Crosstalk: Who should be elected president?

• This race, more than anything else, is about the appointment of up to four Supreme Court justices. If Hillary Clinton wins, the U.S. Constitution dies and that is not an overstatement. The high court is evenly split right now between liberals and conservatives and her first appointment of an activist judge who makes law from the bench starts the ball rolling to toss the principles of personal liberty.

Trump has released a list of 20 judicial nominees that he would appoint if elected. Everyone on that list is solid in their belief that the Constitution should be interpreted as closely as possible to the intent of its framers.

Clinton wants to see the Constitution as a “living document” because it limits government intervention in the lives of Americans. It is only outdated if you want to grow government or strip the Bill of Rights (as in gun ownership). There is a mechanism in the Constitution to make amendments if the people decide that is necessary — it should not be done by judges with their own political agenda.

• Trump is a successful and experienced businessman in the private sector who has actually built and created things. Conversely, Clinton has made millions as a corrupt public servant. She is part of the establishment class that has run up an almost $20 trillion debt, and new Americans are born owing a $60,779 share. How immoral is that?

• Trump plans to create public-private partnerships that spur a revenue- neutral $1 trillion in infrastructure investment over 10 years, as a startng point. He also wants to cancel billions in payments to United Nations climate change programs and use the money to fix America’s water and environmental infrastructure.

• To encourage economic development, Trump will require the elimination of two existing regulations for every new federal rule imposed.

• Trade deals will be renegotiated by Trump to even the playing field on behalf of America.

• On day one of his presidency, Trump will cancel every one of President Barack Obama’s unconstitutional executive actions. He also supports term limits for all members of Congress, ending the career class of politicians.

• Not being reliant upon donors makes it impossible for anyone to own Trump. He will be able to assess what is working in government and what is not without undue influence from people who have bought him as they have Clinton.

• Trump not having a filter will wipe the cancer of political correctness from our nation’s highest offices. Unlike Clinton, he speaks from the heart and his direction is not subject to change based on political winds.

• The “little people” will finally have a voice. We will have someone in office to lift up our concerns — such as the massive loss of manufacturing jobs in the U.S. — instead of another politician making whatever promises she thinks will bring power.

• America will finally have a protector at the helm who will make foreign policy decisions based on what keeps our country safe. Conversely Clinton wants a 500 percent increase in the number of Syrian refugees entering the U.S. when many have no documentation so there is no way to vet them.

She failed miserably during her time as secretary of state to stop growth of the Islamic State. And we all remember the Benghazi disaster and her dismissal of the deaths of four Americans.

• Our most vulnerable population, unborn fetuses, will be protected by Trump’s pro-life stance. Less than three percent of abortions are performed to protect the mother’s health, which Clinton uses as a defense for having 68 million babies killed in the last 43 years.

This election will be a litmus test to see how far around the bend American has gone. Vote Trump to hold the line.

by Jesse Burkhardt

This is a very strange and depressing presidential election year. The trend in American politics over recent campaign cycles has been trending toward sensationalism and attacks rather than a sober review of policy proposals, and the press generally focuses on negative campaigning rather than discerning the direction a particular candidate wants to take the country. Our nation has suffered as a result.

It is so grim this year that political cartoonists have no shortage of material for poking fun at the situation we find ourselves in. Two cartoons in particular have caught my eye. One depicts an alien spacecraft landing in an American city and two aliens coming out of the craft: “After watching your presidential race, we’d rather NOT be taken to your leader,” one of the aliens says.

Another cartoon shows a man in a doctor’s office for a consultation regarding what is apparently a life-threatening condition. The doctor tells the man: “This surgery could substantially extend your life, so you may want to wait to make your final decision until after the election.”

Welcome to our reality in 2016. Now, with just days until the ballots are counted and a presidential winner is declared, ballots have arrived in the mail and citizens need to make a decision. It’s a big one.

There are only two candidates that have a realistic chance of winning, and saying “I’d rather sit this one out” is really not an option.

The view here is that Hillary Clinton deserves your vote. First of all, she will make history – the first woman in our long and illustrious saga as a nation to be elected president. The United States prides itself on being a land where barriers are broken down, and where anyone can dream and believe that there truly are no limits on where your talents can take you, including serving in the highest office in the nation. But so far, no woman has broken through that sharp glass ceiling. It’s long overdue.

Of course, being a woman is by no means the main rationale to cast your vote for Clinton. The primary reason is simple: She has a record of service to the public. In the political arena, she served as a United States Senator from New York for eight years.

She was elected in 2000 — becoming the first woman elected to statewide office in New York — and re-elected in 2006.

As senator, she worked to make sure first responders, who suffered lasting health effects from rushing in to try to rescue victims of the 9-11 attacks, got the health care they needed and deserved. And she showed herself to be a strong champion of the middle class.

Two years into her second six-year term as senator, she was chosen by President Barack Obama to be secretary of state, a daunting and difficult role she handled effectively for four years.

She was a strong voice for human rights during her time as secretary of state, including her famous declaration: “Women’s rights are human rights.”

Earlier, as first lady of the United States during the eight years of the presidency of her husband, Bill Clinton, she focused on trying to expand health care coverage for American citizens. Although her efforts were ultimately unsuccessful, she refined her approach and helped create the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which now provides health care to 8 million kids.

As a public servant, Hillary Clinton has tried to lift her constituents and make their lives better. She has a decades-long record of service to Americans.

She has made her share of mistakes, to be sure, and her record is far from spotless. But she is tough and a fighter. She has a steely resolve that should be reassuring to Americans in potential showdowns with foreign leaders. In short, she is highly qualified to serve as president of the United States, and she is worthy of your support.