This is the United States, where the government is run by and for the people. On Tuesday, we will all go out and practice our right for which our ancestors so valiantly died – the right to vote. We have the power to change our government as we see fit. It is our obligation to take action and vote.

Many people in the media seem to simply accept a lot of the corruption in our current government by allowing patronage hiring and exhibiting an unwillingness to stand up and take charge. It seems that everyone has been subject to a ceaseless barrage of bad news. Sometimes it can be overwhelming to deal with the problems in our large and bureaucratic government, but are we going to give up to corruption and political wrongdoing? No, we have to stand against what is wrong and show that the power lies with people.

What has been done is done, though we can make a difference this November. Gov. Rod Blagojevich has been more than detrimental to our trust in government. Not only has he failed to stop corruption during his term, his expansion of health care has only furthered our already massive debt.

For instance, our Medicaid program is increasing in size and eating up tax dollars that are needed in other sectors. According to the Illinois State Senate Republicans’ Web site, www.senategop.state.il.us, our Medicaid program costs more than $7 billion per year. This rate is increasing in size and is estimated to double by the year 2009. Perhaps the most startling part about this gigantic growth rate is that it is averaging between 4 and 6 percent greater growth than the rest of the state government. What this amounts to is unpaid bills, unhappy doctors and insurmountable debt. We need to focus on paying our current bills before we expand our current programs.

If that doesn’t worry you, does the corruption? A top fundraiser for Blago’s campaign has been charged with a serious crime. According to an article by The Associated Press, businessman Stuart Levine pled guilty to “using his seats on two state boards in a bid to collect millions of dollars in kickbacks.”

Also, the governor has been questioned when his daughter received a check as a gift from a friend. Normally, a gift check is nothing, but it is unusual that soon after the check was given, the benefactor’s wife received a state job. Even though the governor insisted it was merely a gift from a long-time friend, this is a bit of a coincidence.

Who is holding the governor responsible for his actions? We, the people, have a responsibility to do so. Isn’t it about time to make a change? The answer isn’t as clear as it may appear. With elections coming up soon, many promises are being made to change Illinois for the better. But if we are going to change, it would make sense to start over with a fresh person in the governor’s office.