[ol]
[li]Abortion[/li][li]Civil Rights[/li][li]Crime[/li][li]Drugs[/li][li]Education[/li][li]Environment[/li][li]Energy & Oil[/li][li]Free Trade[/li][li]Gay Rights[/li][li]Goverment Reform[/li][li]Gun Control[/li][li]Iraq[/li][li]Health Care[/li][li]Homeland Security[/li][li]North Korea[/li][li]Social Security[/li][li]Taxes[/li][li]US Hegemony vs. UN Cooperation[/li]
[/ol]
(I’m sure there are many others I can’t think of, so please add as you see fit)
My top 5 would be:
US Hegemony vs. UN Cooperation
Taxes
Civil Rights
Health Care
Iraq
(and I know this isn’t really a debate, but the topic has the propensity for being too contentious in IMHO)
This isn’t what I think are most important, but what I think is most important to the most voters.
I think abortion rights is the single biggest issue for so many voters, mostly on the right. I think many voters define their party allegiance based on it.
I disagree. There are a minority of people that base 100% of their votes on abortion. Funny how they never demand that the Republicans they elect actually do anything about it.
Top 3:
1- Iraq and US Imperialism
2- Terrorism and National Security
3- Health Care
I’m often wrong, but it seems many people use that particular topic to identify with a party, and then fit the rest of their beliefs in around the party’s mainstream. I can’t think of any other reason why the parties would be split along such weird (to me) lines.
[ul]
[li]Tax Policy-The tax structure is simply incomprehensible. The tax code is so incredibly convoluted that it is almost impossible for the lay person to file their own taxes, much less understand exactly where their tax dollars are going.[/li]
[li]International Economic Development-I believe that most immigrants, illegal or not, come to the States seeking the same thing that my ancestors did; a better life with more opportunities. We could go a long way in improving the lives by providing some basic needs: safe drinking water and waste disposal. Two things that many of us take for granted are not available. Follow that with education and you have provided many of the tools needed for a society to develop.[/li]
[li]International trouble spots-I cheated and included several issues in here. It was hard to pick just one. The Israel/Palestinian crisis can only be solved when Israel and Palestine exist as independent countries with defensible borders. The situation in Iraq must be sorted out before we leave (hopefully soon). The abilities of the United Nations must be strengthened- Darfur is just the latest humanitarian crisis to draw the world’s attention.[/li]
[li]Environmental Policies-We are faced with diminishing natural resources. Without a defined plan, we will jump from policy to policy without any concern for the long term consequences of each decision.[/li]
[li]Fiscal Policy-This past recession was the shallowest in history due to one reason: Consumer spending fueled by low interest rates. US rates of saving, while always low, have been at their lowest levels yet. Debt levels have risen, thanks to the low interest rates. This lack of saving has been justified by the rising housing market, why bother to save and do without when rising house prices will do the same thing? Now imagine what might happen when the boomers get set to retire and want to take their equity from their house? Prices are sure to slump. This is the monster under the bed that neither candidate is addressing[/li][/ul]
It was actually quite hard to come up with just 5.
