Ads I found which you could use:

Need to find an ad to review:
Jeff Johnson 
Jeff Johnson
Tim Walz
Tim Walz

This MPR article features 3 different ads.

Post 1 - Due Sept 14th

On Tuesday, November 6, 2018 Americans will have the opportunity to vote in the midterm elections. These midterm elections will take place in the middle of Republican President Donald Trump's first term. All 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate will be on the ballot.  

Answer the following prompt(s):

*  Which party do you think will win control of the House of Representatives and Senate?  Why?

*  Who will win Minnesota's most contentious representative races?

     - Rep. Erik Paulson (R) v. Dean Phillips in the 3rd District (which includes Bloomington)

     - Dan Feehan (D) v. Jim Hagedorn (R) in the 1st District

     - Pete Stauber (R) v. Joe Radinovich (D) in the 8th District

Please answer the following prompt by class time on Friday, Sept 14th. Your answer should be well explained and use sources to support your argument. You are expected to cite your sources but you are not required to use MLA formatting. Please include links to internet source. Your goal is to use at least 3 sources in your post. Please proofread before posting. Your post will be read by me, your classmates, and even potentially others. :) A great place to look for arguments you might want to use is the opinion section of any major newspaper.  See me if you need help researching or writing your post. I look forward to reading what you have to read.

Note:  you will be graded on how & whether you back up your opinion with evidence.  You will NOT be evaluate on your opinion.

Post 3: Due October 7th

What topic do you think deserves more time/attention in the presidential campaign and in the debates?  Why?  Justify your answer with supporting research to convince your audience that this issue should be more central in the minds of voters in November.  You need to cite at least 3 sources for this post.

Post is due by the end of the day on Friday, October 7th.

Post #1: The Candidates and their Attempts to Persuade Us

Pick a speech by either the Democratic candidate, Hilary Clinton, and the Republican candidate, Donald Trump, and answer the following questions:

• Who was s/he speaking to?
• What did they articulate as their vision for their presidency?
• Did you find their speech to be persuasive?  Why or why not?
• Pick at least two facts that they used in their speech and fact check them.   What rating would you give their speech on a Truth-O-Meter? (1 being a total lie and 5 being totally honest.)

Please include the link to the speech you picked and to articles you find to fact check the speech.  When you cite the resources you used you can use hyperlinks or you can put a (1) after the point and then make a numbered list of sources at the end of your post.

Your post is due by 8 am on Friday, September 16th.  Please post your response by clicking on the little pencil beneath my post so your response can be on the same thread as your classmates.  I look forward to what you write/think!

Post 8: Due 2/9 or 10

February 9th is the date of the New Hampshire primary.  After there is a clear winner of the primary answer the following prompt:

Based on the results of the Iowa Caucus and the New Hampshire Primary, what type of candidates do the voters want for the general election?  Why?  What do these results mean?  Are these results representative of the country's views?  Why or why not?

You have until midnight on Wed 2/10.  I look forward to reading your insights.  ;)

Last post for Tri 1

Pick a classmate to respond to.  Read their post and watch the ad that they selected.  Write a response to their post addressing both the ad and their writing about the ad.  Remember, one should not need the original post in front of one's face in order to understand your response.

Please do not respond to a post that is about the same ad that you picked.

This is due by Monday, November 9th.  Thanks for sharing your insights this trimester.

Post 4: Analyze a Political Ad

This is the season for campaign ads. Find a campaign ad to analyze. Places you can search for ads include Youtube, candidate webpages, or news articles about campaign ads. Include a link to the ad you analyzed and answer the following questions:

1. What techniques is the ad using to try to persuade voters to vote for the candidate?

2. Are these techniques successful in the ad?

3. Fact check at least 1 piece of information in the ad. Does this ad accurately or inaccurately reflect the candidate or their opponents' record?
You will need sources for the third point at a minimum.

You can analyze any current campaign ad you want. It has to be from 2015 but it can be for any local, state, or national race. It can be from a candidate or from an interest group, Super PAC, or PAC.

Have fun with this! Due Saturday, 10/31st.  And Happy Halloween!

Post 1 for 2012! Due Fri, 9/14

For the past 2 weeks people in this country have either been paying attention to the RNC and the DNC or pretending like they aren't happening.  You get to be in the 1st category.  ;)

Which 2012 political party convention do you think was the most successful and how are you defining success?

 I recommend going to the webpages of each party and looking at the news coverage of the 2 conventions.  Your goal should be to use a minimum of 4 sources.  Your sources can include youtube videos from the convention and polling data.  

Your post is due by class on Friday, September 14th.  

Your post should fully answer the question above, refer to news articles or websites you read, and should be proofread.  Your post should use complete paragraphs, be spell checked and should have citations to show where your information is from.  The class will read your post and someone will respond to your argument by the end of the next week.  

Post #3: due 10/14

September 30th was a major fundraising deadline for the presidential candidates and there was a big push by each of them to raise more money last week. Much of the funds raised will be used by the candidates on their primary campaign and especially on tv ads.

Find an ad from one of the presidential candidates (you can go to their website or search on youtube typing in presidential ad 2012). Post the link to the ad in your post and analyze it. What techniques is it using to try to persuade voters? Are the claims it is making true, partially true or false? Do you find it persuasive? Why or why not?

Post 2: Due 9/30

What are President Obama's main hurdles in his reelection campaign? How do you think he could best try to overcome these hurdles? What could the Republicans do to help or hurt his campaign ambitions? Do you think trying to sabotage Obama could backfire?

Please use complete paragraphs, cite your information and proof read BEFORE posting. Keep in mind feedback I gave you and feedback you got from your classmates from post #1.

Post #1: Due 9/16/2011

Presidential elections are always a fun and important part of studying American government. Read up on the upcoming presidential election and answer the following questions in your post. Please use complete paragraphs, cite your information and proof read BEFORE posting. I look forward to reading your first posts!

*What candidate running for president in 2012 are you the most excited about? Who are you the most frustrated or outraged by? Why?

The leading candidates' webpages are below. They could be helpful to you. However, I want your post to use media sources and not just the candidates' propaganda in your post.

*Michele Bachman (R)
http://www.michelebachmann.com/

*Jon Huntsman (R)
http://jon2012.com

*Barack Obama (D)
http://www.barackobama.com

*Ron Paul (R)
http://ronpaul2012.com/

*Rick Perry (R)
http://www.rickperry.org

*Mitt Romney (R)
http://mittromney.com

Post 6 - Presidential Campaign Choices for 2012

Now that the midterms are over, people are starting to seriously consider the question, "Who should the Republicans put forward to challenge Barack Obama in 2012?"

Here is a link to the Washington Post's discussion:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/21/AR2010112103779.html?hpid=topnews

Do your own research and consider who the WP puts forward but don't forget also about Huckabee, Palin, Pawlenty, and Romney.

Then answer the following questions for your post:
1. What should the Republicans do (and what should someone wanting to run for president do) to gear up for the 2012 presidential election?
2. Who should the Republicans put forward and why?
3. Which Republican candidate do you think Obama would have the easiest time beating and why?

Due on Friday, December 3rd. Enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday!