Post 3: Campaign Ads

This campaign season has been even more fierce than usual.  Pick one Minnesota race (District 3 - Paulson v. Phillips, Governor - Walz v. Johnson, Attorney General - Ellison v. Wardlow, etc) and watch an ad from each candidate and then answer the following prompt:

What claims is each candidate making?  What advertising technique(s) is each candidate using?  Whose ad do you find more persuasive and why?

It would be awesome if you fact checked the ad, but that is not required.

You can find ads by going to YouTube and searching for the name of the candidate and ad.

Post is due on November 2nd.

Post 4: Due 10/28

Election Prediction

Explain who you think will win the 2016 presidential election and how.  What I mean by "how" is what strategy will she/he use, what issue(s) will be the most significant to voters, and what swing states will she/he win, etc.  We will compare your predictions with results and exit poll data after the election.  Be sure to use at least 3 sources to justify your prediction!  Good luck.

Post #1 for 2015!

Presidential elections are always a fun and important part of studying American government. Read up on the 2016 presidential election and answer at least one of the following prompts in your post. Please use complete paragraphs, cite your information and proof read BEFORE posting. Your post should include a minimum of three media sources in it and not depend too heavily on the candidate's own website or on one media source.  I look forward to reading your first posts!

*  What candidate running for president (or flirting running) are you the most excited about? 
*  Who are you the most frustrated or outraged by? Why?

Due by 7:50 am on Fri 9/11/15.

Post 4 - Due 10/11

Due Friday, 10/11

You might be wondering if you get to take the week off because the federal government is shut down, but HA one branch is still highly functional (as in they get work done) even though they aren't being paid - the US Supreme Court!

This week the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Shaun McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission while we are learning about campaign finance in class!  This case will further establish what is legal post- Citizens United v. FEC.

Your task is to answer the following questions in your post and to have specific data from federal elections post-2008 to back up your claims. 

• Do you think that there should or should not be a limit on how much an individual can give to an individual candidate in an election cycle? (This is the central question the Court is answering in McCutcheon v. FEC)
• Are Super PACs becoming too powerful?  (This is what changed in the political landscape after Citizens United v. FEC.)
• To what degree does the role of money in federal elections concern you?

You should have at least 3 articles back up your claims.  Please do not rely on articles or resources I gave you.  See me if you need help.  

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.