Rodell Mollineau On MSNBC's Daily Rundown
On February 22, 2012, American Bridge 21st Century's President Rodell Mollineau appeared on MSNBC's "The Daily Rundown with Chuck Todd" to discuss the 2012 presidential election:
Journal Sentinel: Thompson Worked For Birth Control Maker
On February 19, 2012, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported:
In Wisconsin, U.S. Senate candidates Tommy Thompson, Mark Neumann and Jeff Fitzgerald condemned the president's actions. But in the case of Thompson, his criticism comes with a more complicated past when it comes to the issue of contraception.
AP: Santorum Views On Birth Control At Odds With Most Of U.S.
On February 17, 2012, the Associated Press reported:
Most Americans don't share Rick Santorum's absolutist take on abortion. He's out of step on women in combat. He questions the values of the two-thirds of mothers who work. He's even troubled by something as commonplace as birth control - for married couples. Even among a Republican presidential field eager to please religious conservatives, Santorum's ideas stand out.
Washington Post: Scott Brown Struggles To Refight Old Culture War With Elizabeth Warren
On February 16, 2012, the Washington Post wrote:
Late yesterday, Scott Brown — who is under fire from Elizabeth Warren over the issue — went on a New England TV station and faced an absolutely brutal grilling from his questioner, forcing him to repeatedly dissemble about the legislation. You can watch video of the interview here. The reporter repeatedly pointed out that the measure goes much further than just exempting religious organizations from covering contraception; it also allows employers and insurers to refuse to cover any health service they findmorally objectionable. Brown repeatedly insisted that the bill doesn’t do this. [...] Republicans like Brown are desperate for this battle not to be about women’s health or the health care economics of familes, as Warren is framing it, and want to fight it exclusively on old culture war turf by alleging a war on religion. After all, polls suggest that large majorities, including of independents and moderates, see it as the former.Read the full column here.
Boston Globe: Blunt Words For Brown
On February 16, 2012, the Boston Globe wrote:
What is Senator Scott Brown thinking? This is not a rhetorical question. I really want to know: Why would a Republican hoping to be reelected in Massachusetts leap headlong onto Missouri Senator Roy Blunt’s slippery-slope? In case you missed it, Brown cosponsored Blunt’s legislation allowing employers to limit insurance coverage for treatments they find objectionable on moral or religious grounds. [...] And just like that, Blunt has brought us to Crazyland, a place far beyond the issue of contraception, not to mention common sense. What’s mystifying is that Brown has followed him there.Read the full column here.
Boston Herald: Contraception Bill Bad Choice For Scott Brown
On February 16, 2012, the Boston Herald wrote:
U.S. Sen. Scott Brown has co-sponsored a bill that would allow health plans to deny coverage both for contraception and any service that violates the planners’ beliefs. It was a huge mistake.
Think Progress: Mitt Romney Is Financially Invested In The Birth Control He Seeks To Restrict
On February 8, 2012 Think Progress reported:
Now, an examination of Romney’s financial investments reveals that the very same GOP frontrunner who is now petitioning the White House to extend the regulation’s conscience clause and exclude more women from the benefits of birth control is himself invested in and profiting from pharmaceutical companies that produce the frequently prescribed and extremely common medication:
Huffington Post: Mitt Romney Slams Birth Control Decision Similar To One He Made In Massachusetts
On January 30, 2012, the Huffington Post reported:
The Mitt Romney campaign sharply criticized President Barack Obama's recent decision to require most religiously affiliated employers to offer their employees birth control coverage in an email to The New York Times Sunday, calling it a "direct attack on religious liberty." But in 2005, Romney made an almost identical decision as governor of Massachusetts.
MEMO: Debate Prep For Republican Presidential Candidates
To: Republican Presidential Candidates And Their Esteemed Representatives From: Ty Matsdorf, Senior Advisor American Bridge 21st Century RE: Debate Prep Date: January 19, 2012 Tonight’s debate may offer you your last best chance to reach voters not only in South Carolina, but across the nation. After more than a dozen debates, a lot of ground has been covered but there is still room to distinguish yourselves from Mitt Romney and attempt to derail his coronation. Since it seems that you have struggled to focus in on a sustained line of attack that erodes Mitt Romney’s standing and qualifications for being president among the Republican primary voters while not costing you support from your conservative base, we have mapped out three central themes that will accomplish both should you choose to highlight them in tonight’s debate. Themes For The Debate:
Romney Puts Personal Profit Above Values And Beliefs: It is no secret that Governor Romney is wealthy, and that is not something to begrudge. But highlighting what that wealth encompasses is a key line of attack that could be used. Below are examples that should be broached tonight:
Romney Profits From Abortion Services: On the campaign trail (even though he was previously pro-choice,) Romney continually touts his pro-life positions. However, that hasn’t stopped him from padding his bank account with investments in Stericycle, a company that disposes of aborted fetuses. Stericycle has been targeted by many conservative groups, the same demographic that Romney has been pandering to on the trail. (Huffington Post, 1/17/12)
Romney Profits From Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Despite demonizing Speaker Gingrich for his work for Fannie/Freddie, and the continual disparaging of them on the campaign trail, Romney personally invested up to $500,000 in these organizations and made up to $50,000 last year alone. (Boston Globe, 9/19/11)
Romney Profits From China: On the campaign trail Romney is quick to talk tough on China, but that didn’t stop his investors from investing his money in Chinese holdings. And if Romney hides behind his “blind trust,” remind him of his quote from 1994 calling blind trusts “rouses” (Wall Street Journal, 12/17/11)
Romney Profits From Offshore Tax Shelters: This line of attack writes itself. But just in case, this just further shows that with Mitt Romney his own personal profit trumps all else. (ABC News, 1/18/12)
Romney’s Business Success Was Due To “Corporate Welfare”: Governor Romney has held up his business experience as his main qualification for being President, and has been quick to dismiss the manner in which he acted as simply “free market capitalism.” What he doesn’t mention is that some of his success has been due to huge government subsidies and tax breaks, something decried by the conservative Cato Institute as “corporate welfare.”
Steel Dynamics: Undoubtedly, Governor Romney will tout Steel Dynamics, the “steel mill in Indiana,” as one of his successes. You must tell the other side of the story: this was only a success because of more than $37 million in government subsidies. And what is even more damaging, these subsidies were paid for by raising taxes on the local residents. (LA Times, 1/12/12)
Romney Is Out Of Touch: This has been percolating for months but nowhere was it more crystalized then his flippant comments about the amount of money he made from giving speeches. Again, while no one begrudges success, Governor Romney’s complete inability to relate to the struggles of working families is absolutely astounding.
Romney/Speeches: On Tuesday, Romney offhandedly said he didn’t make very much money from giving speeches. In reality, he has made more than $360,000 dollars last year alone giving speeches. (Politico, 1/18/12)
ABC News: Rick Santorum, Mr. Bipartisan Compromise – And Mr. Pro Wrestling?
On January 4, 2012, ABC News reported:
Interestingly, Santorum early in his legal career played a key role in the rise of pro wrestling. As a young associate attorney for Kirkpatrick & Lockhart in Pittsburgh in the 1980s, Santorum lobbied in Harrisburg on behalf of the World Wrestling Federation in a successful effort to de-regulate pro-wrestling, “arguing that pro wrestling was entertainment, and not a sport, and, as such, should be exempted from federal steroid regulations,” the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported in a 1994 profile.