Two Weeks to Elections, Thoughts on the Home Stretch

This coming Tuesday marks the final two weeks of Campaign '06, the midterm elections. I would like to offer a few thoughts on the campaign as we head down this final stretch.

One, the moral failings of a few isolated politicians is no reason to implicate everyone within one Party. Gerry Studds and Barney Frank certainly were not examples of what all Democrats are like, and neither should Mark Foley represent Republicans. So far, the FBI has discovered no physical contact between Foley and any House page. Why, then, should Speaker Dennis Hastert be vilified for the actions or non-actions of another? From what I can tell, Hastert is an honorable man who deserves re-election.

Two, the war in Iraq has become unpopular because Americans have come to expect military campaigns to be neat, tidy, and shortlived. War is none of the above. Regardless of whether we should have gone into Iraq to begin with, we are there now for better or worse, and the prudent course is to stay until the job is done. The job is done when Iraqis take responsibility for their own country and its defense. Like it or not, Iraq is ground zero for terrorism. Saddam gave haven to terrorists and their training camps. They are a part of an axis of terrorism that includes that entire area of the world--Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Syria. To bolster a budding Democracy in that part of the world would be a gargantuan achievement toward dismantling the hold of Muslim Jihadistsd.

Three, it appears that Senator Joseph Lieberman is cruising toward a major victory in November, taking back his Senate seat as in Independent rather than as a Democrat. The voters of Connecticut are rejecting the extremist politics of his two opponents, the most striking of which is the Democrat, who ran under the delusion that shrill anti-war rhetoric would be a winning strategy. Even in so-called 'liberal' Connecticut we see that such rabid leftist ideology plays well only to the most extreme fringe in the Democrat party. This being the case, it is difficult to image this strategy working anywhere else in the country.

Four, it appears at this point that Katherine Harris will lose in her bid to unseat U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, D-Florida, in spite of Nelson's deplorable views on taxes. My hope was that Congresswoman Harris could win, and she still might, although it is appearing unlikely. Harris' views on the issues are directly in line with such Libertarian ideals as smaller government, lower taxes, abolishing the IRS, repealing the Income Tax, and implementing an entirely new system of taxation in this country. However, the Congresswoman made a series of missteps during the campaign that has cost her dearly. My hope is that she can gain back the ground she lost and come from behind for a victory on election day. It will depend upon the Florida voters who are truly concerned with a sensible approach to the issues going to the polls in droves.

Five, the economy has come roaring back. Unemployment is still low, the stock market is skyrocketing, inflation is under control, oil prices are way down, and things are looking good for the next year at least. If it's really 'the economy, stupid,' then there should be no reason for Americans to vote to oust Republicans and turn over the Congress to those who would surely implement big government schemes to get more of our money.

Six, the notion that we should vote against all incumbents is NOT a good idea after all. After doing much ruminating on the subject, I have come to the conclusion that such a notion is not based upon sound logic. If an incumbent is doing a good job, and if that incumbent has not proved to be a crook, then why 'throw the rascal out?' It makes no logical sense. There may be many incumbents we want to keep, as the alternative may be much worse. This is not to say that there are no incumbents who need to go.

Seven, the Bush doctrine on North Korea is a resounding success that should be celebrated. Having been stung by the failures of the previous Administration's policy of 'bi-lateral talks' with a regime that lied, the Bush Administration insisted from the start that talks with Kim Jong-il should be 'multi-lateral' that would include the Chinese. The Bush doctrine was proved to be correct this week when Kim apologized for conducting a nuclear test after he had received a stern reprimand from the Chinese government. The Chinese are the ONLY ones to which Kim will listen. Why, then, should we as Americans turn to those who have been calling for a return to failed 'bi-lateral talks' with Kim, such as John Kerry proposes?

Eight, despite polls that show Governor Bob Riley way ahead in the state of Alabama, the Governor has taken a hit in the national media this week over his membership in a whites-only Grand Lodge. The AP picked up the story again, after having reported on this several weeks ago, and Riley's membership in the all-white lodge was reported all over the country, particularly in places such as Maryland, North Carolina, and Delaware. Many Masons are up in arms about the practices of this Grand Lodge, as the United Grand Lodge of the Scottish Rite has long since repudiated an exclusionary policy against Blacks. The result is that despite the virtual news blackout of this story in Alabama, many Alabama voters get their news on the Internet, and thus, they have seen the story many times. I have a hunch that Riley has taken a hit in the polls and that this election could be much closer than we think. Many Alabama voters have turned to Libertarian Loretta Nall in her bid for Governor. Stay tuned. Who knows where this one is going.

We still have a little over two weeks left to election day. Much can happen in the final two weeks of a campaign. Trends can shift in the blink of an eye. So stay informed. Educate yourself on the real issues rather than secondary muck such as a politician or two going bad. And by all means, plan to vote!