Presidential Candidates Vs. The Realities of Middle-Class Americans

Recently I've seen news reports and various polls stating that many people are having anxiety about 2008 with the economy, health care, and the future. Especially those of us on the lower end of the middle class ladder.

What I'm not seeing is people feeling that the 'presidential candidates' seem to be very out of touch with what we're dealing with every day. They talk about it, but at this point, it sounds like all rhetoric to me without much substance.

I used to like Obama, because he seemed different. Our union has endorsed 'Hillary the Feminist', which I wasn't too happy about, but she does seem to hammer on the "invisible middle class" issue and how we're eroding. I don't like any of the other candidates. I'm torn between Hillary (with a nod to her rhetoric about reviving the middle class) and Obama. I feel Giulianni has ridden the 9/11 horse for too long. I place Romney in the same camp as Huckabee (but somewhat wishy-washy), and the others seem to have little substance to their platforms. Huckabee caught my attention because of his views on marriage, family, and abortion -- but then it occurred to me that we have a 'Huckabee' in office already (Bush), and I don't like him at all. Too much of a hard moral stance has led to personal holy wars and destroying America's once reputable global status.

Being in a union family, I do feel the need to honor union endorsements and consider why they like certain candidates. That doesn't mean I'll vote for Hillary - it just means that I'm watching and waiting to make my decision.

Regardless, while politicians talk, rally, and slam each other -- American lives go on and we still have our worries and concerns to contend with every day. In some ways, a presidential election a year from now makes little difference in these matters. Things won't change overnight, and there are some problems in America that I don't think any president, politician or do-gooder can solve now - too much damage has been done. I think that in some ways, America has seen its heyday and that some hallmarks of American glory and strength have fallen away. The glory days of FDR and other saviors of the American dream are sorely needed now, but I don't see any viable candidates who can handle this challenge.

To me it seems that what once made us strong as a nation, has eroded and/or our 'leaders' have just given it all away. When I saw the issue being debated about whether to give illegal immigrants driver's licenses, I was dumbfounded. Why is that even an issue or a question? Things that Americans have had to work for and go through the system to achieve or accomplish, should now be given to illegal immigrants? How is this right, and why is it even being debated as an issue? We've handed our country to people sneaking in and bringing their gang wars, drugs, and criminal backgrounds and terrorist connections to our neighborhoods. And we need to "press 1 for English" when we call a customer service number or have health insurance questions. And then a local restaurant is brought before a city council for having a sign considered discriminatory for stating that customers must order their food in English. And all of this is to be accepted as the "new American way"? What has become of our rights as English-speaking natural-born (or naturalized) American citizens?

I'm not against immigrants - I am descended from Italian immigrants who came here legally (circa 1910), and built their new lives the old-fashioned way, through hard work. I AM against free rides and giving away privileges and rights that the rest of us have had to work for or at least become official US citizens in order to receive.

So when I see subjects like this being debated in political forums, it baffles me that it's even an issue. This is overstating the obvious, but "political correctness has gone too far" when we're afraid to offend foreigners and "ESL" minorities while not hesitating to step on the hard-working backs of longtime English-speaking Americans in the name of "freedom."

I'm not holding out much hope for the next election - only a little because Dubya can't be elected again. I ask myself - what are we working so hard for, why are we working ourselves to death, when we can't get ahead, major situations are getting worse (jobs, education, health care, finance), and those in power are too tangled up in political debate to develop any viable solutions? What are we giving to our children, what kind of message does that send? How can we as parents resolve these problems and answer the questions so that we don't pass down the same stinking quagmire to our children?

I'm encouraging my eldest daughter to follow her dreams and her interests (photography and design) with a good dose of practicality along with it, while my husband and I have discarded any notions of 'dream jobs' in favor of jobs that have a more secure future and a faster entry. So I'm telling my child to pursue her dreams while we focus on survival as a family. Makes me feel like a hypocrite, when I'm fielding questions from my child about "Mommy, why don't you ....."

What I try to remember is that my ancestors survived emigration and the Great Depression and much more. I try to hold the view that everything in life goes through cycles - up and down. So maybe we're in a serious downswing at the moment for a few years ... so the only direction left is the upswing again ... right?