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I Stand By My Decision
A Guest Blog from Voiceover Actor Charlie Rengel

It’s been a long road leading to Election Day, and I’m confident that I’ve been following the right path towards a new future. I already knew that I would support the Democratic Party. The past 8 years have made me wary of Republicans, knowing that most would put their interests over the country’s. The Democrats had an admirable selection of presidential candidates over the Republicans, being narrowed down to Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. I had originally voted for Hillary Clinton as the nominee, giving in to the suspicions of Barack Obama’s “inexperience.” However, Obama had been gaining ground, and was selected over Clinton.

It was around then that I realized Barack Obama had a clear understanding of the problems facing the country and knew what had to be done. Shortly after the controversial sermon given by Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama responded with an intelligent, mature discussion on race-relations. (Jon Stewart from The Daily Show said, “For the first time, a politician talked to [the public] about race like we were adults”). I followed CNN, CNBC and MSNBC as well as the network news, ending the night with The Daily Show and Colbert Report. Whenever Obama spoke, he focused on the main issues and was always direct and sincere. Obama also knows how to choose the right people to assist him, when he selected his running mate Sen. Joe Biden. Biden’s experience in foreign policy alone made him a wise choice. The final months would prove to be an election-year to remember, especially against Republican front-runner Sen. John McCain.

I would’ve supported McCain eight years ago, when he made his first bid to run for President. McCain was one of the few Republicans I could trust, and I knew back then he would put the country first. Now, his support of most of President Bush’s decisions have changed things drastically. Also, there were his anger-management issues and his age (he’s the new Bob Dole to comedians), not to mention the circumstances of how he met his current wife, Cindy (and the disturbing photo of McCain hugging Bush).

Then there’s McCain’s running mate, Alaska governor Sarah Palin. The moment she was announced it smelled of a blatant stunt, as if to garner support from Hillary Clinton’s supporters. It was followed shortly by her on-air admission of her lack of knowledge of being Vice President – the first bad sign. All criticisms of Barack Obama’s “inexperience” should have stopped the moment she entered the picture. Soon after, there was the “bridge-to-nowhere” scandal, Palin’s “obsession” with the hunting rifle and her pregnant underage daughter. Sarah Palin slowly became more of a joke rather than a viable candidate, as shown from her infamous Katie Couric interview(s). (On Saturday Night Live, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler wouldn’t have had to write anything; they could recite the interview verbatim and it would get laughs).

During these last moments before the election, both candidates have amped their campaigns up to 11. There will always be some amount of “mudslinging” in the final weeks and there has been news of “whoppers” from both candidates, but McCain has been taking the lowest road possible by focusing on lies, slander and fear mongering against his opponent. McCain’s campaign strategy has become dishonest, deplorable and despicable, choosing to discredit Barack Obama on everything, from his ideals to his associations, right on down to his middle name.

(For the record, “Hussein” means “good, small handsome one” in Arabic. The name definitely applies to Obama; it’s unfortunate that a dictator had that name as well.)

Palin has gone the same route as McCain, slandering Obama with her ill-informed views and opinions. Sarah Palin is a mix of the venom-spewing punditry of Ann Coulter and the naivete of Dan Quayle. McCain and Palin have successfully brought back the “angry-mob,” turning innocent and ignorant people against Obama to dangerous levels. I can only hope that these people will realize what is happening and show some rationality in the end.

Senator Barack Obama inspires confidence when he speaks, and I know there’s an intelligent, open-minded and rational logic behind his words. Obama deserves the highest office of President, even more than McCain from eight years ago. Even if he is “inexperienced,” I don’t doubt that Obama is a fast learner.

I fully support Barack Obama (or as McCain calls him, “THAT ONE”).

http://www.barackobama.com