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Political Discussion / Re: A vote for Trump is a vote for Clinton
« on: July 21, 2016, 10:55:26 PM »People often say refusing to vote for Trump is a vote for Clinton but I say it is the opposite. If you look at polls, most of them show that Clinton has a sizable lead over Trump so arguably a vote for Trump is a waste.
The media and politicians paint a false dichotomy in our voting options. They say the only options are Trump or Clinton and that not voting for one is essentially a vote for the other. They don't even mention a 3rd party or 3rd party candidates. If someone brings it up, they use circular reasoning to suggest a 3rd party can never win. I refuse to be bullied into thinking you don't have a choice.
What if instead, people voted for Gary Johnson? He could steal significant numbers from both democrats and republicans. 60% of Republicans didn't want Trump and Clinton's victory over Sanders was pretty close. If John could siphon off even half of those who don't like Trump or Clinton, he would be in a good spot. The libertarian platform which uses war sparingly and desire to decriminalize drugs could stand to draw a lot of hippies. Conservatives can already align with libertarians in terms of smaller government. If the media actually gave him any attention, and he made a good showing in a debate, I think he could take the election.
If all of Hawaii republicans voted for Gary Johnson that would send a huge message. We already know that Tump won't get Hawaii so why not send a message by voting Libertarian?
Ever hear of the electoral college?
Trump needs 67% of the electoral votes in battleground states. There's NO WAY IN HELL Johnson would get that unless Trump drops dead and Hillary gets indicted before November.
The only message Hawaii will ever send is "We voted for Clinton the way Obama wanted us to. Can we get Federal money to finish the rail, please?"