"At a recent concert, Madonna told the audience she would strip naked if President Obama is re-elected. In a related story, President Obama is now trailing in the polls by 97 percent." – Conan O'Brien "God is three undecided voters: the father, the son and the holy spirit. You gotta figure the son is leaning Obama, what with the long hair, and the loaf and fish handouts to the poor. Get a job, hippie!" –Stephen Colbert "Well, last week in Vermont, the guy from the Dos Equis beer commercials -- you know "the most interesting man in the world" -- he hosted a fundraiser for President Obama. See, that shows you how things have changed. Four years ago the slogan was hope and change. Now it’s 'stay thirsty my friends.'" –Jay Leno "Congratulations to both Mitt Romney and President Obama. They both won Emmys for their performance on "60 Minutes" last night. Obama won for acting as if everything has gotten better over the last four years, and Romney won for pretending to care about that other 47 percent." –Jay Leno "A woman in Tampa, Florida, who is in danger of being foreclosed on, put a giant sign on her roof reading, "Obama, please save my home." To which Obama said, "Hey lady, I'm trying not to get thrown out of my own house, OK?" –Jay Leno ASSIGNMENT 9 FOR TOMORROW

Chapter 6: Wilson Consider: Have we “kept the republic” as Ben Franklin admonished us to do after the Constitutional Convention? Explain… ASSIGNMENT 9 FOR TOMORROW

Forms of Participation in the US  Voting most common, giving money and joining a political organization least common  Some people report falsely how much they vote; if they do this, then it is likely that they misreport other forms of participation  Studies show that politics is not a topic that most people think about on a daily basis. Verba and Nie’s forms of participation Inactive – little education or income, relatively young, most are AA (22%) Activists – highly educated, high income, middle aged not young or old; (11%) Voting Specialists – not much schooling or income and are above average age Campaigners – what distinguishes them from VS’s is their interest in the conflicts of politics, and they usually clearly identify with a party. Communalists -believe more in the community activities of a non=partisan nature Parochial participants – don’t vote or join, but contact for personal problems

A Time to Serve?

Chapter 6: Wilson Assignment 9 for Monday

What factors make people more likely to participate/vote?  Education  But why has turnout declined as levels of schooling have increased?  Mistrust levels?  Religious involvement – the more, the more…  Gender –  Men and women = about the same  Race = whites more than blacks  Unless at same socioeconomic level (blacks more)  Impediments to participation…  Age?  Younger population  Registration requirements  No cost to not participating

Voter Perspective 1  John is 46 year-old white male. He is an electrician who makes $85,000 a year, and has been a member of the Electrical Workers Union for approximately 20 years. He is very religious, attending a Lutheran church each week. He has been divorced for about 5 years, and has 3 children. He gets most of his news from newspapers and occasionally from NBC or CNN.

Voter Perspective 2  Maria is a Latino mother of 2 who just turned 35. She is a lawyer for a large law firm, and makes about $120,000 per year. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, a devout Catholic, and has been married for 5 years. She uses the Internet for her news, pays close attention to several blogs, and occasionally responds herself to the postings she reads.

Voter Perspective 3  Eric is a black male, and a recent college graduate from Penn State in the area of business administration. He is 24, single, and just moved to New York City. He is not religious, and spends a good deal of his free time following sports and spending time out and about in New York City.

Voter Perspective 4  Sophia is a 73 year-old white female, and a grandmother of 6. She is retired from a lifetime as a public school teacher, and receives both a pension and social security. She and her husband live in a retirement community in Vermont, and attend their Methodist church every Sunday. She listens to NPR and watches PBS in order to stay current with the news.