How many of you all have seen the President’s new slogan? Forward. The President wants to take us forward. It sounds like a good idea. Who wouldn’t want to go forward, right? Well, the President is driving us forward. The only problem is that we’re headed towards a brick wall. And when you’re headed for disaster, the country needs someone with the sense not to just yell “Foward,” but to tap on the brakes. Adjust our direction. Once we’re pointed the right way, we’ll go forward. So it’s a nice chant, Mr. President, but you’d better check the direction you’ve turned us before you punch the gas.

Now, if we assume that our opponent is in fact an above average campaigner, regardless of his performance as President, it’s safe to say that there’s a strategy behind this slogan. I’ve got a guess. The President wants to talk “forward”, because he wants to forget the past four years. He doesn’t want you to think about the fact that unemployment is still hovering around eight percent. He doesn’t want you to talk about the 47 million Americans now on food stamps. He’d rather you just forget the fact that 2012 is shaping up to be the most expensive year on record at the pump. Youth unemployment is at 17.1% and our debt just recently passed the 16 trillion mark, but to him that’s the past which should all be left alone. Mr. President, you had an opportunity to take us forward. You failed.

So, where do we go from here? How do we start to turn America back in the right direction? The first and foremost issue in this election is jobs. Before we can start to address the other complex issues that are facing us, we must fix this simple one. Unemployment over 8% for an practically entire presidential term is just plain unacceptable. The first way to approach this problem is to adjust our tax system and regulatory climate to encourage hiring again. Businesses are running scared, because they have no idea what new regulations and taxes will pull the rug out from under them in the near future. That’s not the way to encourage growth, and our small businesses deserve more.

Next, we’ve got to work towards energy independence. It’s an achievable goal, if the government would let our companies pursue it. The President has put a stranglehold on innovation in this industry. He says he wants an all of the above approach to energy. What he means is less drilling here in America and more taxpayer money for failed solar and wind companies that we’ve been waiting on for years. Look, I want to see new and exciting strides made in energy, but I also want to see the price at the pump go down for the everyday Americans. We can accomplish this by drilling right here on American soil. If we do that you’ll see a lower number on the sign at your gas station and higher numbers on the next jobs report.

We can do this. I’m not talking about the election. I’m not even talking about jobs, now. We can make our country the best it has ever been. The principles in the Constitution, the values of our founders that worked in 1776 will work in 2012. I’m optimistic, and I hope you all are too.