The "S" Word

Americans are dissatisfied with the state of the economy – a topic that is bound to receive considerable attention this election season.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of people embark on extended hiking expeditions; consequently, they are often in the wilderness during election season. Long distance hikers, called “thru-hikers,” travel on the popular Appalachian Trail (AT), Continental Divide Trail (CDT) and among Inyo County California treasures’ - the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) and John Muir Trail (JMT).

We all know by now the 2016 election has been historic for many reasons. Revolutions called for, walls promised, and glass ceilings shattered. Now we are eyeing a possibility that third parties get 10% or beyond of the popular vote (most experts will take the under, I’ll be saucy and take the over).

The day after Vice President Joe Biden announced at a White House press conference with Mr. Obama and Mrs. Biden at his side, that he wouldn’t run for president, Senator Lindsay Graham, Republican of South Carolina, who was still in the race for president, was interviewed in Iowa by a reporter who asked, “What do you think of Joe Biden?”

Senator Graham answered, “Joe Biden is the best human being I’ve ever met. If anyone has a problem with Joe Biden, they need help.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Better For America was launched against the backdrop of the deeply divisive campaigns of the two most unpopular presidential candidates in modern history, and the widespread dissatisfaction of the American electorate. The mission of BFA was to keep the electoral window open through the summer, and allow a leader to emerge to restore honor, integrity, and unifying and principled leadership to the 2016 presidential election cycle.

© 2016 by Hedrick Smith. Republished with permission from the author. Smith is the executive editor of reclaimtheamericandream.org.

Last week, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump proposed congressional term limits.

"I hear it from more and more people," Trump said of term limits for federal legislators. "We're going to take a very serious look at that."

San Diego, CALIF.- The Editorial Board at the San Diego Union Tribune has taken to task the Clinton Foundation and by proxy, the special interests that have dominated our current political landscape.

The editorial focuses on the 2010 Citizens United decision, where a “bitterly divided Supreme Court ruled that corporations have political speech rights and shouldn’t have limits on their independent political expenditures.”

This week, the bipartisan Commission on Presidential Debates announced what polls it will utilize in excluding candidates from its debates.

The CPD says candidates like the Libertarian Party’s Gary Johnson and the Green Party’s Jill Stein must get 15 percent in polls conducted by “five national public opinion polling organizations” — ABC/Washington Post, CBS/New York Times, CNN/Opinion Research Corporation, Fox News, and NBC/Wall Street Journal.

As with past election cycles, third party and independent candidates – as well as initiatives aimed at reducing the power of the two major parties – are struggling to achieve access to general election ballots. In some cases, this is the result of general apathy toward specific parties, candidates, or reforms.