Final Thoughts About the Election

Even though the election has ended, the negativity surrounding Governor Sarah Palin and President-Elect Barack Obama continues to fill the air. I would consider myself on the very conservative side of the political spectrum, but I feel that others who also identify themselves as so have showed many cases of immaturity and ignorance. Even if the candidate that you supported did not win the election, he will still be the president of our country and I think people should be more respectful.

As for Sarah Palin, there are stories and rumors still surfacing about her lack of intelligence and/or inability to lead, but it seems irrelevant now that the electorate is sure that she will not be Vice President. She has been given a lot of harsh criticism, even by members of the McCain camp and I do not believe she is deserving of this treatment. It cannot be fully attributed to her that McCain did not win the election and after all, he is the one that chose her.

My main concern with an Obama presidency is that people's expectations might be too high. I understand that people are unhappy with the Bush presidency and are seeking any kind of change that will change the direction of our country. However, when talking to others they seem to present a VERY BROAD list of expectations for Obama that cover a plethora of very different topics and pertain to DRASTIC changes. On one hand, Obama can use any visible changes, even very small ones, to convince the electorate that change is being made so he might be able to appease the people. On the other hand, I feel that some people do not understand how long and arduous a journey it will be for all the changes that they desire. When asking people what they expect from Obama they rattle of a list of topics from education and the Iraq War to the economy and healthcare. He does have a unified government to work with, but that does not guarantee success, especially as quickly as people would like. I really hope that he does not discount the opinions/feelings of Republicans and move very far to the left when his presidency begins. He has promised to work both sides of the aisle and I hope this is how it turns out. This election was filled with more firsts than any in years past and has been truly historical.

Palin, Still in the News

Even though election day is over and Obama has won, we are still continuing to here about the downfalls of Senator Sarah Palin. She is continually being criticized and blamed for the McCain campaign loss to the Obama Campaign.

Recently in the news, Palin was falsely interviewed by a Canadian comedian immitating that she was the President of France. She was also criticized by not knowing the Africa was even a continent or the fact that she didn't know who was a part of the North American Free Tade Agreement.

This is sad for who was a prospective Vice Presidential Candidate. I am sure many people who supported the McCain campaign weren't too sure how she would actually be if the McCain campaign were to have won the election.

After the Election

The election is over. Barack Obama is the winner and the President of the United States. The next step is for the Americans. Can we pull together as America and support him? I was amazed at some of the comments that I have heard in the past few days on campus. We say that we are past being racist and we do not mind having a black person in power, but if that is true then why am I hearing all the racist comments about Obama. He won honestly. "Looks like the Confederates versus the Union." This was said about the way the U.S. looked after the election was done. "We'll see, I can't wait for him to make his first mistake so I can say told ya so." "The Americans have chosen, but they have chosen wrong." What amazes me is that some of these very people voted for Obama. As Ashlee said, we need to pull together as a nation and support Obama. I hope and pray that for our country we can give Obama the chance to make change and make a difference. He deserves that much from all of the Americans.

Time to Jump

It's time to jump on the bandwagon! Whether you were an Obama supporter, an Independent or a McCain/Palin supporter it is official; Senator Barack Obama is the President Elect. We must all set aside our differences and come together to better our nation. Not only must we do this we must be proactive against the hate comments that are being said by our friends and family. If we do not take a stand our country is going to become divided. As we are going through these hard times, we cannot afford to fight over petty things. So I encourage everyone to stop the negativity and encourage others to support our nation through supporting our next president.

Indiana and Obama

2008 will be remembered historically for many reasons. It is the first year that we would have either had our first African American president, or our first female vice president as well as the first time Indiana has voted for a democrat president since 1964. I believe this is not so much as Indiana has gone blue, but more so because of McCains belief that he already owned Indiana. The visiting statistics were so far in Obama’s favor, that I think it ridiculous that McCain didn’t show up more often. When you know you have a state locked up, at least give it the respect to show up once in awhile. Had the differential in visits not been so great, I feel McCain would have had a better showing, especially in Indianapolis, which he lost by 100K votes. I think this just shows that times are changing. We now have our first African American descent president (I say descent, because he is half African and half Caucasian) and the first election which contained an African American and a female. Personally, I believe that it is a great thing to show some mixture in the candidates. Rather than just having white males, we now have African Americans and females gracing the political candidacy, representing a great change in America. Obama ran a cleaner campaign, is the better speaker and worked to bring forth many more voters with his grass roots campaign. I only hope that he follows through on his promises and leads America in to a direction of dominance not seen in a few years.

Handsome and Even Tanned

Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi described Barack Obama as "young, handsome and even tanned." Some people were shocked and taken aback by this statement, but it was only meant as a joke. He said this at a news conference after meeting with the Russian president. Apparently, he said Obama has everything needed in order to reach deals.

If it's meant as a joke, then I see no problem with a comment like that. People should lighten up and have a sense of humor. If it was meant to be negative or anything, then I could see people getting upset. The article also said that Berlusconi has said questionable things before like comparing a German lawmaker to a Nazi camp guard and saying that there were too many women in the new Spanish government. I guess it all depends on how serious you take things, and how easily you can be offended. What do you think about it?

Back Barack

John McCain solemnly took the stage to officially announce his concession. Throughout his speech McCain wanted to make sure that his supporters did not take the loss personally. That they had not failed but rather he had. McCain also wanted to emphasize that although the Republicans would not be in the White House for the next four years that Obama and himself were not complete polar opposites; that they had more in common than they were different. That they were both Americans and could restore the United States back to its glory “I've always believed that America offers opportunities to all who have the industry and will to seize it. Senator Obama believes that, too. But we both recognize that, though we have come a long way from the old injustices that once stained our nation's reputation and denied some Americans the full blessings of American citizenship, the memory of them still had the power to wound.” McCain showed great class and poise when he vowed that he would back Obama in his administration to make America better. It was a nice respite from the harsh attacks and negative publicity.

It makes you wonder if only McCain had showed the same amount of class during the campaign what the outcome may have been. The fate for McCain was sealed when Indiana, Pennsylvania and Ohio went Democratic. Some supporters would not recognize defeat until the concession call was made. Republican supporters have four years to ponder this election and wonder what may have been but at the same time they should recognize the magnitude and historical significance of the first African American president. Martin Luther King Jr. would be proud ; his dream has been recognized.

Republicans Looking for Change

After McCain’s loss to Obama, the Republican Party is looking to reevaluate its overall message. Whenever a party losses an election, it is always important to go back to square one and evaluate the party’s values and stances on issues. The party wants to bring back the popularity of the Reagan years. Republicans are also looking for a fresh face to represent the party. Republicans are trying to move away from their image of the “old man party”. Republican Whit Ayers said, “tomorrow’s party leaders need to defy stereotypes”. Many Republicans believe governors will be the future leaders of the party because the majority of the most popular governors are Republican. They are hoping Bobby Jindal, Tim Pawlenty, Charlie Crist, or even Sarah Palin, all rising stars in the Republican Party, could rejuvenate the party base. I think the key to Republicans gaining popularity is to start governing less from the right and more towards the center. The United States, especially the younger generation, has a growing desire not be republican or democrat, but to do what is best for our country.

Campaign Promises Could Become Burdens

Barack Obama owes his election in part to President Bush's vast unpopularity, but that favor comes at a cost--Obama will be assuming responsibility for a credit crisis, a banking collapse, an unstable stock market and what is likely to be a lasting recession. Throughout his campaign, Obama has promised tax cuts for working families, affordable and expanded health care and a speedy withdrawal from Iraq, but can he really deliver despite the problems the nation faces? In reality, Obama will inherit a budget deficit that many analysts say could hit $1 trillion for the first time in history, potentially crimping any promises of tax cuts or spending on new programs. In addition, he faces a worsening economy that has traumatized Americans trying to buy a home, pay for college or plan for retirement.

Since he ran such an organized campaign, I am not surprised that Obama has already appointed a transition team to help shape his administration's economic policies even before he assumes the presidency. Many of the details for his economic plan may well be hammered out by the time he takes office. Depsite his best efforts, I just don't know if he will be able to deliver what he has promised voters.

Change in America

In his speech following the election results, John McCain pledged his support to Barrack Obama. This is a consistent theme in speeches made by the losing nominee, but I hope it was more than a token gesture. I hope McCain meant what he said there, just as I hope Obama will live up to what he has said he will do. There have been a lot of comments, articles, and accusations that have been thrown at Obama. I hope none of them are true. If you talk to many people who voted for John McCain, they didn't seem to defend McCain. The thing I've heard most is a fear of what and who Obama is. I hope all that fear is completely unfounded, and that Obama will be able to stand true to what he has said he would try to do from the start. Unite the country, make it a better place to live and work. Unfortunately, I have found very little evidence that would suggest that Obama is what the far right has said he is. I say unfortunately because it saddens me deeply to think that 46% of the nation would vote in fear if there is little to no substance behind it. I hope that this election will show capital hill that America isn't happy with the way things are going, and that they will recognize Americans are more unhappy with the divided mentality than a certain party.

McCain's Concession Speech

John McCain’s concession speech was given around 11 p.m. Tuesday night. It was not given in anger, but in passion for America. McCain first congratulated Obama for being elected the next president of the United States. Then McCain explained the significance of this being an historic election and the importance for African-Americans. McCain stated that he “urges all Americans who supported him to join in just not congratulating Obama, but offering our next president our goodwill and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country.” I found this statement to be encouraging to help the McCain supporters connect with Obama. Another strong statement from McCain stated that “I wish Godspeed to the man who was my former opponent and will be my president. And I call on all American, as I have often in this campaign, to not despair of our present difficulties, but to believe, always, in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here.” I think his overall speech was very well written and spoken showing that he is a true American.

Immediate Reaction

Unfortunately, I was unable to watch the campaign election last night. I was working, but I feel like I received some great reactions and feedback from customers that came in to dine. As 7 pm rolled around, and the restaurant was filling up. Almost every table was conversing about the election and what they had heard so far. It is so weird to think, that during the past few months or even yet, the past year or so. No one really shows interest in the election and it is not the main topic until....Election Day. For the majority last night, I would have to say were Obama supporters. What I also found interesting was that as I was talking with people about voting and such, they all said they were not sure who to exactly vote for. They did clearly identify themselves with either being a Democrat or a Republican, but they voiced the opinions that they did not support either candidate, and when it finally came down to it they had to go with their morals and the morals of the candidates. As far as the morals went, McCain supposedly had them and Obama did not. I did not agree that with at all. The way McCain would attack Obama throughout the campaign with his ad and crack under pressure, I clearly do not see him being moralistic. I was pretty excited to hear the results that Obama had won. We were updated all night, with people calling and telling us the numbers. I remember thinking at one point, McCain still had a chance, but in my gut I felt Obama was going to sweep the board. Which he did.

Obama Wins Indiana

While the general election has been won by Barack Obama we still have yet to know the results of Missouri and North Carolina. Missouri seems to be leaning towards a McCain win while North Carolina seems to be giving it to Obama. I personally have been waiting to find out whether Indiana has turned blue or not. CNN has just reported that Indiana has been won by Barack Obama. What is interesting is that I the 2004 election Bush won Indiana 60% to 39% against Kerry. CNN reports that Obama projected lead in Indiana is 50% to 49%.

2008 Voter Turnout

More people than ever voted for the presidential election yesterday- over 130 million people. This is about 7.7 million more than in 2004. Approximately 64 percent of the electorate voted, which is the highest percentage in around 44 years. There was an especially large increase in the states of North Carolina, Virginia and Indiana. Analysts say this is because of Obama's targeting these states. As of right now, at least Indiana and Virginia have voted for Obama, while North Carolina is still very close. Also, a larger percentage of minorities and youth voted in this election, which is also said to be because of Obama, and it benifited him. Exit polls are showing that Obama won 66% of Hispanics, 95% of blacks, and 67% of people between the ages of 18 to 29. I think the increased voter turnout is great. Even though some people had to stand in line for hours and in less than perfect conditions, so many people came out to vote for how they felt.

Ohio police ordered to have riot gear ready for election 'unrest' !!!!

in spite of overwhelming proof that the Republicans stole the 2004 election in Ohio, most who refer to this election are locked in to the Republican line: "Ohio gave George W Bush the 2004 election" When are the americans, as a community of patriots, going to take these bastards on? For it appears that they are still very much in a position to do exactly the same thing they did in 2004. Those who live in "battleground" states should be cognizant of the fact that this is where they will do their dastardly acts, for in wide-open races favoring McCain, they would not take a chance. I suggest we make it very clear to those who are still ignorant of these facts that they do some research. I 'm certain that they will never use the Republican line again. but then again regardless of whats happening in ohio, there are alot of question marks on the democratic party this year, especially obama. for instance, he voted to re-authorize the Patriot Act, grant sweeping wiretapping powers to the government and give immunity to illegal wiretappers. That he opposes single-payer health care. That he voted to give away $700 billion to the crooks who looted the US economy. Woohoo! "Change" I can believe in: same shit, different party.
its a dilema !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and people re confused and dont know who to TRUST !!!!

The End is Near

This has been a dirty and long political campaign, and I am glad it is finally coming to an end. Between the bad publicity and negative advertising, we have all been bombarded with news that shouldn’t make the news and accusations that do not make sense. But after three months of this, it all comes down to one day…and that day is today. The polls indicate that Obama will be the next president of the US, but nothing is for sure when it comes to the elections.
I think that overall Obama has run a smarter, more positive campaign; and that reflects on the polls. He is a much better orator, has better interpersonal skills, “won” all three debates, and has benefited more from E-campaigning. McCain has been behind for awhile now, but he never changed his strategy at all. He continued to run ads attacking Obama, he did not do enough during the debates, and he never quite sound convincing enough during his speeches. So from a communications point of view, I think Barack should win the elections. But we cannot forget that we should not vote for the most likable candidate, or the better speaker, we should vote for the candidate who we agree with more when it comes to issues because a pretty smile won’t better the economy.

Voting Lines

This morning I arrived at Maple Park here in town to vote because I am from town and that is where I have always gone. This year the line was already 20 people long when i arrived to vote at 5:45 a.m. I waited for about 20 minutes to vote and when I left there was about 50 people behind me. I could not believe how many people from this little town were there by 6:30 this morning just at this one polling place. My parents who voted around noon waited for about 50 minutes before they actually voted. They have lived here for more than 40 years and have never had to wait more than 10 minutes to vote. EVER! If it is this busy in a town of six thousand imagine what the lines look like around the big cities of the United States.

Candidate Websites

Candidate websites, in my opinion, are some of the most effective means to persuade voters to vote for a particular candidate. The website contains all aspects of the candidate's campaign effort, from TV ads to volunteer information. The websites also specifically detail the candidates' plan to handle all issues from economics to health care. Is it possible that the web will replace more traditional means of persuasion such as TV, direct mail, and phone calls? It's not likely. However, it is, in my opinion, a more effective way to persuade than most of the mediums we have.

We Learn to Appreciate Campaing Communication More Objectively

If you browse through the website of Obama on this special day, you can’t help reviewing whatever knowledge we learn from the text book. The rhetorical functions of political ads, which can either arouse our respect for our candidate and patriotism or trigger our doubt of the opponent’s leadership qualities, just keep echoing in our mind. The knowledge of content and functions of campaign website enables us to achieve a thorough understanding of the fact why many visitors just cannot resist the coax of the various forms of information on that magical website as to resort to action of either voting or donating. Now we can look at the campaign activities and campaign communication in a more objective and professional way so as to better appreciate the strategies and real intention of our candidate and his opponent.

Voter Fraud

Is there any chance of voter fraud in this election? Of course there is. Growing up in East Chicago, I've seen voter fraud first-hand. I remember one instance where the committee for the incumbent for mayor's office was providing brand new sidewalks and driveways for votes. This tactic aside, people always hear of the deceased managing to cast their vote on election day. Is it at all possible for the United States, or any other country, to have a completely non-fraudulent election? I am, however, very optimistic that this election will have minimal voter fraud and hopefully we won't have another recount nightmare like the one that occurred in 2000.

Political Consultants

Each candidate in the campaign has their own political consultants. They need to have one because they often don't have time to do everything themselves, due to being very busy with dealing with the issues and everything else. Each political consultant has their own jobs as writers, speech coaches, direct mail specialists, and specialists in television commercial production and placement.

The consultants jobs as writers are to basically to handle all of the advertising chores of the campaign. This allows the candidate not to have to worry about what commercials go where and how it should be played out during the campaign. Speech coaches are simply there to help with public speaking and debating, if needed. Some candidates come in to a campaign needing a lot of work on their "speaking" abilities. People who work with the direct mail are simply there to make sure it gets out to the right people, it says the right type of things to help the candidate, and also to make sure everything is going smoothly on the outside.

Everyone has a really important role in the campaigning process, and the candidate is really lucky to have these people with them to help them. OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT!!!

Advertising

With the campaign coming to an end, everyone is wondering who infact will be the next president of the United States, Obama or McCain. Recently a lot of talk has been on the advertising used by the candidates in the last week of the election. During a lot of the campaign, I feel like Obama has used the cruise strategy, to his benefit I believe. The cruise strategy is simply for candidates who are in the lead throughout most of the election, and are obviously striving to maintain the lead. During this strategy the camaign makes a "flat buy" which simply ensures purchasing a constant number of commercials each day during the stages of the campaign, especially the last week or so. Obama has used this strategy because he is still getting commercial time and his name is still out there. OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT!!!

Who is using the internet better?

Both candidates have their own websites. This is the only place where they can control the facts entirely. So it is important to see who is taking more advantage of this resource.
Obama’s site is well organized, user-friendly, and constantly updated. McCain’s website has several videos that play automatically when you open the page, it is full of large images, and doesn’t really have much of a pattern to it.
To be able to influence a voter’s decision, your site has to have plenty of opportunities to get voters involved. I feel like Obama’s website is easier to follow, and therefore people are more willing to look at it for longer and maybe volunteer or donate money. McCain does a decent job at offering volunteer opportunities, but his focus on putting down Obama and I don’t think that is working. It is fair to say that Obama is using this inexpensive resource better than McCain, and that may be one of the reasons why he is more likely to be our next president.

The Incredible Influence of Candidate Website on Voters

Today is the elections day, even without going out of our campus, I can still feel the enthusiasm of American people towards this big day by visiting candidates’ websites. On Obama’s website, there are various pieces of news about preparation for and progress of today’s election for Obama. The second-tier content of website plays a key role at this most critical moment of presidential election. I believe many voters will give their vital support to Obama by voting on the web and giving their donation to him no matter it’s big or small. It’s like election information explosion on the webpage of Obama’s website, and the influence is overwhelming to all visitors. Studying the functions of campaign websites, now I’m fully convinced that the functions of candidate website can never be ignored by presidential candidates because many people, especially young people treat web as the most important means of getting information about the world. No doubt, they will visit candidates’ website to keep themselves updated about the latest about the election.

Volunteers aren't calling it quits until polls close

Surrogates aren’t done with their volunteer work just yet. I was awoken early this fine Election morning to a stranger on the other end of my telephone asking me to volunteer “for Barack Obama’s sake.” “How did you get my number?” was my initial thought, but that thought was immediately followed by “What is there left to be done? We’re voting today!” I guess I never really realized just how many people are still left standing undecided.

I don’t know if this is true for the McCain camp (someone inform me if they know otherwise, please), but Obama activists are STILL phone-a-thoning and door-knocking just until the closing of the polls tonight (in Indiana’s case 6 or 7 p.m. – those poor chaps in California will be hard at work until at LEAST 11 p.m.).

The Obama camp can in part pat themselves on the backs for a “job well done” recruiting and maintaining campaign activists. The volunteer section of their website helps surrogates organize opportunities that can influence voters’ decisions…even up until today!

It’s not too late – you can still help the candidate of your choice today by volunteering! At the very least, VOTE. As Bob Schieffer’s mom used to say: “Go vote now; it’ll make you feel big and strong.”

Dirty Dancing by the RNC

There have been reports accusing the Republican National Convention and its sister organizations of using robo-calls to encourage Barack Obama supporters in Florida to vote. At first it sounds like a nice gesture, encouraging the democratic process to happen. However, at the end of the call, listeners hear a friendly, "remember to vote this Wednesday."

......

Wednesday? The vote is TUESDAY! This despicable decision of depressing democratic demonstration is downright dirty dancing. And not the good kind of dirty dancing where everyone gets a little hot and sweaty, but doesn't care because of how awesome the moment is... This is the bad kind where people may be given the presidency instead of elected to it.

If John McCain cares at all about his image as a maverick and someone who will stand up to party leaders for freedom and democracy, he should denounce these actions and make what is happening publicly known. To his credit, sometimes campaigns get too big for the candidates to know what is going on everywhere all the time. But this will come back to hurt McCain, even if he doesn't win...

How a tie could mean the end of the world...

Candidates need 270 electoral votes to win the presidency. It sounds like a pretty simple concept. However, there is a possibility (more than you might think) that the race could end in a tie, with both candidates holding 269. In this instance, as a Reuters article explains, the House of Representatives would pick the president with each state getting 1 vote. If this is the case, the next president wouldn't be decided until January. That means we'll have to sit in this agony of wondering for another 2 months. And clearly, this will mean the end of the world...

I don't know about the rest of you, but I've been pulling out my hair (what little I have) as I wait. The last thing I want to see again are more attack ads explaining how Obama is inexperienced or McCain is old and all those rhetorical functions that we learned about will once again be relevant. We'll learn all about Obama's upbringing, his political standing on issues, and his image will be again sculpted/redefined. Or there may be more debates

To help prevent this massacre of my spirit, I encourage all of you to go out and vote today, because if Obama gets Indiana, we won't have to wonder who wins.

Leaving a Virtual Legacy

Had enough of political ads? Lucky for us, this cycle’s race is coming to a close and after tonight, we’ll be left to watch TV without fear of those infamous attack ads. Regardless of who wins the presidency, this election will remained immortalized -- virtually, that is. Obama bought (for an unknown amount of money) several “billboards” that grace the pixilated streets of 18 of the most popular video games. These ads were meant to inspire early voting among the male 18-34 demographic. You men (and women, too) out there -- have you voted?

Both candidates have taken creative steps in "techno-campaigning" this election, and we can only assume that both parties will further evolve with our fast-paced, techie society in order to reach all types of voters. I'm just hoping our next challenger isn't an actual robot.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=95720334

would the vp and the presedential debate have an effect on peoples opinions in todays election

For the Presidential Debate, I personally thought that McCain did a better job than Obama. I felt as though McCain's answers were more thorough and connected with the people more, while Obama seemed to be having a bit more trouble. Then again, I'm sure there are people who will say it the other way around.Another thing was that Obama would often look at McCain while answering questions, while McCain focused more on the people and the moderator. I actually thought that this was a good thing for McCain to do because it's not Obama that he wants to win over, he wants to win over the people, hence him putting all his energy towards them. As far as the Vice Presidential Debate, both Palin and Biden would dodge off answers and go off topic for a lot of questions. The moderator several times had to say to both of them "you didn't answer the question, would you like to answer it?" ... now my question is how much will these debates play a role in peoples voting , would it even have any effect ?!! since its been a while for the debates ..
Either way, I'm not happy with this election, but that put aside, I'm sure ANYONE who wins will do a better job to get us out of this economic crisis among other things that Bush has gotten us into.

Sorry John, but MNF says you're done

Is this the end of John McCain's run for presidency? At time of post, the Steelers lead the Redskins 23-6 with 11:00 remaining. As we all know, when the Redskins win their final home game before an election, the incumbent party has won the election 16 in 17 tries. As if McCain wasn't already enough of an underdog, the Steelers win in a landslide as many pundits feel Obama will tomorrow night. What do you think? Is it possible that NFL games are actually bellwethers for presidential elections? Of course, many just say this is by chance...but maybe it is fact that the Washington Redskins run the free world, not the USA. Maybe this whole election thing is just a cover up to a massive conspiracy...

But back to reality, it's not looking good for McCain as unless he can pull of Florida and Ohio, he really stands no chance. With both leaning towards Obama, it seems as though McCain's last viable chance at running for president is all but over. But the fat lady hasn't sung yet, there is still hope out their for all those neo-cons! I will most likely be counting a worthless vote tomorrow towards John McCain, but atleast I voted opposed to several of my friends who say it's not worth it.

Happy Voting!

With Election Day Coming Closer...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27483362?GT1=43001

Although this was a couple of days ago..... it caught my attention.
Both Obama and McCain uncorked massive "get-out-the-vote" operations in more than a dozen battleground states on Sunday. There were millions of telephone calls, mailings, and door-knockings in a frenzied climax to a record shattering $1 billion campaign. It says in the article that together they will spend about $8 per presidential vote.

"Polls show the six closest states are Florida, Indiana, Missouri, North Carolina, Nevada and Ohio. All were won by Bush and made competitive by Obama's record-shattering fundraising. The campaigns also are running aggressive ground games elsewhere, including Iowa, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Colorado and Virginia. "

As campaign closes more television ads are coming out. For example, Obama put a tv ad highlighting Dick Cheney's support for McCain. "The ad features Cheney, an extremely unpopular figure among the general public, at an event Saturday in Wyoming, saying: "I'm delighted to support John McCain. I'm pleased that he's chosen a running mate with executive talent, toughness and common sense, our next vice president Sarah Palin."

Here is another interesting tidbit that we were talking about in class on Thursday-about bellwethers..... "Obama and McCain campaigned on each other's turf Sunday. Obama was in Ohio, a bellwether state Bush won four years ago and where polls show Obama tied or winning."

To say the least, it will be interesting to see which states will have the vote for Obama or McCain!

Strategists Predict Big Gains for Democrats

Several CNN political strategists predict Obama will come out ahead of McCain in the election Tuesday. The entire CNN political team predicted Obama would win electoral votes ranging from 291 to 365. Each correspondent, republican and democratic, predicted Obama would finish ahead of McCain. Several other predictions were made stating anywhere from 7 to 9 republican senate seats would be lost to democrats.

Personally, I predict Obama will finish with 338 electoral votes and McCain with 200... I think Obama will edge out Florida and Ohio aiding in his comfortable win...

Will they be counted right???

With election day tomorrow there has been some discussion of chances of voter fraud. In 2004, multiple forms of voter fraud occurred, including voter intimidation, fraudulent registrations, multiple ballots cast and votes bought for money. Already during the 2008 election cycle, a dead woman in Missouri cast an absentee ballot, individuals were arrested for voting twice in Florida and people in Ohio registered and voted on the same day. I've never really been 100% sure how the voter polls work and how they are added up but with the amount of people in the U.S. there is bound to be some mistakes isn't there? With this doubt McCain-Palin campaign launched the Honest and Open Election hotline to help citizens learn the location of their polling place, as well as report any instances of irregularities at the polls, including voter fraud, intimidation, violence and electioneering. I believe that this is a type of interpersonal communication from the McCain campaign. He is showing every voter that he cares for them and that he wants the same thing to happen that they do, Get it done right.

Final Sprint to the End

Both candidates were very busy on the final day before the election squeezing in last minute visits to the states they deemed as winnable. Obama began in Jacksonville this morning, attended events in Virginia and North Carolina, passed through Indiana, and will end in Chicago for a huge rally. He seemed to be moving comfortably to a victory tomorrow. McCain, on the other hand, still behind in the polls, had a much busier day of campaigning. He also began in the sunshine state attempting to hold on those 27 electoral votes. He then travelled to Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Indiana, New Mexico, Nevada, and then will finally end in his home state of Arizona. Honestly, I have not seen McCain campaigning this fervently during the majority of the election process. Last minute campaign cramming will not be, in my opinion, enough to save him. Of course, speeches and rallies are not the only final strategies of the McCain campaign. Voters in Pennsylvania are being reminded of Hillary Clinton's remarks against Obama during the primaries and campaign ads continue to run, questioning Obama's relationship with his Reverend Jeremiah Wright. McCain needs to take his loss gracefully. These last minute attacks on Obama will just worsen public opinion of him. I have accepted he is very likely to loose the election. Even if he wins all of the swing states that are essentially tied right now in the polls, he still will not have enough electoral votes to win. I have felt for awhile now and continue to feel that if he would have changed his strategy after the first presidential debate and campaigned a little harder instead of coasting comfortably to what he may have thought was going to be a victory for him, he would not be in the current predicament.

Obama's Grandmother Passes

Senator Barack Obama’s grandmother, a central figure in his life who helped raise him during his teen-age years, died in Hawaii on Monday morning. Obama, who left the presidential campaign trail late last month to travel to Honolulu to bid her farewell, announced the death in a statement released by his spokesman upon landing here this afternoon. Her death comes one day shy of Election Day. “It is with great sadness that we announce that our grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has died peacefully after a battle with cancer,” Obama said in a statement. “She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength, and humility. She was the person who encouraged and allowed us to take chances.”
Madelyn Dunham, who turned 86 on Oct. 26, was unable to travel to see her grandson on the campaign trail. But from her apartment in Honolulu, she followed his bid for the presidency, tracking his movements and his progression through cable television.
It's tragic to hear this for the Obama family and friends, especially a day before election day. Thoughts and prayers go out to them and their families.
With this news Obama still continues to push forward for his presidency and plans to finish strong. He still continues to answer to the charges put against him rapidly and repeatedly. Along with this he continues to show how important each vote and each state is to him with working on many swing states. One of these states being Indiana. From what I was last told Senator Obama will be in Indiana on election day to possibly help persuade those undecided voters.

In the Homestretch

Indiana seems to be really important right now. Both candidates plan on visiting Indiana between today and tommarow. Early voting is the highest its ever been and there are many still campaining out there on these last two days. What is different in this election compared to other elections in the past. Many want the election just to end because they are tired of the hoopla surrounding the election and tired of seeing Obama or McCain's face. I say we need to care because one of them will be our president and we will have to see them about everyday.
Many Hoosiers were waiting hours to vote early and many are excited that we are a battleground state. McCain came to Indy today and Obama is expected to go to the Indy area tommorow but it is hushed up because he wants his appreace not to disrupt election day. Volunteers for both candidates were knocking on doors or doing phone calls. This weekend I saw on the news some celebrities even maning phones for candidates.
Obama and McCain will do a one on one interview during the halftime of Monday night football which will be at 10:15pm if anyone is interested. Its the Washington Redskins vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers. Also Saturday Night Live will have some spoofs of various elections tonight. I hope I get to see Will Ferrel as Bush again and of course Tina Fey as Sarah Palin.
Right now Obama leads McCain in Indiana 45.9% to45.3% Some of the early voters are willing to wait three to four hours to vote. Obama opened campaign offices across the state 44 of them and McCain oppened no offices in Indiana releying on state GOP. Grassroots for McCain started off slow compared to Obama's grassroots efforts.
In case you want to know McCain plans to visit battleground states of Florida, Virginia, Indiana, New Mexico, and Neveda all today. Tommarow McCain will go to Pennsylvania and then return to Arizona which he will have a party at Poenix's high end Biltmore resort and spa but plans to adress supporters on a lawn in addition to ballroom events.
Obama plans to visit Florida, North Carolina and Virginia today. Tommarow a quick stop here in the Hoosier state and then his election party will be in Chicago's Grant Park.
Both of them will be very busy but the homestretch is now and they will defiantely need some well needed rest after everything is said and done.

Settling down

This has been an exhausting year. Ever since about March I have found myself in a constant spiral of argument, malicious attacks, misinformation, and repetitiveness. I believe the term is "shit-storm". As far as this election goes, I am officially done. Well, so is America in about 24 hours. This final post will be a round-up of some of the less-covered venues that I find great interest in.

For years, Nickelodeon has broadcasted Nick News with Linda Ellerbee. Well, she's still kicking, and the results for the Kids Pick the President special are in. After 2 million votes, Barack Obama wins with 51%, and McCain loses with 49%. That was an incredibly close race, for sure. Almost too close. In a Nick News special on the candidates, kids asked important questions regarding key issues; these questions were answered by the candidates so many times that by now, it's merely second nature. The last question asked blindsided both of them: "What was your favorite Halloween costume as a kid?" Obama answered first by saying his daughters like to be cute for Halloween. This goes against his beliefs that Halloween should be scary. He then admitted that his favorite costume was a pirate. McCain answered swiftly by saying his favorite costume was also as a pirate. He would like to still take out his sword and dagger in the Senate at times. How incredibly adorable is that?

For both candidates to agree to do this is admirable. The production was simple. They probably only spent a half-hour in a room with a camera and an interviewer. It's all a part of the "big show" strategy. The pageantry of it all may allude to the candidates' need to appeal to voters' children, but maybe it's because they simply want to do it. But this is important to a lot of kids (apparently at least 2 million). A lot of the time, kids only focus on character when picking a president and not the issues. As the videos posted on their site will indicate, many kids do care about the issues and have a lot to say. Although they are not eligible voters, they will be next election. Also, they come from a household whose views may be the same as their views. Could this be a reflection of the national result?

Blitz

John McCain is insane. Seven states before the day is done. He starts out in Florida, moves up to Tennessee, Pennsylvania, hits Indiana, jumps out west to Nevada, New Mexico, and lands home in Arizona late tonight. Meanwhile, Obama also starts in Florida, but merely heads to North and South Carolina before going home to Chicago.

This obviously follows along the fast finish media strategy for a campaign. These rallies in key swing states signify McCain's "never give up" attitude, inherited from Bush and other Republicans. Each candidate will run their campaigns to the voting polls, and it is evident through these sudden rallies.

Although each media strategy seems clear-cut, the candidates seem to have utilized all of them. They both started out very strong, kept that strength for over a year, and are ending strong. It can be labeled as any of the strategies, from spurt to cruise control. However, given the atmosphere of the media at this point, it can seem that the campaigns are adhering to a fast finish race. It started with Obama's 30-minute ad and is ending with McCain's cross-country rally.

CNN reported about two hours ago their interpretation of the candidate's ad strategies. They highlighted two television ads, one from each candidate. Both were attack ads. Obama's tied McCain in with the Bush administration. This is an Obama-endorsed ad, broadcasted nationally. The McCain ad was endorsed by the Pennsylvania GOP, not McCain. Therefore, it was highlighting Obama's association with his former pastor, Rev. Wright; McCain stated he would never talk about this again, but by having an ad sponsored by the Penn. GOP, it's fair game.

These fast finish strategies are shaping up to be reflections of the entire year, wrapped into one concentrated package.

Hillary Clinton's Endorsement

In a recent and significant push for the Obama campaign, Senator Hillary Clinton of New York--formerly Senator Obama's bitter rival in the Democratic primaries--wrote a stunning endorsement letter in today's New York Daily News. You can see it at: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2008/11/02/2008-11-02_the_man_for_the_moment_hillary_clinton_m-3.html?page=0
Bear with me as I analyze the logic of her letter: The piece first emphasizes the importance of voting, then gives a scathing review of the Bush administration and its tax cuts for the rich, tax breaks for the oil companies, and inaction in the face of economic, health care, and energy crises. She characterizes President Bush's policies in this way so that the Republicans can be held generally responsible for their failure, which then reflects on McCain. This is a common argument put forth by the Democrats lately, although both parties are willing to use this tactic of generalization.
Similarly, in the next section, Senator Clinton references the positive aspects of her husband's presidency, such as job creation and balanced budgets. This attributes success to the Democrats, which reflects well on Obama. Clinton briefly mentions her policy initiatives and ideals but quickly moves on to emphatically restate the ideals of the Obama campaign and its policy agenda for an Obama administration, including his economic and health care plans. The letter ends with a reference to "closing the book on eight years of failed policies," but I think a more poignant statement she makes is that it is not "who are you for" but "who is for YOU."
This personal letter to the voters is a powerful endorsement and a well-coordinated political punch in the last days of the campaign. Undermining the opponent by using guilt by association, then extolling the virtue of your own side. It's an argument we are familiar with: do we believe it?

The Phones are Ringing Off the Hook!

With final attempts in motion, it is no wonder that both candidates are turning to the phones to reel in votes.  On the Obama homepage, they are celebrating the record breaking number of calls placed by volunteers in one day:    431,645.  Their goal for today is one million by 9 pm pacific time;  we'll have to see if they make it!  There is more than one reason for posting about this canvassing.  Firstly, it is living proof that Barack Obama has used his new media to capture the attention of voters.  By setting up his online voter contact tool, virtually anyone can make calls to anyone on behalf of the Obama campaign.  The prompt makes the call even easier to help.  

This leads to the other reason why I wrote about online voter contact calls.  As stated before, anyone can call ANYONE to speak to them about the campaign.  If you have not been living under a rock for the past few months, it is clear to say most know Indiana is quite possibly a swing state this year.  Because of it, other state citizens are calling Hoosiers to pursued them to Obama.  For example,  on Thursday, October 30th, I received two phone calls:  one from a volunteer in Fort Wayne.  Well, it was easy enough to tell them that I have already sent in my absentee ballot, thus, casting my vote.  The second of the calls was a 16 year old boy from Puerto Rico.  Not only could I not understand the young gentleman, but also paid for the conversation because he made it via collect calling.  To make matters worse, when I told him I had already sent in my absentee ballot, he began questioning me what an absentee ballot was and why i wasn't voting.  Needless to say, a few dollars and minutes later, the young gentleman, whom I learned was named Juan, got a very brief overview of absentee voting.

The situation of the random Puerto Rican boy calling has made me question if allowing "volunteers" to call and pursued people to vote for Obama may be opening a can of worms or worse.  I just hope he was one of a few who are not fully educated on voting issues and are canvassing for the candidates.  

Final Stretch of the Campaign

Perhaps the most important election of the century is coming on Tuesday, but the work is not over for our candidates. Senators Obama and McCain are still on the campaign trail trying to urge both supporters and undecided voters to get out and vote for them. The candidates are really concerned with the swing states so that they can get those votes. The one thing that really surprised me is that Obama is campaigning pretty hard in Arizona because that is Senator McCain's home state. This is surprising because you would think that McCain has Arizona pretty solid but Obama is going in there saying that he has a chance to win this state. Even though it is Sunday, this election is far from over and it will be interesting to see what these candidates do from today all the way up to the election day.

Lake County Election Troubles

When Myron Chenault came to speak to class about the election I was really surprised to hear about all of the "corruption" that is taking place in Lake County, Indiana. Voting is a right that all Americans should be able to exercise and for a political group to try to stop that right from being exercised is not right. Personally, I do not care who a person votes for as long as they vote, and this is the main reason I feel that stopping early voting is unfair because they are trying to stop the early voting based on an assumption and not a fact. What if you had an event to attend on test day and your teacher would not allow you to take the test early because they assumed what your answers would be and had already given you a grade. You would not think that is fair so why do some feel that stopping the voting early is fair. Lake County is just one example of how the bad side of politics is shown and why people are losing faith in the government and not voting.

Comprehensive Immigration Initiatives for a Secure Nation.

I recently visited Senator McCain’s website to view his stand on immigration and illegal workers in the United States. McCain believes we need to fix our broken boarders, and respect the laws of this country.
Senator McCain has pointed out four main steps to fix the broken boarders. The first step is to secure our boarders. Governors of boarder states will be held responsible for securing the boarders of their states. The second is to meet America’s labor needs. McCain will implement temporary worker programs to meet the demands for labor in the U.S. The third step is addressing the undocumented immigrants living and working in this country. Undocumented peoples must gain citizenship or be sent back to where they came from. They are affecting our economy negatively. The fourth step implement an electron verification system. This will allow companies to employees for citizenship before hiring them.