Why I Am Voting FOR Mitt Romney and Not Merely Against Obama
For some time now I have been asking
many people this simple question: "For you, what are the key issues of
this campaign"?
I have been delighted to hear both the willingness
to engage on the subject and the wide range of issues that people consider when
voting. It has been illuminating and educational.
When those I have engaged in this
conversation have the respect to turn the question back on me, here is my
answer....
3 Critical Crises
Our country is facing a series of crises
of unprecedented magnitude. While we could engage on many, for me the focus
must be on 3 critical concerns:
1) Economic Growth |
2) the federal debt |
3) National Security
 |
To me these three critical issues dwarf
all other considerations.
Why? Because no matter your stand on education,
health, social issues, etc., (all worthy of concern) no meaningful action,
one way or another, can truly take place, until we get our own house in order.
To be concerned about who should be allowed to marry who
When lives are at stake, the priority should be on saving lives.
In this election, the first and most
dangerous fire is jobs and the economy. However, it is not merely about
how many people we put to work but also what kind of economic philosophy is
going to drive our country going forward. Here are our choices as I see them.
Do we work to restore a commitment to prosperity and the creation
of wealth, or one in which we merely put people to work?
The President’s plan is one that relies
on direct funding of work with little or no regard of the source of those
funds. To be clear, I believe in the
great work of teachers, firefighters, police officers, and road construction
workers. As the son of a man who taught unselfishly for 50 years, I can testify
to the difference that one teacher can make in the lives of a human being.
But we need to take a step back to
understand that what allows for great teachers to flourish is an underlying
healthy economy that generates enough wealth to support the hiring of great
teachers, firefighters and police officers. Small Business, Entrepreneurs and owners
of private enterprise are the creators of goods, products and services. These products and services, when they are successful,
lead to wealth creation, good jobs and the ability to provide sufficient funding for
necessary public works, schools and the services that protect all of our
citizens, especially the most vulnerable. So, a vibrant economy is critical,
because without it, all other services, programs, and initiatives become
"at risk" regardless of their merit.
Mitt Romney Has a Better Approach
Instead of directly funding the middle
layers of our economy in which the government takes the role of directing the
funds of the wealthy and future taxpayers to our noble teachers, firefighters,
etc, Mitt Romney proposes that the role of government should be to encourage private sector growth,
by freeing up funds, primarily through a fair and level tax policy and reasonable regulation that promotes private investment, creating opportunity for wealth creation and solid jobs for all. The
wealthier all of us are as citizens, the more we have available to extend the
judicious use of citizen led initiatives, including but not limited to
government programs to address the wide range of the social challenges we face. Simply put, people, with the freedom to
invest and take risks, will do a better job of creating a wealthier society
that impacts us all than well meaning, but limited government bureaucrats.
Federal Debt Secondly we have a federal debt
that is out of control. It is
irresponsible and unconscionable that we would allow the federal debt to
increase to $16 trillion. This puts at risk future prosperity and limits the
options that we have available for the necessary work of government. I simply
will not stand by to pass along this large debt to my children and their
children. It is immoral and unfair. It also saps our nation’s ability to meet our
basic responsibilities.
How so? With every
dollar that we spend on the interest servicing our debt, we lose a dollar for
other necessary programs. This means every dollar sent to China to service the
debt is a dollar we don't have for social security, medicaid, healthcare,
programs for education, national security – or anything else, just name
it. This is a beast that must be controlled and the most powerful way to
approach this is to combine a sensible way of reigning in the spending, combined
with a “pedal to the metal” fueling up of economic growth. Bear in mind that
for every 1% rise in the GDP we contribute almost $700-$800 billion is added
revenue for the federal government. This is why having economic growth is the
number one priority for taming the federal deficit. Having success with this first and most
important issue makes the tough work of the second much easier. Most of the pundits who are looking for the
specifics in the Romney/Ryan plan and state in pontificating terms "that it
does not add up", are guilty of looking at the economic world from a
static perception. It does not add up because they have no faith in the power
of an American economy unleashed. Imagine what would happen to our government
revenues if we could coax and extra 2% RISE OUT OF THE GDP? Why it might be
enough to raise even the fortunes of California.
Here, Mitt Romney along with his partner
Paul Ryan have an absolute sterling record of success in managing and
controlling budgets and turning around difficult situations so that success
could be achieved. Whether you look to his work in the private sector,
his volunteer work during the winter Olympics, or his unpaid leadership as
Governor of Massachusetts, Mitt has a superior track record of success in
turning around challenging situations and leaving many much better off.
Here again I think that Romney has a
distinct and positive solution. First and foremost he clearly differentiates
himself from the president by calling for a stronger commitment to military and
defense spending. It's a sensible 20% of GDP commitment to military spending
which is consistent with our level of commitment for over 40 years. Having the interest payments on our debt
going to fuel Chinese expansion of their military is unconscionable. If we reduce the level of payments to the
Chinese we can afford to update and modernize our own military, thus enhancing the strength of our military force. Obama has
proposed over $500 billion in cuts to the military and a reduction in our military
force. Compared to Ronald Reagan’s successful foreign policy initiatives, Obama
couldn't provide a more diametrically opposed philosophy. Ronald Reagan famously demonstrated, the effectiveness
of “Peace Through Strength” -- and I believe that Romney brings that same
essential proven successful philosophy to his approach on foreign-policy. Drones
and Special Forces alone will not provide us the security nor offer us the
options that come from a military that cannot be challenged. All foreign issues
are not simply “criminal actions” that necessitate a limited police like
response. Nothing is as potent as having
a complete top to bottom military that is second to none.
Now some may challenge this with, “How
can we afford a military buildup when we are struggling with deficits?” A sensible question. I respond with three points: It is a matter of priorities: 1) Economic
Growth, key to all other issues. 2) Reduce
foreign interest payments with fair budgets, 3) maintain security spending @20%
of GDP. This means that we manage
security spending in a manner that is affordable and makes economic growth and
reduction of foreign debt payment THE critical issues in order to achieve those
security goals.
This then allows the United States to
project influence into dangerous parts of the world and have our influence be
taken seriously. I believe that the current administration's approach puts at
serious risk our standing in the world.
So there you have it, these are my top
issues and reasons for voting for Mitt Romney and not necessarily against Pres.
Obama.
Mitt is a man who was successful in turning
around businesses with and setting them
up for sustained success. He turned a
troubled Olympics around, , guiding the 2002 Winter Olympics into one of the
most successful endeavors in Olympic history.
Finally, he demonstrated his ability to be an effective leader in a
government executive position. As
governor of the state of Massachusetts, he was able to bring an out-of-control
budget under control, while at the same time managing the education standards of
that state in such a way that they were envy of others.
We must elect Mitt Romney not
merely to defeat President Obama, but because he is the right man at the
right time that will tackle these three most important issues in a manner that,
I believe. will help turn this country .
These are my issues and concerns. That is why I am voting for Romney and not
necessarily against President Obama!
What are your issues and concerns?
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