Official Romney for President Exploratory Committee Thread

[Viking]

Robin´s Bolivarian Bohemian Revolution cannot be contained!

Stitches, amigo. In stitches.

[Uncle Ted]

Opinion: Romney is unfit to be president because he uses PowerPoint...

Some people believe that Mitt Romney is unfit to be president because the health reform he instituted as Massachusetts governor included an individual mandate.

I believe Romney is unfit to be president because he used a PowerPoint presentation to defend it.

America does not need a PowerPoint president.

Let me make that stronger: A PowerPoint president would be bad for America.

My anti-PowerPoint stance is nonpartisan and non-Luddite. I wrote my first screed against the omnipresent program back in 2005, when Romney was still a moderate Republican and PowerPoint had been implicated as a potential contributor to the 2003 space shuttle disaster. On the techno-front, I am from the era of overhead projectors and audio-visual aids. I love a meaty Excel spreadsheet.

It’s just that I loathe PowerPoint. Enduring a PowerPoint presentation is rarely informative and never efficient. The inevitable cutesy graphics — why think through a tough problem when you can spend your time surfing for clip art or experimenting with fonts? — add a bullet point of insult to the injury of having to sit though it.

[...]

Romney should know better and use Keynote.

[byu71]

I have this feeling the more the press beats up on Romney, the better it will be for him in the long run. I think most Americans are sick and tired of the "institutions" and especially the talking and writing heads.

I will bet Mathews, Maddow, O'Donell, Hannity, Beck and even Rushbo do not have the rating they once had. We know the network folks have miserable ratings and CNN's aren't so hot.

[myboynoah]

First big confrontation with Huntsman this week in Utah.

Romney, Huntsman try to tap wealth of Mormon community

Privately, several Republicans said many devout Mormons are displeased with comments Huntsman recently made distancing himself from the Mormon Church, as well as with his support of civil unions for same-sex couples and his loosening of Utah’s liquor laws at the end of his gubernatorial term.

It wouldn’t be the first time a Huntsman has been on the outs with some in the state. In the 1970s, Jon Huntsman Sr. and his brother, Blaine, were denied membership in the Alta Club, a members-only gathering place for Salt Lake City’s elite. Jon is said to have held a grudge and never applied again. The club reportedly made overtures by inviting his sons to join, but they declined.

Yet when Jon Huntsman Jr. returns to Utah this week, it will be at the Alta Club, where he will stage his big breakfast, welcoming plaudits — and checks — from the state’s establishment.

I can't wait for the readout from '71.



". . . and Raquel Welch says 'Those aren't buoys'."

[Babs]

Fist big confrontation with Huntsman this week in Utah.

Wow. Guess we know who the Post supports.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/nation...ydH_story.html

[falafel]

Romney refused to sign the anti-abortion pledge () drafted by the Susan B. Anthony group, but published his own pro-life declaration laying out his abortion stance point by point.

The opening line: "I am pro-life and believe that abortion should be limited to only instances of rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother."

That sounds familiar.

[byu71]

Romney refused to sign the anti-abortion pledge () drafted by the Susan B. Anthony group,

Good for him. I am not a fan of these folks running around locking in candidates to certain agenda's.

I guess some guy who made who got all the repub senators to sign a no tax hike pledge is going after Senator Coburn because of his stance on Enthnol. This guy is calling it a tax hike. The pundit said to Coburn, aren't you afraid of this guy. Coburn said no and said you pundits blow his power way out of porportion. I decided I really like Coburn.

[hopfrog]

Although I'll be voting for President Obama -- I wouldn't be unhappy if Romney is our next president. I have this almost perverse sense of joy at how outraged people will be, just as they were by the idea of a black president. If I have to listen to a Republican President talking on the news, I wouldn't mind if he was a handsome fox like Mitt.

[il Padrino Ute]

hopfrog, I have to say that if there is a cuffie for most awesomely dressed in the avatar, you would win it. And it wouldn't be close.

[myboynoah]

Wow. Guess we know who the Post supports.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/nation...ydH_story.html

. . . he’s also a high school dropout who spent the latter part of his teen years playing with local jazz and rock bands.

Those years ended when he briefly enrolled at the University of Utah through a program that granted him admission without a high school diploma.

[Sleeping in EQ]

I will bet Mathews, Maddow, O'Donell, Hannity, Beck and even Rushbo do not have the rating they once had. We know the network folks have miserable ratings and CNN's aren't so hot.

Rush's ratings have fallen something like 30% since last fall. Hannity's radio ratings are down a touch, but his TV ratings seem stable. O'Reilly's are stable too.

Only insiders have an idea as to how Olbermann's relaunch is doing as Current TV doesn't subscribe to Nielsen.

I suspect, but don't have numbers to support, that Current TV, Link TV, and Free Speech TV are slowly gaining audience. Actual discussion of the lefty variety is going on on these channels and the programming quality is improving. Democracy Now! used to be the only flagship program on Link and FSTV, but the Al Jazeera English programming has strengthened in recent months. Current TV is catering to young liberals and features plenty of audience-crafted programming. If these channels can make it work with their shoestring budgets they have a chance to significantly influence public discourse.

[YOhio]

Rush's ratings have fallen something like 30% since last fall. Hannity's radio ratings are down a touch, but his TV ratings seem stable. O'Reilly's are stable too.

Only insiders have an idea as to how Olbermann's relaunch is doing as Current TV doesn't subscribe to Nielsen.

I suspect, but don't have numbers to support, that Current TV, Link TV, and Free Speech TV are slowly gaining audience. Actual discussion of the lefty variety is going on on these channels and the programming quality is improving. Democracy Now! used to be the only flagship program on Link and FSTV, but the Al Jazeera English programming has strengthened in recent months. Current TV is catering to young liberals and features plenty of audience-crafted programming. If these channels can make it work with their shoestring budgets they have a chance to significantly influence public discourse.

Rolling Stone had a good interview with Olberman. After a career of giving heartburn to TV execs, it will be fun to see how Olberman handles the job. If they can get better distribution I think they can create a decent niche. But they'll have to put forth a much better showing than FSTV to be considered a success.

I'd like to see a historical trend of Limbaugh's ratings. I bet they ebb and flow with the election cycle.

[myboynoah]

Rush's ratings have fallen something like 30% since last fall. Hannity's radio ratings are down a touch, but his TV ratings seem stable. O'Reilly's are stable too.

Only insiders have an idea as to how Olbermann's relaunch is doing as Current TV doesn't subscribe to Nielsen.

I suspect, but don't have numbers to support, that Current TV, Link TV, and Free Speech TV are slowly gaining audience. Actual discussion of the lefty variety is going on on these channels and the programming quality is improving. Democracy Now! used to be the only flagship program on Link and FSTV, but the Al Jazeera English programming has strengthened in recent months. Current TV is catering to young liberals and features plenty of audience-crafted programming. If these channels can make it work with their shoestring budgets they have a chance to significantly influence public discourse.

I saw Olberman being interviewed by Piers Morgan (I think) and he said his show was the only one currently being produced by Current TV. I thought I heard him say that programming for now is Olberman for 3 hours and the rest was foreign documentaries. Is this correct? 3 hours of Olberman? Yikes.

How significant can that influence be when the channels are so remote? It seems to me the audience will primarily be those that already believe in the cause. I would think people like Olberman and Hannity have much better influence when their vehicle is more mainstream. Olberman might be happy that he can now say pretty much anything he wants to, but if his reach is limited, to what effect?

[Sleeping in EQ]

I saw Olberman being interviewed by Piers Morgan (I think) and he said his show was the only one currently being produced by Current TV. I thought I heard him say that programming for now is Olberman for 3 hours and the rest was foreign documentaries. Is this correct? 3 hours of Olberman? Yikes.

How significant can that influence be when the channels are so remote? It seems to me the audience will primarily be those that already believe in the cause. I would think people like Olberman and Hannity have much better influence when their vehicle is more mainstream. Olberman might be happy that he can now say pretty much anything he wants to, but if his reach is limited, to what effect?

I believe Olberman's show is the only M-F show being produced by Current TV. That's misleading though, as their specialty is 1) Audience produced content and 2) documentaries.

Bar Karma is a show based entirely on scripts submitted to the Current TV website. We could write a script and submit it, and if the gatekeepers like it, the episode will be produced. Talk about offloading labor....

You can also upload videos to Current TVs website and the ones that registered visitors like the most are put on the air. Such videos are often short, so they are slipped in to fill gaps in the programming.

The channels are mostly preaching to the choir, but that's the game on most cable and satellite channels. These channels have the problem that most of the choir isn't in the building. They are providing content that liberals say they want, even if they have to rely on word-of-mouth marketing. There's probably a signigicant potential audience that doesn't know they exist. Somebody like Olbermann could help with this, so I understand why Current TV is pushing him.

[myboynoah]

I believe Olberman's show is the only M-F show being produced by Current TV. That's misleading though, as their specialty is 1) Audience produced content and 2) documentaries.

Bar Karma is a show based entirely on scripts submitted to the Current TV website. We could write a script and submit it, and if the gatekeepers like it, the episode will be produced. Talk about offloading labor....

You can also upload videos to Current TVs website and the ones that registered visitors like the most are put on the air. Such videos are often short, so they are slipped in to fill gaps in the programming.

The channels are mostly preaching to the choir, but that's the game on most cable and satellite channels. These channels have the problem that most of the choir isn't in the building. They are providing content that liberals say they want, even if they have to rely on word-of-mouth marketing. There's probably a signigicant potential audience that doesn't know they exist. Somebody like Olbermann could help with this, so I understand why Current TV is pushing him.

That is a very interesting approach. Has it been done elsewhere on this scale? Also, how involved in Gore in the day to day operations?

But hey, who knows. I remember when ESPN started. Lots and lots and lots of Australian Rules Football.