Friday, August 17. In response to the question posed by Rachel to her guest Steve Kornacki, why did the Republicans choose Ryan (if they won't let him be himself)? The answer I see as obvious was not given. I think the one "positive" that came from the Ryan choice was an immediate and significant boost to campaign donations. Maybe the PR hasn't been working out so great, but they are raking in the money which they believe will buy them the election, one way or another. So it doesn't matter that the Republican candidates will only speak in platitudes about non-existent policy plans, they don't need to do more than bandy around key phrases and baseless accusations that their followers are eager to lap up. They are buying the election and doing an incredibly good job of keeping their opponents home on election day. I do hope they will continue to be hounded about tax returns. The story about Ryan's insider trading should be a good way to segue back to the story about the abuse of power by politicians for their personal gain, i.e. tax evasion and/or loopholes

Ryan will be overcoming history if he and Romney are elected in November. The last sitting House member to be elected to the vice presidency was John Nance Garner in 1932. And you almost have to put an asterisk by that one. FDR could probably have picked the Poughkeepsie Director of Sanitation as his running mate and won, as unpopular as Hoover was by November of that year.

The last Republican House member to be part of a winning ticket was James S. Sherman in 1908. As in 104 years ago. Four years after the hot dog and ice cream cone were invented at the St. Louis World's Fair. He was William Howard Taft's VP pick. (Sherman didn't live through Taft's single presidential term.)

It is not Romney's desire to discuss and debate the issues. And it's quite clear that he has no desire to talk about the specifics of his past policies or his current policy positions. He has no intention of discussing at length his time at Bain, his governorship, his tenure at the Olympics, his Mormon faith, his offshore accounts, his tax records or anything else. The shroud of secrecy that surrounds the Romney campaign is designed to provide the maximal flexibility to avoid specifics so that they muddy the waters on every issue.

The piece about Dan Senor, "War excluded from campaign talk as Romney hires Bush Iraq spokesman" is broken at 0:27 — is there any way to see the rest of it?

It almost makes me wonder, if the Powers That Be are hacking you guys, as in "excluded from campaign coverage" too!

I have a couple of questions. Is it strange to anyone else that Gov. Romney never says the words federal and income when referring to his taxes? I'm sure he's paid all kinds of property, sales, and state taxes. Is the paltry 13% he claims what he paid in federal income tax? And if so, wouldn't Ryan's budget plan, by eliminating taxes on capital gains, and considering that Mitt has declared that capital gains are virtually all his income, eliminate the rest of his tax burden? That's assuming they didn't eliminate off shore tax shelters and multimillion IRA's.

Obviously Mr. Romney thinks that since he got away with lying about his tax returns and won the governorship of Massachusetts, he should be able to lie about his tax returns and win the Presidency. I don't understand why the people of Massachusetts elected him when he not only lied to them, but did not qualify to run under the MA Constitution? How was he even allowed to run? Does no one oversee elections in MA?

During Rachel's segment with Steve K, she says she thinks the presidential race was the "Republicans' for the taking" and that only Romney's incompetence will prevent it...REALLY?!?! I agree that Romney's campaign seems to be truly, amazingly incompetent, but I think it was always going to be a race to the end!! Thankfully, it is looking less and less likely that Romney/Ryan have any chance of winning except for voter suppression and the obscene amounts of money they are going to throw at it. (Is there any chance that the money spent on the campaigns might actually help the economy while trying to buy an election???) I agree with Heartlight3 - why was Romney allowed to run for MA governor??? I do NOT trust Romney to tell the truth about his tax returns - he didn't tell the truth to MA, why would he bother to tell us the truth???

Seems RandR have some things in common like flip flops and memory lapses.

I do realize that the right hates historical facts that are contrary to their agenda but for them to ignore what they themselves said a minute ago while reversing their take is a bit too much.

Poor little rich folk.Life was so much better in the sixteenth century.

Just to keep things in perspective amidst all the whining here... There is a piece floating around about the new Islamic regime in Egypt crucifying Christians. That seems unlikely, yet plausible.

Flame of the day from the NYT letter section . The definitive Ryan:

Ryan is the one who voted for a massive prescription drug Medicare entitlement, the Bush tax cuts and two wars without paying for any of them. He is even sorrier about this than he is about the stimulus."

He is even sorrier that he got stimulus money for his district and argued in recently disclosed letters that it would create jobs, the opposite of what he told the public. He is most sorry that he got caught being hypocritical and a liar and looking like a normal two-faced Republican congressman.

There was a lot of negative chatter about Ryan last night and all week on TRMS. Yet the Romney camapign gained 10.2 million dollars in 6 day's time. 7.2 I understand in 3 days. Not too shabby for such a "poor selection".

BTW. Where's Joe Biden these days? Does he think being in Deleware is the same as being in Virginia..............that he's in North Carolina.

Gallop has Romney UP since last week. How many states had umemployment go UP in July? 44. Forty Four out of Obama's 57 Fifty Seven! Wonder how many msnbc hosts actually believe there ARE 57 states in the US? Meanwhile, Biden is back in Deleware trying to figure that one out. "Forty Four, Fifty Seven, which number is North Carolina?" "And where the hell am I?"

Between Biden's gaffes and Toure's n@@ization comment and Obama's Chicago Styled mudslinging things are really beginning to appear like gloom & doom for the O Team. Question, is it time for TRMS to hit the "panic button?"

I am picturiing a very funny campaign ad for Romney.

Obama & Biden in a wheelchair (with a Hope & Change and Forward bumper sticker on either side of the rear of the wheelchair), being pushed by Paul Ryan............directly towards a cliff.

Just as they go over arms flailing screaming "give us your tax returns!" , a voice is heard,

"I'm Mitt Romney and I approve this message"

Suffolk University released a very interesting study today, about non-voters and likely non-voters in the upcoming election. TRMS might want to look into this. It's in USA Today, and the press release is titled, "Obama Would Cruise to Victory if Non-Voters Participate."

They go into detail about all the reasons people don't vote, and it's very interesting. It also sheds a new light on the Voter ID laws and closing of early polling. It might not just be about racial discrimination, y'know (although that is definitely a factor and we all know it); it might also have to do with trying to keep the non-voters non-voting.

Food for thought.

I think Romney chose Ryan because that was the deal he made with Ron Paul for delegates and controlling them, his silence and a unanimous convention. Why are they muzzling Ryan? Because elections are about deceiving the moderates. And this strategy worked well in the two California governor races when Arnold "the Democrat"Schwarzenegger ran and was twice elected as a Republican in what is basicallya Democratic state. The California Republican's candidate won the election by 1) bashing the Democratic opponent; 2) promising a plan that would fix the state's fiscal and economic problems; 3) offering no details; 4) demanding that the voters "trust him;" and 5) in the first election, saying nothing except "I will do better than the present governor - trust me"; and 6) in the second election, promising things that sounded very much like a Democrat. The Republican's strategy to capture the White House is looking very much like their previous winning strategy which they successfully used to capture the governorship of the great State of California twice by Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In the article above labelled "Paul Ryan Slams Obama For Not Saving Auto Plant That Closed Under Bush", there is a link to a Mitt Romney article at NYT called "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt" (dated November 18, 2008). Down the end is a paragraph starting with "It is not wrong to ask for government help, but....".

What changed in 4 years?

Dear TRMS crew,

So you double check. And some of you triple check, and some of you just can not stop checking !!

But , have not you heard of caring-to-much. . .! ?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ok. . . .I made that up. . . I never heard of it either. .

I stand corrected. .

Ok. . . . . . . ..What If . . . . . .,

Men are from Mars , and Women are from Venus , Than on what planet does Spinoza live ??

Spinoza, the jew that all humanity wanted to hate and kill, because he was too honest. . . Ouch. . . Jews that teach honestly !! ?? No Way !!, I never heard of it ?? Is it even possible ?. . . .?. . . .never see no Christian going that way. .admitting any thing ,. . . or . . .not . . .

This is the vicious cycle that the Republicans and rich people are doing. They complain about the poor being too lazy to work, then want to pay the poor less. But when you see the actual jobs that the poor are doing such as picking crops, doing janitorial services, maid services, even in the construction industry where they have hired immigrants on very cheap wages, and any other jobs what they call low grade work, you know poor people are not lazy at all. Poor people are doing some of the most difficult and hard work in America. If anybody is lazy on this, it is the very people complaining about the poor. In reality, it is these very Republicans and wealthy that on purpose make these excuses so they can pay a lot less in wages, benefits, and taxes where they have done barely any work at all to get more wealth. Republicans and wealthy have been some of the biggest slackers when it comes to real work and suck off the government all the time as they keep lining their pockets with more and more cash with no stopping to it. These Republicans and wealthy are really making some really poor excuses to justify their existence and to screw people out of sustainable living conditions and the pursuit of happiness. Everything, if you really take a look, is an outright dictatorship that the Republicans and wealthy are pulling and not even close to a Democracy. These Republicans and wealthy remind me of those old days in the old South where they sat on their porches drinking lemonades complaining their slaves are too lazy and not working fast enough in the Summer heat.

Mitt says it is about jobs but has no real ideas.

Face up to the facts Mitt! You and your party have been taken over by loons that want to use you to take government away from the people and give it to the Church. They want corporate money to buy the USA and make us all dependent upon church programs.

All this social engineering going on by the republican party in direct contradiction to the very principles the founding fathers expressed. No! We are not a republic but a democracy and no! We are not a theocracy nor do we wish to become one. Until we push back against the voter suppression and the anti-crowd we are in danger of losing our freedom and liberty.

The GOP has drawn the line and we better cross over it! VOTE. If they try to stop you then fight back! It is unconstitutional to deny any citizen his right and his duty to vote.Vote these crooks out and make sure those you vote for will reverse bad law like personhood or voter ID.

Oe you can watch as your rights get trashed.

If the entire state of Michigan is threatened with bankruptcy does it becoome a Dictatorship; Call it like it is Rachel, like Benton Harbor. Where in the Constitution dies it state if you mismanage your finances you become China or Cuba? If it works best for Benton Harbor and Pointiac Michigan; why would it not be best for the rest of the Country? Please don't tell me that the Republicans have always been secret admirers of Fidel Castro and Chairman Mao.

Romney paid 14% in federal taxes in 2010, including payroll taxes. The typical small businessman paid 28%.

Calculation: typical small business earns $75,000 pays 12.8% federal tax (per Joint Commitee on Taxation) plus 12.4% social security and 2.9% medical self-employment taxes.

This is a bit late and sorry about that but I DVR'd her show and watched on Saturday and been busy since. But I want to pose a question about the Veterans Administration Building housing ALL those records to the point that the floors are sagging under an extra 36 pounds per square foot.

Why hasn't this building collapsed yet?

Building 7...of the WTC...anyone remember this building? I KNOW it was not mentioned in the BUSH-CHENEY avoid at all costs Report that was put out...not a single sentence about it in there, despite being described as a "Complete" investigation into 911.

Building 7 came down in 7.6 SECONDS in as NIST has finally admitted in "free-fall acceleration". That building was the STRONGEST building of all seven built back then. It was the Federal Building housing ALL the SEC documents to the Enron and other stock scandals that had been ongoing for some time.

There were NO FLOORS sagging there. Just one single lonely beam...so NIST said...and the whole 42 stories came tumbling down into its OWN footprint. Not even a single piece of steel landed on the Post Office sidewalk next door. And NIST still says and still has NEVER tested ANY other of the many remaining pieces of 911 for explosives.

So...with the Veterans Building floors sagging, the beams are bent...

Why doesn't THIS building collapse when it has more damage to it's infrastructure due to weight than Bldg 7? Also...Buildings 3, 4, 5 was a 22 Story Hotel and only top two floors were damaged, and also building 6 of the WTC had the ENTIRE two towers 1,2 fall down atop them...yet THEY ... all 4 buildings did NOT collapse despite fires and damage?

btw..Building 7 was NOT hit by an airplane, nor by ANY of the debris that fell on surrounding buildings and the 4 above mentioned buildings of 3,4,5 and 6.

If buildings FALL because of "structure failure" acc to NIST...why isn't the Veterans Building with Sagging floors not falling at "Free-Fall Acceleration"???

You can't have it both ways in SCIENCE...either the building is weakened and falls...or it is EXPLOSIVELY brought down like 3,4,5 and 6 were during the clean-up. NIST never tested a single piece of evidence for explosives. period. Still have not and will not. USGS did and found Military grade Nano-Thermite.

So why is the Veterans Building still standing?

Bob...?