The new and improved, fight-free Romney vs. Obama thread!

Since we're talking about Mitt's speech to the NAACP, I thought this was an interesting piece from TNR about how Mitt doesn't quite possess the balls that his old man did when it comes to race relations.

http://www.tnr.com/blog/plank/104848/romney-the-naacp-filial-tragedy

 

This fractious moment might be a good time to commit to memory a completely nonpolitical message of healing - as delivered in a rich tenor baritone bass tenor baritone ? by the US Attorney General.


Let the eagle soar,
Like she’s never soared before.
From rocky coast to golden shore,
Let the mighty eagle soar.
Soar with healing in her wings,
As the land beneath her sings:
'Only God, no other kings.'
Let the mighty eagle soar.

 

Here we go again with the moral equivalency argument: a handful (although very infrequently proven) of people purposefully illegally vote, therefore thousands of mostly minority, mostly elderly voters should be disenfranchised as a result.

God Bless America, indeed.

 

Wait, Roseane Barr was running for President?

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/07/green-party-candidate-jill-steins-running-mate-is-not-roseanne-barr/

How did I not know this?

 

A reactionary yahoo, with a very special distinction . . . he lost an election to a dead opponent.

That's tough to do.

 

That's pretty funny.

 

Attorney General Ashcroft called the American Library Association's opposition to part of the Patriot Act "hysteria"......twice.

http://www.justice.gov/archive/ag/speeches/2003/091503nationalrestaurant.htm

http://www.justice.gov/archive/ag/speeches/2003/091803memphisremarks.htm

Not political at all.

 

How does a requirement to show a government ID that can be acquired at no cost disenfranchise anybody?

 

Wasn't it?

Was this a partisan issue? President Obama signed an extension of the law that had the same provisions:

http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/news/05302011/patriot-act-renewal-renews-reformers-determination

Both of these speeches were made more than a year before the next Presidential election, and neither was made to a "base" group for the purposes of riling up said base.

 

Of course. But also of course, you well know that there are, for instance, numerous snowbirds in Florida and Arizona who are "residents" of somewhere else yet vote in the Florida or Arizona elections. I'd venture that's probably our largest source of voter "fraud" -- people voting in the wrong place. Probably college students, too, to be fair. The point in the main, as you acknowledge, is that the problem isn't a problem. The proposed solutions are the problem.

And yet I don't see the Democratic party trying to throw up roadblocks to senior citizens voting in those states or trying to purge the rolls of non-residents before the election.

But I'll make a deal with you. We can require photo ID in all 50 states so long as we also 1. Give the IDs away; 2. Mandate an early voting period in all 50 states; 3. Allow same-day voter registration complete with photo ID in all 50 states.

That system would assure the lowest possible levels of voter fraud. But it would also benefit Democrats at the polls.

 

I'd have no problem with any of those requirements. I think quite a few states already do No. 2 and No. 3.

 

I'm not sure what you mean about No. 3 ... if you could explain the scenario, I'd be more than willing to consider it.

No. 1 is perfectly fine by me.

No. 2 is not fine by me, but not for reasons you're thinking. I just have a philosophical objection to early voting ... to me, voting's like a sacrament in a democracy, and an election day's like a holy day. But since my viewpoint's decidedly in the minority, and my objection's not grounded in the fraud/disenfranchisement controversy, as regards this discussion No. 2 doesn't much matter to me either.

So 'splain No. 3 to me (with maybe a fer-instance) and I'll give it a look.

So that's two white right-wingers ...