"As American as Apple Pie?"

     Salutations B-Readers! Well, the time is upon us. And no, I’m not talking about the beginning of football season, or those random days off of school for all the religious holidays. I’m talking about that process by which, every four years, we elect (essentially) the ruler of the free world. Yes ladies and gentlemen, the contest to elect the person that this land’s citizens deem “as American as apple pie” is well upon us. If you had told me eight years ago that the race would pit former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney against (now President) then Senator from Illinois Barack Obama, I’d have been skeptical. But yes, on November 6th our country will be able to choose between these two men, as well as a number of other candidates, to serve in our country’s most sacred office. While candidates from the smaller parties could make an impact, we’re just going to focus on the big two, Romney and Obama. 

      

 
President Obama (R) and VP Biden (L)         

 

 Congressman Ryan (L) and Former Gov. Romney (R)

     So before we get into the issues of the election, a quick run-down. Current President Barack Obama, the 44th President of this beautiful nation, a member of the Democratic Party, and the first African-American man to achieve the American Presidency. His running mate, current Vice President Joe Biden, formerly a Delaware Senator, is known for his foreign policy experience, as well as his reputation for saying things he shouldn’t while on the campaign trail The Republican ticket features the duo of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and current Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan. The two are running on an Economically conservative ticket, and have touted their budget plan at every opportunity. So you’re probably wondering where and how this election can and will affect you?

      Whenever we hear anyone talk about the Presidential election, words like: economy, healthcare, reform, immigration, taxes, and all sorts of other politically charged words are thrown around. But what we don’t get are the meanings of these words, nor do we know why they’re relevant to us. Simply put, there are too many college students who are not being given enough information about this election. It’s okay though, I’ve got your back. While there are a number of issues that these candidates disagree on, there are two key issues that I want to focus on.

     This nation’s the healthcare debate, as well as the issue of taxes are all going to be battles that will be fought and won or lost in this country over the next four years. As a college student, if you get sick, you’re taught to go to your campus’ health services center, and the hospital in emergencies. now fast forward five, six, even seven years, and you have to go to the doctor to get medicine for a stomach virus. Now there are two very different paths that could be taken. Under the Republican position, you would pay for your medical expenses out of pocket, directly paying the doctor for your expenses, with no effect on your taxes. Under the Democratic plan's universal healthcare (ObamaCare), your health insurance would be built into your taxes, raising them, but covering you if the need ever did arise. Under ObamaCare, the Federal government would mandate that every person pay for their own healthcare starting from a young age. The decision is not simple; do we, as healthy college graduates spin the wheel and hope that we don’t get sick, or do we cover our bases from the start? 

     As if this issue isn’t enough, our generation is one that will certainly have to worry about our taxes. Our nation is currently operating at what we call a “deficit.” This means that our country is currently spending money that we do not have, like a really big credit card. In our case, the country who issued the credit card happens to be our neighbors across the pond, China. The Democrats want to raise taxes in order to raise more money for our government to spend on our ever-growing population. On the other hand, the Republican ticket is promising a cut in our Federal spending, which means fewer taxes for the American people as well as a cut in funding for programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. While it’s easy to say that we don’t want to raise taxes, can we also survive without these various services? So I hope I’ve been able to shed some light on these issues, and in turn that each of you will be able to enlighten someone else. 

     But what do I think? Well I’ll let you know: while I certainly think that the Republican ticket has its merits, I think that Barack and Joe are due for another four years at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Until next time, stay beautiful B-Readers!