Editorial: Pros and Cons of Voting for Obama or Romney

Over the past week, Ohio has seen temperatures drop statewide to the point where many areas even experienced a snow shower or two. For many Ohioans, however, it may not feel cold at all when they turn on their televisions, radios, or even access Hulu. Yes, as Jon Stewart and his news team appropriately named it last week, Ohio has felt like “Swing State Hell” over the past year.Consider this: Ohio has seen nearly $200 million spent on ads this election cycle, trailing only Florida for the most expensive state. In Columbus alone, over 34,000 television ads have been broadcast since May, and that’s not even the most for one region, as Cleveland has seen over 45,000.Yet, even when Ohioans have tried to turn off their TVs or radio sets, they still have had trouble avoiding election propaganda.President Barack Obama and Former Gov. Mitt Romney, who both plan to visit Ohio before the polls close Tuesday, have visited the Buckeye state a combined 83 times, which is likely a record in modern history.Of course, both candidates have an entirely good reason to turn Ohio into a campaigning massacre. For the past 12 presidential elections, no candidate has won the  White House without carrying Ohio. Republicans have also never seen their nominee make it to Washington without winning Ohio.Still, it’s very likely that no one will be missing the “Obama doesn’t stand up to China” or “Mitt Romney excluded 47 percent of Americans” ads after polls close Tuesday.It goes without saying this could go down in history as the most in-your-face negative campaign Americans have ever faced.From start to finish, the 2012 presidential election has been an ugly one, forcing many to focus on issues like Big Bird or binders full of women instead of some of the more pressing ones, such as foreign policy.It’s also worth mentioning the most important domestic crisis, the looming fiscal cliff, could cause the U.S. to go into a deeper recession than the one caused four years ago.  This, unfortunately, was seemingly glossed over during the campaign by both parties, with neither presenting a viable solution.Perhaps the most disappointing about this presidential election is the question of: “This is all we’ve got?”Unlike the presidential election of 2008, where millions of Americans believed that Obama could be the next FDR, neither candidate this cycle has inspired much hope that they will be the real answer to the U.S.’s problems.The New Political has, therefore, decided to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of each candidate in light of this dilemma. Obama and Romney may not be the strongest presidential nominees we’ve seen in recent history, but one of them will be elected.PRESIDENT OBAMAOne argument that Obama can probably never lose is that he inherited a gigantic mess. What’s ironic is that the collapse of Lehman Brothers,that set off a global financial crisis actually was a heavy contributor in Obama winning the 2008 election. This isn’t to say that Obama wouldn’t have been able to overcome opponent John McCain in the final month without Wall Street’s disaster, as Obama showed up to all three of his debates that year, but the crisis didn’t hurt.During the first three months of the Obama presidency, employers cut 2.2 million jobs.  By February 2010, that number had nearly doubled, totaling at 4.3 million jobs lost.  Since then, however, the U.S. economy has seen 4.9 million jobs come back, making Obama a net job creator.Two huge factors Obama and his campaign have pointed to for these numbers are the $787 billion stimulus package and the $80 billion auto industry bailout Obama signed shortly into his term. Obama claims the auto bailout has brought back 1 million jobs alone and has touted his stimulus for encouraging the growth of alternative energy sources.Another thing many Obama supporters will point to as a sticking point is the killing of Osama Bin Laden and the president’s foreign policy with the rest of the world.  Americans were seen more favorably than at almost any other point in history in Egypt after Obama’s speech there in 2009.There are many that also believe an Obama win will be essential to preventing violence between Israel and Iran because of Obama’s persistence on diplomatic relations. There have even been reports that Obama is planning on meeting one-on-one with Iranian officials to discuss their controversial nuclear program.When it comes to social issues, Obama has been seen as the more favorable candidate, especially on areas such as contraception, abortion and gay marriage. Obama also signed the Lily Ledbetter Act while in office, which aims to ensure women earn pay equal to their male counterparts.Of course, there may not be one thing that defines President Obama more than his “Obamacare,” or The Affordable Health Care Act. Millions of Americans are at stake to lose health care coverage if the act is repealed and benefits that seniors have enjoyed, like saving an average of $768 on their Medicare prescriptions, would also bite the dust.But for all the good Obama has been able to do in office, there are also many reasons to believe the president should be handed the pink slip come this Tuesday.Despite creating 4.9 million jobs over the first four years of his presidency, many economists believe there was much left on the table because of strict regulations. This has led some of the nation’s top economists to actually endorse Romney instead of Obama. Obama has also suggested tax increases on some of the wealthiest Americans, who also serve as the nation’s biggest job creators.When it comes to foreign policy, Bin Laden may be the lasting image, but he also acts as a shield for many of the times Obama has stumbled.Although allowing troops to fully pull out of Iraq may have brought relief to Americans, it also gave Iran much more influence over an already unstable region. There have been multiple instances where Obama looked hesitant to offer a response, such as the Arab Spring last year and the recent events in Benghazi, Libya that are major red flags for security for Americans abroad.The biggest fundamental flaw with Obama, however, may come down to the attitude he has brought to Washington. At no time has the U.S. ever seemed more divided by partisan lines and Obama, as the country’s leader, has been responsible for not trying to find compromise.In the president’s defense, the growing Tea Party has made things more difficult to negotiate and Congress does have its lowest approval rating ever. But Obama has also failed to admit when he or his party may be wrong about a particular issue and it has contributed to the recent debt ceiling crisis and the lowering of America’s credit rating.Obama may be one of America’s greatest public speaking president’s ever, but this overshadows the instances in which he has failed as a leader.MITT ROMNEYIf you were to sit in a room and watch every political ad President Obama has run about the former governor over the past six months, you may think Romney is more or less a robot than an actual human being.This is, of course, far from who Romney really is.Romney clearly has a much more experienced background in business than the president and thousands of business owners will be extremely content with his proposed tax cuts if he were elected. Some businesses have even claimed that without Romney being elected, they may have to lay off more employees.A champion of his own healthcare bill that he helped sign in Massachusetts, Romney has also hinted he won’t fully repeal Obamacare and that he will give control of government healthcare to the states. His Medicare voucher program also could save seniors costs by allowing them to choose the plan that best fits their needs.In world affairs, Romney wants to take a more authoritative stance than President Obama and it has led to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netenyahu to implicitly endorse Romney. Romney claims he will also stop China from cheating on foreign trade and its currency, which will help bring jobs back to America.Conservatives will also like the fact the Romney opposes abortion and gay marriage and there could be a lot to like with his proposed education reward program for the top quarter of high school graduates that would allow them to receive a free college education.In the end though, Romney’s greatest strength comes down to being a cool, calm and collected leader shaped by the dealings he’s had to go through on Wall Street with Bain Capital. Many see Romney as someone who will address the fiscal deficit much more aggressively than Obama and also help grow America’s economy much faster.It’s this, however, that also may be Romney’s Achilles heel.For instance, Romney has failed to explain the crux of his economic plan, which is how he would be able to give tax cuts to millions and not increase the national debt already more than it is. Romney has flip flopped on multiple issues from time to time, leading many Americans to believe he is untrustworthy and will say whatever it takes just to get your vote.Another major concern is that a Romney presidency could make relations in the Middle East already worse than they currently stand. There is a general fear that if Romney were to be elected, war with Iran would become a much more likely possibility than if Obama was re-elected.Yet, the thing that should be most concerning about Romney is his proposed energy policy.Romney plans on removing the stimulus for green energy, nearly $70 billion worth that Obama gave in order to help invest for renewable, clean energy in the future.Romney believes he will be able to make America completely independent for energy by tapping more into the country’s deep recess of natural gas reserves. The problem is that it could create more of an energy crisis rather than relief if the controversial fracking method isn’t made safer.The biggest problem is that Romney continually seems to think on finding solutions for the short-term rather than trying to invest in the country’s future.  Romney has also made plenty of promises that will be near impossible to keep, making him no different than Obama’s lofty “Change” campaign of 2008. IN THE END..It is important to remember that these are not the only two candidates running for president.  As a voter, not only should you be conscious of the policies Obama and Romney are for and against, but also the one’s of Gary Johnson and Jill Stein, who are running this year as Independents.When you go to the poll this Tuesday, The New Political urges you not to vote based on your party, but on a decision made by thorough research into every candidate on the ballot and voting for the one that best agrees with your set of beliefs.