2012 – An Election or a Direction?

Every few decades Americans participate in an election that offers a choice not just between candidates but also between fundamentally different directions for the country. In 2012, voters will choose between two fundamentally different worldviews; government as the provider of equal outcomes for all (a more socialist view) or government as the provider of equal opportunities for all (a more free market capitalist view). These are two very different paths and the choice we make will have profound consequences for generations.

For the last 3 years we’ve witnessed the implementation, and results, of a government driving us toward an “equal outcomes” future. Out of control spending, far reaching Federal mandates (e.g., new healthcare law), record federal debt & deficits, and ever increasing rules and regulations force an insidious shift of responsibility & authority from the individual to the government. Going back further, you can see this is simply the acceleration of a trend that’s been followed by both political parties for decades. For example, in 1950, the % of government spending relative to GDP sat at 22%, a far cry from the nearly 40% of GDP we now spend.

What have we gotten for this tremendous allocation of the nation’s wealth and decision authority? Is the country safer, more energy independent, or more competitive in the world market? Is the performance of our education system ranked higher? Is the middle class growing or shrinking? Sadly, the trends in these areas and many others inversely correlate to the increased spending and authority we’ve granted our government. Consider the deeper cost and ask yourself, “Do I as a citizen have more or less freedom and liberty than I had even just 10 years ago?”

The philosophy of more government equaling better government has crept into our state and local levels as well. For example, take my own hometown of Boulder, Colorado where Democrats control all but a tiny handful of government positions. Our city councils and county commission use a growing set of laws, rules, & regulations to dictate how we live. They seek to acquire and run our local utility, write complex rules dictating in detail what kind of house we can build, and they direct that housing for the chronically homeless will be built in a local neighborhood with tax dollars & without genuinely asking the existing neighbors for input and consent. It seems we’ve somehow let ourselves devolve to a community run by local officials for whom no subject is out of bounds and no issue too small for deliberation. The result is a bigger & more powerful local government and less freedom and choice for us.

Could it be that we citizens have been letting our elected leaders take us in exactly the wrong direction? That moving away from individual responsibility and accountability toward an ever more powerful government is the problem, not the solution? Is it time for citizens to take back much of the power originally reserved for them in the US Constitution and limit government to the enumerated powers also so enshrined. Isn’t that the landscape in which the “American Dream” was created in the first place?

This is not an argument for a government so limited that it becomes irrelevant. We need well-written laws & regulations, strictly enforced, with consequences that truly deter those who would break the rules. We need a fair tax code that even the Secretary of the Treasury can understand. We need to maintain a strong defense against our enemies and safety nets to help those in need return to self-sufficiency. In short, we need an efficient government effectively exercising the specific powers granted to it and no more.

One choice in 2012 will be to continue down the road of bigger government. We can see in Europe where this leads. It’s a path where government increasingly imposes its will to generate equality of outcomes, a “least common denominator” standard of living if you will, and there is little incentive for individuals to innovate and excel. The other choice is to reduce government at all levels and put the focus on ensuring equality of opportunity where citizens are free to pursue their dreams and reap the benefits, or suffer the consequences, of their actions.

Which course is more energizing and aligned with our founding principles? George Washington, in his farewell address, warned our nation “usurpation is the customary weapon by which free governments are destroyed.” His warning has never been more relevant. Few elections have ever been more important.


Scott Schaefer serves as Vice Chairman of the Boulder County Republicans and is currently an investor in, and operating consultant to, small to mid-sized businesses. He is a former officer of BellSouth and Level 3 Corporations and was CEO of QuantumShift Corporation.