Obamacare

Is Obamacare constitutional, is a question that's supposed to be addressed today by the U.S. Supreme Court.  I believe that Obamacare is unconstitutional because the law would force U.S. citizens to buy health/ medicare.  It is the right of U.S. citizens to buy something if they don't wish.  The government should not force U.S. Citizens that cannot afford health insurance to buy it either.  Justice Kennedy is considered as the swing vote to decide whether or not Obamacare is constitutional. Justice Kennedy talks about the market,

"Well, but it’s critical how you define the market… You cannot say that everybody is going to participate in the substance use treatment market and yet you require people to purchase insurance coverage for that." 

Justice Kennedy addressed a good point.  Not everyone is involved in other markets, but they may have no chose to get involved in the health care market. 

Here's a video from the opinion of CNN's Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen on how Obamacare would affect Medicaid for U.S. citizens.  The Supreme Court has a lot on their plate to choose if Obamacare is constitutional for some of these reasons.

 

Banned ads

ads that never were



I believe that when it comes to having ads for politicians, there should be certain regulations of what can be said and what should not be said. After seeing some of these never before seen ads, I am glad that they were never aired on television. In a way, you should not be able to attack another candidate on an ad because it is rude.  I dread election years because of the commercials; they are obnoxious by the end of the political season. It seems like every five seconds, there is an ad on. Most of the time these ads are bashing another candidate and not discussing the candidate whose commercial it was in the first place which makes them look bad. For many this is not a big deal because they do not really pay attention to politics to begin with, but for me, it bothers me. As a political science major I want to know what a candidate stands for and not what they think another candidate did wrong. To me this is showing you are a coward, and cannot sell what you believe in instead you are hiding behind someone else’s mistake hoping it makes you look good.

 It also makes me wonder about how much they pay the celebrities that might go on there to promote them. Like in one of the commercials that were never aired it shows Ben Stein bashing Al Gore, and it is in the setting like he was in the Ferris Bueller movie. To me the whole thing is a disgrace, and both the celebrities and the politicians should be ashamed of themselves.

Chaos on the Right! Does Romney Stand a Chance?

 

 

Without a doubt, the last few months have been absolutely chaotic for the Republican presidential hopefuls.  Although Mitt Romney has proven himself, at least as far as numbers go, to be the front runner of the party, there still seems to be widespread discontent among Republicans as to whether or not he is actually the right guy for the job. South Carolina Sen. Lindsay Graham said on ABC's This Week, "Mathematically, this thing is about over, but emotionally it's not."

Even in the face of a possible Brokered Convention, I would agree with Sen. Graham in that Romney is the probable victor for the nominee, however, gaining support to the likes of which is necessary for a victory against Obama will prove difficult. Winning a presidential election is directly related to the amount of moderates a candidate can sway to their side; this will be largest obstacle for the Republican Nominee, be it Romney or anyone else.  

Assuming Romney is in fact going to be the face of the Republican Party in the coming election, it will certainly be difficult for him to rally necessary support from both Republicans AND moderates when even the most diehard on the right are currently nervous and weary of him.  I would suggest, if only the Party were able to speak publically under one single voice, that they would say something along the lines of:

“We DEFFINITLY do not want to see Obama elected for a second term. We DEFFINITLY need a Republican in the Presidency, but we don’t really want Newt or Ron or Rick (excl. Alabama and Mississippi) … Hell, we don’t even want Mitt! But I guess someone will have to do… So… LETS GO MITT! Because he’s not Obama!"

This is, however, not surprising, as politics in the United States seems to be a game of choosing the “lesser of two evils” nearly every election year.  While Romney seems most likely to stand a chance against Obama (given the Republican alternatives), the chance that he will indeed win seems slim.  Combine all this Republican disorganization and possible Brokered Convention with Obama’s sustained “likeability” that he maintains at much higher levels than Romney, even in the face of a somewhat rocky, past four years, and it is not unreasonable to assume that America will experience, for better or for worse, another four years of Obama.  Unless Romney can rally widespread Republican support similar to that achieved by President Nixon, who despite never being able to shed the nickname “Tricky Dick,” still managed to get himself elected, Republicans will have to wait another four years for a shot at the presidency. 


Sources:
http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2012-01-17/news/bal-romneys-electable-but-is-he-likeable-20120113_1_romney-mitt-likeable