My Response
First off, do I think President Obama has been a great President? No.
Would any President from the Democratic party be able to work with the 2010 House of Representatives? I think not.
Personal opinion, I expect that historians will judge Barack Obama's Presidency to be near the middle of the scale. Of course, I still am of the opinion that George W. Bush's tenure as President will be judged in the bottom 10%.
For the record, I did vote for Mitt Romney in the primary. Mostly because he was the least objectionable candidate on the Republican slate.
So, why do I plan to vote to reelect President Obama?
1. Voting for Barack Obama and Democrats running for the Senate is the best way to protect the "Health Care Reform Act".
While I do not think it went far enough, the Health Care Reform Act is a good first step toward improving health care options for the 99%.
2. We are not going to balance the budget and start to pay down the national debt without raising taxes.
Neither party should take any program cut or revenue increase off of the table, It is very sad that a 5% tax increase for those making over $250,000 a year would raise more revenue than a 50% tax on those earning under $50,000 a year.
3. We need to support organized labor if we want to maintain a strong middle class.
4. We need to increase not decrease the protection of the environment.
5. Alternate energy support and research.
Despite popular opinion, we cannot drill ourselves out of either an energy or climate crisis. There is a finite amount of fossil fuel in the Earth. Once we use up the Natural gas and Petroleum there will be none left. The sooner we shift to higher fuel economy, smaller homes, and shorter commutes, the better for all of us.
And, should fracking damage even one aquifer, is a little more Natural Gas really worth that cost?
6. Finally, both most importantly and most selfishly, a first term Republican President has always coincided with a major economic setback for myself and my family. We are just now recovering to where we had been when George W. Bush took office. I don't think I can recover from another economic setback.
Chas
