You’re George W. Bush. You’re a 57-year-old father
of twin daughters and husband to Laura, a former librarian and
teacher. You graduated from Yale and Harvard Business School.
You’ve served your country in the National Guard, your home
state as governor of Texas and have been alcohol-free for over 10
years now. You even beat out the man who invented the Internet to
become president.
Does this introduction sound familiar? No? Check out
yesterday’s Daily viewpoint for some passé Bush
bashing from a nonstudent and former Daily columnist (The day
Saddam’s statue fell, 04/13/04).
I speak on behalf of the entire undecided population of students
when I say, “It’s getting old, guys.”
Bush isn’t Satan, and he’s not God. He isn’t a
liar, murderer, cheater, racist, sexist, elitist or any other
derogatory term that these Bush bashers misuse. He is a cowboy, and
there’s nothing wrong with that. Rather than waste your time
and insult your intelligence by going Kerry knocking (equivalent of
Bush bashing?), I want to show you all a portion of the Republican
platform. By focusing on four of the top issues for us students,
hopefully you’ll see why we Republicans support the
president.
Keep in mind that the average voter does not attend the
University. So please, free your mind for at least the length of
this article.
Taxes — George Bush Sr. said it best, “No new
taxes.” We believe that the American people know how to best
spend their money. Both parties agree that economic stimulus comes
from spending, but Republicans believe that taxpayers and
corporations should be the benefactors of the spending. Tax cuts
create new jobs,and improve the quality of life for all Americans.
That money promotes consumer spending, which creates jobs for
factory workers and corporate spending on new equipment and the
operators that they require.
Terrorism — Not in our country, ever again. The
United States is an equal-opportunity terrorism exterminator. If
you’re supporting terrorism, we couldn’t care less
about your race, religion, ethnicity or gender; we’re going
to stop you. We want to feel safe in our own country, as do the
citizens of all countries in the free world. As long as terrorist
cells exist, none of us are safe. At home, we need to give law
enforcement the power to quickly react on tips of domestic
terrorism through laws like the Patriot Act. Abroad, we believe
that the United States needs to work with other nations (Pakistan,
Afghanistan, even France) to root out their domestic terrorist
networks, and we can’t be afraid to intervene when national
governments support terrorism (Iraq).
Iraq — For fifteen years, Saddam Hussein stifled
U.N. weapons inspections and refused disclosure of his nuclear and
biological weapons intentions. As Republicans, we supported the war
in Iraq for the threat that Saddam posed to both the Iraqi and
American people. We found a centrifuge cut to nuclear
specifications, missile-precision guidance hardware, documents that
linked the regime with attempts to procure weapons-grade plutonium
and an Al-Qaida training camp in southern Iraq.
We got Hussein, his sons and his regime leaders. The war in Iraq
not only thwarted a volatile regime, ended Saddam’s genocide
of a half-million Iraqis, but it persuaded Libya and North Korea to
disclose their nuclear intentions. Furthermore, we are committed to
instilling a democracy where there once was only tyranny.
Education — Teachers and schools need to be held
responsible for properly educating their students. National
standards are essential to ensure that every American student
receives a quality K-12 education and not just a paper degree.
We believe that all parents should have the ability to choose
their student’s school, be it public, private or in another
district. Finally, public education needs to be better funded by
the states, and more affordable for all. Federal Pell grants made
education affordable for collegiate scholars, but are no substitute
for state funding.
Now that you’re all well-versed in Republican thought, I
implore each and every one of you to make your own educated
decision about which party to support in the upcoming elections. I
also challenge the Democrats on campus to articulate their
party’s stance on these issues and to stop hiding behind this
playground name-calling that is Bush bashing. The Republican Party
has a clear plan and vision for a safer and better America, and I
encourage all of you to support our president as he makes that
vision a reality.
MacGuidwin is an LSA senior and the president of the College
Republicans.