I had posted a general objective summary of issues a while back and had said that I would post a little more of an assessment of things as they stand right now. I am posting this later than I had hoped but still before election day. Keep in mind that this is my assessment of major issues, not an opinion. An opinion is an expressed thought or feeling on a topic, while an assessment is an estimation and summation of a topic or issue based on the available information that can be verified.
Economy: The economic numbers are continuing to be mostly solid. Some of these numbers may not be as good as pre pandemic, but it is impressive that we have gotten to this point since then. Inflation is continuing to go down but is still difficult for a number of people to manage. Based on this information it will continue to fall and whoever is President will take credit of it. Not that anything is 100 percent, it will take effort to maintain the current path.
Both candidates have their economic programs and tax cuts/subsidies. Some of which may have a positive impact, but neither candidate is accounting for the unintended consequences on the national debt (which could be a drag on the economy). Neither are they facing or responding to valid criticism about how effective some of these policies will be in the long run. Most of these are short term solutions to the long-term problem of reduced American buying power over time that must be addressed effectively but also in a fiscally and administratively responsible way.
Immigration: National Border encounters continue a general downward trend. This does not mean that there is still not a serious security problem at the border that cannot be denied. However effective solutions have already been proposed. Lets be clear: no more drastic action needs to be taken other than adjusting asylum laws to be more concrete and less theoretical (as well as other changes in law), and providing more resources, barriers, manpower and technology to the border itself. The immigration system needs to maintain both the rule of law and attempt to be fair to all parties involved. These measures however would require action and courage by both the President and Congress to produce a bill in the long term.
Foreign Policy: The situation in Ukraine has changed little overall but Russia has claimed that they have taken more territory. The choice remains the same given Putin’s known strategy and motives. An early negotiated settlement would carry a high likelihood of Ukraine ceding its own territory. If this happens, Putin will likely only be emboldened to pursue future invasions and interference in the politics of Eastern Europe based on his own past behavior. This would continue to destabilize the region, threaten Eastern Europe and place American interest and security indirectly in danger. The question would then be not if he stopped but where and how worse it would get. While ideally more support would be needed to break the stalemate while avoiding escalation, the fact of the matter is the logistics and speed of assistance has also led to this difficult position. (U.S. Commits F-16s to Ukraine dated 8/24/23) (Ukraine receives F-16s dated 8/4/24). Lack of deterrence and public rhetoric that shows weakness in western alliances have also been significant.
The situation in the Middle East continues to escalate. Israel continues its war on Hamas and is now fighting Hezbollah and exchanging fire with Iran. We should assist Israel in defending itself against terrorism and attacks. However, the death toll in Gaza, while not exactly knowable, is excessive and the tactics of Israel and the allowance of aide have been questioned. The U.S. will also want to prevent a conflict that becomes regional and has spiraled out of control. That is the reason for the negotiations for stoppages in fighting and diplomacy with other nations in the region. Prevention of major escalation is crucial, but eventually difficult decisions may be needed about what sort of peace is necessary in the region and therefore what our strategy should be going forward.