Why Would Any Woman Vote Republican?

Mitt Romney has a problem with women…politically speaking that is.  He is currently sitting on the wrong side of an 18 point gender gap.  It seems that not a week goes by without Romney or his Republican classmates doing or saying something that calls into question their support of women’s issues. 

Take the current kerfuffle over fair pay.  Republicans would like to repeal the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act; a bill which helps women to overcome wage discrimination in the workplace.  It was the very first piece of legislation signed by newly elected President Obama.  Mitt Romney was asked if he would have signed the bill.  Romney dodged the question.

Given Romney’s less than courageous response to this seemingly softball question; and considering the Republican Party’s activities regarding women’s rights on both the national and state levels, we just have to ask…

…why would any clear minded woman support Mitt Romney and his Republican Party?

Are you one of the 90+% of women who use contraceptives?  The Republican base would outlaw them.

Do you believe that you and your doctor should decide matters pertaining to your physical and mental well being?  Or do you believe that the GOVERNMENT should decide what legal medical procedures you can and cannot have?  Do you believe the GOVERNMENT should be able to mandate that you undergo medically unnecessary procedures?  Republicans have proffered over 900 such restrictive and invasive bills and there are over 500 such Republican sponsored laws currently on the books.

Are you a woman who believes in the Republican mantra of a small, limited and less intrusive government?  Then how do you justify the above?

Are you a woman of limited financial means…perhaps a single mom with mouths to feed?  Mitt Romney supports the Ryan Budget Plan…a proposal that would reduce the debt and deficit by gutting education, welfare, food stamps, aid to dependent children, Pell grants and a host of other programs that women count on to support their families.  Romney calls the Ryan Plan…”marvelous.”

Are you a woman of substantial means…perhaps a corporate executive and/or member of the top 1% in income?  Economists say that under the Obama administration you have seen your income rise at historic levels.  In fact you are earning more now than you were before the economy crashed.  Romney and the Republicans say Obama’s policies are not working. But you are living proof that that just isn’t true.  You are doing very, very well.  Why would you want to stop the gravy train?  Why would you want to change anything?  Why would you want to return to the same Bush era policies that trashed the economy?

Are you a professional woman?  Do you believe that you got where you are through hard work and effort?  Do you believe that you should receive the same pay for your efforts as your male co-workers?  Republicans want to repeal the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.  Romney has refused to offer his opinion.  

Are you elderly, retired or a woman approaching retirement in the next decade?  Are you counting on Medicare and Medicaid to be there in your retirement years?  Mitt Romney and the Republican Party would end Medicare and Medicaid as you know it.  First they will freeze or cut benefits.  Then they’ll turn Medicaid into a block grant system and let each state administer the program as they see fit.  As for Medicare…they’ll give you a voucher for $X dollars.  Hopefully that will be enough for you to purchase sufficient medical insurance, pay any co-pays, satisfy any deductibles and pay for your prescriptions.  If the voucher proves to be insufficient…you are on your own.

Are you a lesbian?  Do you believe that if you find someone that you want to spend your life with you should be allowed to marry?  Do you believe that you are an American citizen and as such entitled to the same constitutional rights as any heterosexual individual or couple?  Do you believe that your sexual orientation should not preclude you from serving in the military?  Mr. Romney and his Republican friends disagree with you on every level.  In fact many of them consider your sexual orientation aberrant.

The Tea Party movement swept Republicans into office in 2010.  Since day one they have initiated  a tsunami of legislative proposals designed to restrict the rights of women.  Laws that were passed decades ago are once again being challenged.  Their agenda is quite clear. 

So given all of the above we have to wonder why any clear minded woman would support Mitt Romney and the Republican Party.  Why is the gender gap only 18 points?

Just asking!

    

    

  

Finally!

 Finally!!!

Andrew Ross Sorkin, Editor-At-Large of Dealb%k and author of the best seller, “Too Big To Fail”, reports that in a rare case of clear minded thinking “Citigroup shareholders rebuffed a $15 million dollar compensation package for CEO Vikram S. Pandit, marking the first time that shareholders have united in opposition to outsized compensation at a financial giant…The votes are part of the Dodd-Frank financial overhaul that mandates that public companies include “say on pay” votes for shareholders to express their opinions about compensation.”  The vote is not binding but sends a clear message to management.  Enough is enough!

Citigroup is a prime example of everything that went wrong in the financial calamity of 2007-2008.  Poor management, excessive compensation corruption…you name it they did it.  “Citigroup was terribly managed, and whatever could be done wrong, they did wrong.” said David Dreman money manager for $400,000 worth of Citigroup shares.  Yet in spite of management’s irresponsible behavior the Citigroup directors recommended a $15 million dollar compensation package for their executive officer.  “CEO’s deserve good pay but there is good pay and there is obscene pay.” said Brian Wenzinger, a principal at Aronson Johnson Ortiz, a money management firm that voted against the pay package.

Excessive compensation packages have been an issue in this country since the dotcom bubble in the nineties.  Buoyed by the inflated profits generated by tech companies who made millions out of thin air, chief executives have seen their earnings skyrocket while the average wages of working class Americans have grown stagnant.  Execs who run companies into the ground get golden parachutes while working stiffs get pink slips.  While we don’t object to executive officers being handsomely compensated for a job well done; the thought of paying $15 million to the chief executive of a bank whose mismanagement and corruption was at the very epicenter of the financial crash is beyond the pale.

Economists say that corporate America is generating greater profits today than they did in the years prior to the crash.  Corporate executive salaries continue to skyrocket while the middle class suffers through declining wages and rampant unemployment.  We can only hope that the actions of the Citicorp shareholders mark the beginning of a societal movement toward fairness and accountability.

Next up…the Bank of America’s shareholder’s meeting on May 9.                  

This & That...

The Darth Vader of the Republican Party is at it again.  Merely three weeks after undergoing a heart transplant former Vice President Dick Chaney took on the President.  Addressing the Wyoming Republican Party convention, the erasable curmudgeon offered a full throated criticism of the Obama administration; referring to the President’s first term as an “unmitigated disaster”.  Unfortunately, Mr. Chaney’s suffers from a severe case of memory loss and his recent surgery did nothing to dampen his vivid imagination.  Historically each administration shoulders both the good and bad that occur during their years in office.  A quick review of the events during Mr. Chaney’s days of prowling the White House corridors are less than flattering.  The unwarranted war in Iraq… the unwinnable war in Afghanistan...the market crash on Wall Street…the near destruction of the auto industry…skyrocketing unemployment…the loss of 750,000 private sector jobs/month…turning a $200 billion surplus into a $5 trillion deficit…and last but certainly not least, allowing the worst terrorist attack on American soil in our history.  If Mr. Chaney feels that it is appropriate to blame the Obama Administration for all of the country’s current ailments, then that is certainly his right.  But he should then assume responsibility for everything that occurred during his watch as well.  History will decide whose administration deserves to be called an “unmitigated disaster.”  Our guess is that history will not be kind to Mr. Chaney.

Taliban insurgents signaled the beginning of the “fighting season” striking the Afghan capital and several other cities in a series of coordinated attacks.  The onslaught, which lasted 17 hours, targeted the US, UK and German embassies as well as a multitude of government buildings and NATO bases.  The offensive offers undeniable proof that US efforts to secure the country have failed.  They also provide a clear picture of what is in store for the next country foolish enough to invade this desolate piece of real estate.  It has been ten years.  Bin Laden is dead.  It’s time to bring the troops home.

The USA Today is reporting that a growing number of firstborns in the US have unmarried parents.  The report states that “the number of first births to women living with male partner jumped from 12% in 2002 to 22% in 2006-10…an 83% increase.”  The report goes on to say that the big jump since 2002 “is likely because of the recession which was at its height from 2007-2009.”  “I think it is economic shock” says Karen Benjamin Guzzo, a sociologist at Bowling Green University.  “Marriage is an achievement that you enter into when you are ready.  But in the meantime, life happens.  You form relationships.  You have sex.  You get pregnant.  In a perfect world, they would prefer to be married, but where the economy is now, they’re not going to be able to get married, and they don’t want to wait to have kids.”  We understand that our society no longer views “unmarried pregnancy” in the same manner prevalent a few short decades ago.  The time when our grandparents placed a certain stigma on unmarried pregnancies has long since passed.  But we don’t understand the correlation between a recessionary economy and an unmarried pregnancy.  “But where the economy is now, they’re not going to be able to get married” just doesn’t make sense.  If two people are cohabitating and can afford food, clothing and rent…can’t they afford to purchase a marriage license?  We are not making a moral judgment here…but let’s call this what it is.  A growing number of people across all economic and educational demographics find it acceptable to cohabitate and have sex prior to marriage…a sort of trail arrangement.  Some would call this the result of a degradation of morals in our society.  Others see it simply as a common sense approach to making a lifelong commitment.  Whatever!  Let’s just call it what it is.  People make choices.  The result of these choices is an increase in unmarried pregnancies and the responsibilities that come with parenthood.  If two people can afford the necessities of life surely they can afford a marriage license.  Condoms are not all the expensive either.  The economic argument doesn’t hold water.                      

 

       

        

Silence Often Speaks Louder Than Words

“His wife actually never worked a day in her life.”

With those few words Democratic strategist and CNN pundit Hilary Rosen unleashed a firestorm that is being played out on the front page of every major newspaper.

Ms. Rosen’s comments were intended to bring into question Ann Romney’s qualifications as an economic advisor to her husband, presidential candidate Mitt Romney.  The candidate was quoted as saying that his wife Ann had informed him that women really care about economic issues.  Ms. Rosen stated on CNN that Romney should not be relying on his wife for guidance on economic issues that affect women because as a wealthy stay at home mom she lacks credibility.

The Romney campaign wasted no time jumping all over Rosen’s comments.  Think shark feeding frenzy.  Even Ann Romney got into the act; opening her own twitter account to defend her decision to stay at home and raise five sons. 

The Romney campaign’s reaction comes as no surprise.  They are facing an 18 point gender gap that seriously imperils their chances of winning the oval office.  Hilary Rosen lobbed them a softball and they jumped all over it.

The Democrats shifted into “damage control”.  They quickly sent out the heavy hitters to distance themselves from Rosen’s remarks.  David Axelrod, Michele Obama and the President himself spoke out in defense of women who make the choice to stay at home.

Women all over this country struggle with the balancing act between stay at home mom and working mother.  For some, economics enters into the equation.  For others it is simply a matter of personal choice.  Regardless of their choice many women face unfair criticism and suffer from overwhelming guilt.   Women have the right to make that decision.  Their choice should be respected.  Neanderthals who believe otherwise should walk a mile in their shoes.  The fact that a cable news pundit can bring the twenty four hour news cycle to a grinding halt; sparking a debate that should have been resolved decades ago, is troubling.

But from our prospective there is a bigger news story here; one that stems from the response to Rosen’s comments.

As stated before, the Democrats came out in force against the comments of Hilary Rosen.  The President personally articulated his support of Ann Romney and women all over America who make that difficult choice.  Perhaps it was just politics; but we got the sense that the President personally felt that Rosen’s comments were wrong and needed to be addressed.

So how did Mitt Romney respond when faced with a similar situation? 

Where was Mitt Romney when pundit Rush Limbaugh publically referred to Georgetown coed Sandra Fluke as a “slut” and a “prostitute” for speaking out in favor of women’s rights?  Limbaugh’s advertisers fled like rats from a burning building; but where was Romney?  Silent! 

Now you might argue that Romney does not feel the need to speak out in response to every half baked comment uttered by a pundit.  Fair enough! So where was Mitt Romney just two days ago when a duly elected member of his own party, Republican Congressman Adam West, accused 78-81 Democratic members of Congress of being card carrying members of the Communist Party; a party that was responsible for the murder of hundreds of millions of innocent people.  Silent!

The President understood that Hilary Rosen, a Democratic supporter, made comments that were offensive not only to his opponent’s wife but to tens of millions of Americans.  He understood the sensitivity of those comments and he had the courage and common sense to speak his mind.  When faced with similar situations Mitt Romney has chosen a less controversial course of action…

…silence.

His silence speaks volumes.

  

                          

Lady Justice Stands A Bit Taller Today

Forty six days ago George Zimmerman shot and killed an unarmed Trayvon Martin.  These facts are not in dispute.

Forty six days ago the Sanford Florida police department took Mr. Zimmerman into custody.  Upon hearing Mr. Zimmerman’s account of the incident they believed Mr. Zimmerman had acted in self defense within the terms of Florida’s Stand Your Ground law. Within hours of the shooting they released Mr. Zimmerman and publically announced that no charges would be filed.

Forty six days later Special Prosecutor Angela Corey arrested Mr. Zimmerman and charged him with second degree murder; a charge which could put Zimmerman in jail for the rest of his life.

Over the past forty six days this case has been tried in the court of public opinion.  The public scrutiny and media attention has been intense. Chief among the questions being asked is how the Sanford Police could allow a man who shot and killed an unarmed boy to walk free based solely on his own account of the incident.  Had the shooter been black and the victim white would the police have acted in the same manner?  The answer to that question takes us to a dark place in our history better left for another day.

As we watched the press conferences held by prosecutor Angela Corey and Mr. Zimmerman’s new defense attorney, Mark O’Mara we were struck by two things.  The first was the professionalism and compassion exhibited by both attorneys.  Both have years of experience in trying murder cases and they understood the scrutiny to which they will be subjected.  They also clearly understood that this case is about the rights of the victim, Trayvon Martin and the accused, George Zimmerman; and that media speculation and political pressure should play no part in how they conduct themselves.  We found their reserved and professional demeanor comforting.  We felt like justice was finally in good hands.

The other thing that struck us as we listened to their comments was a sense that there is a whole lot more going on in this case than has been reported in the media.  We got the feeling that both sides have found a lot more in the evidence that make this incident far from an open and shut case.

The prosecutor’s decision to charge Mr. Zimmerman with second degree murder is quite stunning given where things were forty six days ago.  Early on the Sanford Police Department overstepped its authority and took on the mantle of judge and jury.  A black man was shot by Caucasian/Hispanic who claimed self defense.  Not guilty…case closed.  The media was slow to react.  But once the outrage grew loud enough they swooped in, polarizing the country with rhetoric about race, gun rights and probable cause.  There seems to be a sense of calm now; thanks in no small part to the efforts of Angela Corey and Mark O’Mara.  It’s as if we have come full circle.

We don’t have any idea how this case will turn out.  What we do know is that this case will finally be adjudicated in the proper venue of a United States criminal court.

The scales of Lady Justice were unfairly skewed for a while; and it looked like a horrible event would be allowed to go unquestioned.  Someone had their thumb on the plate.  But thanks to public outcry we are taking a second look; and Lady Justice is standing a little taller today.                   

Reps./Dems. Lacking Political Courage To Solve Problems

President Obama’s chief political strategist, David Axelrod and Republican Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan appeared on separate segments of Morning Joe.  What we hoped would be a robust, enlightened discussion on how these two party leaders intended to repair our economy turned into little more than political talking points and sound bites.  In the end it is apparent that neither party intends to take on the really tough choices necessary to repair our financial woes.

Representative Ryan is the author of the infamous Ryan Budget.  His debt and deficit reduction budget focuses on spending cuts as opposed to revenue increases.  Mr. Ryan proposes drastic cuts to discretionary spending; an area that only represents 10%-12% of the budget.  It is the part of the budget where you will find social programs like Pell grants, food stamps, aid to dependent children and other programs that are critical to the middle class and working poor.  You can cut these programs down to zero and you are still not going to balance the budget nor will you significantly reduce the deficit.

Mr. Axelrod, as one might expect takes a different view.  He focus is on increasing revenues, specifically raising taxes on the very rich.  He believes that it is simply a matter of everyone paying their fair share.  Mr. Axelrod and the President would raise taxes on the top 1% wage earners to a minimum of 30%. While his proposal might solve the “fairness’ issue, its $47 billion increase in revenues pales against the $22 trillion dollar debt.

Republicans and Democrats; proving once again that neither party has the courage to make the tough choices necessary to fix our financial problems.                

Santorum's Departure Weakens Our Political Discourse

Facing the pressing health issues of his young daughter and the very real possibility of losing the primary in his home state, Rick Santorum suspended his campaign for the Republican nomination. 

That’s a shame! A Rick Santorum candidacy was good for the country and we are all that much poorer for his departure.

Make no mistake, Rick Santorum was a flawed, undisciplined candidate and we found the prospect of a Santorum presidency frightening.  But Santorum was the only real conservative in the race.  He was the only candidate who embodied the true values and beliefs of the Republican Party.  He was the only conservative candidate with the courage to express those beliefs without fear of political reprisal.  And he was the only conservative who would have fought for those beliefs in a debate with the President.  That is a debate that we as a country need to have once and for all.  Now that debate will not happen.

Santorum’s departure paves the way for a Romney nomination. Seven months of watching Romney do what Romney does best…ooze into whatever political form his audience demands.  For all the talk about Romney being awkward and stiff; no one exudes political flexibility like Mitt Romney.  Trying to pin Romney down is like trying to catch water in a sieve.  But we digress.

Republicans and Democrats see two very different ideological paths for our country’s future.  We need to have a robust debate about which course is in our best interests.  Rick Santorum was a true standard bearer for Republican principles.  He spoke with a conviction that Mitt Romney can only imagine.  While we strongly disagreed with many of Santorum’s positions we respected his commitment and we will miss the clarity of his voice.