Dream Job of Candidates

Asked by Associated Press, presidential candidates listed what their dream jobs would be if they could have it. I found many of these answers entertaining and funny not only because many seemed fit but also the fact that these people wanted job which many Americans can easily attain and succeed at. This list if from Foxnews.com

DEMOCRATS:

Delaware Sen. Joe Biden: Architect.

New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton: "Continue to work for causes and issues I care about, in a setting like a university or foundation."

Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd: Teacher.

Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards: Mill supervisor.

Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich: Astronaut.

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama: Architect.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson: Center field, New York Yankees.

REPUBLICANS:

Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback: Farmer.

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani: Sports announcer.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee: Bass guitar player for a touring rock band.

California Rep. Duncan Hunter: Outdoor writer.

Arizona Sen. John McCain: Foreign service.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney: Auto company chief executive.

Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo: President.

I found this article entertaining on what job each candidates would hold. My favorite is Tom Tancredo which said "president would be his dream job. It really puts a personal face on these presidential nominees.

-Arthur

Democratic South Carolina Debate

At the first full democratic presidential debate, 4 of the 8 candidates agreed that the United States is involved in a War on Global Terrorism. Hillary, Obama, Edwards and Richardson were all in agreement in voting for the bill to set up a timetable for the troops and to send them home.

However, time will tell whether or not the bill will hold and if President Bush will endorse it. Under the threat of a veto, it will seem unlikely. Edwards also commented that he was very unhappy in his vote for war in 2003 and has said it was a mistake. He vows now to stand firm to his beliefs and to vote the right way. Hillary on the other hand defends her vote for the authorization of war. Things are warming up for a pretty interesting election period with Democrats and Republicans on opposite sides on many views today.

Lynch and Tillman Lies

I have to move away from presidential primaries today to talk about an issue that literally makes me mad. I find it truly hypocritical when the Bush adminstration call Democrats unpatriotic when they don't support the War in Iraq and the troops in it. But when stories of Pat Tillman and Jessica Lynch where undisputed lies were told to the public as well as the families of these soldiers.

Coming from first hand accounts that the miltary knew Tillman had been killed by a fellow solder, the miltary tricked the public into thinking a completely different story. We were made to believe something that didn't happen, and that dishonors every soldier.

Secondly, regarding Jessica Lynch, to have her come out and publicaly tell the Senate committee that she didn't even fire a shot. That the miltary lied about her resue raid and what events exactly happened during that attack.

While reading this article it just make me wonder what other lies are we being feed, as much as I don't like to hear about death and conspiracy, I'd rather not be lied to.

McCain Campaign in shambles?

McCain officially announced his run for election 2008. Does he have a chance? can the public overlook his previous mistakes? How does he compare to other candidates? How has he done so far?

Its no surprise that McCain isnt the most popular candidate. Yes, its true he has the most experience and should be the front runner of the Republicans, but hes not. Many Republicans fear that he break too easily with the party and cannot be trusted. Some say he lacks the energy to run a campaign. Ending the first leg of the presidential race, McCain has almost always been behind Guiliani and occiasionally behind Romney. Financially, he did worse than the other two heavy hitters.

I personally respect the man, even with his incorrect comment regarding the safety of Iraq. Hearing him on a few talk shows, I do find him humorous, but I don't see him as a possible president. But the election is still far way, right now its anyone's game.

-Arthur

Gore for President

In a FoxNews article two days ago, there was evidence that former vice president Al Gore was preparing a shadow campaign in the event he decides to run for the presidential nomination. Although he hasn't made any official announcement that he would run, it is a possibility.

Al Gore should have been our president in the 2000 election, he won the majority vote, but lost the electoral vote. In the FoxNews RCP average poll, he has nearly 15%, and he isn’t even a nominee. Among the current Democratic candidates for president, I feel Al Gore is the most qualified. He has administrative experience from his vice presidency as well as public support from his environmental video on global warming. I hope he accepts.

Go Gore!

-Arthur

McCain Loses Again

It seems McCain’s popularity has been steadily worse since his trip to Iraq. There, guarded by a military entourage, McCain distorted the public view of the current state of safety in that country, claiming it was safe to walk into an Iraqi marketplace and buy fruit, when in reality it is not. Now, polls show that his popularity is now lower than ever, even with member of his own party.

He did not attend a convention this past Saturday where Republican parties from all around South Carolina gathered to talk politics and participate in polls. Instead, McCain sent former Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating in his place. The candidates who were there took part in debates and speeches; it was no surprise that McCain ended in last.

This doesn’t look good for McCain. McCain is a candidate who has no credibility, his involvement in the saving and loan scandal as well as his poor relations with his own party members sets him in a bad position for the Republican presidential nomination. I would be surprised if he survives the primaries.

Here is a link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZuQFuM7RBs regarding McCain's comments.

Another Blow to Republicans

After weeks of frustration, questions and scandal, the long awaited testimony of Alberto Gonzales’s took place this morning on Capitol Hill. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has been accused of firing 8 U.S Attorney’s midterm for political reasons and not his stated "performance related” reasons. Gonzales has lied or "misspoke" to both Senators and the public on how he handled the firings.

Today on Capitol Hill, he was met with fierce question by both Republicans as well as Democrats. Many have called for his resignation, stating that his credibility is gone and that his "mistakes have consequences". However, Gonzales stayed firm to the fact that the firing were handled poorly but "nothing improper occurred.

How does this affect the presidential primaries, it doesn’t, well not directly. It does, however affect the public's already dwindling confidence in the current Republican administration. President Bush's approval rating is now a low 30%, and with the primaries around the corner, the people will expect a change, with a new administration.

Virginia Tech Sparks Issues for Gun Control

Resulting from the massacre which took place this week, the issues of gun control have been discussed among the members of the Senate and House. Is what happened at Virginia Tech enough to begin talks for new gun control laws? The previous gun-control laws were the Brady bill in 1993 and the now-expired 1994 Assault Weapons Ban.

Congress responds with a “no for now”. Many members feel it is too soon and too rash to even begin talks for gun control. Any considerations would have to take place next year. However, this week’s event has brought attention to the matter and many Congressmen are hopeful for control in the near future.

The right to bear arms, a constitutional amendment has always been a delicate subject for Congress. In the past 70 year, only 5 laws have been past regulating any form of gun control. Democrats state the reason they lost control of Congress the past 12 years was because of gun control. Now that the Democrats hold both the House and Senate and with the presidential primaries around the corner, I wonder which nominee will tackle the issue of gun control.

Tragedy on Campus

I have been shocked and deeply saddened by the shooting which occurred Monday morning at Virginia Tech University. The number of student's slain has now reached 32, an unprecedented number in American school shooting history. I could only imagine what grief and anger I would feel if 32 UCI students were shot and murdered on my campus, students at Virginia are living it.

The shooter has been identified as Cho-Seung Hui, a South Korean resident alien. It has been established that Cho-Seung Hui first killed a female student and an RA in the dorms, then a few hours later proceeded to campus classrooms to kill again. My biggest question is how come students weren’t informed about the dorm shootings earlier and why classes were not cancelled after the first shooting?

In my opinion, the actions taken by both the school administration and local authorities were slow and lackluster. I have read reports that students began to read about the morning dorm shootings in emails hours after the event, right about the time Cho-Seung Hui began killing again. I believe it is the school responsibility to inform students immediately that someone had been shot on campus, especially if the gunman’s whereabouts is unknown. Secondly, classes should have been cancelled. Many state that students were actually safer in classrooms; my only response is that the majority of the students murdered were chained and shot inside classrooms and on campus.

I offer my condolences to the families and friends who have been directly affected by this tragedy.

Here is a link to a website dedicated to this day
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2007/virginiatech.shootings/


-Arthur

Kerry Again?

Kerry recently hinted that any future of running for president should not be ruled out. Although he did lose in 2004, it doenst mean he wont run again. However for this 2008 election he has decided to stay out, quote "Could that change? It might. It may change over years. It may change over months. I can't tell you, but I've said very clearly I don't consider myself out of it forever." He is out on a tour promoting his book that he wrote with his wife "This Moment on Earth"

I voted for him at the 2004 election, however I didn't understand party politics at all. I voted for him because he was as Democrat and my family always votes Democrat. I hope he will consider running in the future, I didn't have a chance to really understand his policies.

Don Imus Scandal

This week’s top story, Don Imus. Personally, I've never seen or heard anything about him and his show. He actually reminds me of the old singer in the movie "Love Actually". Regardless, after reading about his remarks towards the Rutgers Basketball team and remarks he’s made throughout his career in media I hope he gets fired. He’s essentially lost all his advertisements and as well as broadcasting rights from MSNBC, and I wouldn’t be surprised if CBS followed suit. However, I do give him credit for appearing on Al Sharpton's radio show, I don’t know what he was thinking, but the man's got balls, just not brains.

The funny thing is, very few presidential candidates have really mentioned Don Imus, many have stayed quiet on the topic. Obama gave a few angry words during his interview with CNN. Clinton's website is the only site which has highlighted the Don Imus controversy. Well I hope this scandals ends soon so I can write about something else. Cheers :)

My first post

Hello everyone

This is my blog for my political science class "Blogs, Politics and Media". I will be posting about the presidential primaries, specifically regarding the Democratic Primaries. I will be discussing Clinton, Obama, Edwards and my feelings towards them. Although most of my entries will be regarding these people I may occasionally write about the Republicans nominees, and how much I don’t like them. :) Please feel free to leave comments, suggestions or criticisms. Have a good day.

Arthur