The recent 2020 election year certainly was unique because former President Donald Trump refused to hand the reins to President-Elect Joe Biden despite losing in electoral votes. But the results, a reflection of the past four years, has shown a sudden spike in slander and disrespect in politics, particularly during the 2016 presidential election. Although personal attacks in politics are not a novelty, the division in America due to defamation has inevitably grown to the point of creating incidents of domestic violence within cities like Kenosha, Portland, Seattle, and other major cities. Yet is this all truly necessary? The engagement of familial relations and deliberately opening investigations into Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, for relations with Ukraine seemed more related to an attempt in ruining Biden’s reputation than truly bringing justice. Unlike these past few years, however, the 2008 American presidential election is a clear example of civilized discussion in politics, something that is a rarity in today’s society.

Barack Obama versus John McCain. While for some, the election was memorable because Obama was the first African American president in history. It should also be remembered for the shared respect between each candidate. Despite the far-right groups of the time calling Obama an Arab and a terrorist, McCain was widely praised for dismissing those claims and, in fact, defending Obama as a person, explaining to one of his supporters,

“No, ma'am. No, ma'am. He is a decent, family man, a citizen that I happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues, and that is what this campaign is all about. He is not. Thank you.”
At the end of the day, it is important to remember that politics should not, in theory, divide a country as much as it has today. When politicians such as Trump rely on defamation and controversies as a crucial point of political campaigns, elections become much less desirable for the average citizen because it forces them to resort to a pessimistic attitude towards improving society. Rather than electing the politicians deemed the most beneficial, moderates and conflicted people begin resorting to electing candidates who seem the least detrimental.

The 2008 presidential election was supposed to set a precedent, but it did not. That needs to change.

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