Tag: Issues

NODAPL=SILENCE

In North Dakota there is a havoc being stirred up because of the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline which could possibly end up destroying sacred places, and pose a huge ecological risk which could potentially poison a numerous amount of water supply. At the end of the day Clinton has yet to take a stance on this trending topic and by not taking it stance it is hurting her vote with the indigenous people of America. There is a number of Americans in this country that have indigenous backgrounds who could possibly feel oppressed as well as not defended by Clinton choosing to take the stance of  “silence”. When it comes down to it I can side with Hillary not wanting to speak out on how she feels about the situation because of the October surprises as well as the reopening of her investigation by the FBI. Clinton is not in a good spot to take a stance with everything going on around her. However, I do believe that which ever candidate comes out on this situation in the next couple of days could gain the indigenous vote through taking the most appealing stance. It is just a matter of which candidate will take the opportunity and run with it.

#NoDAPL

def

I believe Hillary needs to come out and use an emotional appeal (PATHOS), so she can solidify herself not only on caring for the people involved in this situation but also to solidify the indigenous vote. The people being affected by this are very worried for their health and what is going to happen in the process of the construction. Clinton needs to come out with a plan of action and what route will be most valuable to the benefit of the people affected. Everyone involved will be at ease when a plan of action comes out that will be appealing to the people. If Clinton does come out before Trump on this situation it will benefit her tremendously by increasing her ethos and painting her as the image of being a capable future Commander-in-Chief. However, if it is not appealing to them it could crash and burn and essentially lose the vote of the indigenous people because they will feel racially oppressed against. This is a pivotal situation that needs to benefitted by one of the candidates it is just a matter of which one will take it and run with it!

 

Third Presidential Debate: Use of Storytelling, Emotions, and Framing with The 2ndAmendment

On Wednesday October 20 in Las Vegas Nevada, the third presidential debate of 2016 took place. The past two time Hillary and Donald, heated arguments dominated the conversations. This time was no different.

Moderator, Chris Wallace, started the candidates on some controversial topics, such as The Supreme Court and The Constitution.

Clinton had the stage first, saying she wants a supreme court that will stand up for women’s rights and the LBGT community, and stand against Citizen’s United.

Next, Trump took an opportunity to pivot away from matters, such as women’s rights, that make him look unpresidential, to talk about the 2nd Amendment.

“We need a Supreme Court that in my opinion is going to uphold the second amendment and all amendments, but the second amendment which is under absolute siege.”

This began the conversation (which was surprisingly tame).

Clinton rebutted saying,

“I understand and respect the tradition of gun ownership that goes back to the founding of our country, but I also believe that there can be and must be reasonable regulation.”

Each candidate made their stance, but how did they do it?

Clinton talked about gun control through storytelling and appealed to the emotions of her audience. Similar to the My Mom political ad on gun violence. She began her statement by saying, “I lived in Arkansas for 18 wonderful years.” This is very typical of a fairytale which often begins with A long time ago in a land far far away.

She also appeals to emotions later after Wallace mentions the Heller Decision. She says, “Well, I was upset because unfortunately, dozens of toddlers injure themselves, even kill people with guns because unfortunately, not everyone who has loaded guns in their homes takes appropriate precautions.” Here Clinton identifies her anger that will resonate with others who felt upset about the court’s decision. She then allows for others to understand her emotion with the information on toddlers.

What do you think? How do you think that Trump’s argument stood up to Clinton’s?

Click here to see a full transcript of the debate.

Click here to watch the debate.

FINISH THE DRILL

In the upcoming debate, Clinton will be looking to solidify the nation’s vote. In doing so, Clinton will be focusing hard on locking in the votes of minorities and immigrants who are directly affected by racial injustice. During this debate I expect Clinton to lay out the plan she has to bring about racial equality in all aspects of life in this country, she needs to be very specific and straight to the point to give the American people belief in her and what direction she is going to head upon entering the presidential office. Right now, Clinton has tons of momentum heading into the last debate and needs to keep rolling to solidify her spot as the nation’s top presidential nominee.

There are two pieces of presidential debate that Clinton will be honing in on. They are “stated proposition” being racial injustice, and “intent to gain the attention of an audience” by gaining the attention of all people directly affected by the racial injustices that take place in this country. Clinton has pulled away substantially in the last two debates, as they say “if it isn’t broke don’t fix it”. Clinton needs to continue to hammer down the topics she has been which include racial injustice and much more.

Presidential debate predictions: What to expect from Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump

Clinton stated in the last debate that Trump owed an apology to America for the alienation and verbal abuse of minority groups which has divided America which he was apart of. This accusation further separated herself from Trump and has helped her gain momentum with the minority and immigrant vote. I look for her to continue with these tactics to solidify her vote with the people directly affected with racial injustices.

Political Campaign Advertisements: Framing of Hillary Clinton in regards to Gun Control

Although the 2016 presidential campaign differs from traditional campaigns, one thing remains constant, the effect political ads have on voter decisions.

Just like artists frame their pieces, campaigns aim to frame candidates. Rhetorical framing happens when an object, situation, or person has been described in a way that leads the audience to believe a certain way. In this campaign, Trump frames Clinton as untrustworthy, hypocritical, untransformative, and weak. While she tries to frame herself as nurturing, knowledgeable, relatable, and strong.

Nurturing, Protective Mother

Hillary Clinton informs her audience of her stance through the use of positive, story-telling ads. In one ad title My Mom, the daughter of a victim of the Sandy Hook Shooting describes the loss of her mother, the principle of the school. It starts with wedding pictures and the daughter telling the story of planning her wedding with her mother. Scenes of ambulance lights and a news article covering the shooting appear on screen. Next the daughter says,

“No one is fighting harder to reform our gun laws than Hillary Clinton”

The narration continues with the daughter stating that Clinton “reminds me of my mother”.

In this ad, Clinton uses testimonial to reach her target audience of younger, college educated women. Hillary frames herself as a loving caring motherly figure. This ad extols Hillary virtues through the use of narrative and story-telling.

Hypocrite Hillary

While Clinton frames herself as protective and nurturing in her gun control political ads, Trump attacks her practices during his speeches.

 

Because harsh backlash happened after Trump’s comment, “2nd Amendment people” should “take care” of Hillary, the NRA, The National Rifle Association, decided that they should intervene and distribute an attack ad instead of doing something more extreme (which could have been implied with Trump’s controversial quote).

In this particular ad, the NRA focuses on framing Hillary as a “hypocrite”. The ad starts with black SUVs escorted by police vehicles pulling up to a private jet. Hillary steps out of the SUV and armed guard walk her to the plane. The ad says that Hillary “tours on private jets protected by guards for thirty years, but she doesn’t believe in your right to keep a gun at home for self defense”. Because Trump did not attach his approval, this ad has the ability to attack Clinton as hard as it wants. PACs do not abide by the same rules as candidates. In fact, most attack ads which occur during a normal political campaign are paid for and distributed by PACs.

What does framing mean for the election?

With citizens already heading to the polls for early voting to elect the next president, it is important to understand how framing effects their decisions. For those who watch NRA’s ad, they could see Hillary as a hypocrite or untrustworthy. For those who watched the My Mom ad, they could see Hillary as someone who will nurture The United States of America back to health after the gun violence occurring across the country.

Hillary Clinton “Wants You!”… But Does She Know You?

hillary-image

 

 

Potential Impact of Millennial Voters:

How important is it to resonate with this election’s bracket of millennial voters? According to PewResearchCenter, “ As of July, an estimated 126 million Millennial and Gen X adults were eligible to vote (56% of eligible voters), compared with only 98 million Boomers and other adults from prior generations, or 44% of the voting-eligible population.” With younger voters comprising a majority of the potential voting population, it would seem of paramount interest to both candidates in question.

 

Are Clinton’s Issues resonating with Millennials?

After the “Feel the Bern” campaign sputtered and finally (though resentfully) endorsed Mrs. Clinton, many believed free college education would continue to be a major plank that the Presidential hopeful could preach upon. However, myriads of young voters are beginning to grasp the financial burden that comes with no tuition. In the words of George Washington student Chioma Iheoma “…we know it’s not really sustainable. We’re going to have to pay taxes. We don’t want to pay for that.” According to Breana Ross, president of the United States Student Association, more pertinent issues include:

With Election Day looming, Hillary would be wise to reign in on issues that evoke a stronger emotional trigger for young voters.

 

Clinton’s Fluctuating Numbers: A Cause for Concern?

Hillary’s failure to grasp and hold onto millennial voters manifests itself in numerous polls:

clinton-poll johnson-poll stein-poll

Even though Trump has seen very little jump in undecided young voters, Third Party candidates are beginning to make headway; most noticeably a thirteen point surge from Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson. While neither candidate is a serious contender for the Oval Office, rising support late in election season shows a wave of discontent for both Presidential hopefuls.

 

Brief Ending Thoughts/Conclusions

I do not believe that a lower turnout of young voters for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be detrimental to her campaign, as long as they are not usurped by Donald Trump. As alluded to in class, middle age and undecided white women seem to be a predominant factor in this year’s election. Nevertheless, a drop of youth support for both candidates depicts a political climate that is all but at ease with our current representatives.