1.  What's the history of the party symbols, the donkey and the elephant?
    What do they symbolise?

2.  You mentioned in class that the total number of representatives was
    unclear in some article because the representatives of the District of
    Columbia were not included in the voting.

    Does it often happen that the D.C. representatives are excluded from
    voting? In what kind of circumstances they do not vote and who decides
    when they vote and when they don't?

3.  The Bill of Rights states that "...the right of people to keep and
    bear Arms, shall not be infringed". Since the term "Arms" is not
    defined in the Constitution, how is it possible to ban certain types
    of weapons, e.g. handguns and assault rifles?  Doesn't the 2nd
    amendment basically allow one to carry a bazooka on the streets?
==============================

1.  You said in class that in presidential elections people tend to vote
    individuals rather than parties. I also read in the reference material
    that in America there is widespread distrust of parties among the
    general public. Why do you think that is?

2.  Is there a big difference in the amount of authority the president of
    United States has compared to the president of Finland? (I don't mean
    globally because that is obvious, but in domestic affairs.)

3.  In a documentary not long ago I heard about something called the
    "Three Strikes" law. How does it work, and in how many states has this
    law been utilized?
===============================

1.  United States and United Nations. Their relationship, talks about the
    US leaving the UN.

2.  The chance of a woman or someone from an ethnic minority becoming
    president. When would the voters (or politicians) be ready for that?

3.  The role of other parties. Are they more important on the state or
    local level than national level, or are they just as marginal there?
    Is there any chance of them ever being a serious threat to the major
    parties?

4.  The relationship between the US and Israel. Does it just boil down to
    there being many influential Jewish people in the States or is it more
    complicated than that? Israel seems to be free to do pretty much
    anything since it has such a powerful ally.)
================================

1.  At first I would like to ask about  election mathematics . When I read
    an article about Senate elections, I found sentences like this:

    "Ashcroft won his first election by 24 percentage points."
    "Kennedy won last time by a 17-point margin.  His Republican opponent
     is businessman Jack Robinson.  The latest state poll has Kennedy
     ahead by 52 points."
     "Akaka captured the seat four years later by a nearly three-to-one
     margin."

What is "point" or "percentage point". Is it "prosenttiyksikkö"? Let's
presume that candidate A got 75 % of votes and candidate B got 25 % of
votes. Does this mean that A won by 50 points? And that he had
three-to-one margin?  Or have I got it all wrong?

2.  Another guestion about the election for the president. I found 5
    so-called third party candidates: Constitution Party candidate Howard
    Phillips; Libertarian Party candidate Harry Browne; Natural Law Party
    candidate John Hagelin; Reform Party candidate Pat Buchanan; Green
    Party candidate Ralph Nader.  Are there still more?

3.  What is the aim (in general) of 3rd-party candidates in U.S. elections
    and what is their and their parties meaning in US politics?
==============================

1.  What is a "federal elections matching fund" - I sort of guess what it
    is but I'd like to hear a more official explanation than mine.

2.  Why do politicians go on these talk shows (Leno, Letterman, O'Brien)
    even though they are joke material in every show? Is it because "any
    publicity is better than no publicity"?

3.  How are the presidential debates organised? Is there really a company
    owned by the Republicans and Democrats behind the debates?
==============================

1.  How big is the salary of the President of United States? What about
    his enterntainment allowance for official duties? Pension?

2.  How many immigrants/refugees enter the USA every year?

3.  How many are allowed to stay, and under what circumstances?
==============================

1.  Television debates between presidential candidates have been a crucial
    part of the election for just 40 years now (the first being between
    Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy in 1960). Do the majority of people
    think these debates are always justified?  Somehow I feel sympathy
    towards the candidate that makes a mistake during the debate and thus
    is condemned to lose the election. Have any presidential candidates
    themselves tried to do away with these television debates or would it
    be too great a risk for a candidate to refuse to participate?

2.  When I was in the USA (year 95-96) I remember there being a lot of
    discussion concerning Medicare in the papers, on TV, at school, etc.
    Do people have to pay themselves to be part of this Federal health
    insurance program or is it financed with the tax money or other
    sources?  What is a 'managed care plan'? Somebody asked on the
    internet about what happens if his managed care plan leaves Medicare
    in his area.

3.  The Vice president seems to be very important for a presidential
    candidate, also in running the presidential campaign. How big a role
    does the vice president play after the election (in comparison to his
    role during the campaign)? What are his duties in office?
==================================

1.  The election campaigns, and especially the way the candidates give
    statements (for newspapers, tv and other media) about each other seem
    somewhat aggressive and kind of "inappropriate" to me - like they
    weren't grown-up, intelligent people at all! Can you come up with a
    suggestion for why things are like they are, and why is the general,
    accepted way of behaviour so different there - at least compared with
    most European countries and Scandinavia?

2.  Has any research been done on how much effect the media really has on
    the voters in general? I.e. how big is the precentage of those people
    who really don't have a clue, or who just don't care, of all voters?

3.  I read in the newspaper today that a vast number of young people in
    the States are not going to vote, because they are not interested. Why
    is that - isn't wanting to affect one's own life and using all the
    possibilities for that one of the famous "national traits" in America?
==================================

1.  As the presidential election is getting nearer and nearer, I'd like to
    know how many desks are going to be emptied at the White house? Does
    the new president (whoever he might be) bring the whole staff with
    him, from cook to janitor, or just press agents, personal assistants
    and so on? Are there some 'permanent' jobs at the White house?

2.  The United States has very much a two-party system, and the
    Republicans and Democrats are basically the only parties mentioned in
    the news. At the moment, how many representatives there are in the
    House of Representatives or the Senate that are from some smaller
    parties, or independent candidates (or are there any)?

3.  Are there any statistics on what portion of the voters use 'straight
    ticket' vs. 'split ticket' at the elections?
===================================

1.  Why is there a traditional division among the two strongest
    presidential nominees into Republicans and Democrats? Do any of the
    third parties have any realistic chances to win the election?

2.  Do people openly show whom they shall vote for? Is the secrecy of
    voting a known concept in the States?

3.  Why is it that especially Bush arouses strong antagonisms and
    opposition among Americans - some influential public figures have even
    threatened to leave the States if he is elected president?

4.  It's been said that the media has been somewhat unfair to Bush. How
    does this manifest itself?
===================================

1.  To what extent is an average American interested in politics? I read
    in the newspaper that especially young people haven't been very keen
    on registering to vote in the November election. How much does social
    status, income or educational background influence voting behaviour?

2.  I sometimes watch the Conan O'Brien show on television and now before
    the election there has been quite often jokes about the presidential
    candidates. The jokes are often quite brutal. I have been wondering
    how is it possible that they can do these things on TV, I mean has it
    got something to do with the fact that the candidates are public
    persons, so the talk show hosts can imitate them and joke about them
    as much as they like and how they like?

3.  How much power do the state governors have? In which matters do they
    have the authority to decide?

4.  The last question is inspired by the TV series West Wing: to what
    extent do the president's staff or cabinet have power over the
    decisions the president makes? Have there been any situations in the
    past where some legal or political advisor has had noticeable effect
    on the president's decisions?
=================================

1.  Foreign politics seems to be an issue that no presidential candidates
    are interested in. What are the reasons for this?

2.  I would be curious to hear more on the system of New England having
    the first primary elections and perhaps determining the direction of
    the results of the presidential race. How do people regard this
    system? Doesn't it raise a lot of controversy?

3.  The young people in the U.S. don't seem very active in politics. Are
    the candidates doing anything to try and appeal more to this group of
    potential electors - or have they simply lost their hopes when it
    comes to the young? Are politics in the U.S. more an issue of the
    older generations?
==================================

1.  Is there a "Green movement" in the U.S.A and are ecological issues
    regarded as central as in Europe today? Do the Greens have a party of
    their own or are these interests represented in the legislative
    structures through the main parties?

2.  Does the U.S.A. take any political or other refugees, and what is the
    attitude to them compared with our Somali question. I understand that
    the picture is quite different in such a multicultural country,
    especially as there is now unemployment. But does the state take
    refugees and use tax revenues for their maintenance?

3.  I would like to hear more about the local administration system, local
    taxation and services.

4.  How can you get U.S. citizenship: how long do you have to live there,
    do you have to have a job (and can you have a permanent job without
    being a U.S. citizen)?
==================================

1.  The voting percentage in the United States is usually lower compared
    to that of Finland. Naturally the fact that Americans have to register
    to vote affects this, but isn't voting regarded in the States as a
    citizen's duty and right as in Finland?

2.  People are traditionally very committed to a party in Finland. Is this
    the same in the States or do the looks and personality of a candidate
    matter more, for example, in a presidental election?

3.  Finnish media and TV shows such as "Iltalypsy" ruthlessly critisize
    and make fun of politicians. It seems that it is ok to say just about
    anything about them. Is the media in the States as cruel?
==============================

1.  How male-dominated is the political system of the US? Is the idea of a
    female president impossible?

2.  How does the principle of affirmative action work in politics?

3.  What about lobbying, activist groups and other organisations?
==============================

1.  From a Finnish point of view both the Democratic and the Republican
    Party seem to be politically quite right-wing. Is any of the smaller
    parties clearly left-wing, i.e. do they have similar ideas as the Left
    League in Finland? Does any of them support clearly communist ideas?

2.  After the death penalty was reintroduced, has any of the states which
    started to use capital punishment abolished it? Is any state likely to
    do it in the near future?

3.  How big a percentage of the American population tends to vote in
    elections? Is the percentage clearly bigger than in Finland?
==============================

1.  Where does the line go concerning jokes played at the expense of the
    president or candidates on television or other public broadcasts?
    Would the president or others retaliate in some way?

2.  Which party would young urban professionals vote for in the USA? Would
    it be the conservative (Republican) party (as in Finland) or would
    another party be more beneficial?

3.  How likely is it that an Afro-American or woman would become president
    in the near future? What are the attitudes toward these things?
==============================

1.  The Supreme Court. I understand that the (ancient) judges there are
    really the best that you can find, but on what grounds are they
    selected? Have they had some exceptional cases during their careers as
    "normal" judges or what?

2.  Americans as voters. Are they active voters? Are they differences
    between states? What about young people, do they vote a lot?

3.  The role of media. I just saw Joseph Liebermann in Conan O'Brien's
    show and it made me wonder just how important are shows like that for
    the candidates? Have there been any studies on how much the voters are
    affected by shows and interviews that concentrate on the candidates'
    personalities and their talents in telling funny stories (rather than
    their abilities in leading the country)?
==============================

1.  I was going to download a program called SecureCRT to read University
    mail at home and ran into this text... I would like to know what its
    all about.

    "This software is subject to export control and may be transmitted,
    exported, or re-exported only under applicable export laws and
    restrictions and regulations of the United States Bureau of Export
    Administration or foreign agencies or authorities. By downloading or
    using the Software, you are agreeing to comply with export controls.

    This software may not be downloaded or otherwise exported or
    re-exported to any country subject to U.S. trade sanctions governing
    the software, countries including Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North
    Korea, Sudan, Syria and Yugoslavia."

2.  Are gay rights an issue in the presidential elections and/or debates?

3.  Sex scandals of prestigeous people seem to be a trend in television
    and movies. Are there really that many sex scandals in the US or have
    Clinton and Kennedy been such influential sex offenders...
=================================

1.  I would like to know about the death penalty. How many states still
    have it and how often are the sentenced pardoned? Is the public
    opinion for or against it because both the presidential candidates
    support it?

2.  The Democrats have been in power for many years now. If Bush wins the
    election, is it likely that there will be drastic changes in foreign
    and/ or domestic politics?

3.  The role of the first lady seems to be rather crucial. Is it a mission
    impossible to run for president and be single at the same time?
=================================

1.  Is there an equivalent for the Finnish "valtakunnanoikeus" in the US?
    Is that where Clinton was prosecuted after the Lewinsky ordeal?

2.  Where do the party symbols for democrats/republicans come from?

3.  Do young people take active part in party politics? What about
    politics in the colleges?
=================================

These relate to a Frontline documentary story on election financing called
"Washington's Other Scandal" that I'm subtitling . I've been able to find
most of the political vocabulary, but want to check these two things.

1.  When talking about advertising, what does "points of coverage" exactly
    mean, as in "We spent a couple of million to run a thousand points of
    coverage, which means everybody saw the ads 3-4 times." Is it just a
    thousand spots or is it more complicated than that?

2.  What is "personal validation"? Clinton says to contributors: "No
    matter what anybody tells you, personal validation still counts for a
    lot in this old world, and not everybody can have dinner with the
    president." Is it personal connections or promises or something
    completely different?
==================================

1.  When and how did the U.S. get its flag?

2.  Where does it go back to that there are two strong political parties
    in the U.S.? Has it always been that way? How did they originally
    differ from each other?

3.  The presidential candidates promise many things in their campaigns.
    How much power do they really have over for example defining the tax
    rates and medicare?
===================================

1. Which political party do you usually vote for?

2. How big is the Libertarian Party compared to the two major parties?

3. What kind of effects will the 2000 presidential election have?