Editor’s Note: The following remarks were made regarding the “Don’t Skip the 2014 Election Cycle” commentary article, by Kyle Gargaro, published July 14 in The NEWS.

The Reality of Voter Choice

I appreciate the sentiment expressed in your article, but the unfortunate reality is that voters have little in the way of choice. Our current two-party system does not really offer voters a choice. The two parties are really one party with two faces. The direction of the nation is the same, no matter which party holds the levers of power. The only difference is the velocity, not the direction. No better example of this can be found than the election of Ronald Reagan. He was the last American president to actually say the direction was wrong (larger and ever more powerful and intrusive central government). Reagan won the elections with huge majorities, winning 49 of 50 states. Unfortunately, even though he had tremendous support and the ability to go around the news media and appeal directly to the voters, it did little good. All he was able to do was to reduce the growth of the federal government while he was in office. Not once did it get smaller any of the eight years he was the president, no matter what the economic conditions of the time.

One small hope is the current group of people who call themselves Tea Party Patriots. They claim to be interested in actually removing entire agencies of the federal government and greatly reducing its size and influence. I have heard this story before from Republicans: unfortunately it was all lies. My hope that the tea party people are not lying comes from the vicious attacks they are enduring and continue to endure from Republicans, Democrats, and most of the news media. The largest group of voters today is the one that I am a part of — those who are not part of any organized political party. This is the only time since the first American Revolution this has been the case. For the sake of my children and grandchildren, I hope the nation wakes up enough to elect people who don’t care about ruling Republicans or Democrats. I hope we can elect people who realize that our form of government is a constitutional republic… not a Democracy. I hope the people wake up and realize current politicians and the news media incorrectly label it a democracy for their own purposes. I hope we can start to call our nation “These United States” again, as it was called for the first 100 years of our history, so the emphasis is placed where it belongs, instead of on Washington D.C., with a ruling class that cares little for our founding principles, our foundational documents, or the fate of the nation.

Newell Franks
CEO
Burr Oak Tool
Sturgis, Michigan

Publication date: 8/4/2014

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