J. Tyler Holmes

(Two mock Chicago Tribune Editorial Board endorsements for Feature and Opinion Writing edited by ex-Chicago Tribune Editorial Board member Dodie Hofstetter – 3/2/16)

The Endorsement of Bernie Sanders

This page is not one that typically arrives in favor of a Democratic nominee. However, we are aware of the inequality experienced by the citizens of this country, both political and economic. As one of our roles mandates, we are to serve as a check on the power of the government and to inform our readers with guidance to make a better decision. That is what we stand to do in an election of nominees making threats with hollow propaganda-style slogans and backed financially by major corporations.

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont has launched a campaign that has evolved into a revolution of reform. The registered independent and self-described Democratic Socialist has become a widespread name in Congress for attacking inequality in the financial industry and acknowledging the struggle of the American middle class. The 2016 presidential race has evolved into a new system of politics as he has roused a frequently unrecognized part of the country.

Sanders has made his mark in American politics for over three decades in various departments of government. He has served as mayor of Burlington, Vt., worked within the US House of Representatives, served in the US Senate, and earned bipartisan accolades from his chairmanship of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. He has always practiced what he has preached, marching in the 1960s in support of civil rights and consistently supporting racial justice, equality for women, and LGBT rights. Sanders has built his platform that he stands on without the help of struck deals and owes no one but the American people he fights to serve.

Sanders’s main opponent has proven to be Senator Hillary Clinton in the race for the Democratic nomination. While Sanders has been open about his views from the beginning of his campaign, Clinton’s beliefs have fluctuated in response to voter reaction. While she is highly qualified due to her senatorial experience in New York and as secretary of state – not to mention previous First Lady during Bill Clinton’s presidency, Clinton’s past has followed her into the election and voters have begun to question her integrity and trustworthiness. Sanders has also scored in popular favor due to Clinton’s undeniable ties to Wall Street while he has continuously avoided financial backing from big businesses.

Bernie Sanders’s appeal is abundantly clear to hundreds to thousands of Americans that have rallied in his support and funded his campaign by making over 1 million donations across the country. The gaps between economic classes have grown too large and Sanders wants to pull them all together again. With his demands for a $15-an-hour minimum wage, free access to a college education, and ensuring a more equal distribution of wealth, many young and working-class voters have found an inspiration in Sanders’s beliefs.

Sanders supports increasing the amount of government spending in order to generate more jobs for the unemployed and renew the nation’s infrastructure. He has also proposed breaking up America’s six largest banks in order to lessen their control over the economy as a whole. In order to prevent any conflicts of interests and manipulation of the financial services industry, he proposes to bar the chief executives of banks from serving on the Federal Reserve’s 12 regional boards of directors. Sanders claims he strongly opposes the Trans-Pacific Partnership with Asian nations in order to stimulate more jobs for the American working class instead of exporting those jobs elsewhere.

In 2014, Sanders supported Obama’s executive action preventing millions of undocumented immigrants from being deported, and wishes to expand these actions even further by forming a clearer path to achieving citizenship by way of the DREAM act. However, he is opposed to the guest-worker program that allows businesses to use low-wage immigrant labor as he believes it fuels a higher youth unemployment rate.

While he has not explained in full extent how he will fund a tuition-free program for public colleges other than a greater tax on Wall Street, Sanders’s motivation to bring a reasonably priced education to the younger generation is apparent. Eliminating federal government profit on student loan repayment is key to creating more successful opportunities for the future of the nation so those students do not wallow in debt.

Sanders aims to dismantle the power of insurance and pharmaceutical companies by repealing Obamacare and introducing a single-payer healthcare system. Through Medicare, he plans to allow negotiations over drug prices with pharmaceutical companies and to re-instate prescribed drug discounts for seniors.

Sanders has been open in his opposition for the war in Iraq and advised against American involvement in Afghanistan. Instead of leaving American troops to continue their involvement, he proposes that the fight against the Islamic State is one to be carried out by other Middle Eastern nations who have the resources like Saudi Arabia. He recognizes that Americans are tired of endless war and intervening in foreign affairs that damage our reputation and drain our resources. Sanders has rejected another Cold War by supported Obama’s sanctions to punish Russia for its treatment toward Ukraine, and believes in Obama’s efforts to work out a deal with Iran regarding its nuclear program.

The media have reported on deaths due to police shootings for too long and the line of “allowable use of force” by officers has become too obscure. Sanders states that he wants to require public reports on shootings or deaths that occur while in police custody and supports the requirement of body cameras to be worn by all officers. After being challenged early on in his campaign by Black Lives Matter activists, Sanders has emphasized the importance for holding police accountable for their actions and bringing justice back to people of all backgrounds.

Bernie Sanders is the right choice for the Democratic Party to achieve the outcome that Americans deserve. The ideas he inspires should be viewed as a powerful progressive message to his fellow Democratic and GOP candidates. The people demand equality, the people demand justice, and overall, the people demand a change from the government that serves them.

 

The Endorsement of John Kasich

In a presidential election where the Republican Party has its attention divided between two controversial front-runners and a multitude of other candidates, confidently casting a vote can seem like a blur. America and the world alike are in a troublesome state of affairs and the Grand Old Party is looking for a leader with an answer; however, some candidates are more focused on scapegoating minorities and relying on statements of shock value compared to finding a rational solution.

Donald Trump has riled up Americans who fear the stability of national security and feel Wall Street has left them behind. Ted Cruz has made irrational promises that he truly seems to believe, like “carpet bombing” villages in Syria. Where these two candidates fall short is in their general lack of knowledge in matters such as national security and economics, and show no interest in brushing up on these topics. Trump has cited that the national unemployment rate falls at 23 or 42 percent where it actually stands at 5 percent. Cruz’s staff has suffered multiple ethical violations during his primary campaign and validates the widespread accusation that he would do or say anything to win the nomination.

Gov. John Kasich of Ohio fits the mold that the GOP is looking for in a presidential nominee. While others exude radicalism and inexperience, he pays attention to the people he serves and practices his belief that the government can improve lives. What stands out is Kasich’s willingness to negotiate from the middle and work with Democrats though he may have opposing views. Unlike his presidential competitors, he is in favor of working towards easier immigration laws and giving undocumented immigrants the opportunity to achieve legalization. Kasich believes in “traditional marriage” between a man and a woman; however, he feels that it is “time to move on” after the Supreme Court ruled same-sex marriage legal and does not wish to seek a constitutional amendment. He has also stood in defense of the social safety net and opposes his fellow Republicans that slash poverty programs.

“I’m concerned about the fact there seems to be a war on the poor,” Kasich said in 2013. “Understand that poverty is real.”

As a former congressman who left office in 2001 in order to pursue a profession in the fields of business and media, Kasich brings a variety of experience to the table from his diverse background. Kasich returned to his political career as governor of Ohio in 2010, and was reelected by popular demand in 2014.

He has stood in support of the Common Core set of national education standards that many conservatives have claimed is a federal government overreach, though Kasich said Ohio districts still have plenty of control. He champions the expansion of charter schools and more school vouchers that allow state residents to attend the school of their choice. In June of 2015, Kasich signed off on a budget that cut more than $84 million from public schools in order to prevent a majority of those funds from going to wealthier school districts that could raise local taxes.

When it comes to the economy, Kasich has a robust record. He has served at the House Budget Committee chairman and have been a pivotal force in making deep cutbacks to federal spending. He has also continued to remind voters that he turned an economic deficit estimated around $6 billion to $8 billion into a $2 billion surplus. He is, however, in opposition of raising the minimum wage. By reducing the corporate tax rate and moving toward a flat tax system, Kasich says he believes he can improve the economy’s standing.

Policy and reason have been outshined long enough by statements of shock value from powerful contenders with lesser experience during this presidential election season. John Kasich is the proper candidate for the Republican Party to achieve the change they are rallying for. He believes in what he preaches and his willingness to negotiate in order to put the most important issues first is exactly what America needs.