Tamor Khan/The Cougar

The worst-kept secret in the world was revealed when former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton officially announced she was running for president, reminding Americans to prepare for endless political ads, party bickering and constant he-said-she-said remarks.

With a colorful cast of presidential hopefuls, the next 18 months will be entertaining, albeit tragic and unoriginal.

The mandatory Texan candidate is vehement Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.

Cruz represents everything wrong with the Republican Party, and he has no real experience to prove his worth. All he has is shock value. Cruz has fought Obamacare, which is strange since he is covered by it, and he denies climate change, probably due to being given $951,882 by oil and gas industries since 2011.

He lashed out at the gay community, saying a “jihad … is being waged (against) people of faith who respect the biblical teaching that marriage is the union of one man and one woman.”

This biblical bully is either delusional or a hustler. If ‘President Cruz’ happens, America will be the laughing stock of the world.

The GOP may find salvation in fiery Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, an unconventional Republican and a true libertarian at heart.

Supporting drug policy reform and, according to CNN, same-sex marriage, he is making an effort to do things differently. He could be just another politician unwilling to forgo partisanship or connect with new constituents. He isn’t.

On the other hand, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida is just another mass-produced politician made off of a faulty design.

He is astonishingly the only Hispanic currently running – Cruz doesn’t count  – but that is his only significant trait. He spews the age-old GOP template that makes him commonplace.

“A new American century” is not what he seems to be offering.

The GOP is rounded out by Dr. Ben Carson, who said “Obamacare is the worst thing since slavery,” and Carly Fiorina, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, who was forced to resign after her company lost half of its stock.

What’s odd about the GOP candidates, besides their idiosyncrasies, is they are either junior senators or have never held political office.

Clinton, however, has a résumé that tramples virtually every Republican front-runner.

Jeb Bush, though not officially running yet, is the only Republican who might be able to match Clinton’s experience.

Another Bush vs. Clinton matchup will be too much déjà vu for this unfortunate country.

Clinton has been a strong voice for women and same-sex rights recently, and after our first black president, a woman in office will continue the fight against the white patriarchy.

The nomination, in many eyes, is hers already.

But Clinton has a problem: a reputation as a cold, calculating politician. According to Time Magazine, she voted for the Iraq War and expanded the drone program. These actions are proof of the hawkish, hyper-aggressive nature many opponents have attributed to her.

This country is ready for a female president, but we need an honest one. Actions speak louder than words, and Clinton’s are but a whisper compared to her challenger, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.

Sanders is a rare politician who has been consistent in his views and is privy to the average working-class American.

He has a longer history of experience than Clinton, refuses to accept campaign contributions from corporations and does not believe in negative campaign ads.

Sanders will get a lot of heat for being a self-declared democratic socialist, because everyone knows socialism equals communism and communism equals the end of America.

But this won’t slow him down.

Sanders has a twelve-step plan that will create 13 million jobs, reduce climate change, make college affordable and reform the tax system. A Sanders vs. Paul election could help push America into a new age of politics, something the country desperately needs right now.

Or they all might just be full of crap. But citizens must participate. Sanders wants a political revolution, and we should give it to him.

Opinion columnist Anthony Torres is a political science sophomore and may be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com

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“Presidential candidates are hard to keep up with” was originally posted on The Daily Cougar