Throughout my adolescent and now young adult years I have always had an interest in politics. I always followed the presidential races closely and thoroughly enjoyed the ideological battles. Naturally, I always formulated an idea of who I wanted to vote for and would anxiously look forward to the day when I was actually old enough to cast a ballot. However, now that I am actually old enough to do so, I am anything but elated.
Based on national polls right now there is a real possibility that I will have to choose between Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders. A narcissistic, arrogant, unqualified a-hole or an actual socialist. Not exactly the choice I fantasized about.
The fact that either of these men are legitimate candidates is absolutely mind boggling to me. In the seemingly normal presidential primaries of the past both of these men would be seen as totally unelectable. However, week after week the support for these men endures leading me to the conclusion that the American electorate may actually have gone totally insane.
On the Republican side, the question everyone is asking is how can so many people think making Trump the leader of our country is anything close to a good idea? The man gained notoriety through reality TV and frequently acts impulsively without thought, probably not a person who should have nuclear codes. Overlooking all that, I next wonder how people think nominating him will put a Republican in the White House. After all, the point of the primary is to nominate someone who you believe can win the general election. From that standpoint, Trump has to be every democrat's dream GOP nominee. He is probably the least likable and most polarizing candidate from either party which bodes terribly for his ability to win a general election.
The state of the democratic primaries is equally as baffling. While the democratic party is obviously left-wing in nature, nominating a self-described socialist would be radical even for them. Just a month ago it seemed that Hillary Clinton was destined to be the nominee. However, astoundingly, Bernie Sanders surged to a near tie in Iowa and is leading currently in New Hampshire. So once again I ask what are you thinking? The name of the game is nominating someone who can win the general election. If Bernie Sanders being a socialist alienates large portions of your own party just imagine what it will do to moderates and independents. I admittedly thought it was impossible for Sanders to gain the support he has so far being a self-described socialist but I remain confident that a socialist could not win a general election.
Even with all this insanity, the Iowa Caucuses did give me some hope. Trump's surprise upset means that perhaps he does not have the solidified support we thought he did. In addition, Marco Rubio's late surge to third was also a pleasant surprise. Rubio represents the only Republican candidate capable of unifying the party and broadening the party's appeal to young people and those struggling. The fact that voters seemed to gravitate towards him at the last second was a promising sign. For the democrats, solace can be found in the fact that Clinton still has the lead in the nationwide poll.
