Politics of Hope vs. Politics of Fear
by Brian Reich | 5 Sep 2008, 5:51pm
I posted a comment last night on my Twitter feed, as the balloons fell at the XCel Energy center in Minneapolis/St. Paul marking the Republican Convention, that read: “Our long national nightmare (read: two Conventions in two consecutive weeks) is finally over.” I wasn’t joking.
The Conventions have passed, the 60-day sprint towards the Election in November is underway, and I need this campaign to be over. This campaign season, no matter how it turns out, has already failed to live up to my expectations. Instead of a spirited debate about the issues and an open dialogue with the American people, the two parties have set up a battle between the politics of hope and the politics of fear. Sadly, there seems to be very little backing up either strategy that, in the end, will benefit the voters, or our country.
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: Barack Obama Convention Joe Biden John McCain politics Sarah Palin
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Women Troubles
by Brian Reich | 4 Sep 2008, 7:00am
Sarah Palin, the Governor of Alaska and newly minted nominee for Vice President on the Republican side, rocked the house at the GOP Convention in Minneapolis/St. Paul last night. She ripped into Senator Obama for being inexperienced and naive, took on the ‘elite’ (read: liberal) media for dismissing her candidacy, and she gave her Conservative base all the red meat they could handle on issues like energy (oil), security (terrorists), and family values.
A star was born.
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: arts Barack Obama Convention education healthcare Hillary Clinton Joe Biden John McCain pay equity Republican Sarah Palin Women
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What’s in a name?
by Brian Reich | 2 Sep 2008, 9:16pm
What’s In A Name?
About half-way through his speech tonight at the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Senator Joe Lieberman uttered two words that no Republican had been willing, or able, to do in the first two days of the Convention. Those two words: Barack Obama. In fact, he used the Democratic nominee’s name twice, in two consecutive sentences.
Compare that to last week’s Democratic Convention.
Barack Obama used John McCain’s name four times in his acceptance speech. Joe Biden used John McCain’s name more than a dozen times in his speech at the Democratic Convention, even going out of his way to call the Senator his ‘friend.’ In fact, with the exception of Bill Clinton’s speech (which focused far more on bolstering Obama’s candidacy than breaking down McCain’s), I can’t find a major speaker at the Democratic Convention who didn’t mention John McCain by name
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: Barack Obama Bill Clinton Convention Joe Biden Lieberman Republican Speech
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The Future of Media, Discussed By Media
by Brian Reich | 1 Sep 2008, 5:49pm
Arianna Huffington, in her role as New Media Baroness (and founder of the Huffington Post), convened a panel discussion today in Minneapolis about the future of media and the influence of blogs — on politics, and society, and all things decent in the world. The lineup of talent assembled for the discussion included (in no particular order, and not limited to), Tony Blankley, Frank Luntz, Laura Ingraham, David Kralik, Cyrus Krohn, Congressman John Shadegg (R-AZ) and Peggy Noonan. It was ‘moderated’ by Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski. In the audience were such luminaries as Liz Smith, Ron Brownstein, Tucker Carlson, Joe Klein, and Ana Marie Cox (the original Wonkette).
Huffington had hosted a similar panel last week in Denver (with a significantly different lineup of talent, including George Stephanoupolos, Will.i.am, and Congressman Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) among others).
I took notes, and have lots of thoughts - a few of which I will try to summarize here. But, the event took place in the basement of a hotel — with limited/no internet connection and few electrical outlets — and when my laptop battery died I was forced to take handwritten and thumb-types notes. As such, my thoughts below are far from comprehensive (and could be far from coherent).
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: Convention media Media Rules! politics
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Convention Week (RNC Style)
by Brian Reich | 1 Sep 2008, 4:54pm
I am spending this week in Minneapolis/St. Paul attending, and blogging, the Republican National Convention.
Why would a good, loyal Democrat want to attend a giant gathering of Republicans? Lots of reasons, actually: First, I love politics — and national Conventions are as big as it gets in politics. The best and brightest of the Grand Old Party are all gathered here and I get a chance to talk with them, understand how they are thinking about this election and the evolution of politics in general, and what they think will decide this race. Second, since I am here as a blogger (aka Special Press, aka Credentialed New Media), I get access to all the media facilities and am able to gain a different perspective on the proceedings. I also get to hang with some of the glitterati of the media world (who I not so secretly obsess about). Finally, if all goes well and I see/hear/write something interesting, maybe, just maybe, I will be able to add something to the discussion this election cycle that helps people to understand the issues, motivates someone to participate or vote, or even do something small to improve the political process as a whole. I realize that is a lofty goal, but it serves to keep me motivated.
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: Barack Obama Convention DNC GOP John McCain
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