Category Archives: Politics

Matt Stoller asks, Does the 2012 Presidential Election Matter? and seems to mostly suggest it doesn’t:

The 2012 election, in other words, is at this point a completely empty enterprise, bereft of substance, or integrity. This is new to our era, reminiscent of the late 19th century electoral landscape which was dominated by policy consensus around corruption and plutocracy while electoral contests were organized around “bloody shirt” smear campaigns. Populism intruded briefly, but there’s a reason that time period was known as the time of the robber barons. It’s increasingly analogous to our time.

And yet, I think the robbing would be even worse with the other guys.

It doesn’t help, though, that I got an online poll from “YouGov” today, which among other things asked me the following question:

How much of the time do you think you can trust the government in Washington to do what is right?
Just about always
Most of the time
Some of the time

No, I didn’t cut off the last line. There was no other choice offered.

Straight from the Obama campaign a strong attack video — Romney quotes from the primary campaign.

Those Obama guys might not be good at little things like closing Guantanamo or keeping themselves from arguing for expansive state power, but they seem to be good at campaigning.

Via Kevin Drum, there’s this stab in the jugular:

Assume that Mitt Romney is going to be the GOP nominee eventually. It’s clear that a slice of the base would rather have Rick Santorum and that they are not going to give up easily. Thus, any friend of the party must be concerned that the ongoing battle will just bleed Romney’s campaign of funds, and provide soundbites for Obama to use against him in the general election.

Isn’t it time, therefore, that all friends of the Republican Party urged Mitt Romney to promise to make Santorum his vice presidential nominee in exchange for his support, and thus unify the party before the internecine fighting becomes too much?

Or, they could just let the food fight escalate and provide free entertainment for Democrats.

Without, I think, meaning to, Crooks and Liars makes the case that Mario Rubio really would be the perfect Veep for Mitt Romney:

Marco Rubio is an ever-shifting creature, changing to fit his circumstances in that time for that group without ever internalizing a belief structure he actually believes.

That sounds exactly like Romney! They are perfect for each other. Yes, there is a small religious problem that Crooks and Liars is ostensibly posting about, Marco Rubio is Sort of Mormon (yes, really) (really, really, honest). But we’re past that sort of thing today aren’t we?

Whether we are past expecting our candidates to look and act like the stand for something, anything, remains to be seen.