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15 Feb 2012 14:38

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Politics: PolitiFact chief Bill Adair responds to Rachel Maddow’s criticism

  • Our goal at PolitiFact is to use the Truth-O-Meter to show the relative accuracy of a political claim. In this case, we rated it Mostly True because we felt that while the number was short of a majority, it was still a plurality. 40 percent of Americans consider themselves conservative, 35 percent moderate and 21 percent liberal. It wasn’t quite a majority, but was close.
  • PolitiFact chief Bill Adair • Responding to some aggressive criticism from MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, over PolititFact’s rating of Marco Rubio’s claim that “a majority of Americans are conservatives.” The polling used by PolitiFact to score the claim proved that, in fact, only 40% of Americans self-identify as conservative — not a majority. However, they rated his claim “mostly true,” the stated justification being “conservatives are the largest ideological group, but they don’t cross the 50 percent threshold.” PolitiFact has been the subject of some derision lately, with the spotlight turned on them after their controversial 2011 “Lie Of The Year” selection, about which Bill Adair authored a rather prickly, underwhelming defense. Earlier this week, they got some criticism over debunking a claim from an episode of “Glee.” Frankly, PolitiFact’s ratings have always brought with them a measure of subjectivity, as you might find with any media arbiter; it’s their own lofty title that makes this an issue. Majorities aren’t pluralities. For a fact-checker, that’s just a dictionary search away. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Feb 2012 10:36

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Politics: Could Romney run out of big-money Republican donors?

  • I don’t know that he’s completely tapped out, but they are trying to look under every stone. You run out of people you can hit up for $2,500.
  • A top New York Republican fundraiser • Discussing the plight of Mitt Romney, whose campaign thus far has largely been funded by big donors. Seems that the well is starting to run dry, though, and unlike Obama’s strong contingent of small donors (which Santorum is starting to build up), Romney has never been able to rely on those. In fact, just by the numbers, most of Romney’s donors have been big ones — in 2011, for example, 82 percent of Romney’s individual donations were $1,000 or higher. Is this a long-term problem? Possibly. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2012 15:24

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Politics: Herman Cain says no to Dancing With The Stars

  • Can Herman dance? That was the question the producers of “Dancing With The Stars” were fixing to answer, but Cain has reportedly turned the offer down, with his executive assistant, Lisa Reichert, explaining thusly: “He can’t dance in an eight-count. He can only dance in a nine-count.” As if we didn’t know already – few know how to hammer a theme home like Cain and his people. (h/t imwithkanye, Photo by John Trainor) source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2012 15:21

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Politics: “Dogs Against Romney” protests at Westminster dog show

  • He clearly doesn’t understand his own dog. I just don’t see how any dog could enjoy being on top of a car for that long. Dogs enjoy sticking their head out for a little air, not being on top of a car.
  • Protester with “Dogs Against Romney” • Explaining why he joined a small group of demonstrators outside the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, protesting the treatment, by Mitt Romney, of his old dog Seamus. For the uninitiated: the Boston Globe reported that during a 1983 Romney family 12-hour road trip, the dog was put in a kennel (with a windshield) which was then tied to the roof of the car. That in and of itself has drawn the ire of animal rights proponents. Further, the dog began to relieve himself during the trip, but no new accommodation was made to the dog, then in a clear state of distress — Romney simply stopped at a gas station, cleaned up Seamus and hosed down the kennel, and kept on going. The journalist who broke the story reflects on and clarifies it here (there has been some misinformation about the incident since the story broke in 2007). source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2012 13:46

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Politics: Norris explains how Gingrich won the support of a Texas Ranger

  • How can the ‘alternative to Romney’ also be a Romney supporter?
  • Legendary actor and martial artist Chuck Norris • In an opinion piece, published today on World Net Daily, explaining his reasons for endorsing Newt Gingrich instead of Rick Santorum.  The former star of “Walker, Texas Ranger” pointed to Santorum’s time campaigning for Mitt Romney in 2008, during which time Norris and his wife were campaigning for Mike Huckabee, saying he didn’t understand how Santorum could support someone who allegedly bragged he was “more liberal than Ted Kennedy on social issues.” The actor also cited 27 different votes, cast by Rick Santorum during his time as a U.S. senator, which Norris felt betrayed conservative ideals. That’s right guys; Gingrich now has an endorsement from a glorified laundry detergent salesman. source
Posted by Scott Craft • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2012 16:47

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Politics: GOP caves on payroll tax cut; 10-month extension set to pass

  • 10 month extension of the payroll tax cut is likely to pass source
  • » Good news for Democrats:  GOP leadership has indicated that they’ll pass a 10-month extension of the payroll tax without any offsets in spending. Democrats had wanted to balance the tax cut, in part, with higher taxes on the rich; Republicans wanted to do so, in part, with cuts to unemployment benefits. Ultimately, they couldn’t agree, and so it will be passed with no offsets at all. Why is this good news for Democrats? Well, the GOP took a hard-line against the payroll tax cut–which largely benefits the middle-class–last December, making the once-benign policy a partisan issue. Democrats, by and large, were okay passing it sans offsets–the suggestion to pay for it via tax cuts on the rich was more a general effort to increase taxes on the rich–and so the fact that the extension is going to pass is a political and legislative win for Democrats. But the extension expires in ten months–right around the presidential election–so this fight is only over in the short-term.
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2012 15:39

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Politics: Washington legalizes same-sex marriage…but there’s an asterisk

  • I’m proud that the children in our schools and neighborhoods will no longer have to wonder why their loving parents are considered somewhat different than other loving parents.
  • Washington Governor Chris Gregoire • Upon signing legislation today that legalized same-sex marriage in her state. The law is set to take place in June, but there’s a catch: If opponents of marriage equality succeed in putting a ballot initiative on the November ballot, the law won’t take effect until after the election returns in December. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

13 Feb 2012 10:13

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Politics: Rep. Emanuel Cleaver: Obama’s budget a “nervous breakdown on paper”

  • This budget is a nervous breakdown on paper … We are still in a recession. We’re still struggling. Unemployment is still too high in every major city in the country. People are struggling.
  • Rep. Emanuel Cleaver • Offering a tough take on Obama’s forthcoming 2013 budget, which Cleaver suggests leans too heavily on spending cuts. Cleaver, the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, says that while he disagrees with elements of the budget, the biggest problem Obama’s budget will face, however, is a broken Congress: “It’s going to probably have some difficulties over in the Senate. And it’s probably dead on arrival over at the House,” he told CNN this morning. “But that’s because of Congress is dysfunctional. The danger here is that we’re going to struggle around without addressing the major problems.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2012 10:02

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Politics: Three things you should know about Obama’s forthcoming budget plan

  • cuts While still leaning on the “Buffett Rule” that he’s been pushing for months and planning to end the Bush tax cuts for the super-rich, Obama’s plan would also cut $2.50 for each dollar raised from tax proposals affecting high income-earners.
  • jobs With the GOP blocking much of Obama’s job plan last year, he’s taking another try at it, offering up $350 billion in job-growth spending, which includes $50 billion to improve infrastructure and $60 billion to modernize schools.
  • defense Echoing the words of Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, the budget proposal would cut non-war spending. However, automatic cuts set to kick in next year will likely get replaced by a “balanced deficit-reduction package.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Feb 2012 11:51

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Politics: Forbes: Is Mitt Romney’s biggest problem his Facebook page?

  • Romney’s page on Facebook strikes me as particularly bad for a politician who needs to connect and for a campaign that is well aware of Obama’s social media pedigree. It’s almost as if the Romney team is not really trying.
  • Forbes contributor Haydn Shaughnessy • Suggesting that Mitt Romney’s real problem is his Facebook page, which, despite over a million fans, feels a little poorly-suited for its job. Shaughnessy got a couple experts on the beat to ask their opinions on Romney’s page, and their feeling was that he was lacking “genuine engagement” — focusing on broadcasting rather than communicating with readers. “If Romney or his team took 30 minutes each day,” claims social media expert Amy Porterfield, “thanking his supporters, commenting on their posts and listening to their concerns, he would not only have a keen understanding on what people are talking about, but he would also create solid, valuable relationships with Facebook users.” The advice here goes beyond hollow-seeming presidential candidates. It’s really good for anyone with interest in social media. (Edit: Per Josh Sternberg, Shaughnessy’s a contributor to Forbes rather than a staff writer.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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