The
Pueblo Chieftain
Sunday, September 21, 2008
The Presidency
TWO MONTHS ago political pundits of all stripes were
conceding this year’s presidential election to Democrat Barack Obama.
His Republican rival, John McCain, was behind in fundraising and seemed
to lack the “buzz” enjoyed by his opponent.
But things have
changed, and now it seems that the race is too close to call. It’s
being called “the most interesting election” or “one of the most
interesting elections” people can recall. We’ll attribute that
hyperbole to our short national attention spans.
What matters
most are the real differences between Sen. Obama and Sen. McCain. The
differences in policy and in political philosophy are chasmic - so much
so that there is a clear choice: Sen. John McCain.
Sen. Obama
promises all things to many people - albeit he is short on specifics -
and the only way we as a nation could pay for the goodies would be
substantially higher taxes. But history has shown that higher taxes are
a systemic drag on the economy, while lower tax rates help grow the
economy, increasing government revenues in the bargain.
Sen.
McCain, on the other hand, has been steady in his call to not only
maintain the most recent tax cuts but to further cut the tax burden so
many Americans bear. In doing so, he’s holding true to the policies of
both John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan to allow the American economy to
flourish.
The differences between the two candidates on
national security are stark. Sen. Obama says he opposed going to war in
Iraq, although it began before he was elected to the Senate, and he
talks about bringing the troops home and spending a so-called peace
dividend on domestic social programs.
That begs the question about the war: Are we in it to win or not?
Sen.
McCain says we should win the war, and he has been an avowed supporter
of the U.S. troop surge which has proved so successful. The war is not
won yet, but it’s turned diametrically in that direction.
To
turn tail and run would give confidence to those who would try to
destroy us. Sen. McCain would not do that, for he knows the primary
responsibility of the national government is the defense of its
citizenry.
One issue that has not received much attention in the
national media but should is that of the federal judiciary. Over the
past five decades, that judiciary has attempted, unfortunately with
some success, to create laws that otherwise could not be passed by the
elected representatives of the people.
Sen. Obama says he would
nominate more such activist judges - judges who can serve their terms
throughout the remainder of their lives. We’re talking about the
potential to take this country hard to the left, without general
consensus of the governed.
Sen. McCain says he would nominate
judicial candidates who hew to the concept that Congress makes the laws
and the judiciary rules on their constitutionality. After all, that
division of powers is what the Constitution says in black and white.
We’ve
had some differences with Sen. McCain, notably the campaign finance
“reform” legislation he co-sponsored with Sen. Russ Feingold. That law
has led to unintended consequences of spreading campaign cash to
organizations that face no accountability.
But at the core, John
McCain holds to the conviction that Americans must not be shackled with
high taxes, that this country and its personal freedoms are worth
defending to the hilt, and that our courts should not be the
playgrounds of those of a mind to experiment with their own notions of
law and policy.
A few words about the vice presidential
nominees. Sen. Obama and his running mate, Sen. Joe Biden, share in
common two of the most liberal, often left-leaning, records in the
Senate. They are, to borrow a phrase used by Democrats in previous
elections, out of the American mainstream.
Sen. McCain’s running
mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, brings a fresh voice to the table.
Despite the liberal attempts to demean her, she’s tough and up to any
challenge that might come her way.
This is a critical election.
Sen. McCain and Gov. Palin are proven reformers, and they offer the
better choice for the nation. That’s why we wholeheartedly endorse John
McCain and Sarah Palin.
Copyright 2008 The Pueblo
Chieftain.
All rights reserved.