Society, Politics, & Economics

Trump Is Showing The LGBTQ+ Community His True Intentions Today Trump announced the military's new policy of banning transgender individuals from military service. It's a relatively surprising yet unsurprising twist to the Trump administration's policy regarding the LGBTQ+ community. Trump's VP, Mike Pence, has a storied  history of anti-LGBTQ+ policy.  Trump surrogates and conservative media outlets have repeatedly attempted to paint Trump as the most LGBTQ+ friendly president in American history. Even after this move, his surrogates are still trying to defend Trump and justify his actions.  Trump has attempted to paint himself as LGBTQ+ friendly because of his ongoing culture war against those that he and his camp of advisors view as non-western, primarily Muslims. Trump is emphatically the president of the nativist and xenophobic population in the US, Steve Bannon being one of his primary advisors shows this. As part of this culture war, Trump and hi

Trump Cannot Pardon Himself As the Russia investigation, as led by Robert Mueller , picks up ever increasing steam, the stress it places on President Trump has continuously increased. Recently, Trump and members of his staff have begun to research the power of the pardon that the office of the president holds. Trump is reportedly considering pardoning himself. He cannot do this. The power of the pardon may be broad, but no person in this country is above the law. When a officeholder  that maintains the power of the pardon uses it on an individual, they excuse them of all crimes that may have been committed. The use of such a power on oneself is unprecedented in American history. Nixon was not pardoned until he stepped down and Gerald Ford assumed power. This was a clear misuse of power, but it was not as much of a misuse of power had Nixon pardoned himself. Nixon clearly violated the law, he stepped down and did not face criminal charges because his successor excused him of

Only Tangible Policy Positions Will Win Them Elections, The "Center" Doesn't Provide That We are currently 6 months into the Trump presidency. The Republican Congress has bungled the ACA repeal attempt while Trump has haphazardly played the role of a president. Currently, there is a Muslim ban in effect and waiting for Supreme Court review. A wall on the southern border with Mexico could potentially be funded by Congress. There are a handful of other policy attempts being worked on, but so far no real piece of legislation has been signed by the Trump administration. The GOP has effectively put forward a slate of policy positions that their voters can observe, The Democratic Party needs to do the same for future elections. Democratic standpoints thus far been of pure and overt rejection. Democratic politicians have gone out on limbs to say things like "this is awful", "we don't support this", "we would never do this". The Democ

School Choice Is Not The Answer The United States population is as diverse as it gets. There are multiple religious, ethnic, cultural, and racial groups all living under the same government, because of this we have become one of the most unique societies that human history has ever witnessed. One important fact remains, regardless of the general characteristics of an individual or group, we are all Americans. We may have have our differences, but we are all equal members of a greater society. A question that a society as diverse as our faces is how can we ensure that the next generation learns that our differences do not define us, that we are all inherently equal? Public schools have historically been the institution where this happens. Our public schools have been where children of Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, and Atheist or nonsectarian parents would come together and learn as a single unit. They would all be treated as equals for the duration of their education

At A Minimum, Criminal Charges Must Be Filed News has broken  that Jared Kushner, Paul Manafort, and Donald Trump Jr. took a meeting with a Russian government connected lawyer. Newly released emails show how the meeting apparently took place to further the Russian government's efforts to support the presidential campaign of Donald Trump. Campaign finance laws clearly state that American electoral campaigns cannot request "something of value" as a contribution from foreign nationals and governments. Emails show that the meeting took place to further the Russian government's efforts to support the Trump campaign. This is clearly an attempt by the Trump campaign to solicit a contribution of "something of value" from a foreign national or government. The emails show that three members of the campaign are directly at fault, while leaving the standing of the rest of the campaign up in the air.  This is dangerous. Members of the Trump campaign app

Constant Attacks On The Press And The Media Have Fractured The American Public The 4th Estate, or better known as the press (or the media), is a crucial component of The United States. The First Amendment guarantees the public's right to having a free and open press, and American history has thanked our nation's founders for that right. Without the 4th Estate, the American public never would have learned about Nixon and the Watergate scandal, the truth about Vietnam may have never come to light, and political discussion and debate would be drastically limited.  The press acts as the American public's best source for information regarding their government's and politician's actions and beliefs. The press is one of the pivotal components of a system that ensures a free and open debate of opinion, ideology, and belief exists in society. Coverage regarding President Trump has been critical and relatively negative. Trump has responded by lashing out at me