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After the pomp and the celebration, the world is no longer interested in Michelle Obama’s inaugural gown or Barack Obama’s inaugural speech.  Today the 44th President of the US will start the hard work of raising the nation back on its feet.  The road ahead for the first African-American US president is a difficult one.  Yet, many believe that no man is better equipped for the job at hand.

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While everyone listened intently to President Elect Barack Obama last night at Chicago Grant Park, there is no denying that another person the audience eagerly awaits is First Lady Elect Michelle Obama.  During the campaign period, she has caught the eyes of the nation, particularly due to her strong character, and of course, her eye-catching clothes. When she joined her husband on the stage to greet the audience, she wore a red and black Narciso Rodriguez original.  They say a good dress is one that some either hate while some absolutely love.  There were fashion analysts who did not approve of her choice, while some do agree that it has character.  Personally, I like its simple elegance.  It suits a woman of strength and character like the future First Lady.

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The people of the United States of America has decided. Majority want the change that America needs. Barack Obama has won the 2008 US Presidential Elections, edging out Republican nominee John McCain after getting 338 electoral votes versus McCain’s 141 at 11 pm. Obama is the first African American president in the history of the US. With the economy in turmoil, it is apparent that people believe Barack Obama can bring the country back to on its feet and repair the chaos they believe incumbent President George W. Bush has brought the nation.
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With just 3 days to go before the US Presidential Elections, things are beginning to heat up even more. Barack Obama and John McCain make last-ditch efforts to convince the American people that they will make the difference. Both candidates are out desperately seeking to discredit his opponent. Obama continues to reiterate McCain’s ties with Pres. George W. Bush while McCain insists that Obama is too liberal and far left.

Obama currently leads all media and other surveys by a good margin and as he campaigned for earlier voting, the large number of early voters may have voted in his favor. In the last few days, the Democrat is moving into States that voted Republican, hoping to gain more ground over his opponent. On the other hand, McCain believes he can still deliver an upset considering Obama’s liberal policies that some Americans find too aggressive. With 1 in 7 voters still undecided, McCain believes gaining their preference would give him the needed push to win on November 4.

Though Republicans expressed concern over the early voting trends, many still believe that McCain has a fighting chance. Even California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, a McCain supporter, admitted that it would take a major struggle for the Republicans to win. However, McCain has delivered upsets before and he can do it again.

What do you think? Is it just a few days away before the change in America? Or will the Republicans be given a chance at redemption?

After being part of a heated discussion between the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees in the last debate, “Joe the Plumber” has become a household name.  The real “Joe the Plumber,” Sam Wurzelbacher, is now on the spotlight, subject of several TV interviews and his videos all over the net.  However, another “Joe the Plumber” seems to be reaping the harvest.  Joe Francis owns www.joetheplumber.com and web traffic in his site surged unexpectedly the last few days as more people tried to find out about “Joe the Plumber.”

Joe Francis is known as “The Friendliest Plumber in Town.”  Not only did his website receive so much traffic, but his office was also flooded with calls.  He was on a hunting trip when he found out that a bidding war had started over his domain.  He may soon be a rich plumber if he takes the $800,000 bid one man offered for his domain.  People even want shirts bearing his company logo.  He is one lucky businessman.  The real Joe the Plumber is set to appear in numerous talk shows in the coming days as more and more people are interested about his income tax discussion with Barack Obama.  As the election draws closer, it is certain that Joe the Plumber will continue to be the hottest sensation in town.  Choosing your domain really can be a stroke of fate.

In the last Presidential debate, instead of two candidates repeatedly talking about the merits of their respective platforms, the impact of their plans were brought to the spotlight as discussions focused on “Joe the Plumber.” Who is Joe the Plumber? He is Joe Wurzelbacher, a middle-class American from Ohio who has been working as a plumber for 15 years.

How did Wurzelbacher figure into the Presidential debate? During one of Obama’s campaigns near Toledo, a bald man with a goatee confronted the senator about his tax programs. Wurzelbacher informed the senator that he was preparing to purchase a company that makes between $250,00 to $280,000 a year. He confirmed with the senator if the circumstance would get him taxed more under his tax policies. Obama admitted that it would likely be the case. Wurzelbacher offered that a flat tax may be a more suitable measure than those that the senator proposes. However, Obama defended his policies and explained the tax incentives that he will likewise propose for businesses. Then both parted ways after shaking hands.

During the last Presidential debate, John McCain raised the incident about Joe the Plumber to highlight how Obama’s proposed tax policies would hurt small businesses. Thereafter, Joe has become part of the election circus, representing middle-class Americans and small businesses. He has become a favorite of the anti-Obama camps. He was tracked down by the Associated Press but declined to tell people who he would vote for.

According to the non-partisan Tax Policy Center, calculations show that less than 700,000 taxpayers will be paying higher taxes under Obama’s plan. And some of these aren’t even small businesses. These would include lawyers, accountants, and investors whose income puts them in the top tax bracket. As Obama mentioned, statistics prove that 98% of small businesses make less than $250,000. Now, Joe speaks his mind right after the debate. Watch the video here.

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As the final moments of the US Presidential debate ticked, America watched closely hoping that somewhere they will find a sign that would point them in the right direction. Who is the right one for the job? With the economy in chaos, there seems to be no room for error as the US scrambles to get back on its feet, trying desperately to avoid a repeat of the 1929 Depression. Never has a presidential election been more crucial than this moment. And never has there been such pressure on candidates trying to give the right answer to the American people.

The final debate was McCain’s last chance to recover some ground after seemingly losing in the previous two. Though he has improved dramatically, Obama still remained composed and confident despite looking uninterested and bored. McCain was more aggressive and kept throwing the sink and the plumber, Joe, that Obama talked to about taxes in a recent campaign. He made more headway and seemed more in command as he continued to batter Obama.

On the other hand, Obama’s worst traits showed as he appeared non-chalant and less aggressive. With his success in the last debates, the Democratic candidate was lax and failed to hit his opponent as often as he should have. This time around, it was Obama who gave broad statements with unclear answers. Still, intelligence and knowledge was clearly Obama’s strongest points. The only setback in the last debate is that he appeared to lack determination.

With only a few weeks to go, has America made its decision? Is it clear who among these two candidates will be the hero to save the nation battered by incumbent President George Bush? America only has 2 weeks to find the right answer. Let’s hope they are not just crossing their fingers or playing spin-a-bottle to get their answer.

As the government frantically tries to establish its bail out plans for the financial market following the bankruptcy of Lehman, Rep. Frank Lucas proposed the shrinking of the nickel in order for the US mint to save millions of dollars. Lucas introduced House Resolution 6942 that would replace the nickel with a half-dime. It would be slightly smaller and half the weight of the current dime. This involves using less metal and thus, taxpayers need not pay more than 9 cents to produce a coin worth only 5 cents. At 9.5 cents to produce and ship, loss passed on to taxpayers for the nickel reaches $58.5 million.

Lucas, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, has not yet proposed eliminating the penny which may be another cost-effective measure that would save the government millions. With Congress still busy with other matters that need more urgent attention, these measures my be resolved only by next year.

Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s Yahoo mail account was hacked Wednesday and her emails published at Wikileaks, divulging inconsequential personal messages since she was selected as John McCain’s running mate. The McCain camp considered it an invasion of privacy and a violation of law. According to a statement, they have turned the matter over to authorities and hoped that those in possession of the emails would destroy them. Yeah, right.

One of the emails that was revealed was an exchange in July with Alaska Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell discussing a talk show host who had been critical of Parnell. Parnell declined to discuss the matter. While another was a personal email of support from McCorkell, appointee of Palin to an advisory board on issues involving alcohol and drug abuse.

The disclosure raises issues about the propriety of the Palin administration’s use of non-government email accounts to conduct state business. Prior to her selection as vice presidential candidate, critics obtained internal emails showing that it was practiced by some aides.

It was unclear how hackers broke into Palin’s Yahoo! account, but it was possible that a hacker sent a forged e-mail to her account tricking her into revealing her own password.

Photographer Jill Greenberg admits to have deliberately taken and manipulated photos of Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain to make him look evil when she was hired by The Atlantic. She even claims that it was irresponsible for The Atlantic to hire her considering her political alliance. A simple Google search would have revealed that she was hard core democrat.

Aside from the official photographs, Greenberg also asked McCain to pose with a strobe light below him which shows a diabolical effect similar to horror movies. Outtakes from the shoot were also dressed up by Greenberg and published in her website, Manipulator.com. Though the October issue of The Atlantic will not use the bad photos, the possibility that The Atlantic colluded with Greenberg may be a matter of opinion. Apparently, the owner of The Atlantic is the husband of Katherine Brittain Bradley, a supporter of Barack Obama. This led many to believe that The Atlantic deliberately hired Greenberg.

Sarah Palin’s first interview as the Republican Candidate for the Vice Presidency turned out unfavorably as she grapples with her answer to the question of ABC’s Charlie Gibson. When asked about her position on the Bush Doctrine, it was apparent that she had no idea what it was and tried desperately to get Gibson tell her what it was.

Gibson tried giving her bits and pieces of info which led her to give vague answers. Palin ended up giving ambiguous perspectives which highlights even more her ignorance about the Bush Doctrine. Initial statements seemed to point that she agreed with it as she blurted out general statements about America’s battle against Islamic extremism. When she finally discovered from Gibson exactly what was controversial about the Bush Doctrine, her answers shifted to another position, seemingly disagreeing with it. Regardless of her actual opinion on the Bush Doctrine, what was glaring was her ignorance on the matter.

The Bush Doctrine was controversial because it shifted America’s defense policy radically. The US previously adopted preemptive war — the right to attack when there is credible evidence that an attack on the US is imminent. The Bush Doctrine changed preemptive war to preventive war when President Bush explained that waiting for threats to materialize would be waiting too long. Instead of credible evidence of an attack, the mere possibility of an attack is enough to launch an offensive against the “possible enemy.”

Well, let’s give Palin some slack since it was her first interview. Problem is, November is just around the corner. Voters may forgive inexperience, but ignorance is another matter altogether.

Sarah Palin’s spark still continues as the web buzzes about the controversies that McCain’s running mate seems to have ignited. Following the teen pregnancy of her daughter and her questionable decisions while in local government, people are even talking about her celeb lookalike, Tina Fey. Here is the premonitory cover of Life Magazine with McCain and Fey way back in 2004.

Tina Fey is an Emmy award-winning writer, commedienne, actress, and producer. She is best known for her work in Saturday Night Live (SNL) and in 30 Rock. 30 Rock is a situation comedy based on her experiences at SNL since she entered the project in 1997 and became head writer in 1999. She became a member of the cast in 2000 and left the show in 1996. After her stint in SNL, she created her own TV series, 30 Rock and portrays the role of Liz Lemon.

According to reports, McCain met Fey way before he decided to take Palin as VP running mate. Some are speculating that his choice may have been affected after meeting Fey when he guest-hosted in SNL years ago. Did Palin remind him of someone? Anyway, though it is expected that Palin will be spoofed endlessly, it is unlikely that Fey will return to SNL to do the stint. SNL will likely find another lookalike to do the job.

If John McCain’s intention in choosing Sarah Palin as running mate in the upcoming US Presidential Elections was to monopolize the limelight, his advisers certainly did a good job. However, news circulating about Palin seems to lean towards controversy rather than good publicity.

Now, newspapers and the blogosphere are buzzing about her previous record as Mayor of Wasilla and Alaskan Governor. Following reports about the teen pregnancy of daughter Bristol, it seems many people are bent on digging more skeletons in her closet.

Sarah Palin now continues to hog headlines with reports saying that she fired local officials during her term in local government and the fiasco involving the construction of a sports complex in her local town. Early in her tenure as mayor, she fired Wasilla’s police chief, finance director, city planner and other department heads explaining that she felt that she didn’t have their support. Anne Kilkenny also confirmed rumors that Palin attempted to dismiss the library director Mary Ellen Emmons after the latter answered her query about banning of books in the local library. Emmons answered firmly that she wil not allow Palin to ban any books from the library. According to Kilkenny, Emmons was only able to keep her job because the residents all rallied behind her.

Another issue that crept to hound Palin is the construction of Wasilla’s new hockey rink and sports complex. Voter’s approved a $15 million bond issue and boosted sales tax to pay off the bonds. However, Palin’s administration did not have legal title to the land. Everything ended up in court with the city paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in interests and legal fees. It put a dent on the city’s reserves and it did happen during her watch.

Palin is known as a leading advocate of ethics reform and is known for being tenacious for whatever she sets her mind to. With all these controversies cropping up, is she really a persistent reformist having bad luck or is it a mask she wears?

With the Republican Convention underway, the memorable highlight of the event at the moment is the video tribute given to Michael Monsoor, a Navy Seal who was previously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his service to the Country.

Michael was killed during his service in Ar Ramadi, Iraq when he threw himself over a live grenade to save his platoon. Here we see a true profile of courage with the wonderful tribute narrated somberly by Gary Sinise. However, I find it even more courageous for US Presidential Candidate Joe Biden to present this tribute in the Republican Convention.

One of the toughest tests to becoming a Navy Seal is to stay under water for 5 minutes ad hold your breath. This was a test that Michael Monsoor surpassed despite his bout with asthma as a child. To prepare himself, he took on swimming and snowboarding to condition his lungs. Comparatively, Joe Biden received 5 deferments to serve in Vietnam because he was classified 1-Y and disqualified because he had asthma as a teenager. Michael ignored and overcame an excuse he could have given to serve his country. The same condition was used by Biden to sit it out during the Vietnam War. That was what I meant about the courage of Biden to show the video of a young man who might even highlight the controversy about his exclusion from the Vietnam War. Then again, we never know what goes on in the minds of his strategists with the election just a few months away.