Soapbox

A Man of the People?

Contributed to the Columbus Dispatch 7/24/04. I keep plodding away, like the little engine that could.

When Marie Antoinette was told that peasants were rioting because they had no bread, she said, “Let them eat cake instead!”
The Bush administration has just announced a new initiative in their plan to strengthen America: a jobs web site for homeless people.
Do you think he understands what “homeless” means?

Yes, many libraries do offer internet connections: it is not a totally worthless plan. But it is only a token, when substantial help is needed. Mr. President, some homeless people actually have jobs, but none of them have homes! Your administration has cut funds for low-income housing.
This seems to be typical of the priorities of the Bush presidency. Head Start programs are quietly closing in some areas as funding dries up. A Bush official said that many people at food pantries are “taking the easy way out”. The Department of Education proposed a $270 mill. cut in Pell grants, which help the poor go to college. Workers upset about their jobs being outsourced were told by the administration to “stop whining”.

The number of un-insured in this country has become an election issue, so this week George Bush touted his health insurance tax shelter that requires an expensive buy-in to a catastrophic insurance policy and has a $2,000-$5000 deductible for everyday medical expenses. This does nothing to address the insurance crisis in America, since most people who can afford the hefty price tag for this scheme can already afford insurance!
Do you think he understands what “poor” means?

There are currently 7.16 million more people in American living below the federal poverty limit than when Bush took office. That’s 12.1 million kids who are “whining” and “taking the easy way out”.

Under Bush’s tax plan, a worker who earns a $50,000 salary pays 3 times more taxes on his wages than a wealthy investor pays on $50,000 of investment dividends. Sadly, the huge and growing national debt means that our children and grandchildren will probably be paying for that investor’s tax cut 20 years from now.

The president has repeatedly asked for pay and benefit cuts for American servicemen while they are at war! Congress just denied funding to improve housing for military families. Halliburton steals millions from its un-bid and practically unsupervised government contract, while children without the proper paperwork can’t get a free sandwich in America. (Dispatch, 7/23)

America, is this the candidate that shares your values?