Instead of a convention, this week in New York George Bush is having a masquerade ball — a facade put on by extremists, pushing moderates out on stage to mask the special interest agenda that’s governed America. Bush has misled America for four years, and now he’s chosen to mislead us for four more nights.

Bush stood by as college tuition soared 35 percent. He broke his promise to increase the Pell Grant and he has cut other financial-aid programs, choosing instead to reward his wealthy friends through massive tax cuts. He inherited record surpluses, a balanced budget and steady job growth, and he squandered them all away.

Under Bush, young people have the highest unemployment rate in America (12 percent), more than double the national average. Bush has also failed with his policies abroad, alienating our allies when we needed them the most. He misled the American people to sell the war in Iraq and irresponsibly sent young people overseas to fight for their country without a plan for winning the peace.

Fortunately, Kerry and Edwards’ plan to make America stronger at home and respected in the world offers a positive, alternative vision to get our country back on track again.

Kerry and Edwards have a plan to expand opportunity in jobs, education and health care through an agenda that will benefit all Americans, not just the very wealthy.

They will make it easier for students to afford college by offering a fully refundable College Opportunity Tax credit on up to $4,000 of tuition for every year of college and offering aid to states that keep tuitions down.

They will create good-paying jobs by cutting taxes for businesses that create jobs here in America instead of moving them overseas. Instead of deficit spending that forces us to mortgage our future away, Kerry and Edwards will make Washington live within a budget to prevent young Americans from having to pick up the tab later on.

Kerry and Edwards have pledged to free America from its dangerous dependence on Mideast oil by exploring and developing new energy sources and ensuring that resources such as coal and natural gas are used more efficiently and cleanly.

Under their leadership, we will launch and lead a new era of alliances to better respond to the threat of terrorism, and we will modernize the worlds most powerful military to meet new threats.

We will deploy all that is in America’s arsenal, using diplomacy, our intelligence system, our economic power and the appeal of our values and ideas to make America more secure and prevent a new generation of terrorists from emerging.

Kerry and Edwards will end the back door draft, preventing thousands of reservists from being shipped overseas for months and years at a time, and they will honor our veterans by providing adequate pay and increased benefits. They will also secure our homeland while at the same time preserving the civil liberties we, as Americans, hold dear.

This November, young Americans face a clear choice over the direction of our country and the kind of leader we want at the helm. Over the past four years, we have been misled by Bush and his administration.

We have seen what they do when they have power. Bush had his chance, and he has not led.

Kerry and Edwards will.

Gabriel Whitaker is a junior in public service and administration in agriculture from Hillsboro. He is the president of the ISU Democrats.