(sorry about the bad picture – it was taken off a cell phone camera in the evening)

Last night we had our monthly Butler County Democrats Club meeting. We were joined by former congressional and senatorial candidate Paul Hackett.

Besides being a highly motivational speaker, Paul brought up some very good points for us to consider going into this election season. We are at a time where the fight to retake our government lies within our hands. We can not place the responsibility solely on the hands of state and national leaders. We are all in this together, not just for ourselves but also for our children and grandchildren.

Paul talked about how we are the party of a strong national defense and smaller government. That sounds like an old Republican talking point but times have changed. The Democrats are showing they have a better view of what our national security should be. The Democrats also don’t believe our government should be listening in on our phone calls, talking to our doctors, worrying about what is happening in our bedroom. Sadly the current leadership of our country does not think the same way. This means that the Democrats are for smaller government.

This is the message we all need to convey to people we know who are sitting on the fence, or are even moderately conservative. I am not talking about going after the Tom Delays out there. I am talking about going after the older Regan Republicans. The Democrat beliefs align more with those people now than the Republican beliefs do.

Proof lies in our recent history. We have a record deficit that is going to continue to climb. Our economy is looking at turmoil and government spending is sky rocketing. Even worse is the nation’s infrastructure which is falling apart before our eyes. While this is happening, the Republican leadership in Washington still believes in cutting taxes. That is not the answer. A fair and moderate tax base is what we need. We need the tax laws reworked so people like Dick Cheney do not get $2 million tax refunds.

The Republicans use to brag about being the party of national defense. Well those times are gone. They are good at sending our young soldiers to war but when it comes to supplying them with the needed tools, they fail miserably. Just this week, the Republican leadership decided to cut even more funding to those vital tools. Add this to constant cuts in veterans benefits and wasting time, money and resources on spying on American citizens who are law abiding and you get a reckless national defense policy.

The Democrats also have a core belief that we are a democracy. The Republicans try to claim that belief also but their recent actions have proven that wrong. We have had a President running this country with unchecked powers for six years now. George Bush continues to abuse his powers and the Republicans in Congress sit by idly and ignore it. This abuse of power is what has lead us to the mess we are in today, with Iraq and at home. This is not a democracy – it is a theocracy.

What would really help right now is more Paul Hacketts out there speaking this message. We need people like him to motivate all those sitting at home who are fed up but don’t know what to do. If we can get this message out between now and November then Washington will be blue once again.