Saturday Update 8/1/14: Republican Debate #1-Who will make the cut?

The Republican Debates start up next week when the top 10 candidates according to FOX News' polling average square off in Cleveland at 9 pm this Thursday night. The candidates that are outside the top 10 will participate in a roundtable at 5 pm. However, being in the 10 person field for the 9 pm debate will be critical for candidates who want to stand a chance since most undecided voters will only watch the 9 pm debate.

Who will the 10 be?
The 10 will be announced Tuesday but to try to figure them out early, I have taken a look at the polling averages from RealClearPolitics and the Huffington Post. Based on these polls, it's clear Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, and Scott Walker will without a doubt be in the debates as they are the top 3 on both lists. Ben Carson, Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, and Mike Huckabee are in the top 8 in both lists and also seem likely to participate in the 9 pm debate. Both averages also have Chris Christie and John Kasich holding slight leads for the final. This would leave Rick Perry, Bobby Jindal, Rick Santorum, Carly Fiorina, Lindsey Graham, George Pataki, and Jim Gilmore out of the debate.

Saturday Update 6/13: Clinton Gives First Major Campaign Speech

For the rest of the time until the election, I'm going to give you an update on top news stories each week. This is the first one of these and I hope you find it informative.

Clinton Holds First Major Rally in New York
Hilary Clinton held her first major rally on Roosevelt Island in New York City today, giving a 45 minute speech to the thousands in attendance. She struck a tone that she would fight for the rights of both middle class Americans and women, saying that she would try to end wage disparity between men and women, fight for paid sick and family leave, and push for universal preschool. She also called out Republicans who she says have turned their backs on gays. Allison Moore, the spokesperson for the Republican National Committee criticized the speech as "chock full of hypocritical attacks, partisan rhetoric, and ideas from the past that have led to a sluggish economy leaving too many Americans behind." She went on to predict that "Next year, the Americans will reject the failed policies of the past and elect a republican president.

Bernie Sanders announces he will run for president. Does he have any chance?

Sanders announces his presidential campaign

The Democrats have their first major candidate to oppose Hilary Clinton. Independent Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont announced on Thursday that he would challenge Clinton in the Democratic Primary. Before I get into Mr. Sanders' chances of winning, I'm going to give you a quick history of his career and political views. He was born in 1941 and elected the Mayor of Burlington in 1981. He served as mayor until 1989 and was elected to congress in 1990. In 2006, after 16 years in the house, he successfully ran as an independent in the senate election for Vermont and has been a US Senator ever since. He will probably be the most liberal candidate in this primary for the Democrats in fact identifying as socialist. He is liberal on most social issues, including gay rights, abortion rights, climate change, and abolishing the death penalty. He also supports Universal Health Care, a system that allows everyone to get health care at no cost. He says his main goal is to create an America that is not run by Billionaires. Now, back to the question of whether he has a chance. What Sanders is going to do is try to be the liberal alternative to Clinton. The only problem is that Clinton has already gained so much support that it is going to be nearly impossible to unseat her. Unless she makes a huge campaign mistake, Sanders will be hard pressed to find a way to top her, though I don't think that winning is what he desires. In my opinion, I think he wants to use this election as an opportunity to get his ideas out to the public and does not have much of an expectation of winning. I project he could potentially finish second though, judging by the 1.5 million in support he received in the first 24 hours of his campaign.

Welcome!

Election season is heating up, so I decided to start this blog now. I am going to take an unbiased look at american politics and elections for the months leading up to the 2016 election. Thanks for taking a look at this blog!

About Me
My name is Bob Smith (I'm not even joking). I live in both Liverpool and Boston, but have taken much more of an interest in American Politics.