Here’s the latest talking point(s) from conservatives:
“NO Obama Does NOT Have a Mandate!”
[…]
“He didn’t run on his record or policies…”
First of all, let’s define what a mandate is. According to Merriam Webster, a mandate can be defined as, “an authorization to act given to a representative.” In choosing to reelect President Barack Obama to a second term in office (by victories in both the popular vote and Electoral College), Americans very clearly gave President Obama an authorization to act on their behalf, as opposed to giving Mitt Romney that authorization. The notion of a government having a legitimate mandate to govern via the fair winning of a democratic election is a central idea of democracy, and while conservatives want to attempt to delegitimize President Obama’s victory on November 6, the fact is the American people have given President Obama a mandate.
Having gotten the whole mandate thing out of the way, let’s move to a discussion about the idea that President Obama didn’t run on his record or policies during the 2012 election. While I understand that’s a popular talking point that was parroted by Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan – not to mention their many surrogates – throughout the 2012 election, their having parroted that talking point doesn’t make it true.
To prove my point, here’s some video of President Obama running on his record as he explains during one of the three presidential debates what he’d done during his first term in office to deserve to be reelected.
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In addition to talking about his record of accomplishment during his first term in office or his plans for a second term, President Obama very clearly mentioned many of his accomplishments and policies on his campaign website. For instance, the “Health care” section of President Obama’s reelection site very clearly mentions Obamacare, along with a list outlining how the provisions of Obamacare is benefiting Americans. A quick surf over to the other issues pages on President Obama’s website shows a similar level of detail. There’s mention of the president signing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law, passing Wall Street reform, doubling funding for Pell Grants and establishing a college tax credit, and the Race to the Top initiative, just to name a few of President Obama’s accomplishments.
The idea that President Obama didn’t run on his record in the 2012 election and doesn’t have a mandate is absolutely absurd, and anyone who says otherwise is simply trying to find a way to continue to “explain away” and minimize President Obama’s victory over Mitt Romney.
The whole MO of the No-no Repubs is to never admit defeat, and when accused, to assault livewise; in other words accuse the opposition of the same failing and make the accusation yours, not the opposition’s.
It’s time we moved on with our mandates and ignore all the obfuscation.
Karl Frisch put it in perspective pretty well:
http://www.karlfrisch.com/2012/11/10/6511/
It seems that the GOP is set to wander in the wilderness lest they truly begin some soul-searching. They have literally come up with nearly every extrinsic explanation as a way to excuse their failure to win this election. Whether it be Hurricane Sandy, to the rather vacuous and consistent allegations that those supporting the President truly are seeking a hand-out, the GOP demonstrates their unwillingness to change their point of view, despite the electorate clearly sending the message that we DO in fact, want THIS President to lead our nation! This, coupled with their most recent solution to their obvious disconnect with the Latino vote, as advanced by Charles Krauthammer: Provide amnesty without full citizenship guaranteeing the nation that this will be the very last cohort the country will have to deal with, while allowing “these people” to live in the shadows, demonstrates their obtuse paranoia over anyone who is different from them; either in looks or ideology!
Hey Folks,
How many of you remember the Romney campaign and the RNC Chairman claiming that our President could not nor would not run on his record? Hmmm! Looks as though he could and did!!!
finally found voices in the wilderness. never sure where you can comment or get the truth.