Resolved: America should elect Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump

This is now effectively a two round debate. For my purposes and the purposes of the reader, the new structure is as follows:R1. AcceptanceR2. WaiveR3. Opening arguments/Rebuttals. R4. Rebuttals/CloseWith that said, let's procede to my opening arguments.1. CharacterI'm going to begin with the overall character of the candidates. What type of person is Hillary Clinton? What type of person is Donald J. Trump? This question is important because the president should be someone who can remain calm under pressure, can lead the nation through intense and difficult times, and be prepared to act in a rational manner. As Senator, Hillary Clinton has demonstrated an ability to work across party-lines. Although her health care reform plan failed, she was instrumental in passing the Children's Insurance Program (CHIP), which provides health care for over 8 million children in low-income families [1]. When 9/11 hit, she was on the front line to ensure that 9/11 first responders got the health care that they needed. As The Huffington Post recounts [2]:"Months after she [Hillary Clinton] was elected, she made sure first responders got the care they needed, as many of them suffered long lasting health effects from their time at Ground Zero. " She has proven to have the ability to work across party lines. The Dallas Morning News, a traditional conservative newspaper that recently endorsed Clinton stated [3]:"Though conservatives like to paint her as nakedly partisan, on Capitol Hill she gained respect from Republicans for working across the aisle: Two-thirds of her bills had GOP co-sponsors and included common ground with some of Congress' most conservative lawmakers" On the other hand, Donald Trump has earned a reputation of being crass and unpredictable. He has insulted and mocked a disabled repoter [4] and attacked a Muslim gold-star family. The National Review, a conservative publication, wrote of this incident [5]:"This is beyond narcissism. I used to think Trump was an eleven-year-old, an undeveloped schoolyard bully. I was off by about ten years. His needs are more primitive, an infantile hunger for approval and praise, a craving that can never be satisfied. He lives in a cocoon of solipsism where the world outside himself has value — indeed exists — only insofar as it sustains and inflates him. "How will Trump's extreme narcissism play out on the global stage? Even though he has no political or military experience, he arrogantly proclaimed that he knows more about ISIS than our generals do [6]. The thought of him ignoring the military's advice and guidance because "Fuhrer Trump knows best" will put the United States in harms way. 2. Economic policyDonald Trump has proposed to start a trade war with Mexico, China, and various other countries. These trade wars will undoubtedly have unintended consequences. Experts and analysts estimate that such a trade war will cost the U. S. over 4 million jobs [7] and that doesn't include what would happen if the countries retaliate against the U. S. Trump's economic plan has been called "impossible" and "reckless. " Trump's proposal to balance the budget in 10 years without cutting Social Security or Medicare, ramp up defense spending, and cut over 9 trillion in taxes is impossible. As the Washington Post reports [8]: "That can’t be done. It doesn’t matter what your hat says about America being great, your personal charisma, how rich you are, etc. As the figure below shows, you can’t get there from here. As noted, other Republicans promise similar packages, though their tax cuts are slightly less ambitious than Trump’s. "CNN reports [9]: "Trump has been clear that he thinks America is a loser on trade and that the U. S. needs to fight back against China, Mexico and others. There are concerns that the hefty tariffs he wants to put on goods coming to the U. S. from China and Mexico would cause a trade war in addition to make a lot of products more expensive for Americans. " By contrast, Hillary Clinton's proposed policies are far more pragmatic and realistic. She has called for increasing taxes on the wealthy, increase spending for job training, and give tax benefits to companies that hire Americans. Consequently, economists are in a near agreement that Clinton's policies will be better. If she did nothing and just continued the current policies, it is estimated that we would add 7 million new jobs. With her policies, however, we would gain an additional 3 million [10]. 3. Foreign policyAs Commander-in-Chief, the president, more than anyone, is directly responsible for our military and for our foreign policy. Trump has proposed forcing the military to commit war crimes and crimes against humanity. He threatened to kill and torture the family members of terrorists. These would be crimes under the Geneva Convention [11]. If he succeeds in getting the military to carry out his attrocities, this will undoubtedly create even more terrorists. Trump has also proposed building a "yooooge wall" along our southern border and making Mexico pay for it. How exactly will he force Mexico to pay for the "yooooge beautiful wall"? His policies are unclear. We can debate the merit of the wall if Con brings this up, but for now, I will leave this here. Hillary Clinton, by contrast, has been one of the most consequential and successful Secretaries of State in US history. During the 2012 conflict between Israel and Hamas, she helped broker a peace deal between the two parties. This has earned her the praise of the Israeli ambassador, as Ha'aretz reports, "[B]ecause of the quick cease-fire, the eight-day conflict was the only one of Israel’s three rounds of fighting with Hamas to not include an Israeli ground operation in Gaza. " [12]. Undoubtedly, a lot of lives were saved on both sides. Clinton's foreign policy experience has proven that she understands the global stage and she has earned the respect of world leaders. ConclusionHillary Clinton is undoubtedly the most prepared candidate for the Presidency. Her experience as First Lady, Senator, and Secretary of State has prepared her to lead the nation forward. Her proposals and policies will be better for the United States than the policies of Donald Trump. This November, the choice couldn't be clearer. Hillary Clinton should become the next President. I now turn this debate over to con and wish him the best of luck. I look forward to hearing your opening arguments. _______[1] . http://bit.ly...;[2] . http://huff.to...;[3] . http://www.dallasnews.com... [4] . http://www.snopes.com...;[5] . http://www.nationalreview.com...;[6] . https://www.washingtonpost.com...;[7] . https://www.washingtonpost.com...;[8] . https://www.washingtonpost.com...;[9] . http://money.cnn.com...;[10] . http://money.cnn.com... [11] . http://www.politifact.com...;[12] . http://www.haaretz.com...;