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By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent
With less than 60 days to go to the Presidential election, the pundits are moving into overdrive as the opinion polls show little change on the pattern established over the last few months. Some are writing Romney off as a poor candidate with a confused and confusing message. But that is undoubtedly premature.
Mostly it is based on the speech (recorded without permission) of Mitt Romney discussing the 47% of people in America who pay no federal income taxes.
“Victims”, he called them, who were dependent on the federal government. It was an off-the-cuff comment, “inelegantly stated”, as he put it himself. But the commentators have had a field day. “He is out of touch”. “He despises half of Americans”. “He is not suitable for the Presidency”, they said.
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By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent
Hurricane Isaac caused some problems for the Republicans in Florida and this week it is just a matter of rain.
Storms, thunder and lightning are promised for Thursday, so the Democrats have had to shift from the newly refurbished stadium in downtown Charlotte to the much smaller Time Warner Arena. Continue reading
By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent
So the Supreme Court of the United States will now be the final arbiter of whether President Obama’s modest health reforms will stand or fall. After three days of submissions and argument the judges will come back with an adjudication around the end of June. Oh yeah – and there is an election this year.
An election for the Presidency of the United States! If ever there was the clear basis of a conflict between the elected branch of government and the judiciary, this is it. Can you imagine the effect of the Court striking down the law in the middle of the election year?
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By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent, in San Francisco
The Government has announced an investment of around €60 million in a venture capital fund, aimed at putting money into Irish companies and also getting the venture capital firms to set up in Ireland.
How realistic is this? Richard Moran is an American legend. He is one of a hundred or so people in San Francisco who are counted in the top tier of venture capitalists.
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By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent
Pity Mitt Romney. Before Super Tuesday all the commentators said that if he won a majority of the states being contested, he would be strengthened as a candidate. But on Sober Wednesday that had all changed.
He won six out of ten but still they were not happy. He was an ‘unconvincing’ candidate who ‘hadn’t sealed the deal’. Why the disconnect?
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By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent
For the four candidates left in the Republican race to become the nominee for the general election later this year, today, Super Tuesday, is a big day.
It may not be the end of the world if they don’t do well, but it is close to being over if they fail to make a mark.
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By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent, in New Hampshire
So after Iowa, there’s New Hampshire. This tiny state has a better track record in predicting the winner of the nomination process than the midwest state and there is a lot at stake for all the candidates.
For Mitt Romney, this is virtually home territory. He was governor of neighbouring Massachusetts and has been campaigning here for the last year.
He still has a lead in the opinion polls, but that has been whittled away by searing attacks from his opponents and by yesterday’s gaff, when he appeared to relish the prospect of sacking people.
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By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent, Â in Iowa
So after a pedestrian campaign that hadn’t caught alight, finally the American Presidential marathon is underway with a bit of pizzazz and a razor thin win for Mitt Romney.
He hadn’t done much campaigning here in Iowa. The conventional wisdom was that this is such a conservative state that he didn’t stand much of a chance.
Surely one of the tough right-wingers would come along and capture the hearts of the caucus goers? Rick Santorum did but he didn’t win.
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Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent, in Iowa
As the candidates keep up their hectic schedules in the final hours of the Iowa Caucuses, a picture of some sort is becoming clear.
First, Mitt Romney appears to be doing quite well. Becky Beach, fundraiser and driving force in the Iowa Republican Party, has opted for Romney.
She told us that it was a pragmatic decision, based on the belief that he could beat Barack Obama in the presidential election.
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By Richard Downes, Washington Correspondent, in Iowa
On the frozen fields of 100 counties, the candidates are trying to get voters to remember their name in the frantic last hours before they finally cast a vote.
Or do they ever really cast a vote?
The caucus system is an arcane and strange one and unique to a few states.
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