“What difference, at this point, does it make?”

Hillary Clinton’s now-infamous comment was made during the Benghazi hearings, but that question can be a good one for the election. Because on a host of issues, there are huge differences between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump — differences that matter for the future of this country, and for those who support limited government within constitutional boundaries, individual liberty, and lower taxes and spending.

Let’s look over some issues briefly.

Freedom of Speech

We know, it’s a shocker that freedom of speech is even on the ballot. But believe it. The FEC is trying to outlaw conservative media and talk radio. The Ninth Circuit upheld a California law requiring pro-life crisis pregnancy centers to promote abortion clinics. Senators and attorneys general are seeking to use RICO laws against so-called “climate change deniers.” And the IRS has gotten away with targeting conservative groups. In other words, while Hillary Clinton may walk free, those who dissent from progressivism get criminal charges.

We will see more of that with Clinton in the White House — you can bet your higher taxes on it. In essence, Trump may be the last line of defense for free speech in this country.

Second Amendment

Here, the differences are as obvious as night and day. Clinton is 100% behind the agenda of gun-grabbers, and has praised the Australian gun confiscation of 1996. But most insidious is her desire to repeal the 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act.

In short, lawsuits from big-city mayors and other gun-grabbers backed by billionaires like George Soros and Michael Bloomberg could drown firearms manufacturers in legal battles — functionally killing the Second Amendment regardless of any pro-2A court ruling.

Confronting the Islamic State/Addressing Syria

Hillary Clinton’s approach of taking in more refugees is, at best, putting a Band-Aid on malignant melanoma. But it’s likely to be far worse. With all the trouble vetting refugees from the region, we could import the perpetrators of the next Paris-style attack.

For better or worse, Trump promises to “bomb the hell out of ISIS” — which, by reducing its power in the region, would help solve the Syrian refugee crisis.

Religious Freedom

Just as our free speech rights are under attack, so is religious liberty. The Hobby Lobby case was a 5-4 ruling — and it’s on the list of rulings the Left wants overturned. They also want to repeal the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993. We’ve seen pharmacists in Washington state ordered to either stock abortion pills or shut down. We’ve seen bakeries close over wedding cakes. Under Clinton, we could easily see a federal version of those mandates — or at least, legal support for them.

The stakes are high, as Justice Samuel Alito noted in a dissent from the denial of cert in the Washington case: “Ralph’s [Thriftway] has raised more than ‘slight suspicion’ that the rules challenged here reflect antipathy toward religious beliefs that do not accord with the views of those holding the levers of government power. I would grant certiorari to ensure that Washington’s novel and concededly unnecessary burden on religious objectors does not trample on fundamental rights.”

Which brings us to…

Judicial Nominations

One thing can tie all of the previous four cases together: Who the next president nominates to serve on the Supreme Court and on lower federal courts. The fact is, much of our domestic policy — and even a not insignificant amount of foreign policy — is in the hands of the federal judiciary. It shouldn’t be that way, but it is.

These days, a state legislature requiring someone who wishes to vote to show the same ID required to get on a plane, buy a firearm, purchase alcohol or cigarettes, cash a check, attend an NAACP rally against voter ID requirements, and a whole host of other things lands you in federal court. Are your state lawmakers no longer willing to give Planned Parenthood money? A federal court may be the last word on that. Then there’s same-sex marriage — 31 states voted NO, but five Supreme Court justices had the final word. Even the Syrian refugee resettlement could be decided in the federal courts.

In short, the Left uses the federal courts to get their way when the American people reject their agenda at the ballot box. Clinton’s judicial nominees would continue that trend. Trump has a list of strict constructionists for the Supreme Court — and some of them could end up at the Courts of Appeal, which have been packed by Barack Obama.

So there are some big differences between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. The stakes are high this election. We absolutely must VOTE, and work to get others to support not just lower taxes and spending, but individual liberty and limited government within constitutional boundaries.