Election Issues Today

Caroline Kennedy and the Making of a U.S. Senator

What exactly qualifies a person to be a U.S. Senator?  Not constitutionally, but in our own eyes?

Caroline Kennedy is 51 years old, a graduate of Radcliffe College at Harvard and Columbia Law.  She is intelligent and informed and carries both the burden and the benefits of her family name.

She has stated that her interests in the Senate seat are “patriotic, political and personal, and the three are intertwined.”

She would bring to the job name recognition and the ability to focus attention on issues she deems to be important.  Her favors and alliances would be sought after by the most experienced old hands in the Senate.  They know the power of a name and the value of influence.  She would bring both to the job.

She probably has as many qualifications for the Senate as Hilary Clinton did when she ran for the same seat.  She probably is more qualified than Al Franken who ran for the Senate in Minnesota this year.  Remember Ronald Reagan ran for California governor from his position as president of the Screen Actors Guild.  And Arnold, the current California governor?  What were his qualifications?   I think…POTENTIAL for LEADERSHIP, is perceived by voters and they respond at the ballot box.  So if Kennedy does get the appointment, she will have to hold on to it at the ballot box in 2010, and then again at the end of the shortened term in 2012.

You don’t know how well a candidate will do until he or she gets into the job.  Some of  the best-qualified candidates in U.S. history didn’t do all that well in office.  (Herbert Hoover comes to mind.)

So I wish Caroline good luck.  I think she would do a good job.

Independent Voters are the Most Valued and still the Least Loved of the electorate.

I can understand why political candidates have a “Love-Hate” relationship with the “Independent” voter.   These voters refuse to commit to one major party or the other and maintain their “independence” from election to election, often remaining in the “undecideds” category until Election Day.

Candidates have no choice but to cater to the “Independent” voter because most electi0n outcomes are decided by their votes.

Independent voters used to cast themselves as “mavericks” but….OH WAIT, that terminology has kind of been captured by Senator McCain. Did you know that a maverick was a term used to describe a bovine calf that went astray and never stayed with a herd during a cattle drive?  Okay, so that’s a generality…but so is Senator McCain’s use of the term to describe his political positions.

The two major political parties also cater to the indendepent voters…love em and hate em too. 

One the one hand, these indpendent voters hold the key to Democratic and Republican victories in local and national elections. 

On the other hand, the independent voters are looked upon as not willing to commit to anything or anybody, a real pain in the neck, spineless, the MONKEY WRENCH that screws up all the polls and plans!

So, what do we talk about next?

Upcoming in this political column and others too, I expect: 

The Lame Duck President and Congress, the State of the Union, the Fate of Social Security and Medicare, TAXES!, the Economy’s Resurgence! (we hope), the Honeymoon and the First 100 Days of the new Administration. 

Election Day is finally here.  Anybody sad to see this day arrive?  I think Obama and McCain workers are all tired; exhausted even.  So, perhaps, are the political commentators and bloggers.  This has been a long, long campaign.

The winner on November 4 has a difficult job ahead.  The winner has been predicted for quite a few weeks now.  Senator Obama seemingly with an increasing lead during the past month has been unstoppable.  Which brings up my points today: The “Herd Mentality,” or “Jumping on the Bandwagon” effects.   Obama supporters are ready to head for the polls, and taking with them many who just “come out of the woodwork” at the last minute to be part of the “great victory.”

But what of the McCain supporters?  What Senator McCain and the GOP must avoid is the tendency to give up, and say “what does it matter any more”?   Staying home on election day would be the worst thing for the GOP.  They needed to keep the race close and they needed to carry the red and pink states right down to the end.  “Staying at home” and “giving up” will mean a GOP on the ropes for the next four years.

Senator McCain promised to “fight for your country, fight, fight, fight!”  Dishonor him by sitting at home and pouting would be the greatest failure of the GOP faithful (or faithless, as it were).

Is Montana in Play?

So reads a headline on today’s CBS News website.  The site carries an Associated Press story that reflects polling information from Montana indicating a closer race for President than anyone anticipated.

McCain seemed assured of a victory in Montana just two months ago, but now, with ten percent of likely voters still being undecided, McCain leads by only four points, 44 to 40.  That difference is within the normal “margin” of error, so, in effect, nobody knows where the voters really stand right now. 

Obama set sights on Montana early in the year, even spending the 4th of July holiday in Butte, with his family.  Since 1948, the State of Montana has gone for the GOP Presidentail nominee in every year except 1964 and 1992.    Obama has 19 campaign offices in Montana; McCain, NONE.  He share spaces in six GOP offices around the State.  Obama is spending a lot of money in Montana; McCain, NONE.

Additionally, the candidacy of Ron Paul has thrown a monkey wrench into the typically secure GOP areas of the State. See the details of Congressman Paul’s effect on the Montana race in the link below.

Here is a link to the CBS News Article:  Is Montana in Play?