link of the day

I came across this link today - a post by Mitt Romney on healthcare. I think the biggest questions I had after reading were 1) why are our leaders rushing universal healthcare without thinking it through? and 2) why aren't more people pushing for plans that have had success, like Romney's?

links of the day

MUST reads for today! Tell your senators NO on the stimulus bill.

top 10 reasons to oppose the stimulus

stimulate economy, not government - commentary on CNN by Mitt Romney

beware the politics of fear - Krauthammer in the Washington Post

Romney on Friday

I heard Mitt Romney on Hugh Hewitt last night - had some really great things to say. And what do you know...Gov. Romney will be here in Georgia Friday stumping for Sen. Chambliss. And he's making not one, but two! appearances. Too bad I will miss it! If you go, let me know, take some pics, etc etc.

Please Join
Senator Saxby Chambliss
&
Governor Mitt Romney

Atlanta Victory Rally 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
10:30 am - 11:30 am

InterContinental Hotel
Venetian Ballroom
3315 Peachtree Rd NE
Atlanta, GA 30326

Savannah Victory Rally 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Charles H. Morris Center
10 East Broad Street
Savannah, GA 31401

Please RSVP to RSVP-at-saxby-dot-org or call (678)589-4888
Please arrive on time.


And! I wrote our senators and such about my feelings of opposition to the bailout...got this response from Sen. Chambliss (curiously nothing from Isakson, Lewis, Bush...so Saxby gets bonus points there).

Thank you for contacting me regarding a financial rescue of the automakers. It is good to hear from you.

The automobile industry has deep seated problems that cannot only be solved by more money. Instead, a restructuring of the industry is needed. I am not in favor of using taxpayer funds to bailout the industry.

If you would like to receive timely email alerts regarding the latest congressional actions and my weekly e-newsletter, please sign up via my website at: www.chambliss.senate.gov . Please let me know whenever I may be of assistance.

ok, i couldn't wait

I'm so pumped up right now that I decided to go ahead and post first impressions & favorite quotes from tonight's Republican Convention. I was gonna wait til tomorrow, but I'm so awake right now! And excited! Because I feel like everyone who spoke tonight, and especially Sarah Palin...they GET America. They're PROUD of America. That gives me hope for our country.

LINKS UPDATED --Will try to update with links tomorrow...I'm too excited about what I saw to look for links for everything!

Ok so I started watching CSPAN around 8:30...but the first speaker I really started paying attention to was Mitt Romney. He was good, and was then followed by Mike Huckabee, who was also good. Huckabee told a great story about a teacher and desks.


Then things really ramped up. Linda Lingle, the Hawaii governor who I've never really heard of, had a pretty good speech defending & extolling Sarah Palin. My favorite points from her:

Delaware has the same # of delegates as Alaska
Sarah Palin got more votes for mayor than Biden got from the whole nation for President of the United States


Alright, up next was Giuliani. Favorite quotes:

advice to Obama regarding his flubbing of the Georgia/Russia crisis: "Next time call John McCain."
on Obama's experience: "community organizer (pause) what?" laughs - I laughed SO hard at this point.
his last point on the media's questioning of Palin's mothering abilities: "How dare they...when do they ever ask a man that question?"



Then, Sarah Palin:

"difference between hockey mom and a pitbull...lipstick"
"small towns...hardest jobs...growing our food, working in our factories, fighting our wars...always proud of America"
on being a mayor: "like a community organizer, but with actual responsibilities"
"I'm not going to Washington to seek [liberal media] good opinion. I'm here to serve the people of this great nation."
on reasons to run for office: "to challenge status quo...leave this nation better than we found it."
"Some use change to promote career...some like John McCain use career to promote change."
"There's only one man in this election who has ever really fought for you."


cute moment: camera focuses in on Piper Palin licking her hand and then smoothing down little baby Trig Palin's hair. aw!!!


yeah!!! great night for Republicans :)

party up! republican party that is...

So I decided to check out the Launch of Young Professionals for John McCain this week...

Here is everyone congregating at the entrance of JCT Kitchen bar. Ryan accompanied me & we were among the first arrivals. We met some people and I forgot their names not 5 minutes after meeting them. Yeah...I'm not good with names. As people started arriving, I was impressed with the range of ages. I was one of the younger people there, but certainly not the youngest. And there were plenty of older people...even close to my parents' ages. (Hey, they are young at heart!) And, there were LOTS of people there. We packed out the inside bar & the outside patio, and people even made makeshift seating on the stairs.


But what was not diverse was the type of person there. I felt like I was back in Greek land in college. Not that this is a bad thing, I loved being Greek. But I thought...I mean, aren't there lots of different professions? Do only good ol' Southern boys & girls who work at tax or law firms support McCain? Or are they the only social supporters of McCain? I just remember back to Mitt Romney & Ron Paul's rallies - all kinds of different people were there (especially at Ron Paul's). This really was not the case. I was so glad I wore a summery, cute dress that day...because every girl was wearing one.

Side note on the food - the recpetion food was popcorn & fries:

What does that say about Republicans? And what about hungry Republicans? I came straight from a long day at work...and I had popcorn & fries for dinner. They were pretty good though.

Ok so after an hour or so of mingling, the speaker was announced. Hunter Hill is running for Georgia State Senate. I have to say, first impressions, nice guy who's not a great speaker. He slipped up and said "we should be helping Obama...oh I meant McCain, sorry." What kind of Republican makes that kind of error? He made it a couple times too. We all laughed it off, but it still kinda bothered me. The other thing that bothered me is that a train came through with horn blasting. Yeah, JCT Kitchen is right by a train track. Whose brilliant decision was it to have a speaker on an active train track?

Back to Mr. Hill...my favorite parts:

"If you're not a conservative, maybe you should look into being one."
many laughs from the crowd on this one

"less taxes, more freedom"

on the war in Iraq (Hill was deployed to Iraq)
"we want to come home winners...Obama thinks nothing is worth fighting for."

It was an upbeat speech, supporting McCain etc etc. Nothing I didn't already know. Then at the end, to wrap up, we were encouraged to tell our friends about McCain and also to give money if we could. Speaking of, I should probably do the money thing soon. But I was a little disappointed in the lack of urgency. It was cool to hear Mr. Hill speak, but I was hoping to hear more about more tangible ways we could contribute. I remember back in 04 spending many hours at Bush's re-election center, making phone calls to get out the vote. When are we gonna do that? What can I do personally? That's what I really wanted to know and I didn't get those answers. Apparently there are more events in the future though, so maybe there will be more involvement then?

random thoughts

Lots going on in the nation...

What do we think of a McCain-Romney ticket? I'm not really sure about it. Not that it's set in stone. On one hand, it may unite the conservatives to McCain. On the other hand, it seems that Romney wouldn't want to be so closely tied to McCain, especially if he wants to make another run at the White House.

Listened to Dennis Prager last night. He had a lot of interesting things to say about the race issue in the Dem race. I think he said that 95% of blacks in Mississippi voted for Obama, yet Obama continues to assert that race is not a factor. He said that before this, he liked Obama. But now, if Obama continues to claim that race has nothing to do with his wins, he is a liar. What do you think?

Listened to Laura Ingraham this AM on the way to work. I wholeheartedly agree with her on the way the media has been treating the Spitzer scandal. If you haven't noticed, all the major news outlets have been featuring "Kristen" lately, going so far as to even bemoan prostitution as being wrong. It seems like the media has just taken the sex scandal as an excuse to take America deeper into sexual deviancy. Do we really need to watch the footage? Do we really need to see the website? Do we really need to know all the sordid details? I don't think so. Which is why you see no links here. Spare yourself from the details.

Last thought...have you heard the California court ruling on homeschooling? Very, very disturbing. The LA Times reports that it is not a ban on homeschooling. But it just upsets me that the government thinks they can take away the right of parents to educate their children in the way they see fit. This intrusion on the family...I guess I get really riled up since A. I was homeschooled for 2 years and B. I went to private school all the other years but 1. Why? Because my parents were not interested in sending me to a public school, where as a 6 yr old, I was lost in a class of 30+ students, exposed to things that they did not morally agree with, and generally did not have a good experience. If parents want more for their children, they should have the right to do so. Perhaps I didn't have as many opportunities later on in high school that public school kids got. But I did get a solid education, and I got into the #2 public university in the nation (at that time). So you can't tell me that the State does the best job of educating. Look at the test scores. Look at what homeschoolers have been able to achieve. I have a friend that was homeschooled her whole life, and now she works at NASA. Stop intruding on the family unit and let parents decide what is best for their kids.

extreme emotion

Does anyone else find this disturbing in the least? I am sure that Obama is a good person, this is nothing against him. But...he has this cult of personality, it creeps me out. Why is Hollywood giving him so much money? And does that really appeal to the American people? I don't really think of Hollywood as having a good grasp on reality. They have lots of money, do whatever they please, etc... And this is coming from someone who works in TV, albeit on a small level. I'll just have to give this some more thought...I don't understand these videos. I get that they're supposed to be funny. But is this the time to make fun of our political system? This is a serious election. This is a serious decision for each and every American (over 18).

Or does anyone find this a little disturbing?Maybe some of you grew up with the things that I did. The Focus on the Family radio show for kids - Adventures in Odyssey - was one of the coolest things ever, better & more exciting than TV shows to me. Stretched my imagination. Then Brio...the girls magazine that I read cover to cover every month. The books my parents read to save their marriage, our family, etc. So you can imagine the respect I have for Dr. Dobson.

But I find it troublesome that he's endorsing Mike Huckabee. Why? Huckabee is conservative in pretty much only one way - his morals. I think that is the folly of the Southern conservatives. They voted for Huckabee based solely on his conservative moral values. We tend to get things confused...Conservative does NOT mean in morals only. To be a true Conservative, you have to face it on several fronts: moral, yes, but also economic, national security, etc. Really, I look more for a candidate who is conservative in the economy first. I don't want the government taking my money and then spending it foolishly. Why couldn't Dr. Dobson have endorsed Mitt Romney? Was it the Mormon thing holding him back?

I guess the thing that irks me the most is that it doesn't really matter if the President is a Christian or not. Christian voters - evangelicals if you will - shouldn't be so enthralled with religion in elections. Instead, just vote for the candidate whose platform most aligns with the values of Christianity. It doesn't matter if the candidate is Christian or not, although it probably helps.

So really I've just been thinking of the extremes of emotion in this election. One one hand you have the people who are swept away by the Obama inspiration & hope. Never mind a hard look at what "hope" he offers or what we have to do to get there. On the other hand you have the moral conservatives who are swept away by the promises of a Baptist minister. When are we going to learn to vote with our heads and not our hearts?

To close...a cool quote from Benjamin Franklin. A man who may or may not have been a Christian. I encountered this in a Bible study I've been going to, and found it very very appropriate for this season:

In the beginning of the contest with Britain when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayers in this room for the Divine protection. Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. ... And have we now forgotten this powerful Friend? Or do we imagine that we no longer need his assistance? I have lived for a long time (81 years), and the longer I live the more convincing proof I see of this truth, that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it possible that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the sacred writings, that "Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it." I firmly believe this, and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall proceed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel.

1787 Speech to the Convention for Forming a Constitution for the United States

initial reaction

Initial thoughts on Super Tues results...as I sat and watched the returns come in at Mitt Romney's campaign get together at 10 Pin Alley last night. Cool place! Wish it could have been a more joyous occasion...

- Mitt Romney - man just can't catch a break! Could not believe what happened in West Virginia...
- Conservatives? Maybe they don't exist any more?? From McCain's wins and frontrunner status, it seems that no matter what the pundits say, he's the choice of Republicans. Maybe there aren't really Conservatives in the Republican party any more? Just wondering...
- Mitt Romney still in this thing. Says he'll go all the way to convention and then to the presidency. Bold words! But maybe his situation isn't as bad as the media would have us to believe. He is still 2nd in delegates, Huckabee had some good wins last night but not enough to overtake Romney. Huckabee says this is a 2-man race between him and McCain...not sure he checked his numbers on that one.
- I'm so proud of Columbia County. The little dark red Romney county in the Augusta area that was surrounded by McCain red and Huckabee pink on CNN last night. Yeah, that's my stomping ground!
- Rush Limbaugh would rather have a Dem in office next term than McCain, reasoning that he'd rather have them mess it up than the Republicans. Interesting...also interesting is Dr. James Dobson refusing to vote if McCain is the nominee.

More thoughts to come...I'll add links to this later. Class time!

tale of 2 rallies

My observations on 2 Republican rallies held prior to Super Tuesday here in Atlanta.

Saturday 2/2 - 12:30 pm - GA Capitol

Ron Paul

Ron Paul was not actually in attendance, but his son Rand was. Unfortunately, I completely missed Rand's speech. So this report is incomplete. We arrived at the rally, the stairs were packed on the West side. We were greeted by several sign holders, a pair holding up a huge joint, a man holding up a Ron Paul blimp, and a patriotic RV that was driven by the Granny Warriors. Fox News covered the rally, no local stations.

What portions we did hear of the rally that stuck out to us:

1 - Libertarian presence - a prominent GA Libertarian (sorry, didn't catch the name) gave his support to Ron Paul. LOTS of Libertarian supporters there.

2 - Ways the secure your vote - what do you think happens when you vote in the electronic booths? We heard from one speaker that your vote may not really be counted! Not sure how I felt about this, but considered it a valid question. The speaker recommended voting absentee, so at least there is a physical record of your vote. He also recommended going in a big group of other similar voters, voting at a certain time of day at the same machine, and going back at the end of the day to check the counts on the machine you all used. Apparently this is legal (never knew that!) Conspiracy theory or valid point? You decide.

3 - Song time - the rally ended with a singer/songwriter from Fayetteville who played a bell, harmonica, and guitar all at the same time. He sang about why we should vote for Ron Paul. I have never seen/heard anything like this before. If I had been alive during the Vietnam War, I might say that it reminded me of those protest songs. The song was original and heartfelt, and probably the most appropriate ending to this rally.

After the rally was over, we heard some Ron Paul supporters planning on meeting up at John McCain's rally later that night with their signs. Awesome.

Monday 2/4 - 12:00 pm - Ga Tech Hotel

Mitt Romney

What immediately stuck out to us at this one was the amount of press. There were several remote trucks for various local & national stations. There were rows upon rows inside the salon reserved for the press. There was also a table outside with info on phone banks, results party, stickers, etc. We arrived on time for this rally and squeezed up to the front, where incidentally, we ran into one of my best friends from college. We got pumped through a couple pre-speakers telling us why they're endorsing Mitt. There was a large group of supporters on stage with signs etc. Then the music plays and in comes Mitt! Everyone goes crazy. The room is so hot with all the people and lights.

What we heard that stuck out to us:

1 - amounts/types of cheering - lots of spontaneous "let's go Mitt" cheers and then speaker led cheers i.e. "are we gonna vote for someone who voted against tax cuts?" "NOOOO!!!"

2 - Mitt's calm & collected demeanor the whole time. You would never guess that he was behind McCain in delegates right now. Every word, part was crafted to drive the point home that he is THE conservative candidate.

3 - Lots of interesting thoughts presented. Governor of a Blue state, able to work with Democrats and effectively get things done. Will stay in Iraq and wants to build up the army - compares himself to Reagan here. Mentioned his success in business several times, and that McCain admitted the economy was not his strong suit. Wants to secure our borders, no amnesty to illegal immigrants, "wait in line" he says.

So two very different rallies, two very different candidates. One Republican nomination up for grabs. Who will it be?!

funny

When talking about the economy, a picture is worth a thousand words.



So, Giuliani really couldn't pull out a surprise win. Too bad...I probably wouldn't have voted for him BUT at least he was "uplifting" and not attacking like Romney & McCain. I respect that. Interesting that McCain won in a closed Rep. primary. What does this mean for the party?

Fried Chicken

Here's one thing NOT to mess with in the South...

funny :) who knew politics were so dependent on food?