Democratic Front-runner Elizabeth Warren Holds Town Hall

On October 25, 2019, a crowd of around 1,100 onlookers restlessly awaited the arrival of Democratic Presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren at the Bema Outdoor Amphitheater. The Massachusetts senator has been picking up momentum recently, besting campaign rival Joe Biden in numerous national polls. Warren appears to be a fan-favorite here at Dartmouth, evidenced by the deluge of pro-Warren sidewalk chalk on campus. Many students even skipped their 2A’s to attend the candidate’s Town Hall event.

Two initial speakers approached the USA flag backdrop to deliver brief introductory statements. After asking the audience to intermingle and introduce themselves to each other “in the spirit of community,” the two attempted to reign the crowd back in from their insignificant chatter with their “Warren stories”. The Hanover organizer for the Warren campaign spoke first, claiming that his support for her is directed by his moral compass and his unassailable position of moral superiority. He was once a potential NBA recruit, but instead decided that it was his duty to assist Warren in her presidential endeavors because—just like him—she too has a moral compass.

The second speaker, Warren’s Dartmouth campus organizer, attributes his allegiance to Warren and her campaign because she reminds him of his own mother. I have long stated that Warren possesses an odd maternal aesthetic, and I am glad that even the Dartmouth Democrats can attest to that. He spoke to this quality as if it were a compliment, but knowing Warren’s positions on government control, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Mother-in-Chief wanted to enforce a federal bedtime. The two later exited the stage to the harmony of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. Ain’t No Mountain High Enough? In this upcoming election, we’ll see about that.

With the event already running behind schedule, yet a third individual began to speak on stage, perhaps to continue stalling for Warren’s tardiness. The student described her physical, financial, and familial hardships as a Pakistani immigrant. However, she noted that her story should not be inspiring. “I AM ANGRY AS HELL,” she rasped with infuriation. I would be too, if my favorite candidate lacked the consideration to show up on time. The student claimed that her misfortune was a consequence of a systematic government failure, and that she will be relieved once Warren takes office and “heal[s] all.” Unfortunately, in our system of separation of powers, delegated governance, and administrative red tape, no single president ever has the power to “heal all,” even if that president had discovered the antidote to human struggle. Finally, in true bureaucratic fashion, Warren arrived seventeen minutes behind schedule.

The seventy-year-old Democratic candidate emerged from the right side of Bema between the stone bleachers. On her peripheries, boisterous students pumped their fists and cheered—almost reminiscent of the fan tunnels you see before college football games. But instead of witnessing the excitement of dozens of testosterone-boosted male athletes running onto the field out of the locker room, we got a fitness mom wearing sunglasses on a minimally sunny day, jogging out of the woods with her golden retriever and undeniably stale husband.

“Helloooooooooooooo Dartmouth,” she squealed, before sharing her personal anecdote. Warren spent her childhood in Oklahoma where her three older brothers, all of whom eventually joined the military, were dubbed “The Boys” by their mother. Warren, on the other hand, did not seem to be planned, as she came to be known as “The Surprise.” Warren continued to describe her family’s economic hardship during her adolescent years—her mother even took on a minimum wage job to prevent home foreclosure. She noted that millions of Americans face similar economic hardships today, prefacing her proposal that “big, structural change” in the government is necessary. She continued to mention that her dream job was to be a public school teacher. When Warren was young, she would even line up her dolls, pretending to teach them in an imaginary classroom setting. “I had a reputation of being tough, but fair,” she joked. Having listened to the past four debates, I have already heard this joke multiple times, proving that Warren’s sense of humor indeed too needs “big, structural change.”

A few of Warren’s approaches to address the alleged corruption in government are to end lobbying, to make the Supreme Court follow basic rules of ethics, and to add a constitutional amendment that guarantees the right to vote and to ensure that those votes get counted.

Warren also plans to enact a “wealth tax.” She said that this targets the top one tenth of one percent. For all individuals with over fifty million dollars, each additional dollar will be taxed two cents—the tax will include “not just real estate, but also your stock portfolio, your diamonds, your Rembrandt, and your yacht.” This assumption is inherently flawed. Warren assumes that all wealthy individuals spend their funds irresponsibly and arbitrarily, when in fact, many of the most prosperous individuals also tend to be the most frugal. She continued to say that billionaires who stayed up late, worked hard, and acted upon a great idea to accumulate a personal fortune are not solely responsible for their wealth. She claimed that these fortunes are built up by everyone, since these billionaires have used workers that taxpayers paid to educate, roads that taxpayers paid to maintain, and policemen and firemen that taxpayers paid to employ. Thus, Warren voiced that it is a moral imperative for wealthy individuals to give up “just two cents” on each dollar earned so that “everyone can get a chance to make it.” This, supposedly, would fund her proposals for universal child care, universal Pre-K, additional public school funding, free technical school and community college, and student debt relief for ninety-five percent of students who have it. However, she left Medicare-for-All off this list of proposals that can be subsidized by this “two cents.” My two cents is that Warren still lacks a plan to fund her Medicare-for-All proposal, as she is yet to announce a feasible solution. So much for “I have a plan for that.”

Warren concluded by categorizing her proposals into three simple actions: Attack corruption head on, initiate structural government change, and protect our democracy. Ultimately, she stated that her campaign is focused around changing who the government works for and who gets an opportunity. She claims that she only got to this point in her career because she was given an opportunity, and that the government should ensure that everyone gets an opportunity. Ironically enough, not everyone got the opportunity to ask her a question at her own Town Hall. Warren only fielded three questions—which were chosen through a lottery system—and barely answered any of them directly. When asked about whether or not regulating ammunition should be considered as a feasible method of gun control, Warren did not respond directly and instead initiated a long-winded discussion of her own gun control policies—never once mentioning the topic of ammunition.

As the event concluded, and Warren announced that she would be available for selfies, an excessive line of eager devotees began to form around the circumference of Bema. It was at this point that I came to a realization: Warren might actually win next year’s election. The dialogue between Warren and the final inquirer was oddly foreboding of what American life could shape up to be if she were to win. As context to his question, the man mentioned that he watches the news everyday. Warren commended him for this, stating that it must be tough in such a perilous period of time. “I’ve got a bottle of vodka near the table,” the man jested. Just like this man, if Warren wins the 2020 presidency, we all might need a little something to numb the pain.