Democracy | News-Opinion
TOP NEWS: Democracy: October 22nd, 2012
COUNTDOWN TO ELECTION: 17 DAYS
Top Five News and Analysis Links (Excerpts Below)
- Sharpening the Message for the Final Push
- The Opiate of Exceptionalism
- 5 things to watch for in debate
- Pennsylvania: Last-Minute Game-Changer?
- ‘Gender Gap’ Near Historic Highs
More top news and analysis: (Updates coming shortly)
ELECTIONS 2012: Sharpening the Message for the Final Push – NYT, MICHAEL D. SHEAR
In the closing days of the 2012 presidential campaign, President Obama and Mitt Romney are finding sharper, punchier ways to communicate their basic arguments.
ELECTIONS 2012: The GOP’s Agenda – WSJ, ROBERT L. POLLOCK
What would Republicans do if Mitt Romney wins the presidency and they take control of Congress?
ELECTIONS 2012: Romney, Obama in Dead Heat – WSJ
A surge in support for Romney has put him in a dead heat with Obama with about two weeks to go before the vote, according to a nationwide Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.
ELECTIONS 2012/RACIAL POLITICS: A Calculus of Race and Politics NYT, JODI KANTOR
Since taking office, President Obama has attempted to balance two deeply held impulses: a belief in universal politics not based on race and an embrace of black life and its challenges.
*Jodi Kantor was a guest speaker at a The Common Good co-hosted event in 2012. Details [HERE]
ELECTIONS 2012: Obama’s Best-Kept Secrets - NYT, THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
Why aren’t we hearing more about the major reforms in schools and cars?
*MORE ELECTIONS 2012 NEWS AND ANALYSIS BELOW
POLITICAL IDEOLOGY:The Opiate of Exceptionalism – NYT, SCOTT SHANE
Of serious presidential candidates, and even of presidents, Americans demand constant reassurance that their country, their achievements and their values are extraordinary.
POLITICAL IDEOLOGY:Why Partisans Can’t Explain Their Views – NYT, STEVEN SLOMAN, PHILIP M. FERNBACH
When we’re asked to explain how a policy works, we become less partisan.
POLITICAL IDEOLOGY: After McGovern, Is the Ideologue Endangered? – TIME, JON MEACHAM
Obama and Romney are clearly more pragmatists than ideologues, but are they both avoiding talking about what really needs to be done
POLITICAL IDEOLOGY: Tea party help for Dems - WP, DANA MILKBANK
Ideological purity keeps the Senate from the GOP.
POLITICAL IDEOLOGY: Seeds of our dysfunction - WP, GEORGE WILL
Reduce the government’s complicity in illusions.
FOREIGN POLICY DEBATE: 5 things to watch for in debate - WP, CHRIS CILLIZZA
MONDAY FIX | With polls suggesting a dead heat, the race may hinge on the foreign policy-focused debate.
DEBATE: The Foreign Policy Debate - NYT, DAVID E. SANGER
For Mitt Romney, America must again be the unchallenged power in the world. For President Obama, America must live in the moment, pre-eminent but not the sole power.
DEBATE: Two Campaigns Skirt Talk of Tough Choices in Afghanistan - NYT
For either President Obama or Mitt Romney, finding a satisfactory end to the war in Afghanistan and maintaining American influence in Pakistan will be a challenge.
DEBATE/LIBYA: Benghazi and Arab Spring Rear Up in U.S. Campaign – NYT
The attack in Libya last month has become the focal point of a fierce debate over what role the United States should seek to play in shaping the new order emerging from the Arab Spring.
DEBATE MODERATOR: Debate moderating: a thankless job – AP, DAVID BAUDER
Thanks to a bitter campaign rivalry, thriving partisan media outlets and the growth of social media, debate moderator is approaching baseball umpire on the scale of thankless jobs.
SWING STATES: Pennsylvania: Last-Minute Game-Changer? – WSJ
Pennsylvania has emerged as an appealing target for Mitt Romney and the Republican Party as they consider where to invest their considerable resources during the final weeks of the presidential campaign.
SWING STATES: Cash Flood Fuels Fight to the End in Leaning States – NYT
JEFF ZELENY: To earn enough electoral votes to win the election, Mitt Romney will likely have to wrest Wisconsin, Iowa or Ohio from President Obama, three Midwestern states that Mr. Obama is trying to protect.
SWING STATES: Alarm Bells for Obama – NEW YORKER, JOHN CASSIDY
Though two new polls indicate that the race in Ohio is tied, Romney is making a serious run in the state…
SWING STATES: Cowboy Boots, High Heels and the Fight for Colo. – RCP, CARL M. CANNON
The airwaves are saturated with political ads, the polls are even, voters exhausted, and party professionals dutifully predicting victory for their side — but only by a single percentage point or two.
SWING STATES: GM is alive in Defiance, Ohio. But Obama’s hopes here may not be. – WP, Rosalind S. Helderman
For Democrats, this may be the town President Obama helped save with the auto bailout. But, in a twist, Defiance and places like it could end up saving Mitt Romney in all-important Ohio.
SWING STATES: Ohio, Maker or Breaker of Presidents - BLOOMBERG, Albert R. Hunt
Ohio is used to being ground zero in presidential elections.
SWING STATES: Bill Clinton’s Get-Out-the-Vote Event in Green Bay - NYT, DAVID FIRESTONE
He delivered the dream speech of a policy wonk, but never assumed the details would bore a general audience.
WOMEN VOTERS:‘Gender Gap’ Near Historic Highs - NYT, NATE SILVER
The biggest gender gap to date in the exit polls came in 2000, when Al Gore won by 11 points among women, but George W. Bush won by 9 points among men – a 20-point difference. The numbers this year look very close to that.
VOTER DRIVES: Campaign Boils Down to Door-to-Door Voter Drives - NYT
Florida’s turnout may rest in part on volunteers’ stamina in get-out-the-vote efforts. “It’s going to be hand-to-hand combat all the way down,” an adviser to the Romney campaign said.
WOMEN VOTERS: The Waitress-Mom War - NY MAGAZINE , JOHN HEILMANN
Both campaigns know that in the swing states, women are the swingers.
VOTERS: Can Obama Sustain Enthusiasm With African Americans? – WEEKLY STANDARD, JAY COST
Elections these days are determined in part by the swing of unaffiliated voters, which both sides closely contest. They also hinge on how strongly each party’s base turns out to vote.
MODERATE VOTERS: Our terribly confused moderates – SALON, ALEX PAREENE
Adams, Bloomberg, Brooks and Bissinger: None of them can admit to themselves that they’re just regular Democrats
UNDECIDED VOTERS: Sympathy for the Undecided – NYT, ROSS DOUTHAT
There are reasons that even a highly informed voter could still be on the fence.
VOTING RIGHTS: Getting to Vote Is Getting Harder - NYT
New rules cover voters in 13 states. Here are four types of voter laws and where they have been put in place since 2011.
VOTING RIGHTS: The Voter-Fraud Myth - NEW YORKER, JANE MAYER
Is Hans von Spakovsky stoking fears of a scandal that doesn’t exist?
LOCAL RACES: A House Race Reflects California Shift - WSJ
The battle over a U.S. House seat in coastal California has turned unexpectedly close, in a sign that changes in California’s election system may begin to favor centrist candidates.
LOCAL RACES: G.O.P.’s Beleaguered Akin Draws Ire Over ‘Fetch’ Talk - NYT
The race between Representative Todd Akin and Senator Claire McCaskill has been one of the most contentious and closely watched ones in the nation.
LOCAL RACES: Fight Night – WSJ, MATTHEW PAYNE
Last night voters in Connecticut, Missouri, Ohio, Virginia and Wisconsin had the opportunity to watch Senate candidates spar. Fireworks ensued.
LOCAL RACES: Taking Note: Wisconsin Senate Race Ads - NYT
For swing states in the age of Citizens United, politics on TV is brutish, confusing and depressing.
ENDORSEMENTS: For US Senate: Kirsten Gillibrand for NY – NYT, EDITORIAL
Ms. Gillibrand has been a steady voice of reason in Washington. We endorse her for re-election to the Senate.
ENDORSEMENTS: For US Senate: Christopher Murphy for CT – NYT, EDITORIAL
We endorse Representative Christopher Murphy, a thoughtful and productive public servant with an almost perfect voting record, for the Senate.
ENDORSEMENTS: THE CHOICE – NEW YORKER, EDITORIAL
The New Yorker’s endorsement of Barack Obama for President
HEALTHCARE: The Republican Ticket Twists the Facts About Health Care - NYT, EDITORIAL
Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan have been obfuscating their plans for Medicare, Medicaid and what they will do to reform the health care system.
OBAMACARE: BEWARE OF ROMNEYCARE - NEW YORKER, JAMES SUROWIECKI
Mitt Romney can be a hard man to pin down. But there is one thing that he’s been clear about: if he becomes President, he will repeal Obamacare. That simple promise, more than any other that Romney has made, illuminates what is most at stake in this year’s election
OBAMACARE: Obamacare’s drawbacks - WP, ROBERT SAMUELSON
Expect a more expensive and confusing system.
WISCONSIN SHOOTING: Three Killed in Shooting at Spa in Wisconsin – NYT
A gunman opened fire at a day spa in a suburb of Milwaukee on Sunday, killing at least three people and injuring four, the police said.
GEORGE MCGOVERN/1922-2012: A Prairie Liberal, Trounced but Never Silenced – NYT
DAVID E. ROSENBAUM: To the liberal Democratic faithful, Mr. McGovern remained a standard-bearer well into old age, writing and lecturing even as his name was routinely invoked by conservatives as synonymous with what they considered the failures of liberal politics.
GEORGE MCGOVERN/1922-2012: George McGovern, Libertarian Hero – BLOOMBERG, NICK GILLESPIE
The venerable former senator and failed presidential candidate George McGovern, who died today at 90, is being remembered by many friends and foes alike as the archetypal ultraliberal.
GEORGE MCGOVERN/1922-2012: George McGovern – WSJ, EDITORIAL
The famous liberal came late to wisdom about life in business.
TECHNOLOGY/CENSORSHIP: A Catch-22 for online anti-censorship tools – WP
Demand overwhelms U.S.-funded programs, hindering Internet access and speed.
LANCE ARMSTRONG: Cycling Body Strips Armstrong of Titles - WSJ
Cycling’s governing body has agreed to strip Lance Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles and ban him for life.
FREE SPEECH: In Texas, a Legal Battle Over Biblical Banners – NYT
A school superintendent’s stance on religious expression has put him at odds with his students, his neighbors, the governor, the attorney general and, some in his town believe, his God.
HEALTH: Your Assignment for Today: Chew Gum – NYT, EZEKIEL J. EMANUEL
Schools should jump on a cheap and easy method of cavity prevention.
HEALTH: ‘Worried Sick’: Meningitis Risk Haunts 14,000 – NYT
For thousands of people who may have been infected by a contaminated drug, there is little to do but wait and see what happens.
HEALTH: Lawsuits piling up over meningitis deaths – WP
At least 12 people have filed separate complaints in federal and state courts seeking damages from New England Compounding Center, and attorneys predict that the number of suits will multiply exponentially.
EDUCATION: Opinion: Testing My Twins - NYT, CLAIRE NEEDELL HOLLANDER
A dip in test scores could have been attributed to all sorts of failings, but we saw it as an amusing instance of identical twin weirdness.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE: ‘Your Honor, My Genes Made Me Do It’ – WSJ
Judith Edersheim, Bruce Price, Jordan Smoller: There have been many theories to explain violent behavior. The latest involves a defective ‘warrior gene.’
JESSE JACKSON: Jesse Jackson Jr., on Leave, to Return to Hospital - AP via NYT
The Illinois Democrat’s father, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, said Mr. Jackson would return to the Mayo Clinic after taking a leave from Congress for bipolar disorder.
MORE DEBATE NEWS & ANALYSIS
DEBATE/EDUCATION: Why Education Should Be in the Foreign Policy Debate - TIME, WENDY KOPP
Education is the most powerful tool countries have for boosting economic growth, increasing prosperity and forging more just, peaceful and equitable societies. Where educational deprivation exists, it breeds conflict and enables repression.
DEBATE: Presidential debate: the Middle East matters - FT
Region dominates agenda in foreign-policy face-off.
DEBATE/FOREIGN POLICY: Debate Topic Could Limit Romney’s Closing Argument - RCP, SCOTT CONROY
From the day he announced his candidacy in June 2011, Mitt Romney has grounded his case for the Oval Office in what he calls President Obama’s failure to reinvigorate the economy, asserting that his own business background gives him the experience and skill set to do a better job.
DEBATE/FOREIGN POLICY: Questions for the Foreign Affairs Debate - BLOOMBERG, JEFFREY GOLDBERG
It’s almost inevitable that the foreign policy debate between U.S. President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney will feature much useless arguing about who said what, and when, about the fatal attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
DEBATE/FOREIGN POLICY: Obama, Romney take on the world in final debate - WP
When President Obama meets Republican challenger Mitt Romney in Boca Raton, Fla., he will face an opponent who has already made up tremendous ground on foreign policy by criticizing Obama as weak, waffling and distracted.
DEBATE: Presidential Mitt - NYT, BILL KELLER
Here’s what Mitt Romney can say in Monday night’s debate to sound like a credible commander in chief.
LIBYA: After Benghazi Attack, Talk Lagged Behind Intelligence - NYT
The gap between the official explanations and the contemporaneous field reports on the attack in Libya illustrates the difficulty of turning raw intelligence into a coherent picture fit for officials’ public statements.
DEBATE: Shadow of 9/11 towers over the US election - FT, EDWARD LUCE
The presidential campaign shows that America has not yet left the Bush era behind
DEBATE: Obama advisers defend his record - FT
Foreign policy becomes focal point ahead of third debate
LIBYA: Dorothy Rabinowitz: The Unreality of the Past Four Years - WSJ
The Benghazi fiasco is a brutally illuminating portrait of the Obama White House in crisis mode.
LIBYA DEBATE: The Benghazi Controversy, Explained - MOTHER JONES, KEVIN DRUM
The reporting on what we know about the Benghazi attacks on September 11 just gets more and more interesting. Let’s do a quick Q&A:
LIBYA DEBATE: Libyagate - NRO, John O’Sullivan
When scandals metastasize, the stakes are high indeed.
AFGHANISTAN: Two Campaigns Skirt Talk of Tough Choices in Afghanistan - NYT
For either President Obama or Mitt Romney, finding a satisfactory end to the war in Afghanistan and maintaining American influence in Pakistan will be a challenge.
DEBATE: Talk to me tonight, Barry - WP, RICHARD COHEN
You and Mitt need to have a grown-up debate about foreign policy.
MORE ELECTIONS 2012 NEWS & ANALYSIS
POLITICS/TECHNOLOGY: Campaigns embrace rise of ‘dual viewers’ - FT
Millions use social media while watching debates.
PROJECTIONS: Campaign Stops: Google’s Crystal Ball - NYT
How does the election look from the search window?
OPINION POLLS: Polarizer-in-Chief - WSJ, STEPHEN MOORE
A Gallup poll shows that Obama has been the most divisive president since Eisenhower.
OBAMA: Obama’s second term - WP, E.J. DIONE
His agenda is neither hidden nor vague.
MEDIA: Ever Bipartisan, Bloomberg Jabs Both Candidates - NYT
JIM RUTENBERG: With his critical assessment of President Obama and Mitt Romney, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg was in a sense speaking for voters exasperated by the campaign.
ELECTIONS 2012: Tight U.S. race surprises many observers abroad - WP
Some leaders appear unprepared for a possible Mitt Romney presidency.
ROMNEY: Gosh, Who Talks Like That Now? Romney Does - NYT
Mitt Romney’s way of speaking is polite, formal and anachronistic, linguistically setting him apart, and influencing the word choices of those who work with and for him.
MARCO RUBIO: Taxing My Patience - NYT, FRANK BRUNI
With trickle-down aviation and other happy talk, Marco Rubio distills the avoidance of hard truths.
The Common Good publishes a U.S. domestic news digest every weekday, available here.
