| Why Vote Democratic? Before answering that question, let me answer the question, “Why vote?” A high school friend said it best: “There’s only 24 hours in a day and you don’t have the resources to concern yourself with every little thing that happens! You need to find a person in politics, that thinks like you, and can vote for you!” Voting means you are participating in the process of making laws that we all live by. When I canvassed my neighborhood for signatures to be a Democratic Precinct Committeeman, I expected to be met with friendly rejection; this is DuPage county, the reddest county in the state. What I came to find out was that most people were more interested in voting for the individual, not the party. DuPage county was not as red as I thought. I also learned that some do not know what the State House Of Representatives does. The house suggests laws and targets funds. The typical Republican views Democrats as being liberal, wanting to raise taxes, and excessively fund human interest projects. They point at Cook County as having the highest sales tax in the country, and say that’s the fault of the Democrats. When I tell my Republican friends that the Republican DuPage County board voted themselves a raise, without considering a revenue source for that increase, they are shocked! They thought the Republicans were protecting them from excessive spending! Well who is telling the truth? I think Robert Reich has some good insights. The current Republican House Representative for the 48th District, Jim Meyer, wants voters to prove citizenship at voting time, even though you already have a Voter ID. I want voters to participate in government, not be intimidated by redundant laws. Most Republicans want as little government participation as possible. “Don’t tax us and leave us alone!”, "we want deregulation!", my Republican friends say. I think being Democratic means you want at least some government participation to protect us from individuals, companies and organizations that would put their own interests first. PBS showed a documentary called "Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room". This movie shows the delicate role Government needs to play in providing a set of rules that benefits no one and protects everyone. Half of my staff consists of Republicans, they believe in me! I think it's important for Republicans and Democrats to work together. Then what's a Democrat? Democrats do want to protect people and the environment. They do want to be fiscally responsible. They do want good transportation systems. I want to keep taxes down. How can we provide for the commonwealth and keep taxes down? Who carries the load right now? Well there's personal taxes and business taxes. The trick is to insure all pay their fair share, that loopholes are not available to avoid paying a fair share. I care about pollution. I care about jobs. I want good education and accountability in our school systems. I want a system that's fair to all. |
