Monday, January 18, 2010
Party Nomination!!
Primary. Caucus.
Presidential primaries and caucuses are methods employed in the United States to narrow the number of candidates for each party before the general election. Presidential primaries are simply elections held by individual states in which people vote for the candidate they want to nominate to run in the general election. Primary elections have several variations. For instance, in some states a person can only vote for a candidate representing a party that corresponds to his or her registration, while in other states, primary elections are entirely open, allowing a person registered to vote against his or her party registration. A caucus is another form of an election, however rather than vote on a ballot, people must physically represent their vote by gathering together with other people who support the same candidate.
Kerry’s results in the Democratic Primary/Caucus for the 2004 election:
January 19th
Won Iowa with 38%
January 27th
Won New Hampshire with 39%
February 3rd
Won Arizona with 43%
Won Delaware with 50%
Won Missouri with 51%
Won New Mexico with 42%
Won North Dakota with 50%
3rd in Oklahoma with 27%
2nd in South Carolina with 30%
February 7th
Won Washington with 49%
Won Michigan with 52%
February 8th
Won Maine with 45%
February 10th
Won Tennessee with 41%
Won Virginia with 52%
February 14th
Won Washington D.C with 47%
Won Nevada with 63%
February 17th
Won Wisconsin with 40%
February 24th
Won Hawaii with 50%
Won Idaho with 54%
Won Utah with 55%
March 2nd
Won California with 64%
Won Connecticut with 58%
Won Georgia with 47%
Won Maryland with 60%
Won Massachusetts with 72%
Won Minnesota with 51%
Won New York with 61%
Won Ohio with 52%
Won Rhode Island with 71%
Won Vermont with 58%
March 9th
Won Florida with 77%
Won Louisiana with 70%
Won Mississippi with 78%
Won Texas with 67%
50 State Strategy??? Win Big Early??? Iowa???
Kerry won the Democratic Party Nomination in the majority of the states and Washington D.C. The percentage by which he won steadily increased as more primaries occurred. Also, as Kerry pulled ahead of the other democratic candidates, he received the endorsement of the candidates who feel behind such as Howard Dean. Through his consistent victories in the primary elections and caucuses between January and March, Kerry won his place as the Democratic Party Nominee for the general election even before each state’s primary election. As Kerry continued to win the primaries, he received more support, funds, and momentum while his fellow democratic candidates fell behind one at a time. Though he did not seem to target any particular states, not all of the primaries were necessary to determine his nomination. Therefore, a greater focus upon earlier elections states is logical, but it seems that Kerry was not soley relying upon victories at the early elections or the Iowa Caucus. Rather, it seems that Kerry was ready to campaign equally in states with approaching elections until he accumulated enough support to receive the nomination.
Presidential primaries and caucuses are methods employed in the United States to narrow the number of candidates for each party before the general election. Presidential primaries are simply elections held by individual states in which people vote for the candidate they want to nominate to run in the general election. Primary elections have several variations. For instance, in some states a person can only vote for a candidate representing a party that corresponds to his or her registration, while in other states, primary elections are entirely open, allowing a person registered to vote against his or her party registration. A caucus is another form of an election, however rather than vote on a ballot, people must physically represent their vote by gathering together with other people who support the same candidate.
Kerry’s results in the Democratic Primary/Caucus for the 2004 election:
January 19th
Won Iowa with 38%
January 27th
Won New Hampshire with 39%
February 3rd
Won Arizona with 43%
Won Delaware with 50%
Won Missouri with 51%
Won New Mexico with 42%
Won North Dakota with 50%
3rd in Oklahoma with 27%
2nd in South Carolina with 30%
February 7th
Won Washington with 49%
Won Michigan with 52%
February 8th
Won Maine with 45%
February 10th
Won Tennessee with 41%
Won Virginia with 52%
February 14th
Won Washington D.C with 47%
Won Nevada with 63%
February 17th
Won Wisconsin with 40%
February 24th
Won Hawaii with 50%
Won Idaho with 54%
Won Utah with 55%
March 2nd
Won California with 64%
Won Connecticut with 58%
Won Georgia with 47%
Won Maryland with 60%
Won Massachusetts with 72%
Won Minnesota with 51%
Won New York with 61%
Won Ohio with 52%
Won Rhode Island with 71%
Won Vermont with 58%
March 9th
Won Florida with 77%
Won Louisiana with 70%
Won Mississippi with 78%
Won Texas with 67%
50 State Strategy??? Win Big Early??? Iowa???
Kerry won the Democratic Party Nomination in the majority of the states and Washington D.C. The percentage by which he won steadily increased as more primaries occurred. Also, as Kerry pulled ahead of the other democratic candidates, he received the endorsement of the candidates who feel behind such as Howard Dean. Through his consistent victories in the primary elections and caucuses between January and March, Kerry won his place as the Democratic Party Nominee for the general election even before each state’s primary election. As Kerry continued to win the primaries, he received more support, funds, and momentum while his fellow democratic candidates fell behind one at a time. Though he did not seem to target any particular states, not all of the primaries were necessary to determine his nomination. Therefore, a greater focus upon earlier elections states is logical, but it seems that Kerry was not soley relying upon victories at the early elections or the Iowa Caucus. Rather, it seems that Kerry was ready to campaign equally in states with approaching elections until he accumulated enough support to receive the nomination.
The General Election!
Presidential Debates & Their Role in Elections
WHO: the two main candidates (almost always of the 2 largest parties)
WHAT: televised (since 1960) and radio broadcasted debates that cover controversial issues of the time; they are known to make or break candidates
WHEN: late in the election cycle, after the political parties have nominated their candidates
WHERE: in a large hall/meeting space, often in a university, with an audience of United States citizens
WHY: they provide direct Q&A insight into each candidate's views, platforms, and plans for the presidency
The Rules of the Game
- A coin toss determines who gets to answer the first question
- Once a question is asked, the candidate has 2 minutes to answer the question
- Then, the opposing candidate has about 1 minute for rebuttal
- The discussion can be extended by 30 seconds per candidate
- Miscellaneous regulations/agreements are outlined between the candidates regarding things like camera angles, hand shakes, temperature of the hall, and what type of paper for note taking is permissible
LISTEN to this NPR broadcast of Talk of the Nation that discusses the rules and regulations of the 2004 presidential debates!
THE 2004 PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES
-strong focus on foreign policy in general
-Kerry accused Bush of having failed to gain international support for the 2003 invasion of Iraq
-Said he would lead stronger alliances and have an international summit of allies
-Said we could train the Iraqi forces to defend themselves better
-"I will hunt down and kill the terrorists, wherever they are."
-focused on how Afghanistan should be the center/focus of the war rather than Iraq
It appeared that Kerry "won" the debates according to polls and political analysts, which strengthened his campaign in the final weeks of the election cycle. Although Kerry faired well in the debates, it ultimately wasn't enough for him to win the presidency.
John Kerry's Overall Strategy
It appears that John Kerry mainly used the 50-state strategy in the 2004 general election campaign, trying to accumulate as many country-wide votes as possible, rather than focusing as much on swing states
- " Mary Beth Cahill, the manager of Senator John Kerry's campaign, said, 'We have said all along that for us, this is a delegate race, and we're going to try to accumulate as many delegates as possible.' " --The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/26/us/2004-campaign-strategy-preparing-go-extra-rounds-candidates-set-their-priorities.html?scp=4&sq=john%20kerry%202004%20strategy&st=cse
- "In the homestretch of his presidential campaign, Mr. Kerry has pivoted from raising questions about Mr. Bush's character to trying to add up for voters, in attention-taxing arithmetic, the effects of the president's policies -- and say just how bad four more years of Mr. Bush would be for them." --The New York Times http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A03E5DD143DF935A15753C1A9629C8B63&scp=8&sq=john%20kerry%202004%20strategy&st=cse#
FINAL VOTE TALLY ON ELECTION NIGHT
Kerry: Electoral votes- 251, popular vote- 48.27%
Bush: Electoral votes- 286, popular vote- 50.73%
The election results were fairly expectable. Only three states changed allegiance: New Mexico and Iowa voted Democratic in 2000, but Republican in 2004. New Hampshire voted Republican in 2000, but Democratic in 2004. However, there was controversy over Ohio. Some argued that if voting in Ohio had been conducted fairly that Kerry would have won the state and possibly the election, but Kerry decided to not dispute Bush's win.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Money!
Federal legal limitations of funding:
Campaign money can come from a candidate’s own pocket, political parties, individuals, or interest groups.
Reforms have been put into place to attempt to lessen campaign money obtained unfairly or corruptly.
These reforms include: imposing limits on giving, receiving, and spending money, and requiring public disclosure of sources and uses of money.
The Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA): passed by Congress in 1971 to limit amounts that candidates could spend on advertising, required disclosure of sources and spending of campaign money, and required PACs to register with the government and report all major contributions.
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA): passed in 2002, banned soft money (unlimited money raised by political parties for “party building purposes”) and limited issue ads.
John Kerry's money:
Raised: $15,825,972
Spent: $9,377,672
Cash on Hand: $2,957,582
[just as a comparison, George W Bush raised $367,228,801 (over 23 times as much as Kerry), spent $345,259,155 (almost 37 times as much), and had $19,291,231 on hand.]
Where it came from:
PAC contributions $17,200
Individual contributions $11,469,628 (72%)
Candidate self-financing $0 (0%)
Other $4,339,144 (27%)
An article by USA today, written in 2003, said “Democratic hopeful John Kerry has loaned his campaign $850,000 and will mortgage his Boston home to come up with more campaign cash, marking the first time a candidate has tapped his personal fortune in the 2004 presidential race.
Top Contributors:
University of California: $632,225
Harvard University: $387,609
Goldman Sachs: $318,250
Microsoft Corp: $300,847
Time Warner: $293,275 (and $1,000 through the 527 group)
Citigroup Inc: $292,931
The Convention!!
JOHN KERRY 2004
" John Kerry Reporting for Duty"
The 2004 Democratic National ConventionHow did the 2004 Democratic National Convention Work??
- Democratic delegates supporting John Kerry met in Boston on July 26th through 29th 2004
- The number of delegates sent is determined using the proportional system
- The proportional system is where the percentage of party members who voted for Kerry in the primaries represents the percentage of delegates at the Democratic convention supporting Kerry
- The convention is made up of speeches, discussion of party issues, and a final speech given by the Democratic Presidential nominee
What happened at the Convention?????
- New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson was chair of the Convention
- Lottie Shackelford, Bill Clinton's former Presidential Advisor, was vice chairwoman
- Illinois Senator Barack Obama gave a speech
- The Nominating Convention Presidential Vote took place. All delegates voted for Kerry except for 43 who were in favor of Kucinich
- John Edwards was elected Vice President through acclamation ( a voice vote)
What did they discuss at this Convention??? (the themes from each day of the Convention)
- Numero Uno: "Plan for America's Future"- the optimism brought by John Kerry
- Numero Dos: "A Lifetime of Strength and Service"- the biography and path to the Presidential Nomination of John Kerry
- Numero Tres: "A Stronger, More Secure America"- the war on terror and the strengthening of homeland security
- Numero Quatro: "Stronger at Home, Respected in the World"- agenda of the party to secure borders, improve the country's welfare, and improve international cooperation
The Partayyy Platform! whoop whoop!
At the Convention, the Democrats created a 43 page document detailing the goals of the Democrat Party. The main theme of their platform was:
"Strong at Home, Respected in the World."
There were four main parts to the platform.
#1: Strong, Respected America- defeat terrorism, world peace and security, elimination of weapons of mass destruction, strengthened military, energy independence, stronger homeland security
#2: Strong, Growing Economy- represent the middle class, creating better jobs
#3: Strong, Healthy Families- reform health care, protect the environment, improve education
#4: Strong, American Community- diversity of nation, upholding civil rights
Let's Talk about....JOHN EDWARDS!!!
- He was born in SC and raised in Robbins, NC
- First in family to go to college
- He graduated from NC State and later received his law degree from UNC Chapel Hill
- After being a lawyer, Edwards was elected to the Senate in 1998
- Edwards preaches equality for the middle class, better schools, better health care, and environmental conservation
He was lookin' for a man who could win over the Republican states and bring those swing states over to the Democratic side. Many say Edwards got the VP spot because of name recognition. Edwards beat out US Rep. Richard Gepharat from Missouri and Governor Thomas Vilsack from Iowa.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Truth?
During the 2004 presidential races, John Kerry was accused of lying about his time served in Vietnam.
Here is a video in which Kerry refutes these accusations:
Here's another advertisement, where Kerry supporters attack Bush in a similar manner:
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