R.I.P. GOP?

Commentary by James Shott
 
The Republican Party is a mess. It has:
    •    Lost its way as a political force;
    •    Largely abandoned American traditions and founding principles;
    •    Become “Democrat lite,” because Republicans nowadays so often think and vote like Democrats;
    •    Failed to listen to its members.

With the GOP disintegrating there is little to halt or slow the devolution of the United States into just one more failed socialist state, something Barack Obama has worked tirelessly to achieve, and which either Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders would continue.

Donald Trump leads conventional Republican candidates in the primaries and caucuses, which surprises and confounds the party elite, who thought he would be a flash in the pan, and would soon fade away, leaving them to continue abandoning their party’s role in protecting the American way of life, and ignoring the concerns of their voters. This effectively demonstrates how badly they have misjudged the level of anger and disgust with the current state of their party that rank and file Republicans feel today, as well as the high degree of dissatisfaction they and a host of non-Republicans have with the federal government.

Trump’s behavior is at once energizing and destructive. It has won him a large following, and at the same time has exaggerated the party’s fracturing, pitting candidates against him and against each other in an elementary schoolyard brawl. But his tactic of saying things others are afraid to say, and ignoring the stupid but daunting rules of political correctness, has energized millions of dissatisfied Republicans, and has attracted non-Republicans, including blacks and Hispanics, to his campaign.

The “establishment” Republicans – those whose weak-kneed perspective has transformed the party to Democrat lite – are working to subvert the primary process, disenfranchising the Republican primary/caucus voters. The establishment’s behavior over recent years is precisely why things are as they are, and hardly anything could be worse than ignoring the plain message sent by the voters in the primaries and caucuses that substantial change in the GOP is needed. It is difficult to imagine that the Republican Party will be able to survive if it betrays the loud voices of those who make up the party telling them to man up, and still remain a viable political entity.

A perfect example of the tone-deafness of the party elite is the blistering condemnation of Donald Trump by 2012 GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who turned backflips to make Trump seem like the Devil incarnate. If that doesn’t seem strange, consider that during the campaign four years ago, following Trump’s endorsement, Romney effusively praised him, and then proceeded to lose the election by failing to be as strong in his opposition to Obama as he was in his praise of Trump.

It is another tribute to the failure of the GOP establishment that it regards Romney’s foolish trashing of Trump more highly than the candidate now leading the party’s nominating process.

Peggy Noonan, who was Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan and now a political columnist for The Wall Street Journal, wrote last week, “I think we are seeing a great political party shatter before our eyes. I’m not sure I see a way around or through.” Of the spectacle of last Tuesday’s debate in Detroit she noted that the current GOP crisis is “something bigger than 1976, that traumatic year when a Republican insurgent almost toppled the incumbent Republican president. Bigger too than 1964, when Goldwater conservatism swept the primaries and convention and lost the country.”

She asserts that what is happening now is more serious and less reparable because it is not about political philosophy. But it seems that the party’s abandonment of conservative principles is precisely what this is about.

By ignoring the increasing frustration of the rank and file over Republicans in Congress failing to stand up against liberalizing of government policies and recent executive branch excesses, the party elite set the stage for Donald Trump’s stunning dominance among those seeking the party’s nomination.

Where Trump is concerned the party elite is damned if they do and damned if they don’t. If they allow the process to play out and he wins the nomination, someone believed by millions to be neither a Republican, a conservative or suitable to be president will carry the Party banner into the election.

If they continue the plot to subversively prevent Trump from getting the nomination, they will alienate millions of otherwise dependable Republican voters.

It seems likely at this stage that the Republican Party will endure, but not as a meaningful political force equal to the Democrat Party. The Republican establishment will be left holding the tatters of a once-Grand Old Party while conservatives move on to greener pastures.

Disaffected Republican voters and others dissatisfied with the status quo that might have stuck with or joined a conservative GOP now will seek an organization that honors and defends the U.S. Constitution not only in word, but also in deed.

The question is whether without a viable opponent to Hillary or Bernie, or a split among those opponents, will it be possible four or eight years later to repair the damage likely to result from another liberal/socialist in the White House?

Cross-posted from Observations

Snatching Defeat From The Jaws Of Victory

Snatching Defeat From The Jaws Of Victory

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Recently I wrote:

“America is at a point in world history when we need a strong leader -- a leader not afraid to assert America’s leadership.  Obama is NOT that person.

I am very afraid there is no one vying for America’s leadership today any stronger as a national or world leader. 

In a recent column, Thomas Sowell said:  “The 2012 Republican primaries may be a rerun of the 2008 primaries, where the various conservative candidates split the conservative vote so many ways that the candidate of the mushy middle got the nomination – and then lost the election.”   I think he pegged it.” (SOURCE)

I have watched intently as the GOP goes all out to lose the 2012 election to Obama and the democrats.  I continue to be puzzled, or as we used to say in the south – “bumfuzzled” – by what MUST be a concerted effort to lose the next election.

Pardon me, if I show my befuddlement … because I just don’t get it.

A sense of “doom” has already set in among the legions of conservative voters in the south. Their sense that the hierarchy of the Republican Party is so completely detached from the reality on the ground (at least here in states of the old south) has been, (they feel) proved absolutely true.

There is a growing sense of “why bother” to go to the polls and vote when the election is already lost to Obama.

Look.  I am no more intelligent that the average guy.  And I have seen the great wave of exhilaration and expectation of victory crash against a shoreline of mediocre candidates that have proved more an embarrassment than anything else.  That great wave has been diminished to a mere ripple in an isolated tide pool.

If you want to know what’s going on in your community – go to the community barbershop.  I did that yesterday.  Turns out, my barber has been taking a very unscientific poll on who his patrons would vote for in the GOP Primary here in North Carolina (currently scheduled for May).  He has been polling since the South Carolina Primary.  The results are interesting and informative.

My barber told me that, to a man, every single patron stated they would vote for Gingrich in May.

My community is heavily Democratic and heavily conservative. 

I pressed to learn who those would-be primary voters thought would win the election in November.  The answer, to a man, was … Obama.

For months now we have warned that if the GOP is counting on conservative voters to vote for the nominee, whomever the nominee turns out to be, then – the GOP is very wrong.  Sure, there will be SOME conservative voters who would cast a vote for, well, anybody, just to vote against Obama. But I am not hearing that sentiment expressed here.

Here’s what I THINK is happening:

Southern voters have concluded that Romney cannot win. Southern voters just don’t like the man.  They are satisfied that Gingrich will not win the nomination, so they feel it is safe to support and vote for Gingrich if for no other reason than Gingrich brings a little fire, fervor, passion, and a little excitement to an otherwise hum-drum campaign that is already a lost cause.

The more debates, the more infighting, the more defecation is tossed into the fan blades, the more damage will be done the eventual republican nominee.  It is already bad enough, but it is sure to get worse.

So, I wonder if it is time to turn our attention to the candidates for the US Senate and House of Representatives and redouble our efforts to claim more governorships for conservatives and stop wasting our time and effort on a predetermined race for the GOP nominee for President.

I am neither an optimist nor a pessimist.  I am a realist.  With me the glass is neither half full nor half empty.  It is simply the wrong size glass.

J. D. Longstreet

Campaign reveals good ideas from Republican bpresidential candidates

Commentary by James H. Shott


The Republican debates certainly have been, well, interesting. The candidates have managed to dredge up all kinds of dirt on each other, and talk liberally about each other’s shortcomings.

Political insiders tell us that it’s good to get all the dirt and negatives out now, so that whoever wins the nomination won’t have all of that coming out during the more critical campaign. Maybe so.

They say politics is a dirty game. But really, politics isn’t inherently dirty; the players are dirty, and the public perceives this, according to a bipartisan survey commissioned by the Project on Campaign Conduct. Of those surveyed:
• 59% believe that all or most candidates deliberately twist the truth.
• 39% believe that all or most candidates deliberately lie to voters.
• 43% believe that most or all candidates deliberately make unfair attacks on their opponents.
• 67% say they can trust the government in Washington only some of the time or never.
• 87% are concerned about the level of personal attacks in today's political campaigns.

Does negative campaigning work; is mudslinging effective? Herman Cain is the most visible recent target of mudslinging, being accused by three women of having made unwanted advances, and another alleging a long-term affair. Are these charges true? Who knows, other than the women making the accusations and Mr. Cain. But have you noticed that since he suspended his campaign, you don’t hear much from those women?

Nobody’s perfect, of course, as is more than amply illustrated by President Barack Obama, whose dismal performance has disappointed nearly everyone at one time or another and left the nation in the economic doldrums. The Republican field also has weaknesses, as we learn daily. However, despite the mudslinging that covers up nearly everything else, there are some good ideas from people who have much to offer in the way of experience and accomplishments.

Rick Perry served five years as a pilot in the United States Air Force, was elected Lieutenant Governor of Texas in 1998 and assumed the governorship in December 2000 when then-governor George W. Bush resigned to become President of the United States. He has served as Governor of Texas ever since, and the state has been at the top of all states in job creation and for low unemployment rates through the current downturn.

Gov. Perry wants a part-time, bi-annual Congress. This would be a return to the original concept of citizen legislators. That change would save a good bit of money on the operation of Congress, and having Representatives and Senators who live and work in the real world certainly couldn’t hurt.

Just imagine all of the laws they couldn’t pass with that schedule, the legislative mischief that we would avoid, and the insider trading that Congresspersons could no longer indulge in.

He also wants to impose 18-year term limits on the federal judiciary, which sounds like a reasonable idea. Why should judges enjoy lifetime tenure when neither the president nor members of Congress do? Congress should not be a career choice, and neither should the federal judiciary.

Newt Gingrich earned a history PhD from Tulane University and taught college history and geography before entering politics and being elected to the House of Representatives. Rising to become Speaker of the House, he engineered the first Republican majority to be re-elected in 68 years. Among the first pieces of legislation passed by Congress with Mr. Gingrich as Speaker was the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995, which subjected members of Congress to the same laws that apply to businesses and their employees. He led the way in Congress and negotiated with President Bill Clinton to pass welfare reform, and led the House when it produced the first balanced budget in 30 years.

Mr. Gingrich’s ideas are frequently criticized, even ridiculed, and it is true that the man has dozens of ideas and not all of them are equally great ideas, It is common for his critics to take what he says out of context, or to deliberately misstate the premise of his ideas.

He thinks teaching kids about work and responsibility by paying them to work in their school assisting janitors, librarians and office staff makes sense. Given how many Americans have to be taken care of by taxpayers because they are unprepared to get and hold a job, helping young people develop a work ethic and learn the value of earning their own way can’t hurt, and would go a long way toward reversing the dependency that the big government folks in Washington so dutifully cultivate.

Perhaps Mr. Gingrich’s and Gov. Perry’s ideas need fine-tuning or modification, but it certainly cannot hurt to consider reforming how our government operates, or finding ways to help young people learn the value of work.

All the Republican candidates have baggage; they are human, after all. But we are not electing a savior. We tried that in 2008, and it did not come out well. We are electing a president who will be , like the rest of us, a fallible human being. What we want is someone who has a record of accomplishment, and some productive ideas to make things better.

Cross-posted from Observations

Ron Paul Next To Be “Creamed” By GOP

Ron Paul Next To Be “Creamed” By GOP

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Sometimes I’m a little slow on the up-take but decades of following US politics as my favorite sport has given me enough insight into the way politics works, at the upper levels, to know that the GOP chose its nominee a very long time ago.  Of course, it is Mitt Romney.  All the hoopla, the debates, etc, really don’t matter. For when the smoke clears, the man who will be crowned as the GOP nominee for President of the United States will be Mitt Romney.  You can, as my old Grand pappy would say:  “Put that in your pipe and smoke it!”

In the spirit of full disclosure allow me to state clearly that I do not intend to vote for Romney either in the North Carolina Primary or the Presidential Election in November of 2012.  It is a matter of honor for me… not to mention that I am royally PO’ed at the Republican Party for “foisting” Romney on conservative voters under what I consider false colors.  Its as though Romney is wearing a tattoo saying:  “GOP APPROVED: CONSERVATIVE.”

The state motto of North Carolina is:  “To be, rather than to seem.” In Romney’s case I fear it is “to seem, rather than to be.”  I am not the least bit convinced of the validity of Romney’s conservative credentials. 

The GOP has managed to convince me that it is focused on beating Obama.  I, on the other hand, am focused on “saving America.”  And THAT, Dear Reader, is where the focus of all Americans SHOULD be … in my not so humble opinion. 

We have come only a short way from the smoke-filled rooms in which candidates used to be chosen by the party.  In fact, about the only thing that has really changed is that the rooms are now smoke free.  I am convinced that Romney’s victory at the GOP convention was planned, and assured, in one of those legendary rooms.

The endless debates, this cycle, appear to have been dreamt-up by a group of leftists in Hollywood. I honestly think the debates have done the candidates more harm than good -- so far as their individual campaigns are concerned.  On the other hand, the debates have been a storehouse of ammunition for the candidate’s Democratic Party opposition.  This election cycle, with the democratic candidate for President having no opposition from within his own party, the debates have – I strongly believe -- only hurt the GOP candidates.

We have witnessed the effect the GOP leadership has had, so far, on the various campaigns and we are about to see even more. 

We have seen that any candidate posing so much as a hint of a threat to Romney is crushed and destroyed by the party leaders and elite.  Each time any one of the other candidates began to rise in the polls and seemed to present a threat, they have been ground down.

The candidates remaining in the GOP race are
”also rans.”  They either present no threat, whatsoever, to Romney, or they are being hammered into insignificance by the GOP.

Gingrich is getting the squeeze even as I write.  Ron Paul is next.  These two men will be smeared and very nearly ruined if they do not back off. 

Yes, the GOP does eat it’s own.  I have said for many years that the GOP is its own worst enemy. 

Look.  The majority of the GOP voters do not want Romney (especially conservative voters).  One look at his ossified poll numbers will reveal that to a blind man. BUT -- you can bet the farm we are going to have him as our candidate come the Republican Convention next year.

I have a problem with authority.  Always have.  I have even more trouble with those in authority who believe they know better than I do what is best for me. And at this moment, I am livid with the Republican Party for deciding that Mitt Romney is best for me.

Heck, I don’t care for the man.  I didn’t like his father.  I don’t care for his brand of politics, and as a southerner, I am not particularly enamored of the state from which he hails.  And I do not like being pushed -- or herded -- toward a voting booth where I am expected to vote for him -- because the GOP insists that I must.

I vote for a candidate because I am convinced that candidate can do the job the way I want it done.  No amount of pressure will get me to vote for the party’s favorite unless the party’s favorite happens to be my favorite.  I’m wired that way.  If my parents were still living they would quickly, and vehemently, verify that fact.

The thing is – I believe there is a host of conservative voters across America who feels the same way. And the GOP is doing itself no favor by acting as the puppet master pulling the strings on the GOP campaign show.

It has been awhile since I have felt that I really had a choice of candidates from the list of GOP candidates for President.  So, I went to the polls and wrote in a candidate’s name rather than vote for the party’s choice.  I will do that again next year.

For better or for worse, I will decide for whom I cast my ballot… not the GOP, or anyone else. 

This whole GOP campaign has been, and continues to be, a charade.  That is my opinion, of course.  You may think otherwise.  But I defy you to watch what happens to Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul in the next few days and weeks (on top of what has happened to Cain and Bachmann, already) and still hold any belief that the hierarchy of the GOP has not had a hand in their destruction.

It’s enough to make a thoughtful man retch!

Finally, if the Republican Party loses this election, (As I am convinced it will) it has only to look in the mirror to see the culprit.  To learn why – they must look much deeper.  

J. D. Longstreet  

Enough, Already, With The Debates

Enough, Already, With The Debates

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

I am not a debater… never have been.  Although I have been speaking publicly since the age of nine, I hate debates.

You may have noticed that I DO tend to favor commentaries.  In a commentary I am allowed to express my views completely, without interruption, and then sit back and wait for the fur to fly. 

I have no interest in arguing my positions or opinions.  Once stated -- that’s it!   I don’t argue.  Its not worth the time and effort necessary to sway someone else’s opinion my way.  I simply don’t care if you disagree with me.   Once my personal deliberations are complete and I make my opinions known, I am finished.  (I know the shrinks would have a field day with this!) 

All this leads me to the so-called debates between the GOP candidates seeking the Republican Party nomination for President of the United States.  Only a child would confuse the debates with a press conference … for that is all they are … press conferences.  They are “gotcha” sessions.  Little is learned from them though they make for grand spectacle.

We Americans have a strange way of choosing whom we send to Washington to represent us on The Hill and in the Oval Office.  It is more than “passing strange.”

One quality we Americans demand from a candidate that I see nowhere else in the free world is… “purity.”  We conservatives absolutely demand purity in our conservative belief.   We never really get it – but we continue to demand it anyway. 

Election cycle after election cycle we swear we will never “settle” – never choose the lesser of two evils – then we go right ahead and do it anyway.

The debates are really just theatre.  Most conservatives already know whom they want as the nominee long before the first debate.  But we watch and we listen and we wince when the candidates stumble and fumble and make ridiculous mistakes while under the tremendous pressure of millions of viewers – not to mention well-versed questioners (with notes from weeks of research) making every effort possible to trip them up or, in a myriad of ways, make them look foolish. 

Then there is this:  Why are there so many candidates on the stage, anyway?  It is ridiculous.  We all know there are maybe two or three candidates who have even a prayer of a chance at the nomination.  Why not have only those two or three candidates and allow for a more relaxed atmosphere and more time for the candidates to formulate answers in their minds before responding to a question.  It would certainly give the viewers and listeners a bit more insight into the way a candidate thinks.

As a former broadcaster, I have to tell you, in my view; the debates are more for the broadcasters and press than for the electorate.  Its sort of like the Oscars -- Hollywood stars salivating and honoring themselves while preening before the cameras assuring us all of their deep concern for their fellowman.  Malarkey! Hogwash! 

Never, ever, believe the Mainstream Media doesn’t do the very same thing.  They are “stars” in their own right.  If you don’t believe it – ask them! 

I’ve done pressers and news conferences.  I have been the guy with the pad and pencil furiously taking notes as the center of attention babbles on.  I’ve been the guy trying desperately to shove his microphone into the face of some politician, or other, in hopes of catching some rare pearls of wisdom dripping from those esteemed lips. I have been there.   I know a little about how news folks work.  I also know what a bit of public adulation can do to the egos of a few very insecure news personalities. 

The whole debate thing really ought to be dumped.  Rather, a roundtable discussion between the candidates and a few members of the electorate would be far more informative to the public. 

The debates, as they are staged today, are more about entertainment and the star quality of the press corp than they are about genuinely informing the American electorate.

It is a shame, really.  Much COULD be learned -- important stuff, too.  But so long as we stick with the current format of the “debates” the electorate will have to glean their information elsewhere.

And then – there is this:  The GOP debates are the best weapon Obama and the Democratic Party have … at the moment.  There are no Democratic Party debates because Obama has no democratic challenger.  So all the screw-ups, all the mistakes, all the brain freezes, all the “space-outs” are happening to the republican candidates.  It makes them look weak, confused, even a little, well, dumb.  The Mainstream Media, which is in the tank for Obama and the Democratic Party, will play all the screw-ups and glitches of the Republicans to the hilt in order to make their extraordinarily weak President look better. Obama is SOOO bad, it doesn’t take much to make him look better.

In light of all this -- even more debates are in the offing. Wouldn’t it make more sense to STOP DEBATING?  But, hey, this is politics.  Who said it is supposed to make sense? 

J. D. Longstreet

Raising Cain!

Raising Cain!

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Surprise, surprise!  Herman Cain has risen to at least a tie for the number one slot amongst the candidates for the GOP nomination for President.  It seems everyone is surprised – but Herman Cain.

So – what the heck is going on here? 

Here’s what I THINK is happening:

REAL conservatives within the republican ranks are in near rebellion.  They actually LIKE Herman Cain and they actually LIKE his platform.  But that is only a part of the story here… in my opinion.

Conservative republicans have made no secret of the fact that they do not want Romney as the GOP candidate for President.  That puts them at direct odds with the GOP and the RNC.

See, Romney was supposed to be the GOP candidate this time round.  I the time honored fashion of the Republican Party, it is Romney’s turn.  Never mind that he has very little chance of actually beating Obama in a head to head race for the Oval Office, the GOP made its decision that Romney would be the candidate long ago.  They made a very serious mistake.  They didn’t ask the grassroots conservatives in the parry how they felt about it.  Had they done so, the republican field of candidates would be very different than it is today.

I catch a lot of flak concerning my insistence that Obama stands a better than even chance of winning four more years in the Presidency.  In fact, I believe there is every reason to believe that he WILL win another term even with all the problems the country has today… many of which can be traced directly to his inadequacy as a leader on the national and international stage.

Never, ever, underestimate the democrat’s election machine and their willingness to do whatever it takes to win an election.  I am seriously afraid the GOP is making that mistake in the2012 election and, as a result, may find themselves waiting four more years for a shot at the Presidency.

Now.  The grassroots conservatives do not like Mr. Romney’s politics.  He is far too liberal a candidate for tastes.  (Please.  Do not try to convince me that Romney is a conservative.  History is on my side.) 

Mr. Romney is a pure politician who will trim his sails for the prevailing political winds.  He will continue to tack, either side of the wind, to get to his destination.  Just as a seasoned sailor can tack either side of the wind to take their vessel just about anywhere they want, regardless of the winds direction, Mr. Romney has a past record of just such maneuvering.  Conservatives don’t like that.  They REALLY don’t like it.  And southern conservatives like it even less.

So, what to do?  Support a so-called second tier candidate, a candidate they actually like to begin with, but has very little chance of achieving the anointment of the GOP.  Walla!  Herman Cain.

I am a born and bred southerner.  I eat, sleep, and breathe southern.  As such, I can tell you today, that I would not be surprised if Herman Cain swept the primaries in the southern states. 

Why would conservatives vote for another inexperienced black man for president?   The answer is simple … Mr. Cain strikes them as an honest, no bull, honorable man.  Cain has held fast to his principles and has impressed conservatives with his forthright answers to the media’s questions, and (and this is VERY important) he has the ability to lift the spirits of conservatives and inspire that “can do” spirit that made this country great in the first place.  Southern conservatives are drawn to his gracious southern charisma. And … contrary to what the liberal press, the democrats, and Hollywood would have you believe -- the southern people are no more racist than any other Americans. 

Now.  Having said all of the above … this is a very fluid campaign season among republicans because we have been asked, again, to support a candidate we don’t like.  We are tired of “settling” for a candidate and we would really like for once in a very long while to be able to endorse, and support our republican candidate will all the enthusiasm and energy we have not been able to commit to ca candidate since Ronald Reagan.

Now we wait for establishment republicans to undermine the Cain campaign and make sure Romney regains the top spot in the polls.   You can be sure the heat will be on Mr. Cain and it will increase in intensity in the immediate future.

That calls for a warning to the Romney campaign.  Whether conservatives go to the polls and cast a ballot in November or stay at home disgusted, may very well depend upon the Romney campaign’s efforts to discredit and/or destroy Herman Cain’s campaign.

I say, again:  If Romney is the GOP nominee, there is a very good chance that Obama will be returned to the Oval Office for four more years.  Frankly, I’m not at all certain America can survive another Obama term in office.

  

J. D. Longstreet

GOP Set To Steamroll Conservative Voters … AGAIN!

GOP Set To Steamroll Conservative Voters … AGAIN!

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

I am fed up with being the “red-headed stepchild” of the Republican Party!

I am a conservative and have been my entire adult life.  When I registered to vote on my 21^st birthday, I registered as a republican.  I have remained with the party for over 50 years.

The past few election cycles, I have been forced to “settle” for non-conservative presidential candidates.  I expect this election to be no different.

All indications are that the GOP is going to nominate Romney as it’s presidential candidate for 2012. 

As a conservative, Romney scares the heck out of me.  I just do not see enough difference between Romney and Obama for me to even make the trip to the polling place in November of 2012.

I left the following comment on the Texas Fred Blog yesterday: “Romney was "The Chosen One" by the GOP/RNC from the beginning.  They are embarrassed and shamed by even having conservatives in the party.  I am sick to my stomach with it.  Hell, I already know what I'm getting with Obama!  With Romney, I expect to get the same thing ... but as a republican I'll be blamed for it! 

I have had it with the GOP. The northeast blue blood country club elitists have a choke hold on the GOP and as long as we conservatives remain in the party they will continue to use us and show their gratitude by treating us as floor mats.  I'm sick of it!”

I’d like to recommend you read Texas Fred’s post entitled:  “Romney to be GOP nominee – Elections no longer required” HERE. 

Look. I do not believe that Romney can win against Obama.  I have been saying that for a very long time now.  Nothing has changed that would lead me to believe otherwise. President Harry Truman told us the American electorate would choose the real thing over an imitation … every time.  He was correct.

Romney strikes me as another northeastern “milquetoast candidate” who can be steamed rolled by the democratic machine.

If you think the divide between the Congress and the Oval Office is wide now consider that should Romney win, the conservatives in the House and Senate are NOT GOING TO FOLLOW ROMNEY’S LEAD!  And they shouldn’t. The government will be locked down every bit as much under a Romney presidency as it is today under Obama.

I’ll say it again: Conservatives desperately need to pull out of the republican party and form their own party -- if they ever hope to have a real, lasting, impact on the US government.

Now, I know I’m going to be blasted by republicans for suggesting such a thing especially at such a critical time for America.  I would answer -- if not now – WHEN?

I come from a long line of South Carolina conservative hot heads. (You may recall the last time my ancestors had a beef with the US government.)  My home state is one of the most conservative states (if not THE most) in the country. We have a history of not caring for the “timing” of a scrap with those we perceive as antagonists. 

The US has reached the critical stage in its existence.  I am convinced that our survival as a free people hangs on the results of the 2012 election. I also know I am being about as delicate as a bull in a china shop suggesting that conservatives leave the GOP in these months before such an important event in our history. 

In my opinion, the RNC knows that a huge portion of the votes for Romney, especially in the south, will be votes not for Romney, but votes against Obama.  They KNOW that and they are counting on that very thing to push Romney across the finish line as the victor.

You say: real republican conservatives won’t run for President.   I ask – why should they?   See, they already know the deck, in the upper levels of the GOP, are already stacked against them.

So what about Cain and Bachmann?  Truthfully?  They haven’t a snowball’s chance in Hades of winning the nomination. 

So.  Here we conservatives are -- again.  About to lose an election even if the Republican Party wins.  Sound familiar?

What is it they say about doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results each time?  Oh, yeah.  Insanity!

J. D. Longstreet

Same Old GOP -- All Bark And No Bite

Same Old GOP -- All Bark And No Bite

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Did you ever see an old dog that would bark and growl and bark and growl so long as your back was to him?  But the instant you turned and confronted the snarling creature – it would drop its tail between its legs and sllnk off into the darkness under the porch?  

As a lad I had a friend with a dog like that.  On one of my fairly regular visits to his home, I did not see nor hear the dog.  I asked him what happened to his dog.  He replied.  “We got rid of him.  He was all bark and no bite, anyway.  He wasn’t worth the cost of feeding him.”  I didn’t press the issue for I fear I would have learned that the Lord had called the poor thing home.

See, I know I shouldn’t have actually EXPECTED the republicans to put up a real fight against Obama and his socialist apparatchik in the Senate.  But, you know, hope springs eternal … right?  Yeah, R I G H T.

The plain truth is:  The GOP got its clock cleaned by the democrats in the debt ceiling debate and the Faustian deal the GOP actually agreed to.  Oh, House leaders are going to attempt to impress us with the fight they put up.  Give me a break!  I had worst fights as a kid with my brother!  We didn’t just exchange insulting words …  we beat the snot out of each other with our fists.  Now that’s a debate!

As a conservative, I find it nearly impossible to remain in the Republican Party.  I have the necessary paperwork from the State Board of elections to change my political party affiliation.  Problem is, at least for me, in NC you cannot register as an “Independent.”  You are: “Unaffiliated.”   I don’t like being described as politically unaffiliated! 

Having said that … allow me to go a step further and say that I think it is time the Tea Party to take the necessary steps to become a full blown political party in the US.  As it is, the Tea Party has a lot of clout -- but not nearly enough.  I think it is past time for the members and supporters of the Tea Party to insist that the political organization make the leap and become the official “Third Party” in America.

I’m sure many of you will not agree.  And that’s fine.  If I had a problem with folks disagreeing with me I would have stopped making comments on the news and current events oh, about 40 years ago.

I’m tired.  Tired of supporting the insanity of the GOP.  Insanity, they say, is continuing to do the same thing over and over again, while expecting a different outcome each time.  That is what I see the GOP doing, over and over and over… ad infinitum.  After 50 years as a republican, I am sick of it. 

No matter how many conservatives there are in the Republican Party, we will never be treated as equals in intellect or breeding.  We will ALWAYS be treated as the redheaded stepchild.  If there was ever any doubt about that, this latest dust-up with the democrats over the debt ceiling amply demonstrated how the GOP will use the power of the conservatives to either get what they want, or use conservative power in a kabuki theatre production in hopes of creating a smoke screen to cover their smoozing with the democrats just to hang on to the trappings and perks of political office and the power that goes with it. In that way, they are no different than the democrats. 

When the wheeling and dealing is done, conservatives are once again told to take their seats and shut up. 

Look.  This deal with the President and the Senate on the debt ceiling was not a victory for the GOP.  Please don’t buy into the propaganda flowing like rivers from the seat of our national legislature.  If you DO feel it is a victory for the GOP or for America, get back to me in a few months.  I expect you will have ample time for reality to set in -- in a few weeks or months -- when it becomes clear Americans have been shafted … again.

What America actually got was nothing more than a lot of promises.  Promises that we would be fools to count on.  The deal is nothing more than a mutual agreement between the two parties that guarantees the continuation of the monumental spending spree that is crushing the life out of Americans. 

The GOP has now emboldened Obama and the democrats to hit the campaign with renewed vigor and vitality building on THEIR victory in the debt ceiling deal.  

In my opinion, the GOP has just handed the 2012 election to Obama -- with a very good chance the democrats will retake the House of Representatives AND gain more seats in the Senate. 

Unless there is a miracle and a true conservative emerges as the republican candidate for President in 2012, conservatives are going to stay home … again!  Bet on it.

Rather than celebrating, Americans should be preparing for a deepening recession and/or a depression equal to that of the 1920s and 30’s.  Oh, it’s going to get a lot worse and rather quickly, too.

With America at its weakest in six or seven decades, we are quickly becoming an alluring target for our enemies.  Already Russia, and China are flexing their muscles. Iran will certainly take advantage of our inability to interfere with their plans for hegemony in the Middle East. 

These are perilous times for America.  And we are leaderless.

J. D. Longstreet

GOP Pro-Taxers Should Be Challenged in Primaries!

GOP Pro-Taxers Should Be Challenged in Primaries!

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

I have that nagging feeling again.  I can’t seem to shake the feeling that our GOP representatives in the Congress, especially the US House of Representatives, are going develop weak knees and cave in to Obama’s demand for an increase in taxes in order to get some sort of deal to give the GOP “cover” when they vote to allow an increase in the nation’s debt ceiling.

GOP Senators lend no stability to my nagging feeling, either, as they seem just as willing as those GOP’ers in the House to try to save their cushy jobs in the world’s most excusive club – the US Congress.

It is time for Americans to flood their inboxes and telephone lines -- and even their fax machines -- with messages insuring them that if they do cave, they will be looking for a position elsewhere come next year’s primaries.

Look.  America does not have a revenue problem.  Heck, the US Treasury has PLENTY of money flooding into its coffers 24-hours a day, seven days a week.  The problem is not that we don’t have enough money, or not enough cash flowing INTO the treasury… we DO!   The problem is with the amount of cash flowing OUT of the treasury – and -- with the speed at which it pours out.  Plus, there is the problem with the less than responsible way (I’m being charitable here!) our government tosses US citizen’s cash around.  Comparing Congress’s manner of spending American’s money to the manner in which a drunken sailor throws his cash around is a gross disservice to the Navy!  It is also slanderous!

Back in November of 2010, we conservatives sent a huge number of new members of Congress to Washington with specific instructions to cut the irresponsible spending of the democrats and especially the Obama administration. It was understood that next election we intended to expel a goodly number of those remaining in order to insure that the citizens of America can, once again, gain some level of control over the way in which our wishes, wants, and desires are addressed by the national legislature. We were anticipating just such Congress-made crises as the debt ceiling crisis we find ourselves in today. 

We HOPE those newly elected Representatives remember WHY we sent them there.  If they, somehow, manage to forget or, allow themselves to be swayed by the so-called moderates or middle-of-the-road, go-along-to-get-along, republicans in Congress then, they, too, will be purchasing a one-way plane ticket back home.  See, we MEANT it when we told them: “No More Taxes” and “Cut Government Spending!”  (Of course, we also instructed them to repeal ObamaCare!)

I find it deeply troubling that a number of them seem to have forgotten their explicit instructions, from us, to stand fast against raising taxes.  There is already enough money.  Once again the problem is:  the irresponsible way our government is spending our tax dollars and driving America into poverty.

The Obama Administration has a “champagne taste” and America has a “beer pocketbook!”  They need some realistic “adult” supervision from the conservatives in the Congress.

There is also the fact that Obama publicly proclaims he wants a “Big Deal” on the debt limit.  I’ll BET he does!  Look at the dates on his proffered deal.  Notice that if it is passed, it would insure that Obama would not have the embarrassment of being forced to deal with the same issue again in an election year – which would remind Americans how inept he and his administration actually is when it comes to handling the finances of the United States.  His ineptitude is not isolated to JUST finances… it extends to practically every aspect of governance.  But having the fact that Obama has spent the US into near bankruptcy splashed all over the 24-hour news channels and forcing his “Ministry of Propaganda,” the mainstream media, to print and broadcast the TRUTH, just before an election, would certainly harm his chances of reelection. 

A short term “fix” for the debt ceiling, as distasteful as that is, would have at least one attribute to recommend it.  It would/will keep the problem alive and in the news cycles all the way up to Election Day next year.  It is beginning to look as if that is exactly where we are headed.

Conservatives need to make it clear to our congresspersons and senators that we do not view service to the country, as a senator or congressperson, a career.  We view it as a brief period of service to their respective constituents lasting one to two terms in both houses of the Congress.  After two terms in office service to constituents seems to be forgotten and it becomes service to THEMSELVES, first, above all else.

Career politicians created the mess America finds herself in today.  We need a congress of citizens who take a few years off to serve their country in Washington -- and then return to their real jobs at home. If it takes a constitutional amendment to get this important change in our government -- then so be it.

In the meantime, we conservatives need to prepare, now, to challenge every republican and democrat who caves and votes to support new taxes on the American people in the coming primary next year -- and in future primaries -- and keep it up until we get a government of which the American people can be proud.

J. D. Longstreet

Has Romney Been Chosen To Lose To Obama?

Has Romney Been Chosen To Lose To Obama?

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

It is becoming clear (at least to me) that Mitt Romney will be the GOP’s choice to lose to Obama in November of 2012.

OK, before you blast me for speaking ill of another republican (In the spirit of full disclosure – I AM a republican.) if you haven’t already figured it out – I do not care for Mitt Romney, as a candidate for President of the United States.  Its not a big stretch for me… as I also did not care for his father, George Romney, when HE ran for President way back in 1968 … right up til he dropped out of the Primary in late February, or early March. 

“Two weeks before the March 12 primary, an internal poll showed Romney losing to Nixon by a six-to-one margin in New Hampshire. Rockefeller, seeing the poll result as well, publicly maintained his support for Romney but said he would be available for a draft; the statement made national headlines and embittered Romney (who would later claim it was Rockefeller's entry, and not the "brainwashing" remark, that doomed him). Seeing his cause was hopeless, Romney announced his withdrawal as a presidential candidate on February 28, 1968. Romney wrote his son Mitt, still away on missionary work: "Your mother and I are not personally distressed. As a matter of fact, we are relieved. ... I aspired, and though I achieved not, I am satisfied." ^(SOURCE)

The “brainwashing remark” referenced above in my opinion, underscores the old adage: “Like father; like son.”  Mitt’s father, George, had problems with “flip-flopping” just as his son does today.  It cost him any chance he might have had at winning the GOP nomination for President.  Here’s what happened:

“On August 31, 1967, in a taped interview with talk show host Lou Gordon of WKBD-TV in Detroit, Romney stated: "When I came back from Viet Nam [in November 1965], I'd just had the greatest brainwashing that anybody can get." He then shifted to opposing the war: "I no longer believe that it was necessary for us to get involved in South Vietnam to stop Communist aggression in Southeast Asia." Decrying the "tragic" conflict, he urged "a sound peace in South Vietnam at an early time." Thus Romney disavowed the war and reversed himself from his earlier stated belief that the war was "morally right and necessary.

Eight other governors who had been on the same 1965 trip as Romney said no such activity had taken place, with one of them, Philip H. Hoff of Vermont, saying Romney's remarks were "outrageous, kind of stinking ... Either he's a most naïve man or he lacks judgment." The connotations of brainwashing, following the experiences of American prisoners of war (highlighted by the 1962 film The Manchurian Candidate), made Romney's comments devastating, especially as it reinforced the negative image of Romney's abilities that had already developed.” ^(SOURCE) 

(As a side note:  Mitt’s father, George Romney was born in Mexico.  Yet, George Romney was a candidate for President of the United States in the primary in 1968. He was born on July 8, 1907 to American parents in the Mormon colonies in Mexico; events during the Mexican Revolution forced his family to move back to the United States when he was a child.) ^(SOURCE)

Now, I realize all this dates me… and that’s OK.  If it has any importance, at all, it is that I feel as though I have been down the same road with Mitt Romney’s father, George, and I do not care to travel that same hilly, curvy road again.  Then Governor Jim Rhodes of Ohio said, "Watching George Romney run for the presidency was like watching a duck try to make love to a football."

As difficult as it may seem to believe, for those who did not witness George Romney’s campaign back in the sixties, for those of us who did -- there is reason to believe the campaign of his son Mitt will not be that different.

We need an assertive candidate, a candidate sure of himself, without a record of flip-flopping all over the map. I just do not see that in Mitt Romney.

Here in the South, the mention of Romney’s name tends to bring on “rolling of the eyes.”  He is a northeasterner, and a Mormon.  That is two out of three strikes for him before the first vote is cast.  If he ever gets to the Oval Office he will do so without the support of the majority of the southern states.  THAT is a near impossible. A number of religious denominations in the south will never vote for a Mormon under any circumstances the human brain can devise.  His campaign will be hard pressed to devise a winning strategy without the southern states.

I understand how difficult this is to read for Romney supporters, but there it is.

So, who can win against Obama?  None of the republican candidate announced, so far. But, I think it is interesting, and important, that the Obama campaign has begun digging into the past of Chris Christie, the current governor of New Jersey, and Christie says he is NOT going to run.  But – if Obama is concerned enough that Christie might change his mind and run, anyway, then that tells me the Obama campaign fears Chris Christie and I LIKE THAT!

J. D. Longstreet

Newt’s Done! So, Apparently, Is The GOP!

Newt’s Done!  So, Apparently, Is The GOP!

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Newt Gingrich’s ambition to be President of the US did not take a shot in the foot over the past weekend – it was a headshot!  You can stick a fork in him ‘cause … he’s DONE!

Either Newt, or his campaign folks, grievously misread conservative voters concerning the nation’s financial mess and socialized medicine. 

Two things the Gingrich campaign apparently missed:  One is that Conservatives know drastic cuts in government spending must be made to salvage our country.  The other is that conservatives do not like, nor do we want, socialized medicine …  in any form or by any name … period!

No amount of “backing and filling” will get Newt out of this hole.  He might just as well get out of the race -- right now.  Any chance he DID have has vanished. Kaput!

As I survey the Republican field of candidates for President today, I have to conclude the GOP has conceded the raced to Obama and the democrats. 

I must tell you, I have strong suspicions the GOP does not want to have a republican in the Oval Office with the country in the financial mess it is in today.  They do not want to be painted with the same brush as the current occupant -- and they sure as heck do want to create a modern “Hoover Days” presidency.

As an American who believes the US is in dire need of rescuing from the clutches of the socialists in our government, I must tell you that should I confirm that is the policy of the GOP concerning this Presidential Election, I will immediately resign my membership in the Republican Party and become an Independent.

If you take a serious look at the GOP candidates you quickly see they are not the “A” team.  In fact, one would have to conclude they are more nearly the “C” team than even the “B” team.

I have watched the Mainstream Media and their “Mitch Daniels Watch” ad nausium.  The truth is – it will make little, if any, difference for Daniels to enter the race.  Daniels cannot carry the social conservatives. (Social Conservatives are MOST of the conservatives.) In fact, he has NO CHANCE of getting their support -- or their votes.

None of the remainder of the field has a snowball’s chance of making it to the portico of the White House, let alone the Oval Office.

Yes, I am pessimistic ... at least about any chance the GOP will win in November of 2012.  I look at the field of would-be presidents and I say:  “REALLY?  You gotta be kidding me!”

I can only surmise … the GOP REALLY does not want a Republican in the Oval office in 2013. How else to explain their pitiful efforts in recruiting candidates? 

So, we can look for the GOP to really go after the US Senate in an attempt to box-in Obama after 2012.  However, Obama will rule by executive order right up ‘til we have a constitutional crisis.  I mean, the country has to reign in a president’s ability to rule by fiat, through executive orders, by-passing the Congress, which is purportedly, the people’s voice.  There can be no doubt Obama is abusing that privilege and it must be stopped. (That is one of the many reasons we conservatives wanted to defeat Obama in the 2012 election!)

To sum up:  Obama will win with nearly 100 percent of the black vote, 80 some-odd percent of the Latino vote, the vast majority of the labor vote (and labor money), the support of the mainstream media, the liberal vote, the socialist vote, and a handful of Progressive votes.

The GOP candidate will get the country club and blue-blood vote (including the Rinos) while the Tea Party voters, and the other conservatives, (Yes, there are conservatives not aligned with the Tea Party.) stay home.

The plain truth, as I see it, is this:  The Republicans can only win the Presidency in November of 2012 with “Divine Intervention.”

Hey, I call’ em as I see ‘em -- and that’s the way I see this election shaking out.

As I said at the beginning:  Newt is done and so, I believe, is the GOP – at least for 2012.

J. D. Longstreet

GOP: Cut With A Meat Cleaver, Not A Scalpel!

GOP: Cut With A Meat Cleaver, Not A Scalpel!
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Rumor has it that the GOP is looking to cut spending in Washington, DC. In fact, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., released a partial list of 70 spending cuts earlier this week. These particular cuts were included as part of the GOP's budget proposal for funding the government through the end of the fiscal year. (SOURCE)

It is troubling because the cuts to the EPA are entirely too small. The proposal calls for cutting EPA funding by only 1.6 billion dollars. That is not nearly enough to shut that agency down. In fact, that is chicken feed! Save some money and close their shop … for good.

Yes. I DID say shut the EPA down. In fact, I would be happy to see a bill introduced that would completely abolish the EPA and rid this country of its tyrannical tentacles. It has become a monster agency, a “star-chamber” sort of lawmaking body with a host of apparatchiks wielding their power like a battalion of schoolyard bullies. It is long past time for the EPA to be shut down and its headquarters padlocked.

The EPA is an agency gone wild. Like a rabid dog, it needs to be put down.

The same goes for the Department of Education. It is a shame.

Since the Department of Education was signed into law in October of 1979 by the legendary “dufus” President Jimmy Carter and began doing whatever the heck it does in May of 1980, education in the United States has shown no improvement. In fact, if anything at all, education has gotten worse.

Education should be left to the states. It should never have been placed in the hands of the federal government and the unions.

Americans have gone from being one of the best-educated countries in the world to one of the worse educated countries in the world under the Department of Education. That alone should qualify it for the dustbin of history.

Abolishing the Department of Education would save billions in wasted dollars. Get rid of it, pronto.

Then, there is the National Endowment for the Arts. Have you seen some of the “stuff” they underwrite with our taxpayer dollars? Forget it!

The proposed cut is only 2 million dollars. That is pathetic. We don’t need a National Endowment for the Arts. If a private organization wishes to fund artists, then fine. But spending taxpayer dollars on the pathos that passes for art these days is nigh onto criminal. The National Endowment for the Arts ought to be shuttered… immediately. Again, millions could be saved.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting should not get a single dime of taxpayer money. If the political left wants to have their broadcasting voice continue its operations, then they should fund it from their own pockets and not from the US treasury.

Don’t get me started on Amtrak. Amtrak has been sucking up taxpayer dollars from the public trough for far to long. A 224 million dollar cut from Amtrak is peanuts! Cut ALL funding to Amtrak. Sell it or trash it … but be done with it.

Americans drive and ride in cars. We take a train only when we have to, or are forced to do so. Otherwise, we stay the heck off them.

We are NOT a homogeneous people, like our Asian friends (and enemies). Americans are uncomfortable on trains, no matter how fast they travel. The President ought to know this and stop proposing “investment” in those super fast, high speed, trains. It will only be more taxpayer money wasted because Americans are STILL NOT GOING TO RIDE THE DARNED THINGS!

Get rid of the Department of Homeland Security. Even its name sounds like some 1930’s Nazi organization. The American people hate it.

There is no reason why the job the Department of Homeland Security is supposed to do could not be handled by the FBI and the CIA. Get rid of it. Billions could be saved.

As I looked over some of the proposed cuts, it struck me that the GOP is using a scalpel to make these cuts when they ought to be using a meat cleaver!

Look, we sent the new House of Representatives to DC to be a bludgeon! This pussyfooting around with insignificant cuts just isn’t going to get it done.

If this sort of limp-wristed action by the GOP continues, they should prepare for a very short stay in DC. In fact, they’d be ill advised to sign any sort of long-term lease on an apartment. The paint will barely be dry before they are packing for the trip back home.

America is flooded with red ink and instead of using a sump pump the GOP is using a drinking straw.

Desperate times require desperate measures. America’s economy is desperate. NOW is the time to act -- and act boldly.

J. D. Longstreet

Will GOP Led House Overturn FCC’s Power Grab Of The Internet?

Will GOP Led House Overturn FCC’s Power Grab Of The Internet?
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

This week the Federal Communications Commission took the first step in taking control of the Internet by the US Government. Their “Net Neutrality” regulation tromps all over the U. S. Constitution and is a slap in the face of the US Courts, which, earlier this year, in very clear terms, told the FCC that they (the FCC) do not have the authority to regulate the Internet.

The fact that it is NOT LEGAL would stop most agencies from boldly forging ahead with plans to grab as much power as is possible for an already near omnipotent government that is out of control and bordering on tyranny.

For nearly 30 years of my adult life I toiled in the broadcast industry. Every day of those years I was conscious of the Federal Communications Commission staring over my shoulder constantly. I knew that the continued existence of my job, and the business for which I worked, depended upon the whim of the commissioners, or as we would, from time to time refer to them -- the “Commissars” of the FCC. As far as a broadcaster’s job was concerned and the license of the broadcaster and the broadcast station was concerned – THE FCC WAS GOD! An infraction of their rules could and, more often than not, could/would mean a gut-wrenching fine and the revocation of a broadcast station’s license.

Lifting the license of a station means that station would go dark, off the air, out of business. Your professional life was in the hands of an all-powerful federal agency that had the power to regulate with those regulations having the force of law.

Regulations “with the force of law” are just the same as any other law. But there is a HUGE difference that has concerned me for many years. Those regulations were not passed out of Congress and did not require the President’s signature to become law. In effect, an agency that has the power to regulate, such as the FCC and a number of other regulatory agencies within the US government, are little “kingdoms” with their “serfs,” the citizens who have to try to stay within the terms of those laws in order not to be fined, or lose their jobs or licenses.

It concerns me greatly that those agencies even exist. There is no place in a constitutional republic for agencies that can simply make-up laws and enforce them with impunity and with the blessing of Congress.

The Commissars … ‘er ... Commissioners … of the FCC are a government within THE GOVERNMENT. They are a group of un-elected individuals acting as a mini-government. There is something inherently wrong about that. But that is what we have with the FCC and a large number of other government agencies.

In our opinion those agencies, among them the FCC, should be stripped of their power to issue regulations with the force of law. If they feel there is a need for a regulation, then they should make their case before Congress and ask Congress to consider making such a law.

As it is today, the FCC appears to be drunk on power. The commission is controlled by the Democratic Party, which, itself, was inebriated on power right up to November 2nd, 2010 when the people of the US said: “ENOUGH!” But, the FCC, apparently, did not get the message. Or, if they did, they have chosen to ignore it. My money is on the latter.

There is a better than even chance the courts will overturn the “Net Neutrality” regulation passed this week by the FCC. Why ... because it is unconstitutional and outside the mandate of the Federal Communications Commission… period.

Senator Jim DeMint, a Republican of my home state of South Carolina has said he intends to stop the Net neutrality power grab by the FCC. In a statement released by Senator DeMint following the issuance of the Net Neutrality regulation by the FCC this week the Senator said the following:
“The Obama Administration has ignored evidence that this federal takeover will hang a millstone of regulatory and legal uncertainty around the neck of a vibrant sector of our economy.

"Proceeding on its own liberal whims rather than facts, this FCC has chosen to grant itself broad authority to limit how businesses can bring the Internet to consumers in faster and more innovative ways.

“Americans loudly demanded a more limited federal government this November, but the Obama Administration has dedicated itself to expanding centralized government planning. Today, unelected bureaucrats rammed through an Internet takeover, even after Congress and courts warned them not to.

“To keep the Internet economy thriving, this decision must be reversed. Regulatory reform will be a top priority for Republicans in the next Congress, and I intend to prevent the FCC or any government agency from unilaterally burdening our recovering economy with baseless regulation.

"In order to provide the stability businesses need to grow, I will work with my fellow senators to see passage of my FCC Act, which would ensure that the FCC can only use its rulemaking powers where there is clear evidence of a harmful market failure, as well as the REINS Act, which would add the accountability of a Congressional vote before any government agency’s proposed major regulations may be finalized.” (SOURCE)

Senator DeMint is “dead-on.” These agencies need to be cut-off at the knees.

It is clear that as long as the Obama Regime controls the FCC, conservative voices will be seen as a threat. The FCC has made clear its intention to silence those voices, in any way it can, until the elected officials of the people dismantle their agency and relegate it to the dustbin of history.

J. D. Longstreet

Mourning In America

By Findalis of Monkey in the Middle

Hat tip to Wake Up America

In 1984, the Reagan reelection campaign set the standard for modern political advertising with its fabled "Morning in America" series, which included one of the greatest political ads of all time -- "Better, Prouder, Stronger." The ad captured the zeitgeist -- America under President Reagan was coming back, full of optimism and confidence in the future.

Today, the zeitgeist is exactly the opposite. Americans are worried about their future, and about a government determined to implement policies that just don't work. But like its predecessor, "Mourning in America" offers a new hope -- if we can just get our government to return to time-tested policies that can spark a rebirth of liberty.

Mourning



The Original Morning

How have times changed!