Seniors, retirees rely on Social Security, SNAP, wellness centers to get by

By Emily Martin

Shymee Davis sat at her desk and pointed to a tan and blue box, full of Post Great Grains Blueberry Morning cereal. She said she had taught seniors the health benefits of cranberries and antioxidants just moments ago.

“I try to introduce them to things they ordinarily don’t eat,” Davis said in an interview. “I try to broaden their horizons, so every week I come with something different, and with that, I like to give them the benefits or nutrients that are involved.”

Shymee Davis is a nutritionist at the Washington Seniors Wellness Center in Ward 7, and she teaches nutrition education classes as part of the nutrition program. Davis said a senior brought her the opened box of cereal and asked if the cereal had antioxidants; it did not.

Many seniors and retirees living in Washington, D.C. rely on nutrition programs, like the Weekend Nutrition Program at the senior center where Davis works, to get information about nutrition or for their next meal. Many more are not as lucky and need to apply for monthly benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) because their only source of income may be a family member’s or from Social Security checks.

D.C. Department of Human Services, which runs the SNAP program, found that out of approximately 100,000 individuals on the program, 15 percent are over the age of 60, which is the smallest age group compared to nearly half being between 18 and 59. However, the Food Research and Action Center, a non-profit research organization focused on food insecurity, estimated the number at 16.3 percent, placing D.C. in the top ten metro areas with the most seniors participating in SNAP and six percent over the national average.

According to Melissa Jensen, an anti-hunger program associate who specializes in SNAP at advocacy group D.C. Hunger Solutions, the government benefits program has become a part of retirement for many D.C. residents, especially in Wards 7 and 8.

“It’s a growing problem across the country, largely because seniors plan to retire on their social security, especially seniors who worked low-income jobs or hourly jobs, which, when you’re in the workforce, doesn’t let them build a lot of savings,” Jensen said in an interview.

Jensen said retirees live off of Social Security, which will not cover all their expenses, and they move in with family members or rely on SNAP to make ends meet. She also said that many seniors find it too difficult to apply for SNAP because there is no online application, and waiting at a service center to be interviewed and approved can take hours. On top of that, if a senior is on a fixed income like Social Security, they will only qualify for the minimum benefit of $30.

“It’s so much work for only $30 a month,” Jensen said. “A lot of the times, if they don’t have a resource like [me] or they don’t know how to contact us or someone else to advocate for them, it just seems like a very mysterious process.”

The minimum for SNAP benefits can actually be as low as $16. Brian Campbell, a senior policy advisor at the Economic Security Administration, a branch of DHS, said in an interview that the rest of the $30 minimum that Jensen mentioned comes from locally-funded benefits. Campbell said the D.C. Council passed law 4–261, effective in 2015, which required local benefits be allocated to households that received federal benefits below $30 a month, bringing their total up to $30.

Campbell said simplification of the application is already in the works. He predicted that residents can expect an online customer portal for the SNAP program to debut within the next 24 to 36 months. The release is currently undergoing requirement testing.

“The trick is, how much time do we spend, how many resources do we spend on program integrity,” Campbell said in an interview. “There’s always going to be some element of imperfection, but we need to strike a reasonable balance in terms of doing our due diligence.”

Campbell said part of that due diligence is the required interview, but this release will soon allow for phone interviews, making the process more accessible to seniors with mobility or medical issues who cannot travel to service centers.

Jensen, however, said that on top of these challenges, some seniors still find themselves ineligible. The DHS website caps gross maximum income for eligible households with one member at nearly $2,000, but adding additional members increases the maximum income by $694 per member.

Alison Jacknowitz, a senior associate dean in American University’s Department of Public Administration and Policy, is an expert in the field of food insecurity, specifically involving children. She said most of the government-based food assistance programs are targeted towards children and their families, which can discourage seniors from applying, even if they are eligible.

“The criteria to get on the program, and transactional costs of getting to offices or going food shopping or cooking, makes some of these programs less enticing to seniors,” Jacknowitz said in an interview. “We [see] that seniors [are] less likely to use the program among those who are eligible, and it could be because it’s harder for them to maneuver through the system.”

For seniors who do not meet the requirements or do not apply, Jensen said they can go to senior wellness centers or food banks to get necessary food, yet there are still challenges.

Campbell said that these alternatives may not work for some because of their specific needs, and traveling to a center or food bank may be difficult if a meal delivery service does not cater to their area.

“Depending on where a senior lives, you might have resources to food, but is there access to food? So with the proximity which one lives to markets, and being on a transit route, that’s certainly an issue, especially in Wards 7 and 8 and parts of Ward 5,” Campbell said. “There simply aren’t a lot of shopping options … and it’s harder for seniors to get around, so how do they get access to specifically healthier foods?”

Jensen added that access to healthy food is limited, and the nutrition seniors find with these resources might not meet their dietary restrictions. Jensen referred to her organization’s 2016 report of a food desert in Wards 7 and 8, where there are only three grocery stores that supply processed foods to residents in the area, causing issues for seniors with dietary needs.

The Washington Senior Wellness Center works to rectify this by providing daily healthy meals and weekly nutrition education classes for seniors in Ward 7, according to Davis.

Davis also said that representatives of the Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program, a Department of Agriculture program that provides low-income seniors with coupons for farmers’ markets, often visit the center to encourage buying fresh produce. These programs help seniors obtain meals, Davis said, but there are other benefits to attending a wellness center.

“Here, they’re more mobile, and happier because they’re active, engaged and involved in the activities,” Davis said. “I would encourage seniors immediately when you retire, to come to the wellness center because it helps you to remain healthy.”

Jacknowitz said the solution to food insecurity may be more long-term like Davis suggested.

“There’s two tracks. I think there’s a track that will deal more with structural issues under unemployment and poverty, and so that might be training or education,” Jacknowitz said. “But then there’s also the track of how do we help people in the immediate term because they need food immediately.”

Jacknowitz said that community-based programs are becoming more common as government-run programs, like SNAP, experience budget cuts or eligibility changes, yet they will not replace them.

While Jensen said these senior populations are still underserved in D.C. when it comes to nutrition, there is also an issue of financially planning for retirement without having to rely on Social Security. The social insurance program is meant to supplement a retiree’s source of income or savings, not replace it, but many people cannot afford to save money because they worked low-income or part-time jobs.

Joshua Dorfman, a financial advisor at a D.C. branch of Northwestern Mutual, said that saving for retirement is not as common because many people are not taught to save early on in their careers.

“Starting in your 20s and 30s puts you head and shoulders above folks that start in their 40s and 50s, but unfortunately, not everyone is aware of that,” Dorfman said in an interview. “It might just be that it’s an intimidating discussion, they don’t know who to turn to for advice … or it could simply be that, based upon their income, they don’t feel they’re in a position to save.”

Dorfman said he believes the epidemic of insufficient retirement savings could be solved through promoting financial literacy at home and in schools.

“Someone’s openness to a discussion often times has very little to do with how much they make,” Dorfman said. “A lot of folks view talking about money as taboo, and I think promoting a society where people feel comfortable having that discussion, regardless of what their standing is, that would make an impact.”

Retirement for low-income households can be difficult, especially in a city where the cost of living has soared in recent years. Business Insider found in August that the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment is nearly $3,000 a month, while the Census Bureau’s 2016 American Community Survey found that the per capita income in Ward 8 is $18,787, only two-fifths the D.C. per capita income.

Dorfman said it is difficult to live on Social Security in D.C. after making non-discretionary purchases like healthcare and rent. Furthermore, Dorfman said a majority of people retire unexpectedly due to health problems, which can lead to retirees relying on family members for healthcare or using most of their Social Security to cover it, leaving little money for other expenses like food.

Retiring in D.C., a city with a high standard of living, after working a low-income job your whole life can prove to be an arduous task, as Jensen, Dorfman and Campbell put it. Relying on Social Security can make it even more difficult, since a 2016 annual report from the Social Security Administration’s Board of Trustees estimated that the trust fund reserves may become depleted by 2023, leaving workers questioning how they will be able to retire.

“The question is if we’ll become more reliant on programs like SNAP or we’ll just have to find other means of funding retirement,” Jensen said. “I think it’s a sign of the importance of funding these programs and continuing to fund them for the future because as other programs wane, things like SNAP are key to so many people getting proper nutrition.”

Audio: https://soundcloud.com/emily-martin-934391204/ar-final-project-audio

DC seniors, retirees rely on Social Security, SNAP, wellness centers to get by

By Emily Martin

(Insert anecdotal lede about senior at Wellness Center)

“Insert quote from senior at Wellness Center”

Just like (insert senior’s name), many seniors and retirees living in Washington, D.C., need to rely on nutrition programs, such as the Weekend Nutrition Program at Washington Seniors Wellness Center in Ward 8, in order to get their next meal. Many more apply to get benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) because their only source of income may be a family member’s or from Social Security checks.

The D.C. Department of Human Services, which runs the SNAP program, found that out of approximately 100,000 individuals on the program, 15 percent are over the age of 60, which is the lowest age group compared to nearly half being between 18 and 39. The Food Research and Action Center, however, estimated the number a bit higher at 16.3 percent, placing D.C. in the top ten rural areas with the most seniors participating in SNAP.

Compared to other states across the U.S., the District has placed fourth in SNAP participating among households with seniors, including what FRAC says are metro, small town and rural areas. The U.S. national average is at 10.2 percent of households with seniors.

According to Melissa Jensen, an anti-hunger program associate who specializes in SNAP at advocacy group DC Hunger Solutions, said that the government benefits program, which provides a monthly supplement to recipients for food, has become a part of retirement for many DC residents, especially in Wards 7 and 8.

“It’s a growing problem across the country, largely because seniors plan to retire on their social security, especially seniors who worked low income jobs or hourly jobs which, when you’re in the workforce, doesn’t let them build a lot savings,” Jensen said.

Jensen said retirees live off of Social Security, which will not cover all their expenses, and they do anything to make ends meet, like moving in with family members or relying on SNAP. She also said that many seniors find it too difficult to apply for SNAP because there is no online app, and so waiting at a service center to be processed, interviewed and approved can take hours. On top of that, if a senior is on a fixed income like Social Security, they will only qualify for the minimum benefit of $30.

“It’s so much work for only $30 a month,” Jensen said. “A big part of what I will do is, if they go to the senior center, and they talk to someone who is trained to work with SNAP, they’ll send me the questions and their documentation and I can send it straight to DHS for them. But a lot of the times, if they don’t have a resource like that or they don’t know how to contact us or someone else to advocate for them, it just seems like a very mysterious process.”

SNAP benefits can increase if the senior pays for their own medical expenses, according to Jensen, but applications require documentation that can be hard to obtain. And there are only five service centers dispersed across the city with a lack of resources for understanding how the process of obtaining benefits may work, which is where Jensen comes in.

Jensen said she wants to simplify the application for seniors and people living with disabilities since they live on fixed incomes, like Social Security.

Jensen said that on top of these challenges, some seniors still find themselves ineligible.

The DHS website caps gross maximum income for eligible households with one member at nearly $2,000, but adding additional members increases the maximum income by $694 per member. For seniors who do not meet the requirements, Jensen said they can go to senior wellness centers or food banks to get necessary food, but the nutrition they find with these resources may not even meet their dietary restrictions.

“In the past 10 years, more and more, we’ve become aware that more seniors are becoming food insecure,” Jensen said. “Even if they can afford food, they can’t afford the food they need to eat. A lot of times, later in life, you may have health issues and you may need a special diet for diabetes, high blood pressure, heart issues, and a lot of seniors, even if they can afford food, they can’t afford the healthy foods or the low-sugar foods, whatever they need.”

Jensen referred to the reported food desert in Wards 7 and 8, where there are only a few grocery stores that mostly supply processed foods to residents in the area, which can cause an issue for seniors with dietary needs.

The Washington Senior Wellness Center works to rectify this by providing healthy, nutritious options for seniors in Ward 8.

Jacquelyn Henry runs the center, which the DC Office of Aging recommends to seniors in Ward 8 on their website. Henry said the center runs a weekend nutrition program with a hot lunch and provides classes on nutrition to teach seniors how to take care of themselves.

(Expand on this after interview)

“Insert quote from Henry”

(Expand more on Wellness Center here after interview)

While Jensen said these senior populations are underserved in DC, there is also an issue of financially planning for retirement without having to rely on Social Security.

Joshua Dorfman, a financial advisor at a DC branch of Northwestern Mutual, said that saving for retirement is not as common because many people are not taught to save early on in their careers.

“Starting in your 20s and 30s puts you head and shoulders above folks that start in their 40s and 50s, but unfortunately, not everyone is aware of that,” Dorfman said. “It might just be that it’s an intimidating discussion, they don’t know who to turn to for advice … or it could simply be that, based upon their income, they don’t feel they’re in a position to save.”

Dorfman said he does come across many clients on benefit programs, but he believes the epidemic of insufficient retirement savings could be solved through promoting financial literacy at home and in schools.

“Someone’s openness to a discussion often times has very little to do with how much they make,” Dorfman said. “A lot of folks view talking about money as taboo, and I think promoting a society where people feel comfortable having that discussion, regardless of what their standing is, that would make an impact.”

Jensen said retirement for low income households can be difficult, especially in a city where the cost of living is has soared in recent years. Business Insider found in August that the average rent for a 2 bedroom apartment is nearly $3,000 a month, while the 2016 American Community Survey from the Census Bureau found that the per capita income in Ward 8 is $18,787, only two-fifths of the per capita income of D.C. as a city.

Dorfman echoed the sentiment that it is difficult to live on Social Security in D.C. after paying non-discretionary purchases, like healthcare and rent. He also said that Social Security is not as reliable as a retirement plan because the funds are running out as a result of American life expectancy increasing, leaving future generations at a loss.

Furthermore, Dorfman said a majority of people retire unexpectedly due to health problems, which can lead to retirees relying on family members for healthcare or using most of their Social Security checks to cover it, leaving little money for other expenses like food.

Retiring in D.C., a city with a high standard of living, after working a low income job, or even a part time job, your whole life can prove to be an arduous task, as Jensen, Dorfman and (possibly Henry) put it.

(End with quote again from senior at Wellness Center)

Facebook CEO in the hot seat at Senate hearing after user data scandal

By Emily Martin

Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO and founder of Facebook, was grilled by two Senate committees at an April 10 hearing after his company mishandled millions of its users’ data.

Zuckerberg agreed to the five-hour meeting with the 44 members of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation after a New York Times investigation revealed that Facebook inadvertently allowed political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica to mine 87 million Facebook users’ data. The data, collected by app developer Aleksandr Kogan from the University of Cambridge, was used to create ads targeting voters in the 2016 presidential election, without many users’ permission or knowledge.

Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., said in his opening statement that he anticipates preventative steps from Facebook to avoid another breach of trust.

“We want to hear more, without delay, about what Facebook and other companies plan to do to take greater responsibility for what happens on their platforms,” Thune said. “How will you protect users’ data? How will you inform users about the changes you are making? And how do you intend to proactively stop harmful conduct instead of being forced to respond to it months or years later?”

Zuckerberg consequently apologized for his company’s shortcoming in protecting user data.

“We face a number of important issues around privacy, safety and democracy, and you all rightfully have some hard questions for me to answer,” Zuckerberg said in his opening remarks. “We didn’t take a broad enough view of our responsibility and that was a big mistake. It was my mistake and I’m sorry. I started Facebook, I run it and I’m responsible for what happens here.”

Zuckerberg said the information sharing tools created for Facebook have helped people connect, provided a platform for free speech and built communities and businesses. However, he said the company did not anticipate that the same tools would be used for harm with fake news, foreign interference in elections, hate speech and misuse of data, referring to Cambridge Analytica.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., presented a poster of the terms Kogan submitted to the company that allowed him to sell data he collected from users that took his in-app personality quiz and all the users’ friends. Kogan saved all the data on a private server, transferring the data out of Facebook’s hands, and sold it to Cambridge Analytica before Facebook changed its consent agreement in 2014.

“What happened here was, in effect, willful blindness. It was heedless and reckless,” Blumenthal said. “My reservation about your testimony today is that I don’t see how you will change your business model unless there are specific rules of the road. Your business model is to monetize user information, to maximize profit over privacy and unless there are specific rules and requirements enforced by an outside agency, I have no assurance that these kind of vague commitments are going to produce action.”

Zuckerberg said he had not seen those terms before and nobody on Facebook’s app reviewer team was fired as a result of the approved terms that violated Facebook standards.

Zuckerberg claimed Facebook and Cambridge Analytica entered a legal contract to delete the data when the breach was discovered in 2015, but he admitted that Facebook failed to audit the consulting firm to confirm they followed through with deletion.

“We considered it a closed case,” Zuckerberg said. “In retrospect, it was a mistake to believe them.”

The CEO said he thinks there should be regulation of his platform from the government, and that it was only a question of what regulation would be effective.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., later thanked Zuckerberg for his public support of her sponsored Honest Ads Act, which ensures that online political ads have the same transparency and disclosure requirements as ads for TV, radio, and print.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said that regulation should come from other areas as well to avoid government overreach, like from competition. Graham asked Zuckerberg to name an alternative to his product and interrupted Zuckerberg discussing categories of competitors to directly ask if the company was a monopoly.

“It doesn’t seem that way to me,” Zuckerberg said to laughter from committee and audience members.

Graham then criticized Facebook’s accessibility and transparency in its terms of service.

“It says, ‘the terms govern your use of Facebook and the products, features, apps, services, technology software we offer, Facebook’s product or products, except where we expressly state separate terms and not these apply.’ I’m a lawyer and I have no idea what that means,” Graham said.

He then held up a thick, physical copy of the terms of service to illustrate how complex they are and asked Zuckerberg, “do you think the average consumer understands what they’re signing up for?”

Zuckerberg said no, and despite the call for simplifying the terms, he said the platform offers controls for users to configure the experience how they want, including an opt-out feature that stops Facebook from sharing their information with third parties.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., referred to the terms again during his questioning, saying the document was not negotiable and easy to hide things in.

Zuckerberg described in his opening remarks three steps the company will take to prevent future misuse of user data, including a full audit of what happened with Cambridge Analytica and warning users affected, an investigation of current app developers and their use of data and instituting limits on what information developers will have access to.

Despite the many calls for regulation, there were no bills regarding regulation of Facebook presented or voted on at the hearing. Zuckerberg also did not commit to simplifying Facebook’s terms of service.

A separate hearing with Cambridge Analytica by the Senate Judiciary Committee is expected in the future after Thune and other senators said there is a need to question the company about its use of user data.

SNAP continues to run under old legislation after Farm Bill expires

By Emily Martin

The fate of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) has been hanging in the balance after the House failed to a pass a new version of the Agriculture and Nutrition Act, known as the Farm Bill, before the Sept. 30 expiration date of the previous bill then adjourned for this session.

Legal experts and advocates in the field of public benefits say SNAP has continued to run under the system established by the previous bill in 2014, and it will until new legislation is passed. Melissa Jensen, an anti-hunger program associate at advocacy group D.C. Hunger Solutions, said in an interview that operating under the old bill is a “best case scenario” until a new bill, like the Senate’s version of the bill, is passed.

“The House version of the bill is getting, thankfully, a lot of that negative attention because it’s a terrible bill,” Jensen said. “The real question is, are Senators going to compromise on some of the worst areas of the House?”

According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a research institute that advocates for state and federal policies related to poverty, the House’s bill contains changes that would cause more than 1 million low-income households to lose or reduce their benefits. The bill would institute work requirements for SNAP participants aged 18 through 59 to work at least 20 hours a week, according to the Center, with exceptions for recipients who are disabled or have a child under the age of 6.

The stricter work requirements in the bill are not guaranteed to increase employment, however. Brian Campbell is a senior policy advisor at the Economic Security Administration, a branch of the D.C. Department of Human Services that determines eligibility for programs such as SNAP and Temporary Cash Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). Campbell said in an interview that DHS has found that there is no direct correlation between removing benefits from a household and increased employment or work engagement.

“I think the question is … should SNAP or any entitlement program … be tied to engagement in a work activity,” Campbell said. “Or should it be designed for ensuring that there’s a minimum level of food security within a household, regardless of what is the engagement of parents or the adult.”

Campbell said that the new requirements may take away the benefits from some low-income households. Jennifer Mezey, a supervising attorney in the Public Benefits Unit at Legal Aid Society D.C., agreed. Mezey represented SNAP recipients in a lawsuit against DHS for its backlog on applications, according to Street Sense, and continues to help resolve what she called “challenging cases” that recipients send to a specially-designed email for Legal Aid Society.

“I suspect that we both would agree that it would be pretty disastrous,” Mezey said in an interview. “You would have to divert a whole lot of resources from efforts to make food stamps more available to fund efforts that would probably not help that many people, and would instead just put up additional barriers.”

Campbell said that DHS aims to balance encouraging work with recipients with ensuring food security in households because other issues are tied to food insecurity, resulting in what he called a “downward spiral.” Jensen also said that the work requirements would have a substantial impact on the population aged 50-69 who are retiring or ready to retire because they have become reliant on it with little to no source of income.

“In low-income neighborhoods, in Wards 7 and 8, I feel a lot of the time that SNAP is basically a part of retirement,” Jensen said. “If you’ve worked a low-income job your whole life, you don’t have substantial savings to retire on, and part of surviving is you leave your job and you apply for SNAP.”

Wards 7 and 8, the southernmost wards of the District, have the highest concentrations in the city of individuals on the SNAP program. The wards are almost even in population, according to Campbell, yet 29 percent of Ward 8 and 23 percent of Ward 7 are SNAP recipients, and the next highest concentration is 14 percent in Ward 5.

Allison Miles-Lee, a managing attorney of public benefits for Bread for the City, a nonprofit that provides food, medical care, legal services and more to reduce poverty, criticized DHS for its shortcomings in food insecurity in the District, especially in Wards 7 and 8. Miles-Lee is also part of the prosecution for the DHS lawsuit along with Mezey, and she said the lawsuit’s purpose is to get DHS to acknowledge the growing issue of wait times and to improve it.

“If DHS had to implement anything, forget it,” Miles-Lee said. “I do not have a lot of faith in DHS’s ability to make any changes. … If any directive comes down from the federal government and requires them to make some sort of changes in the that way they process and approve cases, I think that opens up the possibility of inadvertent errors happening.”

Miles-Lee also said that DHS terminated without notice recipients waiting for recertification in their system when they switched to new computers in fall 2016. She said the problem has been mostly resolved, but the original rollout of the computers was against the advice of experts.

Jensen, on the other hand, said that she thinks that DHS is taking critiques seriously and trying to improve. Mattie Harrison, a recipient of SNAP, said in an interview outside the Taylor Street Service Center that the department has been “pretty good” to her. She said she was at the center to ask for assistance after her water had been turned off the day before, but the center was unable to help. Marvin, another recipient who declined to give a last name, said in an interview outside the same service center it is easy to communicate with DHS.

Another man outside the Taylor Street Service Center identified himself as a recipient of “food stamp and medical” services from DHS, but declined to give his name.

“D.C. takes care of their citizens and that’s all I’m going to say. It’s a blessing what they do with their medical because I’m sick sick,” he said. “It’s a blessing.”

Harrison said that the new work requirements will help with employment, but Marvin said they could make it harder to receive SNAP benefits. Jensen echoed the sentiment that many recipients are satisfied with DHS’s services, but many still suggest possible improvements.

For now, the bill sits in waiting until after the congressional midterm elections in November, when Congress will return with newly-elected members. If it does pass, Mezey said that D.C. may still be able to offer a waiver for the new requirements to recipients, which they currently offer.

Jensen also said that D.C.’s food insecurity issue is discussed often and has a lot of momentum, which would be good for progress and improvements.

“These programs should just exist for people,” Jensen said. “They should be easy to use, they should be open to everyone and we should do everything we can to reduce the stigma around them because people should be able to eat, no one should judge anyone for being able to eat.”

Howard University student calls for military branches to support active-duty minorities in step towards equality

Refocus, Reconstruct, Restore: The 3 R’s America Needs

By Alexa Rocourt

When reflecting on our present-day government, Andy Schwarz sees the midterm election as a great opportunity to refocus, reconstruct and restore a functional team of leaders to improve America.

Apart from pursuing a political science degree, his interests in politics go beyond the classroom walls and into the polls. Schwarz is registered to vote in Maryland and plans to make his voice heard. He’s got lots to say.

“I am a Republican. I would love to have more

Republicans in the House,” he said, “but you can’t always get what you want in politics so it’s essentially a large compromise.”

Schwarz feels one of the biggest issues in our government today is its inability to work well together. “It’s a lot of gridlock in the House and in the Senate on different issues and it makes it hard to pass reform in policies like gun control and immigration,” he said.

Despite his support for the Republican party, Schwarz says his vote will not necessarily be about supporting President Trump. He instead wishes to prioritize his own opinions. While some of them align with the President’s, others don’t.

“For climate change, I fall a little bit differently than most Republicans,” he said. Schwarz grew up as a scout and developed an appreciation for nature and its natural energy, and feels uncomfortable with the government forcing its way into the energy sector.

However, being a scout taught him more than just how to appreciate nature. It also instilled in him an interest in shooting. He said he and his hunting crew were “responsible gun owners” who never killed or shot anyone. “I am not for gun control … I don’t think they [the March for Our Lives group] know as much about the guns they’re trying to control and the guns they are trying to reform the use of,” he said. In Schwarz’s opinion, more deep down logic needs to be applied to issues like gun control.

With those main concerns in mind, Schwarz is ready to play his role in our political system. “I think we are becoming more polarized and the 2016 election definitely played a role in that, and I think it’s time to depolarize and come back in the center,” he said.

 

 

 

Voting: A Duty Done With Pleasure

By Alexa Rocourt

With the upcoming midterm election and her adamant belief in voter responsibility, 21-year-old Camille Torres is set on having her opinions heard in the polls in her hometown, Saint Petersburg, Florida.

Torres, a senior specializing in political science and international studies, places herself in environments that deepen her political awareness and contribution. She spent her summer working at The Blue Lab, a progressive campaign incubator in Boston, where she participated in campaigns for two female politicians, Tram Nguyen and Governor Councilor Eileen Duff. Torres advocates for an all-inclusive government and believes “a more representative democracy is a more just democracy.”

Torres was taught by her parents at a very young age to voice her opinions. “They have always been great about fostering an environment where I should care and allowed me to be an opinionated person,” she said. With such an engrained sense of political allegiance, she feels participation in the midterm election is important as it can personally effect citizens more than the presidential election.

“People forget that the President is not like a king or dictator; he doesn’t decide everything,” she said. Torres is concerned with selecting leaders that will

help bring about a well-rounded government. She specifically wants to vouch for representatives who see eye-to-eye with her on immigration and gun control.

“I feel like we haven’t gone forwards in a lot of ways during this term … and that scares me because I feel the next two cycles will be just be rebuilding and that puts us 12 years behind,” she said.

With the policy changes made to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), for example, she is afraid deportations will continue to increase if the administration feels the need to resist democratic efforts to save the fate of the program.

Torres feels strongly about promoting gun control and highly discourages the idea of allowing weapons in schools. Having witnessed shutdowns due to guns at her own high school, she remembers the terror of feeling vulnerable. “Thinking about teachers having a gun in their hands while also being panicked is a really scary thought for me,” she said.

Torres seeks to be governed by informed politicians who have a good basis and foundation and plans on making her vote count.

AU student circulates platforms to Floridian voters through a Google Doc

by Emily Martin

As his Google Doc – crafted to include the platforms of Florida’s congressional and gubernatorial candidates – circulated, Andrew Rogan, a 21-year-old international relations student at American University, realized the impact he could have on his community and its elections.

“One thing that I was looking at when I was doing my election research was candidates that are willing to invest in public education in Florida,” said Rogan, a registered voter in Orlando, Florida. “That [document] was, I think, a really good thing that I was able to contribute, at least to people in my community.”

Rogan included the candidates’ positions on gun control, climate change, education and immigration, but gun control, he believes, was the most essential issue to include in his research.

“Obviously, gun control is a huge issue in Florida because the past two years has seen more gun violence in Florida than a lot of other states, including, you know, the deadliest shooting in United States history in Orlando at the Pulse nightclub,” Rogan said.

He also said that he discovered a similar stance on gun control for many Republican candidates, one that included little to no action or legislation regarding gun control. This passiveness

concerned him because “obviously the status quo isn’t working” and he believes the governor, senators, congressmen and public officials elected in Florida’s midterm elections need to do “something.”

No matter what the candidate’s views are, Rogan said he will not vote for a candidate that fully supports President Donald Trump, and that’s because Trump is not from Florida.

“Obviously, Trump doesn’t know what’s best for Florida, he’s not from there, and his experience in Florida, aside from resort, is not very, you know, extended,” Rogan said. “So I think that it’s important for me to choose someone who has something a little unique about themselves and when it comes to being just a Trump surrogate, that really offers no benefit to the state of Florida whatsoever.”

Vegan from deep-blue Connecticut wants compassionate candidates in office

by Emily Martin

Nina Larson, a 21-year-old music student at American University, decided to go vegan 10 months ago after researching the animal agriculture industry’s negative impact on the environment. She had started fostering cats a few months earlier.

Larson is a self-proclaimed animal lover, but she cited morality issues and prioritizing health as other reasons for her lifestyle change. She applies her sense of importance on morality in other

aspects of her life, including politics. She believes the most important issue facing the world is climate change and that it is overlooked at our own risk.

“Climate change is real, it is a real issue, and we are not handling it properly,” Larson said. “And within the next 20 or 30 years, we are going to have deserted oceans, who the f–k knows about the weather and we’re not going to be able to raise our children in an environment that is safe basically due to pollution and all that.”

Larson also criticized President Donald Trump’s administration and how it has dealt with climate change, including the decision to pull out of the Obama era Paris Agreement. She said she will not vote for candidates that support his actions on climate change, among other things.

“If you can support Donald Trump and everything he stands for – racism, dishonesty, misogyny – if you stand for that, no matter what your other views are, I cannot support you as a candidate,” Larson said. “When it comes to supporting Donald Trump, that is not a party line thing, that is a personal morality issue.”

Despite her strong views on Trump and Trump supporters on the ticket, Larson is confident about her incumbent Sen. Chris Murphy from her home state of Connecticut. Murphy is running unopposed in the blue state, and polls show he is likely to win the midterm election. Since the Sandy Hook mass shooting in 2012, Murphy has been vocal about gun control policy and has been consistent with a liberal voting record.

“I am not personally worried about who we are going to put in office, because it will be our Democratic candidate, and I trust Chris Murphy, he’s been with us for several years, and I haven’t heard him say anything that I disagree with,” Larson said.