Features

Hillary Clinton continues run for the Oval Office

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BDM Election Photo Hillary Clinton is currently in the midst of a highly contested campaign for the position of U.S. president.  Clinton, who is the Democratic Party’s political frontrunner for the office, has been hard at work in the effort of paving way for her potential of running the country. Clinton has quite the vocational background as she not only has held distinguished positions such as that of a lawyer and professor, but also has been the nation’s secretary of state and first lady for her husband- former president, Bill Clinton.  Hillary Clinton attended Wellesley College where she began to showcase her potential.  She was elected amongst her peers to deliver the first student-led commencement address in school history.  She would go on to attend Yale Law School.  Following her time spent at Yale, Clinton became an outspoken proponent and employee of the Children’s Defense Fund.  She would later go on to become a member of the congressional team that helped investigate president Richard Nixon.  From here, she would move to Arkansas where she began teaching law.  In 1992, Clinton became first-lady to her husband, Bill, who, despite investigations of scandal in his presidency, retained the office through the entirety of his second term that ended in 2000.  Hillary Clinton also was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2000, where she would serve as a senator from the state of New York.  She would go on to make her first run for the presidency in 2008, but inevitably came short to the man who would later become president, Barack Obama.  Obama would appoint Clinton to his presidential cabinet by making her Secretary of State where she served from 2009-2013.  Since 2013, Clinton has been campaigning for the job of becoming president and is now in a heated race to the political finish line at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Economy

At the heart of Clinton’s economic platform is the belief that the American people deserve more money for the work that they do.  She believes that reforms should be made so people can receive a more sustainable income.  Through investment in opportunities such as clean energy, scientific/medical research and infrastructure, she wishes to create new jobs. Her political platform is also being built around the idea that college students deserve a break from current financial hardships.  Clinton’s goal is to create a tax cut of up to $2,500 for every college student to help alleviate some of the financial burden that is being faced.  This is just one piece of what Clinton is calling her “New College Compact.”  This piece of legislation would invest $350 billion into college student tuition with the hope of reducing the amount of borrowing and debt that students are forced into.  It also would have a goal of cutting interest rates on student loans. Clinton’s platform also seeks to increase the value of small businesses.  She hopes to set forth a plan to allow small business owners the chance at tax relief and a renewed effort to see their goods on a new and growing market. She also believes that changes should be made in minimum wage.  The Clinton campaign is fighting  to alter our nation’s federal minimum wage up to a potential $12 per hour.  Alongside the federal view of this hourly wage, she also believes that states and their workers should go beyond the federal minimum and bargain for more balanced state minimum wages.

Immigration Reform

“We have to finally and once and for all fix our immigration system— this is a family issue, it’s an economic issue too, but it is at heart a family issue,” said Clinton, “If we claim we are for family then we have to pull together and resolve the outstanding issues around our broken immigration system.” Clinton’s campaign has a platform built on the idea of immigration reform.   Clinton’s goal with this change is creating potential citizenship and thus millions of jobs. Clinton helped support the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act, as well as cosponsored the DREAM Act, which allows undocumented students the opportunity to be a contribution to their newfound country.

Campus Sexual Assault

Clinton has taken a stand in the belief that actions need to be taken in order to combat campus sexual assault in our country. “I want to send a message to every survivor of sexual assault: Don’t let anyone silence your voice,” said Clinton. “You have the right to be heard.” She plans to fight this staggering tragedy that one in five women have been victim to during their college years.  She is pushing to support survivors in the wake of such horrific events by ensuring that all genders, sexual orientations, races and ethnicities have fair access to the care they need. She also seeks to take action before these crimes are committed.  Clinton believes in the importance in creating awareness in the prevention stages as opposed to the aftermath.  She wishes to increase sexual violence prevention through education programs, which carry the role of informing students and faculty to the power of preventative actions. This issue has always been something at the heart of Clinton’s political platform.  She rallied for heightened awareness of this topic as first lady to U.S. president Bill Clinton, as a senator by co-sponsoring the Violence Against Women Act and as Secretary of State where she promoted awareness of rape as a weapon of war through U.N. Resolutions.

Racial Justice

Clinton firmly believes in the need for reconciliation and justice amongst various demographics and racial lines. “We can’t hide from any of these hard truths about race and justice in America,” said Clinton, “We have to name them, and own them, and then change them.” A strong proponent for a shift in children’s post-school demeanor, Clinton has shown adamant support of setting a new tone in school’s disciplinary policies and structures.  She plans on working to alter the “school-to-prison pipeline” that seems to affect all too many of this country’s youth.  Clinton claims to be willing to set forth actions that would invest $2 billion in support of changes in school disciplinary policies.  Her hope is that this would keep students in school and out of penitentiaries. Clinton also sees the need to strengthen communities’ ties to their police and security forces.  There is a strong belief held by many in this country that communities are being torn apart by the presence of racial injustice and inequality.  Many times this starts with citizen to police relationships that are reported as being unjust and unprofessional.  Clinton claims that as president she will make this issue a priority by investing into the training and facilitation of our country’s police force.

Clinton's Opponents

Over the past months of Clinton’s run at the White House, she has found that there are still many Americans refusing to vote for her.  She may be the Democratic front-runner, but there are those who can’t quite side with the former first lady. The issue that most recently has been the hardest to stomach for the American people involves her potential government scandal indictment.  During her time as Secretary of State, it is believed that Clinton may have been responsible for sending multiple emails containing classified U.S. government information via her personal email account.  Many of the emails in question have since been erased from her database, causing question within the U.S. government. This case is currently being debated in the U.S. Supreme Court and is causing many people to doubt the legality and credibility of Clinton’s actions in office.  This issue has been an enormous part of the current trends in the media as it has created a firestorm between those for and those against Clinton for president. The results of this case will prove to be pivotal to this presidential race as it very well could decide the fate of Clinton’s campaign as well as this highly contested race for the presidency.
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