Just an Opinion
My thoughts after the VP debate Vance & Walz
I write my thoughts down. But that's what I'm supposed to do on this platform, correct? There's even a place to arrange them...and it's aptly called, "The Swamp."
What compels me to do so? Not to get into arguments, that's for sure. Mainly, I need a sounding board since I can't get either of my sons to engage in politics. One has to get up too early for work and the other one says, "They are like soap operas." So having nobody to discuss the debate with means I must pound on a few keys.
Why did I watch the VP debate? One reason is because I knew very little of either candidate. Sure, one was a senator and one was a governor. Both have books written by them or about them. Both served in the armed forces, although both have varied stories of their actual performance/duties while serving. But kudos for their service, nonetheless!
Both came from small towns and "working class" folks. One even had a movie about the familial struggles of his childhood. It's fair to say that for me, being a neighbor to either of them would not be that far-fetched.
They also share in the fact that they are willing participants to be the wingmen for the presidential candidate of their party. It is always nice to be hand-picked. I find myself analyzing just "why" they were indeed, chosen. What jumps into my thoughts are politics, of course. Vice Presidential candidates are very useful to "fill in the weak areas." After all, they need to accrue the most votes in those places.
But I would like to believe it was much more than just politics at the base. I'd like to believe that somber and prayerful consideration took place as to who would be able to lead our country the best if, God forbid, the President could not. And that is the ultimate reason I watched the debate. I wanted to judge what I was seeing and hearing and come to my own conclusions.
I was almost a clean slate before the debate. But I will admit to a few pre-conceived ideas on both men, based only as before mentioned limited scope of them and by some media portrayal I might have taken note of.
Of Vance before the debate, I thought him somewhat exuberant and impetuous which I attributed to his youth. Since I changed my political stances several times throughout my life, I give him the grace to do so, also. But, if you are going to be wingman, it's best to not go against that grain. This is where I must give kudos to Trump because his number two needs to assert himself and go against the grain to better the decisions made for our country. Just do it privately and not in front of a camera, please! I wasn't sure Vance was the "right" pick before the debate.
Of Walz pre-debate, to be honest, I just thought him to be another bumbling old white man like the current one in office or Bernie Sanders. At first glance, all I could think of was "goofy." I'm sorry...just being real. I had a very difficult time wrapping my head around why Harris would want him to represent her platform. He did appear to be a "Yes" man all the way. I thought, maybe that's what she liked. I wasn't certain that voters would see him as an asset.
My mind changed on both VP candidates in question after watching the debate, though. But to be fair, I don't think the election meter will go up or down at the polls based on the debate. The debate did allow me insight into the character of these two, though.
Vance was exuberant, but maybe not as impetuous as I had thought. I found him to be very intelligent, a good listener, articulate, and thoughtful in his responses. He showed tact and fairness, offering a positive, respectful tone and approach. But he stood his ground when he needed to. All great qualities to have if serving in a VP role. I didn't see any going against the grain in his stump, which he championed Trump in, although admittedly stating, he didn't agree with everything. I thought that to be a healthy stance for America.
As for Walz, I found the most surprise from him. I saw a man comfortable in most part behind the podium, also articulate and gracious. But I clearly saw why Harris needs him as her second. He is actually her teacher, has seemingly given her the rule book from his campaign and platform notes of being the governor of Minnesota. His shadow. He is the one who should actually be running as President and not her. He was able to discuss plans and policies (that he used in governance) and has some positive results from his time serving his state. They echo into Harris' platform. She just has a few slogans and a grating, often inappropriate laugh. Unfortunately, unlike Walz, she doesn't have positive results to brag about from her repertoire to fall back on, though.
So, I did learn much from the debate tonight. But I am still voting for whom I think is best able to lead our nation and be a defining asset to our world, Trump/Vance. And I think Vance at helm, if that would occur, would be our best option, as well. They just have a better plan/policies in my estimation.
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About the Creator
Shirley Belk
Mother, Nana, Sister, Cousin, & Aunt who recently retired. RN (Nursing Instructor) who loves to write stories to heal herself and reflect on all the silver linings she has been blessed with :)
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Infanticide
My intent on writing this article is to share my research. This topic would have never crossed my mind had it not been for my utter shock and disbelief, when in the Presidential debate between former President Trump and current Vice President Kamala Harris, on the topic of abortion, there was a statement made by Conservative Trump in regard to "babies being executed" and "laughed off" followed by vehement denials (both by Harris AND so-called "fact checked" ABC moderator, Linsey Davis.)
By Shirley Belkabout a year ago in The Swamp
Comments (6)
I remember this debate and quite enjoyed it! The civility was refreshing. And I often see that point being made about Harris’s grating laugh amongst Republicans, it’s kind of funny 😂 Not something I’d ever think about! I guess it’s like making fun of Trump’s diction and delivery so fair enough
Nice and fair report. Thank you
Thanks for sharing your opinion and take on the debate. I just pray we elect a leader that bring peace and harmony
Well written Shirley. I appreciate your attempt at being unbiased. Of course you know I have my biases - which are based on study, facts, faith, and good old common sense. I find Kamala Harris' laugh to be engaging, delightful, and inviting. It's a breath of fresh air. Her laugh is probably one of the aspects why she is one of the few politicians currently with a positive approval rating. She has a +1.3 approval ratings, Donald Trump has a -9.5 approval, Tim Walz has a +2.5 approval, and J.D. Vance has a -10.3 approval. Both Tim Walz and Kamala Harris have a net positive approval rating which goes a long way in getting elected for public office. That means people not only like the candidates personality but also in general their policies. I have to disagree with you when you say that Kamala Harris has just a few slogans. I have listened to many of her speeches and she goes into detail on her vision, what she wishes to accomplish as president, and the person that she is. She's not just slogans, this I know because I do listen to her and I've taken the time to follow up and read what she has on her website and she goes into pretty lengthy detail in her vision for the United States of America. Now I hear a lot of people saying well she's had three and a half years to accomplish this stuff why hasn't she. Well first of all she is not the president of the United States so she is stating her vision for when she becomes president. Currently she is the vice president under Joe Biden. As for Kamala Harris's accomplishments. My goodness just look at her resume that in itself is an accomplishment. She has earned her way up to vice President of the United States, that is a major accomplishment for anybody. She's been a senator, a district attorney, and she's been successful and all her positions whether you like her or not she has been successful in all the jobs that she has. I say that because with each job she has had the next job she has is a step up. She's continued to take steps up, she has never once taken a step down or a step back. That is a successful person. Now, as for accomplishments in the Biden-Harris administration. If we are being honest there have been many and some have been monumental successes. I will start with a monumental success: The Biden-Harris administration passed a great infrastructure plan which will create millions of high paying jobs over the next ten years. There are already 100,000 projects started across the U.S. due to the Biden-Harris plan. These projects have already created more than one million high paying jobs which are employing architects, City planners, construction workers, designers, cartographers, manufacturers, horticulturists, environmentalists, electricians, plumbers, etc. Because of these projects local manufacturing plants are busy, local restaurants, sandwich shops, coffee shops, etc. are also busy. Trump did not accomplish anything even close to the scope of the Biden-Harris infrastructure plan. This is one of the biggest economic achievements of the past 100 years. Joe Biden will go down in history as one of our great presidents. One other major accomplishment is the Biden-Harris administration's handling of inflation. Back in 2020 economists were saying that once we come out of the pandemic the world (not just the U.S.) would experience a high rate of inflation as well as going into a recession. They were saying it didn't matter who became president (Trump or Biden) this high inflation would hit. The economists were right. They were saying disruptions to the global supply chain would cause price increases on just about everything. Due to the Biden-Harris economic plans the U.S. experienced a lower rate of inflation than most other countries. At it's peak (2022) the U.S. experienced a 9.1% inflation rate while other parts of the world experienced 25%, 40%, 75%, some countries even up to 200% and more. The U.S. relatively felt a very small sting from the global inflation problem. On top of it the average income in the U.S. went up by 4.8% which helped to take even more of that sting away. Plus we did not go in not a recession. FACTS matter. Now remember Donald Trump was handed a strong economy. He inherited an economy which was on an upward trajectory. Trump was lucky, he had it easy. However, his tax cuts which greatly benefitted the wealthy and did not trickle down to the middle or poverty classes added $4 trillion to the U.S. deficit. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were handed a massively broken economy. The economy they inherited was in a downward trajectory. The Biden-Harris economic policies actually decreased the deficit. Plus they had a lower unemployment rate than Trump and the stock market increased by a higher percentage than when Trump was in office. FACTS do matter. FACTS do matter and we should expect a modicum of honesty from our politicians when they are running their campaigns. This notion that Donald Trump is pushing around that this inflation is solely the fault of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris is factually incorrect. What Donald Trump is doing is he is trying to win votes by telling a massive lie. Is that really how we want to elect the people to represent our country?
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I respect your opinion, Shirley and hope that whichever leader America chooses does just that: leads, whether that's by example in the way that they lead their lives; in the way that they show respect for the people who have chosen them to govern and listen to their concerns; on the world stage, as ambassadors for the country of whom they represent. In my opinion, it's not about power: it's about leading, showing the way, in the same way that your faith does for you. You need to feel like you have given your vote to a safe pair of hands, a statesperson who is at the top because they want to serve and for no other reason than that. And in the spirit of democracy, only you know what you feel is right for you and the American people. We'll see what happens soon enough, I guess.
Lol, I agree with your son that politics is like soap operas!