DuPage frustrated with GOP leadership

I do not believe DuPage County is leaning Democrat. The values of the DuPage County residents and taxpayers are much more consistent with those of the Republican Party than the Democratic Party. The reason Republican numbers have been going down in DuPage is voter dissatisfaction with the lack of leadership from local elected Republican officials, not because residents share the governing philosophy of the Democrats.

If Democrats were to gain control of DuPage County, the quality of our schools, parks and villages would all decline. Our students would graduate not knowing how to read, and the safety of our schools would also be at risk. Taxes would go through the roof because the Democrats' answer to every problem is to raise taxes. Government jobs and contracts would all go to incompetent patronage hacks. DuPage voters would be harassed at polling places and told who to vote for. Government corruption and waste would be ignored.

If this sounds like a gross exaggeration, you need only to look to our neighbors to the east in Cook County to see what Democrat control looks like.

It is time for elected Republicans to start acting like Republicans, and get back to the core values of the Republican Party. Republican voters believe in smaller government, lower taxes, individual responsibility and the elimination of corruption. Republican politicians should not have voted to raise our taxes in order to support Mayor Daley's bloated and inefficient Chicago Transit Authority.

Similarly, Republican leaders should not support home rule authority for DuPage which allows our taxes to be raised without getting approval from the voters.

I urge our elected Republicans to shape up, and stand up for the principles that made us choose the Republican Party in the first place. We can keep DuPage a great place to live and raise a family by voting Republican.

Anna Marie Manzo

Oak Brook