Why Can't Republicans find their Way?

It has been six months since the ill fated election that swept the Democrats into power of both houses of Congress. Since then not much has happened to believe that will turn around in the next election. Since Presidential elections are more about individuals than party and the fact that it is very early we can't say much yet about that.

I think in fairness this is too broad of a question to have a single answer, but here are a few of my thoughts:

1. There is no one speaking authoritatively for the movement. President Bush is not an effective speaker, never has been and never will be. This is known. Given that the President tends to be the mouthpiece of a party, this is a liability.

2. The war in Iraq works against them. This cannot be debated. It is turning out to be very difficult and time consuming. It is also not easy to identify the improvements because of the insurgent nature of what is going on. There are not large battles that can be won or lost. It is a process and a long one. Certain people are talking about this, but too many are just running from the subject.

3. The lack of an energetic dynamic communicator has allowed the media to keep dogging them with the idiotic comparisons of each one to Reagan. Reagan was a great president and leader. It is nearly twenty years since he left office. We live in a different world though. No one asks who is the next Roosevelt or Kennedy. The candidates simply need to finally give an answer. Once more with feeling "I am not Ronald Reagan and am not trying to be. I will be the next President and this is what I will do to improve ..."

4. Someone needs to enunciate a big vision. President Bush for all of his faults had and has big visions. He has not been able to carry lot of them to law, but he has vision. Will someone please have a plan for Medicare, or Social Security, or taxes? We cannot assume everyone knows why limited government, low taxes and strong defense is good for the country and the world. Tell the voters and show them.

5. Be a leader!! Some times leaders have to offend some people. This should not be intentional or irresponsible, but leaders sometimes need to say things that are not universally popular. Explanations are needed to make the case but fear of criticism should not stop a true leader. Take any true leader from history and you will find statements and actions that were well criticized at the time. This goes along with vision. Warning: you must be able to support your vision and explain why you believe.

6. Will someone please tell the media that religion is actually legal. OK a little sarcastic here, but I am getting a little weary of the "Oh my gosh he is a Mormon" tirade. I have many problems with the theology of LDS faith, but I am not electing a church leader, I am electing a President. They did the same kind of thing in regards to Bush also, but my goodness liberals, peak in a church one time. There are no secret meetings or handshakes. It is all done in the open. There are no human sacrifices.

Politics is cyclical. Leaders define how long cycles last. This present tide of Democratic dominance does not have to last. Only the candidates can change it.

Time for Some Adults in Politics

We are fully into the presidential campaigns. Between now and next October we are going to be bombarded by promises, and accusations. I have no candidate at this point. Some are interesting, some aren't. Some are electable, some aren't. I don't think unelectable candidates are irrelevant by the way. The existence of Duncan Hunter on the Republican side is very important. He bring conversation about important issues that more well known candidates will ignore if allowed. Security and immigration among those issues.

What I am looking for is which candidate Republican or Democrat will give me the feeling they are an adult. I severely doubt I will find it on the Democrat side, but it is possible. I use the word adult because as adults we have to consider trade offs and results of our actions. Too many of our leaders today want to live in never never land.

So you want the war in Iraq over. How do we do it? Do we just come home? What happens then. I am not going to delve too much into this as I have written about it before. What about health care. You want a single payer system. OK what happens then. What in your plan will problems that have occurred in the past every time a socialized system has gone in? What about the inevitable rationing of care that accompanies the systems of Europe and Canada? You say you want to bring down costs. How can you do that? Price and cost are not the same. You can mandate a price, but if it costs a certain amount today for an x-ray how will your plan bring that down?

Lets say you agree with John Edwards that there are two Americas. Fine, what part of his plan will end that? How will his brand of protectionism stop companies from moving jobs? Some say we will punish them if they do. OK what happens then. When they pickup and move ALL of the jobs, what then? What is the next action? We have a right to know. The left is not alone here. We on the right believe in markets. I'm not sure all of the Republicans do. I say make them explain why markets work. We need a better reason than that is what you need to say to get the Republicans to vote for them. If you want to cut taxes further, great why? Do you want to pass a balanced budget amendment? Good I am for it, but how are you going to get the Congress to abide by it. Congress has a thousand ways to hide spending. How is your plan going to change that? Those congressmen and women need to go to their voters every two years with their hands out for money and votes. Unfortunately they will game the system to cover their tracks. How are you going to change the environment to make it harder? The president cannot change the rules of congress, but they can make let the people know what tricks are being played on them.

Adults need to do the right thing even if it hurts them personally in the short term. If the next President does the right things they may not win a second term. What candidate is willing to take that risk for the sake of their country? I am not sure I have an answer to that, or if there is an answer. The next seventeen months will answer that. I fear too many of the existing candidates are going to reveal themselves as adolescents. It is a pity. We need to ask the questions that will bring that out though. The mainstream media will not, the citizens need to.

Mandating behavior

We have all at some point in our lives said "If I were the king of the world I would do ...". Some people I have heard lately would like to mandate some kind of behavior by the force of law. They range from creating a shorter work week, to mandatory single payer health care.

I of course don't agree with most mandated behavior schemes but let take a stab at some that I would do just as hypothetical and just for fun. (Hypothetical because this slaps at the face of liberty which I believe to be the most cherished thing we have and is eroding enough already.)

1. Mandatory economics lessons for poor people. If more people doing understood how supply and demand worked they could better lift themselves out of their situation. I hear from liberals all the time "I understand supply and demand, but you don't understand that people are suffering". If they truly understood it, they would understand why people are suffering. This of course does not include people unable to work for medical or mental problems. I am speaking about able bodied people. This would also introduce the concept of trade offs to people who believe it is their right to always be happy with little of no effort.

2. Poor people, white and black would be forced to talk to people who have come from their situation and made it. Blacks could talk to Walter Williams, Thomas Sowell, Larry Elder, Condeleeza Rice or Clarence Thomas. Poor whites could talk to Bill Bennett, Michael Medved, or
many others who rose from poor beginnings to become successful in their fields. This would encourage people to not get bogged down in problems but look for solutions.

3. Any time someone attempts to speak for a group, would be made to sit down and shut up until they can prove they have polled the entire group and they want this person to speak for them. Since that will be impossible for religious and racial groups they would be forced to admit they speak for their own self interests and if it happens to help the group they are happy. This is admirable and honest.

4. When politicians argue that higher minimum wages will help poor workers, they will have to pay those peoples salaries when their jobs are eliminated. Economic studies have continually learned that mandating higher wages than the market would allow causes those jobs to be eliminated eventually.

OK none of these will happen, nor should they. I am just hoping to inject some common sense to some endless debates that interest me.

Clarity: The difference Between Left and Right

The recently completed debates provide much clarity between the two parties. I will say I didn't see either one so I am not commenting on content. The Republicans allowed their debate to be moderated by Chris Mathews. There are very few national hosts more hostile to Republicans and Conservatives than Mr. Mathews. Contrast that with the Democrats who have flatly refused to debate on Fox News. In my humble opinion, while Fox does lean right, no where near as far as CNN, MSNBC etc lean left. That aside the Republicans are not afraid to debate in a venue that may not be hospitable to them.

Point two: The Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi will talk to the leader of Syria, one of the major sponsors of terror in the world, but will not attend a briefing by our commanding General in Iraq.

Major Universities using speech codes cut off all debate that is not up to their ideological standards. Criticizing a minority group whether racial, gender, national origin or sexual preference is simply not permitted. Daily accounts of this is possible by columnists on Townhall.com. While Townhall is certainly not an impartial observer the cases are well documented.

The left today simply will not allow disagreement. Opponents of the Al Gore version of Global Warming are not simply criticized, they are destroyed. Numerous examples of scientists have lost funding and lost their jobs simply for not parroting the accepted line. Critics are called equivalent to holocaust deniers. It is incredible.

Some members of the right are more open to debate than others, but I can think of no prominent leaders on the right who simply will not allow disagreement. Certainly no examples similar to Pelosi, Gore et al. This blog is focused on the need to honest open disagreement to make our society better.

We must stop subsidizing victimhood

What you subsidize you get more of. Politicians look for victims at every turn. Every time a bill passes Congress, or is signed by the President, there are a slew of victims waiting to tell how they were victimized and how this bill will help. This is how politics is done and sometimes it is good, but often it is dangerous.

Victims are not to be blamed. This much is true. Many people are honestly victimized. This cannot be avoided. People are victims of crime, some are victims of slander, some of victims of verbal abuse, some are victims of just being annoyed. The perpetrator must be punished if criminal acts have been committed. In our past we have had victims. More importantly we taught that when you fail that helps you become stronger. The founders of our country fought tremendous odds and put their lives on the line for a goal. Some lost their lives. The pioneers in the civil rights movement did the same. Pioneers in every movement go through tremendous struggles. Overcoming these odds are to be celebrated, not the victim hood. Martin Luther King is not looked up to because he was a victim, he is celebrated because he lead people to do something. Rosa Parks isn't famous for going to the back of the bus and complaining, she did something!!! Jackie Robinson went through tremendous victimization, but he emerged! He showed through his skill, but more importantly his character and won people over.

The constant stream of victims on the national stage is not healthy. You want role models? We have them by the boatload. You want a black role model? How about Condi Rice? How about Clarence Thomas? These people rose to the highest levels in their professions not by whining but by excelling. Black youths don't hear about them, they are taught by the hip hop culture. They are treated constantly to a never ending stream of how 'the man' is keeping them down. Captain Obvious Alert: This does not imply that racism does not exist, it does in far too may instances. It implies that the more young blacks are taught to excel the quicker we can reduce racism further.

We are all taught to be victims of globalization. Many people have lost jobs to off shoring. So what is the obvious answer? Get training in another field. Get training before you lose yours. If you lose your job, find a way to work. Start your own company. These are not easy tasks. No one promised it would be easy.

I call on the leaders of our country. That means politicians, community leaders, clergy etc., stop glorifying victims. Glorify the people who have overcome the struggle. Show the young people in your community that you can succeed. While you are at it let them know up front it may be difficult, but it is worth it. The value comes not necessarily from material goods, but in what you feel when you succeed. Individuals, stop feeling sorry for yourselves. We all do this at one time or another. I am no exception. I have to give this lecture to myself frequently. The key is not to let it become your defining characteristic. It is not healthy.

Be know for what you have done, not what has been done to you. As humans we are not guaranteed to never be offended, only a chance to pursue what we can. Our country has more freedom and liberty than any other country I know of. That does not promise you success, only a chance.