The USC Democrats and Trojan Republicans faced off in a debate hosted by the Political Student Union and the Political Student Assembly, on Oct. 23. Onlookers sat in anticipation to watch their peers tackle four different topics: the economy, healthcare, voting rights, and finally political candidacy between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris
The moderators of the debate were Duncan Law, president of USC’s Political Union, and co-executive directors of PSA, Leah Nwizugbo and Hailey Pham.
Here are the main takeaways from the debate
Should the government implement a national right to work law?
Juan Pablo Moreland, a senior philosophy major, represented the Republican side while River Muench, a senior political science major, took to the Democrats. The debate began with the discussion about the economy, specifically if the government should implement a national right to work law.
The Republican side stated that a national right to work law would be beneficial to the American people. The Democrats opposed this idea of a right to work law, highlighting how unionized workplaces are more advantageous to the American worker. The Democrats also touched upon how not being a part of a union could lead to more workplace deaths and unchecked laboring conditions.
“Tell that to people who wish not to be in their union anymore,” Moreland said in an interview post debate. “Telling people their lives depend on union membership is a condescending view and idea.”
Should the Affordable Care Act be repealed?
Healthcare was the next topic of choice, debated between Ben Sheyman, a senior political science major, for the Republicans, and Sara Xiao Stienecker, a senior political science major, for the Democrats. They addressed whether or not the government should repeal the Affordable Care Act.
The Democrats began by explaining how 46 million Americans did not have access to healthcare prior to the ACA, and there is a dramatic increase of insured Americans through the ACA. The Republicans focused on the idea that the ACA was “built on a lie, and became a failure” where healthcare is better established through free market solutions in their opinion.The Republicans then argued that the ACA has made per capita coverage double in over a majority of the states.
“The cost per capita that the American citizens pay on healthcare has actually not gone up significantly,” Stienecker said in an interview post debate. “I wish I had a chance to bring that up on stage but, you know, hindsight’s 20/20.”
Should felons be allowed to vote after serving their sentence?
Tanner Dodt, a junior piano performance major, of the Republicans was next to debate Donovan O’Leary, a Democratic sophomore political science major. Their question surrounded voting rights, and whether felons should be allowed to vote after serving their sentence.
The GOP began by defining that felons were criminals, and should not have a part in our law making processes. They discussed that only through full personal reform can one reobtain voting rights. The Democrats argued that if the prison system is truly meant to rehabilitate, then prisoners should be reformed and allowed to be normal, voting citizens upon release, where further disenfranchisement of voters would not be a solution to any problem.
“Only 10 states do not allow felons to vote post release,” O’Leary said “How do you represent the majority of states if only ⅕ of the US agrees with you.”
Harris vs. Trump: Who is the better candidate?
The final topic presented each debater with two questions specifically about their candidate. The Democrats were represented by sophomore political science major MD Zuhayeer, while the Republicans were backed by Dakota Dreimeyer, a senior law, history, and culture major.
Zuhayeer was presented with a question regarding Harris’s immigration policy, where he began by highlighting how America is nothing without immigrants, and Kamala Harris’ border policies would make a previously unreformed process more ethical and efficient.
“I just want to start off by saying this is the largest Harris rally I’ve ever seen,” Driemeyer opened in his response to a question about Trump’s economic plan.
Driemeyer then alleged that Kamala is a “known Marxist,”and that her policies align more with countries like Venezuela.
In terms of support for Harris, Zuhayeer explained that when men spread fear to gain power they lead us down a path of division. He touched upon how his opposing candidate, who is convicted of 34 felonies, should not be able to lead. Driemeyer closed his arguments by purporting that the democratic party just hates America, “you may be woke, but you aren’t awake.”
Who won?
The conclusion of this debate left junior audience member Eleanor Love with the notion that the Democrats won the debate overall.
“I think it depends on each round of the debate, but, if you had to tally it up I would think that the Democrats probably won,” she stated in an interview after the closing of the debate, “I also think that this campus leans heavily left, so the audience reaction definitely feeds in to some of that perception.”
Throughout the debate, the crowd did not shy away from making it clear as to which point they supported.
“As time went on there was definitely more crowd involvement especially for the other side, which is fair,” Republican debater Moreland further explained in his interview when asked what the opposing side did well throughout the debate. “The Democrats came really well prepared, and very well rehearsed.”
When interviewing Democratic debater Sara Xiao Steinecker, she stated that “[the Republicans] kept it mostly civil” when also asked about what the opposing debaters did well.