Election Day in the USA is about to dawn, and for the political junkie Tuesday will be a day to lay in the provisions and sit down to the evening’s pontification and punditry.
I’ve long loved watching election coverage; I’m a bit of a wonk that way. While I have cured myself of the need to watch CPAC’s coverage of obscure provincial races in places through the years (though I once did sit through election returns from the Yukon race one year) the US Election is obviously one of those great events that can’t be missed by the truly dedicated.
Besides the fact that a whole world is watching the exercise in democracy of our neighbours, and the stakes for the planet as always are high when they vote. The US Election coverage is always high drama, occasional farce and just down right good entertainment.
Back in the day of Peter and Tom and Dan, the big three networks would battle it out for the first call of the night. Occasionally wrong, they would look at the camera, wipe off the egg and continue on with the program. On to the next issue, the next race, the next state. The truly dedicated of the political junkies would sit up late into the evening with them, click, click, click to see who had what rumour right, which guest had the best analysis and who could read the tea leaves in the best fashion.
The cast of characters has changed since then, but the dynamic of election night coverage is very much the same as it was when Edward R. Murrow, Walter Cronkite and a host of other pioneers would peer into the camera and tell the nation what had just happened.
Now there are so many options for the political follower that the regular networks have a trouble keeping up, let alone competing. From Fox News Channel to CNN and MSNBC, the cable news cycle offers up its particular brand of detail and spin. Add to that the plethora of internet sites to help keep you informed and it’s a full time job just trying to catch up.
Having moved over to satellite from our former cable service, this will be the first US election that I’ll be able to compare the right wing spin and rhetoric of the Fox broadcast, up against the more mainstream offerings of the regular networks and the long time staple of the cable news wars CNN. If the Republicans should stumble as many suggest they may, then it will be interesting to see how Rupert Murdoch’s crew handle the developments in their “fair and balanced ways.”
Indeed, the talk on this election eve is of the possibility that the Democrats will take both the House and the Senate. Leaving the divided Blue and Red States not only more divided, but set for two years of a lame duck presidency, a situation which very well could result in the ultimate of checks and balances of a system. Not exactly as designed by the early framers of the U. S. Constitution, a document which sometimes seems to be under attack by its current day legislators.
There are key races across the fifty states, issues of great importance in some and pointless silliness in others. Questions as well, including whether the patchwork of voting procedures in different states will render a true verdict of the people or raise more questions for debate after the election.
Winners and losers on Tuesday, will have their immediate and long term futures stare back at them in the glare of the television spotlight. Potential future Presidents and definite future footnotes, they all will share in the drama of the evening.
If I actually was the kind of person who got calls; my answering machine would be picking them up tomorrow night. I’ll be far too busy switching between television and computer all night long, following all the action. No brand loyalty here, its mindless surfing and browsing all night long and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
The beer fridge has been stocked and there is popcorn for the poppin, bring on the charts, the video clips and the observations. I'm one junkie looking for information!
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