U.S. Presidential Election 2008 - Essay Example

US Presidential Elections 2008 The US Presidential Elections is one of the most grandiose political event in the recent times The publi associated with it is perhaps justified, for the President of the United States is invariably one of the most important political positions around the globe. Though the media has been flooded with news about the elections, the following are five news pieces which deal with various topics. Cooper, Michael. "Poll Says McCain Is Hurting His Bid by Using Attacks" New York Times, 15 October, 2008.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/15/us/politics/15poll.htmlth&emc=th A recent poll conducted by New York Times and CBS News Poll has revealed that the use of bitter and personal remarks against Barrack Obama has backfired strongly for Republican John McCain. 60% of the voters believed that McCain was spending more time attacking Obama than explaining his future strategies as President. 53% of the voters said that they would vote for Obama if the elections were to be held today, while 39% maintained their support for McCain.

Another factor that seems to be working against McCain is his choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate. As the Election Day draws closer, Barrack Obama is gradually narrowing the gap between himself and the Presidential seat. Dennis, Byrne. " The Aura of Mr. Smooth" Chicago Tribune. 22 October, 2008. http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/10/the_aura_of_mr_smooth.html No one can deny that aura and charm has played an integral role in the US Presidential Race, 2008. It is one of the key qualities which Obama uses very efficiently to his advantage.

His youthful energy and excellent oratorical skills, coupled with his promise for change has completely mystified the American youth. But Dennis Byrne argues that there is much more to a President than just charm. Once the aura fades away, a President has to make extremely tough choices which deeply influence peoples' lives. Byrne believes that Obama's inexperience might be a problem once he actually has to start working in office. Cohen, Roger. "Palin's American Exception" New York Times. 25 September, 2008.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/25/opinion/25Cohen.htmlth&emc=th In her first speech after being nominated as the Vice Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin remarked repeatedly how "exceptional" a country USA is. Roger Cohen takes a rather satirical stand on that and expresses how Americans have been conveniently ignoring the problems facing them as they prefer to live in denial. He believes that the country has been deep in crisis since the last eight years and has found it difficult to come out victorious.

Later, he also expresses the stark differences between the two Presidential candidates. He believes that realism is the need of the hour and Barrack Obama is more capable of providing USA with clarity and coherence. Los Angeles Times. "Immigration, Abortion and the Next President". October 17, 2008. http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-equality17-2008oct17,0,6873423.story The article talks about Barrack Obama's and John McCain's ideology on various socially relevant issues.

These issues involve homosexuality, stem cell research among others. But this particular article focuses on the two rather sensitive topics- abortion and immigration. It is interesting to note that their views regarding immigration are somewhat similar . Both acknowledge that the system is broken and favor securing borders, creating a guest-worker program and providing a path to citizenship. But when it comes to abortion, both completely contradict each other. While McCain believes that Roe v/s Wade, the legal case that lead to the historic legalisation of abortion should be overturned, Barrack Obama maintains that the judgement should persist.

Statistics seem to be working in his favor, as abortion rates have declined by nearly 33% since 1974. The Economist. "In Poll Position" 17 October, 2008. http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displayStory.cfmstory_id=12448053&source=features_box_main A recent poll conducted by the New York Times and CBS news poll revealed that Barrack Obama has a huge 14 point advantage over John McCain. The article questions the relevance of such polls and also talks about the factors which affect their results.

Normally, young people and blacks do not turn up to vote in large numbers. But that has changed this year, owing to the popularity of Obama among such people. Another factor that might play a crucial role is the "Bradley Effect". Experts believe that while white voters will support Obama in opinion polls, their secret racist thoughts might dominate their choice when they actually vote in the elections.