Students react to presidential election, discuss media scandals, Trump policies

I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

These are the words of the oath of office that mark the commencement of a new four-year term of a president of the United States.

In little over a month’s time, President-Elect Donald Trump, “the man who would not be president,” will recite these words at his inauguration as the 45th President of the United States.

In light of a tumultuous and heavily social media influenced campaign season, the results of this year’s presidential election took many people by surprise, including junior Karissa Swartz.

“Honestly, I was shocked about this election because the polls had predicted Hillary to win for so long,” Swartz said. “Although there are some things that scare me about Trump, I am happy that the American people spoke and surprised all of the career politicians.”

Sophomore Stevie Caronia was also surprised by the outcome of the election, but she would not consider herself a fan of the President-Elect.

“I don’t even like saying President Trump,” Caronia said. “If he wants people to get on his side, to trust him and to choose to support or continue to support him, he needs to make some decisions that are going to appeal to people.”

As Inauguration Day quickly approaches, students have mixed feelings looking forward toward a Trump presidency.

“I believe that with stable advisors, Trump will make a good president, especially because he doesn’t have so much political baggage like Hillary does,” Swartz stated.

The email controversy, questions surrounding her role in the Benghazi attack… the prevalence of these scandals among others in mainstream media dissuaded many voters from throwing their support Clinton’s way.

On the other hand, Trump had his fair share of media scandals throughout the election season as well, including the sexual assault allegations and the vulgar language used in the 2005 video recording with Billy Bush.

“He’s already had a scandal that he blamed on the media, and he has blamed everyone but himself,” Caronia said. “I’m just praying he makes the right decisions.”

Scandals aside, many students on campus have voiced their opinions regarding Trump’s ideological leanings and how those will affect his presidency.

“I look forward to several of the changes that will come with this presidency, although I certainly do not agree with Donald Trump on everything,” senior Tiana Ferrante said. “One change is that the government will no longer perpetuate the falsehood that brutal partial-birth abortion is a legitimate form of women’s health.”

In the final presidential debate, Donald Trump said he supports the federal ban on partial-birth abortion because, under the procedure, “in the ninth month you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb of the mother.”

Ferrante also looks forward to Trump’s policies on immigration.

“In contrast with the current administration’s border policy, Trump’s enforcement of preexisting border security laws will support legal immigration, which has always been an indispensable avenue to living the American dream, and reinforcing that will also alleviate our susceptibility to terrorism,” Ferrante stated.

Along with these policies, students feel strongly about Trump’s ability to produce positive and significant change.

“In short, from social issues like conscience rights for medical professionals to negotiating agreements, the policies of this presidency could make a very positive impact,” Ferrante said.

First-year Kyle Praset has differing opinions on Trump’s proposed policies.

“Trump talks about getting money out of politics, but he is most likely one of the worst offenders because of the media’s leaning toward Trump over Hillary,” Praset said. “It is clear that the media won this election over all else.”

Praset feels that throughout the election season it was hard to know what Trump’s policies actually were.

According to Praset, building a big wall and deporting immigrants were the only two aspects of Trump’s proposed policies that were widespread to the general public.

“You should know who you support and what that person plans to employ,” Praset stated. For these reasons, Praset is wary of what a Trump presidency holds for the future of America.

For the most part, the student opinions reflected in this article can be seen throughout the general public’s discourse regarding the outcome of the election.

For some people, Trump’s election was a much needed change from career politicians.

For others, a Trump presidency represents the social attitudes that they have been working to eradicate from society.

Needless to say, Trump’s election and his ensuing presidency will be one for the books.

 

Senior Edition

Issuu is a digital publishing platform that makes it simple to publish magazines, catalogs, newspapers, books, and more online. Easily share your publications and get them in front of Issuu's millions of monthly readers. Title: Senior Edition, Author: The Etownian, Name: Senior Edition, Length: 10 pages, Page: 1, Published: 2020-04-30