No matter what news channel you tune in to, you’ve likely heard the current presidential election is filled with two choices that not many people want. If you are Liberal you likely wanted Bernie Sanders to be the Democratic nominee, not Clinton. If you are Conservative you likely wanted Carson, Cruz, Rubio or any of the other candidates–not Trump.
As a Conservative, I have been placed in a position where there is no candidate available on any ticket (with a hope of winning) that I can put my support behind. Worse than that, I find that I am actively against what both of the two major candidates represent and stand for.
After having spent a summer watching countless clips from all kinds of news sources on the candidates and listening to countless hours of talk shows, I feel like I am finally able to decide what to do with my vote. Although I, by no means, want to– I feel as if I am being forced to vote for Trump.
Hilary Clinton makes a lot of sense for me to be opposed to. She wants heavier taxation, wider entitlement programs and more powerful government entities, all of which directly oppose my political viewpoints. She is also for pro-abortion rights, which I morally cannot support.
Donald Trump has secured the Republican nomination, which normally would bring with it the support of anyone right-leaning, but not this year. His policies, actions and values are all just as repulsive to many as Clinton’s. He has supported Democrats financially in the past much more than any other party, is for stricter gun-control laws and is just as big a fan of big government as any progressive.
Worse than his policies, Trump continually displays a lack of positive values that expose him as a terrible person. He has lied about gifts he has given just to make himself look more generous than he is. He demonstrated that he doesn’t think about important issues by taking multiple positions on issues in the course of a few days, like with abortion. He is extremely rude and short-tempered, which is the antithesis of what a president should be.
In short, I am very much opposed to Trump being our commander-in-chief, just as I am against Clinton being elected to the position.
So between these two options, what is someone in my position supposed to do? Abstaining from voting is an option, but it’s one that doesn’t sit well with me. The choice that’s left is picking between the lesser of two evils. And while I don’t necessarily think that Trump is the lesser, he does have two things going for him: his Supreme Court picks and his abortion policy.
Donald Trump’s campaign released a list of potential Supreme Court nominees and the list has been looked favorably upon by many right-leaning pundits.
His official position on abortion is still anti-abortion, but as already mentioned that could potentially change.
Between these two points, there is enough for me to reluctantly decide to vote for Trump, but it is with little hope that he will actually follow through on either of those points. Between flip-flopping on issues in the past and having a well-earned reputation as a liar.
While you may be ecstatic that Trump or Clinton has a chance at winning the presidency, there is a significant part of the population that is unhappy with either candidate. So between two unfavorable options, how will you decide to vote?
Evan Roberts can be reached at [email protected] or @theorion_news on Twitter.
