Believe in America
OBAMA SAYS NO TO SECOND TERM
October 15th, 2014
October 15th, 2014
While making an appearance on The View, former president Barack Obama announced that he would not seek the Democratic nomination for a nonconsecutive second term in 2016. The former President’s announcement came as a surprise, especially since he has been polling very well among Independent voters, who, in a recent poll, have expressed discontent with the Romney Administration’s handling of the economy. In fact, most opinion polls showed Obama leading Romney 52-44 in a theoretical rematch. In addition, an overwhelming 84 percent of Democrats polled said they would vote for him in their state’s primary if an election were held today. The remaining 16 percent expressed support for other non-candidates such as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Vice President Joe Biden, former Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius, and even former Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner. So far, only two Democrats, former Governors Deval Patrick of Massachusetts and Martin O’Malley of Maryland, have officially announced their candidacy for their party’s nomination, although more are expected to enter the race as time goes on.
PRESIDENT ON THE STUMP FOR REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES
October 27th, 2014
October 27th, 2014
With elections in both the House and the Senate just days away, President Romney is on a mad dash across the nation to campaign for Republican candidates for both the House and the Senate. Appearing this morning at a campaign rally for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who is facing an unexpectedly strong challenge from Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear, the President stated that America has a long way to go until it reaches economic recovery, but that the nation cannot afford to “stray from the path to recovery”. Senator McConnell, a four-term Senator from Kentucky, is the longest serving Senator in the state’s history, and has easily won re-election all four times. However, polls taken over the last few months have shown McConnell maintaining only a one or two point lead over Beshear, while some polls show Beshear in a tie with McConnell. Political analysts point to the state of the economy as the cause for the close race in Kentucky, and for Republicans in close races across the nation. As unemployment jumped to over ten percent in July of this year, many Americans blame the current Administration and, by extension, the Republican Party, for their economic woes. A loss for McConnell in Kentucky would send shockwaves through the political establishment in Washington, and cause a shakeup of the Republican leadership in the Senate. With less than a week to go until the election, it’s anybody’s game in Kentucky. It is interesting to note that Governor Beshear had previously run against Senator McConnell in the 1996 election for the Senate. McConnell defeated Beshear by an overwhelming margin of 56-43.
CORY BOOKER SEEN AS FAVORITE TO WIN NEW JERSEY SENATE SEAT
October 28th, 2014
October 28th, 2014
Newark Mayor Cory Booker is almost guaranteed to be the next Senator from New Jersey, replacing the retiring Senator Frank Lautenberg, who declined to seek another term in the United States Senate. Booker, who has been a rising star in New Jersey since 2012, as well as in the national Democratic party, has run on a mostly progressive platform, and holds a very comfortable twenty point lead over his Republican opponent, State Senator Michael Doherty. Booker had originally been seen largely as the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination to run against Chris Christie for Governor of New Jersey in 2013, but declined to enter the race. Christie went on to win re-election in 2013 against Democratic Congressman Frank Pallone.
PERRY HOLDS LEAD OVER CASTRO
October 28th, 2014
October 28th, 2014
Incumbent Republican Governor Rick Perry has maintained a seven point lead over his Democratic challenger, Julian Castro. Castro, who is the current Mayor of San Antonio, won the Democratic nomination after a heated battle against former Mayor of Dallas Ron Kirk, and former Mayor of Huston Bill White, who was also the Democratic party’s nominee against Governor Perry in 2010. Polling between Mayor Castro and Governor Perry has been shaky all throughout this year, with Castro consistently polling close to the Governor, and at one point in May even leading the Governor by three points. Mayor Castro’s campaign has focused on his record of creating jobs in San Antonio, and highlights Governor Perry’s support of what Castro calls “Irresponsible Austerity”. Governor Perry, by contrast, has made an issue of Castro’s youth and his lack of experience in politics. His campaign has declared Castro “unfit to lead” and said that the Mayor’s proposals would increase spending and damage small businesses in Texas. However, there is one campaign issue that makes the Texas gubernatorial race exceptional, and even deemed worthy of national news coverage by major media outlets such as Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC. Controversy erupted in June when a SuperPAC in support of Governor Perry, called PerryPAC, spent hundreds of thousands of dollars running attack ads across the state that raised questions about Julian Castro’s citizenship and his loyalty to the United States, making subtle implications that Julian Castro is somehow directly connected to Fidel Castro in Cuba. Mayor Castro’s campaign denounced the ads as “shameful” and at one point went as far as to suggest that they were racist in nature. Governor Perry’s campaign issued a statement almost immediately, stating that it did not agree with the content of the ads that PerryPAC had run, and declared that the PAC was in no way affiliated with the Governor’s campaign.
NEWT GINGRICH TIED WITH ROY BARNES IN GEORGIA SENATE RACE
October 28th, 2014
October 28th, 2014
Former Speaker Newt Gingrich, according to the most recent polls, is in a statistical tie with former Governor Roy Barnes in the race for the Senate seat being vacated by incumbent Republican Senator Saxby Chambliss. Gingrich announced his candidacy for the Senate in February and faced little opposition in gaining the Republican nomination, running almost unopposed. Barnes faced similar opposition in his quest for his own party’s nomination. Senator Chambliss had originally intended to seek re-election to the Senate, but decided against it when he was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in January. The Senator is currently undergoing treatment.
SHOOTOUT IN TEHRAN CLAIMS THE LIVES OF SEVEN AMERICAN SOLDIERS
November 1st, 2014
November 1st, 2014
Violence in Iran continues as a group of rebels launched an attack on American Occupation forces in the capital city of Tehran. A shootout occurred between a group of armed rebels and a group of American soldiers, resulting in the deaths of seven American soldiers and the wounding of four others. Also wounded were about seventeen civilian residents of Tehran, who were caught in the crossfire as the exchange took place. All twenty of the rebels were killed. Similar guerilla operations have been taking place all across the country since the Invasion of Iran in the summer of 2013, when US President Mitt Romney and then-Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared the regime of the late former Iranian President Ahmadinejad to be in possession of nuclear weapons with the intent to use them in strikes on Israel and the United States. Since the invasion, the region has undergone a massive destabilization, as rival groups battle each other for control as they try to pick up the pieces. The invasion is also seen by many as responsible for the subsequent downfall of Netanyahu’s government in October of 2013, as the Kadima party gained a surprising twelve seats in the Knesset, and the Lukid’s coalition broke apart, leaving Netanyahu without enough seats to form a Government. Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz has called Netanyahu’s decision to launch an invasion of Iran “a terrible idea” and regrets that he had done so. Prime Minister Mofaz has pledged to provide whatever aid he can to the United States during the occupation, and hopes for peace in Iran.
SPEAKER BOEHNER: WE HAVE A 50/50 CHANCE OF KEEPING THE HOUSE
November 2nd, 2014
November 2nd, 2014
House Speaker John Boehner made a statement today in which he stated that he believed that the Republican Party “has a 50/50 chance of keeping the House.” The Speaker’s statement was made with an optimistic tone, however, and Mr. Boehner went on to say that he was confident the GOP would retain the majority in the House as well as in the Senate, applauding “a number of great Republicans” running this year. Whether the Republicans will keep the House or whether Nancy Pelosi will return as Speaker in January remains to be seen, but it does not seem like the Democrats will be able to wrestle control of the Senate away from Mitch McConnell. Even so, the Speaker’s comments, made just two days before the election, have energized Democratic voters and candidates, who see the comments as a sign of admission of defeat from the other side. The Democrats, who had lost the Senate to the GOP in 2012 yet had gained nine seats in the House, have looked forward to 2014 as the year that they take control again.
Last edited: