Job Available: U.S. Commander in Chief

With more than 19 months until the 2012 presidential election, preparations for the election are already underway.

By Andrew Faust

April 29, 2011

HIGH POINT, N.C. - It’s official: the U.S. is now accepting applications for the 2012 presidential candidacy.

OK... it’s not quite that simple.

As public interest grows in next year’s presidential election, candidates are beginning to confirm their interest in running for presidency, and recent polls indicate the public’s split approval of President Barack Obama’s job.

Following President Obama’s April 4 announcement confirming that he is seeking nomination for the 2012 election, five other candidates have also confirmed their bid.

The other confirmed candidates include Randall Terry (D), Gary Johnson (R), Fred Karger (R), Andy Martin (R) and Jimmy McMillan (R). As with elections in the past, many other candidates are expected to confirm there bid for the presidency in the upcoming months leading up to primary elections.

Incumbency Advantage

Based on past trends, the election will be significantly more difficult for candidates running against the current president, who is the incumbent candidate in the election.

In past presidential elections, incumbent candidates have typically won.

However, ten presidents have “unseated,” or won in elections against, incumbent candidates in the past, including:

• 1800: Thomas Jefferson unseated John Adams
• 1828: Andrew Jackson unseated John Quincy Adams
• 1840: William Henry Harrison unseated Martin Van Buren
• 1888: Benjamin Harrison unseated Grover Cleveland
• 1892: Grover Cleveland unseated Benjamin Harrison
• 1912: Woodrow Wilson unseated William Howard Taft
• 1932: Franklin D. Roosevelt unseated Herbert Hoover
• 1976: Jimmy Carter unseated Gerald Ford
• 1980: Ronald Reagan unseated Jimmy Carter
• 1992: Bill Clinton unseated George H.W. Bush

Photos: Click here to view photos of this story.

How Obama’s current approval rating may effect the 2012 election

With recent Gallup Poll findings indicating a 46.7 percent approval by Americans of President Obama’s job, it is difficult to make predictions about the potential effect of his approval in the 2012 election.

The poll’s results for President’s Obama’s ninth quarter, are higher than the previous two quarters, but are the third lowest in his presidency.

Dr. Martin Kifer, associate professor of political science and director of the Survey Research Center at High Point University, said that there are two ways in which the rating may affect the 2012 election.

“First of all, President Obama is looking closely at his approval rating in some of the states where he’s trying to think about how he’s going to win the reelection,” said Kifer.

Kifer said that President Obama will need to focus on ways to utilize his resources most effectively in the months leading up to the election.

“The second thing is that you’ll have people on the other side, in the republican party, who are looking at his approval rating in particular states looking at where he’ll be effected,” said Kifer.

Additionally, Kifer said that more politicians will most likely choose to run against President Obama as a result of his current approval ratings.

Recently, polls of North Carolinians’ approval of President Obama’s job (in March and April) conducted at the SRC at High Point University found similar results to those of the Gallup Polls.

“If the president had a 60% approval rating, the republicans might find it harder to find someone to run against him,” said Kifer. “But now, depending on what poll you look at, the president has between high 40s and low 40s in terms of his approval, so that means you have a significant amount of candidates who are coming out against him because, they think that he is reasonably likely to be challenged in 2012.”

Click here to visit Gallup’s Interactive Presidential Approval Center.

Voters’ opinion

With more than a year until the election, voters have time to make a decision for their vote.

When asked about her view on the 2012 election, registered independent voter Melissa Osborne of Fairfax, Va., said that although president Obama will most likely serve as the democratic party nominee, she does not want to make any decisions without considering all candidates.

“It's too early to tell, and the Republican landscape will change over the next few months," said Osborn.

Similarly, Steve Sherman, a registered democrat in Fairfax, Va., and Mary Helen Waltjen , a junior at High Point University both said that they aren’t impressed by the current candidates, and hope to see others soon.

However, Kifer said that some candidates may wait for the 2016 election, in order to avoid running against an opponent with an incumbency advantage.

“For individual candidates for 2012, they’ll be looking at support for the president to see if its the right time to run.”

Enhancing HP: The City Project (VIDEO)

By Andrew Faust

New grant continues lead-free home initiative

Mar. 4, 2011

By Andrew Faust

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Are you safe in your own home?

Several Greensboro residents are not.

Due to the the city’s abundance of homes built before 1978, lead-based paints and other products are commonly found inside these homes and have the potential to cause many health-related problems.

Luckily, the city was recently awarded its fourth three-year grant funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that aims to eliminate lead exposure in homes across the country by 2018.

The funds are intended for use by citizens with low or moderate income, and citizens living in homes built before 1978 can apply to have their home inspected and revitalized.

According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine overexposure to lead can lead to lead poisoning and even lasting effects. Additionally the library says that children are more likely to have permanent impact on attention and IQ as a result of even mild lead poisoning.

“In the 9 years that we’ve been doing this program, we’ve made about 650 units in the city lead safe,” said Mildred Powell, Greensboro’s Lead Safe Housing Program manager. “We’re projected to do 205 (homes) with this grant, but more than likely we will exceed that.”

The previous grants, which were first awarded to the city in 1971 provided $3 million for lead-safe home revitalization.

However, this year’s $3.1 million grant is slightly different than the previous grants in that it also included a new $100,000 “Healthy Homes” component.

“‘Healthy Homes’ is an area that encompasses lead, but is much broader than that,” said Powell. “I mean it includes other hazards within the home that could affect the occupants, particularly young children.”

These additional hazards include dust, mold and mildew which can trigger a variety of health problems.

“It’s not just lead-based paint that’s the issue, it’s the other things that are made of lead in the house,” said Paula Cox, senior environmental health specialist at the Guilford County Department of Public Health.

According to Cox, the grant emphasizes providing safe homes for children younger than 6 years old, who are most vulnerable to lead exposure, however lead exposure can affect anyone.

“You can’t quantify the fact that it’s been able to prevent a child from being exposed to lead,” said Cox.

HUD awarded only two grants for this initiative in the state of North Carolina; one for the state itself, and the other for Greensboro.

Although the city is targeting areas around southeast greensboro for the lead-safe revitalization, all citizens are allowed to apply.

Local tax dollars fund countless resources for citizens

As due dates for income tax filings quickly approach, it is important for High Point citizens to know how their tax dollars are spent.

Feb. 11, 2011

By Andrew Faust

HIGH POINT, N.C. - For Louanne Hedrick, Budget and Evaluation Committee officer for the City of High Point, working with local tax dollars is one of the most important parts of her job.

Hedrick, who has worked for the city for over 35 years, has seen the impact that taxes have on the community as well as the many benefits that come from tax-funded services.

Local governments rely heavily upon tax funding for many services and resources that are used by its citizens including public-safety services, parks and recreation facilities, public libraries, street resurfacing as well as many others.

“Public safety is the most important service provided by taxes,” said Hedrick. “It’s really something that every citizen can relate to.”

Hedrick explained that two of the most notable resources funded by taxes are the local fire and police departments. These departments are widely utilized by citizens and receive the largest amount of tax funding from the city.

How are taxes spent locally?

With over $100,000,000 in tax funds, High Point citizens’ taxes are used to pay for an abundance of resources.

Just as the city’s budget was significantly cut, tax funding has also decreased causing resources and services to undergo stricter evaluation.

Tax-funded spending, which is based on a competitive system that compares the necessity of each possible expense, provides funding for the services that the city deems most important.

Often times, according to Hedrick, projects do not receive funding because of the importance of funding necessary services, such as services related to public safety.

Although all projects do not receive immediate funding, many expenses are put on a waiting list until the city can afford to pay for them.

“In our budget we have a capital improvement plan, which includes many tax-funded projects,” says Hedrick. “This year we weren’t able to fund any of these projects, but next year we are planning to start road resurfacing, which has not occurred in two years.”

Hedrick said that notable spending within the past five years can be seen in the three new fire departments and two new recreation centers, among many other things, which were payed for entirely by citizen tax dollars.

Citizen’s view

With the many tax-funded resources available in High Point, citizens are able to utilize the benefits of their tax spending.

“Much of our tax dollars are spent in important ways that indirectly affect each of us on a daily basis,” said High Point citizen Deena Qubein. “I’m very grateful for the excellent police force, emergency rescue teams, and road crews we have in High Point.”

Qubein, who works and lives in High Point, said that in addition to the many valuable resources funded by taxes, she is hoping for several new projects to be funded also.

“In the future, I’d like to see funding for the revitalization of Main Street,” said Qubein. “The city of High Point doesn’t have control of Main Street yet since it is a state road currently, but in the near future, the city will be able to make a considerable difference. High Point has a lot of potential in both the UpTowne and downtown districts”

Qubein also said that she believes that it would be beneficial proactively seek new businesses and offer tax-funded incentives to promote business growth in the city.