Just a few days ago we celebrated Halloween. It's one of my wife Penny's favorite holidays. She works for weeks to help ensure that-like magic-our driveway and front yard are transformed into a haunted house equipped with tombstones, spider webs, spooky music, and enough zombies, witches, goblins and vampires to frighten even the most hardened adult, but Penny does all of this wok for the children. She delights in seeing the joy her efforts brings to the children of our neighborhood. Children who themselves have transformed themselves to an assortment of super heroes, ghosts, pirates and princesses so that they can visit their neighbors in search of an assortment of enough treats that will leave many with a sugar high for weeks to come.
On Halloween evening as I stood in front of my house to examine my wife's handiwork, I glanced at the other Halloween decorations around my neighborhood as well as the various political campaign signs that dotted the landscape and I thought how ironic it was that we had two days in close proximity-Halloween and Election Day-where folks attempt to transform themselves into things that they are not. One exercise is harmless fun while the other has implications that can-forgive the pun-can haunt us for years.
That is exactly what happened four years ago and it's what is happening today. Barack Obama is trying, once again, to transform himself into the super hero of the middle class while attempting to portray his opponent, Mitt Romney, as the evil oppressor who will protect the rich, hurt the poor, send our jobs overseas, and harm the middle class. But unlike a Halloween prank, these "tricks" can harm us for years to come.
Each and every election cycle, we are told that this is the most important election of our lifetime. Every election is important, but this time we must take heed of that dire warning because if Barack Obama is reelected, our federal government will continue to grow and take more and more of our hard-earned income and seek ever more control of our individual lives and our personal freedoms.
During his first campaign for the White House one couldn't help but be impressed by Obama's soaring inspirational speeches and his call for unity. Although I am a committed conservative and loyal Republican, after Obama won the presidential election, I wished him well and prayed that his leadership would match his rhetoric and that he truly would reach across the aisle and work with the Republicans in Congress, just like many of my Democratic colleagues in the Texas Legislature try to work with their Republican colleagues. Unfortunately, once elected, Obama cast aside his campaign call for bipartisanship, and instead, not only did he run over the Republicans in Congress, he ran over the wishes of the majority of Americans as well.
From Obamacare (passed with not one Republican vote) to spending trillions of tax dollars on stimulus projects which increased our debt, but created very few jobs, Obama has been an Imperial President issuing executive orders which have overturned the will of the congress and the American people. From welfare reform to his immigration policies, from apologizing for America to stopping the Keystone pipeline, President Obama seemed to forget all about his campaign of hope and change.
Instead, America's debt has ballooned to more than $16 trillion. Our credit rating has been downgraded, and our nation's global economic competitiveness has dropped to seventh, falling behind the Netherlands and Germany. If reelected for a second term with no future campaign in four years, President Obama will be free to weaken our military, spend trillions more, and take our country even further to the left so that it more closely resembles the socialistic nations of Western Europe that he has praised in books and speeches, and further away from the America that was the economic driver for the world, served as a beacon of hope to the oppressed, helped win two world wars, and has been the greatest force of good in the history of the world.
But there is another path and another candidate that, if elected, will reject Obama's policies and work to return our nation to its higher ideals and work to lower the debt, decrease government spending, lessen government bureaucracy, end Obamacare, strengthen our military and secure our borders. That candidate is Mitt Romney and I am enthusiastically supporting him for President.
Mitt Romney has been a successful businessman and governor. He knows what it takes to create jobs and turnaround our economy because, unlike President Obama, he has actually done it. He has created tens of thousands of good, high paying jobs in the private sector and he understands that you cannot increase taxes on the job creators if we want them to create new jobs. Unlike President Obama who only talked about working with the other party when he was campaigning, Mitt Romney has done it. As the Republican Governor of Massachusetts with a Legislature that was 80% Democratic, Mitt knew that if he was to accomplish anything in his state he must reach across the aisle and work with likeminded Democrats to get things done. He did just that and his term of office is still referred to as the "Massachusetts miracle". He will do the same as President. By freeing the hands of small business owners, lowering taxes, and lessening government intervention and mandates, Mitt Romney will help create hundreds of thousands of new jobs.
He will work to lower our dependence on foreign oil by expanding domestic energy production, bringing down the high price of gasoline and electricity, and creating new, high paying jobs across multiple sectors of the economy.
Mitt Romney will work to secure our borders and protect our citizens from the growing threat of the drug cartels, terrorists, those who wish to do us harm. He understands that America is a land of opportunity and freedom and that we should welcome those who wish to share the American dream. He also understands that those who want the opportunities our nation can provide must obey our laws and follow the pathway to legal citizenship, instead of sneaking across our border and thumbing their noses at our rules and regulations. Mitt Romney will work with the states so that they too can be partners in enforcing our borders and our laws.
Mitt Romney will respect our military and give them the tools to succeed against enemies across an ever more dangerous world. He will respect our allies and he will work to protect Israel. He knows that Israel's safety and security is directly linked to our country and Mitt Romney will never apologize for being a force of good in the world. He will not be afraid to stand up to China and to Russia and he knows that the threats of the cold war can return if we do not remain vigilant.
Most importantly, As President, Mitt Romney will respect the sanctity of all human life and he will work to appoint judges and other officials who share respect for the dignity of life from conception to natural death.
This election is indeed one of the most, if not the most important we have ever faced. The contrast between the two candidates has never been sharper and the choice never so clear. I urge my fellow citizens to join me in supporting Governor Mitt Romney to be our next President.
Allen Fletcher represents Northwest Harris County (District 130), including parts of Tomball, Waller and Cypress in the Texas house of Representatives.
