Presidential candidates have no idea what Americans need
Few of the Democrats hoping to become President really know what the real issues are that face voters. During their recent debate, they spent more time arguing over generic media-driven issues than not he issues that voters really care about. Here are some of the issues the candidates should address, but probably won’t
By Ray Hanania
If the Democratic presidential debates prove anything, it is that the candidates have no answers, and the biased national mainstream news media is worse.
The candidates argued hot button issues that generate media headlines, ignoring the issues average voters like you and me care about.
Where was the focus? They said Julian Castro (who?) was “too mean” in criticizing former Vice President Joe Biden for being too forgetful. Biden wasn’t on the razor’s edge during the debate or when he was vice president. His entire career has been plagued by missteps involving bad memory, goofy and inaccurate statements, and plagiarizing others.
Elizabeth Warren is no better. And neither were Bernie Sanders or Beto O’Rourke who poked public emotions by raising the issue of “gun control” and the recent shootings in his hometown of El Paso. There are some gun control fundamentals that could be addressed, like enforcing more stringent background checks, blocking “straw purchases” of guns, and prohibiting anyone from owning a semi-automatic weapon or an altered automatic weapon. But the Democrats have been in power in the past and did nothing then. What makes you think they will do something now?
The abortion debate is a waste of time. Everyone is set in their ways and nothing will change. Even the issue of immigration is being tossed around like it really isn’t important. Instead of focusing on enforcing the laws, they’re focused on letting everyone and anyone in without any requirements. The truth is they’ve been talking about immigration reform for 25 years and they have never done a thing about it except make it worse today than it ever was.
After the debate, the national media asked, “Why weren’t there questions about abortion rights or women?” Not enough about minorities, or immigration “rights.”
They missed the issues that really impact our daily lives.
My income taxes are too damn high and so are my property taxes. No one takes responsibility. The tax system at the federal, state and county level is like an Abbott and Costello “Who’s on First” routine. Everyone passes the blame on to someone else. And taxes continue to rise while services continue to deteriorate. We’re not getting what we pay for.
Every day scammers victimize seniors and yet with all the technology we have, the telephone companies can’t stop it? Really? Maybe the telephone companies don’t want to stop it because they are making a fortune from the phone usage.
The banks are another problem. We get less than 1 percent on our savings, and yet they charge us 17 to 25 percent to use their credit cards. They’re worse than the Mafia! Many Americans are depleting their savings to cover rising costs and can’t put basic food on their tables. The candidates should be talking about cracking down on outrageous bank credit card rates. But they won‘t, because the banks are giving the candidates campaign cash.
Identity theft is worse. Every day, seniors and others are being preyed upon. Scammers take your personal information and then go to the banks to get illegal loans in your name, squeezing every penny out of your life’s investment. Who gets blamed? The victims.
If a scammer steals someone’s identity and gets a bank to give them money off your home, the bank should be responsible for failing to do their due diligence to confirm the identity of the borrower.
Crime is a problem. But it’s not a gun control problem. It’s an accountability problem. Instead of blaming the people in the neighborhoods who protect the gangbangers – because they are their children, neighbors, relatives or friends, they blame the Police. Instead of supporting the Police, the candidates are blaming the police, pandering to failed politicians like Mayor Lori Lightfoot who ran on a platform to fight rising crime, but can’t do anything to stop it.
When you hear a candidate blather about abortion, gun control, criticizing the other candidates, or rehashing the healthcare issue, you can bet they don’t have a clue about what really concerns the average voter, taxpayer, family, or senior citizen.
What they are doing is playing to the biased national news media, and to the powers that control Washington D.C., like the robber-baron banks.
Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.
Email Ray Hanania at rghanania@gmail.com.
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