Leading up to the presidential election, candidates have laid out their core campaign values — highlighting starkly different visions for the country’s future.
Donald Trump, a 78-year-old former businessman and President of the United States, is running as the Republican nominee. Kamala Harris, the 60-year-old Democratic Party candidate, is currently vice president to President Joe Biden and a former Attorney General from California.
Independent and third-party candidates on the Pennsylvania ballot include Green Party candidate Jill Stein and Libertarian Chase Oliver.
Billy Walker, president of the Temple Republicans, emphasized Trump’s economic policies as a key strength of his campaign.
“This is a really unique election cycle where we can actually compare the performances of both administrations,” said Walker, a junior political science major. “And I think he showed the economy has been better.”
Lourdes Cardamone, president of the Temple Democrats, highlighted Harris’ proposed ‘opportunity economy’ as a central value in her campaign.
“She’s very much an advocate for the average working family and average working people and I think that’s why she resonates with a lot of young people because she does hear us and understand us and our wants and needs,” said Cardamone, a junior political science major. “You’ll hear her talk about this opportunity economy, and like its name, it’s very much a place where anybody has the opportunity to get affordable housing, to be able to get ahead and not just get by.”
Donald Trump
Economy
Trump has been heavily praised by his supporters for his economic policies. He believes tariffs protect American factory jobs from foreign competition and proposed a 60% tariff on all goods imported from China as well as a 20% tariff on anything imported by the United States.
Tariffs are paid for by the importers, in this instance, the American companies importing the goods. In turn, these companies typically have to charge consumers higher prices for the cost of goods.
Trump proposed to extend the individual income tax provisions and business tax provisions of the TCJA, a tax code signed by Trump in 2017 which is set to expire in 2025. Trump also plans to eliminate taxes on social security benefits and lower the corporate income tax rate to 15%.
Trump also proposed eliminating taxes on income from tips, of which Harris has also approved.
Reproductive Rights
Since the Supreme Court made the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, states have been left to make the decision on whether abortion should be allowed in each state. There are currently 13 states with abortion bans with no exceptions for rape or incest.
Trump has been known for his shifting stances on abortion. He boasted about his decision to appoint three Republican Supreme Court justices who contributed to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, but has also said he would not sign a federal abortion ban.
During the Sept. 10 Presidential Debate, Trump declined to answer whether he would veto a national abortion ban if he were elected. He has said the current abortion bans are “too tough,” but has not shared his plan on how he would fix this issue if he became president.
“It’s going to be redone,” Trump said during a Fox News town hall. “You end up with a vote of the people. They’re too tough, too tough. And those are going to be redone because already there’s a movement in those states.”
Health Care
At the Sept. 10 presidential debate, moderator Linsey Davis asked Trump to clarify if he had a health care plan to replace the Affordable Care Act, to which he responded that he had “concepts of a plan.”
Trump has been notoriously against the ACA, which was put in place in 2010 by former President Barack Obama. The ACA requires that most Americans receive insurance and pushes states to allow all Americans to sign up for insurance.
During his presidential run, Trump attempted to change the ACA by passing the American Health Care Act. This act would have gotten rid of the individual and employer mandates on health care, amended Medicaid eligibility and lessened the protections of patients with pre-existing conditions. The Senate did not pass the bill.
“Obamacare was lousy health care,” Trump said at the debate. “Always was. It’s not very good today and, what I said, that if we come up with something, we are working on things, we’re going to do it and we’re going to replace it.”
Military Spending
Although Trump has not said much regarding his military budget plans for the upcoming presidential term, he was known for his increased military spending in his last term. Trump emphasized the need for the United States to have the strongest military in the world.
In his presidential term, Trump signed a $1.3 trillion spending bill for the largest military budget in history. Trump has made it clear that if elected, he will make the U.S. military the most “modern, lethal, and powerful” force.
Trump plans to build an “Iron Dome Missile Defense Shield,” which indicates a potential higher military budget will be seen if Trump takes office.
Kamala Harris
Economy
Harris has championed the idea of an ‘opportunity economy.’ She plans to forgive medical debt by using federal funds to buy medical debt from health providers. She also plans to continue supporting Biden’s student loan forgiveness initiative.
Harris said that she would not increase taxes for families earning less than $400,000 per year. Her tax policies aim at taxing the wealthiest Americans to further aid the middle class.
Some other notable economic policies Harris has proposed include banning price gouging in grocery stores, a $6,000 child tax credit, a cap on prescription drug costs and down payment assistance for first-time home buyers.
Reproductive Rights
Harris has promised to protect reproductive freedoms if elected. One of her main goals as president would be to reinstate Roe v. Wade. Harris emphasized the harm that could come if the abortion ban continues as women are denied access to reproductive healthcare.
“You want to talk about this is what people wanted?” Harris said at the debate. “Pregnant women who want to carry a pregnancy to term, suffering from a miscarriage, being denied care in an emergency room because health care providers are afraid they might go to jail and she’s bleeding out in a car in the parking lot?”
Health Care
Harris previously backed Medicare for All, but she no longer considers it a major campaign point. The Harris campaign announced proposals to expand Medicare and Medicaid.
It is likely that Harris will continue the policies put in place under Biden, like strengthening the ACA through the American Rescue Plan, a plan to provide relief to Americans following the pandemic. Additionally, Harris could continue supporting the Inflation Reduction Acts, which expands dental, vision and hearing benefits for those with Medicare, lowers drug costs and strengthens Medicare.
Military Spending
The Biden-Harris administration released their proposed 2025 defense budget which requested $849.8 billion for the Department of Defense. In 2022, Biden requested a $752.9 billion budget for national defense.
The Biden-Harris campaign believes this budget will allow the department to advance their goals of defending the homeland, deterring strategic attacks against the United States, building a resilient joint forces and defense ecosystem and more.
Jill Stein
Jill Stein is on the ballot as the Green Party’s nominee for president. The 74-year-old physician said her major campaign points are fighting for basic human rights, combating climate change and ending wars.
Chase Oliver
Running as the nominee for the Libertarian party in this upcoming election is 39-year-old Chase Oliver. Some of Oliver’s campaign points include bringing down cost of living and inflation, fixing the economy by reducing government interference and granting immigrants quicker avenues to getting their visa.
