Even Republicans are beginning to recognize the sort of thing that I’ve been trying to explain for eons: Bush’s agenda is all about supporting Big Business. It’s all about enriching his own friends.

When President Bush announced his plan to permit illegal immigrants to work in the USA, he outraged conservatives from radio host Rush Limbaugh to Republicans in Congress. They questioned why Bush would advocate a policy that they say encourages unlawful entry into the country.

Viewed in isolation, the proposal does appear to run counter to the Republican Party’s tough-on-crime philosophy. But when looked at in a broader context, Bush’s plan fits a pattern: Since taking office, he repeatedly has championed big-business interests over other Republican causes. Indeed, business groups have pushed for an open-door immigration policy that increases the labor supply and keeps wages down.

My fear is that even though even Republicans are beginning to recognize this, it may not be recognized and anger enough people in time to stop him from winning re-election. Folks, please! Just think about two questions — one question is all you really have to think about before knowing what needs to be done.

1. Are you better off now than you were before Bush took office?
2. Is the country as a whole better off now than it was before Bush took office?

That’s really all you need to consider, but you need to consider it seriously and sincerely.

You may think you’ll just write me off because I’m (in your minds) a Democrat. I’m not. There’s much about the Democrat party that I don’t like.

Would it surprise you to know I once voted for Ronald Reagan? Admittedly, I more often vote with Democrats these days than I do with Republicans, but I agree with many Republican issues — or I did, until the Republican party was kidnapped by Bush. But what’s good for George Bush is not always what’s good for the Republican party — and it’s almost never what’s good for the American people in general.

Are you better off today? I doubt it. Most people I know are not. At best, they are doing about the same. (Taking into account only finances, I’m probably doing about the same.) Some, like the poor, are doing worse. After all, as the policies Bush favors go into effect, the poorer among us will be affected first. If it goes far enough, the rest of us will be impacted, moving from poorest to less-poor to, eventually, solidly middle-class. The result of pro-corporate agendas is always that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

Is the country better off today? Some people may feel safer, because we’re “doing something” when we engage in pre-emptive war on other countries. Whether you think this is right or wrong, though — and let’s pretend for a minute that it’s right — the question is, “Is the country better off?” The answer has to be “No.”

Why? Well, Iraq cannot attack us anymore, because we took over the country, right? There’s just one problem: Iraq wasn’t able to attack us before! Any terrorists who might have found succor in Iraq, any terrorists who might have used Iraq as a hiding place, well, guess what? They’re still there! In fact, just today, they killed more Americans! We haven’t done anything to make us safer. And, in the meantime, we’ve not only angered more Muslim/Arab countries, but we’ve angered our allies as well. The whole world thinks of us as sick warmongers.

Meanwhile, our military is being used to help Halliburton, Bechtel and other friends of the President and Vice-President obtain money from the American people (Halliburton, even though believed to be overcharging us by millions of dollars, just won another $2 billion contract) and oil from the Iraqis.

Why do you sleep? Why do you feel safe? Why do you continue to support this man and his friends?