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History Exams > Obama > Flashcards

Obama Flashcards

1
Q

When did Obama win a seat on the Illinois state senate?

A

1996

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2
Q

Who was Obama’s main competitor for the Democratic primaries for Illinois senator?

A

Blair Hull

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3
Q

What helped Obama to win the primaries for Senator?

A
  • High profile endorsements (e.g. Micheal Jordan)

- Main competitor Blair Hull underwent a violent and public divorce

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4
Q

Who did Obama initially face in the race for Illinois Senator?

A

Jack Ryan

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5
Q

Why was Ryan forced to drop out of the race?

A

He was involved in an acrimonious divorce case

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6
Q

Who replaced Jack Ryan as Obama’s competitor in the race of Illinois Senator?

A

Alan Keyes

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7
Q

Why was Keyes a weaker opponent than Ryan?

A
  • Media response was almost uniformly against Keyes

- Keyes had radical views against abortion, gay rights and an increased involvement of religion in society

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8
Q

What helped Obama’s reputation massively?

A

His well-received keynote speech at the Democratic Party National Convention

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9
Q

Work as a Senator

A
  • Seat of the Foreign Relations Committee
  • Created a website that tracked federal spending
  • Created a PAC which raised $1.8 million in its first year
  • Key campaigner in the successful midterms; rose in stature
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10
Q

Why did Obama win the Democrat primaries for president?

A
  • Use of social media and the internet
  • Obama’s character
  • Hillary’s weaknesses
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11
Q

How did Obama use social media and the internet to help him win the primaries?

A
  • By spring 2007, Obama’s online campaign had over 450,000 people signed up
  • Used the internet to raise $6.9 million (compared to Hillary’s $4.2 million)
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12
Q

How did Obama’s character help him win the primaries (and eventually the presidency)?

A
  • Great speaker
  • Appeared more intelligent and likeable than Hillary
  • Projected youth and dynamism
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13
Q

How did Hillary’s weaknesses help Obama win the primaries?

A
  • Hillary emphasised her experience, but many wanted change
  • She suggested Obama was un-American- alienated black voters
  • Only fund-raised in old-fashioned ways
  • Gave an impression of entitlement to the nomination
  • Those who didn’t like Bill by default also didn’t like Hillary
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14
Q

Why did Obama win the 2008 presidency?

A
  • Obama’s strategies
  • Economic situation
  • Weaknesses of opposition
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15
Q

How did Obama’s strategies help him win the presidency?

A
  • His campaign attracted over 3 million donors; this allowed Obama to outspend McCain 4 to 1 in key swing states
  • His online campaign attracted many new voters
  • Obama used grassroots movements (centred around low income housing in Chicago)
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16
Q

How did the economic situation help Obama win the presidency?

A
  • The economy had crashed under a Republican government; worsened by Bush wanting to bail out banks
  • Obama had a strong economic policy; especially important given that 60% of Americans claimed the economy was their main concern (following the crash)
17
Q

How did weaknesses of opposition help Obama win the presidency?

A
  • McCain had always been rich and was viewed as entitled, whereas Obama was viewed as much more grounded in the struggles of every-day Americans
  • McCain had a weaker economic plan than Obama
  • McCain’s vice president running partner was much weaker than Obama’s
  • A number of republicans did not turn up to vote due to the weakness of the republican candidate
18
Q

Who was McCain’s vice president running partner?

A

Sarah Palin

19
Q

Why was Biden a stronger VP than Palin?

A
  • Biden was more experienced
  • Palin’s competency was questionable
  • McCain’s health issues brought about worries as Palin could become Palin
20
Q

Example of Palin’s questionable competency

A

She was unable to answer what Supreme Court cases she thought were influential

21
Q

What did McCain’s administration say about Palin?

A

Even McCain’s own administration were fearful for the fate of the US if Palin became president

22
Q

What percentage of the black vote did Obama win?

A

95%

23
Q

How many more black Americans turned up to vote in the 2008 election?

A

2 million more

24
Q

New era of race relations

A
  • First black president
  • Many whites voted for him
  • Approval ratings of Obama were high
  • 70% of people believed his election would cause race relations to improve
25
Q

Not new era of race relations

A
  • McCain soundly beat Obama on the white vote
  • Many white supremacist websites crashed due to increased traffic following his election
  • Obama was involved in a number of race controversies during his presidency
26
Q

What did some black intellectuals claim to be a key reason for his victory?

A

Some claimed he won because he told white people what they wanted to hear

History Exams (6 decks)

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