Why I may never vote Republican again

It doesn't happen often in my mature years, but every once in awhile I want to punch some arrogant politician in the face -- if not literally, then figuratively.

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is the latest moron without a clue as to what he's talking about. Delay says people are unemployed because they want to be. Read about it here.

I would love to invite Mr. DeLay to my modest home and show him my Excel files on my computer with hundreds of jobs that I've applied to since being laid off from USA Today in December 2008. I would love to show him how little food is in my fridge, my lawnmower that won't start and my dishwasher that has been turned off for over a year because I can't afford to have it fixed. My thermostat is on 64. My socks have holes in them. And my pride has been blown to pieces.

I would love to show Mr. DeLay my credentials in order to make my case that for 29 years I was a responsible employee who earned his way up to larger companies, building an admirable career in journalism, learning new skills with each job, and embracing technology. I would enjoy telling him how I worked on my college newspaper and interned at the local television station while other people were partying, and how I am a third-generation journalist with ink in his blood, not a bum sitting on the corner drinking ripple wine.

If Mr. DeLay could produce a job in the area where I live, which paid even 60 percent of what I previously earned, I would take it. I would even consider relocating in order to work. But I doubt this Republican has any clue about the predicament I am in, the efforts I've made and the crushing disappointments I've experienced, nor cares. I am beginning to regret ever having voted Republican in my life. After the recent cold and uninformed comments about jobless people from DeLay, Pat Buchanan and Jim Bunning, I might never vote Republican again.

Wonder if Mr. DeLay knows what it feels like to interview for a job over the phone for 90 minutes and then never hear back from that potential employer? Wonder if Mr. DeLay realizes that I and millions like me spend 4-10 hours a day, seven days a week, looking for work, filling out sometimes complex online applications, networking and making cold calls?

If politicians like DeLay want to do something constructive, how about enforcing age-discrimination laws that are openly being broken by numerous companies. That might help improve the job-hunting chances of qualified folks 50 and older.

Right now, I am fighting against a recession, a dying industry (journalism) and blatant age discrimination. I apply to hundreds of jobs that I am 100 percent qualified for, Mr. DeLay, yet rarely get a reply, even though I usually state that I am not looking to exceed or even match my previous salary. Sadly, as my unemployment payments appear to have run out, I have to choose between selling my house this year so I can afford to accept a minimum-wage job or freelance work, or exhausting my remaining savings while I continue my search for a position that will enable me to maintain my modest lifestyle. This is reality and not as easy a choice as some people throwing stones seem to think it should be.

Mr. DeLay, does this sound like someone who doesn't want to work? Yeah, it's my personal story of the last 15 months, but it's also the story of many other people my age. I suggest you and other politicians who are prone to stereotyping unemployed people leave your gated communities and plush offices in Washington and start talking to guys like me -- guys who have busted their butts for decades, only to be treated like unwanted garbage by people like you. Many of us lost our jobs for less than honest or legitimate reasons. The layoffs of this recession were driven by some companies wanting to clear their payrolls of older workers. Now we're faced with criticism for not being able to find new jobs? Unbelievable.

Sen. Bunning was not "brave" in his recent attack on jobless Americans. That undignified attack wasn't about fiscal responsibility. You two are apparently cut from the same cloth -- talking in code, out of touch with realities of today. You are selling something to your conservative base, the ones who can't think for themselves, that is not honorable or true. Ironically, with your cold tactics and idiotic comments, you are doing more damage to your party than are the Democrats.

I am fiercely independent and weigh each issue on its on merits. I wish there was a political party that spent money wisely, but also protected the environment -- was pragmatic, yet compassionate. For whatever reason, it seems politicians can't support the protection of wolves yet also be tough on crime. I have never understood this. If it was up to Republicans, there would still be smoking in restaurants in Virginia, but we might not have the ridiculous car tax. Republicans want no regulations, but Democrats want to regulate everything. Where's the balance?

After these last several weeks, I doubt I will be supporting anymore Republicans for awhile. I live in a state where Republicans have turned down federal assistance for unemployed people. I've seen what a lack of regulations/funding leads to. And while I still believe Ronald Reagan was the perfect president for the time, I think we live in a very different era now. This recession is different than the last. The unemployment problem alone has taken on a unique form. We need less of Tom DeLay and Jim Bunning, and more politicians who can listen and not simply make ignorant assumptions.