Free Republic

There is a problem, and it has 100 members, two from each state.

This will likely not be a popular opinion but I suspect many here are thinking the same thing and are probably keeping quiet because we are so close to the election and we all desperately want to be rid of Obama (If you doubt that I feel that way check out my posting history).

When Schieffer asks the question (regardless how he puts it or how he might try to frame it in order to help Obama), I think he should start out by saying the following:

Mr. Romney should do in the debate what he hasn't done in his speeches, media appearances or TV ads—in other words, in his entire campaign. He must make a forceful case that America's survival as a prosperous and respected nation is at stake. In that context, the election becomes an urgent choice between a national turnaround and further decline. The Romney advertising has been especially sorry at drawing that distinction. The generally bland commercials feel like they could have run at any time in the past 40 years.

To our mind, two events amid hundreds stand out as defining President Obama's first term. The first is his go-for-broke pursuit of progressive social legislation instead of focusing on economic recovery. The second is his refusal to strike a budget deal with Speaker John Boehner in 2011. Both reveal a President more bent on transforming America than addressing the needs of our time.

I apologize for the vanity - I am fired up about Ryan's selection but believe that the next few weeks could be a make or break period of time for RR. The democrats are going to expend an inordinate amount of resources right NOW in an effort to harden opinions against Ryan and his Medicare plan. Timing, magnitude of the response, and the message itself are all critical. 1) Timing: It has to happen right now. The ads countering the MSM and Obama Campaign lies should go up in the battleground states even before the Obama ads if possible. How...

"I am determined to do everything I can to defeat Barack Obama who I regard as a direct threat to my two grandchildren’s future. I think a second term by Obama will be an absolute disaster. So I am prepared to do – this has gotta be Mitt Romney’s campaign. He is the nominee. It has got to fit a rhythm and pattern he believes in. But within that framework, I’ll do anything I can to be helpful to them."

Mitt Romney dominated yesterday's New Hampshire primary, taking more than 39% in what was essentially a five-way race. (Rick Perry, taking his uncompetitiveness for Granite, essentially sat out the primary. He failed to crack single digit, though he did best Buddy Roemer, providing further evidence of the importance of debates.) Romney's closest serious opponent, Jon Huntsman, managed a hair under 17%, while Newt Gingrich appears to have edged out Rick Santorum for fourth place, both men finishing with 9.4%.

About the best that can be said about the Republican attacks on Mitt Romney's record at Bain Capital is that President Obama is going to do the same thing eventually, so GOP primary voters might as well know what's coming. Yet that hardly absolves Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry and others for their crude and damaging caricatures of modern business and capitalism.

Humiliated in Iowa, a desperate and angry Newt Gingrich is taking the offensive against Mitt Romney, whom he accuses of "looting companies when he headed the Bain Capital investment firm," reports NationalJournal.com, and "conservative interests are pushing back":...

Yes this is fantasy, but below is my response to the “tell me about a time you didn’t have the basic necessities” question: “Well I must say that I find the choice of this particular question, among the thousands that I’m sure ABC received, to be troubling – it doesn’t appear to be motivated in any way to uncovering how the candidates on this stage would govern if elected. The appearance certainly exists that this question is an attempt by ABC to conjure up images of Republicans as rich fat cats, unsympathetic to the plight of the many people in...

...On the other hand, sometimes you need a few "wets" to gain a majority and advance your own ideas. Ask Nancy Pelosi, who rode the victories of Rahm Emanuel's hand-picked Blue Dog Democrats to the House Speakership in 2006 and then used them to pass 40 years of liberal dreams in this Congress...

If you haven't seen Bill Whittle's latest editorial, it is excellent

Paraphrased from today's Detroit News: ... Federal agents indicate they have evidence of Conyers accepting payments totaling at least $6K in exchange for Conyers changing her vote on a $1.2 billion contract from Synagro Technologies in 2007. Conyers would not discuss the case with reportes but did say that those who are not praying for her are "just adding to the problem".

This is old news but I haven't seen it discussed here so I was curious if anyone else reached a similar conclusion or recalled the facts as I do. During the primary debates, the topic of immigration came up in nearly every democrat and Republican debate. And in my view, immigration was in fact one of the more hotly debated topics during the primaries. Fast forward to the three presidential debates and the vice presidnential debate. NOT ONE QUESTION WAS ASKED ABOUT IMMIGRATION. How can this be? Of course the conclusion that I draw is that the liberal moderators recognized...

Normally I would think it quite presumptuous for someone such as myself, with no formal experience running a campaign or advising a candidate, to make specific recommendations to a presidential candidate. However, my frustration level is extremely high and the stakes are obviously very high, so I am going to do it anyway. The general thesis is that you are not attacking Obama and the democrats in general with enough strength and specificity regarding Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac. I am not alone. Just last night, Brit Hume and Charles Krauthammer expressed disbelief that you have not attacked on an issue which...

Moderator- Following is a suggestion to add a feature to this board. Feel free to move this as it is clearly not news. I post it here because I hope that it will generate the greatest amount of feedback. I have no programming experience whatsoever so I don't know if it is possible or if it were possible if it can be done cost effectively, but the suggestion would be to rate the stories posted on a scale from 1 to 10 and then show the top rated stories in a sidebar similar to the "Breaking News" sidebars on the...

...Ten years ago, for example, the typical conforming mortgage required a down payment of 10 to 20 percent, and low-down payment mortgages were considered too risky. But then we helped to standardize the 3 to 5 percent down payment loan, brought it to global capital markets, and made it available to lenders and communities nationwide. Now low-down payment loans are commonplace. And we just adopted a new variance in our underwriting standards that will make the $500 down payment loan widely available as well... In 1994, we pledged to provide $1 trillion in capital to ten million underserved families by...

Sorry for the vanity. Just watched the Palin Couric interview and I am concerned. First, I think Palin was an inspired VP choice, gave a great convention speech, and did well under adverse conditions in the Gibson interview. Second, even though I thought she was awful during the Couric debate, I believe she would make a very good President. Many people who are unaware of a candidiate's accomplishments and record, will judge a person's fitness for office based on how they "come across" during an interview or debate. While I think that the substance of what someone says can reflect...

I hope this doesn't turn into Bush redux, where the obvious and decisive responses to liberal attacks are not utilized. Case in point: Earmarks. Today I saw Palin questioned in a confronational manner by "Charlie" and Senator Brownback on Fox by Colmes. Both were challenged on Palin's earmark record. Seems to me that ANY time a republican is challenged regarding Palin's earmark history the following the points should be made (at a minium): 1) Palin does have a record of dramatically reducing earmark requests since she bacame governor. Whoever is being interviewed needs to lay out the numbers. What were...