Reasons to Vote for Obama

Iraq: America and the world was told by our leaders that Iraq was an immediate threat, that they had weapons of Mass Destruction and that they had ties to 9/11. We now know all those things were false. One man in this race had the judgment and foresight to come out against this war and that man was Barack Obama.

The President of the United States not only must use good judgment to get us out of this war responsibly and fast, but use the similar wisdom when deciding to use military force in the future.

Foreign Policy: John Kennedy said one should negotiate not from fear but from a position of strength. Bush and McCain don’t believe we should talk to our enemies at all. Obama has shown the wisdom and vision that we must use diplomacy first with friends and enemies alike. It was negotiations that have prevented many wars, it was negotiations that kept the cold war from becoming the last world war, and it was negotiations that brought peace between Egypt and Israel.

Integrity: Just looking at the commercials run by both McCain and Obama shows a clear difference in integrity. While Obama’s commercials talk about the differences on the issues, McCain’s are full of character attacks and mistruths. Obama has expressed his vision consistently for years, in his speech in 2004, his books, and his current campaign. His positions have been consistent, while McCain has changed his positions on just about every significant issue including torture.

Leadership: While McCain has jumped back and forth on issues, his campaign has floundered from one tactic to another. Barack Obama has inspired a movement. His campaign is clearly run by him, with his vision and his leadership. McCain seems to be run by his campaign staff. Barack draws 10s of thousands, 100,000 just yesterday in St Louis, he does so because of the hope, the vision and the leadership he has displayed. In short Obama leads, McCain reacts.

Economy: It is simple after 8 years of republican economic policies; it is clear to Americans and to the world it has not worked. Joblessness is up, the average American’s income is down, foreclosures are at sick levels, and our banks are in danger of failing. We have gone from a federal surplus to the largest national debt in history. We need change. McCain supported Bush’s policies in his words “90% of the time”, that is not change.

Energy:While John McCain spouts simplistic solutions like "drill here, drill now," Obama shows the vision that we cannot drill our way out of this crisis. We must not only do something about prices at the pump, but we must end our dependence on foreign all for our own security, and me must end or dependence on oil totally for the future of our environment. Barack Obama has comprehensive plans to not only solve our immediate needs for oil but to invest in alternative energy solutions for long term results.

Change: It is not just the policies of the Bush administration that will change; our politics will change under Barack Obama. He has lead a movement. He has brought millions into the political process that have never been there before. Republicans and independents are joining this movement for change with Barack Obama. Such power and enthusiasm will bring change to this nation and the world. McCain will keep us in the failed past with partisan attacks.

Vision: Barack Obama has written two books laying out his incredible vision on every issue and our nation as a whole. He displays the vision in his writing and speeches that show that he sees the problems and he sees the possible solutions. He sees the good and the bad of proposals from all sectors both on the left and right. He has the vision to find the best path among all of those proposals and actually achieve results rather then just partisan knee jerk reactions to such problems.

Faith: Barack Obama has never taken his faith for granted. He found Christianity as an adult. The way he has lived his life, in his career, as a father and as a man has shown the kind of person he is. He has a history of working with faith-based institutions to achieve things to help our citizens. He is a man of love, inclusion and helping his fellow man. He is shown by his actions his moral values.

Taxes: The Republicans have been redistributing our wealth. While the middle class has lost wealth, the rich have gotten richer. This campaign isn’t about socialism. It is about fairness. It is about the middle class paying less of the tax burden and the wealthy paying their fair share. It is about getting rid of the tax breaks for the oil companies and companies shipping jobs over seas, is about giving tax breaks to 95% of Americans. It is Barack Obama that will do that, not John McCain.

Health Care: No one disputes that our health care system is a mess. No matter how hard you work in life, how right you do everything in savings and insurance, one major illness, one lost job can cause it all to tumble. Just getting suggested tests in physicals can end up costing you thousands. McCain wants to damage the one part of health care that works, employer provided health care. He wants to tax health benefits. Obama wants to improve the rules on pre existing conditions; he wants to give Americans options including employer provided, individual plans and federal plans. Quite clearly Obama wants to take what works and improve what doesn’t and McCain wants to destroy the only part that is working.

Guns: Barack Obama believes the second amendment guarantees the individual right to bear arms. He has no desire to take away your guns. He does believe that responsible restrictions should be allowed to restrict the type of weapons people have in communities for the safety of that community. Having weapons for hunting and protection is one thing, owning flame throwers are not. McCain has no vision on guns he just follows the NRA line.

Wisdom: For their Vice Presidential running mates, John McCain chose Sarah Palin, Barack Obama chose Senator Joe Biden. Need I say anything more.

You: The republican’s election after election have managed to distract voters away from the issues that actually affect each of us every day. Health Care, Jobs, the Economy, Education are examples. Election and election we have voted against our own self-interests, this time we must use our own experiences and our own checkbooks to decide who to vote for. If we do that, the clear choice is Barack Obama.