Written by 2008 NEWSWEEK campaign blogger Andrew " Stumper " Romano, Absurdly Premature 2012 Watch is a weekly column that indulges our collective presidential-election fixation … even though the next presidential election is still (ahem) nearly three years away.
in elected office or a candidate, the rules are murky. Interestingly, this latest news provides more material for Andrew Romano's speculation that she isn't particularly interested in helping her fellow GOPers out. She's in it for herself
Once upon a time, way back in 2008, Barack Obama told the American public a lovely little story. Elect him president, he said, and health-care negotiations would "all be televised on C-Span." You know, for transparency's sake. So it was only natural that when Congress returned from Christmas break earlier this month and began to lay the groundwork for merging the House and Senate health-care bills, Jon Stewart plopped down in his Daily Show anchor's chair with a remote control in one hand, a giant bag of popcorn in the other, and a pair of 3-D glasses perched atop his schnoz. "Oh yeah!" Stewart shouted. "We're going to do it on motherf--king C-Span."
no credit; and no credit, no progress.Obama is no Gipper. He would be the first to tell you that. But there is hope. The last president who averaged a 57 percent job-approval rating for his first year? Ronald Reagan.With Andrew Romano
members on board with the party platform. For what it's worth, I think that is probably a mistake on their part. As Andrew Romano explains , Martha Coakley was a bad candidate who ran a bad campaign. Since the majority of Massachusetts voters approve
Alex Brandon / AP Nine days ago, on Jan. 10, The Boston Globe carried a rather heartening headline for Democrats: “Senate Poll: Coakley Up 15 Points.” Now, on the morning of the Massachusetts special election pitting State Sen. Scott Brown (R) against Bay State Attorney General Martha Coakley (D), the tables have not so much turned as spun wildly out of control, crashed through the windows, burst into flames and exploded, leaving nothing behind but a smoldering heap of post-apocalyptic rubble.
Who will win the special election on Tuesday to fill Teddy Kennedy's old Massachusetts Senate seat?
Written by 2008 NEWSWEEK campaign blogger Andrew ( Stumper ) Romano, Absurdly Premature 2012 Watch is a weekly column that indulges our collective presidential-election fixation ... even though the next presidential election is still, ahem, three years away.
spaceryesdefault<style type="text/css"> #container { width: 638px; padding:0; margin:0; } #container h2 { font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; color: #000; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom:5px; } #container h3 { font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; color: #006b95; font-weight: bold; margin:0; padding-bottom:10px; } #container h4 { font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; color: #006b95; font-weight: normal; margin:0; } #container p { font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 11px; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; color: #333; padding-bottom: 10px; } #content2 { width:638px; float:left; margin-bottom:10px; border-bottom: 1px solid #999; } .date { font-size: 12px; color: #006b95; font-weight: bold; } .score { font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; color: #000; } img { float: left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; } #pres { float: left; width:630px; margin-right:10px; } .credits { font-size: 9px; font-weight: normal; color: #999; text-transform: capitalize; line-height: 12px; } </style> <div id="container"> <div id="content2"> <h2> BAY OF PIGS <span class="date">APRIL 15,1961</span></h2> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/43/kennedy_graphic.jpg" width="624" height="17"/><br/> <div id="pres"> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/39/kennedy.jpg" width="101" height="100" /> <h3>KENNEDY</h3> <p>Initially JFK declined to answer questions. Only when a reporter pushed did he admit he was "the responsible officer of government."</p> <h4>SORRY SCORE: <span class="score">6/10</span></h4> </div> </div> <div id="content2"> <h2> WATERGATE <span class="date">AUG. 8, 1974</span></h2> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/19/nixon_graphic.jpg" width="624" height="127"/><br/> <div id="pres"> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/8/nixon.jpg" width="101" height="100" /> <h3>NIXON</h3> <p>With David Frost, Nixon came his closest to apologizing. "I let the American people down," he said. "I'll ... carry the burden the rest of my life."</p> <h4>SORRY SCORE: <span class="score">3/10</span></h4> </div> </div> <div id="content2"> <h2> DESERT ONE <span class="date">APRIL 24, 1980</span></h2> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/48/carter_graphic.jpg" width="624" height="17"/><br/> <div id="pres"> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/92/carter.jpg" width="101" height="100" /> <h3>CARTER</h3> <p>When his attempt to rescue the hostages in Tehran failed, Carter was quick to take the blame. "The responsibility is fully my own," he said.</p> <h4>SORRY SCORE: <span class="score">10/10</span></h4> </div> </div> <div id="content2"> <h2> IRAN-CONTRA <span class="date">NOV. 3, 1986</span></h2> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/34/reagan_graphic.jpg" width="624" height="17"/><br/> <div id="pres"> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/47/reagan.jpg" width="101" height="100" /> <h3>REAGAN</h3> <p>After avoiding the subject for months, the Gipper eventually said he was "the one who must answer to the American people for this behavior."</p> <h4>SORRY SCORE: <span class="score">7/10</span></h4> </div> </div> <div id="content2"> <h2> LEWINSKY SCANDAL <span class="date">JAN. 17, 1998</span></h2> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/58/clinton_graphic.jpg" width="624" height="53"/><br/> <div id="pres"> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/16/clinton.jpg" width="101" height="100" /> <h3>CLINTON</h3> <p>Caught in a web of lies, Clinton was forced to own up to the affair, calling it "a personal failure ... for which I am solely and completely responsible."</p> <h4>SORRY SCORE: <span class="score">4/10</span></h4> </div> </div> <div id="content2"> <h2> HURRICANE KATRINA <span class="date">AUG. 29, 2005</span></h2> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/47/bush_graphic.jpg" width="624" height="17"/><br/> <div id="pres"> <img src="http://ndn2.newsweek.com/media/37/bush.jpg" width="101" height="100" /> <h3>BUSH</h3> <p>"To the extent that the federal government didn't fully do its job right," Bush said, "I take responsibility"—though he still insists the response wasn’t slow.</p> <h4>SORRY SCORE: <span class="score">3/10</span></h4> </div> </div> <div id="content2" style="border-bottom:none;"> <span class="credits">From top: Mark Wilson—Getty Images, William J. Smith—AP, julien muguet—maxppp-zuma, nbc—AP, haraz n. ghanbari—AP, gene forte—afp-Getty images, jeff chiu—AP, cynthia johnson—liason-Getty images, dave smith—microsoft-AP, susan walsh—AP, paul sakuma-AP, photograph by khue bui</span></div> </div>false980falsefalsefalsefalsetruefalsefalsefalsefalsefalse1/11/2010 10:51:54 AM201010111105154AMMondayJanJanuary101/11/2010 3:51:54 PM1/11/2010 3:51:54 PM20101011135154PMMondayJanJanuary151/11/2010 3:51:54 PM6339882191400000006339880391400000001/11/2010 10:51:54 AM201010111105154AMMondayJanJanuary101/11/2010 3:51:54 PM1/11/2010 3:51:54 PM20101011135154PMMondayJanJanuary151/11/2010 3:51:54 PM633988219140000000633988039140000000