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Ted Stevens
Convicted on seven felony counts for not reporting hundreds of thousands of dollars in unreported gifts, Alaska Senator Ted Stevens is asking his colleagues, as well as Alaska voters to stand by his side as he appeals the charges. We know for sure that one Republican senator will not be supporting Stevens. Republican presidential nominee John McCain is asking Stevens to resign. The 84-year old Stevens is up for re-election in next week's November 4th elections and if re-elected he could be expelled by the Senate. McCain calls for Stevens resignation because he says Stevens has "broken his trust with the people." McCain's running mate, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has not called for Stevens resignation, but says that she "is confident he will do what is right for the people of Alaska."
My question is, what about the Republican party? Something else that must be considered is what does this dismissal mean for the Democratic party? Does this allow for Democrats to campaign against the GOP like they did in 2006? ABC's George Stephanopuolos asks this question in his blog, and finds that if Stevens loses Alaska that it means one seat lost for the Republicans, and possibly one gained on the other side.
Early Voting
What an astonishing concept. One in ten registered voters has taken advantage of the opportunity to vote early and avoid the long lines on election day. Along with the surprising number of voters who have voted early, these same people are showing strong support for Obama. For those skeptics who need the "hard facts" on this statement, ABC News has teamed up with The Washington Post to produce an updated document with charts, and questions -- something that I will be checking daily from now until the 4th.
Until one of the candidates shows a strong lead on November 4th, the media will be very hesitant, and should be wary of calling the election. It is important to continue to be a good citizen and keep reading articles, blogs, reports, and keep track of polls. Polls are something Americans should treasure, and look to as another form of democracy and form of representation from their fellow citizens. We are lucky in this country to have polls as a resource to gather information. Although they have high significance, and are what many news outlets are basing their stories off of these last few days, we must still treat them as what they are.
Alleged Plot
Since May 3, the secret service has followed Obama on his campaign trail, which is the earliest the service service has been with any presidential candidate. We now understand why. Federal authorities have reported that they foiled a plot that involved an assassination plan to kill Barack Obama. The plot involved two men with reported links to the white supremacist movement.
The last time I was home, I spent a little bit of time with my mother in a salon while she got a haircut. While I was waiting I began talking to a woman who was waiting next to me. For whatever reason she felt comfortable enough with me to begin discussing the upcoming presidential election. Timidly, she told me that she is afraid to vote for Obama because she is afraid she will contribute to his "eventual assassination". I was pretty perplexed by her response, until I realized that she was from the same generation of voters who loved and supported JFK before his assassination. And she began to tell me that she is so afraid to get her hopes ups, and have something tragic happen like it did with JFK.
I did not have a response for her, but I did come to my own conclusions about this election. This election is truly historic, and especially for those who have seen and heard so many over the past decades; I now understand how important this election is for so many. Obama is finishing his campaign with soaring speeches, while McCain is adamant about his attacks on liberal v. conservative and safe v. risky. In these last few days we might see the campaigns coming down to these small, "little things that may wind up to be big things," which is what ABC talks about in the latest article of The Note. For now we can just track the polls, follow the trails, and anticipate the results on November 4th.
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