From JFK To Obama: A Seismic Shift In Ideology And Worldviews

As we continue to see the Democratic Party move more and more to the left, it is important to put it in perspective through the lens of history. John F. Kennedy has long been a revered man among Democrats. However, he has become a man without a party. The Democratic Party has abandoned his ideology and worldview and shifted towards a more socialist platform and agenda. In the span of the last fifty years, the Democrats have moved from a president who believed strongly in cutting taxes to one who believed in raising taxes. From a president in JFK who believed in standing by your friends and having a strong military to one in Mr. Obama who has consistently stabbed our friends in the back and cozied up to our enemies. In reality, the contrast between Kennedy and Obama is a microcosm of the Democratic Party. It highlights a bigger problem that most Democrats have failed to see. That core problem is where this historical journey will lead us to.

President Kennedy was a firm believer in cutting taxes to stimulate the economy and put more money in the hands of the American people. He believed that led to more prosperity for Americans through job growth and thus letting the natural law of economics work in a capitalist society. More money in the hands of the people meant they would spend more and purchase goods. That spending would help businesses grow, and in turn, they would need to expand their workforce. As businesses grew and salaries grew in a time of prosperity, it created a larger tax base of employed workers and thus increased revenues for the government coffers as well. Ronald Reagan employed this same economic approach in regards to taxes in the 1980's as did George W. Bush during his tenure in the White House. Now, contrast that with the approach of President Obama and Democrats today who choose to increase taxes and put more hardship on businesses and workers. By adding on increased taxes, higher premiums and increased pain through Obamacare, and increased regulations through government agencies, they work to constrict job growth and put the economy in a mode of sluggishness and uncertainty. As we have seen over the last eight years, this policy approach has failed miserably.

President Kennedy knew all too well that foreign policy decisions can kill us. After the failed Bay of Pigs assault in April of 1961, Kennedy looked quite weak in the eyes of the world, and especially in the eyes of Nikita Khrushchev. Kennedy would spend the rest of his presidency trying to build a strong America with a backbone. After a spy plane took aerial shots of missile launch facilities being built in Cuba, JFK knew he was facing a deadly crisis with the Soviets. He couldn't have nuclear missiles just 90 miles off the shore of the United States. He proceeded to install a naval blockade of Cuba and would not allow any Soviet ships to continue into Cuba. Tensions were high for several days and there were real fears of a nuclear war. Kennedy stood strong and Khrushchev eventually backed down and agreed to remove missiles from Cuba if the United States agreed to secretly remove their nuclear missiles from Turkey and Italy. Kennedy's foreign policy approach was known as Flexible Response. He wanted to have all "tools" available to use. That included not only nuclear weapons, but also a strong military with a robust conventional weapons force and diplomacy when needed. He believed in backing up our friends and keeping our enemies alert and on notice, that should they attempt to wage assault on freedom and liberty, America was strong and willing to stand up and defend itself and their friends anywhere in the world. Now, contrast that with the last eight years of President Obama. Mr. Obama has negotiated a disastrous nuclear weapons deal with Iran, stabbed our long-time friend Israel in the back on numerous occasions, gave a reset button to Russia, allowed China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran to grow stronger as the United States has diminished in military strength and preparedness, and allowed Islamic extremism to flourish and grow stronger throughout our world. Much like his domestic policy approach, the Obama foreign policy has been disastrous and put American security in a state of peril.

Two presidents, both Democrats, merely fifty years apart in history, but light-years apart in ideology and worldviews. The big picture takeaway is that this is no longer the party of JFK. It has long since left him behind as just a mere footnote in their minds. Kennedy was much too conservative for the Democrats of today. The problem becomes much larger though now. Many long-time Democrats fell in love with Kennedy and were much more moderate than the base of their party today. Those Reagan Democrats have a hard time supporting the increasingly failed policies that the Democratic Party of today continues to push. But, the Democrats continue to push more and more left and by doing so, really are risking losing the old-time Democrat voters. They have to this point, failed to see how they are continually making their party a regional one instead of a national one. Their core red-meat base is located in California, the Northeast, and the big cities throughout America. Those are the population centers and thus it becomes much clearer why they are looking to move away from the Electoral College and move towards pushing a presidential election based on the popular vote instead. The hard truth is that America is much more a center or center-right nation than most liberals care to admit. The Democratic Party is digging itself a deep grave if they continue down this path. And who are their shining saviors to bring them back to the White House? Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Cory Booker? Not a real refreshing or encouraging group of presidential candidates to bank on winning in 2020.