Carl Paladino thinks Hillary Clinton is a “gift from Hell” and it would be a horror story if she is elected. He described Donald Trump as “an imperfect human being” who says what everyone is thinking.
Paladino, the New York co-chair of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, offered his perspective on this year’s presidential election during an hour-long speech on Monday night. Thirty-five students gathered in Talbert 107 to hear Paladino speak.
Paladino said Trump would make a good president because he will accomplish the things he has promised. He said this election is important because the Supreme Court nominations will “solidify the direction of the nation for the next 30 years.”
“Yeah, [Trump] went bankrupt a few times, but you know what? That’s because he played the game…he is a man who is unafraid to enter the arena. He has been pummeled and knocked down, but he always charges back into the fight,” Paladino said.
Paladino said Trump told him he was planning to run for president four years ago. Trump said he wanted to run out of obligation to his family, according to Paladino.
“He told me ‘I’ve lived the American dream and I want others to have that opportunity in the name of my parents,’” Paladino said.
Paladino briefly discussed the Buffalo public schools, which he said are a “great symbol for the rest of the country,” because they represent the cycle of poverty.
“Why do we still have a cycle of poverty in our urban centers? Because the Democrats want it that way... it’s what has kept the liberal progressive movement alive all these years. They don’t want to solve it,” Paladino said.
He said Trump’s solution for “dysfunctional” urban school systems is to let students choose where they want to go to school with a voucher system.
“Get competition in the market place and you’ve got something good,” Paladino said.
Paladino also discussed media bias in election coverage.
“We allow the press to take charge of our lives. They tell us what to think about and how to react…they are the masters of our fate and the puppets of our souls,” Paladino said.
Paladino said the press makes stuff up and have “no right to draw half of the conclusions they draw.”
Reed Tighe, a senior political science major and president of College Republicans, said Paladino discussed issues people don’t expect to hear about.
“I liked hearing about media bias because there’s definitely a lot of that, but all candidates face it in this election,” he said.
Amanda Geraghty, a graduate student in nutrition, found Paladino’s speech refreshing.
“I thought [his speech] was very raw, which is what we need. Nothing was sugar coated, just like Donald Trump. I liked hearing the raw perspective without media persuasion,” she said.
Geraghty thinks it’s important for students to meet with local representatives like Paladino because they’re the ones who can take questions and concerns further.
“We are young minds so it’s our generation who will be shaping this election,” Geraghty said.
Maddy Fowler is a news staff writer and can be reached at news@ubspectrum.com
