The Chia Report

The Historicity of an Unprecedented Election in US Presidential Politics

By Innocent Chia

  With less than a week left in the race to the finish line on November 4th, campaigns are summoning their best forces and sparing no effort during this injury time. Senators McCain and Obama have been making their closing arguments why they are better qualified than the opponent.

Some of the closing methods and messages have been outright and downright negative and despicable. For the most part, these vile and dishonorable tactics of fear mongering have been deployed by Sen. McCain’s camp, the RNC, other independent groups and extremists. Our space today examines how and why the Fear / Scare Mongering narrative is finding potency or great appeal to many voters on the US political landscape.

 

Understanding the “Bradley Effect” Scare in US Presidential Elections

By Innocent Chia

For international readers and others following the 2008 American Presidential election via audio visual media, mention of the Bradley Effect as having potential to torpedo an Obama presidency has been paramount. What is the Bradley Effect? How does Sen. Obama’s campaign overcome it, whether it be fact or myth?

According to the free encyclopedia, Wikipedia, The Bradley Effect “is a proposed explanation for a discrepancy between voter opinion polls and election outcomes in American political campaigns when a white candidate (Sen. John McCain) and a non-white candidate (Sen. Barack Obama) run against each other”. In other words, the supposition is that voters are not always forthright in their answers to pollsters when they plan to vote for a white candidate over their black rival in elections opposing a Caucasian to a non-Caucasian.

Making the Closing Arguments for an Obama Presidency

By Innocent Chia
Democratic Presidential nominee, Barack Obama was roundly criticized by the media, on the dying days of the Democratic Party primaries, for blowing his lead in the polls to then rival, Sen. Hilary Clinton. The Junior Senator from Illinois was said to be weak on his closing. Opponents and other observers wondered out loud whether he would withstand the hailstorm that was certain to come from the Republican Party and his Republican colleague, the Senior Senator from Arizona. What the soothsayers did not see coming on the last lap of this legendary marathon was an economic whirlwind that has dumbfounded both camps, mostly crippling the McCain camp. The Wall Street implosion cum main Street asphyxiation or “October Surprise”, coupled with titanic unfavorable ratings for outgoing Republican President, George W. Bush, have left McCain over-promising at campaign rallies and under-delivering at debate nights.

His most recent rally event promise is to “whip Senator Obama’s ass” at the next Presidential debate with domestic policy focus on October 15, 2008, at Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY. However, it comes on the heels of a similar, yet un-kept, promise by Sen. McCain to “take-off the gloves” for a knock out of Sen. Obama at the second debate in Nashville, TN. As that second debate unfolded to an end it was obvious that instead of taking off the gloves, the gloves fell off the hands of Sen. McCain. Sen. Obama’s apropos metaphor was that of “wheels falling off the Straight Talk express”. In the heat of this to-and-fro, the focus here and now is figuring out how Obama maintains his momentum and closes the deal on November 4th.

In the Midst of a Storm: Senator McCain & Governor Palin

By Innocent Chia
The news, as you well know, is that the poll numbers have not been good for the McCain campaign at all. Consequently, the McCain campaign is pulling out resources and conceding defeat to Obama in the hitherto contested State of Michigan. But if Gov. Sarah Palin had her say in the move to pull out resources she would stand opposed to it, especially in light of her “new found” stride within the Republican Party. This piece examines not only how Gov. Palin found her herself again and re-energized her base and the McCain camp. Of interest as well is the follow-up promise of Sen. McCain to officially take-off the gloves at the second debate on Tuesday October 7th, 2008 at the Belmont University in Nashville, TN.

PAUL BIYA II AND THE LIMBE BANK ROBBERIES

By Innocent Chia
A week-to-date on the aftermath of the multiple Bank bomb-ins in the Cameroon coastal town of Limbe, government talking heads are giving more tonic to keen observers that are not ready, and rightly so, to score the robbers with an “A” for execution. The incident on the night of September 28, 2008 did not only cost human life. The robbery of 240 million CFA frs ($515,185 or $½ a million) of taxpayer money from AMITY Bank was characterized by the Minister Delegate at the Presidency In charge of Defense, Remy Ze Meka as something that was expected. While that odd “expectation” is something worth exploring, this column will coast along the diagnosis that the Limbe thievery is a systemic plot aimed at subjecting Southern Cameroons to further fiscal bankruptcy and physical insecurity predicated on the politics of fear. But this is just the beginning of a convoluted plot by some in high quarters and the beginning of our narrative here.