Welcome!

Greetings readers,

Welcome to Claire on the Air, our election season project that aspires to provide critical analysis and counsel on the most salient element of the 2012 Missouri Senate race: rhetoric. We'll bring you biweekly posts until the elections are over in November.

From Todd Akin’s infamous comment to Claire McCaskill’s biting ads, this campaign has supplied pundits and armchair politicos alike with an overwhelming amount of material. Consider the importance of how the way candidates phrase and frame certain messages reveal the kinds of policies they'll support. Akin's "legitimate rape" comment was one such message.

And we love this video response:

How do you know it's legit?

We believe Claire McCaskill is the best candidate to represent the interests of Missouri in the US senate. Rhetoric is a word that gets thrown around a lot so let's clear the air: by 'rhetoric' we mean the focus is on the written and spoken messages of McCaskill's campaign.

If the obesity epidemic is any indication, Americans aren't taking care of their bodies. We're not taking care of our democratic body either. It's malnourished by lack of civic participation, and the news amounts to falsely-satiating sweets -- it can only go so far. Democracy doesn't take place on TV, nor can the intricacy of campaign messages or widespread issues be relegated to four minute news spots.

Even cartoons make fun of it.

Here's where that leaves us. Chris is skeptical of the benefit of political attack ads and advertising in general where Connor believes all persuasive attempts are an intrinsic part of democracy. This means we'll provide you with a contextualized, accurate and deep analysis of where the campaign's at, where we think it should go, and whether not this is good for all of us.

Is a campaign message that lies a bad thing when voter turnout doubles? Let's get people talking and help nourish the body that sustains us. Make sure democracy doesn't starve and post a comment.

We’re excited for the next two months! Welcome!