The Sandspur

Issue date: 10/29/04 Section: Opinions

Lately, all I have heard is why not to vote for candidates. The barrage of campaign ads has tried to convince me that both of the presidential candidates are evil incarnate.

I don't buy it. George W. Bush is the candidate to vote for-and it doesn't take an anti-Kerry ad to convince me of that.

Bush shows strength. He shows conviction. He shows leadership. Leadership-a fine quality in a leader, if you ask me. President Bush makes a decision and stands by it. He does not make decisions based on popular opinions or how his numbers are in the polls. He makes decisions based on what he thinks is right for America.

For example, on September 11, 2001, the president was faced with a tragic and difficult situation. That part is obvious. The decisions made in those first few hours were crucial.

He stayed calm. He did not want to create further panic, so he stayed calm, showing strength and courage.

He acted quickly. He called all of the planes to the ground. The last thing that we wanted was for more planes to crash and more lives to be lost. Analysts suspect that the terrorists planned to hijack and crash around 20 planes. They hijacked a mere four. The deaths of the people in those crashes are terrible, no doubt, and I would certainly not try to diminish that tragedy or their memory. However, the numbers could have been far larger. As it stands, nearly 3000 people died that day-a shocking and horrible amount. But it could have been so much worse. It wasn't worse because President Bush took the correct actions.

After grounding all of the planes in the country, President Bush quickly moved troops into Afghanistan. We had to let them know that we meant business. You don't mess with the U.S. The word was that the terrorists were planning attacks at later dates, and those plans were thwarted by American force. Thanks to the president-and, of course, to our courageous troops, whose service we appreciate immensely-those attacks did not occur. That is why strength is so important in a leader.

George W. Bush also demonstrates strong moral character. His stances on abortion, stem cell research, gay marriage, religion, and others could quite possibly lose him votes. That does not mean that he will stop believing them or even stop admitting that he believes them. He is who he is, and he believes what he believes. That does not change with poll numbers. It does not change with protesters. It does not change with campaign ads, media stories, or political rhetoric. It doesn't change with anything. I want a leader with that kind of conviction-one with strong moral values who doesn't change them to win my vote. A candidate that changes his values will lose my vote every time-even if he or she tells me sweet-sounding lies.

Leadership is about strength. You will never agree with everything that a leader does or says. A leader cannot please everyone. However, what that leader can do is make decisions that he or she feels are best for everyone. It takes guts to make those decisions based on what he or she thinks is right rather than what will get them the most votes.

George W. Bush exemplifies this type of strength. He knows where he stands, and so do you. I guess it comes down to one thing-do you want to elect a leader or a politician?

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