Ron Paul is Back and Siding with the Republicans

Rachel Maddow is now reporting that libertarian Presidential nominee and party leader, Ron Paul, is joining forces with the Republican party in order to work together to challenge the current economic recession. Recently, conservatives have been trying to "teabag," yes, teabag, Congress and the White House in order to make a change in Obama's current economic policy.

Paul is hoping to end the Federal Reserve System and to somehow return to the policies of the Gold Standard. This is fairly impossible to do, in my perspective, in such a global economy. In addition, he, like most conservative fiscal policy supporters, is protesting against the rise in income taxes.

Maddow covered this segment in a somewhat mocking tone, which isn't surprising, considering her support of the Democratic party. I found the segment fairly funny, especially the clip of a Fox News anchor telling viewers to "teabag" the current administration. I'm still not quite sure what the real message of doing that is! Um, suggesting Americans to go back to colonial protesting strategies, I presume? However, she did cover Ron Paul, which is providing some kind of bipartisan coverage to her show, even if she's not a fan of conservatives.

Obama Taking Away Rights of Prisoners

Tonight, on the Rachel Maddow Show, Maddow is discussing the issue of Habeas Corpus and whether these rights should be given to "third country prisoners." Although Obama has said before his election that he wanted third country prisoners to retain human rights and access to a courtroom trial, he is now repealing the rights of prisoners in Bagram, Afghanistan, a Guantanamo Bay kind of prison.

This is one of the first times I've seen Rachel Maddow disagree with Obama, so as a Communications student, I find this coverage especially interesting. As someone who is known as one of the most influential liberal news anchors, it is kind of a big deal that she is having such a large segment discussing the negative outcomes of the decision Obama made on Friday.

Maddow is worried that Obama will follow the Bush Administration's lead on interrogation of prisoners. In addtion, she noted how many policies Obama has agreed with Bush on lately, which seemed to trouble her. She hopes that Obama will rethink his decision before everything becomes official regarding the issue later in the week.

Although this is a tough issue since it involves morals and ethics, I agree with Maddow, and not Obama. Even though the prisoners of Bagram are indeed, prisoners, this doesn't mean they are no longer people in the eyes of the law. Whether one is a prisoner on United States soil or in Bagram, he or she deserves proper treatment, in addition to having an option to have a fair and equal trial.

Obama Making Efforts at Global Diplomacy

Tonight, on the Rachel Maddow Show, Rachel discussed Obama's efforts at new global diplomacy, a diplomacy where no country is excluded. According to the show, the time when the United States and Russia were "enemies" are now over. In addition, Obama plans to work with China to work hand in hand to improve the current economic crisis.

Coincidentally, Rachel interviewed Colin Powell earlier than day, and he was able to share great wisdom on Obama's efforts to spread diplomacy, especially in areas where our reputation has withered away. Powell praised Obama for attempting to improve relations with Afghanistan, despite our failures and war on their soil. He believes that improving relations with the Middle East, with leaders from Afghanistan and Pakistan, is essential, even if they were or still are our enemies.

From a communications standpoint, this story is certainly framed to make Obama and his efforts of diplomacy look good. Although this should be expected from a liberal political analyst, I think Obama is doing a great thing in trying to heal wounds with the Middle East, Russia, and China. Nowadays, everything is global. We can't afford to have enemies around every corner, nor would it help us in any way. Having alliances will also help the current recession by having countries aroumd the world giving ideas and help. Working closely with China and Russia especially is a great step for the United States, and I look forward to seeing our countries accepting one another, rather than feuding with each other.

The State of the Unions

Tonight on, "The Rachel Maddow Show," Ms. Maddow discussed the potentially controversial Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA.) If this legislation is passed, it will be easier for employees within a business to create and form unions. While Democrats support this bill, Republicans firmly oppose it. Senator John McCain even suggested the Act was anti-democracy and even, "dangerous for America." Some Republican politicians even see this as worse than the highly opposed stimulus bill and Obama's budget plan.

Isn't the freedom to organize unions one of the basic rights of an American? Are the Republicans catching on to something we don't see, or are they just overreacting to stand the ground of their party?

Are both parties going to be this finnicky for the next four years? Can't we all just get along?