The constant personal attacks from both presidential candidates against each other and echoed by their lapdogs demean the office they seek.
Surely, to the progressive Democrats, Trump is evil incarnate. He most certainly has his flaws, especially as they relate to women. Likewise, anyone with even a cursory glance at the career of Clinton can see through her preferential treatment by the fawning media. The favoritism shown her by the Department of Justice and the lack of interest in her many scandals indicate she is not to be trusted. Based on character and values, a clear thinking electorate would prefer to vote “Other.” Unfortunately, that isn’t a choice.
It is time to consider another point of view. It is time to look at the performance of the parties and the issues that are facing us. Between 1961 and 1983, the Democrats controlled both houses of Congress and again held both houses from 1987 through 1995. Congress controls the purse strings. Congress decides what the budget will be. During that time through today, the national debt has risen to almost $20 trillion. The Democrats could not do this alone. They got a lot of help from Republicans. Considering all that debt, perhaps there is a better way to manage a budget than tax, spend, tax, spend, spend and spend and tax.
Both parties created a federal bureaucracy that never stops growing. They created several cabinet positions and gave them the power to bypass Congress to implement the regulatory programs that prevent growth and create real jobs. Congress gave them the power because Congress didn’t have the guts to make tough decisions. It is time to put an end to high-handed practices by the various “departments” that make laws by fiat and stop productivity with hundreds of thousands of pages of tax codes and regulations.
The Department of Education was created to reward the teachers unions for their support. Well, the federal government and the unions have been running the schools for decades. How are they doing? You know how. The public schools are a disaster. Student performance in math and science has gone down. Compared to other nations, we are about 25th in math and science depending on the source. Kids graduate from high school and can’t read or write beyond the sixth-grade level. Rampant secularism has resulted in idiotic rules that violate constitutional rights and freedoms in the name of “celebrating diversity.” The result is a lack of respect in the classrooms and chaos in the hallways. Perhaps it is time to allow more local control in the school districts.
Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society that was supposed to end poverty instead destroyed the families of those living in the inner cities, stifled individual effort and resulted in an ever-growing entitlement program that doesn’t work. There are more people living in poverty today than when the program started. Where does the money go? Democrat mayors have ruled L.A. for all but eight years since 1961, Baltimore for 75 of 83 years, Boston for 72 years and Chicago for the past 83 years. Whatever they are doing with all that federal money isn’t working. It is time to seek more creative ways to end poverty than doling out checks.
When evaluating how to vote, there are special issues to consider, especially when it becomes obvious one party has little interest in protecting our constitutional rights or our national sovereignty. Which party favors amnesty for illegal immigrants? Which party supports catch and release? Which party supports sanctuary cities? Which party endorses Black Lives Matter, Occupy Wall Street and other divisive anti-American groups? Which party supports the idiocy of political correctness? Which party’s Speaker of the House when ramming the obviously disastrous Obamacare legislation through Congress said, “Pass the bill then you can read it”? Is that the government Americans want in power? Which party’s candidate said, “Deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural biases have to be changed”? That statement alone turns the First Amendment into toilet paper.
Forget the grievously flawed personalities. Forget the lack of honesty and trustworthiness. Forget the calumnies of each candidate and their lapdogs. This time, when you vote, consider only which candidate and her/ his party will be more likely to defend the Constitution of the United States and the Republic for which it stands. Think about it. Then, hold your nose and vote.
James Hofmann lives in Moab. He is a retired educator, corporate trainer, program developer operations manager and engages in a variety of volunteer pursuits.
