I hate to admit it, but I voted for Bush in 2000. Then immediately regretted my vote when the whole Florida debacle went down. I felt it was a sign of things to come, and, IMO, I was right.
I don't vote on a single issue. I consider myself to be slightly left of middle of the road. Some would say I'm conservative because I believe individuals have the right to bear arms and that we should have a death penalty. But I do so with caveats. While we have the right to bear arms, I have no problem with extensive background checks to prevent the criminal class from purchasing them and when applying the death penalty, make sure you've got DNA evidence because killing an innocent person is wrong.
On the other side of the coin, I think we have an obligation as society to educate our children, to take care of the elderly and truly disabled, and to provide health care for all of our citizens. While I could never have one myself, I think that abortion should be a legal option for a woman who unexpectedly finds herself pregnant.
I also happen to think that every person in our country should have the same rights, regardless of sexual orientation and that the laws governing those rights should have no correlation with any religious belief. Maybe gay rights are the tipping point that makes me a Democrat. But to me, gay rights are just civil rights, and civil rights are rights that we all have. So, maybe civil rights are what actually make me a Democrat.
That's my two cents worth.
