Tea Party President in 2012

Chilling thought for the day. Recall the election of 1948, when the Republican Party’s heavily-favored, moderate and uninspiring nominee lost to Truman in a race in which he was heavily favored to win. The tragedy is not that the Chicago Tribune got the headline wrong, but that the American people lost either way given the choice between a left-leaning Republican and a slightly right-leaning Democrat. To see how much we have learned from history, here is a pop quiz.



If you cannot answer any of the following questions, you are ill-prepared for 2012.

Leading up to the 1996 Presidential election, anytime Republicans were gathered, from Young Republicans to State Committees, anywhere in the Country, including Kansas, one candidate was the hands down favorite, usually with double the votes of the second pick.

Who was the darling of the Republican Party in 1996?

(hint: Pat Buchanan was usually second)

In 1964, Barry Goldwater won a primary victory defeating among others, Governor George Romney.

What book is credited with helping the Conservative Goldwater break the grip of the moderate wing that opposed him?

Who was the second, and only other Republican in the last century to defy the statist wing of the Republican Party and wrest the Presidential nomination?

In her book A Choice Not an Echo (1964), Phyllis Schlafly names the dates, places and attendees of the meetings as she details how the Republican Presidential nominees are always hand-picked by a small, elite cadre’ thus relegating loyal Republican activists to “echoing” the pre-selection rather than exercising their birthright “choice”. The housewife-turned-activist Schlafly, was horrified to see the kingmakers actively manipulating the process in an attempt to steal the nomination away from the legitimate Republican popular candidate, Barry Goldwater. She rushed tens of thousands of copies of her book to Convention delegates who then stood with Goldwater to win the battle, if not the war.

Skeptics will wonder how it is possible that a selection of such magnitude could really be manipulated. If you are among them, ask yourself this question. How on earth did two candidates so universally unpopular in Republican circles as Bob Dole and John McCain manage to win their nominations?

In 1996, I joined most Republican activists in backing Senator Phil Gramm. That was not a hard choice. The Ph.D., economist, Texas blue dog Democrat, had ushered Reagan’s tax cuts through the Democrat controlled House into the waiting arms of the Republican Senate. In so doing, he helped turn our Country around. Realizing how his Party had become more Socialist than Democrat, he did an amazing thing. He resigned his seat and re-ran as a Republican. We loved him. You probably forgot about him. The kingmakers stole the 1996 nomination from him, and from us.

Why is this important now?

Governor Mit Romney stands eager to win the office his father never did. As a prolific candidate in leftist Massachusetts, he is on record vacillating on issues such as abortion and even the stature of Ted Kennedy. He is popular with the kingmakers. When the number 1 or 2 issue on voters’ minds is the repeal of Obama along with his Obamacare, conservatives are understandably cautious about the prospect of having as their nominee, the author of Romneycare. Schlafly warned of GOP candidates who echo the position choices of leftists. Hello?

So if Schlafly provided the tool to nominate Goldwater in 1964, and the sheer force of Ronald Reagan being, well, the Great One, allowed him to win the nomination in 1980, the Tea Party movement holds the key to beating the kingmakers in 2012.

Defeating the moderates in 2012 will require two things. First, the disparate groups will have to settle on one candidate, and do so fast. Second, they will have to work together, united and coordinated, grooming activists at all levels including the Tea Party Youth, Tea Party Students and Tea Party Centenarians. Hey, pull out all the stops! Right?

Certainly the midterm elections crushed the Obama-Reid-Pelosi oligarchy and slowed our great Country from a breakneck pace toward Socialism back down to mere creeping Socialism. There is so much to repair not just from Obama but even from the past Republican years. We need a nominee committed to nothing less than full restoration of our Constitutional Republic. Any hint of the stench of neo-conservative statism is unacceptable. As the pendulum swings, we appear to be returning from the leftward most swing of Obamafascism on a trajectory far back to the Founding Fathers’ perfect, small government vision. It is our watch. Let us pick the right nominee-fast, and pull out all the stops in that pendulum’s path to liberty!

YES TO BLUE FRIDAY

While not specifically a tax payer or political issue, I found this incredibly moving and important. Hat tip and a big "THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!!!" to my friend Bob Stevens who is a Navy Man and also the father of a Navy Man for sending this. He is a true patriot.

Here are two very touching photos honored this year:

First Place
Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News






When 2nd Lt. James Cathey's body arrived at the Reno Airport , Marines climbed into the cargo hold of the plane and draped the flag over his casket as passengers watched the family gather on the tarmac.

During the arrival of another Marine's casket last year at Denver International Airport , Major Steve Beck described the scene as so powerful: 'See the people in the windows? They sat right there in the plane, watching those Marines. You gotta wonder what's going through their minds, knowing that they're on the plane that brought him home,' he said 'They will remember being on that plane for the rest of their lives. They're going to remember bringing that Marine home. And they should.'

Second Place
Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News




The night before the burial of her husband's body, Katherine Cathey refused to leave the casket, asking to sleep next to his body for the last time The Marines made a bed for her, tucking in the sheets below the flag. Before she fell asleep, she opened her laptop computer and played songs that reminded her of 'Cat,' and one of the Marines asked if she wanted them to continue standing watch as she slept. 'I think it would be kind of nice if you kept doing it,' she said. 'I think that's what he would have wanted'

Blue Fridays.

Very soon, you will see a great many people wearing blue every Friday. The reason? Americans who support our troops used to be called the 'silent majority' We are no longer silent, and are voicing our love for God, country and home in record breaking numbers. We are not organized, boisterous or overbearing.

Many Americans, like you, me and all our friends, simply want to recognize that the vast majority of America supports our troops. Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops with dignity and respect starts this Friday -- and continues each and every Friday until the troops all come home, sending a deafening message that every red-blooded American who supports our men and women afar, will wear something blue. By word of mouth, press, TV -- let's make the United States on every Friday a sea of blue much like a homecoming football game in the bleachers. If everyone of us who loves this country will share this with acquaintances, coworkers, friends, and family, it will not be long before the USA is covered in BLUE and it will let our troops know the once 'silent' majority is on their side more than ever, certainly more than the media lets on. The first thing a soldier says when asked 'What can we do to make things better for you?' is .'We need your support and your prayers.' Let's get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example, and wear something blue every Friday.