What Colette has to say

Mitt Caught My Vote!

2012-01-04T09:14:00.001-08:00

It's time to be mature citizens and look at the credintials of the candidates. Who has the skills, knowledge and experience to lead America onto the right path? In my book, it is Mitt. Here's why:

Our nation would be blessed and incredibly fortunate to have someone as intelligent, successful and experienced at Mitt Romney as our President. He has built a business and a career on doing exactly what needs to be done in our country. He goes into failing situations and turns them into success stories. The 2002 Winter Olympics were on the brink of failure until Mitt came in. He turned the games around and was the first organizer to have a financially successful modern Olympiad. The International Olympic Committee was so impressed by his leadership that they asked Mitt to write a how-to manual for future organizers. Have you heard of Domino's Pizza or Staples? Without Mitt's help they would have failed. Do you realize how fortunate we are to the have the right person to fix this economy running for office? Instead of vilifying Mitt for being successful we should be excited to have the opportunity to elect someone with the right skill set with a proven track record!

I am also perplexed by the people who bash Mitt for not being conservative enough. Being able to work with both conservatives and liberals is an essential skill. We are electing a President, not a dictator. We need someone who can work with Congress effectively to make any real difference in our country. Being a Republican in Massachussetts is not an easy thing. Mitt was able to make significant improvements in the Massachussetts economy while working with the left. That is a positive not a negative. Idealogues, like Obama for example, are ineffective Presidents because you just can't make edicts. You have to work with both parties to be effective. While it is tempting to only vote for someone who is staunchly one side or the other, rarely do they make great leaders because you have to know how to compromise just enough to make changes happen. The same is true for Ron Paul. He is just too polarizing to be electable and to be effective if by some miracle he is ever in the White House.

Thoughts on the GOP Iowa Debate

2011-08-12T12:34:00.001-07:00

I have been involved with Academic Debate for well over 20 years and usually political debates infuriate me. I often why they even call them debates because it's more like dueling stump speeches. Last night's debate, however, was excellent! It was much more sincere and honest than debates I have seen previously. The answers to the questions were on point and I think the candidates tried very hard to actually answer the question without slipping back in to their rehearsed canned responses. Collectively I think the debate was a win for the GOP. It showed that the candidates are setting themselves up as problem solvers and that they are passionately engaged in efforts to improve America's economy. While the GOP collectively was a winner last night, there were several candidates that did not fair so well individually.

Tim Pawlenty, in my opinion, came off as insincere when he tried to show that he can be more than "Minnesota nice". It's never a good idea to go against your natural character. It always comes across as trying to hard. Pawlenty tried so hard to be tough that he came across as being a jerk.

Rick Santorum seemed very out of touch with the reality of the current state of America and where we need to be in the future. While it would be nice to rebuild the Manufacturing Industry in America, the reality is that it will never happen. We need to realize that like the Industrial Revolution, we've experienced a Technological Revolution and need to build a stronger economy around the future, not go back to the past. Lowering taxes on business and offering incentives to manufacturing companies will not be enough to lure them back to the U.S. Labor Unions have created a toxic job market by making it impossible to succeed using U.S. labor. It just simply costs too much to hire a worker at Union negotiated wages, with Union negotiated benefits and retirement. We will never compete with countries that have not kowtowed to the Unions and created employment standards like we have in the U.S. All businesses, big or small, have the same goal: Make Money. They will do what it takes to achieve that goal and bringing back manufacturing jobs won't happen.

John Huntsman looked small time last night. I am a lifelong Utahan and what John Huntsman said in the debate last night is true. Utah is at the top of the country in terms of economic/job growth and being the best managed state in the Union. Whether or not John Huntsman is directly responsible for those accomplishments is up for debate. Utah is unlike most other states because the vast majority of the citizens proscribe to the same political ideology. We are the reddest of the red states and as a result we don't experience the gridlock or political gamesmanship that occurs in other areas of the country. As a result, our State Government is very efficient and very successful. We are also a state that believes in capitalism and we support local business efforts. Utah also has the added benefit of citizens being actively involved in volunteering their talents and skills in many areas of community where other states might have to pay people. I don't think that John Huntsman is prepared to deal with the challenges that the next President will encounter.

Herman Cain is just fun to watch. He reminds me of watching former debate students when they grasp how to compete successfully. He seems like he is enjoying the thrill of the race. I think Herman Cain is someone that would be a great Economic Advisor to the next President, but I just don't think he is "Presidential". I know it sounds great right now to elect someone who is an "outsider", but look where we are right now after electing someone who was inexperienced. We need a candidate that has both real world economic experience and the savvy to be the President, and as likeable as Herman Cain is, I think he demonstrated last night that he's just not the guy for the job. He is still learning to think before speaking and that is a skill that is a must for the President. We don't need another President that is addicted to the teleprompter.

Ron Paul... smart guy, most of the time, but he just can't clearly communicate his ideas; which is sad because on the economy and auditing the Fed, I think he is right on. The problem is that while he may be right on a large percentage of the issues, his demeanor and his out there ideas on Foreign Policy combine to make him unelectable. I know he has an army of supporters, but it's time to retreat. Libertarians - find a better spokesperson, your voices need to be heard by someone who can articulate your viewpoint better than Ron Paul. The country needs to embrace your ideal of smaller government and we need you to help us by giving us a better Libertarian leaning candidate.

The candidates that I thought handled themselves the best were Michelle Bachman, Mitt Romney, and Newt Gingrich.

Michelle Bachman is one tough cookie. She handled herself very well in her exchanges with Tim Pawlenty and out classed the moderator who asked her about "submission to her husband", which I thought was a very sexist question. I think she is Sarah Palin 5.0. She is a great representative for conservative women and is fantastic at answering questions on the spot. Sure she's had her moments already during the campaign where she should have thought first before saying something that was incorrect (incorrect Revolutionary War reference), but she's learning quickly as the campaign moves forward. I think she is a real contender especially with the support of the Conservative members of the GOP.

Mitt Romney handled the debate very well and came across as the most "Presidential". He answered the questions about the Massachusetts' Health Care Program better than I've heard him before and he dodged the landmine thrown at him about cutting jobs while at Bain Capital solidly. I think he needs to loosen up a bit more and avoid seeming too slick all of the time because some people may view him as being to much of a politician, especially in this political climate. Of all the GOP candidates, Romney has the most experience in the areas where we need leadership. His campaign should run ads with people from the companies that he has helped rescue. They should have the company representatives discuss the difficult economic conditions they were under before Romney came in and then talk about how some of the changes he made were difficult but necessary and now they are successful and thriving and that's what he can do for America. That would be campaign gold! The most important part of last night's debate for Mitt is that no one attacked him directly; no one said anything that would catapult them ahead of Romney and Romney didn't say anything that would lose ground for himself. That makes him a definite winner last night.

Newt Gingrich took on the moderators and won points with the crowd at the debate and at home on their sofas. Newt is probably the smartest guy in the room wherever he goes, including the debate last night. The problem with Newt is that he is just not likeable. He comes across as being a grumpy old man and he can't win the national election. The GOP has to learn that grumpy old men don't win general elections. Newt would be a fantastic Cabinet Member or Political Advisor, but again, he is just not Presidential Material.

This debate was so entertaining that I am really looking forward to the next one.

Is Being Successful a Bad Thing?

2011-04-15T19:51:00.000-07:00

I used to really like the Nicolas Cage and Tea Leoni movie "The Family Man". The little girl that plays their daughter is adorable and it's a fun take on the classic Christmas movie "It's a Wonderful Life," but the last time I watched it I was bothered by it's message that you shouldn't want to be successful. You should settle in life. I can understand choosing family over career. I believe that no success can compensate for failure in the home, but in this particular movie, Jack, Cage's character, can have both and is convinced by his wife that he shouldn't want his dream job, nor should he care about being financially successful. Instead he should choose to live in a life where they will have to struggle to send their kids to college and pay their mortgage every month. Jack is made to feel guilty for wanting to provide his kids with private education and his wife with security.

I think I became more sensitive to this message because it seems like our current President is determined to punish people in this country who have achieved financial success. When he was candidate Obama, he said, “It’s not that I want to punish your success, I just want to make sure that everybody that is behind you, that they have a chance for success too. I think that when you spread the wealth around, it’s good for everybody.” Why didn't more Americans see the writing on the wall when that statement was widely publicized. Obama's words and policy actions speak volumes about his negative attitude about people who have achieved financial success.

Unfortunately not enough people saw through Obama's slick charisma and now we are stuck with him. In February Obama said, "Our culture is obsessed with wealth and power and celebrity and often it takes a brush with hardship or tragedy to shake us out of that." Interesting. I am sure that most people, especially liberal people, would see this comment as a responsible assessment of the Hollywood culture that we are bombarded with daily. I choose to focus on the last section of the quotation. Obama is saying that we need to have a brush with hardship or tragedy in this country to stop obsession with wealth, power and celebrity. So is he the one who is going to shake us out of this evil goal to succeed?

Warner Todd Huston, a writer for biggovernment.com, observed, "Obama does want to destroy the U.S.A. as it is now. But in his mind he is not trying to destroy America simply because he wants utter destruction and devastation to be the only outcome. You see, mere destruction isn’t his end goal as those on the right fear. In his left-wing ideology, he thinks after America’s fall he and his left-wing comrades will be building a new and better U.S.A. Where real Americans see destruction and the end of everything, the leftists see a re-birth to a better and, in their eyes, more moral America. He and his left-wing friends see the U.S. as a Phoenix rising from the ashes of the bad old days." The bad old days of personal responsibility and accountability?

The truth is that America was built on individualism. Individuals are innovative, individuals have drive and determination to improve their place in life. Government does not innovate, it does not improve, it can only intrude on personal freedom and enforce laws to take away autonomy. It is not easy to be responsible for yourself and your success. It takes hard work. Some people will succeed, but most will fail. That's just the reality of life. Obama and his liberal followers think this reality is evil or unfair. They seem to believe that we need to rid ourselves of personal responsibility and rely on the safety net provided by the government. I guess Hollywoood is just trying to prepare us to settle for less than we dream for ourselves and our family.

Reaction to Brown's election will tell us a lot!

2010-01-20T17:28:00.000-08:00

Last night a shot fired in Boston was heard all around the nation. The definitive victory of Scott Brown over a democrat in Massachusetts for the seat previously held for nearly 50 years by Teddy Kennedy was a message to democrats everywhere. The American people are sick and tired of the arrogance that permeates Washington and we are not going to allow our politicians to condescend to us any longer.

Just before the AP declared victory for Brown, I was watching a very interesting broadcast of a focus group discussion being led by Dr. Frank Luntz. He had gathered 20 registered Massachusetts democrats and was posing questions to them about the Senatorial race and the political landscape in general. I was shocked at the turn in their attitudes after just one year under the Obama Administration. Remember, these were Massachusetts democrats, only San Francisco democrats may be more progressive on balance. More than half of those in the group crossed party lines and voted for Brown. Their reasons were basically the same, they all wanted to send a message to Washington. They didn't approve of the health care bill and the reckless spending being done by the White House and Congress.

Americans are beginning to wake up and realize that our country is at the brink of destruction. The election of Scott Brown was indeed a message to our leaders to stop the insanity. The majority of Americans do not want this health care bill and if the powers that be ram it through, there will be repercussions at the ballot box in November. The majority of Americans are sick of backroom deals and quid pro quos for votes.

I have to thank President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid for one thing. They have awakened the American people out of their political apathy. I just don't know if they are too arrogant to ignore the people's wishes. The next few days will be very telling. Watch carefully to see if the democratic leadership realizes the extent of this defeat and tries to become more centrist and workout a more bi-partisan health care bill or if they dig in their progressive heels and force unpopular legislation through less than stellar means. We should learn a lot about our leaders this week.

The important thing for us, the American people, is to get involved. We need to remember that the Constitution was written to empower us, not our leaders. We need to realize that our political leaders work for us. We elect them and empower them to work on our behalf. They need to follow our directions, not the other way around. The time for being apathetic and lazy citizens is over. It is time to be aware, make your voice heard and get actively involved in changing our country for the better.

The time has also come to hold our elected leaders responsible for the decisions they have made to grow the size and scope of the government. Have you noticed that as the government has increased in size, personal responsibility has decreased? We need to rid our country of the entitlement attitude. Until we reduce the size of our government, we will all be nothing more than numbers in the system. Solutions for our country's problems exist, however the progressives don't want solutions, they want followers. They want power. Let's stop them in their tracks and demand accountability.

The Sleeping Giant is Waking Up... Finally!

2009-10-04T18:15:00.000-07:00

In the classic World War II Movie, Tora! Tora! Tora!, the actor portraying Admiral Yamamoto famously said "I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve", referring of course to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Days before the 2008 election, then candidate Obama promised, "We are only 5 days from fundamentally transforming America". I think candidate Obama was right, but I don't think the way our country is going to fundamentally change is the same type of change he had in mind.

President Obama has a very liberal/progressive ideology as demonstrated by his former status as the most liberal Senator, based on his voting record and by the people that he has surrounded himself with in his administration. It is further demonstrated by the legislative agenda that he is trying to force through Congress in record time. He needed to take time to assess his response to the protests in Iran, but we HAD to pass landmark Health care legislation in two weeks. What was all the hurry about? I have a theory that the Administration and the Democratic Congressional leaders know that they only have until the 2010 election to pass their dream legislation pieces, specifically Public Health Care, Cap and Trade (environmental regulation legislation that will significantly increase your utility bills. President Obama has admitted this and thinks it is necessary even though it will affect every American family negatively)and tax increases on the wealthiest Americans which are tantamount to income-redistribution. Did you know that in 2006, 97% of the taxes were paid by 50% of the population and that's not enough? 47% of the population does not shoulder any of the tax burden. How do you cut taxes for people who aren't paying taxes, hmmmmm... oh, that's right you give them a bigger tax credit also known as income re-distribution.

Given this tight time-line to pass their favored legislative policies, imagine how frustrated the administration and Democratic Congressional leaders are now that Americans have begun to wake up. That's right, President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have triggered the alarm clocks of average Americans who have had enough. You see them attending protests and Tea Parties and instead of actually addressing the issues the protestors have, the Administration and Congressional leaders, along with the media outlets beholden to the President have called them astroturf, terrorists, angry mobs and worse. This name calling and false labeling has not had a silencing effect, instead it has strengthened the resolve and determination of those of us who want our country back. But here's the secret that the progressives have not figured out, before they ticked us off collectively, we felt alone in our beliefs and principals. Now we know we are not alone, and as a matter of fact, according to Dr. Frank Luntz, a poll analyst, 72% of Americans are not happy with the government.

It is indeed time to fundamentally transform America, but not in the image that President Obama and the other Progressives intended, it is time to fundamentally transform America back to the values that made us great. It is time to stop being silent when the vocal minority try to destroy our beliefs. We want our money to say "In God We Trust" and we want to say The Pledge of Allegiance. We want our children to be taught actual history not revisionist, politically correct history. We want to be proud to be Christians while respecting all faiths. We want to be frugal with the people's money and restore the values of personal responsibility and accountability back to our government and citizenry. We want to be self-reliant not government ran. We want changes to the health care system that make sense and cut costs and we DO NOT want our health care system ran with the same compassion as the IRS, the same efficiency as the Post Office nor the same chaos as Hurricane Katrina relief. We want America to be the land of opportunity not the land of big government.

WE, the American people, have the power to fundamentally transform America, and now we know it. We had forgotten after years of apathy and wanting to just get along without making waves, but we have been awakened. It's time to turn off the alarm clock and go to work.

Hatch and Bennett did what?

2009-09-14T13:34:00.000-07:00

It boggles my mind that both Utah Senators voted in favor of confirming Cass Sunstein as the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget. Cass Sunstein is an animal rights extremist who believes that animals should be represented as plaintiffs in court:
…Representatives of animals should be able to bring private suits to ensure that
anticruelty and related laws are actually enforced. If, for example, a farm is treating
horses cruelly and in violation of legal requirements, a suit could be brought, on behalf of those animals, to bring about compliance with the law.
--Cass R. Sunstein, “The Rights of Animals: A Very Short Primer,” John M. Olin
Law & Economics Working Paper No. 157, The Law School, The University of
Chicago

He believes in abolishing second amendment rights:
“Almost all gun control legislation is constitutionally fine. And if the Court is right, then fundamentalism does not justify the view that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to bear arms. ”
- Cass Sunstein, writing in his book, “Radicals in Robes”

Mr. Sunstein compares hunting to barbaric human atrocities:
“[Humans’] willingness to subject animals to unjustified suffering will be seen … as a form of unconscionable barbarity… morally akin to slavery and the mass extermination of human beings.”
- Cass Sunstein, in a 2007 speech at Harvard University

Cass Sunstein also believes in limiting free speech:
"A system of limitless individual choices, with respect to communications, is not
necessarily in the interest of citizenship and self-government.
--Cass Sunstein, arguing for a Fairness Doctrine for the Internet in his book,
Republic.com 2.0 (Princeton University Press, 2007), p.137

Cass Sunstein believes in the socialist principle of income re-distribution:
“In what sense in the money in our pockets and bank accounts fully ‘ours’? Did we earn it by our own autonomous efforts? Could we have inherited it without the assistance of probate courts? Do we save it without the support of bank regulators? Could we spend it if there were no public officials to coordinate the efforts and pool the resources of the community in which we live?... Without taxes there would be no liberty. Without taxes there would be no property. Without taxes, few of us would have any assets worth defending. [It is] a dim fiction that some people enjoy and exercise their rights without placing any burden whatsoever on the public fisc. … There is no liberty without dependency. That is why we should celebrate tax day …”
-- Cass R. Sunstein, “Why We Should Celebrate Paying Taxes,” The Chicago
Tribune, April 14, 1999

Given all of his radical viewpoints and beliefs, Sentors, please explain why you felt it was in the best interest of our nation to confirm his nomination. He is out of step with the majority of Americans and certainly with the vast majority of your constituency. I would really like to know the reasoning behind your decision.

Questions I want to ask at a health care town hall...

2009-08-19T13:20:00.000-07:00

Unless you've been hiding in a cave, you have undoubtedly seen the contentious town hall meetings being held by brave congressional leaders this month. I will give those having the meetings credit for having courage and promoting discourse in the nation. Representative Jason Chaffetz will be hosting a series of Town Halls here in Utah, and I am going to try to go to the one in South Jordan. I've been thinking about what I would want to ask our representatives if given the chance and below is my list and the reasoning behind each question.

My questions would differ based on the political affiliation of the hosting member of Congress. Here's the list I would ask a Republican:

1. The perception of republicans right now is that they are whiners with no solutions, but I know that there are several proposals for health care reform that have been drafted by republicans, so why isn't the republican party promoting those plans and ideas?

*I am incredibly frustrated that the GOP is not capitalizing on the current opportunity to demonstrate that they have ideas and plans that will reduce health care costs, insure those in need more quickly and efficiently than having a public plan. There are also proposals that address the needs of tort reform and the solvency of Medicare and Medicaid, but no one knows about these plans. The RNC and the GOP at large need to do a better job with communication.

2. If democrats decide "to go it alone", what can be done to stop them?

*There are a number of reports today that democrats will vote to pass the health care reform without bi-partisan support. Personally, I think that if they do, it will be political suicide. The rage and distrust in the nation will be exacerbated by their deliberate choice to vote contrary to the voice of the people, but what can we do to hold them accountable BEFORE the legislation is passed?

3. If the democrat proposal passes, can anything be done to repeal this decision if republicans take more seats in 2010?

*I don't know if this is even possible, but I would really like to know!

Questions for a Democrat:

1. Why do democrats use the inflated number of 47 million uninsured, when in reality this reform would only really impact 5-10 million Americans when you take out the illegal alien population, those that choose not to purchase insurance offered to them, and the number of citizens that could utilize Medicare and Medicaid and choose not to apply. Isn't it misleading to the country to use this fallacious number and why should we change the current system that has 85% approval ratings for less than 5% of the total population of America?

*It's obvious that the reason we keep hearing that 47 million Americans are uninsured is that there is no way that anyone would agree to over-hauling the system for 5-10 million people. Imagine if this information was more widely reported, do you think the growing rage would continue?

2. I keep hearing democrats, including President Obama say that we need a public plan to increase competition in the market, how would competition be increased when the government sets the standards, dictates the care plans and does not have the overhead costs of the private companies like taxes?
*The government will not offer competition, this is just a ploy to cover up that the real goal is to destroy the private insurance industry. The Congressional Budget Office report indicates that business will drop their insurance plans and pay the penalty tax set in the plan because it costs less than covering their employees. President Obama keeps using the example of Fed Ex, UPS and Postal Service to demonstrate that private industry can compete with the government, however this is not a good analogy. First, Fed Ex and UPS do not offer all of the same services as the post office. They offer quick-turn around packages and large ground shipping utilized mostly by business, while the bulk of the post office business is from average citizens paying their bills with a, what is it now a $.44 stamp. This analogy also demonstrates that the success stories exist in private enterprise. The Postal Service does not make a profit. They are laying off workers and are planning to close over 500 locations. Just like other government programs, they are on the verge of bankruptcy, so why would we entrust the government to run our health care?

3. How can you claim that there will be no rationing when you are not addressing tort reform and you are cutting reimbursement payments to doctors and health care facilities? You are also not doing anything in your plan to increase the number of doctors, nurses, staff and facilities, but you are shoving in more patients. Won't passive rationing occur even if you aren't actively promoting rationing?

*Due to the enormous costs of malpractice and liability insurance, many doctors are closing their practices already before having their reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid reduced. What is the incentive to be a doctor? 10+ years of schooling and student loans and now you get a pay cut and will probably be sued multiple times, sign me up! Seriously, why would you want to be a doctor if this plan passes? We will have a serious shortage of medical resources if this plan is passed. Also, the current democratic plan does not address Tort Reform which leads to massive abuses in the system and increases the costs of insurance premiums due to "defensive medicine".

Well, those are a few of my questions. What would you like to ask? I'd love to know.

Cash for Clunkers Program - Hidden Attack on Personal Freedom

2009-08-01T06:18:00.000-07:00

I hope that news of this discovery that Glenn Beck shared with his TV audience last night spreads like wildfire. Please spread the word, but warn people to not verify this information on their personal computers. Go to a Library or other public location.

Here is what Glenn Beck reported last night:

Beck on his July 31 program hosted a segment about the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) Web site, also known as "Cash for Clunkers" and demonstrated what a Web browser would encounter when logging on to the system.

"Here is Cars.gov. Let's say you go in, if I understand this right - I go in and I say, ‘I want to turn in my clunker.' The dealer goes to Cars.gov, and then they hit submit transaction. Here it says, ‘Privacy Act & Security Statement,' and you're just like, ‘Oh, it's the Privacy Act of 1974. Whatever, I agree. Now, this is how bad this system is."

However, once the Web operator proceeds beyond that point in the dealers section - the government has some very frightening language about what authority they have over your computer posted, as Beck reported. Ordinary consumers wouldn't encounter this warning, but the information contained in the dealer's computers might include theirs.

"A warning box comes up, and it says, ‘This application provides to the DoT CARS system. When logged on to the CARS system, your computer is considered a federal computer system and it is property of the United States government,'" Beck read. "‘Any and all uses of this system and all files on this system may be intercepted, monitored, recorded, copied, audited, inspected, and disclosed to authorized CARS, DoT and law enforcement personnel, as well as authorized officials of other agencies, both domestic and foreign.'"

"Good God almighty!" Beck said.

Kimberly Guilfoyle, a legal analyst for Fox News interpreted the language to mean the government has very broad authority over your computer - including the ability to seize personal and private information.

"Could it be any more broad or frightening?" Guilfoyle said. "Here you are trying to be a good citizen and make a charitable contribution, do something that's good and guess what - they are jumping right inside you, seizing all of your personal and private information and it's absolutely legal Glenn."

Guilfoyle also said legally the government can use Web software to track your computer any time they want once you've logged into the site.

"They can continue to track you basically forever," Guilfoyle said. "Once they've tapped into your system, and the government of course has like malware systems and tracking cookies - they can tap in any time they want."

It is truly frightening that we are being asked to surrender our privacy and personal information to the government. First, it's those who wish to participate in "Cash for Clunkers" who is next? Is this the real reason behind the push for healthcare reform? Are we going to be required to give the government access to our personal computers to get medical services? It is time that we wake up and demand answers from the Obama Administration. We are acting like sheep off to the slaughter in our country right now. We need to get actively involved or watch our freedoms die before our eyes.

Remember the words of President Reagan:

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same."

Are we going to allow our freedoms to be stripped from us during our watch? Call your representatives. We all need to be aware that America is under attack from within.

Healthcare Reform - Putting the Cart Before the Horse

2009-07-21T08:44:00.000-07:00

Sorry, I know it's been awhile since I have posted anything new. I have to admit that I have been a little depressed about politics and have felt like I was banging my head against the proverbial wall, so I needed to take a little break. I am now re-energized and I am so concerned for the future of our country. We are clearly headed in the wrong direction as a nation and to my shock and awe, the latest Rasmussen poll shows that the country is starting to agree with my assessment. Check it out: http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/mood_of_america/right_direction_or_wrong_track

I have finally put my finger on why the proposed healthcare reforms have been so troublesome to me, (besides being an obviously HUGE step toward socialism)we are looking at the number of uninsured Americans as the problem, when in reality they are a symptom of the real problem which the sky rocketing costs of healthcare in this country.

I did some preliminary research this morning about why healthcare in this country is so expensive. Some of the reasons were not surprising. The first reason is something that I have known about for a long time, the high costs of liability insurance that doctors, hospitals and healthcare networks pass on to their patients.

The second reason I found was also not a shock, Americans are not living healthy, active lifestyles and as a result we are developing debilitating, expensive chronic conditions.

The third reason has been swept under the rug a little better. The system of how doctors in hospitals are paid needs to be overhauled. A doctor makes more money based on a patient's length of stay and procedures completed. This gives doctors the incentive to keep you in the hospital longer while you rack up a bigger bill.

One of the other issues will be compounded greatly by covering the uninsured. When people have coverage, they tend to seek more medical attention and demand more costly tests and procedures.

Another widely known issue is the cost of prescription medications. We definitely need to pressure the pharmaceutical companies in America to lower their costs. Other countries have the same medications for much lower prices. Why? Pharmaceutical companies know that Americans will pay the extra money. We need to demand better prices!

The last issue I discovered was the ineffective processes and paperwork currently bogging down the healthcare industry. I am sure that there are better ways to handle medical records and billing that could be implemented in a relatively short time-frame, that is of course unless the government gets too involved. Have you ever thought of the US Government as being a model of efficiency? I just picture miles and miles of red tape.

What was new information to me was that the lack of Tort Reform in this country cost us more because doctors now openly admit to practicing "defensive medicine" which means they order unnecessary tests and do unnecessary procedures so that patients will be less likely to litigate if there are problems down the road. The overuse and misuse of medical supplies, tests, labs and procedures add up to a staggering $500 Billion a year. Our health costs are going up because we are being treated TOO MUCH! There seems to be less concern by patients in this country who have insurance to be concerned with the costs of treatments, tests and procedures because the Insurance Company is footing the bill. Adding millions of additional patients to the insurance rolls, public or private without addressing the issues of increasing costs will only make this problem worse. Think about it, if you have not had health insurance, won't you immediately go to the doctor, who will probably be paranoid because you haven't had a physical in years, so a bunch of tests will be ran to protect the doctor legally? Ca-ching! We are in for a bigger nightmare than I think any of us could have imagined.

The Obama Administration and the Democratically run Congress know that time is ticking before 2010, when it is likely that the Democrats will lose the super-majority and the votes necessary to pass their reform measures. That's why Pres. Obama is on TV everyday sounding his warning cry that we have to have to act now, even though the bill that the Democrats are pushing has been analyzed by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to basically be a failure and the CBO estimates will increase the Federal Deficit by $239 Billion.

I do not want our healthcare system to move in the direction of Canada. I read a very interesting article about the realities of the Canadian system this morning written by David Gratzer, a former Canadian medical student who quit medical school after being a witness to the rationing and waiting lists that exist in Canada. Have you heard that Canada is trying to go more "free market" with their health care? It was news to me! You might want to read Mr. Gratzer's article. http://www.city-journal.org/html/17_3_canadian_healthcare.html

I don't want to see millions of Americans without access to healthcare; no one does. But, we need to make rational, logical decisions and not rush to passing legislation that has the potential to bankrupt our country and cripple our current medical system. We are truly putting the cart before the horse on this issue. We need to solve the actual problems before enrolling more people in a system that is limping along.

A great article I found while researching this morning was published in the AARP magazine. It is a definite must read! Knowledge is power!http://www.aarpmagazine.org/health/health_care_costs.html

Welcome Back Carter

2009-03-25T08:38:00.000-07:00

I was very young during the Carter Administration, but I remember the feeling that existed during the time. It was a feeling of desperation, uncertainty and hopelessness. I remember listening to my parents, who are republicans, arguing with my grandparents, who were democrats and wondering how our President could let things get so bad? My parents had tried to open a business but with soaring interests rates, increased taxes and the devaluation of the dollar, they were struggling to make it.

President Obama, I fear, is heading our country down this same path of economic destruction. There are some extreme conspiracy theorists who think he is doing this on purpose to impose a socialist agenda. I do not proscribe to those beliefs, I just think the guy seems to be clueless as to how to handle the economic mess and has surrounded himself with people as seemingly clueless as he his. Think about what he has done in just more than 50 days in office. True, he is faced with serious economic issues, but how will spending obscene amounts of money, that we will be borrowing from foreign countries with interest, solve the problem long term? Long-term, economists are concerned with the devaluation of the dollar and the Federal Reserve having to spike up interest rates to stave off double digit inflation. Wow, does that sound familiar? Weren't those the issues during the Carter Administration?

Let's have a little pop quiz called "Who Said It - Carter or Obama"... The answers are at the end of this article, so keep track of your guesses.

1. "I'm asking Congress to mandate, to require as a matter of law, that our nation's utility companies cut their massive use of oil by 50 percent within the next decade and switch to other fuels, especially coal, our most abundant energy source."

2. "And we'll invest in the technology that will allow us to use more coal, America's most abundant energy source..."

3. "Just as a similar synthetic rubber corporation helped us win World War II, so will we mobilize American determination and ability to win the energy war"

4. "I'll also extend the Production Tax Credit for five years to encourage the production of renewable energy like wind power, solar power, and geothermal energy."

5. "Our economy is in turmoil and our families are struggling with rising costs and falling incomes; with lost jobs and lost homes and lost faith in the American Dream."

6. "We've always had a faith that the days of our children would be better than our own. Our people are losing that faith, not only in government itself but in the ability as citizens to serve as the ultimate rulers and shapers of our democracy."

Bonus question - who said:

"These efforts will cost money, a lot of money, and that is why Congress must enact the windfall profits tax without delay. It will be money well spent. Unlike the billions of dollars that we ship to foreign countries to pay for foreign oil, these funds will be paid by Americans to Americans."

Isn't it interesting how similar their words, proposals and priorities are? Both Obama and Carter are classic idealists. I believe that both Presidents really believe in their policies. I am sure Carter thought he was going to broker lasting peace in the Middle East. I am also equally sure that Obama really believes that his budget and other economic proposals will have a positive effect on the economy, however, after looking to the economic failures of the Carter Administration, I can't see how his economic policies will ever succeed.

If Obama was only spending money in record amounts, I would be dubious about the economic future of our country, however Obama is doing even more to throw us back into the Carter era. I have previously written in detail about the Cap-and-Trade legislation that will drastically increase the costs of energy for all Americans. During the Carter Administration, we were in an energy crisis. The energy crisis in the 1970's compounded the economic woes our nation was experiencing.

President Carter increased taxes on "the wealthiest Americans", deja vu! Michael Barone, a columnist for U.S. News & World Report recalls the atmosphere of the times during Carter's administration when he wrote "In that environment, the animal spirits (Keynsian economic term) of the productive class were directed away from making productive investments and toward sheltering their income from seizure by the government. I remember rich men in locker rooms engaging in discussion along the lines of "my tax shelter is bigger than your tax shelter". To heck with figuring out whether your investment was going to be productive in the long term. The only question was how much money you could shelter from the tax collector in the short term. I think there is a serious risk that the Obama tax proposals are going to bring back those days."

The Obama Tax plan in conjunction with state taxes will increase the tax burden on those falling withing the upper tax brackets over 40% across the board. Michael Barone continued his concerns when he wrote, "Yes, they call for returning the high income tax rate only to the sweet spot of 39.6%. But they also want to reduce the amount of the mortgage interest and charitable deduction for high earners, which would channel less money to charities and more to the government (and thus to public employee unions and, through them, to the Democratic Party) and would raise the effective rate on high earners to above 40%"

The plan to increase taxes and decrease the deduction amounts on mortgage interest will deepen the real estate slow down adding to the number of foreclosures and the lending crisis. Decreasing the deduction on charitable donations will decrease the money being given to charity. This will increase the misery and hurt those in need. The people who seek help from charities will be turned away due to lack of funds. Americans are known for being the most generous people in the world. Is It really a good idea to decrease the deduction for charitable giving? Is that really "Change We Can Believe In?"

Still don't believe that Obama is the new Carter? Media Analyst and liberal leaning writer, Michael Wolff recently wrote, "It's instructive and humorous to remember that Carter ran a brilliant campaign that succeeded largely because his voice was new. Simple, direct, basic, human. And then, of course, he turned into a sad-sack twit... It is a telling indictment of his first 11 weeks in office that the comparison with Jimmy Carter, a one term liberal reformer was ultimately not up to the job, is no longer an absurdity."

The more I study the comparisons between Carter and Obama, the more I hope we have a Reagan waiting in the wings poised to win in 2012.

Answers to the "Who Said It" quiz: 1- Carter, 2- Obama, 3- Carter, 4- Obama, 5- Obama, 6- Carter, Bonus - Carter. How did you do? Leave me a comment with your score!

Clueless...

2009-03-09T08:50:00.001-07:00

The media bias in America right now is so exasperating. A couple of HUGE diplomatic gaffes occurred over the weekend, one with Great Britain and one with Russia, but neither have been widely reported by American media outlets. If these incidents occurred during the previous administration, the mainstream media would have been giddy like school girls and I am sure that NBC would have broken into Thursday Night "Must See TV" to report these blunders had they been made by Pres. Bush or Condolezza Rice.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown visited the White House and as is the custom, Prime Minister Brown came bearing gifts for Pres. Obama. Usually the gifts exchanged by the President and foreign dignitaries are representative of each other's nations or at the least, are symbolic of the history of the nations. Prime Minister Brown presented Pres. Obama with a pen holder carved from the timbers of the HMS Resolute, the same ship that was used to create the twin resolute desks. He also gave Pres. Obama a framed commission for the HMS Resolute and a seven-volume biography of one of England's greatest leaders, Winston Churchill. Incredibly nice gifts that represented the British government and the British people with great dignity. What did Pres. Obama give Prime Minister Brown? A basket of 25 DVDs. Seriously? He gave the Prime Minister a door prize you would expect to receive at an office Holiday Party. The worst part is that Team Obama is so clueless they didn't realize that the DVDs will not play in European DVD players.

Mrs. Brown presented First Lady Michelle Obama with two stylish outfits from London's trendy and expensive "Topshop". Unprepared with a gift to exchange with Mrs. Brown, Michelle Obama had a staffer go down to the White House Gift Shop and bring back two toy Marine One Helicopters for the couple's boys.

While none of this is being reported by the Obama friendly American media, it is causing a public relations firestorm in England. These two snubs added to the already tense feelings between Pres. Obama and the Brits. Obama caused this tension when he returned the bust of Winston Churchill that had been in the Oval Office since 9/11. The bust was a gift to the White House from the British Government. Think for just a moment, how would Chris Matthews or Keith Olberman handle this story if a Republican had made these horrible blunders with one of our closest allies?

If offending an ally is not bad enough. Hillary Clinton made a major faux pas with the Russians this weekend. She wanted to "Reset Relations". In an effort to inject some humor into meetings with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, she presented him with a gift. When he opened the box, there was a gag-gift inside; a "reset button" which kind-of resembled Staples "easy button", unfortunately the questionable taste to have had such a gift created was not the worst part. Whoever was commissioned to create the gag apparently didn't have a good Russian-English dictionary. Instead of the button saying "reset" it said "overcharged". Secretary Clinton said, "We worked hard to get the right Russian word", then looked at Lavrov and asked "Do you think we got it?" Lavrov replied, "You got it wrong. the word actually means overcharge" Clinton nervously laughed and said, "We won't let you do that to us." OMG!

This gaffe is of course is on the heels of last week's disastrous letter sent by Pres. Obama to Russian President Medvedev where Pres. Obama asked Russia to help keep Iran from creating a nuclear weapon in exchange for the U.S. to take down the defensive missile shield. Obama promised change in the world's perception of America... at least he and his administration are keeping that promise.

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On a personal note, I just noticed that today is the 1st anniversary of this blog. Thank you to everyone who has supported me!

Obama's Cap-and-Trade Plan Will Deepen the Recession and Increase Burdens on All Americans

2009-03-03T09:13:00.000-08:00

US News and World Report on line posted an article by James Pethokoukis which analyzed a report from the George C. Marshall Institute released yesterday. In this report, the George C. Marshall institute tried to quantify the costs of the plan to reduce carbon emissions. Their research determined, that the costs of the plan will be significant. The report states, "The authors find that the constraints posed by the Lieberman-Warner cap-and-trade approach is equivalent to a constraint (in percentage terms) consumption decrease of about 1% each year, continuing to 2050. Put another way, the cap-and-trade approach is the equivalent of a permanent tax increase for the average American household, which was estimated to be $1,100 in 2008, would rise to $1,437 by 2015, to $1,979 in 2030 and $2,979 in 2050." Didn't Obama promise that anyone making less than $250,000 per year would not have a tax increase?

George C. Marshall researchers Buckley and Mityakov show estimates of job losses attributed to cap-and-trade to range in the hundreds of thousands. They also found that the price for energy paid by the American consumer will rise. The studies reviewed showed electricity prices jumping 5-15% by 2015, natural gas prices up 12-50% by 2015 and gasoline prices up 9-145% by 2015. They illustrated these jumps in price using gasoline. According the analysis of the cap-and-trade plan as it stands would increase gasoline taxes by $.16 cents per gallon at the low end of estimates to a high end estimate of $2.58 per gallon. This is an outrage! Right now with the current economic climate, how can anyone propose to increase the costs of utilities? The only thing that is keeping our economy bearable currently is the lower gas prices than we paid 6 months ago. Increasing the costs of utilities and gasoline, I fear will be the proverbial last straw that breaks the camel's back.

Costs of actual energy consumption will not be the only back breaking element of this proposed legislation. US News and World report continues, "By proposing to reduce CO2 output by 80% from 1990 levels (that's 87% from 2006 levels) several other changes will have to be enacted. Even if all cars and light trucks become electric, and all electricity generation is from "clean sources" or based on hydrocarbon with CO2 capture we won't be close to achieving the CO2 reduction goals. The nation's rail system will have to be electrified, commercial aviation might have to be restricted, motor boats, snowmobiles, jet skis and other such devices will have to be banned. Also, home heating systems that use natural gas or heating oil will have to be converted to electric heat. The capital costs required to do this and the costs to individuals will be gigantic. These costs could easily dwarf the costs of the cap-and-trade tax."

Is this really the best time to promote environmental policy that will end jobs, and increase costs for basic life essentials like energy? It is becoming more and more clear that the Obama Administration and the Democratic Congress have no real connection to actual Americans and life in middle America. Can you afford to retro-fit your cars and home heating systems while paying more for your utilities and gas? We have to start NOW to try to get some common sense working in Washington. If we sit idly by and watch all of these proposals get passed into law, it will be too late to save ourselves. Please contact your representatives and tell them that you cannot afford the Cap-and-Trade plan. The economies of western states like Utah, will be dramatically altered by this plan. Let your voice be heard!

The Era of Bad Feelings

2009-02-26T11:22:00.001-08:00

It has started to happen. The Obamamania party is starting to end. People have begun to wipe the hypnotic sleep out of their eyes and are waking up to a political and economic nightmare that may never end. Glenn Beck has been calling this time period "The March to Socialism", while I agree Obama would very much like to march our nation directly to Socialism, I think we are more likely to see incredible animosity grow between the right and the left, ushering in an era of bad feelings.

Obama started this division from the first week he was in office when he told Republican members of Congress to stop listening to Rush Limbaugh. Way to work across the aisle and alienate conservatives. Then he ramrodded the Stimulus Bill, which in all essence was nothing more than a Democratic spending wish list packaged as the way to save our nation, without regard to serious concerns by conservatives. This bill was pushed through so quickly that members of Congress didn't even have a chance to read the bill and it's provisions.

The Stimulus Bill is not a friend to businesses especially companies that have recently laid off workers. The Stimulus Bill requires that companies subsidize COBRA insurance by 65% beginning March 1st. Did you get that? The companies that just laid off workers to try to save their businesses are now required to come up with money to subsidize the insurance benefits for the people they just laid off. How will this new policy increase economic stability and decrease job loss? In my opinion it will have the opposite effect and more people will be laid off. He also proposes in his 2010 budget proposal to auction off permits to exceed carbon emissions caps which would be imposed on users of fossil fuels. Obama also wants to take on the health care industry by making cuts in Medicare to pay for medical coverage for the uninsured. This move will cause political and economic battles with doctors, hospitals, health insurance companies and drug manufacturers.

I also think that Obama should see the movie "Confessions of a Shopaholic". He is on an unprecedented shopping spree that we will all have to pay for. He is proposing a $3 TRILLION PLUS 2010 budget. Obama says that he will slash spending, but where is he doing that? According to the Associated Press, "The $1.75 trillion deficit for this year would represent 12.3% of the gross domestic product (GDP), double the previous post-war record of 6% in 1983, when Ronald Reagan was president, and the highest level since the deficit totaled 21.5% of GDP in 1945, at the end of World War II."

Obama continues to establish the era of bad feelings with his tax proposals to have the "richest 2%" pay for health coverage for the uninsured. This is class warfare and redistribution of wealth. The AP reports, "Obama's budget proposal would effectively raise income taxes and curb tax deductions on couples making more than $250,000 a year, beginning in 2011. By not extending former President George W. Bush's tax cuts for such wealthier filers, Obama would allow the marginal rate on household incomes above $250,00 to rise from 35% to 39.6%". Small business owners who would fall in this category, will be hard hit by these tax increases. Small business is also the business sector that employs the most individuals in the nation. Again, how will this proposal increase economic stability and increase job growth?

The more and more that Obama spends to try to get us out of debt and our credit crunch (I know it sounds horribly illogical... because it is) the more the American public is beginning to question the policies being passed. Just look at how skittish Wall Street is whenever Obama is on TV. They are just bracing themselves for the next shoe to fall. Obama should do us all a favor and quit appearing on TV for awhile, stocks may have a sustainable rally.

Barack Obama painted a picture of the Utopian States of America during the campaign, and now reality has set in. The hoopla that surrounded his election will continue to fade and as it does, the resentment of Americans who work hard for what they have accomplished will grow. I don't know anyone who thinks it should be their responsibility to pay for the irresponsible. America was founded on principles of self-reliance and rugged individualism. I don't think the "March to Socialism" will be a happy skip down the lane, rather it will be an argumentative struggle to class warfare.

The Wisdom of Jefferson

2009-02-17T10:17:00.000-08:00

As our nation embarks on an ideological and economic shift toward Socialism, let us look to one of our Founding Fathers for guidance on his vision of America and his warnings we should heed. Thomas Jefferson stated, "Government big enough to supply everything you need is big enough to take everything you have ... The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases." These are haunting words. The Stimulus Bill is the largest spending bill in the history of America and grows the size of government substantially. Obama promised to change America during his campaign speeches. Was this the change that he was promising? More government and less liberty? Do we really want the government to provide everything for us? A colossal nanny state? It sounds good in theory, at first, but the more you consider the consequences, the less appealing it becomes. I for one, do not want to be enslaved to the Federal Government. I work hard for my money, and I want to spend what I want on what I want. I also want to donate money as I see fit and not as the government dictates. It is easy to see how the personal freedoms we currently have will be eroded as the size and scope of our government increases.

Jefferson also said, "I think myself that we have more machinery of government than is necessary, too many parasites living on the labor of the industrious." Jefferson thought the government was too big during his time? What would he think of the US Government today? I don't think that he would be too pleased with the number of bureaucrats in Washington. I am positive that he would not approve of the duplicitous government agencies that suck up tax dollars and resources. Part of the problem with the US Economy, and even more specifically the States in the US that are now essentially bankrupt, is that there are far too many parasites living on the labor of the industrious. California is BANKRUPT and is seeking a bailout from the Federal Government. Why should the citizens of Utah be forced to send some of their tax dollars to California because of California's irresponsible spending? The time has come for all of us to be responsible for our choices and live within our means. California is the perfect example to analyze. The breadth and depth of the State Government has lead them to a $41.8 Billion budget deficit over the next two years. Spending has increased by 40% since the Governator took office. I am sure that Gov. Schwarzenegger had altruistic intentions, just like Pres. Obama and the Democrats on Capitol Hill, but it just doesn't't work to spend and spend and increase the size and scope of government. Look at these facts about California:

-California leads the nation on spending for government employees.
-California spends twice as much per pupil than the national average and has seen no increase in results.
-California spends $200 million per year on FREE college educations for illegal aliens.
-Due to government regulations and business rules, California is the most expensive state in America to have a business. Businesses are leaving California in search for better markets.
-California has the second highest income tax rates in all of America. And it is among the nation’s leaders in virtually every tax category possible- income taxes, business taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, taxes on real estate transactions, taxes on stock transactions, capital gains taxes, workers compensation taxes, the list is endless. (Increasing taxes does not guarantee solvency)
-California has been given the lowest bond rating of every state in America.
-California is increasing spending even as they are losing 144,000 citizens per year. This migration also reduces property values and increases the economic woes for the state as a whole.

On the surface, it may sound wonderful to have a government that cares about it's citizens so much that it wants to coddle them from the cradle to the grave. Unfortunately, that is not how it plays out in reality. It is not wise economically or socially to give the government that much power over our lives. Thomas Jefferson offered this warning about government officials, "The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first." The US Constitution was meant to empower us as individuals, we should fight to retain those rights and not be led blindly down the primrose path to Socialism. We have seen first hand in California that people need to help themselves. The government cannot and should not be everything to everyone, it just won't work and is not in the best interests of our nation.

C'est la vie?

2009-02-14T09:13:00.000-08:00

Newsweek Magazine's cover this week makes the bold statement that "We are all Socialists now". While I certainly believe the more extreme liberals in our society would love to have us move in the direction of our European counterparts, I do not believe that the majority of American citizens have a desire to become a Socialist state. Recent polls show that only 37% of the American public support the Obama Stimulus Plan. While I hope that our elected officials will actually represent us and our desires for our country, I am afraid that it may be too late. Newsweek's claim may be more accurate than those of us who believe in Capitalism want to believe.

The Newsweek article describes our current economy and the direction we are heading very well when it stated:
"All of this is unfolding in an economy that can no longer be understood, even in passing, as the Great Society vs. the Gipper. Whether we like it or not—or even whether many people have thought much about it or not—the numbers clearly suggest that we are headed in a more European direction. A decade ago U.S. government spending was 34.3 percent of GDP, compared with 48.2 percent in the euro zone—a roughly 14-point gap, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. In 2010 U.S. spending is expected to be 39.9 percent of GDP, compared with 47.1 percent in the euro zone—a gap of less than 8 points. As entitlement spending rises over the next decade, we will become even more French."

So, what are Conservatives to do? Well, first, I applaud all but the 3 Republicans who voted for the Stimulus Bill for standing up to protect our Capitalist ideals. Next, we need to throw our support behind the conservative leaders now more than ever before. Get involved! Educate those around you. Let's examine a few of the Socialistic proposals by the far left.
Do we really want Socialized medicine? Let me pose this question, can you come up with one example of any private industry that the government has taken over and actually improved? I can't come up with one. The US Government is an incredibly ineffective organization with layers upon layers of bureaucracy. How can it be a good thing for these bureaucrats to try to improve the medical system in the United States? Will having more red tape improve ininnovation and increase efforts in research? Will more people actually have access to health care? If we look to other countries with "National Health Plans", the outlook is not so rosy.

Socialized medicine in Canada has not been a successful endeavor. According to the Fraser Institute, at any one time, 900,000 citizens are on waiting lists. Canada is not alone in this waiting list issue, in New Zealand, the number of citizens on waiting lists are about 90,000. The Cato Institute has complied information about 5 myths of socialized medicine, to read the article, click on the link below:
http://www.cato.org/pubs/catosletter/catosletterv3n1.pdf

Ironically, George W. Bush, a conservative who vowed to reduce the size of government, was the catalyst for the socialist movement to gain steam. The TARP plan passed in the fall ushered in the move to nationalize more and more of what was once private business domain. The Newsweek article continues:
"The U.S. government has already—under a conservative Republican administration—effectively nationalized the banking and mortgage industries. That seems a stronger sign of socialism than $50 million for art. Whether we want to admit it or not—and many, especially Congressman Pence and Hannity, do not—the America of 2009 is moving toward a modern European state.
We remain a center-right nation in many ways—particularly culturally, and our instinct, once the crisis passes, will be to try to revert to a more free-market style of capitalism—but it was, again, under a conservative GOP administration that we enacted the largest expansion of the welfare state in 30 years: prescription drugs for the elderly. People on the right and the left want government to invest in alternative energies in order to break our addiction to foreign oil. And it is unlikely that even the reddest of states will decline federal money for infrastructural improvements."

We are moving into unchartered waters as a country. Is this the direction that is the best for America? I personally believe that the answer lies within the American people themselves. We are a nation of hard-working, quick-thinking, innovative problem solvers. The answers are out there to keep our nation's economy growing. It is going to take self-discipline on all of our parts to get our economy back on track, but we can do it. Don't spend more than you can afford and remember the old adage that if something seems too good to be true it probably is. I used to work at a Title Insurance Company and would marvel at the number of people with adjustable rate mortgages. I predicted the mortgage & foreclosure problems we are seeing now almost 10 years ago. The current economic mess we are in is a reminder to us as individuals and to our government that we all need to live within our means.

So, is it inevitable that we will all be Socialists? I'm not so sure. I think the will of the American people will steer our course back to our traditional values and vision for our nation. I don't think we have given up yet. I know I haven't signed up for French lessons just yet.

Prove Chuck Wrong!

2009-02-11T06:28:00.001-08:00

Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat from New York, made the proposterous claim yesterday that American citizens do not care about the pork in the Stimulus Bill. I could not believe those words came out of the mouth of a man who was elected to represent the citizens of this country. Current polls show that only 37% of Americans support the Stimulus Bill. Let's prove Senator Schumer wrong. Click on the link below and send Chuck a message - WE DO CARE!
http://schumer.senate.gov/new_website/contact.cfm

Flood his website with messages that we are not willing to mortgage our children's futures so that Philadelphia can improve their Zoo. We are not willing to mortgage ourselves to China so that Las Vegas can have a Mob Museum. Let's all stand up for logical thinking that will get us through this difficulty. Send Chuck a message he can't misunderstand.

What's Good for the Goose...

2009-02-08T19:24:00.000-08:00

Well, in a shocking display of "Do what I say and not what I do", the House Democrats and our new President held a retreat at a luxury spa in Virginia, 157 miles from Washington D.C. Ummm, excuse me, but didn't the House Democrats just make a huge deal out of Wall Street companies that have accepted Federal Bailout money, continuing with planned junkets for their employees? Last time I checked, our Government is also in the red and the Democrats used tax dollars to pay for this retreat, not only for themselves, but also their families. Does that seem a hypocritical to you? The audacity of spending strikes again.

I happened to be watching the O'Reilly Factor when Fox News interrupted the show to broadcast Obama's speech at the retreat. Now get this... Obama was gushing about flying on Air Force One for the first time. Did you catch that? He flew Air Force One for a 157 mile trip. Now I am sure that was a good use of fossil fuels and the flight promoted responsible environmental policy, don't you think?

I sincerely hope that all of the Obamaniacs are still following the moves of our President. Would all of the tree huggers who voted for him approve of his irresponsible example? How do all of the anti-war zealots feel about his foot dragging on his Iraq policy? I haven't heard from any of these groups and others that fought for him. Is he living up to all of the hype? I think not.

The New Sherrif in Town

2009-02-04T19:42:00.000-08:00

Well, well... It's been quite interesting to watch the past couple of weeks to unfold. Let's see, first Obama does a very responsible thing and spends $170+ million on his coronation while thousands of people were losing their jobs. Then on his first official day in office, as his first act as President, he signed an Executive Order to close Gitmo within a year in an effort to provide rights to suspected terrorists. I'm so glad he's worried about those who elected him! What's up next? Obama tells Republican members of Congress that they need to stop listening to Rush Limbaugh...huh? Did he really say "Don't listen to Rush?" Yep... check out this report: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/01/23/obama-quit-listening-rush-limbaugh-want-things/

There truly is a new sheriff in town. One that apparently doesn't practice what he preaches. During the campaign, Pres. Obama lectured Americans that we need to turn down our thermostats to help the environment, but it must get chilly in the Oval Office when you don't wear your jacket as other Presidents have in a demonstration of respect because the thermostats in the White House have been turned up to tropical levels, according to the White House Staff. Unbelievable! This is the equivalent of Marie Antoinette saying "Let them eat cake!" http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/02/03/obama-getting-heat-for-turning-up-thermostat/

Next, the Stimulus Plan... or better called the Stimulate the Socialist Agenda Plan. The plan has hundreds of billions of dollars earmarked for programs and spending that will do nothing to stimulate the economy. Billions for the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases will stimulate the economy how? Billions for fixing problems with the 2010 Census... last time I consulted a calendar, it is still 2009. How can there be problems with a Census that has even been taken yet, let alone enough problems to warrant billions of dollars? Again, how does this stimulate the economy? This is just the tip of a very large iceberg of spending. I have to say that I am extremely proud of the House Republicans who stood strongly together and defeated the plan in the House. Bravo!

It is now incumbent on us, those in the know, to stand up and be counted. Contact your Senators and Representatives and tell them to vote "No" to the Stimulus Plan as it stands now. Tell them we need a fiscally responsible plan with well thought out policies, specifically more tax cuts and less spending. Governor Mitt Romney has a plan that you can view at www.unitethegop.com. You can also print pre-written letters to send to your Senators and Representatives on this site.

I guess Joe Biden's propensity for making gaffes has rubbed off on the usually polished and prepared Obama, because the next move as President is a doozy! Three of the Obama nominees have had tax problems. What vetting process did the Obama administration use on these nominees? Were they afraid that they may be using torture techniques if they asked them about their taxes? Unbelievably Tim Geithner was approved to be the Treasury Secretary even though he hadn't paid all of his taxes, but two more nominees have withdrawn their nominations, namely Tom Daschle and Nancy Killefer, because they both have tax issues too! Can you believe it?

The controversy with nominees also now includes David Ogden, nominated as a Deputy Attorney General. David Ogden has defended pornography for Playboy and was instrumental in a case that paved the way for Playboy to be included in the Library of Congress. http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/02/04/talk-stimulus-obamas-justice-nominee-used-represent-playboy/ It's amazing what passes as qualifications with the Obama Administration.

If that is all that he had done in the past couple of weeks, that would be plenty to discuss, but today he cancelled oil leases for oil exploration in Utah. Did you know that there is more oil in the Rocky Mountain Region in oil shale than 3 times the amount of oil in the Middle East Peninsula? Obama effectively shut down the possibility of utilizing these resources to help end our dependence on foreign oil. I think it makes much more sense to continue to send trillions of dollars every year to countries that hate us, promote terrorism and use the money we send to them to attack us and our soldiers, don't you? The decision to cancel the oil leases is especially stinging to me because I know what this new industry would have meant to Carbon County residents in the form of more jobs, more resources and a larger tax base that would help better fund the public schools. Environmentalists are making it sound like the oil companies wanted to put an oil derrick under Delicate Arch... hello! Have you been to central Utah? No offense, I grew up there, but it's not that pristine or picturesque... drill baby drill!

All in all, the actions of Obama so far have made me question his motives. Is he really concerned about Americans or promoting his extremist liberal agenda? We need to be very politically aware and act to have our voices heard. We cannot stand idly by and watch as Obama and the other liberals in Washington mortgage the future of this nation and leave the payments to future generations.

Who is Paying for the Huge Party?

2009-01-20T07:56:00.001-08:00

We, the taxpayers, are directly and indirectly paying for all of the hullabaloo going on today in Washington. Tax dollars are being used, as you would expect, to foot the bill for security and the venues for the parties, concerts and dinners, but the we are also contributing to the hoopla in ways you may not realize. Generally, President-Elect Transition teams collect donations from people and companies to help pay for the inaugural celebrations, this is not new. What is new this time is that millions of dollars have been donated by the banks and institutions the tax payers have been bailing out including CitiBank, Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers. They have all donated amounts that add up to billions of dollars. Billions of dollars that they begged Congress to give them to stay afloat. Check out this article in the Wall Street Journal online: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123146096981566339.html?mod=yahoo_hs&ru=yahoo

This is outrageous! Double dipping from taxpayer funds to do what? Throw the most outlandish party that this country has ever seen? The irresponsible use of public funds to me is an obscenity. Obama spent a good amount of time during the campaign to try to paint himself as the champion for the down-trodden, but this narcissistic display for his coronation makes me question the authenticity of his eloquent speeches. Audacity of Hope? Try Audacity of Spending!

The Hypocrisy of it All!

2009-01-19T08:39:00.000-08:00

As we are on the eve of the Inauguration of Barack Obama, I am struck by the absolute hypocrisy that exists in our current political environment. The Obamaniacs that worshipped his message of "Change" have been absolutely silent about his new policy positions since receiving National Security Briefings that seem to not deviate too much from the status quo. His devotees were all about his "END IRAQ NOW" message, but have not protested his new "Wait and See and Rely on the Generals in the Theater" position. Imagine that! Isn't that the Bush Administration position?

The blind followers were even willing to pay higher taxes to have Barack Obama's brand of "Change", but he intends to leave the Bush Tax Cuts in place and will not be raising the business tax rate like he had planned to do on the campaign trail. Interesting... where are the cries of the people?

"Change" what "Change"? Is it just me, or is the Obama Administration a re-run of the Clinton Administration? Obama's Cabinet and internal teams are chock full of Clintonites. Where is the change? Why aren't the Obamaniacs demanding the changes they voted for?

An example of Media Hypocrisy is Barack Obama's nominee for Treasury Secretary, who ironically does not pay his taxes and while there has been some criticism for this choice and seemingly lack of vetting, can you imagine the media firestorm that would have happened if Obama was a Republican that made the nomination? Do you remember Nannygate?

The point of absolute media hypocrisy for me is the absolute lack of judgment and criticism for the Obama transition team's irresponsible spending for the Inauguration extravaganza. When George W. Bush was elected 8 years ago, the Bush team spent $43 million on the inauguration and were blasted by the press for their lavish plans and called for more responsible spending. Obama is spending $150 million and not a word has been said. This is a huge example of media bias. We are in what the media is calling "the worst economy since the Great Depression", and they are letting the wild spending spree for the Obama coronation. Incredible!

All in all, maybe Obama won't be as bad as I feared. It seems to me that he has lost his "George Bush is an idiot and if he was even minimally as smart as me, he would be a better president" swagger and he is shaking in his tasseled loafers just a little bit. I think he is developing a little respect for what the Bush Administration has done behind the scenes to keep us safe from terrorists for the past 7 years. It is respect that needed to be found. It is also tempering his gung-ho attitude for change. I hope and pray this new moderate Obama sticks around.

I just find it an interesting study in human behavior to watch his followers fall in line with his new policy positions that are 180 degrees from what they believed he would do. It proves to me what I have thought about Obamaniacs all along. They wanted to vote for what was cool and the least boring. They don't pay attention to the issues and voted for the best one on American Idol - Presidential Version.

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T09:52:00.000-08:00

Well, it has been quite a year, hasn't it? It has sure had it's ups and downs and I hope and pray that 2009 will be a year that we can all deal with. I have my concerns about President-elect Obama, but I still hold to the hope that once he receives all of the briefings and he listens to advisors that he will become much more moderate in his beliefs and policies. I have reason to have hope, at least he's backed off his plans to immediately pull our troops out of Iraq. Perhaps he will continue to listen to reason and those who know more than he does. It's our only hope!

On personal fronts, I hope that 2009 blesses each of us with the true desires of our hearts. For me, I hope that my book "Til Death Do Us Part" is published and an amazing success. I hope that Steve finds a full-time teaching job on the High School Level that makes him happy.

I wish each of you peace, happiness, success and joy in 2009!

Happy New Year!

A Time for Thanksgiving

2008-11-25T12:13:00.001-08:00

It's a depressing moment every evening when I hear the pundits on TV discuss how much the stock market lost, or how many people have lost their jobs this week. Luckily I am too busy most of the day to focus on it too much because it would be very easy to feel completely paralyzed by fear for the future of our country, especially with the news yesterday that the $700 billion bailout has grown to $7.5 trillion dollars. I have to say that Thanksgiving could not have come at a better time this year. I am ready to take a breath and thank my Heavenly Father for the blessings in my life. Here are just a few that most of us share:

1. I am thankful to be an American. Even though I am not happy with the way the election turned out, I am still proud of my country and what America has stood for in the past. I just hope and pray that we continue to stand up for good causes. That we continue to fight for those who can not fight for themselves, and that we continue to be as the great President Ronald Reagan observed, "A shining city upon a hill whose beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere."

I remember feeling so proud to be an American this summer during the Beijing Olympics. Our athletes were shining examples to the world of what American values have been and should continue to be. They were determined to win, they worked extremely hard to get to the Olympics, they didn't give up when times were hard, they exemplified the fight of the individual to rise to the top of the pack. Each time the American flag was raised and the national anthem played, my eyes filled with tears of pride and gratitude that I am an American.

2. I am thankful for family and friends who love and support me even when I get a little crazy in election years. I can't imagine my life without the wonderful family with which I am blessed, the friends I have made over the years, and my terrific co-workers. I am a very rich person with all of you in my life.

3. I am thankful for those who are serving our country in the military. Their sacrifices bless our lives daily. I am thankful to men and women who are willing to put their lives on hold, and in danger to ensure the freedoms we enjoy each day. I was recently notified of a program to send Christmas cards to soldiers recovering at the Walter Reed Hospital. It would be a wonderful Thanksgiving activity to write a few cards to these American Heroes. The cards can be sent to the following address:

A Recovering American Soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue, NW
Washington , D.C. 20307-5001

4. I am thankful for the fact for the first time in several years both Steve and I have full-time employment. In this economic atmosphere, this is something for which I am extremely grateful. It was a difficult road to Steve being re-hired as a full-time teacher, but we have been truly blessed with this new opportunity for him.

5. I am thankful for the new surge of enthusiasm I have for the political scene. I have enjoyed the opportunity to research topics and write articles on subjects that have been challenging and interesting. I have also enjoyed dusting off some of my skills that had been neglected for awhile. I am truly thankful to everyone who has engaged in political discussions with me and those who have commented on the articles/posts I have written here on my blog and at http://www.unitethegop.com/.

This has been quite a year! I mentioned several times during the election that if you would have told me a year ago that I would be promoting and supporting John McCain for President that I would have called you crazy. I hope and pray that we will continue to be the America that we all love and I hope that we will not stand idly by and watch our politicians try to change us into something that we do not want to be. It should be an interesting and busy year next year. So...

6. I am thankful for a day off to do nothing but enjoy my family, enjoy cooking and not be on a diet.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Interesting Political News

2008-11-20T08:47:00.000-08:00

I was watching Fox News this morning as I was getting ready for work and they had a couple of very interesting stories. The first one was a re-cap of the big 3 auto makers plea to Congress for financial help. I have to say I was impressed with a question that Congress posed to them. "Gentleman, how did you travel to Washington?" All three CEOs each took private jets to Washington at a cost of over $20,000 for the trip. One of the Congressmen, who's name escapes me now, said ( I am paraphrasing) "That's the equivalent of a Prince coming to us holding out a tin cup for donations." I hope this is the attitude our Congress continues to take. We need to be cutting costs and asking tough questions before spending tax money.

I was also proud to be a Utahn this morning because Bill Hemmer and Megan Kelly interviewed Jason Chaffetz, the Freshman Congressman from Utah, because he is setting an example of fiscal responsibility. Rep. Chaffetz strolled into Washington carrying a cot that he will use in his office while Congress is in session. He told Bill and Megan that he needs to save money for his kids' college educations and will not be incurring extra personal debt by purchasing a home in Washington that will only be used while Congress is in session. He plans to sleep in his office and shower in the Congressional Gym. Chaffetz relayed that he ran on the platform of fiscal responsibility and that he intends to stand up for American's rights to a government that is run efficiently.

Hopefully this economic climate will curtail some of Obama's big spending plans. I also hope that it is the catalyst that Congress needs to truly do their jobs representing America's best interests. We all personally, as well as our government, need to stop living beyond our means. Isn't that why we are in the mess we are in after all?

Thankful Thoughts on Veteran's Day

2008-11-11T10:39:00.000-08:00

Veteran's Day means a lot to me for different reasons. Last year my mother-in-law passed away after a very difficult battle with pancreatic cancer on Veteran's Day. My father-in-law was a Naval Officer and a Pearl Harbor Survivor. My Grandpa Litster was an Army veteran and served in World War 2, so military service is something which I admire and for which I am always thankful.

We should all take a moment today to reflect upon the thousands of men and women who have sacrificed so much for our freedoms. While reflecting, think about what you are personally doing to further the cause of freedom. We have a responsibility as citizens of this marvelous country to be actively engaged. A few years ago I read a historical fiction series that focused on a family in Salt Lake City during World War 2. It was a terrific story and helped me to realize the impact that World War 2 had on every citizen in America. Other than paying higher gas prices, what has changed for us here at home? What have we been asked to sacrifice? What have we been required to volunteer to the effort?

I hope that we will all support our troops when the call for reducing their funding is introduced. We need to be actively engaged here at home to protect our troops fighting terrorism half-way across the globe. I hope and pray daily for their safety and their success. We cannot stand by quietly if our new Commander in Chief tries to bring them home too soon to be successful.

God Bless America and God Bless America's Soldiers!

Post Election Depression

2008-11-10T09:08:00.000-08:00

As I write this blog today, the weather outside my window is a perfect representation of the emotions that have been running through my head for almost a week now. The clouds are obscuring the view of our amazing mountains here in Salt Lake City and the drizzle is leaving puddles of cold water on the ground so it is impossible to rise above the mess. Everything outside seems dark, colorless, cold and sad. It is almost like the Obamaite's judgment that was obsucrred by the hype and the tears of the patriots that fought to keep a man that does not have the experience to lead our nation and has questionable views from the highest office of our land.

I have been so exhausted, now I know my family and I just made a HUGE move and I am probably a little physically worn, but I have come to the realization that I am more mentally and emotionally worn out than anything. I fought a good fight and tried to educate others why Obama was not the best choice, and I guess I am dealing with the fact that I failed. Those of you who know me, know that I do not deal with losing very well, it generally ends in tears. But, losing this battle is more than losing a debate round, or a family game night, it is losing our values, morals and what this nation stands for.

During the last few days before the election, my brother Deek and I were trading emails and he sent me this scripture from the Book of Mormon:

Mosiah 29:26-27
"Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe and make it your law—to do your business by the voice of the people.

And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land."

I fear that our nation has chosen iniquity and that the judgments of God will be upon us. What can we do then? I think that there are several answers:

1. Be optimistic! It would be easy to become mired down in the fear and depression, but I have made a new commitment to myself that I am going to shake myself out of this funk and start being optimistic again. President Hinckley always gave us the advice to be optimistic. There are many things to be thankful for and at this time of Thanksgiving, I am going to try to focus on my blessings and not my fears.

2. Prepare! Prepare spiritually, emotionally and physically. Food storage is essential, but so is the storage of strength we will need in our hearts, minds and souls to make it through the challenges before us.

3. Arm yourself and your families with knowledge! We are living in a time where we can no longer be fence-sitters. We are going to have to take a stand on issues and voice our opinions more valiantly. We can no longer hold our opinions close to our vests and hope that things will work out. The example of the controversy around California's Prop. 8 is a perfect example. We may be asked to take a stand on issues that are not viewed as popular, but we must do what we know to be true and correct. The way of the ostrich has left our lives. We can no longer live with our heads buried in the sand, and neither can our children. If we are not teaching our children what is right and about the issues in the world, someone else will.

4. Be more politically active! Involve yourself in promoting good legislation and candidates and be prepared to fight against inappropriate legislation and candidates. The General Authorities have asked us to be more politically active. Now is the time to start! We will need to rally together for the next four years to contact our representatives in Congress and let them know how we want them to vote. We need to be involved in the selection of Supreme Court Justices and contact Sen. Hatch about the candidates, as he sits on the Senate Judicial Committee.

5. Take a deep breath and live the best life you can! We will get through this. We have endured many things and hope to endure all things. This is an opportunity for those that are strong to band together and work toward common goals. It is also a major wake-up call for conservatives. Conservatism is alive and we need to focus on finding a candidate for 2012 that is not another Bob Dole. I hope it is Mitt Romney, but we shall see.

I feel much better now that I have expressed these thoughts and feelings. I have thought a lot about what to do about Obama and I have decided that I have to support the office of the President even if I don't respect the person that was elected. I feel obligated to give him a chance to prove me wrong, but don't think for a second that I will stand by and watch him implement socialist policy. We need to keep him on the straight and narrow. It is our responsibility as citizens to keep our government in check. Let us all pray that we can remain strong and vigilant as this administration takes power.

Imaginiff

2008-10-29T09:02:00.000-07:00

Imaginiff is a pretty fun game that my husband and I received for a Christmas gift a couple of years ago that asks you to imagine answers based on different scenarios. I just wanted to play a little bit of Imaginiff... Political Edition today.

Imaginiff the Republicans had a candidate that had a very thin resume and no real history that is open for examination but he or she had a history of close ties to extremist right-wing groups that bombed abortion clinics... do you think that candidate would stand a chance?

Imaginiff (for the sake of this argumentative article) that Timothy McVeigh had not been convicted for the bombing of the Oklahoma City Federal Building and was alive and well today. The Republicans have a candidate that had worked with Timothy McVeigh and lived in McVeigh's neighborhood. The Republican candidate had even been handpicked by McVeigh to allocate funds to extremist conservative groups that promoted the creationist perspective in schools. Would the media let that slide?

Imaginiff a Republican candidate refused to answer questions posed by a news anchor and then boycotted the station. Would their actions be defended?

Imaginiff a Republican candidate had been a member of a Fascist party in the recent past. Would the media hide the story?

Imaginiff a Republican candidate had written two very racially charged books where he basically said that if times got tough he would side with the Muslims. Would he be allowed to be the Republican nominee for President?

Imaginiff a Republican candidate had attended a farewell party for a visiting professor who had been the spokesperson for the KKK and stood there and listened while speakers attacked racial & religious groups. Then the LA Times found a video of the party and not only was the candidate there, but his friend Timothy McVeigh. Would the LA Times refuse to release the video?

We have less than a week to get the word out that Obama is bad news for America. If I haven't given you enough to imagine...

Imaginiff Obama wins and he has the most liberal congress ever at his disposal, then he appoints three of the most liberal Supreme Court Justices ever. Here's the scenario I predict - America will cease to exist as we know and love it. It is now or never to stand up for what we believe and what we hold dear. We can no longer hold our tongues or try not to offend. If you haven't noticed, the liberals among us don't fear this.... why should we?

I Had a Dream...

2008-10-27T19:54:00.000-07:00

Last night I dreamt my current ultimate fantasy moment. I promise it has a "G" rating. I dreamt that I, by some unknown miracle, had the opportunity to interview Barack Obama before the election next week. Not only did I get an opportunity to ask him the many questions that I would like him to answer, the interview ended up on You Tube and then eventually all of the media outlets. I even was a guest on "The O'Reilly Factor"! Bill commented that "I ask tougher questions than even he gets away with", then asked me to be a regular contributor to his show. I told you it was a fantasy!

Anyway, I usually cannot remember my dreams, but this one was so wonderful, I remember every word. Here's how it went:

Me: "Senator Obama, you say that you are only going to raise taxes on people making $250,000 or more. Is this net, gross or adjusted gross income?"

Obama: "Uhhh, ummm, I don't really know that that has been decided. My people haven't mentioned anything that specific to me."

Me: "Seriously? You keep touting this amazing economic plan and you don't know the details?"

Obama: "These are details that will all be worked out once my administration is in power. Just trust me that this economic plan will help equalize our economy and distribute the wealth of America to people who need it."

Me: "What wealth of America? If you haven't noticed, the wealth of America is dwindling everyday. Companies are closing, people are losing their jobs, others can no longer afford to retire, and foreclosures are at the highest point in decades. Do you really think that now is the time to raise taxes on corporations and small business owners?"

Obama: "We are going to grow our economy from the bottom up. It's time that the less fortunate in this country get a break. Not large corporation for a change."

Me: "So you truly are a Socialist aren't you?"

Obama: "No, I am not a Socialist, I am an agent of change. I want to change America for the better. Where no one person, company, race, religion has more wealth or power than another."

Me: "So you are good at using euphemisms to confuse some people and dazzle others, but thanks for confirming for me that you are indeed a socialist. You are also a radical, extremist, black supremacist aren't you?"

Obama: "Give me a break. We are going to rehash the Rev. Wright thing again for the thousandth time? Look, I did not know that he was making some of the statements that have been replayed continually on Fox News."

Me: "Really? You really think we should believe you that you attended a church for over twenty years, called the Reverend your spiritual leader and your surrogate father figure and didn't know that he was spewing anti-American, black supremacist epithets?"

Obama: "No, I really did not know and now I have distanced myself from Reverend Wright. This subject should be over; it does not need to be discussed any further."

Me: "Well, either you are lying or you are far too unobservant to be the President of America."

Obama: "Hang on there. You are making some very large logical leaps there. Let me explain... "

Me (Interrupting): "Are you kidding me? You are trying to explain your actual actions and pattern of behavior for over twenty years by saying that I am making logical leaps? Anyone who actually believes you has to take a leap from reality."

Obama (after a long pause): "I don't intimidate you at all do I?"

Me: "Uh, No! Why would I be intimidated by you? You are a media fabrication. The true Manchurian Candidate. You have the thinnest resume of anyone who has ever ran for President. Why would I be intimidated by you?"

It was fantastic... then I had to get up and go to my real job. I hope I have another dream just like it tonight.

Seriously Worried in Salt Lake City

2008-10-16T22:14:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but I am starting to lose hope that we have any chance to defeat Barack Obama. I thought John McCain's performance at the debate last night was the best he had done, but sadly, I don't think he did enough. I encounter people that really have been brainwashed by the mainstream media who are admittedly promoting Obama. Do they not care that he associates himself with the most extreme of fringe of liberal groups? Do they not care that he is paying ACORN to win the election for him through voter fraud? Do they do research about his tax policies? Do they really think that businesses are going to take the tax hike he is proposing and not pass it on to the middle-class in the form of higher prices and/or job cuts? Do they really think he will cut taxes for 95% of Americans, as he claims ad nauseum? It is mathematically impossible on a couple of levels. First, 30% of Americans don't pay taxes so he can't lower them. Second, he can't possible cut taxes and fund all of his proposed spending increases. To quote Back to the Future, "Think McFly, Think!"

I guess that is really our problem. Americans in general have become lazy. We don't want to have to think about things, we just want someone to tell us what we want to hear. I guess that's why we will be suffering through an Obama Presidency. I just wish we would all ponder the words of Thomas Jefferson when he said, "Any government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you have away." Americans need to be careful what they wish for... they just might get it.

The Real Debate Questions and Arguments that Should be Asked

2008-10-04T08:47:00.000-07:00

As a former debater in High School and College, as well as a successful debate coach, I was very disappointed in the first Presidential Debate. I kept waiting for John McCain to attack Obama on his many weaknesses and was left wanting. If I were debating Obama today, these would be my questions for him and my follow-up argumentation:

1. So Barack, with all of the money lost on Wall Street in the last week, who are you going to tax now to pay for all of your proposed spending increases?

-The so-called "rich" have lost anywhere from tens of thousands to billions of dollars this week and will be claiming HUGE losses on their taxes, so who are you going to heap your huge tax increases on now?

-Mr. Obama keeps peddling the rhetoric that Pres. Bush's faulty economic plan has hurt Main Street, but he wants to increase taxes on businesses. So there are three things that will happen to businesses if Obama is elected. First, they will pass the increased taxes on to their customers. Yes, you and I, Obama's beloved middle-class will end up paying for this tax increase, so much for his promises to lower the burden on the middle class. Second, the businesses will cut jobs. Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio.... PAY ATTENTION. Increasing business taxes will decrease jobs. Third, they will go out of business, adding to the continuing failure in the economic sector of our country.

2. Mr. Obama, you said in a press conference a few weeks ago that you would not try to lower the deficit and fully expect the deficit to be higher when you leave office, is this a wise policy?

-Obama keeps harping on the increased deficit incurred while Pres. Bush has been in office, but he doesn't really care about the deficit, he only cares because the money hasn't been spent on his projects of priority.

-The increase in government infrastructure and spending will put us into an economic depression not a recession. Obama wants to increase spending by trillions of dollars and increase government agencies by adding 10 new departments to the cabinet. The amount of resources that the government will need to just keep itself and Obama's projects running will be America's economic death knell.

3. Mr. Obama, you want to place more responsibility for American's success and failure in life in the government but providing free college education and increasing the social safety net dramatically. How do you plan to implement and maintain this unprecedented shift in American political ideology?

-Mr. Obama is a Socialist masquerading as a Democrat. His policy proposals are a direct comparison to what is occurring in our economy today. Our nation as a whole has a difficult time differentiating between needs and wants. That is why our economy is in a tailspin. People and business have more debt than they can handle and Obama would add our government into the mix. How much more can our government owe to itself and other countries?

-Sen. Obama's policy proposals are tantamount to a socialist regime. It is a "nanny state on steroids" as observed by the Wall Street Journal. I think we have some examples of failed Socialist States in the past. It doesn't work. As a matter of fact, thousands of Cubans die each year trying to make it to America. Oh, maybe this is Obama's new immigration policy. Make our nation fail just like theirs and they will quit trying to come here illegally.
Living in America is not always easy. Our free-market system will always have it's ups and downs, but we don't have to build fences to keep people in. We have to start building fences to keep people from coming here illegally. We have to be doing something right. Like it or not, liberals, America is still the greatest nation on Earth.

4. Mr. Obama, you are on the National Journal's "Most Corrupt Politicians" list this year. Why should we elect you to be our President?

-Obama is getting a complete pass from the media. Not only is he one of the nation's most corrupt politicians, he associates himself with former terrorists and extremists. He doesn't have a long history of policy decisions or record of actions to judge his readiness to lead, so we have to look at his judgment. Based on those whom he chooses to associate with, his judgment is lacking.

-Sen. Obama has consistently been on the list of politicians that request a large amount of earmarks. Mr. Obama and his liberal friends continually spew hate-filled rhetoric about the "failed economic policies of Pres. Bush", but how many of these liberals added earmarks and pork to bills? How many of them added to the budget and eventually the deficit spending? John McCain can honestly say he has not asked for earmarks or added pork to a bill.

5. In yet another demonstration for your plans to remove personal responsibility from American Citizens, you are a proponent of partial birth abortion. Please explain your views.

-Whether or not you are pro-choice, the majority of Americans can not support the practice of Partial-Birth Abortion, however Mr. Obama not only supports this act of murder, he goes one set farther. He pushed for a bill in Illinois that bars doctors, nurses and hospitals from saving viable babies from botched abortions. The bill asked for the babies to be viewed as medical waste.

6. In your acceptance speech at the Democratic Convention, you said that "we should become a nation where we are our brother's keepers", yet your own brother lives on less than $300 a year. How do you justify your lack of consideration to your own brother?

-Mr. Obama's actions speak much more loudly than his words. If he feels so compelled to run for President to help the needy in America, then why isn't he helping his own family? Mr. Obama wants to be President to be president. He's been running for President since he was elected to the Senate. His own ambition drives him, not his concern for his fellow human beings.

7. Sen. Obama, why do you have a record of not voting explicitly for legislation, or not showing up to vote at all?

-Mr. Obama didn't vote because he wanted to remain an enigma. He wanted to truly be Teflon so he could run for office and no one could use his record against him. This is why we have to look to those who have helped shape him into the person he is today. Liberals keep saying that conservatives are trying to promote "guilt by association" but when Mr. Obama has no record, it's the only record to judge his wisdom or lack thereof.

8. Mr. Obama, do you really feel you have the experience necessary to be the leader of the free world?

-Barack Obama has served less than 200 days as a Senator. He has no real experience as a lawyer, nor real experience as a full-time Professor. He has the thinnest resume of any candidate to ever run for the White House. Those who are voting for him are taking a very large gamble with our nation's future on an untried, inexperienced individual because he is charismatic and has a few good speech writers.

9. Mr. Obama, you accepted millions in donations from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, do you feel responsible for a portion of their failure?

-By accepting millions in donation while knowing that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were in serious financial distress, Obama contributed to the economic meltdown that is affecting us right now. He needs to own up to his involvement in the issue.

10. Are you aware that Acorn, a group with whom you are closely affiliated, has been charged with voter fraud in 14 states?

-Obama acted as an advisor, a volunteer coordinator, and funneled money to Acorn. Acorn has been convicted of voter fraud in the past including registering voters named – Jive Turkey, Mary Poppins and Darth Vader.

-Acorn has been alleged to have picked up homeless people in battleground states and promising them a hot meal if they will register as Democrats and vote for Obama.

I hope that McCain’s camp will work with him and Sarah Palin to be more aggressive. It is what we will need to do to win this election.

Don't be Shocked!

2008-09-20T07:02:00.000-07:00

I have heard that there is a new strategy brewing in the Obama Camp. Watch for news reports to start surfacing that Joe Biden is in a health crisis. Apparently the Obamaites have finally realized that they made a huge mistake when Joe Biden was selected as VP instead of Hillary because they are now putting the wheels in motion for Biden to step down after the VP debate and then nominate Hillary as VP. Why do they want to wait until after the debate? They don't want a head to head debate with Hillary and Sarah Palin. How desperate are they to negate the Palin factor?

Help spread the news that this strategey is a possibility so that we can eliminate the surprise element that they are counting on rather than this being viewed as a calculated strategic plan. I personally don't think that putting Hillary on the ticket this late in the game is going to help the Obama camp. I think that the Hillary supporters will see this move as a disengenious attempt to secure their votes.

If this actually does happen, I hope that the McCain Camp seizes on the opportunity to create a TV ad that shows the clip of Rudy Guliani's speech at the Republican National Convention when he was talking about Obama's record of flip-flopping on issues then said possibly prophetically "If I were Joe Biden, I would want the VP thing in writing." That could be a powerful message! I also think the McCain Camp could run an ad that says "Well, he did say he believes in change..."

Intelligent or En Vogue...

2008-09-17T21:50:00.000-07:00

I have come to the conclusion that the majority of people voting for Obama are making the en vogue choice instead of the intelligent choice. I completely understand that there are people out there that have really thought about the issues and truly believe that Obama has the answers, but they are in the minority. I truly believe that for the most part people, especially younger voters, are choosing Obama because it's the stylish thing to do.

As for me, I would rather be out of style than have a President that thinks that decisions are "above his pay grade". Obama has since tried to say that his pay grade comment was not a good answer, but when you take into consideration how many times he has not voted as a state and national Senator, or voted "present", his record proves that decisions are indeed above his pay grade. If he can't make decisions for himself, why should we decide to make him our President?

The intelligent choice is to select the candidate with the most experience in government and in life. We also need someone who can work with both the Democratic and Republican parties so actual change will be possible.

I sincerely hope and pray that the voters in this country will THINK before they vote and not fall prey to the stylish and trendy traps. Our country is a nation based on substance. Most of us live in the real world, not Hollywood. Don't let Hollywood tell you how to vote. Be intelligent, not en vogue.

New Mission in Life

2008-09-05T21:59:00.000-07:00

I have decided that I have an important mission for the next two months. My mission is to be an Anti-Obama Missionary. I pledge now to use every opportunity that presents itself to me and every opportunity I have the ability to create to inform others that they should not vote for Obama. I am amazed that there are so many undecided voters still out there. I can't trust the mainstream media to provide them with important information like:
1. Obama is on the non-partisan National Journal's list of the 10 most corrupt politicians in America.
2. One of the only pieces of legislation that Obama cared enough to co-sponsor was to make partial birth abortion legal and to allow the infanticide of babies still viable after botched abortions.
3. Obama likes our gas prices where they are and will not increase drilling for oil if elected.
4. Obama believes in government mandated income re-distribution.
5. Obama seeks to remove all personal responsibility from America's citizens. The Washington Post called Obama's economic proposals "disastrous" and his policy proposals as "A Nanny State on steroids."
6.Obama is really a socialist in a donkey suit. He's just masquerading as a Democrat.
7. Obama has no real experience to be our President.
8. Obama doesn't do his job as a Senator. He either votes present or not at all.
9. On one of the rare occasions that he had enough motivation to cast a vote, Obama voted to cut off funding or our troops in Iraq.
10. Obama has close acquaintenances that are domestic terrorists (William Ayers) and attended his America-hating church led by Rev. Jeremiah Wright for over 20 years. He only left this propaganda spewing "church" admist immense political pressure.

I invite everyone to join my cause. It is incumbent upon all of us to inform those around us that a vote for Obama is a vote for an inexperienced socialist with questionable judgment.

Palin ROCKED!

2008-09-04T15:06:00.000-07:00

Did you see Sarah Palin's speech last night? Well, if you didn't you missed an historic and fantastic moment! Sarah Palin had more stress on her shoulders than most of us can imagine. She was to give a speech in front of 30+ million viewers on TV and 30,000+ at the convention. That alone would have had most people shaking in their boots; throw in that her teleprompter was not working properly and the speech alone would be daunting. Consider though the flurry of negative media reports, sexist commentary and media attacks on her 17 year old pregnant daughter. With all of that squarely placed on her shoulders, she walked confidently to the podium and delivered a fantastic speech. No one could have done a better job, not even the eloquent Obama. Even Joe Biden said it was brilliantly delivered.

The speech had some fantastic Obama barbs, here are a few of my favorites:

"I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, except that you have actual responsibilities. I might add that, in small towns, we don’t quite know what to make of a candidate who lavishes praise on working people when they’re listening and then talks about how bitterly they cling to their religion and guns when those people aren’t listening."

"Our opponents say again and again that drilling will not solve all of America’s energy problems, as if we didn’t know that already.But the fact that drilling, though, won’t solve every problem is no excuse to do nothing at all "

"And now, I’ve noticed a pattern with our opponent, and maybe you have, too. We’ve all heard his dramatic speeches before devoted followers, and there is much to like and admire about our opponent. But listening to him speak, it’s easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or even a reform, not even in the State Senate. This is a man who can give an entire speech about the wars America is fighting and never use the word “victory,” except when he’s talking about his own campaign. But when the cloud of rhetoric has passed, when the roar of the crowd fades away, when the stadium lights go out, and those Styrofoam Greek columns are hauled back to some studio lot…
… when that happens, what exactly is our opponent’s plan? What does he actually seek to accomplish after he’s done turning back the waters and healing the planet?"

"Government is too big; he wants to grow it. Congress spends too much money; he promises more. Taxes are too high, and he wants to raise them. His tax increases are the fine print in his economic plan. And let me be specific: The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, and raise payroll taxes, and raise investment income taxes, and raise the death tax, and raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars."

"Here’s how I look at the choice Americans face in this election: In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers, and then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change. They are the ones whose names appear on laws and landmark reforms, not just on buttons and banners or on self-designed presidential seals."

"Harry Reid, the majority of the current do-nothing Senate…
… he not long ago summed up his feelings about our nominee. He said, quote, “I can’t stand John McCain.”
Ladies and gentlemen, perhaps no accolade we hear this week is better proof that we’ve chosen the right man."

Beyond her words, I loved the moment the camera caught of her youngest daughter Willow licking her hand to smooth the hair of baby Trig. It was a precious sight to see. Sarah Palin represents her conservative ideals with more than just her well written speech. It is demonstrated by the way she has handled personal challenges and lived up to her beliefs. We need someone like Sarah Palin to be an example to our country of how to handle challenges with dignity.

McCain/Palin 08!

The Media is Playing it's Bias Card

2008-09-03T09:31:00.000-07:00

If there were any questions previously as to whether or not the mainstream media is trying to ensure an Obama win, there should be no doubt now. The malicious attacks on Sarah Palin and her family have shown the media's true intentions. McCain threw the media off-track by keeping the names of Romney & Pawlenty in the spotlight and now they are running scared without a pre-prepared smear campaign so they are grasping at any little piece of information and spinning it into some giant character flaw. It is amazing to me that Sarah Palin has been in the national spotlight for 5-6 days now and has already had more media scrutiny than Obama has had in the 19 months that he has been actively running for President. Doesn't that seem odd?

Tonight Sarah Palin will accept the Republican Party's Vice Presidential nomination and I hope her speech is a grand slam. Gov. Palin seems to me to be a very genuine, intelligent and classy woman. It would be an honor to have her as our VP. I would also love for her and McCain to win just to stick it to the Chris Matthews and Ariana Huffingtons of the world.

Go Palin!

I've had a day to think...

2008-08-30T06:34:00.000-07:00

After the initial shock of not seeing Mitt as VP wore off I started doing research on Sarah Palin and I am pretty impressed. She is a strong conservative and lives her beliefs. I am also impressed that she has worked to end corruption in Alaskan politics and had the foresight and wisdom to turn down Washington Pork Barrel projects. She has also decreased Alaskan taxes and returned financial windfalls for the state to it's citizens.

I don't know if all of the disgruntled Hillary voters will join the McCain base just because she is a woman and I am worried that there will be some backlash as the mainstream media sources keep saying that McCain is pandering. Women are smarter than to just vote for someone because she's a girl. A lot of women will have issues with her pro-life stance, but I think even the most staunch pro-choicers will have to be impressed by Sarah Palin living her beliefs by having her last baby who has Down's Syndrome.

I am also impressed that both she and John McCain are supporting the war within their own families. They can discuss the War on Terror from political and personal perspectives. That will bring an interesting element to the debates.

The Democrats have already started in on her lack of experience, but that is a political minefield for them and they are bound to trip up. Obama is at the top of the ticket and we can't afford, as his running mate Joe Biden observed, "To elect someone without experience. The Presidency isn't a job that lends itself to on the job training."

I have to say that I am still disappointed that Mitt is not going to get his shot, but I have hope that he will be on the McCain cabinet and still work to fix our economy and reduce government waste.

Disappointment...

2008-08-29T05:20:00.000-07:00

So, I just learned from Carl Cameron on Fox News that McCain has not selected Mitt Romney for VP. First I was shocked, then almost instantly I was disappointed for our country. What is McCain thinking? We need Mitt to fix the economy and be ready to run again in 2012. I just don't know what he is thinking. Mitt is one of the most qualified candidates in our nation's history. Maybe Mitt should run on a third party ticket, but he won't do that. I guess I am just going to have to suck it up and deal with it.

Happy Independence Day!

2008-07-03T12:49:00.000-07:00

As we prepare to celebrate this holiday weekend, let us remember why we are celebrating Independence Day.

Patriotism
What does it mean to be a patriot? At UnitetheGOP we believe that being a patriot means getting involved. Our nation was founded on the sacrifices of regular individuals who pledged their prosperity, time, effort and even their lives in the pursuit of freedom. The Declaration of Independence states:
“And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.”

Today we are not generally in the situation where we required to risk our lives for our country so isn’t giving some of our time and effort the least we can do? Make a commitment to start activating yourself, family and friends to the promotion of the values and ideals that make America the greatest nation on the Earth. We need to fight for our freedom before it is taken away from us piece by piece.

"When a person places the proper value on freedom, there is nothing under the sun that he will not do to acquire that freedom. Whenever you hear a man saying he wants freedom, but in the next breath he is going to tell you what he won't do to get it, or what he doesn't believe in doing in order to get it, he doesn't believe in freedom. A man who believes in freedom will do anything under the sun to acquire... or preserve his freedom." – Malcom X

Service
The freedom we enjoy has been provided by the thousands of men and women in the military who have served in the past and are serving now with honor and valor. Their personal sacrifices and love for their country should be remembered and honored as we celebrate at picnics and BBQs tomorrow. Remember while it may be hot where you are tomorrow the temperature in Baghdad is hovering around 120 degrees. The effort by our troops in Iraq is succeeding and whether you support the War on Terror or not, we should all support our troops. They are the embodiment of patriotism and service. John F. Kennedy said:

"Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty."

We do not need to apologize for the promotion of freedom around the world nor for protecting our freedom at home. We should honor these brave men and women on our nation’s errand. We owe them our undying gratitude for their life of sacrifice and honor.

Gratitude
How can you show your gratitude for freedom? Help promote candidates and legislation that protect our freedoms, values and way of life. Engage yourself in this election. Help educate your family and friends about the important issues our nation faces. Write your Representatives, Congressmen and Senators about drilling for oil, oil shale opportunities and other energy initiatives that will help our economy and keep America strong.

Pray for our leaders, soldiers and citizens to never take our freedom for granted. Thank the Almighty that you are privileged to be an American.

Please have a safe, memorable and fun Independence Day weekend.

New Challenge to Occupy My Time

2008-06-15T21:27:00.000-07:00

I have started a new project. I am writing a novel. No, it's not politically based, surprisingly. My book is just a fun story that fits in the Chick Lit genre. I would love feedback, because I really think I have a shot at getting it published. If you are interested in reading what I have written so far, please make a comment and I would be happy to send it to you.

Obama Supporters - the blind leading the blind

2008-06-05T19:51:00.000-07:00

Do you want to feel good about yourself without putting any effort into it? Support Obama! Obama is for change! Obama is for the little people! Obama is going to end the Iraq War! Obama will decrease gas prices! How?

I don't know... his supporters don't know (I have asked several) and he hasn't offered one tiny piece of any plan in any of his overly flowery, overly dramatic, Hitleresque, dare I say articulate speeches. If you go to his webpage you'll get a better clue. How about HUGE tax increases, larger government agencies, more nanny-state programs, no personal accountability, and no personal responsibility? Vacuum your conscience of any personal failures, the government will take care of you from the cradle to the grave. Sounds nice, right? Only if you can't or won't think!

Personally, I like the responsibility of caring for myself. I want my successes and my failures to be my responsibility. I like having the opportunity to save money for a rainy day. I like having the ability to choose my own doctor and not have to wait for months because we have moved to socialized medicine. I like the idea of knowing who is in our country because it is required to apply for citizenship before moving here. I sleep better at night knowing we have a strong military force with the weapon systems needed to protect us from those who seek to destroy us. I like having phone calls linked to terrorist groups being monitored. I would like our government to stop terrorist attacks before they happen. I think our military should water board any terrorist who has information that can save lives. I want abortions to be difficult to acquire and for underage girls' parents to be notified of this huge irreversible decision. I think we should be energy independent. We have huge untapped fossil fuel resources and need to stop kowtowing to the environmentalist groups.

Have you spoken with an Obama supporter about any of these issues? Most of them have no foundation for their opinions on most of the topics. They haven't thought that far ahead. They just feel like Obama's brand of change will be the right thing. Obama is the new "in" thing. MTV wants their viewers to "Rock the Vote". Most of these kids have no idea about who they are voting for and what he wants to do. They just know he is for change and that Hollywood stars think he is the best choice. That's not such a ringing endorsement in my mind, but it will be in a lot of impressionable first time voters' minds. Those of us that think freely, research and analyze the issues need to start talking about what is important to us and to our country. We need to start educating those around us and help them see the ramifications of an Obama presidency.

I can't imagine my tax rate being 45% of my income. I do not support income re-distribution by our government. I do believe that we need to have some programs in place to help those that are truly needy, but I don't think it is our government's responsibility to remove personal accountability from the core essence of America.

Join UnitetheGOP PAC!

2008-06-03T19:39:00.000-07:00

There are many reasons to join Unite the GOP! Below are my top five reasons. I hope I can convince you to join us and help us spread our message.

1. Unite the GOP PAC is a very unique PAC. Most PACs are founded by politicians or Washington insiders. Unite the GOP PAC was initiated by individuals who are tired of sitting on the sidelines and feeling helpless as our country’s values and principles are being trampled upon.

2. Because Unite the GOP PAC was founded by individuals and not by a powerful politician with a defined political agenda, your opinion counts. Your voice will be heard. The Unite the GOP PAC wants you to share your thoughts and opinions. We want to foster a true market place of ideas.

3. Do you ever feel like a lone voice in the vast wilderness? By joining us in the PAC, you will find friendship and camaraderie with individuals of the same mind and ideals. There truly is strength in numbers. We can work together to spread our message and pursue our Vision and Mission.

4. Stop feeling helpless in our changing world. The biggest reason I became more politically involved is because I did not want to stand idly by as our country is being attacked by the tyranny of the minority through political correctness. I want to know that I am doing everything I can to fight for the principles and values I believe are upheld by the Constitution.

5. Knowledge is power! Arm yourself with facts and rhetoric you can use as a defense weapon system against your liberal friends and family. By reading, learning, commenting and contributing to Unite the GOP you will be helping us teach others the truth that lies behind the politics and mainstream media.

I hope I have convinced you to join our ranks! If this article motivated you to action, send it to your friends and family that you think should join our PAC too. The more we grow, the faster we can make a difference.

The New Terrorist Attack on America

2008-06-03T19:36:00.000-07:00

I had a very interesting conversation with my Dad and a friend this weekend. My Dad asked us "What was the terrorist's purpose in attacking the World Trade Center?” I replied, "To attack our economic base". He then looked at us and said “what is under siege right now by OPEC not producing more oil?”

It hit me square between the eyes. We are being attacked by the terrorists again. They are mounting a very successful attack on the US economy by holding us hostage with oil prices. This could be a more successful and damaging attack than the one on 9/11. The price of oil has a serious trickle-down effect on the price of everything from our food to building supplies. We are allowing the terrorist sponsored nations of OPEC to destroy our economy, our standard of living and eventually our standing as the world's super power.

It is time to wake up! We need to start demanding action by our government to end this attack on our economy, The United States of America has the resources and the technology to become not only self-sufficient as an energy producer, but a leading oil exporter. We need to turn the tables on the terrorists and sell our own oil and stop their money supply.We have more oil than the Middle East Peninsula in the Rocky Mountain States. There is also the ever-controversial oil supply in ANWAR that needs can be utilized immediately.

Please educate yourself on the subject and begin telling everyone you know. As American Citizens, we need to unite our message and contact all of our congressmen and congresswomen to take immediate action!

I Know I Have Been a Slacker!

2008-06-03T19:31:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I know I have not posted in a very long time. I have had a lot going on. Mostly recovering from shoulder surgery, but also moving homes and helping my 16 year old cousin settle in with our family.

I have also been very busy with the UnitetheGOP PAC. Check out our new site... it is stellar!
www.unitethegop.com. Join us and help us spread the word about the importance of a Romney VP nomination.

I promise to once again post at least 3 times a week. I am going to post my two latest articles tonight! As always, I would appreciate your comments and thoughts!

I am back!

A Vote for Romney Sends a Message

2008-03-11T15:23:00.000-07:00

I am writing this in the hope that it will reach conservative voters in states with upcoming primaries. You have the opportunity to make a difference in the election and for our country. Mitt Romney has only suspended his campaign, so his name will still be on your ballot. If you are for a McCain/Romney Ticket, VOTE FOR MITT! We need to have evidence that there is still a large base of support for Romney among conservative voters. If Mitt keeps getting large amounts of votes, it will help our cause to promote Mitt for VP. I have been working with other Romney supporters who are diligently promoting a McCain/Romney ticket. We need your help! Check out http://www.unitethegop.com/. If you are like me, your primary has already come and gone. But, do you have friends and family in states with upcoming primaries? If you do, spread the word - A Vote for Romney is a Vote for a McCain/Romney Ticket!

I have previously posted to this blog a list of reasons why we need Romney on the GOP Ticket. It is entitled "GOP Dynamic Duo". Please feel free to use my thoughts when promoting the idea of a McCain/Romney ticket with others. If you have other ideas, please post comments to this article, I would love to read your thoughts!

Reality Round-Up

2008-02-28T13:43:00.000-08:00

I am going to take a departure from politics today to discuss my two favorite reality shows on TV right now. First, Project Runway is coming to a close. Next week is the final show. I LOVE Project Runway. I enjoy watching the creative process of the designers and how they manage to complete what seem like impossible tasks. This year Gillian, one of the designers, made a dress out of Twizzlers candy and it was actually pretty! My favorite designer is Rami. He was chosen to show his collection at Fashion Week last night. I was so happy that he was chosen because he makes the most beautiful dresses. Next week is the finale, and three designers, Rami, Gillian and Christian will show their design collections at New York Fashion Week. Victoria Beckham will be the guest judge. If you haven't watched Project Runway before, check it out next Wednesday. It will be terrific. Below is a link to the Project Runway website where you can view some of the clothes that were designed this season.

http://www.bravotv.com/Project_Runway/index.php

American Idol has started in earnest and I am so excited that a fellow Utahn is stealing the show! David Archuletta is amazing. He is 17 years old and a Jr. from Murray High School here in Salt Lake City. He sang his own version of John Lennon's "Imagine" this week. His performance was so moving that I doubt there was a dry eye in the studio. Simon commented that David is the contestant to beat this year. Last night the ladies performed. Brooke White is one of my favorite contestants this year. She performed Carly Simon's "You're So Vain", everyone joked that the song was about Simon, which was fitting. She did a fantastic job. This is going to be a great season!

It was nice to have a political break today. I'm sure I'll be back to my political agenda tomorrow.

GOP Dynamic Duo

2008-02-27T13:28:00.000-08:00

Who would have thought after throwing incendiary barbs at one another that Mitt Romney and John McCain would play nice? When Mitt officially endorsed McCain, I began thinking a lot about the advantages of a McCain/Romney ticket. While my natural instincts immediately reacted that there are no advantages attached to McCain, the more logical part of my brain took over and I realized that there are plenty of strengths when McCain is connected to Mitt Romney as the GOP Presidential ticket.

1. McCain represents the moderate part of the Republican Party and Romney represents the more conservative part of the party. This is a ticket that appeals to all parts of the GOP. The only group that may still feel slighted would be the Evangelical Christians who think that Mitt Romney is the devil, but they will get on board because they won't vote for a pro-choice candidate like Obama. So the GOP wins in the end.

2. McCain and Romney have different areas of strength. McCain has the national security background that is essential at this time in our country and he understands the necessity of completing our tasks in Iraq and not surrendering to an enemy that has sworn an oath to destroy us. McCain has travelled Iraq extensively and understands this war from the ground up. He has invested more of himself in this effort to combat terrorism than any other Senator in Congress. Romney has unrivaled experience and savvy in the economic sector. Mitt could go to work on restructuring the government to run more efficiently and save our nation what is wasted per year... an estimated one trillion dollars! Mitt could work on several other budget/economic initiatives such as utilizing US energy resources & renewable energy and working within the healthcare insurance industry to create a solution for the working uninsured in America. There are much easier solutions than turning to socialized medicine.

3. McCain has shown strength in winning votes across the nation pretty steadily, but Mitt has experience swaying liberals to vote for him. He was a red governor in a very blue state. Together they might be able to halt Obamamania.

4. They are both straight talking and direct on the issues. This could be a huge benefit as voters become more serious and start wanting answers not just rhetoric. Both McCain and Romney have very detailed plans for their vision of America. If they blended their ideas they may have mass appeal to Americans.

5. McCain is seen as a politician with experience in Washington. He knows how to do the job. Mitt is seen as an extremely successful businessman with leadership experience. Together they bring a lot to the voting booth.

6. Romney is "Mr. Fix It". Have a problem business? Heard of Staples? Domino's Pizza? Sports Authority? Mitt saved these companies from failure. Have an Olympics coming up and you are over budget, behind schedule and have a huge scandal? Hire Mitt... he will fix it. Did you know that the International Olympic Committee asked Mitt Romney to write a manual for future Olympic cities on how to run successful games? The 2002 Salt Lake Olympics were the first games to make a profit in the history of the Modern Olympics. Not only did the games make a profit, they made over $100 million dollars. We need "Mr. Fix It" in Washington. Mitt could be the first VP in history to really have an impact on America.

7. With Romney focusing on the economy in America, McCain would be free to focus on the War on Terror and Homeland Security with more focus. Imagine if our President could be Commander in Chief and have the faith in his VP to take care of the Administrative issues of the job. This would be a huge benefit for everyone.

8. Having Mitt be the first VP in history to have a real job is not a threat to McCain. He has stated we would not seek a second term. This would be a huge advantage for Romney in the 2012 election. He will have gained more governing and political experience to combine with his "real world" business experience.

Those are the few advantages that came to mind today when I started writing this blog. I hope that my ideas start people thinking of other advantages. If you have any additional ideas, please comment. I would love to start a dialogue about a McCain/Romney ticket. Also, if this idea is appealing to you, check out http://www.unitethegop.com/ and help us make it a reality.

Mitt Romney for VP!

2008-02-26T20:12:00.000-08:00

Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity & Ann Coulter are all on board with the nomination of Mitt Romney as the GOP VP and so am I! I have been working with other Romney supporters to organize a Political Action Committee with the goals of uniting the GOP and having a McCain/Romney ticket. Last night we had our first PAC leadership meeting and I was elected to be the Secretary of the Committee. I hope that our efforts will succeed but we need help! Please check out http://www.unitethegop.com/ and get involved!

A McCain/Romney ticket would be a very attractive ticket to moderates and conservatives alike. McCain is strong on national security and Romney is strong on the economy, both are key issues in this election. McCain is a seasoned candidate with a wealth of government experience and Mitt is new to the political scene with a plethora of real world business experience. They are the yin and yang of the GOP; opposite sides of a Republican coin.

Want to know more about Obama?

2008-02-26T19:56:00.000-08:00

I just found this VERY interesting article about the beliefs of the women in Barak Obama's life, namely his mother and his wife. This article is very eye-opening.

http://atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/JB26Aa01.html

I hope and pray for our country that people wake up from the hypnosis that Obama has them under and start finding out who he really is and what he stands for. I don't think our world is ready for the "Change" Obama wants to implement.

Proud of America

2008-02-26T09:39:00.001-08:00

Unlike Michelle Obama, I am proud to be an American. I am very concerned that a woman who wants to be the First Lady of our country can't say that she has always been proud of the USA. Of course our leaders and citizens do not always make the best decisions. There are events in our past and maybe events ocurring right now that all of us would have liked to have been handled differently, but that should not change your feelings of pride and allegiance to your nation. It seems that Michelle Obama has made the decision to harbor resentment against our country because of a history of racial discrimination in the past. I don't think this is a good example of how to handle difficulties in your life. All of us in this country have been discriminated against or have had a history of discrimination in our families. My Great-Grandfather Colette was robbed of wealth and property and ran out of town by the Ku Klux Klan because he was Italian and a Catholic. My family also has progenitors who were forced to leave their homes and businesses under a state sponsored Extermination Order by the state of Missouri because they were "Mormons", members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. My family and many other people in our country could hold on to these issues of the past and declare unpatriotic statements about our country or demand reparations, but we don't. Why? We have moved on.

We have learned that America, even with its faults is the best country in the world. Michelle and Barak Obama were obviously able to move above the discrimination she claimed still existed in the Princeton University environment. In what other country would the Obama's have been able to succeed above the status to which they were born? Certainly their lives would not be so richly blessed if they lived in Africa. In his book "Out of America, A Black Man Confronts Africa", Keith B. Richburg chronicles his realizations of how lucky he is to live in America after being assigned to be a reporter in Africa. He is truly grateful and proud to be an American, not an African-American.

I guess we can blame part of this issue of American divisiveness and disenchantment on the political correctness movement. Instead of being Americans, we segregate ourselves by titles. I am a Female-Italian-Irish-Chilean-English-Danish-Swedish-Welch-LDS-American... wow, what a mouthful! Just call me an American. We need to drop the titles and respect people for their actions not their backgrounds. In our country being prejudiced against someone for their sex or race, thankfully is not socially acceptable. It is an exciting and encouraging statement about our nation's progress that a black man and a woman are running successful campaigns. However, what shocked me about this election is that it seems religious prejudices are all the rage. Mitt Romney was constantly attacked about his religion and Barak Obama has had to continually refute that he is a Muslim. We still have some work to do in our country but that doesn't mean our country is not pride worthy.

I am proud of the successes of America. I was moved by the pictures from President Bush's trip to Africa. The Africans were so thankful for his visit and for the service that the American Government has provided for them. In Ghana the people lined the streets to see President Bush because he is helping them fight Malaria which is the number one cause of infant mortality in that country. I am proud that women and girls are succeeding in school and work in Afghanistan. I am proud when our athletes win gold medals in the Olympics. I am proud when I see an American Soldier in uniform. I am proud when I see the flag flying. I have been proud of America my entire life. I hope you have been too.

Sorry, I've been sick...

2008-02-22T19:35:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't posted anything in awhile. I have been so sick with a sinus infection and double ear infections. The good news is I have been catching up on political analysis shows so I will have some really good things to share once I am feeling better.

I hope and pray none of you get this bug I have or the flu that Steve, Dad & Dusty have had. Oh, Mom and Kortni have had sinus infections too. Our house should be quarentined.

Isn't it ironic... don't you think?

2008-02-19T12:01:00.000-08:00

I find it ironically mind-boggling today that much of our nation is celebrating the announcement of Fidel Castro's resignation and at the same time we are ready to elect a Socialist to be our next President. I have been sick so I didn't leave the house very much this weekend and I watched a lot of political analysis shows. On one of these shows an economist analyzed Barak Obama's Economic "Plan". His analysis boiled down to this quotation I remember "Obama would create a Nanny State on steroids" - how lovely. The economist went on to report that Obama would increase the size of the US Government substantially; creating 10 new departments and 5 new Cabinet positions. Just what we need, additional government agencies and bureaucracy. How would Obama pay for all of these new programs? Tax increases of course! Does your combined household income total $90,000 or more? If it does, congratulations!! You are rich and didn't even know it! Under the Obama Economic Plan, your taxes would be increased to over 50%. So, you won't be rich for very long. I sincerely hope that everyone supporting Obama's message of "change" realizes that's all they will have left in their wallets if Obama is elected.

There are two other Obama stories in the news today. They both focus on the use of words. The first story is about Obama giving a speech written and delivered by someone else previously without crediting the author. So I won't get in trouble, I want to thank Alanis Morrissette right now for the title of this blog. The Obama camp is trying to downplay these criticisms, but I think it's a valid critique. All Obama has going for him is his speaking ability and "inspiring" messages. If those qualities aren't genuine, what does he have to stand on? He has nothing of substance to prop him up. We need to demand as voters that our candidates have substance.

The second Obama story in the news today is about a comment made by Michelle Obama in a speech today. She was quoted as saying "For the first time in my adult lifetime, I'm really proud of my country". How unpatriotic! How ignorant! How insensitive! This is definitely not the type of comment I expect from someone who wants to be The First Lady of The United States of America. Really, she's not been proud of America? I am proud of the many amazing accomplishments of our nation and it's citizens. Mrs. Obama went on to say she wasn’t just talking about her husband’s booming presidential run — it was more a statement on a trend she’s seen of Americans being “hungry for change.” Again, enough with this "Change" mantra! What do you and your husband want to change? How do you want to change it and how much is it going to cost the taxpayers to implement?

The voters of this country need to demand more of our candidates. We deserve to know the details. This is a very long job interview process. We need to start asking some tough questions.

Time to come together!

2008-02-15T21:15:00.000-08:00

Have you had a chance to check out www.unitethegop.com? A few Romney supporters that have been commenting on the site have begun a grass roots campaign to promote Mitt for VP. I have agreed to help them in their efforts and hope you will help too!

To get started, check out this link http://blogromneyforvp.unitethegop.com/ . Please take the time and effort to get involved.

Obama - This is a MUST read!

2008-02-15T13:24:00.000-08:00

You get an extra post from me today because my brother Deek just sent me an excellent article about the REAL OBAMA.

Check it out!
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/KenBlackwell/2008/02/14/the_real_obama

We need to spread the word! If you encounter someone voting for Obama, start asking them why? We need to help these voters think!

Thoughts on Romney's endorsement of McCain

2008-02-15T12:13:00.000-08:00

I was in the middle of a fundraiser yesterday afternoon for the Huntsman Cancer Institute when I saw the press conference with Mitt Romney giving his endorsement to John McCain. Now, you know I am not McCain's biggest fan, but he is our only candidate and it's time that the Republican Party comes together and supports our best choice.

I was also excited because it seemed like McCain may be seriously considering Mitt for VP. He mentioned working closely with Mitt in the future a few times in the press conference. So, now more than ever we need to bombard the McCain campaign with requests for Mitt to be VP. Last night I found a great website with the same objective http://www.unitethegop.com/. It is worth checking out.

I also want to address the members of the Republican Party that are ready to abandon ship and vote for Obama... WHAT ARE YOU THINKING? Oh, you're not thinking you are feeling. That's what Democrats do - base decisions on emotion rather than thought. I saw an interview with Whoppi Goldberg on the O'Reilly Factor that really opened my eyes. Bill asked her why she thought the things she thought and her reply was "I don't think about these things, it's how I feel about them". That helped me understand the lack of thought process in the liberal mind. It's not what you think, it's what you feel. So if you are planning to vote for Obama, I urge you to think about it, not just react to Romney suspending his campaign. If you need some information to think about, read my blog titled Barak Who?

It also doesn't help when Ann Coulter (whom I usually agree with) is spreading the "Scorched Earth" theory - which is essentially voting for a Democrat so hopefully they can screw things up so badly that a Conservative Republican can win in 2012. Oh, that's brilliant... especially during this time in our history when we are in a war like we've never fought before and when the President we are electing this year will be selecting several Supreme Court Justices who will be in position for life. This is not a good course of action for our country or our party.

We need to all follow Mitt's example and get behind McCain. We also need to urge McCain to get behind Mitt.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2008-02-14T07:37:00.000-08:00

It's Valentine's Day, the day of love. And while I tried to be the emodiment of cupid this morning, it was hard to get past the fact that I HATE THE SNOW! It snowed here in Salt Lake again last night, just in time for the commute home. If I were a democrat, I would think that President Bush hates Mormons and that's why we have had so much snow this year. I know, I know we need the water, but enough is enough. I am so ready for Spring!

Back to Valentine's Day. I am thankful for the reminder of all of those in my life that make it wonderful. I have been blessed with a wonderful husband, whom I adore! I also have amazing parents that have taught me so much and allowed me to form my own thoughts and opinions. They also taught me how to make good choices and for that I will always be grateful! I am also thankful for my brothers and sisters and their spouses, really they are my friends! We have so much fun together! I am also thankful for my nieces and nephews... they are all adorable, funny & smart. I have also been blessed to be a part of Steve's family. His brother Mike and Sister Janalyn and Janalyn's family are all truly blessings in my life too. I also have wonderful Aunts, Uncles and cousins that are so special to me.

Valentine's Day is also a great time to reflect on other people who make my life great, like my co-workers. I have some wonderful friends at work that make my job a happy place to be. Thank you all for your friendship!

I hope that this Valentine's Day is a special time for each of you. Have a terrific day!

Barak who?

2008-02-13T07:16:00.000-08:00

I am composing this blog for three reasons. First is that it seems that Obama has the momentum needed to win the Democratic Nomination for President. The second is that my Aunt Debbie left my mom a voice mail last night asking some questions about Barak Obama. The third reason is that if Debbie has questions about him, others must also need this information. So here we go!

Debbie's specific question was about the report that is being widely circulated on the internet about Barak Obama not putting his hand over his heart during a flag ceremony. While Obama supporters deny this, it is true. Please click on the link below for verification.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/anthem.asp
Obama makes justification for not putting his hand over his heart in the article, but think about it, why doesn't he put his hand over his heart? He is running for the President of America! The second issue that has been swirling around the internet is that Barak Obama is a Muslim. The Obama camp denies that this is true, but does not deny that Barak Hussein Obama's father is indeed a Muslim and that he and Barak's mother divorced when he was 2 years old. When Barak was 6, his family relocated to Indonesia. Barak attended Muslim and Catholic Schools in Indonesia. Barak Obama has been a member of the Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago since 1988. He has a very close relationship with the Pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Pastor Wright is very controversial and awarded Louis Farrakhan with a prestigious award last year. Below is a link regarding the award to Louis Farrakhan.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/528635/barack_obamas_church_honorsnation.html

I can't verify what I feel with anything substantial, but it concerns me that Americans are just willing to overlook the questions that Obama's background brings to the surface. Are we willing to take a risk that there is nothing to these issues? Is anyone going to do the investigative reporting we need to make a proper decision? The answer is no. Here is why...

In his book "Bias" Bernard Goldberg points out that over 80% of American Journalists describe themselves as Liberal. So, there is an agenda in the media... get a liberal elected. There is an even stronger bias for Obama. Recently an NBC reporter embedded with the Obama camp did not realize the camera was still rolling when he made the following statement - "It's hard to stay objective when reporting on Obama". Below is a link where you can watch the video.
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/matthew-sheffield/2008/01/08/nbc-admits-media-love-obama

The reason why the media is so strongly behind Obama is because he is so liberal and so good at hiding his true colors. I decided to start asking Obama supporters questions last week. I have spoken to about 15 so far. I asked each of them why they support Obama. 100% of the time I received one of these answers - "I just like him!" or "He is so inspiring!". When I dug a little deeper and asked them "why do you like him" or "what is inspiring about his plans for America" they didn't know. THEY DIDN'T KNOW!!! This is what is so frightening to me about Obama. He is a great orator but a horrible policy debater, I should know. I understand that his message is resonating with Americans who are feeling very disillusioned with our country today. But what is his message? Barak has been good at concealing his true political stands. While a State Senator in Illinois, he voted "Present" on controversial issues instead of "Yea" or "Nay". His history isn't even a good indicator of where he stands. "For example, in 1997, Obama voted "present" on two bills (HB 382 and SB 230) that would have prohibited a procedure often referred to as partial birth abortion. He also voted "present" on SB 71, which lowered the first offense of carrying a concealed weapon from a felony to a misdemeanor and raised the penalty of subsequent offenses." This is a quote from the article in the link below.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2007/02/the_everpresent_obama.html

I have two sources of blame for the mood of America today. The first is the Bush Administration. At any other time in American History the War on Terror would be viewed as a resounding success. Why? We have been in a war for over 5 years and have lost less than 5,000 soldiers. While every life is precious, 5,000 soldiers is not a huge military loss. We lost more than 5,000 soldiers in major battles in the past. The war the Bush Administration has really lost is the war of Public Relations. I have been so frustrated by the Bush Administration's lack of communication with Americans. They have lost the country's faith and support because they do not include us in the victories. They haven't promoted the successes like girls being able to go to school or women being able drive for the first time. They haven't highlighted that Northern Iraq is flourishing. What the Bush Administration has miscalculated is that the country as a whole has ADD. We have access to information instantly from countless sources. We lose interest, patience and tolerance for things quickly. The Administration also failed to realize that you have to tell your story or your enemy, in this case the Press, will tell their side of the story.

The Press is the second source of blame for the disenchantment in our country. I previously mentioned their motive, get a liberal elected. The Press is orchestrating the Obama movement. Barak is their perfect candidate. He is the most liberal Senator in America, see the article below:http://nj.nationaljournal.com/voteratings/

So, to wrap all of this up, I am fearful that idealistic people in our country have fallen prey to the media scheme to elect a liberal candidate. I admire their idealism but question their logic. Why would you support someone you know very little about? Why would you support someone who doesn't talk about specific policies but just says "Change is possible"? What is he planning on changing? I also have a question for Obama supporters; do you really think it is that simple? Do you think he can just say we are going to change America and it will happen? There is so much bureaucracy and back alley dealing in Washington that anyone elected will have a difficult time making truly good policy changes.

We really need someone to do the research and report unbiased facts about each of the candidates. Until this happens, we need to look at the history of the candidates that we do have for guidance. Considering The National Journal has calculated Obama to be the most liberal Senator in America, he is not getting my vote.

Terrorists will stop at nothing

2008-02-12T07:38:00.000-08:00

The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security issued a warning today about terrorists using mentally retarded women and women disguised as pregnant women for homicide bombings. It is unbelievable to think that two of the candidates running for President want to pull out of the War on Terror. We cannot afford for Hillary or Obama to become Commander in Chief. We are not dealing with countries that would negotiate a peace treaty with the United States. We are defending ourselves from people that would strap bombs to mentally retarded women to kill other human beings. We are defending ourselves from radical jihadists that have sworn a Fatwa (or blood oath) to annihilate the infidels (us) from the face of the Earth. Something tells me that terrorists are not going to come to Camp David for Peace Talks. We must be vigilant in our efforts to fight terrorism.It is essential that we elect a President with the right motivation... Protect America!

To read the warning issued by the FBI and Department of Homeland Security, click the link below:http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330415,00.html

Also, don't forget to contact the McCain campaign about nominating Mitt for VP. I have a new webpage that I am working on. It's still a work in progress. The web address will be http://formermittsupporters.johnmccain.com/.

Know who you are voting for...

2008-02-11T08:44:00.000-08:00

It is very interesting to me what the media chooses to report about the Presidential Candidates. I read over the weekend about Mike Huckabee being on Judicial Watch's 10 worst politicians list, so I checked into it this morning. Guess who else is on this list? Hillary and Obama! Below is a link so you can check it out too.

http://www.judicialwatch.org/judicial-watch-announces-list-washington-s-ten-most-wanted-corrupt-politicians-2007

Mike Huckabee has also had a history of ethics violations. Check out this report. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,313384,00.html

I spent most of the evening last night defending The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from incendiary attacks by Mike Huckabee supporters. You might want to check out what "Christian" pastors are saying about the LDS Church. http://pastors4huckabeeblog.com/. I truly think Huckabee is staying in the Presidential race to hedge against a VP nomination for Mitt Romney. The level of misunderstanding and intolerance by the Huckabee supporters I encountered last night commenting on foxnews.com was incredible. We need to contact the McCain campaign and urge them to nominate Mitt for VP. Our country needs his leadership skills and his example.

Interesting news from CPAC

2008-02-10T11:52:00.000-08:00

So, CPAC still supports Mitt and so do I. CPAC (Conservative Political Action Committee) had a straw poll vote today for the candidate they support for President. Even after suspending his candidacy Mitt Romney was the winner. McCain came in second and Huckabee and Ron Paul were tied for a distant third.

There is not a chance that Mitt is going to reinstate his bid, and I don't think anyone could organize an effective write-in campaign that is such a popular idea online, so what are we to do? I have an idea...

Those of us that are conservative and support Mitt Romney need to bombard the McCain campaign with requests for Mitt to be VP. It's the answer that makes sense to all involved. It would help McCain bridge the gap between him and conservatives. The only group that would be upset are the evangelicals, however they will eventually get on board because they will not vote for a candidate that is pro-abortion.

The McCain camp would also benefit by having Mitt for VP because he could be a VP with a real job. It would be an amazing opportunity for McCain to assign Mitt to go to work on the structure and effectiveness, or rather the ineffectiveness of the US Government. Mitt could work to save the nearly trillion dollars that are wasted each year due to govenment waste. Another area that Mitt could tackle would be popular with liberals and conservatives alike. Mitt could be tasked with working on renewable energy efforts and making them an economically feasible option. Mitt has the business and economic experience that is sorely needed at this time in our history.

Help me by contacting the McCain campaign. We can't afford to sit on the sidelines. We have to be more involved with shaping our future. http://www.johnmccain.com/

You have to join the McCain campaign to comment, but just do it!!!

Families & The LDS (Mormon) Church

2008-02-09T12:02:00.000-08:00

Today I attended a Worldwide Training meeting for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, or Mormon church. The meeting centered around raising a faithful posterity. While my husband and I have not been able to have children, we are planning to have a family in the future. The Mormon church centers it's teachings around the family and are proponents of strong traditional family values.

While attending this meeting, I was reminded yet again of the importance of this upcoming Presidential election. As a nation, we are chosing someone to lead us and direct the values of our nation. We need to be doing all we can to promote the candidates that best uphold traditional family values. It also reminded me just how devestating the suspension of Mitt Romney's presidential bid is to our future. At the end of this posting I will post a link to "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" issued by the LDS church. If you are interested in learning about the true values and beliefs of the LDS or Mormon church this is a great place to start. It details the LDS perspective on the make-up and importance of the family.

Yesterday, my sister Kortni, sent me an article to read from the Wall Street Journal online. It was an article about Anti-Mormon sentiment in our country. I find it upsetting and unbeleivable that at this time in American history that this type of bigotry still exists. The LDS Chrurch has decided to no longer just take these unfounded and dishonest accusations made by people any longer. Elder M. Russell Ballard, a General Authority of the LDS Church has posted several instructional videos on YouTube to help promote the truth about our religion.

If you are interested in learning more about the LDS Church's beliefs, pleaese go to http://www.lds.org/. This webpage can give you truthful information about our church and our beliefs. To read "The Family: a Proclamation to the World", please click on this link: http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=e1fa5f74db46c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=5fd30f9856c20110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&hideNav=1

Don't they teach math in Arkansas?

2008-02-08T07:25:00.001-08:00

I am still baffled that Mike Huckabee is staying in the political race. I have read postings by his supporters and it is obvious that the whole lot of them are delusional. Mike Huckabee is their deluded leader. It is statistically impossible for Mike Huckabee to win the nomination. He and his band of Anti-Mormon followers need to cut their losses and move on.

I understand that it is very difficult to see a dream die. I was a HUGE Romney supporter and still am. I only wish that Huckabee had done some math after Florida and bowed out. We might be in a different situation with different choices today. But, that isn't reality and I've dealt with that over the last 24 hours. It's time that the Huckabee camp counts the delegates and figures out what the rest of us already have... it's a lost cause.

A truly sad day for America

2008-02-07T21:28:00.000-08:00

I am still very heartbroken about Mitt suspending his run, however I am more heartbroken about the way our party is tearing apart at the seams. I never thought that I would vote for McCain, but WE have no choice. McCain may not be as conservative as I would like my president to be, but he’s better than the alternatives. Mitt has it correct. We need to unite behind McCain to defeat Hillary & Obama. We can’t allow them to pull us out of the war on terror and begin negotiating with terrorists.
I listened to McCain’s speech on CPAC, and he did a decent job making his case to be supported by conservatives. While I am still not a McCain fan, I am not a democrat and can not vote for Hillary or the most liberal senator in the country, Obama. With Hillary we know what we will be getting socialism and scandal. With Obama we don’t know what we will be getting because he speaks in beautiful flowery words with NO SUBSTANCE. He doesn’t have a plan for anything and hasn’t done anything of consequence that qualifies him for the position.
Let’s take a moment to heal. Everyone take a deep breath and let’s come together to defeat the liberals and the Jihadists. Let’s work together on the economy and immigration. Mitt is a total class act. We need to follow his example.
Huckabee and supporters, you need to give it up. You need to quit being religious bigots and learn for yourselves about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I find it difficult to swallow that you call yourselves Christian and then bash a religion that is dedicated to Christian principles. You may not understand our doctirine, but you cannot deny our Christian actions. You need to really think about this… Judge not lest ye be judged. Tolerance is our responsibility, judgment is the Lord’s. It is also time that you give up the delusion that Huckabee can win. It is statistically impossible.
It is time to lick our wounds, heal and then come out fighting. We need to reserve our strength to fight the liberals, the socialism, the big govenment spenders… Hillary and Obama.

-Colette