Current Event #6

For this week's Current Event I found an article in the Washington Post, “Stealth Candidacy,” about the Green Party Presidential nominee, Cynthia McKinney. Former congresswoman McKinney served with the House of Representatives from 1993 to 2003 and from 2005 to 2007. McKinney is also recognized by many from being in the news in 2006 for hitting a Capital Hill police officer. Apparently the officer did not recognize McKinney as a member of congress and would not let her enter a building. On December 11, 2007, Cynthia McKinney formally announced that she was the Green Party's nominee for President of the United States. Although Georgia did not allow her to be on their ballot, 32 other states agreed to have her on theirs. McKinney's believes that there are spies all amongst us, so she is cautious with what she says to the public. She also does not keep her calenders filled, or does not answer her phone when called. Some citizens who are voting for her said that they have not voted for a President yet and for their first time they are voing for McKinney. This will be some Election! :)

Election Post #5

Swinging states are important in the Presidential Election because they can tremendously change the outcome of who will win. Virginia, Florida, Pennsylvania, and Ohio are four swinging states that are always closely watched during the Presidential Elections. The two states that I choose to discuss are Virginia, and Florida.

Virginia

So far the polls are showing Virginia as a swinging state from more conservative, to liberal. Records show that Virginia has voted Republican since the year 1964, with Lyndon Johnson. Many believe that Virginia will change due to a high turnout of registered voters in the Northern Virginia area. Some are saying that so far, atleast five million people in Virginia have registered to vote. Other political figures believe that Virginia will be the state that determines who will be the next President, and that is why both Obama and McCain have made numerous apperances in the state, and will continue until November 4th. I predict that Obama/Democratic party will win Virginia. I believe this will be the result because many more younger voters are speaking out and wanting change just like Obama is promising them.

Florida

Right now the polls are showing Obama and McCain in a similar spot. Both candidates are very close in the polls so these next couple days will be the turning point for either candidiate. Last election Florida leaned towards the Republican/Conservative side with President Bush. Now Florida's polls show that it is a close call. It is believed that McCain has north Florida which is in the South, where as Obama has the younger, thriving, cities and populations in the easteren and some southern such as Miami. To compare, most older citizens with more conservative and more traditional views live in the Southern areas of Florida probably will continue to side with McCain, while the younger aged citizens who livein the most thirving, busy, parts of Florida will have more liberal views and will side with Obama. Alhtough the polls show that the race is close between McCain and Obama, I think in the long run the older population/more conservatives will side with McCain thus resulting in his win of the state.

Current Event #5

I found my current event in the Washington Post entitled, “Arduous Transition Awaits Next President.” This article is about the United State’s problems that the new president of the United States will inherit on their inauguration day. There is a “new challenge” for the new President due to the circumstances that the economy is in. Many followers are saying that both nominees will have to create a new administration and new policies to fix the problems. The new president will also be watched closely to see how accurate their actions compare to their campaign promises. Many already want to know if either of the nominees already have plans in mind before their inauguration day. The article also compares the differences between McCain’s promises and priorities and Obama’s.

Election Post #4

For my fourth Election post I went to http://www.gallup.com/ and http://www.electionprojection.com/president08.shtml to look at their polls on the 2008 Presidential Election. The poll results on the Gallup for the Presidential nominees has Obama at 52% and McCain at 41% as of a couple days ago. From the current data, Obama has a lead of 11% over McCain. Also for the "Likely Voters (expanded), and the "Likely Voters (traditional), Obama has gained a point, as McCain lost a point in the polls. To compare results with another poll, http://www.electionprojection.com/ has Obama currently at 52.52% compared to McCain who is currently at 45.48% popular vote. I had trouble finding Jim Gilmore and Mark Warner on the Gallup website but I found their number on the Election-projection website. The results had Warner leading with a score of 57% to Gilmore who has 33% popular vote.

Polling is important in modern U.S. elections because they keep the public notified on the current issues, whether it is the Political Election, to what is the most liked car. Most polls are taken every couple days so their information is up-to-date. Polls usually have an impact on campaigns because once the public sees the outcome either the viewers will become more concerned with the results and feel secure, or they might feel like they need to put more effort into the campaign for the result that they would like. Sometimes polls do help the election depending on the percentages, some people might feel like they need to volunteer/participate for their political party more to help their campaign nominee.

Polls are not always correct in gauging the public opinion. I say this because there might be fluctuation points that could be a little higher or lower than the polls states. The fluctuation can throw off the public views on the election saying one will win over the other, when there is no guarantee until the election occurs. 15 days left until voting for the next President!!!

Current Event # 4

The article I chose from The Washington Post, is, “World Leaders Offer Unity but No Steps to Ease Crisis.” This article is about the national and international financial crisis that is affecting many people around the world. Officials from twenty major countries are trying to come together to create a plan that can help support the economy and bring the stock markets, and international markets up once again. Some officials came up with a plan that has the major countries come together and create an international bank where each country helps support a portion of it. Some believe that this will help the failing economies cope with their loss and bring their economies back up over time. The economy is now affecting consumer spending which directly results in a decrease of merchandise manufacturing. Officials from the twenty most thriving countries are still debating on whether to further the approach of creating the financial plan. Some have their doubts saying the right now the principles of the plan are too vague and not concrete enough. The article ends saying that the international financial bank plan is still being decided upon.

Election Post # 3

For my third Election Post I chose the VA Senate: Mark Warner vs. Jim Gilmore. Both runners are highly qualified in their own individual ways.

Mark Warner-Democrat

Born: December 15, 1954

Mark Warner served as Governor of Virginia from 2002 to 2006. During his time as Governor he tried to improve education in Virginia's public schools. With the huge money surplus that his administration acquired, he was able to invest in the largest amount of k-12 education in the State's history. Warner also cut budgets by modernizing Virginia's schools curriculum which promoted fairness within each ideal focusing on economic development. Warner was also Chaired in the National Governors Association. He was also named one of the "best five Governor's of the country," in the Time magazine.

Jim Gilmore- Republican

Born: October 6, 1949

Gilmore was first elected into the Senate in 1997, against George Allan. During his administering, Gilmore strongly believed in the idea of a tax reduction and pushed for the car tax reduction which significantly helped over time.

Results from the Reduction

1998- down by 12.5%

1999- down by 25%

2000- down by 47.5%

2001- down by 70%

2002- down by 100%

For that a time being the economy was stabilized.

Gilmore also believed that schools should have a uniform cirriculum- Math, Science, English, and social Studies. In 1999, Gilmore proposed and signed into a law that reduced public college tuition's by 20%.

At this point in time Warner is leading Gilmore in the polls- 60% to 34%

The top issues at stake are:

*New Energy Policies

*Health Care

*War

*Competitiveness

*Improving the Nation's Infrastructure

Volunteering for Obama!

Current Event # 3

So, I'm writing this in the library, and it's kinda akward in here because it's so quiet!! I've never used these computers before after school!!? My internet at home isn't working for some reason!?

My third current event is from the Washington Post and is about the economy once again! I believe this is a huge issue that is affecting us world-wide and should be looked into thoroughly. My current event is about a 55 year old woman, Mrs. Fleck, and how she's struggling to maintain a normal life with today's economy. Ms. Fleck lives in Michigan who's dealing with an unemployment rate of 8.6%. Ms. Fleck did not go to College after High School so searching for a job was a challenge for her. Luckly, she found a job at the Dollar Market. Ms. Fleck has been working at the Dollar Market for 12-15 years earning around $10.00 an hour, and recieves an anual raise of .25$. Every day when shipments come in she spends many hours re-stocking the shelves. After work she drives a good distance home to her trailer spending a lot of money on gas. Ms. Fleck is also a single mom working many hours to support herself and her family. She gave up going out for fun to save money. Not only that, but her ex-husband's house has recently been forclosed because he was unable to pay his bills. Ms. Fleck is one of the many residents of Michgian who are dealing with this crisis but has spoken out to the public. The economy is an important issue that should be wached closely!