A new Gallup Poll just released ranks public opinion about the Presidential candidates based on a "thermometer" system. Rudy Giuliani and Hillary Clinton rank "warmest" in their respective parties.
Read the full article here.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Fred Thompson: Senator, Thespian, Presidential Candidate
Long gestating on the thought of running for president, Former Senator Fred Thompson will make his candidacy official on September 6, at 12:01. Thompson plans to follow his announcement with a tour of early primary states.
Read the full story here
Read the full story here
Obama Drawing Large Crowds
Although Barack Obama has not been able to gain much ground on Democratic front runner Hillary Clinton in the polls as of late, it does not appear that his supporters are the least bit deterred.
A recent Washington Post article details the substantial crowds that Obama has drawn at recent campaign stops. That fact, in conjunction with the success that the candidate has had raising money, is proof of what his camp calls, "it's solid ground organization."
Read the full story here.
A recent Washington Post article details the substantial crowds that Obama has drawn at recent campaign stops. That fact, in conjunction with the success that the candidate has had raising money, is proof of what his camp calls, "it's solid ground organization."
Read the full story here.
New Poll Finds the Majority of Democrats Favor a Candidate Representing Change
In a new Gallup poll released today, 73 percent of potential Democratic voters said they would support a candidate that represented "change," while only 26 percent of those polled said that they would opt for "experience."
Read the full story here.
Read the full story here.
Monday, September 3, 2007
Romney Gets Bump In New Iowa Poll
According to a new Newsmax/Zogby poll, despite trailing nationally, former governor Mitt Romney as built a substantial lead in the first caucus state of Iowa.
Read the full story here.
Read the full story here.
McCain Discusses Accelarated Primary Fiasco.
John McCain, speaking Sunday at an event in Iowa, voiced his opinion on the state of the primaries, and his firm belief in the importance of the Iowa caucuses. No word on whether McCain, as several democrats already have, will abstain from campaigning in the states that have pushed their primaries to an earlier date.
Read the full story here.
Read the full story here.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Some Democratic Candidates Might Boycott Early Primaries
Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards joined Chris Dodd, Bill Richardson, and Joe Biden in pledging to avoid states that break Democratic Party rules by holding early primaries.
Read the full story here.
Read the full story here.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
More Additions
We've added another feature to the sidebar today. Just below the "Republican/Democratic Candidates on the Issues" section there is now a new feature labeled "Party Websites." This is a series of links to the five major political parties in the U.S.
It might seem like we live in a two party system, but in reality there are a number of other viable, albeit under publicized, options out there. In fact, over the last few election there have a been a number of Independent and Third Party candidates who have made a significant impact. In the 2000 election, Green Party Candidate Ralph Nadar garnered more than two million votes in the general election. Ross Perot, who ran in 1992 as an Independent and in 1996 as the Reform Party candidate, captured 19 million and 8 million votes respectively. This list does not by any stretch of the imagination encompass all the political parties, it does provide a bit of insight into a few additional options.
It might seem like we live in a two party system, but in reality there are a number of other viable, albeit under publicized, options out there. In fact, over the last few election there have a been a number of Independent and Third Party candidates who have made a significant impact. In the 2000 election, Green Party Candidate Ralph Nadar garnered more than two million votes in the general election. Ross Perot, who ran in 1992 as an Independent and in 1996 as the Reform Party candidate, captured 19 million and 8 million votes respectively. This list does not by any stretch of the imagination encompass all the political parties, it does provide a bit of insight into a few additional options.
If the Election Were Held Today
The people over at Polling Report, and independent and non-partisan research group, recently did a poll concerning how the candidates would stack up against each other if the election were held today.
Read the full story here.
Read the full story here.
Early Look at the Polls for the 2008 Election
As we mentioned before, the 2008 Presidential election has had an unusually early start. For a look at one some of the first indicators regarding how the public feels at this point in the race, The Gallup Organization has done some polling in regards to fight for the nominations.
Read the full story here.
Read the full story here.
Friday, August 31, 2007
Updates and Additions
Alright, Political Bafflegab is starting to take shape. We've added a few more features and another blogger to the site. First and foremost, Miles Doornbos has agreed to hop on board with me and help organize our content. In general, Miles will handle the day to day updates regarding the Republicans, while I'll be reporting about the Democrats. From this point on we will be splitting site-related duties right down the middle, so if anything goes wrong, um...blame it on him.
As for the other updates, we've added two new updates today:
- Diane Rehm Show: Weekly News Roundup: This is a weekly podcast from one of NPR's morning hosts where the headlines from the previous week are discussed by pundits from both ends of the political spectrum. The podcast is not primarily dedicated with issues related to the election, but as the primaries draw closer and closer, a good deal of the content will concern the issues pertinent to the debate.
This is a great source for a genuine, well rounded discussion of the issues of the day. It will be updated weekly.
- Democratic Candidates on the Issues/Republican Candidates on the Issues: This is a permanent feature of the site where by clicking on the name of the candidate that you wish to research you will be able to read where each of the candidates stands on the issues in their own words.
The list currently includes only the candidates that have officially declared that they are running for President. People who have not done so, such as Al Gore/Fred Thompson/Newt Gingrich/etc., but might do so in the future, are not yet included. As candidates either throw their names into the race, or drop out of the race, the list will be updated.
Thats it for now, check back for more additions very soon!
As for the other updates, we've added two new updates today:
- Diane Rehm Show: Weekly News Roundup: This is a weekly podcast from one of NPR's morning hosts where the headlines from the previous week are discussed by pundits from both ends of the political spectrum. The podcast is not primarily dedicated with issues related to the election, but as the primaries draw closer and closer, a good deal of the content will concern the issues pertinent to the debate.
This is a great source for a genuine, well rounded discussion of the issues of the day. It will be updated weekly.
- Democratic Candidates on the Issues/Republican Candidates on the Issues: This is a permanent feature of the site where by clicking on the name of the candidate that you wish to research you will be able to read where each of the candidates stands on the issues in their own words.
The list currently includes only the candidates that have officially declared that they are running for President. People who have not done so, such as Al Gore/Fred Thompson/Newt Gingrich/etc., but might do so in the future, are not yet included. As candidates either throw their names into the race, or drop out of the race, the list will be updated.
Thats it for now, check back for more additions very soon!
Thursday, August 30, 2007
And it starts...
So here we go, the first post of what I hope to many. As unbelievable as it might seem, the Presidential Election of 2008 is already in full swing. Candidates from both sides of the aisle are already jockeying for position in a field that is both deep and intriguing.
Unless you've been living under a very heavy rock somewhere in a distant part of Alaska with earplugs in, blinders on, and tinfoil covering 94 percent of your upper body, you've probably heard a least a little bit about a few of the big name front runners:
-Hillary (she's not a man!)
-Barack (he's not white!)
-Romney (he's a Mormon!)
-Giuliani (the savior of all that's good and holy after 9-11!)
But there is more to it than that. There is more to the candidates than catchphrases, slogans, and bumper stickers. For some reason or another we as a nation have fallen into a rut where if you can't define your opinion with a five words or less, its not worth listening too. People are either pro-CHOICE or pro-LIFE, LEFT or RIGHT, LIBERAL or CONSERVATIVE, from a BLUE STATE or RED STATE. We define ourselves within such limited parameters and there is no longer any room for debate. We are either RIGHT or WRONG, so what is the point learning anything new? Why take the time to educate ourselves about the ever changing world that surrounds us?
In 2004 our nation had a voter turnout rate of roughly 64 percent. Compare that to Australia, a country that since 1960 has had an average voter turnout of 95 percent, and it starts to become staggeringly clear just how deplorable that is. The most astounding and disconcerting aspect of this trend is that the age group with the lowest of the low turnout was that of 18-24 year olds. Young people from this demographic turned out at a paltry 47 percent.
After the last Presidential election I talked to a number of people who fit into that particular age group. I was 21 years old in 2004, so the majority of my friends and acquaintances at the time provided a ready-made study group of young voters and non-voters alike. By no means at all do I want to make it sound like a discussion amongst friends constitutes a scientific study, but the one complaint that kept coming up time and time again was the feeling that there was no place available to find informative, interesting, and unbiased news about the candidates. Sure you could go to one of the major news organizations for help, but what you get now in our 24 hours news society isn't so much information, but rather already formed opinions. Thats where we come in.
This site is going to be dedicated to providing genuine details, facts, figures, statistics and information that pertains to the upcoming 2008 Presidential election. In due time we will include everything from the candidate individual platforms, to info about debates, to the daily news regarding all (not just the name-brand) of the people who have chosen to run for office and become the highest ranking member of the U.S. government.
We as a nation are going to soon participate in one of the most important elections that our young country has ever seen. It is our privilege and it is our job to be educated about the choices that we will be asked to make.
Unless you've been living under a very heavy rock somewhere in a distant part of Alaska with earplugs in, blinders on, and tinfoil covering 94 percent of your upper body, you've probably heard a least a little bit about a few of the big name front runners:
-Hillary (she's not a man!)
-Barack (he's not white!)
-Romney (he's a Mormon!)
-Giuliani (the savior of all that's good and holy after 9-11!)
But there is more to it than that. There is more to the candidates than catchphrases, slogans, and bumper stickers. For some reason or another we as a nation have fallen into a rut where if you can't define your opinion with a five words or less, its not worth listening too. People are either pro-CHOICE or pro-LIFE, LEFT or RIGHT, LIBERAL or CONSERVATIVE, from a BLUE STATE or RED STATE. We define ourselves within such limited parameters and there is no longer any room for debate. We are either RIGHT or WRONG, so what is the point learning anything new? Why take the time to educate ourselves about the ever changing world that surrounds us?
In 2004 our nation had a voter turnout rate of roughly 64 percent. Compare that to Australia, a country that since 1960 has had an average voter turnout of 95 percent, and it starts to become staggeringly clear just how deplorable that is. The most astounding and disconcerting aspect of this trend is that the age group with the lowest of the low turnout was that of 18-24 year olds. Young people from this demographic turned out at a paltry 47 percent.
After the last Presidential election I talked to a number of people who fit into that particular age group. I was 21 years old in 2004, so the majority of my friends and acquaintances at the time provided a ready-made study group of young voters and non-voters alike. By no means at all do I want to make it sound like a discussion amongst friends constitutes a scientific study, but the one complaint that kept coming up time and time again was the feeling that there was no place available to find informative, interesting, and unbiased news about the candidates. Sure you could go to one of the major news organizations for help, but what you get now in our 24 hours news society isn't so much information, but rather already formed opinions. Thats where we come in.
This site is going to be dedicated to providing genuine details, facts, figures, statistics and information that pertains to the upcoming 2008 Presidential election. In due time we will include everything from the candidate individual platforms, to info about debates, to the daily news regarding all (not just the name-brand) of the people who have chosen to run for office and become the highest ranking member of the U.S. government.
We as a nation are going to soon participate in one of the most important elections that our young country has ever seen. It is our privilege and it is our job to be educated about the choices that we will be asked to make.
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