Seth McLaughlin
Articles by Seth McLaughlin
Lot of movement, no progress on ‘fiscal cliff’: Tax increases vs. spending cuts
President Obama's top aides floated a budget framework to Republicans on Thursday that would call for $1.6 trillion in tax increases coupled with a promise for future spending trims in order to head off the "fiscal cliff," an offer GOP leaders immediately rejected, saying the White House needs to "get serious" about spending cuts. Published November 29, 2012
Are parties hurtling toward ‘fiscal cliff’?
With little tangible headway being made in Washington on averting the looming federal taxes-and-spending crisis, a key observer said Wednesday that he puts the chances of Congress reaching a deal before the Jan. 1 "fiscal cliff" deadline at less than 1 in 3. Published November 28, 2012
Rubio jumps to the head of GOP’s class
Sen. Marco Rubio, in a matter of days, leapfrogged from being one of Mitt Romney's reliable foot soldiers on the campaign trail to being a front-runner for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. Published November 27, 2012
GOP fealty to ‘no new taxes’ pledge slipping
Trying to signal a good-faith commitment to the ongoing "fiscal cliff" debt negotiations, some prominent Republicans increasingly are indicating a willingness to walk away from Grover Norquist's influential "no new taxes" pledge, saying that even if they signed it, they no longer feel bound by it. Published November 26, 2012
Democrats seek more benefits for jobless
Warning that more than 2 million Americans are poised to lose their long-term unemployment insurance, some Democrats are calling on Congress to extend the "economic lifeline" before it expires next month. Published November 26, 2012
Tea party vows to stay for long haul, takes no blame for GOP losses
Tea party leaders say they refuse to be the scapegoats for the drubbing Republicans took on Election Day, claiming it was the party establishment — not their insurgent movement — that cost the party seats in the House and Senate and returned President Obama to the White House. Published November 22, 2012
Both parties’ tax plans would add to the deficit
The "fiscal cliff" debate in Washington has been cast as a choice between runaway Democratic spending and draconian Republican cuts, but no matter who wins the argument, both parties' tax plans add to the deficit — by a minimum of $4.3 trillion through 2022, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Published November 18, 2012
GOP: Ryan plan must be bolder
Returning to a new postelection reality on Capitol Hill, House Republicans say Rep. Paul Ryan will continue to be a major player with their caucus after his failed bid as Mitt Romney's running mate, but that the budget he pushed through the House the past two years no longer does enough to clean up the nation's fiscal mess. Published November 14, 2012
Tea partyers say GOP must learn from defeat
Slamming the Republican Party establishment for tapping Mitt Romney as its standard-bearer, the co-founder of the nation's largest tea party group said Wednesday the lessons learned from the 2012 presidential election will strengthen the grass-roots movement, making it an even more important part of the GOP's future. Published November 7, 2012
ELECTION 2012: Romney, Ryan make two final campaign stops
Not content to let Election Day play out on its own, Republican Mitt Romney and running mate Paul Ryan touched on two big battleground states before heading to Boston to await the voters' decision. Published November 6, 2012
ELECTION 2012: Romney’s bid brings Mormons to political forefront
Mitt Romney's run for president in 2012 has blazed a new path for Mormons, making him the first member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to fight his way to the top of a major-party ticket and into the hearts of millions of Americans on the biggest of political stages. Published November 6, 2012
Obama, Romney rush to the finish with battleground state stops
Running at a breakneck pace in what is shaping up to be one of the tightest presidential battles in American history, President Obama and Mitt Romney spent the last full day of the campaign scouring the country for additional votes, and calling on their troops to give them the ground support they need to capture the White House. Published November 5, 2012
Romney pledges ‘real change’ that will end partisan gridlock
Darting across eight battleground states, Mitt Romney spent the final weekend of the presidential race delivering a muscular critique of the Obama administration and saying he is uniquely qualified to end the partisan gridlock in Washington that threatens to push the country into a double-dip recession. Published November 4, 2012
Romney casts himself as uniter, Obama as divider
On the heels of a new poll showing him struggling to make inroads in Ohio, Mitt Romney stumped in New Hampshire, Iowa and here in Colorado on Saturday, telling tens of thousands of voters in the battleground states that four more years of President Obama would generate more of the partisan gridlock that has slowed the nation's economic recovery and hurt the jobs market. Published November 3, 2012
Romney: Don’t ‘settle’ for 4 more years of Obama and another recession
Mitt Romney kicked off Friday with the ringing public endorsement from Green Bay Packers football legend Bart Starr and ended with a rally that featured musician Kid Rock and more than a dozen of the nation's most high-profile Republican figures. Published November 2, 2012
Romney’s message largely in tact: Jobs, jobs, jobs
Subtract the jokes about corn qualifying as amber waves of grain, and Mitt Romney's basic message to voters — captured in his standard 20-minute stump speech — remains remarkably the same today as it was a year ago in the frozen cornfields of Iowa: He's the government turnaround artist the country has been waiting for. Published November 1, 2012
Romney stumps in Florida, pledges to ‘bring real change’
For the first time since superstorm Sandy walloped the East Coast, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney returned to full campaign mode Wednesday in the key battleground state of Florida, where he toned down his attacks against President Obama while touting an optimistic message that centered on his plans for strengthening the economy and nurturing bipartisanship in Washington. Published October 31, 2012
Romney balances sympathy, politics in Ohio
Walking a political tightrope, Mitt Romney made a stop here Tuesday and tried to strike a delicate balance between showing sympathy for those suffering in the wake of Hurricane Sandy and fulfilling the duties of his current job: Republican Party presidential nominee. Published October 30, 2012
Romney embraces executive authority
Facing off in last week's foreign policy debate, Mitt Romney nodded in agreement with much of what President Obama has done with his powers as chief executive — including a full-on embrace of the president's claim to sole authority to expand drone strikes to kill terrorist suspects. Published October 29, 2012
Reid would test Romney vow of bipartisanship
In the waning days of the election, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney is playing up his bipartisan prowess, wooing voters with the notion that he will be the post-partisan leader that President Obama promised but failed to be. Published October 28, 2012
