This has been an exciting election season. I am pleased to be able to write about it here at The Western Word. Thanks for reading.

The two candidates who are facing each other were really not expected to be in this position. The process of electing a President in the United States has become so long and drawn out that I believe, for it to survive, we need to change the rules some to shorten the campaign season. Hundreds of millions are being spent for these elections. It seems a little ridiculous.

Looking back at campaign season 2008, I can honestly say that I did not believe the reporting and the journalism could get much lower than it did in 2006, but 2008 is even worse, even here in Montana. Is real journalism dead when it comes to reporting on candidates and political races? I think so.

My choice for President of the United States is John McCain. I proudly cast my vote for him a few days ago. I’ve had his banner ad displayed proudly here at The Western Word for the last few months, so this is not a shocker. I’ve not always agreed with John McCain on everything, but for me he is far and above the type of person we need running this country. I list several key reasons below.

Barack Obama has shown me that the change he’s for is whichever way the poll numbers show him to go. I don’t like his judgment, his past relationships, or his spread the wealth plan. I don’t believe Obama respects my fellow veterans and the current patriots serving in the military. His liberal views turn me off. He acts like an elitist and he is, by far, the most liberal candidate ever to run for this office.

With that being said, here are some of my reasons for supporting John McCain and not supporting Barack Obama:

NATIONAL SECURITY
Our security is one of the most important jobs as President. As a former member of the military, there’s hardly any other person who can do a better job at keeping us secure than a veteran who has fought in a war and knows what it is like if our security is allowed to take a back seat. There’s already talk from the Democrats of cutting military spending 25%. That cannot happen. Then Joe Biden told us, “Remember I said it standing here if you don’t remember anything else I said. Watch, we’re gonna have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy.”
As a Nation, can we afford to see if Obama can pass this test?

SAFETY
We are a safer country than we were after 9-11. Thanks go to George W. Bush for that. Sadly, there are still those around the world who want to harm us. Another attack on another day will require strong leadership that has been tested. Frankly, Hillary Clinton got it right when she ran the 3:00 a.m. campaign ad saying she was better qualified to lead during a time of crisis than Barack Obama. John McCain is even a better choice.
Telling folks that he would sit down with leaders of rogue nations with no preconditions showed that Obama is just not mature enough on world issues to be the Commander in Chief.

FREEDOM
Nobody understands Freedom better than a veteran – especially a veteran who paid the price of being held as a POW for over five years.
Nothing. Let me repeat that –NOTHING Barack Obama has ever done for his community, his state, or his country can compare to what John McCain has done for his. Obama can never understand what freedom means more than John McCain, and McCain will never let our freedoms be taken from us.

SECOND AMENDMENT
I love my guns. It’s not that I am a Rambo or even an avid hunter, but I know they are there in my closet if I need them and, as long as I obey the laws, they won’t be taken from me. There’s doubt if Obama is President. Folks like Max Baucus, Jon Tester and Brian Schweitzer must be smoking something to say that our guns are safe with Obama as President. Obama has a record on gun ownership that should bother people who believe in the second amendment. McCain has a much better record.

JUDGMENT
It is perfectly fine to judge a Presidential candidate on the company he or she keeps. Barack Obama attended church and listened to his pastor preach hate. He did this for 20 years. At first Obama would not disown his pastor and spiritual advisor, but as time passed and the polls changed, Obama finally did renounce his pastor. A real man and a leader would not have allowed his family to be subjected to this hatred for 20 years; he would have packed up and moved on to another church. That is, of course, unless he believed it.
There are a number of other questionable relationships that show the very poor judgment of Barack Obama. People like Bills Ayers and his wife, Tony Rezko, etc. Recently we’ve heard hints of Barack Obama praising Palestinian activist Rashid Khalidi. The LA Times is protecting Obama from this latest information, by not releasing a video tape of a banquet that Obama attended for Khalidi at which the United States was harshly criticized for its support of Israel. The LA Times endorsed Obama. Obama’s judgment is sorely lacking. Who knows what else we may discover down the road.

DISHONESTY
Barack Obama will spend more than any other candidate for President of the United States to try and win this election. At first, he agreed to public financing. Then he changed his mind. In other words, he lied. Winning was more important than keeping his word. That told me a lot about Obama.
As CBS News reported, Obama’s “…gotten more money than anyone in history from unidentified donors with names like ‘Doodad’ who lists his employer as ‘Loving,’ and has given more than $17,000, way over federal limits.”

SPREADING THE WEALTH
Obama wants to take (tax) hard-earned money from the people in this country who are doing well and give it to folks who are not doing as well. This breeds mediocrity. Why do well when an Obama administration will take it from you?

SPENDING
John McCain has long been known for his resentment toward the earmark process. Obama does not have this record. McCain has and will fight against the runaway earmarking process. As President, he will have the power to veto these bills and bring spending under control. McCain has a strong record of working with both sides of the aisle to bring change. In the past, we’ve witnessed his own party show their anger toward him when he fought for what was right. McCain is more independent than Obama.

To wrap this up, it’s almost always said every four years, but this really is a very important election for the United States. In two short years, we’ve seen the damage that has been done with the Democrats in charge of the House and Senate. If Obama is elected President, there will be no check or balance for the Democrats’ agenda. Can we afford a weaker military? Can we afford another housing crisis? Can we afford more spending? Can we afford another attack? Can we afford to surrender in the war on terrorism?

Many folks believed the Democrats in 2006 when they said they would change the way Washington operates. They changed it for the worse. Spending has increased, the unemployment rate has gone up, and there were no reforms on earmarks. Gas was $4.00 a gallon. Airfares went up 200% on some routes. We won’t be able to afford four years with the Democrats having free reign under an Obama administration.

Vote for your Freedom. Vote for your Security. Vote for John McCain and Sarah Palin.