In the September debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, Former President Donald Trump claimed “[Kamala] refused to be there because she was at a sorority party of hers.” Within that same debate Vice President Kamala Harris claimed “What you will also notice is that people start leaving [Donald’s] rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom.”
The common theme is obvious. Politics in 2024 has become more insults and rhetoric than civic dialogue and policy.
In a time where the United States is more divided than ever, on topics ranging from abortion or foreign policy, politics needs candidates who will clearly and concisely lay out their policies for their citizens. The debate this past week was a prime example of what politics has become. It has become a space with so much hate and contention where opponents won’t even shake hands.
However, it wasn’t always this way. Let’s take a look at how debates have gone in the past. Looking back to as recently as 2012, at Denver University, even with candidates with very different viewpoints, the debate did not have the attacks that are common today. Current incumbent at the time, Barack Obama, and Former Governor, Mitt Romney, faced off in a debate that started with congratulations.
“Congratulations to you, Mr. President, on your anniversary. I’m sure this was the most romantic place you could imagine, here with me. So I—[Laughter]—congratulations,” Romney stated.
In the past, even when candidates disagreed, disagreements did not come with harsh attacks on their person. Occasionally, as crazy as it may sound to voters not familiar with older debates, candidates sometimes agreed with each other. When speaking of corporate tax rates former president Obama and Romney were able to respectfully agree on the topic and admit their similarities.
“When it comes to our Tax Code, Governor Romney and I both agree that our corporate tax rate is too high. So I want to lower it, particularly for manufacturing—taking it down to 25 percent,” Obama stated.
See another theme here, politics wasn’t always all insults. Politics has devolved into a game of name calling and attacks. Many politicians today use these to try to spark anger and emotion into their voters. However, these tactics have allowed for the far ends of each side to have the loudest voice, but the smallest majority. Most Americans are not a Radical Republican or an extremely Liberal Democrat. However, politicians have set the stage for each extreme to outshine the majority of citizens that reside around the middle.
The unaccounted for effect of the path politics has gone down has been the increase in attempted political violence. Words and fearmongering have sparked assassination attempts and riots. Since the last debate, we have seen bomb threats in Springfield, Ohio and a man armed with a semi automatic rifle at Donald Trump’s golf course.
Consider this, no matter the result of the 2024 election, half of America will not be happy with the result. 50% of America will not be in favor of the candidate that won the election. However, instead of the results sparking riots and anger, Americans should focus on what they can do for the betterment of the entire country under the new administration. At the end of it all, Americans need to remember that both candidates are attempting to put forth their vision to better the country, they just disagree with their ways to get there.