Assume a recession is in our future . . .

by Gary D. Halbert, Election 2008 – Extract from Where Are The Conservatives?: I will be the first to admit that I am as disappointed as you probably are with the current field of GOP presidential candidates. But consider the alternatives: Hillary or Obama. Do we want 4-8 more years of the Clintons in the White House, especially with Hillary’s agenda for socialized health care, higher taxes, her disdain for the military and her pledge to pull out of Iraq within 60 days of her inauguration? Do we want Bill Clinton as the “First Man?” I don’t think so.

Do we want a sophomore, left-wing ideologue, Barack Obama, with limited business or economic experience and no foreign policy expertise, running the country for the next 4-8 years, when we are likely to face some of the most challenging global economic conditions in years? Here too, I don’t think so. Obama could well take us back to the “tax and spend” years of the Carter presidency, or worse.

The present group of Republican hopefuls - while admittedly disappointing to most conservatives – is better than the Democratic field in my opinion. While they are not nearly as conservative as we might like them to be, none has remotely as liberal leanings as Hillary or Obama. And political pressures should prevent even the more moderate Republican candidates from going where Hillary and Obama are almost sure to go, should they win the highest office in the land.

Sadly, I hear from some Republicans who feel that it will be better for the Democrats to win in 2008 and inhabit the White House in 2009-2012, because they believe that we are headed for a bad recession during that period. As you know, The Bank Credit Analyst feels we may well encounter a potentially serious recession in 2010-2011. So some Republicans have taken the position: let it happen on the Democrats’ watch. Yet in my view, that is the wrong position to take. Assume a recession is in our future. Who do you want to be in charge in such a scenario? Hillary or Obama, who will opt for higher taxes and more government?

Or any one of the current GOP hopefuls who will not likely default to such liberal reactions? In my opinion, we all need to vote – don’t sit this one out. Just pick one candidate and go for it – that’s my advice. Our right to vote is a precious thing, and our vote should not be cast - or withheld - lightly.

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