By By ERIKA PICKLES / Niles Daily Star
NILES – Could you imagine having the opportunity to be President of the United States for one day? What would you do? Would you fly around the United States on Air Force One? Order Starbucks lattes throughout the day while trying to solve a number of different problems in America? Or would you do something to help every U.S. citizen?
According to women in the Niles area, they would choose to make as much of an impact as they could in the short 24-hour period.
This week, the Daily Star hit the streets to ask women what they would do if they were President for a day. To most, the answers almost instantly popped in their minds.
"I would start by bringing all of our troops home for good. It's time," Keri Ferrell said.
On a less serious note, and for a shot at making the oil industry shut down for a day, Ferrell said she would give out free gas for the day. "Hey, I can do what I want right? I would also go shopping and buy a house with the salary I would make off one day of work," she added.
Amber Fergison would pay for someone to decorate her Christmas tree, just as they do at the White House.
"They pay people like $10,000 just to decorate that tree," she said.
Fergison would also pass a law that would allow all uninsured people to have free health insurance.
"A lot of people in this country do not have insurance and that's something that should be fixed," she said.
Madelyn Stocks of South Bend, Ind. also thinks the same about health care.
"I would make healthcare funded by the government so that everyone would have free healthcare," she said.
Kim Ferrell's first item on her list would be to make a mandatory English speaking law for every United States citizen.
"It's ridiculous. I called a company the other day and the very first voice I heard was some lady speaking in Spanish, then she spoke in English. We live in America, we speak English and this needs to be enforced. That would be like us going to another country and wanting them to change their language to English just because we moved there and it's not fair. If you want to live here and enjoy the freedoms we have then first things first, learn English," she said.
Vivian Brown of Niles said one of her priorities would also be to make sure everyone knew how to speak English.
"I get frustrated when I have to call numbers and ask for help or when I walk into a store and there are conversations going on around me that aren't in English. You don't know what those people are saying, they could be planning to rob you or could just be downgrading you and it isn't right," she said.
The next item on her list would be to fire most of the government workers and start with a new group of employees who are actually for the people.
"It's unreal. You cannot trust anyone anymore and some of our highest officials are as crooked as a tree limb, so I would go through a crucial hiring phase," she said.
Peggy Daus of Niles said she would tighten a lot of the laws that have to do with criminals, especially convicted child abusers and sex offenders.
"They wouldn't get off as easy as they do now. I would make sure their punishments were much more strict," she said.
Daus said she would also bring most of our troops home and make it mandatory to have security in every school, shopping mall and other highly populated area.
Last but not least, she would make every kind of birth control product free.
"There are too many children in bad situations," she said.
Men look out. If and when women rule the White House, things may get pretty tough.