POV: Two Students Offer Opposing Views on Which Party to Support
Weighing in on what’s at stake for the nation
POV: It’s Morning in America Again
Why you should vote Republican this Election Day
If you were alive in the 1980s, you might remember a famous political ad, called Morning in America, for Ronald Reagan’s 1984 reelection campaign. The ad talked about how much positive progress had been made in the country since Reagan’s 1980 election, and asked, “Why would we ever want to return to where we were?” History repeats itself and we have reached a moment where it is once again Morning in America and on Tuesday, November 6, we will be faced with the choice to continue down the road of prosperity or halt progress and return to where we were two years ago.
Since President Trump took office, the unemployment rate has fallen 4 percent, over 3,000,000 new jobs have been created, and the S&P 500 reached a new all-time high. The economy is soaring (250,000 jobs were added just last month), the United States is assisting in peace negotiations with North Korea, historic tax cuts have been passed, and two honest constitutionalists have been appointed to the Supreme Court. With all these incredible accomplishments, how could anyone want it to stop? I love all the great progress our country has made in such a short time, and that’s why on November 6 I’ll be voting red, and it’s why you should, too.
Over the past few years, the Democrats have shifted their party platform from the party of the blue-collar worker to the party of social justice socialism. At a time when America’s economy is sky high and continuing to grow, why would we elect people who support socialism, an economic system that has never succeeded in any country in the history of the world.
Democrats have relentlessly tried to demonize Republicans and the president. Some Democratic leaders have even gone as far as to call for violence against Republicans. Earlier this year, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) told her supporters to harass members of the Trump administration. The left has become more and more intolerant of different ideas and opinions. At such an important and prosperous time in the nation’s history, can we trust the Democrats to keep level heads and work across the aisle to continue America’s success?
When you vote red, you’re supporting liberty and freedom in your communities. You’re supporting the right to choose where your children go to school with charter school programs, and the right to freely practice your religion without the government stepping in and telling you when your beliefs are okay and when they are not okay (as in the case of the Colorado baker who turned away a gay couple who’d asked him to bake a wedding cake because he was opposed to gay marriage). You’re taking back your hard-earned money from the government by supporting tax breaks and rollbacks on economic regulation that prevent businesses from succeeding. You’re protecting your Second Amendment right to bear arms and defend your family and your property, without relying on the government for protection. You’re supporting a more effective government, by having smaller, less intrusive bureaucracy and giving power back to the people.
The Republican representatives you elect this November will work to promote these values on the national, state, and local level. Here in Massachusetts, Republican Governor Charlie Baker has proposed and enacted legislation to make the sales tax holiday permanent and increased the penalties for drug dealers in order to help stop the opioid crisis. Republicans like Baker will work with the current White House administration to promote the continued success of the country instead of fighting it every step of the way, as Democrats have shown they will.
America is coming to a crossroads: we have an opportunity to change the path we’re currently on and head back to a time when unemployment was up, the economy was dragging, and people had less money in their pockets. We could let the Democrats impose socialist policies and destroy the American dream. We could have an ineffective government that would fight the Trump administration tooth and nail. Or we can continue to stay on our current course to an even brighter future, with even more economic and social prosperity. This election day make the choice to vote for the party that wants a stronger America, that believes in individual and human ingenuity. Vote red.
Jack Moriarity (COM’20), Boston University College Republicans communications director, can be reached at bucollegerep@gmail.com.
POV: Hoping for a Blue Wave
Why you should vote Democratic this Election Day
Today, Americans who have not voted early head to the polls to cast their ballots in the 2018 midterm elections, with the atmosphere leading up to November 6 one of excitement, apprehension, relief, and anticipation—on both sides.
These midterm elections are being hailed as one of the most important in contemporary history. With 73 highly competitive congressional races across the country and 35 Senate seats on the ballot, Democrats have an opportunity to reclaim control of both the US House of Representatives and the US Senate. Here in Massachusetts, three important ballot measures, the gubernatorial race, and Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren’s reelection campaign have energized a state viewed as solidly Democratic. And a poll released last week by the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics reveals that 40 percent of voters age 18 to 29 nationwide say they definitely plan to vote this year, which could result in record-breaking numbers for a midterm election. There is a lot at stake with your vote this year; gains for the Democrats could result in a massive shift of power in Washington during an era where the Trump administration seems to have the country in a headlock. A vote for Democrats could, effectively, uphold civil liberties and justice in this country.
These past two years have exposed a greater disconnect between the right and the left than many Americans ever thought possible. Likewise, many voters have discovered ideological disjuncture within their own party, and the Democrats are no exception. Despite this, I am proudly casting my vote for Democrats this fall. Why? Because, although the policies of Democratic candidates vary from district to district, the party’s platform centrally and unequivocally commits itself to this country’s well-being through its support of marginalized communities, economic policies designed to help the average American, commitment to reproductive freedom, and initiatives to curb gun violence.
Since Trump took office two years ago, hate crimes have continued to grow in the 10 largest US cities, as well as around the nation. From 2017’s Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Va., when Trump defended white nationalist protesters by saying that there were “very fine people on both sides,” to his administration’s travel ban on six Muslim-majority countries to last month’s shooting at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue, Trump and the Republican Party have contributed to an atmosphere that villainizes whole groups and places marginalized individuals at a greater risk of violence.
This hatred of the “other,” which now permeates American culture, is being countered this election year by Democrats, who support the rights and civil liberties of people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people of all faiths and religions, regardless of their place of origin or political affiliation.
There are other pressing issues that argue for voting Democratic. With Brett Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court, confirmed by 49 Republicans and one Democrat, reproductive freedom is on the line and Roe v. Wade faces an overturn. Even recent victories, such as Obergefell v. Hodges, which allows same sex couples to marry in all 50 states, could be overturned by the addition of another conservative justice to the Supreme Court. Voting Democratic ensures that at our local, state, and national levels of government, there are more people working to uphold the rights of all Americans to health care, safety, and the right of protection from discrimination.
In an era where political asylum-seekers are being detained at the border, migrants from Central America face a backlash before ever reaching US borders, civil demonstrations against police brutality are met with harsh Republican criticism, and tax cuts for the wealthy come at the expense of expanding social programs for needy Americans, there are plenty of reasons to vote Democratic.
While it’s true that the issues that America faces, from low wages to rising housing prices to immigration, have long been prevalent in modern America and were the catalyst for Trump’s election, not the result, this year’s midterms will determine whether President Trump remains a political anomaly or represents a long-term change in American policy. I urge you to vote Democratic if you want a country that promotes progress, inclusion, and well-being for all.
A blue wave has the ability to effect hope and progress in a time of political gridlock. As former President Obama famously stated during his speech at the 2016 Democratic National Convention, “Don’t boo, vote.”
Caroline Brantley (CAS’19), vice president of BU College Democrats, can be reached at clbrant@bu.edu.
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