I am trying really hard to understand to why people would still vote for Hillary. It’s sincerely a mystery to me. About a year ago, I didn’t know Bernie, except from a few crazy CNN clips. Then I saw a Hillary ad and was all giddy. I went to my husband and said, “We could have a female president and look, she cares about working people, people of color and queer people!” One good ad, that was it, and I was sold...sort of.
The honeymoon period didn’t last long. I listened to her speeches and started to see through the lies, the flip-flopping and glaring contradictions outlined on alternative media.
I researched Bernie, watched his Congressional speeches and came to the conclusion he’s been saying the same thing for 30 years. He also supported Jesse Jackson’s campaign in 1984 and 1988, because it was virtually identical to his own platform. I took an online quiz, and I agreed with Bernie on 95% of the issues. My number one issue is campaign finance reform, which I believe affects all other policy issues. Next are climate change, wealth inequality, and health care. I finally found a real champion for the issues I care about. And above all he’s honest, even when it’s unpopular to be honest, like on Palestine.
I don’t understand why some people continue to stick with Hillary when there’s a clear progressive alternative. But here’s my effort to elaborate some reasons you might actually want to vote for Hillary based on her platform, experience as Secretary of State and voting record, plus arguments.
- Hillary is a closet conservative and you are too. A bunch of prominent Republicans, including Laura Bush, recently came out for Hillary. Consider this, you may actually be more conservative than progressive than you think you are on the issues. When I was in high school, I took a political spectrum test. I thought I was a true Texas conservative, but it turns out I was very progressive. Identity crisis! If you are really a Republican, please consider voting in that primary instead.
- You respect that Hillary is a master politician, a true wheeler and dealer. She lies, she bribes, she trades favors, and she strong arms other politicians to get what she wants (e.g. How Hillary Clinton Bought the Loyalty of 33 State Democratic Parties). This is a huge advantage in a very corrupt government system. The problem is when she uses those skills against the American people. For example, selling you one piece of legislation and giving you a slightly different one that will have a hugely different impact. It happens all the time in policy making, as with the trade deals being good for American jobs (millions of well paying working class jobs lost, forever) or the Patriot Act fighting terrorism yet spying unconstitutionally on innocent citizens (hence Snowden). Here is 13 minutes of Hillary lying on video and flip-flopping on the issues.
- You fear ISIS, the Russians, the Mexican cartels and so on. You want a commander in chief who will show ‘em who is boss. The other side to this story is that the US already has a reputation as an international bully and it won’t help create peaceful relations. Addressing the root causes of international conflict is key to long-term stability. She has a reputation as a “war hawk” and for overthrowing governments like Honduras.
- You are over 60 and not too worried about your economic future or climate change. You just want to live out the rest of your life in peace, surviving off your hard earned retirement. Maybe you don’t have kids or grand kids. And well that’s their problem anyway...except our children are inheriting massive problems they didn’t create and that’s just plain selfish.
- You like the trade deals so far. You are one of the lucky ones who’s in a field of work that hasn’t been outsourced. And you like getting cheap stuff at Walmart from sweatshops in China, because it’s not like you are rolling in it. The problem is that next on the chopping block might be your industry and then you’ll be wishing you picked a candidate who stands up against the trade deals. Hillary was on the Board of Walmart during its union busting days, received $300,000 in campaign donations from Walmart recently, and she has supported all of the trade deals at one time or another.
- You work on Wall Street or for a health insurance company. You like making fast, easy money off the backs of the poor as long as you don’t have to witness their demise. Or you like stamping those health insurance claim denials — like God, you get to make life and deaths decisions. Or you are one of of those super rich assholes Sarah Silverman refers to and you don’t care if your workers’ kids have to eat cat food. Honestly, I don’t know what to say to this except crimes of poverty might come back to bite you in the karmic butt.
- You like your elite health insurance package and would like to be able to get a sixth heart transplant to hopefully live forever, like David Rockefeller, at the expense of basic medical care for all. But under Medicare for All, you can still theoretically get 6 heart transplants, you’ll just have to pay for them out of pocket or get a private plan.
- You believe there are human superpredators and Hillary will protect you from them. However, the welfare reform and crimes bills she advocated for and Bill defended, caused massive economic and racial oppression that resulted in anti-social behavior. Getting tough on crime isn’t nearly as effective as eliminating its root causes or at least not encouraging them. Here’s Bernie’s speech that outlines this argument against the infamous Crime Bill. He did vote for it because the Violence Against Women Act was part of it, but he protested much of the rest of the bill. The same bill that Hillary strongly championed, using the term superpredator to scare people into supporting it.
- You want to see a first woman president before you die. Hillary has a high unfavorability rating even in her home state of New York. If that continues during her presidency, I am not sure it does much for promoting women in leadership. But hey, we can give it a try, right. I understand, I watched Miss Representation and it got me all fired up. Still, I am willing to wait for the right woman. I even have my doubts about Elizabeth Warren now.
- You are not sure Bernie can get anything done, he’s too progressive for this Congress. Having worked in a state legislature, I can tell you this is how the game goes. Both sides take positions, then they find the middle ground or cancel their legislative proposals all together. If you start in the center, you end up with slightly conservative legislation. If you start on the left, you move toward the center. It’s actually not a strategic game plan to aim low in policy negotiations. Any salesman, dealer, or other negotiator will tell you the same thing. I want a dealer that’s mostly on my side, otherwise I know I’ll get the shaft at the legislative negotiating table. As savvy a negotiator she may be, I don’t think she’s on my side. I think she’s on the side of Big Pharma, Monsanto, Walmart, Health Insurance Companies, and the fossil fuel industry. Here’s a list of her campaign contributors. And yes, employees contributing does count. I used to do campaign finance research for my job and it’s how corporations get around the law.
- You actually do like Bernie, but you believe he can't win so you won't vote for him. Self-fulfilling prophecies are one of the most common ways we psychologically sabotage our dreams.
I would love to hear in the comments from Hillary supporters. What do you like about her? Help me understand, because I feel like we are aliens to each other now, speaking mutually unintelligible languages. I was one of you and now I really do not understand the appeal of Hillary Clinton.