Introduction

As the field of 2020 presidential candidates narrows after each statewide contest and the differences in the contenders’ policies become more and more pronounced, understanding the nuanced positions comes to the fore. 

This voting guide details the positions of seven presidential candidates all of whom were selected by a Jan. 8-16 survey, to which 80 Lane students responded, conducted by The Warrior through the General Student News email. Respondents wrote in their preferred nominees for both parties; candidates qualified for inclusion on the criteria of being (1) named by at least one student as a preferred candidate and (2) still in the running for a Republican or Democratic nomination. The issues discussed in this spread are ones that we, as an editorial board, believe are most important to students.

Breakdown of issues

Does this candidate support the mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons?

As a measure against escalating gun violence, multiple candidates have proposed the mandatory buyback of assault weapons, a policy under which assault weapons owners are required to sell their firearms to the government, usually under no threat of prosecution.

Does this candidate support an assault weapons ban?

In addition to mandatory buybacks, some candidates have proposed a blanket ban on assault weapons — the definition of which varies by campaign — in order to combat violence committed with such weapons.

Does this candidate support the use of nuclear power in combating climate change?

Nuclear power and its viability as an alternative to fossil fuels has been a contentious issue in the election, with some candidates advocating for a long-term investment in nuclear power, and others apprehensive of the United States’ ability to safely dispose of its radioactive byproducts. 

Does this candidate support reentry into the Paris Climate Accord?

The Paris Climate Accord was an agreement adopted in 2015 by nearly every country in the world with the goal of mitigating greenhouse gas emissions in order to reduce global temperatures. In 2017, President Donald Trump withdrew from the agreement, saying that the deal “punishes the American people while enriching foreign polluters.” 

Does this candidate support universal student debt forgiveness?

Under universal student debt forgiveness, the federal government would cancel all the debts that all U.S. college students have accumulated, eliminating the need to pay these loans back.

Does this candidate support free public higher education?

Free public higher education would mean that the federal government would pay for anyone who wants to attend public university in order allow Americans similar access to higher education opportunities.

Joe Biden

Does this candidate support the mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons?

No. Biden instead supports a voluntary buyback. If gun owners choose not to sell their weapons, they will have to undergo a background check and register the weapon, according to Vox.

Does this candidate support an assault weapons ban?

Yes. According to his website, Biden supports bans “based on lessons learned from the 1994 bans. For example, the ban on assault weapons will be designed to prevent manufacturers from circumventing the law by making minor changes that don’t limit the weapon’s lethality.”

Does this candidate support the use of nuclear power in combating climate change?

Yes. According to The Hill, Biden supports maintaining nuclear reactors already in action, but not building new ones.

Does this candidate support reentry into the Paris Climate Accord?

Biden plans to take further action in addition to reentering the Climate Accord. “This includes pushing other countries to increase their emissions-cutting ambitions through diplomacy, new policies to incorporate climate into trade policy, and potential fees or quotas on ‘carbon-intensive goods,’” according to Axios.

Does this candidate support universal student debt forgiveness?

No. Instead, Biden supports waiving $10,000 yearly (up to five years) for Americans working in public service. Additionally, he proposes that those with an income below $25,000 will not have to finance undergraduate loans. Other loaners’ payments would be capped at 5% of their discretionary income. He also plans to double the maximum value of Pell Grants, according to CNN.

Does this candidate support free public higher education?

At a cost of $750 billion per year, Joe Biden has proposed guaranteeing two free years of community college, according to CNN.

Why should other students support this candidate?

“Joe Biden has a lot of political experience relative to the other candidates running. His foreign policy experience during the Obama administration shows that he will be able to effectively keep America safe, help bring peace to the Middle East, and mitigate the power and dangerous potential of adversaries like Iran.”

— Aidan Lloyd, Div. 050

Pete Buttigieg

Does this candidate support the mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons?

No. Buttigieg believes that such policies have had “mixed results,” he said at a March For Our Lives forum.

Does this candidate support an assault weapons ban?

Yes. At an October March For Our Lives forum, Buttigieg said, “I continue to believe that our focus right now should be universal background checks, red flag laws and a ban on the sale of assault weapons.”

Does this candidate support the use of nuclear power in combating climate change?

Though Buttigieg has not specifically declared support for nuclear energy, he “calls for generating 100 percent of electricity in the U.S. by 2035 without producing carbon emissions, a goal that would leave room for continued use of nuclear energy,” according to Politico.

Does this candidate support reentry into the Paris Climate Accord?

Yes. In addition, Buttigieg would double America’s contribution to the Green Climate Fund, a fund established within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, according to Politico.

Does this candidate support universal student debt forgiveness?

No. According to SoFi, “Buttigieg plans to cancel student debt for borrowers who were targets of ‘low-quality, overwhelmingly for-profit programs’—specifically, colleges that failed to meet the Gainful Employment Rule standards.”

Does this candidate support free public higher education?

According to his website, Buttigieg supports “a state-federal partnership that makes public tuition affordable for all and completely free at lower incomes–combined with a large increase in Pell Grants that provides for basic living expenses and keeps up with inflation.”

Why should other students support this candidate?

“Buttigieg takes a strong stance on issues that are increasingly relevant to youth in Chicago, such as gun violence, immigration, and climate change. Buttigieg is a moderate Democrat, so if you skew to the more Conservative minority of Chicago, he provides a not-radical alternative to Trump.”

— Sydney Curran, Div. 350

Bernie Sanders

Does this candidate support the mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons?

No. Sanders considers a mandatory buyback unconstitutional, according to The Washington Times.

Does this candidate support an assault weapons ban?

Yes; Sanders wants to “ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons,” according to his website.

Does this candidate support the use of nuclear power in combating climate change?

No. Sanders plans to stop the building of nuclear power plants and “find a real solution to our existing nuclear waste problem,” according to his website.

Does this candidate support reentry into the Paris Climate Accord?

Yes, but according to Sanders’s website, “We must think beyond Paris,” in part by investing $200 billion in the Green Climate Fund and cutting the Pentagon’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Does this candidate support universal student debt forgiveness?

Going even further than his opponents, Sanders supports forgiving all $1.6 trillion in student debt, including graduate and private school, according to The Washington Post.

Does this candidate support free public higher education?

Yes. According to The Washington Post, Sanders supports tuition-free public universities, community colleges and trade schools.

Why should other students support this candidate?

“There’s a lot of policies that he especially reaches out to young people, whether it be eliminating student debt entirely for everyone in this country or free public colleges, universities, and trade schools. … With Bernie, the populism is authentic. The populism is legitimate and it’s all for the working class and it’s a legitimate thing, so you won’t get that energy with any other candidate but Bernie Sanders.”

— Oscar Zetino, Div. 079

Donald Trump

Does this candidate support the mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons?

No. According to a 2019 tweet, Trump believes such policies “[convince] many that Dems just want to take your guns away.”

Does this candidate support an assault weapons ban?

As of 2016, according to Politico, Trump does not support an assault weapons ban.

Does this candidate support the use of nuclear power in combating climate change?

Yes. In September of 2018, Trump signed the Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act.  According to the Department of Energy, the bill sought to eliminate barriers standing in the way of nuclear innovation in order to make the United States more energy independent.

Does this candidate support reentry into the Paris Climate Accord?

No, because of the “draconian financial and economic burdens the agreement imposes on our country,” Trump said in a 2017 Rose Garden ceremony.

Does this candidate support universal student debt forgiveness?

No. Trump has instead proposed defining the “undue hardship” that allows student loans to be forgiven in bankruptcy, according to The College Investor.

Does this candidate support free public higher education?

According to U.S. News, Trump’s reelection website makes no pledges on higher education.

Why should other students support this candidate?

“America is currently in great financial shape with unemployment just below 3% and a rise in GDP. If students want a candidate who will continue this great trend in the economy and who will put America first always, then I see no reason not to support Donald Trump for reelection.”

— Andrej Colovic, Div. 169

Elizabeth Warren

Does this candidate support the mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons?

Warren supports a voluntary buyback, according to The New York Times.

Does this candidate support an assault weapons ban?

Yes. In addition, Warren also supports “creating a federal licensing system, limiting the number of firearms someone could buy, [and] raising the minimum age to 21 for purchasing a gun,” according to NPR.

Does this candidate support the use of nuclear power in combating climate change?

At a 2019 CNN town hall, Warren said that nuclear energy should be phased out by 2035.

Does this candidate support reentry into the Paris Climate Accord?

Yes. Additionally, Warren plans to provide American-made clean energy technology to the most in-need countries, according to her website.

Does this candidate support universal student debt forgiveness?

No. According to Forbes, Warren plans to cancel $50,000 in debt for all borrowers earning less than $100,000. She also plans to make private loan debt cancelable.

Does this candidate support free public higher education?

Yes. According to her website, Warren plans to “give every American the opportunity to attend a two-year or four-year public college without paying a dime in tuition or fees.”

Why should other students support this candidate?

“With us being students and us going into college and our next steps, and also becoming adults in a country like this, I think it’s important that we choose a leader that can really represent our needs and who we are as a country, and I think she can do a good job of making sure our needs are met.”

— Lauren Gallagher, Div. 054

William Weld

Does this candidate support the mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons?

In 2016, Weld said that “restricting gun rights doesn’t make us safer, and threatens our constitutional freedoms,” according to CBS Boston.

Does this candidate support an assault weapons ban?

Weld believes that “we must continue to keep automatic weapons out of commercial availability,” but says the definition of “assault weapon” is not standard, according to his website.

Does this candidate support the use of nuclear power in combating climate change?

Citing nuclear energy as a large cause for decreases in CO2 emissions, Weld believes “that we need more nuclear power than we have now,” according to his website.

Does this candidate support reentry into the Paris Climate Accord?

Yes. According to his website, he “[thinks] we should be cooperative with other countries” and “should rejoin the Paris accord.”

Does this candidate support universal student debt forgiveness?

Weld seeks to “allow for federal student debt to be renegotiated” and supports “federal student loan refinancing,” according to Student Loan Hero.

Does this candidate support free public higher education?

Weld supports free in-state tuition for some workers and generally advocates online education as a means to decrease room and board costs, according to his 2019 candidacy announcement speech.

Why should other students support this candidate?

“Bill Weld is the candidate that most represents my personal beliefs as a libertarian. Fiscally conservative and socially liberal, Weld supports the policies that I think will best protect the individual and civil liberties of United States citizens.” 

— Alejandro Gonzalez, Div. 082

Andrew Yang

Does this candidate support the mandatory buyback of assault-style weapons?

No, but Yang does support “a federal buyback program for anyone who wants to voluntarily give up their firearm,” according to Politico.

Does this candidate support an assault weapons ban?

No. Yang instead supports a “a three-tiered licensing system for gun ownership” in which different varieties of firearms are subject to varying licensing requirements, according to Politico. First-tier licenses protect basic hunting rifles and handguns and third-tier licenses protect advanced and automatic weaponry.

Does this candidate support the use of nuclear power in combating climate change?

Yes. According to Yang’s website, “nuclear power is a crucial component in the move towards creating sustainable, carbon-free energy for the United States.”

Does this candidate support reentry into the Paris Climate Accord?

Yang does support rejoining the agreement, but told the New York Times that “the Paris Agreement doesn’t go far enough to mitigate climate change, and the U.S. should be a part of the conversation on what targets are necessary and how we can get to them.”

Does this candidate support universal student debt forgiveness?

According to Business Insider, “Yang said he supported a plan like Warren’s to forgive most student loan debt, saying ‘if you have a choice between hundreds of thousands of young people living in their parents’ basements or investing that money back into the economy, we should choose the latter.’” 

Does this candidate support free public higher education?

Yang supports “making two-year community college education free or extremely low-cost, and implementing a number of measures to incentivize four-year colleges to reduce their tuition costs,” according to Business Insider.

Why should other students support this candidate?

“As a political outsider, Yang is not afraid to take a stand against the establishment and propose the policies and solutions that will be most beneficial to Americans in the long term.” 

— Daniel Velazquez, Div. 161