October, 2008
Why McCain/Palin Means Middle Class
Ryan Pahota
With the recent articles presented in newspapers on how the Republican Party does not represent the middle class, I would like to counter that argument in a form not regulated by a maximum number of words as is the case in some newspapers.
Most of us have seen the movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington with James Stewart and have fallen in love with the idea of a Mr. Smith that can go to Washington D.C. and represent our votes while reforming Capitol Hill, but not become corrupt in the political game. Senator John McCain, as the "Maverick," has done many things unpopular toward his party, in the meaning of "Country First" not party, not political corruption. He had helped to pass the McCain-Feingold Act as well as working with Ted Kennedy for an immigration reform bill. These things were unpopular with the Republican Party, leading to a slight ostracize of McCain from the Republican Party. Nonetheless McCain pushed this legislation in the interest of the people, not for the GOP.
McCain’s running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin, also pushed for reform in the GOP Alaska, a strong good-ole-boy citadel. Palin sold the governor’s private plane on Ebay and cut property taxes in Alaska, giving that money back to the taxpayers – to the people. Mrs. Palin unlike everyone else in the current candidate race, is not a Washington insider, she is not part of the political game that takes place in D.C. Thus said, she is the "Mr. Smith" that Americans have been waiting for. A person like Sarah along with Sen. McCain will listen to the people and what they have to say. The evidence is shown at rallies where Palin is speaking (one where I so graciously was able to attend at The Villages). At these rallies, the diversity of Americans shown up at these events. You have your college students like myself, you have families, you have single people, and more importantly you have the middle class here at these rallies listening to Mrs. Palin speak, and her willingness to listen to her constituents, which is the entire nation.
For instance, look at the platform of the McCain/Palin ticket at www.johnmccain.com. While I am not going to get into the great detail on each issue (As I urge you as the voter to research these things yourself) I will point out the things that the average American wants, and the Republican Party wants to give:
1. Reducing the dependence on foreign oil: John McCain and the Republican Party want to reduce the $700 Billion that is sent overseas for oil. McCain pushes for nuclear power (if France can have it why can’t we) which can help out the environment (yes the GOP cares about the environment look at Theodore Roosevelt) and increase efficiency by eliminating coal-powered plants. Furthermore, McCain is a proponent of offshore drilling, an issue that the Democrats in Congress led by Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid refuse to vote upon. With the gas prices shooting upwards, every major industry is hurt, freight charges go up and thus the grocery prices go up, hurting the average family. With the innumerable "DRILL HERE DRILL NOW" stickers around the U.S., someone needs to listen to the people, and that someone is John McCain.
2. National security: When I recently went polling door to door asking survey questions on what is the most important issue to you in the 2008 Presidential election, a large percentage had denoted national security. Now this issue should not be a hard issue to see which candidate has more experience as Barack Obama’s resume pales in comparison to John McCain. McCain has spent more than two decades in the military, and was the forefront for the surge in Iraq which as can be clearly seen to anyone with a logical processing facility ("brain" for those who do not have one) IS WORKING!!
3. Economy: The economic policy of true conservative GOP members as well as John McCain is a free-trade system, a more perfect capitalism. I will not delve deep into economics, but a free-trade system with cutting business taxes (We are the 2nd highest in the world) and eliminating windfall taxes (raising those would just pass the cost on to the consumers) would bring business to the United States and thus more jobs, and the MADE IN AMERICA logo will once again be on more goods than just flags and Craftsman tools. The lower operational costs of businesses will make goods cheaper and thus the American dollar will be able to buy more.
4. Healthcare: The middle class American wants insurance, wants healthcare, and the best way to provide that is not through government intervention, but to opening up the healthcare system to the open-market. Will governmental-sponsored healthcare (as like that in many socialist countries) the wait time for a visit is extremely long, and the medical practice itself is also not that great (what is the incentive, you have medical tenure and you will be paid equally as much for any job you do). Furthermore, a government-intervention would allow the government to say who has the right to healthcare, how much healthcare can you has, and when can you have the healthcare coverage. In an open-market, businesses compete and thus the consumer wins as the price of insurance will drop. If you are willing to spend more money for better medical services, one should not have to be restricted by the federal government.
There are plenty of other issues that one should look up on the McCain website, such as the 2nd Amendment right to bear arms, education, immigration, etc., however you as the reader can research those, do not allow me to make you decision for you.
Thus said, McCain and Palin represent what the middle class, and what America wants- lower prices on gas, stronger economy, and the safety of mind to know that you can spend that money without being threatened by terrorists around the globe. Obama and Biden on the other hand, come off as cold elitists who work the political game, much like the "Jim Taylor" from our first-mentioned movie, who only care about themselves and their party.
In conclusion, who do you vote for, the Mr. Smiths that represents the people, not just the middle class but all Americans, or the Jim Taylors that are only out for political gain and partisan politics?