John McCain is a good and decent man. He has served his country with honor for his entire professional life. McCain’s concession speech struck a conciliatory tone that was fitting for the moment. John McCain is a graceful loser. Conservatives must learn from this if we want to regain power in two years. Next time, we must pick winners.

Politics is a blood sport. As this election proved, there are no rules, save one: Win. Win on the power of your positions. Win on the superiority of your principles. Win by pointing out the flaws in your opponent. Win by motivating your base. Win by raising more money. Win in the marketplace of ideas and in the message in the media. Above all else, win damn it! (read more…)

Freedom, Liberty, Personal Responsibility, and general Conservative principles suffered a crushing defeat tonight. The concept of limited government seems dead. In an election I will remember as the choice of the lesser of two evils, evil won.

I am tired. I am tired of choosing between bad and worse. I am tired of supporting a party that has lost its way. I am tired of Republicans whose motto is “we aren’t quite as bad as the alternative.” I am tired of liberals of both parties expanding entitlements, taking away liberties, raising my taxes, bankrupting the country, and calling me selfish for not wanting to bend over and take it. To paraphrase our new 1st Lady-elect, For the first time in my adult life I am ashamed of my country.

I am ashamed of my country because it has elected an unqualified clown. I am ashamed because 52% of the electorate has chosen an empty suit. I am ashamed of my party too. I am ashamed that starting in 2001, George Bush and the “Compassionate Conservatives” abandoned all Conservative principles in the name of political expediency. I am ashamed of new entitlements and rising deficits. I am ashamed of temporary tax cuts and class warfare.

John McCain is a good and honorable man, and he would have been far better than Obama, but he is no conservative. Neither is George W. Bush. McCain should never have been the standard bearer of the GOP. Republicans used to stand for small government, less interference, lower taxes. In a year when 75% of the country was dissatisfied with George Bush, McCain ran a completely ineffectual campaign, and yet still managed to gain approximately 46% of the vote. 46% of us including myself bit our tongues, swallowed our convictions, and supported McCain not because he supported our principles but because on balance he was better than the alternative. I am tired of carrying the water for Republicrats. (read more…)

Whomever wins tomorrow, the fact that Obama has gotten as far as he has as fast as he has represents a troubling trend in our country. Never before has someone so completely unqualified or unprepared to be President gotten so close to the Oval Office. As we count down to election day, we can only hope and pray that the electorate has paid enough attention in the last 48 hours to send this clown back to Illinois. If not, this country in headed for an ugly 4 years.

Barrack Hussein Obama II is not qualified to be president. The Presidency is the toughest, most challenging, most important CEO position in the world. It is not the place for on-the-job training. We should not experiment with affirmative action. We should require more from our President than a flashy smile, a nice suit, and a large bankroll. We should treat the election like a job interview, and require our candidates to have actual skills, executive experience, and a proven track record.

Before I go into Obama’s qualifications, or lack thereof, let me define what I believe are the minimum qualifications for being President:

1. Citizenship – The Constitution requires Presidents to be a natural born citizen at least 35 years old.
2. Public Executive Experience – Running the Executive Branch requires executive experience. It requires the ability to massively multi-task and compartmentalize. It requires the ability to surround yourself with competent lieutenants, and to delegate to your subordinates. These are the skills one gains as an executive in a large organization. There are differences between government executive skills and private executive skills, so it is important that the president has spent time in either the Federal or a state executive branch. Governors, Lt. Governors, Vice Presidents and Cabinet Leaders are all good examples.
3. Private Executive Experience – The Government places an incredible burden on its citizens and businesses. If you have never run a business, made a payroll, sat through an audit, negotiated a benefits contract, it is hard to truly understand the impact of the laws and regulations passed by the Government. To be an effective President, it is best that you have spent time in the private sector running a business.
4. Military Experience – The President is the Commander in Chief of the military. To gain a full grasp of military issues and structure, it is desirable that the President has served in some capacity, be it active duty, reserve, or national guard.
5. Public Policy Experience – The President must also deal with a wide range of issues including the economy, the budget and taxation, social security and other entitlements, foreign relations, and nominating judges. Candidates should have extensive experience either at the Federal or State level on matters of Public Policy.
6. Character – Above all else, character counts. A man of character can surround himself with subordinates to fill in the gaps in his experience. As Peggy Noonan once wrote: “In a president, character is everything. A president doesn’t have to be brilliant… He doesn’t have to be clever; you can hire clever… You can hire pragmatic, and you can buy and bring in policy wonks. But you can’t buy courage and decency, you can’t rent a strong moral sense. A president must bring those things with him…” I agree. (read more…)

Contrary to the assertions of the Prop 8 opponents, Gay Marriage has nothing to do with gay civil rights and everything to do with education, employee benefits, and religion. In the State of California, homosexual couples already have the right to legally join together. It is called Domestic Partnership.

Under California Family Code section 297.5, “Registered domestic partners shall have the same rights, protections, and benefits, and shall be subject to the same responsibilities, obligations, and duties under law, whether they derive from statutes, administrative regulations, court rules, government policies, common law, or any other provisions or sources of law, as are granted to and imposed upon spouses.”

The law goes on to say that domestic partners have the same rights as married couples regarding separation, survivorship, child rearing and adoption. In addition, section h provides “No public agency in this state may discriminate against any person or couple on the ground that the person is a registered domestic partner rather than a spouse or that the couple are registered domestic partners rather than spouses.” Gay couples already have all the civil rights afforded to heterosexual married couples. So, whose civil rights get affected by gay marriage or the lack thereof? (read more…)