Unit3: US Politics and The 2024 Presidential Election: "Stranger Than Fiction"?
Intro:
On the eve of the 2024 presidential election, the stakes could not be higher. The two candidates/parties are at loggerheads and are trying to sway undecided voters. In this unit we will try to get a better understanding of the US political system and of the key issues of the campaign. We will also take a look at the campaigning strategies used by the two nominees.
Survival kit:
Step1: The US political system:
-
The US political system:
Slideshare1 (The Constitution and the three branches of power)
Slideshare2 (the "Checks and Balances")
Our government (TheWhiteHouse.gov)
US Government Games (Shepard Shoftware’s)
How is the US government structured? (BBC)
-
US major political parties: main facts: cf DM (I)
The Democratic Party (History Learning)/ Official website
The Republican Party (History Learning)/ Official website)
Revisions on the two major parties in the US: song
- How the US electoral process works + the two major parties:
"How the US president is elected"
(USA.gov) Doc1 Key video->
"The Two-party system and the two major parties in the US" (US embassy.gov)
"Republicans and Democrats: Comparing and contrasting US political parties" (Elli, ESL Library)
"270towin" (270toWin.com)
"US election 2024: which are the battleground states that could decide the election?" (FirstPost)
Step2: The candidates' positions on key issues:
- Two presidential tickets: cf DM (I)
- Donald Trump and J.D. Vance:
Former President Donald Trump: official website
Senator J.D. Vance: official website
How Donald Trump stands on key issues in US politics (Ballotpedia)
Presidential candidates (CNN)
Promises Donald Trump has made so far in the campaign (CNN) = -------- >
Doc2a: look at the issues mentioned after the promises made
Where Trump stands on key issues (BBC News)
Trump's love of tariffs (The Washington Post)
Project 2025 (BBC News)
2. Kamala Harris and Tim Walz:
Vice-President Kamala Harris: official website / white house website /
Governor Tim Walz: official website /
How Kamala Harris stands on key issues in US politics (Ballotpedia)
Presidential candidates (CNN)
Promises Kamala Harris has made so far in the campaign (CNN) = ----> Doc2b: look at the issues mentioned after the promises made
"Where Trump and Harris stand on 6 education issues"
(NPR)
Les positions de chaque candidat (Ouest France)
Step3: Election results + The Takeaways from the Election:
- Election results: a political earthquake:
- Highlights from Donald Trump's address after being declared President Elect:
- Highlights from Kamala Harris's concession speech:
- A few thought-provoking articles on the takeaways from the election results:
"Will a Woman ever be president of the US?", The New York Times
"Why Trump won: 9 takeaways from the election", NPR
"What does it mean that Donald Trump is a fascist", The New York"Where did Harris and her campaign go wrong?", Aljazeera
"A researcher explains why polls failed to predict a Trump victory", NPR
Step4: Branding and Marketing in the Presidential Campaign: A "War" of Images:
-
Trump iconic photo (Doc4a) ---------------------------------------->
- Donald Trump's and Trump supporters' deepfakes / AI-generated memes: Doc4b
- Donald Trump's trading card ad: (Doc4c)
- Donald Trump's first campaign ad: (Doc4d)
"Elevation, color - and the American flag: here's what makes Evan Vucci's Trump photograph so powerful", The Conversation
- Kamala Harris'(s) first campaign ad: "Freedom": (Doc4e)
- "Kamala HQ is a social marketing masterclass" (MarketingBrew.com) (Doc4f)
"How Kamala Harris' meme-fied campaign is leveraging social media and Gen-Z culture" (The Conversation) +
