What have you learned about each candidate since reading his book? What kinds of things have surprised you? Have your views on each candidate changed at all?
Write one post in response to these three questions. The first half of your post should respond for the Romney book and the second half for the Obama book.
due in class 10/3
I have had a little trouble concerning the election books. More than a little, actually. My copy of Obama’s book has simply disappeared into the wild blue yonder, and I had great difficulty reading through Romney’s book, for one major reason: I was very quickly disappointed at how much he simply bashed President Obama. It’s not that I think that Obama hasn’t made some poor decisions, and I can agree that he hasn’t met all of his campaign promises, but then again, as president, he doesn’t exactly have the express power to deliver on those promises. However, as I read Romney’s book, I became unhappy that he didn’t so much present his own opinions as disagree with Obama’s choices. In fact, this has caused me to notice how often the two candidates have been simply attacking each other over the course of this campaign so far, and it saddens me that I could not actually tell you what, based on the ads, each candidate intends to do as president. I do reserve judgment, however, until I can either track down or acquire a new copy of Obama’s book, because I cannot be sure that he didn’t do the very same thing (that is, bashing his opponent willy-nilly) in his work.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading about both of this year’s presidential candidates there are things that surprised me about each. I was not aware that Romney had as many viewpoints as he did that opposed much of the Republican Party. I have become more of a Romney fan after reading his book. I was surprised that he is such an everyday American man and has an ideology that can successful if implement correctly. I think he is a great speaker who gives and gets respects with those around him.
ReplyDeleteI haven’t been too surprised by much of the Obama book because I have learned a lot about our president throughout his term. My views on him have changed slightly after reading this book. I do not like Obama and many of his policies but after reading his book I have began to like him a little bit more. With that being said I don’t think he is a good president but I have been able to learn things and agree on certain aspects of life with him.
Both presidents have used opposing styles and have used it to leverage themselves past the other. They counter each other very often and do so in a way that belittles their opponent very well. I would have never guessed that Romney and his family came as far as they did. The stories about his dad working and where he came from can relate with many Americans out there today.
Romney: No Apology
ReplyDeleteI went into the reading of these books as nonpartisan as I possibly could- trying to keep an open mind about what each candidate was trying to convey, even though I clearly had a personal preference. One thing that surprised me about Romney’s book is how seriously negative he was. Clearly, in writing this he was preparing to run for President and had certain criticisms about the way the country was being run. But what really surprised me was how much time he really spends being critical of Obama and the current administration. Along the same lines he spends an exuberant amount of time praising past Republican administrations- even defending the Bush administrations actions when it came to Iraq and Afghanistan. Even the title of the book- No Apology is in reference to the fact that Romney is critical of the “apologizing” that Obama does for America. The entire book just seems to be a negative criticism and aside from saying what needs to be changed, Romney still does an inadequate job of describing how he would change things. For example, seems easy to just discuss “soft power” but he doesn’t exactly describe how he would utilize “soft power” in relation to countries like Columbia, but just that we need to use it. Also, it is shocking to me that he spends so little time discussing his private life. I was looking forward to learning more about Romney as a person but feel unsatisfied when it comes to this. I feel so much criticizing has been done and so much discussion of Republican ideals without getting personal as to how he has ended up where he is. Overall, my views of Romney have been reinforced in that it seems like running for political office is just another stage in this career. Also, I noticed that a lot of his time was spent reinforcing and emphasizing republican views. For example, he talks a lot about small business and people being able to start companies and also about military power (hard power) things that are typically more important to Republicans than to Democrats.
Obama: The Audacity of Hope
I have learned a lot about Obama since reading this book. First of all, I went into reading knowing what I wanted as far as candidates go politically but I wanted more insight into their personal lives- or how they got to where they are today. I felt satisfied in this sense from reading Barack Obama’s book because he discusses in a literary almost memoir-like fashion that describes his political career on a more personal level. I also learned that like myself, Obama seeks to have a more nonpartisan form of government in which we don’t attack each other and just work for common goals. While his writing may seem more idealistic then Romney’s, I also found it to be more engaging and personal instead of overwhelmingly critical- something that I enjoyed. I know as an incumbent he didn’t have a whole lot of defending and explaining to do but it surprised me that there was a lack of criticism (except maybe the criticizing of partisan ways in the government). Overall, it reinforced the ideas I had about Obama as well, so I guess I didn’t learn an extreme amount of new information, but things were explained to me well.
No Apology has not changed my view on Mitt Romney much. I am surprised to learn however, how much of his campaign is simply bashing the current regime. It seems to be either that or scare tactics that seek to challenges Americas true greatness without himself as leader. Its also interesting how much he uses China to rally his supporters in anger. Despite these things my initial outlook towards Romney wasn’t good to begin with, so his book only solidifies the image I had towards him.
ReplyDeleteI learned from The Audacity of Hope that Obama is a lot more bipartisan then I first realized. I understood that was his “thing” from the beginning but the book really helped put it in place how much that means to him. I was also surprised to learn about the hardships of Obama’s political career, which I was completely naïve too before. It really seems that Obama is the person to the image, but it could equally be that the book helps create the image, I don’t want to say for sure.
Since reading through some of Mitt Romney’s No Apology book, I have gotten a better idea of what he stands for. I did not get much of a sense of his character thus far, however. He did not share many personal thoughts or stories that make the reader connect with him. His writing was very straight forward – he is against Obama and his administration. Romney believes that a change needs to happen in our government, and he lays out the ways in which he wishes to do it. He speaks a lot about what is wrong in this country and the world. One thing I learned from this book is that Romney believes very strongly in family ideals and believes that America is strong as well. His main value that he holds seems to be that we do not need to apologize for our nation, and that the United States should be able to holds its own in this world. My personal views on this candidate have not changed much since the reading, but I do understand more clearly where he is coming from.
ReplyDeleteThrough reading Obama’s book, The Audacity of Hope, I have learned a lot about his character. In contrast to Romney’s book, Obama shares a lot of personal anecdotes. He talks about his struggles and family life, and how he tries to hold on to his values. What surprised me most about him was his willingness to share his feelings. He wrote about how certain conversations or events made him feel. He talked about how being a politician was stressful on his family. What was surprising to me, though, was how he did this in a way that didn’t ask for sympathy. Throughout our readings of his book, I was reassured that Obama is simply a man who is genuinely trying to make this country better, the only way he knows how. He is a man who is honest and doesn’t want to be “just another typical politician”.
Romney “No Apology”:
ReplyDeleteUpon reading his book, I have learned that Mitt Romney is a man who is very invested in America and how great our land is. He seems to never want to apologize for anything America does, then again when you are the greatest and most powerful country in the world; it almost seems silly to do so. Romney appears to be a man who is very old school, right winged, just wanting America to be powerful again and retaining it’s allies that seem to have been lost over the past few years. He believes in having a strong military, but when it comes to defense mostly, but he also believes that we should have a smaller government, one that does not hinder our small businesses and allows for the American dream to prosper. The things that have surprised me about Romney is how deeply he feels about our country and wanting it to be this great land that our founding fathers had wanted it to be. A lot of times when politicians come into office they want to tweak what was done before them and those before them, thus changing our nation into something our founders had not intended. So with Romney wanting to get back to the basics and wanting to change our country back to the principles it was founded on was a surprise to me, simply because we have not really had a candidate wanting to do that, at least not in the years of the elections that I can remember. My views on Romney have not changed, I still thing he is a strong candidate that could really do something for America and get us back to the principles that we were founded on. He is consistent with what he believes America should be, what America should do and where America stands in the world. He seems to know what it is that he wants out of this campaign and where he stands with his own beliefs, he is not wishy-washy and unsure of what he wants to do or where he wants to take this country; he is solid and unchanging in where he sees our country going.
Obama “The Audacity of Hope”:
In reading Obama’s book I have learned that Obama is a man who is very hopeful about the future of this country. In his book he seems to be a man who wants politics to be less about partisan politics and more about what we can do for our country that benefits it for the good. Obama had to work his way up in politics and has had respect for all candidates and presidents even if they are not affiliated with the same party as him. Some things that did surprise me though is that Obama is very different in his book than he is when he is giving speeches, especially at the Democratic Party convention. In his book he is all about not being partisan and how Democrat’s and Republican’s should work together but in giving his speech at the convention this year he was very left winged and the politics of his speech had become more partisan toward his party. It is almost expected though of the presidency to change a person, even if originally that is not what Obama had intended for his campaign. My opinion on Obama has not changed at all either, while I think he has done great things for this country, there are still things he has done that need to be fixed and improved upon. I understand what he wanted in his book is different than what has happened in his presidency and feel that perhaps if he had followed along with the goals in his book his presidency could have been different and quite possibly for the better.
I have learned that Mitt Romney thinks America is vulnerable and that we aren’t doing enough to spur the gains being made by other countries. He spends a lot of space emphasizing foreign affairs and how it relates to policies here in America. In fact, most of the first four chapters of his book pertain to how countries such as Russia, China, and some Islam states in the Middle East are all pursuing power to “dethrone” America so to spea. It surprises me how much Romney discusses this topic almost to the point of him beating a dead horse. I don’t know if he’s planning on touching on other subjects in his book, but so far I feel like he is trying to scare people into voting for him. Romney also extensively discusses how our decreases in our military power of late has made America appear weak because we are not as prepared to ward off a strike from a hostile country as we used to be. This is one major thing Romney discusses that I agree with. We cannot idle by and let our military dwindle in case we need them in the future.
ReplyDeleteThrough reading Obama’s book, I have learned more about the history of politics in our nation and about how we developed as a burgeoning democracy and forged ahead through disagreements among Congressmen to create the Constitution that still guides our government and country today. Obama discusses how our country has progressed through various events that have tested its strength and also the Constitution’s validity such as the Civil War. He places great importance on this document and describes it as “a road map by which we marry passion to reason, the ideal of individual freedom to the demands of community.” This shows that Obama respects our body of government and all the checks and balances that exist within it to help guide our politics today. It doesn’t surprise me that a politician takes the time to express his love for our government, but it does surprise me that he does so after pointing out a lot of things that he believes are wrong with our government today. I think Obama wants things in politics to get more like they used to be.
Since beginning Obama's book, it has become evident that he plans to present himself fairly strictly in a political light. His book focuses on his experience in local government and up through the senate to the presidency. Chapter 3 discusses the process of making legislation within the system. To the average reader, this type of material is dry and boring especially considering the lack of input on current issues. It surprises me that instead of rehashing the old issues Obama has chosen to sell himself as an intellectual and a sort of free spirit within a difficult and tangled legislative system. This approach seems unconventional given the tense climate of the past 2 elections.
ReplyDeleteMitt Romney's book resembles more of an economics or political theory textbook. He gives insight to world issues from the eyes of a businessman. This analysis covers a breadth of issues yet never gives any clear call to action. I feel that Romney is still trying to prove his competency as a politician due to the fact that many people don't have any idea who he is. I'm not surprised by his need to provide bold views on international issues as Republicans always seemed incredibly outspoken to me. He's continuing a legacy of loud-mouthed chubby white guys making claims before hearing the other side of an argument. My view on the candidate hasn't changed at all. In fact, my past views have only been reinforced.
I have learned a lot from reading the chapters out of Mitt Romney’s book No Apologies and most of these things have been negative towards my opinion of Romney. The thing that I have just learned about Mitt Romney was that he wants to start a new war in Syria. This is not stated straight out however, he did stat that is was appalling that the president now has not done anything to prevent this radical country from having the power to harm the united stats and that we as a strong nation have to insure our freedom by showing our power to this rouge state. Which can only really come though one action and that is another war in the Middle East with Syria. Another thing I have learned from reading this book is that Romney only likes money and that is about it since in the intro he stats a lot of how he has gotten money and that is the major theme to his book if its not how he has collected the money he has then it is how the government is spending it in the wrong places. Now this book has surprised me about governor Romney by him showing a little compassion to anyone else when he was talking about the soldiers in the United States military. My view of the candidate have changed a lot since before I didn’t care about him or his view and now see that they are very different from my own.
ReplyDeleteI have learned a lot from reading President Obama’s book The Audacity of Hope that have been positive for support of the candidate. This book is very effective for showing Obama’s supporters why they should be voting for him. The thing that has surprised me the most is that this does not seem like a campaign book like Romney’s does. I am not aware if this is supposed to be Obama’s campaign book or not but it is vastly different style and approach then Romney’s book. Where as Romney’s intention for writing his book is to say how pour of a job that Obama has done it seems that Obama’s reasons for writing the book were to show his supporters and who ever else wanted to read it who he is and what he truly stands for. My view for Obama has changed from not really liking him to thinking that he is a descent man however, I still don’t know if I would want him running the country.
I have learned a lot from each candidate’s book. In Romney’s book, I learned about the importance he places on other countries and just how much they impact the United States. He is constantly referring to overseas affairs, and I feel like his stress on the rest of the world positively manifests in his writing. I was surprised to learn that Romney is Mormon. I’m sure this knowledge was made public a long time ago, but I was not aware of his religious affiliation until I read his book.
ReplyDeleteIn Obama’s book, I learned about some of the struggles he faced in climbing the political ladder. I suppose I had it in my head that politicians all originate from wealthy families and never know what its like to be less than perfect. I enjoyed reading about his persistence and determination to get where he is today. I also find it inspiring that he paved the way for African-Americans in the White House. My views on Obama have changed drastically since I have been enrolled in this course and have read about each candidate’s stance. I grew up in an incredibly conservative town with parents who always told me that the Republicans keep this country together. I think Obama’s views and policies are much more geared toward young people who are struggling to “make it big” in any chosen career path. As a broke college student, I fit perfectly into that description and I have found that it is much easier to identify with the Democratic party at this stage in my life.
By reading Romney's book. I learned that he grew up in a rich family; he has his own business; He will be a tough president of the United States. His opinion about the Hard Power of America is really surprised me. He thinks American needs a strong defensive capability in the face of the threats it face. He's theory seems like he will lead the United States in a new arms race in space, cyberspace, and nuclear weapons. There is nothing to could be changed in my view, because Romney is the person always has tough foreign policy.
ReplyDeletePresident Obama's policy seems better than Romney. He grew up in a normal family. He has experiences with other cultures, so that peoples in other countries expect him to understand how to deal with international relationship better than Romney. There is nothing surprised me in his book yet. As a candidate of America president, he have to choose the best thing for America.
Considering that I knew nothing about Mitt Romney at the start of this class besides what the strong Obama supporters told me “Romney doesn’t care about women since he plans to get rid of birth control and Planned Parenthood”. I think that my opinion of Romney has changed since the start of this class. I am learning the facts not just hearing all the gossip. His book so far has surprised me. To me he seems like a no nonsense kind of guy who believes that people should take care of their own problems instead of putting it on others. His book is not like that, he tries to come across as understanding to the middle class while still keeping his upper class image. Both candidates use framing to express their point of view. Mitt Romney’s book has surprised me so far. It will be interesting to see if he continues this tone of his book.
ReplyDeleteI knew a decent amount about Obama going into this class. When he was running for President back in 2008 I turned 18 on the inauguration day. I remember feeling upset because I wanted to get the chance to vote for who I felt would be best at running out country. I honestly did not know that much about either candidate, my emotions were based off of the desire to do something new and to be of the age that I can legally vote. I knew that President Obama was from Chicago but through reading his book I found out how hard he had to work to get where he is today. I found it interesting though that the world almost gave him a break during one of the elections when his oponants was not really competition. I have also learned how smooth of a talker he is. He has a great way of expressing things and framing them in a way that will go in his favor. I am interested to see how the rest of the reading goes and how he frames particular issues.
Mitt Romney No Apology
ReplyDeleteThis is my first year voting in a presidential election so I was really excited to do my research. I did a lot of research online and my mom kept me updated with what was said on the news so I had a pretty decent background with each candidate before reading each book. While reading Romney’s book, not much seemed to surprise me, it seems as if I had seen it all before. Although, I am not a republican and often disagree with their views so maybe while reading my opinions were already biased which did not allow me too much in. Majority of the book I did not agree with, especially all of the bashing of his opponent and while reading I often got angry and upset with his choice of words. My view of Romney before reading his book was that he is a rich republican who cares about nothing more than money and has no concern for the middle class American. After reading the book, my opinion about Mitt Romney did not change.
Barack Obama The Audacity of Hope
My previous research on both candidates was intensified on Barack Obama because I am of the Democratic Party and I personally love him as a president. While watching his speeches I feel empowered and I believe he deserves another term. While reading his political book what surprised me was that the book kept my interest, it didn’t feel like I was reading a political book, it felt as if I was reading a biography, at least in the very beginning. My views on Obama’s campaign and political strategies did not change; I still love him as a president.
Before I started this class the facts that I knew about Mitt Romney were about slim to none. I was not aware what his political status was before the governor of Massachusetts. I was unaware what he stood for and thus he is a new running mate I was not sure what to think about him. I was did not know how much of a family man he is, or about how he is anti-abortion. He made himself look like he was going to be the next Captain America. Then I found out about his tax plan and was not a big fan. After The phone recording about the 47%, made me think a little less of him. Although he may have said it out of frustration because of the fact that he does care. Since I do not hold the truth of why he did it or what he was feeling makes me concerned, which makes me like him less than obama
ReplyDeleteComing into the election I knew that Obama was the president and that he was the first black president. I also knew that he was for hope and that I didn’t seem to follow anything going on with him in the white house for the past four years. I have learned that Obama does not want to give up his spot in office and whats to try and not erase what has happened. This was a big part of his campaign. I like the fact that I have not felt any fear while he was in office and I like that about him. I like that he is still trying to forward progress his plan and not change everything like Romney
I am really glad that I have been reading these books. It has really opened my eyes about each candidate and this election. In Romney’s book I have really noticed the emphasis on other countries and there effects of the United States. I have noticed that he stresses much on his business experiences and how he is a supporter. I enjoyed learning more about his family and their lifestyle. I was surprised that he is all about being a strong government and a tough president. This also ties along with the other countries because he wants to handle threats very seriously. I honestly think he will be a good leader after reading some of his book because of his opinions that he has brought to my attention, especially defensively. I noticed that he talks a lot about theories in his book. These theories mostly deal with economics. I think that my past views have stayed the same but became stronger about Mitt Romney after reading a couple chapters in his book. I agreed with Mitt Romney’s extensive thoughts on our military power. I think that in his book Romney has shown his passion for the United States and his want to better our country as a whole.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the beginning of Obama’s book I have noticed that my feelings and views on him have also stayed the same but have only grown stronger. I was surprised how little he discussed international views in comparison to Romney’s book. I noticed that he focuses on his own experience as a Senator and the beginning of his career in Chicago. I was also surprised that he did not really discuss current issues as much as I thought he would. I think that is a large downfall on his book and reflect him in a bad light, a way that he would not want to be viewed as. I thought I learned a lot about his background which was interesting and something that I haven’t known before. I think the importance on the history of politics is written well in this book and I was glad to read it. I was surprised how he got into the debate about Republicans and Democrats and their differences and similarities right away. I think that he put this out in a good way because he did not focus on being negative with the Republican side. I agree with Obama that our country has been tested and our community needs to come together and guide our politics. I think that he expressed his love and passion for the government.