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Why I Voted For Joe

I’ve been thinking a lot about the reasons why I voted for Joe Biden. I was pretty excited to vote last year with a few candidates I felt that I could really get behind that seemed transparent (enough). But like most elections, the exciting choices didn’t prevail, and with it went my deflated passion as it came down to Joe Biden. He’s a career politician that has gotten it wrong so many times in the past, on a lot of the issues he’s now running in contrast to today. I get it, he’s very flawed and a liar like every establishment politician.

It’s easy to talk about the reasons why I don’t like Donald Trump - The greatest hits are all out there (and I’m sure mine will qualify, as well), but I find myself voting on a very simple foundational level - Words matter.

I’ve seen a lot of career Republicans and lifetime supporters stick by his side at all costs because of policy, blatantly ignoring what he says because of loyalty to the party and stubbornness to stick to a philosophy that they’ve always bought into. I don’t care if someone’s a Republican - I was one myself years back, but at what point do we realize that a lot of things happening right now are not just a result of a flawed media (and they are very flawed), the “China virus,” or “wokesters,” but words that come directly from our President? Why do you think a traditional President speaks the way he does with careful, predictable messaging? Sure, re-election is always in play and the approval rating of the people, but it’s because EVERYONE IS WATCHING. You are responsible for representing millions of people, and being the face of a country for the rest of the world. What you say matters. “Oh, he’s just messing around about injecting bleach, or that we’re turning a corner with covid, or that it’s not that bad and we shouldn’t be afraid of it. He denounced white supremacists!” Are you watching the same person I am? Can you not read between the lines of what this man truly feels and thinks? Donald Trump may not be a white supremacist, and that may not be what he’s trying to inspire, but the words he says and the attitude behind them are inspiring that behavior across the country. The trickle down effect is real. I’ve seen it daily in my own community.

On the final day of his campaign, he laughed it up with a rally crowd about firing the Infectious Disease Expert that has been 95% correct on all of his information and warnings to the public, instead of trying to appeal to all Americans with any sort of unifying message. Doesn’t that matter to people? He harps on this need for law and order while his supporters surround Biden buses in giant trucks to run them off of the road. Do you know who would be first to denounce that behavior? Joe Biden.

There’s no substance to the things he says, no ounce of thought or well-planned research or compassion for those of us that are both equally scared for our health and of losing our jobs - Two things that are not separate from one another. Everything he does is emotional and reactionary. We’re currently divided over HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of people dying in our own country. Where do you think that stems from? Why are people intentionally going out in public without any protection whatsoever after opening up the economy. Why is Gretchen Whitmer labeled some power hungry woman for measures she has taken that SO MANY OTHER STATES HAVE? We met more than halfway, and this is your response, and these deaths are the result. How can we cling to Christian values and Pro-Life talking points while ignoring 200,000 deaths in the name of Constitutional rights?

His reactions, his demeanor, and the things he says inspire millions to carry out that message, whether it was intentional or just top of mind. And it has consequences. It’s as important as any policy he may hold (we wouldn’t know, because there was no chance to debate about actual things we care about - Like healthcare, probably the #1 most important topic to Americans)

He ran on this platform of being the anti-politician, a refreshing alternative to establishment politics, and 4 years ago on election night, I told my partner, who at the time didn’t buy a word of my thought process, that I would give him a chance and welcome productive change to many decades of the same problems. But to not call Donald Trump a politician is to blatantly ignore everything he has done in the last four years. He is no different than Joe Biden or those that came before him, he just doesn’t have the political/voting track record for us to publicize.

I don’t know if Joe Biden is a “decent man” or if he cares about all Americans, or if he’ll succumb to the demands of the party, but I do know that I’m really scared for my family’s health going into next year when every single person of importance is warning us of apocalyptic type losses while our leader tells us it’s going away. That’s terrifying. A President should assure us that they have a plan in place based in reality, not lies that treat us like we’re children. 

I don’t like snooty liberals that look down on the uneducated or the rural farm country folk. You’re no better. I am no better. I don’t like a media that has twisted the knife on every story for years in unethical ways. And I HATE when I allow myself to throw punches on social media, which is putting irreparable damage on our mental and social health. I also don’t condone property damage when it comes to protest in any form, but I also know that kneeling for a football game in peaceful protest of police brutality did absolutely nothing but cause American flag wearing chest pounding and “If you don’t like America, you can get out” responses, and those affected reached a boiling point.

When did American Pride turn into ‘My way or the highway?’ or this strict obsession with centuries old documents where women had no rights and black people were slaves? When did the idea of figuring out systems (as a nation) that are inclusive to all people begging for help become Anti-American?

I’m voting against dangerous messaging to the everyday American. We were divided before Trump, and we will be divided after him, and that’s on us to look inward and figure out, but before this, debate was at least possible. We discussed policy, not wild conspiracy theories and which part of the country the Civil War was breaking out that day. We didn’t wake up every day pulling our guns out to battle the other side. I feel divided from people I love because of this man, who does not represent the Republican Party that I thought I knew. I know there are good Republicans out there that deep down know that this man does not reflect their values. We have to get past party loyalty.

I won’t celebrate a Joe Biden presidency because I believe he is a great candidate, and I do not count myself as a far-left, proud member of the Democratic Party, but I’ve also seen a lot of troubling behavior from people I know all in the name of this man, and Joe Biden will at the very least provide a refreshing restart. We’ve got a LOT of work to do as human neighbors far beyond the presidency -- I need to be better and engage those that think differently than me with compassion and understanding of where that person is coming from and their story. I’ll be first in line volunteering to fight for real change for my community when this pandemic ends, but I know that there is no hope anytime soon for that future to mend fences if Donald Trump returns.