Elections in the US, specially presidential elections, have always been mystifying for Europeans, though little by little some European politicians are beginning to copy some aspects of it, like introducing families, and making their lives known to their constituents. Still there is a lot to catch up if in reality they want to transform their elections into the circus attractions and even the nastiness the American elections end up turning into. Right now, prior to the elections in November, the Democrats having only the incumbent president as a nominee, are not yet campaigning in full force, though President Obama is beginning to court possible voters and even turning nastier than before against the Republican runners. These, a group of peculiar politicians have been debating and insulting each other and their records in public and private lives with relish until the primaries started. The first state to vote was Iowa where Mitt Romney won and Michelle Bachmann who came on last quit; then it was New Hampshire were Romney also had the top position following by Ron Paul and Jon Huntsman. Gingrich and Santorum were left at the bottom but still full of energy to smear the record of the others. And in the midst of this all came the attacks on Europe. All the candidates tried hard to contrast the economic system of the US with what they call Europe’s welfare state. The Republicans accusing Obama of taking the country towards the European way of an entitlement society. This is ridiculous as the Democrats know well that nobody will be elected president of the US if they were to try to make the country more like Europe. So Obama and his party have said that such a thing would be a disaster.
And among all this, in a last ditch effort to stop Romney for winning the Republican nomination, one of his rivals for it, Newt Gingrich, has picked France,as the country that epitomizes all that they consider wrong with Europe, to attack him. The reason Gingrich has given to avoid people voting for Romney is that he speaks French! It would seem that in his youth, as it is normal among the Mormons, Romney was sent as a worker for his faith abroad and he lived for two years in France. On to South Carolina, the next primary.
Related posts:
