Clinton for president
Endorsements in big races don’t carry much weight in politics these days as the electorate has been reduced to those who still believe their vote matters, and they are fully capable of making up their own minds. Nevertheless, I’ve been asked frequently by friends, family and neighbors about my reasons for supporting Hillary Clinton in our caucus this Saturday, and I’m happy to oblige.
Twitter wars about who is the “real” progressive in the Democratic primary hold no appeal for me. I don’t get diverted by ruthless outrage over coin tosses in the Iowa caucus or misleading information distributed by campaign staff. I’m also not much interested in the daily glossy mailers, full of lofty language designed to appeal to my progressive heart. And I’ll definitely discount this week’s last minute visits and phone calls to sway me to another candidate.
I made up my mind a long time ago.
Although I like much of the populist message Bernie Sanders is promoting, he has no realistic plan to achieve any of it. While I support universal health care, the battle over the Affordable Care Act revealed the strength of the prescription drug companies and the various factions of the health care industry. We’re not going to get universal health care until we get rid of the dark money in political campaigns. We can’t do that without changing the orientation of the Supreme Court.
Let’s face reality. The Revolution is not arriving this year or anytime soon. Half the country refuses to acknowledge the science of climate change and our complicity in subsidizing energy policies that complicate a solution. They seem just as determined to deny a woman’s right to choose. Their candidates have no plan to replace Obamacare after they repeal it, but that doesn’t seem to bother their voters. They want to privatize prisons and schools, and aren’t all that worried about the environmental destruction of fracking or the nation’s crumbling infrastructure that poisoned the children of Flint.
Remember, they want their country “back.”
These forces, evil as they seem to those of the progressive persuasion, are not going to elect a democratic socialist, especially one with no record of success despite his decades in the Senate.
The anti-intellectual, pro-corporate interests of the right have convinced half our country of another vision, and they righteously defend it. There’s very little middle ground in a political environment that rewards combat over compromise. But given the right circumstances—i.e., Donald Trump as the Republican nominee—these voters might be swayed to vote for Hillary Clinton.
We can’t risk a Revolution in the form of a victory for Trump or Cruz or Rubio. We can’t allow far-right extremists to fill vacancies on the U.S. Supreme Court, leading us dramatically backwards in reproductive rights, voting rights, environmental standards, and labor law.
Hillary Clinton has the intelligence, the depth of decades of experience, and the ability to withstand the withering attacks of the national campaign conducted under the spotlight of fake news outlets searching for salacious scandals. Her calm, steady performances during the Benghazi hearings and presidential debates have been impressive. She is a natural collaborator who knows how government succeeds and how it fails and she has the political relationships to move progressive issues to the next level.
Clinton has many detailed policy plans, including an approach to the heroin epidemic that will work. When other candidates are challenged they revert to robotic talking points while she delivers complex but understandable answers.
Clinton has devoted her life to making sure the voices of women, children, and the poor are heard. She was an effective senator and a stellar secretary of state. Despite the dismissive and mocking attitudes of those who have constantly undermined her efforts, she has persevered.
I’m with her.
