Press "Enter" to skip to content

Why I’m supporting President Obama

With election season winding to an end (finally), I would like to express the reasons why I am supporting President Obama’s re-election campaign and what is really at stake in this election.

I support President Obama:

Because he passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) making healthcare a right, rather than a privilege that only the well-off can afford. Insurance companies can no longer deny a person coverage because he or she is already sick and they must allow children to be covered by their parent’s plan until age 26. The President has also closed the Medicare doughnut hole, which ensures that my grandparents will not reach a “healthcare limit” and be forced to pay exorbitant amounts of money for the healthcare they need.

Because he saved the U.S. auto industry, realizing that the real way to grow the economy is to reinvest in the American workers and the companies that provide them jobs. The president also realizes that the key to true economic success comes through growing the middle class and has worked to ensure that millionaires pay their fair share in taxes.

Because he has raised fuel efficiency standards for cars to save consumers money and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

Because he ended the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” military policy and took a stand for marriage equality, believing that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve the same rights as everyone else.

Because he brought our troops out of Iraq and is on track to end the war in Afghanistan in 2014, allowing the focus to shift to the plethora of domestic issues that our country faces.

Because he got the banks out of the student loan system and has set aside federal funding to give to colleges and students to defray the cost of college so that anyone who desires a college education ever has to drop out. The president realizes that education is not only the key to a successful present but a long-lasting successful future.

For these and many other reasons, my small OFA team, the Bradley University College Democrats, and I have spent countless hours making more than 4,000 calls to battleground states like Iowa and Wisconsin. We’ve also made trips to these states to knock on doors and express the importance of this election.

But this election season is about more than just the presidential election. We’ve also walked and made calls for great candidates like incumbent State Senator Dave Koehler (who has been endorsed by such diverse groups as the AFL-CIO, the National Rifle Association and the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police) and Cheri Bustos, who is running for the House of Representatives from the Illinois 17th Congressional District.

Regardless of what side you take on these issues and this election, please remember that there is no better way to involve yourself in this democracy than by voting on Nov. 6.

Robert is a junior political science and economics major. He is also the Neighborhood Team Leader for the Obama for America (OFA) campaign on campus.

Copyright © 2023, The Scout, Bradley University. All rights reserved.
The Scout is published by members of the student body of Bradley University. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the University.