It pains me to have to write this because I have been a long time listener and fan of Hugh Hewitt. However, his personal vendetta against the FairTax significantly diminishes the respect I had for his opinions and insights.

It is one thing if he were to pick on some aspects of the FairTax that he didn’t like or didn’t think would work and make some cogent arguments on how they should be changed or eliminated. Instead, for whatever reasons, he started with the idea that the whole concept of FairTax was a “nightmare” and set about to conjure up the worst case scenario for every aspect of it. The FairTax idea has been around for a long time and been reviewed and scrutinized by many people. Now, all of a sudden, a lawyer (Hugh) and a former tax accountant (Hank) have uncovered it as a “fantasy”. How could all those politicians and economists have not seen this? Is it possible that Hugh and Hank are the only enlightened ones able to see through the “fantasy”? Unfortunately, this reminds me a lot of a former Vice President who came up with a man-made global warming crisis and put a bunch of “scientific facts” in a movie that he could sell to a gullible public. Just like global warming is a crisis and there is nothing good about it, in Hugh’s mind the FairTax is a pending disaster and there is nothing good about it.

Every objection they have is based on various bad things that they think will happen when the FairTax is enacted. Every one of them has already been addressed in the FAQ on the www.fairtax.org website which I’m sure Hugh hasn’t read. Instead, Hugh manufactures scenarios that the FairTax rate is not going to be enough to fund the federal government (even though it is set to be revenue-neutral), the states can’t handle the administration (even though 45 already process sales taxes), prices would rise (even though the cost of goods would be reduced by eliminating payroll taxes, etc.), tax evasion and corruption would run rampant (no reason it would be any worse than it is with income taxes) and baseless scenarios where people couldn’t afford to buy homes, companies would have to pay taxes for new employees they hire and the beginning of a trade war. He also brings in the liberal mainstay of class warfare by stating that that the rich will benefit from the FairTax. Gee, maybe they will use their extra money to start companies, hire more people or invest it in the stock market! Finally, he says we just can’t do something this big and it would be a disaster for Republicans in 2010.

Come on Hugh, America is all about doing big and bold things! And, with Obamanomics taking this country down the road to no return, this is the perfect time to replace the confiscatory tax code that he is using to take us there. The implementation of the FairTax would be a boon for Republicans because it would take away the class warfare (“soak the rich”, “they can afford to pay more taxes”, “spread the wealth”, etc.) that Democrats use to win elections. With the FairTax, the tax revenue can no longer be attributed to individuals and their income levels. All that the politicians will have then is a big pot of money and they will have to decide how to divvy it up. It will likely help control the size of government because any increase in the FairTax rate past the revenue-neutral point will increase prices for all goods and services and be a hard sell to voters who will all be impacted. Instead, Republicans can push for smaller government through a reduction in the FairTax rate and the corresponding decrease in prices.

Those of you that are buying into Hugh’s FairTax Fantasy need to go to the FairTax website and start researching this on your own. The FAQ section is especially good because it addresses many of the concerns people initially have. Don’t waste your money on the FairTax Fantasy book. Hugh’s lame objections to the FairTax can be heard in the podcasts of his radio show and in the future debates he wants to have on the topic. Instead, take the $15 and make a donation to FairTax.org. This is the next best thing you can do after attending the TEA parties. It will take a grassroots movement from all of us to implement the big and bold FairTax.

The President is using the current economic crisis to implement a federal government takeover of a significant amount of our free market economy and our liberties. The “trojan horses” he is using are the bailout, stimulus and omnibus budget bills, which he claims are necessary to get the economy back on its feet and create jobs. Instead, these bills will set up the federal government to permanently control the banking industry, auto industry, education, health care, energy and significantly expand the federal bureaucracy and entitlements. Additionally, there will be no further efforts to stop illegal immigrants from entering the country and those who succeed will be given ever increasing amounts of federal benefits (education, health care, welfare, voting rights, social security, etc.). Our liberties will be gutted in areas such as the right to bear arms, private property ownership and school choice. Doctors will be forced to perform abortions against their moral convictions and enemy combatants will be given the legal rights of U.S. citizens. The funding for all of this will fall on businesses and taxpayers who are the major producers in the economy. They will be hit with higher income and payroll taxes, capital gains taxes, cap-and-trade energy taxes, inheritance taxes and will lose deductions for mortgage interest, charitable contributions, property taxes, state taxes, etc. However, this will not be enough to cover this massive expense and the government will need to go further into debt or print more money which will devalue the dollar and spur inflation.

The President and Democrat-controlled Congress are poised to use these trojan horse bills to transform this country for generations to come. They are trying to divert attention from them by blaming the problems on Bush, ignoring the stock market response, starting a fight with Rush Limbaugh and flat out lying about not believing in big government. They are also trying to equate the stock market response to the false idea that the bills do not include enough spending and that more is needed.

Other than the unanimous vote against the stimulus bill in the House, the Republicans have been pretty much flopping in the wind when it comes to making a case against these socialist directions that the country is heading. A big part of this stems from the fractured leadership within the party. Without a Republican president or a dominant candidate for 2012, several individuals have tried to fill the leadership gap such as Michael Steele, Rush Limbaugh, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, John Boehner, Bobby Jindal, etc. While they all have good ideas and oppose Obama's radical transformation, their disconnected, and sometimes conflicting, ideas are not providing a consistent, coherent message to the American people. Without that, they will not be able to stop or even slow down the transformation, nor will they convince the American people to vote them back into office in 2010 and 2012. Not having a single individual who the GOP can rally around, means that they will need to develop a leadership team and a plan to carry their message and take the necessary actions to regain control of the Executive and Legislative branches of government.

This can be accomplished by first organizing a GOP convention. The attendees would include the national and state party officials, members of Congress, aspiring candidates for Congress and governorships, current governors, former governors and members of Congress, College Republicans, conservative talk show hosts and columnists, bloggers and various policy experts. The agenda would be as follows:

Day 1 – Key Issue Presentations; policy and subject matter experts would present facts and perspectives on the key issues that the country is facing such as terrorism, nuclear proliferation, illegal immigration, taxes, education, health care, energy policy, climate change, trade agreements, national debt, social security, etc. The objective is to get everyone up-to-speed on the issues and on common ground with them.

Day 2 – Pundit Forum; conservative talk jockeys, columnists and bloggers will get the chance to present their views on the direction of the Republican Party and the issues of the day through individual speeches or by participation on panel discussions. They will be able to weigh in on the previous day's presentations and provide their perspectives on the solutions and positions that the party should promote.

Day 3 – Platform Development; small groups would focus on specific issues and develop solutions and positions that could be adopted for the platform. Hopefully, these would include many of the reforms I mentioned in my previous post titled “The Elephant in the Room: GOP Rx”. Especially important now is getting tax reform with the Fair Tax, challenging man-made global warming and carbon taxes, opening up oil and gas exploration in this country, building nuclear power plants, defending marriage, preventing terrorist attacks, making health insurance affordable, dealing with illegal immigration, balancing the budget and cutting entitlements and insisting that people take responsibility for their mistakes (i.e. no more bailouts).

Day 4 – Platform Adoption and Designation of Champions; each plank in the platform would be presented by the small group responsible for it. Discussions would ensue and possible refinements made until the plank was officially adopted. Also, 3-5 “champions” would be assigned to take these positions public. These champions would consist of a mix of former and current governors and members of Congress. Their objective would be get interviews on news programs, write opinion pieces, do speaking engagements, develop bills in Congress or fight against ones proposed by Democrats and find any way possible to deliver their messages to the general public.

Day 5 - Candidate Lists and Gap Analysis; documentation would be provided that identifies all of the potential candidates for the each open congressional seat and governorship for the upcoming 2010 and 2012 elections, along with presidential candidates for 2012. Many of the challenger candidates (vs. incumbents) would have the opportunity to give a short speech to introduce themselves to the convention attendees. The objective is to have at least one Republican candidate for every open seat, so the gaps will need to be identified. These gaps will become the responsibility of Republican National Committee (RNC) who will work with state affiliates to identify and prepare new candidates.

Day 6 – Liberal Indoctrination on College Campuses; documentation would be provided that lists all the colleges and universities that have College Republican organizations on campus and the number of members. Major universities without a Republican organization would also be identified. College Republicans would participate in panel discussions that address how to form a organization, overcome resistance from school administrators, recruit members, sponsor speakers and debates, disseminate marketing materials and position papers, develop an Internet presence and discuss ways to counter the liberal biases of most professors. The Young America Foundation would provide a presentation on how they successfully bring in conservative speakers to college campuses. The RNC would be responsible for identifying individuals who would be willing and able to start up a College Republican organization at each of the schools that do not currently have one.

Day 7 – Media Bias; liberal bias has corrupted objective journalism for several decades, but with this past election the liberals in the media blatantly became campaigners for the Democrats and tried to do everything they could to downgrade Republican candidates. However, this day is not to figure out ways to fix that, but to discuss ways to deal with it and use it to Republican advantage. The entire list of media organizations (print, Internet, television and radio) will be graded on the strength of their liberal bias, along with key individuals in those organizations. Panel discussions and presentations will provide ideas on how to handle hostile interviews containing “gotcha” questions and unfair challenges. Also, how do Republicans successfully counter liberal propaganda that poses as objective news? Can conservative views make significant inroads into other media besides talk radio, the Internet and FOX News? (By the way, this is the only day that will be closed to all media organizations.)

During the convention, all potential candidates and current office holders will be asked to sign the Commitment to Integrity Pledge which has these tenets:

• Members of Congress will not add any earmarks or pork spending to any bills.

• Members of Congress will vote “No” on any bills containing earmarks or pork spending.

• Governors will refuse federal money that is for earmarks or pork spending.

The convention will also kick off the RNC's new goals:

• Identify, recruit and train candidates for every congressional seat and governorship before the next election.

• Establish College Republican organizations at every major college and university during the next four years.

• Expand conservative voices in the mainstream liberal media.

• Raise a boatload of money to support candidates and the marketing of the GOP positions.

Holding a convention like this sometime in the next few months could provide huge benefits for the GOP. It would show that the party is not going to just wander in the wilderness for the next four years, while waiting for the next Reagan to lead it to the promised land. It will help them shed the “party of no” label when they oppose Obama and the Democrats because they will have documented, opposing positions on all the issues. They will be much better prepared for the next election through aggressive recruiting of quality candidates and will be actively countering liberal indoctrination in the schools. They will have a cohesive and consistent voice with which to speak to the voters and be able to successfully articulate how Obama's trojan horses will destroy the greatness of this country.

Previously, I posted an initial plan for reviving the Republican Party (see “Getting the Elephant Back on its Feet”). My intention in this post is to expand and elaborate on that plan…

Besides being out of power in Washington, the GOP is currently fractured and in disarray. While President Bush should be thanked for the actions he took to keep us safe after 9/11, his inability to garner public support for his policies left a void that the liberals successfully filled with lies and propaganda that has hurt the Party overall. The slate of presidential candidates put forth in this election cycle exposed the lack of involvement the Party has in bringing forward the best candidates. Each of them had various flaws that they couldn’t overcome, yet they were all we had to choose from. Several congressional candidates in the past two elections were involved in unethical or illegal behaviors, lost their seats and further damaged the Party. We knew that the mainstream media was biased against Republicans, but with this election cycle we saw that they will now openly try to defeat GOP candidates and promote Democrats.

So, how do we get this moribund Elephant back on its feet? I don’t think the solution is to clean house, let it crash and burn or start a new party. There are some strong Republicans that can be leaders in resurrecting the Party. However, these leaders need to have a sound strategy and approach on which to make it happen. What they need is a set of actionable reforms based on conservative principles that will put them back into a position of strength (similar to the 1994 “Contract with America”). This also requires effective candidate development and marketing of the GOP brand.

Here are the objectives of the strategy:

• Implement reforms that will benefit the country, help Republican candidates win and that put the Democrats at a disadvantage on the political playing field
• Learn to effectively identify, develop and support quality candidates at the national level
• Ensure ethical conduct and integrity in all party members and candidates
• Establish an ongoing marketing campaign to promote the GOP brand and combat the mainstream media
• Restore party pride, unity and loyalty

The Party leaders implementing this strategy will be critical to its success. I will identify potential individuals that I believe can lead the Party and champion each of the specific reforms.

Mitt Romney is my choice to be the new leader of the Republican Party. He is a proven executive that has successfully built and run several organizations. He would also be an effective promoter and fundraiser. Michael Steele would be a good second-in-command. They will be the ones to implement the strategy and establish “champions” to lead each reform to make sure the reforms stay visible and active. I will throw out some names for potential reform champions as well.

Here’s why I believe these are the critical reforms that the Republican Party should rally around at this time:

• These are key issues of our time and will have the greatest impact on the future of the country and the success of Republican Party
• They are founded on conservative principles and American values
• The majority of Americans can support them
• They allow candidates to campaign on a consistent set of actionable issues, instead of a myriad of promises
• The implementation of many of these reforms will result in political disadvantages for Democratic campaigns and candidates

Following are the key reforms I believe need to be part of the ongoing Republican platform. Certainly, the Republican Party may want to make some modifications. I won’t deal with the details of the reforms here, but they can be found in my previous post titled “21 Steps to a Greater America”. There are five broad areas of reform and specific issues within each of them. I will list each one briefly, suggest champions and address the issues in implementing them, along with how they can politically disadvantage Democrats.

1. Congressional Reform (Champions: Fred Thompson, Lindsey Graham, Jim DeMint and Sam Brownback)

• Term Limits – the country needs people in Congress who are there to serve their country, not their next reelection bid. The Executive branch has term limits and so should the Legislative. This will only have a chance if existing members of Congress are not credited with prior terms. The limits on their terms would begin with their next reelection. This is a tough sell for Congress to put limits on itself and will likely take a Republican Congress to accomplish it.
• Line-Item Veto – Congress needs to give the President the ability to veto any specific funding items in a bill while approving the rest of it. Congress can still override any of the vetoed items with a two-thirds majority. This may only be achievable with a Republican Congress.
• Balanced Budget – a balanced budget amendment is needed prohibit excess spending and stem entitlement growth. There are probably enough people in both parties concerned with the swelling national debt that it may be a ripe time to introduce this legislation again.
• No Earmarks – all Republican legislators must pledge to refrain from inserting earmarks into any legislation. Also, they must be fully committed to vote against any bill that contains them. This can be made effective immediately.
• No Lobbyist Money – Republican legislators will not accept any campaign contribution from registered lobbyists. An effective date can be determined by the Party.

Democrats thrive on legislative power where they can promise pork and take lobbyist bribes to secure reelection after reelection. These reforms will strip them of their ability to successfully push earmarks and entitlements and their ability to campaign on them to stay in office.

2. Tax Reform (Champions: Mike Huckabee, Ron Paul, Carly Fiorina & Saxby Chambliss)

• Fair Tax – the current income tax code is a complicated behemoth that is overdue for reform and should be replaced with a consumption tax, such as the Fair Tax (www.fairtax.org). The Fair Tax movement is gaining support from many citizens and just needs critical mass from enough legislators to get it implemented, along with repealing the sixteenth amendment. However, it’s only likely that a Republican Congress and President could get it passed.
• Social Security – it will demand significant tax increases or reduced benefits if it is not addressed. It needs to be phased out and replaced with personal retirement accounts. Again, a Republican Congress is needed for this one and they must ensure that the transition to personal accounts does not take away what retirees have been promised.

This reform would politically devastate the Democrats. Their ability to win elections mostly hinges on income redistribution, “making the Rich pay their fair share”, the growing gap between the rich and poor, “grandmothers will have to eat dog food”, etc. When tax revenue now comes from people’s spending and not from people’s income, Democrats will no longer have the power to legislate income “fairness” through tax rates, deductions, exemptions and credits. Also, getting rid of the Social Security entitlement will eliminate another program that Democrats have used to demagogue Republicans.

3. National Security (Champions: Rudy Giuliani, Joe Lieberman, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich & Sarah Palin)

• Declaration of War – legislation is needed to recognize that this country is at war with Islamo-fascist terrorists and gives the Commander-in-Chief a framework of authority to prevent future attacks (communications monitoring, surveillance, interrogation techniques, etc.), along with the authorization to use military force to disrupt and destroy terrorist networks. Unfortunately, only the next successful major attack is likely to provide the opportunity to get this passed.
• Illegal Immigration – the border fence needs to be completed and existing laws against illegal immigration need to be enforced. The legislation needs to have more teeth put in to set a timetable for the fence and eliminate the ability to protect illegals in “sanctuary cities”. This would likely require a Republican Congress and President.
• Energy Independence - The goal should be to achieve energy independence so that we are no longer funding terrorist-supporting countries. It needs to start with eliminating all federal restrictions on accessing oil, gas & clean coal resources within our borders and in our coastal waters. President Bush has recently dropped the Executive ban and Congress needs to lift their bans. Congress will also need to rescind any restrictions on building and expanding nuclear power plants. This will likely require a Republican Congress and President and a period of high gas prices to get this moving again.

The disadvantages for the Democrats with this reform are that they will no longer be guaranteed votes from peaceniks who don’t understand the enemy, illegal immigrants and environmentalist extremists.

4. Abortion (Champions: Tom Ridge, John Boehner & Michele Bachmann)

The never-ending abortion battle can only be stopped with a compromise solution. The common ground is that neither side sees abortion as a good thing, and the less abortions that happen, the better. The basis for this change is to set up an environment where most women would choose to not have an abortion. This won’t eliminate abortions totally, but it should dramatically reduce them over time.

The compromise solution would be federal legislation that will provides strong incentives for women considering abortion to see their pregnancies to term and put the child up for adoption, but ultimately gives her the final choice. The legislation would prohibit any future laws that made abortion illegal, but would require that women receive information on adoption alternatives and require parental notification for underage women prior to the abortion procedure.

Even if Roe vs. Wade is eventually overturned, this issue will then go back to the states where they will decide the legality of abortion. If some states make it legal and others do not, then those seeking abortions will find ways to get them done in states that allow it and the problem will continue to be a political fodder for campaigns. Winning hearts and minds, not trying to make it illegal, is the most effective way to reduce abortions and the opportunity is there now to adopt this compromise solution.

Democrats currently have an advantage here because most people are against abortions, but yet want women to make that choice rather than have the courts decide it. If the threat of legal punishment for abortion is lifted, then Democrats will no longer get the votes of people who are afraid that pro-life Republicans will make it illegal.

5. Election Campaigns (Champions: Mitch McConnell, John Kyl & Karl Rove)

• Campaign Financing – current campaign finance laws infringe on people’s freedom to contribute money to the candidate of their choice. These laws should be repealed and replaced with legislation that allows unlimited contributions with the following restrictions: they can only be made by individual citizens (no organizations, groups or bundling) and requires public disclosure. Another alternative would be to have all contributions made and validated through the Federal Election Committee and distributed to the candidates anonymously so they do not know the contributors and won’t feel obligated to them. This reform is most viable just after an election and will likely need a Republican Congress to deal with the expected opposition of labor unions who are big Democrat contributors.
• Presidential Nomination - the process needs fixing so that all voters can have their votes mean something. One option is for every state to have a presidential primary. There would be only four primary dates for the entire country and all parties, including third parties and independents, would vote on one of those four dates. The country would be divided into four groups representing sets of 12-13 states. States in each group would be scattered across different regions of the country and have combined delegate counts that totaled up to approximately 25% of the total delegates. The primary dates would occur in March, April, May and June and the four sets of states would be rotated so they would all change order from one election to the next. This will require support from the Democratic Party and they should be receptive after the messy nomination process that just occurred.
• Voter Fraud – a photo ID required for registration and voting would significantly reduce illegal voting. Democrats would never support this, so a Republican Congress and President are needed to pass this legislation.

This reform would disadvantage Democrats because they rely heavily on union campaign contributions and groups like ACORN to deliver thousands of illegal votes each election.

Candidate Recruitment & Development

The Party needs to be more aggressive with ongoing efforts to identify future national level candidates. They need to actively vet, recruit and develop these individuals so they will be ready to take the national stage. They must provide training to improve their personal appeal, communication skills and understanding of national issues. These future candidates will also require fundraising and campaign support from the Party.

The objective should be to ensure that the Party always has a stable of high quality candidates for every Congressional race. With term limits in place, this will become much more important because there will no longer be career politicians who retain their seats for 20-30 years. The Party also needs to groom future Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates and they should constantly be working on lists of prospects who can be projected out to the next two or three election cycles. Just imagine what Sarah Palin would have been as a candidate in this election, if instead of getting a last-minute crash course on national issues and foreign policy, she would have been tutored for the VP position for a year or more. Bobby Jindall should be getting groomed right now for a potential candidacy in four or eight years. This grooming would include establishing a record of accomplishments and successes as Governor, getting acquainted with foreign policies and developing a strong understanding of domestic and economic issues. Tim Pawlenty and a host of other top candidates should be engaged with Party to look at ways to beef up their resumes. Specifically, all potential Presidential candidates should be finding ways to meet and get to know key foreign leaders and their issues.

The Party has been too passive in waiting for candidates to emerge. They need to take a more proactive approach that identifies individuals with the most potential, turns them into outstanding candidates and fully promotes their campaigns. There should never again be Republican candidates who are poor campaigners, have limited knowledge on key domestic or foreign policies or have past indiscretions that can be used against them. The Party needs to also get tough on any Republican office holders that violate ethical standards. They should distinguish themselves from Democrats and take swift, appropriate actions, including seeking resignations, from those who don’t uphold high standards of ethics and integrity.

Marketing Campaign

As we have seen from this current election cycle, the vast majority of the mainstream media is the liberal media. This liberal media is worth millions in campaign propaganda for the Democrats. The Republican Party needs to develop an ongoing marketing campaign to counteract the influence of the liberal media. The campaign must include advertising in the liberal media (TV, print, radio and Internet), the unleashing of spokespeople (including reform champions) who can convincingly explain Republican positions and a calling out of the “journalists” who are Democratic Party shills (“make them famous” as John McCain would say).

A scorecard should be developed that shows progress on each of the reforms. It can be distributed to the voters as an election approaches to reinforce what Republicans are trying to accomplish. The marketing should also include keeping a scorecard on what Democrats do, or do not do, in Congress and in the White House. This will make for good ammunition for Republican challengers. Finally, a list of all federal judges should be maintained by the Party and include ratings on how well they make their decisions based on strict interpretation of the Constitution. The list can be used to evaluate potential candidates for Republican appointments and used to identify Democratic appointments whose confirmations should be stopped.

It is also important to ensure that there are active College Republican groups at as many colleges and universities as possible. They should be provided with the necessary support to be able to sponsor Republican speakers on campus, arrange for Republican-Democrat debates and challenge the liberal propaganda preached by their instructors. These college groups can then be leveraged as campaign offices during national elections to distribute literature and spread the word about the candidates. Today’s youth are future GOP voters and candidates and they must be introduced to conservative principles before they become lost to liberal indoctrination.

The bottom line is that the Elephant must take aggressive action to revive itself. If it passively lays there waiting for the next Reagan, then it will likely stay dormant for decades. The next election is a two short years away. Let’s roll!

We were attacked within our borders during both the Clinton and Bush administrations; the second one (9/11) much more effective and devastating than the first. Both attacks were staged at a time when the economy was struggling and a new President was early in his first term. This was purposeful planning on the part of the terrorists. Their objective is not to simply kill people, but rather, to alter our way of life by causing people to live in constant fear and to damage the economic prosperity we enjoy. The high-level mission of Islamo-fascism is to use terrorism to weaken the economy, causing the federal government take more and more control and then expand this federal control to an eventual dictatorship where Islamic Sharia Law could be established.

The first bombing of the World Trade Center was somewhat botched, but the 9/11 attack was quite successful. The result was that the stock market tanked, people stayed at home and most were worried about when and where the next attack would occur. Osama bin Laden, after taking credit for the attack, fled to the Afghan mountains where he knew he would be safe from the week or two’s worth of bombing he expected to get as retaliation. However, President Bush had other thoughts on the matter. He decided that his country was not going to respond to these terrorist attacks with simple retaliation as was done in response to previous attacks. He was not going to have his country live in constant fear and have our way of living dictated by terrorists. Instead, he took an approach to prevent more attacks by destroying and disrupting terrorist networks that were existing and future threats.

Instead of just hunting down bin Laden, he went into Afghanistan with the objective of taking out terrorist control of that country and giving it back to the people. With the people in control, it would no longer be a safe haven for terrorists to plan and train for their next attack against the United States. The other threat to our country was the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq. Saddam had a long rap sheet that included using chemical weapons on his own citizens, sponsoring suicide bombers in Israel and invading other countries. He needed to be taken out before he had the chance to obtain and use biological or nuclear weapons that could kill thousands or millions. Although the President got faulty evidence on how far along the development of these weapons were, it was only a matter of time after the weapons inspectors had left that Saddam would reconstitute his weapons program. President Bush’s decision to take down the Saddam Hussein regime in 2003 was bold and necessary and the success of the U.S. military and coalition forces in carrying it out has eliminated a major terrorist threat. Additionally, Iraq now had the opportunity form a democratic government that would no longer tolerate terrorist networks living among them. Then, the opportunity presented itself where bin Laden thought he could effectively counter President Bush’s objectives in Iraq. When the Saddam holdouts and other insurgents were effective in killing Iraqis and American troops, bin Laden added his Al Qaeda network to try and defeat American will and return Iraq to a terrorist-supporting regime. Despite an initially flawed military strategy and the “war is lost” wailing of liberal politicians and the media, the President was steadfast in continuing to help the Iraqis solidify their new government. At the urging of General Petraeus and Senator McCain, the President implemented the “surge” strategy which has significantly reduced violence against our troops and Iraqi citizens. The Al Qaeda ranks have been dissipated and they are on the verge of giving up the fight in Iraq and switching their efforts to Afghanistan. With 12 of the 18 provinces now under Iraqi control, victory appears to be achievable.

President Bush to this day has not been able to get the majority of the American people to understand his mission to protect the country from future attacks and has suffered dismal approval ratings because of it. Left-wing activists, politicians and the media have tried to undercut his efforts at every turn and their propaganda and traitorous actions have been largely successful. In spite of this, President Bush has accomplished what he set out to do following 9/11. Over the past seven years, he has kept at bay the next major 9/11-level attack and has thwarted approximately 30 smaller attacks before they had a chance to be carried out. This was accomplished with a prevention program using finance and communications surveillance, effective interrogation techniques, terrorist watch lists and military actions in Afghanistan and Iraq. History will be very favorable to him as a war president. He also pushed through tax cuts that revived the faltering economy and got it growing again until the collapse of the housing market and subprime loan debacle that formed the catalyst for the current financial crisis.

Unfortunately, the current conditions present a “perfect storm” for terrorists to attempt another major attack. The convergence of a major financial crisis with a new, untested President is a scenario where a successful attack could have devastating long term repercussions. The security gaps emerging when the new administration is transitioning personnel and policy will provide the best opportunity to put the attack plan into motion and successfully execute it. With U.S. economy already staggering against the ropes and its repercussions being felt in the global economy, an attack at the magnitude of 9/11 could be the potential knockout blow that the terrorists are seeking. The federal government has already socialized a good chunk of the economy with the recent $700 billion bailout and, after the attack, would likely be the looked at to take more control. The success, frequency and impact of each subsequent attack will determine how fast the terrorized citizens of this country drive the government towards greater and greater control of the economy and loss of their individual liberties. Once the federal government has all the power, a President with a majority party can start to run the country as a dictatorship. The final step in the terrorist strategy is to give the President an offer that he or she can’t refuse; incorporate Sharia Law to stop future attacks.

This nightmare scenario does not have to happen. The solution is simple; keep up the efforts to prevent the attacks and allow free market capitalism to spur a strong and growing economy. With the election only a few days away, we all have the opportunity to vote for candidates that we believe will be the best choices to continue to keep us safe from terrorist attacks and implement policies that will ensure that the economy is strong enough to rebound from another successful attack.

As the campaigns come to an end, it is clear which presidential candidate wants to limit federal control of the economy through reduced taxes and spending and ignite the capitalist engine that drives the economy. We also know which candidate wants greater federal control through increased taxes and increased spending.

The missed opportunity in the presidential debates was the question, “There have been no successful terrorist attacks on U.S. soil since 9/11. What specific measures would you take as President to prevent an attack from happening on your watch?” Both candidates have been less than clear on whether they would continue with the successful prevention measures used by the current administration.

It really boils down to the candidate whose demonstrated character, judgment and leadership would make him the best choice to be Commander-in-Chief during this time of war. Which one will be the most committed to keep us safe and achieve victory over Islamo-fascism?

No matter who wins the Presidential election, the Republican Party is clearly on life support. If the worst should happen, namely a President Obama with a Democratic-controlled Congress, some serious Rx will be needed to bring new life to the GOP.

I hear a lot of pundits saying that the solution is to find the next Reagan or simply get back to conservative principles. While these are thoughts I would agree with, they don’t represent a serious solution to revitalizing the Republican brand.

What’s needed are specific political reforms that the Republican Party must stand for. McCain and Palin were on to something when they started talking about “reform”, but they haven’t been able to provide a clear message on what the reforms will be. Additionally, the Party needs to actively develop national candidates and market the GOP brand. If successful, conservative principles and the next Reagan will have the opportunity to reemerge.

Here are the key reforms that need to be part of the ongoing Republican platform until they are implemented:

Congressional Reform

Term Limits – the country needs people in Congress who are there to serve their country, not their next reelection bid. The Executive branch has term limits and so should the Legislative.

 

Line-Item Veto – Congress needs to give the President the ability to veto any specific funding items in a bill while approving the rest of it. Congress can still override any of the vetoed items with a two-thirds majority.

 

No Earmarks – all Republican legislators must take a pledge to refrain from inserting earmarks into any legislation. Also, they must be fully committed to vote against any bill that contains them.

 

High Ethical Standards – all Republican legislators must pledge to uphold the highest standards of ethics and personal integrity.

 

No Lobbyist Money – Republican legislators will not accept any campaign funding from registered lobbyists.

Tax Reform

Fair Tax – the current income tax must be replaced with a consumption tax, such as the Fair Tax (www.fairtax.org).

 

Social Security – it will demand significant tax increases or reduced benefits if it is not addressed. It needs to be phased out and replaced with personal retirement accounts.

Energy Reform

The goal should be to achieve energy independence by 2025. It will start with eliminating all federal restrictions on accessing oil, gas & clean coal resources within our borders and in our coastal waters. Congress will also lift any restrictions on building and expanding nuclear power plants. Any promising alternative energy solutions will be able to obtain federal grants for research and development.

The reason for focusing on these specific reforms is that the majority of people in this country can enthusiastically support them, including Libertarians, Independents, Ron Paul supporters and Reagan Democrats. If the Republican Party can demonstrate commitment to these reforms, it should significantly help in getting Republicans voted into office, regaining a majority in Congress and then being able to push through the necessary legislation to implement the reforms.

This doesn’t mean that the Party will ignore its core beliefs of personal freedom and traditional values. Those will continue to be front and center. What the reforms will demonstrate is that the GOP is a party of action, not just a set of beliefs and values. It will allow candidates to tell voters what they plan to accomplish, not just give them platitudes about “fighting” for them or “standing up” for their beliefs. These reforms, when implemented, will result in limited government and economic growth that fundamentally changes the political landscape. These reforms will make it much harder for Left to use the federal government for their wealth redistribution and social engineering ideology.

Along with pursuing these reforms, the Party also needs to give itself a makeover with regards to recruitment and development of candidates and the initiation of an ongoing marketing campaign to promote the GOP brand.

Candidate Recruitment & Development

The Party needs to be more aggressive with ongoing efforts to identify future national level candidates. They need to actively vet, recruit and develop these individuals so they will be ready to take the national stage. They must provide training to improve their personal appeal, communication skills and understanding of national issues. These future candidates will also require fundraising and campaign support from the Party.

The objective should be to ensure that the Party always has a stable of high quality candidates for every Congressional race. With term limits in place, this will become much more important because there will no longer be career politicians who retain their seats for 20-30 years. The Party also needs to groom future Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates and they should constantly be working on lists of prospects who can be projected out to the next two or three election cycles. Just imagine what Sarah Palin would be like as a candidate in this election, if instead of getting a last-minute crash course on national issues and foreign policy, she would have been tutored for the VP position for a year or more. Bobby Jindal should be getting groomed right now for a potential candidacy in four or eight years. This grooming would include establishing a record of accomplishments and successes as Governor, getting acquainted with foreign leaders and policies and developing a strong understanding of domestic and economic issues. The Party has been too passive in waiting for candidates to emerge. They need to take a more proactive approach that identifies individuals with the most potential, turns them into outstanding candidates and fully promotes their campaigns. There should never again be Republican candidates who are poor campaigners, have limited knowledge on key issues or have past indiscretions that can be used against them.

Marketing Campaign

As we have seen from this current election cycle, the vast majority of the mainstream media is the liberal media. This liberal media is worth millions in campaign propaganda for the Democrats. The Republican Party needs to hire a professional firm to develop an ongoing marketing campaign to counteract the influence of the liberal media. The campaign must include advertising in the liberal media (TV, print, radio and Internet), the unleashing of spokespeople who can convincingly explain Republican positions and a calling out of the “journalists” who are Democratic Party shills (“make them famous” as John McCain would say). It is also important to ensure that there are active College Republican groups at as many colleges and universities as possible. They should be provided with the necessary support to be able to sponsor Republican speakers on campus, as well as Republican-Democrat debates. These groups can then be leveraged as campaign offices during national elections to distribute literature and spread the word about the candidates.

The bottom line is that the GOP must take aggressive action to revive itself. If it passively sits there waiting for the next Reagan, then it will likely stay dormant for decades. On the other hand, if they can develop a reform strategy and recruit effective candidates to push it through, the Elephant may not only get back on its feet, but he could stomp the Donkey at the same time.

A new religion has emerged from the social liberalism that is now dominating the Democratic Party in the United States. “Govocracy” is a theocratic religion that establishes the federal government (including all three branches) as the Supreme Provider for the people. The founding of the religion is based on this declaration, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Government with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Job Security, Entitlements and the pursuit of Universal Health Care. Therefore, ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what your country can do for you.”

The Sacred Canons of Govocracy:

·       The Government is responsible for providing all the basic living needs for its citizens if they can’t, or won’t, provide for themselves, including food, shelter, clothing, transportation, jobs, health care, education, insurance, retirement funding and Internet access.

·       The Rich must be taxed as much as necessary to pay for the basic living needs of those who are not so fortunate.

·       All those immigrating to this country, whether legally or illegally, must be given the same basic living needs as all other citizens.

·       Big Corporations are inherently greedy and must be tightly regulated and heavily taxed by the Government.

·       The planet is fragile and the Government must protect it at all costs through environmental regulation, taxation and lower standards of living.

·       The Constitution does not directly address modern day social issues and must be interpreted and adapted by liberal judges.

·       There must be a total separation of Government functions and all spiritual religions, except for Islam since they have a terrorist faction that may kill us if we don’t accommodate them.

·       The States and local communities must not be able to pass laws that deal with social issues such as marriage, abortion, homosexuality, religion and sex education, as the people cannot be trusted to make the morally correct decision.

·       The military should only be used to protect the country when an attack occurs and it should not be used to make a preventive attack or liberate a country from a totalitarian regime.

·       The United States will be liked by the rest of the world and terrorist attacks will end when this country stops acting like a big powerful arrogant bully.

·       The United States is only worthy of our patriotism when Government is controlled by Democrats.

Position on Heresy and Blasphemy:

Anyone who expresses conservative political views is committing heresy. Also, those who support the people who commit heresy are guilty of heresy. The groups most likely to spread heresies about the Government are the Republican voters, the Rich, evangelical Christians, corporate executives, conservative talk show hosts, anti-abortionists and, especially, Republican politicians. However, be aware that there are heretics and blasphemers within our midst as well. They must be uncovered and exposed for who they really are (e.g. Joe Lieberman, a.k.a. Judas Lieberman).

Blasphemers and heretics are a threat to Almighty Government and our American way of life and must be politically destroyed. The teachings of Govocracy support a moral relativism whereby name-calling, character assassinations, false accusations, voter fraud, vandalism and other illegal actions can be morally justified if they are committed against blasphemers and heretics. If you also belong to a spiritual religion, know that God will forgive you for the sins you commit to help Her anointed servant on earth – Lord Government. There will be a place for you in heaven (and, depending on your religion, maybe 72 virgins also).

It must be the mission of all the faithful to defeat conservative heresy at every turn. Do not merely rely on having enough votes from other enlightened ones to win elections. Ensure that all Republican candidates are made unelectable, no matter what it takes. Also, finding ways to keep Republican voters from the polls is highly encouraged.

When a Republican becomes President (Government forbid!), members must sacrifice personally to wreck the country enough so that the President is removed from office, or at least loses the next election. If the country is at war, we need to do everything we can to discredit the mission, even if it means military defeat. If the economy is faltering, we must try to push it over the edge. Although this may cause you pain in your personal life, you need to do it for the Greater Cause.

You must also do all you can to minimize, hide, distract from, obfuscate and ignore personal failings of Democratic candidates. Many of our members have been adulterers, taken bribes, complied with lobbyist demands and committed various illegal acts. We must immediately forgive them and stand up to any attacks made towards our candidates on account of these issues. Ensuring that these Democrats obtain office, or stay in office, is morally justified, no matter what kind of sin they committed.

Excerpts from the gospel texts on the recent titular heads of Government: Ronald, George I, William and George II.

The Gospel of Ronald

Democrats wandered in the wilderness for a dozen years starting with Ronald. He invited nuclear war by calling the Soviet Union the “evil empire” and building up our nuclear weapon supply. Fortunately for the United States, the Soviet economy had some problems and they had to give up on mutually-assured destruction (MAD). Ronald cut taxes for the Rich and cut off entitlement programs for the needy. He increased the national debt so that it became a burden on future generations. While there were some additional jobs created, they were mainly hamburger-flipping jobs that didn’t pay enough to make a living from.

Heresy spoken by Ronald Reagan:

“The nine most terrifying words in the English language are; I'm from the Government and I'm here to help.”

“The Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.”

“The best minds are not in Government. If any were, business would hire them away.”

“Entrepreneurs and their small enterprises are responsible for almost all the economic growth in the United States.”

The Gospel of George I

Although he represented another four years of Republican rule, the first Bush did minimal damage to the country. He freed Kuwait from Saddam Hussein, but didn’t try to remove the Hussein regime. He also raised income tax rates on the Rich, despite pledging not to.

Heresy spoken by George Bush I:

“Read my lips--NO NEW TAXES!”

“Obviously no country can claim a special place in God's heart, yet we are better as a people because He has a special place in ours...I want to thank you for helping America, as Christ ordained, to be a light unto the world...”

“I believe with all my heart that one cannot be America's president without a belief in God, without the strength that your faith gives you.”

“No, I don't know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God.”

The Gospel of William

The man from Hope led the Democrats out of the wilderness and retook control of the White House. He was the first intellectual President in modern time and won two terms because he could feel the people’s pain. With his Vice President having created the Internet and companies flocking there to do business, Clinton raised taxes that resulted in budget surpluses. The surpluses helped pay down the national debt that had been expanded by the Reagan administration. Clinton, unfortunately, was weak in his faith and he succumbed to the Republicans in welfare reform, NAFTA and had a failed attempt at universal health care. He also had a taste for the ladies, which the Republicans used to distract him from the nation’s business by putting him through bogus impeachment hearings.

The Teachings of William Clinton:

“We will lower the tax burden on middle-class Americans by asking the very wealthy to pay their fair share.”

“George Bush has raised taxes on the people driving pickup trucks and lowered taxes on the people riding in limousines. We can do better.”

“We have to ask the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share again. Their incomes went up in the 1980s and their taxes went down. We can't ask the middle class to pay more; their incomes went down and their taxes went up.”

“Opportunity for all means making taxes fair. I'm not out to soak the rich. But I do believe the rich should pay their fair share. For twelve years, the Republicans have raised taxes on the middle class. It's time to give the middle class tax relief.”

The Gospel of George II

The son of George I is the worst and most evil President in history. He and his Vice President were modern day oil barons who sought office for the sole purpose of going to war in the Middle East to set it up for their oil buddies take over the oil wells and get richer. He should have lost his first term election, but the conservative-dominated Supreme Court stopped the Florida recount and gave him the victory. Once he took office, he planned the 9/11 attacks and parlayed them into attacking Iraq based on lies about Saddam Hussein’s involvement with the attack and the stockpile of WMD that he had in Iraq. Then he gave Halliburton a no-bid contract in Iraq so they could take the oil. He developed the Patriot Act to take away the privacy rights of American citizens. He tortured Muslims and put them in prisons where their rights to due process were taken away. He violated the law when he started illegally wiretapping innocent citizens. He is guilty of war crimes and should have been impeached.  He duped Congress into lowering income taxes on the Rich which caused huge deficits. He also supported Republican deregulation which caused the financial crisis of 2008.

Heresy spoken by George Bush II:

“We have learned that terrorist attacks are not caused by the use of strength; they are invited by the perception of weakness. And the surest way to avoid attacks on our own people is to engage the enemy where he lives and plans. We are fighting that enemy in Iraq and Afghanistan today so that we do not meet him again on our own streets, in our own cities.”

“Every nation in every region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists.”

“States should have the right to enact... laws...particularly to end the inhumane practice of ending a life that otherwise could live.”

“You know what's interesting about Washington? It's the kind of place where second-guessing has become second nature.”

“They want the federal Government controlling Social Security like it's some kind of federal program.”

“The case for trade is not just monetary, but moral. Economic freedom creates habits of liberty. And habits of liberty create expectations of democracy.”

Prophecy for the next Gospel:

"Now it shall come to pass in the final days of George the Worst, a young man with inspirational oratory skills and dark skin will rise to the height of Democratic politics. The Anointed One will enter on a platform of hope and change and the masses will flock to bear witness to His message.  Behold, He will be great and will be called the Transcender of Race, the Hope We Can Believe In and the One We Have Been Waiting For. His name will be written as Barack, but His adoring disciples will shout “OBAMA!” He will have the power to provide care for the sick and good jobs to the jobless, to slow the rise of the oceans and heal our planet, to end a war and secure our nation and to restore our image as the last, best hope on earth. But, upon this Good News, a dire warning follows: evil Republicans will mock the Messiah, defame His name and call Him the Inexperienced One, Too Liberal and Not Ready to Lead. He will enter the political arena to battle the Republican whom we call George III, although his name is written as John.”

The Lord Government’s Prayer

"Our Mother, which art in Washington,

Government be thy Name.

Thy handouts come,

Thy will be done, in America as it is in Sweden.

Give us every day our loaf of bread.

And forgive us our trespasses, as we destroy those that trespass against us.

And lead us not into free markets,

But deliver us from capitalism.

For thine are entitlements, and the power, and the taxes, for ever and ever. Amen”

Position on National Holidays

Govocracy proposes the elimination of Good Friday/Easter and Christmas based on the separation of church and state described in the First Amendment.

To replace them, we propose adding the following:

Worship services are held around the clock on blog sites and on talk radio. Go to Internet sites such as www.dailykos.com, www.moveon.org and airamerica.com to dialogue with other Govocrats and hear the gospel teachings of some of the top preachers in the country.

Also, make sure you get your wristband with “WWGD” (What Would Government Do?) inscribed on it. It comes in all the colors of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and it will help you identify other Govocrats that you encounter in your daily life ($.99 + $5.00 tax donation at www.govocracy.org).

Blogger Note: I am a Govocracy heretic and have published a couple of posts from my Townhall site on the Daily Kos website (I’m a glutton for punishment). If you are curious how Govocrats respond to conservative heresy, feel free to check out the comments made to my posts (known as diaries):  http://www.dailykos.com/user/MikeMN - WARNING: X-rated language!

It was the best of times for Democrats and the worst of times for Republicans. The 2006 election had given the Democrats complete control of Congress and every reason to believe that they would take over the Executive Branch in January 2009. It was only a matter of time when they would witness Hillary Clinton taking the oath of office as the first woman President of the United States.

So what happened? Well, what happened was that the Democrats made four major strategic mistakes that the Republicans were able to capitalize on.

The first mistake was assuming that Clinton would walk away with the nomination and that the nominating process did not need to be modified in the event that two or more candidates would be able to stay in contention until the end. The process expected a single candidate to get a majority of the pledged delegates during the early primaries and caucuses and then cruise to the total needed for victory even before all the states had the chance to be counted. At that point, the large contingent of Super Delegates could just vote their conscience and cast a symbolic vote that wouldn’t affect the results. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) would have been wise to permanently fix the process by either eliminating the Super Delegate concept altogether or at least force those delegates to commit to a candidate before the first state voted. Super Delegates are supposed to be the enlightened members of the party and, thus, should have weighed in on the candidates early so that the rank-and-file voting could be influenced by these party leaders. The situation was unknowingly made even worse by the DNC disenfranchising the Michigan and Florida delegates because they moved their primary dates up. The DNC figured that Clinton would get enough delegates from the other states so that the Michigan and Florida delegates would not be needed to give her the victory. Additionally, Clinton built her campaign strategy on the assumption that she was the Anointed One and that she would have an insurmountable lead after the Super Tuesday primaries. Further compounding of this mistake came about from the DNC and Hillary Clinton for not taking the time to thoroughly vet this freshman Senator named Obama who was embarking on his first presidential nomination process. The Republicans eventually did the vetting for them, but the Obama train was already rolling towards nomination station before the voters found out about Obama’s sordid associations with Reverend Wright, William Ayers, Tony Rezko, etc. Had this information been in the public eye before the Iowa caucuses, even the inspiring messages of “change” would not have been enough for most Democratic voters to take a chance with this guy at the top of their ticket in ’08. Unfortunately for the Democrats, they unwittingly took away Clinton’s coronation and put forth a candidate that would have less of chance to win in November.

The other early mistake by the Democrats was thinking that McCain would be the easiest Republican to run against. They knew that his reaching across the aisle and sponsoring liberal legislation would alienate him among conservatives, many of whom they hoped would stay away from the polls. Also, they figured that their historic first woman presidential candidate going up against the old, curmudgeonly maverick was a matchup made in heaven (separation of church and state aside). The NY Times endorsed McCain simply for the purpose of attracting interest to him in the primaries and many others in the liberal media sang his praises.  On top of that, many Democrats crossed over to vote for McCain in the early primaries, and with the help of a strong showing of Independents, McCain got his first victory from the New Hampshire voters. If the Democrats would have realized at the time that McCain was the only Republican candidate that stood a chance of winning in the general election, they would not have been so quick to help revive his dying campaign and help get him back into contention. However, the Democratic CPR was not enough by itself to propel McCain to the nomination. It also required having a slate of Republican candidates from whom the conservative base could not readily identify their next Ronald Reagan. As the primaries got rolling, the conservatives were in disarray on who to vote for and the results got spread out and watered down among several candidates until McCain was able to slip past everyone with the moderate, independent and Democratic crossover vote. By the time conservatives decided that Romney could be their guy, McCain had too much momentum to overcome. So the Democrats got the Republican nominee they wanted – unfortunately for them, it was another big mistake.

As the primary season was coming to a close with Obama holding a narrow lead in pledged delegates, another major mistake was made. That mistake was for the Super Delegates to give the nomination to Obama instead of Clinton. The writing was on the wall; Obama had only a slight polling lead over McCain when he should have been up by 15-20 points and Clinton had thumped him in key states down the stretch. His inspirational rhetoric could no longer mask his past associations, his #1 liberal voting record or his lack of qualifications. At this point, the DNC, Clinton and the “super” Super Delegates should have met with him and asked him to step aside and take the VP spot on the Clinton ticket. With enough support from the Super Delegates, they could have made him an offer that he couldn’t refuse, because they would have had enough delegates to swing the victory to Clinton. They could have pointed out the benefits for him; he would be the first black Vice President, he would have more time to distance himself from Reverend Wright, et al., get valuable VP experience and be the next Democrat in line for the Presidency. It would be a dream ticket for Democrats and ensure a victory in November. Unfortunately, the black contingent of the Democratic Party would not consider the idea that Obama had to give up his opportunity for the good of the party. Obama was their chance to have a historic President and they deserved to have the first black President as much as others felt entitled to have the first woman President. There were even threats that if Clinton was handed the nomination, blacks would stay at home on November 4 and that there would be the chance of rioting in the streets. The Democrats could not afford to risk losing the black vote and, thus the third mistake became reality.

The fourth mistake for the Democrats was Obama’s VP selection. Putting Hillary Clinton (or should I say “Team Clinton”) on the bottom of the ticket would have at least shored up most of the disgruntled Clinton voters and been a historic first for both slots. Besides showing total disrespect for the person who was supposed to be the Anointed One, the Biden decision was a huge mistake because it highlighted Obama’s inexperience, especially on foreign policy, and basically added nothing positive to the ticket. Biden’s relatives and friends in Delaware are not enough additional votes to offset the lost Clinton voters. Correspondingly, McCain, with the advantage of going second, totally trumped Obama’s choice by putting a woman in the number two slot. She would likely have been the selection no matter who Obama chose, but the impact to the ticket is much more significant with Clinton standing on the sidelines. Also, Palin adds much more to the ticket than just being a woman. She has energized the Republican base with her conservative credentials, she is a strong communicator and complements the change McCain wants to bring to Washington with her reformer image. Palin provides a boost to the McCain ticket regardless, but the impact would have been much less if she was matched up against Clinton and the upside-down dream ticket. Obama had the chance to show his good judgment with his first major decision as the nominee and he blew it royally.

With several weeks left in the campaign, the cumulative effect of these major strategic mistakes has turned the best of times for Democrats into panic time. The only “hope” they believe in now is to adopt an all-out attack on the Republican ticket and hope they can inflict a mortal political wound in the eleventh hour. Maybe they will even resort to an October surprise of dumping Biden for Clinton. Can they pull out a victory from the jaws of defeat…or will they just be making another mistake?

There are 22 subject areas in this guide with each containing two opposing views. Depending on which of the views you align with, it will indicate which presidential ticket you should vote for.

If you have already made up your mind, go through this and see how strongly you really match up with your candidate on the 22 subjects. This may be especially helpful for those who have locked in on a ticket, but don’t know much about the candidates or where they stand on the issues.

National Security

If you believe that 9/11 must have been an isolated attack based on the fact that no other attack has occurred since then and that we are not currently at war with Islamic terrorists and that "Iran is a tiny country that doesn’t pose a serious threat", then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe the United States has not been attacked since 9/11 due to the defeat and disruption of terrorist networks in Afghanistan and Iraq, along with the enhanced intelligence gathering and surveillance requested by the current President and that we are still at war with Islamic terrorists who are looking for their next opportunity to top 9/11 and that Iran is a serious threat and needs to be stopped from developing nuclear weapons, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Iraq

If you believe it is in the best interest of our country to "pull all of our troops out of Iraq in 16 months", even if it results in their democratic government being toppled by terrorists, that the United States loses its second war (Vietnam) and that we may have to send the military back there to fight in the near future, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that helping sustain freedom and democracy in Iraq is a key to maintaining our national security and that our military can, and must, defeat the terrorist insurgency and support the Iraqi government until the country can fully defend itself and that the recent surge of troops is putting us on the road to victory, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Energy

If you believe that this country should continue to pay for foreign oil, even when some of it comes from countries that have sponsored terrorism against us, and that we should not drill for our own oil because it would take too long to get or that it may disturb some eco-system and that we can resolve the current energy crisis by "properly inflating our tires and cutting back on our driving", then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

It you believe it would be better for this country to reduce its dependence on foreign oil and the terrorist-supporting countries we are getting it from and that we have vast oil reserves in this country and in our coastal waters that can help us achieve energy independence in the next couple of decades, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Nuclear Power

If you believe that nuclear power plants are too dangerous to build, even though other countries like France use nuclear power for up to 80% of their electrical needs or that disposal of nuclear waste poses too high of a risk or that solar, wind and hydroelectric power can provide all the electricity we need right now, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that the current nuclear power technology is now very safe, does not emit greenhouse gases and is very cost effective and that by building more nuclear power plants, along with leveraging solar, wind and hydroelectric solutions, we could eventually meet our nation’s electrical needs and eliminate the polluting coal-burning power plants, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Taxes

If you believe that the federal government can make better decisions than you can on how you should spend your income and you want the government to "spread your wealth" to others or you just believe that "paying more taxes is patriotic", then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you want to keep more of the income you earn through reduced taxes and be able to make your own decisions on how to spend it and you think that the federal government already gets more than enough tax revenue to perform their limited role as stated in the Constitution, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Federal Budget

If you like the idea of Congress spending more money than they take in from your taxes and continue to fund pork barrel projects through earmarks that bloat their spending bills, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you want to see Congress spend less of your tax money, eliminate earmarks, work towards balancing the federal budget and have your President make frequent use of his veto pen, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Health Care

If you believe that the problem with health care is that we just need to contribute more of our earnings to the federal government so they can regulate the care and drugs we can, or cannot, have and that when the federal government mandates below-market payments for medical procedures and prescriptions it won’t cause doctors and pharmaceutical companies to provide lower quality and less innovation, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe the problem with health care is that health insurance costs too much and that people need more options for purchasing it at a reasonable price by driving more competition among health insurance providers and ensuring that we continue to get the best quality care and new life-saving drugs, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Marriage

If you believe that the definition of marriage is discriminatory and that same-sex partners should be able to be married and yet you can rationalize that it is not discriminatory to prohibit polygamy, incest or other relationships and you don’t believe that the redefining marriage will have a negative impact on society because it doesn’t have a direct impact on you personally, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that preserving the traditional definition of marriage is in the best interest of a healthy society and that children growing up with both a mother and father have the best odds to be well-adjusted and successful in life and that same-sex couples can legalize their relationship through a civil union, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Abortion

If you don’t believe that it is morally wrong for a woman to make the choice of aborting her child during pregnancy for any reason or letting the baby die after it is born following a botched abortion attempt and that "determining when a baby gets human rights is above a Senator’s pay grade", then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that it is morally wrong to have an unborn human life killed unless the mother’s life is in danger and that all human life should be protected, including a Down’s syndrome baby or a child conceived out of wedlock and you want "an advocate for special needs children in Washington", then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Global Warming

If you believe that the man-made production of carbon dioxide is going to bring about a global warming catastrophe and you have closed your mind to any scientific or common sense evidence to the contrary because Al Gore says "the debate is over" and that the Obama nomination was "the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal", then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you don’t believe that man-made production of carbon dioxide is going to bring about a global warming catastrophe or at least you don’t think that the debate is over and you don’t want to stifle economic growth based on the faulty assumption that we can actually control the earth’s climate, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN (Palin will hopefully change McCain’s mind on cap-and-trade).

Gun Control

If you believe that the Second Amendment only allows the military and police officers to own guns and that gun control laws will keep criminals from getting and using them and that bitter law-abiding citizens will be safer if "they can’t cling to their guns and religion", then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that the Second Amendment allows all citizens to own guns and that gun control laws do not stop criminals from getting them and that citizens will be safer if they are able to have guns to defend themselves and their property and that hunters can still shoot caribou and moose, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Talk Radio

If you fear that hearing conservative talk radio may cause people to change their long held liberal views and you believe that the government should force radio stations to broadcast an equal amount of liberal talk radio, even though the mainstream television and print media is totally dominated by liberal views, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe in the free expression of political views over the public airways and that radio station owners should be able to broadcast talk shows with any, and all, political opinions as they see fit, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Education

If you want a candidate that is beholden to the teacher unions that have helped ensure that good teachers are not paid for their performance and that bad teachers keep their jobs and that parents and students should have no affordable options other than their local public school, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that the best teachers should be paid more than average ones and that poor-performing teachers should be fired and that parents and students should have affordable options for schools, including the choice of a better public school, charter schools, private schools, religious schools and home-schooling, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Union Organizing

If you believe that unions should be able to force workers to openly declare their vote on whether they want to unionize or not, so that the unions can coerce those who are against it and intimidate those workers into changing their mind, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that workers should be able to submit a secret ballot with their vote on whether or not they want to unionize so that they are protected from union thugs who want to pick out those workers not wanting to unionize and pressure them to change their mind, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Illegal Immigration

If you believe we should not try to stop illegal immigration with a border fence and that we should give amnesty to those that are already here illegally and protect them with sanctuary cities, even though they have broken U.S. laws, taken jobs that U.S. citizens could be hired for and are getting billions of our tax dollars for education, health care and other benefits, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe we should try to stop illegal immigration with a border fence and that those here illegally now should not get a free pass to citizenship and that current laws dealing with illegal immigrants must be enforced, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Foreign Trade

If you believe that American companies can stay in business and maintain their good paying jobs by restricting and taxing imports, even if it leads to other countries restricting and taxing our exports and we need to do this because many American goods and services can’t compete on a level playing field (free trade) with other countries, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that free trade agreements provide the best opportunities for companies to grow their workforce by expanding the sales of their goods and services to foreign countries and get the opportunity for our country to import other competitively priced goods and services that we need, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

National Pride

If you don’t believe that the United States is the greatest nation on the planet, that it has done more harm than good in the world and that it should become more like some of the European countries and you "didn’t become proud of America in your adult life until Obama won some primaries" and you agree that "America is, is no longer, uh, what it could be, what it, it once was", then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN (or pack up your things and catch the next plane to Sweden)

If you believe that, despite all its faults, the United States has always been the greatest nation on the planet and that it will continue to be a beacon of hope for all freedom-loving people on the planet and that politicians need to put their country first, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Foreign Policy

If you believe that the United States is better off if we are liked by our allies and enemies and that we can get other countries to like us by simply talking to them and apologizing for our past actions that may have offended them and that will ensure that our enemies won’t attack us anymore, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you believe that the United States is better off if we are respected by our allies knowing they can count on us in time of need and also feared by our enemies knowing we will destroy them if they attack us or our allies, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Historic Presidential Candidate

If you want to witness the milestone of the first bi-racial President or think it would be cool to have a President with dark skin and don’t care whether or not that person is ready to lead the country, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you want to witness the milestone of the first bi-racial President or think it would be cool to have a President with dark skin, but want that person to be ready to lead the country, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN (Bobby Jindal and others are on the way).

Qualifications

If you prefer to have a President that is a Harvard-educated lawyer, did some teaching and community organizing with no major accomplishments to speak of, spent several years in the Illinois legislature with 130+ “present” votes and is now a freshman Senator in Congress who has not authored any significant legislation but has written two memoirs, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If you prefer to have a President that graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, fought for his country with honor in Vietnam during his 22 years of military service and served in Congress as a Representative for 4 years and a Senator for 22 years where he authored key legislation, including some that were co-authored with Democrats, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Historic Vice Presidential Candidate

If you want to witness the shattering of the political glass ceiling with the first woman Vice President or just think it would be cool to have a female on a winning presidential ticket, but insist that the woman be a Democrat, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN (and hope that Hillary rises from the ashes in 2012).

If you want to witness the shattering of the political glass ceiling with the first woman Vice President or just think it would be cool to have a female on a winning presidential ticket, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

Change

If the change you are hoping for means losing to terrorists in Iraq, raising our country’s risk of another terrorist attack, increasing taxes and spending to have more government control of your life and continuing our energy crisis by not allowing more oil drilling or construction of new nuclear power plants, then VOTE FOR OBAMA/BIDEN.

If the change you are hoping for means winning in Iraq, protecting the country against more terrorist attacks, decreasing taxes to spur economic growth and pursuing energy independence by replacing foreign oil with our own, adding more new nuclear power plants and finding cost-effective alternative solutions, then VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN.

America is the greatest nation on the planet, but I see many opportunities to make it even greater. Below are 21 steps in the areas of economics, culture, politics, foreign policy and national security that I believe can significantly enhance America’s greatness.

The order does not represent prioritization, but some of these steps are related, such that I wanted to deal with one before the other. Many of these ideas have been discussed before and I have added some new concepts to others. Any of these could be implemented alone, but I believe that implementing them all would expand the value that each would add by themselves. Also, to implement all of them would require various transitional periods and phase-in approaches. Each step is listed below with a single sentence description and they are all expanded upon in subsequent sections.

All of these steps, except the last one, have been posted previously on their own. Now that they are all developed, I wanted to publish all of the 21 steps in a single post for easier reading. I welcome any feedback on the content of this post and your ideas on restoring American greatness.

1. Union Makeover – unions take on a new role that ends their involvement with wage contracts and replaces the employer as the benefit provider.
2. Healthy Choices – increased competition will make health insurance affordable for all and keep health care quality the best in the world.
3. Tax Revolution – income taxes are replaced with a consumption tax.
4. Social Security R.I.P – a mandatory retirement account for each worker averts the coming Social Security disaster.
5. Working with Welfare – improved incentives will drive capable workers off of the welfare roles while maintaining the “safety net”.
6. Criminals at Work – prisoners pay their dues to society and get a real opportunity for a second chance.
7. Limiting Congress – term limits will help infuse Congress with fresh minds and reduce abuses of power.
8. Living Within a Budget – the federal budget becomes zero-based using the previous year’s tax revenue and preset priorities.
9. Every Vote Counts – election processes and financing are revamped to ensure fairness and optimal results.
10. Marriage Vow – a marriage amendment is necessary to ward off state-level challenges to this important societal institution.
11. Abortion No-Demand – abortion demand will be lowered through alternative choices without the need to overturn Roe v. Wade.
12. Race to the Finish – black victimization and oppression give way to a new age of racial enlightenment.
13. Religious Expression – unshackling religious expression from the misinterpreted church and state separation will strengthen our society.
14. Rethinking Education – state and corporate alliances enhance academic quality and opportunity.
15. Fences for Freedom – a full border fence and tightened port security will protect our nation from illegal immigration and terrorist intrusions.
16. Pink Slips for Illegals – employers will have preset timeframes to dismiss illegal immigrants from their jobs and provide their travel expenses home.
17. The Enemy Within – the federal government, along with its citizens, are empowered with methods to find plotting terrorists before they can act.
18. Orbiting Security – a fully functioning missile defense system provides needed protection from international threats.
19. Save Your Energy – energy independence will be achieved through the combined use of our energy resources and alternative solutions.
20. Rewarding Innovations – annual monetary awards are given to the country’s top innovations in the areas of energy, health and the environment.
21. Peace Through Liberty – our key foreign policy objective is spread freedom and democracy around the world to achieve lasting peace and prosperity.

The labor unions in the first half of the twentieth century served a valuable purpose. Workers needed unions to drive improvements in working conditions, negotiate increases in wages, enact legislation to restrict management abuses and establish the U.S. Department of Labor. But they became victims of their own success. In the new world of labor-management relations, they are continuing to operate like they were still under the management abuses of the previous decades. It is time for unions to get a makeover and establish a new and more effective role for the American worker. For this new role to be successful, the changes must lead to a win-win situation among workers and companies.

The first thing that must change is union involvement in wage contracts. These contracts stifle productivity and reward poor performance and seniority. Workers have set wages based on their years of experience, so potential top performers have no incentive to produce more and poor performers get paid more than they are worth. It’s time for union labor to compete for jobs in the market place like most other workers. The top-performing union workers will now have the opportunity to leverage their skills for higher wages. Companies can offer the higher wages to them because they will be paying lower wages to others who are not as skilled. Now here is where the union can really add value for the lower performing and novice worker. Various types of training can be offered by the union, including classroom sessions, self-study and tutoring by their highly-skilled union brethren. Workers who are between jobs can sign up for classes to brush up on their skills. The new union would also be able to arrange for development of new skills for individuals who initially chose a line of work that they maybe weren’t very suited for. Also, if jobs are taken over by offshore competition or become obsolete due to technology, the unions could take the lead on training their members with new skills to compete successfully for other jobs. Companies will demand, and pay a premium for, highly trained union workers. Along with this, the Minimum Wage Law needs to be repealed. Companies should be able to offer wages based on supply and demand of the workforce and not be forced to pay a minimum wage determined by Congress. If a company has a job worth $5 an hour and there are workers who want it, more power to them.

The next change for the new union is to provide member benefit packages that they currently negotiate for with the companies. Unions with significant membership volumes should be able to negotiate very reasonable prices for health, dental, auto, life, disability and any other types of insurance that the members might need. The largest unions may even want to underwrite the insurance themselves. On top of that, they could negotiate fees with money managers to set up retirement savings accounts for all members. This eventually will remove the need for companies to provide these benefits to their employees and they can redirect that money towards wages, bonuses and retirement contributions.

Union members may also decide to use their membership fees to offer other types of member benefits such as:

- Education loans or scholarships

- Affiliated credit cards

- Memorial fund for families of deceased members

- Eliminated or reduced membership fees during times of unemployment

- Various types of insurance programs

- Discounted gym memberships

- Day care

- Subsidized transit passes

With this makeover, unions become attractive for all types of workers, including white-collar management and those in professional positions. The objective is for potentially all workers to be members of unions that represent various groups of jobs and professions. Doctors, astronauts, managers, accountants, scientists, journalists, bankers, lawyers, police officers, etc. would all want to unionize with this new model.

It really does become a win-win situation. Workers get training to make them successful, along with benefit packages that are portable between jobs and throughout retirement. Companies are freed up of having to pay for employee benefits and can use the money to attract the best employees (and no more strikes!).

2. Healthy Choices

The only problem now with health care is that it is a big expense for most people and it causes many people decide to roll the dice and not buy health insurance. It is a good deal for those working for employers would subsidize most of it, but it becomes a problem when they lose their jobs or retire. The solution is not to provide a government-controlled, taxpayer-funded system (a.k.a. single payer, universal, etc.), but to drive price reductions in health insurance through pooled risk and competition. At such time when nearly everyone has become a member of a union (see #1 Union Makeover), these unions will be the risk pools that negotiate affordable health insurance contracts for their members.

Most of the unions will contain a mix of individuals who span from low-cost, healthy to the high-cost, unhealthy. Overall, the risk is balanced out and the unions should be able to negotiate reasonable rates with insurance companies, based on their numbers and risk assessment. Also, smaller unions may choose to partner with others to increase their numbers and bargaining power. Another option is for unions to underwrite their own health insurance plan, where the union itself would provide insurance to its members (receiving the premiums and paying out the claims).

Members would still have the incentive to use medical services wisely, due to co-pay requirements, etc. and the possibility that rates would increase if the pool moves into a higher risk category. Doctors could leverage their unions to negotiate better malpractice insurance and, in turn, set their rates more competitively.

The main benefit is that having affordable health insurance is no longer dependant on having a job where an employer provides it. Workers can belong to unions for their entire adult life and continue to have reasonably priced benefits, like health insurance, during their working years and throughout retirement. Medicare would no longer be needed once all workers were unionized and would eventually be phased out.

3. Tax Revolution

The current income tax code is nearly 8,000 pages and cannot be understood by the average citizen. It is a complex maze of regulations that have been piled on one another for decades. It is time to revolutionize the way the federal government is funded. A flat income tax, a value-added sales tax and an embedded sales tax (“FairTax”) have been researched and offered up over the past couple of decades. Any one of these would be a better alternative to the current income tax, but my choice is the FairTax. The details about the FairTax can be found at www.fairtax.org and a brief overview from that site is presented here:

What is the FairTax plan?

The FairTax plan is a comprehensive proposal that replaces all federal income and payroll based taxes with an integrated approach including a progressive national retail sales tax, a prebate to ensure no American pays federal taxes on spending up to the poverty level, dollar-for-dollar federal revenue neutrality, and, through companion legislation, the repeal of the 16th Amendment.

The FairTax Act (HR 25, S 1025) is nonpartisan legislation. It abolishes all federal personal and corporate income taxes, gift, estate, capital gains, alternative minimum, Social Security, Medicare, and self-employment taxes and replaces them with one simple, visible, federal retail sales tax administered primarily by existing state sales tax authorities.

The FairTax taxes us only on what we choose to spend on new goods or services, not on what we earn. The FairTax is a fair, efficient, transparent, and intelligent solution to the frustration and inequity of our current tax system.

The FairTax:

- Enables workers to keep their entire paychecks

- Enables retirees to keep their entire pensions

- Refunds in advance the tax on purchases of basic necessities

- Allows American products to compete fairly

- Brings transparency and accountability to tax policy

- Ensures Social Security and Medicare funding

- Closes all loopholes and brings fairness to taxation

- Abolishes the IRS

My proposed changes in the federal budget (see #8 Living Within a Budget) reduces federal spending and ties it directly to the revenue produced from the FairTax. This should make the FairTax rate significantly less than the 23% set in the current legislative bill.

4. Social Security R.I.P

While there were certainly good intentions with the Social Security program, it was based on a questionable concept where current workers would pay to support workers who were now retired. At the time it was set up, there were many more workers than retirees, so each individual didn’t have to contribute all that much. Along the way, the money coming in for Social Security was not saved for that use, but was distributed out in the general funding pool and replaced with I-O-Us. Also, with the size of the Baby Boomer generation, the number of retirees will soon exceed the number of those in the work force. The Social Security system can be nursed along for a while longer, but that would mean increasing the contributions from workers and/or reducing the retiree benefits. Neither option is a viable solution.

Instead, Social Security will be phased out and replaced with legislation requiring a secured retirement account (SRA) for all working individuals. The account would be set up with an individual’s first job after reaching the age of 18. There would be any number of options for companies who could set up the account and administer it. The rules of the account would be very similar to those of existing IRAs, including setting a retirement age for withdrawals and providing for some loan and hardship provisions.

The key difference with an IRA is that the account is funded directly out of the wages paid by the employer. Five percent of all wages paid to an individual will be directed into their SRA account. For example, a worker with a weekly salary of $1,000 will get a check for $950 and $50 will be deposited in the SRA account. Also, these SRAs will require the investments to be made in “safe” government-backed securities, such as treasury bonds, for the first $50,000 in the account. Above $50,000, the individual owning the account can invest the money in any allowable investment vehicle and can self-manage the money or hire an investment professional. Also, individuals can authorize any amount over the five percent to be taken out of their wages and deposited to the account. IRAs, 401k accounts, etc. would no longer be needed since there are no tax advantages any more (see #3 Tax Revolution) and the SRA will accommodate all the retirement funding needs.

Essentially, this change forces all workers to have, and fund, their own retirement accounts. Anyone that works most years from 18 to their retirement age will have a nice nest egg and not need government assistance to support them. Compound interest and dollar cost averaging should produce significant gains in the five percent contributions being made during the working years. Couple the SRA with the health insurance and other benefits provided by the unions through retirement, and retirees will be able to keep a high quality of life throughout their lives.

A few other things to note…when a man and woman get married, they are automatically given joint ownership of each other’s SRA account. If one spouse had not worked and does not plan to, then there will be only one account between them. If a divorce occurs, the funds in the account, or accounts, will be split up equally based on all the contributions made during the time they were married. Upon the death of an owner of an SRA account, the money in the account is passed on to a beneficiary’s SRA account, unless it is needed to provide child support for beneficiaries under age 18.

5. Working with Welfare

All existing welfare programs would be eliminated. A program would be established for those individuals, and their children, who are unable to work due to physical or mental handicaps (Safety Net). They would have a reload-able debit/ID card to handle their living expenses. There would be a set annual amount based on the current cost of living (including minimum insurance coverages) in that area and the number of individuals in the family. For example, let’s say that in a particular city the set amount is $20,000 to support an individual with the basic necessities to live. An additional $5,000 may be the amount set for each child of that person.

Those who are able to work, but are currently unemployed, would be put into a different program (Unemployment Support). This program would provide temporary unemployment funds until the person gets employed again. It would also be based on a set amount for the area the person lives in, but not an amount that would cover the minimum living expenses. In the same city as the previous example, the unemployment program may only provide $10,000 annually to cover expenses between jobs. However, even if the individual gets a low paying job for $15,000, that person will still receive $5,000 of the unemployment funds so that they at least can maintain an annual income at the Safety Net level ($20,000) when they are working. Since these are people who can work, they would also be members of unions that would provide benefits, such as health insurance, during times of unemployment (see #1 Union Makeover).

Both the people in the Safety Net and Unemployment Support programs would be able to accept any amounts of charity (food, clothing, shelter, money, etc.) without impacting the funds they are receiving from the government. Since there are no longer any tax deductions for charitable contributions (see #3 Tax Revolution), those that truly want to help the needy will have the opportunity to provide their time and money directly to those individuals, or through organizations such a food shelves, Habitat for Humanity, Salvation Army, religious outreach programs, Goodwill Industries, etc.

6. Criminals at Work

All prisoners, except for those with life sentences (no parole), would be expected to work during their time in prison. Some of the jobs would be offered from local, state or federal organizations, while others would come from private companies.

The incentive for providing these job opportunities is that the employers would not have to provide any pay for the work. All they would have to do is provide training, tools, equipment and necessary raw materials to do the work. There are likely many types of work that criminals could perform while in prison and many companies and organizations that could benefit from the products or services that they would produce.

The incentive for the prisoners to do the work is that this would be the main factor for granting parole. Prisoners eligible for parole will need to have been actively working the whole time they have served (less sick time, holidays or other time off) or they will not be approved. The other advantage is that they will now have experience in something that will highly increase their chances of finding a job when they leave the prison. Even the companies that employed them in prison will want to check out these “interns” as potential regular employees when their prison time is up.

It becomes a great rehabilitation program for the criminal and becomes a source of workers for companies.

7. Limiting Congress

The reelection rate for members of Congress is over 90%. An increasing number of them are serving 30 years or more. It has become a life-long career for many of them, which is antithetical to what the Founding Fathers intended. The Founders expected citizens to put down the tools of their trade, come to Washington to serve their country and then return to their homes to live with the legislation they enacted.

Congress has established for itself lucrative pay, benefits and perks. This, along with the power it gives the members, is very enticing to candidates and they don’t want to give it up once they get in. But, to stay there, an incumbent’s main focus needs to be on the next election. Instead of making decisions for what is best for the country, they must satisfy voters and contributors who will provide them with the money and votes for their reelection.

We need to get rid of the career legislators and provide the opportunity for more citizens to serve in Congress and contribute fresh ideas. Career politicians quickly lose touch with the average American and their needs. Also, they are more susceptible to abuses of power involving money, special favors and sex.

If term limits make sense for the Executive branch, then they also make sense for the Legislative branch.

What I propose here is a constitutional amendment with the following term limits:

- Representatives can serve up to five 2-year terms for a total of 10 years and

- Senators can serve up to two 6-year terms for a total of 12 years.

Additionally, legislator’s pay would be linked to military pay scales. Legislators will be paid a salary that is tied to the average pay of mid-level officers in the four branches of the military. This makes it so that they cannot vote themselves any pay increase without corresponding increases in military pay. The point is that they understand that they don’t deserve more compensation for their service to the country than those who defend it.

Members of Congress would continue to have additional funds for key expenses, including lodging and travel while in session. They would also have a limited expense account to hire several aides to assist them in their work. They would not receive any other benefits when in office (see #1 Union Makeover) and would not receive a pension upon leaving (see #4 Social Security RIP).

What this change ensures is that Congress gets regular turnover to bring in new faces and fresh ideas. It will no longer be a magnet for people who are mainly seeking the position for the money and power. On the other hand, it will entice those individuals who truly want to serve their country. Because of the term limits, most legislators will leave office needing to return to a normal job. They know that they will have to live under the legislation they passed, just like any other citizen. We should get a much better quality of legislative decisions coming out of Washington than we have gotten previously when their votes were overly influenced by a reelection focus.

I also believe you will see much more interest and participation in the elections with this change. As the 2008 presidential race is demonstrating, voters get excited to vote when there is no shoe-in incumbent in the mix.

8. Living Within a Budget

Federal spending is out of control and the national debt has reached $9.2 trillion. The reasons for the excessive spending are that federal government is funding things they have no business being involved in and once the funding is in place, it becomes an entitlement that never goes away. Additionally, if we don’t spend more on entitlements each year, then people complain that their programs are being cut. Also, there is no law to limit Congress from spending more than it receives in revenues. Legislators, in there unending focus on reelection, add billions in funding that is earmarked for pet projects in their states. These earmarks are literally slipped into legitimate funding bills at the last minute with little chance for review. Once the bill hits the President’s desk, there is no opportunity for these individual items to be vetoed without vetoing the entire bill.

The changes we need to make are for Congress to approve only balanced budgets, to significantly reduce the amount of annual spending and to reduce the federal debt.

First, a Balanced Budget Amendment or some similar type of legislation needs to be implemented that doesn’t allow Congress to approve one penny more in annual spending than the amount of revenue received over the previous 12 months. This will force Congress to make tradeoff decisions among competing funding requests. Also, the balanced budget legislation will eliminate entitlements by not allowing any automatic carryover of spending from year to year. All spending items in the budget start at $0 and legislation must be introduced and approved for those items to receive any funding. I should also note the Congress will have the authority to adjust the FairTax rate (see #3 Tax Revolution) as necessary to achieve desired revenue levels.

Federal spending will be reduced significantly from current levels through the following items:

- Elimination all business/corporate/farm subsidies and grants (let them compete in a free market)

- Elimination of current welfare programs and Medicaid (see #5 Working with Welfare)

- Elimination of Medicare (see #2 Healthy Choices)

- Phase out of Social Security (see #4 Social Security R.I.P.)

- Elimination of the Department of Education (see #14 Rethinking Education)

- Reduced funding for many other departments (Labor, Health & Human Services, Agriculture, Housing & Urban Development, etc.)

The following are the priority budget items that need to be funded:

- Interest payments on the national debt

- Pay-down of the national debt

- Executive, Legislative & Judicial branches

- Departments (Homeland Security, Defense, Energy, Commerce, Justice, State, Interior, Treasury, Transportation, Veterans Affairs, etc.)

- Agencies (CIA, FCC, NASA, NTSB, OSHA, SEC, USPS, etc.)

- Welfare Safety Net and Unemployment Support (see #4 Working with Welfare)

- Supplemental Disaster/War Fund (“extra” money for natural disasters or military actions)

- International Assistance (a.k.a. foreign aid)

If the actual revenue does not meet total spending amount budgeted, then the pay-down of the national debt, supplemental disaster/war fund and international assistance will be the first candidates for funding cuts to make up the difference. Extra pay-down of the national debt will be made with any revenues that exceed the total spending.

The final part of this change will be to provide the President with line-item veto authority. That will allow the President to cross-out those unrelated pet projects without rejecting the entire bill. Any vetoed items would need to go back to Congress and receive a two-thirds majority to have the veto overridden. It provides the President with more fiscal responsibility and a necessary check and balance against wasteful spending by Congress.

9. Every Vote Counts

The election reforms proposed here involve the presidential nomination process, campaign financing and voting regulations. Implementation of these reforms would require coordination between the Federal Election Commission, national and state party leadership and the state governments.

Presidential Nomination Process

Every state would have a presidential primary. There would be only four primary dates for the entire country and all parties, including third parties and independents, would vote on one of those four dates. The country would be divided into four groups representing sets of 12-13 states. States in each group would be scattered across different regions of the country and have combined delegate counts that totaled up to approximately 25% of the total delegates. The primary dates would occur in March, April, May and June and the four sets of states would be rotated so they would all change order from one election to the next.

Each state primary would be a winner-take-all for the delegates apportioned to that state by the two major parties. The candidate in each party getting the most votes would be pledged all of the delegates. There would continue to be a threshold (60%) of pledged delegates that would be needed to lock in a candidate as the nominee. Also, a party may decide to use Super-Delegates. If they do, they would be used upfront to pledge themselves to a candidate before the first set of primaries. That way, these veteran political insiders would provide direction to the party rank-and-file on who they think are the best candidates. The rank-and-file could then decide to follow the Supers’ lead or go their own way. If, after the four sets of primaries, no one has achieved the required threshold, then the decision would be made during the July conventions. Each of the parties would need to establish their own process on how to decide the nominee during the convention (highest vote total or delegate count, runoff voting, back-room negotiations, Super Delegates decide, etc.).

As referenced above, third party or independent candidates are also included in these primaries. When voters get to their polling places, they will be able to request one of three ballots. One of the ballots will have the Republican candidates, one will have the Democratic candidates and the other will have all of the third party and independent candidates. Party registration would not be required to take a Republican or Democratic ballot. A qualified voter can select any ballot, regardless of whether they are, or are not, registered with a political party.

Only the vote totals will be tracked for the third parties and independents since they involve multiple parties and don’t have a process set up for apportioning delegates. After the primaries are done, only those candidates that receive 15% or more of the total vote count will get the opportunity to appear on the general election ballot. For example, let’s say that 100 million people vote in the primaries with the Republican candidates getting 40 million of that total the Democrat candidates getting 40 million. That means that a single candidate from the third party ballot would need to get at least 15 million of the votes from the remaining 20 million to appear on the general election ballot. This will ensure that only viable candidates will be able to compete with the Republican and Democratic candidates in the general election.

All these changes in the nomination process would ensure a consistent process for all parties and ensure that all states/voters get a fair chance to influence the outcome. With 60% of the delegates needed to secure the nomination, at least three of the four sets of primaries will be needed to decide the nominee. These changes also provide an opportunity for a third party or independent candidate to compete with the major parties, but candidates must achieve a high primary vote total to demonstrate their viability in a general election.

Campaign Financing & Disclosures

All current campaign financing legislation will need to be repealed. Going forward, all candidates who pay the presidential election fee and are listed on the primary ballots will be required to provide full disclosures on a Federal Election Commission (FEC) web site. The disclosures will include:

- Personal Information (marital status, family members, residences, education, affiliated organizations, employment, military service, age, religious affiliations, criminal history, health report, etc.)

- Policy views on the top 15-20 issues of the day (developed for each election cycle). They would include such issues as the Economy, Foreign Policy, National Security, Taxes, Federal Budget, Defense, Welfare, Abortion, Capital Punishment, Energy Policy, Environmental Protection, Space Exploration, Trade, Gay Rights, etc.

- A listing of all official endorsements from individuals and organizations.

- A listing of all financial donors and their contribution amounts.

There will be no more limits on the amount of money that can be donated to presidential candidates. This is essentially a free speech issue and citizens have the right to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to who they want for President. However, there will still be some rules regarding these contributions:

- The contributions must come directly from an individual (no groups or organizations or “bundling”).

- Contributions can only be accepted from those individuals with exclusive U.S. citizenship (those with dual/multiple citizenship cannot contribute).

- Contributors must provide their full name, current address, phone number and SSN (only name, city and state will be published on the web site).

- The FEC will frequently audit the list of contributors and notify the campaign if it has accepted an illegal donation, which requires an immediate refund. Also, the FEC will list all the illegal donations that the candidates received to provide full disclosure to the public.

This financing reform makes it so that only individuals can donate, they can donate as much as they want, but they need to do so publicly for everyone to see. The other disclosures will also provide voters with key information about the candidates to help them make an informed choice.

Voting Regulations

For both the primary and general elections, the voting process will include the additional regulations as follows:

- A photo ID with address will be required to vote. It will be matched against voter registration data. If someone has not previously registered, then they will also need to bring a utility bill with an address matching the ID card to get registered.

- A voter must be registered to request an absentee ballot.

- All ballots and instructions will be printed in English only.

This will help reduce voter fraud and provides an incentive for new citizens to know the national language if they plan on participating in the election process.

10. Marriage Vow

The change for this step is to get the Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA) adopted. The proposed amendment states the following:

"SECTION 1. Marriage in the United States shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman. Neither this Constitution or the constitution of any State, nor state or federal law, shall be construed to require that marital status or the legal incidents thereof be conferred upon unmarried couples or groups."

Marriage is currently considered a state issue. A number of states have passed laws protecting traditional (man-woman only) marriage, but judges in other states are giving legal support for same-sex marriages. States should not be deciding this on an individual basis because it is a fundamental societal institution and has significant inter-state impacts.

The main reason for preserving traditional marriage is because it is the best arrangement for raising future generations of Americans. Research overwhelmingly shows that children are most well-adjusted and successful in life when they are raised by a mother and father who are married. Despite the fact that there are single parents and same-sex couples who provide tremendous love, care and support for children, there is no real substitute for having both a mother and a father role model. Traditional marriage is too important of a building block in the foundation of a healthy society to allow it to be redefined by state governments and judges.

Having states pass legislation that allows marriage for same-sex couples is also problematic in a couple of ways. First, what if a married same-sex couple wants or needs to move to a state where legislation has been passed that only supports a man-woman marriage? Their marriage would not be recognized in the state and you can just imagine all the lawsuits that would ensue. Secondly, once a state has allowed same-sex marriage, it will likely be challenged to also allow other relationships (e.g. polygamy). How can a state rationally defend itself by saying that two men, or two women, can marry, but a man and multiple wives cannot? It is easy to think that changing marriage to allow same-sex couples will be the end of it, but it will only start us down a slippery slope where marriages can be any relationship people can imagine (two sisters, plutonic brother-sister relationship, a guy and his pet, etc.).

One thing to remember is that all the benefits bestowed on married couples within the income tax code are gone (see #3 Tax Revolt). Therefore, there are no longer any tax benefits that same-sex couples lose out on by not being married. Additionally, this amendment would not take away any legal rights from same-sex couples. If they want to commit to their relationship, they can develop contracts that provide joint ownership of their possessions and bank accounts, define beneficiaries for insurance, develop wills and estate plans, etc. While they can’t obtain a marriage certificate, they can still have a ceremony of their choosing to announce and recognize their relationship with family and friends.

This amendment really boils down to providing what is best for our country’s children. It is not meant at all to disparage gay relationships. Raising as many children as we can in traditional families will provide the best hope for future generations of Americans. The adoption program I discuss in the next step (see #11 Abortion No-Demand) also plays a part in strengthening the family in our society.

11. Abortion No-Demand

While most pro-choicers are not pro-abortion, they are fearful that any legislation (parental notification, prohibiting partial birth abortion, etc.) will become a slippery slope towards making abortion illegal. On the other side, there is the belief that abortion is the killing of a human life and that all abortions are morally and legally wrong.

The solution to this abortion battle relies on a compromise between the pro-choice and pro-life positions. The common ground is that neither side sees abortion as a good thing, and the less abortions that happen, the better. The basis for this change is to set up an environment where most women would choose to not have an abortion. This won’t eliminate abortions totally, but it should dramatically reduce them over time.

The compromise solution is what I call the National Abortion Reconciliation Act. This federal legislation will provide a way to resolve the current abortion battle in a way that should satisfy both sides, with the exception of the pro-life and pro-choice extremists. What it provides is strong incentives for a woman to see her pregnancy to term and put the child up for adoption, but ultimately gives her the final choice without any legal consequences.

For pro-lifers, this act establishes the following:

- A national adoption agency that that focuses only on pregnant women who do not want to keep the expected child. Other existing private agencies will still remain to handle other children and international adoptions. This federal program will establish fees, rules, criteria, etc. for potential parents who are looking to adopt newborn babies of U.S. citizens. The women choosing adoption will be ensured of quality health care, counseling and supplemental income as necessary during their pregnancies. Registered married couples (see #10 Marriage Vow) will be the primary source for matching with the adoptee candidates. Singles and other couples (e.g. same-sex) will be a secondary source and only used if there are not enough qualified married couples to meet the demand. This act will also prohibit any future claims and contact by the natural mother or father of the child, except in special situations where the adoptee parents die or are determined by law to be no longer competent to raise the child. There will be ongoing national marketing and all hospitals, clinics and doctor’s offices will have program materials that can be provided to pregnant women. It will partner with pro-life organizations to assist with information distribution and counseling.

- A pregnant woman must sign an acknowledgement that she received information on the adoption program from the agency before she can choose an abortion.

- Pregnant women under 18 will need to inform their parents or guardians and the father before deciding on an abortion.

- Partial birth abortions cannot be performed, except when they are the only choice to save a mother’s life.

For the pro-choicers, this act provides the following:

- No federal or state law may be established that prohibits, or penalizes, a woman choosing to have an abortion performed by a qualified physician.

With the significant financial incentives and societal support for adoption, women should be less likely to choose abortion.

12. Race to the Finish

It’s time for black Americans to take the next step to unleash the shackles of racial victimization and group mentality and truly assimilate as individuals into American society. The United States has been blacks’ worst nightmare, but it is also their best hope.

Slavery was eliminated after the Civil War, but blacks faced another hundred years of segregation, discrimination and racism. They responded appropriately during this time by coming together through the development of cultural bonds and black organizations (e.g. NAACP). Because of the efforts and sacrifice of leaders like Martin Luther King and the black organizations, institutional discrimination was removed through the civil rights acts that were first initiated in the 1960s.

Despite the legislation and court decisions that opened the doors for blacks, Democrat politicians and self-appointed civil rights leaders have held them back from taking the next step to full assimilation in American society. While having good intentions, they kept blacks polarized in a separate black society that continued to preach victim mentality and government solutions. Most blacks followed dutifully.

Fortunately, many did not and they were able to reach great heights in business, industry, science, arts, sports and politics. Many also brought themselves out of poverty and are part of a growing middle class. They achieved success by fully assimilating themselves into American society and making their way through the doors of opportunity that are now available to all. In doing this, they also had to break away from a separate black society where they were led to believe that they were permanent victims of racism, solely dependant on government funding, programs (e.g. affirmative action, diversity training) and lawsuits to survive.

The enlightenment shown by the black successes has demonstrated a model by which other blacks can prosper in society. The model first recognizes that victimization thinking only hinders the chances of moving forward and that existing racism is a hurdle to overcome – not a closed door that can’t be unlocked. Secondly, pursuit of the American dream can only be accomplished within the American society and that American society is not a “white society”. Other races and ethnicities have successfully jumped into the melting pot to assimilate into, and enhance, American society. This assimilation has also been the key to knocking over many of the racism hurdles that they faced when first immigrating to this country.

Racism stems from seeing only the differences in another person. It is natural to think that someone is not like you when you see their different skin color and maybe associate them with negative stereotypes. A racist attitude melts away when a person gets to know someone of another race and realizes that skin color is really the only real difference between them. How many people do you know who have close relationships with other races and continue to exhibit a racist view? When individuals of differing races come together in close relationships such as neighbors, friends, work colleagues, students, families, organization members and teammates, they can observe first-hand the similarities among them. That is why assimilation, via these relationships, is the key to overcoming much of the remaining racism and moving more blacks forward in American society.

While the idea is simple, it will be difficult to achieve and the burden of making it happen will require the dismantling of some black organizations and artifacts of black separatism. Some of these were important and beneficial during the civil rights struggle, but they have outlasted their usefulness. Continuing to have them around will only hinder this new era of black assimilation. The following need to be ended, dismantled or phased-out:

-        Black separatist and supremacist organizations (NAACP, Nation of Islam, New Black Panthers, etc.)

-        Churches that preach black liberation theology or the like

-        Black caucuses in the government

-        Affirmative action and racial quotas

-        Allegiance to the Democratic Party and its failed solutions

-        Use of the term “African-American”

-        Black dialects (Ebonics and others)

New black leaders will also be needed to replace the civil rights leaders whose time has passed. These new leaders need to tear down the walls of separatism and guide individuals towards societal integration. There are many successful blacks out there who understand this and would make great role models and spokespersons.  

There are other issues significantly affecting black citizens that also need to be addressed such as poverty, crime, single mothers and education. Several of the other “21 Steps…” will help address these in a way that supports the overall assimilation effort. Blacks need to be an integral part of American society and the American society needs blacks to enhance the greatness of this country.

13. Religious Expression

The first amendment to the Constitution states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof”. This is very straightforward, but, unfortunately, it has been misinterpreted, distorted and extended well past what the Founder’s intended. Judicial activists have put up a “wall”, separating anything government-related on one side with anything spiritual-related on the other. The amendment was written to allow free expression of religion, yet many court cases have resulted in just the opposite, where free expression has been prohibited. The only thing that was meant be prohibited with this amendment was the establishment of a single American religion, along with any laws that limit free expression. It was not meant to restrict prayers in school, Ten Commandments plaques in courthouses, “Jesus” license plates or the like.

America was founded on the idea that everyone was created equal and endowed by their Creator with unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. God was acknowledged in the founding and religion has provided strong moral underpinnings as this country has evolved. Religious beliefs are positive influences on the citizens of the nation and their expression must be allowed and supported.

Reversing the legal precedents set by decades of court cases is an ominous undertaking, but we need to take steps to move in that direction. Getting judges at all levels that support the free expression established in the Constitution is necessary. We need to vote for the political leaders who will appoint and confirm these kinds of judges. We also need individuals who will continue to challenge the so-called separation of church and state through their exhibition of religious expression. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has done the most to try and stifle religious expression, especially that of the Christian religions. All religious people in the country need to stop donations to the ACLU to help dry up the money they use for litigation against free expression. Reestablishing religious free expression on a legal front will take time and persistence, but can be done if citizens are willing to stand up for their constitutional rights.

On another front, religious leaders and organizations have the ability to reshape this country by bringing together all religions in an effort to support each other and the country itself. It can start with an annual convention titled “One Nation Under God”. The objective of the convention is to solicit ideas and foster discussion on how religions can come together for the betterment of the country. There would be information on the beliefs and practices of each religion as a way of achieving awareness of the similarities and differences. From there, opportunities would be explored on how these religious organizations and their members could unite behind action steps leading to a better country for all. Common ground for these discussions can be found in helping the less fortunate, educating children, supporting families, protecting the country, cleaning up the environment, reducing religious intolerance and supporting free expression. One action would be to develop a standard non-denominational prayer for any schools or other organizations interested in using it. Another would be to support scientists who are exploring evidence and theories on how intelligent creation and design have been involved in the origin and development of life. They could maintain and publish a list of judges and politicians who support religious free expression. They could establish a centralized, multi-faith food shelf program with distribution channels through various churches, synagogues and mosques across the country. They could initiate a national “Show Your Faith Day” where on a set day of the year people are asked to proudly exhibit some expression of their religion, such as wearing a necklace with a cross, carrying a holy book, donning a yarmulke or any other form of expression. There are really endless possibilities as to what could emerge from this convention where people have the common bond of being Americans and believing in God.

Once the linking together of religions in the United States takes hold and the benefits for the country emerge, then this concept can be taken internationally. Another convention could be started with the title of “One World Under God”. Now, many countries can get involved in a cross-religion effort that addresses how the combined power of religious organizations can make the world a better place to live and maybe find that there really is a pathway to “heaven on earth”.

14. Rethinking Education

The first part of this change is to eliminate the Department of Education and remove federal control. Let the states, communities and parents provide for the education of their children. They are in a much better position to understand and provide for the academic needs of their K-12 students. Standard national tests will continue to track student progress in key academic areas, but local school systems will be free to use whatever teaching methods, books and tools that work best to educate their students.

Since teacher unions will no longer have control over teacher pay or the hiring/firing decisions (see #1 Union Makeover), it will open up the door for schools to go after the best teachers and pay them for what they are worth. They also will be able to release teachers who are not performing up to expectations. There will be a lot of competition among the nation’s schools and the outstanding teachers will be in demand. Teacher quality and results will be measured in various ways to determine how well they are performing. Each school system will find their own ways to determine how well their teachers performed, but a couple of key measures will be typical. First, take the scores of the national tests at the end of the school year and compare them to the students’ scores in those tests from the end of the prior year. Effective teachers will see their students’ scores improving. Secondly, the students and parents will receive a survey at the end of the school year. The survey will ask specific questions to solicit feedback on how the students and parents assessed the effectiveness and quality of the learning environment provided by the teachers. Again, effective teachers will see very positive feedback from the surveys. Also, an annual recognition program will be established to identify and recognize the best teachers in the nation. Good teachers will have a lot of incentive to stay in the teaching business, along the opportunity to be recognized and paid as the skilled professionals they are.

Home schooling options would also be provided through the schools. If parents are qualified and want to teach their children at home, the local schools will provide them with the curriculums, books and other materials. All home-schooled children will also be given the standard national tests each year to measure their progress. Parents will be able to teach the child up to whatever grade level they are comfortable with and then have their child start attending school when that level is reached. For example, a parent might want to teach her child up through 6th grade and then have the child switch to school during grades 7-12. The grade a student starts at when changing from home to school would be mostly determined by the student’s standard testing results. Even while being home-schooled, a student will be able to participate in athletics and all extracurricular activities that the local school offers. There would also be the option for a student to take most of his classes at home, but attend school to take specialized classes like band, theater, art, shop, cooking, etc.

All students would have the opportunity to qualify for the many “academic teams” that schools decide to sponsor. The teams would be formed to compete in state and national contests in areas such as debate, music, math, science, spelling, creative writing, performing arts, etc. This would provide opportunities for gifted and talented students to achieve their potential, along with getting national recognition.

Another part of these educational changes is to have school districts form alliances with state and local businesses. These alliances would provide benefits to the schools and to the businesses. The main benefit for the school is the additional funding that the businesses would provide. Depending on the type of businesses that support the school, there are also other non-monetary options that could be provided. Here are some examples:

- student internships

- part-time jobs

- after-school day care

- athletic uniforms and equipment

- adjunct instructors for business-related courses

Possible benefits for the businesses would be:

- getting the school named after the business (e.g. Microsoft High School, Wal-Mart Middle School, Exxon Elementary School)

- source of workers for intern or part-time positions

- source of full-time employees after graduation

- advertising and marketing to students, parents and teachers

A final part of this change is to institute year-round schooling. Having the summers off for the children to work the family farms made sense a hundred years ago, but those family farms are few and far between now. Also, the three-month brain-drain makes it difficult for students to pick up where they left off when they return in the fall, requiring teachers to spend the first month or more going over basics that they were taught last year. The plan for year-round schooling includes 4-day weeks (Monday-Thursday) with 2-week vacation periods in the spring, summer and winter. The start of each school year would continue to be in the fall, typically just after Labor Day. The school year would finish around the end of August.

Providing local control, business alliances, teacher incentives and a year-round learning environment will drive academic improvements and better prepare our next generation workforce.

15. Fences for Freedom

We need a border fence and tighter port security to prevent people from coming to this country illegally. The lack of secure borders poses several threats and high costs to U.S. citizens. It is a way for terrorists, drug smugglers and other criminals to enter the country. To conceal their status, some will commit identity theft. Many end up getting health care benefits paid for by our tax dollars. They get hired for jobs that legal immigrants and citizens could be doing. Estimates are that averages of 12,000 illegal immigrants are entering the United States every day.

The Secure Fence Act of 2006 allows for funding of 700 miles of fencing on the Mexican border, but it doesn’t mandate that the fence be built. This legislation needs to be superseded by my new Fences for Freedom (FFF) Act which will be a comprehensive mandate to build a fence the entire length of the U.S./Mexico border (approximately 2000 miles), increase security at every U.S. port and significantly expand border fencing, surveillance and personnel on the U.S./Canada border.

The U.S./Mexico border fence will be the priority. Firms winning bids for sections of the fencing while have timetables that include penalties for not meeting them and incentives to complete the work ahead of schedule. The specifications will be for a double-walled chain-link fence with a driving road in between. Some modifications can be made to accommodate extreme terrains. There will also be cameras and sensors placed strategically at various points along the fence. Also, protection barriers will be placed along the way to stop destruction of the fence by ramming it with a vehicle.

At all the significant border towns with main roads going between the countries (Nogales AZ, Columbus NM, Brownsville TX, etc.), there will be an Inspection Center to check goods going between the countries, a Security Checkpoint to verify proper credentials of those entering the country and an Immigration Service to process citizenship applications. Many more Border Patrol facilities will be placed along the fence, especially where the terrain is more amenable to making a crossing attempt. They will be fully staffed to ensure adequate coverage to monitor any illegal crossing attempts.

The FFF Act will also provide funding to beef up security at all U.S. ports, including those in Alaska, Hawaii and the Great Lakes. This involves low-tech security devices such as drug-detecting dogs to high-tech cameras, x-ray machines and other surveillance equipment. Port security personnel will be tightly screened and monitored and the security operations for all ports will be run by the U.S. government (no foreign companies).

Even though the most pressing problems are at the Mexican border, the FFF Act will also increase security along the Canadian border. Again, border towns with main roads will have an Inspection Center to check goods going between the countries, a Security Checkpoint to verify proper credentials of those entering the country and an Immigration Service to process citizenship applications. The land border is over twice as long as the one with Mexico and overall posses more rugged terrain that would make it expensive and costly to build a fence the entire length. However, additional fencing would be added at key stretches, along with more Border Patrol facilities.

The enhanced border and port security will greatly improve our ability to keep unwanted individuals and goods from entering the country.

The next step is to deal with the 12-20 million illegal immigrants who have successfully crossed the border or have stayed past their visa expiration dates (see #16 Pink Slips for Illegals).

16. Pink Slips for Illegals

There are already laws in place that prohibit employers from hiring illegal immigrants, but they are not fully enforced, or should I say they are hardly enforced. What Congress needs to do it develop legislation that puts the onus on employers (both companies and government agencies) to resolve the immigration problem within our borders. Here’s how it works:

An Employee Verification agency would be established that has access to all citizen and visitor registration information (SSNs, visas, etc.). From the date that the legislation is enacted, all employers would be given three months to submit identification information on all of their employees to the Employee Verification agency. The agency would analyze the information on each employee and notify the companies of any who are suspected of being here illegally. There will be a process where any employee deemed illegal can challenge his or her status to ensure that any mistakes are given the chance to be corrected. Once an employer has a validated list of illegal employees, they each need to be notified of their employment termination date. These dates will be determined by a timeframe based on a person’s length of employment. Those who have worked here longer will receive a longer period of time to make preparations. Those who have been employed for less than a year will have their termination date set three months out. 1-3 years of employment gets six months. 3-5 years gets nine months and 5+ years gets the maximum of one year to end their employment. Employees can leave earlier if they want, but as long as they show up and successfully perform their jobs, employers must continue to provide them at least their current wages and benefits. Additionally, it will be the responsibility of the employer to cover reasonable travel expenses for the employee and his or her immediate family and household members to return to their country of origin. These individuals will be given special status to allow them unencumbered access to mainland transportation and airplane travel to leave the country. They will also be able to travel to an Immigration Center on their way out and file a citizenship application. They will be given no advantage or penalty, but be processed just like any other new applicant.

Employers will be periodically checked to ensure that they have given the pink slips to their illegal employees and that the employees have been terminated on schedule. Those employers failing to comply will face significant fines and penalties that increase with each violation.

Going forward, any potential new hire will need to be processed through the Employee Verification agency. Failure of the employer to do so will again invoke severe fines and penalties, along with the immediate termination of that employee.

With this change, the illegal immigrant population in the country will be mostly gone over a period of one to two years and very few will be able enter with the enhanced border security (see #15 Fences for Freedom).

The next step is to find ways to identify those in the country (citizens or illegals) who may be planning terrorists attacks and stop them before they can carry them out (see # 17 The Enemy Within).

17. The Enemy Within

The 9/11 terrorists attacked us from within. They were able to get into the country and establish, what looked to be, normal lives. All the while, they were preparing for that fateful day in 2001. In retrospect, we can see that there were clues, and if put together could have helped authorities stop the attack. We now know who the enemy is and we are much more aware of the ongoing threat that we face. President Bush reacted well in establishing Homeland Security and leveraging surveillance technology to monitor communications and financial transactions of suspected terrorists and others within terrorist-supported countries. He was also right to encourage citizens to return to their normal lives and not let the threat of terrorism dominate our lives.

However, the President really missed an opportunity to fully engage the people in this country to help identify potential terrorist plots. Establishing a terror-alert color scheme and telling people to be a little more observant than they had previously, is not enough. After seven years without another attack, 9/11 has become a distant memory for many and complacency has set in again. The next attack will come from those that live among us and the police and government agencies alone may not be able to prevent it.

Since 2002, government agencies, such as Homeland Security, FBI, CIA, etc., have been working on bringing all the information on potential terrorist threats into a single database where this data can be analyzed together and shared among the intelligence and law enforcement organizations. It has faced various hurdles, but, hopefully, this database will become fully operational in the near future and serve as a comprehensive clearinghouse for intelligence on terrorist plots.

While the intelligence agencies have their roles to gather and analyze intelligence data, the best hope we have to avoid another attack is to enlist all Americans as “citizen soldiers” who observe and report suspicious activity where they live, work and worship. We have over 350 million people who will be on the front lines for the planning of future attacks from within our borders. Essentially, we need to establish a “neighborhood watch”, but on a much broader scale across the entire country. This program would be taught by local law enforcement to groups of citizens who would be given guidance on what to look for and how to report their observations to a tip line.  These tips would be linked in with other related data to form a more complete picture of threat possibilities.

The benefit of this is not just getting more information to assist with national security, but it also helps engage the American people to support the ongoing war on terror. It will keep everyone’s awareness raised and reduce complacency during extended times between attacks. Hopefully, the time between attacks will become longer and longer, but there is no end in sight for potential threats. Getting American citizens to do their part is critical in the long term battle against those within the country who are probably already planning the next attack.

18. Orbiting Security

President Reagan initiated the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) in 1983 as a means to defend against mutually assured destruction (MAD) between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. The concept was to develop a combination of land-based missiles and space satellites that could identify and destroy incoming enemy missiles. After the Cold War ended, SDI morphed into other more limited defense initiatives under Presidents Bush and Clinton.

Times have changed in the 25 years since Reagan launched SDI, but the need for it has never been greater. Although the former Soviet Union is not a current threat, they still possess nuclear weapons and several other countries have developed, or are in the process of developing, them. These include two current enemy nations; North Korea and Iran. Even among the America-friendly countries that have nuclear weapons, there is a real threat that the missile installations and control centers could be raided and taken over by terrorists.

Along with threats from other parts of the planet, we also need to start thinking about threats from space. I don’t think it will ever come from space aliens, although this enhanced SDI could help if we were attacked. More likely is that we will have to deal with an approaching comet or asteroid on a collision course with the Earth. The same technologies that are being researched and developed to destroy missiles before reaching their destination could be used try and break up the projectile or at least alter the course enough that it misses our planet.

This new version of SDI would involve a joint venture between the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and the National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA). The objective would be to implement defensive weaponry in strategic locations on the planet, in orbit around the Earth and on the Moon. Significant federal funding needs to be budgeted for acceleration of defense technology research such as lasers, x-rays, particle beams, etc. and for the deployment of missiles and satellites.

The land-based systems will need to provide security perimeters around the continental United States, Hawaii and Alaska. These systems would also be placed in locations within the borders of our allies, while operating under joint control. Additionally, ship-based defense systems would patrol the world’s oceans and be able to position themselves in key locations anywhere in the world to address potential threats.

Orbiting satellites would be used to identify launched missiles and eventually be able to destroy or disable them. There would need to be enough satellites placed in strategic orbits so that there is always complete coverage of the entire planet. These would also be the front-line for any space-based threats. These satellites would be monitored and maintained through manned space stations and the Space Shuttles.

The third deployment location of SDI will be on the near side of the Moon, which will provide defense capabilities at an orbit much farther out than the satellites. The defense systems on the Moon would be part of a military base that could operate as a manned or unmanned facility. It would also serve as a scientific research center.

The comprehensive approach of SDI, combined with border security (see #15 Fences for Freedom), “citizen soldiers” (see #17 The Enemy Within), energy independence (see #19 Save Your Energy) and support for other democracies (see #21 Peace Through Liberty) will be keys to protecting the country, and the entire world, for centuries to come.

19. Save Your Energy

We need the next President to set a goal for this country to become energy independent in the next decade or two.  Initiating the “Energy Race” will put this country in a position to secure the commitment and innovation of U.S. entrepreneurs and industry to achieve this economic and national security goal.

The Energy Race sets in motion two competing solutions whose combined results will ensure we meet the goal as quickly as possible. The first one involves unleashing the energy resources we have available in this country and the second is to drive innovation of new technologies and renewable sources of energy.

To tap into our existing energy resources (oil, natural gas and coal), we first need to remove federal restrictions that currently limits American free enterprise from tapping into all of the energy resources we have available within our borders and in the waters off our coasts (Note: 7/14/08 - President Bush lifted an executive ban on offshore oil drilling, although new oil exploration on the Outer Continental Shelf will remain off limits until Congress also takes action). We will need oil for many more years and it doesn’t make sense to be at the mercy of the other oil producing countries, especially when some of them support terrorism against the United States and its interests. We need to ensure a fast track for American energy companies to be able to explore, extract, refine and distribute our energy resources. This will mean moving hurdles to quickly approve permits and bypass unreasonable environmental restrictions. This includes ensuring that no cap-and-trade legislation is passed that will put a brake on our goal for energy independence. When the resources are located within specific states, these states will have the final say in determining if, when, how and where these resources will be tapped. In addition to the fossil fuels, the other resource that we need to maximize is nuclear power. The door must be opened to putting dozens of nuclear power plants on-line over the next couple of decades.

The second leg of this strategy involves spurring the innovation of Americans to develop new technologies and find renewable resources that can eventually make us less dependent on fossil fuels. The country needs to aggressively pursue alternative energy sources such as solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, wave power, etc. We also need to discover and develop technologies that optimize the use of fossil fuels and leverage the use of renewable resources. Although this may sound contradictory to the goal, we need to repeal the current government subsidies (read taxpayer funding) that currently props up the not-ready-for-prime-time alternative energy sources and technologies. We shouldn’t be paying for them until they can compete directly and become cost effective. American ingenuity will find effective and efficient solutions that will allow us to achieve a significant reduction in the percentage of fossil fuels vs. alternative sources by the time we eventually achieve energy independence. We can also provide incentives to spur the search for new and innovative solutions (see #20 Rewarding Innovations).

This combined approach will get us to the finish line of the Energy Race in the fastest time possible and free us from dependence on foreign sources. Additionally, it will generate many jobs and stimulate our economy. Even though it will take years to get some of this American energy onto the market, a total commitment to energy independence from the President on down will produce near term price reductions of foreign oil and curb the high prices driven up by speculators.

20. Rewarding Innovations

The “American Innovation Awards” are established to reward U.S. citizens who invent innovative solutions in the areas of Energy, Health and the Environment. The objective is to stimulate new and improved solutions in these three important areas and to help advance them into the marketplace.

Each year, nominations will be accepted and reviewed by a committee of judges appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Each judge must be a practicing or retired expert within one of the three areas. There will be nine judges with three representing each area.

The judging will focus on ideas that are patentable, marketable and provide significant cost benefits.

The types of innovations that the judges will be looking for in each area are as follows:

 Energy

- Alternative and renewable energy sources

- New methods or technologies that improve energy output or reduce the cost

- Enhanced methods for extraction of natural resources

- Improved distribution methods

Health

- Cures for diseases

- New or improved medications

- Human body replacement parts (real or artificial)

- Prolonging life

- New or improved surgical techniques

- Sustaining wellness or enhancing physical abilities

Environment

- Reducing pollution

- Cleaning up pollution

- Finding new or improved uses of natural resources

- Enhancing or beautifying nature

- Adapting to environmental changes

The awards will be presented at a lavish White House dinner and ceremony with each winning individual (or group) receiving a check for $5 million. A condition on the check is that the winners either start, or continue, to bring their solutions to market. They can do this themselves or sell the rights to someone who will.

These awards will help “prime the pump” and provide added incentive to find solutions to these three critical issues impacting America’s future: energy independence, healthiness and a clean environment. These are also important international issues and the solutions will be available to all nations that can benefit from them.

21. Peace Through Liberty

The United States of America is the greatest nation in human history, not only because of what it provides to its citizens, but also for its contributions to the rest of the world. Think about what the world would be like today if the United States had not turned back the spread of Japanese imperialism, Italian Fascism, Nazism or Soviet Communism. And, imagine what the world might be like in the next couple of decades if Islamo-fascism were allowed to spread unrestrained.

Fortunately, the United States has stepped in, and since 9/11 this country has taken the lead in going after Islamo-fascist terrorists and their breeding grounds. Thousands of terrorists have been killed in Afghanistan and Iraq, including the overthrow of Saddam Hussein’s terrorist regime. More importantly, this country has not been the victim of a successful terrorist attack since 9/11.

However, the current world war is not like any of the previous ones. A military victory will not be able to end it. It may never totally be over, but the best hope to dissipate this ideology is by spreading freedom and democracy into the countries that support it. Freedom and democracy are the only weapons that can truly beat back the ongoing threat of Islamo-fascism. Ronald Reagan made this observation about the power of democracy in his farewell speech in January 1989:

“Countries across the globe are turning to free markets and free speech and turning away from ideologies of the past. For them, the great rediscovery of the 1980s has been that, lo and behold, the moral way of government is the practical way of government: Democracy, the profoundly good, is also the profoundly productive.”

Islamo-fascism cannot survive in nations that offer individual freedom and a democratic government. When people get their first tastes of freedom, the totalitarian rule imposed by Islamo-fascism can no longer be stomached. The benefits resulting from democratic societies are plentiful; raised standards of living, reduced unemployment, less pollution, improved health, better education and more. People who are able to pursue life, liberty and happiness will never again allow themselves to be controlled by a totalitarian ideology.

As the United States has led the way to defeat previous ideologies in past world wars, we must do so again to defeat Islamo-fascism. Our key weapon will be the spreading of freedom and democracy across the globe. Depending on how successful we are, this could be the last world war that mankind ever faces.

While the United States will lead the effort, it must first begin by establishing an alliance of other democratic nations who will work together to replace totalitarian regimes. This organization, to be known as the Alliance of International Democracies (AID) will operate differently than the United Nations, so far as member nations will not take actions based on proposed resolutions and voting results. For each issue, members will meet to determine possible actions and each member can decide their role, if any, on specific actions that one or more of the members decide to pursue. The goal of the organization is to have all non-democratic nations converted to democracies by the end of the 21st century. As nations become converted, they will be invited to join the alliance and be able to contribute as members.

The priority for AID will be to focus on countries that are either imminent threats to member nations, are known to provide support for terrorist networks or are developing weapons of mass destruction. The standard approach will always begin with diplomatic discussions and, only if necessary, escalate to economic sanctions, stimulating regime change from within or taking military action. The diplomacy will first offer the country various incentives such as financial aid, humanitarian aid and a team of experts who can assist in determining the most appropriate type of democracy (representative, parliamentary, etc.) and help develop its new constitution. If the diplomatic efforts are exhausted without success, the next approach is to seek appropriate sanctions that can be placed on the country with support from member nations. This can involve trade restrictions, freezing international bank accounts, embargoes, etc. If this turns out to be ineffective, then further escalation will result through identification of dissident groups within the country that would have the potential to overthrow the current regime and be committed to replacing it with a democratic government. AID would be able to offer money, weapons and limited military support to these groups, if necessary. The last resort is an attack by military personnel from member nations to overthrow the current regime and provide support for the country’s citizens to establish a new democratic government.

AID will also assume other objectives that will replace the need for the United Nations. The AID member nations will meet regularly to negotiate trade policies, respond with aid for natural disasters, find ways to adapt to climate changes, encourage religious freedom and harmony, promote peace and global security, ensure adequate food supplies and distribution, control the spread of disease, protect patents and intellectual property, etc.

Freedom and democracy opened the way for America to become a great nation. They are the greatest gifts we can bestow on other nations and a key to future world peace.

Final Thoughts

Although this great “American Experiment” has been hugely successful, the country has not been all that it can be. Leftist politicians, judges and activists have distorted the meaning of the constitution, eroded our liberties and implemented socialist policies. My purpose in writing the “21 Steps…” was to suggest ways we can bring back the greatness that America is capable of achieving. Although many of my “steps” can surely be improved upon, my hope is that this article will encourage political leaders to come up with some bold ideas and muster the courage to put them into action.

I end this post by mentioning that the title of my Townhall blog site is a composite of words that Ronald Reagan used to describe the greatest country in the world.

“I've spoken of the “Shining City on the Hill” all my political life…after 200 years, two centuries, she still stands strong and true on the granite ridge, and her glow has held steady no matter what storm. And she's still a beacon, still a magnet for all who must have freedom, for all the pilgrims from all the lost places who are hurtling through the darkness, toward home…the American people have a great genius for splendid and unselfish actions. Into the hands of America God has placed the destinies of an afflicted mankind…We are indeed, and we are today, the last best hope of man on earth.”

Here’s my dream scenario…

John McCain selects Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his VP running mate. Her presence on the ticket firms up his credibility on oil drilling and his overall commitment to achieve energy independence. She draws a lot of votes from former Hillary Clinton supporters who want to see the first woman VP and are not happy that Obama has selected a white guy with foreign policy credentials to be his VP running mate. Palin’s relative youth and conservative views win back many of the conservatives who had left the GOP reservation during the primaries.

In the coming months leading up to the election, Iraq continues to stabilize from the “surge” and Obama looks more and more foolish trying to justify his opposition to the war and his timetable for retreat. Gas prices stay high and a huge majority of people want to do whatever it takes to reduce our dependency on foreign oil. Also, people finally realize the huge tax increases that Obama will need to ask for to fund his new entitlement programs. When push comes to shove, many who thought it would be cool to have the first bi-racial President, finally realize that a freshman Senator with radical liberal views and questionable associations with a bigoted, anti-American pastor, an unrepentant terrorist and convicted racketeer is too big a risk to vote for.

The McCain/Palin ticket wins handily enough, so there is no outcry for recounts or whining about disenfranchised voters. McCain becomes the oldest first term President and Palin the first woman VP. Also, Congress, with their 9% approval rating, gets unexpectedly bush-whacked (get the pun?) and the Senate comes back to Republican control and the Democrats lessen their majority in the House.

During the first term McCain ends the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan and their democratic governments and security forces become self-sufficient. No terrorist attacks on U.S. soil are successful. Drilling gets started in the coastal waters and in ANWAR and 25 new nuclear power plants come on-line, resulting in the average price of gasoline coming down to $1.78 per gallon. Al Gore is committed to an insane asylum after his man-made global warming catastrophe is officially debunked and his Nobel Peace Prize is revoked. The big income tax cuts McCain proposes get through Congress and the stock market soars with the Dow Jones breaking the 20,000 mark. McCain also replaces two Supreme Court Justices whose confirmations win rave reviews from conservatives.

With huge successes under his belt, McCain decides to go out on top and not run for a second term. VP Palin wins the Republican nomination with no significant opposition and the Democrats resurrect Senator Clinton to oppose her. Palin and her VP running mate, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindall, defeat Hillary and Chelsea in a landslide. Now the Republicans have added other firsts, the first woman President and the first bi-racial VP.

Palin ends her second term successfully, having appointed another four Supremes, protected the country against terrorism and oversaw an ever-growing economy.

Following the Palin presidency, Jindall becomes the first bi-racial President and the Republicans get another eight years in the Executive Office.

For over a quarter century following Bill Clinton, the Republicans control the Presidency.

As for the others…Hillary Clinton lost her Senate seat and the Clintons traveled around the world for years unsuccessfully trying to fix their legacies. After his failed presidential bid, Barack Obama continued to win reelection to his Senate seat with an exciting message of “hope and change”. He eventually stopped reminding people that he gave a speech in 2002 opposing military action in Iraq (now a strategic ally). Al Gore spends his typical day drawing “hockey stick” diagrams in a notebook and mumbling about how the debate is over…

If only dreams would come true!

We are now down to two viable Republican candidates – McCain and Romney. As a Reagan conservative, neither are my top choices. Throughout the course of the primary season, I have bounced around from Hunter to Thompson to Huckabee to Romney to Guiliani. I’m in a Super Tuesday state, so my day of reckoning is coming up.

The bottom line with these candidates, despite their constant references to Reagan, is that there is no Reagan running in this election. No matter how much we hoped to see a Reagan messiah, he or she is just not there. I could argue that there never will be another Reagan. He was a unique man at a unique time in history. And he became “Reagan” because of what he did in office, not because of his positions on the issues before he became a candidate. It may be another forty years for conservatives to wander in the wilderness until the next promised candidate is found.

Conservatives still have two choices for this election…and I am not referring to McCain and Romney. What I am talking about are two strategic alternatives.

The first is one that I know many conservatives are committed to or certainly considering. That is something having to do with a general election non-vote, a write-in, third-party or Democrat vote just for spite. If that happens in any numbers, we can be guaranteed of a Clinton or an Obama presidency for the next 4-8 years.

“So what!” you say. “I am a conservative who votes on principle! I will only vote for someone who is with me on my key issues”. With all due respect to fellow conservatives, that kind of thinking is for self-indulgent losers. The election is not about you and staying true to your conscience. An election is where the American people get the chance to decide on who will run the country in the coming years. Whether you like it or not, the only viable candidate for the president will be either the Republican or Democratic nominee. While we conservatives are the core of the Republican Party, it is still a “big tent” party when it comes to the issues. We have Republicans that
span the spectrum on many of the big issues of the day; pro-life to pro-choice, hawks to doves, Second amendment rights to gun-control, capital punishment to life in prison, global warming sham to Chicken Little believers, lower taxes to higher taxes, small government to big government, deportation of illegals to amnesty, defense-of-marriage amendment to civil unions, free enterprise to wage/price controls, isolationism to spreading democracy, etc. On any one of these issues you can find true Republicans on either extreme. However, our common bond is that our fellow Republicans are on the “right” side of the majority of issues. As Reagan said, anybody we agree with on 80% of the issues is our friend, not our enemy. Conversely, Democrats are a very “small tent” when it comes to the issues. Just ask Joe Lieberman who was literally kicked out of the party because of a differing view on a single issue!

We need to approach the election with the mindset that we are first Republicans and that any Republican victory over a Democrat is good for the country. And what’s best for the country is to make the right vote, not to satisfy some self-centered principles. My alternative strategy, first of all, deals with both the presidential and congressional elections. The fate of the presidential candidates will significantly impact the Senate and House races and it is critical to look at the potential outcome in a holistic way among all three branches of government. Democrats currently control both branches of Congress and a Democratic president will ensure that they retain control for at least the next couple of years. The worst case scenario is where they add to their existing seats and get a filibuster-proof majority. Just imagine Democrats creating and passing legislation at will and their president getting a repetitive-motion injury from signing all those bills! And think of the issues at stake; same-sex marriage, victory or defeat in Iraq and Afghanistan, illegal immigration, socialized medicine, global warming legislation, the next terrorist attack, Iran and North Korean nukes! On top of that, there is a high likelihood that a Supreme Court appointment could arise soon. With a filibuster-proof Congress, any liberal activist candidate appointed by the President will have clear sailing into the Supremes, defeating any chances of getting Roe v. Wade overturned. Keep this in mind when you start thinking that you want to “make a point” by not voting for the Republican nominee. You may feel at peace with your conscience, but you are contributing to the demise of your country in the process. So what is the best strategy to prevent the scenario described above?

First, we have to make sure that our nominee is the one with the best chance to beat the Democrat. Of the two left, Romney is the closest match with my issues (by far!), but I believe McCain has the best chance of beating the Clintons or Obama. Polling data thus far indicates that and I can see a number of different voting factions supporting McCain; war hawks, senior citizens, military families, pro-lifers, Second amendment people, moderate republicans, conservative Dems, independents, racists/sexists, Hispanics, etc. Also, despite polling data, Islamic jihad will continue to be the #1 issue for years to come. McCain would be a strong Commander-in-Chief. However, the only way McCain can win is with strong support from conservative Republicans. So, here’s the deal…all Republicans, especially the conservatives, need to get to the upcoming primaries and caucuses and ensure that McCain gets the nomination. Hold your nose if you have to, but do it for the sake of the country. The stronger and quicker that we nominate McCain, the better momentum he will have to start off with against the Democratic foe. And, hopefully, the Clintons and Obama will be battling it out to the end so we end up with a vulnerable, battle-scarred opponent.

For the general election, the conservatives need to get out in force and vote for McCain. Again, hold your nose if you need to, but pull that lever! We need a Republican in the White House, even if he is a 60/70/80% conservative, to stop carte blanche legislation from the Democrats and ensure Republican-appointed judges. A side benefit in a McCain victory is that he would no longer be in Congress to sponsor liberal legislation with Feingold, Kennedy, Edwards and Lieberman. Hopefully, he will consider a conservative VP, but we can’t count on that. Also, consider that only about 50-60% of eligible voters participate in the elections. If conservative Republicans can come out en mass to this cause, they would have the numbers to decide this election.

The final part of the strategy is to ensure that we vote for any, and every, candidate on the Republican ballot, conservative or not. Putting control of Congress back into the hands of the Republicans is critical, especially if our presidential candidate doesn’t win. Having Republican control of Congressional committees would be huge. At a minimum, we need to retain the ability to filibuster legislation and judicial nominees. If Republicans are able to regain control of the Senate and/or House, along with a McCain victory, we benefit by having Republicans drive conservative legislation and stop any liberal judicial candidates that McCain may offer up.

Listen, I want a Reagan conservative to be our next President, but it ain’t gonna happen in this election. The Democrats are counting on conservative Republicans to stay home on November 4. Note this typical Dem comment:

Let’s make history and come out in droves to put Republicans in as many positions as we can. The more elected officials with Rs after their names, the better.

Conservatives, unite! We may have to wander in the wilderness for a while longer until our Reagan messiah emerges, but in the meantime, we are Americans and we need to do what’s best for the country.

Here are my top ten threats to the United States in the next 5-10 years. They are in priority order based on a combination of likelihood and impact.

Please comment if you think the order is wrong or you have other threats not mentioned on my list.

1. Islamo-fascist jihad – there is no end in sight to terrorism and a nuclear weapon in terrorist hands would be devastating.

2. Socialist health care – taxpayer-funded, government-controlled health care would drive huge costs, rationing and poor quality

3. Illegal immigration – sucks up American jobs, drains entitlement funding and poses a potential security threat

4. Multiculturalism – keeps people from assimilating, creates polarized groups and is the antitheses of the “melting pot” that made this a great country

5. Man-made global warming sham – big risk that the federal government will implement costly legislation to try and control something they can’t control

6. Liberal activist judges – they continue to set precedents that have no basis in the Constitution

7. No Congressional term limits – career politicians make decisions that will get them reelected and don’t do what’s best for the country

8. Same-sex marriage – the slippery slope to opening up marriage to all types of relationships and a likely tear in our societal fabric.

9. Social Security – when retiring boomers outnumber the working stiffs, this Ponzi scheme will come crashing down

10. Comet hitting the earth – maybe I’m watching too much of the National Geographic channel…

The talk of the Airhead America crowd these days can be summed up as hearings, censure and impeachment. The rabid left has done everything they can to destroy the president over the past few years and, with the 2006 election results in hand, they are now going for the jugular. They are so excited at the prospect that they are fast-forwarding in time to proclaim that Bush will go down as “the worst president in history”. With their “Bush-derangement syndrome” (I can’t recall who to credit with that term), they continue to believe that “he lied us into war to benefit his oil buddies and then used the war to justify the trampling of the constitution by taking away our civil liberties”. Their great hope is that they get his legacy started by putting an “Impeached” stamp on his presidency before he leaves the White House for the last time.

The problem for the liberals is that President Bush is nearly a lock to be one of the best presidents in history and the war on Islamo-fascist terror is the key. Even if the Democrats are able to impeach the President and/or win the 2008 presidential election, it will not take away from the President’s elevated place in the history books.

When the Bush history is written, it will see this as a time when the free world was in a war against Islamo-fascism that unofficially started in 1979 with the Iranian hostage situation. 9/11 was the “Pearl Harbor” that provoked the United States to fully engage and take the battle to the terrorists. President Bush’s objectives to take down Saddam Hussein in Iraq and Taliban control in Afghanistan, and help the citizens replace them with democratic forms of government, was completed swiftly and successfully. This was the right decision for Afghanistan where the planning for the 9/11 attack was initiated. Aside from all the support that was there for the initial invasion of Iraq, the real validation came when the terrorists were dispatched to Iraq to try and create enough havoc to drive out the U.S. military and topple the fledging democracy.  They would never have bothered if having control of Iraq was not strategic to the Islamo-fascist jihad.

The ensuing terrorism, following the establishment of the new governments in Afghanistan and Iraq, was not fully accounted for and has resulted in problems in determining the most effective military tactics and in getting the Iraqi government to be more self-supporting. History will note that President Bush continued to provide military support for those governments despite the persistent undermining of his efforts from the liberal activists and politicians. On the smoldering heap of the twin towers, President Bush declared, “Either you are with us or with the terrorists!” The liberal activists and politicians ended up siding with the terrorists and did all they could to cause the President and the United States to lose the war. Their near-traitorous actions will go down in history as the worst ever support of a Commander-in-Chief and our armed forces in a time of war. Even with low ratings in the public opinion polls, the President has courageously stood by his commitment to get those two countries in a position where they can be self-sustaining democracies. The recent military “surge” will be seen as effective, but the President will historically receive low marks for not using his bully pulpit effectively enough to achieve broad support for his objectives from the U.S. citizenry and the international community.

Additionally, a big plus for President Bush is the lack of successful terrorist attacks since 9/11. The military action in Iraq and Afghanistan, coupled with the surveillance and monitoring of terrorist finances and communications, will be credited as the reason we haven’t been attacked again.

A historical synopsis of the Bush presidency: When the United States was attacked by terrorists on 9/11/2001, President Bush responded with successful removal of Taliban control in Afghanistan and removal of Saddam Hussein from Iraq, helped establish democracies in both countries and made the United States safer from future terrorist attacks.

This is hardly a description of the “worst president in history.”

So let’s look at the scenarios for the remaining days of the Bush presidency…

If the democratic Afghanistan and Iraq governments remain in place and there are no additional attacks on U.S. soil, then the President gets credit for a great foreign policy victory. The next President is the one who will then be saddled with the decision on how long these countries need to have U.S military support.

If the troops are pulled by the next President and the governments sustain themselves, then the military action would be considered complete and successful. President Bush’s initial decision would be validated. If the troops are pulled and the governments are overthrown by terrorists, then the new President will be blamed for removing the troops prematurely and losing those fronts. If a successful terrorist attack then follows on the heels of the government overthrows, that President would surely be packing his or her bags at the end of the term.

Even if there is a successful terrorist attack on U.S. soil before President Bush’s term ends, he will still be given credit for the years he prevented and shutdown several potential terrorist attacks. It will also remind everyone that the war against Islamo-fascism is still being waged and continue to give Bush credit for his efforts to take the battle to the enemy and not sit around and simply wait for the next attack.

There is really only a single scenario, albeit a totally improbable one, where the Bush legacy could be damaged by the extended military action in Iraq and Afghanistan. The scenario is that the next President pulls the troops out, the terrorists overthrow the democratic governments and they declare the jihad over, with the justification that they were only fighting to get the country back from U.S. occupation. Basically, they would be saying that if the President hadn’t initiated the war, then they would have never considered another terrorist attack against the United States. I said it was improbable!

No, President Bush will not go down as the worst president in history. On the contrary, the military overthrow of the Taliban in Afghanistan and Saddam Hussein in Iraq, the establishment of two new democratic governments in the Middle East and the prevention of additional attacks on U.S. citizens will lock him in as one of the best. Depending on how this plays out, he should also be a lock for the Nobel Peace prize. However, after seeing Al Gore get it this year for his global warming sham, I won’t hold my breath that President Bush will ever return to the White House to be honored for his deserved peace prize.

What is curious to me is that a large majority of people believe in a God, yet there is this ongoing forced separation between science and God. Science looks at how the world works, but God is normally not considered as a factor when testing theories or hypotheses. God is just a spiritual thing and doesn’t have anything to do with the real world, or so they say. If there is the God that most people believe exists, would He really be that disconnected from life on earth? Wouldn’t the greatest scientific discovery ever be to prove whether or not God exists? It’s not likely to be accomplished through discovery of direct evidence, but it could be accomplished by identifying artifacts and processes in the universe that can’t be accounted in any other way known to science, such as the origin of life and the dominion of man over other species.

There are so many observations that can be made to indicate that this planet and human life were part of a fabulous design. We are a one of a kind. We have been able to explore a significant amount of the universe and, yet, have been unable to discover other life or a single planet that has the ability to support life as we know it. Here we are in this universe on a small sphere with abundant life and no signs of anything close to this within millions of light years in any direction. How is it that the earth was positioned so perfectly in the universe? It was set in orbit at just the right amount of distance from its light/heat source. It revolves around that source tilted at an angle to provide seasonal changes for its inhabitants. It rotates so that life is able to have light for its daily activities and darkness for sleep and regeneration. The earth has an atmosphere that helps keep in the warmth of the sun and also protects it from the sun’s harmful rays. How amazing is it that the sun’s heat output and the earth’s orbit have remained so stable over however many years that life has been on this planet?

Life forms certainly do evolve and adapt to environmental changes over long periods of time, but the separation of plants and animals and the extent and complexity of the millions of species that exist, surpass anything that could occur through basic evolutionary processes. The amazing complexities, functionality and differences between species are more than what an unscripted evolutionary process can justify.

It certainly seems possible that all species could have started from a single cell as Darwinism theorizes. However, this initial cell had to be created and designed by God and the subsequent evolution occurred as part of God’s design, not randomly. On the other hand, it also seems feasible that various species were created at specific points within the timeline of life on earth, while others came about through evolutionary forces. I don’t know how the design has actually played out, but it seems obvious to me that there was a Supreme Designer involved.

Although Darwinism is assumed to be scientific fact and taught in schools, there are many variations proffered from other scientists regarding how evolution works and how long the earth and its life forms have been around. Darwinism, and its variants, are just theories, not proven facts. I don’t want to diminish the fact that they are rooted in scientific evidence and have consensus buy-in from many scientists. However, in past history, there was scientific consensus that the earth was flat and also that the sun revolved around the earth. Darwinism is not a scientific fact and maybe it will eventually fall into the scientific junk heap, if scientists are ever able to produce an accepted intelligent design theory.

In the meantime, here’s my intelligent design theory...

The earth was designed by God specifically for humans as the predominant life form. We were given mental capabilities above all other species, partially to ponder the existence of God and to have the desire to know Him. The purpose of our existence is to seek out and rejoin our Creator, while having free will and living in an environment that is both supportive and sometimes harmful. I think of it as God’s experiment to see how humans will overcome their limitations and the challenges of the environment to eventually discover and find their Maker. The key components of the design are the balance and cyclical patterns that are found throughout:

- Animals, plants, minerals, gases, liquids, etc. are provided as multi-use natural resources (food, clothing, shelter, transportation, medicine, companionship, etc.) that support human life, but are also harmful in certain situations.

- These natural resources were designed to regenerate themselves, or be continually created, through natural processes.

- The earth is set in an infinite universe so that humans can explore and ponder if other life exists, but never be able to explore it completely.

- DNA is the blueprint designed into every new life form to instruct it how to develop itself during its lifetime. However, this development peaks at a certain point and then it starts to degenerate until it eventually moves toward its planned death.

- All living things eventually die and are replaced by new life.

- All life has self-preservation capabilities (immune system, blood clotting, cell regeneration, antibodies, adrenaline, etc.), but none of them can prolong life indefinitely.

- Self-adjusting cyclical patterns are used to provide environmental changes (i.e. day/night, seasons, climates, wind and water currents, mating cycles, precipitation, tides, etc.).

- Extreme conditions (earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis, monsoons, lightning, hail, heat, cold, meteors, etc.) can cause loss of life, but are temporary and allow new life to replace the old.

Human life cycles, natural resources, cyclical environmental patterns and extreme conditions all work together in a finely tuned, yet “industrial strength”, balance to allow the planet and human existence to last indefinitely (or at least until God wants them to). There are no flaws in this design. We are talking about the Master of all designers here – not some apprentice or journeyman! This planet was designed to bend, not break. Since our existence, humans have polluted the water and air, wiped out fish and animal populations, clear-cut forests, over-farmed land and detonated nuclear bombs, yet the planet is very self-healing and self-correcting and no permanent damage remains. Pollutants are eventually dissipated and new life replaces the old. The bottom line is that no matter what we do, we do not have the capability to destroy the earth.

Having said that, I want to make it clear that I think we should be good stewards of what God provided for us. Even though we can’t ultimately destroy the earth, we can surely do a lot of damage to existing life on it. I fully support keeping our air and water clean and nurturing the beautiful environment that God has designed for us.

The Gore-bal Warming theory is based on a false assumption that the planet is fragile, when exactly the opposite is true. When Al Gore titles his book “Earth in the Balance”, he is implying that the earth is at a tipping point where just the least little shove from humans can push it over the edge. What I have been saying here is that the balancing processes built into this design are what make it so resilient and self-adjustable. The global warming that appears to be happening now is being driven by forces much more significant than what is caused by the additional greenhouse gases that humans are putting into the atmosphere. The next global cooling period will happen despite any attempts we make to curb carbon dioxide emissions. It would be really interesting to see how the Gore-bal Warming zealots will address the next cooling period. Do you think they will advocate more coal-burning plants and gas-guzzling SUVs to stop the coming ice age? No, my guess is that they will come up with the theory that we have previously put so much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere that the greenhouse effect is no longer warming the planet, but it is now actually blocking enough of the sun’s warming rays so that the planet is cooling, or something like that.

To me, the key sign that theories like Darwinism and Gore-bal Warming have significant gaps in believability is the amount of effort the advocates put into stifling opposing opinions or challenges. A red flag goes up in my head when I start hearing phrases like “A consensus of scientists believe…”, “The debate is over” or “Even if you don’t believe this, you should…” Then there is the direct suppression, or even legal actions taken, to stop any alternative theories from being articulated. This has and will continue to happen to the opponents of Darwinism and Gore-bal Warming. From my perspective, any theory worth its salt should be proud to be challenged. The more unsuccessful challenges that are made against a theory, the more solid the theory. Unfortunately, theories, like these two, are propagated by people who use them for their social and political agendas. They can’t afford to have them challenged and will do whatever it takes to squelch opposing views.

The intricacies and balance between the earth and its life forms indicate an amazing design that could only be developed by an omniscient God. This design is not delicate or fragile. Coal and oil are natural resources that God provided for us. Human uses of these resources for energy are specifications built into the design. The earth is not going to break, or even be severely injured, because we are putting more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than we did in the past. The earth was designed for human life. Let us use our resources wisely to make the most of our limited existence on this planet.

 Here is the speech that President Bush should give on the 5-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks:

My fellow Americans,

Our nation was brutally attacked by Islamo-fascists on September 11, 2001. Nearly three thousand innocent civilians were killed. We must never forget that day, nor rest until we defeat our enemies. These enemies have declared war, or jihad, on all those who refuse to succumb to their religious tyranny. The 9/11 terrorist attacks were led by Osama bin Laden and the Al Qaeda organization. However, our enemies in this world war are widespread and consist of several Islamo-fascist organizations and regimes, including Hamas, Hezbollah and the terrorist-led governments of Iraq and Iran.

Following the attacks, I committed our nation to fighting these enemies through the war powers available to me as Commander-in-Chief. We started in Afghanistan, where we helped the Afghan people take back control of their country from the Taliban terrorists and install a democratic government. The next battlefront was Iraq, where Saddam Hussein was a growing terrorist threat to his own people, neighboring countries and the United States. He had killed thousands of Iraqi citizens with chemical weapons, paid off homicide bombers in Israel, invaded Kuwait, launched missiles into Israel and would have been able to obtain nuclear weapon capabilities if we had not permanently removed him from power. For both Afghanistan and Iraq, it would not be a lasting victory if we simply defeated the enemy and then left, only to see more terrorists retake control of those countries. Freedom and democracy are the only ways to achieve lasting victory against Islamo-fascism and to reestablish lasting peace.

While the democratic foundations are in place for the governments of Afghanistan and Iraq, our enemies know that this freedom is the best weapon against them and they are fighting desperately to stop it. There is more support we must provide to Afghanistan and Iraq, until such time as their new governments can defend themselves against a terrorist takeover. Leaving those countries before they are ready to support themselves would be a huge victory for our enemies and allow terrorism to flourish around the world for years to come.

There are three fronts in which we are waging this war. One is the military action in the Middle East. Another is the defense of our homeland. The third is the media battle for hearts and minds.

My current assessment is that we are “even” with the military action in the Middle East. We have been victorious in ousting the Taliban and the Saddam Hussein regimes, but are facing a long, tough struggle to make the democratic governments that have replaced them self-supporting. In the defense of the homeland front, we are “winning’, having successfully defended ourselves from another major attack over the past five years. In the media battle, we are “losing”. Only about half of the country supports our efforts in this war and the political left and mainstream media continue to undermine and inhibit our strategies to defeat the enemy.

To achieve victory and a lasting peace, we will need to be successful on all fronts. I have only two years left to lead the country in this war and I want to use the time to put in place a broad plan and set of initiatives that will ensure an eventual victory and world peace.

My administration will be constructing a declaration of war and presenting it to Congress for ratification. It will make it clear who our enemies are and our commitment and resolve to defeat them, while defending the country and protecting American citizens.

I am proposing a funding increase to invest in, and upgrade, our military capabilities. Our combat personnel will be getting a significant pay increase and benefits package that puts them on par with members of Congress. Their equipment and technology will be upgraded to the best available.

We will continue to pursue all avenues available to gather intelligence information on terrorists and terrorist activity, through access to phone records, financial transactions, Internet communications, travel records, etc. I have asked key Congressional leaders to review the presidential war powers in light of existing laws to determine if additional legislation is needed to provide enough latitude to effectively gather and use this information against our enemies.

I have also directed Congress to establish legislation that supports the use of military tribunals which will be used to determine the fate of enemy combatants captured during the war.

We need to do more to defend our country from attack, both from the outside and from the within. I am proposing funding to build a fence on the northern and southern borders of the continental United States and strengthen security measures for all our ports and shoreline borders. We will be implementing anti-missile defense systems and aggressively moving forward with the Strategic Defense Initiative. We will provide the highest level of protection in the areas of potential terrorist targets, airline and other transportation security measures, compliance with immigration laws, setting up of an electronic data clearinghouse for citizen tips and information on suspected terrorist activities and establishing terrorist surveillance units within each of the major police forces across the country.

I have asked the Justice Department to pursue criminal prosecution against all parties who have leaked or published classified information that undermines our war efforts. We need covert and secret programs to find our enemies and prevent them from carrying out future attacks. Anyone that compromises those programs will face criminal charges up to and including treason.

To engage more citizenry in our war efforts, I am proposing a network of volunteers who will be part of a non-military national service program. These “citizen soldiers” will range from high school graduates to senior citizens and will have a variety of opportunities to serve their country. These opportunities will include building the freedom fences along our borders, being part of a security detail at a major terrorist target site, participating in neighborhood watches and organizing rallies and “welcome home” events for military personnel who are shipping out or returning home from combat duty. Other options will also be available.

This war could last for many more years. It is critical that we have strong leadership from the Congress as well was from the Presidency. My opinion is that we have too many career politicians in Congress whose main objective is to keep getting reelected and that serving the country is their secondary objective. The lack of term limits for legislators drives negative behaviors that I believe will hamper the role of Congress in effectively dealing with this war. We need legislators who are willing to commit to maybe 8-12 years of service to their country and then return to live and work under the laws they enacted. I have organized a bipartisan team of legislators who will introduce and drive passage of a term limit amendment for Representatives and Senators. This will ensure that we get fresh leadership periodically in Congress as we do now with the Presidency.

Later this month, I will be going to the United Nations and enlisting the support of all countries that stand with us in this war against Islamo-fascist terrorism. We will be making commitments to support each other through military, economic and intelligence sharing. We will strengthen the coalition that we currently have and better leverage our allies’ capabilities as we progress with the war. For those countries that support our enemies, they will face aggressive actions such as economic sanctions or military force.

With our allies, we will be defining the rules of engagement including interrogation techniques, treatment of prisoners, collateral damage and enemy negotiation policies. The Geneva Convention is obsolete, since our enemies do not conform to it. Our new rules of engagement will continue to be humane and follow high moral standards, but will still allow us to effectively deal with the immoral barbarians we are fighting against.

These plans and initiatives I am proposing will improve our ability to successfully prosecute the war on all three fronts and I ask for your support and prayers.

This is a pivotal moment in history, as our nation and our allies face another world war. These enemies are a threat to our freedom and world peace. They are attempting to destroy our pursuit of the life, liberty and happiness. We must stop them, and we will.

Good night and God bless America.