Free Republic

The debate between former vice president Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) was entirely unnecessary given that Sanders is all but eliminated as a serious contender. He continues to take money from donors and encourage others to congregate (for example, phone banking), which is neither reasonable nor responsible. The debate changed nothing and suggests Sanders should have exited the race. Biden made real news committing to pick a woman as vice president. Biden also promised to nominate an African American woman to the Supreme Court. Sanders tried to argue about Biden’s past votes on the Hyde Amendment, which restricts...

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) was asked, point-blank, what she thought of a report in The Washington Post that accuses former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg of "making crass remarks, objectifying women and creating a sexist culture in the workplace." Although Bloomberg has denied the allegations, Klobuchar said he needs to stop hiding behind massive ad buys and sit down on a TV show and answer questions.

Will it work? Update: initial reports suggested Trump had already spent $60 million on ads. That’s not the case. Today’s buy total just $4 million, but more is to come. The eventual total has not been announced. The piece has been altered to reflect this. Here in Michigan, we don’t see too many Presidential campaign ads. That’s because, at least in terms of the top of the ticket, Democrats have dominated the state since 1988. Those of you who live in battleground states? I feel your pain.

Trump set more than one record during the primary season. The most talked about is his earning more primary votes than any other candidate in the history of the republican primary system. Trump excelled in another category as well. He spent far less than any of his major opponents. It should be noted that not every dollar of spending is for advertising, but it is a significant part of total spending for most candidates. Numerous articles were written on Jeb Bush's scorched earth TV campaign that spent tens of millions and yielded so little in terms of results. During that...

Planned Parenthood, endorsing President Obama Wednesday morning, went after Mitt Romney out of the gate with a new ad buy in crucial swing states accusing the Republican candidate of undermining women's rights. Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/05/30/planned-parenthood-targets-romney-with-new-swing-state-ad-buy/#ixzz1wNMGXP3G

RICHMOND -- Gov. Mark R. Warner suggested Friday that fellow Democrat and their party's presidential nominee, John Kerry, pay attention to something besides poll numbers when it came to investing in Virginia. The campaign, he said, should give more credence to the enthusiasm that Virginia Democrats are showing this year at rallies and headquarters openings. "There are other states more significant, more important, to their electoral strategy," Warner conceded. "We're one of the states on the bubble, and I think they underestimate the enthusiasm Virginia Democrats feel this year." The Kerry campaign will not purchase television ads in Virginia, at...

THE TEA-LEAVES OF AD BUYS Every campaign season, one hears of mysterious and almost-never-leaked "internal polls" by campaigns. Sometimes these etherial, mysterious forces are cited as a cause for optimism... "Yes, forty-nine percent of respondents say they would rather elect a cabbage than our candidate, but our internal polls show this number much lower." Here's a great example from Sid Blumenthal today: Both John Kerry's and Bush's internal polls gave Bush only a four-point lead. (Quick observation: Uh-huh. One is supposed to believe that while Kerry Spot has to pull teeth to get stuff out of the Kerry campaign,...

WASHINGTON - After months of pledging to contest President Bush in every region of the country, Sen. John Kerry and Democrats are limiting television advertising to 14 battleground states as the fall campaign opens. The shift bumps GOP-leaning Missouri, Colorado, Arizona and several Southern states off the political playing field - at least for now - and gives Bush reason to consider moving money from some of those states to others that historically trend Democratic. Both presidential campaigns are honing their strategies now at the start of the election homestretch. That's when budgets grow tighter, forcing campaigns to pick and...