Can someone explain to me in simple terms. USA elections

[ihatethecold]

What are the main differences between Obama and romney?
Is Obama like labour and Romney like very right conservative?

Why does Romney say he will get rid of the healthcare bill that Obama brought in.

Did it not work?
why wouldn't you want people without insurance to access healthcare ?
Thanks

The trouble is Ponders the televsion is too biased to question that. We are used to having biased newspapers but we have (relatively) unbiased television.

In the US television is more like our newspapers and have an editorial biased - eg Fox is pro-republican. Its a more powerful media than newspapers.

The only saving grace and counter to that is the rise of the internet, but that relies on people seeking alternative news sources; people who are by that very nature more likely to be liberal...

Ponders, it's really not fair to judge a whole party based on the statements of one person

Fair enough, nightlurker

I am waiting (without bated breath) for the Official Republican Party to distance itself from Ryan's speech

Ponders, also worth remembering that if the democrats are doing the same we are less likely to hear about it, as our media is overwhelmingly pro-Obama.

Some of the best analysis at the moment is here
www.economist.com/world/us-elections-2012
as the Economist by instinct leans to a pro business right - but is also VERY anti protectionism and excessive inequality as it tends to jump up and bite the rich later ....

I haven't paid as much attention this time around as I did in the last election (largely because of despair that the race to the bottom is given so much validity), but in the last election Nat Silver at 538 provided some much needed intellectual rigour in the analysis. I don't know how the move to the NYT has affected his coverage, but his stats and commentary certainly used to be worth checking out.

Ponders, also worth remembering that if the democrats are doing the same we are less likely to hear about it, as our media is overwhelmingly pro-Obama

um - not sure they could be doing the same at this point, Hmm

by "our media" do you mean eg the Telegraph??? the Times??? "overwhelmingly pro-Obama"? really?

"The Democrats are often tagged as 'socialist' but they make even New Labour look like a bunch of hard left radicals."

Think the Democrats make even the Tory party look like hard left radicals. I mean really, the 'right' to be insured ... as that's all the 'Obamacare' really amounts to, is that people cannot be refused medical insurance...

I mean ALL of our media Ponders. From the BBC to the Times and Torygraph. Republican ideas are, for the most part, very very alien concepts to most Europeans, its not just the British - the Tea Party really hasn't helped matters. It scares us, so the press and politicians automatically look to what we feel closer to. Its everything from gun laws, abortion, religion, social security, legislation and involvement of government to foreign policy and diplomacy.

Definitely a pro-Obama leaning across the whole of europe.

I still doubt that, Hmm. not pro-Obama as such - just anti completely-loony-right-wing (cf Clint Eastwood )

Of the mainstream UK media, the BBC is probably most left-of-centre

Of the rest, they lean to the right (apart from the Guardian & Mirror) but even so, the Republicans clearly scare them rigid on "gun laws, abortion, religion, social security, legislation and involvement of government to foreign policy and diplomacy"

God help the rest of the world if Romney gets in

And thats not anti-romney? pro-obama?

Ponders
My Dad (lives in NY) sends me links to what he thinks are left of centre articles - they are BEYOND the Daily Mail.

NONE of the UK press is much to the right of Obama let alone as far right as much of the GOP including Romney

Romney Marsh and Ryan are bigger liars than our idiotic right. F'rinstance Romney mentioned in his speech about creating jobs for Americans, conveniently forgetting that Bain Capital, the venture capital company he was paid by until about three years ago, arranged leveraged buyouts of American manufacturing companies, bled them till they were dry then exported the jobs to the Far East, keeping the brand alive but upping profit margin.

Ryan mentioned in his speech a car factory closed by O'Bama. It actually shut when the shaved monkey Bush was president.

The Republicans make our Toryscum look like socialists. Which is probably why people like IBS and Grayling got ministerial posts. For added crazy.

Really enjoying this thread - so interesting.

I'd like to think Europe preferred Obama - the tea party nutters are plain scary!
Just horrid they are allowed out and about smiling through their hateful ideas.

Good o Obama he ha smade a small move forward on health care

I think that it has not helped the Tea Party one bit that Sarah Palin was its poster girl. Seems to me that Ryan is just her slightly more sane replacement* and that he definitely makes up Romneys shortfallings as far as the Republican base is concerned.

*it being a question of degrees, I can't actually believe a word that he utters

It is incredibly difficult in this country, I think, to understand the mindset of such extreme opposition to state-provided healthcare, even among the more left-wing voters in the US. I really, really don't get it, but there it is.

So much good info on this thread - I'm throwing in a few more questions:

• What is the 'you didn't build that' thing all about? I've seen lots of references to it in the last few days as an Obama gaffe the Republicans are exploiting.

• I have finally worked out, I think, what 'GOP' means as a commonly-used way of referring to the Republicans. God's Own Party? Am I right?

Zamantha a very small move though .... and he took steps backwards on many other things
he's not been great sadly - but the alternatives are scary - for European peace if nothing else

officially it means Grand Old Party

but you're probably right, DisabilEightiesChick

HmmThinking I truly love your comments (also on the tip thread), they have so much depth and so much substance backed up by accuracy...may I ask where you're from?
I am a Wolverine myself

Romney ... Claims he graduated from Harvard but actuall grauated from a Mormon university and only spent a year out taking some classes at Harvard

Despite that when he was young enough to take part in the Vietnam war being a rich young white right winger he did what any rich young healthy white right winger would do and ran off to super socialist France in 1966 to avoid the draft and only returned to the US after he collided his car with another car killing his passenger. daddy had him rushed back to the US where he was again healthy young and of course available for the draft so he did what any good young healthy man eligeable for the draft does and gets married within weeks of his return, despite his relationship with his now to to be wife being non existant whilst in France. Being married of course meant he could now avoid the draft again for the following year or two. And yet he now claims that despite hs rush to go to serve his country in the war it was suspire for him to know that when his daddy was running to be president in 1968 (you know the year he was hiding in france= his father campaigned against the war)

Most likely to want to start a war with Iran or to only realise after the fact that Israel started a war with Iran but due to his faith will blindy support them no matter what as his religion is dispensationalist.

Wants to return US to private healthcare only through private healthcare companies because well private insurance always works and never has get out clauses do they.

Used to be pro abortion then anti then agin he was pro then when he had a chance to be president he became anti again cause lets face it his party have passed over 1000 state laws that are against a woman's right to her control her body in the last year alone, including that conception starts not from fertiliation but at your last period and drinking can be seen as child endangerment of the foetus even during those two weeks of course before yo were knocked up. Draconian did you say

Promises to sign off on tax cuts that will go the folks who earn over 5 million a year as enough is just never enough especially if like him you have so many houses.

Refuses to realease his own tax returns for the last decade as is the custom in the US to allow people to see just how much you fiddled or not to judge your character

And insulted the London Olympics at his first opportunity despite his own olympics being bankrolled by his church and only the little winter games that you can have in a swiss village anyway.

Daddy made millions for the car industry but when the car industry faltered he was against giving any goverment backed loans which would have led to 100s of thousand out of work within months if the loans did not happen.

Obama ...Actually did graduate from Harvard University Law school magna Cum laude in other words top few percent of his class and was voted editor of the student law magazine and bright enough to be a professor of law at another University with in 5 years of graduation. During that time he had also set up a voter registration drive with 10 staff and enrolled over 400,000 disenfranchised electorate to the polls in the subsequent election.

Actaully did what Bush failed to do for 12 years which was to quietly go about eh job of getting Usama Bin laden his just desserts

Actually for the fist time in history has introduced a healthcare system that means you will no longer be turned away from treatment in the USA if you are one of the third of the population that cannot afford to pay the private health companies insurance and therefore the old the infirm unemployed etc will all be covered at last as any first world country should be and without the scheme costing anyone to loose their right to still pay through the nose if they want to.

Despite being lumbered by BUSH signing off to create the largest deficit in world history has steered the US economy out of recession and whilst EU jobless as soared the US the actual us jobless figures are some of the best of the world inspite of the largest debtor. Refuses to offer tax cuts to individuals who earn over 5 million a year so the silly republicans keep blocking the budget votes.

Released his tax returns birth certificate medical so you can see he is a stand up guy.

Stood with the Arab world and the Brits and French to aid the arab spring and the removal of the tyrannts Muburak and Gadaffi without risking any lives or inflamation of arab sensitivities

Pushed the private enterprises to the be the solution to space travel so that now there are 3 independant companies that are capable of flying craft to the international space station at dramitcally reduced cost to the taxpayer.

Signed of the loans necessary to save the car industry in the US keeping it a strong manufacturer and seeing all loans repaid including interest and profit for the governement despite right wing opposition.

I'm British but have studied American History and Politics as part of my degree. Got a couple of close friends who are either American or emigrated there too so thats helped. I just find the subtule and not so subtule differences in culture fascinating. I'm sure it bores the tits off most other people, but not me. I would love to the opportunity to live in the States at some point in my life, but thats a tough one with visas etc.

As for the didn't build that statement it was a Very valid point that if you are a Us manufacturer you have benefitted frm state intervention for decades through use of the road network airports and ports railways etc and general infrastructure which is all paid for from the federal government and not from the tiny corporatin tax rates.

eg. All sea ports canals etc in the USA are designed and constructed by the 30,000 plus employees of the US Army corp of engineers as a service to the country so a new sea port will have the water way built by the government even if the port is owned by a private company at the end of the day. transport cost therefore do no reflect these cost, A bit like eurotunnel being gifted by the French British armies to eurostar if you like.

QED You didn't build that