Midterms, Anyone?

By Alyssa Tompkins

Before I really begin, let me tell you about what was happening in my room on Tuesday evening as election results rolled in. I was sitting on my bed staring at my laptop. This went on from 9 pm to 2 am, as I just click between two live New York Times articles in order to keep up with both elections. As many of my friends can attest, I was stressed out and telling them about my electoral stress. I was determined to stay up 'til the vote counts were finalized and I could finish this post, no matter how tired I would be. Call it dedication or call it stupid, I was invested in Montana's, and my own, future (*Note, this didn't happen, I fell asleep). Watching the polls felt like a movie was being played in front of me, and I couldn't quite tell if it was going to be a horror movie or not.

I sincerely hope that everyone who was eligible got out and made their voices heard; every single vote matters, folks. For those of you who are too young to vote, including myself, I encourage you to dip into the political climate and get out there and support the cause you believe in, whether it be for the right or left. Your voice matters and needs to be heard here in our unprecedented America.

Now that my reason for being tired at school this week is laid out on the table, let's actually look at what these elections actually mean for Montanans.

Sidebar about morality for a second, because morality should play into politics, but does not always. Why is it alright for a man --cough Gianforte cough cough-- to assault a news reporter and still be voted in to the House of Representatives? I don't know about you, but I don't want that violently emotional man being my voice to the rest of the country any longer.

I know that it is easy to criticize only opponents, but Gianforte deserves some criticism. He voted to close down two separate veterans homes here in Montana. He even wanted to deny scholarships to purple heart recipients. These decisions are ones that, to me, are just harsh and cruel. Why would someone vote in favor of not aiding those who defended our country off or on our soil? Vets need something to come home to after fighting; they don't need to come home to nothing at all.

Gianforte is an intense Trump supporter, very much unlike Williams. In my opinion, we need to keep "public lands in public hands," which Williams generally supports, but Gianforte wants more commercialization and privatization of public lands in order to boost Montana's economy. During a debate, Gianforte dodged a question about his votes on public lands and instead went into his belief that the discrepancy between the lengths of wait time between the BLM and APD's drilling permits must be addressed. Gianforte didn't vote for the bill to reinstate the funding of public land initiatives. This bill he didn't vote for would not allow for the privatization of our public lands. This is not a victory for many outdoor-loving Montanans such as hunters and fishermen, because this could limit public land access.

Now, Tester has won his seat back, which is good news for democrats. I support Jon in many ways , but his refusal to sign the DREAM Act is not one I enjoy. The DREAM Act would have provided a path to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants brought here as children. As a liberal, voting against the DREAM Act does not fit into my ideology. All people deserve a safe place to live, and if you were born in America after your parents left a war-torn country, you should not be facing the fear of deportation.

Anyhow, the midterm elections will affect Montanans voice, for better or for worse, for the rest of President Trump's term. Be sure to keep up with the #TheLiberalintheBasement to keep up with my views on politics!