Current Events and the Psychology of Politics
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Dec 22nd, 2009

Summary: The 2010 election cycle’s first poll in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District race for U.S. Representative has been released. The survey, conducted December 17-20, 2009, shows 53% of U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann’s constituents approve of the job she is doing. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on December 22, 2008, Aubrey Immelman reported that the brother of Muntadhar al-Zeidi, the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at President George W. Bush, claimed al-Zeidi’s apology letter was written against his will after he was tortured in detention. The shoe-throwing incident received worldwide media coverage and al-Zeidi became a potent symbol for opponents of the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq.


Nov 18th, 2009

Summary: Like most of the mainstream media complicit in propagating a superficial, sanitized image of U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, CNN has taken the bait. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on November 18, 2008, Aubrey Immelman reported that Iran praised the Iraqi Cabinet for approving a U.S-Iraq status-of-forces agreement and that Michael Hanna, an analyst at the Century Foundation in New York, said a continuing but finite presence of U.S. troops in Iraq could benefit Iran because it provides “retaliatory options” as Tehran pursues a nuclear program opposed by the West.


Oct 29th, 2009

Summary: Recently, the New York Times published a poorly researched, superficial, misleading, mostly puff piece on U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, titled “A G.O.P. agitator not named Palin” (Oct. 14, 2009). Bill Prendergast’s responds. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 11th day of his write-in campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman posted his candidate information from the St. Cloud Times Voter Guide.



Summary: Video montage of the bizarre Rep. Michele Bachmann’s more memorable televised statements of the past year, accompanied by the soundtrack of the song “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the 23rd day of his 2008 campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman provided a forum for Sauk Rapids resident Jason Krueger, who volunteers as the Minnesota representative for the Fluoride Action Network, to express his views on the issue of water fluoridation. As a public service announcement to help draw attention to the sacrifice of National Guard citizen soldiers serving in Iraq and the families they leave behind, Immelman featured Part 4 of the Associated Press series, “The Longest Deployment” (the story of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division of the Minnesota National Guard and its tour of duty in Iraq).


Jul 27th, 2009

Summary: First in a two-part series examining the outlook for the 2010 U.S. House of Representatives election in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District. Part I surveys the political environment in which the contest will take place. Part II, to follow closer to the election, will take a look at the candidates. … One-year retrospective: On the 13th day of his campaign against U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination as House of Representatives candidate in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Sunday, July 27, 2008, Aubrey Immelman posted a public service announcement to help raise funds for memorials in honor of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan and observed a day of rest.


Jul 16th, 2009

Summary: U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, in addition to three likely Democratic opponents (Elwyn Tinklenberg, Maureen Reed, and Tarryl Clark), also faces a battle on a second front — a primary challenge from within the Republican Party (Chris Johnston and possibly Aubrey Immelman). … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on the second day of his 2008 campaign against incumbent U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, Aubrey Immelman discussed the challenges for a self-funded political outsider in setting up a campaign office, building a campaign organization, and introducing himself to voters.


May 9th, 2009

Summary: Can U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) be defeated in the 2010 U.S. House of Representatives election in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District? Yes, but not by a Democrat in the general election. Rep. Bachmann is most vulnerable in the primary election against a more moderate Republican challenger. The trump card for Bachmann opponents is Minnesota’s open primary system. With no party registration in Minnesota, self-identified Democrats and Independents are able to vote in the Republican primary against Bachmann, joining forces with disaffected Republican voters. The fact that Bachmann did not receive a majority of the votes in either the primary (47.2%) or the general election (46.4%) in 2008 underscores her vulnerability.


Apr 30th, 2009

Summary: Information about the H1N1 novel virus (swine flu) pandemic, including links to news reports and resources.