Tag: Exclusive

EXCLUSIVE: Democrats Flip the House, Republicans Keep Senate

By Nick Baum

WEDNESDAY – 11/7/18

Dramatic, hard fought, and down to the end. These phrases describe the seven-hour-long midterm election last night, as dozens of house seats, as well as Senate seats, went down to the wire, many of which were too close to call.

The Democrats have flipped the House of Representatives in their majority for the first time in 8 years, as it has been two midterm elections since the Democrats had a majority in the house. They needed to gain 23 seats in order to retain a majority and was able to accomplish that early on in the night with victories in key battleground states like Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. As of now, votes are still live but House Democrats have the ability to add even more seats to their gain, as some races were too close to call from last night.

As for the Senate, the GOP will maintain their majority with a two-seat gain. Republicans managed to defeat incumbents in Florida, Arizona, Indiana, North Dakota, and Missouri while still taking losses in Nevada and Montana, in order to keep a Senate majority. However, four Senate races are still up, and The New York Times projects that the Republicans can expand their majority to 53 seats.

Sources: The New York Times, CNN, FiveThirtyEight

EXCLUSIVE: We’re Back! Insights and Predictions at 2018 Midterms

By Nick Baum

MONDAY – 11/5/18

The buildup for the 2018 midterm elections has reached a peak, as tomorrow, millions of Americans will be choosing their representatives in what many are calling “The most important election in years.” At stake in the midterms, is control of both lower and upper houses, with all 435 House of Representative seats up, and 35 Senate seats up, too. According to numerous polls, many American voters are treating the election as a referendum on Trump halfway through his presidency, while others will be voting within party lines or for new candidates.

In the House of Representatives, the Democrats are being projected to win, with FiveThirtyEight giving them a 7 in 8 chance of regaining control of the house as of 6:00 PM. What has caused what many call a “blue wave”, is liberal and sometimes independent backlash of President Trump, while other polls show that issues like gun violence and controversy surrounding Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh has energized voters. In order to win back the house, 23 Republican seats will need to be turned over to Democratic control, while the Republican’s strategy consists of accepting a loss in seats, but still maintaining a majority in the House of Representatives.

As for the Senate, Republicans are poised to hang on to a majority in the upper house, as many tight races are up in the air, some of which favoring the Republicans. Also, not all seats are up for election, protecting some individuals on both parties from facing tough reelection or voting out. Overall, the Senate Republicans are projected to keep the same number of seats, 51, if not gain a few more from close races in Nevada, North Dakota, Tennesee, Missouri, Florida, and even surprising upset watches like Democrat Beto O’Rourke taking on Republican incumbent Ted Cruz in Texas, or Republican challenger Bob Hugin running to replace Democrat incumbent Bob Menendez in New Jersey.

Sources: CNN Politics, FiveThirtyEight, 270toWin, Wikimedia Commons

EXCLUSIVE: The World Cup so Far

By Nick Baum

WEDNESDAY – 6/20/18

The 2018 World Cup has only been around for six days so far, but we have already seen plenty of action, many of which unexpected, across the tournament. The first game of the tournament was in Thursday, with Russia taking the biggest win of the tournament so far, 5-0 against Saudi Arabia.

Soon after, Saudi Arabia flew to its next game, only for the plane’s engine to take fire, (An accurate representation of them playing Russia), but fortunately, the plane safely landed, and everyone was safe. Meanwhile, 2014 World Cup champions Germany lost 1-0 to the underdogs Mexico, and fans there cheered so loudly that it created a registered earthquake.

Switzerland managed to tie with Brazil, a World Cup favorite, by locking down on defense. Before then, Portugal and Spain tied 3-3, with Portugal’s Ronaldo scoring a hat trick (three goals) that game. Russia recently played its second match against Egypt, winning yet again with a score of 3-1, with Egypt’s Mo Salah scoring a penalty.

What has been seen by many as weird and embarrassing are the amount of own goals in the tournament so far. In 17 matches, 5 own goals have been scored, making Own Goal the leading goal scorer of the tournament so far. Now, it is time for the second match day for the teams. Every country has already played once with an exception of Russia and Egypt whom kicked off the next series in the World Cup.

Sources: Bleacher Report, Fox Sports, ESPN, Wikimedia Commons

EXCLUSIVE: Pressure Against Separating Illegal Immigrant Families Grows

By Nick Baum

TUESDAY – 6/19/18

Recent reports and news has shown that pressure and opposition to separating families at the US – Mexico border continues, as the separating of families also continues. Recent outcry has come after the policy that was around since the Bush Administration had finally taken effect under Trump, and many have since urged Trump to stop the activity.

A photo taken for the New York Daily News shows a small immigrant infant crying, supposedly because of her family being separated, but it is yet to be confirmed. The photo also had a caption targeting Trump, and it landed the front page of the paper. Politicians like Tim Kaine, Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, and Former First Lady Laura Bush have all taken to social media to share their dislikes in the acts. Pelosi also held an announcement relating to it.

The White House also hosted a press conference with Sarah Sanders relating to Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy. While many have tried to urge Trump to back down, many predict he won’t due to his support amongst bordering states and citizens along the border. As of now however, CNN reported that the the families are receiving donations of more than $4,000 per minute.

Sources: Flickr, CNN, White House, New York Daily News

EXCLUSIVE: World Cup Starts Today

By Nick Baum

6/14/18 – THURSDAY

The 2018 FIFA World Cup will kick off today when the host country Russia (who automatically makes it) plays Saudi Arabia. This year’s world cup in Russia will feature dozens of stadiums, 32 teams, and like every year, will revolve around the host’s culture.

Some of the favorites of this year’s World Cup include Spain, Brazil, France, and Argentina, which includes Messi. Just yesterday, despite the 2018 World Cup not starting, the 2026 World Cup had been decided, when a FIFA council voted unanimously to bring the games to the US – Canada – Mexico joint bid, rather than Morocco.

In the 2026 World Cup, plans have already been announced that there will be 48 teams in the games, and that Canada will host 10, Mexico will host 10, and the United States will 40. Back to the 2018 World Cup however, it is a close race and a fierce competition, even if the United States, Italy, and Netherlands will be missing it.

Sources: Fox, ESPN, SB Nation

EXCLUSIVE: The Stanley Cup and NBA Finals in Review

By Nick Baum

SATURDAY – 6/9/18

Both the Stanley Cup Finals and the NBA Finals ended back to back, one day after another, and both proving to be very exciting. The Stanley Cup was first, between the new expansion team Las Vegas Golden Knights, and the underdog and championship-less Washington Capitals. The Golden Knights were looking to be become the second expansion team in major sport history to win the championship in their first season, and hoped to do so against the Capitals, whom aimed to get their first championship since they were created in 1976.

The Golden Knights proved that they were the favored team, taking a 1-0 series lead in a high scoring game 1. However, the Capitals came back, and won their next 4 games in a row to win the series 4-1, capping an incredible upset, and their first Stanley Cup ever. The win was not only huge for the Capitals however, but for the Washington DC fanbase, the city with the longest active championship drought of cities with all 4 major sports teams.

Over in the NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors once again took on the Cleveland Cavaliers, in their forth NBA finals meeting in a row. In the past three NBA finals where they met, the Warriors won two and the Cavaliers one. The NBA Finals this year could’ve been different this year though, with both the Eastern and Western Conference Finals going to game 7. However, the Boston Celtics snapped their streak of winning every home game in the playoffs, giving the Cavaliers the win. Over in the Western Conference Finals, the Houston Rockets couldn’t contain the Warriors who zipped right by.

In the NBA Finals, game 1 was the closest of them all. After making a free throw to tie up the game, Cavs player George Hill missed his second free throw. JR Smith got the rebound, but in an apparent twist, he thought that his team was winning, so he dribbled back not realizing he could’ve scored. The mistake ended them up the Cavs up in overtime, where they eventually lost. It wouldn’t get better for the Cavaliers, as they would lose the rest of their games and get swept 4-0. Many speculated that the easy finals loss might mean that Cavaliers’ star player LeBron James could move to a different team, as he is currently in the talks with 6 other NBA teams. However, it is unclear what his decision is now.

Sources: Bleacher Report, Wikimedia Commons, NBA.com, Washington Post, FiveThirtyEight, ESPN

EXCLUSIVE: May Jobs Report Shows Great Signs for Economy

By Nick Baum

SUNDAY – 6/3/18

In a jobs report released just yesterday, positive numbers in many areas of the economy have been proven with a monthly financial report on jobs and economics. The unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest in half a century, 3.8%, with 223,000 jobs being added in the month of May.

In other areas, the average hourly earnings, or wages, overall went up in America by 2.7%. The unemployment rate in other aspects also went down, too. The black, latino, women, and non high school graduating unemployment rate has hit its lowest point.

Criticism has still been shared by different opponents, too. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said that those numbers “mean nothing”, and criticized the consequences of Trump’s approved tax plan earlier this year. The White House Twitter account also violated a passed law in the 2000’s, in that if a jobs report is released, an official government source must share at least an hour after. However, both the White House and Trump shared it shortly after.

Sources: Wall Street Journal, USA Today, UMN News