Tomorrow is Election Day, 2020!

Tomorrow we go to the polls to elect our leader for the next four years, and it is imperative that we all vote for JOE BIDEN.  The very soul of our nation depends on it.

 Four years ago we elected the most unfit man ever to hold that office.  He has disgraced our country and we must show the world that we realize that we made a mistake, but we corrected it at the very first chance we got. 

 I listen to Trump supporters who tell me that that know Trump is not perfect and they recognize the flaws of his character, but they ignore them because he lowered their taxes or reduced some regulations they did not like.  They have dozens of reasons to rationalize their choice.  Some of Trump’s policies have indeed been good and beneficial to our people.

BUT THE ENDS DO NOT JUSTIFY THE MEANS.   We cannot not sacrifice our integrity as a nation for short-term benefits.   The Devil always temps us; it takes true strength of character to stand up for what is right even though it may mean we don’t get what we want right now.   Did we not learn anything from the very first lesson in the Bible?

As a Christian, I try to teach my kids the lessons that Jesus taught us.  I try to teach my kids the difference between right and wrong.  I try to teach them to treat other people with dignity.  I try to teach them to treat other people the way they want to be treated.  I try to teach them to help others less fortunate.  I try to teach them that honesty is the best policy; that a man’s word is his bond; that his reputation for honesty is his most important asset.  I try to teach them that we are all children of God.  “Red and yellow, black, and white, they are precious in his sight.”:  What a beautiful thought, and one that we all need to remember. I try to teach my children that racism and prejudice are the tools of the devil. 

How can I teach my children these things by supporting a man whose actions are just the opposite of all of these things?   What kind of message would I be sending to my kids?

What kind of message are we sending to all of our children?   What kind of message are we sending to the rest of the world?

Over the past 100 years, we have been the beacon of democracy throughout the world.  We have been there for our friends when they needed us.  We stood up for the weaker countries and shed our blood to defend their freedom.  Our word was our bond.  Under our leadership, Democracy spread like wildfire throughout the world. Monarchies, dictatorships, and communism all diminished under the light of our democracy.  When a country was in need, we gave.  We shared our ideals, and backed them up with financial aid, and even our very lives.

Even though our ideals cost us a lot of money and lives, we prospered beyond anyone’s wildest dreams.  We went from being an isolated nation before World War I to being the world’s only superpower. We became the richest, most prosperous nation in the world.  Our people prospered.  We educated our children.  We reduced Illiteracy.  We wiped out many childhood diseases.  We went from horse and buggy to putting a man on the moon! 

But in the last four years, our shining light has been darkened.  We have become the laughingstock of the world. Our word is no longer any good. Indeed, we have abandoned our allies and left them to die on the battlefield.  We have alienated our friends and embraced our enemies. Without our leadership, we are seeing democracy crumple in countries all over the world.  Here at home, civil unrest is at its highest since the Civil War.  We are no longer a united people but a divided one.

Our Presidency is more than just an office. The President is our moral leader as well.  He not only sets the general policies and directions our nation takes, but he embodies all that we stand for as well.

Donald Trump is a pathological liar.  We cannot believe anything that he says.  He cannot be trusted.  He has lied over 20,000 times since taking office!  How can we teach our children that honesty is the best policy when our leader lies over 10 times every day? 

Donald Trump has mocked our Constitution.  He has abused the power of his office.  He has ignored the checks and balances our founding fathers built into the Constitution.  His corruption has spread like a cancer throughout his Administration and the Republican party itself.

We need a leader that can unite us in times of crisis.  When our country split apart, Lincoln led us through our bloodiest period and reunited us.  When we were attacked by the Japanese on December 7, 1941, FDR stepped up and led us through four years of hell, but kept us united.  As a result, we defeated fascism and rose out of the Great Depression at the same time.  When we were attacked on September 11, 2001, George W. Bush stepped up and united us.  His approval rating was over 90% during that crisis!

Now, during the past year, we have suffered another huge crisis; one that has killed more Americans than died in Vietnam and Korea combined.  During this crisis, Trump has FAILED us miserably.  Not only has he failed to unite us, he actively tries to divide us.  He has failed to follow the policies of his own experts and has not only ignored them, but ridiculed them as well.  This virus originated in China, which is about as far away from us as we can get.  Yet our infection and death rate is the worst in the world.  The counties closest to China, such as Vietnam and Japan, followed the advice of the experts and have had only a handful of deaths.

Trump’s failure of leadership not only has costs the very lives of tens of thousands of Americans, but has destroyed our economy as well.  Trump inherited a booming economy.  Indeed, it was the longest peacetime expansion in the past 100 years. Now, we are seeing the highest unemployment numbers since the Great Depression.  Even before the pandemic, Trump was only able to sustain the economic growth under Obama by vastly increasing the deficit, mortgaging our children’s future for our short-term goals.

Freedom of the press is one of our most important rights. Democracy depends on knowledge and transparency.  For 200 years, our press has served to keep our leaders honest.  It has served as a check against abuse of power.  Trump has not only attacked the media, he has successfully convinced many Americans that the press is the enemy of the people.  These are not the actions of a leader of a Democracy, they are the tyrannical actions of a dictator.

Both Presidents Obama and Bush were relentlessly attacked by citizens who disagreed with their policies.  But they both realized that Freedom of speech is essential to our Democracy, for it’s the right of every American to speak their minds and hold our leaders accountable for their actions that gives us our strength and that’s why it’s the very first right embodied in our Bill of Rights.   That’s why neither Bush nor Obama ever personally attached those who criticized their actions.  The recognized that their position of power could easily be abused and that accepting criticism was a core part of their job.   Trump, on the other hand, has done just the opposite.  He has used the megaphone of his office to attack and drown out all those who disagree with him.  These are not the actions of a democratic leader; they are the actions of a tyrant.

We need a president that we UNITE our people, especially in times of crisis.  Instead, Trump has used crises as an opportunity to divide us even further.  We are seeing civil unrest and riots all over our country at a level unseen in decades. Instead of recognizing and addressing the legitimate concerns of the people, he has chosen to attack them.

Get out tomorrow and VOTE.  Cast a vote to HEAL our country.  Cast a vote for DEMOCRACY.  Cast a vote for FREEDOM.   Cast a vote for INTEGRITY.    Vote for JOE BIDEN.

 

Endorsement of Joe Biden

 

I am a lifelong Republican. 

 I have donated money to most of our local Republican candidates, including Ben Cline, Emmet Hanger, Dickie Bell, Steve Landes, and others. I have never a single penny to any Democratic candidate.

 I marched in several parades to help Ben Cline get elected.

 I served as Vice Chair to the Augusta County Republican Committee.

 

I ENDORSE 

JOE BIDEN FOR PRESIDENT.

 

Why?  Because I believe in the principles and values outlined in our Republican Creed:

 

“That the free enterprise system is the most productive supplier of human needs and economic justice”

 

Donald Trump’s withdrawal from trade agreements and his arbitrary and vindicate tariffs flies in the face of free enterprise, not to mention his disgraceful efforts to hurt American companies such as Goodyear and Amazon simply because they did not agree with his political policies. Donald Trump has failed us miserably, and this alone is reason enough to realize he is unfit for the office of President.

 

“That all individuals are entitled to equal rights, justice, and opportunities and should assume their responsibilities as citizens in a free society”
 

Almost every one of Trump’s words and actions are designed to enrich himself and his cronies at the expense of the good people of our country. Under Trump, millions of Americans have lost their health insurance.  He has used his power to pardon to reward those loyal to him. He has further sabotaged our already-broken immigration system by slashing quotas, dividing families, and instilling fear in many. Remember, our creed states, “All Individuals”, not simply all citizens.  For Trump, justice comes second to loyalty to him. He has rewarded those loyal to himself while punishing those that disagree or otherwise oppose him, not only by his words – think Twitter – but by his actions as well.   Donald Trump has failed us miserably, and this alone is reason enough to realize he is unfit for the office of President.

 

“That fiscal responsibility and budgetary restraints must be exercised at all levels of government”

 Fiscal responsibility means paying your bills.  Trump promised to balance the budget and start to pay of our National Debt.  Instead, he increased both the deficit and national debt to historic levels during a time of economic boom, and that was well before the Covid-19 crisis. Sometimes it’s necessary to run a deficit to stimulate the economy in times of economic downturn, but during economic booms its equally important to be fiscally responsible by balancing the budget and repaying the debt that was incurred. Donald Trump has failed us miserably, and this alone is reason enough to realize he is unfit for the office of President.

  

“That the Federal Government must preserve individual liberty by observing Constitutional limitations”

 Trump has ignored Constitutional limitations by abusing his executive authority, issuing illegal executive orders, ignoring Congressional subpoenas, and actively obstructing justice on numerous occasions. Donald Trump has failed us miserably, and this alone is reason enough to realize he is unfit for the office of President. 

 

 “That peace is best preserved through a strong national defense”

 They key to a strong national defense is a strong system of allies.  World wars I and II were won be a strong collation of allied nations.  When we were attacked on September 11, 2001, our allies came to our defense as was required of member nations of NATO.  Trump has done everything he could to destroy NATO.  He has alienated our allies while embracing our enemies.  Worst of all, he abandoned our allies on the battlefield leaving them die.  Of all of his abominable actions, this is arguably the worst, and this alone is reason enough to realize he is unfit for the office of President.

  

“That faith in God, as recognized by our Founding Fathers is essential to the moral fiber of the Nation”

 A true Christian leads by example, he does not use it as a weapon to attack others or as political props.  Christians use the lessons, values, and morals taught us in the bible to guide us as we live our lives. Trump has no morality, ethics, or willingness to follow those principles.  For him, everything is about himself. Donald Trump has failed us miserably, and this alone is reason enough to realize he is unfit for the office of President.

 

 We need a leader that we can trust.  Donald Trump has LIED to the American People over 20,000 times since taking office.  He repeats the same lies every after they have been totally debunked.  He endorses crazy conspiracy theories while ignoring the advice from our intelligence agencies, scientists, and learned scholars.  He has attacked the media, labeling anything that is not flattering to himself as “Fake News”.  He promised to “Drain the Swamp” by banning government expenses from working as lobbyists right after leaving government service, but issued waivers that excluded much of his own staff.  Even worse, in multiple occasions, he has appointed lobbyists to run the very agencies whose job is to oversight their industries.

 Donald Trump is NOT a Republican, he is a charlatan simply telling his followers what they want to hear so that they will allow him to ignore existing laws, obstruct justice, and divide our country solely to pursue his own personal agenda to enrich himself and his cronies.  He has ignored all of the principles and values under which our party was founded. 

 On the other hand, Joe Biden has a long and distinguished history of serving his country and upholding these principles. He has shown us by his actions that his morality and faith in God are not merely words spoken to gather votes, but are the guiding principles in his life.  His perseverance during times of extremely personal crises have shown us that he has the courage, ethics, and morality to lead our nation out of this time of darkness by uniting rather than dividing us.

 Perhaps most importantly of all, a President’s job is lead and unite the people.  We are, after all, the UNITED States.  Instead, Trump has divided us.  Every one of his words and actions are designed to enrich himself by dividing us.  He actions have done great harm to our moral fiber as a nation, and he is totally unfit to hold the office of President of the United States.

  

As a TRUE REPUBLICAN, I proudly ENDORSE JOE BIDEN for PRESIDENT of the United States.