Today, I’ll make the drive from Pittsburgh up to Erie to cast my first ever presidential election vote for Hillary Rodham Clinton. This is a really exciting day for me--I’ve been a politics enthusiast since high school, but because of my birthday I missed getting to vote in the 2012 general election by two days. That year, I compensated by interning for President Obama’s campaign over the summer and for a state representative candidate in the fall and then helping out with GOTV on election day. This year, I’ll be able to supplement my volunteering (no internship—too busy with classes!) with the most fundamental expression of support there is: my vote.
As a policy-loving wonk, I have been spoiled by eight years of President Obama. He combined charisma with a towering intellect, an interest in details, and a preference for real action and deliverable results over symbolic gestures. He refused to pander or demagogue; his has been a presidency of rational decision-making. And Barack Obama has given us a truly historic presidency. After a century of trying, we are closer than ever to realizing the progressive dream of universal coverage thanks to the Affordable Care Act. Millions more have access to healthcare, and the long-term budgetary outlook of the United States has been improved. The ACA has literally saved lives. The Dodd-Frank Act has stabilized financial markets and insulated the economy from financial crises by targeting the actual sources of risk. The Clean Power Plan and the Paris agreement represent historic progress made in addressing the threat of climate change. The Iran Deal has made the world safer and more stable, as well as opening the door to relative detente with a longtime U.S. enemy. After a half century, relations between the U.S. and Cuba are thawing. Obama has defended and advanced the rights of women and LGBT people, and has appointed two trailblazing progressive women to SCOTUS. And, as further evidence of President Obama’s desire to be a transformative president, the Democratic primary of 2016 is a contest between another trailblazing women and a self-described democratic socialist to see who can develop the most progressive and comprehensive policies.
As for my vote this year, I have always admired Hillary Clinton’s competence, her wonkery, and her attention to detail, qualities she shares with President Obama. I have also been impressed with her agenda—detailed, comprehensive plans that cut to the heart of the issues facing our country and our world—and her commitment to building on President Obama’s legacy rather than abandoning it as insufficiently pure and heading off in a new direction. She had my vote for these reasons.
Then a funny thing happened. We’re told that people aren’t inspired by Hillary Clinton, or passionate about her. They only vote for her because they think she can win, or because she’s competent. They’re wrong. It’s true, Hillary can (and will) win, and she is as competent a candidate for president as this country has ever seen. But as this election season has gone on, my enthusiasm for our frontrunner has grown more and more. I’m inspired by her compassion for the people she hopes to serve as president. I’m inspired when she recognizes what we do well in this country before reminding us that there is, and will always be, much more to do. I’m inspired because she’s the rare politician honest enough to explain political and policy hurdles to goals we all share, and to explain, step-by-step, her plans for getting us over those hurdles to deliver for progressive causes. I’m inspired when she stands with the Mothers of the Movement to decry racism and identify solutions, when she forthrightly explains her theory of change to activists, and when she listens to ordinary people and learns from them. And, to be honest, I am deeply inspired by the historic nature of her candidacy. I consider myself very fortunate to have the opportunity to cast my first ever presidential vote not just for a woman, but for THIS woman.
Today, I’m voting for Hillary Clinton to preserve and extend the legacy of Barack Obama, to advance issues of race, sex, gender, and orientation to the heart of the conversation, to show my support for real plans to make college affordable, expand healthcare coverage, and further regulate Wall Street, to protect our climate, to defeat the extreme right this November, and to bring us one step closer to shattering the highest glass ceiling once and for all.