The Restore America Project

Mitt Romney (left) is the GOP candidate most likely to win the nomination and compete against incumbent President Obama for the presidency.

The presidential election is only twelve months away, and it will likely be a defining moment in America’s history. Never before have such divergent views of America and government been present in a political race, and because of this, your vote has never been more important. At the polls, people across America will make a decision that will change the lives and fortunes of millions of people throughout the nation: should the American people depend on government to provide every need and want, or should Americans work to the best of their ability to provide for themselves and be self-sufficient?

Today, at a San Francisco fundraiser, President Obama warned his supporters of the consequences of a Republican victory next November: “The one thing that we absolutely know for sure is that if we don’t work even harder than we did in 2008, then we’re going to have a government that tells the American people, ‘you are on your own.’” Clearly, President Obama fears a time in the future where Washington is unable to redistribute wealth and to keep everyone on generous government dough. In the context of American history, however, this welfare state mentality is completely at odds with the values of our country’s founding. Thomas Jefferson, the writer of the Declaration of Independence, once said that “those are governed best who are governed least”, and the Declaration of Independence itself states that every man should have the right to ”life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

By contrast to President Obama, the modern conservative movement seeks a return to the values that have made America great and an alignment with the vision of the Founding Fathers. Barry Goldwater, a US Senator who sparked the resurgence of the American conservative movement of the 1960s, summed up this vision nicely, saying that “a government big enough to give you everything you want is also big enough to take away everything you have.” Especially in the past 100 years, America has undergone gradual social changes that have pushed our country to the brink of becoming a welfare state. Social Security, Medicare, and Obamacare are all fantastic examples of how government has massively intruded upon the lives and the pursuits of millions of people across the United States.

People are increasingly biting the hook when it comes to the Democratic Party’s call for government to take charge in the lives of everyday Americans. A recent ad by the AARP warns politicians of the consequences of taking away the benefits of seniors for the sake of fiscal responsibility, and “Occupy Wall Street” protesters have demanded that government provide a “guaranteed living wage income regardless of employment” and immediate debt forgiveness for everyone in the United States. Clearly, many Americans want government to take care of them at the expense of everyone else, but fortunately, there is hope in 2012.

2012 will be the last stand and the final battle for conservative values and principles. If the GOP fails to retake the White House next November, the American spirit of hard work and self-sufficiency will die and give way to a collectivist entitlement society, the concept of which has failed all over the world time and time again. Republicans envision a society in which people can freely provide for themselves and their families without government handouts and entitlements, while Democrats want everyone to be dependent upon government for every need and want. Defeat in 2012 will truly be the beginning of the end for America.

What will you choose? America’s fate rests upon your shoulders.