US 2008 Presidential Nominations: My Thoughts and Some Soundbytes
Republican candidate Mike Huckabee bowed out of the race and endorsed John McCain. After announcing his withdrawal from the race, he thanked his wife, his family, his campaign staff and his supporters. He said that John McCain would have his full support, and that McCain was an honorable man who conducted himself with honor during the presidential race. You can see why I prefer watching US politics to watching Philippine politics. I don't know if these US guys totally believe in the grand statements they utter before the crowds, but I admire how gracious they are about losing. I don't think I've ever witnessed any Filipino politician who used the limelight to thank his/her supporters and wish his/her opponents well.
Having exceeded the required number of votes, former soldier Senator John McCain is now the Republican nominee!
Naaliw ako kasi noong paakyat na si McCain sa platform, pinapatugtog yung "Eye of the Tiger." ^_^
McCain thanked his rivals, his family and his staff. Apparently, he has the smallest staff among all the campaign groups for this presidential race! He's also quite interesting because he lost the 2000 presidential race to George Bush and lagged behind in this nomination period until about last month.
I liked something he said about the security issues. He called on Islamic moderates to stand up and not let the fundamentalists win the struggle for the soul of Islam. I found that particular instance intriguing because I recently read an essay about the Islamic fundamentalist terrorists, written by a Fil-Am journalist. Among many other insights, she revealed that the heart of the conflict was not Islam vs. the West or Islam vs. Christianity or Islam vs. the United States. The United States was just a small player in this conflict. The real battle was for the soul of Islam. And that statement tells me that the central issue has a lot to do with deciding what it means to be a true Muslim. Is denying women basic rights like going to school the correct way of praising Allah? Is strapping a dynamite jacket onto a young man's body, then sending him to a public place to take his own life and other people's life, the correct way of practicing the jihad principle? I don't know if these are things that McCain thinks about when he thinks about Iraq and Iran and Afghanistan. But I am just glad that he sounded that call to Islamic moderates, treating them as brothers and sisters with a similar cause and an important stake in the conflict.
Some sound bytes:
FROM HUCKABEE
"I would rather lose the elections than lose the principles that got me into politics."
"Tonight I hope we remember that the battle is not about us, but about our country."
FROM MCCAIN
"Leaders don't choose nostalgia over optimism.
Leaders don't pine for the past, they make the future better than the past.
We don't hide from history, we make history.
And that is the essence of hope..."
On the Democrat side, Hillary Clinton won in a number of strategic states and is now closing the gap between herself and frontrunner Barack Obama. Hillary promises solutions, Obama promises "change we can believe in." Both candidates love using anecdotes in their speeches--anecdotes of young mothers and laborers who are overworked and still unable to pay the rent or avail of health care.
Hillary emphasizes economic security and demonstrates that she has a better idea of what to do with US security issues if elected. Obama is ever the charismatic although people are noticing that he has not articulated a specific vision for his presidency. Yeah, he loves to talk about changing the way US politics is being done. But how will he do that? people ask. What concrete steps will he take? That's something he has yet to address. Moreover, what are his specific plans for national security issues? He has no experience handling security issues and he has not yet stated any specific plans for this aspect. Another blow to Obama's campaign is the recent corruption trial of one of his key supporters. This could potentially smear the image of integrity that is so crucial to his campaign message.
CNN analysts now characterizes Hillary as a fighter who can take punches as well as throw them. Meanwhile, Obama seems to be portrayed as a charismatic without bottom lines. But both are very determined to win. Neither one is ready to pull out of the race. Democrats have suggested a dream team of either Clinton/Obama or Obama/Clinton but neither candidate seems ready to accept this. Both want to be number one. This might be the Democrats' undoing. The Republicans have united behind McCain (although he still has to win the hearts of conservative voters who consider him too liberal). But the Democrats are currently split between two candidates--what does that say about the chances for a Democrat to sit in the oval office and end the party's eight-year dry spell?
Earlier, I skimmed through an essay that characterizes the Republican party as being a "party of ideas" while the Democrats tend to be divided, short-term thinkers. The article stated that the Republicans' values have always been freedom, strength (particularly military strength) and morality. Whereas the Democrats tend to dwell on identity politics, and their solutions tend to be more short-term in scope. They don't have a big, comprehensive theme to unite them. I don't know enough about US political history to really comment on this, although I found that analysis interesting.
These days, I wonder: if I were a US citizen, would I be a Republican or a Democrat? Personally, I am against the notion of Baby-sitter/Big Brother Governments wherein welfare is the name of the game. I think that just ends up making people lazy and dependent, which would in turn tax the government's resources. (I wouldn't know from personal experience because I've never experienced the government effectively absorbing the costs of my basic needs like education and health.) But I also think that basic social services for those who are really, really hard up (like disabled poor people and the homeless elderly) are necessary. I also know that the exorbitant prices of medical services is simply criminal, and the government should not just leave it up to the free market to decide the appropriate price. I don't know. I would probably be either a liberal Republican or a conservative Democrat or an Independent.
Anyway, if you're interested in the US 2008 Presidential Race, go to http://edition.cnn.com/POLITICS/ or watch CNN on TV.
Having exceeded the required number of votes, former soldier Senator John McCain is now the Republican nominee!
Naaliw ako kasi noong paakyat na si McCain sa platform, pinapatugtog yung "Eye of the Tiger." ^_^
McCain thanked his rivals, his family and his staff. Apparently, he has the smallest staff among all the campaign groups for this presidential race! He's also quite interesting because he lost the 2000 presidential race to George Bush and lagged behind in this nomination period until about last month.
I liked something he said about the security issues. He called on Islamic moderates to stand up and not let the fundamentalists win the struggle for the soul of Islam. I found that particular instance intriguing because I recently read an essay about the Islamic fundamentalist terrorists, written by a Fil-Am journalist. Among many other insights, she revealed that the heart of the conflict was not Islam vs. the West or Islam vs. Christianity or Islam vs. the United States. The United States was just a small player in this conflict. The real battle was for the soul of Islam. And that statement tells me that the central issue has a lot to do with deciding what it means to be a true Muslim. Is denying women basic rights like going to school the correct way of praising Allah? Is strapping a dynamite jacket onto a young man's body, then sending him to a public place to take his own life and other people's life, the correct way of practicing the jihad principle? I don't know if these are things that McCain thinks about when he thinks about Iraq and Iran and Afghanistan. But I am just glad that he sounded that call to Islamic moderates, treating them as brothers and sisters with a similar cause and an important stake in the conflict.
Some sound bytes:
FROM HUCKABEE
"I would rather lose the elections than lose the principles that got me into politics."
"Tonight I hope we remember that the battle is not about us, but about our country."
FROM MCCAIN
"Leaders don't choose nostalgia over optimism.
Leaders don't pine for the past, they make the future better than the past.
We don't hide from history, we make history.
And that is the essence of hope..."
On the Democrat side, Hillary Clinton won in a number of strategic states and is now closing the gap between herself and frontrunner Barack Obama. Hillary promises solutions, Obama promises "change we can believe in." Both candidates love using anecdotes in their speeches--anecdotes of young mothers and laborers who are overworked and still unable to pay the rent or avail of health care.
Hillary emphasizes economic security and demonstrates that she has a better idea of what to do with US security issues if elected. Obama is ever the charismatic although people are noticing that he has not articulated a specific vision for his presidency. Yeah, he loves to talk about changing the way US politics is being done. But how will he do that? people ask. What concrete steps will he take? That's something he has yet to address. Moreover, what are his specific plans for national security issues? He has no experience handling security issues and he has not yet stated any specific plans for this aspect. Another blow to Obama's campaign is the recent corruption trial of one of his key supporters. This could potentially smear the image of integrity that is so crucial to his campaign message.
CNN analysts now characterizes Hillary as a fighter who can take punches as well as throw them. Meanwhile, Obama seems to be portrayed as a charismatic without bottom lines. But both are very determined to win. Neither one is ready to pull out of the race. Democrats have suggested a dream team of either Clinton/Obama or Obama/Clinton but neither candidate seems ready to accept this. Both want to be number one. This might be the Democrats' undoing. The Republicans have united behind McCain (although he still has to win the hearts of conservative voters who consider him too liberal). But the Democrats are currently split between two candidates--what does that say about the chances for a Democrat to sit in the oval office and end the party's eight-year dry spell?
Earlier, I skimmed through an essay that characterizes the Republican party as being a "party of ideas" while the Democrats tend to be divided, short-term thinkers. The article stated that the Republicans' values have always been freedom, strength (particularly military strength) and morality. Whereas the Democrats tend to dwell on identity politics, and their solutions tend to be more short-term in scope. They don't have a big, comprehensive theme to unite them. I don't know enough about US political history to really comment on this, although I found that analysis interesting.
These days, I wonder: if I were a US citizen, would I be a Republican or a Democrat? Personally, I am against the notion of Baby-sitter/Big Brother Governments wherein welfare is the name of the game. I think that just ends up making people lazy and dependent, which would in turn tax the government's resources. (I wouldn't know from personal experience because I've never experienced the government effectively absorbing the costs of my basic needs like education and health.) But I also think that basic social services for those who are really, really hard up (like disabled poor people and the homeless elderly) are necessary. I also know that the exorbitant prices of medical services is simply criminal, and the government should not just leave it up to the free market to decide the appropriate price. I don't know. I would probably be either a liberal Republican or a conservative Democrat or an Independent.
Anyway, if you're interested in the US 2008 Presidential Race, go to http://edition.cnn.com/POLITICS/ or watch CNN on TV.