09.09.05
Why I Am a Republican
Many reasons have been given over the years as to why so many people are moving to the Republican party. Our ranks are growing rapidly as was seen in the last elections. More and more people are choosing to join the Republican party and make a positive difference in our nation. While people with opposing views are always welcome in the Republican party, it is important to note that these are the reasons I believe in the Republican party. I will stand with them even if I don’t agree with every policy decision. I will point out some of the differences between the two major parties and add other comments to further make the point.
I am a Republican because…
1) I believe in the sanctity of human life. While there are some pro-life Democrats, the numbers are dwindling. The mainstream of the Democratic party strongly supports abortion on demand (aka choice). On the other hand the Republican party strongly supports life and has even written that into the party platform. I also believe that it is wrong to experiment on human embryos. All of the advances in stem cell research have come from adult stem cells. There has not been anything beneficial that has come from embryonic stem cells. Therefore, I support the president’s policy of using existing stem cell lines only and oppose cloning embryos for the purpose of destroying them.
2) I believe that reducing the tax burden on all Americans helps to stimulate the economy. Republicans, under the leadership of president George W. Bush, have worked hard to reduce the tax burden. Many of the Democrats have claimed that this is “a tax break for the rich.” While this sounds good to the people in their audiences who haven’t taken time to learn the facts, it is far from true. The recent tax relief has greatly helped our family (and we are very far from rich).
3) I believe marriage is between one man and one woman. I support equal rights for all Americans and if someone wants to create their own type of union then they should be free to do that. However, government should not be in the business of endorsing their lifestyle. The Republican party has opened their arms to people who have chosen the gay lifestyle but that doesn’t mean we need to alter Marriage as has been practiced for thousands of years. Marriage, by definition, is “a union between one man and one woman.” The Republicans are the party willing to defend the traditions and institutions that have made America great.
4) The Republican party believes in a strong defense and if necessary a strong offense. Ronald Reagan advanced the notion of “Peace through Strength.” Without a shot being fired his brilliant strategy ended the Cold War and brought the Soviet Union to their knees. In short order the Berlin Wall came tumbling down and statues of Lenin and Stalin were destroyed. Most of the Baltic states have formed their own sovereign nations and are no longer under the communist nation (who’s undergone her own transformation).
5) It is the Republicans that most strongly promote the idea of personal responsibility. There are too many people who are victims; or at least they are convinced of that. The Republican party is always there with compassion to help people who need it, but at the same time wants to “teach them to fish.” The Republican led fight to reform Medicare during the Clinton administration was brilliant and has been hugely successful. This is the one thing I think president Clinton did right - he signed it into law. You may be leary of his motives but the important point is that he signed it and it has helped thousands and thousands of people get off the welfare rolls.
6) I believe in the equality of all people regardless of race or gender. It was the Republican party that led the fight to free the slaves under the leadership of president Lincoln. It was the Republican party that passed the Civil Rights legislation of 1964. Many Democrats voted against that bill. Senator Robert Byrd was heavily involved in the KKK and was actually a leader of that racist organization. While Republicans are not without their problems in this area, I am committed to the Republican party because they overwhelmingly support treating all people as equals. The Republicans do not believe in giving someone a job just because of the color of their skin. It is our belief that that demeans a person. It’s much better to give a person a job because they are the best qualified. It is the Republican party that has led the way in trying to get rid of racism. It is the Democrats who try to find racism in everything. President Reagan was the first president to appoint a woman to the Supreme Court. Did he do it just because she was a woman? I believe he did it because he believed she was the most qualified. It was also the Reagan administration that made Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday a national holiday, signifying the importance of the work that he had done. President Bush #41 appointed the first black man to the Supreme Court. Was it because he is black? Again, it’s because he’s well-qualified and has proven to be a great Supreme Court justice. President George W. Bush has appointed more minority people to positions of power than any other president in our history. The tide is turning and many blacks and Hispanics are beginning to see that the Democrats truly do not have their best interest in mind. It’s time for all Americans to stop seeing racism in everything and start judging people by “the content of their character” rather than “the color of their skin.”
7) I believe in the right to “keep and bear arms” which is laid out for us in the second ammendment. While the Democrats seek to reduce those rights, Republicans seek to preserve them.
8) I believe in private property rights. The Republican party has fought to protect property rights for all Americans. The courts should not be allowed to take the rights away. In recent years they have done that very thing. The Republicans have tried to put an end to judicial tyrrany. Much of this will change once president Bush gets some Supreme Court justices in that will respect the constitution rather than legislating from the bench.
9) Limited government has traditionally been one of the hallmarks of the Republican party. In that last few years that trend has reversed somewhat but I am confident that we will once again get back on target.
10 ) America’s free market economy continues to be the envy of people around the world. Even though Hong Kong has reverted back to ownership by the Chinese government, they have kept their free market principles. Why? Because they can see that it works. Did you know they just built a Disneyland in Hong Kong? The entrepreneurial spirit of the Republican party is another reason that attracts me to them.
11) The Republicans accept people from all faiths and protect their rights to practice their personal faith. Likewise, they also accept people who choose not to practice any faith. On the contrary the Democrats cater mainly to liberal Christians and support organizations that want to remove every shred of our Christian heritage from public life. There has been a significant shift in the Jewish and Catholic communities towards the Republican party. What people of these two great faiths have come to realize is that the Democratic party has been coopted by extreme liberals and no longer represents their interests (not that they ever did that great of a job in the first place). Under the leadership of president George W. Bush there has been an increase in awareness of all the good that Christian, Catholic, Jewish (and other religious) organizations do. There has been a significant increase in funding to assist those organizations that provide food, shelter, drug rehabilitation, counseling, job search, or other help.
The Bottom Line: It’s the Republican party that has a positive vision for America. The Republicans are the party of ideas, compassion, and action. That’s why I’m a Republican!