REWRITING PRESIDENT OBAMA'S POSITIONS

Mr. Romney and his advisors have shown a disturbing pattern throughout this election.  President Obama positions have been distorted and misquoted indiscriminately.  Here are 20 examples from Romney speeches...

References:  to learn more go to:

PolitiFact.com: http://www.politifact.com/personalities/mitt-romney/statements/byruling/false/
Photos/Cartoons: from TheChristian Left Web site: http://www.thechristianleft.org

-----

Mr. Romney has said:

1.  "Regulations have quadrupled. The rate of regulations quadrupled under this president."

The actual data on regulations show Obama's rate of regulations is no different from the past 18 years.

Mr. Romney  has said:

2.  "In one year, (President Obama) provided $90 billion in breaks to the green energy world … into solar and wind, to Solyndra and Fisker and Tesla and Ener1."

The money wasn’t provided in one year, wasn’t distributed primarily via tax breaks, wasn’t primarily provided directly to

companies, wasn’t primarily spent on solar and wind, and wasn’t spent at all on Fisker or Tesla.  If fact more than 60 percent of the allocated money was directed to state and local governments and utility companies for energy efficiency, transportation and electrical infrastructure. 


Mr. Romney has said:
3.   "President Obama has "doubled" the deficit."

President Obama and the Congress have actually decreased the deficit slightly.

Mr. Romney has said:
4.  "Right now, the (Congressional Budget Office) says up to 20 million people will lose their insurance as Obamacare goes into effect next year."

There is a great deal of insurance change by choice each year.  Many of those 20 million will be leaving employer coverage voluntarily for better options. Romney also ignores that under the status quo, many more people today "lose" coverage than even the highest CBO estimate.

"The life I touch for good or ill will touch another life, and in turn another, until who knows where the trembling stops or in what far place my touch will be felt.” Fredrick Buchner

Mr. Romney has said:

5.  "The 48, 49 percent that supports President Barack Obama are "people who pay no income tax."

Not supported by the polls and income tax data.  Obama gets substantial support from people earning more than $50,000 -- and 90 percent of them, or more, do pay taxes. And Romney gets lots of support from seniors, many of whom have no income tax liability.

Mr. Romney has said:
6.  "President Obama’s lawsuit claims it is unconstitutional for Ohio to allow servicemen and women extended early voting privileges during the state’s early voting period."

Obama’s lawsuit clearly states that it seeks to permit all Ohioans to vote during the three days before the election, as was the case in 2008. The suit in no way suggests restricting early voting by members of the military. 

It is simply dishonest for Romney and his backers to claim that Obama’s effort to extend early voting privileges to everyone in Ohio constitutes an attack on military voters’ ability to cast ballots on the weekend before elections. 


Mr. Romney has said:
7.  "President Obama was saying success 'is the result of government,' not 'hard-working people,' when he said, "If you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen."


The Romney campaign has repeatedly distorted Obama's words. By plucking two sentences out of context, Romney twists the president's remarks and ignores their real meaning. 

The preceding sentences make clear that Obama was talking about the importance of government-provided infrastructure and education to the success of private businesses. 

Romney also conveniently ignores Obama's clear summary of his message, that "the point is ... that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together."

By leaving out the "individual initiative" reference, Romney and his supporters have misled viewers and given a false impression.

Mr. Romney has said:
8.  Stimulus money went to buy electric cars from Finland as a payback to Obama supporters.

There is nothing accurate in this claim. The federal loan guarantees the company received were not part of the stimulus, and there is no evidence that any government dollars paid for work done by Finnish workers.

Ornisher, the company spokesman, told us the contract to produce the cars in Finland had been signed before the federal loan was approved. Also, measures were put in place to ensure that taxpayer dollars only went for work done in America.

 

The ad’s suggestion that the Fisker loan was a reward to a political supporter also falls flat. The program was approved initially by the Bush administration.


Mr. Romney has said:
9.  " ‘Obamacare’ puts the federal government between you and your doctor."


The law does aim to improve the quality and efficiency of care. At some level, that would change what doctors do. But we found no hard evidence to support the claim that doctors would be forced to make bad decisions. In contrast, we found many provisions that support an open process geared toward providing better care.

Primary care doctors seem most inclined to support the law, as do a large number of physician professional associations.

 But that doesn’t mean the government is placing itself between doctors and patients.

Mr. Romney has said:
10. "Dow Chemical decided to build a plant in Saudi Arabia rather than Oklahoma due to the impact of environmental regulations on the supply of natural gas."

No record of it appears to exist, Romney's campaign didn't offer any evidence to back it up and neither did Dow.

"If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at this woman" John 8:7

Mr. Romney has said:
11.,  "Obamacare … means that for up to 20 million Americans, they will lose the insurance they currently have, the insurance that they like and they want to keep."

Romney is  wrong to describe it as only including people who "like" their coverage, since many of those 20 million will be leaving employer coverage voluntarily for better options. Romney also ignores that under the status quo, many more people today "lose" coverage than even the highest CBO estimate. We rate his statement False.

Mr. Romney has said:
12.  "Obamacare adds trillions to our deficits and to our national debt."

There is no factual basis for Romney’s claim that the law "adds trillions to our deficits and to our national debt."

Mr. Romney has said:
13.  (When Mitt Romney was governor of Massachusetts), "we didn’t just slow the rate of growth of our government, we actually cut it."

When Romney was governor spending rose by an average of about 5 percent per year during Romney’s term.  

Many of Romney’s efforts to shape the budget were rejected by the Democratic legislature, so claiming full credit for any budgetary trends on his watch is a stretch.

Mr. Romney has said:
14, "Barack Obama is the only president to ever cut $500 billion from Medicare."

Changes under Obama’s watch were a reduction in future growth.  And other presidents have cut Medicare in the past.  
 Health care law doesn't 'cut' Medicare

Mr. Romney has said:
15.  "The president gave the (auto) companies to the UAW."

The reality is Obama was in charge of a bailout deal that resulted in the union’s health care trust owning stock in Chrysler and GM. But the trust was owed money to pay for health care under the terms of labor contracts the car companies signed. And the union "gave" plenty too -- in the form of wages, vacation and job security. In that light, the arrangement was a tradeoff, not a giveaway.

What tips Romney’s claim even further from reality is the fact that the union itself does not own any GM or Chrysler stock. It is not a majority shareholder in either company, nor does it have a vote on the board.

Comparison of sentences for AIG executive  (stole $500 Million) and Homeless man (Stole $100)

Mr. Romney has said:
16.  "This president went before the United Nations and castigated Israel for building settlements. He said nothing about thousands of rockets being rained in on Israel from the Gaza Strip."

Doesn’t match Obama’s speeches. In his 2009 speech to the U.N., Obama said that America does not accept "the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements." Though he did not specifically mention Hamas, he did mention Israeli’s fear of rockets. And in later speeches to the U.N., Obama was blunt in his criticism of violent attacks against Israelis, once saying "the slaughter of innocent Israelis is not resistance -- it's injustice." 

Our examination of three of Obama’s speeches to the U.N. showed that Obama is fairly even-handed as he has laid out goals for both sides -- while he spoke against the Israeli settlements, he also bluntly opposed violent attacks on Israelis.

Mr. Romney has said:
17.  "President Barack Obama has opened up no new trade relationships with other nations.

It did take the better part of three years for Obama and the Republican dominated Senate to enact the languishing South Korea, Colombia and Panama trade agreements. But ultimately he did reach an accord with lawmakers that enabled the agreements’ relatively easy passage in both the House and the Senate, including strong support from Republicans as well as the votes of several dozen Democratic lawmakers.

Mr. Romney has said:
18.  "Eliminating 'Obamacare' ... "saves $95 billion a year."


Romney said repealing the health care law would save $95 billion a year. But that only accounts for outlays in one year, 2016. Because of the revenue sources that the law established, repealing it actually adds significantly to the deficit over the long haul, according to the CBO.

Mr. Romney has said:
19.  "The National Labor Relations Board told Boeing that it couldn’t build a factory in South Carolina because South Carolina is a right-to-work state."

The NLRB’s complaint started a legal process that could ultimately have resulted in a factory closure, but the NLRB as a whole didn’t tell Boeing anything. What’s more, the legal basis for the action centered on whether Boeing was punishing the union for staging strikes, not that Boeing had opened a factory in a right-to-work state.

Mr. Romney has said:
20.  "Only one president has ever cut Medicare for seniors in this country . . . Barack Obama."


The statement gets it wrong on every front. The Medicare belt was tightened in 1981 and 1982 under Reagan, in 1989 under the first President Bush and again in 1997 under Clinton. So Obama is in no way the only president to cut the program.

Further, by specifying that Obama cut Medicare "for seniors," Romney seems to mean that the president slashed benefits, not just the program’s spending. That’s even more egregious. Other presidents have made changes to Medicare that reduced benefits for seniors, while the health care law Obama signed actually increases them. That’s a lot of inaccuracy in a single sentence.

The frightening thing is ... how many people accept the lies - even when presented with the actual evidence...

Be sure to vote on or before Nov. 6!

You can pass on this blog by sending this url to a friend:  http://johnzlatnik.blogspot.com

Mr. Romney, Please explain...

This is a small part of the collection of WPA era murals painted on the inner walls of Coit tower in San Francisco - They represent the many different workers found in California... "It is the workers in the middle class that grow the economy..."

-----

I occasionally run into someone who says,” President Obama had his chance and he hasn’t solved our national problems – so I’m ready to give Romney a chance.”  This is a dangerous position because:

·  * It doesn’t recognize the complete mess that Obama inherited from George Bush.

·  * Doesn’t recognize how much progress has been made in the economy, jobs, housing, medical  care, foreign policy, women’s issues.

   * And it shows a lack of knowledge of  the harmful policies being proposed by Mr. Romney.

RR workers

Here are 5 policy areas which Mr. Romney has not clearly explained his plans  to the American people:

1.     In this week’s debate Governor Romney presented his latest tax proposal.  He said “I'll pick a number -  $25,000 of deductions and credits, and you can decide which ones to use."  

Here is what the Romney plan would do:(Data from the non partisan Tax Policy Center ): http://www.taxpolicycenter.org

*An average family in the top 1% would get a $104,563 tax cut,

*The average family in the middle 1/4  would get a $722 tax cut.

Librarian

     What would that mean for the average federal tax rate paid by different segments of the US population? 

·     *Taxes paid by the top 1% would drop by nearly one-fifth.

·     *The federal tax rate of the middle 1/4 would fall by 8%,

·      *The tax rate of the bottom 1/5 of the population would go up by about two-thirds.

Street workers - above and below ground

The clincher: The Tax Policy Center found that the proposal to cap deductions would not raise nearly enough money  to pay for Romney's proposed tax cuts. They show that his plan is mathematically impossible.  But it sure would be great for the top 1%!

Read more: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/17/romneys-proposal-to-cap-deductions-would-not-pay-for-his-tax-cuts/?hp

Detains on Romney’s plan: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/10/17/1145665/-Understanding-Romney-s-Tax-Plan-Hint-0

Postal workers 

2.  It’s scary how much Romney’s over all plans compare to those of George Bush.

* They both offer over-all economic plans without full explanation of their details– saying “trust me”.   We all know how well Bush’s economic plan turned out.

* Bush actually offered a more fully developed domestic policy than Romney. Romney and Bush are using very similar words  to describe their economic policies toward China, South America, and growing  small business.

* There are differences. Romney’s plans do not include outreach policies like Bush’s ‘Compassionate Conservative’ message.  He has nothing like "No Child Left Behind", faith-based initiatives, or immigration reform.

* Neither Bush nor Romney nor the Republicans have supported organized labor in America, despite the evidence that strong unions lead to a strong middle class and a growing economy.

*Romney's  record is one of opposition to regulations that conflict with business making profits. Regulations on everything from food safety, to labor practices, to care of our environment,insurance rates would be in jeopardy.

*Romney  has not proven a record on protecting the environment or dealing with the growing reality of Global Climate Change.

*For all Romney says about China he says nothing about tax policies to give incentives to companies that grow jobs here in America v. moving operations to China.

Cattleman

3.  Health care: When ObamaCare is fully implemented it is projected to reduce the number of uninsured in every state, age group and income level.

Mitt  Romney's plan, according to a new report by The Commonwealth Fund, would repeal Obama Care.  Families with children, low, .and middle-income Americans would be hardest-hit.    With the Romney plan in place,
* about 72 million Americans will be without coverage.
* By 2022, according to the organization, an estimated 18 million kids under the age of 19 would be without insurance under Romney's plan.

Policeman

4. Women'sWomen's issues:  Romney spoke of his efforts to get 'binders full of women' – suitable to be part of his Massachusetts staff when he became governor.   In fact the Massachusetts Women's' Political Caucus created the binders of potential staff persons and left them on the desk of the new governor before the election was even  decided.

Additional positions regarding women's rights...

b.     He spoke of needing to adjust to the special needs of women to not work long hours because they needed to be home to cook dinner – In present day families both men and women have special scheduling needs, and often share child care responsibilities. – and both often have to be adaptable to the demands of their jobs.

c.     Romney also failed to give any answer to the pay equity question.  It is clear that he has never faced the reality of the “glass ceiling”.  Ask professional women! A pay gap and opportunity gap still blocks women from reaching their highest potential.

d.     Romney has been all over the map in his positions of women's health issues.  Most recently he is sounding almost middle of the road – But he and his party have made their positions clear on contraceptives, abortion, and a woman's' right to choose her own health care. He would defund Planned Parenthood.

Produce warehouseman

5. Foreign Policy;

a.   "Gov. Romney also wants to spend $2 trillion on additional military programs, even though the military's not asking for them."  While the Obama budget calls for shrinking the size of the Army and Marines by 100,000 troops, Romney proposes adding 100,000.  What does he have in mind?

b.   A recent poll by the Washington Post finds:

Obama holds
* a 14 point edge over Romney on who is more trusted to handle terrorism 53-39.
* Among independents it’s 51-43;
* among moderates it’s 62-32.
Obama holds a 10 point edge on which candidate would do a better job handling an unexpected major crisis, 52-42.
*Among independents, that’s 51-43;
*among moderates it’s 60-33.
*Obama holds a five point edge on who is trusted to handle international affairs, 49-44.    *A recent Fox News poll found that only 37 percent of voters think the Obama administration has not been supportive enough of Israel,
*versus 42 percent who say it’s been about right (and another 10 percent who say it’s been too supportive.

Source: Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/mitt-romneys-weakness-on-foreign-policy/2012/10/01/0a388438-0bd5-11e2-bb5e-492c0d30bff6_blog.html

Longshore man waiting to load ships

c.    Romney suggests that we should arm the Syrian rebels.  This stand on Syria  don’t take into account the possible destabilizing effects of sending U.S. arms into the middle east. U.S.'s involvement could increase tensions between Sunni and Shiite  and help Assad’s claims that foreign elements are supporting the rebels.  Recent reports show that arms coming from other mid east countries to the rebels often end up in the hands of extremists.

Lunch stand workers

6.  There are many other issues – but you get the flavor of  differences from these 5 examples.  Before you vote do your homework – educate yourself – go beyond the hype of sound bytes and paid political announcements.  Know what you are voting for!

If you liked this blog you can send it to a friend by sending this url:  http://johnzlatnik.blogspot.com

Policy differences between Obama and Romney

Artwork this week is from the Smithsonian US History Museum Collection , Washington DC - they present the lives of Average Americans..

-----

After months of rhetoric and "paid political announcements", our presidential elections are drawing near.  The policy differences of the two candidates for the office of President, have become clear.

Lets play a guessing game – can you identify which candidate holds which position?  To play the game put a checkmark by all the items with which you agree.

Economy – One candidate wants to repeal tax cuts for households earning more than $250,000/yr. and would lower taxes on the manufacturing industry.  He would provide short term stimulus spending and provide tax cuts to grow the economy. He would cut spending and raise taxes on the wealthy to reduce the deficit. His focus would be on growing the middle class to benefit the economy for all. 

  The other candidate wants Bush era tax cuts to become permanent. He would lower all corporate tax cuts to 25% and reduce taxes and regulations to encourage business.  He would cut government spending by 5% to reduce the national deficit. His focus would be on providing benefits for big business, banking, and those with higher income ( the 1%)

Healthcare:  One candidate supports the 2010 healthcare overhaul bill that calls for patient protection to allowing coverage for pre-existing conditions, and would not permit insurers to cancel policies when patients get sick.  Individuals would be required to buy health insurance or pay a fine.  The other candidate created a similar healthcare plan in Mass. but believes it's not appropriate for all of USA and wants to repeal “Obamacare”. He proposes encouraging individuals to purchase their own health insurance rather than via employers, and allowing insurance across state lines.  The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that eliminating “Obama care” would increase the federal budget deficit by an estimated $109 billion between 2013 and 2022.  (See reference below)

Immigration: One candidate supports offering a path to legalization for illegal immigrants that includes learning English & paying fines; toughens penalties for hiring illegal immigrants.  He has supported maintaining the fence along the Mexican border. He issued an exec order to not deport certain undocumented immigrants.  The second candidate would make English the official language of the US and "turn off the magnets like tuition breaks or other breaks that draw people into this country illegally".

Reproductive Rights: One candidate supports the health care reform law insurance plan that required coverage to provide contraception, (churches, synagogues, excluded).  He supports the concept that a women’s reproductive rights are between the woman and her doctor – no government intervention.    The second would sign a repeal of the health-care law, and thus eliminate the guarantees of contraceptive coverage. He also supports eliminating federal funding of Planned Parenthood because some affiliates provide abortions (though not with federal money). #2 also supports state having the right to pass laws that determine women’s access to contraception and abortion. 

Iraq:  One candidate opposed invasion of Iraq from the beginning; has opposed troop increase; ended military operations in Iran, following the previously negotiated Bush timeline. He agreed to troops moved into Afghanistan and to the Iranian border to improve stability in the region. The other candidate says that keeping the U.S. in Iraq is the best option for minimizing casualties and maintaining a democratic government in Iraq.

Iran:  Candidate #1 chooses to engage in direct diplomacy; tighten economic sanctions with international cooperation; military option not off the table. He believes in working closely with our NATO allies in forming our Iran policy – with the expressed focus on preventing the developing of a nuclear weapon in Iran.  Candidate #2: Military option is not off the table.

Global Warming and Environment:       “One” supports a mandatory cap-and-trade system to reduce carbon emissions. Delay the decision on northern leg of Keystone XL pipeline due to environmental concerns. Recognizes the relationship between permitting increased CO2 in the atmosphere and global climate change.   “Two” opposes cap and trade legislation. Supports Keystone XL pipeline. Exporting carbon emissions to China hurts US and planet. (Aug 2007), $20 billion package for energy research & new car technology.  His party has not been on record for accepting global climate change and its causes. Note: To learn more about Cap and trade: http://www.ncpa.org/pub/understanding-cap-and-trade)

Position on Abortion:  One candidate  supports the Roe v. Wade decision; criticized Supreme Court decision that upheld ban on partial-birth abortions.  He supports the concept that women’s reproductive rights are between the woman and her doctor – no government intervention. The other candidate opposes Roe v. Wade; believes states should be allowed to ban abortions, 1994: Supported abortion rights but personally opposed, No punishment for women who have partial birth abortions, change of heart in 2005 when preparing to run for President.   The party of #2 has advocated for no exception in the abortion law in cases of rape or incest... To learn more about Row v. Wade visit this site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roe_v._Wade

Have you identified a pattern of your own positions? 

Of course the first candidate in each case is Obama, and the second Romney

Myself – I believe earnestly in an America with a strong middle class. An America that supports its public schools, makes medical available for all, respects the right of all people to make their own health decisions.  Recognizes and deals with the massive problems of global climate change and pollution of our air and water. I have had enough of selfish interest groups watching out for themselves and saying, “Let the middle class and the poor take care of themselves...”

So the choice will be for each of us Americans.

1.     Make sure you are registered and make plans to vote.

2.     Second - go beyond all the hype and expensive ad campaigns and learn about the issues.

3.  Get involved - work in your community to make sure that everyone has the right to vote and the support they need to get to the polls!

If you found this blog of interest – pass on this url address  to a friend:  http://johnzlatnik.blogspot.com
Two brief must see videos:
1.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/08/mitt-romney-debates-himself-video_n_1949414.html
2.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZfXvFAeHVo

My research sources:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/12/opinion/a-debate-with-clarity-and-fervor.html?_r=0

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/DC-Decoder/2012/0825/Obama-vs.-Romney-101-5-differences-on-women-s-issues/Health-care

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57479021-503544/cbo-health-care-repeal-would-cost-$109-billion/

http://www.diffen.com/difference/Barack_Obama_vs_Mitt_Romney