On Wednesday this week, Barak Obama held a
Facebook Town Hall. This was an historic move by the Obama campaign. Never has any candidate/President taken their town hall to Facebook (a successful social networking site). During the town hall session, Obama stated that the GOP/Republicans are proposing cuts in the budget on the backs of low income Americans. In fact, the rich just want to take from America and not give back. This kind of rhetoric will become a staple piece to Obama’s campaign for re-election in 2012. It’s clear that Obama will spin the republicans as a bunch of rich people unwilling to give and intent on taking from the poor.
According to Obama, the rich as he defines them, are individuals or families making 250,000 a year and above. Don’t get me wrong, 250,000 is a lot of money but it’s hardly rich in comparison to what Zuckerberg (owner of Facebook,
Forbes magazine last month estimated his net worth at $13.5 billion) or Obama. In fact, many Americans that fall into that income level are the very backbone of this country (
even Obama agreed with this). People like my parents that own two small businesses in a rural community contribute greatly to America’s stability. My parents, in their 70’s, are still actively working their businesses and employ fewer than 15 people between the two entities.
For small business like my parents’, the proposed tax hike would put them in a position where they would have to lay off one or two employees and most likely raise the price of their services. What that equates to is everyone paying more (including low income individuals) and people losing their jobs that in fact creates a strain on the very tax payers Obama deems uncaring and unwilling to give. Meanwhile my parents and the remaining staff will have to pick up the slack of the few laid off. There are many people that fall into this category of 250,000 who are hardly rich. They are however, hard working people that keep this country moving.
The Republican or conservative view of assisting low income families is that it’s the responsibility of people and organizations such as churches, foundations, etc… We believe in assisting people but believe it is our ‘personal responsibility’ rather than a ‘government responsibility’. For Obama to paint the entire GOP or Republicans in general terms that we want cuts on the backs of low income Americans isn’t exactly true. Furthermore, our government is broke. What part of broke don’t they understand?
The next 18 months will be difficult and the dishonest rhetoric (the theme of Obama’s campaign) will be hard to swallow. I won’t go into details or the amount, but let’s just say for my family, we take our Christian responsibility serious and we happily oblige. The many of conservatives across this country give regularly to charities and the under-privileged. The most unfortunate part to this is that through social media Obama is using our young people to spread misinformation designed to paint the democrats as a socially minded and caring while the republicans are uncaring rich takers.
As we head into the next 18 months we have to step it up. We’ll have to use the social media, Internet, email, and face-to-face encounters to portray the Tea Party and conservative values effectively. The truth will prevail only if we are able to get the truth out there. We must create the buzz. We cannot depend on the left leaning, Obama loving media. In the 2008 campaign, Obama used social media to his advantage. This campaign will be no different, except that the Obama campaign will use it more effectively this go around.
By Darla Dawald
National Director,
Patriot Action Network
The Tea Party Movement
