The beautiful thing about the Willard-Salamander battle

[Jackpine Radical]

Last edited Thu Jan 19, 2012, 10:21 PM - Edit history (1)

is the Bain damage Newt is inflicting on Willard. The debate is focusing on the inequities of American capitalism. Newtie sounds almost like an OWS type as he slams Willard over his corporate job-destroying, tax-avoiding, Cayman Island-banking, socially clueless "$300K+ a year isn't much," "I'll bet you $10,000" associations. Since a fellow Republican is making all this fuss, the press seems to feel safe in going after aspects of the Willard story that they wouldn't touch if they were brought up by a Democrat.

When the national bickerfest was focused on the deficit, the Republicans were getting to set the terms of the argument. Now that the country has been sensitized to the 1% versus the 99%, the battle has shifted to what is, or should be, Democratic territory.

Newt had to take the game off Romney's playing field in order to chip away at his Republican Top Dog status, but in doing so he handed the larger debate to the Dems. All that is needed for a national sweep is for the Dems to pick up Newt's theme, and maybe show some actual progress in moving the economy*, or at least manage to pin the blame for failure onto Republican recalcitrance.



*The current unemployment numbers are noted as a hopeful sign of such movement.

[sinkingfeeling]

1. Rec'd just for the new term: "Willard-Salamander "

[Jackpine Radical]

4. What, you didn't like "Bain damage?"

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

12. I will be stealing both, thank you.

[karynnj]

11. That is good - an alternative to make them both reptiles - Chameleon/Salamander

[Jim Lane]

15. Pedantic quibble: Salamanders aren't reptiles, they're amphibians.

Unfortunately for the analogy, it's Romney who acts more like the amphibian. He can amble around on dry land, breathing the air of liberalism, and then, when it suits him, dive into the conservative waters and stay submerged indefinitely.

Also, like a salamander, he's cold-blooded.

[karynnj]

18. It's been a long time since high school biology - Thanks for thr correction

Agree on Romney as well.

[FSogol]

2. Agreed. Hope Newt and Santorum stay in until the bitter end.

[tridim]

10. Newt is all-in until either he wins the nom or he destroys the party that shunned him.

Or maybe both.

[mopinko]

3. all of which is the answer to-

what is wrong with primarying obama? what harm could it do?

[Jackpine Radical]

5. Well, if there was ever a point to primarying Obama,

and I personally never endorsed such a move, that point would have been to force him onto 99% territory.

I think the Salamander just did that for us.

As long as everyone thought the biggest problem was the deficit, the game belonged to the Republicans.

The shift to 99%'er issues puts the ball into the Dems' court. The election is now Obama's to lose, and even the right wing knows it. We, and Obama, owe the Occupiers for that profound shift in the nation's political focus.

[mopinko]

6. +1

[Kahuna]

9. Primarying your own president is stupid and counter-productive. That's

what's wrong with it.

[izquierdista]

7. Watch the MSM drop the Newt/OWS talk like a hot potato

As soon as the Repubs have a candidate, expect them to return to how damaging getting into class warfare would be.*




*[font size = 1] and neglecting to point out who has been winning for 30 years.

[Jackpine Radical]

8. Genie.

Bottle.

[A Simple Game]

13. I'm curious, how many still think Romney is a lock for the Republican nomination? n/t

[Jackpine Radical]

14. I've had doubts for quite a while.

The odds of a brokered convention grow every day.

[malaise]

16. Excellent post

Rec

[mfcorey1]

17. Willard always has a simpleton look on his face. nt