Political Stance

The political views of President Barack Obama is an inspiring new change of pace to American politics. While he promotes many liberal policies, he has adopted several conservative ideas and is a huge supporter of bi-partisanship as well. His political stance on issues is not determined by the party he belongs to, but by facts and a rational thought process in tackling our current world problems. He doesn’t just talk about reaching across the aisle, he actually does it. This is a breath of fresh air for many Americans as President George W. Bush and his administration were not known for an open door policy or bi-partisanship. Some citizens believe that President Bush’s unwillingness to listen to others is part of the reason why our country is in it’s current shape. American citizen’s political views have been changing a lot in the last decade due to the major changes in government during this time.

- President Barack Obama’s political stance is not subjected to just democratic views and ideas. He has included many Republican ideas in his proposed health care reform bill as well as his economic reform legislation. Many Americans would argue that his foreign policies are very conservative. The president’s opponent from the 2008 election, Senator John McCain co-sponsored a defense contracting reform bill that Obama signed into law. He encouraged both parties to come together to pass a credit card bill of rights and was successful in doing so. He also got Republican support in order to extend compensation to the unemployed. This is what our country needs right now. Many politicians talk about being bi-partisan, but very few actually follow through with it.

- Many would argue that the difference between President Barack Obama and President George W. Bush is like night and day. President Bush’s political stance was extremely conservative. His political views reflected only those of his own party especially when it came to the economy. He relied on tax cuts as one of his main ways of fixing economic problems. Some Americans were not supportive of his tax cuts to large businesses who were not only making record profits but shipping jobs overseas as well. It was during George W. Bush’s presidency that many American’s changed their political views. President Bush took office with a record surplus and left office with a record deficit and also started two wars. This caused many Americans to look at their own political stance and ask some important questions.

- President Obama has not been promoting the democratic party the way other democratic presidents did. He encourages bi-partisanship almost every time he speaks. He is able to be passionate about his policies and political views without putting down the other party. Many American’s have hope that he can lead this country into a new era of politics. Only time will tell whether his words and actions translate to progress but most can agree that this is a huge change of pace from politics as usual with presidents especially within the last 30 years.

President Obama’s political stance might not be due to his personal beliefs but rather a demand of bi-partisanship by the American people. With the worst economic downfall since the great depression and our country involved with two wars, we cannot afford for the president’s personal political views to be affected by petty politics and opposition party bickering. We need a leader who can rise above politics as usual and do what’s right for the citizens of this great country. Many hope that years from now, there will be a time known as pre-Obama politics and post-Obama politics and that the ladder will be a much more positive political environment.

Political Polls

The modern political poll has changed the face of American government. In addition to the twenty-four hour news cycle, constant updates from a political poll allows politicians to stay on the verge of possible confrontation and displeased voters. Political polls are not always effective as much has been made about their ineffectiveness to gauge real public sentiment. The usage of political polls dates back to the early days of the American government, with local papers and individuals implementing straw polls. This practice failed to represent the future of the political poll, however, as every modern political team maintains a focus on the political poll and usually hires a pollster for at times, exorbitant fees.

- Many historians date back political polls to the contentious election between Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams. It was conducted as a straw poll which is much like a regular vote, but without it actually counting for anything. This was an interesting election for polls to be conducted due to the vast split in popularity between these two candidates. Andrew Jackson was commonly known as the people’s candidate, and although he claimed to be in line of a Jeffersonian Democrat, Jackson became the first American populist. It was said that even Jefferson dismissed him and his brand of politics. John Quincy Adams, on the other hand, represented the professional politician with his father having been the second president of the United States. The effectiveness of a straw pull as a viable political poll lacks credulity because the results will be based solely on who chooses to take the straw poll.

- Political polls continued as straw polls until Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In 1936, the sitting president was weary over some individuals running against him, or that were at least expected to. At this time, George Gallup conducted a different kind of poll that focused on demographics and scientific evaluation more than chance. Gallup would come to predict not only the 1936 election with his political poll, but his polling system would come to accurately predict several elections in the following years.

- In recent years, the political poll has become a science in which nearly every news outlet and political campaign utilizes. The historical Gallup poll has paved the way for an entire system of political polls, each used for a specific purpose to either gauge voter viability, or even opinion on a certain issue. This is not to suggest that the modern political poll is entirely objective, however, as a lot of the results hinge on the type of questions asked and chosen demographic.

The history of political polls took off by the middle of the twentieth century. Now, every election attracts numerous types of political polls, all claiming to be the most accurate. Individuals looking at a political poll should be weary of its source, because the ability to tweak results based on the types of questions and chosen demographic is entirely up to the pollster or news outlet.