MIscellany: 8/18/10

Quote of the Day

A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.
Sir Francis Bacon

The GOP is Blowing the Mid-Term Election

If anyone is thinking that I'm predicting a surprise comeback for the Dems this fall, with a stalling recovery, sticky high unemployment, a highly unpopular political agenda, and unprecedented, unsustainable spending,  he or she is dead wrong. Both Rasmussen and Gallup are showing GOP leads in the generic Congressional ballot beyond statistical error. Senators Murray (D-WA), Feingold (D-WI), Boxer (D-CA) and Reid (D-NV) are multi-term incumbents from solid blue or purple states whom shouldn't even be breaking a sweat for reelection and at best maintain slim one-digit leads. I think the election story that puzzles me the most is that fact that the GOP hasn't fielded someone that caliber of Giuliani or Pataki to take on Gillbrand in New York; the same thing holds true in Maryland where Mikulski has not drawn a well-established opponent.

You have to look at the election like a game of chess. We are really setting the stage for 2012. Even if the GOP captures control of the House or Senate, they'll hold at best a slim majority. The real target is the Presidential election in 2012. If the economy continues to struggle through 2012, Obama is done, without the GOP having to do anything more than nominate a qualified candidate for President. But Reagan was also struggling mid-term and came back to sweep the election. The fact that Obama is still hanging in the 40's, badly overexposed and still polling ahead of his fellow Democrats should bother the GOP; he will be the primary beneficiary of any positive trend in the economy and if the GOP overplays its hand, it gives Obama something more than Bush to run against.

I cannot stress this enough: IT'S NOT AS MUCH ABOUT ISSUES AS ABOUT PROCESS AND RESULTS. By 'process' I'm talking about political civility and pragmatism, the parties negotiating and compromising on big issues without preconditions. No more red meat politics. And the Republicans need to address government not as an evil, but as unfocused, inefficient, and ineffective. It's about running government smarter and leaner, with a sense of realism. It's about deciding what's in a government's core competencies, divesting marginal operations and demanding the same type of productivity increases out of its workforce as in the private sector. It's about thinking outside the box, leveraging other entities (the private sector, the non-profits, and state and local government) to deliver citizen services, with lower cost and accountability. It's about looking for ways for the government to pick its battles carefully and to promote self-actualization of its citizens by eliminating moral hazard and ceding back personal responsibility.

One example of the wrong approach is the Ground Zero mosque issue. (I've noticed my readership seems to have dropped in half since I posted on the issue, but it's a matter of principle.) Here, we have a situation where a local zoning issue has become the follow-up flavor of the month to Shirley Sherrod's 15 minutes of fame. Why would the Republicans, of all people, get involved in an effort for government intervention about what people can do on private property--and especially given the Kelo decision? Why would they target people, whom share many of the same socially conservative/family values? The GOP needs to get away from the judgmental, shrill, Sean Hannity-type negativity, the Bill Ayers / Jeremiah Wright attacks, the Palin one-liners, etc. It's a turn-off for voters.

If I was heading the GOP, I would start off with the voters this fall with a mea culpa over the Republicans' 12 years of power in the House. I would stress a positive, constructive agenda and a willingness to meet the President halfway. It's time our politicians confronted the tough issues straight on and leave this country in better shape than we inherited.

Mitt Romney: "Grow Jobs and Shrink Government": Thumbs UP!

Anyone who reads this latest op-ed from Mitt Romney knows why I urged John McCain to dump Sarah Palin and replace her with Mitt. Mr. Romney is hitting all my buttons in this article in a pro-growth agenda, including but not restricted to: free trade, accelerated write-offs for business, globally competitive business tax rates, tax simplification (i.e., fewer giveaways to companies), elimination of investment taxes for people below a top tax level, reforming entitlement programs, and extending the Bush tax cuts.

 Political Humor

"After three weeks of jury deliberations, Rod Blagojevich was convicted yesterday on only one of the 24 counts against him. The one count he was convicted for? Transporting illegally silky hair across state lines." –Jimmy Kimmel

[No, Jimmy. Fitzgerald got Blagojevich on bragging to investigators about having been the source for the Valerie Plame leak....]

"[Blagojevich] could get up to five years, though that's very unlikely. He'll probably do somewhere between Lindsay Lohan and Lil Wayne." –Jimmy Kimmel

[Not smart, Jimmy. Now VH1 won't have to pay you royalties for the idea behind their new reality series...]

"I don't understand why the president has to drive. He could just flap his ears and fly anywhere." –Jimmy Kimmel

[No, Jimmy. Obama could just say, "Scotty, beam me up!" The reason you have the birthday certificate issue is because Obama's father was from a round-eared ethnic group on the planet Vulcan. Did you think his love of logic as a lawyer and emotionless delivery came by accident?]

Musical Interlude: The American Songbook Series

Alice Faye*, "Slumming on Park Avenue"



(* My collection features Peggy Lee on vocals. I hope the reader finds Alice Faye a worthy substitute.)