Politics

OK, here we go. As I stated earlier, I'm a Republican. I'm not arch-conservative about most things, but I tend to agree with the GOP than I do with the Democrats.

This year, John McCain is the nominee of my party. Senator McCain was my senator when I lived in Arizona, and I've had a few chances to listen to him speak. Overall, I agree with what he has to say. Yes, he tries to work with the Democrats, and he doesn't toe the party line each and every time. That's a real reason I like him. I'm not interested in electing another party drone idealogue who has to have it his way or no way.

That being said, he still has to earn my vote.

I know he's very good on defense, but what about economics? I saw a headline that he's promising to balance the budget in his first four years, so I want to see details on how he's going to do that.

What is he going to do about shrinking the footprint of the federal government? He's always seemed to be anti-pork in the past, but what specific cuts will he try to get through Congress in order to limit government and cut the budget?

He says he's for the individual right to a firearm, and overall his record agrees with that. But what will he do to better enforce the existing gun laws?

I'm not extremely happy about his stance on illegal immigration. I don't know how we're going to secure the border, but something needs to be done. And a big fence isn't the answer. If people want to go over, under, or through a physical barrier, they will find a way. What is Senator McCain proposing to do about the millions of illegal workers that are here already?

And while I know the government can't do much about the price of petroleum, is Senator McCain willing to start a Manhattan Project for renewable energy that doesn't come from overseas and doesn't destroy the environment and drive up the price for other commodities?

So there you are. You'll notice that I didn't mention gay marriage (none of my business, I'm married to a woman) or abortion (I'm against it, but I'm even more against the government telling someone what to do in regards to their morals and body). Not that I expect replies here, but I'll be keeping an eye on the news outlets for answers to these questions.