It's About Defense...Mr. Bush!

Contrary to Bush’s notion of obstructionism, Democrats are playing defense to maintain the best parts of America for all of us.

It is damn hard to tackle the quarterback when he is wearing Teflon. You think you got a hold on the issue and then he just wiggles loose again.

We Democrats are playing defense in a game that threatens to take away the gains we made over 50 years to support the ordinary guy on the street.

It’s defense to support public radio and television. A house panel has voted to eliminate all public funding for NPR and PBS. The cuts would slash 25% of the federal funding this year and end funding altogether within two years. Geez...how could you not love Sesame Street and Reading Rainbow...and history, the fine arts, and bias free news?

It’s defense to ask about the Downing Street memos. Why is it that the Bush regime is never required to reveal its agendas, memos, studies, consultants, plans, etc.? This is the most secretive government I have seen in my 67 years. We are defending the traditional responsiveness and accountability expected of the government to the people who elected their leaders.

It’s defense to protest the dismantling of the Social Security System. This is an inter-generational promise made to take care of seniors, widows and orphans and the disabled. It would be immoral for this nation to break that promise. It needs tweaking with a raise on the cap, not destruction.

It’s defense to question this regime on its torture policies and record of abuses around the world. America once stood for something great and good. Now we are hated around the world.

It’s defense to question the right to preemptive wars by this government without solid evidence and international support. Wars that takes the lives of our sons and daughters, maims thousands physically and emotionally, kills 100,000 mostly innocent Iraqi men, women and children, dismantles their infrastructures, raises unemployment to 60%, disrespects their culture, history and religions and raises the spector of civil war. What kind of precedent have we set? Who can blame an attack on us again...for we are the threat...the ones with the WMDs and no hesitation to use them.

It’s defense to support NASA and exploration of space and rescue of the wonderful Hubble Telescope rather than put money into more Star War weapons that don’t work.

It’s defense to stand up for cars that conserve gas, renewable energy sources, saving environmental laws rather than defile our nature preserves and spend money on big business so they can mess up the environment even more.

It's defense to stand against the appointment of John Bolton to the United Nations. We need to preserve and improve the UN...it's our creation....not let it be destroyed or disrepected by this man.

It's defense to try and preserve jobs in the U.S.A and stop the outsourcing of our economy. It is in our national interest to preserve the ability to produce and manufacture the sources we need for our infrastructure and safety.

It's defense to protest pharmaceutical companies charging Americans higher prices than around the rest of the world.

It's in defense of our wellbeing to insist on national medical insurance for all at an affordable rate we can all pay into. 40 million Americans should not be without coverage. Businesses should not be penalized by having to provide coverage to attact workers. We can do this better when we take the profit out pain and suffering and fear of illness.

It's defense to protest the taking away of the civil rights that have made America unique in this world by the passing of the Patriot Act during a period of high emotion. The secretive ends do not justify the secretive means.

It's defense to question the budgeting process that gives to the rich, takes away from the poor, bankrupts the nation and leaves the debt to our grandchildren's children. At least we Democrats pay the bills as we go.....and the money goes to improve our nation's wellbeing...not the bottom lines for the privileged.

And the list goes on....It's about Defense ....because we care.