Can House Republicans Talk the Talk?
Minority Leader Boehner
To the surprise of no one, Republicans in the House of Representatives voted to keep Ohio Representative John Boehner and the party Leader (also referred to as the Minority Leader).
Of course, the right-wing pundits here in Washington have proclaimed that John Boehner will use this role to help bring a conservative voice back to the Republican Party.
Have these people not been following Congressional politics for the last year?
Based on recent statements, it even appears that Boehner himself has forgotten the actions of House Republicans over the last year:
(from Politico.com)
“In recent years Americans lost faith in us; stopped believing we are what we claim to be,” Boehner said. “There are various views on why. Some blame President Bush. Others blame Congressional Republicans and our own actions during our 12 years in the majority. While there are many views on why Americans lost their faith, we’re unanimous on one thing: it’s time to win it back.”
Sure, some blame President Bush, and yes, others might blame actions taken during our time in the majority. However, in my opinion, it’s a well versed cop-out.
I think it’s safe to say that for the most part, it’s only those who have been sipping on the Potomac Kool-Aid that truly think that people base their perceptions of the current House Republicans based on what happened during their time in the Majority.
It’s unfortunate to see that just moments after he was re-elected as Minority Leader, one of his first statements was the response of a typical politician, something most are sick of.
It’s not President Bush, and it’s not even the former Majority. People are upset with the Republican Party because of the actions that they took in the past year, actions that were spearheaded by Leader Boehner, which is probably why he wont step up and address that bit of information.
Let’s not forget that Leader Boehner was one of the House Republicans claiming that we needed this Wall Street Bailout, despite the massive public outcry of opposition.
Leader Boehner will vote for a bailout that will cost taxpayers $700,000,000,000.00, but then also make statements like this:
“Washington is broken, and it will never be fixed until the earmarks stop and fundamental reform begins”
While I’m not as smart as many members of Congress, pro-reform statements like the one above, followed by a vote for the bailout seem a bit contradictory to me. Maybe I just need more of that Potomac Kool-Aid to see the light.
I think that Leader Boehner could be a great voice for the Republican Party, and more importantly the conservative base. Aside from this, his record is quite impressive.
Unfortunately for Republicans in the House, the biggest issue is the economy, which would normally be a good thing for Republicans.
However courtesy of the latest actions by some in the GOP (support for the bailout), if they want to be trusted by the American people, they’re going to have to grow a pair, and those who voted for the bailout are going to have to admit that they made a mistake and promise to be more responsible with taxpayer money.
Unfortunately, as you can see in Leader Boehner’s statement, the one thing you can’t get a politcian to do is admit that they made a mistake.
I guess we just have to ask ourselves, If con is the opposite of pro then what is the opposite of progress?
Baby Palin Video
After seeing dozens of Palin lookalikes, the girl in this video definitely steals the spotlight:
Chained to a Corpse: The GOP and Why McCain Lost.
Part I: A Fetid Corpse
A German general in World War One once lamented that the alliance with the moribund Austrian-Hungarian Empire, an alliance that was daily diminishing Imperial Germany’s chances at victory, was akin to being chained to a corpse. Of course, since that term was coined, it has been used to describe many situations. At present, it was also fitting description for John McCain’s run for the White House in 2008. Despite the lunacy that Barack Obama represents, and his barely concealed socialistic intentions, as well as his alliances with radicals, John McCain lost the election simply because no matter what he did (or for that matter, what Obama did) the electorate was unwilling to vote for a Republican. Indeed, once the economic crisis struck McCain was doomed because the voters trusted the Democrats more than the Republicans to fix the economy. One wonders how it could have come to this considering that only a few short years ago the GOP was the party of fiscal responsibility, enlarging its majority in the Congress and re-electing President Bush. Of course, the answer to this somewhat ironic turn of events is simple insofar as the Republican Party has become a walking corpse and a victim of its own greed, decadence and hubris.
If the corpse was to have a name it would most certainly be Senator Ted Stevens. Though most would, at first blush, automatically go to George W. Bush, I think that Stevens is a far more apt symbol of the transformation from the party of Reagan to the big-government, big-spending and ethically challenged leviathan that suffered a staggering defeat on November 4th.
Uncle Ted reacts badly to his future in prison.
Stevens, as you may know, has served a staggering 39 years in the Senate and has recently been convicted on seven counts of corruption. Stevens is known for his affinity for pork, including the infamous bridges to nowhere, as well as his total misunderstanding of modern concepts like the internet (which he thought was made up of a series of tubes).
It is men like Ted Stevens that is at the root of the public’s negative perception of the Republican Party. Stevens is a perfect example of the Republican incumbent that has served so long as to be corrupted by the process. He is out of touch, is a fiscal hypocrite (though he has a point about wealth distribution vis-à-vis Alaska and the rest of the Union) and his refusal to resign is indicative of a gross sense of entitlement and terminal hubris. He has betrayed the public’s trust and used and abused his august position making his constituents look like utter fools.
Uncle Ted the REMIX!
Of course, as noted, Stevens is not the sole offender as one could name any number of so-called Republicans who have compromised themselves and the people they were elected to represent. Names like DeLay, Cunningham, as well as everyone involved with the wretched Jim Abramhoff, have sullied the reputation of the GOP to the point that one can argue that the current incarnation of the Party is nothing like the one led by Ronald Reagan or even George H.W. Bush.
Arthur Harris, the commanding officer of Britain’s Bomber Command during World War Two once warned his German adversaries that they would “reap the whirlwind” for their habit of bombing civilian targets. The same could be said for this election year and it remains to be seen if they can dig themselves out of the rubble.
To be continued with Part II: How the GOP can turn defeat into victory in 2010 and 2012.
Veterans Day, Not Just Another Day Off
Today is Veterans Day. What does that mean? Is it just another day off? No. It is a day of remembrance. It is also a day of hope. In remembrance of those who gave everything to a dream, and hope for the gift they bought with their lives. Yes it is Veterans Day, but ask any veteran and he or she will tell you that this day is really for those who never came home…
Veterans saved this Republic in its most desperate moments. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and his men made an Obama victory possible.
Let us consider the last week. We have just elected a new President. Moreover, he will be our first African-American President and a testament to our nation’s greatness in its ability to overcome past wrongs. We will have a peaceful transition of power in a world filled with coups, strongmen and barely veiled dictatorships. We take this for granted these days but we must never forget what it took to reach this period in our history where we have such peace and prosperity. Our nation was underwritten by the blood of our fighting men and its future is guaranteed by the same.
Consider the victory of Barack Obama last week. We have a black President, something that was unthinkable within living memory. Who made this possible? It was the blood of Union soldiers that made the hopes and dreams of an entire race reality. It was the solider fighting a desperate battle in a desperate war on Little Round Top withstanding the invincible tide of Robert E. Lee’s gray legions. It was Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain fighting to the last that saved the Army of the Potomac, and the United States from utter and total defeat.
What about the freedom we enjoy? Would we be able to engage in a bloodless election if it were not for the heroics of the American fighting man in the face of Hitler’s Wehrmacht and Tojo’s fanatics? Or perhaps we should dwell on how this nation was founded in the first place. It was not rational discourse nor petitions to King George III that allowed our Republic to gasp its first breath, no, it was the blood of the first patriots, split at Lexington, Concorde, Bunker Hill and finally Yorktown, that gave birth to the dream that has become the United States.
Thank a veteran, they built this nation, especially those you never came home…
So on this day remember how it was we have become the greatest nation on the planet. For all those political types out there, forget about the perception of your contribution to the United States in electing Obama or fighting the good fight for McCain and take the time out of your day to thank the real heroes of the Republic; those who gave up everything they ever were, and all their hopes and dreams, so that the dream that is liberty could come to full fruition.
Gun Control and Secessionitis
And now for something completely different…
Now that the campaign is over and Barack Obama has emerged victorious, we must now consider the far-left proposals he is bound to enact now that the pandering is over. Though President-Elect Obama has repudiated gun control for the purposes of the election, it is likely he will return to form soon enough. Throughout his barely mediocre legislative career, Obama was a champion of gun control in all its various forms. In 1998 Obama proposed banning all semi-automatic weapons (which is most of them short of hunting rifles) as well as keeping all firearms out of the inner city (never mind how he would be able to achieve this). Now are we likely to see a new assault-rifle ban or hand gun ban? Moreover, what is the likelihood that Obama appoints anti-gun Justices to the Supreme Court (count on it)? In any case, it is probable that Second Amendment rights will come under attack by Obama and his Democratic colleagues in the Congress. Beyond the expected protests and waves of indignation that will emanate from the NRA and gun owners, another unexpected consequence may complicate Obama’s crusade to protect us from ourselves: secessionitis.
The voice of reason…but for how long?
Ok, so I can already gauge the reaction of readers out there. What state in their right mind would threaten secession over gun control? As amazing as it may seem (or not) the State of Montana has threatened secession once before over Second Amendment issues. I am not speaking of a few militia nuts or libertarians; I am referring to a joint resolution from the legislature of Montana warning the Supreme Court that they would secede from the Union if the proper decision was not reached in the recent D.C. vs. Heller case.
If Obama returns to form and begins an assault on gun rights will we see Montana once again threaten secession? Would other states use the Second Amendment as a pretext for secession? It is no secret that several states already have secessionist movements. Groups in Texas have longed cherished a dream of independence ever since Texas joined the Union and agitate for it still (though with no real success). Alaska has a substantial secessionist movement in the form of the Alaska Independence Party that, incidentally, has already elected a governor in the recent past (Hickell in 1992).
Old timey beards prevent the AIP from garnering more than 10% of the vote.
Though the possibility of secession remains remote, Montana’s recent resolution reveals that the polarization of partisan views in the US is more than politics and is a real symptom of a vast difference of opinion as to the very nature of the United States. Are we a nation built upon a pioneering spirit and the can-do spirit of Horatio Alger? Or are we a nation that must improve on its rustic origins and join with the nations of Europe and have the government guarantee a certain standard of living for all citizens? If the latter were to occur is there a right to secession based on an attitude of “I didn’t leave America, America left me?” Questions to ponder, as far-fetched as they may be, though it wouldn’t be the first time the election of a President has created a bout of secessionitis.