Members of UB College Republicans don't want to be labeled.
"We're not all Fox News Republicans," said Kathryn Delong, president of UB College Republicans. "If you want to join a club where everyone agrees with you, this is not the club for you." With the Republican Presidential candidates holding a key debate and President Obama giving a long-awaited speech, there was much to discuss in the world of politics this week. As a result, UB's College Republicans and College Democrats were not lacking topics at their weekly meetings.
The UB College Republicans held its first meeting this past Wednesday. While several topics were discussed at the meeting, the 2012 presidential primary, and whom each club member deemed the best candidate, generated the most debate.
A popular choice was Texas congressman, Ron Paul, whose libertarian views and anti-war stance struck a chord with several attendees.
"He's had a consistent voting record," said Dan Fabian, a senior biology major. "He's never voted to raise taxes, he supports civil liberties, and he's against the drug war."
While Paul was popular among attendees whose views were on the libertarian side, the room was very divided on who it supported; Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann, Jon Huntsman, and Newt Gingrich all were mentioned as the favorites.
Jerome Trankle, a sophomore accounting major, said he was trying to decide between Gingrich and Paul.
"I like [Gingrich's] experience, and his forceful personality," Trankle said. "He's also one of the most knowledgeable candidates. He's about policy, not just rhetoric."
While former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has been viewed as a frontrunner in the media, Wednesday's crowd was not particularly enthusiastic about him. When everyone in the room was asked to name the candidate they'd support, only one person mentioned that they were considering supporting Romney.
His lack of passion for conservative politics was cited as a concern.
"It seems like he wants to win the election more than he wants to believe in something," said Griffin Orr, a freshman computer science major.
Delong stated that she was pleased with the debate taking place. She hopes that Republicans of all types will come to the meetings and engage in discourse this year.
The College Democrats, who held their second meeting of the year on Thursday at 7 p.m., also discussed the Republican primary contenders. They, however, were less impressed with the potential nominees.
"I haven't seen anyone who I think can stand up to Obama at this point," said Victoria Feliz, president of UB College Democrats. "And I haven't seen too much excitement about the candidates."
While in past years, College Democrats has focused its efforts primarily on campaigning for Democratic candidates in local and national races, this year's projects are designed to serve the community.
"There aren't too many elections this year, so we'll be campaigning less," said Karen Ertrachter, vice president of UB College Democrats. "We plan to focus on community service, and reaching out to the Buffalo community."
While many of the year's events were still being planned, the College Democrats have already committed themselves to assisting the Catholic Helping Hands Food Pantry.
Even though the group won't be as involved in campaigning as in past years, they will still attempt to provide campaigning opportunities to group members who are interested, stating that when candidates contact them, they'll forward the information to their members.
UB College Democrats meet Thursdays at 7 p.m. in Student Union 145 C and UB College Republicans meet Wednesdays at 6 p.m. in Student Union 317. As the Republican primary quickly approaches, debates within the groups should continue to be lively.
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