Gov. Bob McDonnell’s speech at the Republican convention on
Tuesday was, like the politician himself, bland and unimportant. McDonnell
employed his usual talking strategy by rhetorically patting his fellow GOP
members on the back and showcasing Virginia’s economic progress under his
governorship, or supposed progress. McDonnell also took time out of his speech
to contrast Republican policies with those of the Obama Administration.
McDonnell stated, “While the Obama Administration borrows
over $3 billion a day just to keep the lights on, Republican governors closed
$65 billion in budget shortfalls, without raising taxes.”[1]
In other words, Republican governors slashed away at the middle and working
class while refusing to raise taxes on the wealthiest members of America.[2]
McDonnell also showed off his sense of humor when he
remarked, “Imagine that, we’ll have a president who actually knows how to
create jobs, and a vice president who actually knows what state he’s in.”
Indeed, imagine a vice president who has the nerve to speak off-the-cuff and
make occasional gaffes or a president whose attempts to create jobs are
overwhelmingly blocked by the opposing political party!
Regardless of whether the vice president is always aware of
what state he’s in, unlike Bob McDonnell, Joe Biden and Barack Obama are aware
of what state Americans are in and have attempted to provide remedies for our
country’s ills, remedies which the Republican Party has never seriously
attempted to compromise with.[3]
To McDonnell’s credit, he is one of the few Republicans who
have viewed compromise as a political necessity, as a means of getting things
done. But McDonnell has also caved in to the most extreme elements of his party
on several occasions, putting a question mark around his true policy positions[4].
McDonnell is not, therefore, the political leader of the
future. As his speech at the Republican convention demonstrated, McDonnell
lacks the vision, the insight, and the vigor that America
needs to remain the world’s superpower in the 21st Century.
[1] http://washingtonexaminer.com/mcdonnell-plays-it-safe-on-national-stage/article/2506298
[2] http://www.enewspf.com/opinion/36017-wisconsin-workers-walker-appearance-suggests-romney-ryan-will-continue-class-war-on-working-people.html
[3] http://swampland.time.com/2012/08/23/the-party-of-no-new-details-on-the-gop-plot-to-obstruct-obama/
[4] http://www.theblaze.com/stories/virginia-gop-gov-bob-mcdonnell-flip-flops-on-abortion-bill-libs-liken-to-state-sponsored-rape/
