Editorial | Our Presidential Primary Endorsements

With the Pennsylvania primaries fast approaching, as well as those of many other relevant states, The Daily Pennsylvanian’s Opinion Board is endorsing candidates for the presidential primaries, as we have in past elections. We are choosing a candidate for both parties, and these selections reflect the choices of the Opinion Board and not the publication as a whole.

Hillary Clinton

The DP Opinion Board is endorsing Hillary Clinton for the Democratic candidacy for a number of reasons.

Hillary Clinton is perhaps the most experienced candidate in the primaries from either party. Her experience in Washington, D.C. will serve her well if she becomes president. She has been Secretary of State, a senator and First Lady — a trio of titles that speaks to how well she has navigated the U.S. political system in the past.

Even so, the decision between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton is not necessarily clear cut. Despite their differences, both candidates have obvious appeal. Sanders has a commendable history of concern over race and class consciousness, while Clinton has strong economic proposals and valuable experience in enacting foreign policy. Still, Clinton has also become the center of controversy, being put under national scrutiny for her private email server and her handling of the Benghazi attack. However, she has been tested both in court and by the media, and Sanders has not been subject to the same scrutiny as of yet.

While Sanders has big ideas, we question whether he will be able to implement them. Clinton’s goals are much more achievable. Her proposed policies may be less radical, but they are still progressive. But more importantly, the probability of her creating tangible change is higher, even if that change is less comprehensive than it could be. Immediate change would be beneficial to the country as a whole at this moment in time, and this is change that Clinton may bring more easily.

Clinton would be a highly qualified president and one who understands how the system works, which is definitely a desirable quality in a leader.

John Kasich

The DP Opinion Board is endorsing John Kasich for the Republican candidacy.

To put it mildly, this year’s race for the Republican presidential nomination has been surreal. The two frontrunners, Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, both stand out in their own idiosyncratic ways. Marco Rubio, despite his seemingly broader appeal has himself also stooped to making personal attacks at his competitors. Kasich is a candidate with crossover appeal and significant experience in both the private and public sector.

Kasich may be an underdog in this year’s race, but he is one with meaningful experience in both the state and federal level after two decades in the House of Representatives and as governor of Ohio, especially compared to his peers. He has the amount of experience of both Rubio and Cruz combined, to say nothing of Trump. Likewise, he has experience in the private sector between his public sector appointments.

Kasich, unlike other candidates, does not veer to or revel in extremism or inexperience — character traits that perhaps do not make for good television but make for a good presidential candidate.

His conduct and policy proposals have been well thought out. He has crossover appeal and an ability to work with Democrats. He has an ability to navigate complex social issues, providing reasoned opinions to questions of same sex marriage and other controversial topics. After he became governor, the rate of job growth in Ohio was lower than the national average, but the job decline is lower than the national average as well. His plans for balancing the federal budget are also intelligently proposed and reasoned out, which is also a highly appealing quality. Therefore, we are endorsing him for the Republican candidacy.

Some might argue that it would be better to vote for Rubio because he has had more time in the spotlight and may have a better chance than Kasich in getting the nomination. However, we believe that it is more important to endorse a candidate whose policy we agree with rather than a candidate we believe has more appeal.

Voting for him is casting a vote for a more organized Republican party, something that this year’s race has shown that we sorely need.

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