Why People Vote Trump

By: Madison Shanfeld

This presidential election counts on the small population of undecided voters. So, The Political Pen has decided to write a two part article series explaining why people may choose each of the candidates, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. Here in part two, Donald Trump will be discussed. 

BACKGROUND

Donald Trump was born into a wealthy family in 1946, and when he got older, he took over his father’s business and renamed it the Trump Organization. In addition to his successful business, he published many books including The Art of the Deal, his very first book. Throughout his life he has found himself in the light of the media, including a reality TV show and cameos in popular series including Sex and the City, The Nanny, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. 

THE FORMER PRESIDENT

Trump won the 2016 election as the republican candidate against Hilary Clinton, the

credits: Alex Brandon

democratic candidate. He won with the popular slogan, “Make America Great Again.” He lost the popular vote but defeated her in the electoral college, effectively becoming the 45th President of the United States. During his presidency, he commonly directly communicated with the public, political figures, and the press through Twitter. The end of Trump’s presidency was consumed with COVID-19 and the rest of his political endeavors had to be put on hold to deal with the crisis.

POLICIES AND VALUES

In a neck and neck election, the policies and values on one issue could completely swing the votes of the undecided voters. Thus, the policies of the Trump campaign need to be discussed in detail.

Trump has made contradictory statements about his issues on abortion however he has moved to a softer view on it as the election moves forward. He notably takes credit for the reversal of Roe vs Wade and that he appointed three of the justices who voted for it to be overturned. In general, former President Donald Trump stands with the Pro-Life side of this issue. That side basically stands by counting a fetus as a living human being, and abortion would thus be constituted as a murderous act. However, in contradiction to his Pro-life statements, during the presidential debate he claimed “I'm not in favor of abortion ban.” and that within his presidency the issue of abortion would remain in the hands of the states.

Credits: Darron Cummings

As it pertains to gun law policies, Donald Trump firmly defends second amendment rights and stands with the NRA, National Rifle Association. Trump is actually endorsed by the NRA in his presidential campaign due to his strong beliefs. During his presidency from 2016-2020 he notably reversed some of the policies restricting gun ownership from the Obama administration including one of Obama’s executive orders which made people with mental illnesses have trouble buying guns. Even though he vetoed a national conceal and carry law during his presidency, experts predict that he will continue to resist gun restriction policies.

Similar to his statements on abortion, former President Donald Trump has sent mixed messages on the topic of climate change. At one point he has claimed that the whole idea was a hoax, but he has also claimed that is an issue to pay attention to. However it is known from his vice presidential partner, JD Vance, that the Trump campaign is working towards clean energy and American manufacturing to hopefully help the earth.

The policies about healthcare have been a true talking point of this election. The Trump administration plans to completely repeal the ACA, Affordable Care Act, including any Medicaid expansion,  and instead allow people to fully deduct health insurance from their tax returns. He claims that “ Obamacare was lousy healthcare” and that his ideas include “  [a] plan that's going to cost our people, our population less money and be better healthcare than Obamacare” As of now he has not shared have a specific plan, but promises Americans that “until then [he’d]  run it as good as it can be run” Which is restoring hope for a wide population of people.

Economic policy remains, like always, a hot talking point of the presidential election. Due

credits: Matt Kelley

to Trump’s past career, a lot of his campaign focus’ on economics and economic policies or reforms. He is often seen claiming that his time as president was accompanied by a booming economy in 2016-2020. During conversations about economics during this election, Trump spends a lot of time claiming to reduce the high inflation present in the United States and cutting taxes. For tax cuts Trump’s campaign is planning on making the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) permanent as well as cutting corporate income taxes. Lowering the TCJA would lower taxes by more than 4 trillion dollars. Trump proposes a raise tariffs in order to make 2.8 trillion dollars in the next ten years, which is a fraction of what would be lost if accompanied by tax cuts. Thus prompting experts to disagree that this strategy will yield positive results. Trump sums up his economic policies during the presidential debate, “Everybody knows what I'm going to do. Cut taxes very substantially. And create a great economy like I did before.”

ISRAEL VS PALESTINE

It is impossible to ignore an incredibly prevalent issue in the world today: The Israel vs Palestine war. So where does Donald Trump Stand? Trump claims during the debate that Iran was broke under his presidency and that if they remained broke, the war would never have happened. It would have been prevented because now that Iran is rich, it is spreading money to the other Middle Eastern countries, fueling the war. He has stated that he has plans for peace between the two nations, but the plans have not been fully explained to the people yet and remains neutral in his support for either side. 

VICE PRESIDENTIAL PICK

Donald Trump chose Ohio senator, JD Vance, as his Vice Presidential candidate. Vance

credits: David Paul Morris

has a history of political experience through being a recent senator and has studied law at Yale University, with his undergrad from The Ohio State University. Around 75% of people who plan to vote for Trump see Vance as a qualified pick and around 30% of the country views JD Vance in a favorable light,  however 23% of the country claims to have never heard of him..

What Vance has over his competitor Tim Walz is a prestigious educational background, which is one of the main contributors to people’s faith in him.

ONLINE PRESENCE

Trump’s online presence definitely made its mark on how presidents communicate with the American people. x, formally known as Twitter, was the most famous way that Trump chose to communicate during his four years in office. It set a new standard for the speed at which the President can influence the public. His rallies garner a large amount of attention online pulling attention to his campaign. In addition, the Trump Campaign has its own TikTok account where the younger generations can connect with their ideals.

TRUMP VS HARRIS

It is impossible to talk about one side of the election without referencing the other. A large reason why one candidate may be voted for is a simple distaste for the other or a love for the first. Some people choose to vote for Trump because they see Kamala Harris as too liberal or too modern. Trump supporters tend to have traditional values that they feel are being lost within the Harris campaign

However, the Trump support comes from how he makes his supporters feel. His fans

credits: Anna Moneymaker

feel that he will fight for the common American citizen during his presidency and that he will always put their beloved country first. Most people feel an innate sense of American pride from Donald Trump, that feeling only grew after his reactions to the assassination attempts. In short, people vote for Trump because of how he makes them feel.

CONCLUSION

Hopefully this two part series has been able to explain why each candidate is voted for and which one most aligns with your own personal values. Thank you for letting The Political Pen help you find your way into the door of this election.