Among the great ideas of civilization is the notion of organized government in its various forms, most effective and efficient when it’s democratic, transparent and aimed at benefiting the largest number of citizens most of the time.
The most striking example: the Democratic Party in the U.S., creator of Social Security (President Franklin Roosevelt, 1935), the G.I. Bill (President Harry Truman, 1945), Medicare and Medicaid (President Lyndon Johnson, 1965), Obamacare (2010) and a number of food and subsidy programs assisting both individuals and businesses.
Add also most of the civil rights laws and a strong body of veterans’ security and health provisions.
It is a pity some members and candidates of the Republican Party now find it less than “settled law” that many of these programs should continue to survive and serve the citizenry.
We should be careful who we vote for.
Bob Moorehead, Paris
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