Campaign

In anticipation of the Republican debate tonight, I’m interested in how the candidates will speak to women.

The fact is Democrats have a woman problem. In 2008, Barack Obama won the majority of the female vote. Three years later, women’s support for the president has dropped dramatically.

According to a new Gallup poll, women’s support for Obama dropped 11 points over the summer. And today only 41 percent of women “approve” of how the president is handling his job.

A.B. Stoddard takes your questions in this week's Ask A.B.

The Democratic victory in Wisconsin sends a red-alert warning to House Republicans that Speaker Pelosi might be coming back.

Democrats fell short of the three seats they needed to take control of the Wisconsin Senate, but winning two seats in seven Republican districts is a big win for Democrats and an ominous warning for Republicans.

Do the math. If two out of seven House Republicans lose in 2012, Democrats win a huge majority in the House. And when the recall petition for Gov. Scott Walker is finalized early next year, he is in big trouble, because in a statewide vote, Democratic districts will vote alongside Republican districts.

Yesterday there was an “election” in Wisconsin. It was necessary because a host of fake Republican candidates filed to run as Democrats. Silliness, pure and simple.

This was all part of the recall effort that both Republicans and Democrats have engaged in as a result of Gov. Scott Walker (R) and the Republicans' decision to go after teachers and public employees.

There is remarkably little buzz in Washington, D.C., surrounding the California congressional special election to replace Jane Harman, and one has to wonder whether that is because Craig Huey shocked the political establishment by winning the second slot in the runoff election.

This race was supposed to come down to two Democratic Party liberals fighting over what was once a Republican congressional seat, but Huey messed things up by clawing his way into second place in the primary election.

Now the July 12 election will determine whether Huey, a businessman who enjoys support from both evangelicals and some Jewish leaders, can successfully translate economic angst amongst this Los Angeles coastal district into votes against the heavily favored Democratic establishment candidate.

Buffalo Bill’s defunct/who used to/ride a watersmooth-silver stallion/and break onetwothreefourfive  pigeonsjustlikethat . . . – E. E. Cummings

When Bill Clinton had a college student perform a submissive sex act on him in the Oval Office he became an adored cult figure to his generation. So why should Anthony Weiner resign?
Today, Bill Clinton, adored by millions, attends the soccer World Cup matches with Mick Jagger, who urged on fans to public intercourse in a cult movie with an unmentionable title. So why should Weiner resign?

Bill Clinton left public office in disgrace after pardoning a supporter whose wife had given the Clintons a million-dollar bribe. What did Clinton do then? He moved to New York. Within days, op-eds appeared in The New York Times and elsewhere asking, could Bill run for VP? Could they not change the Constitution so he could be president again? Could he not be president of the world via the U.N.? So why should Weiner resign?

Every once in a while, former President Bill Clinton hits one out of the park. This week we have the Big Dog to thank once more, for telling Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) he hopes Democrats don't use their victory in a special election in NY-26 to do nothing on Medicare reform. Then he told Ryan to give him a call, which Ryan said he plans to do.

That race, to replace former Rep. Chris Lee (R), saw a Democratic victory in a GOP stronghold for more than four decades. The headline of the campaign was Ryan's ambitious, controversial reform plan for Medicare, which would transform the popular program so that Medicare recipients would instead receive vouchers to purchase coverage in the private market.