LAND OF LIMITLESS POSSIBILITES! Republicans Believe America Must Reclaim That Status
by Leonora Cravotta
Clash Daily Contributor
Since I cast my first vote at age 21, I have been repeatedly asked why I am a Republican. Given that I have spent a significant portion of my adult life living in large cities with high concentrations of Democrats, including New York and Philadelphia, the question does not surprise me. It is usually the delivery of the question that irritates me. The question is not posed as a precursor to an intellectual discussion about why I embrace the tenets of the Republican platform. The scenario is more analogous to a court room where a prosecutor is grilling me about my political beliefs.
Usually, the typical phraseology is something along the lines of “How can you be a Republican?”, “How could you vote for Ronald Reagan, George Herbert Walker Bush, George W. Bush, John McCain, and Mitt Romney?” Or my personal favorite “How could you as a woman vote Republican?” Needless to say, the situation has only gotten worse since I started writing about politics and co-hosting a conservative political radio show. Like-minded friends and acquaintances are extremely supportive. Liberal friends (including blood relatives) say things like I am proud of you, but I hate everything you stand for.
There are several key reasons why I am a Republican. The first reason dates back to my college days. I read an article which I believe was sourced to Time magazine that explained the difference between Democrats and Republicans. According to the article, Democrats worry about how “we are going to spread the golden eggs around” while Republicans worry about the “health of the goose”.
This comparison still resonates with me. I am passionate about fiscal responsibility. Now that Senator Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma) is retiring, I am desperately hoping that someone takes up his mantle and keeps publishing his Waste Book which the Senator has been publishing for the past five years. The 239 page Waste Book which was last published in October 2014 highlighted $25 million in government waste including ” $450,000 that the Homeland Security Department spent on high-end gym memberships for staffers whose federal health insurance already pays for gym benefits.” Here is an even more ludicrous example, “$387,000” in tax payer dollars to fund a National Institute of Health study regarding the impact of giving Swedish massages to rabbits four times a day. Need I say more?
The second reason is the Republican belief system. Over the past few days, I have had the good fortune to attend the Republican Northeast Leadership Conference in Philadelphia which was headlined by several GOP 2016 presidential candidates including Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
Every one of these candidates delivered a speech where they focused on America as a place of “limitless possibilities.” Carly Fiorina specifically used this phraseology. Governor Scott Walker described America as a place where you can be anything you want to be “if you work hard and you follow the rules.” They all told their personal stories of their parents and grandparents’ pursuit of the American dream and economic rise through hard work and education.
Contrast this narrative with that of the Democrats including President Barack Obama and 2016 Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton who talk about “shared prosperity”. There is a huge difference between the Democrats’ directive that the rich must share their wealth with the economically disadvantaged and the Republicans’ belief that anyone in America can create their own wealth and a better future for their families.
As Americans we have a responsibility to continue our country’s legacy as the land of “limitless possibilities.” We cannot permit our country to continue to slouch towards Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton’s Utopian vision of a society which replaces personal responsibility with personal handouts; of free phones, free internet, free healthcare, free college and most recently an affordable home in an affluent neighborhood.
We as Americans cannot let this kidnapping of our society continue. We need to take our country back from those who seek to turn it into a nanny state. America needs to return to being the country where all things are possible, “if you work hard and follow the rules.“
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Leonora Cravotta is the lead writer/editor for BugleCall.org; and the Co-Host for the Scott Adams Show, a political radio talk show. Her professional background includes over fifteen years in corporate and nonprofit marketing. She holds a B.A. in English and French from Denison University, an M.A. in English from University of Kentucky and an M.B.A. from Fordham University. The Scott Adams show is available on Buglecall.org, Red State Talk Radio, iTunes, Tune-In, Spreaker, Stitcher and Soundcloud.
