by Mark Newberg

I’m not old enough to remember Reagan’s “Morning in America” campaign ad, but I’m not immune to its romanticized American-bred optimism. I am old enough to remember the man from “a place called Hope” restoring that optimism to the Nation for as long as bipartisanship lasted. Granted, that wasn’t much past transition time, but it was a rosy time for our American ideals. Now, with President-Elect Obama, we’ve launched, once again (and 75%-heartedly) into an era of national unity, cheer, and good tidings.

I like this stuff. I like it a lot. In fact, I’m of the belief that the best Democratic Presidents tend to tap into the same vein of our collective consciousness: the desire for hope. Don’t believe me? Ok. Name the best Democratic Presidents of the television age (and yes, FDR counts). FDR. Kennedy. Clinton. “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” ”Eight years of peace and prosperity.“ Seeing a theme yet? Even Reagan, in his search for the Center, harnessed our desire to feel good about the future, especially in times of great national pain. Remember, “They slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God?” How about, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

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Just yesterday, I told you that the current administration is doing this thing where they turn political appointments into civil employees, in a process called “burrowing,” in order to make sure these people keep their jobs and can continue making policy.  Well, today, Senate Democrats are saying, “Hey.  Knock that off.”  In fact, Senators Schumer and Feinstein wrote a strongly-worded letter to the President, in which they said,

Today’s report reveals that senior members of your administration are undermining your public commitment to ease the transition by reorganizing agencies at the eleventh hour and installing political appointees in key positions for which they may not be qualified.  We respectfully urge you to stand by your public commitment to a smooth transition by directing executive agencies immediately to halt any conversions of political appointees to career positions.

The Washington Post reports that though “Democrats in the Senate called on President Bush to halt any effort by his administration to place political appointees in career jobs just weeks before his team leaves office,” the administration isn’t playing games with the Senate.  White House Spokeswoman Dana Perino, in responding to questions, said that, hey, we don’t know what you’re talking about.

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With all the rumors swirling about President-elect Barack Obama offering Hillary Clinton the job of Secretary of State, I’m left with one question: Why? There is no doubt in my mind that Senator Clinton is a hardworking, highly intelligent and highly driven individual, however her taking over the “first amongst equals” position in the new cabinet seems to have some glaring drawbacks.

For starters, Hillary Clinton is a drama magnet when it comes to press coverage. This is not necessarily her fault. The press tends to construct its own narratives regarding public officials which then in turn are very difficult to break as time goes on and more examples of the pre-existing, self-fulfilling storyline are piled on. However, the very nature of the bitter, former rivalry between Senator Clinton and President-elect Obama during the primaries is highly dramatic in and of itself and the drama-tinged press coverage of their working relationship could prove a major distraction for an administration that needs to succeed during a very difficult time in American history.

Secondly, I simply don’t believe Hillary Clinton is the most qualified person for this job. While the former First Lady has unquestionably polished her foreign policy credentials during her time in the United States Senate to the point where she can be considered competent in the area, there are still much more experienced people hovering around the Democratic foreign policy establishment, most notably Richard Holbrooke and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson. We’re talking about the difference between above average (Clinton) & outstanding (Holbrooke or Richardson) as far as the respective depths of knowledge and personal relationships with diplomats around the globe are concerned with these candidates. As trying as the coming years will be in regards to foreign policy, it stands to reason that the incoming administration should choose the absolutely most qualified individual available to shepherd our Department of State.

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Today Al Gore called on young people to practice civil disobedience and demand an end to non-carbon-capturing coal plants.   At a meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative, the Nobel Peace Prize winner and environmental activist explained:

“If you’re a young person looking at the future of this planet and looking at what is being done right now, and not done, I believe we have reached the stage where it is time for civil disobedience to prevent the construction of new coal plants that do not have carbon capture and sequestration”

There are currently 28 coal plants under construction in the U.S., with 20 more waiting in the wings.   And while some efforts are underway to capture and bury carbon, known as geosequestration,  Greenpeace and other critics argue that there are far safer and cleaner alternatives.

takepart by learning more from Al Gore and check out the Architecture 2030 Challenge

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Inconvenient Truth of the Day

It’s September in Leap Year and that means we’re in the midst of yet another closely contested Presidential campaign in these United States. So here at TakePart we thought it might be a good time to take a look back through the years to the most pivotal and memorable campaign moments to grace the small screen since the inception of television as a mass medium.

They’re not all deep, indeed some of them are downright petty. Some highlight an age in American politics where a quick dig, an easily accessible narrative or simply the impression conveyed by bits of picture and audio substituted for an honest dialogue with the public about the governmental and economic forces which shape their lives. Others show truly thought provoking moments that blend medium and message seamlessly without degrading either.   So here they are…for better or worse…your TakePart Top 10 Presidential Campaign Moment of the Television Age!

10. 1980 Jimmy Carter - Ronald Reagan Debate - “There you go again…”

The 1980 Presidential race between incumbent Jimmy Carter and California Governor Ronald Reagan marked a turning point in politics in this country. It also bears many similarities to the race now at hand between Barack Obama and John McCain in terms of the issues at play, notably energy, the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the Middle East and healthcare. In this moment, Reagan gave a glimpse of the next 28 years of medical care following his election in his dismissive, waving off “There you go again” response to Jimmy Carter bringing up the issue of health coverage for American citizens. An issue that has only gotten progressively worse to this day.

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In honor of the anniversary of Women’s Suffrage and Hillary Clinton’s speech at the DNC tonight, I give you our videos of the day.

1) GOOD: Hillary Clinton - a profile of the politician before she dropped out of the race. No doubt she’s made it easier for lot’s a little girls to dream political dreams:

For the Cinema YouTube Video of the Day, Click here>>

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Bill Clinton is following in the footsteps of former VP and anti-global warming champion Al Gore by issuing his own list of top 10 things the federal government should do to promote clean energy, reduce emissions, and make the world an overall greener one. Clinton gave his clean energy speech in Las Vegas on Monday night at the National Clean Energy summit. One suggestion? Work with a single state - like Nevada - to become complete energy independent. The effects, he told the crowd, would “rock the world.”

Is the future new administration listening up? Here are Clinton’s top 10 suggestions for ensuring clean energy policies, courtesy of Earth2Tech:

1) Congress must pass legislation that puts a price on carbon and establish a cap-and-trade system. The alternative is passing a carbon tax, Clinton says, but adds that he tried that route already and it didn’t work out too well.

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The TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is a compilation of the week’s most notable stories from our entertainment-meets-social-action blogging network. Check out some of our most popular stories of the week, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites!

Nicole Hughes:

U.S. Media Ignores Link Between Midwest Floods and Global Warming

Top 10 Houseplants for Removing Indoor Air Pollution

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Andy Kondrat:

Dubai to Build Rotating Positive Energy Tower

Bioethicist Peter Singer Tackles World Food Shortage

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Jon Popham:

Americacorps Workers Assist Flood Ravaged Town

Australians “Out-Fat” Americans

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Giulia Rozzi:

Progressive Book Club

Oprah Recommends “A New Earth”

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Gina Telaroli:

Human Rights Watch 2008 Film Festival Update

SilverDocs 2008 Update

Americorps disaster response workers are laboring hard to save the flood ravaged town of Clarksville, Missouri. An Americorps team led by Katie Rooney and Kyle Henning has been coordinating volunteer and community liaison efforts out of the City Hall of the small Mississippi River community, population 490.

“I think they are awesome,” Clarksville Alderman Mike Russell, who doubles as the town’s emergency services manager, told MSNBC. “I can literally tell you that if it was not for them running the City Hall end, we would be much worse off.”

Americorps is a Federal National Service program created by President Clinton in 1993. Members specialize in a wide array of domestic issues ranging from environmental programs to literacy initiatives. The Clarksville team was part of a disaster response unit based out of St. Louis, Missouri who had just finished assisting tornado victims in the Southwest portion of the state when they were called to help out with the disastrous Mississippi flooding in Clarksville. Americorps members receive healthcare, a few hundred dollars a month, a modest educational grant and numerous ready to eat meals for their invaluable service to pressing issues confronting the country.

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The Tuskegee Experiment, which Reverend Jeremiah Wright brought into the national discourse, was a federally funded clinical study which tested the affects of syphilis on 399 poor, mostly illiterate black men. The experiment took place in Tuskegee, Alabama and lasted from 1932 to 1972. Only 65 years later, was the tragedy acknowledged, when President Bill Clinton apologized for the experiment. Those who enrolled in the study did not give informed consent and were not told that they had syphilis. These people were, in fact, denied medical treatment, even when penicillin became the drug of choice for syphilis in 1947. They were, however, promised free medical treatment, rides to the clinic, meals and burial insurance in case of death.

After the truth about Tuskegee came out in in 1972, Congress passed The Tuskegee Health Benefit Program that provides comprehensive lifetime medical and health benefits to the affected widows and offspring of study participants.

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