Republican early vote gains in Ohio are holding

In 2008, Republicans trailed Democrats by a 20-point margin on absentee ballot applications, which included voting by mail and in-person early voting. Three weeks ago, we updated you on the huge gains that Ohio Republicans have made in the early voting game. We told you that based on mail-in applications so far in 2012, that we had narrowed the gap down to 6.5 points, a huge improvement.

A liberal commenter, known for being wrong a lot, retorted that once people started voting early in person, that that gap was going to open back up to 2008 levels. His rationale was that Republicans had the edge in early voting by mail, where as Democrats held the edge in voting in person.

That theory is proven wrong in two ways. First, if you look at Cuyahoga County, the largest in the state, you will see that fully 75% of the early vote in 2008 was by mail. Since the early vote deficit there was a staggering 37 points in 2008, the notion that Republicans win the mail-in vote is preposterous, and apparently was just another lie pulled out of the air in a lame attempt to form some sort of a comeback to the bad news we reported.

Obama Losing Ground in Every Major Demographic

Obama's victory in 2008 was by a 7% margin, what many Democrats want you to believe was a landslide victory.  Considering some major polls had him up double-digits in the days leading up to the election, that's not exactly a "landslide," but a decisive victory, nonetheless.  And Barack Obama did it with support from nearly every major demographic group.

Unfortunately for the President, that support has eroded... dramatically.  According to Gallup, the President has lost significant ground in nearly every major demographic group from where he was in 2008:

Real Leadership On China Will Level The Playing Field

Guest Post by U.S. Congressman Pat Tiberi

Why are 23 million Americans unemployed, underemployed, or so discouraged that they have given up looking for work? Why are 47 million Americans – including 1.7 million Ohioans – on food stamps? Why have median household incomes dropped more than $4,500 since President Obama took office?

The American economy is complex and, no doubt, a variety of factors are in play. But we should not discount the role of China’s unfair trade practices and President Obama’s inability to address these barriers.

Since President Obama took office, as Mitt Romney has rightly been pointing out, the United States has lost over half a million manufacturing jobs, while China has seen a 25 percent increase in its own manufacturing. Indeed, in 2011, China became “the world’s top manufacturing country,” surpassing the United States, which had been world’s largest producer of goods for more than a century.

How did this happen?

Another Issue 2 FAIL

After stealing money from their members, big labor interests were expected to make waves this year asking voters to give up their voice and pass Issue 2 at the ballot this November.  So, when I kept seeing 'No' on Issue 2 television ads, I was left wondering, when is big labor going to release their television campaign?

And then I got this email from We Are Ohio--the union front group that spent enough money to buy a private island defeating Issue 2 last year--touting their new radio ads:

That can't be all.  With all the money they steal... err... assess from their members, unions have to be able to get on television.  So I looked for their YouTube page, only to find this huge FAIL:

Vice President Joey Giggles thinks our serious issues are funny

Last night's debate between Paul Ryan and Joe Biden didn't produce a clear winner. We knew that Biden was going to come out and be very aggressive. He brought the emotion, while Ryan brought reasoned arguments. In the end, I don't think anyone changed their votes.

But anybody watching had to be wondering why our Vice President behaved like such a jackass. He constantly interrupted, made outrageous faces and laughed while Ryan spoke. He was obnoxious and rude. That left a bad taste in the mouths of independent and undecided voters. One lady in CNN's focus group said he acted like "a buffoon".

Here's a quick video the RNC put together showing Biden laughing hysterically over such hilarious issues as Iran possessing a nuclear weapon.



No. We aren't laughing.

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Obama's national campaign spokesman abruptly ends tough Ohio radio interview

Ben LaBolt, national spokesman for the Obama campaign, called in to Cleveland's WTAM radio today for an interview with Bob Frantz. Hilarity quickly ensues as LaBolt keeps trying to push the Romney $5 trillion tax cut talking point, that even Stef Cutter has admitted is a lie. Stick around until the end of the interview after LaBolt angrily hangs up. The traffic guy's reaction is priceless.



These guys can't take a tough interview with real questions.

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Ed FitzGerald: Just another corrupt Cuyahoga County politician

Those of us who live in Northeast Ohio know the name Jimmy DiMora all too well. Other Ohioans may not, so what follows is a very compressed version of the last four years.

Jimmy DiMora on his way to jail - Plain Dealer Photo

Cuyahoga County, home to Cleveland, had been the subject of rumors of corruption for years. Roughly 4 years ago, it was revealed that the FBI had begun an investigation. The highest level culprit was Commissioner Jimmy DiMora, but literally dozens of county office holders and staff were arrested, including the County Auditor and a sitting judge. DiMora was recently sentenced to 28 years in prison for 33 corruption-related charges.

The stench of corruption, kickbacks and payoffs in Cuyahoga County was so bad, that the voters didn't just kick people out of office, they voted to completely overhaul the entire structure of county government. No longer are there three commissioners, but a county council and a county executive.

Obama's Latest Ad Shows His Desperation

After an abysmal debate showing by President Obama, the polls have Romney closing in swing states throughout the nation--and Gallup today has Romney +2% over Obama in their latest national survey.  Voters throughout the nation agreed that Romney presented a strong case for his election, outlining his agenda and providing far more details than Obama.

Obama's Regulatory Mess

President Obama is visiting Columbus today to boost his campaign and will no doubt celebrate Friday’s news that the unemployment rate has dropped below 8%. 

Ohio’s message to President Obama; welcome to the club.

How much better would the national unemployment rate be if the President followed Ohio’s model of actually encouraging business growth?

 

According to the NFIB the Obama Administration has over 4,000 regulations in the pipeline just waiting to be enacted upon small business owners.  This avalanche of over- regulation could cost our economy over $500 billion and stifle small businesses that are already struggling to stay afloat.

Nobody is disputing the fact that reasonable government regulation of business is warranted and necessary, it clearly is.  However, enacting duplicate and needless regulations requires small business owners to shift resources from actually growing their business and hiring new employees to responding to mountains of paperwork.

Best. Parody. Ever. Obama phone lady.

This is one of the funniest song parodies I've ever heard. Just had to share.



And here's another good one!



VOTE!! Which is the funnier Obama phone lady song?





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Debate #1: Romney buries President Empty Chair McTeleprompter

Last night, my friends, was a classic butt-kicking.

Mitt Romney just dominated the debate in Denver. He appeared every bit competent and presidential. He was assertive but respectful to the President. He looked him in the eye both when he was speaking and when Obama was speaking to him. To the low-information voters out there who have just started to pay attention and tuned in to see if this Romney fellow has what it takes to be President, Mitt delivered. Big time.

Obama, on the other hand, was his usual bumbling stumbling self without his teleprompter. He often strayed all over the place getting in his varied memorized talking points. He was on the defensive most of the night and frequently reverted to the old excuse of blaming his predecessor.

He could rarely bring himself to look Romney in the eye. My mother-in-law texted me, "Why is Obama looking down so much?". Indeed, the President appeared to be very much wishing he was somewhere else.

Even his usual cheerleaders conceded that he got stomped. Check out the glorious meltdown by Chris Matthews who exclaimed, "What was Romney doing? He was WINNING!"

Does Obamacare Cover Butt-Kickings?

Ouch.  I don't know how there can still be undecideds out there, but after debate #1, I think there are less of you.

Cross-Posted: TobyToons.com (Conservative Political Cartoons)

Don't Worry Taxpayers, You Got This!

Follow @Jen_Engel

Thank you for another burden on the taxpayers, President Obama. Lockheed Martin, one of the top 5 defense contractors, released that it would not be issuing layoff notices this year. "Citing guidance from the White House released Sept. 28 that the government would shoulder the cost of potential lawsuits if broad factory closing are required, the company has decided not to issue notices that it previously said would be required under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, Lockheed Martin spokeswoman Jennifer Allen wrote in an email."

Well, isn't that nice. You, me and every other taxpaying citizen in the United States will be paying for the White House's request that Lockheed Martin hold off on sending out layoff notices. It is not a mere coincidence that the White House is trying to delay these WARN notices until after the November election. 

Biden accidentally lets the truth slip

It’s been said that a politician commits a gaffe when he accidentally tells the truth. In a moment of uncharacteristic honesty, Job Biden did just that today in North Carolina. Here he is, explaining that the middle class has been “buried the last four years.”

Will Michelle Obama Eat Her Peas?

The First Lady and her husband are fond of telling everyone, from school children to adults, to "eat their peas". But, will she do the same during her campaign appearance on Tuesday in Cincinnati, when it comes to tough issues that voters want answers to? 

Interestingly enough, I overheard my neighbor speaking to an OFA-Ohio canvasser last night. My neighbor is a registered democrat. So, I can see why the canvasser was targeting their household. What the canvasser didn't expect was to be berated about the failed policies of his candidate. At the end of the exchange, my neighbor said "I'm worried about the spiritual and moral compass of this country. And, your guy isn't the answer.". The poor OFA-Ohio canvasser walked away completely dumbfounded.

Absentee ballot data not looking good for Democrats

One of the keys to Barack Obama's victory in Ohio in 2008 was the early voting game. Ohio Democrats tapped into the enthusiasm advantage they had and got their voters to vote early in overwhelming numbers. On election day itself, John McCain actually won. But Obama had such a large lead with votes already banked, that he won Ohio and put the nail in McCain's coffin.

We have analyzed some polls this year that used ridiculous samples with Democrats outnumbering Republicans by 8 points or more. For example, a recent NBC/WSJ/Marist poll used a Dem +10 sample, and the latest Ohio poll used a preposterous sample with 48% Democrats.

We have argued that these polls are not accurate because in 2008, which was the height of the blue Obama wave, Democrats outnumbered Republicans by 8 points on election day. One of our trolls countered that since every single voter got an absentee ballot application in the mail this year, that Democrat turnout would further increase.

Democrat Ohio Sheriff thinks he is above the law

The Dispatch published an article Wednesday about the Franklin County Sheriff’s recent decision to park his car in a handicapped-only parking space. Sheriff Zachary Scott was campaigning at the Franklin County Fair’s Junior Baking Auction, and he must have been in a hurry to bid on a batch of fresh-baked cupcakes because he left his car in a clearly marked handicapped-only spot.

Sheriff Scott says he made an “honest mistake.” He complains that the pavement wasn’t marked, and I guess the bright blue reflective signs posted at eye level all along the row must have escaped his attention as well.

Media picks up on 3BP story about Bellefontaine Mayor

Earlier this week, some additional media outlets followed up on our story about Bellefontaine mayor Adam Brannon, who has decided to only work a part time job and depend on government assistance to feed his children.

Here is an interview I did with Maggie Thurber who was guest hosting on WSPD in Toledo.

Presidential Embarrassment

President Obama has always had a deferential relationship with China, but comments he made in the past few days are particularly disconcerting. According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, President Obama explained that he has been unwilling to tackle China’s blatant currency manipulation and other foreign trade violations for fear of “embarrassing China.” That, he said, would lead to an “all-out trade war.”

Obama bows to Hu Jintao

More of Obama's entitlement nation in Ohio

Why should you vote for Barack Obama? Because he gives free phones.



"Keep Obama in President, you know?" I'm betting she's a Plunderbund reader.