Sunday, July 10, 2016

Why I can't vote for Hillary or Donald

I feel terribly conflicted, do you? My conflict isn't about how the upcoming election will affect me but rather the impact it will have on my children. I recall as a child looking at our elections every four years as the time my parents made their choice as to the future they wanted my family to have. If your family was like mine they didn't always agree and more often than not my parents canceled each other out in their choice of candidates. But, this cancelation had more to do with political direction than the candidates themselves.

For example, my dad is fiscally conservative. He's a businessman and his primary concern has always been the survival of his company. He prefers minimal government intervention, low taxes, reasonable trade restrictions and the right to pay and benefit his workers as he sees what is best for his company. I don't think he was a big fan of Richard Nixon's personality and he probably wasn't an enthusiastic supporter but his company prospered during that presidency and he voted to reelect him in 1972.

In 1980 my father's business was in trouble, he was unable to take any income out and he worried about the very survival of his 40 year old family enterprise. As you can imagine he voted for Reagan, his business recovered and he did again four years later. I am pretty sure my dad has been a consistent Republican his entire life.

My mother has had a different feeling about how to influence the future. As a caregiver she always has been much more concerned about social issues. As many of us are aware Republicans don't have a great track record supporting social issues, primarily because they conflict with fiscal conservatism. I think early on my mother voted with dad tilting in favor of the business but as years went by I am pretty sure this changed. Her sister was disabled and depended on state support and as her mother aged she relied upon social security and Medicare. Mom supported Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.I'm pretty sure this frustrated my fiscally conservative father.

I watched my parents discuss their decisions and I saw their frustration with each other. But, I never heard them say they thought the other was making a choice for a morally or ethically bankrupt person.

Unfortunately, 2016 is such a year where I believe the two primary candidates are morally or ethically bankrupt. I wish I could just vote the impact on my wallet or the social issues. That would make the decision easy. Hillary will probably raise taxes, increase regulation and probably slow economic growth. On the other hand, she will probably be much more favorable to immigrants, legal and otherwise, support personal choices, and maintain a safety net. Trump, is more likely to keep taxes lower, minimize regulation and be less likely to retard growth, but he has little sympathy for the unfortunate and no recognition of climate change.

But, political positions are not what I an voting about this year. This year I am really thinking about my children and their future. When I parent my children I tell them not to play with bullies, avoid people who lack moral character, are prone to unethical behavior, and have a disregard of others.

So, how do I vote in an election where the two primary candidates reflect most if not all of these unsavory characteristics? Hillary has years of behaviors that reflect this. Not just the recent email debacle, but one has to look at the whole Whitewater investigation. The Washington Post has a very remindful article today, http://wapo.st/29p1x03 . OK, what about Trump? Well, he lacks any political scandals but he has many business issues which call into question his moral and ethical qualities. He has many years of hooking investors into weak business enterprises that go down in flames yet somehow he emerges unscathed and wealthier. Yes, bankruptcy is legal, but an ethical captain of a ship goes down with it. Also, is it just me or do others see him as the obnoxious school bully we all tried to avoid?

Under better circumstances I would be intrigued by a candidate with no political experience. There would be no big donors pushing an agenda, no career in politics to tank. But, Trump's lack of political experience does not mean he has avoided conflict and his long track record of questionable business practices and thorough lack of empathy and insight makes him just as bankrupt in the soul as Clinton.

So what do I do? For my children's sake I don't believe I can vote for either of these people. That would be a complete contradiction of all of the moral and ethical guidance I have been trying to instill. My friend, Barbara, offered to be a write in candidate. This pleasant, intelligent woman is fiscally conservative, cautious about international conflict, worried about social issues. She has two grandchildren in the military. She gets it!  I'm pretty sure she has the moral and ethical values I am looking for. She has never run for public office, probably doesn't even know how to sign up. I'm pretty sure there aren't any big donors influencing her.

Barbara has the lack of experience I'm looking for. Not Trump's. I bet if you look around you probably know someone just like Barbara. I have to believe in a country of nearly four hundred million people we can find at least a couple who despite having different points of view are still good people.

I'm not a politician, I don't know how to solve this problem, and I will probably be writing Barbara's name on a ballot in a few months. I know she won't win. But, I have a responsibility to my children not to vote for someone who lacks the moral character to lead the greatest nation on earth.

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