President
• Obama Schools on College
Costs - CNN
• Thursday, August 22
• Obama proposes plan to help
make college affordable
• Bus Tour to several Colleges
and High Schools
• Plan has 3 parts
– Fed rating system
– Payments capped at 10% of
income
– Students must earn certain # of
credits before more aid is given
President
• Importance
– Tuition has gone up
250% over last 3 decades
• Income up only 16%
• Avg student has $26,000
debt
• My Thoughts
– College has never been
more expensive
• Necessary to compete
internationally
• Crippling debt is a
deterrent
• Connections:
– President can set agenda
for nation
• Only Congress can
legislate
– Republicans against
most of Obama’s plan
• Too much Gov’t
regulation
Congress
• Clock is Ticking for a
Deficit Deal – NYTimes
• Thursday, August 22
• Obama & GOP Congress
can’t agree on Budget
• Congress is on recess
– Summer talks have broken
down
• Gov’t could shut down in
October
– GOP wants spending cuts
– Dems want to raise taxes
Congress
• Importance
– Gov’t could shut down
– Gov’t could default
• If debt ceiling isn’t raised
– Same crisis from last
December/January
• My Thoughts
– We elect leaders to work
for America
– Opposition is good, but
only if it leads to
statesmanship
• Connections
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Federal Budget
National Deficit
Division of Powers
Beliefs of Political Parties
War/Military
• Aid to Egypt Evaluated on
a Daily Basis – USA Today
• Tuesday, August 20
• After “coup” removing
Morsi from power, US
considering withdrawing
aid
• $1 Billion package
– $585 Million still not sent
• Cutting off aid would
jeopardize US/Egypt
relations
War/Military
• Importance
– If revolution was a “coup”, US
not allowed to send aid
• Sending Aid looks like coups
allowed
• Stopping Aid looks like we back
Morsi/Muslim Brotherhood
• My Thoughts
– Rev was a “coup”
– Power Vacuum in Egypt
• Scary for US
• We could be aiding a potential
enemy
– Coups can’t exist in a
Democracy
• BUT – we need strong allies in
the Arab World
• Connections
– Treaties w/other nations help
build alliances
– Democratic Ideals
• Can’t support overthrowing
democratically-elected Prez
– Rule of Law
– Politics
• Prez in charge of foreign policy
International/Foreign
• Allegations of Deadly Gas
Attack in Syria – FoxNews
• Wednesday, August 21
• Rebels claim Assad Gov’t
used chemical weapons
• Hundreds to Thousands
killed
– Many women & children
• Assad claims reports are
untrue
• UN is trying to investigate
– Russia and China are blocking
UN action
International/Foreign
• Importance
– Over 100,000 killed in 2 years
– Chemical Weapons are war
crime
– Obama said US would
intervene if Chem weapons
used
• My Thoughts
– We intervened in Egypt,
Libya, Iraq, Tunisia
• Why not Syria?
– Are rebels any better than
Assad though?
• Osama Bin Laden
– US helped him fight Soviets
in Afghanistan
• Connections
– Prez is commander-in-chief
• Can authorize use of troops
– Should we help spread of
Democracy
– Do Syrians see Assad’s
authority as legitimate?
Political
• RNC votes to exclude CNN
and NBC from 2016 Primary
– Washington Post
• Monday, August 19
• CNN & NBC plan to air film
about Hillary Clinton
– RNC object
– Feel it is free campaigning
• RNC Chair threatened
networks, but they refused
to change plans
• RNC votes unanimously to
not let them cover 2016
RNC debates
Political
• Importance
– Election is 3 years away
• Campaigning starts early
– Relationship b/w parties
and media
• My Thoughts
– FoxNews is incredibly
biased
• RNC only hates “bias”
against them
– Film is about Hillary as
first-lady, not candidate
– RNC Chair is just bitter b/c
his name is Reince Priebus
• Connections
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Media and Politics
Campaigns
Party Organization
1st Amendment
• Freedom of the Press
Economic
• Obama Asks Regulators to
Speed Up Wall Street
Reform – Reuters
• Monday, August 19
• Obama meets with Fed
regulators to push them to
speed up Dodd-Frank
• Dodd-Frank is Wall Street
reform passed in 2010
– Only 40% of rules have been
put in place
• Some warn that Wall Street
is doing same thing that led
to 2008 crisis
Economic
• Importance
– Dodd-Frank reforms not
being done
– Economy recovering, but
still fragile
– Only 1 Wall Street exec
convicted of crimes
• My Thoughts
– WTF!!!
– These laws were passed in
2010…its 2013!!!
– Vast majority of US wants
Wall Street reform
• Connections
– Laws Passed by Congress
– Bureaucracy in charge of
carrying them out
– Special Interest Groups
– Money and Politics
My Choice
• Antoinette Tuff Hailed as Hero for
Handling Georgia School Gunman
– CNN
• Wednesday, August 21
• 20 yr old brought AK-47 & 500
rounds of ammo to Georgia
school
– Planned to kill many
– Prepared to die
• Front Office worker talked him
into surrendering
– Discussed her life
– Told him she loved him
– Stayed with him while he was
arrested
• NO ONE KILLED
My Choice
• Importance
– After Newtown, CT, school
security is major issue
– Rise of trend in mass
killings
• My Thoughts
– Amazing
– Truly a Hero
– Who else would/could do
that under the
circumstances?
• Connections
– 2nd Amendment
– Gun Debate
– Guns and Background
Checks
– Lobbyists: NRA
Bizarre News
• Ted Cruz to Renounce
Canadian Citizenship –
Huffington Post
• Tuesday, August 20
• Ted Cruz (R) – Texas
– Tea Party
– Very popular right now
– Probably running for Prez in
2016
• Born in Canada
– Dual Citizen
• Renounced his Canadian
Citizenship
Bizarre News
• Importance
– Could be serious
Republican candidate
– Is he eligible to be Prez?
– Could a Prez be a citizen
of another country too?
• My Thoughts
– Remember the “Obama”
isn’t a citizen” thing?
– Where is Donald Trump?
– Hypocrisy
• Connections
– Requirements to be
President
• Article II
– Natural Born Citizen
– Politics and Campaigning