Atlanta, U.S.A. — During the October 16 U.S. Presidential debate, Republican nominee Mitt Romney said President Barack Obama waited 14 days to declare the attack in Benghazi an “Act of Terror” before the president protested, interrupting, “Get the transcript,” which he claimed refuted Romney’s assertion.

Videotape from the live event shows debate moderator Candy Crowley with what appears to be the transcript of the President’s Rose Garden speech in hand, waving it about as if on cue from the President.

The video, distributed by Job Creators Solutions, demonstrates how that exchange should prompt the media and the public at large to ask why Ms. Crowley held up a document at that critical moment in the debate.

“The debates are a sacred part of our democratic system,” said Herman Cain, co-founder of Job Creators Solutions and former presidential candidate. ”The American public deserves to know if that system was subverted. This video raises enough questions to make us all deeply uncomfortable until we know the answers.”

To assist the public in its own evaluation, Jobs Creators Solutions has produced the video showing the moment when, prompted by President Obama, Crowley produces what appears to be the transcript of the September 12 remarks. The “TranscriptGate” video can be viewed at http://bit.ly/SgGXMt.

Images Courtesy of Austen Hufford | Gage Skidmore

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New York, U.S.A. — The kids of the United States have spoken and President Barack Obama has been elected the winner of Nickelodeon‘s 2012 Kids Pick the President ”Kids’ Vote.” Since it began in 1988, kids have correctly picked the winner (in advance of the national election) five out of the last six times. More than half a million votes were cast in the network’s online poll as part of Nickelodeon’s Kids Pick the President initiative to build young citizens’ awareness of, and involvement in, the election process.

President Obama received 65% of the vote and former Governor Mitt Romney received 35%. In order to more closely replicate the actual election, and to ensure the results were more authentic, this year the voting was limited to one vote per electronic device. Kids were able to cast their votes online from October 15 to October 22.

On Monday, October 22, at 7:30 p.m. (ET/PT), Linda Ellerbee, the Emmy Award-winning host of Nickelodeon’s Nick News, announced the winner of the Kids Pick the President ”Kids’ Vote” on the network.

“What politicians do definitely affects kids but for me, it’s not about who wins,” said Ellerbee. “It’s about creating tomorrow’s voters. Democracy takes work. We’re the practice field.”

Leading up to the Kids Pick the President online vote, Nickelodeon aired two election-themed Nick News with Linda Ellerbee specials this year, which ranked as the series’ highest-rated episodes for 2012 to date. In “Kids Pick the President: The Issues” (Sept. 17), kids nationwide ranked the campaign issues most important to them. “Kids Pick the President: The Candidates” (Oct. 15) provided an opportunity for the two major party U.S. Presidential candidates to answer kids’ questions. This year’s candidate special featured President Obama sitting down with Nick News at the White House to answer kids’ questions and previously taped video clips of Romney addressing issues raised by kids.  Romney was unable to participate in the special.

Image Courtesy of  U.S. Embassy New Delhi

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New York, U.S.A. — NewsOne.com, an urban digital media company, Interactive One’s African-American news website, published on October 23, an exclusive op-Ed penned by First Lady Michelle Obama that speaks directly to the country’s nearly 39 million Black Americans. The op-Ed addresses the importance of every vote in this November’s presidential election and Mrs. Obama encourages those who can, to vote early this year for her husband President Barack Obama.

“Now that so many states have early vote—including Ohio, North Carolina, Nevada, Colorado, Wisconsin, Florida, New Mexico, and Iowa—we can make our voices heard well before Election Day,” explains First Lady Michelle Obama. “So, if you live in a state with early voting, pledge to cast your ballot early—and then reach out to everyone you know and make sure they vote by November 6, too.”

Before reminding voters of the close results of the 2008 presidential election, the first lady recalls the long strides previous generations made to ensure the civil liberties all Americans enjoy today. She makes clear, however, that it “doesn’t mean our work is finished.” Mrs. Obama states, “Make no mistake, here in our time, it’s more important than ever that we show up to vote, not just this year, but every year and in every election. Every voice must be heard and every vote must be counted.”

Mrs. Obama’s op-Ed comes on the heels of an exclusive story published by NewsOne on October 11 where the first lady addressed issues affecting Black female voters. In the story she discusses President Obama’s latest debate performance, what’s at stake in this year’s presidential election, and whether the president has the support of Black women.

“NewsOne.com is the definitive source for news most relevant to the African-American community and our recent exclusives with First Lady Michelle Obama demonstrate that fact,” said Tom Newman, President, Interactive One. “The importance of Mrs. Obama’s message cannot be overstated. All of us at Interactive One eagerly encourage our readers to make their voices heard by voting and encouraging others to vote in next month’s election.”

To read First Lady Michelle Obama’s op-Ed, and for more information about NewsOne.com, visit their website.

Image Courtesy of Joyce N. Boghosian, White House photographer [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

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Towson, U.S.A. — Exis Interactive, a Maryland based game development company has released “Execuforce” a satirical 3d game for campaign and charity fundraising. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Obama presidential campaign and the wounded warrior project.

This is the first game to be used for campaign financing, and provides a new way to reach and engage the 18-35 year old audience. People who buy the game not only donate to these worthy causes, but they also get a great experience while learning about the candidates in the game itself.

This game is another example of how American companies are innovating, bringing disparate elements together to form something new and imaginative. Working tirelessly to push boundaries and find new ways to communicate with one another and the world. Games are great tools for dissemination of information, and a powerful medium for mobilization; They’ve never been used in this fashion before, and this project represents a shift in the use of new media to spread a message.

Players can take the role of Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, Bill Clinton, and Ronald Reagan in a fantastical journey that pits the leaders of the free world against evil alien forces bent on enslaving mankind. The game allows players from all over the United States to play together in an online cooperative mode and help save the game world. In the real world though, these players have a direct impact by helping the campaign and our troops.

Campaign and Charity Supporters can buy the game at http://www.ExisInteractive.com/Execuforce/.

“This is a last minute fundraising effort to benefit the Obama campaign, and to directly aid the wounded soldiers who have given so much for this country. We think it’s important for everyone participate in our democratic process, and hope that Execuforce can help inform and entertain; all while getting critically needed funds to the campaign and our wounded warriors. Games are the most engaging way to interact with your audience and spread your message. Execuforce is the first game to directly aid campaigns via fundraising and we hope that other people interested in helping these causes will champion this project. We’re a small four man team and we want to help combat the onslaught of corporate money flooding the system. “ – Peter Kojesta, Founder of Exis.

Exis is an Indie game development studio founded in 2003 and creates AAA products for partner studios and publishers. The company is located in Towson, Maryland, directly across the street from Towson University.

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Toronto, Canada – Wave Accounting, the disruptive creators of award-winning free small business accounting and payroll software, announced on September 11 the results of its small business opinion poll on the 2012 U.S. Presidential Election. Wave polled the U.S.-based portion of the company’s more than 300,000 customers regarding their opinions on the candidates’ potential impact on small business.

Key findings include:

• On the question, “Who is better for small businesses,” 53% of respondents chose Romney/Ryan, 39% chose Obama/Biden.
• Reducing government red tape is the number one issue for Republican voting respondents, with an overwhelming 90% citing this issue as “crucial.”
• Among voters intending to vote Democrat, the most important issue is improving health care options for small businesses (77% called it “crucial.”)
• Size matters: Support for Romney/Ryan grows as company size grows. 47% of companies with 6-9 employees say they are definitely voting Romney/Ryan, vs. 45% among companies with 2-5 employees, and 43% among one-person businesses.
• Support for the GOP ticket is strongest in the South where 57% of businesses favorRomney/Ryan.

“These insights represent the real opinions of real small businesses in America,” said Kirk Simpson, CEO of Wave Accounting.

Recent “small business” surveys have included opinions from companies with hundreds of employees and many millions in revenue. Because Wave specializes in online solutions for real small businesses with 9 employees or less, the company can access key insights from a unique and significant segment of the market.

“This group makes up 95% of businesses in the U.S., yet their voices are badly underrepresented in media and politics,” said Simpson. “Their opinions and needs are interesting, in some cases unexpected, and deserve to be heard.”

The complete Wave Small Business Opinions Report — 2012 U.S. Presidential Election is available at www.waveaccounting.com/election2012.

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Washington, U.S.A. – Bruce McBarnette, lawyer and real estate investor, is hosting this year the Art for Obama Reception Series in cities all across the country.This series, which was conducted in 45 galleries in 11 cities in eight states in 2008, is raising funds for the Obama campaign.

This year the Series will be hosted at galleries in several cities, including Washington, New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. The next receptions in Washington, DC will be held simultaneously at 6pm-10pm on Saturday, September 8, in Georgetown at the MOCA Gallery, the Parish Gallery, the Alla Rogers Gallery, and the Winter Palace Studio.

On Monday, September 24 there will be another reception in Georgetown at the Addison/Ripley Gallery. At each reception guests can buy art and contribute to the Obama campaign.

“I am so grateful to the many volunteers, artists, and gallery owners across the country who have been donating their time and talent to make the Art for Obama Reception Series so successful,” said Bruce McBarnette, who is president of Summit Connection LLC, a real estate investment company.Bruce McBarnette is well known for hosting charitable social events in Washington, DC for causes ranging from the homeless to disaster relief.

“A good number of people have been reaching out to us on the internet and that has allowed the Series to have a presence in many different places,” said Devlin Francis, owner of Cryptic Vision, the company providing website design and internet support for the Art for Obama Receptions Series.

For information about upcoming Art for Obama receptions and volunteer opportunities, visit http://mcbarnette.com/obama or http://facebook.com/artforobama.

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In the past weeks the political campaign has focused in social issues like Medicare, abortion and rape; all of these are areas in which President Obama has an advantage over Mitt Romney. According to the last AP-GfK poll, President Obama is seen much more capable of handling social issues. But now Mitt Romney has tried to focus in his energy plan to boost his economic plan.

Mitt Romney is now trying to refocus the national debate to economic issues in which Obama is weaker. The high unemployment rate has been one of Obama’s weaknesses; the Obama campaign has released a new ad called “Clear Choice,” which features former President Bill Clinton, saying that this election is an opportunity to decide which candidate would be able to get the country back to work.

Clinton explains the Republican plan intends to cut taxes on the wealthy and get the country back to the regulation that got the country in so many problems. On the other hand, Clinton explained that Obama’s plan would rebuild the country investing in innovation and creating jobs. Clinton added that the plan would only work with a strong middle class, such as the one that existed when he was president.

Romney is now working on his energy plan, which he says would be able to create three million jobs by 2020. It would also open more areas for drilling off the coast in two swing states the Republicans lost in the 2008 election: North Carolina and Virginia.

Romney will be traveling to different states with his energy proposals, so voters will have the opportunity to hear them. His plan is supposed to result in $1 trillion in revenue for federal, state and local governments. Also, Romney intends to give each state the liberty to establish the form of energy production they want on federal lands, which is quite different from Obama’s administration energy policy in which the federal government currently controls these lands.

Romney’s plan will have a lot of opposition in Congress and will lead to protests from different environmental groups, especially if the oil drilling is done in the mid-Atlantic, where it is currently banned. In order to prevent these protests, the energy production would be banned in areas that are currently designated as off-limits. Romney has a big plan to finally execute the Keystone XL pipeline project, which is a pipeline that would run from Canada to Texas refineries.

Mitt Romney has recently received almost $7 million from oil executives from fundraisers in Texas. During a fundraiser in Arkansas, Romney promised that “”North America will be energy-independent by the last year of my second term.”

Steve Holland in a Huffington Post article explains that the “Republicans are eager to make greater use of the U.S. energy supply to increase jobs for Americans suffering amid an 8.3 percent unemployment rate. They would curtail some federal regulations to permit more production.”

Holland, speaking about the environmental controversy that Romney’s plan could cause, said “the plan makes little mention of climate change or greenhouse gases. Romney policy adviser Oren Cass said Romney supports green energy and government spending on energy research, but opposes loan guarantees for green companies.”

Image Courtesy of  Gage Skidmore

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Accusations from Republicans, especially Rick Santorum, against Obama continues, as Santorum also explained that, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, “Obamacare” would cost taxpayers almost two trillion dollars. Santorum added that, in 10 years, “Obamacare” would leave nearly 30 million people uninsured and would not solve the urgent problem of the increasing costs for healthcare.

Santorum also mentioned China’s economic situation to criticize Obama’s economic policies. China has largely increased its manufacturing base and its economy grew almost two trillion dollars in the past year. Santorum explained that in the United States, Obama increased taxes on most manufacturing businesses, which killed more job opportunities and puts the country at a great disadvantage against China.

Mitt Romney has also taken advantage of Europe’s crisis to criticize President Obama saying that the Americans shouldn’t let the United States become Europe under Obama’s leadership. Romney also compared California’s difficult economic situation under Democrat leadership with the Greek economic crisis.

But these haven’t been the only accusations Republicans have made against Democrats. Recently, Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, accused Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) of lying for saying that Mitt Romney had not paid income taxes in 10 years. Romney defended himself, saying that his 2010 tax report has already been released and the 2011 report will be released when it is completed. Currently, only Romney’s tax return for 2010 has been publicly released.

Most of Santorum’s accusations are similar to what other Republicans are using to attack Obama. One of the most hurtful ones has been Romney’s campaign ad accusing Obama of gutting former president Bill Clinton’s welfare reform by dropping employment requirements. In response, Clinton released a statement on August 7 denouncing the ad.

An article on The Atlantic, written by Molly Ball, explained that “the Obama administration issued a memo telling states they could apply to have some aspects of the law’s work requirements waived. Some on the right were outraged by the supposed attempt to weaken the law’s emphasis on getting people off welfare and into employment, which the administration denied would result from its order.” That is why Romney’s campaign released an ad claiming that the Obama administration wants to get rid of the work requirements in order to receive the welfare check.

The article further explains that the Obama administration responded to Republican accusations saying that they don’t want to drop work requirements but they do want to give benefits to more people who aren’t working in the way it is currently defined, finding the requirements restrictive.

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich also accused Obama of gutting Clinton’s welfare reform. Gingrich, who was one of the Republicans who negotiated the welfare reform with Bill Clinton, accused Obama of “setting up a dramatic reduction in the work requirement.”

Image Courtesy of  Gage Skidmore

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Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney and many other Republicans have been criticizing President Obama for what they consider to be failed economic policies and are accusing him of trying to get rid of work requirements in order to receive a welfare check.

Former 2012 hopeful Rick Santorum recently posted on his blog about “Obamanomics,” a term used to explain that Obama’s economic plans, instead of “spreading wealth around, in reality only spreads poverty and economic decline.”

The former Republican presidential candidate wrote that Obama does not understand the challenges many working families are facing. He thinks that the government’s economic management has led to a situation that forces companies to outsource jobs, while many American families are losing them.

Santorum asserts that the situation is so chaotic that 41 months have passed with the unemployment rate above 8 percent, something that hasn’t occurred since the Great Depression. Since WWII, no president that served while the unemployment rate was above 8 percent has been reelected. If this continues into November, President Obama will have to challenge history for reelection.

Santorum also added that one out of six Americans is currently below the poverty line and that one in four children is receiving food stamps.

The other aspect Santorum criticized from Obama’s government is unnecessary spending. Santorum wrote, “national debt has grown by over $5.2 trillion to $16 trillion dollars—an increase of 49 percent.”  Santorum also explained that this is the fourth consecutive year in which the deficit exceeds one trillion dollars.

Another accusation Santorum made against Obama is that he has only made cuts in the defense spending budget, which Santorum considers wrong. He believes that the defense system should be a priority for the federal government, but Obama’s cuts have exceeded one trillion dollars.

President Obama has defended himself from this type of accusations, an example is on a speech on Cleveland in June he explained that the Bush tax rate cuts where somehow guilty for the recession, not his economic policies. Obama stated: “The failure to pay for the tax cuts and the wars took us from record surpluses under President Bill Clinton to record deficits. And it left us unprepared to deal with the retirement of an aging population that’s placing a greater strain on programs like Medicare and Social Security.”

Obama defended his economic policies on Cleveland, he stated: “We acted fast. Our economy started growing again six months after I took office and it has continued to grow for the last three years.” He added: “Our businesses have gone back to basics and created over 4 million jobs in the last 27 months; more private sector jobs than were created during the entire seven years before this crisis, in a little over two years.” But this is exactly what Republicans like Rick Santorum are criticizing, they accuse him of not reacting in time and maintaining the unemployment rate above 8% for too long.

Image Courtesy of  pennstatelive

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Los Angeles, U.S.A. — With many citing the economy as the most important issue for the 2012 presidential election, Loop21.com, a leading digital source of emergent Black culture, and a coalition of top black civic, entertainment and media organizations, conducted The State of the Black Economy (SOBE) survey, a study of African American public opinion on the issue. The study, conducted from July 9 to July 27, tapped into a panel of more than 5,000 regular African American visitors to the Loop21.com website.

According to polling results released today, Loop21.com’s African American panel respondents are more pessimistic about the national economy than they are on their own personal finances, however, 86% approve of President Obama’s performance on the economy. While overall the president’s economic job approval number have been hovering around the mid to low 40s; African Americans see him as doing much better than the public at large.

The panel respondents tend to blame the current economic problems on former President George W. Bush, Wall Street, and Congress, more so than President Obama. Panel respondents also tend to think that President Obama’s race influences the public criticism he receives when people speak about his economic job performance.

When panel respondents who disapproved (14%) of the President’s performance on the economy were asked who could do better than President Obama the most common response suggested no one. The second most common response among disapproving respondents was that a Democratic Congress could do better.

The distant third most common response (9%) was a third-party Presidential candidate. The list of responses—panel respondents could only check one—included a Republican President (1%), the Republican Congress (<1%), a Democratic other than Obama (6%), a Democratic Congress (20%), a non-Democrat or non-Republican president (9%), a different African American (1%), none of the above (44%), and unsure (17%).

Asked specifically about how much President Obama “cares about the needs of Black people” compared to “past presidents” and compared to “former President Bill Clinton,” respondents said that Obama cared more than past presidents, but equal amounts said he cared “the same” as or “more” than former President Clinton.

Panelists also offered opinions about job policy priorities. When asked about the issue of jobs in the United States, a majority of panel respondents say job creation should be more important than reducing the deficit and that tougher immigration enforcement would not lead to more job opportunities. The panel respondents were split on the issue of whether tax decreases for business would stimulate job growth.  Panel respondents also preferred “issue targeted” policies over “race targeted” policies.

On the issue of race, (70%) of the panel respondents see “African Americans” as sharing more common experiences than “Americans” in general, (55%).  The survey also found that panel respondents perceive more racial bias for other African Americans than they experience in their own daily lives; yet, list “workplace discrimination” among their greatest concerns for job security.

Racial perceptions influenced African Americans panel respondents’ assessment of criticism leveled at President Obama. The overwhelming majority of respondents hold the view that all “Americans” and “African Americans” hold President Obama to a “higher standard than other presidents.” When asked why, nearly 9 out of 10 responded that both “Americans” and “African Americans” hold President Obama to a higher standard “because of his race.”

Image Courtesy of   pennstatelive

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Tampa, U.S.A. — This month’s Republican National Convention is expected to bring approximately 50,000 visitors to Tampa and drive delay times on the city’s major roads by 18 percent. The insight, released today by INRIX, the largest global traffic intelligence platform in the world, unveils a number of likely problem areas for drivers including:

• Routes South of Whiting Street will be closed, including the Platt Street Bridge and the part closure of the Selmon Expressway, between Willow Avenue and 50th Street
• Traffic will likely reroute to the I-275 or Kennedy Boulevard with delays increasing to more than 25 minutes on the busiest days, from an average of 10 to 15 minutes
• Overall traffic volume will significantly rise, with 350 charter buses and more than 500 private vehicles expected, with no plans to set aside specialized lanes on the interstates
• Short traffic signals could bring downtown Tampa to a standstill, with the biggest concerns being traffic signals on Kennedy Boulevard and Ashley Drive
• Road closures are anticipated to be lifted after 6PM on Friday August 31 st and will start from Saturday August 25 th

Jim Bak, Director of Community Relations, INRIX, shares advice to Tampa commuters: “There will likely be a conference session that clashes with the morning rush hour on Monday August 27 th and commuters should get an early start to avoid the anticipated delays. Staggering work hours around peak commuting times and working around the road closures as much as possible should help alleviate some of the pressure on the roads, we advise drivers to plan journeys in advance as much as possible.”

Current Top three worst bottlenecks in Tampa:

• I-275 Southbound from Floribraska Ave/28th Ave/Exit 28 to US-92/Dale Mabry Hwy/Exit 23,  traffic moves through this 4.2 mile stretch of road at rush hour at 33 mph for 24 hours each week
• I-275 Northbound from FL-60/Cypress St/Exit 39  to FL-574/Exit 46B where traffic crawls through this four mile stretch of road at an average speed of 22 mph for 13 hours each week.
• Veterans Expy/FL 569 Southbound where it intersects with Linebaugh Ave/Exit 7 is a half mile stretch of road where cars crawl at an average speed of 23 mph for 10 hours a week.

The Republican National Convention runs August 27 th to August 30 th 2012 across various locations in Tampa.

image Courtesy of    Voices Empower with Alice Linahan

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Tampa, U.S.A. — A unique gathering of advocacy groups urged the Republican Party Committee on Resolutions (the platform committee) to consider all faith viewpoints when it comes to the country’s most pressing social issues—including access to reproductive healthcare and the freedom to marry.

In response to increasingly heated rhetoric about religious freedom, leaders of Republicans for Choice, Catholics for Choice and the National Council of Jewish Women, which are members of the Coalition for Liberty and Justice, joined the Log Cabin Republicans on a panel, “Republicans in Good Faith: Making Room for All Voices in the GOP,” during Republican Party platform committee meetings.

New polling data from Republicans for Choice revealed that the leadership of the Republican Party does not reflect the views of rank and file Republicans when it comes to reproductive healthcare issues. Eighty percent of those who identified as Republicans believe that, when it comes to abortion, the decision should be made by a woman. Three percent said it should be made by the government.

“Republicans in good faith don’t use faith to discriminate. They recognize the hypocrisy of advocating government to get out of the boardroom but not the bedroom. They understand that they need to welcome and embrace voters of all religious persuasions, not just the few who have dominated the discussions in the recent past,” said Ann Stone, national chairman of Republicans for Choice.

Jon O’Brien, president of Catholics for Choice, said, “Polls done across the political spectrum show the majority of Republicans, like the majority of Americans, do not agree that abortion should be illegal. The leadership of the GOP should better reflect the views of Republican voters—who are overwhelmingly pro-choice.

Too many Republican leaders agree with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops that recent advances in the provision of family planning are an attack on religious freedom. This is completely bogus. In bending the knee to the Catholic hierarchy, these leaders have taken on values that are held by a tiny minority of Catholics and are anathema to Republican ideals of freedom and fairness.”

Image Courtesy of   Talk Radio News Service

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Two new polls have appeared demonstrating the same thing: Obama is still slightly ahead of Romney. The surveys have been elaborated by AP-GfK and The Wall Street Journal/NBC News. Not even the nomination of Paul Ryan as Romney’s running mate has made the Republican comeback a sure thing, but Republicans still hope their Tampa Convention will turn things around.

The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll shows the Obama-Biden ticket has the support of 48 percent of registered voters ,and the Romney-Ryan ticket gets 44 percent.

In the July poll the results were almost the same. Let’s remember that during that month Ryan had not yet been designated as Romney’s running mate. The Obama-Biden ticket had 49 percent of registered voters’ support, and Romney had 43 percent. Even through all of the Republican effort, only a slight difference has been seen in the polls from July to August.

Romney’s tax record, and his Medicare plan, which is not popular, is costing him serious trouble. These are the main issues he must solve to have a serious comeback opportunity. President Obama, on the other hand, is having trouble with the unemployment rate and the nation’s direction; he must convince the voters that in four more years he will be able to take the country in the right direction.

But not all of the polls look negative for Romney. If you consider just 12 key state battle grounds: Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin, Obama’s advantage over Romney has gotten smaller. He now leads 49 to 46 percent, when in the same poll on June and July he had an 8 percent advantage in these same key state battlegrounds.

Obama still has minorities’ support; Hispanics and African Americans are behind him. So are women, which makes it seem that the Democrat’s campaigning regarding Republicans’ war with women has succeeded.  Romney is leading Obama on white, rural and senior voters, respectively.

The AP-GfK poll shows similar results. One of the poll’s results worthy of consideration is that amongst people who think Medicare is a very important issue, 49 percent would vote for Obama and 44 percent for Romney. This proves that Obama’s Medicare plan is more popular. On the other hand, voters still think Romney is more capable of handling the economy, 48 percent favor him and 44 percent favor Obama.

According to this poll Obama is also seen as much more capable of handling social issues, such as abortion and same-sex marriage, 54 percent of them think Obama is much more capable of handling abortion, while only 33 percent think Romney is more capable.

Obama is also seen as a strong, honest and trustworthy leader, whilst Mitt Romney needs to work on his personal image in order to have a serious chance of winning this election.

Republicans are hoping their Tampa Convention will make them jump in the polls. They have prepared a Convention with speakers that could turn things around, like Chris Christie (key-note speaker) or Marco Rubio (who will introduce Mitt Romney). Also, the Convention will be an opportunity for Romney to work on his personal image and for people to know Paul Ryan’s proposals firsthand.

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Washington, U.S.A. — Following Congressman Akin’s controversial remarks on Sunday, the Romney-Ryan campaign quickly released the following statement: “Governor Romney and Congressman (Paul) Ryan disagree with Mr. Akin’s statement, and a Romney-Ryan administration would not oppose abortion in instances of rape.”

After praising Congressman Ryan’s pro-personhood record in a press release last week, Personhood USA has now expressed concern about the appearance of compromise on the part of Congressman Ryan.

“Personhood USA does not endorse political candidates, but we had hoped that Congressman Ryan would be a good influence on Governor Romney, considering Romney’s liberal abortion record,” explained Jennifer Mason, Communications Director for Personhood USA. “Reading today that babies conceived in rape should suffer the death penalty under a Romney-Ryan administration is extremely concerning, and indicates that Congressman Ryan’s pro-woman and pro-baby positions would have little influence if he wins the office of Vice President of the United States.”

In December, Personhood USA asked GOP Presidential hopefuls to sign a “Personhood Pledge,” affirming the Republican party platform and following in the steps of President Ronald Reagan. Governor Mitt Romney declined to sign the prolife pledge.

Personhood USA spokesperson Rebecca Kiessling, who was conceived in rape, has had the opportunity to speak to many presidential hopefuls over the past five years. When speaking with Governor Mitt Romney several years ago, Rebecca commented that he was largely unresponsive and seemingly disinterested. By contrast, Rebecca’s conversation with Texas Governor Rick Perrymade headline news, with Governor Perry stating, ”Looking in her eyes, I couldn’t come up with an answer to defend the exceptions for rape and incest.”

“As someone who really cares about rape victims, I want to protect them from the rapist, and from the abortion, but not the baby. A baby is not the worst thing that could ever happen to a rape victim — an abortion is,” explained Kiessling. “We need to educate the American public on the truth in this matter and not make public policy based on myth and misinformation.”

“Governor Romney claims to be prolife, but it appears he is prolife with exceptions – if the baby was conceived in rape, it seems that Romney does not believe that baby has a right to life. This position is contrary to the Republican party platform and contrary to the beliefs of prolife Americans nationwide. All babies have a right to live, regardless of the circumstances of their conception,” concluded Mason

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The Obama campaign has announced that Vice President, Joe Biden, has plans to be in Tampa next week. This wouldn’t be an important announcement, but the same days he is planning to attend Tampa are the same days the Republican National Convention will be taking place in the city.

The White House released a statement saying: “Next week, on Monday, August 27 and Tuesday, August 28, Vice President Joe Biden will travel to the Tampa area and other cities for campaign events.” The Republican National Convention is scheduled to take place from August 27 to August 30 at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus has already responded to Biden’s plans saying that the Republicans will respond to any attempt from the Democrats to interfere with the convention.

Priebus even threatened the Democrats that if they interfere with their convention, they should not be surprised if the Republicans interfere with theirs: “I think it’s pretty common among parties to play with each other’s conventions, and we’ll have a pretty big presence in Charlotte as well,” Priebus added that “the nice thing about going first is that whatever they do to us, we can do ten times over to them.” This was a very serious threat; it seems Priebus believes that if the Democrats attack their convention the Republicans should counter-attack harder.

When Priebus was asked that if his declarations meant that Romney would be in Charlotte for the Democratic Convention, he responded: “You never know where we are going to be.”

This political campaign has been very aggressive, with both campaign teams trying to interfere in each other’s activities.

Joe Biden has been also involved in recent controversies because of the declarations he made on a speech in Danville, Virginia to a crowd that included many African Americans, in which he said that Romney’s Wall Street plan was going to put the people “back in chains.”

An Obama campaign official told ABC News that ““as the full quote makes obvious, the Vice President was clearly using a metaphor to describe the devastating impact of deregulating Wall Street and the financial industry, as well as how Governor Romney’s policies would take us back to the same failed formula that led to the 2008 financial crisis – the same failed formula that benefited a few, but crashed our economy and hurt the middle class.”

The Obama campaign official defended Biden, saying that he did not intend to make racial comments for political purposes, as many analysts have criticized.

Image Courtesy of  Center for American Progress

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After the euphoria that followed Romney’s nomination of Paul Ryan as his running mate, two issues are now at the forefront of debate: Medicare and Romney’s tax record. Democrats are asserting that Romney has not paid taxes in a decade. The way the candidates manage these controversial issues could decide the election.

Democrats have made claims that Romney has been dishonest in how much he has really paid in taxes. On Aug. 2, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid declared on the Senate floor, “The word’s out that he hasn’t paid any taxes for 10 years. Let him prove that he has paid taxes, because he hasn’t.”

In his defense, Romney has said that he has paid at least 13% of his income in taxes each year during the last decade. But Romney has only made public his 2010 tax return and has stated his 2011 tax return will be released when they are ready. Romney said in a recent press conference, “I did go back and look at my taxes and over the past 10 years I never paid less than 13 percent. I think the most recent year is 13.6 or something like that.”

Obama’s campaign has been taking advantage of the fact that Romney’s tax return records are not public and recently offered him a deal in which they promise to stop attacking him for this matter if he releases five years of tax return records. The offer came in a letter made by Jim Messina, campaign manager for Obama for America, after Romney released his statements.

He stated, “Governor Romney apparently fears that the more he offers, the more our campaign will demand that he provide,” and added, “So I am prepared to provide assurances on just that point: if the Governor will release five years of returns, I commit in turn that we will not criticize him for not releasing more–neither in ads nor in other public communications or commentary for the rest of the campaign.”

Romney’s campaign manager, Matt Rhoades, responded to Messina’s offer, stating “It is clear that President Obama wants nothing more than to talk about Governor Romney’s tax returns instead of the issues that matter to voters, like putting Americans back to work, fixing the economy and reining in spending.”

Another issue that has become controversial in this campaign is the future of Medicare. Romney, in a recent political rally, used a whiteboard to explain the difference between Mr Obama’s plans for Medicare and his own. He explained that Obama’s plans would lead to bankruptcy and that his plan’s would give solvency to Medicare. Both sides have said they want a serious debate about Medicare, an issue that has not been of similar importance in recent political campaigns.

Jim Messina immediately responded to Romney after he used the whiteboard through Twitter, “Next time Romney uses a whiteboard to explain his Medicare plan, he should probably use this one.” In his whiteboard picture Messina explains that Obama would not make cuts on Medicare benefits. On the contrary, he adds that Romney would give the insurance companies $150 billion.

Image Courtesy of  Matthew Reichbach (Flickr: Mitt Romney Steve Pearce event 057) [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

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New York, U.S.A. — The Nobel Watch Company, a manufacturer and importer of high quality Swiss watches, released an attractively designed watch that supports the election of Governor Mitt Romney and Congressman Paul Ryan. The company’s Board of Directors strongly supports Governor Romney and has resolved to aid his election by producing this quality election timepiece.

“As a business owner, I have firsthand experience on how the downward economy is affecting people all across America,” says Iszy Genuth, President and Founder of Nobel Watches. “The Nobel Team has decided to produce a special watch for Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, since America needs a comeback team that will make us strong again.”

Nobel Watches has partnered with the Veteran’s Watchmaker’s Initiative to produce the timepiece. The Initiative teaches the important skill of watch making to disabled veterans so that they can develop a respectable profession. “What greater way to support our country than by having all the watches assembled in the USA by disabled war veterans?” said Mr. Genuth.

In addition to creating valuable jobs in the US market, Nobel Watches will be donating $4 of each watch sold to the Republican National Committee as another way to show their support for the Republican ticket. Nobel is also donating a $1 to the Veteran Watchmaker’s Initiative for each watch sold. The watch is quickly becoming a collector’s item, and people who buy it can display it proudly, knowing they are helping to contribute to a more robust economy and a better future for our country.

A proven name in luxury Swiss watches, Nobel’s watches are not only backed by their unique styling and affordable prices, they’re also supported by years of combined experience.

“Only the Nobel name is instantly associated with man’s greatest achievements, and with the release of our new timepiece we hope to help America achieve its potential and become great once again.”

Image Courtesy of  tomanthonydotcom

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Washington, U.S.A. — Generation Opportunity, one of the largest grassroots organizations connecting with young Americans through advanced social media outreach and traditional, boots-on-the-ground organizing, released the non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) 18-29 unemployment rate data for June:

The youth unemployment rate for 18-29 year olds specifically (NSA) for June 2012 is 12.8 percent.

The declining labor participation rate has created an additional 1.735 million young adults that are not counted as “unemployed” by BLS because they are not in the labor force, meaning that those young people have given up looking for work due to the lack of jobs.

If the labor force participation rate were factored into the overall 18-29 youth unemployment calculation, the actual 18-29-unemployment rate would rise to 16.8 percent (NSA).

Generation Opportunity President Paul T. Conway, former Chief of Staff for the United States Department of Labor and the United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM), responded to the June 2012 jobs numbers:

“For young Americans, through no fault of their own, their story is one of few opportunities, delayed dreams, and stalled careers. Today’s unemployment numbers tell the story of millions of young Americans who are paying the price for the failed policies coming out of Washington that have inhibited economic opportunity and job creation.”

“Despite the challenges they face, this generation is not asking what their country can do for them. Instead, they stand ready to do more for their country, to continue their service beyond the contributions they have already made as brave defenders of freedom across the globe, as selfless rebuilders of disaster-torn communities here at home, and as confident advocates for greater opportunity for all Americans.”

“While leaders in Washington travel to communities to make campaign promises and seek to place blame for the results of their failed policies, young Americans are looking for more than rhetoric.”

“In 2012, their message to candidates is clear – we want to build our careers, get on with our lives, and fulfill our dreams. If the only solutions you offer mean less jobs and more debt for the country, the stakes are too high to risk our vote on a bad bet.”

Generation Opportunity has been encouraging its Facebook fans, as well as its thousands of grassroots supporters across the nation, to call the White House and demand that the policies of the last three and a half years, which have stifled job creation, be reversed in favor of policies that free up Americans to create jobs, to hire, and to restore the American tradition of access to opportunity for all.

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WASHINGTON and BERLIN – After over 20 years the USA (along with Somalia) is the only country in the world (193) where children human rights are NOT legally and internationally recognized through the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). All children who are on U.S. soil loose their basic human rights that they have in 193 other countries. Now is the time to change this silent violation of children’s human rights before the 2012 Presidential elections.

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” Obama, February 2008

The Little Peace Ambassador, Ariana-Leilani, 9 years old, was destined to promote peace and children’s human rights worldwide. She was born a dual German – USA citizen with two nationalities, cultures, races, religions, and three languages.

“We lose ourselves when we compromise the very ideals that we fight to defend. And we honor those ideals by upholding them not when it’s easy, but when it is hard.” Obama, Nobel Lecture,December 2009

Before 5 years she had traveled to ten countries and volunteered to help orphaned children she called “friends.” The Little Peace Ambassador, met President George W. Bush, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Queen Noor at the United Nations in NY, and was named after the “Ariana” museum at the United Nations – Palais de Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, where she once ran the halls at the World Health Assembly. Yet, for such an unusual start in life, since the age of 5, the Little Peace Ambassador has been trapped in Washington, DC, USA now fighting for her life.

As a direct result of no UNCRC, Ariana-Leilani has suffered silently for 4 years in the USA with untreated life-threatening Severe Chronic Neutropenia only minutes from The White House, in the most powerful and internationally involved foreign policy and human rights defender governments in the world.

In Germany she would have the basic human right to live. In the USA, she is denied life-saving medicine (nupogen), free since she is on the Severe Chronic Neutropenia International Registry (SCNIR); a full toxicology and expert medical care. A ”gopetition” to President Obama and Chancellor Merkel to “Save Ariana-Leilani” currently has signatures from 117 countries.

“All of us share this world for but a brief moment in time. The question is whether we spend that time focused on what pushes us apart or whether we commit ourselves to an effort, a sustained effort to find common ground, to focus on the future we seek for our children and to respect the dignity of all human beings.” Obama, speech, June 2009

Little Peace Ambassador, Ariana-Leilani, “Happy 9th Birthday.” May you live a long life and continue to educate and advocate for Children’s Human Rights in the USA and worldwide.

Links
Children’s Human Rights; www.Ariana-LeilaniFoundation.org
Petition: http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/save-ariana-leilani.html
Save Ariana-Leilani: www.Ariana-Leilani.org

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