Articles filed under “Politics”

Extravaganzaaaa.

So we’re all back to campus for the post-fall break grind, some of us a little worse for wear. To all who survived for days without electricity or heat, eating ramen and doing thesis reading by candlelight: RESPECT. To all who stayed on campus and experienced a full 3 traumatizing minutes of losing power: get out of the Bubble (please, let’s). To all who spent fall break on free class trips to Shanghai, Yellowstone, etc: don’t rub it in.

(Actually though, way to choose classes like a boss. May we all be so lucky in this semester‘s course selection.)

We know it’s hard getting back into the swing of things. But whether you’re pumped for classes, still fazed from the hurricane, or out celebrating Jersey-lloween right now, UPC wants to make sure you don’t miss out on the most crucial day of the week: Election Day! Voting time! The future of America in your hands! Princeton’s got loads of political activity lined up over the next few days, and we’ve compiled it all for you here:

  • VOTING. If you’re registered to vote on campus and didn’t read Dean Dunne’s email, check this campus map to see where you should cast your ballot tomorrow. Essentially everyone who lives on campus should be voting in Icahn Lab – unless you’re living in one of the eating clubs, in which case you’ll vote in the COS building by the Friend Center. Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Bring your prox!
  • Election Night. Whig-Clio is hosting a viewing party “extravaganza” from 7 p.m. on in Whig Hall. If you’re a die-hard Democrat or Republican, head to the basement or third floor respectively, where the College Dems and Republicans will be headquartered. If you’re more moderate or just intimidated by the aggressive political debater kids, show up for free stuff! They’ll have pizza, red and blue cupcakes, and free election themed drawstring backpacks from 7:30 on.

Continue reading…

Nov 5, 2012

Princeton and the President: Election Day Roundup

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“Presidential Bicker” 2012

Hey politicos, excited for tonight’s presidential debate? Concerned about the future of America? Aware of the huge debate viewing party taking place in Richardson Auditorium with commentary from Anne-Marie Slaughter?

Too swamped with problem sets and midterms to attend?

We at UPC have got your back – tonight we’ve embedded ourselves on both red and blue sides of Richardson Auditorium, and we’ll be liveblogging not just the presidential debate, but Princeton’s live reactions too. We’re on standby for campus verbatim too, so if you’ve got any witty jokes, fact-checking action, overheard commentary or Big Bird jokes, send them our way! Email pressclb@princeton.edu, tweet @UnivPressClub, or post ‘em in the comments. Show us what you’ve got, Princeton.

8:29 PM

Zach Beecher ’13 introduces campus fave Anne-Marie Slaughter. She’s sitting on the Democrats’ side of the auditorium, but chose to dress in classy neutral (black) instead of red or blue tonight. Cheers for her from both sides.

- AYS

8:33 PM

AMS says we’re likely to hear questions pointed at specific foreign policy issues tonight – when are we getting out of Afghanistan? How much support will we show for Israel? What about Iran? Romney and Obama actually don’t disagree dramatically on these questions, Slaughter says. “On the specifics, you’re not likely to hear a big difference.”

8:39 PM

AMS gives bipartisan credit for effective anti-terrorism policy. “I think we can ask Americans on this, ‘How do you feel? Do you feel safer 4 years ago than 10 years ago? I think the answer’s going to be yes.”

8:41 PM 

AMS on Clinton’s apology: “She was right to say that and frankly that’s the woman I work for. She had to step up and own it…but president can’t hide behind secretary of state. It would surprise me and be a bad political move to say, ‘Oh yeah, that was Hillary’s fault.’”

- LZ

8:42 PM

Second speaker! AMS wraps up with a shout-out to Hillary Clinton (“She’ll step up and own it”) and final point that there won’t be a huge axis of difference between Obama and Romney, but that Barack will offer a solid debate. Now we’ve got politics and international affairs professor John Londregan on stage. He wasn’t too fond of Romney’s 47% comments or of the left’s depiction of Republicans as “clinging to their guns,” he says. What solution does he offer for those who aren’t huge fans of either candidate this year?

“I am hopeful that in 2024 or 30, in some years, two of you will be competing candidates!” High hopes…

- AYS

8:56 pm

Oh, some commentary on the actual scene here: full house! American flags hanging from the balcony, red and blue balloon arches at the from doors of Richardson, CARDBOARD CUTOUTS of Michelle and Barack for photo ops (was there a Romney one on the other side? I didn’t see) and free foam fingers! There’s a pretty visible chunk of kids wearing red or blue in the front rows, but everyone else behind looks more neutral. In terms of dress, at least. We’ll see how the audience vibe goes when the actual debate starts.

- AYS

8:58 pm

The second speaker is talking for a long time. People are getting antsy… overheard from the Democrat side:
“They should have food for us.”

Also, from the blue crowd as he leaves the stage: “Time to watch Obama whup some ass.”

Continue reading…

Oct 16, 2012

LIVEBLOG: American Presidential Debate

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Not quite satisfied with Harvey Rosen‘s or Politico‘s analysis of last night’s debate? Who better to ask than Princeton’s own budding politicians–the freshmen class council candidates?

Did you watch the presidential debate? No? Aren’t you a politician–what’s your excuse?
No – because I was busy preparing things for my own campaign! —Brian T. Chen

What’s your favorite moment of the debate?
[Seeing] Obama’s sassy side when he claimed, “I had five seconds before you interrupted me.” —Priya Krishnan

Romney: And congratulations to you, Mr. President, on your anniversary. I’m sure this was the most romantic place you could imagine, here – here with me. —Gloria Kantungire

My favorite moment of the debate was when the candidates ignored the requests and pleas of Jim Lehrer. Basically, I liked the entire thing. —Brian J. Geiger

What’s your favorite Election 2012 meme?

My favorite “belief” in the election is definitely the fact that Mitt Romney’s full first name is Mittens. —Ben Dobkin

—Brian J. Geiger

Continue reading…

Oct 4, 2012

The Presidential Debate According to Freshmen

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A major victory for Princeton couple Joshua Vandiver GS and his husband Henry Velandia: an immigration judge in Newark ruled yesterday that Venezuelan-born Velandia’s deportation would be halted until December in light of developing national policy on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

Vandiver (left) and his husband Velandia (right) courtesy of NYT.

Vandiver (left) and his husband Velandia (right) courtesy of NYT.

The background: Vandiver met Velandia in 2006, and they legally married in Connecticut in August 2010. Currently, Vandiver is a residential grad student in Whitman, getting his PhD in politics. Velandia teaches salsa lessons in Whitman and also founded his own dance studio called HotSalsaHot.

The battle: According to DOMA, passed in 1996, the national government does not recognize same-sex marriages, civil unions, or domestic partnerships. Because couples married in states with same-sex marriage laws do not receive any federal rights, Velandia could not obtain a green card via his spouse, unlike most heterosexual bi-national couples. When Velandia’s visa expired and his request for a new one was denied, the couple launched a campaign to stop his deportation that has gained national attention from CNN, The Advocate, and the New York Times.

More details after the jump. Also, check out the video of Josh and Henry’s wedding from their Facebook page, ”Save Our Marriage”:

Continue reading…

May 8, 2011

Judge Halts Deportation of Henry Velandia

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If you’ve been following the latest round of USG elections (here’s a refresher if you haven’t), you’ve been waiting with bated breath to find out who will be appointed to fill the vacant 2012 class secretary position. Well, while we don’t know who Lindy & Co. are going to choose, we recently heard about one of the pending applications that put a decidedly different spin on the standard class government operating procedures. This is a real application, submitted to 2012 class officers; the applicant asked that we not use his name. Without further ado … the best class government application EVER!

To: “Lindy Li” lindyli@Princeton.EDU, dpuglies@princeton.edu, jmonagle@princeton.edu

Sent: Sun 24/04/11 12:28 PM

Subject: Fwd: Re: We need a secretary

Secretary Application: ************ 2012

Race: Caucasian

Gender: Male

Here are the questions that we would like you to answer:

1)  Why do you want to get involved in class government?

As a very outgoing and politically involved individual, I have found that my medium of choice, commenting on PrincetonFML and Daily Princetonian articles, can no longer give me the breadth of reach my visionary voice requires. Class government and its mass-email opportunities present a unique opportunity to let everyone know what witty commentary I have to say. Whether it is a simple yet timeless outpouring of “LOLZ” or the more sarcastic and biting “LAWLZ,” the people deserve to know my trifling opinions on the inconsequential news and gossip of Princeton life.

I hope through the extended mass emailing privileges of class government to instigate even more contention between class officers and the incompetent body known as the USG. Dominic Pugliese has done an excellent opening shot, but I believe the vitriol needs to go even further. Why stop at mere pronouncements of the USG’s ineptitude? Personal attacks on members have always proven effective – merely look at the current political climate! Outright lying is the norm of modern American politics – who cares if Yaroshefsky isn’t actually the love child of a midget and a capybara? If you tell it to the masses, some will believe, regardless of any “fact checking” or “correcting” that occurs after it has been said. You may even apologize for wrongfully accusing him of embezzling USG funds to invest in his chain of wee-man designer outfits, but the question will remain “Where did he get the money to design all of those tiny people suits?”

2)  Why are you interested in the secretarial position specifically? (“It’s the only open position in the senior class government” is a perfectly reasonable answer.)

I have always considered myself a natural candidate for the secretary position. While I firmly believe that occupations are very much gender oriented and that a secretary is as female a role as nurse or sandwich artisan, I understand that the modern progressive times call for new ways of looking at the world. With this in mind, I would propose referring to me instead as the “2012 Chief of Notetaking and Logistics.” Adding “Chief” to any position of course denotes the masculinity and power appropriate to the position. The name change would entail the creation of an underbody to serve said Chief of Notetaking and Logistics, specifically several aids and a woman to act as my secretary.

More original ideas, including a push to change Dean Dunne’s name to “Count Chocula,” after the jump!

Continue reading…

Apr 25, 2011

Best Class Government Application EVER!

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Orange Bubble Syndrome is something that many of us take for granted. We get stuck in a cycle of rotating between weekends at Prospect, weekdays at Firestone and occasional excursions for late meal at Frist. We micromanage our days in GCals of rainbow-colored sleep deprivation. We might stop once in a while to read something from the Prince UPC, complain about P-Safe’s lockout policy, scoff at Dean Malkiel’s dog or laugh at the bicker plans for Cannon Club.

Read the news? Uhhh. I'll pencil that in someday, okay?

Read the news? Uhhh. I'll pencil that in someday, okay?

But where is the globally aware citizenship that all the admission brochures advertised? Where are the scholars in the nation’s service and in the service of all nations (aside from sharpening their get-recruited-for-I-banking skills in Robertson or Tower, that is)? A Prince column earlier this week (okay, we do read them too) called for more campus dialogue on current events. The Middle East is erupting. Japan is in shambles. Basically, 2011 thus far has reached a point where I expect a new revolution or disaster every time I refresh the NYT homepage.

I know, I know. We’re busy. We’re tired. We work really hard. Sometimes it is easier to just sit in Whitman dining hall, discussing the merits of different types of fruit-cereal-froyo combinations (banana, Smart Start, vanilla. Win!) instead of debating the pros and cons of intervention in Libya.

In the last week or so, though, I’ve become increasingly convinced that it’s actually easier than you think to break out of the Orange Bubble. Meaningful campus dialogue can exist! Even when it’s not awkwardly facilitated by Sustained Dialogue! Here, I give you five reasons why we can and should think outside the bubble:

1.) IT’S SO EASY.

Continue reading…

Mar 28, 2011

Sometimes, The World > My Grades

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The Chosen One

He is The One.

Don’t scorch the skies yet — New Jersey Congressman (and former Assistant Director of Princeton’s Physics Lab) Rush Holt may just become this century’s Neo from the Matrix.

After IBM supercomputer Watson trounced all-time champions Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter in a game of man vs. machine Jeopardy! a few weeks ago, it looked as if the world was doomed to artificial intelligence supremacy. (Especially after Jennings revealed himself to be a traitorous robot sympathizer, writing “I for one welcome our new computer overlords” on his Final Jeopardy answer.)

Benedict Arnold [Schwarzenegger]. (source: ABC)

pictured: Benedict Arnold (Schwarzenegger)

But hope is not lost. Yesterday, our 12th district representative Rush Holt (D-NJ) beat the supercomputer Watson 8,600 points to 6,200 in a “Congress vs. Computer” Jeopardy tournament on Capitol Hill.

Holt was a former nuclear physicist and five-time champion on Jeopardy! over 30 years ago, making him a seasoned contender against the supercomputer.

According to the L.A. Times, Holt kicked Watson’s hard drive in categories like “Presidential Rhyme Time” and “Also a Laundry Detergent.” (Whitman College residents who watched the fateful Jennings v. Watson episode in February noticed the computer isn’t very good at wordplay. Are puns the last refuge of humanity?)

Despite Holt’s redeeming victory, I still don’t trust robotic technology. It’s not too long before a couple of THESE buggers get a mind of their own and begin attacking us like a swarm of killer bees.

Mar 1, 2011

Rush Holt: humanity’s last hope against the machines

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If you play your cards right (and beat me to it), all this could be yours...

If you play your cards right (and beat me to it), all this could be yours...

Over the next few days (November 11-13), the Liechtenstein Institute for Self-Determination of Princeton University will be celebrating its 10-year anniversary. We’ve come a long way, baby!

This unique institution is one of the few university organizations that can say that it was co-founded by a reigning monarch (…the Prince of Liechtenstein), and one of the even fewer university organizations that uses the phrase “geostrategic perspectives” in its mission statement.

According to the institute’s website, it concerns itself primarily with issues of self-determination, “especially pertaining to the state, self-governance, sovereignty, security, and boundaries with particular consideration of socio-cultural, ethnic, and religious issues involving state and non-state actors.”

This is particularly fitting for an institute founded by the rulers of a place so small that Snoop Dogg once tried to rent out the entire country for a video shoot.

Liechtenstein, referred to fondly by Wikipedia as Europe’s favorite doubly landlocked alpine microstate, is known for winter sports, tax scandals, and being the world’s largest producer of sausage casings, potassium storage units and false teeth.

The Liechtenstein Institute Colloquium’s scheduled events and highlights include panels on religion and diplomacy, self-determination and sovereignty, the state and the international system, and crisis diplomacy.

We will also be graced by the dreamy presence of the big man himself: His Serene Highness Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein (H.S.H.P.H.-A.I.I.o.L. for short).

No, he doesn’t have any eligible heirs apparent (believe me, I checked)

But if you’re interested in a little mercenary homewrecking, HSH is going to be giving a welcome speech in the University Chapel today at 4:30.

Dress to impress!

Nov 11, 2010

Putting the “Prince” back in “Princeton”

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FO FREE!

FO FREE!

Readers who have been checking out The Ink from its days as just a fledgling blog know that I never miss an opportunity to trash the USG (whether over ineffectual grade deflation measures, uncontested elections, the Becca Lee decision, election snafus – you get the picture).

So, as I stood in line outside the Garden Theater last Thursday around 11 p.m., waiting to see The Social Network FOR FREE, with FREE popcorn and a FREE soda, it occurred to me that credit ought to be given where credit is due. So here it is:

The free UFO movies at the Garden Theater are the best program the USG has ever enacted.

Now, this probably isn’t news to a lot of you — according to a Prince article, 2,700 students have gone to the free showings already this year, up from just 1,500 at this time last year. But it’s still worth going over why the initiative makes so much sense – lessons the student government can apply when thinking about other ways to spend school funds.

1. It’s Simple

Free movies. Every weekend night ( the college weekend includes Thursday, much as the baker’s dozen includes a 13th bagel). With snacks. First come, first serve. Easy, self-explanatory, and sells itself. Genius!

2. It’s Late

Princeton students stay up late. Really late, a lot of the time. And unless you’re going out to the Street, there aren’t all that many obvious late night choices.  USG events often happen when there are a ton of other things going on – the night owls of Princeton are the perfect audience for activities.

3. It’s a Really Good Deal

Movies are, like, expensive yo! Tickets are at least $10 most places on a weekend night, and snacks hit the wallet hard, too. This is one case where “free stuff” is actually pretty valuable (unlike, say, kettle corn or those drawstring bags, as popular as those seem to be). The USG spends $17,500 on the movies, and in my book, it’s money well spent.

So, in other words, spend money on things students want and will use, preferably late at night. Here’s the thing – I didn’t even get in to the movie last week. They ran out of tickets a few spots ahead of me in line. And I wasn’t mad – other people had obviously gotten the memo earlier in the semester, or last year. Next time, I’ll just show up earlier. An hour of my time for a free movie? When it would take me half that time anyways to drive to the nearest non-Garden theater to pay for a ticket? Sign me up. Great job, guys.

Oct 19, 2010

Free Movies @ The Garden Theater: Best Thing the USG’s Ever Done

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If you are one of the poor phantoms haunting this ghost campus right now, craving some marginally-Princeton-related excitement, this might be the fix you need. We’ve got our mainstays– Whitman’s gubernatorial race, Bradley’s World Cup squad — but this was also a week of broken ankles, bloody noses, and fainting spells. Oh, and heinous refereeing. Tigers sorta set the media aflame this week, for better or for worse.

Something tells us a Fortune cover with a thoroughbred isn't the best candidacy PR move

Something tells us the front cover of Fortune with a thoroughbred isn't exactly the best PR move

Running for office tends to bring all the unsavory bits to the surface, as Meg Whitman ’78 probably knows by now. Her whole family seems to be fair game: gossip rags have had a field day mining all the exploits of Whitman and her sons, Griff Harsh ’09 and Will Harsh ’11. A few days ago, Gawker conveniently rolled it all into one, hyper-hyperlinked, mud-slinging blog post. They lead things off with Griff allegedly breaking some lady’s ankle, and not on the b-ball court:

According to a police report filed later that night, [a 22 year-old woman Valerie] Sanchez and her friends had mocked his fraternity and said “fuck you” and “fuck your fraternity” to him before Sanchez swiped Griff’s baseball cap off his head. The altercation escalated when both parties arrived at Blue Chalk Cafe. According to Valerie’s statement to the police, they were inside the bar when Griff “pushed” her “with two open hands on her chest and shoulder area.” She fell down and felt her right ankle “snap.” A nearby security guard witnessed the event and corroborated Valerie’s version of the events.

The aftermath? Whitman “posted Griff’s $25,000 bail with a cashier’s check and brought her son home,” and the charges were eventually dropped under vague circumstances.

And further stoking the Whitman media flame: maybe-governor Meg apparently roughed up one of her young eBay employees, as the New York Times reported on Monday:

Ms. [Young Mi] Kim later told at least one colleague that Ms. Whitman used an expletive and shoved her. According to one of the eBay employees knowledgeable about Ms. Whitman’s version of the incident, Ms. Whitman said that she had physically guided Ms. Kim out of the conference room.

Unlike Griff’s incident, there was no word as to her actual technique — did she also use the patented Whitman family double-open-hand shove? — but at least Ms. Kim escaped unscathed. Maybe Whitman was just getting in the right mindset, taking after her potential predecessor? Unanswered questions.

There was no roughhousing involved, but General David Petraeus *87 apparently fainted during a congressional hearing on Afghanistan strategy. Senator McCain aimed a question, then “stopped mid-sentence, his face frozen, as Petraeus slumped forward from his seat on to the witness table.” The general recovered quickly, chalked it up to dehydration and jet lag, and shrugged it off … pretty reasonable. (Happens to the best of us. Now that I think of it, happened to that one kid at that one bar mitzvah in 7th grade.)

Meanwhile, the media proceeded to grossly overreact and degenerate into some kind of weird speculative frenzy, best summed up by a genius Huffington Post video:

One of our Press Clubbers works with a DC intern who was present at the hearing and said it was a pretty low-key affair: he left, got some water, came back and apologized. Leave it to the media to blow things violently out of proportions!!!

And after the jump, graphic images of Congressman Jared Polis ’96 bleeding out of his face. Proceed at your own risk:

Continue reading…

Jun 22, 2010

Week In Review: Minor Medical Incident Edition (June 14 – June 20)

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All of us are in a state of despair, with Dean’s Date looming over us, but let’s just take a quick moment to engage in some “school spirit” (I hear it’s a real thing):

kagan

President Obama will nominate Solicitor General Elena Kagan ’81 to the Supreme Court, NBC’s Pete Williams is reporting tonight. And the White House will officially announce the selection at a 11 AM event tomorrow (Monday), according to The Atlantic‘s Marc Ambinder.

Kagan, who previously served as the dean of Harvard Law, will be the third consecutive Princetonian to be picked for the nation’s high court, joining Justices Samuel Alito ’72 and Sonia Sotomayor ’76 on the bench.

Princeton will be the most represented college on the Supreme Court, assuming Kagan is confirmed. Stanford is next with two alumni (Kennedy and Breyer) on the Court. Other colleges represented are Harvard (Roberts), Georgetown (Scalia), Holy Cross (Thomas), and Cornell (Ginsburg). Retiring Justice John Paul Stevens graduated from the University of Chicago.

Kagan would be the third Jewish Supreme Court justice if confirmed, leaving exactly zero Protestants on the bench (Stevens is the only one left). She would also be the first Solicitor General to be appointed to the Court since Thurgood Marshall (for whom she clerked after graduating from Harvard Law). Marshall’s nickname for Kagan? Shorty! (She’s less than 5’3″.)

And Kagan is the second member from the Class of 1981 who has become a superstar in American politics. The other alumnus: Eliot Spitzer ’81. (We will refrain from making any prostitute jokes.)

Oddly, it might be liberals who will be more upset with Kagan, who has supported a more expansive view of executive power than many on the Left find palatable. Still, expect Republicans to mount a large effort against Kagan by arguing that she’s “radical” and too gay rights-friendly. In particular, they cite Kagan’s criticism of the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy during her time as dean of Harvard Law as particularly troublesome:

I believe that policy is profoundly wrong — both unwise and unjust…and I look forward to the day when all our students, regardless of sexual orientation, will be able to serve and defend this country in the armed services.

Last year, the Senate voted to confirm Kagan 61-31, including seven Republicans, when she was nominated Solicitor General, so chances are she’ll be hanging with our girl Sonia (and maybe our homeboy Sam? Probably not…) when the Supreme Court begins its new term in October.

See our previous posts on Kagan here, here, and here.

And you can find our past coverage of Justice Sotomayor and her time at Princeton here, here, and here.

May 9, 2010

It’s official: Kagan ’81 makes it three in a row

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It's always a party in the Supreme Court lobby

It's always a party in the Supreme Court lobby

Earlier this week, we gave you some helpful advice on what not to do if you plan on becoming a Supreme Court justice. But what sorts of things should you do as a Princeton student if you want a lifetime appointment to the nation’s high court?

An exhaustive (i.e. cursory, superficial, dumb) examination of the Princeton careers of both Justice Sonia Sotomayor ’76 and leading contender (and Solicitor General) Elena Kagan ’81 reveals some startling similarities between the two. (We, um, conveniently ignored Justice Samuel Alito ’72 because he was just too different.)

Here are some important steps to take before you walk out of FitzRandolph Gate:

Continue reading…

Apr 28, 2010

So you want to be a Supreme Court justice (PART 2)

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