By Garrett Receveur

The national debt stands at over 14 trillion dollars. Unemployment stands at 9.1 percent. The global economy is eroding away. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg warns that, as riots engulf Europe, New York City may be next.

The time for solutions to solve these problems is now. Barack Obama is entering the last year of his first term as president with disapproval for him and his administration rapidly increasing.

If Obama wants to remain in the White House for another term, he has to make significant headway in bringing our nation’s problems under control. He has to stop golfing and start leading.

It now seems that Obama is trying to come up with a viable solution.

His proposal is focused on eliminating three trillion dollars from our national debt over the next decade. Plans include a heavier tax on the wealthy, reductions on Medicare, and removing troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

These proposals to fix our country are in danger of falling into a partisan trap with Republicans trying to mar Obama’s image by destroying every facet of Obama’s proposals and with Democrats willing to pass anything to keep Obama in the White House.

Obviously, this is a gross over-simplification of the matter. There are proposals that Republicans agree with and some that Democrats disagree with.

There are going to be disagreements with Obama’s plan on both sides of the political spectrum, no one denies that. However, these disagreements need to be on the basis of what is best for the country, not on what voters want.

What this country needs now is a non-partisan approach to solving this economic crisis. Rigid party lines are more of a high brick wall, blocking progress in the right direction.

I am non-partisan. To be specific, I am economically conservative and socially liberal. I believe that the best way to solve this national debt problem is to cut spending and raise taxes. In addition, I am pro-life and pro-gay marriage.

My political beliefs combine those of the Democratic and Republican parties. Democrats are, for the most part, pro-gay marriage and pro-raising taxes. Republicans, on the other hand, are more pro-life and pro-spending cuts.

We often judge people based upon their political affiliations. We often associate Republicans with backwoods rednecks who speak with an unintelligible Southern drawl and Democrats with blind politicians concerned more with their public image than with doing what is best for the country.

Often, our particular party affiliations bind us with metaphorical blinders, happy with any action our party does and decrying any action the opposite party does. Sometimes, our party affiliations even cause us to sulk and take an axe to the television when a president from the opposite party is elected.

That happened to me in 2008 when Obama was elected. In the days before the election, I would often engage in intense political debates with my friends about why Republican John McCain would make a better president than Obama.

On Obama’s election night, I continuously pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.

In the years since Obama’s election, I have warmed up to him and other Democrats. Do I still think that Democrats are a curse put on mankind? No, absolutely not. Democrats and Republicans both have certain platforms I agree with and certain positions I don’t.

Regardless of our political affiliations, we must try to do what is best for our country in the months leading up to the 2012 election. If keeping Obama in the White House will solve this debt and jobs crisis, I hope you all will join me in cheering when he is reelected. If, however, Obama proves that he needs to go, I hope we will all cheer for his replacement with as much enthusiasm.

I think former president John Kennedy put it best when he said, “Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer.”

Now is not the time to fill Congress with one political party. Now is the time to put people who know what they’re doing into power in order to fix this crisis.