Your view: Get the facts

We who are going to vote in the November presidential election have a decision to make that will affect the whole world. This time we must get the facts. Voting records cannot lie. They are open to the public.

Sen. John Kerry voted to keep partial-birth abortion legal and to provide foreign aid to promote abortion.

In 1996, he was one of only 14 (out of 100) senators who voted against the Defense of Marriage Act, which says that marriage is the union of one man and one woman and gives each state authority on the issue.

He wants to severely restrict the right of every law-abiding American to keep and bear arms, voting for gun control at every opportunity.

He has voted consistently against any legislation intended to increase or improve the strength and capabilities of our military. In 1995, he voted to freeze defense spending altogether for a seven-year period.

He has habitually voted to cut funding for U.S. intelligence agencies. In 1994, he himself proposed cutting that budget by $6 billion. This was after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in 1993.

He has voted consistently against tax cuts and in favor of tax increases - no matter what the income level of the taxpayers in question.

From 1997-2002, he voted to increase federal spending by $731 billion. If he kept his campaign promises, in the first year alone, U.S. taxpayers could expect an additional $2,306 in taxes per year apiece.

Never before in our history has any party used the filibuster to block the nomination or confirmation of judges. John Kerry joined with other Democrats in the Senate and did exactly that. What a horrible precedent to set.

Please consider these facts before you vote.

Teresa Arndt