PopSugar

Heidi and Spencer Are Proud to Fulfill Their Civic Duty

PopSugar — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 11:30:07 -0800

Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt joined the rest of the celebrity voters and headed to the polls in LA yesterday. While their choice for President didn't win the election, the couple still took the opportunity to pose for patriotic photos. As they supported their candidates, Heidi's dad was endorsing Spencer. He told Life & Style, "Every father wants his daughter to be with someone like Spencer, believe me," and spoke highly of his future son-in-law. Heidi's mother, who is divorced from Mr. Montag, might not agree, but now the couple has at least one family member on their side.

To see more photos of Heidi and Spencer posing around the polls just read more.

View 10 Photos ›

Pacific Coast News Online

Presidential Election Mailers Can Get Ugly

LibertySugar — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:15:00 -0700

Messages based on fear have been getting out via mailers lately. The Republican Party of Virginia has sent out an ad that says "American must look evil in the eye and never flinch." It features an almost unrecognizable picture of Osama bin Laden, in which the skin is darker, the beard lighter, and the nose covered by words. Obama supporters worry that the Virginia GOP, whose chair compared Obama to Osama bin Laden recently, manipulated the picture to resemble Barack.

Over in North Carolina, the Republican National Committee sent residents a controversial mailer. On a page next to a prominent white hand with its hand over its heart, are the words "It used to be easy to recognize patriotism."

And perhaps the most blatantly inappropriate, and most obscure, anti-Obama pamphlet comes from the Chaffey Community Republican Women Federated in Southern California. The group sent a newsletter to 200 members, which contained an image of Barack Obama surrounded by a bucket of KFC chicken, watermelon, ribs, and Kool Aid, with the words: "Obama talks about all those presidents that got their names on bills. If elected, what bill would he be on????? Food Stamps, what else!"

Are critics of these ads being overly sensitive, or is there reason for concern? Can these attitudes impact the election, or will there always be extreme, yet inconsequential, fringe groups.

Five Online Tools to Help You on Election Day

GeekSugar — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 06:30:42 -0800

With the Presidential Race in the homestretch (only one day away!), many of you will be tuning into your televisions to follow all the late-breaking election news. For those of you who will be away from your TV, but find yourself near a computer or have your smartphone with you, you can not only check out all of the latest news on citizensugar, but you can also find voting help, advice, and get election updates from the following websites and online tools!

View Slideshow ›

Campaign-Themed Food: Our Top Votes

YumSugar — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 05:30:43 -0700

With the presidential election less than two months away, the whole country's been talking, breathing, and sleeping campaign politics. It's only natural, then, that we've been eating up campaign politics, too - and boy, is it tasty. We had some tough choices to make, but these treats get our top votes.

View Slideshow ›

iTunes Beefs Up Election App Selection

GeekSugar — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 06:00:42 -0700

With the Presidential Election just 32 days away, techies like myself are already gearing up for the big day with useful geek goodies like the Election 08 application for the iPhone; which shows me real time results from the polls. It's been a few weeks since I've perused on over to the election section in the iTunes app store, and I must admit, they've totally pimped it out with new campaign apps like "Obama '08" and "DaysTo Election Day 2008."

So if you're glued to your iPhone as much as me, and want to stay up-to-date with all the election happenings, I suggest heading over to the app store pronto!

Tonight's The Night! A Look Back at Election Coverage

BellaSugar — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 16:19:45 -0800

Happy election day, everyone! Since we'll soon be closing the book on this long election cycle, here's one last look at some beauty-full political stories:

Obama Refuses Public Financing. What Does This Mean?

CitizenSugar — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:37:29 -0700

I might be a special brand of crazy, but when I woke up to this news this morning, I started hyperventilating: Obama is not accepting public financing.

In shunning each tax-payer's $3 contribution we kick in when we pay our taxes, Obama is the first candidate to do so since Congress passed 1970s campaign finance laws after Watergate in the 1970s. McCain, the Republican nominee in waiting, has already taken steps to accept the public funds in the general election - matching funds that put a cap on how much each candidate can spend.

Obama said of his decision in a video released to supporters:

It's not an easy decision, and especially because I support a robust system of public financing of elections. But the public financing of presidential elections as it exists today is broken, and we face opponents who've become masters at gaming this broken system. And we've already seen that he's not going to stop the smears and attacks from his allies running so-called 527 groups, who will spend millions and millions of dollars in unlimited donations.

There are a million factors to consider:

Does the above statement mean he's going to police all 527s on his behalf, making sure they're silent and not "broken"?
Obama is the best fundraiser this side of an ATM - he's coaxed $265 million in donations so far. But do his supporters want him raising money? Or focusing on being the best, most prepared person for the job?
Last November he said this: “If I am the Democratic nominee, I will aggressively pursue an agreement with the Republican nominee to preserve a publicly financed general election." Is he going back on his word, or should "publicly financed" be in quotes with a winky-face after it?
The campaigns and respective fight/momentum each has had to work with has been vastly different. Obama's been in a grudge match to the death until two weeks ago. That will inspire the wallets of supporters much more than a candidate who's been assured for months, creating an inequity that starting the general election fresh, with public-financing, would solve.

Those are just some of the thoughts that are racing through my tending toward indignant head. What do you think? Is Obama making the best, fairest decision for his own campaign? Is public financing broken like he says? Or did he just cash a blank check made payable to "The Next President of the United States"?

Source

Gordon Brown Gets in Trouble For Praising Barack Obama

LibertySugar — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 09:00:19 -0700

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown seemed to break with tradition by writing an effective endorsement of Barack Obama for US President, or at least his housing policies. In an opinion piece, published on Monday in the Parliamentary Monitor magazine, Brown writes:

Around the world, it is progressive politicians who are grappling with these challenges. In the electrifying US Presidential campaign, it is the Democrats who are generating the ideas to help people through more difficult times. To help prevent people from losing their home, Barack Obama has proposed a Foreclosure Prevention Fund to increase emergency pre-foreclosure counselling, and help families facing repossession.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister peddled backward. To see how, read more.

His office released a statement that said: "The Prime Minister is not endorsing any candidate and never would. Presidential elections are a matter for the American people. The Prime Minister looks forward to working closely with whoever is elected."

Either way many Europeans echo Gordon Brown's praise of Obama. A fresh poll shows that 47 percent of Europeans think an Obama victory would lead to better US-European relations, while only 11 percent think McCain would improve transatlantic relations.

Do you consider a candidate's ability to mend relations with Europe, when deciding how to vote?

Source

Front Page: Late Rallies Hope to Push Voters to Morning Polls

LibertySugar — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 07:30:00 -0800

Last night the candidates wrapped up two years of campaigning. Barack Obama saved his biggest Virginia rally for last - a jam-packed event in Manassas with 90,000 people reportedly in attendance. Meanwhile, a fired-up John McCain told supporters to "be strong and fight" in an election eve rally Monday, his last before voters in swing state Nevada weigh in. - Huffington Post
Long lines formed when polls opened in Eastern states. Barack Obama's bid to become the first black president faces the final test of his remarkable two-year journey, while Republican John McCain presses for an Election Day upset. - MSNBC
A report released on Monday by a state board found that Gov. Sarah Palin did not apply improper pressure to try to dismiss a state trooper who was her former brother-in-law and did not violate state ethics laws in the firing of her public safety commissioner. The report by the Alaska Personnel Board contradicts the conclusions last month of a separate inquiry into the matter overseen by a bipartisan legislative panel. - New York Times

Taiwan and China set aside decades of hostilities today, agreeing to expand flights and allow shipping links across the Taiwan Strait, a hotspot that has long threatened to become a war zone. - Associated Press
Iran's parliament sacked its interior minister after he admitted a degree he said he obtained from Oxford University was a forgery. It is a setback for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad eight months before he faces presidential elections. - BBC News

Source

Mommy? What's a President?

LilSugar — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 08:30:53 -0700

Kissing babies has long been a part of the presidential election process, but now more children are becoming interested in the campaign as a result of nonstop media coverage and listening in to mommy and daddy's conversations.

The What Presidents Are Made of book ($13) is a good starter for political tots. It focuses on 17 US presidents and includes short antidotes that show the human side of our former presidents. For example, George Washington is "…made of good deeds."

Looking for more presidential presents? I've rounded up some patriotic gear and a few other books that will help you teach your children about the presidential process.

Me for President ($40)	Liberty Lollipops ($14)
John, Paul, George & Ben Book ($12)	America the Beautiful: A Pop-up Book ($17)