Category Archives: LDVUSA

Learning lessons from the US elections: four legal differences you need to know

By Mark Pack | Published 19th January 2012 - 10:56 am

With a new American Presidential cycle producing, as ever, near obsessional coverage (and ignoring other more important electoral news), now is a good time to update a post from the last cycle about learning lessons from the US:

This year is already seeing all sorts of prognostications about the lessons UK political parties and campaigners can and should be drawing.

However, many of the differences between American and British election campaigns are not the result of American campaigners having good ideas the British should copy, but rather are the result of four key legal differences between the two countries.

First – and …

Continue reading »
Also posted in Election law, Op-eds | 3 Comments

You know what we’re doing wrong? We’ve not introduced tax breaks for wooden arrows

By Mark Pack | Published 11th January 2012 - 4:55 pm

What do we want? Section 503.
When do we want it? Now.

Oh, you want to know what Section 503 is? Read here.

Tagged | Leave a comment

The weekend debate: Would Mitt Romney make a better President than Barack Obama?

By Carl Quilliam | Published 29th October 2011 - 8:55 am

Here’s your starter for ten in our weekend slot where we throw up an idea or thought for debate…

Over the last three years Obama has had to concede much of his programme to Republicans in Congress. His healthcare reforms had to be significantly watered down even before Republicans won back the House of Representatives in 2010. And the reforms themselves have since acted as a lightning rod for criticism of the President.

Obama is struggling to get the economy going again amid continued turbulence in the global economy and unemployment is staying stubbornly high despite the massive £800 billion stimulus package. …

Continue reading »
Also posted in Op-eds | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

LDVideo: The West Wing explains the US debt ceiling in under 60 seconds

By Stephen Tall | Published 31st July 2011 - 11:35 am

Everything you needed to know about the current ‘epiphenomenal imbroglio’ ((C) Will Self at 0:48 here) engulfing the US economy, courtesy series 6 of The West Wing:


(Also available on YouTube here.)

And as a special treat, here’s a bonus West Wing clip of presidential contenders Santos and Vilnick debating ‘liberalism’ — all together now: “I will pick up that label and wear it as a badge of honour.”


(Also on YouTube here.)

Also posted in YouTube | Tagged | 3 Comments

Even left-wing politicians will be hoping Newt Gingrich turns out to be a role model

By Mark Pack | Published 23rd June 2011 - 8:15 am

Newt Gingrich, a right-winger whose bid to become US President looks to be crashing and burning after many of his senior staff walked out on his campaign, is not an obvious role model for British politicians, especially those not on the right.

But at heart quite a few all across the political spectrum would, I suspect, be rather pleased if he ends up doing well. That’s because the cause of the falling out is Gingrich’s insistence on doing two things that will strike a chord with many politicians and a fear into many election agents.

Continue reading »
Tagged | 1 Comment

This is not a negative advert

By Mark Pack | Published 13th February 2011 - 9:55 am

The political advertising put out by people who disdain negative ads is often too self-consciously worthy to be effective. John Hickenlooper’s advert as part of his successful run for Governor of Colorado however was rather different – and was rated as being very effective by those watching the race:

It is, of course, not a patch on the Luis Fishman advert which has to be seen to be believed. Fishman lost, perhaps not surprisingly.

Tagged , | 3 Comments

It’s not only in the House of Lords where filibustering is an issue

By Mark Pack | Published 28th January 2011 - 3:25 pm

Labour’s filibustering in the House of Lords in many ways echoes the current tactics of Republicans in the Senate: using delaying tactics to avoid issues coming to a vote when they know they will almost certainly lose a vote when it comes.

The Wall Street Journal reports how the US version is being addressed:

Senate leaders announced on Thursday a package of rule changes that seek to reduce the stalemate and gridlock that has characterized the chamber in recent years.

But lawmakers failed to agree on a limitation to the use of the filibuster—the right of any senator to hold up any

…

Continue reading »
3 Comments

LDVUSA: The mid-term view from Boston

By Paul Elgood | Published 3rd November 2010 - 7:50 am

Paul Elgood is a Lib Dem councillor in Brighton & Hove, but has been out in Boston, in the USA, watching closely observing the mid-term elections. Here’s his early morning dispatch…

Four years ago, Boston politics looked very different. Teddy Kennedy had just won what was to be his last campaign, Congressman Barney Frank romped re-election to make it 26 years in Congress, and new Governor Deval Patrick, backed by a then little-known Senator called Barack Obama won the State House, following on from Republican Mitt Romney.

Obama’s historic election followed just two years later, but so too did the …

Continue reading »
4 Comments

Opinion: The Tea Party – lessons for the Liberal Democrats

By David Boyle | Published 30th October 2010 - 9:25 am

The Tea Party movement is even now preparing for its first big electoral test.  Banners are being printed, bumper stickers peeled, computerised push-pollers tested.

They are a frightening prospect for European liberals.  Perhaps any foreign radical movement looks bizarre to outsiders, but the combination of Sarah Palin, red-neck fundamentalists and the shadowy Koch brothers with their billions is a fearsome prospect.

Yet the Tea Party has lessons for us, even if it doesn’t make its way over here – which in some form or another it seems likely to do.

Continue reading »
Also posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 10 Comments

Opinion: What the US midterms do (and don’t) mean for the Liberal Democrats

By Fred Carver | Published 17th October 2010 - 2:44 pm

I’ve heard a few Liberal Democrats express concern about the mid-term election results. The fear, as it has been expressed to me, is that Cleggmania had a lot of superficial similarities to Obamamania – it was a campaign based on hope, by a progressive liberal who offered something new, and it led to the formation of a government. Seeing Obamamania apparently swept away in a surge of vehemently conservative tea-partyers, several Lib Dems fear that the same fate could befall them at the next election.
I think this is simplistic.

Continue reading »
Also posted in Op-eds | Tagged | 9 Comments

US political TV ad puts Twitter centre-stage

By Mark Pack | Published 16th September 2010 - 2:54 pm

Facebook too gets a walk-on role in this Iowa Senate TV advert:

If the ad makes you want to follow him on Twitter, his account @grassleyworks is here.

Also posted in Online politics | Tagged , | Leave a comment

LDVUSA: California’s Proposition 8 overturned

By Alex Foster | Published 5th August 2010 - 3:01 pm

America’s gay rights activists were celebrating last night as a judge re-legalised gay marriage, making the latest step in the long-running battle in the US and the state of California.

Previously, legal gay marriage had been granted to Californians following successful legal challenge on discrimination grounds of the rules that meant marriage was only available to heterosexual couples.

Only after thousands of gay Californians had tied the knot did anti-gay activists manage to get a proposition on the ballot paper last to ask voters whether gay marriage should be disallowed.  By a narrow margin, Californians voted to end homogamy in their state …

Continue reading »
Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Opinion: Tax – the next big political battle in the US

By Paul Walter | Published 1st August 2010 - 3:22 pm

Tax is emerging as the next big battleground in the US Congress. George Bush’s “tax cuts for the rich” expire at the end of the year. Obama proposes extending them for everyone except those earning over $250,000 (couples) / $200,000 (singles). That means only the top 2% revert to their previous tax rates (about 4 percentage points up on the situation now). The Republicans want all the Bush tax cuts to be maintained and, indeed, extended to everyone.

Well, I suppose we can be relieved that, after simply naysaying all Obama’s proposals for a year, the Republicans have at last come …

Continue reading »
5 Comments

If Twitter is just another way of sending out news…

By Mark Pack | Published 23rd June 2010 - 10:20 am

For some people and organisations Twitter has become, at least in part, simply another way of sending out timely news. Issue a news release? Check. Put it on website? Check. Send out tweet with headline and link back to site? Check.

All sounds fairly typical and unexceptional and if you’d asked me a few days ago I wouldn’t have added an exception or caveat to that sort of process, even if it didn’t involve a formal press release or link. If you treat Twitter as an outlet for official, timely news then that’s how you use it. I say “a few …

Continue reading »
Also posted in Online politics | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Book review: learning from the Obama and McCain online advertising campaigns

By Mark Pack | Published 2nd March 2010 - 10:20 am

Campaign ’08: A Turning Point For Digital Media is a slim volume by Kate Kaye, senior news editor at ClickZ, taking an in-depth look at the online advertising used in the 2008 Presidential contest for the primaries and then the general election.

Though the book touches on other aspects of internet campaigning, what makes it stand out from the crowd of competing volumes is its focus on advertising.

It starts with a reminder that there is only one John McCain: the McCain mocked in 2008 for not getting online campaigning is the same McCain who was feted in 2000 for getting online campaigning. Indeed, in many ways it was his 2000 campaign that put online political fundraising on the agenda in the US, just as Howard Dean’s 2004 campaign put online organising on the agenda.

Continue reading »
Also posted in Books, Online politics | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment