I’m with her. Let me be clear, this is not an, “I’m not with him.” I am completely and voluntarily with her. Considering Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are the two most despised candidates in presidential candidacy history, that statement of support says a lot. My support stems from my own experiences and beliefs, but with all the negativity surrounding this election, I feel more compelled to share why I am not against Hillary. I’m not foolish enough to think this will sway those who dislike her; I do not think this will change minds. However, the fact remains that some of Hillary’s biggest critiques do not hold up under much scrutiny. For months I’ve been hearing, “I can’t vote for her because…” Rather than citing information, people hide behind the go-to excuses publicized by the media. Just because it’s popular does not mean it’s correct. Blindly adopting the party line doesn’t earn you extra points. With less than three weeks to go, it’s about time we address some of these “reasons” head on, because it should be information that influences our opinions – not strategic framing.
“I can’t vote for her because…”
1. Hillary is a Woman
You’d think in 2016 gender would not make the list of reasons to vote against someone. Unfortunately, our world is still sexist, and women are still unequally valued and discriminated against. So let’s get a couple things straight. Hillary’s gender is not a legitimate excuse to oppose her. It is also not a legitimate excuse to vote for her. Women are not inherently bad; women are not inherently good. Being a woman, in and of itself, is not a qualification or a disqualification.
2. Hillary isn’t qualified
I’m sorry, but this reason is plain bull shit. Hillary is qualified. In fact, she is the most qualified presidential candidate we’ve had in decades. In the words of President Obama, “I don’t think there’s ever been someone so qualified to hold this office.” So, let me break it down for you.
Hillary Clinton holds a bachelor’s degree from Wellesley College and a law degree from Yale University. That’s more education than 68% of the U.S. population ages 25 and older. But, as many people point out, education is not the same as qualifications. So, let’s look at her professional career. In her 68 years, she has been a Law Professor, a public defender, a patent and intellectual property lawyer, a non-profit co-founder, a child advocate, the first lady of Arkansas, FLOTUS, a New York Senator, and Secretary of State. From an institutional perspective, Clinton has worked in the university system, the court system, the corporate world, the nonprofit world, the state government, the legislative branch, and the executive branch. If that isn’t experience, what is?
3. The Scandals are too much…
Let’s address the elephant in the room: The Scandals. Although she hasn’t dealt with as many scandals as Olivia Pope, there are quite a few. The two biggest plaguing voters’ minds: Benghazi and The Emails. However, even these are shaky reasons when all facts are brought to life.
Benghazi
Since the incident occurred, citizen and government officials alike have blamed Clinton for not responding. And despite report after report, that still seems to be the dominant narrative. Hillary didn’t respond resulting in Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens’ murder. However, I’m not so much interested in the angry Tweets and Facebook posts as I am in the investigation. Since the Benghazi incident, there have been 10 congressional committees; 33 congressional hearings; 252 witnesses; 13 reports; and $7 million dedicated to investigating the State Department. Ultimately, ZERO investigations have found any evidence of administrative wrong-doing. If 10 Republican headed congressional committees– the majority of whom would have made a deal with Rumpelstiltskin to convict Clinton– cannot find anything in more than 110,000 pages of documents that indicate Clinton is even remotely responsible, I think it’s safe to say Benghazi does not fall squarely on her shoulders. End of story. No buts or ands about it.
Private Server Emails
Nevertheless, the Bhengazi committee did not walk away empty handed. During the investigation, Hillary’s private email server was uncovered. To put it simply, Clinton was using a personal email server during her time as Secretary of State. Her reasoning? She didn’t understand the complexities of technology, and wanted to make things simpler by using one device. Okay, that’s nonsense. While she might not have understood the technology, her aids and staff certainly did. There was clearly a security breach. However, this is not the anomaly the media and critics have publicized. She is not the first or only one to do this. Both Jeb Bush and President George W. Bush also set up private servers. From 2003-2009, the Bush administration used a private server owned by the Republican National Committee. In total, more than 22 million emails have been “lost.” Sound familiar? Probably not, because the media hasn’t publicized or hung on to it for dear life like they have the Clinton email scandal. Instead, it was covered by one talk show. Meanwhile Clinton’s 33,000 emails have plagued our News Feeds for over a year. Furthermore, the FBI found no substantial evidence that warranted criminal charges. Considering they are called the Federal Bureau of Investigation, I feel more inclined to trust their extensive investigative resources than the average Googler. Yes, there was stupidity, but unfortunately every President since Washington has been guilty of that. So, while Hillary’s emails have a shaky frame, the reality is it’s not the monstrosity we all think it should be. Plus, we can be 99.999% sure that she won’t pull as stunt like this as President, because there’s no way anyone will allow her to– for her sake and the country’s.
The Rape Case
Since the beginning of the primaries, the story has circulated that Clinton happily defended the rapist of a 12 year old girl. Politifact, a Pulitzer Prize winning, bi-partisan fact checker, has deemed this story false. While working as legal aid for the University of Arkansas, Clinton was appointed to defend the accused rapist of Kathy Shelton– who had specifically asked for a woman attorney. Despite personal objections, Clinton remained the appointed public defender. The case resulted in a plea bargain of a year in jail and four years of probation. As much as Trump wants to push the story that she volunteered, this simply isn’t the case. The fact is, Clinton was doing her job. Just as every accused murder is guaranteed legal counsel, so is every accused rapist. Public appointed attorneys do not get to choose their cases; they do not get to veto. They get what they get, no matter if they throw a fit.
3. She isn’t consistent
Early in the campaign, a video circulated which notes how Clinton’s opinion of LBGTQ rights has changed over time. Between 2004 and 2016, Clinton has been documented stating marriage is a sacred bond between a man and a woman and, later, pledging her full support of gay marriage. Yes, these two statements contradict each other. However, she has consistently been on the same page as most of the country. In 2001, 57% of Americans opposed same-sex marriage; today, only 37% oppose it. It’s not an inconsistency; it’s a change of opinion. Like the majority of the country, her ideas on gay marriage evolved. If you are a millennial, this attitude shift may be harder to understand as most of our generation has never grappled with our opinion on same-sex marriage; we have always been for it. Nevertheless, we have to remember that this is a huge ideological shift for previous generations, and people don’t take change lightly. Like most political movements (i.e. women’s right and colored rights) it took hold gradually! A lack of consistency does not always indicate instability. In this case, it actually implies Clinton’s ability to embrace progress and change.
4. She’s been bought by big money
People point to the campaign books. People point and say she has funded her political career with big money. This is true. The Clinton campaign has accepted funding from rich people and businesses. But so has nearly every politician on Capitol Hill. She is not the first, and she will not be the last. To earn a Congressional seat, it costs nearly $2 million in campaign funds. That’s a lot of money– especially since the majority of Americans can’t even name their state senators or representatives. Now, think how much it costs to run a Presidential campaign. Between ads, travel, appearances, etc. we’re passing the millions and heading towards a billion. Considering how much people hate talking about politics, it’s no wonder politicians have to turn towards corporations and Super PACs. The single-family donations just don’t cut it. We are in dire need of campaign reform, but there lies the paradox: to change the system, you have to work within the system. So, rather than not voting out of fear of her donors, why don’t we vote and hold Clinton accountable for her promises to help the American people while in office?
5. She’s another Clinton
I think we can agree on a few things here. Yes, she is married to Bill Clinton. He is her husband. No, they are not the same person. There is Hillary and there is Bill. Just because she is his wife, does not mean she shares the exact same viewpoints or will enact the same policies. We cannot cite Bill Clinton’s administration as a prediction of what Hillary’s will be like. This is not the early 1900s when women publicly agreed and supported everything their husband did. They are two separate people with two separate minds. Both Clintons have broad political experience, but they do not have the same experiences. They lived and governed through different times; they are each politicians in their own rights. We cannot assume Hillary will make the same mistakes as Bill. She is not her husband. She is an independent woman.
The media has painted Hillary in a number of ways– creating a storm of hatred and distrust amongst the American public. Because she is the only woman to make it this far, we place her in a league of her own; we hold her to an impossibly high standard. Everything she does she does alone. Yet behind all the rhetoric and red tape there are facts that have been swept under the carpet– kept silent by blind distaste. It’s time that we check ourselves: check the facts behind the news feed; check the assumptions before applying. The popular image is not the whole story, and it’d be a shame if we let it dictate and feed our fears.
