I remember when the internet was still young, official Presidential campaign websites were all over the place. As were most official websites, back then.
Now that the year is 2015, though, there are some rules that have been established.
Your website should be flawless and not have any typos. It should have links to volunteer and donate. It should some biography stuff and some catchy slogans and quotes. And it should definitely have the best URL possible.
One of those rules, apparently, is not that your official campaign website must have your political platform. Though that would be the opposite of what I personally would expect.
After all, for those of us not blessed enough to live in one of the swing states, we are not likely to have a chance to meet most of these candidates face to face. If we want to get to know what the candidates really stand for, then, the website remains one of the best resources out there.
So it is with much concern that I find that Hillary Clinton's website does not have one of these pages. Nowhere on her site does she explicitly establish a political platform. In this day and age, to not have such a page on your website is a complete insult to the notion of the informed voter. And for what reason? Triangulation, most likely. And even if it's not, with what evidence are we supposed to think otherwise?
This is not the first time I have brought this problem up, as I have written similarly last month. And I know there is still plenty of time for all of that to make it up there on the site. Still, the idea that a major Presidential candidate can officially launch their bid for the Presidency without even explicitly outlining one bit of their platform on their website, it seems like a serious faux pas that is totally out of step with a 21st century mindset.
Compare that to the website for Bernie Sanders. The issues page has been streamlined down to three main issues (If anyone had seen the original version, the list was a bit more cumbersome):
Income and Wealth Inequality
Getting Big Money Out of Politics
Climate Change & Environment
We can likewise see a formidable issues page for Martin O'Malley, as well, listed under his "Vision." I would suggest O'Malley streamline his vision much like Sanders has, though.
Fight for Better Wages
Bring Accountability to Wall Street
Expand Equality of Opportunity for the Next Generation
Strengthen our Cities and Communities
Support Women and Families
Break Down Barriers That Keep Families in Poverty
Reform Our Immigration System
Protect the Dignity of Retirement
Launch a Jobs Agenda for the Climate Challenge
Restore Competition to Our Economy
Put Elections Back in the Hands of American Voters
Insist on Transparent, Accountable, High-Performing Government
Look, I am not saying that Hillary has to come out swinging at every issue like O'Malley. And I am also not saying that she needs to mention specific policies and proposals like Sanders. But at the very least, she needs to identify what issues will truly take priority in both her campaign, and her potential Presidency. It's not like anyone thinks that she hasn't already taken a side on most of these issues.
My point is that, considering one of the largest misgivings Democrats still have about Hillary is the apparent lack of a real agenda, having a total constant lack of any positions at all explicitly posted on her official Presidential campaign website is a most certainly glaring omission.
For a full treatment, it is also worthwhile to take a look at what the Republican Candidates are setting as their main issues. Alternatively, you might use this as instructive on the overall recurring themes we will likely be treated to in the Republican primaries, and in contrast to the Democrats'. As others have mentioned, the Warrenification is making itself felt, in that quite a few Republican candidates are pushing more populist concepts, however there's still a lot of the abortiony, keep hating gays type of euphemisms we all know and love.
To the best of my abilities, I have refrained from inserting snark among the list of issues. This is meant to be as impartial a treatment as humanly possible.
Ted Cruz: Like, O'Malley, Cruz calls his main issues his vision, but like Sanders, has streamlined it down to a few headings.
Our Standard: the Constitution
Stronger, Safer America
Life, Marriage & Family
Jobs & Opportunity
Rand Paul: Like O'Malley, dazzling us by trying to hit all the main points, and then ending with some weird bit about documenting government wasteful spending, which is kind of a weird juxtaposition.
Advancing Energy Security
Advocating for Sanctity of Life
Balancing Our Nation's Budget
Expanding Economic Opportunity
Fixing a Broken Justice System
Promoting Opportunity Through Education
Protecting Gun Rights
Protecting Privacy and Civil Liberties
Putting Patients First
Reforming Washington Through Term Limits
Reversing Burdensome Regulations
Securing our Nation
Supporting our Nation's Heroes
The Waste Report: Waste in the U.S. Government
Marco Rubio: Definitely one of the more esoteric lists of the bunch. The "Rubio Doctrine" alludes to the Monroe Doctrine, but is written in a way that one might think more immediately of something like the Dutch East India Company.
This Is How America Should Lead: This is where he's talking about the Rubio Doctrine:
1. American Strength
2. Protection of the American Economy
3. Moral Clarity Regarding America's Core Values
My Vision For Europe
Iran Nuclear Deal: Obama’s Desperation is Showing. And It’s Dangerous
Marco Signs Pledge Not To Raise Taxes
Marriage Laws Belong To The States
Ben Carson: I have to suspend my oath to not snark, because there are just so many doozies here.
Balanced Budget Amendment: From looking at his issues page, I'd definitely like to see the budget he comes up with.
Education: Translation: fuck Common Core.
Keep Gitmo Open: Why?
Health Care: "ObamaCare is a looming disaster."
Keep Faith in Our Society: "Our Founding Fathers were courageous men of principle and faith. We know this because the Declaration of Independence, our bedrock document, explicitly acknowledges the existence of our Creator." Barely.
Protecting Innocent Life: "I am unabashedly and entirely pro-life." Except if that life requires affordable healthcare, apparently.
Russia and Lessons Learned: "President Putin must come to learn that there will be grave and serious consequences when Russia engages in naked aggression against other sovereign nations and free peoples. All options should remain on the table when dealing with international bullies such as President Putin." A Vote for Me is a Vote for World War Three. Hey, it rhymes!
Protect the Second Amendment
Stand by Israel, Our Bulwark Middle East Ally
The American People Deserve a Better Tax Code: "The current tax code now exceeds 74,000 pages in length. That is an abomination." Yeah, fuck reading. Kiss my ass, Dostoyevsky!
Carly Fiorina: If you are looking for another comparison with Hillary, like Hillary, Fiorina does not have an explicit set of issues enumerated on her official campaign website. What she does have, though, is a terrible homepage design. Personally, I like this version.
Mike Huckabee: Huckabee's Issues page is divided into the following sections:
2nd Amendment
Border Security
Education
Energy
Healthcare
Israel
National Security
Record As Governor
Seniors
Spending & Debt
Tax Reform
Values
Veterans
Undecided Voter?
Also fun fact: In Huckabee's store, you will find shirts that say "Defeat the Clinton Machine." Guess his team is not giving Sanders or O'Malley much of a chance.
Rick Santorum:
Rick’s 20/20 Tax Plan
Fighting Radical Islam
Immigration Reform That Protects American Workers
Fighting for Conservative Values
Common Sense Instead of Common Core
Valuing the dignity of every human life
Fighting for the American worker
End the Immoral Spending in Washington
George Pataki: Apparently George Pataki is also running for President. That's not weird or anything.
Like Hillary and Fiorina, Pataki's website does not feature an issues list. One would think that after being out of politics for so long, he would want voters to get to know what he stands for right off the bat. Instead, we are simply treated to his and his wife's bios.
One could spend all day analyzing the issues here, or rather, not here (like Climate Change). However, my overall point is this: most all of these other Presidential candidates have already set their political agendas on their campaign websites. The only ones who haven't, other than Hillary, are by most accounts small fries. To think that any of these other candidates, though, could have made it this far without some semblance of a platform or agenda would immediately damage their credentials. For it to not do the same for Hillary, seems to me to be absurd.
Again, this could all change very easily. Perhaps in a few weeks, or even months, it gets put up there on Hillary's website. But until that happens, I will continue to point out how relevant it is that such a section is missing.
I know that the website, including any section on the issues, is but one aspect of a political campaign. And when considering who to support, it is just one piece of data that should factor into our decisions. Still, for many informed voters, the issues page is often a very important data point on which to base that decision. To use a rough analogy, you wouldn't make a sandwich without knowing what any of the ingredients taste like, right?
After everything that has been written about all of the candidates, I have still not ruled out voting for Hillary in the primary. At the end of the day, she could very well be the best candidate to represent the Democratic Party, after all. But I refuse to support her until she posts her political platform on her website.
Because without a platform, how can we say we are even supporting anything at all?