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14 Nov 2011 16:08

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Politics: Here’s the thing about the Gingrich surge

  • yeah…Newt Gingrich is, to the surprise and annoyance of pundits everywhere, storing ahead of his GOP rivals in national polls. Newtmentum!
  • but…Polls also show the “ideas man” faring rather poorly against President Obama in a general election, trailing the POTUS by 812 points. source
  • » Now is probably a good time to bust out this gem from last summer.

08 Nov 2011 18:29

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Politics: The Lewinsky scandal’s spazzy little brother

  • “It’s not just men who potentially sexually harass women.” Herman Cain just gave a press conference addressing the sexual harassment accusations his ex-employees keep hurling at him, and we can’t say it went very well. He clarified nothing, repeated what he’s been saying all along (“These women are lying and I never harassed anyone”), and made a few unforced errors–such the true but utterly irrelevant reminder above–that can’t do anything but hurt him going forward. Here are some of the best/worst.
  • On his time as CEO“I have seen instances where it could be interpreted as sexual harassment, and if I saw it…I dealt with it immediately, before the other person perceived it as an infringement of their privacy.” In other words, Herman Cain can detect harassment before the victims even know they’re being harassed!
  • On taking a polygraph“Yes. Yes, I absolutely would [take a lie detector test]. But I’m not gonna do that unless I have a good reason to.” This is the kind of thing someone says when they don’t want to take a lie detector test.
  • On who’s behind it all“The Democrat Machine in America has brought forth a troubled woman to make false accusations.” Cain initially claimed that it was Rick Perry’s doing; now, it’s the Democrats. Also, Cain is fooling himself if he thinks Democrats want to prevent him from getting the nomination. source

07 Nov 2011 15:06

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Politics: “Mr. Cain has never harassed anyone.”

  • Team Cain triples down: “All allegations of harassment against Mr. Cain are completely false. Mr. Cain has never harassed anyone.” That’s the campaign’s official statement on the latest harassment allegations, and it’s a notably firm denial. There’s very little wriggle room; if, say, some sort of evidence were to come out against Cain, he’d have a hard time coming off as anything but a bold-faced liar. This would seem to imply that Cain is confident no hard evidence will surface–a confidence that, in itself, doesn’t imply innocence or guilt. The statement also inexplicably patted Cain on the back for his “clear foreign policy vision,” perhaps in an attempt to divert media attention to another, less salacious Herman Cain controversy. (Picture credit: Gage Skidmore)  source

07 Nov 2011 14:35

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Politics: Herman Cain’s accuser speaks out

  • He pulled my head towards his crotch… I said, ‘I have a boyfriend.’ He said, ‘You want a job, right?
  • Sharon Bialek, on Herman Cain • Bialek is fourth former Restaurant Association Employee to accuse Cain of sexual harassment–and the first to come forward publicly. For now, we’ll treat these accusations as just that–accusations. Also notable: Bialek is being represented by celebrity attorney Gloria Allred, who’s previously taken on Tiger Woods and Meg Whitman, amongst many others.  source

06 Nov 2011 09:29

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Politics: Ron Paul wins another straw poll; Herman Cain right behind

Despite a scandal that chewed up much press energy this week, Herman Cain was only two points behind Ron Paul in a Republican straw poll in Illinois. But Paul still kicked his butt. source

01 Nov 2011 23:04

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Politics: BREAKING NEWS: Utah politician purchases residence in Utah

  • Stories like this are an indicator that it’s a slow news day. Our favorite part is the bombshell Huntsman quote after the fold, “It’s my residence.” source

31 Oct 2011 15:25

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Politics: Rick Perry, easing off his anti-drug stances?

  • A very, very energetic Rick Perry: In this case, “energetic” is a euphemism for “dangerously over-caffeinated, perhaps to the point of requiring medical attention.” We’re not quite sure what to make of this bizarre speech Perry gave to New Hampshire Republicans a couple of days ago. He’s not just unusually expressive; he looks like he’s about to burst (fast-forward to 2:30 or so if you’re feeling impatient). His frantic performance might make slightly more sense if he were speaking to an ultra-conservative crowd in South Carolina or something, but was a room full of New Hampshire moderates. Color us baffled, but at least he didn’t come off as over-prepared. source
 

29 Oct 2011 18:12

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U.S.: Joe Biden is not actually comparing Republicans to arsonists, kids

  • Republicans moralizing about deficits. That’s like an arsonist moralizing about fire safety. These guys have zero credibility.
  • Vice President Joe Biden • Turning up the funny at a speech to Florida Democrats at Walt Disney World on Saturday afternoon. source

17 Oct 2011 23:28

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Politics: Herman Cain takes a stroll towards becoming president

  • He’s not running for president; he’s sort of strolling for president.
  • George F. Will • On Herman Cain. If Cain is strolling for president, Newt Gingrich is crawling for president. source

13 Oct 2011 23:10

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Politics: Obama’s campaign fundraising prowess tops estimates, and then some

  • $70M the amount Obama raised for his 2012 campaign in the most recent quarter
  • $55M the amount the president expected to raise this quarter; all the extra was just showing off
  • 98% of donors to Obama’s campaign threw in $250 or less; you do the math on that one, guys source
  • » And he wasn’t even at his peak powers: Thanks to the long-running debt ceiling debate that boringly captivated the country earlier this summer, Obama had to turn down a number of major fundraising events, lowering his total from the previous quarter. He’s miles ahead of every other candidate, for obvious reasons: The still-splintered GOP field has to fight with each other for the right to take on Obama next November.