While we're looking at the downside of the news, the Washington Post also finds that Romney now has a firm 3-point lead,according to their latest tracking poll, "with President Obama experiencing a steep drop in support among white voters from four years ago."
Is race what's drawing the extraordinary numbers of people to early voting here in Texas? Is that why, among whites, the same poll shows Romney at 60 to Obama's 37? Is it why the signs for Romney and Ryan are small and indistinct while the most visible is large and glaringly red -- and reads "STOP OBAMA"? There's something about that STOP! that's chilling.
Fortunately, the Post admits this tracking poll isn't "statistically significant." But it is a knife in the side of anyone looking for reasons to feel pride in America. And we were thinking in 2010 that it couldn't possibly get more divided than it was then. Over here on the left we were thinking that, in this day and age, we were pretty much on the road to get beyond racial cariacatures and divisions.
There is a chink of light at the end of this dark road.
In a rapidly diversifying country, the percentage of the nation’s population that is white drops 2 percent every four years, said David Bositis, a senior research associate at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies. And even among white voters, Republicans perform best among older voters, who will age out of the voting rolls in coming years.
Without improving tallies with minorities, Bositis said, “I think this will be the peak for Republicans.”
“The formula they have right now is a long-term loser,” he said. ...WaPo
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You have to fight your way through the Post article to get information about this poll and when it was taken, past the huge drawing of an angry, glowering Obama and a cheerful, reassuring Romney (ah, the Post!), and into a survey of links. Finally there it is: the dates for the latest tracking poll. October 21-24.
Let's compare Obama's numbers on InTrade for the same period compared with where they are now.
Well, those investers/bettors are probably all the wrong color.
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Think Progress points to very common evidence of racism: the belief that for non-white people, all ideas and opinions are based on race. Thus, Republican John Sununu.
In an interview with CNN’s Piers Morgan this evening, Romney Campaign Co-Chair and former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu (R-NH) offered a surprising theory on why General Colin Powell endorsed President Obama for reelection today — because both men are black...
...For the record, John Sununu is an intelligent and accomplished white man. He has also decided to endorse Mitt Romney, who is white, over Barack Obama, who is black. No one believes that Sununu made this decision for any reason other than the fact that he prefers Romney’s policies to Obama’s, and it would be absolutely inappropriate to suggest that Sununu joined the Romney campaign because he wanted a president of his same race.
Colin Powell is also an intelligent and accomplished man. Suggesting he is unable to see beyond the president’s race is no less insulting. ...Think Progress
