Question Of The Week 6/26/05
Some of you might think I'm getting ahead of myself, (and everyone else) but I don't think it's ever to soon to start thinking about the next Presidential Election. So, this weeks question is, What will be the top three (most important) issues in the next Presidential Campaign? I will post my answer in the comment section late Sunday night or early Monday morning.
God Bless America, God Save The Republic.
God Bless America, God Save The Republic.
posted by David Schantz | 1:08 AM
10 Comments:
Maybe not getting ahead of yourself, but certainly pretty ambitious. Hard to zero in on three issues in the next Presidential election this far out. Especially with a Congressional election in between now and then which could completely change our ideas of what's important.
I'll try though:
1) Health Care -- Domestic issues are always the biggest ones and this has been bubbling since 1992. The Pentagon and Congress are looking at cutting health care benefits for the troops even -- that's a sign costs are out of control. On top of that, 45 million Americans can't get health insurance and the number is growing every year.
2) Medicaid -- the big "inside baseball" issue. Voters may not grasp it fully but Governors do. They're facing massive state tax increases to keep it working. It's in much worse shape than Social Security and has a lot of special interests -- Big Pharma, nursing homes, etc -- behind it. It'll be the "fuzzy math" issue of 2008.
3) War/Terrorism -- The GOP will likely keep blurring the line between Iraq and the War on Terrorism. If we're still in Iraq, it could be a very good issue for the Democrats. If we still haven't gotten Osama bin Laden -- it will be an excellent issue for the Democrats. It will have been nearly twice as long as WWII lasted for the US without grabbing him. At this point, it's better for the Bush White House to NOT grab Osama. The War in Iraq is draining military resources at an alarming rate -- the biggest drain being on manpower. Recruitment and retention is way down and the wear and tear on equipment is resulting in constant equipment failures in the field. That creates huge opportunities for Iran and North Korea to move forward with nuclear saber rattling -- possibly buying Iran enough time to test a nuke before the 2008 election. And if Iran does -- that's bad for the GOP who, having majorities in both chambers and the White House "did nothing to stop them."
Just my guess.
Without expanding too much on each issue, here are my top 3:
1) Healthcare--Democrats are really, really starting to piece together excellent policy plans for health care. Overall, the Bush Administration has ignored the issue, so expect Democrats to make it big. Btw, Medicare and Medicaid are included under this heading.
2) Economic insecurity--whether you personally think things are going fine or not, a majority of Americans are still scared (and rightly so because of the soon-to-burst housing bubble).
3) Security (war, terrorism, Iraq)--now that 49% of Americans think that Bush was responsible for starting the War in Iraq and only 44% say it was Saddam. (Link). Couple that with the fact that the US is now negotiating with the insurgency (Link), and that we know where OBL is but can't capture him, Americans know that Bush really isn't helping to keep them secure or assuaging their fears. This will be the most contentious political issue, I'm sure.
1.) Our sovereignty, which includes securing our borders. This will help in the war on Terroism. Then deport all uninvited guests, ALL. And have a alien work program set up.This also includes the battle over the Supreme Court. The liberal court has turned the constitution upside down. People will demand that we reign in an out of control court.
2.) Trade Imbalance has to be addressed. China must be made to trade fairly or pay dearly.
3.) Health care, Social Security and Education. Three places the Government should address. Vouchers are going to be demanded by the populace since the public schools can not educate anymore.
Health care needs reformed, which simply means getting the politicians out of it. Social Security is a fine program for the older generation, but it is a big rip off for anyone under 25 today. The young people will figure this out, well at least the ones who were home schooled, or went to private schools. See how these issues are related?
For me, the borders, China and the wage gap VS how much CEO's make/the economy
(1) If the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) is passed this summer (I feel it will be)we could be feeling its effects when the next campaign is in full swing. More jobs and factories will have left the United States. A lot of people will be calling on their elected officials to get us out of the free trade agreements.
(2) There is no doubt in my mind, we will still be in Iraq during the next Presidential campaign.People are getting concerned about the draft being reinstated. They are afraid they will lose their sons and daughters in what they feel is a senseless war. The candidates will have to have a plan to bring our troops home without appearing to lose the war.
(3) Secure our borders. That should have been at the top of the list. Our borders are wide opened while we are involved in a war on terrorism.(?)A large number of United States citizens are out of work or their jobs are in danger but we allow a countless number of illegal aliens to enter and stay in this country.Most of them cross the border looking for work and a better life. Some of them could be members of terrorist cells that are known to be in Mexico. So there are at least two reasons for securing our borders, to protect the jobs of legal United States citizens and to protect us from another terrorist attack.
God Bless America, God Save The Republic.
Sorry for the late answer, but here are what I am guessing:
1. Protecting ourselves from and living with new world powers as emerging nations, especially China, are rapidly developing. I feel since the 9-11 attacks that we have almost completely lost focus on the large scale international arena and instead put way too much effort on battling terrorism. Personally, I think that our current strategies are not realistic. We are trying to use the conventional tactic of invading an enemy country, thinking this will increase security. Well, when we invaded Iraq, did the threat level go up or down? The next election will involve debates on where and how to allocate our resources in protecting the United States. I know this is a rant, but I don't have many chances to blow off steam.
2. Any type of government aid, social security, medicare, all of it. As the boomers retire the whole system will be put under extreme pressure and questioning. There even may be talk of overhauling parts of the government, federal and state.
3. Economic shift of the United States of America. I am not just talking about a particular part of the economy, but about all of it. It is clear that we are losing the manufacturing industry. More and more workers are becoming part of corporate offices. I think it will be time to think about whether we really need to take a good look at the economy, and what the government can and/or should do.
Border security issues won't be among the top five national or presidential issues in 2008--unless the person running is from California, Arizon, New Mexico, or Texas--where that issue could've defined the office they held in the state.
As for the judiciary, it always plays a role while Congress is in session, but when it comes to Presidential campaigns, speculation on judicial nominees is just that--purely speculation. Ideology can of course be gaged, but it doesn't have to be through the judicial gage.
And I think David may be onto something with responses to the passage of CAFTA. For principled reasons to oppose this treaty (whether free-trade Dem or moderate Republican) see my post on Thought Mechanics.
I just read the post Chris mentioned at Thought Mechanics, I'd like to suggest you check that out.
God Bless America, God Save The Republic
Sorry to respond so late, I've had a busy week and you caught me a bit off guard. I'm going to cheat a bit. I have 3 major categories, each with sub-categories. These are the three top categories for me. The things we usually focus on as a country in presidential elections are ludicrous. No one reads the Constitution, in stead, they decide that they want to elect a President who will go against the Constitution and rob me so they can have free health care. Health care should not even be an issue at the federal level.
1.) National security:
-a.) Illegal immigration (I want it stopped)
-b.) China (I want the problem paid attention to)
-c.) Domestic Energy Production (I want offshore drilling in Florida, I want drilling in Alaska, I want the shale oil in the Rockies developed. I want a real effort to be put into alternative energy – like a Solar Energy Production Satellite)
2.) The Constitution and the Bill of Rights:
-a.) Second Amendment (stop treading on my right to keep and bear arms)
-b.) First Amendment (stop putting limits on what I can say and when)
-c.) Tenth Amendment (stop ignoring the fact that most legislative power is supposed to be at the state level)
-d.) Eminent domain (just stop it)
-e.) health care (grow a backbone and inform the American people that the Constitution does not empower the federal government to create national healthcare)
-f.) Supreme Court nominations (support justices who can actually read the Constitution and who understand that their power to do anything at all derives from the Constitution and not from international law precedents)
3.) Taxation
-a.) support the FairTax
-b.) real Social Security reform. Since the existence of Social Security violates the Tenth Amendment to our Constitution, we the People should at least be allowed to completely opt out of the system. Heck, I'll even let them keep the money they've already taken from me.
Yes, I realize that this I cheating a bit, but I have a lot of hot-button issues. The good news is that almost all of my hot-button issues would be resolved if the feds would stick to the Constitution as written. Also, this seems different than my original list; I might have to change it later.
Happy Fourth of July!
"We must confine ourselves to the powers described in the Constitution, and the moment we pass it, we take an arbitrary stride towards a despotic Government."
--James Jackson, First Congress, 1st Annals of Congress, 489
1. Climate Change
2. Economy
3. Immigration
This 3 topic is most important to me and the residents of http://assistedlivinglittlerockarkansas.com
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