Ghirardelli Tomb on Millionaire's Row at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland. Like the rest of the Bay area, the big and very expensive resting places are at the top of the hill, and have a great view of the water... and they are all crammed together in a row...
News.
How many lies can $1 billion dollars buy? We are going to find out. "Republican super PACs and other outside groups shaped by a loose network of prominent conservatives – including Karl Rove, the Koch brothers and Tom Donohue of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce – plan to spend roughly $1 billion on November’s elections for the White House and control of Congress, according to officials familiar with the groups’ internal operations." The "pants on fire" fact-checkers better get their rest now, because they are about to get super-busy...
To the folks in North Carolina, Virginia, Colorado, Ohio, and Iowa - so, so sorry. Just turn off the TV, and go enjoy the nice weather outside.
Which brings us to the latest Romney lie. Greg Kessler at the WaPo, one more time: "Now that the '100,000 jobs created' talking-point has been discredited, we sense a new talking point developing in the Romney campaign — that 80 percent of Bain Capital investments 'grew their revenues.' Um, no... "The Bain statement is so vague and imprecise that in theory revenues could grow a single year, but fall in other years, and still be claimed as a growth in revenues. Moreover, the statistic takes no account of whether the business ultimately failed, despite revenue growth, because under Bain’s direction it had taken on too much debt." Three Pinocchios on this one.
Time to play some offense. The Obama campaign will dig into the real Romney record as governor of Massachusetts, and run that through the election, according to ABC News. "A 14-page research document compiled by the campaign and obtained by ABC News reveals the breadth of material Democrats plan to deploy, listing dozens of examples of Romney rhetoric and corresponding video clips from 2002, 2012, and the comparative 'results in Massachusetts.'" At the same time they will start a $25 million campaign touting the president's first-term record.
Unfortunately, that will lead to more lies from Romney, characterizing a look at his record as a "personal attack." Apparently everything he's ever done should be above scrutiny, or he will simply fall back into Professional Victimhood Mode. Comes standard with all Republican candidates. Question them, and they cry like children. Ever notice that?
Michigan, my Michigan. Looking good according to PPP, with Obama at 53 and Romney at 39. "It's not just Romney's unpopularity helping Obama in Michigan though. Obama's own approval rating is at a record high in our polling of the state with 53% of voters giving him good marks to 41% who disapprove, including a 50/43 standing with independents. Obama's crushing Romney on what will doubtless be one of the biggest issues in the campaign in Michigan- 55% think that he's been better for the automotive industry in the state to only 31% who say Romney wins out on that front." Now if Ohio has any sense...
Planned Parenthood is getting in the game with a $1.4 million ad buy for Obama. This is only the third time the group has endorsed for president; Republicans passing laws in Congress and the states to cut funding and access to health care for women has brought a new urgency to the fight.
Big Coal is on the way out. "More than 100 of the 500 or so coal-burning power plants in the United States are expected to be shut down in the next few years. While coal still provides about a third of the nation’s power, just four years ago it was providing nearly half. The decline is largely because new pollution rules have made coal plants more costly, while a surge in production of natural gas through the process of hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, has sent gas prices plummeting." They aren't going without a fight though, putting a multi-million dollar campaign on "clean coal" and looking to the Republicans to roll back regulations.
Off to a busy day.