The 6%

       Presidential candidate Mitt Romney made an off-the-record statement that 47% of the voters would never vote for him.  He got a lot of bad press when a live mike picked up this statement.  I find this interesting, because it is just a statement of fact.  Nothing should have been read into it. 

       Every Presidential candidate faces this reality.  People loyal to the Republican Party or the Democratic Party both vote for the their party’s candidate.  Others vote based on a candidate’s race, sex, or religion, and it has nothing to do with the candidate’s qualifications.  

       There are also people who vote because of the promise of free stuff, or a government job.  Special interest groups of all kinds promote a candidate because they want special considerations of some kind from the government.   Big Money and corporations fund a candidate’s campaign because they expect a sizable return on their investment though tax breaks, grants, loans, subsidies, and more.

Some people vote based on what their parents, educators, celebrities, movie stars, musicians, sports stars, or their peer group thinks.  They want to fit in with their peer group or associate with the people they admire.  

      Others are just more susceptible to propaganda. These people are sometimes referred to as “Useful Idiots.”  There seem to be more useful idiots among the young, but this makes sense as they have less experience and are more naive. 

Political propaganda is spread through advertising and the media.  There seem to be no repercussions from running political ads that stretch the truth or are outright lies.  I wish we could stop untrue political ads and negative ads, but the fact is they work, and will continue to work until the public gets smart enough to recognize them.  

The media plays a big role in promoting this injustice.  If a candidate makes a misstatement, it becomes big news.  They would much rather run with a story like this than actually tell if the candidate is qualified and ethical.  That story would be just too boring. 

The political elite will continue to divide our voters. The sad fact is that this has nothing to do with the candidate’s qualifications, experience, agenda, ethics, or leadership.  Every candidate will promise they are for jobs, the economy, the working middle class, but this promise usually lasts only until they get to Washington.  Then it is big government as usual. 

For all these reasons, a Presidential candidate from either party will have 47% of the voters that will never vote for him or her regardless of how qualified he or she might be.  Combined, that makes 94% of the voters.  That means only 6% of the voters determine our next President.  That 6% is responsible for the future of our great country and our children.  I hope the readers of this blog are in that 6%. 

Let’s be realistic for a moment.  President Obama would have lost both elections by a large margin if he had not carried over 90% of both the black and Muslim vote.  Race and religion were the determining factors in these two elections. 

Some say it is not polite to talk religion or politics.  But, if you are one of the responsible 6%, you better start talking, and don’t wait until the general election.  That may be too late.  We have to take back our country now.  Be vocal, get involved today.