Election 2020: What’s at Stake?

By John Meng, Managing Editor     When it comes to the ideology and platforms of the Republican and Democratic parties in the United State, the choice facing Americans next week has not been so diametrically opposed since perhaps the 1868 election ­– the first presidential election to take place after the conclusion of the Civil War and the abolition of slavery.     

This election presents two political parties with very different agendas and visions for our future.     

Lynard Olson, chairman of the Jackson County Republican Party, explained that President Trump’s efforts to fill vacancies on the Federal courts, including the Supreme Court, changes the playing field, not just for the present, but for years to come. With  conservative judges on benches across the county, Olson believes that “legislating from the bench” through judicial activism will be significantly reduced.     

“They (Democrats) can’t just say ‘if we don’t get our way, then we’ll sue until we do get our way.’,” said Olson. “Now, Democrats have to go out and convince the voters that what the they want is to the voters’ advantage.”     

According to Olson, career politicians in Washington D.C. have a history of corruption and the recent allegations of Joe Biden and his son, Hunter, making deals and taking money from China and Ukraine are evidence of that.     

“The politicians always seem to get rich,” he said. “That means they are not always working for the people; they are working for themselves. This Biden issue is bringing that to the forefront.”     

Olson said that all politicians make promises to the American people when they are campaigning, but a real measure of the person is whether they keep their promises once they are in office.     

“I was always for Trump, but if you look at the list of his promises and accomplishments, it’s an extremely long list. As others have said, “He’s done more in 47 months than Biden has done in 47 years.     

“I would expect that with what Trump has planned for us in the next four years, we will see the economy really skyrocket. It’s going to be so much better for the U.S., all the people. Trump is for everybody. He’s trying to get taxes down. He’s trying to get more income for people. He’s trying to give businesses a chance to succeed,” said Olson.     

“We’re better off today than four years ago. Most of the people seem to think they are better off today, mainly because they have seen what happened in the last three years. The main reason people are better off is because businesses have less regulations and they can plan for growth which means they can hire people,” said Olson.     

Olson also commented on the recent shut down of the economy by Democratic governors due to the coronavirus.     

“I think they are overstepping their bounds as far as having control over the populace. These Democratic governors have taken advantage of the virus situation and tried to take control of the businesses and the people in their state. I think that is a bad omen.”     

Not surprising, H. Donnell Cole, chairman of the Jackson County Democrat Party, sees things a little differently.     

Cole commented that the election has stimulated a lot of interest on both sides.     

“The two sides are dramatically different in what they are proposing,” said Cole. “But I think this election has really stimulated both sides – those that hate Trump and those that love Trump. Personally, I’ve never figured Trump out yet.”     

Cole predicts that a Democrat administration will have the environment and medical insurance as its top priorities.   

 “They will push for more people covered for healthcare, and certainly roll back environmental plans,” said Cole. “I don’t see much change in the gun laws for the first couple of years, but they may come up with new restrictions on purchasing guns that we haven’t seen so far. Of course, so many other things will get thrown in there.”     

Cole believes another top priority for Biden will be getting COVID-19 under control.     

“Trump is pushing that a vaccine is just around the corner, but I don’t see it around the corner. We had polio for many, many years, before we came out with a vaccine. On the Democratic side, I think they will push more for masks and distancing and it will be hard on restaurants and bars and any type of place for social gathering. I think there will be a national mandate for masks.”     

The Democratic Party chair contends that the nation needs a centralized plan to combat COVID-19.     

“We have to have someone in charge because the way it’s going now there is not a centralized plan. Every state is trying to develop their own plan and some are not even trying to do that.     

“The problem of making the virus at least manageable so we’re not spending all of our energy and resources trying to carry out each state’s plan, each county’s plan, or each precinct’s plan, is that we don’t have a solid and consolidated plan.     

“There’s no central plan. I think the first thing we’re going to have to do is get the virus under control. If you’re not protected where you work, you’re certainly not going to want to go to work. If we can get the curve going down like New York did, we might be able to bring this economy back a little sooner. Otherwise, I think this (virus) will drive us into a depression like we haven’t seen since the 1920s and 1930s.   

 “Look at South Korea. When they wanted to shut it down, the government led the way. I think the Federal government can coordinate the practices necessary to bring it under control, instead of each state doing their own thing,” said Olson. “I look forward to the Democrats to move pretty strong and quick on centralizing a plan for combating COVID-19.”