Free Republic

July 1988 An Insider's View of the Election Our author visits the political pros in four battleground states and is reminded that the swing vote in the November election is not conservative or liberal, northern or southern, young or old, black or Hispanic--it's the white middle class. by William Schneider There are two theories about the 1988 presidential election. One is that the Democrats can't lose unless they do everything wrong. The other is that they can't win even if they do everything right. According to the first theory, the Democrats hold all the trump cards--the Iran-contra scandal, the stock-market...

How to Woo NASCAR Fans By William Schneider Posted: Friday, December 12, 2003 ARTICLES National Journal   Publication Date: December 13, 2003 Stock car racing is a populist sport. That's the whole point. "When NASCAR was formed in 1948, there was a definite shortage of new cars in the postwar era," the association's Web site recalls. "The feeling was that race fans wouldn't stand for new cars being beat up on a race track while they were driving a rattle-trap prewar automobile." The tradition persists: Stock cars are standard-issue cars--Fords, Pontiacs--modified for racing. No Lamborghinis. The stereotype of the NASCAR...