The National Journal contrasts the clash of the candidates, and they offer a predicting future of Barack Obama's second term if he beats Mitt Romney.
With the two presidential nominees sharply diverging on key policy issues such as the economy, workplace policy and foreign policy, President Obama and Governor Romney will provide the American public with the starkest contrast since 1984 if not 1964. National Journal and The Atlantic will examine this clash of policy ideas, each candidate's vision for America and a broad range of public policy issues destined to define the 2012 general election cycle.
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Bio
Ron Brownstein
Ron Brownstein, a two-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of presidential campaigns, is National Journal Group's editorial director, in charge of long-term editorial strategy. He also writes a weekly column and regularly contributes other pieces for both National Journal and The Atlantic, and coordinates political coverage and activities across publications produced by Atlantic Media. Mr. Brownstein also writes for 2012 Decoded.
Prior to joining Atlantic Media, Brownstein was the national affairs columnist for the Los Angeles Times. He has also served as the Times' national political correspondent and the author of the weekly Washington Outlook column. Brownstein is a National Journal alumnus, having served as the magazine's White House and national politics correspondent from 1983-1986, and then as its west coast correspondent through 1989. He appears regularly on national television, including NBC, ABC, CBS, and MSNBC, and served as a political analyst for CNN from 1998 through 2004. His sixth and most recent book, The Second Civil War: How Extreme Partisanship Has Paralyzed Washington and Polarized America, was published by Penguin in November 2007.
Mr. Brownstein was twice named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, receiving that recognition for his coverage of both the 1996 and 2004 presidential campaigns. In addition, he is the recipient of several journalism awards, including the Exceptional Merit in Media award from the National Women's Political Caucus, the Excellence in Media award from the National Council on Public Polls in 2005, and the Journalist of the Year award from the Los Angeles Press Club in 2005. In 2007, the American Political Science Association presented him its Carey McWilliams award for lifetime achievement, granted to honor a major journalistic contribution to our understanding of politics.
Major Garrett
Major Elliott Garrett is a Congressional correspondent with the National Journal. Prior to joining the National Journal he was the senior White House correspondent for the Fox News Channel. He covered the 2004 presidential election, the War on Terror, and the 2008 presidential election where he covered the Democratic primaries and later Barack Obama as the Democratic nominee.
He is married to Julie Kirtz, a Washington, D.C. correspondent for Fox News weekend.
David Gergen
David Gergen is a professor of public service and director of the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School. In addition, he serves as a senior political analyst for CNN and contributes to Parade Magazine. In the past, he has served as a White House adviser to presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton. He wrote about those experiences in his New York Times best-seller, Eyewitness to Power. In the 1980s, he also served as chief editor of US News & World Report. He serves on many boards, including Teach for America, City Year, the Schwab Foundation, and the Aspen Institute, and is chair of the advisory board for Elon University School of Law. He is a member of the District of Columbia Bar, a veteran of the US Navy, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a member of the US executive committee for the Trilateral Commission.
John Harwood
John Harwood is an American journalist who is the Chief Washington Correspondent for CNBC and a writer for The New York Times. He writes a weekly column entitled "The Caucus" that appears on Monday about Washington politics and policy.
Jim Kessler
Jim Kessler is the Vice President for Policy and a co-founder of Third Way. He works on issues across the policy spectrum. A longtime Capitol Hill veteran, he served as Legislative and Policy Director to Representative/Senator Charles Schumer. Mr. Kessler helped pass landmark legislation on crime, gun safety, and domestic violence. From 2001 to 2004 he served as Director of Policy and Research for Americans for Gun Safety.
He has appeared frequently as a political commentator on television, radio, on the web, and in newspapers - including 60 Minutes, Congressional Quarterly, National Journal, ABC News World News Tonight, The CBS Evening News, NPR's Morning Edition, and Marketplace Radio. Mr. Kessler earned his Master's degree in Public Policy from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government and his Bachelor's degree in Political Science.
Neera Tanden
Neera Tanden is the president of the Center for American Progress and counselor to the Center for American Progress Action Fund. Most recently, Ms. Tanden served as the chief operating officer for the Center, leading strategic planning of the organization and managing all operations.
Ms. Tanden previously served as senior advisor for health reform at the Department of Health and Human Services, advising Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and working on President Obama’s health
reform team to develop and pass the Affordable Care Act.
Prior to that, she was the director of domestic policy for the 2008 Obama campaign, where she managed all domestic policy proposals. Ms. Tanden also served as policy director for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, having previously served as associate director for domestic policy and senior advisor to the first lady during the Clinton administration. She received her B.S. from the University of California Los Angeles and her law degree from Yale Law School.
Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress, argues why America is better off after Barack Obama's first term, despite high unemployment and lukewarm GDP growth.
Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress, asserts that the Obama Administration has big ideas a possible second term. Tanden argues that obstructionist tactics from the Republicans are holding back his agenda.
John Harwood, Chief Washington Correspondent for MSNBC, believes that a major budget deal will pass in Congress should Barack Obama be reelected. David Gergen, political analyst for CNN, is less optimistic, and argues that partisanship will persist even if Obama wins a second term.
