Obama insists that Main St. America is hurting all while the rich in this country are continuing to enjoy tax breaks. Of course mainstream America is struggling right now. Prices continue to increase on products that we all need and so many Americans are losing their jobs and are facing tough times for their families. While many Americans struggle, there are plenty of rich people in our country feeling no pinch in their wallets. Obama’s conclusion to this situation is to increase the taxes on those doing well and share that money with the American’s facing hard times. Take some from those that can afford to spare and give it to those who need it. Many of you reading this may agree with the Robin Hood mentality and believe the government should increase taxes on the rich to give to the poor. If you agree with this, you are certainly not alone. But those of you agreeing with this, and Senator Obama, should be honest with yourselves and America and call this belief by its proper name; forced socialism. If this is your belief, don’t shy away from calling it what it is. Be straight and recognize Obama’s tax plan for what it is: a redistribution of wealth being mandated by the United States federal government in the name of helping the poor.

Taxes are not the fundamental issue though. If the federal government would simply stop spending inordinate amounts of money on things they have no business being involved in, they would not need as much money as they think they do. The government does not need to increase their revenue; they need to decrease their spending.

How would this look if we compared it to an American family?

Take a family that is living a lavish lifestyle, enjoying the fine things of life and spending when they feel like it. Money gets tight and they can no longer afford all the fancy things they have been enjoying. How would this family best solve their problem? Would they go out and pick up a second or third job hoping to increase their revenue and continue living their lavish lifestyle? Or would a smart family step back, evaluate their expenses, establish a conservative family budget and make cuts in the areas that are non-essential for them? Any financial expert advising this family would tell them to cut their spending. Do not bury yourself in expenses so much that you consume yourself with finding ways to fund your lifestyle.

The government should not be increasing taxes to continue expanding the role of the federal government, rather decrease the role of government and the tax demand will go down.

Fundamental then to this discussion is understanding the role the federal government should play in the lives of individual Americans.

Washington is spending our money so irresponsibly it is a direct violation of the constitution and everything sacred our Founding Fathers stood for. Out of control spending is the problem. The budget would be balanced in no time if the federal government abolished the numerous federal departments that are unconstitutional for them to be running to begin with. STOP trying to do things for Americans that they can and should be doing for themselves. What happened to a common belief in the spirit of Americans and their ability to provide for themselves and take care of their families?

Bringing this conversation back to the current election, both candidates believe in a bigger federal government than was ever intended for this country. One, however, wants to take the federal government to a whole new level of control. Barack Obama has proposed a radical increase in federal programs aimed at assisting Americans. He believes that Washington has a role to play in the day to day lives of people living in Maine. Obama believes that Washington should be subsidizing the poor in Maine with money taxed from the wealthy in Florida. He believes Maine should answer to Washington on how we educate our children and that health insurance should be given by the federal government, not by private businesses. If you fundamentally believe that the men and women in Washington should be playing a role in the day to day lives of American citizens, vote for Obama. If you want to see more Americans step up to the plate and help themselves, McCain comes a whole lot closer to that then Obama.

Neither candidate will take the necessary steps to downsize the federal government and restore America to her roots. Neither candidate will make the difficult decision to close down federal departments, drastically rewrite our tax policy and reestablish America’s independence and prosperity. Neither candidate is a true conservative that believes that the constitution decides what should be done in this country, not emotions or the ever-changing public opinion. No, neither candidate would make Washington, Jefferson or Franklin proud, but one will keep our country from turning into a socialist society controlled by out of touch men and women in Washington.