So most of the polls in the past weeks have put Obama winning on Tuesday. Butjust like what happens when they think they are going to win, and then don't.... some Obama fans fear that the exact same thing will happen this Election Day. Call it superstition or just being cautious, many are looking at the past two elections and think that it could be too good to be true. One concern that these poll watchers have is the idea of race in the polls. Some people might say that they are voting for Obama, when in reality they will be voting for McCain and just didn't want to seem racist.
This article frames the idea of the election in terms of desperation. Desperation that if things don't go as planned, the exact opposite could happen. In a reverse psychology kind of way, it is encouraging voters, liberal and conservative alike. For Democrats, its a way to ensure a win; for Republicans, its a chance at hope. But for Independent voters, it just makes it all the more confusing in a make or break situation.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Sunday, October 26, 2008
This week on the 'Times'
"I am not George Bush," McCain said to Obama at the last debate.
The Obama campaign seems to think differently, and it has been trying to associate McCain with President Bush in every way possible. The ideas and philosophies of the Republican party and President Bush that people have grown to fear have crept into Obama's rallies. One week left to go and he is speaking about the trickle down affect and how similar Bush and McCain really are. If Obama had such a lead, why is he resorting to negative rallying?
Another short article touched on Palin speaking out about her wardrobe. The article was framed so that appeared like this was the biggest thing bothering Palin, not the issues of the election, even though the article ended in her wanting to move on to the more important issues. Palin did state that the designer clothes that she has been wearing are all property of the Republican National Convention and she "[isn't taking them with her]."
Is it too late for McCain and Palin to pull ahead? One of the key things that everyone has been talking about when it comes to the election is the polls. For example, West Virigina, was originally a very strong McCain state with 11% over Obama in the polls. A recent poll came out placing Obama less than 6% behind McCain in WV (West Virginia Wesleyan College, Orion Media Poll). But according to the NY Times article, McCain stated that he "does not believe the polls" are showing him at a significant disadvantage. Is he trying to stay positive when he says that he is happy where his campaign is right now, or is he just relieved that he won't be president during this hard financial crisis.
Top stories that the New York Times has been covering this week are; 1. Obama's lead 2. Obama's sick grandmother 3. McCain's hopeful campaign 4. Palin's fashion 5. The Looming Economy
Accessed October 26, 2008 7:45 pm.
The Obama campaign seems to think differently, and it has been trying to associate McCain with President Bush in every way possible. The ideas and philosophies of the Republican party and President Bush that people have grown to fear have crept into Obama's rallies. One week left to go and he is speaking about the trickle down affect and how similar Bush and McCain really are. If Obama had such a lead, why is he resorting to negative rallying?
Another short article touched on Palin speaking out about her wardrobe. The article was framed so that appeared like this was the biggest thing bothering Palin, not the issues of the election, even though the article ended in her wanting to move on to the more important issues. Palin did state that the designer clothes that she has been wearing are all property of the Republican National Convention and she "[isn't taking them with her]."
Is it too late for McCain and Palin to pull ahead? One of the key things that everyone has been talking about when it comes to the election is the polls. For example, West Virigina, was originally a very strong McCain state with 11% over Obama in the polls. A recent poll came out placing Obama less than 6% behind McCain in WV (West Virginia Wesleyan College, Orion Media Poll). But according to the NY Times article, McCain stated that he "does not believe the polls" are showing him at a significant disadvantage. Is he trying to stay positive when he says that he is happy where his campaign is right now, or is he just relieved that he won't be president during this hard financial crisis.
Top stories that the New York Times has been covering this week are; 1. Obama's lead 2. Obama's sick grandmother 3. McCain's hopeful campaign 4. Palin's fashion 5. The Looming Economy
Accessed October 26, 2008 7:45 pm.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Hope for McCain?
After first traveling to Liberty University over fall break, and then getting distracted by my senior thesis that is due in less than a week, I have unintentionally forgotten about blogging.
It isn't hard to see in the "liberal" news media that the McCain/Palin campaign is losing. There have been many recent news articles and polls suggesting that the election is basically over regardless of Obama leaving the campaign trail to visit his grandmother today. But is there hope in sight? The NY Times released an article yesterday that compared McCain's position to the position of Vice President Gore one week before the 2000 election. As many will recall, that race ended a very close one.
Regardless of this comparison, they point out that as November 4th grows closer, it will become even harder for McCain to close the gap and pull ahead. Many of the McCain supporters have thrown in the towel and decided that for 2008, this election is over. But for those optimists (and I am one of them) what objects are being watched? It is the states, issues, polls, and turnouts.
So to sum it up, here is what has to happen. In addition to the states that considered to be "red," McCain must hold on to and win Indiana, Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, and Virginia. This will put him at 260 of the 270 votes to win. Then through a combination of other smaller states such as: Colorado, Nevada, New Hampshire and New Mexico, he could pull ahead. But it won't be an easy task to get all of those states in such a short period of time.
Another issue is the Biden factor, which many have predicted would show up during the race at some point or another. Recently he has made the remark that if Obama were to win the election, his presidency would be tested within the first month. I think one of the key factors here is that the Obama campaign has done nothing to rebut this critical remark. And with Former Secretary of State Colin Powell endorsing Barack Obama, race once again rises to the forefront, which makes you wonder just how big of an issue race will be inside the ballot box on November 4th.
The final issue, the NY Times states that the Obama Campaign is not a bit worried about the turnout. But should they be? The McCain campaign has been studying just how hard it is for a first-time voter to go from registering to actually going to the polls on election day. This year, a great majority of voters say that they will vote for Obama. You can bet that the McCain/Palin ticket is hoping that it is just as hard for them as their studies predict, especially in areas where there are hours of long waiting just to vote.
Accessed October 24 at 3:30pm
It isn't hard to see in the "liberal" news media that the McCain/Palin campaign is losing. There have been many recent news articles and polls suggesting that the election is basically over regardless of Obama leaving the campaign trail to visit his grandmother today. But is there hope in sight? The NY Times released an article yesterday that compared McCain's position to the position of Vice President Gore one week before the 2000 election. As many will recall, that race ended a very close one.
Regardless of this comparison, they point out that as November 4th grows closer, it will become even harder for McCain to close the gap and pull ahead. Many of the McCain supporters have thrown in the towel and decided that for 2008, this election is over. But for those optimists (and I am one of them) what objects are being watched? It is the states, issues, polls, and turnouts.
So to sum it up, here is what has to happen. In addition to the states that considered to be "red," McCain must hold on to and win Indiana, Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, and Virginia. This will put him at 260 of the 270 votes to win. Then through a combination of other smaller states such as: Colorado, Nevada, New Hampshire and New Mexico, he could pull ahead. But it won't be an easy task to get all of those states in such a short period of time.
Another issue is the Biden factor, which many have predicted would show up during the race at some point or another. Recently he has made the remark that if Obama were to win the election, his presidency would be tested within the first month. I think one of the key factors here is that the Obama campaign has done nothing to rebut this critical remark. And with Former Secretary of State Colin Powell endorsing Barack Obama, race once again rises to the forefront, which makes you wonder just how big of an issue race will be inside the ballot box on November 4th.
The final issue, the NY Times states that the Obama Campaign is not a bit worried about the turnout. But should they be? The McCain campaign has been studying just how hard it is for a first-time voter to go from registering to actually going to the polls on election day. This year, a great majority of voters say that they will vote for Obama. You can bet that the McCain/Palin ticket is hoping that it is just as hard for them as their studies predict, especially in areas where there are hours of long waiting just to vote.
Accessed October 24 at 3:30pm
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Weekly Update
In the past couple of weeks, there have been many news articles to support the idea that McCain is decreasing in his popularity in the polls. This past week the articles have been focused on the second presidential debate, analysis of the debate, more updates on the economy, and the disheartening news about Sarah Palin's results of the "Troopergate scandal."
There was a lot of political talk. On Tuesday I had the opportunity to go and work at Buckhannon's Republican Headquarters. Many of the people that I met at the headquarters seemed to be very close-minded on politics. I was a little disappointed that they seemed to be very close-minded and misquoted a lot of information. I didn't think to ask them what news source they had gotten their information from, but if I had to guess, it would be from word of mouth. On the same night at the Debate-Watch, people discussed the debate for a little bit afterwards, many people were talking about their predictions for who would win. Most thought that Barack Obama would win, probably as a result of information from more liberal news sources. Also, Shelley Moore Capito came to visit the school on Thursday evening in the Cat's Claw. At the tables before and after her presentation, friends started to talk about the political issues and the election.
The five top issues covered this week: 1)Debate 2)Economy 3)Trooper-gate 4)McCain's campaign 5)Obama's block by block approach
There was a lot of political talk. On Tuesday I had the opportunity to go and work at Buckhannon's Republican Headquarters. Many of the people that I met at the headquarters seemed to be very close-minded on politics. I was a little disappointed that they seemed to be very close-minded and misquoted a lot of information. I didn't think to ask them what news source they had gotten their information from, but if I had to guess, it would be from word of mouth. On the same night at the Debate-Watch, people discussed the debate for a little bit afterwards, many people were talking about their predictions for who would win. Most thought that Barack Obama would win, probably as a result of information from more liberal news sources. Also, Shelley Moore Capito came to visit the school on Thursday evening in the Cat's Claw. At the tables before and after her presentation, friends started to talk about the political issues and the election.
The five top issues covered this week: 1)Debate 2)Economy 3)Trooper-gate 4)McCain's campaign 5)Obama's block by block approach
Friday, October 10, 2008
Trooper Gate.. Ill Fate?
Accessed October 10 at 9:30pm
The top story tonight on the New York Times was an update on Palin's scandal in firing the public safety commissioner. The title was, "Panel Finds Palin Abused Authority in Firing State Official." The article calls attention to the fact that one of the reasons that she fired the commissioner was because of a family grudge. Very briefly does it mention that there were other reasons as well.
If you don't know the basic story, read on. While Palin was governor, her sister was going through a divorce with Trooper Michael Wooten (the "trooper" of the "troopergate"). There was evidence that supported the idea that Gov. Palin pushed the commissioner to fire her brother-in-law. When the commissior refused, she fired him (Walter Monegan).
The view that the NY Times portrays is that Palin abuses power that is not rightfully hers. What would she do as the vice-president? The update included information about the extensive report that the panel released this evening. The article also suggests that Palin has been less than cooperative since her nomination to the cnadidacy. The 1,000+ page report has been debated by a few Republican Alaskan politicians stating that it was an attack against Palin, but after the decline of the appeal, we could see this report published very soon.
The top story tonight on the New York Times was an update on Palin's scandal in firing the public safety commissioner. The title was, "Panel Finds Palin Abused Authority in Firing State Official." The article calls attention to the fact that one of the reasons that she fired the commissioner was because of a family grudge. Very briefly does it mention that there were other reasons as well.
If you don't know the basic story, read on. While Palin was governor, her sister was going through a divorce with Trooper Michael Wooten (the "trooper" of the "troopergate"). There was evidence that supported the idea that Gov. Palin pushed the commissioner to fire her brother-in-law. When the commissior refused, she fired him (Walter Monegan).
The view that the NY Times portrays is that Palin abuses power that is not rightfully hers. What would she do as the vice-president? The update included information about the extensive report that the panel released this evening. The article also suggests that Palin has been less than cooperative since her nomination to the cnadidacy. The 1,000+ page report has been debated by a few Republican Alaskan politicians stating that it was an attack against Palin, but after the decline of the appeal, we could see this report published very soon.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Fresh from the debate
The second presidential debate took place this evening at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennesee. The town-hall style debate seemed to work better for McCain, although there were good points and jabs towards the opponent made by both sides. The most talked about issue during this debate was the economy, followed by healthcare, and foreign policy towards the end.
There was a lot of underlying cynicism within the questions that were asked by the people. Many were upset by the economy and confused as to what would be done in the next administration. The town-hall meeting format made the debate more interesting, however I feel that it was poorly moderated and both candidates should have followed the rules and time-guidelines. As I watched the debate at the Debate Watch at West Virginia Wesleyan College, there were varying reactions to both candidates.
Key points that might arise in the analysis of the debate in the following days:
- Obama : "I am confident in the economy"
---- Isn't this the same as the "fundamentals of the economy are strong"?
- McCain: Nailing down Obama's policies is like nailing jello to a wall
- McCain: I'll answer the question
---- Yes, please, no one seemed to understand how to answer a question.
- Obama: Senator McCain mentions that for the past 30 years Congress hasn't done anything on environmental issues... but he's been there for 26 years.
---- I have to admit that this was a good jab towards McCain.
- McCain: hair plugs
----I mean, really?
- The Last Question: What don't you know and how would you learn it?
---- This could have potentially been a very good question but apparently, neither have anything to learn.
There was a lot of underlying cynicism within the questions that were asked by the people. Many were upset by the economy and confused as to what would be done in the next administration. The town-hall meeting format made the debate more interesting, however I feel that it was poorly moderated and both candidates should have followed the rules and time-guidelines. As I watched the debate at the Debate Watch at West Virginia Wesleyan College, there were varying reactions to both candidates.
Key points that might arise in the analysis of the debate in the following days:
- Obama : "I am confident in the economy"
---- Isn't this the same as the "fundamentals of the economy are strong"?
- McCain: Nailing down Obama's policies is like nailing jello to a wall
- McCain: I'll answer the question
---- Yes, please, no one seemed to understand how to answer a question.
- Obama: Senator McCain mentions that for the past 30 years Congress hasn't done anything on environmental issues... but he's been there for 26 years.
---- I have to admit that this was a good jab towards McCain.
- McCain: hair plugs
----I mean, really?
- The Last Question: What don't you know and how would you learn it?
---- This could have potentially been a very good question but apparently, neither have anything to learn.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Let's call it a week
The news topics on New York Times this week seemed to revolve around the Palin and Biden Debate that took place this past Thursday. Although most of the articles touched on this debate, here's my take on the top five objects.
The vice presidential debate was the main object this week. Everything from the days that led up to it, to the analysis afterward, the news dictated that this was the debate to watch. Overall, I felt that the debate seemed very guarded from both sides. Both the Democrats and the Republicans were playing it safe but they were not afraid to throw some tough hits towards their opponents. I don't think that this will be an issue in the coming week(s).
The second presidential debate is big news at Wesleyan and at the New York Times. There are already those anticipating the debate. Wesleyan prepares for it through the Debate Watch, and there are already articles talking about the debate. My guess is that on Monday and Tuesday mornings, NY Times articles will be saying something like this: although McCain's ratings are going down, expect him to come back strong. They will be lowering expectations for Obama and raising expectations for McCain.
Among other issues that have been and will continue to be discussed will be the economy and other issues that might be debated on. Today another issue that was brought back to the front, that being the Iraq War and what would happen if each was elected. Another topic that will probably be discussed more is the potential nominations of a new member of the Supreme Court by the new president.
So as a recap: 1) Vice-Presidential Debate 2) Second Presidential Debate 3) Economy 4) Iraq War and 5) Supreme Court nominations
The vice presidential debate was the main object this week. Everything from the days that led up to it, to the analysis afterward, the news dictated that this was the debate to watch. Overall, I felt that the debate seemed very guarded from both sides. Both the Democrats and the Republicans were playing it safe but they were not afraid to throw some tough hits towards their opponents. I don't think that this will be an issue in the coming week(s).
The second presidential debate is big news at Wesleyan and at the New York Times. There are already those anticipating the debate. Wesleyan prepares for it through the Debate Watch, and there are already articles talking about the debate. My guess is that on Monday and Tuesday mornings, NY Times articles will be saying something like this: although McCain's ratings are going down, expect him to come back strong. They will be lowering expectations for Obama and raising expectations for McCain.
Among other issues that have been and will continue to be discussed will be the economy and other issues that might be debated on. Today another issue that was brought back to the front, that being the Iraq War and what would happen if each was elected. Another topic that will probably be discussed more is the potential nominations of a new member of the Supreme Court by the new president.
So as a recap: 1) Vice-Presidential Debate 2) Second Presidential Debate 3) Economy 4) Iraq War and 5) Supreme Court nominations
Friday, October 3, 2008
Palin/Biden debate Assessment
Accessed October 3 at 9:00pm
On the politics home page of the New York Times this evening, the three top stories were all about the vice-presidential debate last night. Their analysis of the debate was exactly as expected; according to them, Biden won the debate.
The language of the article frames the analysis in a way that is not completely partisan, but it portrays Biden as a sharp speaker even though he tends to be mistake-prone. Although Palin did not make any mistakes as remarkable as her interview with Katie Couric... it was still evident that she was avoiding direct answers to some questions. But she should be the least of the McCain's campaign's problems, according the New York Times. Obama has a five to six point lead in many of the toss-up states. The next debate is on this coming Tuesday. My hope is that McCain can start to turn it around after his warm-up last week.
On the politics home page of the New York Times this evening, the three top stories were all about the vice-presidential debate last night. Their analysis of the debate was exactly as expected; according to them, Biden won the debate.
The language of the article frames the analysis in a way that is not completely partisan, but it portrays Biden as a sharp speaker even though he tends to be mistake-prone. Although Palin did not make any mistakes as remarkable as her interview with Katie Couric... it was still evident that she was avoiding direct answers to some questions. But she should be the least of the McCain's campaign's problems, according the New York Times. Obama has a five to six point lead in many of the toss-up states. The next debate is on this coming Tuesday. My hope is that McCain can start to turn it around after his warm-up last week.
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