Welcome to another week of Expect Diversity! Join Host Dr. David Pilgrim as he talks with Jonathan Hart & Mikaela Berna about the upcoming Presidential Election.
Election Season
On this episode of Expect Diversity Host Dr. David Pilgrim talks with Jonathan Hart the President of College Democrats, Mikaela Berna the Secretary of the College Republicans, and Professor David Takitaki who teaches Social and Behavioral Sciences. The topic of this episode is the upcoming 2024 Presidential Election. The first topic is how to make sure you are registered to vote and the times that are available to vote; Professor David Takitaki informs them that you are able to register to vote until 8pm November 5th which is Election Day although at that point you would have to do it in person he also mentions that you can do so within the township or city clerk’s office as long as you have the required information and driver’s license or other Identification with you.
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This Years Candidates
Host David asks the guests which candidates they are supporting starting with Jonathan in which he replies with Kamala Harris, Mikaela says that she is supporting Trump. Within this conversation the topic of Woman’s Rights specifically abortion came up. Mikaela views abortion as “Ending the life of an Innocent Human being” (4:50 timestamp within the video) she also believes that overturning Roe V. Wade and turning the decisions to the states is a good thing. On the other hand, Jonathan makes the statement that he is not pro-abortion but he is pro-choice and that he believes the “decision should be left to the mother” (6:30 timestamp within the video) rather than the state. Jonathan also makes the point that eliminating access to safe abortions will not eliminate abortion just create a higher rate of unsafe abortions.
Jonathan begins a conversation of health care costs by saying he believes it should be free and that nobody should be worried to seek healthcare in fear of being put into financial distress. In response Mikaela agrees that healthcare is too expensive but does not believe that it should be free.
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Dr. Pilgrim asks Professor Takitak if he believes that character should play a role in choosing a President. Professor Takitak responds by saying absolutely and says that characteristics he looks for reliability, considerate, and if they are able to keep their word. Mikaela says that she also believes that it is important. She goes onto say that she disagrees with how Trump acts sometimes but believes that he has some good characteristics like being powerful and respected. When asked if Mikaela is worried due to Trump being a felon and saying things about women, she simply responds by saying that everyone has made mistakes. When Jonathan was asked about character he said that it was one of the most important things to him when it comes to choosing a candidate. Jonathan goes on to point out the issue of trump having 34 convictions as well as pointing out that Trump has had issues with his past
businesses and bankruptcy. Mikaela had no response to this. Mikaela’s response to what is Kamala’s character is like she responds with saying that Kamala is not very decisive.
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Economic Issues & Troubles with Misinformation
Both students addressed their major concerns with the current state of the economy. They
expressed concerns about young people’s ability to afford the basic necessities to live.
Mikaela shared that she believes that Donald Trump would be a more effective candidate
to get the economy back on track, but Johnathen disagreed by stating that Kamala Harris’
economic policy will be much better for the economy overall.
Professor Takitaki finishes off the discussion by articulating what he believes is one of the
largest issues with the current state of elections in this country. He says that the rampant
spread of harmful misinformation spread through places like the internet is a major
contributing factor to the mistrust and general disinterest that we see in voters today. He
believes that people tend to miss the nuance in many situations and encourages voters to
do their research and inform their opinions on different topics.
Image by Ted Ethan