Posts by Dr. Eric Ostermeier
Michele Bachmann Appears on National Cable TV Every 9 Days
With her A-block interview on health care reform on Fox News’ Hannity program Tuesday evening, Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann has now equaled in 7+ months in 2009 the number of national cable television news appearances she made in all of…
Read MoreHow Long Before Brett Favre Gets a Job Approval Rating?
With future Hall of Famer Brett Favre signing a two-year contract with the Minnesota Vikings this week, the Gopher State’s most popular sports franchise is now officially led by the former face of its most hated rival, the Green Bay…
Read MoreWill Minnesota and Wisconsin Elect Governors from the Same Political Party in 2010?
Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle’s official announcement on Monday that he would not be seeking a third term created not only a newfound battle for the Democratic nomination, but also a scenario whereby the Badger and Gopher States will both…
Read MoreAl Franken Receives First Grade As U.S. Senator: Minnesotans Split Down the Middle
As DFL Senator Al Franken inched into office by the narrowest of margins, both he and 2008 Republican opponent Norm Coleman endured negative net favorability ratings as their expensive, and frequently brutal campaigns gained neither candidate favor with a majority…
Read MoreCan the DFL End Its Gubernatorial Drought?
With House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher’s announcement that she is now officially in the 2010 gubernatorial race, the DFL adds yet another hopeful face to end a near quarter-century drought since the party last won the prized statewide office in…
Read MoreMinnesota Leads Midwest in Birth-to-Death Ratio; Will Its 8th U.S. House Seat Be Saved?
With the U.S. Census and reapportionment just around the corner, reports have come out during the past year, including data from Minnesota’s own state demographer, that indicate the Gopher State is in real danger of losing a seat in the…
Read MoreIs Barack Obama the World’s President?
With Monday’s news conference in Guadalajara, Mexico with Mexican President Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, President Barack Obama continues to build on his record number of press conferences held outside of the United States….
Read MoreRepublican Opposition to Sotomayor Marks Largest Supreme Court Confirmation Vote Dissent in GOP History
Last week’s vote in the U.S. Senate confirming Sonia Sotomayor as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court was noteworthy foremost, of course, for Sotomayor being the first Hispanic and third woman to serve on the Court. But the Senate…
Read MoreEt Tu Minnesota? Klobuchar Disapproval Rating Soars to Record High After Franken Is Seated
As unemployment continued to rise and economic and budget concerns reached near crisis levels across most states, several U.S. Senators, both Democrats and Republicans, saw their approval ratings slip noticeably during the first several months of 2009. One of the…
Read MoreRepublican Senators Ignore ‘Hispanic Effect’ in Sotomayor Confirmation Vote
In the months after President Barack Obama’s selection of Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court, political analysts and even a few Republicans (e.g. Joe Scarborough) have characterized GOP opposition to and harsh questioning of the new Associate Justice as…
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