt Romney doesn’t have the backbone of George W. Bush. Grover Norquist wanted a rubber stamp president and that is exactly who Mitt Romney would be. The reason why Romney hasn’t pulled his endorsement of Richard Mourdock is that he is absolutely terrified of the far right wing of the Republican Party. Romney is still trying to convince far right that he is one of them. If elected, Romney would cave and give the right everything that they want.

Bill Maher was right. All of the extremist right wing cultural baggage that most Americans disagreed with during the Bush years will return bigger than ever if Romney is elected. These people aren’t working so hard to elect Romney because they believe in him and support him. They are fighting tooth and nail for Romney because they desperately want to be back in power. One of the reasons why they hate Obama so much is because he has stopped their agenda dead in its tracks.