Elections are just 2 weeks away and I know you have all been bombarded with campaign mailers, text messages and emails as well as TV and radio ads AND, of course, round the clock news coverage. So I won’t go on about every issue and candidate on the ballot, but I think it’s important to emphasize the magnitude of this election because there is SO MUCH AT STAKE!
And if you’re a younger voter, I implore you…PLEASE do not blow this off! I know politics is frustrating, confusing and can seem unproductive, especially in this age of extreme partisan politics. BUT our imperfect democratic system is still the best way to get shit done AND have your voices heard.
You care about getting a job? Then take a look at who has helped improve job growth during their time in office. At the end of Donald Trump’s presidency in 2020, the unemployment rate was 6.7%. As of September of 2024, the unemployment rate under Biden-Harris was 4.0%. And if you want to start your own business, Harris proposes a raising the tax deduction on start up costs from $5000 to $50,000. Neither Trump’s campaign nor the RNC’s policy platform includes small business support programs.
You think you’ll never be able to afford your first home? Although Trump has no specific plans to help first time home buyers, Vice President Kamala Harris supports a First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit of up to $25,000 as well as access to mortgages with required down payments as low as 3.5%. Current average for first-timers is 8%
You want everyday expenses like groceries to come down? Again, Trump doesn’t have a specific plan to make that happen. He speaks only in general terms about deregulation, cutting taxes (mostly for the wealthy) and heavily taxing imports, especially from China (which will actually increase costs for Americans) . Harris has several proposals to reduce costs including cracking down on corporate price-gouging, lowering health care costs, improving supply chains in the U.S. and supporting farmers domestically, which will stabilize food production and prices.
You want Climate Change to be taken seriously? Donald Trump does not. He promises to continue rolling back environmental regulations, increase oil, gas and coal production, and diminish renewable energy and international climate agreements. Kamala Harris plans to continue aggressive decarbonization to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, invest heavily in clean energy, which would create millions of new green jobs, focus on environmental justice, and strengthen climate resilience.
You want women and girls to have the right to make decisions about their own bodies and receive life-saving reproductive health care? This issue should really be a no-brainer because it really is about freedom…a woman’s freedom of choice. We all have differing beliefs, faiths, values and we should respect those differences, BUT the government should not have the power to interfere in the private decisions that a woman makes and remember, unlike what the opposing narrative suggests, many women are NOT getting abortions just because “they can”, it’s because they must due to a life-threatening situation or a sexual assault.
Abortion is NOT something that women take lightly. We don’t see it as some sort of “birth control option” or “easy out”. I think you would be hard pressed to find a woman who is joyful about getting an abortion, which is how some conservatives want to portray pro-choice advocates. And guys, this isn’t just a female issue. If you care about your girlfriend, wife, sister, mother, friends AS WELL as your future, this is YOUR issue as well.
Finally, when writing this blog, I used ChatGPT to help with some of my research. What I found really fascinating is that every time I asked to compare the policies of Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, ChatGPT would begin by saying “Donald Trump has not outlined a specific plan or detailed policies about (insert topic)”, whereas the answer under Harris was consistently jam packed with specific information. Now I’m not suggesting ChatGPT is the oracle that knows all, but you have to admit, it’s pretty telling that the difference in responses is so very stark.
Whatever your position, political stance, personal view…just vote because it’s YOUR RIGHT and that’s what being part of a true democracy is all about!
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