A question on records: Obama's Vs. Mitt's

I continue to hear Mitt Romney and several Republicans and also media personalities repeat the refrain, Obama cannot or will not run on his record as he cannot win with his record. Hence his only chance of winning is to make Mitt look like the bigger evil...

I see! Indeed it might be true that Obama has not been able to get unemployment under 8% as he claimed he would do when the stimulus plan was passed. But is that the ONLY record his has?

When I listen to the campaign speeches that Obama is giving on the campaign trail, it seems to me that he very much IS running on his record! Of course he is going to point out his differences with Mitt Romney, would you not do that if you were running? However, I do not see him "running away" from his record, not even the term Obamacare!

Obama's Record 

I was pleasantly surprised while listening to an address he gave to a crowd in Colorado, he indeed used the term Obamacare! Chances are he will refer to it again. I agree that the Republicans have their talking points and also the fact does remain as I noted, that unemployment is indeed above 8%. But it seems to me I hear Obama reminding us that he does have a record he can run on some of which comprise of the following:

  • He passed the health care bill (Mitt flip flops so much on this, it makes one dizzy) 
  • The bill allows kids to remain on their parents insurance till age 26
  • Insurance companies cannot reject you due to an existing condition
  • He signed a major trade bill with South Korea
  • He prevented the American Auto industry from collapse or going bankrupt (Mitt has sadly blatantly lied on his flip flopping on this)
  • He ended don't ask don't tell and allows Gay and Lesbians to serve openly within the armed forces
  • He has created over 4 million jobs since taking office, not enough by any stretch, but job shave been created 
  • He ended the war in Iraq
  • He embraced an unpopular surge in Afghanistan something his opponent in 2008 John McCain supported
  • Without American boots on the ground he aided the removal of Qaddafi (Despite the senseless charge of leading from behind)
  • He killed Bin Laden
There are other successes he can claim, of course many will depend on your political persuasion to accept them and good or bad, even some above like the ending of don't ask don't tell. 

So despite not scoring an 'A' on his report card, he does have a report card on which he is indeed using in his campaign. I can understand the Republicans trying to distort his record and making the claim he cannot run on his record, what I do not understand is the media who fall for that false assertion. However ironically, the more the Republican say he cannot run of his record and the more he talks about his record on the campaign trail, the more he might benefit from the people embracing the record he has even if not a stellar  one and the one they had expected. 

Mitt Romney's Record

And many will ask, can Mitt Romney do any better??? I ask can Mitt run on his record? Mitt has made his time as the executive at Bain Capital AND his time leading the Olympics the center of his campaign and the record Americans should consider in deciding to send him to the While house. As you have probably seen, he never fails to remind us that "he knows how to create jobs as he has created jobs before" At times, it seems he wants us to forget that he also has a record as the Governor of Massachusetts... 

I do have to ask, why is Mitt Romney not running on his record as governor which should be the primary and core record being used to validate his qualifications to be president and why is the media giving him a pass on this? So an added question I have for Mitt Romney is, which nobody in the media seems to be able to ask is: Can you really compare the organizing AND running of the 2002 WINTER Olympics in which only 2400 people participated and took place in ONE state in ONE city in the United States, Salt Lake city, to the running of a whole country of over 300 million people and 50 different states...? 

You would have expected Mitt Romney to use as the center of his campaign his tenure as governor, but he seems to be using his time as a turn around specialist at both Bain Capital and the Winter Olympics as his record to be considered and his credentials for the White House. So far I don't buy it. 

Sometimes, I wonder if it me that just does not get it... 

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