Course change needed for democrats

    Anyone that has read my past articles knows that I am no fan of the Democratic Party. 
    However, today I will take a different route.  Today I will help the Democratic Party by telling them how to win elections.  In fact, if democrats listen carefully they might be able to get my vote and that of conservatives.  All that is required is for the Democratic Party to submit to four ideas that should be agreeable with their present agenda. 

Support the “Balanced Budget Amendment.”
Back in the ’90s republicans in Washington had an idea to make a Constitutional amendment that would force Congress to propose  a balanced budget to the President every year.  Currently, democrats have been very mad at President Bush for expanding the deficit, and republicans aren’t happy with the President’s ridiculous spending on social programs and subsidies.  If the Democratic Party can successfully pick up this idea as a major campaign issue, then they will rally their liberal base and pick up disappointed fiscal conservatives.

Create comprehensive tax reform.
Republicans go into every election promising to cut taxes for all working Americans and they usually deliver.  It’s hard for democrats to tell voters that they will raise their taxes and still expect to win their vote.  That is why the Democratic Party needs to change their tax strategy.  Instead of talking about raising taxes on the rich and working class, they need to be talking about reforming the tax system so that the working class won’t have to pay taxes if they so choose.  The way is for democrats to take the idea of the Fair Tax and make it their national platform’s top reform.  With this tax reform, working class individuals won’t have to pay taxes and can save 100 percent of their income.  The wealthy elite will be paying far more than they do now because they will continue to live and consume at their lavish expense.   

Support the military even if you don’t support the war.
Many democrats in Washington have been following this rule well and they have been a great aid to the party in general.  But, there are still some that will vote against funding essential armor for our military.  John Kerry got in trouble in 2004 for voting against $87 billion funding for the military (before he voted for it, of course).  What he should have done was vote for it and then propose $150 billion of additional funding for the troops.  When republicans vote against that because it’s just not needed, he can claim they are short-changing the military.

Don’t avoid Christianity.
The most successful years for the democrats were when they actually listened to their Christian base.  In the 1980s a liberal wave took over the Democratic Party that forced evangelical Christians to find a new home – the Republican Party. More than 4/5ths of evangelicals voting consistently republican.  But it’s not too late.  If democrats start standing up for Christianity the way they have for Islam these last five years, then they could minimize the republican’s religious base.  
    If Democrats will just make these minor reforms, they can take control of republican issues like: spending, taxes, military and religion.  All these ideas would be very appealing to moderates and would anger the liberal base little, if any.  I believe that this would be a unifying agenda that I, along with many conservatives, could get behind.  
Send responses to
colonnadeletters@gcsu.edu

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Oct 6 2006. Filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry