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NATION Wednesday, November 7, 2018 East Oregonian Page 7A President Trump is all the talk among voters The Associated Press It was Election Day in America, and voters were delivering their first verdict of President Donald Trump’s tumultuous tenure. Immigration, the econ- omy, women’s issues, parti- sanship — all weighed heav- ily on voters’ minds as they cast ballots to decide control of Congress and put Trump- ism to the test. Though not on the ballot, the president looms large over decision day, among both supporters and detractors. Across the country, people are talking about this election as one of the most momentous in their lifetimes — a fight for the very soul of America. Here’s what some of them had to say: Washington ‘out of control’ Bonnie Slade, a 45-year- old federal employee who lives in Potomac, Maryland, said politics in the nearby nation’s capital shaped her vote this year. “Washington is out of control,” she said. “The politics are kind of dirty always, but this time is a bit much ... like do I want to vote? Does it really make a difference? But I felt like it’s my duty.” Slade, who is black, said Trump was part of what motivated her to vote. “He doesn’t stand for anything that I believe in, period,” Slade said. “I’m a minority. I’m a woman. And he’s just not the best choice for me, personally, or my family.” In Plano, Texas, Jef- frey Lawrence, a 59-year- old Uber driver, is so sick of the stalemate and mudsling- ing he wants to see term lim- its imposed on lawmakers. He voted for Republicans up and down the ballot because he likes the direction of the economy. But it seems like they can’t get enough done because no one is willing to compromise. “The old-boys system up there says, ‘I have the ability to get your bill passed, but you need to do this for me,’” he said. “That’s not how politics should be. It (should be) what’s good for the people.” Keith Lesage, a 50-year- old design engineer in Plain- field, Connecticut, said he’s focused more on state issues but is concerned by the divi- sion he sees in the country. “It’s horrible, some of the rhetoric that’s coming out of Washington. I’m not pick- ing on Republicans or Dem- ocrats, but we’re all adults. Let’s come together for the American people — not this is what the red side wants, this is what the blue side wants. It’s getting to the point where it’s just dividing the country — and it’s real sad to watch.” Stay the economic course Ken Wenzl, a 66-year-old computer trainer and a reg- ular Fox News viewer, said he is grateful that Trump has cut government regu- lations. “He is amazing the way he is going after stuff,” Wenzl said, acknowledg- ing the president’s penchant AP voter poll shows where voters were focused WASHINGTON (AP) — Health care and immigration were high on voters’ minds as they cast ballots in the midterm elections, according to a wide-ranging survey of the Amer- ican electorate conducted by The Associated Press. AP VoteCast also shows a major- ity of voters considered President Donald Trump a factor in their votes. The VoteCast survey debuted Tuesday, replacing the in-person exit poll as a source of detailed informa- tion about the American elector- ate. In all, the survey included inter- views with more than 113,000 voters nationwide. Some early takeaways from VoteCast: • Health care was at the forefront of voters’ minds: 26 percent named it as the most important issue facing the country in this year’s midterm elections, followed by immigration (23 percent). Smaller shares consid- ered the economy (19 percent), gun policy (8 percent) and the environ- ment (7 percent) to be the top issue. • Nearly two-thirds of voters said Trump was a reason for their vote, while about a third said he was not. • Voters have a positive view of the state of the national economy — 65 percent said the condition of the economy is excellent or good, com- pared with 34 percent who said it’s not good or poor. • A majority of voters overall said the country is headed in the wrong direction. About 6 in 10 voters said it is headed in the wrong direction, while around 4 in 10 said it’s on the right track. AP VoteCast is a survey of the American electorate conducted in all 50 states by NORC at the Uni- versity of Chicago for The Associ- ated Press and Fox News. The sur- vey of 113,677 voters and 21,599 nonvoters was conducted Oct. 29 to Nov. 6, concluding as polls close on Election Day. It combines inter- views in English and Spanish with a random sample of registered vot- ers drawn from state voter files; with self-identified registered vot- ers conducted using NORC’s prob- ability-based AmeriSpeak panel, which is designed to be represen- tative of the U.S. population; and with self-identified registered voters selected from nonprobability online panels. Daniel Sangjib Min/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP Voters cast their ballots at Robious Elementary School in Chesterfield, Va., on Tuesday. for upsetting the other side. “But we don’t all have to be friends.” When he voted in Plano, Texas, Wenzl chose Republican Sen. Ted Cruz because he worries that Democrats will try to block Trump’s agenda if they win control of the House or Sen- ate and “just sit on stuff for two years.” He’s already rooting for Trump 2020. Richard and Aleshia Mur- phy took their 7-month-old daughter when they voted early in suburban Los Ange- les. The couple, who moved seven months ago from Reno, Nevada, to Lake- wood, California, said the economy was foremost on their minds. “I want to keep things going,” said Richard, a Republican train operations manager. “My work feels the booming economy. We’re hiring more people, all posi- tions, from the bottom to the top.” Both Murphy and his wife, an independent, voted for Trump in 2016 and like where the country’s headed. “I’d rather have somebody who’s going to come off as a complete jerk — but you know exactly what they’re thinking because they have no filter — than a slick- haired politician that literally tells you anything you want to hear just so that you sup- port them,” Aleshia Murphy said. Switching sides Amanda Martin, a high school teacher in Dallas, said she is a Republican who decided to vote Tuesday for Democratic U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke for U.S. Senate over the Republican incum- bent, Ted Cruz. Martin, 40, said she liked that O’Rourke was “more in the middle.” She added, “I think we were missing that during the elec- tion” for president between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Her displeasure with Trump was also a factor in her decision. “I like that Trump is trying to secure the borders, but I don’t believe he’s tactful in his relations with how he communicates with the media. And he’s not a good face for our country.” Josh Rent, 43, a small business owner and regis- tered Republican in Port- land, Maine, voted mostly for Democrats this time as “a protest vote to Trump.” “I’m generally a fairly reliable Republican,” he said. “This is the first time I ever voted pretty much Democrat all the way down the ballot.” Of the president, he said: “I don’t think that dividing us is get- ting us anywhere. We need to actually solve this stuff.” Kevin Benson, a 38-year- old graphic designer from Westerville, Ohio, said he’s registered as a Republican, considers himself an inde- pendent, and voted all Dem- ocrat on Tuesday. Why? “Mostly Trump, just as a check. I’m frustrated with the way he’s acting. Plus just Republicans in general. ... I’m just kind of dissatisfied across the board with them.” Benson said health care is his No. 1 issue and that he’d like to see a single-payer system. “We’re heading in the wrong direction.” Concerns over health care Fred Hoy, a 61-year-old from Reno, Nevada, said he’s been out of work for 13 years but is scraping by to pay his rent and care for several ill family members and friends. Hoy has diabetes and is on Medicaid. He was taking care of his aunt in California but returned to Reno to make sure he could vote in time — and he’s voting Demo- cratic because he’s worried Republicans will cut Med- icaid, Medicare and Social Security and threaten protec- tions for pre-existing condi- tions. “If we don’t have some kind of medical,” he said, “we’re going to collapse as a nation.” In Juneau, Alaska, 34-year-old Will Muldoon considers himself nonparti- san. Health care is an issue he’d like to see Congress take up, “but that’s scary. It’s almost, I don’t know that they could come up with better than what we have right now, type of thing. My confidence in them having the compe- tency to do OK on that’s not too high,” said Muldoon, a mainframe technician. Cordell Chaney, 30, works at Superior Essex, a company that manufactures wire and cable products in Fort Wayne, Indiana. A member of the steelworkers’ union, Chaney is a father of four with a fifth on the way. He says afford- able health care — including maintaining pre-existing con- ditions — is the most import- ant issue for him. He voted straight Democratic Tues- day, which includes support- ing U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly. Chaney worries that if the Republicans remain in control of Congress, they’ll get rid of Obamacare. “It really upsets me. ... Decent health insur- ance should be a right. Every- body should have that. Right now, it’s endangered.” Be a part of the giving by becoming a Winterfest Sponsor. Contact Emily Smith at 541-278-2627 about Sponsorship information, your help is greatly appreciated in making this wonderful event a success. Saturday DECEMBER 8 th , 2018 Family Day | 10am-2pm Friday DECEMBER 7 th , 2018 Evening Gala | 6:00 pm 21 or older | $40 EACH FREE ADMISSION tickets sold via presale at SAHPENDLETON.ORG/WINTERFEST or by calling 541-278-2627 Sponsored by WIldhorse Resort & Casino • Lunch with Santa & his elves • Prime Rib and Salmon Dinner • Make ornaments & playdough • Live and Silent Auctions • Write letters to Santa • Music, Dancing, full cash bar, table games gift shop, wreaths, and swags for sale BOTH EVENTS WILL BE LOCATED AT THE Pendleton Convention Center For more information or to purchase tickets, contact St. Anthony Hospital Foundation at 541-278-2627 Proceeds benefi t St. Anthony Hospital Foundation, Cason’s Place Grief Support for Children & Families, and Pioneer relief nursery. More information is available at SAHPENDLETON.ORG/WINTERFEST
