And the Winner is....

No Surprise, I along with my followers and a majority of the people who saw the debate on Wednesday would say that Romney won hands down. He was a little more combative than i would really care for and walked over the moderator at many points. It doesn't matter how you win just that in the end you win. He has been the talk of the media all weekend and this week.

Romney saw a bump in the polls and the shrinkage of President Obama's lead in many of the swing states as the debate effects take hold. The Election is obviously becoming much more competitive in these final 30 days. Romney is riding a new head of steam now following the win in last Wednesday's debate that will no doubt carry into the VP Debate. Romney has seen his critics on the right pull an about face and they are now some of the strongest voices defending him in the past few days.

The strong comeback kid theme seems to be building around Romney and his campaign. They have effectively shaken off the 47% comments and begin to challenge Obama on foreign policy in a convincing manner. It seems that he campaign is beginning to shape the conversation to prepare for the next debate. With these new statements on foreign policy Romney is posturing to offer his view on what can be done to protect Israel and create a more stable middle east.

The entire next debate is completely on foreign policy and thus thus will be what we hear about in the news next week, after the VP Debate that is.

It will be interesting to see what the Obama team comes up with in the next few days to combat the failure in the debate and prep for the next one. I have heard of many excuses that were given to try to explain the failure and by far the oddest was Al Gore's state that the President was effected by the altitude in Denver. Yea I have heard of this being an issue but its not like Obama has never visited the city for a day.

All excuses aside Obama just fell flat and will need to work to prepare better and come out guns a blazing in the next debate to hold on to his lead. In the mean time lets all get geared up for the Vice Presidential debate on Thursday.

Congress Leaves Unfinished Business!

Generally it is this time of year where we hear Congressmen and women coming back to their district touting the work they have completed in the past session. This year all I hear about is the list of unfinished business left back in Washington. It is the longest I have ever seen.

No Solution to the Fiscal Cliff 

No Farm Bill

No Real Budget Reform

No Solution to the Debt Ceiling

No Defense Re-authorization

All these issues must now be dealt with in an abbreviated lame-duck session following the election. With leaving these issues to the election they are poised to be huge election topics. It is sad that policies that could help so many Americans are held up for no reason. In the past session we have seen healthcare repeal acts, that have gone no where, passed 33 times while other crucial issues such as the approaching Fiscal Cliff and the new Farm Bill have not received the attention that they deserve.

The Fiscal Cliff is the compilation of Bush Era Tax Cuts that are set to expire at the same time as $100 billion Spending Cuts go into effect. Many economic experts fear that these both will cause the US to fall into another recession. Legislators are on record calling for the needed action to prevent the Fiscal Cliff  as soon as possible, yet nothing has been done. Now its up to a lame-duck Congress to sort out following November 6th.

Neither side is more at fault than the other for these issues not being completed in the previous session. The partisan bickering on both the Left and the Right have held up needed reforms for the bast 2 years. It is no wonder why Congress's approval rating is at 13%.

We truly need our elected officials to come back after the election and work together otherwise I fear even less will get done in the next session of Congress.

What Party?

For those of you who have never thought about what party you fall under or are confused on the issues I have just what you need.

In my search for a good party identifying tool I found the Pew Research Centers Political Party Quiz. "The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. The center conducts public opinion polling, demographic studies, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. It does not take positions on policy issues."

I have used the center multiple times in the past for research on college projects and just to stay up to date on the facts that are circulating in the media. I took this quiz and was surprised to find where I fall in the political spectrum and I know it will help my readers.

Take the quiz and let me know what your response to the results. Are you a member of the party you thought you were? Were you surprised about the results? Why do you think you received the party you did? What effect if any will this have on your political views in the future?

Link to Political Party Quiz