This week, I watched This Week on ABC with George Stephanopoulos and State of the Union on CNN, hosted by Jake Tapper. Pundits and guests with George included Mitch McConnell, Tom Perez, Sir Kim Darroch, Gillian Tett, John Micklethwait, Greta Van Susteren, Stephanie Cutter, Alex Castellanos, and Michael Eric Dyson. On State of the Union, the guests were Bernie Sanders and Bob Corker. The pundits included Martin O'Malley, Jan Brewer, Ken Cuccinelli, and Nina Turner. Both shows discuss Clinton's lead in the race, discomfort in the Republican party, and Brexit.
I first watched This Week, and George began with reviewing the polls for the presidential race. Trump is trailing 12 points behind Clinton, because his mistakes and comments are beginning to show in the demographics. George brings Senator Mitch McConnell on. They discuss voters' reactions to Trump and his troubles, and McConnell states the Republican party will not change it's stance on issues just because the split in the party. Secretary of Labor Tom Perez supports Clinton and thinks she will be the change America needs. I agree with that in the sense that Clinton has a plan and has made the plan clear to voters, while Trump only claims he will "make America great again" when he needs to be giving voters a specific plan as president. Now onto Brexit, British Ambassador Sir Kim Darroch is interviewed on the relationship of America and Great Britain, Britain's leave from the EU, and the economic affect of their leave. Now speaking to Gillian Tett and John Micklethwait, Tett discusses how many British citizens regret their vote to leave the EU, but in my opinion, they should have taken the vote more seriously because it is irrevocable. John only says how other European countries are considering having the same vote, as a result of Great Britain leaving. At the panel, Cutter stated that numbers like Trump's are extremely difficult to come back from, but she also says they have never seen numbers like his, so the two statements cancelled each other out. Dyson mentions how people will not trust a man like Trump with nuclear codes, but this is not a valid argument, because a single man cannot start a war. Using that same argument, most people do not trust Clinton to be president, as Alex Castellanos said later on. I completely agreed with Susteren when she stated that Trump needs to become a more presidential candidate, and then the voters will decide who would be better for them, despite mistakes both candidates have made. The discussion between the pundits was very beneficial because there were strong people from both parties, even though some of them were aggressive with their opinions.
The next show, State of the Union, started with the host, Jake Tapper interviewing Bernie Sanders. Throughout the duration of the interview, Tapper was trying to get Sanders to say he would endorse Clinton. Sanders' answer was that he will not do all the work for Hillary, which I think is Sanders' way to make Clinton change her campaign tactics to defeat Trump. Bernie later says that the feeling behind Brexit is similar in comparison to the feeling behind the election in America. Tapper ends the interview and moves over to Senator Bob Corker and first asks what he thinks of the Republicans not supporting Trump. Bob says that he has respect for those people, but Trump gives a voice to "faceless bureaucracy" and bigger politicians do not like that. He later says that he is offended by foreign leaders controlling our issues, so people from Britain would not appreciate President Obama doing the same and saying comments that were "sort of sophomoric threats." The interview ends after discussion of gun control and terrorism, and Jake brings in his panel for discussion. The panel on State of the Union was unprofessional and unproductive. The guests would argue over each other, and Tapper suggested talking about immigration, to which all the guests ignored and continues their arguments. Cuccinelli accused Democrats of calling Republicans "bigots and racists" while guests from the Republican party did the exact same. The tension from both parties was highlighted through these arguments and debates. The panel never really discussed a topic fully, and soon the show ended.
In conclusion, recently there has been tension between political parties, and the effects of that is showcasing during the discussion portions of these news shows. Some guests had productive and useful interviews, while others had a hard time staying on topic while they head-butted with members of the opposite party. I doubt the parties will ever come to an understanding or compromise, but I think it would have an amazing impact on the effectiveness and peacefulness of politics.
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
June 19th - Week 3
On Sunday June 19th, I watched Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace on Fox News channel and Meet the Press, hosted by Chuck Todd on NBC. Guests on Fox News included Loretta Lynch, Jeff Sessions, Juan Williams, Amy Walters, George Will, and Brit Hume. Pundits and other guests with Chuck Todd were Paul Ryan, Mark Halperin, Gwen Ifill, Jose Diaz-Balart, Katy Tur, and Loretta Lynch. Both shows had healthy discussions and interviews which covered very similar topics.
On Fox News Sunday, attorney general Loretta Lynch discusses the Orlando shooter, Omar Mateen's, wife and her connections to Omar. She suggests how America should manage gun control, and says they are investigating the wife's relationship to the shooting. Lynch spoke as though it was less of a terrorism attack than a hate crime when in reality, it was both. Next, key adviser for Trump Jeff Sessions says that toxic ISIS ideology is what caused the shooting, not the access of guns. Trump says he thinks anyone on the no-fly list, should not be allowed to purchase a firearm, and I agree. Any questionable connections with terrorism or danger should prohibit someone from buying a weapon. Juan Williams, Amy Walters, George Will, Brit Hume, and Chris Wallace discuss ISIS's impact in social media and the growing threat. Amy Walters mentions how both parties cannot come to a common ground. Republicans say Orlando was a terrorism issue, and Democrats say it is a gun control issue, when it is both. Now onto the political race, the table discusses the candidates' stance in the race. Walters states that Trump can exploit Hillary and the Obama administration for their lack of controlling ISIS, but Trump fails to take those opportunities and uses insults and lets his mouth get the best of him. Hume says that Trump is missing chances to change his view to voters, since many voters are losing faith in him. George Will mentions that Trumps confuses the hype of the crowds at rallies with the attitude of the general voters, which gives him a false idea of what the voters think.
This week on Meet the Press, Chuck Todd started the show with an interview with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. They discussed Trump's appearance in the media. Todd asks how Ryan feels about Trump "implying that Obama has a connection with ISIS." Ryan shoots back to say that is not what Trump meant by his statement, but Todd continues to press Ryan on why he trusts Trump. Ryan stands his ground and fully answers questions while keeping his cool. I believe that Todd is biased in his interviews and as a host by the way he forces his opinion against the Republican party into his deliverance of the news. Later in the show, Todd and his discussion team, Mark Halperin, Gwen Ifill, Jose Diaz-Balart, and Katy Turr, gather to talk about the "Dump Trump" organization. Ifill says that no one is strong enough to be appointed to win against Trump in the Republican party. The group agrees that no one will believe the movement is organic, because it is the delegates who want Trump gone, not the Republican voters. Tur mentions the fact that Trump is "backtracking" and is "sputtering" which hurts his support systems in the race. Since Sunday, Trump has fired the head of his campaign, so hopefully he will begin to be more specific about his plans and control his mouth.
In conclusion, both shows I watched, Fox News Sunday and Meet the Press, had very informative information and included several interesting views on terrorism, gun control, and the presidential race. The guests had many points that made me think differently about current issues in America. I look forward to see how politics progresses in the next week.
On Fox News Sunday, attorney general Loretta Lynch discusses the Orlando shooter, Omar Mateen's, wife and her connections to Omar. She suggests how America should manage gun control, and says they are investigating the wife's relationship to the shooting. Lynch spoke as though it was less of a terrorism attack than a hate crime when in reality, it was both. Next, key adviser for Trump Jeff Sessions says that toxic ISIS ideology is what caused the shooting, not the access of guns. Trump says he thinks anyone on the no-fly list, should not be allowed to purchase a firearm, and I agree. Any questionable connections with terrorism or danger should prohibit someone from buying a weapon. Juan Williams, Amy Walters, George Will, Brit Hume, and Chris Wallace discuss ISIS's impact in social media and the growing threat. Amy Walters mentions how both parties cannot come to a common ground. Republicans say Orlando was a terrorism issue, and Democrats say it is a gun control issue, when it is both. Now onto the political race, the table discusses the candidates' stance in the race. Walters states that Trump can exploit Hillary and the Obama administration for their lack of controlling ISIS, but Trump fails to take those opportunities and uses insults and lets his mouth get the best of him. Hume says that Trump is missing chances to change his view to voters, since many voters are losing faith in him. George Will mentions that Trumps confuses the hype of the crowds at rallies with the attitude of the general voters, which gives him a false idea of what the voters think.
This week on Meet the Press, Chuck Todd started the show with an interview with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. They discussed Trump's appearance in the media. Todd asks how Ryan feels about Trump "implying that Obama has a connection with ISIS." Ryan shoots back to say that is not what Trump meant by his statement, but Todd continues to press Ryan on why he trusts Trump. Ryan stands his ground and fully answers questions while keeping his cool. I believe that Todd is biased in his interviews and as a host by the way he forces his opinion against the Republican party into his deliverance of the news. Later in the show, Todd and his discussion team, Mark Halperin, Gwen Ifill, Jose Diaz-Balart, and Katy Turr, gather to talk about the "Dump Trump" organization. Ifill says that no one is strong enough to be appointed to win against Trump in the Republican party. The group agrees that no one will believe the movement is organic, because it is the delegates who want Trump gone, not the Republican voters. Tur mentions the fact that Trump is "backtracking" and is "sputtering" which hurts his support systems in the race. Since Sunday, Trump has fired the head of his campaign, so hopefully he will begin to be more specific about his plans and control his mouth.
In conclusion, both shows I watched, Fox News Sunday and Meet the Press, had very informative information and included several interesting views on terrorism, gun control, and the presidential race. The guests had many points that made me think differently about current issues in America. I look forward to see how politics progresses in the next week.
Thursday, June 16, 2016
June 12th - Week 2
On Sunday June 12th, I watched Meet the Press with Chuck Todd on NBC. His guests and pundits included Pete Williams, Tom Brokaw, Hugh Hewitt, Amy Walter, Joy-Ann Reid, and Jeff Flake. He also has Bernie Sanders, David Plouffe, and Steve Schmidt on the show.
Early Sunday morning around 2 A.M., there was a mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, so Todd addressed the shooting for a large portion of the show. There were at least 20 dead and 42 wounded, but more people were discovered dead later in the week. The shooter held hostages in the club until police came, and the shooter was killed in the gunfire. Todd showed several eyewitness accounts from survivors in the club and family of people who were killed. He also discussed gun control and terrorism with NBC News justice correspondent, Pete Williams.
Todd gathered his news team and discussed those same issues. Tom Brokaw suggested that both Republicans and Democrats need to have a healthy discussion about gun control because of the several mass shootings in America, even in the past year. Hugh Hewitt discusses how powerful and terrorizing ISIS is, similar to how Amy Walter says that citizens and parents are scared to anything because the threat of ISIS. Joy-Ann Reid talks of people who are targeted by terrorism. I did not approve that Reid said the Orlando shooting was a hate crime when the shooter's intent was not yet decided. I think that was an inappropriate statement, even though the shooting was a horrible event. Todd repeatedly says he wants America to have a conversation about terrorism and gun control at the same time. I believe that America lacks moral for gun control and needs to realize that mass shootings cannot be a routine occurrence in our country.
Now onto the political race, Clinton is up three points, and Romney loyalists attack Trump. Trump shoots back to say that he will win and will not "choke" how Romney did. Senator of Arizona, Jeff Flake, comes on the show. Todd asks him why America cannot have a debate discussing both terrorism and gun control. Flake gives a roundabout answer to this question, I believe he "dodged" the question to maintain his reputation and avoid getting criticism from the press. Despite avoiding that question, Flake speaks out to say that he is uncomfortable supporting Trump and feels that his racist comments will affect the ballots. Flake laughs when he is asked if he can see himself voting for Clinton, but he does not think Trump will change as a candidate.
Bernie Sanders is brought onto the show and says he will do everything in his power to make sure Trump will not win the election. He will meet with Hillary Clinton soon to discuss her campaign.
Meet the Press included a new segment called War Room when two political figures are interviewed by Todd. This week, he brought on David Plouffe, campaign manager for Obama in 2008, and the senior adviser for McCain in 2008, Steve Schmidt. They are asked about the similarities to the 2008 race and the current presidential race. Schmidt says Trump has been the primary Republican candidate, but his controversies and division of the party is not putting that to good use. I agree and believe that Trump is not using the tools he has in the election. Plouffe believes that Clinton's campaign needs to be incredibly smart, because if she loses certain states, it can seriously affect her stance in the race. Although, Clinton has advantages in several states, and that is because more states are primarily Democrat, so Trump has more places to lose only because of the political standpoint of the states.
To conclude, this week on Meet the Press, Chuck Todd and team discussed gun control and terrorism in America. The also talked about how America handles these issues and how they should be fixed. He also meets with several political figures to discuss the progress of the race for president as the election nears. There are currently several factors affecting the race, and it is incredibly interesting to see how it will pan out in the upcoming months.
Early Sunday morning around 2 A.M., there was a mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, so Todd addressed the shooting for a large portion of the show. There were at least 20 dead and 42 wounded, but more people were discovered dead later in the week. The shooter held hostages in the club until police came, and the shooter was killed in the gunfire. Todd showed several eyewitness accounts from survivors in the club and family of people who were killed. He also discussed gun control and terrorism with NBC News justice correspondent, Pete Williams.
Todd gathered his news team and discussed those same issues. Tom Brokaw suggested that both Republicans and Democrats need to have a healthy discussion about gun control because of the several mass shootings in America, even in the past year. Hugh Hewitt discusses how powerful and terrorizing ISIS is, similar to how Amy Walter says that citizens and parents are scared to anything because the threat of ISIS. Joy-Ann Reid talks of people who are targeted by terrorism. I did not approve that Reid said the Orlando shooting was a hate crime when the shooter's intent was not yet decided. I think that was an inappropriate statement, even though the shooting was a horrible event. Todd repeatedly says he wants America to have a conversation about terrorism and gun control at the same time. I believe that America lacks moral for gun control and needs to realize that mass shootings cannot be a routine occurrence in our country.
Now onto the political race, Clinton is up three points, and Romney loyalists attack Trump. Trump shoots back to say that he will win and will not "choke" how Romney did. Senator of Arizona, Jeff Flake, comes on the show. Todd asks him why America cannot have a debate discussing both terrorism and gun control. Flake gives a roundabout answer to this question, I believe he "dodged" the question to maintain his reputation and avoid getting criticism from the press. Despite avoiding that question, Flake speaks out to say that he is uncomfortable supporting Trump and feels that his racist comments will affect the ballots. Flake laughs when he is asked if he can see himself voting for Clinton, but he does not think Trump will change as a candidate.
Bernie Sanders is brought onto the show and says he will do everything in his power to make sure Trump will not win the election. He will meet with Hillary Clinton soon to discuss her campaign.
Meet the Press included a new segment called War Room when two political figures are interviewed by Todd. This week, he brought on David Plouffe, campaign manager for Obama in 2008, and the senior adviser for McCain in 2008, Steve Schmidt. They are asked about the similarities to the 2008 race and the current presidential race. Schmidt says Trump has been the primary Republican candidate, but his controversies and division of the party is not putting that to good use. I agree and believe that Trump is not using the tools he has in the election. Plouffe believes that Clinton's campaign needs to be incredibly smart, because if she loses certain states, it can seriously affect her stance in the race. Although, Clinton has advantages in several states, and that is because more states are primarily Democrat, so Trump has more places to lose only because of the political standpoint of the states.
To conclude, this week on Meet the Press, Chuck Todd and team discussed gun control and terrorism in America. The also talked about how America handles these issues and how they should be fixed. He also meets with several political figures to discuss the progress of the race for president as the election nears. There are currently several factors affecting the race, and it is incredibly interesting to see how it will pan out in the upcoming months.
Wednesday, June 8, 2016
June 5th - Week 1
On June 5, 2016, I watched Face the Nation with John Dickerson on CBS. John included an interview with presidential candidate Donald Trump. The many other guests and pundits on this week's show included: David Axelrod, Dan Balz, Susan Page, Reihan Salam, Amy Walter, Bill Rhoden, and Thomas Hauser. I also watched FOX News Sunday with Chris Wallace on Fox News channel. John Podesta, Newt Gingrich, Brit Hume, Anne Gearan, Karl Rove, and Charles Lane were guests on the show.
I first watched Face the Nation, and it began with host, John Dickerson, interviewing Donald Trump. John asked questions about Hillary Clinton's recent attacks towards Trump's fitness to be president. Trump's response was that Hillary herself was not fit for the Oval Office. Dickerson then proceeded with questions about the rumors of the re-opening of Trump University and judge Gonzalo Curiel's court rulings about the university's lawsuits. Trump claims Curiel is "biased" against him because of his Hispanic heritage. Dickerson shoots back to say that Gonzalo is an American citizen and was born in Indiana and hints that people could receive that as racism. Once the interview ends, Dickerson and other political analysts discuss all the candidate's political techniques and tricks. Reihan Salam says that when Donald Trump is asked a question, he uses several words from the question and redirects the question to avoid a straightforward answer. On the Democratic side, Amy Walter discusses how Bernie Sanders would "lay low" and gather votes will getting his campaign message across through every outlet by making connections. I personally do not think it was a fair analysis on both sides, since they mostly talked positively of Bernie but only discussed Trump and Clinton's faults in their campaign. Sport columnist Bill Rhoden and author Thomas Hauser discuss Muhammad Ali's impact on the world and his life as a man who always fought for his faith and beliefs, It was a very respectful and tasteful memorial for Ali.
I later watched FOX News Sunday. They first brought on John Podesta, the head of the Clinton campaign. He was asked about Hillary's "attacks" on Trump during her speech and Chris Wallace asked if Hillary could "pull the ethics card on Trump" while she has her email scandals and instances like Benghazi. Podesta stated that Clinton has apologized for her mistakes, but it seems like he was avoiding a real answer. Podesta later says that "Trump is full of bluster" when asked to respond to Trump's comments about Clinton's private email server, saying he will put Clinton in jail if he wins the election. Next, Chris talked with former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich about Trump's comments about Federal judge Gonzalo Curiel. Newt thinks it was a huge mistake and discusses how people may receive it as racism. Newt is one of the few people on Trump's running mate list, and Newt says he can be blunt with Donald. He still supports him even though he disagrees with some of his political tactics, which I respect and think Newt's support will leave a good impression on the Republican party. Later on, Chris and his discuss team talk about the violent attacks against Trump supporters. The attackers were first believed to be Clinton supporters, and Hillary came out and said she did not condone the violence. The attackers were actually immigrants who were not politically active, and the team discusses Trump's and Clinton's reactions to the attacks. The show closes with a memorial to remember the exciting life of Muhammad Ali.
In conclusion, there were several interesting discussions on Trump's controversial comments and Clinton's recent attacks on other candidates in her speech, which is a different tactic for her. I am excited to learn more about the race for president and witness how the election plays out.
I first watched Face the Nation, and it began with host, John Dickerson, interviewing Donald Trump. John asked questions about Hillary Clinton's recent attacks towards Trump's fitness to be president. Trump's response was that Hillary herself was not fit for the Oval Office. Dickerson then proceeded with questions about the rumors of the re-opening of Trump University and judge Gonzalo Curiel's court rulings about the university's lawsuits. Trump claims Curiel is "biased" against him because of his Hispanic heritage. Dickerson shoots back to say that Gonzalo is an American citizen and was born in Indiana and hints that people could receive that as racism. Once the interview ends, Dickerson and other political analysts discuss all the candidate's political techniques and tricks. Reihan Salam says that when Donald Trump is asked a question, he uses several words from the question and redirects the question to avoid a straightforward answer. On the Democratic side, Amy Walter discusses how Bernie Sanders would "lay low" and gather votes will getting his campaign message across through every outlet by making connections. I personally do not think it was a fair analysis on both sides, since they mostly talked positively of Bernie but only discussed Trump and Clinton's faults in their campaign. Sport columnist Bill Rhoden and author Thomas Hauser discuss Muhammad Ali's impact on the world and his life as a man who always fought for his faith and beliefs, It was a very respectful and tasteful memorial for Ali.
I later watched FOX News Sunday. They first brought on John Podesta, the head of the Clinton campaign. He was asked about Hillary's "attacks" on Trump during her speech and Chris Wallace asked if Hillary could "pull the ethics card on Trump" while she has her email scandals and instances like Benghazi. Podesta stated that Clinton has apologized for her mistakes, but it seems like he was avoiding a real answer. Podesta later says that "Trump is full of bluster" when asked to respond to Trump's comments about Clinton's private email server, saying he will put Clinton in jail if he wins the election. Next, Chris talked with former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich about Trump's comments about Federal judge Gonzalo Curiel. Newt thinks it was a huge mistake and discusses how people may receive it as racism. Newt is one of the few people on Trump's running mate list, and Newt says he can be blunt with Donald. He still supports him even though he disagrees with some of his political tactics, which I respect and think Newt's support will leave a good impression on the Republican party. Later on, Chris and his discuss team talk about the violent attacks against Trump supporters. The attackers were first believed to be Clinton supporters, and Hillary came out and said she did not condone the violence. The attackers were actually immigrants who were not politically active, and the team discusses Trump's and Clinton's reactions to the attacks. The show closes with a memorial to remember the exciting life of Muhammad Ali.
In conclusion, there were several interesting discussions on Trump's controversial comments and Clinton's recent attacks on other candidates in her speech, which is a different tactic for her. I am excited to learn more about the race for president and witness how the election plays out.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)