FEMA and Federalism at the eye of Sandy's storm

In a primary debate, Romney said states should take a bigger role in disaster response. | AP Photo

Another Hurricane, this time "Superstorm Sandy" has the federal government, federalism and the way levels of government respond to natural disasters in focus just a week before the Nov. 6 presidential election.

 

Politico reports:

 

The Romney campaign stressed Monday that states should take the lead in responding to emergencies like hurricanes. But the campaign said Romney would not abolish the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“Gov. Romney believes that states should be in charge of emergency management in responding to storms and other natural disasters in their jurisdictions,” Romney spokesman Ryan Williams said in a statement. “As the first responders, states are in the best position to aid affected individuals and communities, and to direct resources and assistance to where they are needed most. This includes help from the federal government and FEMA.”

 

A campaign official added that Romney would not abolish FEMA.

The statement came after The Huffington Post highlighted Romney’s comments from a June 2011 CNN primary debate in which Romney said states should take on a bigger role in responding to disasters. “Mitt Romney In GOP Debate: Shut Down Federal Disaster Agency, Send Responsibility To The States,” read the Huffington Post’s headline.

“FEMA is about to run out of money, and there are some people who say, ‘Do it on a case-by-case basis.’ And there are some people who say, ‘You know what, maybe we’re learning a lesson here that the states should take on more of this role.’ How do you deal with something like that?” debate moderator John King asked Romney during the debate, pointing to the May 2011 tornado that killed more than 150 people in Joplin, Mo.

“Absolutely. And every time you have an occasion to take something from the federal government and send it back to the states, that’s the right direction. And if you can go even further and send it back to the private sector, that’s even better,” Romney responded.

“Instead of thinking in the federal budget, ‘What we should cut?’ we should ask ourselves the opposite question, ‘What should we keep?’ We should take all of what we’re doing at the federal level and say, ‘What are the things we’re doing that we don’t have to do?’ And those things we’ve got to stop doing,” Romney continued.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1012/83001.html#ixzz2Amq1O9N6

 

Politico also had this video on how all the political signs could turn into, don't laugh, flying missiles in the Supertorm.

http://bcove.me/1vmr77fz

 

 

Why don't both sides see early voting as a good idea?

President Obama made history by becoming the first president to early vote during a campaign stop to his howntown, the Great City of Chicago, Thursday. To early vote in Illinois, a voter must show a driver's license. Even the President of the United States. If you vote on Nov. 6, a photo ID is not needed in the State of Illinois. First Lady Michelle Obama early voted on Monday, as she said to guard against any plumbing problems.

Some conservative commentators claimed that the president should not have early voted. One said it cost tax payers over a million dollars to fly on Air Force One home to vote. Not true, it was a campaign-funded stop. The question I have is why would anyone be against early voting? Is it just because early exit polls have Obama up 15 percent in early voting exit polls?

R-Word: Really Reprehensible

Last week, presidential politcs and punditry may have hit a new low when conservative comentator Ann Coulter called (or tweeted) President Obama the R-Word. She later, on CNN said in trying to jusity her ignorant hateful speech as, "it's the same as saying loser."

Either she doesn't get it, or she does and doesn't care. Either way, she has millions of people that listen to her and she gets paid millions of dollars to say this crap. That costs our society greatly.

Now if she wants to criticize the President, as a pundit, that's her job. But when she uses a group of people to insult and sling mud, we have to get up on a collective soap boax and say stop.

As a 10-year Special Olympics Coach, I am confident that R-easonable people on both sides of the political spectrum can see this. But maybe they haven't heard, or read, the intelligent words that make what Ann Coulter said last week seem like a waste of a college education and publisher dollars.

Read here the open letter to Ann Coulter from John Stephens, Special Olympics Global Messager. And when you do, think about if you've ever used the R-word to describe something you don't like -- then stop. Hopefully, at least in using the R-Word, Stephens can silence the hate being spewed from the dislikes of Ann Coulter.

An Open Letter to Ann Coulter

An Education about the Electoral College

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50133559n&tag=showDoorFlexGridLeft;flexGridModule

(From CBS News Sunday Morning)
Mo Rocca, host of the film "Electoral Dysfunction" airing on PBS, helps us understand just what the Electoral College is, how it affects our choosing the president, and introduces us to one lawmaker's plan to abolish it.

Because the Electoral College is still the big scoreboard in play, with two weeks before the election, Nate Silver's political calculus has Obama at 290.8 and Romney at 247.2 at 538 blog.

Does Mo Rocca's elementary example point out the need to abolish the Electoral College once and for all?

What if 269-269 tie?

Debate tonight, Test tomorrow

Blog here tonight your comments on the final presidential debate, focussed on foreign policy. One of the president's key constitutional powers is that of Commander in Chief. How American's view Preisident Obama's performance here, blanced with his job as Economic Chief might make the difference in the 2012 election, just 15 days away.

Terms to know for tomorrow's MC portion of the test:

Traditional Roles of the Media
Voter Turnout in U.S.
Significance of 2000 presidential election
Campaign finance reform (Bipartisan Campaing Finance Reform Act of 2002, Soft Money, Hard Money, FEC, PACs, Super PACS)
Incumency Advantage
Primaries, Caucuses
National Conventions
Public opinion polling
Politcal Socialization
Political Efficacy
Where do liberal Democrats live?
Where do conservative Republicans live?
Conservative ideology
Liberal ideology
Third parties in America
Institutional challenges to third parties in America
Purposes of Politcal Parties
Valance issues vs. Positional Issues
Expanding electorate
Proportional representational voting systems
First-past-the post voting systems
Iron Triangle
Republican Party founding 
linkage institutions
Special Interest groups
Growth of lobbyists in Washington
How many PACs in US?
Importance of Iowa and New Hampshire in campaigns
FEC
FCC
Ralph Nader
John McCain/Russ Feingold
Jon Stewart
Tea Party
Occupy Wall St.

Also, watch these short videos on political movements, on the fringes of our political parties:

Who are the Tea Party?

Occupy Wall St. --- movement on the left

Caucusing is Easy....

This is really a well done Clinton campaign video that was posted in 2008 before the Jan. 3 Iowa Caucus. It is a must see.


I do agree with the Clinton campaign that caucusing is not as hard as exercising. But more importantly, it is a great party builder, a grass roots organizing tool AND a way to meet your democratic neighbors! People meet "caucus" buddies, both Clinton and Obama supporters in 2008. In 2008, WV grad and former Youth & Government president Sarah Sampson was part of the ground game for the Obama campaign, offering baby sitting services for parents who went to caucus.

Remember.

Exercising is hard.

Singing is hard.

Dancing is hard.

Caucusing is easy!

(Just a take-off of the 'Governing is HARD, Politics is EASY...Caucusing in retail politics and all politics is local pulled together in a festive atmosphere that can build campaigning momentum.)

Our Caucus is Tuesday:

For next Friday,

1) produce a slick-looking campaign book;
2) produce or download a television ad;
3) try to get our class to vote for your group as the best campaign staff after your 8-minute presentation


Book It (what needs to be in the book):

 Slick-looking cover – Though if you pick Michelle Bachmann, be careful of a crazy-eyed Newsweek portrait. Cover should have at least one of the candidates’ mottos.

 Platform/finance tracker – brief descriptions of main issues of the campaign and list tracking campaign donors. Who is enjoying the most “Mother’s Milk of Politics” can be found @ (http://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/summary.php)

 Script of a campaign ad – either that you produce or that the candidate’s campaign produces. You need to bring the ad to show.

 Position paper – 3-page policy piece highlighting your candidate’s “Reagan Rule of 4” – the four top positions you and your candidate.

 Copy of a speech. A member of your staff will give the speech on caucus day.

 Propaganda – not necessarily in the book, but brought into the caucus. Can be posters, buttons or food stuffs.

Will Debates Make a Difference?

(From CNN) -- Presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin says that even though a lot of modern debates are programmed, there are still moments that no one expected.

"And it's sort of like championship boxing," she says, "you do get revelations of character, of temperament, of humor, of anger, and you get a feeling of this person during these one-on-one debates that really nothing else can provide."

 

Goodwin describes 10 key presidential and vice presidential debates that made a difference:

 

Blog here your top moment of tonight's debate. No live blogging tonight, but wait for the second debate live blogging by Political Warrior.