Yes, President Obama and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump are obviously very different people from vastly different economic and cultural backgrounds. However, they’ve got one thing in common: they’ve both now subjected themselves to “Ask Me Anything” chats on Reddit. And their answers on campaign finance reform distills their different approaches to politics and policy in one sentence.
A redditor from Florida under the name Shadow6463 asked “Mr. Trump. What is your plan for reducing or removing the influence of money on politics?”
Campaign finance reform is and has been a major issue in American politics for decades. And Trump has brilliantly used his financial independence to attack the character of his former Republican rivals and the perceived ties between Wall Street and Hillary Clinton. So, with the time and space to offer a thoughtful response, Trump instead declared:
“Keeping Crooked Hillary Clinton out of the White House!”
It was one of three times Trump responded to a question by referring to the Democratic presidential nominee as Crooked Hillary, a sentiment echoed by many of his fans who posted questions to the forum.
As Mic points out, the response couldn’t be much different than a thoughtful and nuanced response issued by Barack Obama during his own Reddit AMA back in 2013, when he was asked, “What are you going to do to end the corrupting influence of money in politics during your second term?”
In response, Obama wrote:
In fairness, Obama hasn’t done anything to stem the tide of money in politics during his presidency and who knows if a President Clinton would make any progress either after a disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision and Republicans in Congress, most of whom oppose meaningful campaign finance reform. But the two answers showcase the Grand Canyon sized difference in style and substance of our soon-to-be outgoing Commander in Chief and the blustering, details challenged candidate hoping to replace him.
