Last year was the site’s first year, and that meant I was still getting to know all the rhythms that came in the yearly news cycle. I launched it in early February (the DAY after the Superbowl, a time when men can think for about six months), I enjoyed a wave of events in the Spring, then I had a presidential nomination on the Republican side to give me easy fodder for the rest of that year. Well, now I’m in my first true Summer period for the site, and I can say that Summer sucks…at least for political blogs.
The biggest stories going are what dicks the Supreme Court could be (they have yet to finally weigh in on “Obamacare”), that Jerry Sandusky is guilty (which we knew a year ago), and the ongoing fundraising battle between Obama and Romney (big surprise, the guy NOT worth 250 million by himself is losing). Right now, it seems like a loooooong road to November, when Americans will have to vote between Obama or Romney, a race that feels like it took place three years ago.
Has Romney not essentially been running since he lost last time around…have we not gotten so used to the idea of these two as our choices, that it feels exhausting now that we’re finally here? I think that’s why I haven’t written much about the race since all of Romney’s serious competitors dropped out, because, in my mind, there’s no longer much to write about. Romney will lie, cheat, and steal to get the office his dad never could, Obama will have to be at the absolute top of his game just to squeak to a victory, and if Romney wins (which he very well could) I predict he’ll take office with the lowest approval ratings of any U.S. president. Enthusiasm for him just sucks, and even people that say they’ll vote for him only acknowledge that they’re voting against Obama.
So…the biggest story going is a completely lackluster presidential race that could wind up having one of the most depressing finishes in history (President…Romney? Can even Ann Romney get excited about that one way or the other?). The passion just isn’t there the way it was when the loathsome Bush was in the mix or when black Americans were finally able to get excited about the possibility of freshman senator Barack Obama becoming the long-awaited “First. Black. President.” In other words: November can’t get here fast enough.