The Republican Party's platform is overall superior to that of the Democratic Party

R1:'The party platform itself may not directly use such inflammatory language, of course, but it pays the extreme Christian Right a nod by placing such high priority on things like “protect traditional marriage”.'Thanks to Con for an interesting opening argument, I'd like to start right away with this idea of the GOP paying homage to the "extreme Christian Right". While I do agree that "protecting traditional marriage" shouldn't be a high priority issue, some of the ideals the social conservatives put forward are positive ones. Ideas such as family values, the idea that no institution can raise a child better than a mother or father, and even a pro-life stance (excluding cases of rape) are fundamentally good ideals to put forward to the American people. R2:"The biggest problem with the platform overall is probably taxes. You can’t cut taxes and immediately see enough growth to cover the shortfall, that’s just pure fantasy....Additionally, if tax reform is to remain revenue neutral, this merely means that the rich will enjoy lower rates, and the poor and middle classes will have to make up the difference."Actually as history has shown tax cuts are one of the best ways to get an economy rolling, look at the presidency of Ronald Reagan. The US economy had a bigger boom in the Reagan years than any time before, or since primarily due to the tax cuts. [1] In order to cover this shortfall in revenue, which my opponent speaks of, the GOP is in favor of reducing government spending, so that way there will not be a shortfall or a need for more tax revenue. The repeal of Obamacare and the rolling back of costly social programs and regulations create an avenue for tax cuts, which stimulate the economy. Along with that I'd also like to counter my opponents claim that the middle class would see an increase in tax rates, this is simply untrue as the GOP's plan calls for an across the board tax cut for ALL people. Just because the rich get their rates cut does not mean the middle class sees a rise in rates. R3:"On energy, Democrats have supported sustainability and renewables in favor of fossil fuels. So far there has been no commercially viable breakthrough that has revolutionized energy consumption for the majority of Americans, but we all know that eventually there will be one, and it needs to be developed here if America is to be at the forefront of the industry (and we do). Fossil fuels will run out"We all know fossil fuels will run out but right now we have to look at things realistically, the American economy is struggling, unemployment is high, now is not the time to attack our major, dependable and sustainable energy industries (coal, oil, natural gas etc.) To go along with this point, there is a major issue which you failed to address with these renewable energy sources. Take solar and wind for example, they can only work during certain times of the day, they are extremely costly, and very inefficient. [2] A far cry from the sustainable renewable resources the Democrats tout. I am not saying innovation is bad, but we can't abandon the industries we have that work for wasteful and inefficient ones especially with our economy being in its current condition.1. http://en.wikipedia.org...2. http://exploringgreentechnology.com...