25 Reasons to Vote Dem in November

According to 'Campaign 2006: The Issues, the Stakes, the Prospects' by Arthur Blaustein, an essay first published in Mother Jones, voting this November is incredibly important if you care about the future of our nation. Quote: "The choices are stark, the consequences are momentous, writes a public policy professor at UC Berkeley, who argues that the November elections will be the most significant in a generation."

As Professor Blaustein writes, the time is ripe for a referendum on Bush's failed policies:

Republicans running for the House and Senate in marginal districts and swing states have a problem. They’re just like Tony Blair, fatally weakened in Britain and derided in Europe as “Bush’s poodle” for rolling over for the U.S. president’s every policy demand. Republicans in Congress, however much they may try now to distance themselves from a deeply unpopular president, are in trouble for having stood on their hind legs and jumped through hoops every time the White House has fed them a new policy biscuit. Thus, the policies of George Bush and his administration are—and well should be—the defining issue of this campaign.

The professor lays out in detail the Bush political strategy, our political prospects, the issues and the foreign policy and national security implications of the November election and then lists out what is at stake:

25 reasons as to why this election is important and why you should get involved:

1. Iraq
2. Woman’s choice
3. Global warming
4. Public education
5. Civil liberties
6. Decent jobs at livable wages
7. Affordable housing
8. National health insurance
9. Torture and human rights abuse
10. Separation of church and state
11. Soaring federal deficits
12. The Supreme Court and federal judges
13. Increase in poverty and homelessness
14. Assault weapons back on the street
15. Social Security
16. Consumer protection
17. Huge national debt
18. Preemptive wars and national security
19. Mercury and acid rain
20. Disaster preparedness and Hurricane Katrina
21. Maldistribution of wealth
22. Resumption of nuclear testing
23. Homeland security—ports, mass transit and chemical plants
24. Renewable energy and gas prices
25. Pervasive corruption, cronyism, manipulation and incompetence

You could probably add a number of reasons of your own. What’s of paramount importance, though, is that the issues are basic, the choices are stark, the stakes are high and the consequences could be devastating.

So what kind of election-related volunteer work are you contributing? Contact a candidate's campaign office, an issue group or the Democratic Party and join the effort to turn things around. If we don't do it, who will?