By the time the US election ends on Tuesday November 6, 2012, the American people will surely feel battle weary. Elections can be long drawn out affairs but in America it seems that they are almost in constant election mode.

The lengthy campaign by Republicans to select their GOP candidate for 2012 dragged on and on. Televised debates, a  nationwide tour and ads trying to win support. Once Romney was elected there were seemingly endless fund raising ads. Even at such a late hour American voters are being accosted by election news and propaganda.

With early voting in place in some States many people have already voted. The monumental effort being thrown into the final stages of this election shows just how tight the race for the White House is in 2012. It would appear that there is still all to play for.

Hurricane Sandy altered the election landscape somewhat. Both Obama and Romney may have gained some political leverage on its back. A week after the event, as fuel shortages, power outtages and freezing cold weather bites many victims of Sandy will blame Obama. He is after all the President. For now at least Romney can concentrate on his election campaign.

Would the outcome of Sandy have been different with Romney in the White House? Not at all. The people could have been looking at a longer restoration period though. If he had abolished FEMA many would be fending for themselves entirely.

Age and experience has taught us that politicians are often not what they seem. Part of public speaking is playing a role. Presidential hopefuls will part with plenty of personal information without  revealing  who they really are. For many voters then gut instinct will play a part in who they choose to support. That is unless they have a vested interest in who is the next resident of the White House.

The only conclusion you can draw about Mitt Romney and his uber wealthy backers is that they want a stake in the White House for their own ends. Our gut instinct is that President Obama is a better option for America and the World than Mitt Romney. It will of course be up to Americans to decide for themselves and see through the spin and campaign words.

Which candidate talks the talk and can walk the walk is the all important question?

So Americans have their final Presidential debate to look forward to tonight. We wonder how many will actually tune in. If what is put out on the media it would seem that many Americans and plenty of people in foreign lands will tune in. For some it will be a taster, for others they will watch it glued to the TV. How much will really be achieved is also debatable.

There is always a lot of spin. There are always facts and figures, some accurate others more vague. Then there is who is behind each man. When in the first debate Romney appeared to out debate Obama we wondered who had been training him. After all failed GOP hopeful Newt Gingrich, more adept at debating, had said that he would help out.

This is of course is the point. Are these debates really showing the true candidate or not? They could simply be showing a well rehearsed speaker who has been coached to the hilt.

People need something to utilise to choose their new President but is this the way? For more than a year the USA  has been in election mode. The new Presidential hopeful has in some ways a better chance. After all he or she does not have to run the country whilst fighting an election. In the end though at times it all seems like a slanging match. A fight where the seconds out is about to be called.

Both sides have tried to name call the other. As the GOP faithful try to claim that Romney has been demonized by Democrats we wonder what planet they have just arrived here from. They have played everything form Birther Issues to Damning 47% of the population. Of course the 47% comments were not meant for general consumption. They however surely show the true nature of Romney and his followers. Hate and racism are rife.

In a debate Romney can and no doubt will say anything to come up trumps. In truth though will any of it be meaningful. If different words are spoke behind closed doors you have to wonder what actually is the truth.

All of sudden GOP campaign managers, Tagg Romney and Mitt's supporters want us to feel sorry for the guy. They want us to know that he is not how he has been painted. That from a group of people who have painted President Obama almost as the devil incarnate.

Soon this tiring political trek will end for Americans. Either Romney or Obama will reign supreme. Will either be able to easily cure America's ills? No.

The final debate is on foreign policy. President Obama must by now have had his fill of foreign affairs, wars and conflicts. Would Romney have tackled them in a better way? Probaly not. He may have done some things differently but in the end he would have followed America's path. Never forget that GOP President G W Bush took America into Iraq and Afghanistan. President Obama simply inherited an already unwinnable war.

Americans will have many concerns overseas but in the end it will be policy at home that will win or lose the election. Most voters when all is said and done look to their wallets. Can Romney a fully paid member of the Elite offer ordinary Americans a better future? You decide.

The two men, each hoping to be the next Vice President of America, locked words in battle yesterday. Veteran politician Joe Biden took part in a televised debate with Republican Vice Presidential hopeful Paul Ryan.

Experience and age does not always add strength of character and useful knowledge but in the case of Joe Biden it helped prove his political worth. Both sides claimed victory in the post debate "spin room". In politics anything can be "spun to suit". Barring an out and out disastrous performance by either man both campaign teams would be able to talk up their guy's performance.

We should of course always remember that it is a performance and not much more. In politics bluff and acting skills play a part. Hopefully each leader has truth or principles in a larger quantity though. In TV debates characteristics not essential for being a skilful politician come to the fore. After all does it really matter who is wearing what? Does it matter what the candidates wife looks and sounds like? Do we need to see the person's children? No in all cases. It is froth and not substance.

Who you think won in what is essentially a meaningless debate will depend on your political leanings. We all tend to see the faults in those we are not supporting more than in "our guy".

Having said that the televised debates area meaningless though we have to admit that in the US they are not. By the time spin doctors have spun their web of intrigue voters may be swayed toward a different candidate. In the US the politics of Presidential candidates seems less important than who the candidate is. Are there no American voters who tend to support either the Democratic Party or the Republican one?

In the recent debate between Obama and Romney the President was cautious. He allowed Romney at times to dominate the debate. He was courteous rather than feisty. Biden had either been advised, or personally decided to, act more aggressively. In doing so you run the risk of being just that, aggressive, rather than assertive.

Ryan appeared more calm and controlled. Perhaps the Romney and Ryan team had decided beforehand who would play the "good cop" and who the bad.

President Obama came to office at a time when World economies were crumbling. The former GOP President, GW Bush, had presided over a crumbling US economy and military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. In other words Obama inherited a mess. The question remains has he done enough to put things right? Would Romney have done better? He may have done somethings differently but would America have been in a better position if he had?

When you look at the candidates the GOP and the Democrats are much of a muchness.  What will be crucial for voters deciding who to vote for will be who is expected to pick up the tab involved in getting America up and running once more.

After the Republican Party's virtual dominance of media sources this year it is now the turn of the Democrats get out there and campaign in earnest.The Obama re-election campaign was also underway but it had not yet begun to bite.

In around two months time American voters will go to the polls to elect the man who will be their President for the next four years.

In late 2011 the Republicans began their search for a leader. A round of elections, TV questions, ad campaigns and more bombarded would be voters in America. Even when it was clear that Romney would be the GOP's choice for 2012 the excessive publicity and spin continued.

This peaked at the National Republic convention held last week in Florida. The Man who would be President, Mitt Romney, was officially named and so was his sidekick Paul Ryan, the man who would be Vice President. In truth of course the GOP has had to come together and stand with Romney even though for many of the Party faithful he is not their ideal choice. His Mormon faith has been a stumbling block for some but there are other issues. He seems adept at putting his foot in his mouth and sadly lacks charisma and sincerity. You can argue whether or not that matters but it will to voters.

President Obama has been in Office during a bad period of history. In the last two years he has faced opposition by Republicans in office simply because they have wanted to prevent him being an effective President. This shows the GOP have a lack of care for America and its people.

Obama may no longer be able to blame all his ills on his predecessor, George Bush, but inheriting a mess will not have helped his Presidency. By the time he should have been past blaming Bush the "Republican Veto" had been adopted.

There is no doubt that plenty of people are hurting in the US. That is true world wide. Many countries will have to face the fact that they are no longer a "world leader" All Empires have their day. The Roman Empire and Great Britain are prime examples of how time changes a country's power and presence on rhe World stage. New leading countries could come from the East or the Southern hemisphere.

Whoever wins the 2012 US election has their "work cut out for them".

President Obama is now on the campaign trail. Both sides continue to raise money which is then spent of attacking the opposition. What a waste of time, money, effort and talent. Obama needs to enthuse his followers to make sure that they bother to vote. The President's problem could be voter apathy. In light of the terrible state of the world and America can you blame them?

However that is what the GOP will be hoping for. The best advice is get out there and vote, as currently it is all you have to allow yourself some say over your country and how it is run.

Televised debates between Obama and Romney will soon be aired in the USA. Before that though there is the DNC. The Democratic National Convention will run from September 3-6, 2012, in Charlotte, North Carolina. It will include speeches by the President and his wife Michelle Obama. Bill Clinton is scheduled to deliver a speech also.

We wonder if George Clooney wil take a leaf out of Clint Eastwood's book and address a plank of wood representing Mitt Romney?

The Republican Convention has finally kicked off in the USA. Isaac, the gathering storm delayed the start of the convention. Isaac may yet still cause problems and increase in intensity but the convention cannot delay for too log. The US 2012 election has a timetable to follow albeit a rather lengthy one. The Republicans have been campaigning for half of President Obama's term in office. No wonder Americans look election weary. The hard core political pundits will be having a field day and those voters who border on extremists will be having a ball. As for the rest of Americans they must be heartily sick of election rhetoric.

Surprisingly in Tampa Florida Mitt Romney will be officially announced as the heir apparent for the GOP. All of this seems very strange to a Brit. He has been travelling the country and even undertaking visits to Israel and the UK when in fact then he was just still an "also running"

President Obama is concerned that the Romney campaign is raising huge amounts of money, now regularly outstripping the President's election campaign. That of course shows who has a vested interest in Romney being elected. It is not the ordinary man and woman on the street but rather the monied elite in the US and beyond.

The problem for Obama will be the amount of money available to spend on advertising. It is sad that in so many countries these days ads will win the day. Brainwashing people was something Russia was accused of many years ago. In reality the West does it every day in more subtle ways.

The election should be fought and won or lost on substance. There should be a manifesto of aims and the President should have the ability to fulfill promises. In the US Obama has had his hands virtually tied when it comes to implementing change. Perhaps those who will view election ads and allow themselves to be persuaded, or should that be brainwashed, should think outside of the box occasionally.

In the West we so often vote for who we consider the "lesser of the evils" No President or Prime Minister after all is going to please everyone. Most people are looking at what an election will do for them. Some may say vague statements hinting that they care about their country but in the end elections boil down to what you may gain and what you may lose. People should at least be honest.

In Florida there will be more money wasted on GOP pomp and fluff. Speeches from those who want to show that Romney is the man for America. As with all such conventions of course ALL will be specially selected to praise him

An Ideal, World class leader is hard to find. One that has the best interests of many, especially the vulnerable of society, in mind is worth electing. Now does that fit Romney or Obama? You decide.

The 2012 Presidential Campaign seems to have dragged on forever. What it must be like for US citizens heaven only knows. Of course if you are a 100% Democrat voter you may have bypassed the apparently everlasting election for the GOP presidential hopeful. At least now Americans know that it is a straight forward election between Republicans with Mitt Romney at the helm or incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama.

Each Party's campaign has been costly and full of propaganda. As always election hopefuls negatively portray the opposition, more than they explain what they will do should they be elected.

As The Romney Election Machine continues to secure huge funding President Obama is going to be outspent. Should that matter in an election? No. Will it matter in the US election? Yes. 

Money allows the candidates to run advertising campaigns which latch onto any flaws in the other side. Clever editing will be utilised meaning that in reality the ad campaigns are useless to would be voters. They will however play a part in deciding the winner. Voters will choose to believe slick ads rather than seeing them for what they are.

Today July 16, 2012, Mitt Romney has asked that the Obama camp back off. He claims they are making false allegations regarding his time at Bain Capital. As you sow so shall you reap though. The GOP candidates slated each other with unreliable truths. It was a sorry sight. Each in an attempt to secure the nomination verbally attacked the others. It is hardly surprising then that the proper opposition follows suit.

The Romney camp has attacked President Obama and intends to continue doing so until the November election. Politics is a dirty business. It is far from honourable.

This weekend Romney has called Obama's attacks "dishonest". He went on to say "What does it say about a president whose record is so poor that all he can do in this campaign is attack me?"  "I think when people have accused you of a crime, you have every reason to go after them pretty hard."

But they are both playing the blame game. Remember those words Mitt when Obama hits even harder.

President Obama's response today July 16, 2012, was that "No" he would not apologise. As Obama said if you want to run an election on your record in business expect that to be scrutinised.

In truth America deserves better than what is on offer in the 2012 Election. We in the UK deserved better than what was available for us in the 2010 election. Western democracy is floundering under a swathe of fat cats attempting to buy leadership for their own ends. Fact.

As the 2012 election predictably plunges into child like tit for tat nastiness huge amounts of money will be wasted. It must surely be time to re-think how western elections are played out.

In the meantime expect some ridiculous, far-fetched name calling to follow, in a anything goes attitude as Romney and Obama race for the White House.

Tags: Romney claims Obama dishonest, US 2012 election, US politics, Bain Capital

The US 2012 Presidential election has been a long drawn out affair. Looking across the Pond it seems to have been a lengthy campaign and that was just to decide which Republican would represent the GOP. All countries hold elections their own way. All have much wrong with them. These days most of us are looking at voting for the person we consider the lesser of the evils, being thoroughly disillusioned with the political scene.

May 30, 2012 Mitt Romney is officially the GOP candidate, having clinched Texas the deal is done. The GOP campaign, especially in its early days, must have damaged itself more than the Democratic opposition and incumbent President Obama.

Romney has been the GOP nomination in all but name for some weeks. This has meant that the Republican Party and Romney's team have finally begun to attack the opposition. Political debate will be what decides floating voters. Whilst many people may be die hard Democratic or Republican voters there are always plenty of unsure voters. Some of these may not decide who to vote for until the seventh hour. Some even go to the polls undecided.

Whoever wins the US 2012 election will have a job and a half in the coming four years. It could be that in line with European elections it is off with the old and on with the new. Europeans have tended to blame their incumbent leaders for financial and economic woes.

It is always hard for the people to decide what is rhetoric and propaganda and what has at least a semblance of truth. Campaign managers are good with words. It is part of what they are paid to do. This means that the same "truth" can be written many different ways. In the end too many people may choose not to vote classing all politicians as bad as each other.

However without using your vote how can you complain when legislation does not suit?

Mitt Romney is a wealthy man. Wealth does not have to mean though that he does not have the ordinary man, woman and child at heart. Philanthropic individuals have the well being of others at heart after all. In Mr Romney's case though that would not seem to be a fair assumption. Apart from his own wealth all you need to do is look at who is backing and funding his obscenely expensive election campaign. Corporations do not stump up vast sums of money for nothing. Remember he who pays the piper calls the tune.

US lengthy election campaigns cost money. As we have said before it is almost as if someone buys their way into the White House. That cannot be good politics. When it is third party business corporations it could be disastrous.

If there is one growth industry making big bucks in the US it is the election industry. Be it the campaign managers, the ad producers, the poster designers or whoever it appears that the funds required are limitless. Of course they are not.

Each candidate from both sides of the political spectrum is busily fund raising. Those in a privileged position, like mega wealthy Mitt Romney, are still taking financial support from the Super Pacs.

Political Party and election campaign funding is under scrutiny on both sides of the Pond. We the Public would be loathe to have to fork out more in taxes to ensure a fairer election system but the current one is in serious need of an overhaul. 

The UK has recently had cash for policy making brought to the public's attention by undercover reporters. If we were in any doubt before that funding needed to be reformed we are not now. In The US it continues to appear as if occupation of the White House will in part go to the highest bidder.

After all the candidate wit the most funds will probably achieve the best election campaign, advertising and support. An election is a bit like actors on a stage all trying to prove that they can play a realistic role. Only some will persuade you but remember in most cases it is still all an act. An act to win your vote.

USA Today's Onpolitics blog has some interesting facts and figures. However spin doctors come in all shapes and sizes so determining what is the truth is never easy. One thing is certain in the GOP race and that is that Rick Santorum appears loathe to endorse front runner Mitt Romney. His silence is, as they say, deafening.

The latest predictions have Mitt Romney on a dream ticket with Jeb Bush. For many Americans that would be a nightmare ticket. It is not hard to guess what sort of policies these two would concoct. Romney is financially supported by so many Corporations that it is safe to assume where his priorities would lie. Would Jeb Bush follow former Bush politicians and concentrate on oil?

None it seems would concentrate on the people and their current woes. Even President Obama has been carefully edited to look as if he too is an etch a sketch man who will betray his principles if he gets re-elected. Currently it seems that none are principled in the least. That is except for looking after themselves. 

The US has its own financial problems in spite of being a wealthy country. It has been overstretched for years in so many ways. It beggars belief that US citizens are happy with the obscene cost of their national and GOP election. However maybe they are not. Surely it is time to draw in the purse strings and act in a more prudent way. Leading by example should be the way that all politicians act.

 Good luck America, looks like you will need it.

Tags: US election, GOP nomination, President Obama, election funding, Jeb Bush

Now that it looks likely that Mitt Romney will lead the Republican Party into election battle against President Obama and the Democrat Party the in fighting is settling down. The GOP no longer need  to attack each other but instead need to get behind their probable representative.

This should mean that finally the opposing political parties can get down to business. They will begin attacking each others core beliefs, promises, track record and more.

Recently the media has been covering what has been called "The Buffett Rule" So what is the Buffett Rule? Well it works on quite a simple premise. That is that millionaire Americans should not pay a lower rate of tax than the middle class and lower paid workers. So simple it seems to this blogger that it should be obvious.

You can check your rate of tax easily on line at a link offered by the Obama / Biden 2012 Election campaign. The link however is designed to show you just what rate of tax you paid in comparison to multi millionaire Mitt Romney. The site carries a brief introduction to the Buffett Rule which says:

"Millionaire Warren Buffett and many wealthy Americans pay a lower tax rate than middle-class families do. That’s just not fair. Warren Buffett knows it and President Obama wants to fix it. The Buffett Rule would require everyone to pay their fair share—a key step to reduce the deficit and invest in what we need to grow and strengthen the economy. Mitt Romney opposes the Buffett Rule because he wants to protect tax loopholes and give millionaires like himself trillions of dollars in tax breaks paid for by either increasing the deficit or by cutting programs critical to the middle class and economic growth."

Well whilst the link and info may be part of the Democrat campaign it sounds sensible practice. The days when the 99% would roll over and play dead so that the 1% can prosper are well and truly over. We keep getting told we are in it together and need to accept austerity measures but yet the minority continue to utilise loopholes.

Western governments are trying in some degree or another to ensure that taxes are fair. That should go without saying. Expecting the lower paid to stump up a higher rate of tax is obscene in this day and age. The argument that wealthy men like Mitt Romney need the tax breaks to give them the incentive to create jobs and businesses is nuts and untrue.

If that were the case unemployment would be nil not staggeringly high and increasing all the time.

Tags: Warren Buffett, GOP, Democrats, President Obama, Buffett Rule, tax rate, tax loopholes, Mitt Romney, create jobs, US election

With the US election due in November 2012 Americans have been inundated with election hype. Most of this to date has been in the form of the GOP nomination race. It has been mindless electioneering and one Party the Republicans behaving as they were all sworn enemies. Yesterday Rick Santorum withdrew from the race which makes it highly likely that Mitt Romney will lead the GOP into the election. It is however not signed sealed and delivered yet.

President Obama has been campaigning during the same period but he is now on the election trail proper. The White House website offers updates to Mr Obama's campaign and here is one of the latest:

President Obama was in Florida today, April 10, 2012, to talk about our economy, and what he called the essence of America: the idea that everyone who works hard should be able to do well.  

America has always been a place where anybody who's willing to work and play by the rules can make it.  A place where prosperity doesn’t trickle down from the top, it grows from the bottom; it grows outward from the heart of a vibrant middle class.

Instead of giving more than a trillion dollars in tax breaks to the very wealthiest Americans—those who make more than $250,000 a year—we need to be investing in the things like education and research and health care. These are the same investments we’ve been making for generations because they lead to strong, broad based economic growth that helps everyone, as the President explained:

What drags our entire economy down is when the benefits of economic growth and productivity go only to the few, which is what’s been happening for over a decade now, and gap between those at the very, very top and everybody else keeps growing wider and wider and wider and wider.

 The fact is, the share of our national income going to the top 1 percent of earners is as high as it’s been since the 1920s. And those same people are paying taxes at one of the lowest rates in 50 years. To address this imbalance in our tax system, President Obama has proposed the Buffett Rule, based on the simple idea that people who make more than $1 million each year pay at least the same share of their income in taxes as middle-class families do. With the Buffett Rule in place, the President said:

 …it makes it affordable for us to be able to say for those people who make under $250,000 a year -- like 98 percent of American families do -- then your taxes don’t go up. And we can still make those investments in things like student loans and college and science and infrastructure and all the things that make this country great.  

Opinion: The UK is currently trying to address similar problems. It seems that across both sides of the pond those with plenty of money want to cut welfare and make people pay more, as long as they can remain the "fat cat" that gets the cream.

Tags: Buffett rule, President Obama, 2012 US election campaign, GOP, Republicans, US politics