1. Ted Stevens is convicted.
Ted Stevens was convicted on seven felony charges this week despite testimony about his honesty and trustworthiness from members of both political parties. He was convicted on that he took gifts from an Alaskan businessman and did not disclose them on his Senate disclosure forms.
I think that this was something that was good for the American people to show that no one is above the law. I have heard countless number of people say that this was something that was good for government to show that people are being held accountable.
Of course this depends on which party you belong too. If you are a Democrat you can see that this is just another sign of corrupted Republican members of Congress which is how CNN showed this case. If you are a Republican you say that the appeals process will be used because this is unjust which is stuff that Fox News has said.
2. McCain predicting late win on Election Day
Senator John McCain is predicting a win on election night late into the evening. McCain is saying that some swing states and the southeast, southwest, and the plains states to come through for his campaign against Senator Barack Obama. He knows that independent and undecided voters are going to decide this election.
I am unsure of who is going to win the Presidential election. I think that it is going to come down to who actually goes to the polls. The Obama campaign has energized Americans to get involved in politics again, particularly young voters, like we haven't seen before since President John F. Kennedy. Even though they are energized again does this mean that they will go to the ballot box on Election Day? Only time will tell.
3. Leadership has called on Stevens to resign.
Both Presidential candidates have called upon Republican Alaska Senator Ted Stevens to resign following his conviction of seven felony corruption charges. This has been echoed by both the Democratic and Republican leaders of the United States Senate. Also members of his own party who are running a tight re-election campaign have issued statements saying that he should resign.
I believe that we should treat this matter as we have other matters in the past. Let the appeals process work its' will and then make a decision on what to do. However; since he is a member of the United States Senate the membership of the body can expel him with a 2/3 vote no matter if he was convicted in court or not. When you are a public official you are held to a somewhat higher standard than perhaps someone who lives in private life.
4. Polls predict solid Democratic federal government
Polls are predicting that the Democrats will win the White House and expand their majorities in the Senate and in the House. In the Senate they are hoping to get 60 seats which would allow them a filibuster-proof majority which is turns almost ensures that anything that they propose or Senator Obama if he is elected President proposes will be enacted into law.
This has not bene the case since the late 1970's when the Democrats had 60 seats in the United States Senate. I think that this is not how the Founding Fathers wanted the Federal Government to operate. We get the best results not when one party controls everything but when they work together and incorporate all ideas and viewpoints into legislation that best benefits the people that they represent. Fox News has shown voters over the last several months how scary this scenario would be if it were to come true including higher taxes, more government, and less freewill to make your own choices and live your own life. Scary isn't it...
5. Senator Durbin's daughter dies.
The senior Democratic Senator from Illinois Senator Dick Durbin has lost his daughter this week to a heart problem. She was 40 years old and passed on while Durbin is in the midst of his re-election campaign. She also left behind a husband and a son.
Typically when this happens and the election is only a couple days away he might get some sympathy votes that otherwise he would not have received. Durbin was not in a tight re-election race so it really will not effect the outcome like it did in South Dakota this election cycle when the Republican Senate Campaign Committee decided not to challenge Democratic Senator Tim Johnson since he suffered a stroke last December.
I know that this was not something that was planned for sympathy votes and who would want to lose a child to win an election. Fox News did somewhat bring this thought up in the article but I would hope that was not the sole intention behind its' reporting the situation as it did. Our thoughts and our prayers are with the Durbin family during this difficult time.
