This was easily my favorite Table Talk so far, and as the other topics have been interesting, it was nice to have one focused individually within my major. As a Government student, the talk was a great opportunity to meet a professor in the department who I had previously never taken a class with before. Focused mostly on the topic of international relations, dedicating time to exploring the U.S. electoral campaign and getting a more in-depth explanation into the Trump impeachment inquiry was incredibly helpful and showed me that a lot of the concepts I’ve been learning in class don’t only apply abroad, but widely to domestic policy issues as well. The open and casual discussion provided the perfect platform for asking questions on things like the electoral college and other complex subjects that I’ve sometimes needed clarification on. Hearing the opinions of other students on the subject and that of a professor from the department (who also brought the discussion into comparative politics) was a great experience and I feel much more confident as a voter going into the elections now.

Last week, I was able to attend the Table Talk with Professor Ken Roberts where we discussed the upcoming US Federal Election, the current state of politics, and the implications of impeachment.

The main point of discussion that struck the most pertinent was the current, polarized state between the Democratic and Republican Parties. Professor Roberts asserted that the main outlet for reducing this gaping hole of understanding between people is to simply talk to those around you. Engage in conversation with people who hold different beliefs than you. Find issues that all relate to—because at the end of the day, both sides hold some same fundamental beliefs. We’re all people, and by pitting ourselves against each other, nothing gets done and faith in our nation dwindles.

We also touched on the implications of the current impeachment investigation. With new administration, will US politics as a whole moderate? The current president, no one can deny, is a prominent figure that is divisive. Under a new Commander in Chief, will Republicans and Democrats come closer together? Will politics become less apparently black and white? Less combative?

These were my main questions, my main takeaways.

Overall, I really enjoyed this discussion.  Politics have always interested me, and I couldn’t think of a more interesting time in politics than our current situation.

Every week, I like to tune into the Daily Show with Trevor Noah and Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj to hear what jokes they have to crack about the circus we call the government. I think that that is just a way for me to distract myself from the craziness going on with the impeachment and the abundance of  arguing democratic candidates for the 2020 election. However, I understand that there is more to politics than late night hosts have to share. The table talk regarding the election was a great experience for me to gain a better understanding of what is going on in the world around me.

An interesting discussion we had was around falling interest rates and how in Europe interest rates are negative, meaning that people have to pay the bank to keep their money. This is crazy to me, due to the looming possibility of a recession. Since Trump is so involved with the Federal Reserve (unlike any other President – as the Fed is supposed to be separate from the White House) it’s possible that his decisions could lead to very low interest rates which would trigger a recession and the possibility of negative interest rates. This would be very bad for the economy, especially with the current position the US is in regarding tariffs and taxes with China.

Another topic I found interesting is the fact that democrats are polarizing themselves. The main candidates (Biden, Sanders, Warren, and Harris) are all majority left facing, while Trump is very right facing. This creates a divide for moderate Americans (which a lot of us are). Since there is no candidate that fully represents a more moderate/left audience, it is entirely possible that these people may vote for Trump or may not vote at all. Unfortunately, all of the democratic candidates are stuck in their policies and don’t see the need to possibly appeal to a moderate audience.

Overall, this talk was very educational and taught me what I need to know to formulate my own opinions on modern democracy and the upcoming election.

Last week, I had the opportunity to listen to Professor Ken Roberts talk about the U.S. Presidential Campaign. While we discussed the current talk on impeaching President Donald Trump and the likelihood of certain democratic candidates succeeding in the 2020 campaign, I was thinking of two issues.

Firstly, some people try their best to avoid politics. When any issue about Trump or presidents arise whether in media or in conversation, the initial reaction for some could be pulling their ears or changing the channel. Listening to Professor Roberts reminded me of the complexity of the issue, which could be another push factor. This attitude could be accompanied with refusing to voice one’s opinion or not voting at all. I wonder what can mitigate this issue.

Secondly, polling on voter opinions are no longer trustworthy. Professor Roberts touched upon the fact that many Trump supporters were hidden from pollsters before the 2016 Presidential election causing the pollsters to forecast Hillary Clinton’s success. The Trump supporters simply did not take polling surveys. It makes me wonder how pollsters can possibly tell who will win the 2020 election.

Still, questions such as these almost make my roll my eyes; it is difficult to take presidential elections seriously after the last one.