We all lean one way or the other

Mr. President:

I have a few thoughts in regards to your time in the Oval Office. First I firmly believe that Saddam was high on your list of priorities before you took office. And I freely admit that I might have felt the same as you. You see, I had a strong loving relationship with my own father and absolutely no one could get to my old man except through me. Also, as far as Iraq is concerned I think the broader view is the entire region must take notice that we will not tolerate threats to our land.

I agree with your tax cuts. So far you've enjoyed some success in that respect. Relative to that, President Reagan once said that corporations shouldn't have to pay tax at all! Guess what, I agree with that. Believe it or not, I'm a liberal democrat, but I believe, like myself, that all liberals have a conservative side and the same applies to conservatives. So some of the things I hear from Rush make sense to me.

We all lean one way or the other. We enjoy a rich mix of ideas and values in our great country. Diversity is our creed. But where the overlaps occur are invariably where resolution of important issues happen. Radicals and zealots have no place there. I guess I don't know much about Ashcroft, but I'm afraid individual civil rights are in harm's way with him in charge of the justice department for another four years. You start messing with civil rights and alarms will start going off all over the place. I keep on hearing the ACLU are anti-American, HUH?? My liberal side says that's obscene! I think they typically champion civil rights or matters regarding the Constitution. I hope that issues regarding such things as “prayer in school”, “abortion”, “stem cell research”, etc, etc. are resolved to everyone's satisfaction some day, probably not in my lifetime though.

Two months ago my position was that Kerry was less favorable than you as far as my vote was concerned, that has changed. You guys are now in a dead heat. Why?? Because I was disappointed about you not addressing the NAACP convention, insults or not. Black people still probably are having lingering feelings about the last election. It doesn't matter what they can prove(conservative), but what they feel(liberal). I think the importance of that cannot be denied(deniability is for wimps, George). Somewhat substantial mistake.

Next, Cheney shooting his mouth off on the floor of the Senate. I don't think he's dumb, but telling Leahey to go do something anatomically impossible to himself was DUMB. Restrictions on embryonic stem cell research is silly(I'm NOT calling you silly). Ten years from now countries that had the good sense to permit and fund unrestricted research will be so far ahead of us that it will take another ten years for us to catch up, and we will catch up, but at what expense in lives and unnecessary suffering of our people.

That might be an undesirable legacy for you, even worse, the opportunity to save a loved one from pain or worse is lost. That prospect makes us all think, but someone in your position must do more than think. Don't think about the religious right, don't think about the GOP, don't think about special interests. Think about the American people. Think about the world. Now there's a LEGACY.

Hope you see this

Dave, Nam vet, USMC
Age 51
Tarentum, PA, nestled by the Allegheny