America Asks About Politics

A. Election2004 (with history of Election2000)
Campaigning	How do I become a Convention delegate? Is Hillary Clinton a carpetbagger? Why is media obsessed with the presidential race?
George W. Bush	Are there parallels between Iraq and Vietnam? What is Bush's campaign strategy? What are Bush's campaign themes? What is "gravitas"? What did Cheney say about Nelson Mandela? Why did McCain get so much press coverage? What's the mystery of W's success? Is Texas a "weak governor" state?
Kerry versus Bush	Does Kerry have no Senate record? Is George W. Bush stupid? What about Pres. Bush's approval rating?
Third Parties	Who else is running for President? What's a viable strategy for third parties? Buchanan and religion Should Buchanan be allowed in the debates? Is there hope for the Reform Party? Why vote for third parties?
Al Gore	Where did Bill Bradley go wrong? Was Gore once a conservative? Did Al Gore invent the Internet? Is using "Jr."on Bush's name derogatory? Will Lieberman's being Jewish help Gore? How many Vice-Presidents became President?
Gore versus Bush	Why did Gary Bauer endorse McCain? Strengths of Gore vs. Bush? Issues of Gore vs. Bush? How will the good economy affect the election? What about the Florida Recount? How does Florida affect the Electoral College? Who's taller, Bush or Gore? What did Jesse Jackson do during the Florida Recount? Is America ready for a Jewish Vice President? Who will Gore pick for Vice President?

B. Politics
Bill Clinton	Can Clinton run again in 2004? Did Clinton destroy the balance of power? What will Clinton's legacy be? Was Clinton impeached for sexual deviance?
Executive Branch	Has Reinventing Government worked? Is bureaucracy good or bad? Why do federal programs fail? What are the roles of the Vice President?
History	Were there presidents before George Washington? Who were the best presidents? Which party has the most historical presidencies? Was Watergate just a burglary, or more?
Legislative Branch	What do Congressmen get paid? Why has gridlock gotten worse lately? What percent of Congress have criminal records?
Media & Polling	Is the news media politically biased? Does public opinion matter?
Political Participation	How do people become US citizens? What accounts for political participation? What's a plurality vs. a majority? Where does "pork-barrel" spending come from? Has campaign reform worked?
Political Theory	Is total freedom good? Is all politics local, or should we think globally? Why should regular people care about think tanks?
Two-party system	Practical examples of liberalism vs. conservatism Democrats vs. Republicans: What DO they believe? Democrats vs. Republicans: What DO they believe? - 2004 update Liberals & conservatives: What DO they believe? Why do some people always vote for the same party?

C. Political Process
Activism	How do I get info on activism? How do I prepare for running for office? What is an initiative petition? How do I make a political speech?
Campaigning	What did the 1994 GOP landlside mean? How can money have a smaller role in elections? Do polls help or hurt the political process? How do polls work? What is soft money?
Constitutional Issues	How does the constitution get changed? How do parliamentary governments in Europe work? How does separation of power work?
Electoral College	If the Electoral College decides, why vote? How can we get rid of the Electoral College? Do we vote for candidates or Electors? Pro's & Con's of the Electoral College?
Policy & Process	What are the steps for presidential candidates? How do PACs and lobbyists work? Why not write simpler laws and get rid of judges? How do you get a political appintment? What is Public Policy Analysis? How does technology affect the political process?
Presidential Succession	Can the President get arrested? What do retired presidents do? What happens if a nominee dies before taking office? Is there any chance for term limits?
Voting	A Pre-teen's view of Election 2000 Why do 18-24-year-olds vote so infrequently? What about on-line voting or other new voting rules? What percentage of the population voted in 2000? How do primaries work? Can I vote without registering with a party? Do third party votes "split the vote"?

D. Issues
Abortion	Should we let abortion extremists speak? What does "Roe v. Wade" mean? Will the Supreme Court outlaw abortion?
Civil Rights	How did African-Americans win the right to vote? What is free speech, really? What do people think about affirmative action? Civil liberties vs. civil rights What's the story with same-sex marriages? What's the controversy with the Confederate flag? When is civil disobedience justified? Do "minority rights" hurt the majority?
Crime & Drugs	What do we do after the War on Drugs? What does "Three Strikes" mean in crime? Liberal & conservative views on death penalty? How do we stop the War on Drugs? Why do liberals support gun control? Why is medical marijuana still illegal?
Miscellaneous	How does actual capitalism differ from theory? What are entitlements? What are the candidate views on Immigration? Should there be judicial activism? Is dictatorship necessary for socialism? What does Bush say about Vouchers?
Technology	How should we regulate the Internet? What's the role of computers in politics? What's the story with Napster?

E. Foreign Affairs
Asia & Mideast	Is EVERYTHING illegal in Singapore? Do authoritarian governments work best in Asia? Was atom-bombing Japan in WWII justified? Is there hope in the Middle East? What's a "unity government"? Did Lee Kuan Yew help Singapore?
China	What will happen to Hong Kong after reverting to China? Will China become capitalist with Hong Kong? What can we do to help Tibet? Will China invade Taiwan? Is dictatorship suitable for Hong Kong?
Europe & Russia	What's the post-Cold War role of the CIA? Was the NATO bombing of Kosovo legal? Did detente work? Are hostile missiles no longer aimed at the US? Which socialist countries are transitioning to capitalism?
Third World	Is there any hope for progress in Nigeria? Is poverty caused by overpopulation? Are multinationals evil? How do multi-nationals affect international development? Why does democracy work only in Western countries?
U.S. role	What should America do to prepare for the future? How big shouldthe US military be? What do people think about foreign aid? What is the official US foreign policy? Should the US intervene abroad? What is the New World Order? How does the US decide foreign policy? Will America lose its superpower status?

F. Environment
Cars	Should we drill for oil in Alaska? What do cars do to the atmosphere? Have cars done any good for the environment? How does urban sprawl hurt the environment? What should the government do about traffic?
Global Warming	What should we do about climate change? Is the Gaia theory true? Who makes greenhouse gases? Why is melting polar ice caps bad? What's the Rio Summit? What negative trends should we stop?
Miscellaneous	Commercial activities vs. environment Electric hand driers vs. paper towels How are we investing in future energy? Paper or Plastic? What good do trees actually do? How to track underground storage tank leaks?
Sustainable Development	How can we reconcile environment & development? How do we account for sustainable development? Is the Earth reaching its carrying capacity?
Water Pollution	How do I check for water pollution myself? Do polluted river get better? Do lawns pollute? How can I tell if my local river is degrading?

G. Economics
Budget	What does the federal government spend? How can we keep a balanced budget? Should we spend the surplus on the national debt? (2000) Is the national debt growing again? (2004) Where do Social Security funds go? Why should we care about a balanced budget?
Economic policy	Did deregulation work? What's the "marriage penalty"? How does a good economy affect unemployment? Were labor unions predicted by capitalist theory? What's utilitarianism? Has welfare reform worked?
International Trade	Who benefits from GATT and the WTO? Should government protect local industry? Why do we have a trade deficit with Japan?
U.S. Economy	How does currency value go up and down? How do regulations affect the economy? Who gets credit for the good economy? How does the government control the economy? Do CEOs deserve their very high salaries? Are the rich getting richer?

• Coming soon: keyword index
• Election_By_County_2000.jpg
• Demographics_2004.jpg
• Election_By_County_2004.jpg
• FL_2004a.jpg
• FL_2004b.jpg
• FL_2004c.jpg
• FL_2004d.jpg
• FL_2004e.jpg