Hello all,
http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/01/26/2609873_in-campaign-romney-rarely-notes.html
I read this article from the Miami Herald, and I was surprised that Mitt Romney doesn't heavily emphasize his connection to Mexico in a state with a lot of Hispanic voters. Would it help him or hurt him more if he did? I know Hispanic voters went to the polls for Obama in 2008, but that doesn't necessarily mean this can't change. I assume the obstacle for Romney would be how to court Hispanic voters without seeming weak on immigration issues. This route could hurt his standing among voters among the far right.
At the moment catering to right is what all the republican candidates are trying to do. However, once the republican party has a nominee, I am sure the far right would still back an unfavored republican over Obama no matter what. The left will side with Obama. The moderate swing voters are who will decide this election. If the republicans want to take these voters away from Obama they need to appeal to other groups besides the far right and their party base. If Mitt Romney gets the republican nomination it would be wise for him to reach out to a wider variety of voters. In my opinion, it would be in his favor to appeal to Hispanic voters at this time. He could really hurt Obama if he took away that demographic. Most republicans dislike Obama so much they would tolerate Mitt Romney appealing to Hispanics. However, let's see what actually happens . . .
~ Melissa
Update: I noticed later today some of the statements Romney made to the Hispanic community. And I think is interesting how Gingrich and Romney are trying to win this group over.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Friday, January 20, 2012
Does Debt Matter?
I was reading my blog list this morning and came across a wonderful read from Lord Skidelsky, John Keynes' Biographer and professor of Political Economy at Warwick University in England.
http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/skidelsky49/English
He talks about the fallacy of government as a big household. It's short and to the point, but explains how the US, Britain, and Japan are not in the same situation as the Eurozone.
This article is important because it should bring to light the fact that the government has the capacity to do much more for the economy and its citizens. The idea is that the government should be responsible to the needs and desires of citizens, but that this should go beyond physical security and education, to economic security” - Economist Jan Kregel. For the government to be truly responsible, it needs to act in a manner that puts the interest of its citizens first, and not its own priorities. The national debt simply represents the desires of citizens to hold safe financial assets. A responsible government understands these desires and operates accordingly.
http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/skidelsky49/English
He talks about the fallacy of government as a big household. It's short and to the point, but explains how the US, Britain, and Japan are not in the same situation as the Eurozone.
This article is important because it should bring to light the fact that the government has the capacity to do much more for the economy and its citizens. The idea is that the government should be responsible to the needs and desires of citizens, but that this should go beyond physical security and education, to economic security” - Economist Jan Kregel. For the government to be truly responsible, it needs to act in a manner that puts the interest of its citizens first, and not its own priorities. The national debt simply represents the desires of citizens to hold safe financial assets. A responsible government understands these desires and operates accordingly.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/us/politics/poll-shows-obamas-vulnerability-with-swing-voters.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha2
This article was very interesting to me. I understand the concerns that many people have about Obama. I share many of their concerns. But the fact of the matter is, the Republican pool is very dismal. Quite frankly, far more scary than the idea of a moderate like Obama. People are so quick to throw around the term "socialist," but frankly, most of what he has done has been far more conservative than even Bill Clinton. But because Obama has been surrounded with so many firsts, from his election to the bills that he has signed into office, many people are frightened. And rightfully so, because it is not exactly a positive outlook for our country at this point in time. Yet, I still think many Independents would be wise to show up for Obama, because how practical is it for a president to accomplish everything they ran on, let alone in four years?
This article was very interesting to me. I understand the concerns that many people have about Obama. I share many of their concerns. But the fact of the matter is, the Republican pool is very dismal. Quite frankly, far more scary than the idea of a moderate like Obama. People are so quick to throw around the term "socialist," but frankly, most of what he has done has been far more conservative than even Bill Clinton. But because Obama has been surrounded with so many firsts, from his election to the bills that he has signed into office, many people are frightened. And rightfully so, because it is not exactly a positive outlook for our country at this point in time. Yet, I still think many Independents would be wise to show up for Obama, because how practical is it for a president to accomplish everything they ran on, let alone in four years?
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Gingrich and Racist-Code Language
Read Charles Blow's column on this in today's NYTimes.
http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/17/newt-gingrich-and-the-art-of-racial-politics/?src=recg
Those who may be skeptical that Gingrich is resorting to "dog whistle" politics in his particular choice of words might want to consider the following:
1. South Carolina was the final state in the country to recognize MLK, Jr.'s birthday as a national holiday.
2. The modern Republican party's strength in the South began in the 1964 Johnson vs. Goldwater presidential election in which, for the first time since Reconstruction, five former confederacy states voted for the Republican nominee. Goldwater opposed the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the most important civil rights legislation in our modern history. Nixon's "Southern Strategy," in 1968, was intended to capitalize on the switch in the Electoral College away from the solid (Democratic, pro-segregationist) South. White voters -- so-called "white ethnics" (Polish-American, Scotch American, and Irish-Americans) -- residing in the South from DC through the old confederacy began to associate the Democratic Party with African Americans, suffering from what Nixon strategist Kevin Phillips called "negrophobia."
3. Ronald Reagan began his 1980 campaign for President in Philadelphia, MS (not PA). Campaigning on "states' rights" against federal encroachment, the Reagan campaign knew full well that this was the sight that, in 1968, where three white "freedom riders" were killed in their efforts to desegregate the South. This acclerated the racial realignment -- and hence regional realignment, too -- of the two parties: Until Obama's victory in the states of Virginia and North Carolina in 2008, no northern Democratic presidential candidate could break the GOP electoral hold on the South. The exceptions, of course, consist of the two governors of Southern states, Carter and Clinton). Before Obama, nominating a non-southern was tantamount to giving the Republicans a significant head-start in the Electoral College. American national elections still follow these regional patterns.
4. The Party votes by race in 2008 in South Carolina tell the tale. Three-quarters of white voters voted for McCain in the general election; two percent of black voters cast ballots for the Republican nominee.
5. In SC today, a white woman thanked Gingrich for putting Juan Williams in his place on Monday night, saying that the so-called question of Gingrich's use of racialized language was not a question at all but an assertion of insidious motivation that was baseless. "Putting a questioner in his place" is an odd way to characterize behavior that is entirely innocent of racial overtones.
Anyone who would like to pursue this matter at greater length would be well-advised to run down Joel Olson's article in the Journal of Political Research examining "whiteness" as a root of American partisan polarization. It's not a pretty story, but it's first-rate political science in my opinion. I doubt, however, that Professor Ricci would concur with my assessment.
http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/17/newt-gingrich-and-the-art-of-racial-politics/?src=recg
Those who may be skeptical that Gingrich is resorting to "dog whistle" politics in his particular choice of words might want to consider the following:
1. South Carolina was the final state in the country to recognize MLK, Jr.'s birthday as a national holiday.
2. The modern Republican party's strength in the South began in the 1964 Johnson vs. Goldwater presidential election in which, for the first time since Reconstruction, five former confederacy states voted for the Republican nominee. Goldwater opposed the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the most important civil rights legislation in our modern history. Nixon's "Southern Strategy," in 1968, was intended to capitalize on the switch in the Electoral College away from the solid (Democratic, pro-segregationist) South. White voters -- so-called "white ethnics" (Polish-American, Scotch American, and Irish-Americans) -- residing in the South from DC through the old confederacy began to associate the Democratic Party with African Americans, suffering from what Nixon strategist Kevin Phillips called "negrophobia."
3. Ronald Reagan began his 1980 campaign for President in Philadelphia, MS (not PA). Campaigning on "states' rights" against federal encroachment, the Reagan campaign knew full well that this was the sight that, in 1968, where three white "freedom riders" were killed in their efforts to desegregate the South. This acclerated the racial realignment -- and hence regional realignment, too -- of the two parties: Until Obama's victory in the states of Virginia and North Carolina in 2008, no northern Democratic presidential candidate could break the GOP electoral hold on the South. The exceptions, of course, consist of the two governors of Southern states, Carter and Clinton). Before Obama, nominating a non-southern was tantamount to giving the Republicans a significant head-start in the Electoral College. American national elections still follow these regional patterns.
4. The Party votes by race in 2008 in South Carolina tell the tale. Three-quarters of white voters voted for McCain in the general election; two percent of black voters cast ballots for the Republican nominee.
5. In SC today, a white woman thanked Gingrich for putting Juan Williams in his place on Monday night, saying that the so-called question of Gingrich's use of racialized language was not a question at all but an assertion of insidious motivation that was baseless. "Putting a questioner in his place" is an odd way to characterize behavior that is entirely innocent of racial overtones.
Anyone who would like to pursue this matter at greater length would be well-advised to run down Joel Olson's article in the Journal of Political Research examining "whiteness" as a root of American partisan polarization. It's not a pretty story, but it's first-rate political science in my opinion. I doubt, however, that Professor Ricci would concur with my assessment.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Greetings, 2012 Capstoners
Welcome to Obamadogs, 2012 capstone members! This blog exists as a forum for communication among an elite group of political science and international relations majors at Wartburg -- on topics pertaining to our common interests: all things political. Since members of PS460 meet only once a week, this provides an opportunity for extending conversations on class-related matters in the intervals between class sessions. Because we are only now getting into the Ricci volume, blog entries can deal with matters related to the book. Or they can pertain to current events, e.g., the looming South Carolina primary, the state of play in international politics, e.g., the recent spate of "accidents" killing nuclear scientists and engineers in Iran, or proposals for the post-Ricci design of this term's 460.
Because of last week's brief consideration of Stephen Bloom's article on Iowa and Iowans in a December issue of The Atlantic Monthly, along with the voluminous commentary and criticism his unflattering portrayal has provoked, the nature of Iowa as a "politically consequential" political phenomenon is yet another possible topic of conversation. In fact, this piece may well serve as the basis for a class project on Iowa, where the "identity" of Iowa is subjected to scrutinty in the form of a Q methodological study, where the massive population of subjective descriptors of Iowans found in the Bloom piece and in the nearly 900 online commentaries on the piece are treated as a "concourse" from which to draw a Q sample of, say, 40 or so alleged characteristics of Iowans. Participants could consist of class members, including those of us who are relatively new residents of the state and people with lengthy histories in the state as well. It might be fun . . .
Best wishes for a good term,
DT
Because of last week's brief consideration of Stephen Bloom's article on Iowa and Iowans in a December issue of The Atlantic Monthly, along with the voluminous commentary and criticism his unflattering portrayal has provoked, the nature of Iowa as a "politically consequential" political phenomenon is yet another possible topic of conversation. In fact, this piece may well serve as the basis for a class project on Iowa, where the "identity" of Iowa is subjected to scrutinty in the form of a Q methodological study, where the massive population of subjective descriptors of Iowans found in the Bloom piece and in the nearly 900 online commentaries on the piece are treated as a "concourse" from which to draw a Q sample of, say, 40 or so alleged characteristics of Iowans. Participants could consist of class members, including those of us who are relatively new residents of the state and people with lengthy histories in the state as well. It might be fun . . .
Best wishes for a good term,
DT
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