Fellow citizens,
As voters, you are the jury of this election. You must render a verdict on the president’s stewardship of this nation for the past four years. Yours is a solemn duty, one enshrined in the Constitution and held sacred by over two hundred years of law and tradition. Based on the evidence before you, I believe the verdict is clear.
At the Republican convention, Paul Ryan and I asked for your vote, and we explained why we, not President Obama, deserve it. We promised not to lower the seas or heal the planet, but simply to enact commonsense policies that expand the economy, create more jobs, and protect you and your family without imperiling your liberty. We explained how our experiences governing and legislating have equipped us with the skills necessary to do what’s necessary to get America back on track.
Beyond asking for your vote, we also provided concrete evidence of the president’s failed record, and the alternative to it. Republican governors Chris Christie, Nikki Haley, Bobbi Jindal, Susana Martinez and others spoke of the damage inflicted upon their states by Obamacare, the president’s war on coal and energy development, and his burdensome business regulations. They also spoke of how they are leading their states to prosperity despite, not because of, President Obama’s policies.
This evidence from the states was irrefutable and instructive. Americans know if their particular state is doing well, and they know which party is leading it. It is no coincidence that Democratic-governed states replicating President Obama’s policies are suffering, as America is suffering, while Republican-governed states are showing the way forward with meaningful budgetary and pension reforms. Of course, this is exactly my experience. Massachusetts prospered under my leadership, and as president I will work cooperatively with reform-minded governors of both parties to get America back on track, and get the federal government off the backs of the states.
Then came the presidential debates, during which I presented further evidence against the President’s record: endless months of unacceptably high unemployment; record deficits and debt; a failed stimulus and crony capitalism that wasted your money on green energy investments that resulted in bankruptcy; a failed foreign policy of apology and retreat; higher gas and food prices; increased health insurance premiums; and increased taxes.
As you saw and heard, the President had no response to these failures, no admissions of his mistakes, and no apology for his shocking waste of your money. We cannot afford four more years of his profligacy, and his refusal to change course when necessary.
Further, the President admitted he has no plans to lower healthcare costs, raise employment, increase take home pay, strengthen our military, address immigration, or reform Social Security or Medicare. We cannot afford four more years of his inability to tackle these critical issues.
Indeed, the debates made clear that the president’s only plan has been to demonize and attack me. He’s demonized my business success, my gubernatorial success, my success in running the Olympic Games, and even my attempt to help those hurt by Hurricane Sandy. But as I said during the debates, attacking me is not a plan. I think you know that.
But more important than the evidence you heard is the evidence you see in your own life. Your pension is worth less than it was four years ago. If you are fortunate enough to have a job in the Obama recession, you are likely making less money than you were four years ago. If you have kids who recently graduated from college, you know the challenges they face finding employment. Also, gas, food, and healthcare are more expensive for you now than they were four years ago, and your kids and grandkids are set to shoulder more debt than they were four years ago.
America has had enough of this. Four years of Barack Obama is enough. Americans are not destined to the mediocrity the president apparently believes is acceptable. We are a great people, we live in a great nation, and a great future is ours for the taking.
So, I ask you: take a look at the last four years. If you like them, then the evidence requires you vote for my opponent. But if you think this country can do better, if you believe, as I do, that the last four years are unacceptable, I ask for your vote.
Paul Ryan and I are not seeking Nobel Peace prizes, or celebrity endorsements, or Person of the Year accolades. We are seeking the chance to work to get government out of your way so you can achieve your dreams and take America to its brightest days, which I believe lie ahead. The evidence demands a verdict. Vote accordingly.
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