Tag: election 2008

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Podcast: Latino Voters Take Center Stage in the Race for the Democratic Presidential Nomination

Latino voters were pivotal in Hillary Clinton’s recent victories in Texas, California, and New Mexico. According to the Pew Hispanic Center exit polls show that, “Latinos accounted for at least 30% of the total votes cast in the Democratic primary (in those states), and Clinton outpolled Sen. Barack Obama among Latinos by a ratio of about two-to-one.”

When and how did Latino voters gain this level of political power? What are the implications for the rest of the primary campaign and the general election? What are GOP Senator John McCain’s chances of winning significant Latino support?

In this Podcast veteran journalist and Feet in Two Worlds reporter Pilar Marrero takes an in-depth look at these questions. Marrero is the senior political writer at La Opinión, the leading Spanish-Language daily in Los Angeles. In a conversation with FI2W executive producer John Rudolph, Marrero also discusses historical trends that have given Latino voters unprecedented clout at the ballot box this year.

[audio:http://www.xrew.com/joceimgs/FI2W/fi2w_pilar_0315.mp3]
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Podcast: Barack Obama courts evangelical Latinos

Barack Obama is reaching out to Latino evangelical leaders as part of a broader strategy to win support for his presidential campaign among Latino voters.

The Illinois senator has invested significant resources in faith outreach, holding community faith forums and courting religious leaders in key primary states such as Texas and South Carolina.

Aswini Anburajan, a former Feet in Two Worlds reporter covering the Obama campaign for for NBC News/National Journal, and current Feet in Two Worlds journalist Lorenzo Morales of El Diario/La Prensa speak with FI2W executive producer John Rudolph about Obama’s faith-based campaign strategy.

They discuss his unique approach, its effectiveness and the issues that matter to evangelical Latino voters—many of which have little to do with church positions on abortion or same-sex marriage.

[audio:http://www.xrew.com/joceimgs/FI2W/fi2w_latinoevangelicals_0308.mp3]

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Podcast: Doubts about Obama

Despite Senator Barack Obama’s recent string of primary and caucus victories there is deep unease about his candidacy in some immigrant communities. Obama’s positions on Pakistan, Iraq, and the Middle East could cost him votes and campaign contributions from Russian and Pakistani immigrants.

Ari Kagan

Two journalists, Ari Kagan, senior editor of the Russian newspaper Vecherniy New York and Jehangir Khattak a writer for Pakistan News and Defence Journal, discuss the challenges facing the Democratic senator from Illinois in his presidential campaign.

Jehangir

Kagan and Khattak also talk about Senator Hillary Clinton’s support among Pakistani and Russian immigrants, and why, if she fails to win the Democratic nomination, some of that support will go to Republican Senator John McCain, rather than Barack Obama.

[audio:http://www.xrew.com/joceimgs/FI2W/fi2w_kagan_khattak_0215.mp3]

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Letter from America

America on Road to Verdict – A Split One

(This article was originally written for Defence Journal)

By Jehangir Khattak

defence logo

Pakistan has frequently been mentioned by almost all the candidates from both sides of the political divide. Unfortunately, Pakistan’s name has never been mentioned in a manner that would make most Pakistanis proud. The candidates cite the example of Pakistan while discussing the rising threat of religious extremism in different parts of the world. The candidates’ strong rhetoric in their plans to “deal” with Pakistan has attracted at times pretty strong reaction from Pakistan’s Foreign Office. While politicians like Mike Huckabee lack international vision, their foreign policy outlook remains a guessing game. And whenever they spoke on international issues, those were nothing short of gaffes.

The assassination of Pakistan’s former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, on December 27, 2007, was the first major incident that evoked response from all the presidential candidates. The candidates’ varying responses exposed their command on foreign policy. So striking were these responses that top American dailies like The Washington Post wrote a special editorial on them under the caption “The Pakistan Test.” These reactions not only demonstrated the candidates’ understanding or otherwise of international issues, but also their ability to handle them. The astonishingly naïve reaction came from none else but Mike Huckabee who wanted a crackdown on illegal immigrants from Pakistan in the United States following BB’s assassination. His unimaginative approach did not end here. He, in the course of his comments, tried to make his audience believe that Pakistan is still under martial law.

Equally disappointing was Senator Barak Obama who has so far treaded a tough line on Pakistan. Obama has time and again expressed his resolve to hit terrorist targets, if any, on Pakistani soil without seeking Islamabad’s permission. Obama’s somewhat unilateralist approach towards Pakistan is in virtual contrast to his international outlook which advocates more inclusiveness and greater openness. Unlike the current Republican administration’s policy of not negotiating with its foes, Obama is promising talks with countries like Iran. In Pakistan’s case, Obama, who is promising change in Washington, is propagating something that would maintain status quo in the American line of thinking. Former Director George Tenet, in his latest book At the Center of the Storm, best explains this thinking. He says, “…we must not fall prey to typical American impatience and rush into ‘solutions’ that only make matters worse.” The Illinois Senator’s assertions on Pakistan have disappointed and even antagonized many of his Pakistani-American admirers.

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Podcast: Latino voters weigh candidate positions on abortion, the war in Iraq and immigration.

el diario

In a conversation with Feet in Two Worlds executive producer John Rudolph, Alberto Vourvoulias-Bush, executive editor of El Diario/La Prensa speaks about key issues for Latino voters and his newspaper’s efforts to present a picture of the Latino electorate that is more nuanced than mainstream media.

[audio:http://www.xrew.com/joceimgs/FI2W/fi2w_albertobush.mp3]

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Podcast: Kennedy endorsement of Barack Obama creates, “the perfect storm of Irish-American reaction.”

The recent endorsement of Senator Barack Obama’s presidential bid by Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy and his niece Caroline Kennedy has sent shockwaves through the Democratic party. The move by prominent members of the Kennedy family has sparked speculation about the possible impact on Democratic voters in the Super Tuesday primaries and beyond. Irish-American newspapers are paying close attention to this story for many reasons. In addition to the enduring interest in the Kennedy family there is also Bill Clinton’s popularity among Irish-Americans stemming from his deep involvement in the Northern Ireland peace process, and Barack Obama’s Irish heritage.

Peter McDermott, associate editor of the Irish Echo, speaks with Feet in Two Worlds executive producer John Rudolph about Irish-American reaction to the endorsement and the comparisons being drawn between Senator Obama and the late President John F. Kennedy. Peter also talks about Irish-American views of Senator John McCain, a Republican presidential candidate with Irish roots.

[audio:http://www.xrew.com/joceimgs/FI2W/fi2w_mcdermott.mp3]

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Podcast: Chinese immigrants and the campaign for the White House

sing tao daily logo

Hillary Clinton and Rudy Giuliani are the favored presidential candidates in New York’s Chinese community. Will Chinese immigrants support other candidates if Hillary or Rudy do not win their party’s nomination? What campaign issues are most important to Chinese-Americans? Listen to Lotus Chau, chief reporter with the Chinese-language newspaper Sing Tao Daily in conversation with Feet in Two Worlds executive producer John Rudolph.

[audio:http://www.xrew.com/joceimgs/FI2W/fi2w_lotuschau.mp3]

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Peter McDermott of the Irish Echo on the history of the NH primary

Andy Smith’s (head of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center) comment about the Hillary campaign, particularly its attitude to the media, was backed up by Maureen Dowd’s column the following day.
“Hillary has barely talked to the press throughout her race even though the Clintons this week whined mightily that the press prefers Obama,” she wrote. Dowd echoed another comment he made when she said that Eugene McCarthy forced the incumbent President Lyndon B. Johnson from the White House with his strong showing in the New Hampshire Primary in 1968.

Both Andy and the NYT columnist are wrong on this historical point. The primary was held on March 12, which LBJ won in a write-in campaign. The president announced to the nation in a televised address on March 31 that he would not be seeking reelection. What neither mentioned is that Robert Kennedy had entered the race on March 16.

I referred to these facts in a general opinion piece about the history of the primary, which was published in my paper on Jan. 2, and can be found on the IPA website.

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Letter from America

New Hampshire sets stage for blazing American election season

By Jehangir Khattak (This article was written for the Pakistani magazine Defence Journal)

defence journal logo

New Hampshire primaries results have set the stage for a blazing election season in America. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s ability to prove all scientific data generated to predict her certain defeat in the Granite State primaries and John McCain’s resurgence despite almost dried up funds has made the 2008 presidential election one of the most closely contested in recent years.

The snow-clad city of Manchester (NH) and its adjacent state capital Concord and elsewhere in the sprawling countryside all were dotted with political shops set up in school gymnasiums, town halls, small country-style cafes, restaurants and every conceivable space that could be used to impress the voters. The candidates too used every available media to reach out to the voters. Thus voters in New Hampshire were in no mood of celebrity gossip rather they were practically in the middle of almost daily gossip with celebrities.

Kathy Gunst was thrilled to see Bill Clinton talking to about a dozen of his admirers outside a restaurant at lunch time in Exeter, a small town in vicinity of Manchester. “It was deeply intimate to listen to a former President of the United States on a side walk,” Kathy, told Defense Journal. Kathy said Bill talked about different projects his foundation had launched. He talked less about politics and more about environment and some international issues like Turkey’s joining the European Union.
It could be because the locals were so used to celebrity talk on roadside pavement that not all walking by opted to listen to Bill. Some of the former President’s admirer’s had a photo opportunity as well, giving a valuable addition to their personal albums. So was the style of almost all the candidates who wouldn’t miss an opportunity of public engagement in an effort to woe New Hampshirites, considered hard nuts to crack when it comes to winning their vote.

A local joke speaks of their maverick political nature. “I am still undecided after having heard the candidates and shaken their hand two times,” is the common phrase used by the state voters to force the candidates make more rounds of their communities or subject them to a “special” treatment. Little wonder New Hampshire has one of the highest numbers of undecided or independent registered voters in the country. Forty-two percent of the state voters are registered as independent and can legally swing in favor of either party on polling day.

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A Polish reporters meets New Hampshire voters

Talking to New Hampshire voters
By Ewa Kern Jedrychowska
Reporter, Nowy Dziennik/Polish Daily News

Polish Daily News

On the eve of the New Hampshire primary, we went to 3 rallies – John McCain’s, Mitt Romney’s and Barack Obama’s.  People that I interviewed in all these places were passionately sharing their views and expressing support for their favourite candidates.  Almost as if they were trying to convince me that they are right.  “This election is about one issue only – war on terror, and John McCain is the only candidate that can deal with it,” said Christine Liska, 57, a resident of Epping, during the rally in front of the Exeter Town Hall.  “I’m tired of politics in Washington. I believe Obama will bring this country together and change its foreign policy,” said Heidi Page, 41, who lives in Deering and attended an Obama rally at Concord High School.  These people had made up their minds.  They were determined and the message they were trying to put across was almost as strong as the one of the candidates’ themselves.

Then I realized yet again how much I liked interviewing Americans. Whenever I talk to them on the streets of New York, I am amazed how open and enthusiastic they are. How they have no problems with sharing their views, and how they don‘t mind giving me their names and being photographed, unlike people from the Polish community that I cover for my newspaper. Poles usually don’t want to talk to the press, or if they do they prefer to stay anonymous. I can usually forget about taking their pictures. Some of them are undocumented and do not want to be exposed. Others say that, “this community is too small and they do not want their friends to recognize them in the paper.” As if having an opinion was something embarrassing.

So I was very surprised to get a “Pole-like” attitude on primary day in front of the polls in Exeter, right where the McCain rally
happened the night before.  Most of the people that I tried talking to did not want to reveal who they voted for.  “This is my private matter,” they would simply tell me.  Only a handful agreed to share their thoughts with me.  How strange… It did not seem to be their private matter the night before.

But then I understood that people going to the polls are not the same people that I met at the rallies.  Most of the people who attend rallies are the convinced and determined voters who go there to express their support.  Coming to rallies, I think, requires more involvement in politics than just going to the voting booth.

I also realized what should have been obvious right from the beginning: Americans from New Hampshire are not Americans from New York.  I had always known they had different political preferences and voting patterns, but now I understand that probably some of them also had a different intimacy level.