Monday night’s Iowa Democratic Caucus attendees had a dynamic choice in front of them.
On one hand was a divisive grandstander of epic portions, whose policies would dismantle core American principles and put a system in place which, by some estimates, could eliminate six million jobs.
On the other hand was a principled, pragmatic progressive realist who refuses to promise a pie in the sky when only a slice or two could push through a contentious U.S. House of Representatives controlled by Republican representatives.
The delegate counting, tabulating and recounting went on until noon the next day. It was then that the AP officially called the race for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
While the result was not an outright rebuke of Sen. Bernie Sanders, the caucus was still a stunning letdown for his campaign.
With all of the fervor surrounding his effort, the angsty youth in Iowa’s various college towns were excited to dip their toes in politics for the first time. The expected turnout made this race his to lose.
Sanders’ voters did turnout in full force, but more reasoned, experienced and moderate voters who understand what’s really at stake in this election counteracted Sanders’ highly impressionable allies.
This was the right course of action and these people quite possibly saved our democracy.
If Sanders had #ComeThru, not only would slacktivists have gone on an agonizing Bernie meme-sharing bonanza, real world implications would have started to take effect.
The next president will control and shape the Supreme Court for the next generation, which is the most important issue of this campaign. We shouldn’t leave this election to hopes, wishes and a real life political science experiment.
Time and time again, Republicans have shown their willingness to repeal the Affordable Care Act. So ensuring universal health care becomes a full reality and not another contentious gridlocked debate is vitally important. We shouldn’t laugh this off as an untrue barbe from the Clinton campaign.
The most ardent of Sanders’ supporters are my liberal, white college peers.
They flounce around in bongo circles and earnestly believe America needs a revolution. Any note of this mass restructuring’s repercussions are wispy at best. They believe hard work, determination, personal responsibility and the gusto to get things done must be overlooked when evaluating their lot in life.
I feel this is the central reason Clinton’s message falls on deaf ears. She does not wrap their well-being in a cozy blanket. Instead, she is honest about the work required to get somewhere in life. She is tough as nails, and that is why I cannot wait for her to be my president.
Contrary to the #Berners scurrilous assertions, she always believed and fought for every person to be given equal access to opportunities. It still does not occur, and making this true is a central theory behind her reason for wanting to become president. She will not however, kowtow to the belief that hard work does not eventually pay off.
Sanders’ fantastical proposals will give way to Clinton’s sane and reasoned approach as Democrats and Independents make up their minds post Iowa and New Hampshire and the voting states begin to actually represent the racial makeup of America.
Garrett Hines is a 21-year-old political science senior from Monroe, Louisiana. You can reach him on Twitter @GarrettH_TDR.