myerstownherald.com

The recent gubernatorial elections in Virginia and New Jersey do not bode well for President Obama. By voting for Republicans in larger numbers than normal, voters in these two states have shown that they do not approve of Obama’s policies of more spending, higher taxes, and more bureaucracy. About a year after Obama’s speaking abilities helped him win the presidency, voters have shown that they expect results, which they have not received.
Particularly, voters have been upset about Obama’s plans for health-care reform. Obama has called for a government-run health insurance agency. Additionally, Obama has called for private insurance companies to cover more people. Various versions of the health-care legislation have called for higher taxes to pay for expanded government coverage, and if private companies are forced to cover additional people, those rates also are likely to climb. Although Obama has said private insurance would remain if a government-run health insurance plan is created, the most likely result would be the government plan crowding out private companies.
Many people do not want the government making health-care decisions for them and increasing their health-care costs. As a result, Obama’s health-care plans have not been favorably received. These negative feelings generated by health-care reform are amplified even more by the fact that the economy has struggled. People do not want to see their health-care costs go up when economic times are difficult.
Obama’s handling of the economy has not helped him, either. Obama’s main solution for the economy was a stimulus plan, which really appears to consist only of massive government spending on wasteful, pork barrel projects. If anything, the stimulus actually seems to be a hindrance to the economy because the government’s ineffectiveness only has increased uncertainty.
In foreign policy, Obama has not taken a decisive stand on whether to send additional forces to Afghanistan. In the beginning of his presidency, Obama went around the world and apologized for America’s past actions. But he only weakly criticized Iran’s government when its forces cracked down on protestors. Americans expect stronger leadership from the chief executive.
The disenchantment with Obama’s performance is shown in the gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey. In Virginia, Bob McDonnell easily won in a state that Obama carried. Virginia had been Republican for many years, but Democrats had shown new strength there recently, until this gubernatorial election. In New Jersey, Republican challenger Chris Christie defeated incumbent Gov. Jon Corzine. Obama campaigned heavily for Corzine, but Christie won by a comfortable margin. Although state issues undoubtedly played a role in the race, Republicans rarely are competitive statewide in New Jersey, and Obama won this state easily. The gubernatorial results in New Jersey and Virginia show that voters there are leery of White House policies.
The reverses in Virginia and New Jersey are a message from the voters to Obama. The voters do not like the way the country is going. Obama should adjust his policies. They are too liberal, and the people have rejected them.