Positive Liberty

Last night’s election had two silver linings.

First, the tears represented something special. At 11 PM Eastern, as the race was called, nearly every network had an African-American commentator on set, and some even some black guests, each of whom was given a moment to share their feelings. Their eyes watered. Their voices cracked. One analyst even lost his composure. The cameras, on location throughout the country, showed a sea of brown faces, who even in their jubilance, often had tears streaming down their faces.

This was, for millions of our fellow Americans, a special moment. I hope and pray that we, as a country, have turned some important corner on the road to national healing for past sins, and that the colorblind society is really on its way. Frankly, the way I’ll know we’ve arrived at that objective is that white comedians will be able to stand up and talk about blacks, the same black comedians can talk about whites, and all of us, no longer insecure or guilty, will laugh. But I think an African-American family in the White House is a giant leap forward.

Second, they said it took Nixon to go to China. Well, it took a liberal Democrat to do irreparable harm to the Presidential Matching Funds system. President-elect Obama was able to campaign in states that McCain didn’t think he’d have to protect. And he even won in places the professionals thought were a waste of more limited resources, like Virginia. He did it because he raised roughly double, in September alone, what McCain had in total from the Matching Funds program. The liberal Democrat took no public funds for the primary or general election. And he won. The Republican took the money, and had to ration his meager welfare.

Hopefully, Barack Obama gave the system its mortal wound. Taxpayer funding of elections is unconstitutional and immoral (even with that silly check-off box). And it’s one of a million luxuries that should be cut from a budget running so steeply in deficit.

But at least now, I can argue with liberals — who want taxpayer funding of elections — and have an argument that will really resonate with them. And I can even point to Obama’s method of fundraising — lots of smaller contributions, flooding-in online — and suggest that these were pre-votes (the desires of the marketplace made evident before Election Day). Why would any progressive desire such a system? Thanks Barack Obama.

That said, as my co-blogger James Hanley commented on one of my earlier posts, “Well, so much for the honeymoon.” Indeed. President Obama has numerous plans I oppose, and I will combat his efforts with the same fervor and energy that I deployed while dueling with his predecessors’ big government ideas.

But at least there’s some reasons to cheer this morning.

Hardball delenda est.

I have no rooting interest between the two best known candidates. But there is a silver lining should Barack Obama win — at least there is for me.

I live in Ohio. Diebold is just about 20 minutes drive from here. For eight excruciating years I’ve had to listen to Democrat conspiracy theories that we don’t know how to count our votes here in the Buckeye State. Robert Kennedy even wrote a really, really wordy magazine article on the subject of vote fraud in Ohio.

But I predict that once Obama gets elected, these silly, unproven conspiracy theories will go away. For at least the next three years we won’t have to listen to it… that is, until the Democrats start worrying about 2012. Why? Because these fables weren’t reality in the first place.

These Democrats just couldn’t deal with the fact that more people voted for Bush than Gore or Kerry. It was unfathomable to them. The conspiracy was a consolation to them.

And I understand, up to a point: I don’t know why Continue Reading »

I think mixed metaphors are the bee’s pajamas. Matt Taibbi amusingly crowned Thomas Friedman the leader of seriously mixed metaphors. If you enjoy this English language quirk, Friedman is your savant. He simply grabs metaphors by the horns, and runs with them.

I didn’t watch much of it, but I’m told that Barack Obama had his own rocket surgery moment last night. Obama said that John McCain thought that he (Obama) was, “green behind the ears.”

I love that! Does that mean he spends his time thinking about environmental issues, or that he’s good at gardening? You really have to dig in your feet to figure that one out.

But Obama is largely style, and mixed metaphor is a big part of his substance.

Obama: “This is the moment when we must defeat terror and dry up the well of extremism that supports it.” As David Frum points out, “When you try to use a well to support something, that thing tumbles 30 or 40 feet below ground and lands with a splash.”

Hardball delenda est.

It’s been 21 days since I posted to the blog. A new computer install and a road trip/speaking gig on behalf of DownsizeDC.org have consumed my time of late. I also started, but haven’t yet completed longer blog posts on the homeschooling issue (the big debate that was raging here three weeks ago). But I promised I’d keep you posted on Bob Barr’s lawsuit to keep McCain and Obama off the ballot because they filed late.

And I predicted that Texas judges would say, “Don’t worry Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain: You two are exceptions to our ‘late-filing, no ballot access, no exceptions‘ rule.”

I mean, it’s not like McCain and Obama are from minority political parties, right? Ballot access laws are for Libertarians, Constitutionalists, Greens, or even the Female Circumcision Party.

Well, the expected happened. The Texas Supreme Court ruled that Obama and McCain are allowed on the ballot — and wait till you see their explanation!

Here’s more of the story as reported at NolanChart.com… Continue Reading »

While showing a video about FDR to my presidency class today, I was struck by the narrator’s statement that, “despite the pressing issues facing the country in 1932, the campaign was based almost entirely on personality.”

I’ve been steamed lately about McCain’s faux outrage over Obama’s lipstick on a pig comment. The Republicans, lately, seem to have consistently avoided real issues and focused instead on manufacturing such faux’t rage, and turning the election into nothing more than a personality contest.

So it’s good to get a little perspective and realize that our politics really hasn’t sunk to a new low–presidential elections have nearly always been about personality rather than issues. (Hey! Did you hear Jefferson’s been miscegenatin’!?)

Do you think you live in a nation of laws? That all are created equal and even the powerful must abide by the law?

Think again. I’d be willing to bet someone** that we’re about to see a special exemption to the law made for the Republican Party and Democratic Party.

Those who participate in minority party politics (a/k/a, “third parties”) learn first hand about segregation and discrimination. They must do a great deal more, in most states, to qualify for a place on the ballot — a ballot that is printed and counted at taxpayer expense. No equal access here.

And if these minority parties make a mistake on their infinitely more difficult filing process, no matter how minute and technical, they lose their ballot line. They can challenge it in court, they can even appeal the initial decision — which usually goes against them — but by the time they might win that appeal, the election is over.

Then comes this shocking (and if true, huge) news from the Bob Barr, Libertarian Presidential campaign . . . Continue Reading »

Hi. My name is Jim, and I have a political addiction. I can’t stand any political party. I don’t like either of the major candidates. I’m so disgusted by the process that I rarely vote for humans (I don’t trust their kind; but I do vote on ballot initiatives, particularly when I can vote against a levy). However, I can’t help watching the coverage and offering my opinion. It’s a disease. And I thank you for being part of my therapy. After I write this, I’ll be able to go back to work!

Last week, I wrote that gridlock was the best of bad alternatives (“Why I Don’t Want United Government”) — that both candidates represented great evils, but McCain would accomplish less with a Democratic Congress (Democrats controlling Capitol Hill seems inevitable). This is an argument that I think the Republicans could use to great advantage.

Jack Welch, former CEO of GE (who thinks Clinton was a good President), appeared on CNBC’s Kudlow & Co. last night and he too made a case against “united government.” He said the worst alternative was Continue Reading »

This post is really about the importance of Ohio and Colorado. These are the two states to watch in this Presidential election. If Obama wins either state, it probably means that he wins the Presidency. Continue Reading »

The Democrats are likely to expand their lead in the House and the Senate. Obama is running a Great Society liberal’s campaign. Uniting both ends of Pennsylvania Ave. would be bad.

Gridlock is good.

Until Obama flip-flopped on the FISA vote, and it became apparent the Democrats didn’t understand the need to stop their silly oil drilling ban, I liked Obama better than McCain.

Now I don’t like either of the leading candidates, and I think the results will be more bad than good whichever one of them wins.

I am very opposed to the Bush foreign policy, and I think McCain will continue that. I also hate McCain’s positions on carbon taxes and political speech. He’ll have aid and comfort from the Democrats on these positions.

But McCain will, overall, accomplish far less than Obama will. And it’s that bi-partisan (or uni-party) accomplishment that I’m really concerned about. I don’t want both ends of Pennsylvania Ave. to come together to, “get things done.” When they get thing done, it costs us money, time, and hassle. It restricts our choices. It takes away our rights and liberties.

Gridlock is good.

What’s at stake in this election is the level of legislative success. Barack Obama would be able to get a great deal more of his agenda passed than would John McCain.

And here’s what Obama’s going to do once elected, that will have permanent, detrimental effects… Continue Reading »

Quote: “Support for Bob Barr brings too much uncertainty to the call.” - John Zogby

One of the two best pollsters in the country, John Zogby, in a recent survey of ten “battleground states,” has some surprising poll numbers to report for Libertarian Bob Barr (who will appear on 49 state ballots).

What does this mean?

Continue Reading »

Some random thoughts…

Purpose Driven Dialogue

Rick Warren, pastor of mega-church Saddleback and author of “The Purpose Driven Life” and “The Purpose-Driven Church,” was declared by one news outlet (I cannot recall who now) to be the new Billy Graham. Why? Is it because he preaches the gospel? Not really. It’s because he’s friends with presidential candidates on both sides of the aisle — friend of the next president. It’s also because he’s perceived as being less partisan and less divisive than the likes of the late-Jerry Falwell, the late-D. James Kennedy, Pat Robertson, James Dobson, and David Barton. It’s because he seems like, and probably is a nicer guy.

I, for one, would like to see a new kind of evangelical leader — one who sees his role as “afflicting the comfortable, and comforting the afflicted.” There may actually be a couple of them. I’m aware of at least one such individual. But it’s a lot harder to climb the prestige ladder if that’s your attitude. People call you a radical, a liberal, and unpatriotic.

American Evangelicalism has become hotter and stinkier than the Gehenna dump.

Being Rick Warren gets you on all the right shows. Being James Dobson raises you an army and lots of money. Being a critic gets you neither.

Does this mean we can see Rick Warren’s purpose?

I don’t know. Actually, there are some things I like about Rick Warren. I’ll conclude this piece by mentioning one of them.

Brayton’s Reprobation

Our PL colleague over at his real big blog wrote, Continue Reading »

Punditry is generally trite and boring these days. Cable TV news must’ve ruined it. Jon Stewart, on “The Daily Show,” can demonstrate, with a handful of clips, that Capitol Hill culture is an echo chamber. Little original thought flows out. They just mimic each other. It’s so bad it appears someone writes the scripts for all the networks and their routine pundits.

But even Jon Stewart can become part of the echo chamber.

Jon Stewart suggested that Bill Clinton’s response to the question, “Is Barack Obama ready?” (which, by the way, was “You could argue that no one is ready for that job”) was the work of a passive-aggressive ass. (If you click the link, the relevant part starts at 2:20).

Jon wasn’t joking. It was what everyone in the media was saying, minus the cuss word. But there is another plausible explanation. It’s so novel that it’s amazing that it’s been overlooked in the DC echo chamber… Continue Reading »