At last: The primary battle is officially over. Now, let's talk policy.

Texas put the period on the end of the sentence in the race for the Republican nomination for president of the United States.

And thank goodness the bickering and finger-pointing are over and we can get down to the business of really looking at the two men who want to lead this country based on their policies and not sensationalist garbage.

Oops. Spoke too soon.

There is going to be mud hurled, and distractions will be raised in the battle for the White House. Some will come from Democrats, and some will come from Republicans.

And it will be tough to sort out what matters from what can best be described as irrelevant garbage. But that will be our most important job as voters this year.

This is a critical election year. Decisions made on leadership could fundamentally alter the future.

So paying attention and weeding through the immaterial is one of our most critical jobs as voters this year.

There are questions to be asked and policies to question. And there is an incumbent who needs to be held accountable for decisions he has made, and a challenger who must justify his claims that he has the better solution.

And it all has already begun in earnest.

The commercials are out and the sound bites are flowing. What we have to demand is an honest race. And to get one, we have to insist on it.

Voters are smarter this year. They have questions they want answered.

All they have to do is demand those answers to figure out who really is the best person to lead this country.

Published in Editorials on May 30, 2012 10:49 AM