I don't like writing political emails to my family. I suspect they roll their eyes when they receive them. So these days I don't write them. But for this election, I felt like it was time to do one.
There are a couple of people in my family who, while generally conservative, are somewhat open to the idea of voting for Obama. They have concerns, though, regarding taxes, socialism, and Joe Biden.
I wanted to try to persuade them. Below the fold, my attempt, shared with you in case you have conservative relatives too, and wanted ideas for how to reach out to them.
Dear family,
We are a family of people who know their stuff, and who often have strong opinions. I doubt many of us are on the fence about this election. I know, therefore, that it may be useless to try persuade any of you in regards to your choice for president. I certainly mean no disrespect -- your vote is yours to make, and your rationale for how you vote is valid. But, I'd like to make one last case for Obama. I really care about this election, and I believe Obama is the real deal. So I'm just going to let loose and tell you what I think, and if you don't care then you don't have to read it. Fair enough?
I think that Barack Obama is a good man, and that he'll make a great president. I think he'll put our country on a path toward energy independence, create new jobs, and put our economy back on a growth track. He will increase transparency in federal government. He'll restore America's standing abroad, and make our country safer. He'll make education and health care more affordable for the middle class, which will gradually improve the quality of life for the average American. He will be fiscally conservative. And he'll be good for the environment, which is personally my number one priority.
Many of you are conservative-leaning, and some of you are Republicans. I'd like to point out that several conservatives & independents have voiced support for Obama. Just to name a few: Dick Lugar, Colin Powell, David Friedman, Christopher Buckley, Ken Adelman, Charles Krauthammer (albeit highly qualified), Susan Eisenhower, Lincoln Chafee, David Brooks, and Jim Whitaker (the Republican mayor of Fairbanks). Conservative-leaning newspapers have endorsed Obama, including many that endorsed Bush in 2004. Members of Barry Goldwater's family have endorsed Obama. But I think perhaps the best endorsement of Obama I've seen from a conservative is the one from Wick Allison, a former publisher of the National Review:
statesman article
I have nothing bad to say about John McCain as a person, and certainly nothing bad to say about Sarah Palin. It comes down to who has the best ideas for where to lead this country. I just want to talk about Obama's positions on a few things, because even if you have not been inspired by Obama's campaign, you might discover you like some of his policy positions.
TAXES
According to The Tax Policy Center (a nonpartisan think tank), Obama will cut taxes for middle class families at least THREE TIMES as much as McCain would. He will cut taxes for 95 percent of all working families. No family making under $250,000 will see any of their taxes increase. Under Obama's plan, senior citizens earning under $50,000 will not pay ANY taxes, and the average family will pay tax rates that are 20 percent lower than they were when Reagan was President.
And despite the media coverage of that plumber guy, most small businesses would benefit significantly under Obama's plan. Obama's small business plan is cleverly crafted, and would not only help small businesses, it would help create jobs in America.
McCain's tax plan puts the focus in a different area. Exxon-Mobil just reported the largest profits of any corporation in all of history. McCain's plan would give that corporation a 1.2 billion tax cut. However, 101 million working families would receive no tax relief.
Obama is not in favor of taxing health care benefits, unlike McCain, whose tax plan involves just that.
I know Obama made a gaff when he said that thing about "spreading the wealth around," but he is NOT a socialist. His policy positions on the economy make common sense. What many people don't know is that Obama's plan will cut overall spending, and every program he has proposed will be paid for without incurring any debt.
But YES, Obama does intend to roll back the Bush tax cuts on people who earn over $250,000. If you make that much, your taxes could go back to what you paid under Clinton. It's hard to ask anybody to vote for an increase in their own taxes, and I recognize that. I would argue, though, that it was not responsible or fiscally conservative for Bush to institute those tax cuts in the first place, because our country was at war and we couldn't cut spending. While those tax cuts certainly had benefits, they are part of the reason why our national debt has doubled in the last 8 years, which will end up costing all of us much more in the long run.
HEALTH CARE
Firstly, please remember that America already has universal health care, it's just a highly inefficient system that doesn't promote good health. There is a law in this country that Emergency Rooms cannot refuse patients. Many uninsured people therefore go to the ER for their basic medical care. The costs are spread to the rest of us. The costs are much higher than necessary, because there are many conditions that are easy and cheap to prevent or cure at an early stage, but that become extremely expensive to treat at a later stage.
Nobody is suggesting that we socialize medicine. The goal is simply to get more Americans health insurance! That's ALL we're talking about. If more people have insurance, then premiums will go down, and because more illnesses will be caught in the early stages, America will spend less overall on medicine, and we'll have a healthier population. Even many conservative Republicans have realized our country needs a smarter system.
As for Obama's health care plan, it would not result in a health care system like what they have in Canada or England. Under his plan, people who already have private health insurance will keep what they have, but their premiums will go down. Obama's plan would expand the employer-based system America already has so that it covers more people. His plan would give small businesses a tax credit for offering affordable health care to their employees. People who can't afford insurance will get help buying into their choice of either a private plan or a public plan (what federal employees have).
By covering more people, focusing on prevention, switching to electronic systems, and stopping non-competitive practices, the cost of health care per person will go down dramatically.
Under Obama's plan, if you don't want health insurance you can refuse it with no penalties (although it's true that there will be a mandate that children have insurance). Obama's plan does NOT result in a government take-over of health insurance; on the contrary, private insurance companies will see a boost in business. It is NOT socialism -- it's not even as stringent as the rules we have in this country for auto insurance.
And by the way, Obama's health care plan was the most conservative of all the plans offered in the Democratic primary -- far more conservative, for example, than Hillary Clinton's, or the single-payer system proposed by Dennis Kucinich. Criticism was heaped upon Obama's plan during the Democratic primary for not being liberal enough (not enough mandates). It is ironic to me that now people are accusing Obama's plan of being socialistic. Obama's plan gives real hope of covering many of the nearly 50 million Americans who have no health insurance, while minimizing bureaucracy and preserving the quality of care for people who are happy with the insurance they already have.
JOE BIDEN
As you know, [WIFE] comes from a law enforcement family, and she currently works for the [LAW ENFORCEMENT] office. The reason that [WIFE] and I like Biden is because he championed VAWA, the Violence Against Women Act. It funds and trains prosecutors and police officers to help catch and prosecute perpetrators of violence against women (including domestic violence), and it funds treatment for victims (including shelters for battered women). VAWA has decreased domestic violence by as much as 25%. [WIFE] works directly with VAWA, so she has witnessed first hand how important it is. Biden has a track record of fighting crime and standing up for the underdog. Biden is behind other legislation that helps victims of crime. These pieces of legislation are not wasteful spending; they fill a real need, they're relatively cost effective, and we think they've made our country better.
Joe Biden may not look like the face of change. He is an old-timer in the senate. But aside from his foreign policy gravitas, there are a couple of special things he brings to the table. For one, he has never used his position to enrich himself. He's been in the senate a long time, and yet his average net worth has been rated as the lowest in the senate. He speaks his mind without editing, and this makes him gaff prone; but he's honest, he's forthright, and he has acquired a considerable expertise in congress without losing touch with the struggles that average Americans face.
POLICY POSITIONS
When it comes to the issues, in my opinion Obama has smarter plans than McCain. If you'd like to know what Obama actually intends to do as president, there is a great way to learn more. Check out the "Blueprint for Change" videos. They're short, and they focus purely on Obama's policy positions without getting into too much rhetoric:
Fiscal Discipline
Ethics
Economy
Education
Energy
Health Care
Immigration
Foreign Policy
Iraq
Technology
Service
Social Security
Or watch the Obama "infomercial," which sums up many of Obama's views in 30 fairly-entertaining minutes:
http://www.youtube.com/...
IN CONCLUSION
Lastly, I believe that Obama is sincere in his desire to unify this country and to move beyond petty partisanship. He seems to have an ability not just to inspire people, but to listen sincerely to others, to seek the best council, and to incorporate good ideas into his policy positions no matter the source. One example of this is Obama's embrace of Bush's initiative of funding faith based programs. Obama wants to expand this funding. This was one of Bush's most controversial policies in the eyes of liberals, and yet Obama saw the logic in it. If faith based programs work and they're constitutional, they should be supported.
Barack Obama is not a jihadist or a terrorist or a socialist or any other thing you need to be afraid of. Please don't fall for that bull. Vote for who will be the best leader, and vote for who has the best plan.
That's my 11th hour pitch to you.
Thanks for reading,
Patrick