Opinion: GOP Voters Should Cross the Aisle & Vote Biden-Harris

Apart from its virtual nature, a distinguishing peculiarity of the 2020 Democratic National Convention compared to past conventions was the fact that not only was the Democratic Party almost completely united, with both liberal and socialist speakers fiercely backing Democratic Presidential Nominee Joe Biden, but they were also supported by prominent Republicans who disapprove of President Trump’s tenure in the White House.

The DNC featured remarks from Former Governor John Kasich (R–OH), who incidentally ran against Trump in the 2016 GOP primary presidential race; Cindy McCain, widow of the late Arizona Senator and war hero John McCain, who had run against former President Barack Obama in the 2008 Presidential Election; General Colin Powell, former Secretary of State under the George W. Bush Administration; and several other prominent Republican figures. This marks a huge blow for Trump and the Republicans supporting his re-election campaign, especially because the GOP Convention is almost immediately after that of the Democratic Party.

Republican endorsements for Biden and the formation of Republican coalitions such as The Lincoln Project and Biden Republicans, which were created to defeat Trump on Election Day, speak volumes about the chaos and division that the President has provoked—both within and outside of the GOP—and why all GOP voters should cross the aisle and vote for Biden.

Joe Biden is not a radical leftist

Erroneous claims by the Trump administration about Biden and Harris being socialists and embracing the radical left were met with fear by conservatives and centrists alike about a potentially socialist America. The endorsements that Biden receives from radical leftist politicians like Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders also infuriate conservatives and discourages them from crossing the aisle. However, such support from radical leftists does not imply that the Biden administration plans to promote radical liberal policies.

Sanders and other radical liberals showed support for Biden strictly after Sanders withdrew from the Democratic race for president, clearing the path to nomination for Biden. Hence, it is clear that radical leftist politicians are not championing Biden because of concurrence with his agenda—they champion him considering their abhorrence of and far greater amount of disagreement with the Trump administration’s more conservative and hence, for the radical left, more undesirable policies.

Furthermore, Biden has stated on several occasions that he is not in support of a radical liberal agenda and would veto bills promoting radical liberal policies including Medicare for all. Biden has also made it clear that he doesn’t support the defunding of the police, a move supported by a small fraction of figures in the radical left. Biden’s tax plan also calls for far lower taxes than the Sanders campaign had proposed before its withdrawal. For instance, Biden’s tax plan’s highest tax bracket taxes a mere 39.6% while Sanders’s plan’s highest bracket planned to exceed 55%. Moreover, Biden’s voting record during his tenure in the Senate has shown consistent support of moderate policies—not sympathy to the radical left.

Unlike Biden, Trump does not have a consistent record of political views. Throughout his life, Trump has been affiliated to both the Democratic and Republican parties, and has—embarrassingly—donated to some of his former rival Hillary Clinton’s initiatives in the past. Biden’s consistency of being a moderate is essential to unify the country which is currently torn between the left and right.

Our system of checks and balances will ensure that conservatives are still represented

Naturally, conservatives disagree with several Democratic beliefs that Biden and his administration would promote including increased welfare, government involvement in daily life, and amnesty for illegal immigrants. However, a Biden administration does not equate to conservative beliefs being suppressed. America’s celebrated system of checks and balances will ensure that liberal-leaning decisions perpetuated by a Biden administration would be monitored and approved by conservatives as well as those of his own party. A liberal president being elected is not synonymous with a scenario in which he or she is met with open arms regarding all of his or her policy initiatives. The Supreme Court remains conservative-leaning, and the Congressional races will ensure that Republican lawmakers will maintain a presence in our government. Hence, even with a Democrat-controlled White House, it would still be possible for conservatives to maintain a firm grip on policy.

Trump’s lack of leadership hurts America

First and foremost, Trump’s lack of empathy, compassion, and understanding for the American people and their woes—especially during this period of uncertainty—is simply insulting to all of those who have from the many crises afflicting America, most notably the brutal pandemic and suffocating economic hardship.

In his viral interview with Jonathan Swan of AXIOS, Trump was asked to clarify why he believed that the coronavirus was “under control.” Despite the absurdly high amount of daily deaths, he said, “they are dying, it’s true, and it is what it is.” Naturally, Trump was met with heavy criticism following the controversial interview due to his dismissal of the severity of the deaths.

In comparison, Biden has received recognition by several leaders—including Republican politicians, memorably from Senator Lindsey Graham (R–SC)—about his commendable empathy and compassion. Unlike Trump, Biden spends much of his time helping and comforting people. He aids children who, like him, were mocked for a stutter and families who undergo hardship of any kind, notably the family of George Floyd after his unfortunate death. In short, Biden’s compassion and empathy is something that distinguishes him from Donald Trump.

Trump has corrupted the government, despite promising during his first campaign to “drain the swamp” in Washington and replace career politicians with new public servants. Under previous administrations, Cabinet Secretaries, the White House Staff, and Presidential Advisors were competent and experienced professionals with experience and merit. Under the Trump administration, they are sons-in-law and oil tycoons. Furthermore, eight close individuals to Trump during his political career have already been indicted, a statistic that by itself speaks volumes about the quality of influences Trump has in the White House. Furthermore, Trump himself has been impeached for abuse of power, not to mention his suspicious and consistent refusal to release his tax returns.

Apart from such lack of leadership, Trump’s embracing of racism could not come at a worse time. From his calling neo-Nazi rioters “very fine people,” to his retweeting a video of people shouting “White Power” at Black Lives Matter demonstrators, to his controversial claim that Islam “hates” America, Trump has demonstrated his hatred for several racial groups. Comparatively, Biden was quick to respond to the neo-Nazi riots, was sympathetic to the peaceful aspects of the Black Lives Matter movement, and has not spoken derogatively about any ethnic or religious group.

In addition, despite a priority of the GOP being maintaining a strong national defence and positive national image, the rest of the developed world has slowly been losing respect for America, and videos of world leaders mocking Trump have been gaining popularity and recognition.

Joe Biden has long had an impeccable reputation amongst world leaders, due to his long tenure in the foreign policy focused Senate and as vice president to the Obama administration.

The United States’ handling of the coronavirus was by far the crisis most detrimental to Trump’s already crumbling reputation. Trump’s response to the coronavirus is often ridiculed; he refuses to wear a mask and perpetuates false claims, especially regarding the controversial yet completely ineffective previously alleged treatment hydroxychloroquine. Additionally, Trump has demonstrated severe lack of understanding of the gravity of the situation, with his holding of rallies with little to no precautions, refusal to implement mask orders and other precautionary measures, and empathizing with violent mobs protesting coronavirus precaution orders whose cause could only be described as common sense during a once-in-a-century pandemic.

On Trump’s watch, over 176,000 Americans have died from the coronavirus, and over 5.7 Million have tested positive for the virus—that too, not including unconfirmed, asymptomatic, and untested cases. As the rest of the world prepares to reopen, America is left isolated, with more confirmed cases and deaths than any other country in light of which most foreign countries have placed temporary bans on the American passport, once known as one of the most powerful and desirable passports in the world.

If Biden wins the election, he will address the pandemic based on science, which Trump failed to do. Unsurprisingly, Biden already has a plan: when he becomes president he will work with the nation’s top scientists including Dr. Fauci—without politicizing the issue . In contrast, Trump retweeted the #FireFauci on his signature outlet of Twitter shortly after Dr. Fauci mildly criticized the president’s initial response to the coronavirus. Furthermore, Trump’s coronavirus task force is headed by Vice President Mike Pence, who is known for being fiercely loyal and defending of the president’s statements, regardless of their validity.

Biden made speculations and expressed his worry of a pandemic earlier this year when the virus had not yet arrived in the U.S.. In contrast, Trump kept dismissing worries of a pandemic until as late as early- to mid-March, frequently calling the virus the “[Democrats’] new hoax”

Biden has a comprehensive plan: “Build Back Better,” which addresses how the U.S. can reopen and rebuild the economy safely. Evidently, Trump conducted no organized and planned response to the virus and left states to handle the effects of COVID-19 alone.

A Biden-Harris Victory Would Allow for a Long-Overdue Reform in the GOP

The GOP is often accused of promoting backward-thinking policies—with many of its politicians condemning same-sex marriage and LGBTQ+ rights, denying the existence of climate change, and failing to speak against racism. Due to such factors, the GOP has been condemned, particularly by the younger generation, especially after various Republicans expressed their disapproval of the Black Lives Matter Movement. However, with the potential loss of seats for the current incumbent Republican politicians, the Republican party has a significant amount of time to re-align. The GOP should use this time to revisit their traditional beliefs and find a middle ground, which will allow it to appeal to modern conservatives and neo-liberals while maintaining its core values that distinguish it from liberalism. This will assist them in defeating big-government Democrats in future elections, and gain popularity amongst financial conservatives who feel reluctant to support Democrats considering the GOP’s traditional beliefs.

A Biden–Harris victory and a brief hiatus in GOP control the government would give the GOP time to realign in some issues to allow for more

Although the values that the GOP stands for do not entirely align with those of Biden, it is imperative that conservatives join liberals in electing the Biden-Harris duo to restore both the GOP and the nation. As Former Republican Ohio Governor John Kasich said at the Democratic Convention last week, “America is at a crossroads.”