By Samson Afolabi-11th Grade, Trinity Christian School 

Every four years, different men and women all compete for that one title — President of the United States. Coming mainly from the Democratic and Republican parties, the contenders duke it out with debates, speeches, trips and campaigns, each trying to oust the other party members and opponents to win. The 2016 Presidential Election, however, has been a dramatic and controversial one, with scandals, crises, and secrets that make you wonder if there a point to this. From the myriad of people running, the two candidates decided upon for the Democratic and Republican Parties are Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, respectively. However, from the moment of their nomination, the controversies have grown even further, and it is bound to get worse from here.

But, does it really have to get worse? From the very beginning, there have been controversies and scandals that are still being talked about today. Whether its Donald Trump’s plan to build a wall to keep out Mexican immigrants or Hillary Clinton’s email scandal, there have been a number of issues, and the candidates are not making their case better. Another example is the plagiarism of a previous speech of Michelle Obama by Donald Trump’s wife, Melania. These controversies do not seem to prove the candidates as being fit for presidential office and only put them in a bad light. The candidates need to find some way to turn public opinion around or this could be a confusing election. To make matters worse, these scandals, no matter how old they are, keep increasing as a result of the person’s own actions, other people who are against the person, or the opposing party.

Elections are always a campaigning war, with each side trying to promote itself and its platform while trying to discredit the other, all to prove that its plan and method for the country is best. However, there has been so much discrediting and boasting in this presidential race that it makes you wonder if the candidates really care? Do the candidates actually care about America’s problems or are they trying to promote their own agenda? A recent ad sponsored by Hillary Clinton is solely designed to discredit Donald Trump; while there is also is an ad promoting her platform, the attack ad is playing more often. As for the other side, Trump constantly tries to insult Clinton and other enemies of his, while not saying much about how he plans to better America. It really makes you wonder about their agendas.

This election has been jampacked with propaganda, insults, controversies, and debates that would qualify for a successful reality show. However, this is not some show, but a real decision as to who will lead this country for the next four years. If these petty squabbles and scandals do not subside soon and if a real attempt to provide ways to better this country does not appear, we might be looking at four years of unseriousness or four years of a hidden agenda.

Samson is an 11^th grader at Trinity Christian School. He lives in North Braddock and has been on the Trinity School Newspaper Staff. He is interested in programming, and is seeking to major in cyber security and have a career in cryptology.