By Steve Frank on The Ed Show
Check out the beautiful people at MSNBC's open-to-the-public presidential debate-eve viewing party at Govnr’s Park Tavern in Denver last night. While they waited for Ed (click here to see those photos), they got some free t-shirts!
Thank you for attending and thank you Michael Martin Photography for the photos!
After last night's The Ed Show in Denver wrapped, Ed appeared in person at MSNBC's an open-to-the-public presidential debate-eve viewing party at Govnr’s Park Tavern. As you can see, everybody had a great time, especially Ed himself!
Thank you for attending and thank you Michael Martin Photography for the photos!
Ed Schultz is joined by Democratic challenger Wayne Powell on the heels of his debate with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor.
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and Democratic challenger Wayne Powell held their first and only scheduled debate last night in the campaign to represent Virginia's seventh district.
The debate was heated, but Cantor, a classic Republican obstructionist who has become the face of the current do-nothing Congress, was almost robotic in sticking with the Republican script.
"What he proved tonight is that he speaks just like he writes and just like he speaks in Washington, which is Washingtonese, D.C.-ese, whatever you want to say," Powell told The Ed Show after the debate. "It's cut taxes, cut regulations, help small
businesses and the jobs will magically appear."
Cantor’s seat is definitely up for grabs.
Just last month, Public Policy Polling found that 40 percent of likely voters in the state of Virginia have an unfavorable opinion of the congressman:
And Congress has a 13 percent approval rating, the lowest Gallup has measured this late in an election year:
Powell has a solid resume with military and legal experience, which should play well in the seventh district.
Indeed, Powell asked Cantor during the debate why he (Cantor) "voted to continue paying members of Congress, including yourself, in the event of a shut down" while "at the same time, you voted against a bill that would have ensured that members of the armed services continued to get paid."
"You can go on your personal attacks all you want, but it's not going to do anything to create jobs," Cantor said in his non-answer, adding that he has supported a number of efforts to help veterans.
"[Cantor]'s so intent on making sure that the richest and the greediest amongst us get all the tax cuts that he forgets that the people that we send forward to represent our best values over seas, whether the war is fair or not, they're doing their duty," Powell told The Ed Show.
Candidates Obama and Romney were both quick to lower expectations for their upcoming debate in Denver, Colo. – the first of three potentially game-changing face-offs. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.
Republicans are hoping for a game changer with Wednesday's debate in Denver, but The Republican ticket can't even get Fox News on board with their vision for America.
Tonight, Ed (who is live from Denver tonight and tomorrow night!) welcomes Howard Fineman, NBC News Political Analyst and Editorial Director of the Huffington Post Media Group, for the latest from the Republican "rolling calamity."
Then, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie predicts Mitt Romney will turn the presidential race "upside down" with his debate performance. Susan Del Percio, Republican Strategist and MSNBC Contributor, and Chris Kofinis, Former Edwards Campaign Comm Director, will join Ed for a preview.
Its debate night (click here to watch them live until 8pET) in Massachusetts and Virginia and Democrats have Scott Brown and Eric Cantor on the ropes.
Felix Arroyo, Boston City Councilor At-Large will offer reaction and analysis on the Elizabeth Warren-Scott Brown debate and Wayne Powell will comment on his debate with House Majority Cantor.
And on the eve of early-voting in Ohio activists are sleeping overnight at the polling places. We'll go live to Cleveland where state Sen. Nina Turner (D-OH) is camping out.
It's going to another blockbuster @EdShow at 8pET on @msnbctv.
Join the conversation now or during the show by commenting on Facebook and/or tweeting (with the #edshow hashtag) so we can share your thoughts on the show.
The @TweetTron9k is powering up the circuits to put yer tweets on the teevee.
Every modern presidential campaign has had a "moment of impact." The candidate says something or does something that makes a lasting impression. And sometimes the moment of impact can kill a campaign.
There’s new evidence Mitt Romney’s suffering after his own "moment of impact." These words could follow him for the rest of his life:
"There 47 percent of the people who vote for the president no matter what. My job is not to worry about those people. I`ll never convince them that they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives. What I have to do is convince the 5 percent to 10 percent in the center that are independents."
In fact, The New York Times crunched the poll data to find out if the "47 percent" comment is hurting Romney:
The poll numbers are pretty steady until Romney’s "47 percent" comments hit the news. The president is holding on to all of his post-convention gains and keeps gaining. Romney is barely holding on or he's losing likely voters as a result of the hidden camera comments.
Romney’s got another problem.
Lots of candidates have been caught making embarrassing mistakes. But Romney was caught saying something he really believes.
"I think we may have seen a game changer," said John Nichols, Washington Correspondent for The Nation magazine told The Ed Show. "And you can't say that on the night it happens or the night it comes out. You got to watch over time. But what's significant is that the advantage that Obama got as that began to lock in has continued. In fact, his advantage has continued to grow."
Watch the segment:
New poll analysis shows Mitt Romney is suffering after his caught-on-camera comments disparaging the 47 percent of Americans he claims don't pay income taxes. Politics is filled with memorable, campaign-killing gaffes. Does Romney's comment rank up there with the worst of the worst? Ed Schultz talks with Washington Correspondent for The Nation, John Nichols.
MSNBC announced today it's going to host a presidential debate-eve watch party in Denver tomorrow night (Oct. 2) and Ed wants you to join him!
Please come to Govnrs Park Tavern at 672 Logan St. starting at 4pMT for the live 6pMT broadcast of The Ed Show (don’t forget it’s first come, first served so we cannot guarantee everyone will get in).
Be sure to stick around as Ed will stop by after the show (he will be doing the actual show from a studio at another location, both tonight and Tuesday night; the actual Obama-Romney debate is Wednesday night).
See you there!
Somebody had to do it.
The self-described job creators who feel entitled now have a voice, thanks to Steve Pearlstein, a Pulitzer Prize-winning business and economics columnist for The Washington Post.
Steve Pearlstein, Washington Post columnist
On Saturday, Steve published a column titled "I am a job creator: A manifesto for the entitled." In it, he plays a corporate chief executive/business owner/private-equity fund manager-type, a "misunderstood superhero of American capitalism, single-handedly creating wealth and prosperity despite all the obstacles put in my way by employees, government and the media."
Here's just three examples:
I am entitled to complain bitterly about taxes that are always too high, even when they are at record lows.
I am entitled to provide political support to radical, uncompromising politicians and then complain about how dysfunctional Washington has become.
I am entitled to load companies up with debt in order to pay myself and investors big dividends — and then blame any bankruptcy on over-compensated workers.
Click here to read the full article. It's that good!
Although polls show Mitt Romney trailing President Obama, the candidate remained optimistic while on the campaign trail Friday, telling voters that his campaign is "going to take the White House." NBC's Peter Alexander reports.
We've finally got a real case of voter fraud: Mitt Romney and the Republican National Committee have been funneling money to an organization suspected of voter fraud!
Are Republicans trying to steal the election? Tonight, Ed will ask U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer and Allen Raymond, author of "How to Rig an Election."
Then, do Republicans want to cheat because they have a candidate who is losing? Democratic Strategist Bob Shrum joins Ed for Romney's bad week that just got worse today.
Is Mitt Romney's "47 percent" remark the biggest game changer in the history of presidential politics? The Nation’s John Nichols has the answer.
RNC Chairman Reince Priebus flip-flops on supporting Todd "forcible rape" Akin. Michelle Goldberg, Senior Contributing Writer for Newsweek and the Daily Beast, and Ari Melber, Correspondent for The Nation, join Ed for that.
And in the Big Finish, Mitt Romney is doing his best to make trade with China an issue in this election, but the facts keep catching up with him. Ed will have that with Rep. John Garamendi.
It's going to another blockbuster @EdShow at 8pET on @msnbctv.
Join the conversation now or during the show by commenting on Facebook and/or tweeting (with the #edshow hashtag) so we can share your thoughts on the show.
The @TweetTron9k is powering up the circuits to put yer tweets on the teevee.
Iowa kicked off the presidential election yesterday, becoming the first state where voters could cast their votes in person for the general election.
27 states and Washington, D.C., will have early in-person voting prior to Election Day. The campaigns estimate that two out of every five ballots will be filled out before November 6, Election Day.
And one presidential candidate is in much better position to take advantage of the new voting in this dynamic thing we call American democracy.
Here's a look at Mitt Romney's field offices in Iowa. The Romney camp has 12 outposts across the Hawkeye State:
Now take a look at President Obama's operation, his field operation in Iowa. The Obama campaign has 66 of these outpost offices, a 5.5-1 advantage over Romney:
These field offices are the lifeblood of presidential campaigns. This is where campaigns stage their “get out the vote” efforts and organize volunteers.
It's rather stunning for Mitt Romney to be so under-prepared to fight in the ground game in Iowa. He`s had the same problems as the primary candidate. Romney only started making frequent appearances in the state a week before the Iowa caucuses. By then, it was too late. And he lost a tight race.
Romney's campaign should have refocused their efforts, but instead, they find themselves in a huge disadvantage, as the first ballots were cast yesterday.
Here's the complete early in-person voting schedule:
Sept. 27 - Iowa & Wyoming
Oct. 1 - Nebraska
Oct. 2 - Ohio
Oct. 8 - California
Oct. 9 - Indiana
Oct. 11 - Arizona
Oct. 15 - Georgia
Oct. 17 - Kansas & Tennessee
Oct. 18 - North Carolina
Oct. 20 - Nevada & New Mexico
Oct. 22 - Alaska, Arkansas, Illinois, North Dakota, Colorado, Washington dc, Texas, Wisconsin
Oct. 23 - Utah, Hawaii, Louisiana
Oct. 24 - West Virginia
Oct. 27 - Maryland & Florida
Nov. 2 - Oklahoma
The presidential election is officially underway. 27 states allow early voting, including two that started today. And early signs show Mitt Romney is in big trouble.
Tonight, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, (D-FL) Chair of the Democratic National Committee, talks about the Democratic effort to get out the vote in Iowa and beyond.
Then, Romney reveals the real goals of Bain capital in a newly discovered video.
Ed will ask Robert Reich, former U.S. Labor Secretary and UC Berkeley Professor, what Romney means when he says he's harvesting companies.
Mitt Romney says he will use the debate to fact check the president's ad claims. We'll have a Romney fact check of our own with Steve Benen, Contributing Writer and Blogger with the Washington Monthly.
The guy who has no idea what he's talking about when it comes to women has the nerve to call U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill unlady-like. We'll bring you the latest on the Todd "legitimate rape" Akin disaster with Keli Goff, author of “The GQ Candidate” and Political Correspondent for TheRoot.com, and Sam Stein, Huffington Post Political Editor.
We’ll also have new details about Romney's past investments in China.
And in the Big Finish, George W. Bush is staying away from the campaign trail, but his trip to the Cayman Islands could be a headache for Mitt Romney. Jonathan Alter, MSNBC Political Analyst and Bloomberg View Columnist, weighs in.
It's going to another blockbuster @EdShow at 8pET on @msnbctv.
Join the conversation now or during the show by commenting on Facebook and/or tweeting (with the #edshow hashtag) so we can share your thoughts on the show.
The @TweetTron9k is powering up the circuits to put yer tweets on the teevee.
George W. Bush is actually going to speak at an "investment" summit in the Cayman Islands only 5 days until the Presidential Election. This could mean bad news for Mitt Romney Come November 6th. MSNBC's Jonathan Alter weighs in on if Bush actually knows what he's doing to Romney.
What's the worst thing George "
Bush, ranked as the fifth-worst president in U.S. history by the Siena Research Institute of Siena College in 2010, is heading to the Cayman Islands. He's scheduled to deliver the keynote address at the Cayman Alternative Investment Summit on Grand Cayman on November 1, just five days before Election Day!
Bush's appearance, of course, will put the spotlight (again) on:
As you'll recall, Bush presided over the worst financial collapse since the Great Depression, was the first former president since Richard Nixon to skip his party's first political convention after leaving office. And unlike Democrat Bill Clinton, he won't be actively campaigning for his party's presidential nominee during this year's campaign.
Why did Bush accept an invitation that obviously stabs Romney in the back? Maybe he's read the latest polls.
NBC sports analyst Peter King and New York Daily News sports columnist Mike Lupica discuss the impact of fan outrage on the NFL's negotiations with the its referees, and what the league won and lost from the rocky three weeks leading to the deal.
