Palin in the Spotlight

A recent article in Time said that vice-presidential candidate Governor Sarah Palin is more popular with male voters than with female voters. According to the article, polls reveal that 52 % of men favor Sarah Palin, compared to 42 % for women. Time explained in an article “Why Some Women Hate Sarah Palin” that women dislike Palin not because of her political agenda, but for her good looks and powerful persona. Interestingly, Palin seems to represent the modern woman. She has managed to get that brilliant career while raising a family. With a dashing smile, she is on her way to the White House. It is surprising that women do not praise her success. An article in the New York Times Magazine discussed how Palin’s entry into the election caused women to think about the sacrifices they made as wives and mothers. The writer brings up the question of whether it is possible for a woman to accomplish all of her goals without forsaking her family. In the case of Palin, perhaps it is possible. During the vice presidential debates last Thursday, Palin was approachable and energetic. According to an article from Politico, “Palin was a lot more direct in her attacks on Obama and a lot more simple.” Indeed, Palin seemed more natural behind the camera, drawing in the viewers. She is not the average “soccer mom,” and her experiences may not relate to the lives of some women. However, Palin took a chance by stepping into national politics, and her confidence gives a good chance of winning.

Party Vs Candidate

As the presidential election creeps upon us, more and more people are discussing who they will vote for. Interestingly enough, there seems to be a trend among the average, everyday American of simply voting for the party rather than the candidate. What's wrong with this? Well, it is a much too easy and naive way to go about choosing a leader for our country. Simply voting for one's party is a simple alternative to actually reading about the candidates and listening to them. I went around to many people at school, both democrats and republicans, and asked why they were voting for who they were voting for. One person responded with McCain. I asked why and he said, "I really could not tell you. I honestly don't really follow politics, but I'm not voting for a democrat, I can tell you that." Many other people had similar responses, that they were simply voting for their candidate because they would never vote for the opposing party. It terrifies me that this represents a large portion of our population. Why should people who have no knowledge about the issues at hand be taking this responsibility upon themselves? I realize that America is a democracy and that everyone has the right to vote, but individuals that are going to affect everyone else in the country by voting need to be educated on the issues. Being educated on the issues in this election is very important considering the economic crisis we are in and the international dilemmas at hand. People who are not willing to learn about these problems should not take the privilege to vote. It is inherent for the common American to realize what is at stake and take the time to really care about his or her country.

Less Than a Month Away!

The presidential election billed by many to be the most important in history is now only less than a month away. According to Karl Rove, the famous architect of the last two presidential victories, Obama would win today if the election were held today. Obama has appeared to have secured more states than McCain, but there are still a lot of states that are a toss up between the two nominees. Especially interesting are those swing states in the South like North Carolina. If Obama were to win one of those states he would be the first non-Southerner Democrat to win a Southern state. 

Election polls ebb and flow constantly and John McCain can easily regain the lead he enjoyed a couple of weeks ago but his strategy is going to need to change. According to his 2000 presidential campaign manager, McCain is going to need to return to a more moderate approach if he is going to win any "ticket splitters".

In addition to the presidential election, the situation for Republicans is even more precarious in the Senate, where there is now a strong possibility Democrats will capture that coveted 60 seat super-majority mark. Due the the recent fall in the economy many Republican incumbents are facing a lot of heat and are now expecting heavier losses than expected.  Not since the Reagan era has such situation occurred. 

Battles and Smear Tactics Start on the Campain Trail

On Saturday, just two days after the vice-presidential debates, Palin has begun associating Obama with terrorists. She has made comments such as:"Our opponent though, is someone who sees America, it seems, as being so imperfect that he's palling around with terrorists who would target their own country." at a fundraising event and a rally in Carson, California.

CNN has reported the man in question is Bill Ayers, the founder of the radical Weather Underground, which was responsible for several bombings in the early 1970s, including the Pentagon and the Capitol. Records show that he has met with Obama several times after 1995 when he received a seat in the Illinois senate. 

The Obama campaign has quickly denied such claims, stating that Obama and Ayers met while the latter was a professor and worked in a non-profit group trying to raise funds for school improvement projects and a charitable foundation. the Obama campain's spokesman Ben LaBolt said the two had not spoken over the phone or email since 2005 when Obama entered the US Senate, and only met once more than a year ago when they encountered each other on the streets of Chicago. 

Even the New York Times article that Palin referenced as a source of her information stated, "A review of records of the schools project and interviews with a dozen people who know both men, suggest that Mr. Obama, 47, has played down his contacts with Mr. Ayers, 63. But the two men do not appear to have been close. Nor has Mr. Obama ever expressed sympathy for the radical views and actions of Mr. Ayers, whom he has called “somebody who engaged in detestable acts 40 years ago, when I was 8.”

The Obama campaign is now fighting back against the McCain campaign, as noted by the Washington Post. Obama has said, the McCain Campain people "are gambling that [McCain] can distract you with smears rather than talk to you about substance. They'd rather try to tear our campaign down than lift this country up. It's what you do when you're out of touch, out of ideas, and running out of time." 

Also, Obama allies have warned the GOP that if he is going to use such tactics against the Democratic Presidential Candidate, then they may start reminding voters about McCain's ties to Charles Keating, a convicted savings and loan owner whose actions two decades ago triggered a Senate ethics investigation that involved McCain as one of the "Keating Five." (Washington Post)

Vice President Debates: Palin Dodging Issues

The Vice Presidential Debate of October 2, 2008 proved to shock America, as Palin demonstrated her ability to think politically, however still lacked the ability to addresss the issues at hand. Biden showcased his competence for the Vice President position by addressing fiscal issues, health care, and the war in Iraq. Surprisingly, focusing his attention to the policies in which McCain supports, Biden concentrated on Wall Street's economic decline. Commenting on McCain's support for deregulation and further lack of public interest, Biden drew upon the struggle of middle class America. However, when asked to counter Biden's argument, Palin steadily avoided the delicate topic, choosing to focus her attention upon tax issues. When asked directly by Biden to address the issue again, Palin refused by saying that she prefers to speak against the high taxes in which ironically, McCain previously voted 477 times to increase tax prices. If Palin is incompetent to address a simple question, then how is she expected to run this country?

Anticipation Builds For Tonight's Debate

According to an article in Politico Palin's aides are grateful that her poor responses in the Couric interview, further lowered expectations for her performance tonight. With more pressure on Biden to give a shining performance, Palin has much to gain and little to be loss in the debate. Palins aides also explained the primary goal is to show that the battle is "Sarah Palin vs. Washington", and with Biden's senate experience and commanding debate presence, it should not be extremely difficult to create this image for viewers in her constituency. Biden faces another seemingly more difficult challenge, in that he must be strong and convincing, without falling into "gender pitfalls", the Wall Street Journal points out. Known for demonstrating aggressive and tough tactics in speaking, Biden will have to carefully avoid attacks while still making the issues and differences between him and Palin, clear. So as viewers carefully watch Biden's every move with increasingly high expectations, the Alaskan governor will have more freedom to "launch aggressive attacks against her Democratic opponent" (The Washington Post). The preconceived ideas and highly awaited face off between the Vice Presidential nominees, should have an interesting effect on determining the ultimate victor.

Florida Heats Up

According the to highly acclaimed election prediction and polling analysis website FiveThirtyEight.com, Florida now leads all other states with a 24% chance of determining the outcome of the 2008 election. The website uses a sophisticated algorithm based on current polling data to make their daily "tipping point states" calculation.

This development does not come as a surprise to most political observers, given the fact that NBC News/Mason-Dixon and Quinnipiac both released polls earlier this week showing John McCain's steady lead in the Florida has evaporated. For the first time since both candidates won their party's respective primary contests this spring, Real Clear Politics now shows Obama leading McCain (by a 1.4% margin) in the bellwether state. Two weeks ago, the Obama campaign released a strategy video in which campaign manager David Plouffe announced that the campaign would be investing a stunning $39 million into Florida alone. It has yet to be seen whether or not this investment will pay off in the long term, but at the moment there doesn't seem to be a better place to send resources than the Sunshine State.