As I am writing an article discussing rhetoric 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, I want to disclose to whom I have made financial contributions. I’m not a person of much financial means, so none of the candidates listed have received much from me, but they have received something.
Buttigieg. As a gay man, I am very interested in a top-tier gay candidate for President — something I doubted I would live to see (and I’m just 37).
Castro. During early appearances, I felt Castro needed to be heard from more, both because of the stand-alone virtue of his policy stances, but also because I was curious about his greater viability as a candidate.
Gravel. I was enthralled by the story of the Gravel campaign, the voices behind it, and what it might signal about agency, rhetoric and our democracy.
Klobuchar. I was approached on the street by a Klobuchar volunteer whom I also share a regular morning bus commute with. She made a compelling argument to make a small donation to help Klobuchar continue to qualify for major debates.
Sanders. I was a regular donor of Bernie Sanders in the 2016 election cycle, but have made just a few small contributions to his campaign for 2020. The support I felt for Sanders has largely shifted to Warren.
Warren. Generally, she is the candidate I have most often found my beliefs aligning with aside from Sanders.
Williamson. The first time I heard her name was when she spoke about the unaddressed psychic trauma of slavery as she laid out a full-throated argument for the critical need for slavery reparations. As I read about her, I realized that we otherwise have many points of disconnect, but I felt the field was better with her than without her.
