Things to check out pre-midterms:
The BBC is doing a great little series on the 'real American TV voters' i.e. voters who resemble TV characters and how they are feeling in the run up to the mid-terms. This is not only entertaining but also presents some very different members of society.
The Huffington Post is great simply for constant updates on going's on. Particularly they have highlighted almost every one of Christine O'Donnell's numerous faux pas, including this most recent case.
Time Magazine wrote the best article I've read summarising the Tea Party. And they only mention the word 'tea' twice!
Finally if you haven't seen it yet you must see Obama's appearance on The Daily Show. It will turn out to be the marker for whether he could really regain some of his popular support.
Silence is golden?
The coalition was and is a big deal. Not only is it a relatively shiny and new concept, people have been genuinely intrigued as to how it will actually function as a government.
Well thus far there have been two main themes; first the reversal of all things Labour from economic policies to social policies. The second has been the relative invisibility of the Liberal Democrats; in everything from policy to actual physical appearances.
In fact the only times that the Liberal Democrats have fronted the government were to announce some of the early more painful measures of the government. So far so bad.
However, this silence could go two ways entirely in an electoral situation. First, the silence could be viewed as weakness; the Liberal Democrats inability to make their mark on the political stage. Second, the silence could be viewed as stoic survival in an uncomfortable situation. They could use all of these 'painful' measures to only further differentiate themselves as pragmatists but not radicals.
And whilst this is all going we will stay glued waiting for this government's true rise or fall.
Well thus far there have been two main themes; first the reversal of all things Labour from economic policies to social policies. The second has been the relative invisibility of the Liberal Democrats; in everything from policy to actual physical appearances.
In fact the only times that the Liberal Democrats have fronted the government were to announce some of the early more painful measures of the government. So far so bad.
However, this silence could go two ways entirely in an electoral situation. First, the silence could be viewed as weakness; the Liberal Democrats inability to make their mark on the political stage. Second, the silence could be viewed as stoic survival in an uncomfortable situation. They could use all of these 'painful' measures to only further differentiate themselves as pragmatists but not radicals.
And whilst this is all going we will stay glued waiting for this government's true rise or fall.
Remember, remember
Just a quick note; if a candidate wants to appear feasible surely trying to amend the Constitution (or at least not knowing it very well) is not the best way to go about it?
Really one of the key issues that the Tea Party has had is that it's candidates have simply not been serious candidates, and it is them who have primarily led to the 'extremist' depiction of the movement. Whether it be the questionable qualifications of Christine O'Donnell, an almost invisible candidate in Nevada or the endorsement of the infamous Sarah Palin it is the characters that front the movement that make them appear less the disillusioned and more the ignorant.
So here's a suggestion; next time use a range of faces to represent yourselves (i.e. disillusioned centre-lefts as well as those on the right) or simply don't have people as your representatives at all. The only way to truly revolutionise politics is to make it about policies and, less significantly, values rather than people and personalities.
And this phenomenon is not simply a conservative thing. It is clear that the personality cult that followed Obama has been one of his primary problems; with expectations outstripping ability.
Really one of the key issues that the Tea Party has had is that it's candidates have simply not been serious candidates, and it is them who have primarily led to the 'extremist' depiction of the movement. Whether it be the questionable qualifications of Christine O'Donnell, an almost invisible candidate in Nevada or the endorsement of the infamous Sarah Palin it is the characters that front the movement that make them appear less the disillusioned and more the ignorant.
So here's a suggestion; next time use a range of faces to represent yourselves (i.e. disillusioned centre-lefts as well as those on the right) or simply don't have people as your representatives at all. The only way to truly revolutionise politics is to make it about policies and, less significantly, values rather than people and personalities.
And this phenomenon is not simply a conservative thing. It is clear that the personality cult that followed Obama has been one of his primary problems; with expectations outstripping ability.
Middle of the Road
Mid-terms are about the middle in more than the obvious way.
Although they are about the middle of a Presidency they are also about the middle of the political spectrum. It's the 'middle', the 'floating voters', the 'independents' that will prove vital to the beginning of a new congressional term. This is because, as the party die-hards only become more partisan, the middle are becoming increasingly disillusioned by the politics of either of the parties that dominate in the US.
Although, as the BBC points out, the tea-partiers are trying to claim that they are indeed the middle, what this disillusionment really results in are voters who simply don't turn out to vote. And this is the real issue with mid-term elections; not only do the elections suffer the low US turnout due to the regularity of political events but they also suffer from the hangover of an often high-profile Presidential term. As a result it is the bitter squabbling, rather than the policies, of the candidates that dominates the headlines. Meanwhile the middle often simply try to reinforce their message from two years prior, in this case, on which Obama came to power:
'Work together to fix our country.' What could be more simple than that?
Although they are about the middle of a Presidency they are also about the middle of the political spectrum. It's the 'middle', the 'floating voters', the 'independents' that will prove vital to the beginning of a new congressional term. This is because, as the party die-hards only become more partisan, the middle are becoming increasingly disillusioned by the politics of either of the parties that dominate in the US.
Although, as the BBC points out, the tea-partiers are trying to claim that they are indeed the middle, what this disillusionment really results in are voters who simply don't turn out to vote. And this is the real issue with mid-term elections; not only do the elections suffer the low US turnout due to the regularity of political events but they also suffer from the hangover of an often high-profile Presidential term. As a result it is the bitter squabbling, rather than the policies, of the candidates that dominates the headlines. Meanwhile the middle often simply try to reinforce their message from two years prior, in this case, on which Obama came to power:
'Work together to fix our country.' What could be more simple than that?
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