State of the Union

Obama recently gave his State of the Union address. A large part of it was focused on the war in Iraq. He discussed reducing the spending on defense and the return of American troops. Obama also gave his usual speech about jobs, the economy, and unemployment. Blah Blah Blah. Heard it all before.

One good thing about his speech was his use of historical references. Instead of making a bunch of general statements, he said things that could be referenced back to previous events and presidencies.

Dramaaaa

In the most extraordinary day of the Republican presidential race, a series of fast-paced and unexpected events shook the candidates and their campaigns Thursday, significantly changing the dynamic of the contest just two days before a crucial primary that many thought might settle the nomination.

It was a day of split-screen viewing and almost hourly recalibration. Iowa Republicans declared former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania the new winner of their Jan. 3 caucuses, erasing Mitt Romney's eight-vote victory.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who had one of the largest donor networks of any candidate, quit the race and endorsed former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who was gaining momentum but faced new challenges as his ex-wife accused him in interviews of asking for an "open marriage."

Money Money

The four remaining GOP presidential candidates and their supporters will have spent $10.4 million on broadcast television advertising in South Carolina by the time polls close there Saturday, swamping the state with finger-pointing spots.

And that total doesn't include the more than $2 million of combined air time purchased by Rick Perry and Make Us Great Again, a pro-Perry "super PAC," before the Texas governor pulled out of the race Thursday. 

Back in 2008, when five Republicans were vying for the nomination, the television ad war totaled $6.9 million, according to Kantar Media's Campaign Media Analysis Group. Another $6.6 million was spent on TV ads in the Democratic primary that year.

This year, the biggest spender in South Carolina has been Restore Our Future, a super PAC backing former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, which bought up nearly $2.4 million worth of TV advertising through Saturday, according to a campaign source familiar with the details of the media buys. The organization plunked down $356,000 just in the last two days.

Winning

Marion County,SC which sits along the site of a proposed interstate highway, has scored few wins. Its population is stagnant in a state that has seen a 67 percent increase in population in 30 years. Without jobs, officials say, it is hard to attract new people and younger residents are anxious to flee. Nikki Haley,the mayor, who has endorsed Mitt Romney in the Republican presidential race, is proud of the growth. "In a nation struggling economically," she said in a recent interview, "South Carolina is winning."

Amid the flurry of campaigning before Saturday's South Carolina Republican presidential primary, not a single candidate has shown up in Marion County, a sleepy rural stretch that represents the bottom of the U.S. economy.

Politically, Marion County has long been a Democratic Party stronghold in a Republican state. It is majority African-American and in 2008 its voters solidly backed Barack Obama. They are poised to back Obama's re-election.

Colbert and Cain

Stephen Colbert, who last week announced that he would explore a “possible candidacy for the president of the United States of South Carolina,” is joining forces with former GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain at a rally. Colbert is not on the ballot in South Carolina because he missed the filing deadline by several months, but Cain, who suspended his bid for the White House on December 3, still is, and Colbert is asking supporters to vote for Cain in his stead. South Carolina permits Democrats and Independents to vote in the state’s Republican primary. 

“Herman Cain is my main man,” Colbert said. “He’s my main man with a tax plan so fine, they called it 9-9-9. The Mad Max of the flat tax. Herman Cain has qualities that I admire — he’s a family man, he’s pro business, and he has something I don’t think I’ll ever have: a place on the South Carolina ballot.” 

$ Romney $

In 2008, Mitt Romney tapped into his personal fortune to run for president, pumping nearly $45 million directly into his political campaign. There could not have been a more visible demonstration of the economic distance between Mr. Romney and the middle-class citizens he sought to lead as president.

Despite that, his vast wealth never really became a serious issue in the 2008 campaign. Few people demanded that he release his tax returns or made a big issue out of his role at a private equity firm. When a candidate was mocked for not knowing how many homes he owned, it was Senator John McCain, the eventual nominee, not Romney.

As he battles for the Republican nomination, Romney’s hesitant, uncertain answers about his wealth have provided an opening for two rivals, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, to become the candidate of the middle class, which Mr. Romney had set out to be.

Santorum has always portrayed himself as the grandson of a coal miner. Now, that image contrasts even more sharply with the picture of a Wall Street-connected rich guy whose fortune includes money in offshore accounts.

How Newt Does It

This article describes the days leading up to the New Hampshire primary. As Gingrich campaigned, his popularity grew. His one tactic was implying the greatness of New Hampshire’s budget. He told the citizens that New Hampshire’s budget management is one to be proud off. He states that if he were to be President, he would adopt it for Washington DC and hopefully the whole nation. New Hampshire changed their budget procedure to one that will be more beneficial to the state and people. Now, it sets up a amount of revenue and then conforms its needs to meet the revenue, unlike before when it could not conform to a set spending plan and had to ask the federal government for more money.

In this article, Gingrich is clearly shown kissing up to the people of New Hampshire. He does it effectively and is commending New Hampshire for a job well done. The question was whether this type of behavior would affect his popularity. The results of the New Hampshire caucus show that they haven’t. The author was somewhat bias against Gingrich supporters; I feel he does not take them seriously. In today’s political arena, politicians should be quick to praise their voters but not for menial tasks. Gingrich did it right. Fixing New Hampshire’s budget was a big step that helped New Hampshire’s economy in many ways.