Reevaluating Candidates' Campaign Approaches

I found an interesting editorial in the Dallas Morning News entitled “Editorial: Substance, Not Sound Bites, Needed in Race.” The basic argument of the author is that the presidential candidates should focus on more key issues during their campaigns rather than the ones they have been hitting on so far, and that they should not speak in generalities when doing so. Specifically, the author states restructuring of the financial system, problems with social welfare programs, foreign policy, and immigration reform as the subjects the candidates should be focusing on. The intended audience is obviously the voter demographic. The author’s credibility is questionable for several reasons. For one, he does not back up his “facts” with any credible sources. Additionally, the author claims that the candidates have only lightly touched on these issues in the past, and have not detailed them specifically, and yet he says nothing about what the candidates have actually said about them up to this point. Thus, the author never defines what exactly the delegates should change about their campaign strategies. This is a major flaw in the author’s logical approach, considering that this is the basic foundation of the entire argument. However, despite these flaws, I agree with the author’s overall message. After all, the editorial does do a good job in detailing the potentially disastrous ramification of ignoring these vital issues. The economy clearly seems to be in a state of decline, and the cost of maintaining social welfare programs will only add to the national debt. Our immigration system is broken, and looming threats such as Iran, North Korea, and Pakistan demand a reevaluation of foreign policy. For these reasons and more, I side with the author’s stance.

Dealing with the US economy

After looking around I found a very interesting article that piqued my interest. It is from the New York Times and concerns the presidential candidates’ stance on economic policy. According to the article, Senator Barack Obama will air a commercial today (Sept. 17) in which he announces his plans for dealing with the US economy if elected. Obama states that the nation’s economy is in a crisis that demands restitution. His plans for dealing with this issue include such actions as a tax break for the middle-class, a crack down on Wall Street culture and lobbyists, development of energy at home to reduce the reliance on foreign oil, and finally an end to the war in Iraq. Senator John McCain initially had an opposing opinion on the issue; stating on Monday that the economy was “strong.” However, on Tuesday he quickly realigned his views on the subject; declaring the economy to be in a “total crisis.” He now favors increased regulation of the economy. I think this article is worth reading due to its relevance to our current economic state, which affects us all. As the article states, economic conditions have worsened over the past year, so this is an issue that should play an important part in the upcoming election.

Link to article: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/17/the-early-word-fixing-the-economy/