Bush approval ratings

What role does this play on election 08? Does it move voters to a more independent/liberal stance? On MSNBC one reporter said that non-republicans like McCain because of the fact that he is different and often rejected by his own party.

Mrs. Edwards vs. Clinton

Mrs. Edwards accuses Senator Clinton of not being "a more forceful advocate for women." Once again the race becomes more about race and gender than actual issues or leadership abilities.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/18/politics/purehorserace/main3070873.shtml

"His Wife's Campaign" - about Bill and Hilary in NY.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/29/AR2007102902179.html

a family that prays together...

Mitt Romney's five brothers started a blog in April of '07 and have collectively been blogging there since. They answer questions about their brother and family and post Youtube videos, including one of a prank that was pulled on their father. These boys may not be out of the trail with their brother, but they are certainly doing their part to help him in the race.

wanna get a beer?

A friend of mine from South Carolina asked for my advice on who to vote for in the primaries. After asking her what the most important issue was to her and advising her to figure out which candidate best upholds her beliefs. She was still uncertain. So, my new advice to all who are questioning who to vote for is: who would you rather get a beer with?

Think about it, if you could sit in a dingy bar for an hour with one of the candidates who would it be? Who would crack the best jokes? Chat about life? Debate about whether or not David Bowie defined 80s hair?

Mrs. B

Barack O'bama's wife was featured on CNN this morning say that she hopes America chooses a president not on the basis of race or gender, but who would best lead this country. This very well spoken woman is about to head out on a 40 day tour. Who knows, maybe in four years she'll join the race herself!

Bill? Are you still there?

What is the role of a presidential candidates family?

If you were Barack Obama, your family would be considered your backbone and remain in the wing as the perfect, happy American family. If you were JFK, your family would be considered like English royalty, ever elegant and regal.

But, if you were Hilary Clinton, your family would occasionally hold more of the spotlight than you. Bill, although a great president, has an interesting track record. Apart from the obvious misstep with an intern, Bill recently became defensive while a journalist questioned him. He also twisted the words of Obama eledging that a simple statement about change meant that the senator thought "Republicans have had all the good ideas in the last 16 years." I am sure if Obama were asked to reply to this (and doubtless he will) he would disagree, seeing as in his statement, he simply claimed that Reagan was an agent of change. Not that Reagan was the only one to put his change thinking cap on since his presidency.

I believe that like HIlary, Rudy Giulaini's family background is working against him too. Divorce was an ugly mark on a family's reputation in the early 1900s, but why when the divorce rate is at around 51%, why is it still an obstacle in Rudy's campaign trail?

So, what is the family's role? Should a candidate's family matter?

rock has a new star

I recently saw a picture of Mike Huckabee playing the guitar. Now we all know that he is a Baptist minister, but what we didn't know was that he is actually a rock star. Look for him next month on the cover of Rolling Stone.

Somewhat irrational thoughts that may spark a topic idea:
The popularity of rock stars vs. that of politicians.
Media coverage of rock stars vs. that of politicians
The fans of rock stars, the fans of politicians and the overlap.
The number of posters I see for political candidates vs. the number of rock star posters displayed by 18-24 year olds.

eeeh...yeah, I'll get there.

what about...

Political endorsements?
Why does anyone like Kerry or Oprah choose to openly support a presidential candidate? what could be the underlying motivations? It could help if I categorize endorsers thus clarifying their motivations- media, politician, lobbyist, etc. How much money do these endorsers contribute?
hmmm....Could there be any unfair play going on? Passing dollars under the table?

finding a stream of consciousness

For Caley Cantrell's Portfolio Development class at the VCU Brandcenter, I am writing a political journal following the upcoming election in '08. My first order of business is to find a story-line to cover. Primary ideas:

Gen. X, war and the election
How media portrays American voters as blind sheep
If the electoral college is mentioned at all in the media
How many times the word 'change' is used
How many times the word 'change' is misused (?)

Hopefully, something will jump out at me in the next few days.