........."Americans don't want cradle to the grave government. But most Americans see more of a role for government in their lives than he is comfortable with. In the greatest tradition of the New Deal, they believe that representative government is there to succor the poor and offer hope to the downtrodden. That government plays a role in keeping the marketplace competitive, products safe, and the economy active and strong. That government deters crime and war, provides a linking infrastructure in highways, rail lines, and airports, and safeguards the vanishing wilderness for future generations. Representative government funds the research that provides medical cures, improved industrial and agricultural processes, energy efficiency, and explores earth and space, advancing science, health, and America's prestige and legacy as the greatest nation on Earth.
Americans will fight bureaucracy, waste, and the concentration of unaccountable power, as well they should. But asking this nation to return to a simpler time of weaker, restricted, less-effective government simply won't work. The Democrats long knew this, and Republicans have learned it.... . " |
