Sanders supporters have challenged me and others to name one positive reason to vote for Hillary. Well, here are a few dozen and there are a few hundred on her web site if you have time to check it.
Before Bernie Sanders entered the race, the proposals that Hillary has put forward would have been seen as the most liberal or progressive in decades. Now, because Bernie goes even further, and she will not propose big changes to the Affordable Care Act she is called a “corrupt corporate candidate”.
It’s crazy. Anyway, here is why I’m voting for her. She wants to raise the national minimum wage to $12. She wants to end the “carried interest” loophole, implement the “Buffett Rule” so millionaires pay a minimum effective tax rate, and plans on closing tax loopholes and expenditures that benefit the wealthiest taxpayers, to pay for her plan to make college affordable and refinance student debt. Hillary supports free college tuition at public universities for students who work 10 hours per week. She’ll ensure “every 4-year-old in America has access to high-quality preschool in the next 10 years.”
While she is not supporting the public option for health care, she supports expanding Medicaid and Medicare plus she has detailed plans to expand affordable coverage, lower prescription drug costs, and lower deductibles for all Americans, without ending employer based insurance or raising taxes. On taxes, she supports middle class tax cuts, not increases. On Social Security, “Hillary understands that there is no way to accomplish that goal without asking the highest-income Americans to pay more, including options to tax some of their income above the current Social Security cap, and taxing some of their income not currently taken into account by the Social Security system.
On campaign finance reform, she wants to overturn Citizens United and stop secret unaccountable donations in politics. Going even further, “Hillary will establish a small-donor matching system for presidential and congressional elections to incentivize small donors to participate in elections, and encourage candidates to spend more time engaging a representative cross-section of voters.” Hillary will: “Restore the crucial provisions of the Voting Rights Act. Implement universal, automatic voter registration for eligible 18-year-olds. When you move, your registration should move with you. Set a new national standard allowing early voting to begin 20 days or more before an election.”
Her plan for rebuilding our infrastructure would: “Boost federal infrastructure investment by $275 billion over the next five years…. Create a $25 billion national infrastructure bank…. Reauthorize a Build America Bonds program to help finance the rebuilding of America’s infrastructure….” Hillary would regulate Wall Street, not the other way around: “Impose a risk fee on the largest financial institutions…. Close the Volcker Rule’s hedge fund loophole…. Hillary’s plan would give regulators more authority to force overly complex or risky firms to reorganize, downsize, or break apart…. Tackle financial dangers of the “shadow banking” system…. Impose a tax on high-frequency trading.”
On the environment, she would “Set national goals to have 500 million solar panels installed; generate enough renewable energy to power every home in America; cut energy waste in homes, schools, and hospitals by a third; and reduce American oil consumption by a third. Lead the world in the fight against climate change by bringing greenhouse gas emissions to 30 percent below what they were in 2005 within the next decade—and keep going.” On gun violence, she would “Strengthen background checks and close dangerous loopholes in the current system. Hold irresponsible dealers and manufacturers accountable. Keep guns out of the hands of terrorists, domestic abusers, other violent criminals, and the severely mentally ill.” All opposed by Congress.
Hillary would reform our criminal justice system. “End the era of mass incarceration, reform mandatory minimum sentences, and end private prisons. Encourage the use of smart strategies — like police body cameras — and end racial profiling to rebuild trust between law enforcement and communities. Help formerly incarcerated individuals successfully re-enter society.” On immigration: “Enact comprehensive immigration reform to create a pathway to citizenship, keep families together, and enable millions of workers to come out of the shadows. End family detention and close private immigrant detention centers. Defend President Obama’s executive actions to provide deportation relief for DREAMers and parents of Americans and lawful residents, and extend those actions to additional persons with sympathetic cases if Congress refuses to act.” It’s all there on her web site.
So can I name one positive reason to vote for her? Yes, she wants to Keep America Moving Forward!