I may be a self-described liberal or progressive, but regardless of my ideology or political affiliation, when I go to the voting booth on election day, I want one thing - for this country to improve. I'm not going to go as far as Donald Trump in insinuating that this country has gone to hell in a handbasket (of deplorables) and we need to "make it great again." I'm also not going to naively suggest the country is perfect as is. I think the country is already great, but is in need of a few changes/improvements. Having said all that, unlike in elections past, I believe there is only one sane choice for president this go-round, and that person is Hillary Clinton.
I'm going to be perfectly honest, I've never voted for a Clinton. I was too young to vote for Bill in '92 or '96. In the 2008 Democratic primary, I opted for Barack Obama over Hillary. Then in this year's primary, I voted for Bernie Sanders over the former Secretary of State. However, while Hillary Clinton may not have been my top choice, I think it's incredibly important we elect her over Donald Trump to be our next president.
Like every politician, Hillary Clinton comes with her share of baggage. She's also exaggerated a time or two (yes, I may be underestimating). Yet, as both Donald Trump and Mike Pence have recently stated, "Nobody's perfect." In admitting some of her shortcomings, however, Secretary Clinton also has plenty of strengths. Not only is she highly intelligent, she's a hard-worker, a great listener, strong, and decisive, not to mention she has a history of working with both sides of the aisle. Ironically, for as divisive as the Clinton name is, she tries to be a uniter. The former First Lady has a great deal of experience working with leaders both foreign and domestic and is arguably the most prepared candidate in this country's history to take on all the challenges that go with the presidency.
Her opponent, Donald Trump, meanwhile has no political experience. He's proposed military ideas which would violate the Geneva Convention and place our soldiers at risk in the process. Secretary Clinton may have received her fair share of criticism for transparency (or lack there of), but she's as transparent as a ghost compared to Donald Trump. While he likes to make the excuse that he can't release his tax returns while being audited, that's incorrect. Case and point? Richard Nixon. Not only that, but his economic ideas are said to be much more costly than Clinton's, and will mainly help those at the very top - leaving us more prone to another recession. He's gone so far as to say we should do away with 70% of government regulations. Sure, it'd be nice to believe we could survive and be placed on a level playing field void of government regulations, but that's not reality. While the government may go too far at times in their regulations, most regulations are put in place to protect us and provide us an equal opportunity of good health and success. Just imagine what life (or more likely death) would look like without FDA (Food and Drug Administration) regulations. Trump's alleged strength is his business record, but is his business record really all that impressive? Look at how Trump's career started. He was loaned $1 million from his father, inherited another $14+ million, had gone through $50 million of his father's money by the time he was 35, has gone through six bankruptcies, has lost $1 billion in a year on two occasions (on record), and isn't nearly as wealthy as he likes to claim. So, his business record is spotty, at best. He's also a divider. When's the last time you heard a presidential nominee call Mexicans "rapists"? Suggest we temporarily ban Muslims from entering this country? Refer to African-Americans as "the" blacks and declare all their lives are garbage? Admit to trying to fornicate with married women before telling someone he can get away with sexually assaulting women because of his fame and fortune? Poke fun of disabled individuals? State that POWs aren't heroes? Criticize the parents of a fallen soldier? Need I continue?
This is not a movie, folks. This is not a reality television show. This is reality. I know Donald Trump may be the anti-establishment candidate and a vote for him is a vote against "politics as usual," but drastic changes aren't always positive. Placing this country at risk of another recession is not a change I think any of us want to see. Placing our soldiers' lives at risk is something we never want to see either. Placing progressions made along multiple demographic fronts at risk, including those in the LGBT, Muslim, Latino, African-American communities, not to mention women, isn't something most of us want. With Donald Trump as president, we can say goodbye to even the slightest chance of reversing the Citizens United decision. We could very well say goodbye to Roe v. Wade, Obergefell, and the Affordable Care Act decisions. Women would have to seek other, potentially more harmful ways, of having abortions. Same-sex couples would lose their right to marry. Twenty million people would have to find other ways to possess health insurance. We'd also have to explain to all our children that bullying, sexism, racism, xenophobia, and lying can result in being the most powerful person in the country (world). I don't know about any of you, but I don't want to have to look any child in the eyes and say that. Hillary Clinton may not be perfect, but she's strong, steady, intelligent, ready, and will continue to move this country forward if elected on November 8th. I strongly encourage all of you to get out and vote for Hillary Clinton. If you can't bring yourself to do that, simply vote against Donald Trump. The man has had everything handed to him, doesn't understand average people's daily struggles, and cares about nothing but himself. Don't believe me? He's even given permission for men to refer to his daughter, Ivanka, as a "piece of ass." The man lacks respect for anyone that isn't him, and if he's elected president, the rest of the world will lack respect for us. For your friends, family members, and self, get registered and go vote!
I'm going to be perfectly honest, I've never voted for a Clinton. I was too young to vote for Bill in '92 or '96. In the 2008 Democratic primary, I opted for Barack Obama over Hillary. Then in this year's primary, I voted for Bernie Sanders over the former Secretary of State. However, while Hillary Clinton may not have been my top choice, I think it's incredibly important we elect her over Donald Trump to be our next president.
Like every politician, Hillary Clinton comes with her share of baggage. She's also exaggerated a time or two (yes, I may be underestimating). Yet, as both Donald Trump and Mike Pence have recently stated, "Nobody's perfect." In admitting some of her shortcomings, however, Secretary Clinton also has plenty of strengths. Not only is she highly intelligent, she's a hard-worker, a great listener, strong, and decisive, not to mention she has a history of working with both sides of the aisle. Ironically, for as divisive as the Clinton name is, she tries to be a uniter. The former First Lady has a great deal of experience working with leaders both foreign and domestic and is arguably the most prepared candidate in this country's history to take on all the challenges that go with the presidency.
Her opponent, Donald Trump, meanwhile has no political experience. He's proposed military ideas which would violate the Geneva Convention and place our soldiers at risk in the process. Secretary Clinton may have received her fair share of criticism for transparency (or lack there of), but she's as transparent as a ghost compared to Donald Trump. While he likes to make the excuse that he can't release his tax returns while being audited, that's incorrect. Case and point? Richard Nixon. Not only that, but his economic ideas are said to be much more costly than Clinton's, and will mainly help those at the very top - leaving us more prone to another recession. He's gone so far as to say we should do away with 70% of government regulations. Sure, it'd be nice to believe we could survive and be placed on a level playing field void of government regulations, but that's not reality. While the government may go too far at times in their regulations, most regulations are put in place to protect us and provide us an equal opportunity of good health and success. Just imagine what life (or more likely death) would look like without FDA (Food and Drug Administration) regulations. Trump's alleged strength is his business record, but is his business record really all that impressive? Look at how Trump's career started. He was loaned $1 million from his father, inherited another $14+ million, had gone through $50 million of his father's money by the time he was 35, has gone through six bankruptcies, has lost $1 billion in a year on two occasions (on record), and isn't nearly as wealthy as he likes to claim. So, his business record is spotty, at best. He's also a divider. When's the last time you heard a presidential nominee call Mexicans "rapists"? Suggest we temporarily ban Muslims from entering this country? Refer to African-Americans as "the" blacks and declare all their lives are garbage? Admit to trying to fornicate with married women before telling someone he can get away with sexually assaulting women because of his fame and fortune? Poke fun of disabled individuals? State that POWs aren't heroes? Criticize the parents of a fallen soldier? Need I continue?
This is not a movie, folks. This is not a reality television show. This is reality. I know Donald Trump may be the anti-establishment candidate and a vote for him is a vote against "politics as usual," but drastic changes aren't always positive. Placing this country at risk of another recession is not a change I think any of us want to see. Placing our soldiers' lives at risk is something we never want to see either. Placing progressions made along multiple demographic fronts at risk, including those in the LGBT, Muslim, Latino, African-American communities, not to mention women, isn't something most of us want. With Donald Trump as president, we can say goodbye to even the slightest chance of reversing the Citizens United decision. We could very well say goodbye to Roe v. Wade, Obergefell, and the Affordable Care Act decisions. Women would have to seek other, potentially more harmful ways, of having abortions. Same-sex couples would lose their right to marry. Twenty million people would have to find other ways to possess health insurance. We'd also have to explain to all our children that bullying, sexism, racism, xenophobia, and lying can result in being the most powerful person in the country (world). I don't know about any of you, but I don't want to have to look any child in the eyes and say that. Hillary Clinton may not be perfect, but she's strong, steady, intelligent, ready, and will continue to move this country forward if elected on November 8th. I strongly encourage all of you to get out and vote for Hillary Clinton. If you can't bring yourself to do that, simply vote against Donald Trump. The man has had everything handed to him, doesn't understand average people's daily struggles, and cares about nothing but himself. Don't believe me? He's even given permission for men to refer to his daughter, Ivanka, as a "piece of ass." The man lacks respect for anyone that isn't him, and if he's elected president, the rest of the world will lack respect for us. For your friends, family members, and self, get registered and go vote!
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