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Category Archives: Columns
In Election’s Last Weekend, Obama Gains Moderate Momentum As Romney Flails – The Daily Beast
Draw a line along President Obama’s endorsements by Mayor Bloomberg and The Economist, his post-Sandy stand with Chris Christie, and the deployment of Colin Powell ads to the swing states, and you’ll see why the president suddenly has the Big … Continue reading
In Last Days of Campaign Ground Game in Ohio Comes Down to Math – The Daily Beast
The weather is getting cold, but the ground game here in Ohio is already hot. The polls are tight in the Buckeye State with President Obama maintaining a small but steady lead of between two and four points in most … Continue reading
Battleground Blog: Ohio’s Senators Weigh in on Romney Jeep Ad Controversy – CNN.com
Here in Ohio and other Rust Belt battleground states where this election will be decided – the auto bailouts are a personal, political and pocket-book issue. The latest campaign skirmish over the auto industry concerns comments Mitt Romney made on … Continue reading
Romney’s disputed Jeep claims – CNN
John Avlon offers his take on a controversy surrounding some claims Mitt Romney has made about the auto industry.
As Election Nears, Voter Suppression Efforts Kick Into Gear – The Daily Beast
’Tis the season for dirty tricks. Less than one week out from Election Day, we are witnessing a war of attrition, a game of inches. With state polls this close, every vote counts. And so beyond the positive effort to … Continue reading
As Campaign Closes, Mitt Romney Peddles A Bipartisan Myth – The Daily Beast
Turn on the television in any swing state these days and you’re likely to see Mitt Romney smiling wistfully and saying this: “Republicans and Democrats both love America. But we need to have leadership — leadership in Washington that will … Continue reading
Battleground Blog: Shooting Survivor Passionate About 2012 Election – CNN.com
On the Battleground Bus Tour, we’ve met some extraordinary people. Usually, our focus is talking with the swing voters in swing states who will decide this election. But while Hurricane Sandy bore down on the East Coast, we started reporting … Continue reading
Hurricane Sandy Exposes Mitt Romney’s Self-Made FEMA Problem – The Daily Beast
In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, President Obama has been coordinating storm response from the White House—while Mitt Romney has been dodging questions about what critics say was a primary campaign call to cut funding for the Federal Emergency Management … Continue reading
Obama’s Deficit Plan Closer to What CEOs Favor – CNN.com
The deficit and debt are major concerns for swing voters — and President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have very different visions of how to deal with it. That’s why it was significant to see 80 CEOs of major American … Continue reading
Posted in Columns
Tagged 2012 Elections, CNN, Elections, Fiscal Responsibility, President Obama
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October Surprise: Shadowy Conservative Groups Dominate Outside Spending – The Daily Beast
The Super-PAC October Surprise is here with unprecedented negative spending – and an overwhelming advantage for conservative shadow money groups flooding the airwaves against Democratic candidates. Total non-party outside spending is now estimated by the Center for Responsive Politics to … Continue reading
Deficit-Hawk CEOs Bend Toward Obama – CNN.com
The deficit and debt are major concerns for swing voters — and President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have very different visions of how to deal with it. That’s why it was significant to see 80 CEOs of major American … Continue reading
Posted in Columns
Tagged 2012 Elections, CNN, Elections, Fiscal Responsibility, President Obama
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GOP’s Surprising Edge on diversity – CNN.com
Everybody knows the Republican Party is basically an all-white bastion, right? After all, even Colin Powell condemned the “dark vein of intolerance” that has flowed through his party since the post-civil rights era political realignment. Now with President Barack Obama … Continue reading
Obama’s Risky Demographic Gamble – The Daily Beast
Demographics are destiny, but Team Obama may be taking that a bit too literally. Play-to-the-base campaigns are particularly risky for Democrats given that only 21 percent of Americans identify as liberal, but the Obama campaign has staked its reelection on … Continue reading
Mourdock’s Rape Remark and Extremism – CNN.com
Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock believes that rapes resulting in pregnancy are “something that God intends to happen.” Do you? It’s a relevant question as we enter the last two weeks of this election, because Mourdock’s comments are not … Continue reading
Democrat Jim Graves Has a Chance to Unseat Michele Bachmann – The Daily Beast
Meet the man who could defeat Michele Bachmann. Jim Graves is a 58-year-old self-made Minnesota businessman and grandfather of seven, still married to his high-school sweetheart, running against a symbol of unhinged hyperpartisanship in the halls of Congress. Bachmann’s bizarre … Continue reading
Ground Game: Obama Campaign Opens Up a Big Lead in Field Offices – The Daily Beast
Beyond the presidential debates, one final factor matters more than all the rest in a close race: ground game. It’s the ability to get your voters to the polls—a way of moving soft support into actual votes. Field operatives have … Continue reading
Posted in Columns
Tagged 2012 Elections, Elections, President Obama, The Daily Beast
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Will an Energy Boom Swing Ohio? – The Daily Beast
I spent the weekend in Ohio, and filed this report for CNN on how a natural gas energy boom in the bellwether northeastern region of the state is the final factor for many swing voters in the area. Their votes … Continue reading
Posted in Columns
Tagged 2012 Elections, Elections, President Obama, The Daily Beast
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The Sound of Chugging Kool-Aid – The Daily Beast
This is the sound of chugging Kool-Aid: “This debate goes to Romney. It seals his momentum and will lead to a big win,” Dick Morris writes at Fox. “Game, set, match … one of the best debate performances ever by … Continue reading
Hall Monitor Mitt’s Missed Chance – The Daily Beast – CNN.com
President Obama needed to step up and dig in at Tuesday night’s second presidential debate, and that’s exactly what he did, I write over at CNN. Insistent jockeying for time, his fumble of the Benghazi question, and furious Etch-a-Sketch moments … Continue reading
Will Energy Boom Swing the Election? – CNN.com
No Republican has won the White House without Ohio. In these final weeks, the Buckeye State is an intense campaign battleground and northeastern Ohio is the bellwether of this key swing state. For decades, the economic news here has been … Continue reading