To the editor,
As Senator Obama sought to lead the free world he promised America that he would provide “change we can believe in.” A message of “hope” became iconic to his candidacy.
In August of 2008 he warned that electing a Republican would be “Four more years of the same divisive politics that is all about tearing people down instead of lifting this country up.” In the same speech he claimed “we can bring Democrats and Republicans together to pass an agenda that works for the American people.”
Seven years later it is hard to look at these promises and not compare them to his record. Police and protesters have been battling it out in places like Baltimore, MD, where the leadership is black and Democratic. Instead of calming the tension he amplifies racial issues.
We do have a real problem in cities across the nation. Citizens are afraid of police and police are afraid of citizens. I lived in Fayetteville, NC, where the police force and courts are corrupt. I can empathize with being in a community where you see a policeman and feel less safe instead of more secure.
This type of systemic failure has nothing to do with race. It has to do with a competing culture between the public and law enforcement. It needs to be addressed. But we do not have a president who will tackle this problem and unify our nation. Instead he uses his bully pulpit to inflame racial tensions using “divisive politics that is all about tearing people down instead of lifting this country up.”
A Pro-Life group released a series of videos documenting how Planned Parenthood harvests and sells fetal organs from unborn babies. The White House press secretary said that the President will not watch the videos. Any attempt by Congress to defund Planned Parenthood would face veto.
These videos were released soon after a Marist poll found that 84 percent of Americans opposed abortion after the first month. This number includes 69 percent of the people that identified as Pro-Choice. The poll also found that 68 percent of our nation believes that taxpayers should not subsidize abortion.
Planned Parenthood argues that public funding does not directly pay for abortions. Other services provided by the organization such as cancer screening and family planning are already available at local health clinics. This seems like an issue that is clearly unifying in our nation. It seems like a leader could take this on and bring “Democrats and Republicans together to pass an agenda that works for the American people.”
I’d like to hold out “hope” but that word has become iconic for hypocrisy in the Obama administration.
On Saturday, Aug. 15, from 10 am to noon, Iowa Right To Life is hosting a rally on the Capitol grounds. WHO host Simon Conway and Family Leader president and former candidate for governor Bob Vander Plaats will speak. We may be waiting until 2017 for change we can believe in, but you can get involved now to elect a leader that can unify this nation and pass an agenda that works for the American people.
–John Thompson of Jefferson, member of the Iowa Republican state central committee
