This presidential election is, without a doubt, the most important of our generation. Never in our nation's history has there been an era in which the responsibilities were greater for the United States, and rarely has a president been called on to meet such extraordinary circumstances for the homeland and the world. After eight years of lawless and incompetent Republican rule under George Bush and Dick Cheney, the United States and the world are in need of a tremendous reset moment; a sort of knocking down of the old evil empire, and a new, younger, progressive model put in place. The next four years require a steady hand, sound judgment, and a level of intellect not seen in the White House since January 19, 2001. These times require Barack Obama.
Domestic Policy:
On the domestic front the nation's finances are in serious meltdown. Millions of Americans are losing their homes, millions more are going bankrupt, trillions of dollars in savings are gone, jobs are vanishing.
Eight years of incompetent Republican rule have brought us to this point. The U.S. Treasury has been pillaged, we owe trillions of dollars to foreign banks and have mortgaged our children's future to the hilt. Thanks to Mr. Bush, Mr. Cheney, and their radical Republican philosophy, the future looks rather bleak.
By his own admission, the Republican candidate in this contest, John McCain, isn't the man the United States needs to tackle this economic crisis. His limited knowledge of American economics was on full display earlier this month when the financial sector was in serious meltdown mode. The Senator from Arizona "suspended" his campaign and flew to Washington in hopes of working with congressional leaders on a bail out package. There, in full view of the American public, McCain came across as erratic and unknowledgable - two traits the U.S. and world economies cannot afford as we navigate the rough seas of the next four years.
Barack Obama, on the other hand, kept a cool head, remained calm and steady, offered up solid proposals to get our financial house in order, and at the same time presented a blunt assessment of the situation that was refreshing in its honesty. (The recession has only just started and is bound to get pretty painful before it gets better.) Obama's cool-headedness is the perfect prescription to help keep the markets steady and America's spirits high. (Over the past month, the markets tanked every time President Bush put himself on television to discuss the crisis. Imagine what those markets would do with the bumbling and indecisive McCain in the White House!)
Foreign Policy:
In matters of foreign policy, McCain again comes across as erratic and flailing. While the surge in Iraq has squashed much of the violence there, the government of that country has become way too dependent on the United States. After six long years it's time for them to take the reins and govern themselves. It's time for American troops to pull out, regroup, and deploy elsewhere to fight the true battle against terrorism. McCain still thinks Iraq is the central battlefield of that war. He insists we must win in Iraq without really defining what victory would look like. In the mean time, al-Qaida and the Taliban are regrouping in Afghanistan and Pakistan; and, in what is probably the most reprehensible aspect of Republican incompetence these last eight years, the man responsible for the deaths of 3,000 U.S. citizens on September 11, 2001 remains free.
But make no mistake: Barack Obama does not want to "wave the white flag of surrender." He is not your stereotypical weak-in-the-knees Democrat. Obama will continue the fight against the radicals of the Islamic world but, unlike the current administration, he'll take the fight right to their doorstep. At the same time he'll work to empower the moderates in those countries in an effort to strengthen their numbers and reduce the chances that future generations will produce the suicidal cowards whose only goal in life is to bring down functioning, free, democratic governments.
On matters of foreign policy Obama's judgment is that of a solid, thoughtful, and grounded statesman. McCain's, however, is erratic and all over the map. Not what the globe needs as we finish out such a violent and tension-filled decade. Not what the United States needs as she tries to regain her status as the shining beacon of liberty, severly dimmed over the last eight years.
Judgment:
The differences in judgment between these two candidates - Obama's solid, thoughtful steadiness versus McCain's wild flailing - couldn't be more evident than in their choices for vice-president.
In Joe Biden, the Democratic ticket has an elder statesman, much respected around the globe, who epitomizes the essential definition of vice-president: He is more than ready to step into the role of president if need be.
As many readers of this blog know, Biden was my original choice for the Democratic nomination. As such, I look forward to seeing what the Obama/Biden ticket can do if they are fortunate enough to serve as President and Vice-President of the United States. They are an all-star team in my book.
And then there is Sarah Palin. By all measures John McCain essentially disqualified himself for the presidency when he tapped Gov. Palin to be his running mate. She is nowhere near qualified for the job...not by a long shot. Her tremendous lack of understanding of the vice-presidency (any third grader could tell you what the V.P. does), let alone the fact that she has little working knowledge of domestic and foreign affairs (a fifth grader is smarter), is more than enough to reject the Republican ticket outright on Tuesday.
The irresponsibility of McCain, a 72-year-old cancer survivor, to add Palin to his party's ticket is unfathomable. His decision to do so - one that could very easily result in a "President Palin" - should shake every American to their very core.
The Campaign:
The tumultuous general election campaign has provided American voters with two very different snapshots of two very different candidates.
John McCain's campaign has been absolutey vile. Rather than lay out his plans for the next four years, the Republican has managed his candidacy from the gutter - always cranky, always negative, always repulsive. Americans are foundering and find their futures hanging by a thread, yet John McCain and Sarah Palin have nothing to offer except Bill Ayers and over-the-top charges of socialism. They have spent the entire campaign tearing down Barack Obama and Joe Biden while they should have been presenting plans on how they would return America to her once admired glory.
For eight long years we've stood by as that glory has faded, as America's confidence has been battered and bruised. For eight long years we've watched as Lady Liberty's role as the beacon of freedom and prosperity around the world has been dimmed by the incompetence and lawlessness of Republican government. And now that very same Republican government wants us to pat them on the back, tell them what a wonderful job they've done, and reward them with another term in the White House?
Absolutely not.
American voters are swarming to Barack Obama's campaign because they know in their heart of hearts that the United States can't afford four more years of such governance.
Reminiscent of President Reagan's "Morning in America" campaign of 1984, Obama has presented a positive campaign that is strong on substance and provides Americans with an outline of what needs to be done to restore our nation's self-confidence. Barack Obama seems to tap a resovoir of patriotism (squashed these last two terms by the war criminals and constitutional shredders currently residing in the White House) at a time when we need it most.
Now more than ever, we need Barack Obama. Under his guidance, America will breathe a collective sigh of relief as we turn the page on the years of Bush and Cheney. Under his stewardship, America will once again stand as the beacon of peace and freedom to the rest of the world. Under his leadership, America will once again stand tall and proud.
It is essential that Americans elect him president on November 4.
