Earlier this year I was asked if “women were going to vote for Hillary regardless of what she stands for on issues” just because she’s a woman. My answer to that person was an unequivocal, no. Don’t get me wrong. I’d love to see a female president in office for many reasons. I think the country needs to break the glass over that White House ceiling. I think it would change the dynamic of the military and Congress to learn to adjust (sooner rather than later) to answering to a female leader. I think other countries who are far more advanced than us in this area would respect us. I think children growing up in this country now need to see that ANYONE can be president. (And really how cool would it be to follow up the first African American president with the first female one?). That said, Hillary does not reflect me or my views. Women don’t all agree with other women on what we need as a society or hold similar values even if we are of the same gender.
I DO think Hillary is qualified to be President. She has more experience than a lot of the other candidates. She has the unique experience of having LIVED in the White House already and seen firsthand how the job of President works. She has no illusions about what she can or cant do as President. She likely will not make false promises. She knows our leaders and our Congressional representatives. She is definitely a qualified candidate. Unfortunately the candidate I want to support for President will be someone whose values reflect mine, whom I feel can address concerns that I have about our present society. I feel that candidate is Bernie Sanders.
There is a lot of criticism towards Bernie as being a “socialist.” Bernie is an independent, probably more a democratic socialist but all the same. Even if he were a “socialist” I think far too often people need to stop treating this like a bad word or equating it with communism (the two are different you know). Bernie has ideas that help us become a better First World country (and more i line with other First World countries). Bernie sees the big picture and doesn’t cater to the wealthy corporations that can further his career just to add another notch in his political tool belt. Another common argument I have heard and read is that Bernie Sanders “cant win.” Well, he can if we support him. If we vote in the primary election and appeal to others to support him too. There’s no realistic reason he CANT win if we support him and vote for him.Our votes DO Matter. Our voices DO matter only no one will hear them if we act in a defeatist way by choosing to do nothing.
A criticism from the Pro-Bernie set is the lack of TV coverage about him. There’s references to a “blackout” since most major news organizations focus on Hillary Clinton and other candidates. I definitely advocate pressuring news outlets and cable companies to change this and to reflect ALL candidates that people are supporting. In reality, we know the news media is owned by a few corporations. I am sad to see the lack of Bernie coverage but not surprised. And honestly, maybe I’m underestimating the importance of cable in 2015, but I’m not tat concerned either. Cable is dying. It seems cable TV debates are things viewed by old people. In last years list of things that will be dead by next year (put out by Yahoo!) cable was in the Top 10. I think Bernie has a lock on social media which will be more important than prior election years. Maybe this seems ignorant, and I hope not, however history tells us of a similar election and time when media was at a crossroads. In the 60’s, radio was the prevailing form of media for most households. Television was a hot new thing that was emerging. The Presidential debate between Richard Nixon and JFK was broadcast on both platforms, and in an interesting twist, audiences of both had completely different takes on who “won.” Audiences listening in on the radio came away with the impression that Richard Nixon was the better candidate. He made good points. He was an articulate speaker. By contrast, television viewers saw a nervous man, with sweat coming off his brow. Television viewers saw a young candidate with charisma and a comfortable demeanor engaging with Nixon. Television viewers thought JFK was the better candidate. Granted in this example both candidates were equally broadcast in both platforms, but I think we can see this as an example of how difdferent media can affect a different outcome. True it would be great for Bernie to be covered on TV but with TVs relevance dwindling, and social media accessible and prevalent virtually everywhere, I’m not worried about it either. #HeresHoping #FeelTheBern #BernieSandersForPresident
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