Originally Posted by owedtojoy

A joke slogan suggested for Obama was "Barack Obama - at last a real Compassionate Conservative"

There is many a true word spoken in jest, as they say.

If Romeny tries the "Compassionate etc etc" shtick, he is likely to run up against the fact that he chose an unabashed Randian as his running mate. Randian Objectivists must eschew any trace of altruism and act selfishly at all times. Quite the opposite of what compassion means.

That's exactly why Ryan was chosen. A bad choice in my view.

His policies and ideology are far clearer than those of Romney and he frames a far clearer narrative. He'll likely be a candidate in 2016, although the stink of failure tends to stick to candidates (even VP candidates).

It'll be interesting if Ryan destroys Biden (that's allowable between those two) and if Obama defeats Romney. That could upset the Romnet campaign and pave the way for a real run from Ryan next time around.

This election has the look of 1996 of Clinton v Dole written all over it.

I expect a similar result for the incumbent in 2012.

Originally Posted by RobertW

This election has the look of 1996 of Clinton v Dole written all over it.

I expect a similar result for the incumbent in 2012.

Was that the year Clinton said it was about the economy?

Originally Posted by wombat

Was that the year Clinton said it was about the economy?

No 1992 I think.

Clint Eastwood: Republicans 'Dumb' For Asking Me to Speak

Originally Posted by Des Quirell

I don't see any basis for making valid comparisons between political parties in Ireland and the US. The political system in both cases was born out of entirely different circumstances.

The absence of nything approaching a Left in the USA makes comparisons even more difficult to sustain.

Of course you are correct but it might say something about the lack of a contest thet folks are shooting the breeze about "what if" stuff like this.

Originally Posted by Socratus O' Pericles

Of course you are correct but it might say something about the lack of a contest thet folks are shooting the breeze about "what if" stuff like this.

That is also true.

Originally Posted by Des Quirell

That's exactly why Ryan was chosen. A bad choice in my view.

His policies and ideology are far clearer than those of Romney and he frames a far clearer narrative. He'll likely be a candidate in 2016, although the stink of failure tends to stick to candidates (even VP candidates).

It'll be interesting if Ryan destroys Biden (that's allowable between those two) and if Obama defeats Romney. That could upset the Romnet campaign and pave the way for a real run from Ryan next time around.

Joe Biden has been around the block a few times. As the incumbent, Ryan has to attack him adn all Biden has to do is defend.

The only knockout punch in a VP debate was when Lloyd Bentsen caught Day Quayle with a hard right to the jaw, when Quayle compared himself to JFK: "Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy, I knew Jack Kennedy, Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy. "

What sank Quayle was that he made no effective rejoinder. But it made not a blind bit of difference to the election result: Quayle and G.B.H Bush pretty handily.

In the "debates" candidates aim for good soundbytes and to finish effectively - that is what sticks in people's minds and what gets repeated in the news cycle.

Mitt just loves the Irish.

(CNN) – One day before Mitt Romney's campaign starts a three day bus tour in Ohio, a new poll indicates the Republican nominee is behind President Barack Obama by five percentage points in the Buckeye State.
Just over half - 51% - of likely voters back the president, while 46% support Romney, according to a new survey released Sunday and conducted by the University of Cincinnati's Institute for Policy Research.

Poll: Obama up by five points in Ohio – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs