Rubio on Obama: Most 'Divisive Figure in Modern American History'

10:09 AM, May 20, 2012 • By DANIEL HALPER

Florida senator Marco Rubio slammed President Barack Obama in a South Carolina speech delivered last night to a large gathering of Republicans.

“For all the policy disagreements that we may have with the president, it is hard to understate how much he inspired people across this country four years ago, with his promises to unite America and lift it up,” Rubio said about Obama, referring to his 2004 DNC speech and 2008 presidential run.

But, Rubio said, President Obama has changed: “The man who today occupies the White House and is running for president is a very different person. We have not seen such a divisive figure in modern American history as we have over the last three and a half years.” Rubio, who might be the next Republican vice presidential nominee, also said that Obama and his Democratic party are on a "destructive, counterproductive, and very unfortunate" path.  
The president and his party’s view of America’s government and our lives is a failed one. It hasn’t worked. His ideas that sounded so good in the classrooms of Harvard and Yale haven’t really worked out well in the real world," said Rubio. "They get frustrated. They can’t win on their record, and so they’ve chosen to go down a different road, one that I think is destructive, counterproductive, and very unfortunate." Read More

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Your 7-Step Midyear Money Checkup

By Dayana Yochim 

You always remember to change the oil in your car ... when the red warning light comes on. You get diligent about flossing ... when the dentist mails the reminder postcard to make an appointment for your six-month checkup. So consider this article your warning light/postcard to get ready for your midyear money review.

With six months of earning, saving, and spending under your belt, you've got plenty of data to project how 2012 is going to play out. So let's lift the hood on your finances and give everything a good once over. Read More

Borat Burnout: Baron Cohen's Shtick Already Stale

 

by Christian Toto 

The promotion campaign attached to "Borat" was nearly as funny as the film itself.

And that's saying plenty. But audiences are already tiring of Sacha Baron Cohen's signature shtick, if the anemic box office results from his new comedy, "The Dictator," are any indication.
American audiences were mostly unfamiliar with Baron Cohen and his coterie of characters before "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" hit a comedic thunderclap in 2006. The giddy combination of pre-written material and "Punk'd" behavior shook up the film comedy realm.
And watching Baron Cohen in character visit "The Tonight Show" and other media haunts made the film feel like a new breed of comedy.
Then along came "Bruno," and it was clear Baron Cohen's singular film genre had a short shelf life. The so-called reality segments felt forced, and the scripted material wasn't much better. And the film arrived as a lecture about Americans ability to tolerate gay culture. Of course, it takes a pretty thick skin to endure Bruno's antics, no matter his sexuality.
"The Dictator" finds Baron Cohen abandoning  his own comedy sub-genre, but he held on to his madcap promotional blitz. He appeared on the Oscars' red carpet and spilled the "ashes" of Kim Jong Il on a surprised Ryan Secreast. And for the past few weeks Baron Cohen's Dictator character has been everywhere, all the while the comedian lets his character do the talking for him. Read More