My Response To Howard Dean

I receive email from the RNC and the DNC on a regular basis. Why? I have no idea. Some good Samaritan must have entered my email address knowing I would want to fully participate in the political process.

Yesterday I received an email from Howard Dean, the chairman of the DNC.

Dear Michael,

I want your help.

My friend, Senator Jim Webb, has the honor of giving the nationally televised response to the president's State of the Union speech tomorrow night.

He'll be preparing his remarks tonight and tomorrow, and I want you to make your hopes, your dreams, and your thoughts about the state of our union part of our Democratic message.

Please take a moment to make your input part of the process by sending a note to Senator Webb as he prepares his remarks — we'll deliver your message…

I almost deleted the email, but then I thought about it. He asked for a response, so he's getting one. He wants to know my hopes, my dreams, and my thoughts about the state of our union. So here is my response.

Dear Senator Webb,

Howard Dean asked me to take a moment and send you some input for your response to President Bush's State of the Union speech tonight.

Just as Mr. Dean is pessimistic that President Bush will "get it right", I too doubt that you will "get it right" either.

Personally, I think it is impossible for Democrats and Republicans alike to "get it right" anymore. Because of party affiliation and sticking to the party line it is impossible for our politicians to act in the best interest of our country. In fact, toeing the party line is what keeps any real work from being done. Whether it's national security, stem-cell research, abortion, the economy, tax hikes, tax cuts, alternative fuel sources, dependency on oil, global warming, or Social Security, one side is blind to the facts and the other side thinks they have all the facts. Anyway, I digress…

My hope is that the American people will wake up and start requiring their politicians to accomplish something. Anything. When our politicians are more focused on their daily sound bites than they are on solving our country's problems, we get nowhere. It's time politicians were held accountable for their inaction.

My dream is that our country will be safe and vibrant for my children, when they are raising their children. At the current rate, politicians are doing more to destroy the fabric of our nation than any other force, including terrorism. When we do not stand united in the fight against terror, our enemy sees that as weakness, and it emboldens them to further their attacks. There is no doubt the United States faces a grave threat, and backing down now, whether from Afghanistan, Iraq, or anywhere else, is just not acceptable. Our country cannot thrive if we buckle to the threat of terrorism.

As for the state of our union… Things are bad, but not nearly as bad as you and your fellow Democrats would like me to believe. Just after September 11th, I took a 50% pay cut to help save the company I work for. Five years later, I am still working for that company. Things were shaky for a while, but everything settled out after time. Things aren't back to where they were before the cut, but I shudder to think what life would be like for my family if Al Gore had won in 2000. Today, my boys are sitting in their home school classroom enjoying the fact that their mother can stay home to be with them, and their father is sitting in an office 30 feet away, lost in the sounds of their voices as they learn something new. We are an American "middle class" family, working day by day to make ends meet. We are not wealthy by any means, but we are rich. We value the things we do have, and we value the freedoms we have as citizens of the greatest country on the planet. You and your fellow Democrats will propose raising my taxes, making our borders less secure, and pulling our troops from Iraq. Exactly how is being broke, competing with illegal immigrants for jobs, and facing the threat of terrorism everyday supposed to make me feel better? The state of our union is bad, but it's up to all of us, including you, to change that.

Mr. Dean says you'll deliver my message. Somehow I doubt you will.