American Youth Vote Obama
- At November 9, 2012
- By Dale Anderson
- In Current Events
After much debate about an “enthusiasm gap” among young voters prior to the 2012 election, turnout among this group seems to have been comparable to that in 2008. And these young voters played an important role in reelecting President Barack Obama. Youth Turnout in 2012 According to the Tufts University’s Center for Information and Research [...]
Read More»The People Have Spoken – Obama Reelected 2012
- At November 7, 2012
- By Dale Anderson
- In Current Events
The people have spoken and what they said was—more of the same. Yesterday, the American people reelected Democrat Barack Obama as president, returned the Republican majority in the House, and once again gave the Democrats the majority in the Senate. The results reflected a sharply divided electorate. Obama Reelected Obama rode a coalition of women, [...]
Read More»Fallout From Frankenstorm Sandy
- At November 3, 2012
- By Dale Anderson
- In Current Events
The only thing more certain than the fact that the damage estimates for Hurricane Sandy were higher than the storm surge is that the late October “Frankenstorm” had political fallout. Sandy, which slammed into the mid-Atlantic coastal shore Monday night, caused somewhere between $30 and $50 billion in damages—and counting. The storm is likely to [...]
Read More»Congress Matters, Too: The House Races in Election 2012
- At October 17, 2012
- By Dale Anderson
- In Current Events
Artwork courtesy of Nick Zakhar. Last week, the OLE Election Series looked at the Senate races. This week we’re looking at what might happen in the hundreds of races for seats in the House of Representatives in the 2012 election. Open Seats While Democrats have a small 53 to 47 majority in the Senate, the Republicans, [...]
Read More»The Senate in Election 2012
- At October 16, 2012
- By Dale Anderson
- In Current Events
Most eyes are focused on the tight race for president between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. But for either man to enact his programs, he will have to work with Congress. Right now, the Democrats control the Senate and the Republicans the House. Will the new Congress be different? In this first of two parts, [...]
Read More»Battling for the Battleground States
- At October 12, 2012
- By Dale Anderson
- In Current Events
Why are Barack Obama and Mitt Romney more likely to schedule appearances in Florida than California? Why are New Hampshire voters more likely to be bombarded by campaign commercials than voters in Oregon? You might think that it’s because of those states’ electoral votes. However, California and Oregon have nearly twice number of electoral votes [...]
Read More»Debating Domestic Policy in Denver—The First Presidential Debate
- At October 5, 2012
- By Dale Anderson
- In Current Events
In the first presidential debate of the 2012 election, President Barack Obama and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney squared off on October 3 at the University of Denver. Moderated by PBS newsman Jim Lehrer, the debate, the first of three presidential encounters, focused on domestic policy. From the opening question, the two candidates engaged in [...]
Read More»Breaking Down the Issues: Education
Background According to polling data, Americans think the country’s educational system is in trouble. An August 2012 Gallup poll found that only 37 percent of Americans thought that public schools are providing a good or excellent education. In June 2012, Gallup pollsters found fewer than 3 of 10 people said they had either quite a [...]
Read More»Breaking Down the Issues: Immigration
Illegal immigration has been a significant issue in presidential campaigns since the 1980s. President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney differ on immigration in several areas. Background Between 1 and 1.2 million people have gained legal resident status each year since 2005. That level is up slightly from the early 2000s. Another 90,000 [...]
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