Demographic Shifts Shake GOP

This past week, Barack Obama became the first president since Franklin Roosevelt to be re-elected with relatively high levels of unemployment. His win and the Democrats’ resounding victories are testaments to the skill of the Obama campaign as well as some long-term changes in American demographics. Matt Yglesias had a great blog post earlier this week onContinue reading “Demographic Shifts Shake GOP”

Vote to Continue Forward

I remember the exuberance that surrounded the election of Barack Obama as president four years ago. Even though I was living in Canada, I recall going to school the next day and hearing everyone talk exclusively about the election. My headmaster devoted a school assembly to talking about the meaning of Obama’s victory. The 2008Continue reading “Vote to Continue Forward”

Foreign Policy in Focus

According to Peter Beinart of The Daily Beast, neither President Obama nor Governor Romney won the recent foreign policy debate. The real winner was George W. Bush because “the framework for understanding the world that he put in place after Sept. 11 still holds.” He describes this framework as the viewing of foreign policy almost through anContinue reading “Foreign Policy in Focus”

To Understand US, Look to VA

One only has to cross the Key Bridge to be in one of the most competitive swing states in the country — not only for the presidential election but for the senate race as well, with former Democratic Governor Tim Kaine facing off against former Republican Governor and Senator George Allen. To better understand VirginiaContinue reading “To Understand US, Look to VA”

Two Sides of the Coin in VP Toss-Up

The recent vice-presidential debate was one of the more polarizing events of the past few weeks. Depending on to whom you talked, Vice President Joe Biden’s performance was either phenomenal or atrocious. This sharper-than-normal partisan divide can be explained by Joe Biden’s personality — his quirks are simultaneously his greatest strengths and weaknesses. Watching theseContinue reading “Two Sides of the Coin in VP Toss-Up”

Independent of Party, Not Purpose

It’s become almost trite for Americans to complain about the lack of bipartisanship in Washington. Every stump speech includes some standard line about the need to break the “partisan gridlock.” “The Daily Show” had a great sketch this week in which John Oliver asked different individuals at the Democratic and Republican National Conventions about the tension betweenContinue reading “Independent of Party, Not Purpose”

Campaign Differences Come Into Focus

Please note that this originally appeared in The Hoya.  Here is the original link. Mitt Romney’s getting desperate. It’s only six weeks to Election Day, and President Obama’s lead in swing states is only increasing. An early sign that a campaign is going downhill is when the leaks about internal divisions start to emerge. That’sContinue reading “Campaign Differences Come Into Focus”

Clinton Still Has Classic Touch

This article was originally published in The Hoya.  Here is the link to the original. True to his legendary oratorical form, President Bill Clinton (SFS’68) made a convincing case last week at the Democratic National Convention as to why Americans should re-elect President Obama. It was a performance arguably unmatched by any U.S. politician inContinue reading “Clinton Still Has Classic Touch”

Eastwood Gives Meaning to ‘Grand Old Party’

Please note that this column was written for The Hoya.  You can see the original link here. The United States is at a political tipping point. As Jonathan Chait argued in New York Magazine, the 2012 presidential election will be the last in which one political party’s strategy will be almost completely reliant on the non-Hispanic whiteContinue reading “Eastwood Gives Meaning to ‘Grand Old Party’”

‘Forward’ Slogan for Obama a Tricky Sell

Please note that this column was written for The Hoya.  You can see the original link here. With only two months to go until the 2012 election, President Obama has an average lead in the polls of only a few percentage points, according to realclearpolitics.com. In essence, the race is tied. With the numbers soContinue reading “‘Forward’ Slogan for Obama a Tricky Sell”