The second presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump was absolutely ridiculous. The election of 2016 will have a major influence on what direction this country will take. At such a vital time, it is important that it does not turn in the wrong direction.

I am personally neither pro-Clinton nor pro-Trump, but if I could vote, I would vote for Clinton. After watching the debate, I gained a new perspective on the candidates. I am tired of hearing that Clinton is the “lesser of two evils” because she is significantly more qualified for the job than her opponent. Throughout the debate, Trump constantly interrupted her, his insults were juvenile, and he had little-to-no facts to back up his points.

Trump said he would launch a full investigation on Clinton. She responded by saying that it was good someone like him isn’t in charge of the law. Trump immediately fired back with “Because you’d be in jail.” He has advocated for killing terrorists’ families, which is a war crime, and his close-minded ideas are not what this nation needs. Trump’s immaturity shows how unqualified he is to be our president.

After the recent video that leaked of Trump describing kissing women without their consent, he defended his actions by saying it was only “locker room talk.” As a woman, I do not want a man who brags about sexually assaulting women to run our country. He cannot claim to respect women when he is pro-life and this is only one example of the numerous sexist behaviors he has exhibited. I have a newfound respect for Clinton just for remaining calm when Trump was being so disrespectful.

Clinton is willing to work with different groups of people. Her motto, is in fact, “Stronger together”. While Trump is very much set in his ways. The fact that his slogan is “Make America Great Again” really makes me wonder, When was America “great”? As far as I can tell, this nation has only been great to wealthy, heterosexual, white men. Nativism has been an underlying theme in our country and Trump sheds light on this issue and proves how little the nation has progressed. He represents the dark nativist roots this country had thought it had grown away from. A country run by Donald Trump would be a gigantic step backward and we would forever be “a nation divided”.

This election will potentially determine whether or not young people like me will ever be able to pay off our student loans or if there will be jobs available after we graduate. As a college-bound student, would like to think that I have a bright future.I would like to believe that our country will grow more tolerant and be more accepting of cultures, ideas, and customs that are not the norm for us.  This could be possible under Clinton, but under Trump, it would be nothing but a fantasy.