Between Two Worlds: A look at the Contrasting Policy Positions of the 2016 Presidential Front-Runners
Christian Segers, Assistant Editor
Photo: Peter Griffin, public domain.
If you are one of the millions of Americans who have tuned in to the presidential debates and followed the banter surrounding the two major party front-runners, it is possible that you have begun to ask yourself where each candidate stands on the issues and what he or she believes needs to be accomplished in the Oval Office.
The purpose of publishing this article is to help those who plan on going to the polls to find the candidate that best represents their needs in a president. The following major policy positions come directly from the campaign websites of both Hillary Clinton (Democrat nominee) and Donald Trump (Republican nominee). Hyperlinks to the webpage describing either candidate’s views on each topic are included.
Taxes:
· Clinton: Clinton believes in what she calls, “a fair tax system.” In this system, “the wealthy, Wall Street and corporations [will] pay their fair share in taxes,” the website stated. Under the system, business owners and higher income individuals/families would be obligated to pay a greater sum to the government annually. Additionally, Clinton has proposed the elimination of “loopholes,” which she claims allows the wealthy to dodge increased taxation. The money accrued from the wealthy would be redistributed towards education, city infrastructure, clean energy solutions and immigration strategies.
· Trump: Trump’s tax plan includes extensive tax breaks for what his site calls “working and middle-income Americans.” Differing from Clinton, Trump has proposed that the upper class continues to pay a higher percentage of its net income, but not at a rate that his camp claims, “stifles job creation and growth.” Following this trend, Trump says he plans to lower business tax so America can become more competitive with other countries’ tax breaks. Additionally, Trump plans to allow Americans to fully deduct childcare from their taxes.
National Defense:
· Clinton: Advancing innovation and beefing up anti-cyber terror efforts appear to be the main focus of Clinton’s military efforts. Clinton’s website pledges to “stretch every dollar” when it comes to defense spending, taking from certain programs in order to expand the technological capabilities needed to combat the aforementioned cyber threats. Also included in Clinton’s agenda is the provision for American veterans to have access to any doctors they need.
· Trump: Trump’s webpage includes a laundry list of changes on the topic of national defense. Key portions of his concerns lie in the lack of military personnel, fighter jets and warships currently at the United States’ disposal. After speaking with army generals and commanders, Trump has pledged to (if elected) build up the military to 540,000 troops (as has been requested by the military), 1,200 fighter jets, and 350 battleships. In his policy positions, Trump claims that America is currently operating at the lowest military strength levels since World War ll. Trump also wants to invest in missile defense systems to combat the growing threat of a nuclear attack from North Korea and Iran. These various expenses would be paid for (according to Trump) by auditing the Pentagon for government waste of taxpayer dollars and eliminating key non-essential government programs.
The Economy:
· Clinton: Clinton’s plan to improve the economy largely stems from the creation of government payouts and tax breaks to small businesses and individuals, under the assumption that it will create more jobs available to the millions of Americans who remain out of work. The first 100 days of a Clinton presidency would see the first female president create trade deals that would bring back growth to the private sector and increase the amount of individuals that businesses are able to employ. Clinton would use taxpayer dollars to employ thousands of workers in order to create solar energy panels that will allow the nation to become more self sustainable.
· Trump: Trump’s idea of economy rebuilding is nothing less than grandiose in nature. The real estate mogul has stated that he wants to create 25 million new jobs in the next decade.
Trump’s website says, “For each 1 percent in added GDP growth, the economy adds 1.2 million jobs. Increasing growth by 1.5 percent would result in 18 million jobs [1.5 million times 1.2 million, multiplied by 10 years] above the projected current law job figures of 7 million, producing a total of 25 million new jobs for the American economy.”
According to Trump, the gross domestic product (GDP) accrued under President Obama’s tenure (2.1 percent in seven years) is the lowest it has been since the 1940’s andbusinesses and corporations need to be taxed less so that they do not turn to outsourcing in order to post a profit.
Immigration:
· Clinton: Clinton’s immigration policy, like other major policies, differs starkly from that of Trump’s. A majority of policies proposed by the candidate have the intention of making it easier for immigrants of “varying visa statuses” to stay and/or work in America. Clinton has pledged to end three and 10-year bars that force all members of an immigrant family to have entered the country legally. The Democrat nominee wishes to xxpand Obama’s Affordable Care Act to include the millions of illegal immigrants that do not have health care coverage. Clinton also intends to promote citizenship naturalization, while also keeping families from having to be split up due to varying visa statuses. In Clinton’s plans for keeping America’s borders sacred, she intends to create a natural office of immigrant affairs with 15 million in new grant funding and encourage an emphasis on English proficiency.
· Trump: Trump intends to construct a wall along the southern border of the United States, barring the illegal entry of foreign aliens. Trump seeks to prioritize the jobs and security of the American people in this way, rather than use mass amounts of expenditures on the illegal immigrants that he insists take away from the jobs of the American people. Trump plans to eliminate “sanctuary cities,” that make it nearly impossible to deport illegal immigrants. Trump will call for the increase of border patrol officers and intends to pass legislation that will ai
d them in protocols more effective than the current catch and release system that he intends to abolish. Additionally, Trump will suspend visa requests from countries that cannot provide proper screening. Lastly, a Trump presidency would see biometric entry/exit stations installed across all American land, air and sea ports.
