The centerpiece of Governor George Bush’s campaign is “to prosper we must have a purpose.” That purpose is to leave no one out; that all are afforded “equal access.” This noble goal will not be reached if Democrats win the White House again.

To that end, Gov. Bush has pledged that to achieve this goal, we must educate every child. Central to this notion is that we help low-income families. But he’s a Republican, how is that possible you ask? Minorities are supposed to ally themselves with Democrats.

The sole purpose of the Democratic party is to foster superiority over minorities. The current social programs developed by Democrats have lacked a very important aspect: Achieving self-dependence.

Our new economy requires education and skills; it demands it. Welfare programs, such as those in Wisconsin and around the nation, give minorities temporary jobs in factories working on assembly lines. These are so-called “community development” facilities.

After three years, these workers are supposedly “educated” and sent out into the workforce to look for jobs they have no possibility of attaining. When they don’t actually find work, we label them as lazy deadbeats.

In President Clinton’s State of the Union Address, he said we need to place more money into the welfare and social action programs, so that welfare recipients can sustain longer periods of dependence.

What kind of reform is this? It sounds like Democrats trick welfare recipients into thinking they really need them.

On paper, welfare programs look good, but in order to get a decent paying job you have to have some kind of skills from interviewing to knowing how to do the job you are applying for.

Many minorities are abandoned to frustration and self doubt, further increasing dependence.

It is too late to help those in need now because the system is so distraught with problems it will take years to reform. We can’t really help those who are currently in the system. The way to reform is educating youths.

In Texas, the number of minority children passing the state skills test jumped from 38 percent to 69 percent.

Some say it is unfair to hold under-privileged kids to such lofty standards. To do otherwise is a disservice. In our society, we characterize minorities as lazy thugs who would rather milk welfare for all it’s worth than get a job. If racial equality were truly a goal, as Vice President Gore suggests, shouldn’t policy focus on educational development in earlier stages of education like preschool rather than focusing on quotas, where the number of minorities drop out anyway?

Children should not be used as pawns in bitter debates. Bush’s record reflects that his policies are more central than far right like the Buchananites.

Bush doesn’t fear having to alienate the xenophobic right, it doesn’t even count. Look at Alan Keyes, he’s as psychotic as they come and despite his rising performance, he paled in comparison to George Bush.

Significantly, Bush knows that minority voters live in the ten states with 202 of the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency. The four largest, Texas, New York, California and Florida alone make up the 144 of the 270.

Bush’s “English plus” plan is far better than the “English only” movement by the GOP candidates in 1996. His speech “The dream is for everybody” speech solidified his commitment to diversity.

Interest group politics should die with this President’s last term. No real solutions have come about in the last seven years. Oh, but the economy is great and family savings are at the lowest levels in history, hurting average blue collar Americans the most. Bush signed the largest tax cuts in Texas history, putting the money back where it belongs, in the hands of Americans.

We lost faith in big government. Didn’t Clinton say the era of big government was over? Obviously, by his State of the Union Address, it is as big as ever.

One of Bush’s platforms is that he’ll restore dignity and honor back to the White House. Partisanship was present during Bush’s tenure as governor because he put party ideology aside for the sake of the common man.

Americans support Bush, the fact that many middle-income families are interested in donating to Bush’s campaign signifies that they are willing to make an investment in a sound leader, not to buy the presidency. Taxes are at the highest level ever, Washington, give it back.

Why vote Republican? The answer is simple: Gov. Bush represents the faith we’ve lost in government. His platform is honesty and responsibility.

Politicians are supposed to be crooked cheats, but Bush’s open policy proves that he isn’t a puppet figure who needs to release a public opinion poll for every issue. After all, the dream is for everybody.

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Andy Gonzales is a junior in political science from El Paso, Texas.