This election

[King]

Compared to what you can remember about Summer 2004 and 2008, anybody else find this one to be strangely dead silent?  There's no buzz on either side and neither is really making headlines in the news cycle. It doesn't feel like an election year.

[milhouse24]

maybe its Romney's triangulation that's boring liberals and republicans; and Obama's economic meltdown.  someone should start those replace Biden rumors again. 

[All Along The Watchtower]

It's a boring election of Establishment candidates.

[anvi]

The conventions and the fall antics will make it plenty vitriolic.  Turning up the heat now and ruining everyone's summer on top of how bad things really are will just piss voters off.

[Peeperkorn]

Any chance that paultards burn down Tampa?

[Lincoln Republican]

Maybe the Dems should starting complaining about Ann Romney's clothes again.

That might ratchet up interest.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Maybe the Dems should starting complaining about Ann Romney's clothes again.

That might ratchet up interest.

Oh, yeah, because your guy's been so captivating and fascinating.

[milhouse24]

Compared to what you can remember about Summer 2004 and 2008, anybody else find this one to be strangely dead silent?  There's no buzz on either side and neither is really making headlines in the news cycle. It doesn't feel like an election year.

It might be because neither side wants to talk about the issues because they make them look bad. 

Obama might be secretly trying to dampen enthusiasm to decrease turnout, because that might help his chances more, if more people are asleep and not paying attention.  He's trying to be as scandal free as possible. 

The Health Care ruling will determine the scope of the campaign issues.  It effects the economy, senior citizens, and Obama's survival. 

Romney's never been flashy, and he too is trying to win by getting a high turnout by Republicans, and avoid scandal. 

Its almost odd, that both are trying to be as scandal free as possible and just hope that the turnout favors them.  Obama wants to lull voters into thinking he is doing a good job if nothing majorly bad happens for the next 4 months.  He'll be protected by the liberal media on F&F and other serious issues.

[useful idiot]

We have two uninteresting candidates heading into an election where the outcome seems fairly predictable. Scare tactics aside, this is not the most important election of our lifetimes...far from it.

On one hand you have the prospect of a second Obama term that will essentially get nothing done. The Republicans will almost certainly retain the House, and quite possibly take the Senate, stifling any major legislative agenda Obama might want to take forward. His first term has been a massive disappointment and his lone "achievement" will most likely go up in smoke when the SCOTUS hands down their ruling. Like it or not, come January 20th the 2016 election cycle begins. Whereas Bush's second term started out with promise for the GOP and got sidetracked by unforseen events, it seems clear at this point that there's nothing to look forward to for Democrats. Half the energy of the last campaign is already gone because the novelty aspect of his presidency is gone.

On the other hand you have the prospect of a Romney presidency, something no one (aside from Winfield) is excited about because Romney is just a horribly boring guy. Technocrats never induce enthusiasm among the masses, especially when they only speak in platitudes and seem as plastic as Mittens. His affection for pandering and lack of a clear vision concerning where he wants to take the country leave little to the imagination. If I were a Republican I honestly wouldn't mind losing because the bench for the 2016 race is incredibly strong and the potential Democratic field isn't particularly impressive (Cuomo? 68 year old Hillary?). Wait 4 years through a lame duck Obama administration and get the candidate you actually want.

In the end an obscene amount of money will be spent, MSNBC and FOX will bloviate about whatever ridiculously insignificant news item or gaffe occurs on that given day, and we'll be in no better or worse shape than had the other guy won. It's a gigantic waste of time, and I think more people have caught on to it than we probably even realize. From 2001 through 2010 we've lived in a time where politics was really at the forefront of people's minds, and it seems like we're reverting back to a pre-9/11 state where the public is largely apathetic to it all. Might not be a bad thing...

[BaldEagle1991]

This is the summer doldrums, wait til after the conventions take place. Then you'll see it kick in.

[Donerail]

Any chance that paultards burn down Tampa?

Eh, 50-50.

[Peeperkorn]

Any chance that paultards burn down Tampa?

Eh, 50-50.

"Party like its 1776"? This has to be a joke.

[Donerail]

Any chance that paultards burn down Tampa?

Eh, 50-50.

"Party like its 1776"? This has to be a joke.

It's quite real; they've been fighting with the RNC over whether or not they can lease the fairgrounds. Gary Johnson's attending. You can support it by making purchases from http://www.paulfestivalswag.com/

[argentarius]

That sounds fupping awesome. What crowds are expected?

[You kip if you want to...]

I know that here in the UK, nobody knows who Mitt Romney is.

At this point in 2008, everybody knew who Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were.

[Lincoln Republican]

I know that here in the UK, nobody knows who Mitt Romney is.

At this point in 2008, everybody knew who Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were.

Well, Hillary Clinton had been a high profile First Lady for eight years, became a Senator, and had enjoyed  celebrity status since 1992.

Barack Obama burst onto the scene as the first serious black candidate to seek the Presidency.  He became a sensation almost over night.

[fezzyfestoon]

I'm not holding my breath, but I'm still hopeful it's a nationwide turn towards sanity. The sooner we collectively realize how uniformly both damaging and irrelevant our government is, the sooner we can start forcing reform on them. I think the extreme hangover from the Obama high of 2008 ought to be a sobering turn of events for Americans. At best I'm hoping that lasts through the 2012 election cycle.

[Peeperkorn]

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

I think you are right that things are rather quieter at present than at a similar point in the last few elections. As to the why... others have said that we're in the summer doldrums, and that is certainly true. Additionally, I suspect that it may be the similarity of the two candidates political positions. At their core, the politics of both Romney and Obama are quite similar and I think the current zeitgeist reflects it, even if saying it out loud would be verboten for the talking heads.

[The Mikado]

This election will never heat up.  2012 is the second-most boring election of my lifetime (1996 still edges it out).

[milhouse24]

I know that here in the UK, nobody knows who Mitt Romney is.

At this point in 2008, everybody knew who Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were.

I still don't know who Gordon brown is, and i don't care.

[Peeperkorn]

I know that here in the UK, nobody knows who Mitt Romney is.

At this point in 2008, everybody knew who Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were.

I still don't know who Gordon brown is, and i don't care.

Wow, you're like a walking wikipedia.

[King]

I know that here in the UK, nobody knows who Mitt Romney is.

At this point in 2008, everybody knew who Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were.

But did anybody know who John McCain was?

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I know that here in the UK, nobody knows who Mitt Romney is.

At this point in 2008, everybody knew who Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were.

I still don't know who Gordon brown is, and i don't care.

If you genuinely didn't know who Gordon Brown is you wouldn't have mentioned him in your post, since change08 didn't mention him in his.

[Warren 4 Secretary of Everything]

2012 is another 2004. Not popular incumbent that people still like against an uncharismatic and seriously flawed challenger.