Okay, let me just tell you...

[Vernon Windsor]

I worked on the Obama campaign. I put myself in a self-imposed media vacuum for the last four days of the election. I just figuratively put myself in the harness, put my head down and pulled. Once the objective had been reached, I crashed like a salmon after spawning. After finally waking up, I decided I needed some light-hearted entertainment—so I turned on Fox News.

Oh my goodness! I must admit it was somewhat satisfying to see the Fox News universe running around, banging into each other and tearing their hair out. I was also vindicating to see that Karl Rove even lies to his own billionaire donors (and quite likely to himself). It was amazing to see how unwilling he was to even acknowledge the truth of the election results even when it was happening in real time.

Lies, built on lies, covered in lies, fried in lies, seasoned with lies, eaten with lies, and finally washed down with a giant glass of lies. That's Fox News. And they're still doing it, even today.

To all the denizens of TBD that have been talking smack about how badly the GOP was going to stomp all over President Obama and the Democrats I just want to point out three things: 1) 332 electoral college votes and a sweep of all battleground states except one ; 2) a decisive popular vote victory; and 3) your duly elected president of the United States of America for the next four years is a Hawaiian-born, African American man named Barack Hussein Obama. All of which proves that, at least sometimes, America isn't stupid and all elections can't be bought.

Ain't life grand?

[Scott Free]

The key to President Barack Obama’s narrow victory of the popular vote and electoral landslide lies in the changing demographics of the U.S. This was an election that Republicans had every chance of winning, but they blazed a path of self-destruction beginning in 2010 with legislation that alienated the non-white male base. They created laws like the Arizona immigration law and attempted to pass legislation redefining rape.

In the GOP primary Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney had to run to the right of his opponents and become a severe conservative to have a shot at winning the nomination. Romney pledged he would solve illegal immigration by self-deportation, and he got caught in the quagmire of the contraception debate. Let’s not forget the GOP senate candidates and their several rape comments and the voter ID laws. The Obama team and Democrats pounced on these flubs by Romney and other republicans in an effort to build a winning coalition.

Despite these factors, Obama faced the real possibility that minorities and young voters would stay home and the electorate would look more like 2004 not 2008. This is where the President’s superior ground game paid dividends. Organizing for America created a massive voter registration effort and registered hundreds of thousands of minorities and women. The Obama team was able to win because he recreated the 2008 demographics by a strong get out the vote effort. We saw more young voters, 19 percent up from 18 percent in 2008, more Hispanics, 10 percent up from 9 percent in 2008, and less white voters, 72 percent down from 74 percent in 2008. The President’s support from minorities, women and young voters allowed him to lose the white vote by 20 points and still win the popular vote. This support created an electoral firewall that Romney could not overcome. Romney had to campaign in states that were once reliably republican such as Virginia and Nevada only to lose due to the changing demographics of this country.

The 47% comment caught on video, his failure to connect to many of the other 99%, his pledge to get rid of Planned Parenthood, were other factors that ultimately led to his demise. His Vice Presidential choice of Ryan (who was supposed to garner votes from the mid America battleground states) was in retrospect a poor choice all contributed to the loss. It was never about a single issue. It was many issues.

But at the end of the day, when you looked at the two ballrooms where the victory/concession speeches were to have taken place, you would not have been able to prevent yourself from noticing that the Republican ballroom was replete with white people all dressed up with coats and ties and ladies in cocktail dresses and the Democrat ballroom was a cross section of America, poor and rich, a rainbow of "people" colors, and basic desire apparently to meet in the middle. Unless Republicans change some of their WASP views, they will simply become irrelevant at some point to the ever changing face of America.

[EastSider]

Vernon, your whit went way over my simple white man's head. Specifically this statement: "White men voted their race evidently. Everyone else knew better." Perhaps I was really confused, and it was the President's white half that I voted for. But yes, your point was pretty clear.

[Vernon Windsor]

EastSider, your literal reading of my post makes me smile, but I guess I made my point. Lynx River, blogs get posted on the front page by the most recent. Nothing has changed in that regard. Secondly, you are very mistaken if what you think you are reading here is a "flame war." This is a discussion about whether I would have supported Mitt Romney if he was black. I didn't bring it up. I won't allow the assertion to go unchallenged. The argument is...well...you know.

[EastSider]

Darooll: there is absolutely no proof that blacks voted their race. If you look at the history of black vote in the US, you will see that it peaked in 1964 with nearly 95% for a Democrat in the presidential race. Since that election, it averaged 90%. The Obama black vote is not even the high watermark.

On the other hand, it would be denying the truth to claim that racist whites, did not vote their race. Check out the numbers. I say racist whites, because I disagree with Vernon's sweeping characterization that whites voted their race.

BTW, when you say that you're a racist for not voting for Romney because he's a Mormon, that's not exactly true. That makes you a sectarian bigot. Opposing Obama for no reason other than his race, would make a racist. Congratulations.

It's sort of like this woman who tweeted that she's moving to Australia because their President is a Christian, and "he" does what he promises.

[Lynx River]

Gee Whiz. I haven't been on here in a year.
This is the sort of thing that is posting right on the front page?
When I was a regular year, this sort of discussion would be off in a forum.
The home page was for the "touchy feely, welcome aboard" stuff.
Starting a flame war like this on the page people see first is a sure way ensure people don't come back.
Darryl, and those pissing and moaning along with him, should know that.
And the moderators should know that too.

[darroll]

I don't want a Robin Hood Prez taking my retirement money and giving it to a free-loader. I don't waste anything, what gives our elected people (democrats) the power to constantly buy dead horses and pass the bill to the tax payers..
The election is over and I don’t think we got robbed or cheated, we beat ourselves.

[Vernon Windsor]

By the way, a poll is always taken. White men voted their race evidently. Everyone else knew better. You still didn't answer my question. You are Christian, I assume (or at least what passes for it nowdays). Why didn't you vote for the Christian presidential candidate since you didn't like the Mormon? Why didn't you vote for the white half of Barack Obama? Why didn't you evaluate the candidate on something that might matter to the nation as a whole. Why do you think you would know who I would have campaigned for on the basis of race, or any other basis for that matter? Your comment says a lot about you, and very little about me. But you know that, don't you?

[darroll]

I know what comment you are trying to get out of me.
When I go on the dole, I will vote myself a raise and vote for a democrat.
By the way a poll was taken, Blacks did vote their race.

[Vernon Windsor]

Why didn't you vote for Barack Obama because he is a Christian, Darroll?

[darroll]

I voted for McCain because he was a veteran.

I didn’t vote for Romney because he was a Mormon.

I guess that I am racist.