Romney Dodges Money Questions; VP Announcement Nears - The Road to the White House - Election 2012 - Week 29
- Details
- Category: Beltway Insider
- Published on Saturday, 21 July 2012 22:53
- Written by Janet Walker
Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican Presidential candidate, is facing heat from his political opposition over his former financial affiliations and refusal to releases additional federal tax returns.
54% of Americans, according to Gallup, believe Romney should release additional tax records while 37% say he should not. The disparity seems to fall strictly along party lines with Independents siding with Democrats on the issue.
President Obama’s current overall ratings, according to Gallup, gained a single percentage point over the past week to 46% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness dropped a single percentage point to 47%.
According to Gallup, as of July 21, 2012 among registered voters President Obama’s national popularity continued to climb gaining two percentage point this week to 48% and Mitt Romney’s national popularity dropped two percentage points to 46%.
Romney has faced harsh criticism over the past week, as his failure to release pre-2010 tax information has been interpreted as evasive and suspicious and has become the source of Political attack campaigns and fodder for political pundits to label him deceitful.
Both candidates have been forced to address the Money issue. Super Pac’s fundraisers, which by all accounts, are the fuel the candidates need to maintain the pricy cost of political campaigns, cover everything from Media buys, for the relentless attack ads, to campaign salaries.
President Obama has the help of Hollywood with fundraisers such as the recent May event held at actor George Clooney’s Studio City home which netted the President’s campaign a cool 15Million. Romney’s Super Pac, Restore Our Future, in June was able to top that with a net haul of 20Million.
It is not uncommon for men of great wealth to want to govern. The U.S. Supreme Court’s 1976 decision, Buckley v. Valeo, invalidated statutory restrictions on the spending of one's own personal funds in a political campaign which gives those who can the opportunity to use their own resource to secure their desire.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, owner of Bloomberg News and all its vast subsidiaries, has, since 2002, been using his wealth, skill and expensive legal team to keep him in the office he proclaims to love. Former Wall Street Titan, Goldman Sachs CEO Jon Corzine used his vast wealth to maneuver himself into a Senate seat in New Jersey and went on become governor. Prior to his untimely death, John Heinz, heir to the H. J. Heinz fortune was a Republican member of the House of Representative and former Pennsylvania senator and spent millions of dollars of his own wealth to secure his dreams.
Romney’s camp has announced his intent to name his Vice-Presidential choice very soon; more than likely before his planned visit to Europe to meet with the heads of state from Israel and Europe. The trip is seen as a Foreign Policy opportunity for the former Massachusetts governor.
The Republican National Convention, where delegates will be officially conferred to the candidates and where Mitt Romney will be designated the Republican Presidential Nominee will take place in Tampa Bay, Florida, August 27-30, 2012.
The Democratic National Convention will take place in Charlotte North Carolina, September 3 -6, 2012.
To access the Republican Official Convention site: www.gopconvention2012.com/
To access the Democratic Official Convention site: www.demconvention.com/
