4 ri-%% MB I AMirA I I ifVIAA m Jimrm i 111101 October 25,2004 V0L.45 N 0.4 Election day sacred day in academia By Kathryn Herr Editor in Chief kah92B@psu.edu On Oct. 14, 2004 the Student Government Senate unani mously passed a resolution entitled “The Election Day Resolution.” “There was a loud yes vote from the entire sen ate,” said Rodney Horton, SGA president. The resolution urges the faculty to avoid scheduling exams and major assignments due during the week of the presidential election. SGA decided to introduce the resolution to give students a chance to vote in the elections even if they have to go back to their hometowns to participate. “We aim high in hopes that the faculty will at least give us the day of elections even if they can’t do the whole week,” said Horton. SGA developed their resolu tion from a similar resolution passed in the SGA at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College. “We wanted to reach out to those who see Nov. 2 as a regular day because it is not just a regular day,” said Horton. “It is an empowering day.” Dean Madlyn Hanes and Assistant Provost Dr. Bill Mahar are supporting the resolution and are joining SGA in their call for the resolution to be observed. “I’ve never missed a vote,” said Horton. “I want to give stu dents the same opportunity to vote in this election.” What’s on 7 Baseball playoffs; October brings in the regulars. PSH Intramurals offers escape from school stress. What’s on 9 The Capital Times visits North Street Zephyr Express in Harrisburg. Review inside. Presidential debates to be debated By Nat Melincove Staff Reporter ncml2B@psu.edu The umbrella topic of foreign policy and homeland security welcomed the first presidential debate between President Bush and Senator John Kerry with much ballyhoo and more bang to follow. The exchanges were pointed and the attacks relentless in Coral Gables. Kerry was highly critical of the president’s han dling of the “war on terror” while Bush maintained his stance that the American people need a president that will be firm in the face of terror. “I don’t see how you can lead this country to success in the war in Iraq if you say ‘wrong war, wrong place, wrong time,'” Bush said. “The way to win this is to be steadfast and resolved.” Bush went further by explaining Kerry’s indecisiveness on the war. He said the senator voted for the invasion of Iraq and voted against the $B7 billion ear marked for war and reconstruc tion in Afghanistan and Iraq. Kerry came back with perhaps his best line of the night. “I made a mistake in how I talk about the war,” he said. “But the president made a mistake in invading Iraq. Which is worse?” The 90-minute debate was the first of four between the cam paigns. Bush and Kerry argued in two others, while Vice President Dick Cheney faced Kerry’s running mate Senator John Edwards in their own debate. The University of Miami played initial host to the candidates and veteran moderator Jim Lehrer of News Hour on PBS. Lehrer chose the topics and underlying subjects to amass his own ques tions, not shown to anyone prior to the debate. Many wondered if Lehrer, going into his 10th presi dential debate, would ask more pointed questions than he has in Rendell speaks out about upcoming election events By John Fox Staff Reporter jtfls3@psu.psu With the presidential election around the corner, politicians at all levels of government are busier than usual. Some of those duties include doing appear ances in support of their party’s candidate or fielding additional interview requests from college journalists. One such busy public official is Pennsylvania governor Edward G. Rendell. Rendell spoke with one such college journalist in his office at the Pa. capitol building about his accom plishments, musical interests, and relationships with the people of Dauphin County. Elections loom ominously in the hearts and minds of all Americans so it seemed natural to ask if Rendell planed to run for a second term in 2006. “As of right now I do," said Rendell. “I am pleased that in the first 20 months I’ve accom plished all five of my major cam paign promises and would like to the past. The topics of the night were the war in Iraq, terrorism, foreign pol icy and homeland security. These were all areas where Bush was considered to have an advantage according to poll sters. The evening’s greatest exchange dealt with Bush’s criti- Presidential candidates John Kerry and George Bush shake hands after a heated debate. This year’s presidential debates have been the cause of much debate over who dominates the popular vote. Although there is contradiction about who is win ning, America will vote on Nov. 2, 2004. cism of Kerry being an unfit com mander-in-chief because of his wavering stance oDn the war on terror. “You cannot lead if you send mixed messages. Mixed mes sages send the wrong signals to be around to see these pro grams implemented. The educa tion program for early childhood just started and I would like to see it run successfully. The 2.3 billion dollar economic stimulus program has all been passed into law but the implementation will take 3 or 4 years. I want to be around for that. The gaming and property tax reduction hasn’t been implemented yet. I would like to be around to implement that.” Rendell’s enthusiasm to see his programs through completion suggests that he will more than likely run for a second term, though he said he will weigh in health and family considerations when formally announcing his decision in January of 2006. The middle class has become a battle ground during this presi dential campaign, especially since the middle class tradition ally votes Republican. Democrat John Kerry is aggressively going after that vote by promising huge tax relief to this financially bur dened demographic while Rendell discussed the our troops. Mixed messages send the wrong signals to our allies. Mixed messages send the wrong signals to the Iraqi citi zens. And that’s my biggest con cern about my opponent,” Bush said. “There must be certainty from the U.S. president.” Kerry had a quick response for the ideological incumbent. “You can be certain and be wrong. And certainty sometimes can get you in trouble,” he said. In his introduction the president said, “I’ve shown the American people I know how to lead. I understand everybody in this Republican strategy. “In terms of the middle class, I think the Republicans have done a very good job in various cam paigns,” said Rendell, “even going back to 1994 when Newt Gingrich and the Republicans took back control of the con gress. They've done a very good job propagandizing. For exam ple, they use the term etax and spend fiscally irresponsible Democrats. Well, that’s just not in accord with the facts. Clinton eliminated the deficit. It was zeroed out,” he said. Rendell said that with a Republican president and Republicans controlling both houses of congress, the country has the largest deficit in the country’s history. He said, “So, who are the fis cally responsible ones, Democrats or Republicans? Clearly, the Democrats. Yet, if you polled the middle class on who could best manage their money, Democrats or Republicans, they’d say Republicans because the Republicans have done a very country doesn’t agree with the decisions I’ve made, and I made some tough decisions. But peo ple know where I stand. People out there listening know what I believe, and that’s how best it is to keep the peace.” Kerry instantly cited two major concerns with the administra tion’s handling of the war: the Photo courtesy of Yahoo images inability to capture al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden due to their focus on Iraq and the loss of alliances crucial to keeping the peace around the world. “We had Osama bin Laden cor nered in the mountains of Tora Photo by Jennifer Kauffman Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell good propaganda job.” Rendell said that the typical middle class voter would also side with the Republicans with respect to national defense. To expose this belief as fallacy, he Please see GOV. on 2 Bora,” the senator said. “With the American military forces nearby and in the field, we didn’t use the best-trained troops in the world to go kill the world’s No. 1 crimi nal and terrorist.” Kerry said Bush “outsourced the job to Afghan warlords, who only a week earlier had been on the other side fighting against Kerry was insistent in reiterating that the president had misled the country into war. Kerry was not as clear in his plans for Iraq, a problem most undecided voters cited. He only offered that his approach to Iraq would offer the county a “fresh start and new credibility.” Bush said his opponent did not understand the global war on ter ror. The president’s message in avoiding another 9/11 was deter mined, confident and resolute. A Gallup/CNN/USA Today poll of voters who had just witnessed the debate found that 53 percent thought Kerry did a better job, opposed to 37 percent for Bush. The survey consisted of 615 reg istered voters and the margin of error was plus or minus 4 per centage points. The senator was not long-wind ed in his remarks and replies, dropping a long-held undesirable label of his debate style. With his control of the room, many debate critics believe Kerry prevented Bush from putting the election away. The president has a history of solid debate performances, indicative of his strong debate team. The simpler style of Bush is said to be more appealing to voters. His short, quick answers make his message come across with more clarity. A major criticism of the presi dent’s performance was his facial expressions and the angry, frustrated tone in his replies. As Kerry spoke, the president was caught puckering his lips and gri- Please see VOTE on 5 Contents World View 3 Political Cartoon 5 River Trip 6 Baseball Playoffs 7 Penn State Football 8 Hot Spot CD Review Movie Review Campus Calendar 11
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers