Game Change

This is an Editorial. There is no option for editorials in the "type" or "genre"--that's odd. There should be a heading somewhere for different types of non-fiction. I guess that was an editorial too.

The game has changed this week. What has been taken for granted as conventional wisdom for many years in American politics has just been turned on its head.

The fact is, for good or for bad, Republicans have owned the topics of Patriotism, business and Religion in political discussions for the past thirty years. THIS CHANGED THIS PAST WEEK. Their hatred of President Obama forced them to let go of those things because they don’t want to talk about any success that the President has had. The result is that Republicans are arguing against the killing of Osama bin Laden because they don’t want to give the President credit for taking him out. They were arguing for killing American jobs, especially jobs in the automotive industry, because they don’t want to give the President credit for saving GM and Chrysler, not only saving a million jobs, but adding hundreds of thousands of jobs that wouldn’t have been there. And the Republicans at best had vague references to God, but nothing that defined who that God is or what he would have us do.

The Democrats proudly picked up what the Republicans, in their rancor, cynically dropped. It was the Democrats waiving flags, not the Republicans. It was the Democrats chanting “USA! USA!” not the Republicans. It was the Democrats who talked about our troops fighting our wars, not the Republicans. It was the Democrats who thanked our troops�"for their service, for their sacrifice, for their courage, not the Republicans. It was the Democrats who were Pro-Business, not the Republicans. It was the Democrats who laid out clear plans for the future, not the Republicans. It was the Democrats who supported small businesses, not the Republicans. It was the Democrats who presented a business plan for America, not the Republicans. It was the, who Democrats not only mentioned God, but talked about how faith in God determines the policies that help ordinary people. The Republicans seem to think that God is just there to make the rich more wealthy; but Democrats believe that God expects us to take care of “the least of these.”

That is the choice that was offered this week: It was the choice of cynicism or Patriotism; ignoring our troops or thanking and supporting our troops; killing jobs in America or saving and creating jobs in America; faith in more profits the very rich, or faith in social responsibility and shared sacrifice and shared prosperity�"it was the choice of “you’re on your own” or “we’re all in this together.”

The Republicans offered cynicism while the Democrats offered a vision. The Republicans offered slogans while the Democrats offered a plan. The Republicans refused to tell you what they will do; the Democrats told you what they have done, where we are, and where we are going.

We have turned the corner on the most devastating economic period in my lifetime. DON’T QUIT BEFORE THE MIRACLE! We are so close to breaking out of these past few years, and choosing to go backward will keep us in the morass of unemployment and failure for years to come. Don’t quit before the miracle. Vote for Barack Obama for President and ensure the miracle of our economic recovery is a reality and not something that could have been.