Time to Put Up or Shut Up
"Whether we look at capitalism, taxes, business, or government, the data show a clear consistent pattern: 70 percent of Americans support the free enterprise system and are unsupportive of big government." -- Arthur Brooks
In a recent article published by The Daily Caller, Dan Whitfield, a British writer living in Washington, D.C., opined that Republicans ought to appeal to moderates and independents. Reasonable enough, but it was Whitfield's opening line that resulted in a horrendous coffee spill of epic proportions:
"If Republicans want to win back the presidency in 2012, they should hope to lose the midterm elections in November."
Slack-jawed pause...
If you look closely at the image of Thomas Jefferson, Founder and our third president, you can clearly see tears of rage accompanying his wince of pain. Perhaps not, but if he were with us he probably would have taken his walking stick to a sensitive part of Whitfield's anatomy. How on God's green Earth can a supposedly intellectual, politically-savvy scribbler fall victim to such careless nonsense? Did he have this reflection in Amsterdam whilst breakfasting on hash-laced broodje en koffie?
To be fair to Mr. Whitfield, his thoughts are based upon the premise that the Republicans need to present a clear alternative to the Democrats. He cites examples of previous, well-meaning congressional revolutionaries and their slow spiral into the Beltway Black Hole of business as usual. However, this line of reasoning indicates that he has not kept up to speed on early and primary election results. It also indicates that he does not fully appreciate the cause for such a dramatic shift in the political winds.
The awakening majority
in March 2009 the Pew Research Center asked Americans: "Generally, do you think people are better off in a free market economy, even though there may be severe ups and downs"Think unbridled government and political appeasement at the cost of principles will prevail? Ask ex-Senators Bennett or Murkowski." from time to time, or don't you think so?" 70 percent agreed they were better off in a free market economy; Only 20 percent disagreed. Remember, this was amidst the worst of the financial crisis. It didn't matter then and it doesn't matter now -- especially now that Americans are experiencing first-hand the catastrophic economic damage being wrought by what is turning out to be just the tip of the socialist iceberg.
To put it succinctly, come November a 70-percent majority of Americans will begin the process of ridding our nation of tax-lovers, spendthrifts, and non-elected, bureaucratic meddling by decree. Disagree? Think unbridled government and political appeasement at the cost of principles will prevail? Ask ex-Senators Bennett or Murkowski. They learned what some of their Republican colleagues are going to learn, along with a horde of Democrats.
It was Thomas Jefferson who said, "The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases." He was not speaking for the moment, but for generations to come. He was right. We have reached that point of diminishing liberty. Which is why the American majority, more than 70 percent strong, has finally awakened.
Time for action, not words
Are you twice as prosperous and twice as free now that government has doubled in size and still growing? The Democrat Congress has an approval rating of just 11 percent. Apologies to Mr. Whitfield but today, merely the fact that congressional candidates are not Democrats will appeal to moderates and independents. It is what happens after November that matters. This year -- unlike previous congressional leadership changes cited in Whitfield's article -- there is a clearly-defined instruction mandated by the American Majority:
Limit the size and power of government.
What an amazing turnaround in just two years. From nebulous election sloganeering and promise-the-moon pandering to a national economic meltdown of staggering scope. Nevertheless,"Americans allowed their representatives to sell out, ignore campaign pledges, defile sacred oaths, and hideously bloat an already inflated government." it is difficult to argue with the notion that the country reached this stage of woeful disrepair because America was asleep and did not hold Washington accountable. Americans, especially the 70 percent who profess conservative values, were not as involved as they should have been.
Americans allowed their representatives to sell out, ignore campaign pledges, foreswear sacred oaths, and inflate an already-bloated government. They then over-reacted with the able assistance of state-run media -- Serpent in the Garden -- and elected a regime dedicated to the fundamental statist transformation of America. To the shameful lament of the majority, that change involves destroying what has always proven successful and morphing what is left into something foreign, more repressive, and unquestionably unsustainable.
There is one aspect on which we can agree with Mr. Whitfield. Should the Democrats be replaced and the Republicans lose sight of the requirements so clearly being made known by the awakened American majority, the GOP as it is now comprised will be banished from the political arena.
They won't be alone -- they will all be voted out until they start listening.
Hype and Chains for 61 more days.