In this first article, I am going to have to side with President Obama on this one because I feel that the United States needs a crucial economic victory and get this country back on its feet.  As the package states, I think that it is great that it has a 2 year extension on the bush era of tax cuts and that finally the people of the United States, not just some people in our country, can be grateful for a blessing and use it to better their lives.

I can say right now that this 1.27 trillion dollar bill is just going to put our country in even more debt and I don't believe that the government can't do anything about a totall shut down if the bill doesn't get passed.  Maybe I know too little about the subject, but I sure as heck know that the more we are in debt, the worse we are going to be down the road.

This is a very immature thing that both party's are doing I think.  Christmas is a time of celebration and giving and I think that they should pause the sessions in the senate until it is done.  It will do no harm.  Why can't each party just drop it and move on after Christmas?  I mean if its that big of a deal, then sure, go ahead and continue and let us all enjoy our Christmas but don't let it be our problem too.

I would have to agree with Senator Thune on this one because this bill will only increase taxes in the next few weeks if they don't wait for a perfect agreement.  I also agree that Senator Thune would be a stronger contender.

I must say, I did not have the slightest clue on how a bill became a law, but I did some research and found out that it really isn't that complicated of a process.  First, the bill originates in either the House or the Senate.  From there, it is put on a commitee and is organized the way that they want it.  There is a debate on the bill and then they vote.  Whether it passes or not depends on where it goes next.  It can either go back to the committee to do some more work on it if it doesn't pass, or it can pass and be sent over to the other legislative branch.  If it passes there, it is sent to the Governor.  The Governor can either approve it or veto it.  If it is vetoed, however, it can still pass with a 2/3 vote.

I did not really know anything on this subject but I learned from the websites that this process isn't really all that complicated.  I learned that if the Governor doesn't like the bill and vetoes it, it can still pass with a 2/3 vote from the legislative branch that it came with. 

1. Explain the difference between hard and soft money:

Hard money is money raised and spent to elect canidates for Congress and the White House while soft money is funds given to party organizations for the good of that party.

2. What is the electoral process and is this something that you agree or disagree with and why?

Democracy: voting to elect a person to an office of the government.

3. What is the difference between a closed and open primary?

A closed primary deals with a party's nominating election in which only declared party members can vote while an open primary is a party's nominating election in which any qualified voter can cast a ballot.

4. Explain what absentee voting is and what the positives and negative may be with regards to it:

Absentee voting is simply voting before the actual election due to the fact that they, for any reason, couldn't get to the voting booth on election day.  I think the positive side is that more people will vote but then again maybe not as many people will vote because they think they have time to vote whenever but then its too late.

5. What changes to your see in the way we run elections ten years from now?

I think that we will run our elections the same way as we do now.  There are decreasing numbers in voters each year but I think its just the fact that people are becoming too lazy.  People will start to vote and care who our leader is eventually.

6. Explain your views on money and elections with regards the amount of money that is spent:

I think that its just plain stupid how much money is put into elections and that the party's go way overboard.  There doesn't need to be that much money spent.  They think that the more money is spent, the more votes they will get and I don't think that's the case.  Both party's can spend less and still get enough votes to win elections.

7. Go to cnn.com or foxnews.com and find an article dealing with the election process.  Post the article in your blog and provide your viewpoints pertaining to the article.