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It's very disheartening to hear that many voters make up their mind at the last minute. Seems to me a responsible voter would have a more deliberate process for choosing.
No, what's disheartening is the voter who makes up his mind before he or she has garnered every bit of information about all the candidates in the field.
How many here have ever (any year) seen a presidential candidate live while they were campaigning in your state? Can you still make up your mind about who to vote for if you haven't?
Why do these people in NH and Iowa have to see candidates live in small settings in order to make a voting decision or is the TV media selling us a bunch of crappola on this reach out and touch issue?
Because we're people not machines, and we like to get "up close and personal" with the people who run the country. It's the same reason that people attend pro football games or NASCAR races or theater production rather than just watch them on TV. It's an experiential thing.
And yes, I have seen presidential candidates while campaigning in my state. In 1988, I was working in downtown Albany, catty-corner to the State Capital and two blocks from the Empire State Plaza, so I attended the campaign rallies for those candidates in the Democratic primary that I was interested in. It was quite a spectacle, and while I didn't get to shake hands with any of the candidates, many others did.
I was very undecided in that primary election, too. My heart was with a candidate that my head knew couldn't win in the general election. In the voting booth on primary day, I finally decided, "what the hell" and voted my heart.
No, what's disheartening is the voter who makes up his mind before he or she has garnered every bit of information about all the candidates in the field.
Thank you.
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No, what's disheartening is the voter who makes up his mind before he or she has garnered every bit of information about all the candidates in the field.
In the old days, you didn't have as many sources of information. You had newspapers and 3 TV networks who covered debates. There was no around the clock coverage 24/7.
Now, in addition to cable news you can find video of candidates when they were campaigning and the days before they were running. You can see some of the candidate's events streamed live and you can research them going back years. You actually have access to polling data, too, and no longer have to wait for the media's spin on it. It can't be that people have to see them live to be educated about each candidate. I think maybe Iowa and New Hampshire like the media attention they get for their "uniqueness" and the 24/7 media feed it.
I just believe it's part of media manipulation and trying to use their powers of persuasion. If Bush were in the lead by 20 percent, we wouldn't be hearing that residents haven't made up their minds yet. Also they like to keep people hooked into the whole mess.
I'm one of those NH folks. I made up my mind months ago, but I still attend many town halls. I love getting out and meeting the candidates. It helps me decide on my number two and three candidates. It also helps solidify who I WON'T support in the general election.
I'm one of those NH people too. It's good to attend town halls and see the candidates first hand.
How many here have ever (any year) seen a presidential candidate live while they were campaigning in your state?
At an event, no. At the gas station or restaurant, sure.
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Can you still make up your mind about who to vote for if you haven't?
This has never been an issue for me. A hundred years ago, if you didn't see a candidate live you didn't see him. Now I can see more than I'd ever want to via cable TV and the internet.
Now, if I actually had the opportunity to sit down with a candidate and ask direct questions, that would be a different story. For instance, Some of what Bernie Sanders wants to do intrigues me, but being a numbers guy and a small business guy I see some gaps in his plans that are concerning enough to keep me from voting for him if I can't get firm clarification. If I could actually visit with him for an hour and get him to clarify a few things I might be able to get behind him, but the click bait media isn't going to ask the questions I need the answers to so I'm left to err on the side of caution and withhold my support unless and until I get the answers I need to make an informed decision.
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Why do these people in NH and Iowa have to see candidates live in small settings in order to make a voting decision or is the TV media selling us a bunch of crappola on this reach out and touch issue?
Media condescension, for the most part. "Lo, behold the poor Iowan, surviving a hardscrabble existence in this vast cultural wasteland with nothing to look forward to but the thought of a visit from the Presidential candidates every four years."
Don't get me wrong, we appreciate the influx of people spending their money on gas and food and lodging, and the attention is kind of fun up to a certain point. But in terms of figuring out who do vote for, we would do just fine without having them come here.
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