Seth McLaughlin
Articles by Seth McLaughlin
Obama camp looking for answers in aftermath
Mitt Romney's debate performance continued to wear well Thursday as President Obama's backers searched for answers to what went wrong with their candidate, who voters and pundits alike said lacked the magic that captivated the country in 2008. Published October 4, 2012
Debates not last word on presidential race
The presidential debates may be the biggest news events between now and Election Day, but with two monthly jobs reports, the final deficit tally and several other end-of-the-fiscal-year numbers due, the calendar is littered with other potential political land mines. Published October 3, 2012
Presidential debate ritual is great equalizer for incumbent, challenger
Call it the built-in gravitas gap: President Obama flies the country in a grand 747, cruises in plush limousines adorned with American flags, and speaks from the White House Rose Garden, while his campaign opponent, Mitt Romney, flies in a smaller MD-83 passenger jet, rides in nondescript SUVs and makes speeches at factories and strip malls. Published October 2, 2012
Romney won’t deport illegal immigrants with temporary legal status
Moving to soften his immigration stance ever so slightly, Mitt Romney said this week he will not immediately deport the illegal immigrants granted tentative legal status by President Obama — and the Republican nominee also set a soft deadline for getting a broader immigration bill done in 18 months. Published October 2, 2012
Romney insists Pa. in play in November
Mitt Romney courted military cadets and top-dollar donors on Friday as he declared Pennsylvania up for grabs in the November election — a state where the campaign is not running television ads and where poll numbers suggest that Friday's pit stop appeared to be more about raising the money needed to compete in more hotly-contested battleground states. Published September 28, 2012
Obama, Romney move battle to Virginia for military votes
President Obama and Republican rival Mitt Romney each trolled for military votes Thursday in the critical swing state of Virginia, and although polls show Mr. Obama with a slight edge overall in the state, he is having trouble convincing veterans that he should remain their commander in chief. Published September 27, 2012
Romney, Obama locked in a duel for Ohio’s working-class voters
Scrambling to regain his footing in the Buckeye State, Mitt Romney enlisted the help Wednesday of a golf legend and a television star with the sort of blue-collar credentials that could resonate with the state's working-class voters. President Obama, meanwhile, made his own Ohio pitch to college crowds at Bowling Green and Kent State. Published September 26, 2012
Romney tax release appears to undercut Democratic charges
Seeking to put to rest lingering questions about his tax history, GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney on Friday released his 2011 tax return as well as a 20-year "summary" of what he has paid to the IRS – a financial history, as told by tax preparers, that appears to punch a hole in Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid’s claim that the Republican presidential nominee avoided paying federal income taxes for more than a decade. Published September 21, 2012
Romney campaign zeroes in on Florida
Mitt Romney told a Florida crowd Thursday that he — not President Obama — is the real agent of "change" in the 2012 election as the Republican presidential nominee tried to win over voters in a state that's joined Ohio as key bellwethers in presidential elections. Published September 20, 2012
Nondeportation trips up Romney
President Obama's nondeportation policy continued to tie Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney in knots Wednesday as he struggled to find a stance that can appeal to Hispanic voters while not angering his own conservative base. Published September 19, 2012
On the attack, Romney slams Obama’s ‘government-centered’ approach
Far from backing away, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and his campaign are embracing his claim that nearly half of Americans are dependent on government as they seek to frame the race as a choice between the GOP's wealth-creation policies and what they called President Obama's wealth-redistribution message. Published September 19, 2012
Romney, in damage-control mode, takes on Obama’s views on wealth
Mitt Romney on Tuesday said that President Obama's economic vision embraces the notion that government is an instrument to be used to redistribute people's hard-earned money as the Republican presidential candidate tried to curtail political damage from caught-on-camera comments that indicated he has written off nearly half of the electorate. Published September 18, 2012
Romney campaign gets down to specifics
Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney will recalibrate his message over the final weeks of the race, his campaign said Monday, putting a "new emphasis" on the "specific aspects" of his policy prescriptions for strengthening the nation's economy and foreign policy abroad. Published September 17, 2012
Fundraisers, not voters, attract nominees to opposition states
Mitt Romney made the more-than-2,200-mile journey last week from Reno, Nev., to Jacksonville, Fla., to appear at the only event he had penciled in for the following day: a fundraiser where guests ponied up as much as $50,000 to see the former governor up close and personal. Published September 16, 2012
Obama’s convention bounce begins to fade
President Obama came out of his nominating convention surging in the polls, both nationally and in key states he will need to carry to win in the Electoral College — but the high already is beginning to fade, and pollsters said he didn't fundamentally alter what's still a neck-and-neck race. Published September 16, 2012
Romney blasts Obama’s foreign policy
Mitt Romney, the GOP presidential nominee, challenged President Obama's foreign policy chops on Thursday, telling supporters that the Democrat has sent mixed message to the world and said the United States "must protect the embassies of our nation." Published September 14, 2012
Mitt Romney picks Snooki; Ann opens up about scantily clad George Bush
Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential nominee, said Friday that he prefers Snooki over Honey Boo Boo because of her "spark-plug personality," wants actor Gene Hackman to play him in a movie and that he wears "as little as possible" to bed. Published September 14, 2012
Romney rips Obama’s China policy, shies away from Middle East unrest
A day after blasting the Obama administration's response to the attacks on diplomatic posts in the Middle East, Mitt Romney pivoted back to the economy Thursday, taking particular aim at what he sees as President Obama's soft approach toward China. Published September 13, 2012
Romney hammers Obama over response to assaults on diplomatic missions
Mitt Romney hammered the Obama administration Wednesday for not immediately condemning the violent mobs that stormed U.S. diplomatic posts in the Middle East and left four Americans dead, including the ambassador to Libya. Published September 12, 2012
Romney: ‘Repair, rebuild’ military
Observing an unofficial Sept. 11 "truce," Mitt Romney didn't directly blast President Obama Tuesday in a speech to the National Guard Association Conference. But the Republican presidential nominee vowed to reverse his Democratic opponent's planned cuts in military spending. Published September 11, 2012
