Thursday, October 25, 2012

Bearing Drift endorses George Allen for U.S. Senate

 Susan and George Allen, October 18, 2012, at Virginia Tech.
(Photo by Lynn R. Mitchell)

Virginia needs George Allen’s common sense leadership. This self-described Jeffersonian conservative is fiscally responsible, strong on defense, understands the country’s energy needs, and opposes Obamacare. As a result, there are stark differences between Allen and his Democratic opponent Tim Kaine.

George Allen understands the need to cut spending and increase revenues through economic growth by working with companies that create jobs. While in the U.S. Senate, Allen’s fiscal conservatism kicked in when he was one of a handful of senators to vote against the “Bridge to Nowhere.” He advocated tax cuts that would help create more jobs, and introduced a balanced budget amendment to make Congress live within its means just like the families he represented. He fought for the line item veto and for a paycheck penalty for members of Congress when they failed to pass appropriations bills on time. To keep America on track as the world capital of innovation, he created the Competitive Caucus. In contrast, then-Governor Tim Kaine proposed a $4 billion tax increase that failed to receive even one Democratic vote.

As a strong defender of America’s military forces, George Allen’s previous experience in the Senate gives him a distinct advantage when it comes to national defense. The proposed sequestration cuts of $1 trillion in defense spending, caused by the failure of the Congressional “Super Committee” to cut the deficit, will begin in early 2013. The slashed defense spending is an issue of huge concern in Northern Virginia and the Hampton Roads area where hundreds of thousands of jobs would be lost, a frightening prospect for Virginia. Kaine agreed with the cuts, and went on record in July saying it was the right thing to do. Allen said ‘no’, it was not the right thing to do, nor was it right to use military men and women as bargaining chips for the president’s tax hikes.

Allen takes a responsible approach to energy that includes drilling for the abundant gas and oil reserves off Virginia’s coastline, and working with coal companies to keep jobs while protecting the environment. He believes that by unleashing America’s energy resources, hundreds of thousands of jobs could be created while reducing the cost of energy, food, and other commodities. The result would be a more secure and competitive America. Kaine stands by President Barack Obama’s green energy policies that include ever-increasing EPA regulations that are strangling Virginia’s farmers and the coal industry where thousands recently lost their jobs.

Allen vows to repeal and/or reform Obamacare. Kaine supports Obamacare. The overreaching federal government boondoggle that was passed by Democrats without a single Republican vote threatens millions with higher costs and less coverage. It also threatens to ruin companies that will not be able to meet the financial demands that have been discovered since the bill’s passage and, thus, may result in a large increase in unemployment.

As chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Tim Kaine rubber-stamped every government program proposed by the president. There is no reason to think he would break with fellow Democrats if in the senate. Kaine talks bipartisanship but walked in partisan lock-step with Obama. Though Kaine now says he can work in a bipartisan fashion, in the past he referred to Republicans as “corrosive”, the “Donner” party, and the “tea-bag” party. His rhetoric is not that of a statesman.

George Allen, on the other hand, was a can-do governor who got results.  As Kay Coles James noted in a recent campaign ad, “impossible” has never been in his vocabulary. Working with a Democratically-controlled General Assembly, Allen put Virginia on the map as a national model in welfare reform, education accountability, abolition of parole, and public safety. He was able to rein in government spending and pass reform measures because of his willingness to work across the aisle in a bipartisan manner.

The choice is clear. Bearing Drift proudly endorses George Allen for U.S. Senate.

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