Miami
We’re used to invasive species in Florida, from Burmese pythons terrorizing the Everglades to unlicensed plastic surgeons injecting our butts with cement glue. In fact, many Floridians are themselves invasive species, …
2012 Election
The Obama Campaign’s Humorous Dog Whistle
The best attacks are cast with humor. That’s why it worked when John McCain’s 2008 campaign used Paris Hilton against Barack Obama, and why the windsurfing spot that George W. Bush used against John Kerry in 2004 got so much traction. The humor takes the edge off and builds a bond between the viewer and the attacker. And so the Obama …
Occupy Mitt: Protesters Come Face-to-Face with the 1% in Florida
Dunedin, Florida
After Mitt Romney spoke at a rally in Naples on Sunday, a young man worked his way through the crowd, swimming against the current of tanned, elderly attendees leaving the plaza. A one-dollar bill was plastered over his mouth, symbolizing the silencing power of money. On it, he had written “99%.” An older man saw him …
Mitt Romney and Ron Paul: A Tale of Two Very Different Candidates
The Villages, Florida
Mitt Romney and Ron Paul may be running in the same race, but they’re different animals. While Romney was holding rallies across Florida in the run up to Tuesday’s primary, Paul’s camp was busy in less conspicuous places such as Maine and Nevada, where voters will head to the polls on Feb. 4, looking to …
The Most Important Number Update: Not Quite Good News For Obama, Yet
A couple of weeks back, I explained the historic importance of economic growth, and more particularly disposable income growth, in predicting presidential election results. When incomes are rising, incumbent parties tend to get reelected. When they are static or falling, incumbent parties tend to lose.
On Monday, the Bureau of …
Bracing for a Loss in Florida, Gingrich Reinvents Himself as a Grassroots Insurgent
Tampa
When you throw a party only to show up an hour and 45 minutes late, the least you can do is feed your guests. Once he arrived at a cavernous hangar for a rally on the last full day of campaigning before Tuesday’s …
Slaying the Republican White Knight Theory
The two-man race between Mitt Romney, He of the Mandated Health Insurance, and Newt Gingrich, He of the Lunar Janitorial Academy for Kids, has reduced conservative cuticles to nubs. Tea Partyers are threatening to stay home in November and the eminent Bill Kristol has not yet given up his dream of finding a White Knight to lance the …
For Mitt Romney in Florida, It’s All About Character (Attacks)
Pompano Beach, Florida
A political riddle presents itself on the trail with Mitt Romney: Can a true man of character constantly attack the character of another man?
From the first introductions on Sunday, character was presented as the defining, most winning attribute of the former governor: Romney was touted as the candidate whose …
Outstumped and Outspent, Newt Gingrich Flounders in Florida
The Villages, Florida
For a moment, as he gazed out at the gargantuan crowd gathered in brilliant sunshine, Newt Gingrich caught a glimpse of what might have been. Gingrich arrived at this retirement enclave in central …
The Once and Future Front Runner: Why Romney Is Winning in Florida and What Comes Next
In a Republican-primary season marked by political chaos, here’s something that finally seems settled: Mitt Romney will win the Tuesday, Jan. 31, Florida primary. So say the latest public polls, several of which suggest Romney …
With Gingrich on the Trail in Florida, Romney Surrogates Are Never Far Behind
Port St. Lucie, Florida
Newt Gingrich’s rallies have taken on certain characteristics as he crisscrosses Florida. There are the ubiquitous Reagan references. (Gingrich seems bent on drafting the ghost of the Gipper as his …
In Surprise Twist, Cain Endorses Gingrich
Former presidential candidate Herman Cain endorsed Newt Gingrich on Saturday night, giving Gingrich a much-needed boost just two days before Florida’s pivotal Jan. 31 primary.
A Gloomy Gingrich Struggles to Snap His Slide in Florida
Delray Beach, Florida
“Three nuclear weapons properly placed in Israel is a second Holocaust,” Newt Gingrich tells a room full of Jews. “If you’re going to go to Yad Vashem, if you’re going to say never again,” he …