Author: Elspeth Reeve

Weiner Won't Get Women's Votes but He'll Take Their Money

Associated Press

Anthony Weiner is reportedly holding a fundraiser called "Women for Weiner" next week. And the politicians who really need "Women for…" groups are the ones who have women problems. And Anthony Weiner is one of those guys.

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 3, 2012

Debate Recap: Romney Brought It

In the first presidential debate tonight, the candidates won't offer that much policy detail -- President Obama has been prepped to act less "professorial," Mitt Romney to rattle off fewer statistics. Instead, they're focusing on looking calm, cool, and not smug. In other words, they're trying not to inspire GIFs. They are almost certain to fail.

Comments | 23,030 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 3, 2012

Ad Watch

Obama Declares Romney 'Not One of Us'

Today in Ad Watch: President Obama accuses Mitt Romney of using coal miners as props, Romney talks straight into the camera again, the Romney campaign admits Joe Biden is better at selling their economic message, and an anti-immigration group targets black voters.

Comments | 2,242 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 3, 2012

Who Was Helped by The Daily Caller's Obama Video Stunt?

The moment Twitter figured out that Drudge, Sean Hannity, and The Daily Caller had coordinated to make a big production out of an Obama speech that was covered by a ton of news sites five years ago spawned anxiety among some conservatives.

Comments | 3,511 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 3, 2012

A Second-by-Second Preview of What Romney Will Do at the Debate

The Romney campaign has spent the last few weeks hyping the event, but while doing so, they've made the curious decision to preview almost every single second of the candidate's debate performance in the press

Comments | 5,171 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 3, 2012

Obama Is Crushing Romney on Ad Spending

Democrats spent 2011 and the first part of 2012 wallowing in self-pity that President Obama would be vastly outspent by Mitt Romney thanks to Citizens United unleashing an avalanche of negative ads from a financial sector angry at the president, but that hasn't happened. In fact, it's been the exact opposite.

Comments | 545 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 2, 2012

The Obama Phone's Roots in Government Deregulation

The Obama Phone is a perfect example of the combustible mix of deregulation, lobbyists, and clever marketers: a more efficient system that's also expensive and wasteful.

Comments | 7,574 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 2, 2012

Actually George Will's Been Obsessed with Race for a Long Time

The real story about race in this election is not that racism might hurt President Obama, but that it might help him, The Washington Post's George Will writes.

Comments | 2,829 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 2, 2012

Romney Wants to Let Young Illegal Immigrants Stay in U.S.

Mitt Romney said he would not deport the young illegal immigrants allowed to stay in the U.S. after President Obama's executive order in June -- and promised he would pass immigration reform -- in an interview with the Denver Post.

Comments | 794 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 2, 2012

Creed Frontman 'Disappointed' in Obama

Creed frontman Scott Stapp is "disappointed" in President Obama and won't vote for him, he tells Fox News.

Comments | 7,093 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 1, 2012

From Gaffes to GIFs: The Great Shift in Presidential Debate Strategy

The candidates, campaigns, and pundits have dropped any pretense that the first presidential debate will be anything more than a reality show in which President Obama and Mitt Romney are competing to see who can avoid looking stupid -- not saying something stupid -- on TV.

Comments | 13,772 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Oct 1, 2012

Romney's Semi-Pivot to Foreign Policy

There is dissent in the ranks of the Mitt Romney campaign over whether the candidate should pivot to foreign policy, given President Obama's lead in polls despite voter dissatisfaction with his handling of the economy.

Comments | 605 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 28, 2012

No, You're the Racist, or Blogging About Obama Phones

Yesterday we asked "How Racist Is the Obama Phone Video?" It turns out that we didn't just need to explain the degree of the racism, but whether it was racist at all. Okay, here goes.

Comments | 366,671 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 28, 2012

Babies Consider Mitt Romney

What is so awesome about the baby-kissing tradition in American politics is that presidential candidates are required to kiss babies but babies are not required to conform to the social norms of adults.

Comments | 6,922 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 28, 2012

Five Theories Why Romney Isn't Winning

Mitt Romney isn't beating President Obama in polls, even though the economy sucks and mobs of people are burning the American flag outside a whole bunch of embassies. Pundits are scrambling to explain this unexpected state of affairs.

Comments | 11,548 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 28, 2012

Even George W. Bush Is More Popular Than Mitt Romney

Here's one more way to measure Mitt Romney's unpopularity: He's less popular than George W. Bush, the last Republican president who's so unpopular he didn't speak at the Republican National Convention and gave his endorsement of Romney while leaping into an elevator.

Comments | 8,120 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 28, 2012

Akin's GOP Rehabilitation Proceeding Quickly

Todd Akin will get the endorsement of Kit Bond, former Missouri governor and senator, on Friday, CBS News' Scott Conroy reports, even though in August Bond signed a letter with all the other living Republican former senators of Missouri calling on Akin to quit the race after his "legitimate rape" comments.

Comments | 345 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 27, 2012

One of This Election's Only Criminal Inquiries into Voter Fraud Involves the RNC

The Republican National Committee has fired a consulting firm it had hired to register Republican voters over allegations of that the firm turned in 106 potentially fraudulent registrations in Florida, NBC News' Michael Isikoff reports.

Comments | 1,492 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 27, 2012

Soros Decides to Give to an Obama Super PAC After All

Billionaire George Soros is donating $1 million to the pro-Obama super PAC Priorities USA, The New York Times' Nicholas Confessore reports.

Comments | 299 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 27, 2012

Just How Racist Is the 'Obama Phone' Video?

There was a video leading the Drudge Report on Thursday afternoon of a poor black woman with messed-up teeth saying she's voting for President Obama because he gave her a free phone, and perhaps you have some questions about it.

Comments | 139,922 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 27, 2012

Akin Nostalgic for a More 'Ladylike' McCaskill

Todd Akin says opponent Sen. Claire McCaskill was "very aggressive" at their debate last week, a change from 2006, when she was more "ladylike."

Comments | 2,023 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 27, 2012

Ad Watch

Obama's New Ad Is Just Romney's '47 Percent' Tape

President Obama has launched two ads—a nice happy one about his plans for the future, and a mean one playing Mitt Romney's "47 percent" audio—while Romney attacks Obama on a core Ohio issue.

Comments | 2,632 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 27, 2012

Obama and Romney's Ritual Pre-Debate Lovefest

If you've been craving a more uplifting tone in the presidential campaign, this is your week.

Comments | 1,264 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 26, 2012

Every Election Is a Fight for White Guys

Politico's Lois Romano wrote today that the 2012 presidential election has become a "battle for white men," because, "after decades of taking a back seat" to women and minorty voter. Now, exactly when were white guys being so ignored?

Comments | 3,018 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 26, 2012

The Republican Rehabilitation of Todd Akin Has Begun

Until the absolute last deadline passed for Todd Akin to drop out of the Senate race in Missouri, his opponent, Sen. Claire McCaskill, had to pretend she wasn't all that interested in campaigning against him, and Republicans had to pretend they had zero interest in winning control of the Senate by any means possible.

Comments | 5,345 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 26, 2012

Do Today's Polls Mean It's All Over for Romney? No.

There's a wave of bad polling news for Mitt Romney Wednesday morning.

Comments | 9,139 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 26, 2012

Romney Reboots Again, This Time with 'Compassion'

In his latest reset (we've lost count), Mitt Romney has taken a bold step to show his humanity and look straight into the camera.

Comments | 526 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 25, 2012

Revisiting Obama's Paths to 270: Ten Months Make a Big Difference

Way back in December 2011, President Obama's campaign manager Jim Messina presented five possible paths for his boss to get the necessary 270 electoral votes and they all looked difficult. But ten months and many polls later, they are looking a lot easier.

Comments | 2,040 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 25, 2012

Did Someone Give Obama a Black Eye?

The four times President Obama has gone on TV in the last six days, as he did this morning when he spoke to the United Nations General Assembly, cameras showed what looks like he has a black eye.

Comments | 11,104 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 25, 2012

Brown Staffers Dispute Warren's Native American Heritage with Tomahawk Chops

Sen. Scott Brown's staff find it so insensitive that his challenger, Elizabeth Warren, may have mislead people about having Native American heritage that they showed up at one of her campaign rallies to express their outrage with war whoops and tomahawk chops.

Comments | 7,422 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 25, 2012

Romney's Four Ways to Attack Obama's Foreign Policy

Here are the four ways Mitt Romney is attacking President Obama on foreign policy: He's too wimpy like Jimmy Carter, he's too vain to do diplomatic drudgery, he's too callous to recognize the humanity of the people who died in Libya, and he's too bureaucratic to use the private sector to help developing countries.

Comments | 2,698 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 24, 2012

Ad Watch

Scott Brown Goes All In on Warren's Cherokee Pa-Paw

Today in Ad Watch: Scott Brown takes on Elizabeth Warren's family tree, President Obama mocks Mitt Romney's "47 percent" tape, and Romney says Obama can't even control Nancy Pelosi.

Comments | 1,180 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 24, 2012

What Is Paul Ryan's Job on the Romney Campaign?

Have you ever had a job where two different bosses were constantly tell you to do two different things? That's Paul Ryan right now.

Comments | 3,501 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 24, 2012

It's Not Easy Being a Super PAC

It's official: politicians are better at spending rich people's money than rich people are at spending their own money on politics. 

Comments | 1,379 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 21, 2012

Jogger Mitt Romney Looks to Be in Better Shape Than P90X Disciple Paul Ryan

Oh sure, Paul Ryan gets lots of attention for his muscle-confusing P90X workout, his alleged 6 percent body fat, and his alleged six-pack. But Mitt Romney, 23 years his senior, is healthier, at least based on resting heart rate.

Comments | 2,722 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 21, 2012

Did Mitt Romney Learn His '47 Percent' Line from Paul Ryan?

Where did Mitt Romney get the idea that 47 percent of Americans think of themselves as victims?

Comments | 1,249 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 21, 2012

Romney Paid 14% in Taxes This Year but Could Have Paid Less

Mitt Romney has released his 2011 tax return, and it shows he paid an effective tax rate of 14.1 percent tax rate -- and if he'd taken all the deductions he's allowed, it would have been lower.

Comments | 4,080 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 21, 2012

Not Everyone's Convinced by Romney's Reset

Mitt Romney's campaign has detailed a strategy shift twice this week, and you can measure the level of faith some conservatives have in it by their very different and very specific recommendations that Romney do something else.

Comments | 4,085 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

Romney Fundraising Slowed in August

Mitt Romney raised $86.6 million in August, according to newly released financial disclosure forms, which is less than the $100 million raised in both June and July, when he was outraising Barack Obama. 

Comments | 172 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

Obama Doesn't Think He Can Change Washington After All

President Obama said he's learned some lessons in the White House, and this one is a pretty disappointing lesson: "The most important lesson I’ve learned is that you can’t change Washington from the inside. You can only change it from the outside."

Comments | 1,142 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

Update: Scott Brown Made the Debate!

Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown has a very important date tonight.

Comments | 1,585 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

'My Horse Has More Style and More Class in Its Hoof'

If Lyn Mosbacher is to be believed, then Ann Romney is also quite capable of sounding like a cartoonish caricature of a rich person.

Comments | 49,069 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

The Worst Way a Democrat Could Whiff a 47% Question

You would expect Republican politicians to struggle with answering questions about Mitt Romney's "47 percent," conflicted between party loyalty and their own electoral welfare. But for Democrats, the answer should be easy. Not so for Tim Kaine, who just advocated taxing the poor.

Comments | 31,846 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

Obama Exposed: Middling Popularity as a Professor

A longstanding conservative meme is that President Obama wasn't "vetted" during the 2008 campaign, and several conservative organizations have undertaken big projects to remedy that. Today's major revelations include that Obama was only a moderately popular professor.

Comments | 17,071 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

Your Creepy Political Meme of the Day: Obama's New Flag vs. Blood in Libya

When conservative commentators saw President Obama's campaign site was selling a flag with his "O" symbol subbed in for the stars, they saw blood. Literally!

Comments | 3,785 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

The Half of Obama's Redistribution Video That Romney and Drudge Ignored

After the Drudge Report posted audio of Obama from 1998, Mitt Romney immediately folded the clip into his first interview about the 47 percent with Fox News and cited it on the campaign trail as "something we've been hearing on the Internet." But the second half of Obama's remarks, in context, doesn't sound very socialist-y at all.

Comments | 1,551 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 20, 2012

Romney After 47%: Which Reset Button Will He Push?

Mitt Romney's campaign is finally changing its strategy after a flood of free advice following the secret tape of him writing off 47 percent of Americans. Is he going to follow any of it?

Comments | 1,254 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 19, 2012

Why No One Knows What the Polls Mean

President Obama is either crushing Mitt Romney with an 8-point lead nationally, or Romney has just edged Obama for a 1-point lead. No one knows which to believe and even the savviest poll-readers are confused.

Comments | 6,671 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 19, 2012

James O'Keefe Is the Real Victim Here

James O'Keefe III is feeling some righteous indignation over... well, it's not clear what, exactly. The chief complaint seems to be that there is hidden camera footage in the news, and it isn't his.

Comments | 6,831 Views

By Elspeth Reeve

Sep 19, 2012

Ad Watch

100% of New Obama Ads Are Talking About 47%

A pro-Obama super PAC uses Mitt Romney's "47 percent" footage, Romney attacks President Obama over using coal miners, Todd Akin shows women love him, and Tim Kaine shows he's bipartisan.

Comments | 1,245 Views

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