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Campaign News
Obama Blames Private Equity For "Massive Layoffs" And "Busting Unions" Michelle Caruso-Cabrera, guest host of CNBC's Kudlow Report, said the President "is once again at another fundraiser...attacking Mitt Romney, big business and private equity." President Obama: "What Gov. Romney doesn't seem to get is that a healthy economy doesn't just mean a few folks maximizing their profits through massive layoffs or busting unions. You don't make America stronger by shipping jobs and profits overseas."
Politico reported that in Denver, the President "continued his assault on Mitt Romney's private-sector experience...suggesting at a fundraiser here that he hasn't 'spent time working in the real world.'" According to Politico, the President "mocked the idea that if wealthy CEOs make more money, then there will be more jobs."
Emory University economist Paul Rubin, in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal , contends that the President's critique of private equity demonstrates a misunderstanding of the role of the profit motive in a functioning market economy.
Obama's Focus On Private Equity Deemed Risky The New York Times , in a front-page article titled "Bain Strategy Holds Pitfalls For President," says that by "leveraging his bully pulpit and advertising dollars" criticize Romney, the President "may also be testing a bond first formed by Bill Clinton, who persuaded much of his party's elite that Democrats could be both populist and friendly to Wall Street." According to the Times, "At stake are not only a political and policy relationship Democrats have nurtured over decades with the financial services industry, but the millions of dollars in campaign cash that have come with it."
The New York Times reports, "In an advertisement released this month by President Obama's campaign," Mitt Romney and Bain Capital, "are painted as vampires" who "sucked the lifeblood out of GST Steel in the 1990s, which pushed it into bankruptcy, destroying jobs and eliminating pensions." However, "In a quick counterattack, the Romney campaign released an ad that highlighted the robust job growth at another Bain investment, the manufacturing company Steel Dynamics." According to the Times, there is an element of truth in both ads because "the business of private equity firms is buying and selling companies," which "sometimes...means jobs are created," and "sometimes...means jobs are lost."
Romney Repeatedly Refers To Obama's Experience As A "Community Organizer" Chris Matthews, on MSNBC's Hardball, showed a clip of Romney saying, "The President's experience has been exclusively in politics and as a community organizer. Both of those are fine areas of endeavor, but, right now, we have an economy in trouble, and someone who spent their career in the economy is more suited to help fix the economy than someone who spent his life in politics and as a community organizer." Mark Halperin, who conducted the interview for Time , said, "A lot of voters will find that compelling to say: 'I have been in the private sector; he hasn't.'"
NBC Nightly News reported that "after days of stinging criticism from the Obama campaign about Romney's record at Bain Capital...Romney defended his experience in an interview with Time magazine." Romney: "Having been in the private sector for 25 years gives me a perspective on how jobs are created that someone who has never spent a day in the private sector, like President Obama, simply doesn't understand."
Romney Blasts Teachers Unions' Opposition To School Reforms McClatchy reports that at a meeting of the Latino Coalition in Washington, Mitt Romney "launched a blistering attack on...teachers unions, saying they're blocking crucial revisions to education and are hurting children, particularly young Hispanics and other minorities. 'This is the civil rights issue of our time,' Romney said. 'President Obama has been unable to stand up to union bosses and unwilling to stand up for kids.'" According to McClatchy, Romney "proposed a series of changes, including greater choice in public education, more charter schools and digital learning, and a one-two punch of less job security for poor teachers and higher pay for better ones."
The Washington Post reports Romney said "poor and disabled children should be allowed to escape failing public schools by using federal dollars to pay for private schools and other alternative settings." The Post notes that the Romney campaign "released a white paper highlighting his support for federal vouchers -- a plan to reroute tax dollars sent to public schools to help educate poor and disabled children and instead let those dollars follow the children to private schools."
The Wall Street Journal , in an article titled "Romney For Parent Choice On School Aid," quotes Romney as saying, "I'm going to expand parental choice in an unprecedented way. For too long, we've merely talked about the virtues of school choice without really doing something about it."
The Washington Times adds that Romney "said teachers unions have teamed up with Democrats to block reforms that have shown promise in Connecticut, Detroit and in the District, where the city's voucher program has proved wildly popular with parents, but saw Democrats try to cut it."
Romney Opens Lead In Florida A new Quinnipiac University poll shows Mitt Romney leading President Obama 47%-41% in Florida. That's up from a 44%-43% lead in a similar poll earlier this month and a 49%-42% Obama lead in March. The survey also shows that 44% now say the President deserves a second term, while 52% said he does not. Quinnipiac's Peter Brown said, "The overall picture in Florida is positive for Romney, who is ahead 50 - 37 percent among men, while women are divided 44 - 45 percent. And the President is getting just 33 percent of white votes, compared to 85 percent of black votes and 42 percent of Hispanic votes." The poll surveyed 1,722 registered voters from May 15-21.
The Miami Herald adds that Romney's lead "would grow even bigger - to an 8 percentage-point advantage - if the challenger chose Sen. Marco Rubio a running mate, according to" the "survey released Wednesday. The seemingly small 2-point advantage with Rubio could be huge in must-win Florida, which Obama won by just 2.8 percentage points in 2008. The last three presidential elections - including the 2000 elections decided by 537 votes - have been won by an average spread of 2.6 percentage points."
The Tampa (FL) Tribune adds, "The candidates' opposing views on same sex marriage was a factor with one-third of the respondents and 22 percent identified the issue as 'extremely important.' By better than a two-to-one margin those who found the issue important said it would make them less likely to vote for Obama, who supports same-sex marriages. Romney is opposed to same-sex marriage. 'While the issue of same-sex marriage looks like it affects only one-third of Florida voters, we know from experience what a few votes can mean in the Sunshine State,' Brown said."
Polls Show Walker With Moderate Lead The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on its website that a St. Norbert College/Wisconsin Public Radio poll of 406 likely Wisconsin voters taken May 17-22 shows Gov. Scott Walker (R) leading Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett (D) 50%-45%. The recall election will be held on June 5.
Meanwhile, a survey for Libertarian-leaning Reason magazine shows Walker leading Barrett 50%-42%. The poll also shows President Obama leading Mitt Romney 46%-36%. The poll surveyed 609 likely voters from May 14-18.
Washington News
Obama Sees "American Century" As He Delivers Air Force Academy Speech President Obama's commencement speech at the US Air Force Academy in the presidential swing state of Colorado was not covered by the broadcast television networks, but received print coverage across the nation. Reports are generally upbeat, saying the President offered a hopeful outlook for the nation as he praised the military.
The Colorado Springs (CO) Gazette reports the President paid tribute to new graduates' "dedication and hard work before shaking the hand of every new second lieutenant." His speech "was a hopeful one, both retrospective and forward looking. He talked about how the country has rebounded from the recession of the past decade, and said America's reputation worldwide has simultaneously improved." The President "predicted that the coming years will be an 'American century.'"
The Denver Post says the President told the 1,073 cadets that they are the first class since 2002 "entering into a world where there are no Americans fighting in Iraq." Referring to that conflict as well as Afghanistan, Obama continued, "The end of these wars will shape your service and it will make our military stronger. ... Ending these wars will also ensure that the burden of our security no longer falls so heavily on the shoulders of our men and women in uniform."
The AP says the President "used a speech before a military audience to make it clear that he thinks 'American is exceptional' -- a counterargument" to Mitt Romney, "who has challenged Obama's belief in America. And Obama had other unmistakable rebuttals to Romney in the graduation speech." The President said the US "'led from the front' in an international military campaign in Libya, countering a Romney assertion that the president has led from behind in world affairs," and "insisted the US will maintain its military superiority in the world, amid Romney's charges Obama is poised to weaken US defenses."
Politico says the President "took up Mitt Romney's tag line on foreign policy on Wednesday and told graduates at the Air Force Academy that he envisions another 'American Century.'"
Investors Sue As Congress Investigates Facebook IPO ABC World News reported in its lead story that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is "being sued by thousands of investors who accuse Facebook and their bankers with withholding key information about the inflated value of the company. So when the average investor was lining up to buy on Friday, those elite few in the know were poised to sell for a quick profit."
NBC Nightly News reported in its lead, "Facebook says the suits are 'without merit and we'll defend ourselves vigorously.' Today, the Senate Banking Committee began asking questions as Massachusetts subpoenaed Morgan Stanley's internal documents, all of it, further undermining faith in Wall Street."
The Los Angeles Times reports that the suits "alleged that Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg and the banks underwriting the IPO concealed crucial information shortly before the social networking company went public." Facebook "has vowed to defend itself vigorously against shareholder suits."
Meanwhile, Politico reports that that Senate Banking Committee is reviewing the Facebook IPO. Chairman Tim Johnson said, "I have instructed my staff to conduct due diligence regarding issues raised in the news about Facebook's IPO," adding that his staff "is now coordinating 'bipartisan staff briefings with Facebook, regulators and other stakeholders.' Johnson said he would wait for more information before making a decision on a hearing." The House Financial Services Committee "is also gathering information and receiving briefings, a spokeswoman said. 'While no hearings specifically focused on this IPO are planned at this time, the committee will have hearings over the coming weeks where this topic is likely to be raised,' the aide added."
Housing Market Appears To Be Rebounding Slowly The Commerce Department said Wednesday that new home sales increased 3.3 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 343,000. The CBS Evening News reported, "The government reported today that sales of new homes increased more than 3% in April, and the median price was about 5% higher than a year ago, nearly $236,000. Slow progress."
The AP reports that sales increased "in every region of the country but the South." The AP says the gain, which "pushed the annual sales pace to its second-highest level in two years," is "the latest evidence that the US housing market could be starting to recover."
Bloomberg News says the increase in demand for new US homes indicates "residential real estate may contribute to economic growth for the first time in seven years."
Likewise, the Wall Street Journal casts the numbers as another sign that the housing market is in recovery. The Journal also notes that in addition to the increase in new home sales, sales of previously owned homes have been posting gains which suggests that improvements in the housing industry are widespread.
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