Saudi Arabia and India agree to study feasibility of establishing power grid    Saudi Awwal Bank records SR5.9 billion net profit after Zakat and Income Tax for YTD Q3    Economy minister emphasizes global partnerships to address pressing challenges Private investments in non-oil sector soar 70%    Saudi Arabia's GDP grows 2.8% in Q3, driven by non-oil sectors    PIF, HKMA sign MoU to establish $1 billion investment fund    Israeli soldiers forced Palestinian men to take off clothes as they evacuated war-torn Jabalya    North Korea fires suspected intercontinental missile    India celebrates Diwali, the festival of lights    'It was like a tsunami': Spaniards recount horror of deadly floods    Bahrain Crown Prince receives Saudi Interior Minister    In-person classes will remain suspended in Jeddah, Rabigh and Khulais schools on Thursday    HR Ministry takes penal action against 568 violators of Domestic Workers' Regulation    Derby Week makes its debut in the Roshn Saudi League    Al Nassr eliminated from King's Cup after a defeat to Al Taawoun    Teri Garr, Young Frankenstein and Tootsie star, dies at 79    Othman Al Omeir receives Legacy of Change Medal at the UK Parliament for advocacy in media    Neymar joins Saudi fashion trend, donning traditional attire at Al Hilal match    Indonesia Days event celebrates cultural diversity at Al Suwaidi Park    Saudi Football Federation reappoints Hervé Renard to lead national team    Tarzan star Ron Ely dies aged 86    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Muted Eid celebrations for millions of Nigerian Muslims    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







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Ayoon Wa Azan (In All Countries, People Vote With Their Pockets In Mind) (06-03-12)
Published in AL HAYAT on 06 - 03 - 2012

Today is Super Tuesday, or the day when the Republicans vote in ten U.S. states for their candidate for the U.S. Presidency. Although the day will not end with the contest having been settled once and for all, I believe it highly likely that Mitt Romney will remain ahead of the other contenders, not because he is the best candidate, but because he is the least bad among them. In fact, this is what has made many prominent Republicans in Congress and outside rally around Romney on the eve of the vote.
The traditional leadership of the Republican Party wants their candidate to be Romney, so much so that I read that the results of the ballot among the party members in the state of Maine were rigged in favor of Romney – i.e. in line with the Arabs' style in rigging their election results.
Perhaps the GOP leadership realizes that Romney is not an ideal candidate for the presidency, but that he is the best one available. Indeed, the competition is now confined between him and Rick Santorum, with Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul trailing behind.
If Barack Obama was given the opportunity to choose his Republican rivals, he would not have found anyone better than those to run against him, and I insist that the President can beat any of them individually, and perhaps even all of them combined.
What matters are economic performance and the candidates' understanding of the economy, and what solutions will they have for the ongoing financial crisis. After he won the primaries in Arizona and Michigan near the end of last month, Romney chose to propose an equal tax rate for everyone. However, the Tax Policy Center said that Romney's proposals would increase the deficit by three trillion dollars.
Although Romney is a multimillionaire, the press discovered that he pays a rate of only 19 percent as income tax for an annual income of 21 million dollars. Then he barely opens his mouth without putting his foot in it, i.e. blundering as the English saying means. In response to Obama's question about how America got into the economic crisis, Romney said that this happened because Obama was elected president. However, the U.S. economy was losing 750 thousand jobs each month in 2007 under the Republican administration of George W. Bush, while it is now adding 200 thousand jobs per month under Obama. Furthermore, Romney himself had admitted in a televised statement only two weeks earlier that the economy is improving.
Rick Santorum, on the other hand, is a skilled speaker and an intelligent man who memorizes numbers and facts. However, he is on the far right of a right-wing party, and his stances border on fascism in a country like the United States. For instance, he is opposed to gay relations and contraception, and believes that global warming is a hoax. He also claims that universities are liberal bastions that brainwash students to get rid of their Christian faith. He supports a war on radical Islam, and wants a military strike against Iran to prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons. He even claims that Satan is at war with America, and said that he almost throws up when hears about the need for the separation of church and state, although this is at the heart of the system of government in the United States.
Then there is Newt Gingrich, who is a walking and talking scandal. His financial and personal scandals are widely circulated and known, to which we can perhaps add his ‘scandal of the day', since he is running in the primary elections with the media hungry for all news about him. The last thing I read about him is that he was closely involved with Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, two government-backed real estate banks that had incurred some of the highest losses in the aftermath of the U.S. and global financial crises. It turns out Gingrich worked as a consultant for Freddie Mac and collected 1.9 million dollars from the bank since 1999. It was also revealed that he had defended both banks in Congress when he was MP and then as Speaker of the House.
The physician Ron Paul is the best among the Republican contenders. He is for reducing government interference in people's lives and opposes foreign wars, but he is supported by youths exclusively, and has no hope to win the nomination for the party or indeed the presidency after that.
On the other side of those Republican contenders, there is Barack Obama, who is scandal-free, whether these scandals are financial or sexual in nature. Recent public opinion polls have shown that he is ahead of his Republican rivals, amid consensus that the U.S. economy has begun to recover. With jobs being added each month, unemployment levels have declined, and manufacturing output and retail sales have increased. The Federal Reserve Bank (the central bank) meanwhile has issued a positive encouraging report on the U.S. economy.
Americans and people in all countries vote with their pockets in mind.
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