Friday, March 21, 2008

Primary Revotes

Why it’s in the best interest of Florida and Michigan’s political machine to not have a revote



Hillary Clinton’s “Political Machine” have gathered approximately ten investors to try to privately fund Michigan’s primary revote. Clintons Political Machine has raised nearly 30 million dollars to fund a new Michigan Primary. Hillary Clinton’s opponent Barack Obama has yet to declare his support for a revote.

Howard Dean and the Democratic National Committee(DNC) has really forced both primary runners into an unfortunate predicament by telling both Florida and Michigan their primary votes would not count in deciding who would represent the democratic party if State of Michigan and State of Florida moved their primary dates.

The problem is both Clinton’s political machine and Obama’s Political Machine is correct in their assessment of the situation; they are both faced with evaluating the opportunities to collect votes from Michigan and Florida residents. Hillary could close the delegate count and popular vote count to help her argue her position as a viable candidate.

The High Road

Clinton’s “political machine’ argues all votes should be counted and delegates should be awarded based on the number of votes each candidate receives. This is a sound argument if both candidates are represented. In the end it was Barack Obama’s and John Edwards’s decision to remove their name from Michigan’s primary ballot. Hence, it is Barack’s fault for not having the insight to realize Michigan could be a crucial state on his campaign to the white house.

Obama’s “political machine” argues that they are being punished for following party rules. The DNC said Michigan and Florida’s votes would not be counted in the primary and Obama followed the rules established by the Democratic National Committee (DNC). Barack Obama’s argument; by following the rules and wishes of the DNC he could possibly be penalized thus, increasing Hillary Clinton delegate votes and popular votes. Barack’s continued argument; circumvent and ignore the rules of the DNC and your political party and you will be rewarded? In addition Barack Obama offers a valid concern regarding whether or not Hillary will continue to ignore rules in the White House?

Michigan’s voice is being heard. Michigan held a primary and the outcome favored Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton won the primary by over 50% and over 40% of the Democratic vote was for “uncommitted” which was pushed by the Michigan
congress and senate as a way to vote for Barack or to confuse the DNC for removing Michigan’s delegate count.

Why Michigan’s Political Machine moved Primary dates.

Michigan is a fairly large state with an economy revolving around the manufacturing industry for decades. Michigan currently has the highest unemployment in the country with an average of 7.1% as of January 08. Michigan’s foreclosure rate is 2.5 times the national average, Michigan’s Wayne county (Detroit) leads the country in foreclosures. The closing of auto plants and other related manufacturing jobs leaving the state and moving to China, Mexico and even southern states has fueled Michigan’s one state recession for almost 5 years. The state’s Political Machine decided to move Michigan’s primary date to gain national attention for Michigan’s struggling economy.

Why Michigan citizens should not have a primary revote.

First, any candidate that has enough financial backers willing to privately fund the revote is a cause for concern due to threats of “Prid Pro Quo” for the successful candidate. Michigan should not have a revote for the fact that Michigan wanted national attention and they are now receiving the national attention they wanted. Michigan will continue to receive the attention in the National Election whether it is from Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama. Neither democratic candidate has spent much time in the state and with the uncertainty of how Michigan voters will vote this will increase the focus of the democratic candidates and force them to address Michigan’s concerns to the state of the economy for Michigan and the United States. For Michigan or Florida to have a revote would remove any shroud of ambiguity allowing the Democratic Party to focus on the particular concerns of the voters. Thinking strategically, wait until the national election and make the candidates work for their states vote. In the end, with the primary struggles both states will play a vital role in the national election because of the uncertainty that was created by the Democratic National Committees
Political Machine.

Monday, February 25, 2008

Barack Obama -Senate Voting Record





It is obvious Barack Obama is a powerful speaker and his charisma with the people have done him well. Barack's political machine is proving to be an unstoppable machine. However, Senator Hillary Clinton and Senator John McCain make an excellent point questioning how Senator Obama will deal with current issues. Issues that have yet to be solidly debated. This Senator has only been in office since 2005 and was a state senator for 8 years.

The question is: Does he have the skills and knowledge of Washington to get things done? Some say his lack of experience is negative some say it's a positive. Out with old, in with the new? The plain fact is Barack Obama is about overhauling the political machine. Just like a mechanic overhauls an engine, you still have the engine block, you just need to update the mechanical parts of the engine. At least this is how he appears on the outside.

Although this article is about Barack Obama I looked at both of the leading primary candidates. I see the benefit of John Mccain's maverick ways backed with McCain's knowledge of Washington politics and his ability to possibly circumvent some of the red tape to get things done, if he so desires. Additionally, Barack Obama does not have years of Senate experience and he likely does not have many debts to repay in Washington. I say debts as in, comprises paid to other members of congress for helping each other. The old you wash my back, I'll wash your back example. So, chances are he does not have years of debt on compromises to pay back. This could be important in order get things accomplished in congress. This could also be negative if he is unable to compromise. Additionally, on a positive note just as a young kid asks "why?" hopefully, Barack's inexperience will help him ask the hard questions on why things can't be done.

About Barack Obama

Barack Obama has been the subject of many myths circulating around the Internet regarding him and his father. The argument of his father being a Muslim and Barack attending a school that taught Islam is correct. However, Barack Obama and his family currently attend Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago and little can be said or done about the choices parents make for their children. Furthermore, with the choice being made to send him to a school teaching Islam, Internet speculation was running rapid regarding him and terrorism. Although people tend to believe rumors, it would be highly unlikely a terrorist would be running for president of the United States. With that being said, I would like to share publicly available research regarding the Obama campaign and his "political machine".

A little history about Barack Obama, he married his wife in 1992. Barack and his wife live on the South side of Chicago. Barack graduated from Columbia University in 1983 and eventually went on to Harvard Law School where he was the first African American president of Harvard Law Review. Barack was born August 4th ,1961 making him 47 years old.


On to looking at Baracks 2007 Voting record.

Before previewing any senators voting record we should be aware that sometimes the name of the bill sounds positive but the actual “bill” is bad for the people. For instance, why would a senator vote down a law or amendment to provide health care to children? I assume any decent person wants healthcare for children.

Possible reasons for voting down the bill are other members of congress have added fat to the bill. Fat in this case means “appropriations” without a legislative discussion or votes. If you have heard about the multi-million dollar bridge to no where (Alaska), this is exactly how the bridge was funded. It was stuffed into a federal bill and paid with federal tax dollars to fund an Alaska project with tax payer dollars from other states.

I am sure the senator will get reelected since it did not cost his state any money and only created jobs. An outrageous example of such actions could be equated to a person turning down a Ferrari for sale for 150.00 a month. That would be crazy? Not if you read the fine print and the remaining balance was due at the end of 2,4 or 6 years. Thus, you the consumer turned down an excellent deal to buy a sports car, just as a senator for no obvious reason decided against funding health care for children.




Barack Obama was seated to the senate as of January 4th 2005. Barack Obama is a class three senator, meaning his term does not expire until 2011. A Class 1 senator term will end 2013 and classes 2 Senators is up for reelection in 2009. Fortunately for Barak Obama he will still have a job if he loses the primary or if he ends up losing the general election. Although Barack Obama has not been in the US senate long enough to be considered a career politician he has been very active in seeking appointments to committees and sub committees which will increase Senator Obama's experience and exposure in areas of foreign policy, areas of social security as well along with exposure to issues such as health care reform. Belonging to these committees will not only help him build his resume but will also help him gain enough experience to one day be commander in chief. This is especially important if Barack loses the general election.

Barack Obama belongs to the following committees:

• Committee on Foreign Relations
• Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
• Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
• Committee on Veterans' Affairs


Barack Obama belongs to the following subcommittees:


• Subcommittee on African Affairs
• Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs
• Subcommittee on European Affairs
• Subcommittee on International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs and International Environmental Protection
• Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations, Democracy and Human Rights
• Subcommittee on Near East and South and Central Asian Affairs
• Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps and Narcotics Affairs

Although this list only covers most of 2007 we can still get an idea of how Barack Obama votes. We can go back to 2006 and see how Senator Obama voted. The senator’s record can be found at senate.gov or if you need assistance on how to find information about your senator or congressman you can read about
"researching your politician”

In addressing votes or how senate members such as Barack, we should read the amendments being proposed very carefully for words such as: “Motion to table” “Motion to waive”.

These statements suggest putting off voting on a particular subject. A senator may vote “nay” however, the senator is not necessarily voting against an amendment, they are actually voting nay in order to have the opportunity to address the issue rather than putting the issue off until later. Some of the biggest time wasters are voting on motions, “to motion” such as this example below:

“On the Motion (Motion to Waive C.B.A. Re: Kyl Amdt. No. 115)”

In this instance the Senator Obama voted Nay on the motion, for a motion to waive the opportunity to address C.B A..

To put it other terms, a senator could motion they discuss a motion to actually work. Hence, I would vote nay to address the motion to work and they would not address the motion of actually working. Although this is a ridiculous statement the point has been made on how an amendment could actually be held up. It could be similar to a filibuster

Although these are documented voting practices of Barack Obama for 2007 it does not necessarily mean his vote was a reflection of the bill actually passing or being rejected. The voting record below is a brief view, it is intended to allow the reader to become informed and if so inspired, do research on a particular voting record they care about.

Barack Obama's "Nay" Votes

______________________________________________________________

On the Motion to Table (Motion to Table Vitter Amdt. No. 6 )
prohibit authorized committees and leadership PACs from employing the spouse or immediate family members of any candidate or Federal office holder connected to the committee

On the Motion to Table (Motion to Table DeMint Amdt. No. 11 )
To strengthen earmark reform.


On the Motion (Motion to Waive CBA, Ensign Amdt. No. 154)
To improve access to affordable health care

On the Motion (Motion to Waive Re: DeMint Amdt. No. 158)
To increase the Federal minimum wage by an amount that is based on applicable State minimum wages.

On the Motion (Motion to Waive C.B.A. Re: Kyl Amdt. No. 115)
To extend through December 31, 2008, the depreciation treatment of leasehold, restaurant, and retail space improvements.

the Motion to Table S.Amdt. 298 to S.Amdt. 275 to S. 4 (Improving America's Security Act of 2007)

To strengthen the security of cargo containers.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 577 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To provide budget levels to extend through 2012 the production tax credit for electricity produced from renewable resources, the Clean Renewable Energy Bonds, and energy tax provisions for energy efficient buildings and power plants.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 513 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To provide for true deficit reduction in appropriation bills.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 472 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To require wealthy Medicare beneficiaries to pay a greater share of their Medicare Part D premiums.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 525 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To provide reconciliation instructions of $33.8 billion to make provider payments more accurate, to improve Medicare Part B income relation provisions, expand those provisions to Medicare Part D and reduce the deficit. To provide a deficit-neutral reserve fund for the reauthorization of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) that will cover kids first.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 489 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To establish a reserve fund for Social Security.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 476 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To ensure that our troops serving in harms way remain Americas top budget priority by ensuring full funding for the Department of Defense within the regular appropriations process, reducing reliance on supplemental appropriations bills, and by improving the integrity of the Congressional budget process.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 477 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To provide for a budget point of order against legislation that increases income taxes on taxpayers, including hard-working middle-income families, entrepreneurs, and college students.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 507 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To protect families, family farms and small businesses by raising the death tax exemption to $5 million and reducing the maximum death tax rate to no more than 35%, to extend college tuition deduction, to extend the student loan interest deduction, to extend the teacher classroom deduction, to protect senior citizens from higher taxes on their retirement income, to maintain U.S. financial market competitiveness, and to promote economic growth by extending the lower tax rates on dividends and capital gains.



Barack Obama's "Yea" Votes
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


On the Amendment (Vitter Amdt No. 7 )
To amend the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 to establish criminal penalties for knowingly and willfully falsifying or failing to file or report certain information required to be reported under that Act, and for other purposes


On the Amendment (Kerry Amdt. No. 1, As Modified
To amend title 5, United States Code, to deny Federal retirement benefits to individuals convicted of certain offenses, and for other purposes.
``(A) any revenue provision that has the practical effect of providing more favorable tax treatment to a particular taxpayer or limited group of taxpayers when compared with other similarly situated taxpayers

3. (a) A Member who proposes an earmark, targeted tax benefit, or targeted trade benefit included on a list prepared pursuant to paragraph 2, shall certify that neither the Member nor his or her spouse has a financial interest in such earmark, targeted tax benefit, or targeted tariff benefit.


On the Amendment S.Amdt. 10 to S.Amdt. 3 to S. 1 (No short title on file)
To increase the penalty for failure to comply with lobbying disclosure requirements.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 44 to S.Amdt. 11 to S.Amdt. 3 to S. 1
To strengthen earmark reform.

On the Cloture Motion S.Amdt. 4 to S.Amdt. 3 to S. 1 (No short title on file)
To strengthen the gift and travel bans.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 65 to S.Amdt. 4 to S.Amdt. 3 to S. 1
To prohibit lobbyists and entities that retain or employ lobbyists from throwing lavish parties honoring Members at party conventions.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 30 to S.Amdt. 3 to S. 1 (No short title on file)
To establish a Senate Office of Public Integrity.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 206 to S.Amdt. 100 to H.R. 2 (Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007)
To express the sense of the Senate that Congress should make permanent the tax incentives to make education more affordable and more accessible for American families and eliminate wasteful spending, such as spending on unnecessary tax loopholes, in order to fully offset the cost of such incentives and avoid forcing taxpayers to pay substantially more interest to foreign creditors.

On the Nomination PN178
Lt. Gen. David H. Petraeus, in the Army, to be General

On the Cloture Motion S. 4
A bill to make the United States more secure by implementing unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight the war on terror more effectively, to improve homeland security, and for other purposes.

On Passage of the Bill H.R. 2
A bill to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide for an increase in the Federal minimum wage

On the Concurrent Resolution S.Con.Res. 20
A concurrent resolution expressing the sense of Congress that no funds should be cut off or reduced for American Troops in the field which would result in undermining their safety or their ability to complete their assigned mission

On the Resolution S.Res. 107
A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate that no action should be taken to undermine the safety of the Armed Forces of the United States or impact their ability to complete their assigned or future missions.

On Passage of the Bill S. 4
A bill to make the United States more secure by implementing unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight the war on terror more effectively, to improve homeland security, and for other purposes.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 545 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To restore the top marginal tax rate to pre-2001 levels on taxable income in excess of $1 million and use the increased revenue to increase funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Act.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 486 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To provide additional funding resources in FY2008 for investments in innovation and education in order to improve the competitiveness of the United States.

On the Amendment S.Amdt. 483 to S.Con.Res. 21 (No short title on file)
To provide a point of order against any budget resolution that fails to achieve an on-budget balance within 5 years.
*****In the end we are all responsible for making and educated vote, we can't complain about what our senators are doing if we don't monitor their activities as stewards of the people****

Thursday, January 31, 2008

John McCain and Mitt Romney

McCain and Romney primary battle

John McCain continues to be the comeback kid after his recent win in Florida. John McCain’s recent win in Florida surprised many republicans including John McCain and Rudy Giuliani as well as other GOP supporters. The Arizona senator is feeling pretty confident after he recently won New Hampshire and South Carolina after narrowly losing Michigan. Additional good news for John McCain aka: “The maverick” and “comeback kid” he recently received an endorsement from his former competitor former governor Rudy Giuliani. This endorcement helps push McCain's "political machine" even further along towards his road to success.

One of the biggest surprises about John McCain’s politicial machine is he was in debt to the sum of 4.5 million going into Florida’s primary. The senator was border line broke and had to rely on a line of credit at the end of 2007 to continue his campaign to be the GOP’s representative. Senator John McCain’s savvy debates and his moderate (although he’ll argue he’s a conservative) views have proved to be enough to gain 7 million dollars in January alone. John McCain’s win has helped him build up momentum by winning 3 primaries and his political machine has been on fire ever sense. However, John McCain still has a tuff fight on his hands as he continues onto Super Tuesday.

John McCain’s biggest adversary Mitt Romney has deep pockets and can stay in the fight for as long as he feels he still has a chance to win. This is obvious after Mitt Romneys frustrations when reviewing their previous debate where Senator John McCain accuses former governor Romney of wanting to pull troops out of Iraq and Mitt Romney’s reactions to Senator McCain’s statement. This attack tactic by Senator McCain is what several political pundits believe helped him beat Mitt Romney in Florida .This was obvious by the frustration of Mitt Romney during his debate at the Ronald Regan Presidential Library. However, many pundits believe John McCain will continue to press the issue that Mitt Romney wanted to pull of Iraq due to suggestions that John McCain could possibly lose ground if the debates move to anything related to money and the US economy. During the debate Mitt Romney was becoming frustrated and changed tactics and attacked Senator McCain accusing him of being more focused on liberal views rather than holding onto Republican values.

In an interesting turn of events Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is scheduled a news conference to throw his support to John McCain one week prior to California’s primary. This comes after the Governor previously said he would not endorse any primary candidate. This endorsement should help John McCain solidify his position as the Republicans candidate for the GOP nomination. John Mc Cain should do well as his popularity in California has seemed to rise according to polling data. California being a large state will help John McCain gain the delegates needed to push him out in front of Mitt Romney when it comes to adding up the delegates. Of course this also depends on how Mitt Romney does during Super Tuesday. John McCain has won 3 races and California offers 170 delegates deriving from 53 congressional districts for which only republicans can vote.

To summarize the fight to represent the GOP it all falls down to the ability to continue to raise money for John McCain along with Mitt Romney’s choice to continue to stay in the race if he loses a significant number of the delegates on Super Tuesday. It also depends on the amount of endorsements from state governors and senators supporting Mitt Romney and John McCain.

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Super Tuesday

Super Tuesday

One of the benefits of being connected to the Internet politics is much easier to research while helping voters stay informed. Thus, with the Internet it makes it easier to explain while easily providing examples and links to support researched topics on politics such as the history behind “Super Tuesday”.

Super Tuesday received its name back in 1988 when southern states joined together to have their primaries or caucuses on the same day. The intention was to help parties save money while trying to expedite the decision process and preventing delays. This is beneficial for the parties and candidates to a point. However, a part of the focus of primaries and caucuses is the help the voter to get to know potential candidates before the national conventions and ultimately the presidential race.

The movement of a majority of the primaries to super Tuesday may save money for Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Republican National Committee (RNC). Unfortunately, the voters are losing out by not receiving face time from candidates because of the limited time between the Iowa Caucus and Super Tuesday. This forces candidates to skip states, rush through states and cities while focusing on specific groups such as minorities or unions.


The recent events has each parties political machine speeding along and “Super Tuesday” (February 5th) could potentially be renamed surprise Tuesday due to previous wins by Senator Clinton, former Governor Mitt Romney, Senator John McCain, and the Iowa Caucus win by Mike Huckabee. The current race is so hectic that some websites are calling it Tsunami Tuesday. However, with "Internet politics" and blogs Super Tuesday could become even more hectic and make history if Rudy Giuliani wins the Florida primary. In that event, this would leave the republicans in their financial backers in a quandary about who they should support.

Although the GOP is having their own identity crisis they are not alone. The race between Barak Obama and Hillary Clinton is proving to be as entertaining as any other Super Tuesday since former President Clinton had his trial and tribulations to eventually win. It is even more interesting with the popularity of the Internet politics is easily referenced by an abundant amount of blogs and RSS Feeds.


Super Tuesday being February 5th:

24 states will be conducting their primary or caucus. Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, **Idaho, Illinois, **Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, **New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia. ** Democrat caucuses only***

Feb. 1: Maine

Feb. 9: Kansas, Louisiana, Washington
Feb. 12: District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia
Feb. 19: Wisconsin
March 4: Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont
March 11: Mississippi
May 6: Indiana, North Carolina
May 13: Nebraska
May 17: Hawaii
May 20: Kentucky, Oregon
May 27: Idaho
June 3: South Dakota

To view dates along with the specific number of delegates please visit Wikipedia



Thursday, January 17, 2008

Nevada Caucus Politics

The importance of the Nevada Caucus

How important is the Nevada Caucus to both the Democrats and Re publican's Political Machine? It is important, but not as important or valued as it is to media pollsters and the importance to build confidence among certain candidates. The reason the pollsters are interested is because of the roller coaster ride the media and pollsters are receiving. The first surprises being the Iowa Caucus win by Mike Huckabee. The second surprise is the win for Hillary Clinton and John McCain in New Hampshire. All three wins were a surprise to the candidates as well as the media. With McCain losing Michigan to Mitt Romney it’s almost considered a crap shoot for Nevada and South Carolina? The pollsters have been wrong and they need some stability in the primary race to establish credibility. The primaries have been so unpredictable international politics and politicians are refraining from commenting and making early alliances due to the fact it’s still any body’s race.

January 19th and Nevada play an important role in helping create stability among the primary and the Political Machine. The turnout for Nevada is expected to be large because of minorities and the involvement of Nevada’s largest labor union representing Culinary Workers Union (Casino) supporting these minorities with about 60,000 supporters and service employees with 17,500 members supporting Obama.

About the Nevada Caucus
Delegates are elected at the town or precinct-level (in larger cities) caucuses attend their desired party's county conventions. There voters elect delegates to the state conventions. From this step those voters at the Nevada conventions elect the delegates to the national conventions. It should also be reinforced that delegates at county, state and national conventions are not required or legally bound to continue to support the candidate they pledged to support at the caucus level or at a lower level convention (county for instance).

Voters in the Republican caucus must have been registered for at least 30 days before the Iowa caucus. So in order to be eligible to vote in the Republican the Republican voter had to be registered in December. Democratic Party rules differ from the GOP. They allow Republicans, Independents and previously unregistered persons to register as Democratic anytime up until the day of the caucus.

A downside to the caucus system is the absence of secret ballot voting and having to declare their candidate in public, along with the confusion and lack of understanding regarding caucus system by many potential voters. Although caucuses are not a secret as voting in a traditional primary the people of Nevada can expect to create some excitement by participating in a caucus rather than the traditional primary. The fact is the caucus induces more energy but is one of the more confusing processes of the political machine no matter which state has a caucus.

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Michigan Primary

About Michigan's Primary:

Michigan’s’ Primary was changed recently and moved to a date earlier than Feb 5th the proverbial “Super Tuesday”. Michigan’s Primary (open primary) will now occur on January 15th. This change has provoked the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to blacklist Michigan’s primary. Michigan has been told not to bother sending its 156 Democratic National Convention delegates to Denver, where hotel rooms have been taken away. Both Republicans and Democrats lost delegates as a punishment for moving up Michigan's presidential primary to Jan. 15. This is yet another game in the political machine and politics.

The Republican National Committee (RNC) told Michigan Republicans that they would lose half of their nominating delegates at their convention. The Democratic National Committee said Florida and Michigan would have to forfeit their delegates at the convention for moving their primaries before February 5. The Democratic candidates responded by supporting the DNC by vowing not to campaign in Michigan and Florida during the primary. Republican candidates continue to visit and run ads in Michigan.

In Michigan’s the Democratic Party's ballot, you will notice four of the party's candidates do not appear on the primary ballot, this includes candidates John Edwards and Barrack Obama. The candidates voluntarily withdrew from Michigan's primary. As it stands Michigan is unofficially down to 59 delegates to send to the DNC. However, Hillary Clinton has stuck it out and remains on Michigan’s ballot. The unofficial reason for the primary change is because Michigan is experiencing what many consider a one state recession and by moving the primary Michigan hopes to gain more influence in the selection of the next presidential candidate while bringing national attention to Michigan’s economic struggles.

Michigan’s manufacturing struggles and economic downturn forces the state to become even more involved and bring focus on International politics and policies. Michigan has the highest unemployment rate in the nation (7.4%) and citizens are moving out of Michigan in record numbers while Michigan’s Wayne County (Detroit) experiences the difficulty in exporting vehicles and watching plant closures continue to hurt Michigan. Michigan’s Wayne County is also starting to lead the nation in home foreclosures and Democrats have chosen to ignore over 1 million voters in this particular county over “primary politics”. Since the change of Michigan’s primary, their hopes of shifting focus on international politics and trade issues may have back fired and Michigan could lose some of its voice and media exposure although this is unlikely.

Since Michigan has been black listed on the democratic side voters of Michigan can enjoy not being bombarded by ads, calls or flyers to support the democrats other than Hillary Clinton who again went against party politics and continues to run ads. Since a majority of democratic candidates have chosen to pull their names off Michigan’s primary there is a big push to vote uncommitted with uncommitted currently rating at 33% according to an Epic MRA poll as of 1/12/08 . So, either democrats vote for Hillary Clinton or they vote uncommitted.

The Democratic political machine in Michigan should be furious, The reason being Republicans such as McCain and Romney are taking out ads and talking to Michigan voters while providing the “we feel your pain speech’ while Mitt continues to talk about his dad and his roots in Michigan although he moved away. Furthermore, on a national level Democrats were poised to win overwhelming in the presidential race as they did in the previous congressional races. However, it may be slipping as the Iraq war loses steam and financial worries start to take precedence. A prime example is the GOP is slamming Michigan with ads and Democrats are losing out on face time.

Michigan’s political machine has retooled and changed primary dates, this will likely benefit Michigan in the future but not until 2012-13. However, if Michigan voters don’t express their disapproval for the DNC and RNC black listing, Michigan may see a repeat in the next presidential election after 2009. In the end the only people to immediately benefit from Michigan’s primary change is the Republican’s, Independents and most likely Hillary Clinton.

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

New Hampshire Primary

New Hampshire Primary



The New Hampshire Primary is important cog in the political machine because it is the second event which gives the country a view of who are the top contenders for their parties’ presidential nomination. It is common for New Hampshire to reflect what the people of Iowa vote for. However, this is not always the case as is in the recent polls for Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican John McCain.

There are two main types of primaries in the political machine, open or closed, which dictates who is eligible to vote in the primary. . In an open primary, on the other hand, a registered voter can vote in either primary regardless of party membership. However, the voter cannot participate in more than one primary. A third less common type of primary, the blanket primary, allows registered voters to participate in all primaries.
In primary politics, closed primaries a registered voter may vote only in the election for the party with which that voter is affiliated or registered as (Democrat, Republican, Green parties). A voter registered as Democrat can vote only in the Democratic primary and a Republican can vote only in the Republican primary.

To explain further differences in the political machine voters are eligible to vote in the primary, there are differences in whether the ballot lists candidate or delegate names. The presidential preference primary is a direct vote for a specific candidate. The voter chooses the candidate by name. The second method is more indirect, giving the voter a choice among delegate names rather than candidate names. As in the caucus, delegates voice support for a particular candidate or remain uncommitted

The New Hampshire Primary is a closed primary. Votes can only be cast to for the part which the voter is registered. Hence, a voter registered as a Republican choosing to participate In the New Hampshire Primary must vote in the Republican Primary. Likewise, a Democrat choosing to participate must vote in the Democratic party. However, because New Hampshire allows people who are independent to choose either party it could easily be considered as an open primary based on the independents option to vote.

In a current update regarding the current 2008 New Hampshire the political machine plugs along as we see a surprise surge as Senator Clinton narrowly ousts Senator Obama. This surprise comes to both Democratic presidential candidates and shows how for whatever polling is being conducted he voters have the ultimate voice and decision in both primaries and in the interest of national politics. In yet another surprise Republicans watched as the Huckabee falls to third place and John McCain is seen as the comeback kid after receiving the most votes in the New Hampshire Republican Primary.

Monday, January 7, 2008

Iowa Caucus

About the Iowa Caucus

How is Iowa used in the Political Machine? The politicians use the caucus to measure their status among Middle America. This is the beginning of how presidential hopefuls will represent themselves among international politics as well as local and party line politics.

How Does the Iowa caucus work?

The caucus is a closed group of people or realistically a political party coming together in a closed meeting to select candidates or decide on policy. The caucus should not be confused with the Primary where the candidate is actually selected to represent their party. The Iowa caucus is considered the first step in the presidential nomination for Democrats and Republicans. This is not because Iowa is really important, it’s because Iowa is first in the series of caucuses.

Why is Iowa considered Important by the media and potential presidential candidates? Iowa is deemed as important because it’s the first state in the union to conduct a caucus and it’s considered the first real challenges candidates will face. Iowa is also considered a state that equally represents American on a majority of the views on both sides’ of political lines. Additionally, Iowa is the first state to start the caucus. Thus, Iowa receives most of the attention. This is also considered a preliminary view of who the individual parties will select to represent them in running for president. So, Hence, January 3rd brings a lot of interests for prior speculations among media and political consultants.

Democratic Process when in Caucus for Iowa

In the Democratic caucuses party officials in each county split the county into groups by either precinct or legislative districts. There are currently 99 counties in Iowa. These groups can be hosted at schools fire stations, or even an individuals home. The whole point is to create a group where the attendants have a minimum of 15%-25 of attendees if another group is present and has less than 15% they must either join another group or stand out. Iowa always holds their caucus on January 3rd. During the democratic caucus supporters write their names and the names of the candidates they have chosen to support on the cards. Next, the cards will be added to the number of people supporting a candidate in the first round. If that candidate doesn’t get the 15 percent of votes to be considered viable, the cards won’t be used further. Individual supports not in the 15% percentile may reallocate their support to another candidate or group. Hence, candidates vie for support of people that are not in a particular group in hopes of increasing their margin or percentage of people supporting their run for presidency.

Republican Process when in Caucus for Iowa

In the Republican caucuses, each voter casts his or her vote by secret ballot. Voters are given sheets of paper without the candidate names printed on them. Voters begin by listening to other people campaigning for a particular candidate. This again is done by caucus participants, after the voters have made their choice they write it down and the information is provided to the Republican Party. Iowa republicans total the results at all 99 precincts then in turn they notify people of the media of the results. The results are calculated and reported to the state party which provides the results to the media.

A Delegate from each precinct caucus is sent on to the county convention. In turn, the county convention chooses delegates to the District Convention, which makes the selection of delegates to the State Convention. So, in actuality it is the Republican state convention, not the precinct caucuses, which ultimately selects delegates to the Republicans National Convention in Iowa. The media usually allocates delegates by estimating county convention results. However, delegates are officially unbound from the precinct caucus. It should be noted as a part of the democratic caucus there is no way to vote anonymously. Voters may request what could be considered as a sort of absentee ballot, which is commonly referred to as a preference card. A preference card may be issued if the voter has to work or can’t attend because of a disability or health reasons or other legitimate reasons. To be a responsible voter we must research and understand the game of the Political Machine