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The Voters who stayed Home (bitter pill: Republicans re-elected Obama)
National Review Online ^ | 11/10/12 | McCarthy

Posted on 11/11/2012 11:27:31 AM PST by pabianice

The key to understanding the 2012 election is simple: A huge slice of the electorate stayed home.

The punditocracy — which is more of the ruling class than an eye on the ruling class — has naturally decided that this is because Republicans are not enough like Democrats: They need to play more identity politics (in particular, adopt the Left’s embrace of illegal immigration) in order to be viable. But the story is not about who voted; it is about who didn’t vote. In truth, millions of Americans have decided that Republicans are not a viable alternative because they are already too much like Democrats. They are Washington. With no hope that a Romney administration or more Republicans in Congress would change this sad state of affairs, these voters shrugged their shoulders and became non-voters.

“This is the most important election of our lifetime.” That was the ubiquitous rally cry of Republican leaders. The country yawned. About 11 million fewer Americans voted for the two major-party candidates in 2012 — 119 million, down from 130 million in 2008. In fact, even though our population has steadily increased in the last eight years (adding 16 million to the 2004 estimate of 293 million Americans), about 2 million fewer Americans pulled the lever for Obama and Romney than for George W. Bush and John Kerry.

That is staggering.

(Excerpt) Read more at nationalreview.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Editorial; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 2012; 2012analysis; 2012electionanalysis; andymccarthy; conservatives; cutoffnosevoters; elections; gop; gopcivilwar; gotv; obama; republicans; rinos; romney; romney2012; voterturnout
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To: driftdiver
Its our job to pick the better one.

Which end do YOU pick up the 'better' one from?

101 posted on 11/11/2012 12:32:03 PM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Elsie

Elsie, so I take it you didn’t vote AGAINST Obama and you’re now smug and happy that we’re stuck with Obama for another 4 years?

How pathetic.


102 posted on 11/11/2012 12:33:01 PM PST by AlanGreenSpam (Obama: The First 'American IDOL' President - sponsored by Chicago NeoCom Thugs)
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To: GlockThe Vote
Unlike you I tried to get rid of Obama.

And YOU were not successful.

Why?

My fault?

Just like O blames Bush for everything?

103 posted on 11/11/2012 12:33:19 PM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: driftdiver

You can bet your family jewels that within weeks these mental midgets will be screaming the loudest about Obama’s misdeeds.


104 posted on 11/11/2012 12:34:14 PM PST by monocle
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To: driftdiver
“God gave us government.”

This is wrong so the rest is crap.

Face it, this nation began committing suicide after WWII. Voting Mitt only would have delayed what is coming and even that is a big maybe. As far as answering for transgressions: I doubt that God thinks as much is at stake as you do or that He would want anyone to subordinate morality to economics. All Mitt had over Obozo is econmics.

105 posted on 11/11/2012 12:34:50 PM PST by TalBlack (Evil doesn't have a day job.)
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To: AlanGreenSpam
Elsie, so I take it you didn’t vote AGAINST Obama and you’re now smug and happy that we’re stuck with Obama for another 4 years?

Do I SOUND smug and happy?

106 posted on 11/11/2012 12:35:29 PM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: pabianice
“This is the most important election of our lifetime.” That was the ubiquitous rally cry of Republican leaders. The country yawned. About 11 million fewer Americans voted for the two major-party candidates in 2012 — 119 million, down from 130 million in 2008. In fact, even though our population has steadily increased in the last eight years (adding 16 million to the 2004 estimate of 293 million Americans), about 2 million fewer Americans pulled the lever for Obama and Romney than for George W. Bush and John Kerry. That is staggering.

It is also wrong. Millions of votes have yet to be counted. It took until Thanksgiving to get the total vote count in 2008. For example, only 71% of CA's votes have been reported until now. There are millions of votes to be added to the current total from CA alone. The national total is now over 120 million.

107 posted on 11/11/2012 12:35:38 PM PST by kabar
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To: BereanBrain

This election has me CONVINCED that conservatives can only win next time if they run a candidate of color (black or brown) who will garner the votes of the dimwits who vote solely on skin color and social background.

-Herman Cain was an option (and I think he should have stayed in the race, just like Slick Willie stayed in the WH after being impeached for his sex escapades)

-Rubio seems too white to garner hispanic vote, but is a good start.


108 posted on 11/11/2012 12:35:56 PM PST by AlanGreenSpam (Obama: The First 'American IDOL' President - sponsored by Chicago NeoCom Thugs)
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To: TalBlack

Heresy will get you condemned to the pits of hell.

Read the Bible, start with Romans and it will be a bit clearer for you.


109 posted on 11/11/2012 12:35:56 PM PST by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: Tau Food

Exactly. In my opinion, too many conservatives where I live sat on their butts and did very little to help Newt or Rick Santorum and both of those campaigns were literally running on a shoestring budget while Romney’s campaign had a bunch of workers, signs, phone banks, etc. and they won pretty easily. We had so few campaign workers to walk the precincts for Newt and because there was so little money many times we had to call voters on our own cellphones to get them to go out while the Romney machine had dozens of workers walking the pavement and phone banks with voter rolls to get out the vote on primary day. Conservatives can whine about being stuck with the establishment candidate but the plain fact is not enough of us did the grunt and leg work needed to get a conservative the nomination, nor did we give them enough financial support. That’s the bottom line. The Tea Party sprang entirely from grassroots supporters. They bucked the establishment and they were responsible for the big congressional gains of 2010. The GOP establishment is already talking about pushing their guys like Jeb Bush and Chris Christie for the next presidential election. If we’re going to get a conservative nominee in 2016 it’s going to be a grassroots operation and we need to work our butts off so we don’t have another repeat of 2008 and 2012.


110 posted on 11/11/2012 12:36:52 PM PST by dowcaet ( for)
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To: monocle
You can bet your family jewels that within weeks these mental midgets will be screaming the loudest about Obama’s misdeeds.

Well; SOMEone will have to do it; for you poor losers will be too tuckered out to do so, from screaming at US!

111 posted on 11/11/2012 12:37:13 PM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Elsie

You think you’re smart. I think you’re a traitor and blasphemer.


112 posted on 11/11/2012 12:37:18 PM PST by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: Strategerist

The states examined are Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, Virginia, Nevada, Wisconsin, Iowa, Colorado, and Michigan. The trend for Obama was across the board: fewer votes in all swing states. However, the Republicans were able to increase the votes for Romney in seven of the nine states. However, those two states were big: Ohio and Pennsylvania although the Obama losses were much larger 236,080 in Ohio and 389,142.

Republican differences in the swing states:

Ohio: -80,702
Michigan: +62,500
Wisconsin: +146,313
Pennsylvania: -60,711
Florida: +79,241
Colorado: +61,581
Iowa: +42,565
Virginia: +48,977
Nevada: +49,780

Totals will change as more votes are counted.


113 posted on 11/11/2012 12:38:57 PM PST by kabar
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To: dowcaet

“If we’re going to get a conservative nominee in 2016 it’s going to be a grassroots operation and we need to work our butts off so we don’t have another repeat of 2008 and 2012.”

Would also bring the GOP back to the center.


114 posted on 11/11/2012 12:39:02 PM PST by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: AlanGreenSpam
-Herman Cain was an option (and I think he should have stayed in the race, just like Slick Willie stayed in the WH after being impeached for his sex escapades)

He was well on the way to get MY vote; but his sin, while similar to Clinton's, was performed while wearing the label of REPUBLICAN; so that would have insured a thorough Borking of him.

115 posted on 11/11/2012 12:40:19 PM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: driftdiver
Heresy will get you condemned to the pits of hell.


116 posted on 11/11/2012 12:41:29 PM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: driftdiver
I think you’re a traitor and blasphemer.

Ok; but I'm sure not a whiner and a blamer like SOME folks on FR that I can think of right now.

117 posted on 11/11/2012 12:42:39 PM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: bigdaddy45

all over the country, no. Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Colorado... yes.

Not “throw away” ballots. They manfactured Dem ballots, all digital these days.


118 posted on 11/11/2012 12:44:10 PM PST by GeronL (http://asspos.blogspot.com)
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To: Elsie

You’re just bitter because they only allow one wife in Utah now.


119 posted on 11/11/2012 12:44:39 PM PST by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: dowcaet
The GOP establishment is already talking about pushing their guys like Jeb Bush and Chris Christie for the next presidential election. If we’re going to get a conservative nominee in 2016 it’s going to be a grassroots operation and we need to work our butts off so we don’t have another repeat of 2008 and 2012.

You've said it perfectly!

Karl Rove is out there explaining that Romney would have won if the Democrats hadn't criticized him and depressed the vote. Can you imagine someone feigning surprise that his candidate was criticized by the his opponents?

I guess the lesson is that next time we'll just pick a candidate that the Democrats won't badmouth - maybe Michelle Obama! That'll work!

120 posted on 11/11/2012 12:44:59 PM PST by Tau Food (Praise God. Trust God.)
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