Every now and then, a particular opinion editorial will catch my eye because it’s different and, more importantly, relevant. It will prompt me to ask: why hasn’t this generated more attention? It matters! I felt this way when I read Amy Oliver Cooke’s op-ed in the Daily Caller. Maybe that’s because it discusses the nation’s current fiscal crisis, or because it has a focus on women – perhaps both! Whatever the draw, it’s an important issue, and I’d recommend all of you check it out.
The piece talks about women and how they have historically been single-issue voters. I don’t know if there are any hard facts to back up this claim but, as a woman myself, I can tell you that most people automatically assume you will be most passionate about the issue of abortion. Now I’m not here to get into an abortion debate or belittle its significance to voters on both sides; neither is Ms. Cooke. She simply criticizes those campaigns that have attempted to make it THE issue in 2010. In fact, Cooke believes the strategy could backfire. Why? The Denver Post’s Dan Haley writes, “This election is about the economy. It’s about jobs. It’s about taxes. It’s about health care. It’s about debt. It’s about voter anger.” Kellyanne Conway, a Republican pollster (with a primary focus on women voters), says “Women are looking at this election almost entirely through an economic lens.” Furthermore, a recent Gallup survey was released that listed Americans’ top concerns as the economy and jobs. Abortion wasn’t even in the top 10. Yet why are campaigns spending thousands of dollars in TV ads to hammer their opponents on the issue? Do they really think this is the only thing women care about? If so, they are wrong.
Cooke is the founder of Mothers Against Debt, an organization introduced at last year’s 9/12 rally in Denver, CO. It’s a great cause and easy to join! There are no meetings or dues; members simply take a pledge to “hold accountable any elected official, bureaucrat or government employee who has access to taxpayer money, who adds to our children’s debt.” In her Daily Caller op-ed, Cooke writes:
“As of this writing, a child born in the United States owes more than $43,818 for his share of the national debt, which does not include the roughly $100 trillion in unfunded liabilities. If that child is born in Colorado, his debt burden, including state and local debt, is nearly $53,000. It’s fiscal child abuse, and responsible parents won’t stand for it anymore.
The reproductive rights fear factor is out of place in this election. The real fear for MAD moms does not come from whether or not our teenage daughters will have unfettered access to an abortion; the real fear comes from what type of economic catastrophe we will leave our sons and daughters to face.”
Media outlets are saying women could very well determine the outcome on November 2, but don’t expect us to be single-issue voters. Our primary concern is fiscal responsibility and we’ll be heading to the polls to hold leaders accountable for all of the big-government policies that are bankrupting our nation.