The greatest threat to the United States is not Islamo-­terrorism but our own federal government.

The president and his cohorts in Congress seem bent on destroying the economy at the expense of the private sector: inhibiting growth in the private sector by supporting higher taxes on those who create the jobs and wealth; destroying access to quality health care with burdensome bureaucratic regulations; over-regulation of the financial sector; and ­weakening the United States internationally with an ­“apology tour” when we have given our blood and wealth to promote the cause of freedom for more than 100 years.

No wonder the American ­people are angry. Government can only confiscate, spend or redistribute wealth. Only the private sector can produce meaningful jobs, jobs that grow the wealth of this nation.

The president is attempting to fundamentally change the nation in ways the American people do not want. He is bent on punishing the private sector by taking from the producers and redistributing to the moochers. He believes that the United States is the root cause of the world’s problems. He is attempting to reduce the United States to a second-rate nation.

How dare he say that this nation is no more exceptional than any other when it has welcomed millions of downtrodden and prevented the enslavement of millions?

Our federal government has grown too large, our Congress has spent too much, and personal freedom has been eroded over time. The tea party movement stands for smaller, less intrusive government, less spending, lower taxes for all and more personal freedom, and means to stop this slide into mediocrity by electing those who believe in the time-tested strengths of the United States in November.

Peyton E. Cook

Southern Pines