Ye Olde Briefing Sheet # 1

So here goes my first stab at a Briefing Sheet. My stories this week come from NPR (the radio station...) so I don't really have much of a title for each one. I have put the dates, though, if that helps.

1.) March 27th
Barack Obama's progress in the election has not been hindered by Jeremiah Wright's offensive anti-America remarks. Many people believed (and feared) that Wright's offensive sermons would make him completely unelectable. However, the statistics reveal that nothing has changed for the presidential hopeful despite his pastor's beliefs.

2.) March 27th
The housing and financial crisis has been a subject of much talk lately. John McCain believes that the investors were over zealous and that simply letting them deal with the consequences of their own actions will solve the problem. Clinton believes the crisis has to do with our current presidential leadership (which will, of course, be solved once she's president...) and Obama went back in time to Alexander Hamilton to show the tension between free markets and the government.

3.) March 27th
Although Senator John McCain supports staying in the war with Iraq, he does not agree with many of President Bush's current policies. He very much wants to regain the collaborative efforts of our foreign allies. He resents the fact that we did not take our foreign friends' ideas into account before going to war without them. He believes that the U.S. cannot lead by power alone.

4.) March 28th
Democratic party leaders call to calm the relentless fighting between Senators Obama and Clinton. They fear that such bickering could hurt or even divide the party. Howard Dean urges everyone to be calm as we near July 1st.

5.) March 29th
Both Democratic candidates are continuing to work with strategists in order to knock the other down while still appealing to the people. Tad Devine speculates that the push and shove between Obama and Clinton could potentially pull the Democratic party apart. He notes that the two are similar enough ideologically that the party may be able to mend itself post-election.

6.) March 30th
New shorthand terms for both Obama and Clinton supporters have been conceived recently: Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks Democrats. Because the two candidates are selling roughly the same ideas and solutions in different packages, they have been compared to the coffee at Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks. The humorous nicknames imply the question, "Whose product (coffee/leadership) is better?
**Note: In case anyone was wondering, Obama is Starbucks and Hillary is Dunkin Donuts...

7.)March 31st
Clinton and Obama were in Pennsylvania trying to rally votes today but the real focus is on the 794 super delegates that may ultimately decide which of the two gets the nomination for the Democrats. Super delegate Senator Amy Klobuchar sided with Obama over Clinton, giving Obama one more step above Clinton. Klobuchar's pledge came as a surprise because she had decided to remain neutral quite some time ago.

8.) March 31st
More bickering and fighting have taken place between the two Democratic nominees in order to win delegates in Texas. Shoving matches, booing and crying were only some of the dramatic displays supporters put on at the conventions there.

9.) April 1st
Senator Clinton, in hopes of bringing the Democratic party as a whole closer together, challenged Barack Obama to a bowling match in Pennsylvania today. She said boldly "Winner takes all" but, considering the date, she meant it only as an April Fool's joke. In all seriousness, Clinton admitted after the challenge was made that there were some things she disagreed with during the Clinton Administration behind the scenes.
**Note: I guess Obama rolled a few truly spectacular gutter balls during the bowl-off...har har.

10.) April 1st (I found this ridiculous, but it was news, so here you go.)
The NFL decided to start broadcasting their season opener 19 minutes early so that John McCain's acceptance speech at the Republican Convention and the football game would not overlap. This is so football fans who are also McCain supporters can watch both without feeling as though they are missing out on something.


So there you go. I hope that's what was wanted... :)