Second Time Around~!

This debate was more energetic... This debate was better, President Obama was better, more energetic, More aggressive.  More passionate!  He checked Mr. Romney everytime he told one of those whoppers.....
He presented his case!.. That's what I wanted to see.  That's what everybody wanted to see.
This night ,President Obama showed up!

The Moderater? She was better than Jim Lehrer (Not a hard thing to do!) but not as good as last week's moderator during Biden and Ryan.

President Barack Obama took the stage at Tuesday’s presidential debate determined to play offense against Republican nominee Mitt Romney, taking every opportunity to put his GOP challenger on his heels. It was clear from the second presidential debate’s outset that it wouldn’t resemble the first, when Mitt Romney was widely-acknowledged to have run circles around President Obama, whom Democrats worried was not aggressive enough in responding to Romney’s attacks.Not the case this night!

This was a street fight.President Obama and Mitt Romney went at each other early and often on topics ranging from the economy and taxes to energy to women’s rights and to immigration. The tension between the candidates was readily clear, as well – the two physically approached each other during one early exchange.

The president insinuated Mitt Romney’s tax proposals were a “sketchy deal” for the American people, and sought to tie the GOP nominee to George W. Bush. President Obama’s attacks extended into personal territory, too, as he frequently made reference to  Mitt Romney’s immense personal wealth to make the broader case about  Mitt Romney and “top-down economics.” "No, I haven't looked at my pension,” he said in one exchange with  Mitt Romney, “It's not as big as yours, so it doesn't take that long." Funniest exchange of the night.

Mitt Romney, in turn, emphasized President Obama’s own failings as president and again adopted the centrist tone he had projected in his first meeting with President Obama. “Why am I lowering taxes on the middle-class? Because under the last four years, they've been buried,” Romney said, alluding to a comment made recently by Vice President Joe Biden saying the middle class had been “buried” over the last four years. The debate also featured  Mitt Romney and President Obama’s first exchange on the topic of last month’s terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, which left four Americans dead, including a U.S. ambassador.


President Obama seemed to flash anger toward the former Massachusetts governor, as he turned and stared down  Mitt Romney, calling the suggestion that his administration would play politics with the attack “offensive.”

"That's not how a commander in chief operates. You don't turn national security into a political issue," President Obama said of  Mitt Romney’s accusation, as details emerged about the attack, that the White House had expressed sympathy for the attackers besieging diplomatic posts in Egypt, Libya and beyond.
Mitt Romney argued that  President Obama had left the White House to go campaigning shortly after the attack, and accused the president of having failed to label the attack in Libya an act of terror.
When moderator Candy Crowley intervened and contended President Obama had actually done so, members of the audience applauded – in violation of debate rules.


President Obama took the stage clearly more eager to play offense versus Mitt Romney, a sign that the president was looking to move past his more laconic and dry  performance versus Mitt Romney at their first debate.

His exchange with  Mitt Romney on energy turned especially tense as the two men walked toward each other, prompting the GOP candidate to scold: “You'll get your chance in a moment, I'm still speaking.” Romney was rude all night and at times I felt as though the moderater was losing control of the entire thing..but I also admit that she didn't have a very easy job... I don't envy her.

This debate was the second of three presidential debates this fall; President Obama and  Mitt Romney will meet one more time between now and Nov. 6, a foreign policy-focused debate on Monday.

Get your popcorn ready for the endgame people!

Crucial Debate!

Hmmmm,was it less than two weeks ago when, before the first presidential debate in Denver, I was saying that Mitt Romney was facing a crucial moment in his campaign. It was coming right after President Obama's Democratic Convention bounce, the scrutiny over the 47% comment, and all the handwringing over the state of the Romney campaign.

How quickly that narrative can change. Now it's President Obama who is  facing that crucial moment -- to fully turn the page on that first debate performance. Mind you,The president isn't behind, and he still holds more paths to 270 electoral votes than Mit Romney, but he needs to slow Romney's roll, his  momentum and get it back on his side. 

Bottom line: Tonight is all about  women Suburban women; They has been President Obama’s demographic firewall. Mitt Romney has made some progress with them on his fav rating and on handling the economy, but not on ballot test.

Tonight will tell us whether he continues to make progress... Tonight will tell us a lot of things..

Tonight’s debate, which takes place at 9:00 pm ET from Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY, features questions from uncommitted voters selected by the Gallup Organization and is moderated by CNN’s Candy Crowley.Mitt Romney will take the first question, and then President Obama gets the second. There are no closing statements.

Tonight will tell us whether he continues to make progress... Tonight will tell us a lot of things.. Stay tuned!

Keith's Favorite Quotations

Happy Monday !

Weekend Humor

Snow White, Superman and Pinocchio are walking along. They see a sign: "Contest for World's Most Beautiful Woman." Snow White goes in, later comes out smiling, wearing a crown. 

They walk along and see another sign: "Contest for World's Strongest Man." Superman goes in, later comes out smiling, wearing the belt. 

They walk along and see a sign: "Contest for World's Greatest Liar." Pinocchio goes in, later comes out with

his head down crying. "Who the hell is Mitt Romney?"  Pinocchio sobs.

Have a Great Weekend Everybody!

Unsubtle Threat!

I thought that Mitt Romney got a bounce from the last debate....Thought he was neck and neck ( and some say) leading President Obama amongst likely voters???  Apparently some people like David Seigel in Florida doesn't think so...He's afraid that President Obama just might win...

David Siegel, the resort CEO who is building the biggest private home in the country, really, really, really doesn’t like President Obama.

So while Siegel hasn’t sent any money to Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, he has gone a step farther to support him. On Monday of this week he sent an e-mail to all 7,000 employees of privately-held Westgate Resorts, many of them in the battleground state of Florida, warning them their jobs are at risk if the president is re-elected.

 “The economy doesn’t currently pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job however, is another 4 years of the same Presidential administration,” he said in the e-mail.

“If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, as our current President plans, I will have no choice but to reduce the size of this company,” he says in the nearly 1,400-word e-mail.

“Rather than grow this company I will be forced to cut back. This means fewer jobs, less benefits and certainly less opportunity for everyone.” 

Now I should mention in all fairness that David Siegel doesn’t mention Mitt Romney’s name anywhere in the e-mail, and he writes he “certainly wouldn’t interfere with your right to vote for whomever you choose.”

And he insisted Tuesday that he wasn’t threatening to fire employees if President Obama is re-elected. But he proudly stands behind the e-mail.

“I wanted the employees to know what the situation is, and not listen to campaign commercials but hear it from the horse’s mouth,” he told CNNMoney. 

David Siegel actually has been hiring in recent years. He said Westgate had 12,000 employees and $1 billion in annual revenue four years ago, before the financial meltdown caused credit markets to freeze up. “We were fat, dumb and happy,” he said.

Let's stay with Dumb!  This kind of thing is just unconscionable....This is a not so subtle threat.  He says all of the right things to protect himself legally like - "I certainly wouldn’t interfere with your right to vote for whomever you choose.”  but he is in effect telling the employees in so many words that some of them will lose their jobs if the president is re-elected... So he is in fact interfering with their right to vote for whom they choose...If he wasn't there would be no need to even send such an email...

This is in effect- Blackmail....But it's so subtlely done that it's perfectly legal!!!! Shame on you! shame on you Dave Seigel!!!

Don't Boo! VOTE!

Something To Think About!

Note to all candidates...Enough with the Big Bird Jokes....It's over!  You're beating a dead horse or in this case... Bird! (I couldn't resist)!

5 Things President Obama should do before the next debate!

Well Hello....I took a few days off to recharge...Did anyone miss me? I'm sure some people did...And just as sure that some people who comment by not using their real names or any clues to their identity did not!
I was thinking about the upcoming debates...

I'm not worried about Biden-Ryan...I'm certain that that will be spirited and full of high drama (and  possibly high comedy!) I am deeply worried about the presidential debates.... I hope and pray that the President isn't getting burned out!.

Here are some suggestions I have for him for the second debate , which will be next week...

1. Get some Sleep! - This should be self explanatory!  Good sleep  and good rest are essential for an alert and keen mind... President Obama looked and sounded like he was exhausted during his debate with Mitt Romney. To put it more bluntly, I am convinced that had someone who knew nothing about politics watched the debate with the sound off, he or she would have summarized it as "one guy looked like he needed a nap. The other one looked like he had the best night's sleep ever."

The president looked as if he had stayed up all night -- the night before one of the most important job interviews of his life. Compared with Mitt Romney, who is older, the President looked older and slower -- qualities that don't exactly make Americans feel confident in a leader.

The Barack Obama who spoke at a rally in Denver the following day looked and sounded energized and years younger. That  Barack Obama needs to show up at the next presidential debate, hopefully after having gotten a good night's sleep.

2. Anticipate the un-anticipated !  -No time here for any October Surprises...The Day after the debate in a speech in Denver, Colorado, The President joked that "Some energetic fellow claiming to be Mitt Romney showed up last night," but he went on to explain that "this fellow" was espousing positions and ideas different from those previously espoused by the real Mitt Romney. Well we know that!

President Obama was making the point that the Mitt Romney who showed up at the debate was a completely different Mitt Romney from the one who has been present on the campaign trail. This should not have been a surprise to anyone!

 The Mitt Romney on the presidential campaign trail is also a completely different Mitt Romney from the one who served as governor of Massachusetts, changing his positions on issues like abortion and health care along the way. The president seemed caught off guard that Mitt Romney was attempting to distance himself from his previously espoused positions during the debate. He should not have been.

 The one thing that should not be a surprise at this stage of the game is Mitt Romney changing his positions. Now Mitt Romney's even backing away from his infamous "47 percent" comment. The president should not have been caught flat-footed like this, and this can never ever happen ever again.

3.  Get engaged, Get Involved, Get into it! - Once again...Self explanatory....If I sound like an Old James Brown record, it's because....I've heard too many people say that the president didn't look like he wanted to be there... Maybe he didn't...It was his wedding anniversary....Who can blame him? It was his anniversary -- and, well, as Mitt Romney joked, a debate is not exactly the most romantic place to spend it.
(Especially not with him!)

If you recall...Some years ago President George H.W. Bush was famously derided for looking at his watch during a presidential debate, which left pundits and some voters wondering if he felt he had some place more important to be than making his case to the American public. While President Obama did not look at his watch, he certainly did not look as if he was happy to be on that stage...That's got to change....

In the words of James Brown..."Get Involved, Get engaged, Get into it"  Okay...he probably didn't say it that way, but if he were alive...he woulda!

4.Attack, Attack, Attack!  - As my frat brother Nate would say..."It's time to bring it to the block."

We've heard a million complaints that the president needs to get "tougher," that his style is too cool, too laid-back for him to fight aggressively enough with opponents. He clearly prefers substantive dialogue to fighting, which can be admirable in a leader, but the kiss of death to a candidate. Look, half of the people watching don't really care about what is being said or even understand...Let's keep it real...but they wanted to see some fight, some vigor!!!I know....We are superficial, but what can I say?  Even I'm guilty!  I came to see a street fight, not hear a lecture.

5.Pray! -Hey no joke....I always pray before a major event !  It certainly can't hurt!

Weekend Humor

A Black Man walks into a prestigious private bank in midtown Manhattan and asks for the loan officer who politely tries to direct him to a more commercial establishment.

The  man says he's going to Europe on business for two weeks and needs to borrow $5,000. The loan officer says the bank will need some kind of security for the loan, so the  Man hands over the keys to a new Rolls Royce.

The car is parked on the street in front of the bank. He has all the papers including the title and everything checks out. The bank agrees to accept the car as collateral for the loan. An employee of the bank then proceeds to drive the Rolls into the bank's underground garage and parks it there.

The news quickly spreads throughout the bank and over lunch, the bank's president and its officers all enjoy a good laugh at the dumb (nigga's) expense for using a $250,000 Rolls as collateral against a $5,000 loan.

Two weeks later, the man returns, repays the $5,000 and the interest, which comes to $20.41. The loan officer says, "Sir, we are very happy to have had your business, and this transaction has worked out very nicely, but we are a little puzzled. While you were away, we checked you out and found that you are a multimillionaire. What puzzles us is, why would you bother to borrow $5,000?"

The man smiled and then replied; "Where else in New York City can I park my car for two weeks for only $20.41 and expect it to be there when I return?".

A Very Smart  Man!

Have A Nice Weekend Everybody!

Like Cotton Candy

There's something funny about watching Mitt Romney...I've noticed it now and I saw it when I watched this first debate.. I saw it in film clips when I watched him debate the late Teddy Kennedy....He winds up after awhile saying and agreeing with all of his opponents points.

After watching one half hour of this debate...I wasn't sure if  President Obama was running against  Mitt Romney or a moderate Democrat..  That's just Mitt, that's why I call him Flipper...He sat up there last night and lied through his teeth anytime it suited him just to score points against the President.

Before I go any further let me say that Moderator Jim Lehrer was terrible...He lost control of both candidates,  letting them both run on and on past their time..Letting a visibly amped and hyper Mitt Romney interrupt  the President several times... Jim Lehrer couldn't control his bladder last night..Let alone the candidates. Hopefully , there will be a better moderator in the next debate.

A lot of people said that the President didn't look like he wanted to be there and that he just wasn't aggressive enough...I think that people watch too much reality television...I mean what did they expect him to do, cuss Mitt out...call him a liar?   Wellllll...I must admit...I did expect a lot more passion....The kind of passion I saw during the convention...I just didn't see it...Not from President Obama....I did , in all fairness see it in Mitt Romney...but that's just the thing...I saw passion and aggression (even rudeness at times ) on Mitt Romney's part....but no substance, no real plan and a lot of changing of positions that should have made his right wing base a little worried , if not downright angry.....And as much as I hate to agree with Rick Santorum, this is the problem you have with Mitt Romney....You never really know just who you're getting at any given minute.

Despite that, Mitt Romney didn't say one thing last night that would make me vote for him.  Not one thing...I waited..I waited for him to answer one question straight, to explain how he was going to do something...I just didn't hear it.  Mitt is like cotton candy...Looks Pretty, Tastes good, but has no nutrition, no real value...But that's just Mitt.

Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's tax cut proposals consumed the opening moments in his first debate versus President Barack Obama, as the two candidates sparred over whether the math behind the Republican presidential nominee's plans matched his rhetoric.

The President said Mitt Romney would cut taxes by $5 trillion, but hadn't accounted for how he would pay for them. For his part, Romney argued that President Obama would not live up to his promise to balance the budget, and argued tax hikes would devastate an anemic economy. The initial focus on pocketbook issues matches an election in which the economy has been the undisputed top issue for voters. Either candidate would be forced to contend almost immediately with these issues upon taking office in January, when a series of tax hikes and automatic spending cuts are set to spring into place.

"My number one principle is there will be no tax cut that adds to the deficit," Mitt Romney said  on the campus of the University of Denver. Mitt Romney asserted his tax plan would spur job creation and help balance the budget, but the president insisted that these proposals simply do not add up. "The fact is that if you are lowering the rates the way you described, governor, then it is not possible to come up with enough deductions and loopholes that only affect high-income individuals to avoid either raising the deficit or burdening the middle class," President Obama said. "It's math. It's arithmetic."

But neither math, arithmetic ,logic or facts will settle in peoples minds....We are used to reality television and sports analogies for serious issues and just about everything else..People are looking at Mitt's aggressive performance last night and declaring him the winner of the debate, despite the fact that he did a 360 on practically all of his stated positions and when he wasn't spinning around, he wasn't saying anything of substance..... It's that cotton candy thing again!

It's wayy after midnight...I'm tired...On to the next one!

Blocked!

In time, the plans of all evil men will be exposed and laid to waste.   I said that...Sounds fancy doesn't it?  On the eve of the debates, which I'll be talking about later on this week...a Judge here in my home state of Pennsylvania has blocked that Voter I.D. law.!! For now!

A Pennsylvania judge has blocked enforcement of the voter identification law which the legislature enacted and Republican Gov. Tom Corbett signed last year, meaning the law will not be in effect for the Nov. 6 election.

Judge Robert Simpson said even with the streamlined procedures that state officials proposed to make it easier for voters without ID cards to obtain them, “the proposed changes are to occur about five weeks before the general election, and I question whether sufficient time now remains to attain the goal of liberal access” to ID cards.

Judge Simpson went on to say , “I expected more photo IDs to have been issued by this time. For this reason, I accept Petitioners’ argument that in the remaining five weeks before the general election, the gap between the photo IDs issued and the estimated need will not be closed.”

Thank goodness...Finally someone is doing the right thing....I have heard that these voter ID laws have been struck down in other states also... I can hear the Tea Party sympathizers and conspiracy theorists saying that the Obama Administration is somehow behind all of these changes or let's see..Perhaps it's the liberal media that is to blame.Yeah that's the ticket.

How bout, Judges who apply common sense and due process of the LAW for a change.??.Maybe that's why these unfair voter suppression tactics are being shot down...Because judges see them for what they are..

Better luck next time Tea Party! Hopefully, we can vote these crazy right wing people out of office and there will not be...a next time!

What I've Learned

1.What Goes Around, Really Does Come Back Around.

2. The One bird in your hand, Really is worth the two that's in the bush.

3. A lot of things , adults said around me when I was a child are just starting to make sense to me now.

4. You either run the day...or the day winds up running you!

5. People make up their minds quite quickly about what it is they're going to believe.

6. Logic will rarely change a person's core beliefs.

7.Some of the most important decisions a person makes in life are based on something emotional..

8. The older you get, the faster the years seem to pass by.

9.Sometimes the only blessings you need to count is your heartbeat!

10.At times you have to do what you can ,with what you have , where you are!

Peace!

The Debates Are Coming!

If I've been quiet for the past few days as far as this blog is concerned....That's because I'm resting my mind and my fingers..The Debates are coming... I believe they will begin within the next few days.  The Romney people are praying that their guy has a good showing...It's his last best hope at this late date for any kind of bounce or reversal of fortunes.

If I'm not saying much it's because at this point...there is nothing more for me to say...I mean , unless you're a complete empty head, you know who you're voting for on November 6th... Nothing I can say, Nothing I can write at this point can change your mind....The debates are coming...

Yes...they are and Mitt Romney can't do much repair of the damage he has already done to himself....Never have I seen a candidate make so many gaffs at this late a time in the campaign as this guy...I'm willing to say..that if he were running against anybody other than Barack Obama...His campaign, his chances for winning would all be done, finished...

But he is running against Barack Obama....which is the only reason why he is even as close as he is...The racism that is inherent in this country and in the far right fringes that now have a hold on the Republican Party is so great, that many people will overlook Mitt's gaffs and mis-steps and still vote for this guy anyway....

Frightening thought isn't it?  Mitt Romney, President of the United States!!!!!!!

A poll of nine so called "Battleground states shows President Obama is ahead of Mitt Romney in all nine,  states with his biggest leads being 7 and 8 points (in Ohio, New Hampshire, and Iowa) and his smallest edge at 2 points (in Nevada and North Carolina). President Obama's average percentage in these polls is 49.5% and Romney's is 44% -- which is consistent with the national polls . The state surveys also show a slight improvement in voters who believe that the nation is headed in the right direction. And they find President Obama and  Mitt Romney essentially tied on who would better handle the economy, while President Obama mostly enjoys double-digit leads on foreign policy.(something that used to be a Republican strong point!)


Here’s another way to look at the nine polls -- If we divide them into three buckets. The first bucket: The states where President Obama’s job-approval rating is at 49% or higher, and those states are Florida, Iowa, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Virginia. The second bucket: The states where President Obama leads on the economy, and those are Colorado, Iowa, New Hampshire, and Ohio. And the third and final bucket: The states where Mitt Romney’s favorability is underwater, and those are Colorado, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Wisconsin. There are three states that apply to all three buckets, and you can consider those Mitt Romney’s most problematic states right now: Iowa, New Hampshire, and Ohio. As for where Mitt Romney’s in the best shape: North Carolina; it’s the only state where President Obama’s job is under 49%, where Romney leads him on the economy, and where Romney’s favorable rating is right side up.

The Debates are coming! Both campaigns are now fully engaged in lowering expectations for Wednesday's debate. In a Romney memo writtenby senior adviser Beth Myers, she wrote: “President Obama is a uniquely gifted speaker, and is widely regarded as one of the most talented political communicators in modern history. This will be the eighth one-on-one presidential debate of his political career. For Mitt Romney, it will be his first.”

Meanwhile, the Obama camp countered with its own memo by David Axelrod: “[We expect Mitt Romney to be a prepared, disciplined and aggressive debater. Gov. Pawlenty said Romney ‘is as good as it gets in debating. He is poised, prepared, smart, strategic.’ We expect that Mitt Romney to show up in Denver. 
Second, debates—and particularly the first debate—generally favor challengers.”

But here’s the truth about both President Obama and  Mitt Romney: Neither has been a stellar debater. President Obama never really shined during the Democratic primary debates of 2008, and candidate Obama had a tendency to ramble (something he improved upon in his general-election debates against John McCain). And while Mitt Romney performed well at most of this season’s GOP primary debates, he had some rough performances (the $10,000 bet, the debates in South Carolina). Romney’s one-on-one performances in ’94 and ’02 (for SEN and GOV) were uneven, and his biggest weakness is unspoken body language. The bottom line: Ivy League debate coaches will enjoy Biden v. Ryan a heckuva lot more.

Like I said, The Debates are coming....but I doubt that they will change anyone's mind at this point in the game ,unless one of them comes up with a game changer, a show stopper!  I don't see it...but anything is possible! Stay tuned!.