With the presidential election coming up ahead, one can hardly scroll through their Facebook or have a workplace discussion without being assaulted with an onslaught of political debate. While there are certainly those who firmly and vocally campaign for one side or the other, a distinguishing feature of the 2016 election cycle is the number of voters who voice dissatisfaction for both candidates. Independents, moderates, and even long-time single party voters complain that their options are terrible, citing corruption and scandals on both sides. This has resulted in a previously unseen surge in third party interest, threats of a voting boycott, and posts like the ones below flooding social media.
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However, despite admitted merit to political concerns, continuing to complain about a lack of decent options and remaining “on the fence” shows a lack of concern for the future of our government – especially considering the polar opposite beliefs of the two sides.
From the beginning of the campaign process, Donald Trump has advocated for a number of extreme policies, including the construction of a wall between the United States and Mexico, the deportation of Muslim citizens, criminalizing abortion, and the use of nuclear weapons against our country’s enemies. His platform has attracted a lot of attention due to its unforgiving nature, and although it has given a voice to those with extremely conservative social standards, it has alienated those with concern for social freedoms. This, combined with the seemingly endless influx of fraud accusations, sexual assault claims (most famously, the “grab them by the p***y” video), and what many referred to as “temper tantrums” during the debates, pared down his supporters to a radical group that advocate for him unequivocally.
On the opposing side is Hillary Clinton, who many believe to be untrustworthy due to the publicity surrounding her previous trial. Her political stance is nearly the reverse of Trump’s, and she preaches a much more lenient and socially aware ideology. While many appreciate her more moderate views, her past and the subconscious code of party adherence discourages many alienated Republicans from voting cross-party. And this is where the root of the problem begins – those who don’t support Trump refuse to “suck it up” and support Clinton.
Some refer to the ensuing choice as picking the lesser of two evils, but in doing so, we place accused email fraud on the same level of accused sexual assault, child rape, tax evasion, racism, sexism, homophobia, and political inexperience. Trump’s supporter’s cry, “Hillary for Prison!” but ignore the fact that their candidate has slipped through the justice system for decades. This hypocrisy may stem from stubborn party attachment, or simply deep rooted sexism, but either way it results in privileged groups ignoring the concerns of minorities over Trump’s dangerous policies.
Many voters aren’t pleased with either candidate, but bemoaning both our options as if they are equal is nothing but counterproductive. Negative discussion of Trump will do nothing to sway his core group of supporters; if they have stuck with him thus far, little can be done to change that. However, bashing Clinton discourages the large group of voters that initially supported Bernie Sanders, and now have little passion to vote at all. Passion is necessary if the United States wants to avoid electing a volatile, politically inexperienced President. Frankly, lack of passion indicates a lack of moral standing, or simply a lack of awareness, both of which are dangerous heading into arguably the most internationally significant election to date.
To put it simply, if you must insist that both candidates are bad, please recognize that one is much worse. Tearing them down together only puts them on an equal playing field, and a morally corrupt would-be dictator does not deserve to be on with a field with a former Secretary of State boasting decades of political experience. Even if your social position affords you the luxury of not being affected by any of Trump’s proposed policies, understand that they will greatly impact the lives of your classmates, your neighbors, and your friends. We as a nation do not have the privilege of tweeting about our disgust of our presidential candidates, because come next year, one of them will be in office, and we had better be sure we pick the one that won’t trigger a worldwide nuclear apocalypse.