Twitter roundup

	Brendan Nyhan Sep 1, 2010 at 10:52am From my Twitter feed (8/30-9/1)
	BrendanNyhan Aug 31, 2010 at 7:45pm Yet more Dems-are-in-trouble-due-to-bad-messaging nonsense http://j.mp/d7TSKT Reality: No one's spin would have worked in this environment
	Drew Westen: What Created the Populist Explosion and How Democrats Can Avoid the Shrapnel in November Republicans are running Tea Party candidates who are so far to the right you can't see Middle America from their porch. Some endangered Democrats will likely see victory in November from theirs if they understand the public mood and speak to it.
	BrendanNyhan Sep 1, 2010 at 3:50am Dionne also faults Obama's messaging http://j.mp/deg5TF However, Obama's approval virtually equal to the "Great Communicator" at this point
	E.J. Dionne Jr. On How Barack Obama Can Use The 2010 Midterm Campaign To Rescue His Presidency. | The New Republic The New Republic covers politics, culture, and the arts with a focus on national politics, foreign policy, Congress, Capitol Hill, the 2010 midterm elections, literature, and more.
	BrendanNyhan Aug 31, 2010 at 7:50pm Contra @joshtpm, slow growth, not unemployment, is Dems' problem http://j.mp/b7fc28 See @smotus and John Sides: http://j.mp/dm4a7d
	Overdetermined | Talking Points Memo Here's a good piece by Nate Silver in the Times. Simple point: once you get past the simple fact that the terrible unemployment rate has a lot to do with the Dems' awful electoral prospects, it's very hard to make...
	Dems will lose seats -- but not why you think With the 2010 midterm elections looming, many Democrats are nervous that double-digit unemployment and weak economic growth will cost them seats in Congress. They are right to be concerned: economic conditions influence how many seats the President's party gains or loses.
	BrendanNyhan Aug 31, 2010 at 7:54pm But @joshtpm is correct that most theories of Dem doom lack factual basis http://j.mp/dybB3p See also http://j.mp/am3uDR http://j.mp/diwr7j
	Overdetermined | Talking Points Memo Here's a good piece by Nate Silver in the Times. Simple point: once you get past the simple fact that the terrible unemployment rate has a lot to do with the Dems' awful electoral prospects, it's very hard to make...
	Is Health Care Why Dems Are Losing? | The New Republic The New Republic covers politics, culture, and the arts with a focus on national politics, foreign policy, Congress, Capitol Hill, the 2010 midterm elections, literature, and more.
	How Did Democrats Get Here? - NYTimes.com There are no lack of hypotheses to explain the Democrats' poor electoral position.
	BrendanNyhan Aug 30, 2010 at 6:18pm J. Klein: "most important leading indicator" of 1-term pres. is "indifference on the stump" http://j.mp/9HMIYw Wrong! See http://j.mp/9mfQbX
	Ezra Klein - Leading indicators I know I'm a broken record about this stuff but, well, here's Joe Klein: If Obama is not reelected, it will be because he comes across as disdaining what he does for a living. I don't think he thinks of...
	The magical thinking of Fred Barnes - Brendan Nyhan [Updated below with more details on Clinton's win in 1996] I take it as a given that most journalists know very little about political science. But I still assumed that almost everyone has a basic understanding of the relationship between...
	BrendanNyhan Aug 31, 2010 at 6:44am Meghan McCain: Palin didn't make my dad lose. Prob. true, but may have cost him 1.6% of vote http://j.mp/9KqBI7 http://j.mp/9MYP3f (gated)
	BrendanNyhan Aug 31, 2010 at 6:01am A statistical analysis of Michael Steele's gaffes -- love it http://j.mp/baTKjt
	Michael Steele’s Gaffes: An Empirical Assessment | Rule22
	BrendanNyhan Aug 30, 2010 at 7:03pm Gail Collins lacks a rudimentary understanding of Social Security, but she sure can write a Bristol Palin reference! http://j.mp/aAhj19
	Print view: When no one cares about black kids, omissions like Chait's will occur

Comments

[Rob]

Gail Collins must be delighted that Bristol Palin will be on "Dancing with the Stars." My choice for that spot would have been this dancer, who not only has the moves but also puts the immigration debate in a whole new light.

[David in Cal]

Being an actuary, I'm happy to see Collins's misunderstanding of Social Security pointed out. Unfortunately, Somerby is no expert on this topic, so his "correction" is not helpful to one who wants to understand the system and its problems.

I suspect Somerby may have gotten his views from Paul Krugman. No doubt Krugman does understand SS. The misleading columns he has written in the NY Times on this topic were not based on ignorance, as Collins's was, but IMHO were intentionally designed to deceive his readers.