Guest column by Sam Iacobellis | Why I trust her

As we enter the final two months of this chaotic election season, one question is still constantly asked of me as a supporter of Hillary Clinton: do you trust her?

The answer is a resounding yes.

According to the most recent ABC News/Washington Post poll, only 35% of likely voters view Hillary Clinton as honest and trustworthy. This figure directly contradicts the truth of the matter. The non-partisan fact checking site PolitiFact found that of all the candidates in the 2016 contest (of either party), Hillary Clinton was the most honest based on an analysis of her public statements since entering the race. In the same analysis, Mr. Donald “Tells it like it is” Trump made the most incorrect statements of any candidate, having nearly one in five of his statements given the “Pants on Fire” assessment, which means the statement is “not accurate and makes a ridiculous claim”.

If one thinks that Hillary Clinton is inauthentic or dishonest about the beliefs she professes, they fundamentally do not understand her record.

Hillary Clinton has been talking about and fighting for the same issues since she was a student at Wellesley College. In her landmark 1969 commencement speech she passionately elucidated the structural problems of poverty, inequality, education, and women’s rights. Whether she was fighting to end school segregation in the Deep South after college, assuring all children received a quality education as First Lady of Arkansas, making sure low-income children had access to affordable healthcare via the Children’s Health Insurance Program as First Lady or proclaiming that women's rights are human rights are women's rights to the U.N. in 1995, Hillary Clinton has been leading the effort on these issues her entire professional life. Whether people want to believe it or not, Hillary Clinton’s words have matched her actions.

Even the go-to Republican points of attack such as her use of a personal email server as Secretary of State or the response to the 2012 attack on the American embassy in Benghazi do not hold up under scrutiny. Partisan attacks against Hillary Clinton’s honesty always fall flat once facts are brought to the surface.

When people ask me why I trust Hillary Clinton, the answer is an easy one.

I trust her to make America the 21st-century clean energy superpower.

I trust her to combat addiction and address the stigma surrounding mental illness.

I trust her to make college more affordable and deal with the crisis of student debt.

I trust her to address injustice in our criminal justice system and improve race relations.

I trust her to keep our country safe and strengthen our alliances abroad.

I trust her to create millions of new jobs and catalyze American industry.

My trust is not blind. It is based on the record of a passionate, pragmatic, progressive leader who has proven she has the experience and temperament to lead the free world.

As she exited the race in 2008 and endorsed then Sen. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton crystallized the reason why she sought the presidency. She said, “I entered this race because I have an old-fashioned conviction that public service is about helping people solve their problems and live their dreams. I've had every opportunity and blessing in my own life, and I want the same for all Americans. And until that day comes, you'll always find me on the front lines of democracy, fighting for the future.”

I trust that she will keep fighting for us. She always has.

Sam Iacobellis is a senior and co-president of Penn for Hillary

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.