Mason Votes interviews students to find out what the most important issue is for them.
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Posted on October 8th, 2008 by Aram Zucker-Scharff
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Mason Votes asks George Mason University students how they feel about the Wall Street bail out plan.
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Posted on October 8th, 2008 by Aram Zucker-Scharff
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Presidential Candidates John McCain and Barack Obama participated in their second debate tonight at Belmont University in Nashville, TN. George Mason University students and staff gathered in the Johnson Center Atrium to watch the much anticipated meeting. Both candidates’ campaigns had promised to take off the gloves for this debate, a promise that seemed to go unfulfilled.
Mason Votes Live Blog participants rated McCain as tonight’s winner. To agree or disagree with this analysis, vote in the Mason Votes Poll on the right hand side of this site.
See the Live Blog.
Photos of the event
Posted on October 7th, 2008 by Christian Yingling
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Tonight’s presidential debate is expected to be much more pointed than its predecessor. When asked recently when he was going to take off the gloves, Presidential Candidate John McCain answered, “How about Tuesday night?” And today, David Axelrod was reported by CNN as saying that Presidential Candidate Barack Obama is “prepared for a very aggressive debate.”
The debate, which begins at 9 p.m., will be shown in the Johnson Center Atrium. A pre-debate panel discussion featuring Mason Votes’ Aram Zucker-Scharff will begin at 8:30 p.m. During the debate, participate in Mason Votes’ interactive live blog.
Posted on October 7th, 2008 by Christian Yingling
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Tonight at 8:30 p.m. Mason Votes will open the Second Presidential Debate Watch Party with a panel of guest speakers at the Johnson Center, who will speak about the youth vote and the digital sphere’s influence on the electoral process. Join Mason Votes on this page for a live blog of the event and the debate.
Posted on October 7th, 2008 by Aram Zucker-Scharff
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Today, the last day to register to vote, over 100 students have registered or updated their registration on campus. Registration volunteers from Presidential Nominee Barack Obama’s campaign have been on campus everyday for weeks. According to those volunteers, students have been surrounding their registration table all morning; some have been experiencing problems contacting the Virginia State Board of Elections and came to the Obama volunteers instead.
Registered residential students who do not want to travel to their home polling center have the option of reregistering with their campus address or applying for an absentee ballot. Both application forms must be submitted by today.
“I knew that today was the last day to register. I had been contemplating whether to vote absentee ballot or reregister,” said freshman Ed Bennett. After discussing the options with his Father, Bennett decided to reregister today using his on campus address.
All voter registration forms must be postmarked today. Registration volunteers will be outside the Johnson Center until 4:30 p.m.
Posted on October 6th, 2008 by Christian Yingling
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The Johnson Center Atrium was full Thursday night as students closely watched the live vice-presidential debate. Senator Joe Biden of Delaware and Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska crossed swords on issues such as the economy, international affairs, the role of the vice president and their readiness to lead.
Going into the debate, both candidates needed to overcome negative public perceptions. The bar had been set low for Palin due to recent interview gaffs and Biden needed to overcome an image of being condescending and rash.
“I expected Palin to make an a** of herself and she delivered,” sophomore Nicole MacCracken said.
Josh St. Louis, the second vice-chair of the College Republicans, agreed that Palin’s abilities had been in question. “I was really nervous coming into this debate especially because of the recent ABC, CBS interviews and the fact that Joe Biden is a beast.” But immediately after closing statements were made, St. Louis said, “I saw two things. . .Vice President Palin and Citizen Biden.”
During the debate, the crowed of almost 200, commented constantly on the debating politicians, cheering and clapping when agreeable comments where made. “I’m definitely reassured that John McCain made the right decision in picking her. You can tell by her closing remarks where she quoted Ronald Reagan, she’s ready to lead,” said freshman Vinny Prinzivalli.
Whether students liked or disliked Palin, after the debate most discussions revolved around her. “Honestly, I had a hard time focusing on [Biden] anytime [Palin] was on the screen,” said Tierney Kaine, a senior English major and Mason Votes official Blogger.
This was the first and only vice-presidential debate. The next presidential debate will be next Tuesday, Oct. 7.
Posted on October 2nd, 2008 by Christian Yingling
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Join Mason Votes tonight as we Live Blog the Vice Presidential Debate from the Johnson Center watch party. The debate and interactive live blog begins at 9 p.m.
Posted on October 2nd, 2008 by Christian Yingling
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Virginia Congressional hopefuls gathered in Harris Theatre to deliver their proposals about healthcare and to respond to specific policy questions from panel members on Wednesday night.
The candidates were each given fifteen minutes to present how they would improve healthcare in Virginia and in the nation. Speeches were followed by five minutes questions formulated by healthcare experts.
The night began with a brief address by university President Alan Merten, about George Mason University’s community involvement and the importance of the work conducted by Health and Human Services.
Tim Henderson, active Deputy Director for the Center For Health Policy Research and Ethics, led the panel asking the delegates questions on health policy. He shared the results of a survey by Kaiser Family Foundation to set the mood for the forum. According to the survey, paying for healthcare remains a problem for one in four Americans.
Chairman Gerry Connolly of the Fairfax Board of Supervisors was the first to speak. The Democratic congressional hopeful for the 11th District led off by telling an anecdote from his days as Chairman. He received a call from a woman, who said, ”I have a dead deer in my front lawn What are you going to do about it?” When he asked, ”Well, have you thought about calling animal control?,” she said. ”No, I didn’t want to bother them this early on a Sunday morning.” This story, he said, illustrates the accessibility of local politics that is lost on the federal level.
Connolly went on to address the issue of healthcare. We have to do something to make healthcare accessible and affordable to all Americans, Connolly claimed, but we cannot do that until concerns can be heard by legislators. He said that he could take that message to the federal level.
He also said that health insurance companies should not be able to cherry pick and exclude people based upon pre-existing health conditions.
“Insurance companies need a risk pool, and need to spread the risk across the board,” Connolly said. “I believe that there is a lot that can be done, I believe there is a lot that has to be done…We need to move to an electronic medical record system…the only caveat is that we need to be careful when considering rural healthcare systems and mandating an electronic medical record system because they have limited resources.”
Because of the event’s late start, Keith Fimian, the Republican congressional hopeful for the 11th District, was only able to speak briefly before leaving for another event. He stated that patients should be in charge of their healthcare and families should have refundable tax credits to purchase health insurance but that he would make sure that every dime he spent if elected would be spent as efficiently as possible.
He also stressed that there is an urgent need to reform malpractice liability and that the healthcare system should convert to an electronic medical record system. A tax credit should be granted to health care providers to help relieve IT expenses when converting.
Fimian did not mince words when it came to the fiscal reality currently facing America, saying that the tumult on Wall Street came from foreign creditors calling on their debt and that days of free credit were over. He said it was crucial to recognize the economic reality of the situation.
Virginia Delegate Mark Sickles, of the 43rd District, spoke on behalf of Democratic Congressman Jim Moran, of the 8th District. Sickles said that Moran is passionate about expanding health care for uninsured and underinsured, and supports the statewide healthcare plan of Massachusetts.
Sickles then concentrated on Senator John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) healthcare plan. Sickles said the plan would take away the deduction for providing health insurance given to employers and give a private tax credit of up to $5,000 for a family of four. However, Sickles said, if a family is not making enough money to pay $5,000 in taxes, it will not receive the credit.
Sickles stressed that Moran believes preventative healthcare would be the most efficient solution to growing costs and inefficiency. However, until people have guaranteed coverage and did not have to rely on the Emergency Room as a last resort, Moran does not think there would be much improvement.
The health forum was hosted by The Center for Health Policy Research and Ethics and The Department of Health Administration and Policy.
Posted on October 2nd, 2008 by Christian Yingling
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By Maria Carabelli – UPI
During the 2004 presidential election, only 47 percent of youth ages 18-24 voted and only 66 percent of those aged 25 or older took to the polls, according to The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement Web site. These statistics concern Jason Warren, communication instructor at George Mason University, Fairfax, Va., who at 26 years old is a young voter himself. With 30,000 students the university is home to a plethora of young voters, many of whom will have the opportunity to vote for the first time in November.
Warren, who was recently recognized as Outstanding New Coach of the Year by the American Forensics Association, teaches students the value of their voice and the ethical obligations of their First Amendment right to free speech. This semester as the presidential campaigns heat up, his free speech and ethics class has no shortage of material to discuss.
As a student in George Mason’s doctoral program in communication, Warren understands there are many life events that might prevent a person from physically going to vote but he also says there is a false ideology that young votes do not make an impact. “Young voters feel they have no personal stake and they feel their vote doesn’t make a difference,” Warren said. He also believes that young voters are less educated about the election and he uses his position as an educator to help his students understand the importance of their vote.
Yet, he can only do so much. The candidates, he asserts, need to find ways to engage young voters and make them feel included in the democratic process. In Warren’s eyes, Democratic Party nominee Barack Obama, has an edge over his Republican Party opponent John McCain. U.S. Sen. Obama, according to Warren, put the spotlight on young voters by working to increase the number of registered young voters and by talking to them about issues that are important to them, such as the economy, education, foreign relations and the War on Terror.
U.S. Sen. McCain, however, has a slightly more uphill battle as his party must be able to convince a skeptical audience that they are a party of change, said Warren. Regardless of either candidate’s current position with young voters, the questions remain: Will young people voice their opinions? Will young people vote in November, or will they continue to give into the idea that they are a powerless demographic?
If Warren has anything to say about it, young people will vote. His students who stand with him in line at the polls will be those who understand the power of free speech, ethics and the right to vote.
From: The Voice of the Young Voter
Published: Sept. 18, 2008 at 5:36 PM
Posted on October 2nd, 2008 by Aram Zucker-Scharff
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