Biden’s campaign is reacting to uncommitted votes
What Do Students Really Want to Learn About Democracy? The Case for a Change in American Politics, not Just for Third Parties: A Remark on Martin, Tracy, and Menon
Martin said there are thousands of people who agree with every one of them. “And if we’re able to talk and convey these things, this is democracy, what we’re doing right here.”
After an hour into the discussion, NPR asked the students whether there was anything that would give them hope. The discussion was the main answer.
“The issue that we have to worry about is not that, oh, our democracy is just going to suddenly end if Trump were to become president … Our institutions get eroded away if we don’t maintain them.
“Are we not going to forget the decades’ worth of election that had the slavery debate, that actually rended our country and had a civil war?” said Sandeep Menon, 23, who is also a member of the Michigan Army National Guard.
What then, do they say, to people who say they’re risking democracy — by throwing away their votes or potentially helping pave the way for another Trump term? It’s not a decision they lightly or proudly make. Others were quick to dismiss the idea that this is an especially consequential election.
There is a clear need for a change in American politics, and that can begin with people taking a stand in this election, according to a junior. He himself is torn between voting undecided or for Biden.
Collectively, the students said they feel taken for granted by Democrats, turned off by Republicans and dismayed that each party seems to be campaigning on what to vote against, rather than for.
Tracy said there weren’t good options for everyone. We have to find other ways to show our displeasure, even if it’s direct action, because voting isn’t working at this time.
But many students told NPR they’re not sure whether they’ll vote this year — at all, let alone for Biden. Their top concerns include the economy, human rights, and the state of politics.
The group Listen to Michigan did not ask their followers to stay home from Tuesday’s Democratic primary. They asked them to vote for uncommited.
She asked “What are they supposed to do if they don’t want either of these things?” It’s not like we have a choice. We are being pushed to vote only for third party.
The Detroit campus student frustration with Biden’s response to the 2016 election: Is it good to know when I’ll get a house?
Rania Umer doesn’t think she’ll vote. She doesn’t support Trump because of his human rights record. But she also disagrees with Biden’s response to the war — specifically, the fact that the U.S. has not called for a permanent ceasefire or stopped sending military aid to Israel.
The students range in age from 19 to 30 and hail from various parts of Michigan. Many of them are majoring in global studies. And all of them — not just Braziel — are unhappy with the choice likely awaiting them in November.
Wayne State University’s Detroit campus was mostly quiet last Friday at lunchtime, but not at the long, narrow table where six undergraduates gathered to share their election anxieties with Morning Edition.
In 2020, Velma Matthews voted for Biden and now plans to do so again. She thinks he’s a good person and believes in his politics. But she’s not necessarily pleased with how the government is functioning.
Kaja voted Democrat in the past. The 30-year-old Detroit native remembers casting her first-ever vote for Barack Obama, which eventually factored into her support for President Joe Biden.
She’s not sure if she’ll vote for Biden again. The senior at Wayne State University is angry that Biden has not done more to address student loans. She acknowledges he’s not solely responsible for falling short of his promises, but says it’s an issue nonetheless.
“But it doesn’t change my thought process of when do I get to become a real adult?” asked Braziel, who took an additional job to commit to her studies. “When do I get to buy a house? When am I stable enough to think about having kids?
“It doesn’t seem like any choice is a good choice at all, that’s what it seems like,” said Braziel. It’s like you’re between the devil and the devil, it’s more like that. And at this point in time, it feels like both the devils that we know. And I’m not comfortable with either of them.”
How Will You Be Reaching Out to the Metro Detroit Area During the November 2012 Election? A Response to “Not wishing to vote for Trump or Biden”
It wasn’t long after the polls closed that the metro Detroit residents who didn’t plan to vote for Trump or Biden were correct.
Kelly: And what about younger voters? The uncommitted vote in the county that the University of Michigan is located was higher than statewide according to the AP’s results. So more voters who may skew younger voting uncommitted. How are you going to reach out to those voters in their twenties and thirties?
In the last presidential election, I was disappointed that I didn’t vote, it felt like a reaction against Trump, said Addison Tracy, 21. “Rolling around to this election and being able to vote in it, with probably the same two candidates and two choices … I don’t feel hopeful or like I’m voting for something that will be that meaningful.”
A Michigan Mom’s View of Biden, Biden and the Future: Why Michigan Voters are Disillusioned by Biden?
Some churchgoers gave Biden mixed reviews about high healthcare costs, the amount of money the U.S. is giving to Ukraine and other things. Biden’s age — arguably his biggest political vulnerability — was a deterrent for some and a nonissue for others.
Her husband, CJ Sampson, agrees. While he considers himself a liberal, he’s lost confidence in Biden. He’s torn if his life would have been better under Trump or Biden, even though he wishes he’d seen more police reform.
“Yeah they have this or have that, but they’re still struggling with food, still struggling with their utility bills, still struggling with medical coverage,” she added.
Sampson works for the state Department of Health and Human Services, helping administer EBT and Medicaid programs. And she said she’s seen firsthand how many people are applying for benefits compared to before the COVID pandemic.
Even though she’s not sure who it will be for, Deasia said she always makes it her duty to vote. She points to student loan forgiveness, inflation and funding for schools as her top concerns, especially as a mom of a three-year-old.
Source: Many in Michigan don’t know how — or whether — they’ll vote in the general election
The Zisslers: How the Black Michiganders are going to vote for Biden in 2020 and What Will They Do About It?
In a December poll, just 50% of Black adults approve of Biden, which is the lowest approval rate of any presidential candidate in the last 20 years. And there are signs that Black Michiganders’ support for Biden — which Democratic strategists see as key to his reelection — is waning.
“Growing up, I feel like I voted Democrat just because it just seemed like the thing to do,” he said. “I’d say now … I am more into politics and seeing what both parties are doing, so it isn’t just like a blind vote.
Ka’Marr Coleman-Byrd, a 27-year-old tax consultant who voted for Biden in 2020, says he’ll make up his mind closer to November based on where things stand with issues like foreign aid, race relations and student loans.
And yet some Black voters in the city, especially younger Black voters, told NPR that they’ve lost faith in Biden. Several people told reporters that they had not decided who to vote for in the general election.
They hope the candidates will do more to try to bring people together. They don’t think any of the names that are poised to be on the ballot could do it.
Above all, the Zisslers take issue with how divided the country is. They say they have lost friends because of politics. And they blame politicians in D.C., who they see as arguing with each other instead of listening to their constituents.
Source: Many in Michigan don’t know how — or whether — they’ll vote in the general election
The UAW President: Why so many in Michigan don’t know how they’ll vote in the general election? Shelly Vaughan’s son, Matt, and the widow of an autoworker
Both are also concerned about the prices of things like gas and groceries. Shelly’s 28-year-old son, Matt Vaughan — a fourth-generation autoworker — says he still struggles at times, despite the generous pay raise he got in the most recent union contract.
Immigration and foreign aid are the top concerns of the two. Shelly blames Biden for the record number of migrants crossing the southern border, and says she doesn’t understand “why it can’t be figured out.” Matt wants the government to stop sending money to wars overseas and do more to help people struggling at home.
Matt said that he would never allow anyone to tell him who to vote for. “I’ll take information from everyone. But in the end I’ll make up my own mind, whether it’s a union-endorsed candidate or not.”
The candidate has bills himself as the most pro-worker president in US history and became the first president to join a picket line in modern times when he supported striking autoworkers last fall. It doesn’t mean that all UAW members will vote for it.
They could look to leadership of the United Auto Workers union — of which they are among more than 380,000 members in several states — for guidance on how to vote. The UAW president officially endorsed Biden last month in a state where the support of blue-collar workers swayed the election of Donald Trump.
Source: Many in Michigan don’t know how — or whether — they’ll vote in the general election
The two boys in Flint, Michigan, are not afraid to tell their partners how to run their country – or why they wouldn’t vote for Trump or Biden
“I would like to see more people getting involved in running,” he said. If it’s the same two people, I feel like we will keep repeating what we’ve already been through.
Sitting at home in Flint, about an hour north of Detroit, the couple tells Morning Edition’s Leila Fadel that they’re not sure how they’ll vote come November, but they wish they had different choices.
While their preferred parties and voting histories varied, many cited the economy, immigration, foreign military aid and societal divisions as their top issues and said that neither Trump nor Biden had done enough to solve them.
A majority of US adults think politics in this country is bad, according to national polling.
Interviews with eligible voters help explain why enthusiasm is waning among key demographic groups like young voters and black voters, and what the leading candidates need to do to win them back.
The two boys, 47 and 50 years old, work on cars the majority of the time. The third- and second-generation autoworkers met on the job and got married in 2019. Both of them voted for Trump the following year.
That was the first time Shelly, a lifelong Democrat, voted Republican. She says it’s because she felt Trump was “mentally better to run our country.” Matt, a libertarian, had voted for Trump before, but he dislikes 2020 because it is a very painful vote.
Biden’s campaign reacts to ‘uncommitted’ votes in Michigan: a perspective from the Gaza crisis in the era of Cold War
In Michigan, the campaign to convince voters to send a message to President Biden regarding the situation in Gaza may have succeeded.
Mary Louise Kelly talked to the Biden campaign co-chair,Mitch Landrieu, about how the campaign will connect with younger, Arab American and Muslim voters after the Michigan results.
Mary Louise Kelly expressed her approval on winning the primary. How worried are you about the people who are voting uncommited?
Mitch Landrieu: Well, first of all, the president got 80% last night, on top of New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada. So the president continues to really hit it out of the park – really, really, really strong night. There’s no doubt that there were some folks in Michigan that wanted to send the president a message. He’s received that message many, many times. The president sent a group of high ranking officials out to Michigan to talk to people about the difficult issue that the US is facing in the conflict between Israel and Gaza. So the message has been received. The president actually thinks that people ought to voice their opinion, but last night he got 80% of the vote.
Kelly: But the 13% who voted “uncommitted” translates to more than 100,000 people. In a swing state in November, that number may well be tight.
Source: ‘Message has been received’: Biden’s campaign reacts to ‘uncommitted’ votes
Joe Biden’s campaign responds to ‘uncommitted’ votes: Donald Trump eats a lot more from Mcdonald’s
Landrieu: Well, first of all, we’re just starting the campaign. Now think about this: Joe Biden, in the first three years of his administration, created 15 million jobs. I don’t know what’s more important. Is Biden’s age 15 million?
Kelly: Since you are co-chair of the Biden campaign, let me put to you directly the question that many voters tell us is on their mind, which is the president’s age. President Biden had his annual physical today [Wednesday]. It wasn’t much different from last year. I know you are going to tell me that he’s sharp, that you’re with him all the time, that he is up to the task, that the concerns about his age are overblown. My question is, what are voters missing that that is not the image that comes across?
Landrieu: Let’s answer the question first. How fit is Joe Biden to be president of the United States? Very comfortable. His physical today shows that he’s strong just like an ox. Donald Trump is the guy who eats a lot more from Mcdonald’s than anyone else.
Source: ‘Message has been received’: Biden’s campaign reacts to ‘uncommitted’ votes
Is Joe Biden a Criminally Innocent Candidate? The Case Against Justine Biden and Other Donald Trump’s Particles
The age of your ideas is more important than the numerical age. Donald Trump’s ideas are going to take us back 50 years to a time that they thought was better than today but never was.
There is another number for you. There are a lot of criminal complaints against Donald Trump. Joe Biden does not have any. Joe Biden is the choice of the majority of Americans if they were to consider the numbers that have an effect on how they live.
