In a conference call with student journalists today, Michelle Obama touted the importance of the youth vote to this fall’s presidential election.

“Young people can make a huge difference,” said Obama, “No matter who they are voting for, we need young people to register to vote.”

In 2000, only 36 percent of registered voters age 18-24 voted in the presidential election. That number only increased to 47 percent in 2004.

“This year we have got to turn this trend around and I think we are doing that. Young folks, as well as anyone, know why this matters,” Obama said. “We need all the young people we have met to stay involved and to really stay focused. Young people…will be dealing with the effects of this election for the rest of their lives.”

Obama said her husband’s most important agendas are the economy, healthcare, ending the war in Iraq “responsibly” and investing in schools and renewable energy. She cautioned however, against rash optimism regarding the capabilities the next president will have to make sweeping changes.

“The next president, whoever it will be, will be inheriting a crisis at home and abroad,” she said. “The next president can lead us in a different direction…or the next president could not.”

Overall, Obama stressed the impact her husband’s educational platforms will have on current and future students. Drawing on her experience as a mother, she reminded the gathered journalists that she and her husband will have to prepare for the personal debt of their own children’s higher education.

“Barack and I just paid down our student loans,” she added.

In an effort to distinguish her husband’s platform from that of his Republican opponent Sen. John McCain, Obama stressed Barack’s proposed legislation to increase Pell Grants to $5,100 and his continued commitment to keeping it at “pace with rising costs.”

Obama also promoted the new website www.voteforchange.com, a product of the Obama campaign. It assists potential voters by allowing them to register to vote, find out if they are already registered, register for an absentee ballot, find the nearest polling location and other practical voting information.

Editor’s Note:

Although www.voteforchange.com is paid for by Obama’s presidential campaign, the editors of Mason Votes feel that its non-partisan information is important enough to be featured by our website. We will be linking it from our website. Mason Votes editors have contacted the campaigns of McCain, Cynthia McKinney, Bob Barr and Ralph Nader in search of similar sites. Only Nader’s campaign provided a similar site, www.votersunite.com, which will also be linked from our website.

Posted on September 22nd, 2008 by Christian Yingling
Filed under: Top Stories | 1 Comment »

Voters should check-out the following sites for practical information on voting. Don’t know if you are registered to vote or where your nearest polling location is, want to register, or need practical voting information like what to bring with you to the polls? Go to:

WWW.VOTEFORCHANGE.COM

Mason Votes editors have contacted the campaigns of McCain, Cynthia McKinney, Bob Barr and Ralph Nader in search of similar sites. Only Nader’s campaign provided a similar site:

WWW.VOTERSUNITE.COM

Posted on September 22nd, 2008 by Christian Yingling
Filed under: Mason Learns | No Comments »

By David Pierce, courtesy of Broadside

Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright spoke at a foreign policy town hall meeting, sponsored by presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign, Saturday in Dewberry Hall. She was part of a three-person panel that included terrorism expert Richard Clarke and Rep. Jane Harman (D.-Calif.)

Albright, 71, introduced herself as a life-long scholar of national security policy and expressed her opinion about the current global scene. “I don’t think I have ever seen the world in such a mess and that is a diplomatic term,” Albrigh saidt.

Albright outlined major foreign policy issues that she felt the next president has to face once elected. She explained that the country needs to fight terrorism without creating more terrorists in the process, placing blame on the Bush administration. “Even former Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld said we were creating more terrorists,” Albright said, adding “not everybody who dislikes us is part of Al Qaeda.”

The former secretary of state claimed our nonproliferation system was broken. She said that the original agreement was that nations with nuclear arms should disarm, while those who do not have nuclear weapons should not acquire them. “Both sides of that bargain have been broken,” said Albright. She felt that the United States has not disarmed and that North Korea has exploded a nuclear weapon, both occurring while President Bush has been in office.

Albright also expressed concern regarding the negative aspects of globalization, especially the expanding gap between the rich and the poor. She felt that the recent financial crisis affecting the global stock market was of major concern to the next president, as well as the importance of talking to our enemies as a diplomatic tool.

“When President Obama suggests we talk to Iran, it is a sign of strength, not of weakness,” explained Albright. She had some advice for President Bush, “You don’t say to a country ‘I won’t talk to you until you do all of the things that we are actually going to talk about,’” said Albright, “which is what is going on now [in the Bush administration].”

Harman assured the audience of the capability of Senators Obama (D-Il.) and Joe Biden (D-Del.), if elected. “Democratic women and men understand security issues,” claimed Harman adding “It’s a slam dunk for Obama-Biden.” She also criticized the Bush administration’s handling of the September 11 terrorist attacks and the war in Iraq. “We’ve had seven years to capture, or kill, Osama bin Laden,” said Harman, “[Instead we] went into Iraq, and took our eye off the ball.”

Clark began his speech by emphasizing the importance of Virginia in the 2008 general election. “This is the battleground state,” exclaimed Clarke, “We could be the pivot of this election.” He expressed his support for Obama by saying that he was right for calling for a troop withdrawal timetable, an action that was opposed by the White House. “The Bush administration just agreed to a withdrawal timetable with the Iraqi government,” said Clarke.

Albright and Clarke both criticized Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain (R.-Ariz.) “I very much want to see a confident president, rather than a certain president,” said Albright. Richard Clarke questioned McCain’s judgment. “When McCain was singing about bombing Iran,” Clarke said, “Obama was suggesting that we use something called diplomacy first.”

Questions were briefly accepted from the audience as the event neared conclusion. When asked about Republican claims that Obama does not have the experience required to become President, Albright immediately replied “I’ll start by saying they are totally wrong.” She further explained that Obama is a person of incredible judgment and wisdom. “He knows the difference between the Sunnis and the Shias [in Iraq],” said Albright, adding “he has also served very well on the foreign relations committee.”

Immediate feedback from audience members after the speech concluded was varied. Ian Cook, a Vienna resident, said “I was more taken by Richard Clarke.” Cook also expressed criticism of Albright’s support of Obama, saying that the other panelists supported the Democratic presidential nominee more than she did.

Jim Pflieger, a Fairfax resident, was very pleased with Albright’s speech. “I wish I could’ve gotten a CD of [her] speech to use it to convert independents over to Obama… She had a very convincing argument.”

When Oscar Ramirez, the Virginia policy director for the Obama campaign, asked at the beginning of the event if there were any undecided voters in the audience, three hands were raised. By the conclusion of the event, one of those voters claimed to have decided to vote for Senator Obama.

Posted on September 21st, 2008 by Christian Yingling
Filed under: Mason Learns, Mason Votes, Top Stories | No Comments »

By Lars Laing-Peterson

1) He votes with the failed and failing policies of George W. Bush 90+% of the time. (FactCheck.org has it at 95% of the time.) These policies will have a lasting detrimental affect on this country. And, more importantly, how can you be a Maverick when you vote with the Party Line 95% of the time?

2) Karl Rove, one of the most revolting, horrid figures to slime their way into politics since the Nixon Era, thinks that McCain’s negative ads fail the 100% truth test. Not exactly news — any of us who have followed this election since before the Republican Convention knew how false McCain’s and Palin’s statements have been — but still, when Karl Rove thinks you’ve gone too far… that’s frightening.

I don’t want to have to live in a country run by a man who votes with Bush 95% of the time, that Karl Rove thinks is untrustworthy with the truth, and who attached Sarah Palin to his ticket to rile up the GOP voting base.

McCain is not a Maverick by his own admission, he’s not good with facts or the truth, and his running mate is a frightening creature by her own admission: a pitbull with lipstick. Sounds like a Ralph Steadman illustration.

Posted on September 19th, 2008 by Lars Laing-Peterson
Filed under: Mason Learns, Opinion | 2 Comments »

Senator Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden, Ph.D., held a women’s rally in Sterling, VA this morning, where they touted the need to have equal pay for equal work, a women’s right to choose, better healthcare options, tax credits for education and the right to privacy.

Mason Votes was there to provide live blogging, available on http://www.twitter.com/masonvotes, and the complete audio available soon.

Posted on September 19th, 2008 by Christian Yingling
Filed under: Mason Votes | No Comments »

The Office of Student Media dn the Film and Video Studies program present a free screening on September 27, 7:30 p.m., in Harris Theater of Six Days in June, a film about the 1967 Six Day War between Israel and Egypt. This is part of a series of election-season films at George Mason University.

The movie’s website notes:

Written and directed by noted filmmaker Ilan Ziv (The Junction, Human Weapon), Six Days in June chronicles the events of forty years ago with a fresh historical perspective. Beginning with the buildup for the war, and the political and military maneuvering of Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol and Egyptian President Jamal Adel Nasser, the film takes us through the six days of fighting, the war with Jordan, the occupation of the West Bank and the unification of Jerusalem.

Featuring stunning archival footage and first-hand accounts of the war from both the Israeli and Arab soldiers who fought it, Six Days in June explores how these events became the flashpoint in history that reshaped the regional political landscape, destroyed old systems and brought new forces to the surface. Rarely in modern times has so short and localized a conflict had such profound global consequences.

Posted on September 19th, 2008 by Aram Zucker-Scharff
Filed under: Mason Learns | 1 Comment »

by Noah Martin

Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State, U.S. Rep. Jane Harman and Richard Clarke, former chief counter-terrorism advisor to the U.S. National Security Counsel, will speak at the Foreign Policy Town Hall at George Mason University in Student Union Building I’s Patriot Lounge on Saturday at 7 p.m.. The speakers will address the foreign policy of the current administration and the topic of terrorism and counter-terrorism.

Albright was the 64^th Secretary of State. She was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate and sworn into office on January 23, 1997 becoming the first woman to hold the position. Prior to her role as Secretary of State, Albright served as the United States’ Permanent Representative to the United Nations, a member of President Bill Clinton’s Cabinet and representative to the National Security Council.

Harmen has represented California’s 36^th Congressional District since 1992. A seven term congresswoman, Ms. Harmen served for eight years on the House Intelligence Committee and is a recognized authority on issues of homeland security, counterterrorism, and intelligence.

Clarke has served in different capacities in the field of counter terrorism for the past four U.S. presidents. He served in the State Department for President Ronald Reagan, worked for President George H. W. Bush and served as the chief counter-terrorism advisor to the US National Security Counsel under Clinton, and  President George W. Bush.

The event is sponsored by Students for Barack Obama and the Fairfax City Obama Campaign for Change and paid for by Campaign for Change, part of the Virginia Democratic Party.

Posted on September 19th, 2008 by Christian Yingling
Filed under: Mason Learns, Top Stories | No Comments »

by Noah Martin

George Mason University’s School of Public Policy will host Bruce L.R. Smith, Jeremy D. Mayer, and Lee Fritschler, authors of Closed Minds? Politics and Ideology in American Universities, on the Arlington campus in the Original building room 244 on Friday from 6:00 – 7:30pm.

Smith, Mayer, and Fritschler will lecture on their new book which suggests that the political landscape of American universities has shifted since the pinnacle of student political involvement during the 1960s. Now, according to the authors, universities have withdrawn from the arena of politics, rather than the commonly held belief that universities are mainstays of liberal political ideology.

Smith is a former professor of political science at Columbia University, a staff member at the Brookings Institution and is currently a visiting professor at the School of Public Policy at Mason.

Mayer is an associate professor at the School of Public Policy at Mason. He is the author of Running on Race: Racial Politics in Presidential Campaigns 1960 – 2000.

Fritschler is professor and director of executive education at the School of Public Policy at Mason. 

For more information on the presentation contact sppalum@gmu.edu.

Posted on September 18th, 2008 by Christian Yingling
Filed under: Mason Learns, Mason Votes | No Comments »

by Noah Martin

Feminist Majority Foundation Speaks in Classes about the Importance of Voting

George Mason University hosted Feminist Majority Foundation representatives for their Get Out Her Vote 2008 campaign, a non-partisan campaign traveling to campuses nationwide to encourage voter registration and increase knowledge of the voting system. They spoke at multiple classes around campus on Sept. 17.

“The most important part of our message is to inspire the care behind civic engagement. The information is important, but come November 5, happy or sad, it is important to continue be active and civically engaged,” said Tania Stewart and Patrice Guillory, both national campus organizers for Get Out Her Vote.

Young women are the least registered population in the United States according to Stewart. If young women do not register and vote in elections, Stewart claimed, issues that affect them will never be addressed by candidates; rather candidates will disregard women’s opinions when considering campaign platforms because of non-participation. “We are here to inform voters, encourage voters to become knowledgeable about the issues that pertain to their experience, and get to the polls and vote,” said Stewart.

As members of the Feminist Majority Foundation, Stewart and Guillory delivered statistics about the situation of women across the globe. They claim that 70 percent of the impoverished around the world are women and the majority of workers in sweatshops are women.

After emphasizing the importance of involvement in civic affairs and the plight of women around the world, Stewart addressed practical information for voters. She explained, to the surprise of many students, that it was legal to vote wherever you attended college as long as you had a physical address. She explained the deadlines for registering to vote in the national election, the regulations pertaining to absentee ballots, the 100 dollar pay for working at the polling stations and the importance of filling out a provisional ballot if the polling center did not have an individual on their list. “Do not leave without voting,” proclaimed Stewart.

Guillory had a message for women of color in particular. Guillory is the organizer of a bi-partisan political conference Women of Color. The second annual conference will be held at Bennet College in North Carolina. “Women need a place where they can meet and find others with similar experiences and goals. The conference is really about getting together, finding something you are passionate about and creating a plan to pursue that goal.”

“The conference has bloomed out of my own experience. When I went to a liberal arts school I had to start asking myself, ‘Where do I fit? How do I fit? What can I bring to the table?’” Guillory said.

There was an overwhelmingly positive reaction from students to the message of Get Out Her Vote 2008. “I enjoyed the message and have already decided my vote and am not going to change, but it made me wonder, ‘What am I doing to be involved?’” said Yvonne Woodhull, a junior sociology major.

Another student was struck by the particularity of Guillory message. “I appreciated how she talked about being a woman of color in particular. She didn’t separate woman and color and address them as two separate things but talked about women of color. I did want them to talk about the role of women in the election more and, what about the transgender community?”

When asked about their experience while speaking at and touring Mason, Stewart responded, “I was overwhelmed when we came on campus. Sometimes we go to schools where there seems to be no information available to students. But when we came here, I saw the Mason Votes banners, the tables for voter registration, and even campaign representatives walking around campus polling students.”

Tonya Stewart and Patrice Guillory

Ingrid Sandole, Professor of Sociology, thought it was important to bring the representatives from the Feminist Majority Foundation to her class. “It is important for students to know what organizations are out there and what information they are delivering,” Sandole said. “When speakers like this come to class students get the influence of peers and can see how the abstract theory meets up with practice.”

Information about the Feminist Majority Foundation and their campaign Get Out Her Vote 2008 is available at www.feminist.org and www.feministcampus.org/vote.

Posted on September 18th, 2008 by Christian Yingling
Filed under: Mason Learns, Mason Votes | No Comments »

Maybe next time Obama tries to demonstrate his capacity to handle middle of the night crisis, he should hold the phone the right way.  And here I was thinking that McCain was the senile one in this election…

Posted on September 18th, 2008 by Tierney Kain
Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »