Come Nov. 5, millions will be heading to the polls to cast their votes for the president of the United States. With any luck, the majority of the votes will go to the Republican candidate, Bob Dole. His integrity, strong sense of ethics and sensible plans for reforming our government make him the obvious choice.
Dole's platform includes spending reforms that have been a long time coming. Dole understands, as should all of us, that simply throwing money at a social problem will not make it go away. Programs such as welfare, Medicare and Social Security are being mismanaged, and are so mired in bureaucracy that they do relatively little to help anyone but the bureaucrats themselves.
Dole also advocates an amendment to the Constitution that would require the federal government to have a balanced budget - is it so unreasonable to ask that the government not spend more money than it receives in revenues?
Dole further advocates a 15 percent tax cut across the board, which would put more money in the pockets of every citizen.
On the issue of spending reform, Clinton and other liberals characterize Dole as a mean-spirited man bent on leaving the poor and elderly to live in poverty for all eternity. They even go so far as to tell outright lies, saying that Dole voted to cut Medicare - I may not be a mathematician, but the last time I checked, increasing spending by 7 percent was not by any means a "cut." What Dole did do is (responsibly) decide not to vote for the increase that the Democrats supported, which earned him the scorn of liberals everywhere.
Very few people will disagree with the idea that our social programs need drastic improvements. What the Democrats and Republicans do disagree on is how to accomplish this. Clinton and the Democrats favor blindly increasing spending to these programs, without regard to how the money is spent. Dole and the Republicans advocate spending the money that is already there more responsibly. What most people do not realize is that for every dollar spent on welfare, only a few pennies ever reach the hands of welfare recipients. Where does the rest go? Into the bloated and inefficient government bureaucracy designed to administer these programs. Dole realizes that if one simply spends money without making changes to the way it is spent, little good is done.
Dole has shown his commitment to reforming our spending procedures. He led the fight to pass a balanced budget, which was struck down a number of times by Clinton who claims to support a balanced budget, but has yet to make good on this claim.
Dole advocates a 15 percent tax cut across the board. This is, admittedly, an ambitious proposal. Without drastic spending reforms and without a balanced budget, such a decrease in revenues could prove disastrous. However, if such reforms were to be enacted, such a tax cut would be both highly feasible and very welcome. With less of our money in the hands of the government and more in our pockets, we will have more money to spend on homes, investments and education.
Another plus for Dole is, simply, that he is a very honest, decent and ethical man. It is surprising that our society has evolved to the point where honesty and ethics have seemingly become a thing of the past. We have an incumbent president who is a proven liar and a probable criminal, with evidence of wrongdoing piled against him that would likely land any of us in jail were the same evidence amassed against us.
Clinton has proved time and again that he will not keep the promises he made to the American people - where is the middle class tax cut and the abolishment of the anti-homosexual policy in the military he promised us in 1992? Why are we willing to settle for a less-than-honest president while completely shunning an honorable man such as Bob Dole, who has kept the promises he has made to the American people?
Dole has shown himself to be sensitive to those who hold differing views than he does. For instance, he is an avowed pro-lifer. As a Republican who is, like many others, pro-choice, I was a bit worried about his stance on abortion. However, he has stated that there is a place in the Republican party for those who disagree with him on that issue, and while he would likely sign a measure restricting abortion should one be passed, he will not actively push for such a bill.
Bob Dole is exactly what we need in a president: a hard-working, honest man who will work to reform our government, spend our tax dollars more wisely and improve our lives. Can we really say the same for Bill Clinton?
- Geoff Brown is the editor in chief of The Michigan Review. The opinions presented in this article are his own, and do not represent those of the Michigan Review.