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Joseph Swit
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JosephSwit.com

Insights and Political Punditry from a POTUS In-Training

(Democratic Candidate in 2032)

Note: He also does Sports Analysis.

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I recommend everyone check out my friend Fareed Zakaria's new show GPS every Sunday at 1 ET on CNN.

Go to Sports Analysis page to read Sports blog

Saturday January 16, 2010

Recap Obama’s First Year in Office

A year ago Barack Obama was sworn in as our nation’s 44th President and 1st African American President. Since then he has faced many issues some, he has addressed and some remain unresolved. We start off with Obama’s first executive order as president, to close down Guantánamo Bay by the end of the year, but here we stand in January of 2010 and Obama has yet to officially close GITMO and to relocate all of its inmates. Then of course there was the seemingly endless debate over Health Care Reform which started in January, continued through summer, and dragged out to early winter when finally The Democrats managed to get the necessary 60 votes required to pass the bill on the morning of Christmas Eve. By far the President’s greatest achievement to date, this bill will provide health care coverage to over 90% of America. I was incredibly disappointed that no Republicans voted for the bill in the Senate, and that the Democrats had to cut deals with several key senators to get the bill passed. However this bill was long overdue and I applaud President Obama for finally passing this landmark reform.

Before Democrats could fully enjoy their victory however, a 24 year-old Nigerian shifted the focus of America. By attempting to destroy an American airliner bound for Detroit from Amsterdam, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab caused a firestorm of controversy regarding airline security and intelligence communication. I believe the President should have addressed the Media the day of, or the day after the failed attack. I believe Obama’s decision to wait on addressing the nation allowed the situation to escalate and caused some to question his leadership skills. Its been a long year for the country but I’m sure we’ll be able to make progress along the road of economic recovery, and national security.

Friday, October 16, 2009

LCS Predictions

With the first and usually the most unpredictable round of the MLB Playoffs now over, its time to predict who will win the League Championship Series. For the first time in a long time it seems that finally the four best teams in Major League Baseball survived the division series. The Phillies, Yankees, Angels, and Dodgers all handled the division series well and advanced in less then 5 games. In the ALCS I think the Yankees will win because the Yankees and Angels have the two best home field advantages in Baseball and the Yankees have one more home game then the Angels so the Angels will probably have to take one of the first two games at Yankee Stadium if they want to stand a chance against New York. In the NLCS I am going with the Dodgers mainly because of L.A.’s ability to come from behind in the late innings and given the immense struggles of the Phillies bullpen this series could play the Dodgers way. Its going to be a great LCS so stay tuned!

August 10th, 2009

Breaking Down the Trade Deadline

Its been a week since the MLB Trade deadline and I am going to tell you which teams were winners or losers last Friday. The big trade was Jake Peavy going from the Padres to the White Sox. The interesting part of this trade is that Peavy, one of the best pitchers in the game, is currently on the DL and will not return until late August. I don’t know how effective Peavy will be when he returns from the DL so I am not sure if this will help the White Sox this year but they have Peavy for a few more years so they will improve their club in the long term but I am not sure how much Peavy can give them down the stretch. Seattle Ace Jarrod Washburn is now a Detroit Tiger, I like this trade because Washburn is an innings-eater and will give you a quality start most of the time and will help save the depleted Tiger bullpen for the playoffs. Washburn is also a proven winner having been won a World Series with the Angels. He should be a good pickup for the Tigers even if only for two months. Reigning AL Cy Young winner Cliff Lee is changing uniforms, he is now a Philadelphia Phillie. I like this trade because like Washburn Lee is an innings-eater who has proved himself last year winning the Cy Young award. Don’t pay attention to his lackluster record, Lee was plagued by poor run support in Cleveland and now with the Phillies potent offense he should do just fine. The other big name leaving Cleveland was first basemen/catcher Victor Martinez who joins a struggling Red Sox offense. But, putting Martinez in the three spot in that lineup should help turn things around. The bad part is that Boston skipper Terry Francona will have to juggle a already depleted bench to keep Martinez in the lineup on an everyday basis. Not to be overlooked in all this is the Twins acquisition of Athletics SS Orlando Cabrera. Cabrera should help a Twins offense that is struggling outside of Mauer and Mourneau. It will take sometime for these deals to take full effect so stay tuned.

Friday, July 31, 2009

Thoughts on Sarah Palin’s Resignation

When former Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin announced that she was stepping down from her post as Governor of Alaska on July 3rd I was shocked, and today she is officially stepping down form her office. I was shocked mostly because she had such a bright future in the Republican Party. I said had because she basically threw all that away when she quit her job. The idea that she’s quitting because she wants to help Alaska by going around the country making money for herself by giving speeches and writing books may fly in Alaska but most people in the lower 48 aren’t buying it. Here’s what I think if she quit to further her career in politics then she’s made a pretty stupid move. Not many people are going to vote for a quitter especially one who claims to be a maverick. On the other hand she may have made a smart move if she has quit because of ethics violations. If that were the case than her quitting would end an investigation and keep what little of a reputation that she still has alive. But, ether way she’s cornered because her career in politics is over. Whatever the motive for Palin to resign was, she still want ever be in politics again.

Sunday, July 26 2009

Trade Deadline Rumors, Roy Halladay, and Division Races

With the Trade Deadline just 4 days away there are plenty of teams looking to bolster their rosters for a playoff run. The unquestioned jewel of the trade market is Toronto Blue Jay ace Roy Halladay. Arguably the best pitcher in baseball, Halladay could be dealt to any number of teams as the Blue Jays sit in 4th place in the AL East and 10 games behind Boston and New York. The only problem for the Blue Jays is that the two teams that would be best suited to giveaway enough young players to trade for Halladay are Toronto’s division rivals the Yankees and Red Sox. Obviously the Blue Jays would prefer not to trade Halladay to a team in their own division but there aren’t many teams with enough money to resign Halladay who is a free agent at the end of 2010. However, the fact remains that plenty of teams need Halladay even if only for a-season-and-a-half: The Brewers, Rockies, Cardinals, Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, Phillies, Angels, Rangers, Cubs, and Astros could all use Roy Halladay. All the teams I just mentioned are in the thick of a pennant race and Roy Halladay could propel them to the postseason, it’s just a question of who’s willing to give the most to get Halladay. The NL wildcard will probably go to the Giants they’ve got the best rotation in the NL and although they did not get Matt Holliday, who was traded to the Cardinals, they still have enough talent to get it done. The NL Central is wide open but if ether the Cubs, Cardinals, or Brewers get Roy Halladay then that team will go on to win the division. If the Cardinals get Roy Halladay then they could be a potential World Series winner because with Roy combined with Albert Pujols, and now Matt Holliday the Cardinals could be unstoppable. It will all go down on the 31st, who will get Roy Halladay and can that team use him to their advantage? We’ll just have to wait and see.