**In no way does the following article endorse Hillary Clinton, not by the author, the Hastings Odyssey Chapter, or any staff member of Odyssey itself. The following article is merely the musings of a college business and economics student with a passion for politics, in no way does this secure the author's vote for said candidate**

With the media set ablaze earlier this month with the announcement of Ted Cruz pulling his candidacy for the presidency from the table, it has been a wild week for politics. With Cruz's dropping out, it is fairly clear that Republican frontrunner Donald Trump will be the GOP's candidate, and it's down to Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton for the Dems. While Hillary is leading by a mild margin, Bernie refuses to go down without a fight, so it is only fair to have him within this comparison. Here, I'll give you the cold hard facts about the three candidates left, and what it will mean to have each of them [potentially] leading the free world. Each week for the next three weeks I will put the spotlight on one of the said candidates. This week:

Hillary Clinton (D)

Next on our candidate spotlight we have Mrs. Hillary Clinton of the Democrats. Aside from Trump, Hillary is the most questioned and publicized candidate, but from the Democratic side of the spectrum, and has also had quite the role in stirring up the media, but for some different reasons. Hillary seems to have a habit of contradicting herself, whether it be by something she said 20 years prior, or something she previously was vehemently against and is now supporting. While Trump chose to focus on just seven issues in his platform, Hillary has a whopping 31 'issues' she is hoping to reform (should she be elected) on her official campaign website. Here are just a few, some of the more controversial:

Platform:

College

-Proposed "New College Compact", in which 'costs won't be a barrier, and debt won't hold you back'

Economy

-Raise incomes for hard-working Americans, partially by raising minimum wage

Gun Violence Prevention

-Strengthen background checks, close loopholes in the system, have harsher punishments for those illegally distributing guns, and keeping guns out of 'the hands of terrorists, domestic abusers, other violent criminals, and the severely mentally ill'

Immigration Reform

-Enact comprehensive immigration reform to create a pathway to citizenship, and keeping families together, as well as promoting President Obama's executive actions regarding deportation relief, naturalization, immigrant integration, and closing immigrant detention centers

LGBT Equality

-Ensure full federal equality for all LGBT Americans, support LGBT kids, parents, and elders, and secure affordable treatment for people living with HIV and AIDS

National Security

-Defeat ISIS and global terrorism, and strengthen our alliances and nurture new relationships to tackle shared challenged around the globe

Racial Justice

-End the era of mass incarceration, protect immigrants' rights and keep families together, defend American right to vote

What the US would look like in the event of a Clinton victory:

This, like Trump, is a little difficult to envision. A future with Clinton in charge would likely look a little messier than a Trump victory. Simply comparing seven campaign objectives to 31 proposed by Clinton, it's easy to see where her focuses could stray. With so many varied topics, it would be interesting to see which of the 31 she could accomplish within four years. With that being said, it should make Americans a little uneasy the wealth of promises we are currently being given by Clinton, and being realistic. Can anyone accomplish 31 major changes in four years? I don't think so.

My thoughts:

Personally, this was the first time that I had ever delved into Hillary's actual campaign promises. For the most part, they are fairly well written, but much too ambitious to possibly hope to accomplish within four years. In all honesty, the idea of Hillary being our next president scares me. She, in my opinion, is the candidate playing the most 'dirty politics' and has changed her mind on multiple things to garner more votes. A good example of this would be her stance on LGBT rights. I invite you the watch the video below, then look at what I wrote previously about her current stance on LGBT rights.

Let me ask you, my reader, how does someone who so clearly is against the legal rights of LGBT marriages, just 180-degree flip her stance on it? This is just but one example of multiple, official speeches made by Hillary in which she completely contradicts herself. My thoughts? I think the entire Clinton campaign is nothing but smoke, mirrors, and false promises. I certainly don't want a president who only too obviously flips her stance on an issue just to garner votes. I urge Americans to not be fooled by these false pretenses, do your own research on what she really believes and will institute, and wake up to this reality in the Democratic nomination.

Stay tuned for next week's candidate spotlight: Bernie Sanders