Video Analysis Blog Entry #3

http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/oreilly/2012/01/17/bill-oreilly-some-big-political-moves-today

            This video is from www.foxnews.com and was published on January 16, 2012. This host is Bill O’Reilly and his show is called, “The O’Reilly Factor.” The title of this segment is, “Some Big Political Moves Today.” O’Reilly mentions Jon Huntsman’s decision to drop out of the race as well as his decision to endorse Mitt Romney. There is also a new Fox poll out with Romney in the lead at 40%, then Santorum at 15%, followed by Gingrich at 14%, Ron Paul at 13% and at the bottom Perry with 6%. In the same poll was Obama versus Romney and they are basically tied with Obama at 46% and Romney at 45%. Also, Obama’s administration already knows what they will say when Obama is running against Romney. They believe “Mitt Romney is rich, greedy and a terrible person.” O’Reilly then mentioned how he previously stated that Romney would secure the nomination which angered some of his viewers, but he responded by saying he tells the truth. His show then showed information on the top one percent such as how much money they earn a year, how much charity they give, and more. Many are saying that Obama vs. Romney for the presidency will most likely be about class warfare. O’Reilly believes that this fight over “class” is ridiculous and the issue that really matters is restoring economic prosperity to America. This is significant because it basically says that Romney, without a doubt, will be the Republican candidate to run against Obama in the 2012 Presidential election. It is also interesting that Obama and Romney are more focused on how rich a candidate is rather than actually focusing on the issues that America is faced with everyday. It is also significant because this was shown the day of the South Carolina debate before anyone knew what would take place during the debate. It is interesting to see how things can change within an instant. Now, only two days later, it seems that Gingrich could have a chance to beat Romney in South Carolina which could possibly change the way things are running now.

http://abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/

            This video was found on abcnews.go.com and was published on January 19, 2012. The title of this video is, “Rick Perry Suspends Campaign; Santorum May Have Won Iowa Caucus.” It is under the segment, “Politics in a Flash.” The first thing mentioned his Rick Perry’s decision to end his campaign. Perry’s reason for ending his campaign is that he feels there is no viable path forward for him and so he has decided to end it. When he started his campaign, he had many supporters but unfortunately for him he was unable to keep his popularity when the debates began. While Huntsman supports Mitt Romney, Perry has decided to support Newt Gingrich saying that even though he is not perfect, but no one is perfect. Changing subjects, Santorum possibly won the Iowa caucus by around thirty four votes but these are not certified yet. Speaking of Romney, many believe that he is Gingrich’s biggest enemy, but his ex-wife actually is. She had an interview with Brian Ross. She described that Gingrich asked her if they could have an open marriage, but she refused. The full interview is on “Nightline.” Although this video clip is short, it provided many with significant information. For example, the fact the Rick Perry is out of the race gives the other candidates a better chance of becoming the Republican nominee. It is also interesting that Perry has decided to support Gingrich because it seems like the only reason he is supporting Gingrich is because Huntsman is supporting Romney. The possibility that Santorum actually won Iowa is not as significant because he did not do well in New Hampshire and either way, Romney is still ahead in the polls. It would have been significant if this was discovered before the New Hampshire primary because then voters would stop and think about what Santorum has to offer. Gingrich’s ex-wife’s interview with Brian Ross could have a significant impact on Gingrich’s success in South Carolina because many people seem to dislike the fact that he has been married three times and that his newest wife was his “partner in religious crime” (or his adulteress). Either way, hopefully the country chooses a candidate who will start the process of fixing America’s problems.

Video Analysis Blog Entry #2

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/406269/january-18-2012/indecision-2012---newt-gingrich-s-performance---mitt-romney-s-tax-returns

            This video was found on www.colbertnation.com and the title of this video is, “Indecision 2012- Newt Gingrich’s Performance & Mitt Romney’s Tax Returns.” The person talking is Stephen Colbert. It was published on January 18, 2012. He begins this segment by mentioning South Carolina and Gingrich’s strong performance in the debate. Colbert says that it has given him, “Newtmentum” which fixes his, “Gingnertia.” The video then shows another video of Newt Gingrich at a press conference saying that if he wins in South Carolina, he will be the Republican nominee. Gingrich then said that if he does not win, the voters will choose a moderate who will lose to Obama. Colbert made a joke that if Gary Johnson wins, then the Mayans were right. Changing the subject, he talks about Mitt Romney and his difficulty in answering questions about his tax return. A video is shown of the debate and Romney is sort of trying to get away from answering the question fully by saying that typically, it is “tradition” to release them in April. He kept referring to this statement. Colbert then jokes saying that he may release his tax returns in April if he can finish answering that question in time. Another video is shown of Romney answering a different question and he just sounds like he does not know exactly what to say so he is just rambling. Jokingly, Colbert said that Romney is not paid that much. He is only paid $374,327.62 for speaking. Colbert then said that if that were his total income, he would be ranked in the top one percent. He then said he wants to see Gingrich’s tax returns, Santorum’s tax returns and for Ron Paul “to release the treasure map to his chest of gold.” He then jokes more about “Ron Paul’s maps.” This video is significant because it could really hurt Romney in the South Carolina primary because of his inability to answer the tax return question. It is also significant because Newt Gingrich seems to be moving up to the top after roughly three weeks of being closer to the bottom of the pack than the top. For those who support Romney, hopefully this issue will not make a difference to those voters who are undecided.

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-january-17-2012/indecision-2012---southern-discomfort

            This video is from www.thedailyshow.com and the host is Jon Stewart. It was posted on Tuesday, January 17, 2012 and is called, “Indecision 2012- Southern Discomfort.” Stewart talks about the South Carolina debate held on Martin Luther King Jr. day which was on January 16. During the debate, they took a few moments to recognize Dr. King’s statue as well as a sand sculpture of the Republican Candidates. Stewart says that during the debate, all of the candidates were “all over each other.” Basically, during the debate each candidate was trying to tear up the actions of the other candidates. Stewart then said, “Even their insults to each other smell of rich guys.” Anyway, South Carolina is more conservative than Iowa and New Hampshire. Stewart then asks which candidate could appeal to the conservative folks of South Carolina. Was it Romney? No. How about Rick Perry and his statement that South Carolina is at war against the government? Close, but no cigar. And do not get me started on Ron Paul’s inability to convince South Carolina that America should not do things to other nations that America would not want in return. Only one man was able to win the hearts of South Carolinians, and that was Newt Gingrich. Awkwardly, Gingrich did not think that he insulted African Americans when he said that they should be asking for jobs, not food stamps. However, he responded by saying he would help the poor learn how to ask for a job, want a job, and own a job, which is what everyone in the crowd cheered for and they cheered loudly. This is significant because it shows that Gingrich still has a chance to win the South Carolina primary which would definitely help his campaign. It is also significant because it seems like the people of South Carolina do not agree with Ron Paul’s ideas which could hurt him in the upcoming primary. Either way, it seems that Romney now has some competition for the front line making everyone wanting to work harder than ever before. 

Blog Entry #7

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/17/us/politics/discord-among-conservatives-as-romney-picks-up-steam.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=2012%20GOP&st=cse

            This article is called, “Discord in G.O.P. as Conservatives Air Differences,” and was written by Katharine Q. Seelye. This article was found on www.nytimes.com and was published on January 16, 2012. Basically, this article is about how some of the Republican candidates, who have not dropped out of the race, are really against Romney because he is the front runner as of now. However, there are some who fully support him. For example, Jon Huntsman recently dropped out of the race and announced that he will be endorsing Romney because he feels Romney would be the best candidate to beat Obama in the upcoming Presidential Election. He also believes that Romney would be the best candidate to fix the problems of the United States. This does not change the evangelical leaders’ views that the candidate should be more conservative and that candidate is Rick Santorum. Newt Gingrich still has a chance as well because people have not forgotten about him. This article is also about how Santorum released his first negative advertisement against Romney. This advertisement was released only hours before the candidates had a debate. The ad talked about how Romney is “more liberal than Ted Kennedy on social issues” and that Romney would be unable to show the differences between himself and Obama because of the fact that Romney inspired President Obama’s health care plan. It also talked about how South Carolina’s conservative and evangelical voters have an interest in choosing Santorum or Gingrich. It seems like each candidate, other than Romney, is publicly saying negative things about the other candidates. Either way, Romney is still attempting to pull off a third straight nomination with the upcoming South Carolina primary. Basically, Santorum and Gingrich are targeting conservative voters to vote for them because they know that people believe Romney is not as conservative as he says he is. Also, it seems that between Santorum and Gingrich, one of them is going to do worse than the other which elevates the pressure to drop out completely. This is significant because although Santorum and Gingrich seem to be making progress, Romney seems like the most likely candidate to win. It is also significant because Huntsman is endorsing Romney which could give Romney even more support than he already has or it could completely turn voters the other way because some voters may hate Huntsman and everything he is involved with. Overall, it seems like Romney is the candidate that will run against Obama in the 2012 Presidential election.

http://www.thestate.com/2012/01/12/2113684/social-conservative-leaders-to.html#storylink=misearch

            This last blog entry is on the article called, “Social Conservative Leaders to Huddle in Texas, Assess 2012 GOP Candidates,” and was written by Dave Montgomery. It was published on January 14, 2012 and was posted on www.thestate.com. This article is about how the social conservative leaders from around the nation gathered in Texas to figure out who they feel will be the best Republican presidential candidate. They seemed to be leaning toward Mitt Romney. This gathering took place at former Texas judge, Paul Pressler’s Hidden Hills Ranch which is where many social conservatives and evangelicals gather. Since Romney had repeat wins in Iowa and New Hampshire, he seems to be the most likely candidate for all other candidates to beat. However, many people do view Romney as a moderate and they tend to question his commitment to opposing abortion and gay marriages which is their priority issues. Romney has a lot of work ahead of him if he wants to win in South Carolina because many of the voters are evangelicals and social conservative. This gives Rick Perry, Newt Gingrich, and Rick Santorum hope for possibly earning a win. Anyway, around several hundred conservatives were invited to this gathering which takes two days. Some of the people invited to this gathering are James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, Kelly Shackelford, president and CEO of Liberty Institute, Don Wildmon, founder of the American Family Association, and Gary Bauer, president of American Values. Some of the people attending this believe that it will be difficult to decide on one candidate because many of the people are torn between all of the candidates. Shockingly, Perry seems to be a dominant contender for social conservatives and he has a good chance of having a significant impact during the South Carolina primary. This is significant because if the people attending this gathering decide on Romney as the candidate they want, then Romney will most likely win the South Carolina primary. It is also significant because Rick Perry, who was thinking about dropping out of the race before the New Hampshire primary, may end up having a very good outcome. It will be interesting to see the results after the South Carolina primary and to see who will win those delegates. 

Blog Entry #6

http://www.concordmonitor.com/article/304207/three-winning-ads-for-romney?page=0,0

            The title of this article is, “Three Winning Ads for Romney,” and was written by Tad Devine. It was posted on the concordmonitor.com on January 11, 2012. This article is about how Romney has been pretty successful during his campaign. Romney sees himself as the strongest candidate because of his real-world experience and his potential performance in a general election. The author of this article stated, “I have worked on presidential campaigns for five Democratic nominees and produced candidates across the country and around the world.” This author also believes that TV ads are a crucial part in determining a winner in this campaign. If Romney is able to produce the right ads, he will most likely have the nomination. This democratic ad-maker believes that Romney is only three ads away from winning the Republican nomination. Then the author goes on to talk about what should be in the three ads. The first one should include his wife talking about her husband as well as the fact that he supported her through her fight with multiple sclerosis. This shows the audience that Romney is a faithful husband which is good when compared to Newt Gingrich’s multiple affairs. This also shows that Romney is a person of integrity which is the opposite of the newsletters involving Ron Paul. The author states, “Ann Romney can make a simple but powerful argument that her husband stood by her through tough times and hat he is prepared to stand by America in tough times as well.” The second ad should be something negative about Newt Gingrich, but it should not be the typical narrator ad. Instead, a camera crew should be sent to Gingrich’s old congressional district where many people strongly dislike Gingrich. These voters, who Gingrich once represented, could have a significant impact in South Carolina and Florida. Finally, the third ad should be that Romney should connect with voters by appearing in his own ads which would include him telling the voters why he is running for president and what he will do to fix the country’s problems especially the economy and the creation of jobs. This article is significant because it was written by someone who makes TV ads for the opposite side: the Democrats. Although this man is telling the reader what Romney needs to do in order to secure the nomination, if Romney is chosen this way the Democrats can use the advertisements Romney created against him. It is also significant because Romney has a great chance of winning the Republican nomination and has even a greater chance if he creates three political ads correctly.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/01/12/2919635/romney-rolls-into-south-carolina.html

            The title of this article is, “Romney Rolls into South Carolina; GOP Nomination in Sight?” This was written by David Espo and Shannon McCaffrey and was posted on January 12, 2012 on charlotteobserver.com. This article is about how Romney has been able to win the first two states’ delegates and that he is on a good path. Romney told the authors that he does not want to be overconfident, even though Romney brought up his plans for challenging President Obama in the fall. Even though Romney is the front-runner, his competitors are not surrendering. Gingrich, at the first Southern primary state, attacked Romney’s business career and also created an ad telling the public that Romney is a flip-flopper on abortion. Rick Perry was also able to show his Southern side in his campaign which is something Romney is unable to do. However, Romney got help from surprising resources after winning in New Hampshire. Ron Paul was angry with Gingrich and Perry for being critical of Romney due to the fact that he is the front-runner. These criticisms included Romney’s business experience. Jim DeMint, Senator of South Carolina, agreed with Paul and he flat out stated, “I think Romney’s going to win here…He’s hitting a lot of hot buttons for me about balancing the budget, and frankly I’m a little concerned about the few Republicans who have criticized some of what I consider to be free market principles here.” Many of the Republican candidates wanted DeMint’s endorsement and so far, he has been neutral. With upcoming debates, the high unemployment rate (in South Carolina at 9.9 percent) is something that will be discussed. Although Romney won in Iowa and New Hampshire, South Carolina is considered to have little in common with these two states. Jon Huntsman, instead of criticizing Romney’s business experience, criticized Romney’s record as the governor of Massachusetts. If Romney wins in South Carolina, it could become a quick end to what for a while seemed like it might be a long battle. Gingrich also believes the same thing. He stated, “There’s no more time for talking about stopping Mitt Romney. We’re going to do it next week in South Carolina or he’s almost certain to be the Republican nominee.” Although it looks like Romney could also win South Carolina, Romney is unsure if he can win. Romney brought up the impact of being a Mormon could have on his chances. Romney stated, “The conservatives in New Hampshire, the people who called themselves very conservative, the tea partyers in New Hampshire, supported me.” He also believes that, “There are people who want to elect a commander in chief. They’re not worried about electing a pastor in chief.” The most significant reason for why Romney won the New Hampshire primary is the fact that the primary goers want a candidate who can beat Obama. Another aspect of Romney’s strength is the money he was able to raise. His campaign announced that it had $19 million. This article is significant because it seems that Romney has a great chance of winning in South Carolina because he seems to be the candidate who could beat Obama in the presidential election. It is also significant because it shows which candidates are somewhat afraid of Romney’s success and therefore which candidates would do whatever it takes to bring Romney down. 

Blog Entry #5

http://www.thestate.com/2012/01/02/2098706/dems-target-romney-in-iowa.html#storylink=misearch

The title of this article is, “Dems Target Romney in Iowa,” and was written by Ken Thomas. This article was found on thestate.com, which is one of South Carolina’s newspapers found online. It was also published on January 2, 2012. This article is about how those Democrats in Iowa want to try to lessen Mitt Romney’s popularity, especially with the GOP Caucus that occurs on January 3, 2012. Democrats will be at the caucus to try to get the voters not to vote for Romney because as of now, he leads in the national polls and could use Iowa as well as other early states to secure his nomination as the Republican candidate. Democrats have tried to show the people that Romney is not a good candidate because although Romney says his business background is a big reason for why he should be sent to the White House, the Democrats feel that his background in business is questionable. Michael Fitzgerald, a Democratic state treasurer of Iowa, stated, “When push comes to shove, Romney’s economic vision could not be more out of touch with the needs of working folks here in Iowa and across the country.” The article also mentions how Obama plans to talk to the caucus attendees by web video on January 3. It also mentions that Romney is in the lead with a steady support at twenty four percent and many of the people who will attend the caucus believe that Romney would be the most likely Republican to run against Obama in the presidential election. The Democratic National Committee found a union official who was laid off by Romney’s private equity firm Bain Capital that said that the layoffs show that Romney does not understand the needs of the working people. Similar to other candidates, the Democrats tend to try to use Romney’s past against him to make sure Obama can shine, especially when talking about the economy. Romney’s campaign has worked hard to try and stop the efforts of the Democrats to bring up Romney’s business past. Romney’s campaign also mentioned that the reason the Democrats are targeting Romney is because they know that Obama will lose the presidential election if Romney is the Republican candidate running against him. This is significant because it shows that not only does Romney have a great chance of winning the GOP caucuses and being the candidate to run against Obama, he also has a great chance of beating Obama. Democrats are fearful that Obama will lose if Romney is the man to run against him and they will do everything in their power to bring Romney down.

http://www.concordmonitor.com/article/301843/santorum-on-shoestring?CSAuthResp=1325633784%3A4ae6l5h0l9ssfbu82uqq7gs457%3ACSUserId%7CCSGroupId%3Aapproved%3AE53D946CD726FA2E2BB61D2923BB3849&CSUserId=94&CSGroupId=1

The title of this article is, “Santorum on a Shoestring,” and was written by Annmarie Timmins. It was published on January 3, 2012 on one of New Hampshire’s online newspapers, www.concordmonitor.com. This article is about Santorum’s decision to campaign in New Hampshire. However, he will only be able to do it on a shoestring budget. Santorum already has very little money with him in Iowa. Santorum was only able to raise $1.3 million and already spent $1.1 million. Mitt Romney’s funds of $33 million and only $18 million spent. Santorum is having difficulty of affording rental cars as well as affording pollsters or television advertisements. It seems like it will be difficult for Santorum to be able to get the funds that would lead him to becoming a big factor in the race for the presidency. However, Santorum is still getting the attention needed in Iowa, which gave him the opportunity to raise more money in five days than he did in the previous four months. Jamie Burnett, an unaligned New Hampshire-based GIO strategist, believes that Santorum is, “showing he can live off the ground, so to speak, and make a real competitive go of it.” Santorum’s lack of wealth was shown when in Iowa, he relied on a supporter’s pickup truck for transportation. Phil Musser, a Republican strategist, asked the question that only a miracle could answer: “Could they put together $10 million in five days?” This is significant because although Santorum may be in the top three at the moment, he may be unable to have enough funds to continue in the race. It is also significant because many people say that money is something that should not matter when dealing with certain situations such as this one, but in reality money is a big contributor to the success of many. Santorum could be the perfect candidate to run against Obama, but he may be unable to because of his money situation. 

Video Analysis Blog Entry #1

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032608/#45714689

The title of this video is, “One-on-One with Rep. Bachmann.” This video was found on the online version of “Meet the Press,” and the person speaking with Bachmann is David Gregory. This was broadcasted on December 18, 2011.  This video is showing the people Bachmann’s responses to David Gregory’s questions. The first question he asked Bachmann was “under what circumstances would you support an extension of the pay roll tax cut through 2012?” She responded by saying that she did not support it when it was first proposed a year ago. The reason she did not support it was that it denied one hundred eleven billion dollars to the social security trust fund. She believed that it was not a good thing and she brought up that the reason Obama proposed it in the first place was to created more jobs. She then went on to say that there is no evidence that shows that it created jobs. She believed that all this is doing is adding to the debt. David Gregory then told her that 58% of the people feel that the payroll tax cut should be extended which is the opposite of what Bachmann believed. In response to this, Bachmann said that all members of Congress, back in the summer, should have gotten together and discuss the problems of the country’s spending habits. She said that Obama is being irresponsible and that his actions are similar to George Bush’s actions. Switching to the next question, David Gregory asked her about Iowa. She believes that she will win in Iowa. He then asked her if Gingrich was targeting her about her “inability” to get the facts correct and she believes that he was targeting her. After talking about her opinions on Gingrich, Gregory asked if she were to become the president, would she ignore decisions that she disagreed with that were issued by the Supreme Court. Her answer was no, but Congress and the president together can pass laws and go against the Supreme Court. They then go on to discuss laws and it seemed like Bachmann and Gregory were both confused about what each other was saying. He then asks her about foreign relations, specifically relations with Iran and nuclear weapons. She is saying that Iran is close to obtaining a nuclear weapon. She believes that Iran must never have a nuclear weapon because they will use the weapon to get rid of Israel as well as use it on the United States. Bachmann says we need to stand for our own safety. The next president of the United States needs to know how to address this threat. This is significant because during the interview, there were times where it seemed like Bachmann had no idea about what she was talking about which could cause her to lose in the Iowa caucus. However, her response about Iran’s threat seemed like she knew what she was talking about as well as how to stop them from actually acting on their threat. Either way, Bachmann can be seen as a candidate who is clueless or a candidate who can fix the United States.

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7393430n&tag=contentMain;contentBody

This video was found on the online site for, “Face the Nation.” It is titled, “GOP candidates give their New Year’s Resolutions.” Mitt Romney’s resolution is to say, “Thank You,” more often. He says that appreciation is an underappreciated thing. When Ron Paul was asked, he asked if he could think about it. Rick Perry’s resolution is to pray for those in the military and pray for their safe return home. Jon Huntsman’s resolution is to show more compassion for those who have lost loved ones and he hopes that the country will do the same. Rick Santorum said he has not thought about his resolution, but he feels that everyone knows what it is already. Ron Paul finally answered with that he hopes that he can deliver the right message to those who go out to hear him speak and to do a better job each time he does it. Newt Gingrich responded by asking if the person who asked him has a resolution. Michele Bachmann’s resolution is to work very hard and win the Iowa caucus, then win the New Hampshire primary, then win the South Carolina primary, and then win the Florida primary. Basically, she hopes to win the primaries and become the Republican nominee. This is significant because while some of the candidates described resolutions dealing with the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, others described resolutions that were personal. Rick Perry, Jon Huntsman, and Mitt Romney all described resolutions that dealt with things such as praying and being more grateful and compassionate. The resolutions given by Ron Paul and Michele Bachmann were more on the lines of the presidential nomination. Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich did not give resolutions. Santorum did say that his resolution was obvious enough that he did not have to say it. After hearing all of the resolutions, it can make the people of this country decide what is significant and important to the candidate. It can also influence how people view the candidates. Some may have view Romney as a mean person, but after seeing that his resolution is to appreciate things, it can change that person’s opinion. The fact that Gingrich did not give a resolution could be seen that he is above the resolution giving nature that people have during the New Year.

Blog Entry #4

http://www.concordmonitor.com/article/300167/extremist-newsletters-haunt-paul?CSAuthResp=1324931610%3A4ae6l5h0l9ssfbu82uqq7gs457%3ACSUserId%7CCSGroupId%3Aapproved%3AD750EB96FC61454264AF4F52EF895FBC&CSUserId=94&CSGroupId=1

The title of this article is, “Extremist newsletters haunt Paul,” and was written by Ben Leubsdorf. It was published on December 24, 2011 on concordmonitor.com, one of New Hampshire’s newspapers. This article is about how Ron Paul wrote different sorts of newsletters regarding his racist and homophobic views. These letters were also brought up during his campaign in 2008. One of his letters that was reviewed by The New Republic contained racist words when discussing the federal holiday celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. day as, “Hate Whitey Day.” He also said things about AIDS patients that “enjoy the attention and pity that comes with being sick.” These articles are from the 1970s and even earlier. Paul told the public that he disowned the newsletters and that he does not know who wrote those articles. Paul is saying that he is not responsible for what was said and that he takes no credit in writing them. However, it is said that Paul wrote an eight-page letter encouraging people to subscribe to his newsletters. One of the warnings in this letter was, “the federal-homosexual cover-up on AIDS (my training as a physician helps me see through this one).” Similar to before, Paul’s spokeswoman told the public that he did not write this one either. These letter have come into the light more recently because Paul has a significant chance in winning the January 3 Iowa GOP caucuses. As of now, he has a lead over Mitt Romney who happens to be his nearest rival. This is significant because if someone is able to prove that Ron Paul in fact wrote these letters, it could show that he is a racist and a homophobe. This could also demolish his chance of winning the GOP caucuses because many people would not vote for a racist or a homophobe. It is also significant because during elections, secrets from the past tend to come to the surface. With Herman Cain’s past, it ended with him dropping out. If this turns out to be true, Ron Paul may have the same fate.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/23/us/politics/for-obama-payroll-tax-victory-was-aided-by-republicans.html?_r=1&scp=8&sq=politics&st=cse

The title of this article is, “A Victory Considerably Aided by the Other Side,” and was written by Jackie Calmes. It was published on December 22, 2011 on nytimes.com. This article is about whether or not Obama can actually win the 2012 presidential election. Some are worried that he may not win because in 2010, Republicans have gained control of the House and a share of power in Washington. It is threatening to Obama’s prospects for re-election, especially after the summer fight over the nation’s debt limit. With this in mind, in September the White House decided to change the image of Obama to a determined voice of economic populism which started with a job-creation plan. Obama would either pass his plan, which was unlikely because of the Republican opposition, or he would get political credit and therefore increase his popularity as well as show that the Republicans would be completely against anything he proposed. Ironically, Republicans actually helped Obama with anything the White House and Congressional Democrats did. However, Obama did win in the way that his approval ratings raised in the polls. Congressional Democrats were nervous that Obama was more eager to make deals with Republicans, such as reducing Medicare and Social Security, in order to get a grand budget bargain. However, this win gave Obama somewhat more respect from the Congressional Democrats. Many Republicans believe that Obama would give in rather than having the blame put on him if payroll taxes went up for millions. Overall, it seems that Obama is figuring out how to fix the economic crisis. This is significant because if the people realize that Obama is actually fixing things, especially something as important as the economy, then he may actually be re-elected as president in 2012. However, if Obama cannot continue with his path of improving things, than people may decide to get him out of office.