Confidential Memo to Republican Voters

Alert! Alert!

I have just intercepted a confidential memo to Republican voters from their Senate leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. Here it is in its entirety:

CONFIDENTIAL MEMO TO REPUBLICAN VOTERS

FROM: US SENATOR MITCH MCCONNELL

DATE: NOVEMBER 28, 2010

SUBJECT: WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?

Yes, what the hell are you doing???

Why are you out there spending for Christmas? Retails sales were great on Black Friday. They continue through the weekend to be up. Online shopping is soaring off the charts.

I'm trying to limit Obama to one term and you are not helping.

The stock market is up and may go up another 300 to 400 points in 2011. If you keep up this pace of helping him recover the economy we may see a 30-40% growth in the stock market next year.

You small businessmen: why are you hiring? My thanks to large businesses who continue to sit on their trillions in cash but you small businesses are not doing your part. I see that private sector hiring has been growing steadily upward for the past four quarters.

And while I'm at it, many of you are decrying spending via earmarks while writing me urging that I slip in an earmark or two for your special projects. Don't you think the hypocrisy of your position is a bit obvious? I can't cover your hypocrisy forever, you know. The Democrats like earmarks, too, I know, and you have been great to point that out, but they usually insert about 4,000 per year when they are in charge. Republicans, on the other hand, have been trying to keep quiet the fact that we insert about 14,000 each year, We do it for you. What are you doing to help us cloud this fact?

So, yes, what the hell are you doing to help us defeat this Obama character besides calling him names?

Stop spending, stop hiring, stop investing. What kind of patriot are you anyway?

Some of you have even joined the socialists on the other side of the aisle demanding that we not "repeal and replace" the recently passed health care reform law, but that we "keep and expand" it. Fully 51% of you have abandoned our cause. How do you expect me to get paid this year by my friends in the drug and health insurance industry?

Consider this a wake up call! Do your part.

Next: Coming soon, a confidential memo to discuss your demands for increased spending for Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and unneeded, unrequested military hardware the DoD doesn't want without finding a source to pay for them. You know that is an untenable position, don't you. Your grandchildren will question your IQ if you keep this up. I'm serious, do you want that?

Your obedient servant,
Mitch McConnell

Obama's Approval Rating

This morning I saw a new poll that says President Obama's approval rating is down a point from last week, to 43%. And on the radio, I heard a candidate for Congress out West say, "President Obama is the worst President in American history."

Is there no one in the middle or on the right who is "using their heads for anything but a hat rack," as my dad used to say???

Obama saved the auto industry. He passed a stimulus package. He passed financial reform. All of which helped save jobs and kept the economy from sinking into the abyss.

Obama passed a health care reform bill which will insure million of Americans now uninsured, and the bill has a chance -- a chance -- to slow the growth in individual health care costs.

Obama has brought the ill-conceived Iraqi war to an honorable conclusion with no promise that the centuries old Sunni-Shia conflicts will not return the country to the chaos it has known in the past under the strong man rule of the latest despot.

Obama has turned America's military focus to Afghanistan to stabilize the country while continuing to search for the 9/11 perpetrators who remain at large.

Obama has presided over a massive federal response to the worst environmental disaster in American history, and has forced BP to put $20B in a kitty to compensate Gulf Coast victims.

All this, in less than 18 months in office!!

And he is still willing to tolerate the belief of 24% of Americans that he is not a "real" citizen.

We do not deserve someone of Barack Obama's intellect, talent, patriotism, and commitment to strengthening America in all its diversity -- but we have him! Thank God, we have him.

So, why IS Obama's approval rating dropping to 43%?

Obama Defends Constitution

"Who, among my conservative Republican friends would disagree with the idea that government should play no role in decisions regarding one's choice of religious faith or place of pursuing that faith?"

I asked myself that question as President Obama spoke from the White House in reference to the controversy over whether or not a mosque should be permitted near the site of the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan. I could not think of even one in the right wing of the GOP who would disagree with that. Surely, there is not one who calls himself an American who would disagree.

It is perhaps the most fundamental protection included in the US Constitution. If one believes in strict adherence to the Constitution, one cannot find fault in President Obama's remarks regarding the right of any faith to be practiced unfettered by restrictions of any sort from government at any level. Obama, after all, taught Constitutional law. He is not likely to make a mistake in its interpretation.

But I was wrong. there are plenty who, for purely partisan purposes, or perhaps because they have never read the Constitution, disagreed with the President. For them, I present the First Amendment of the US Constitution to consider:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for redress of grievances.”

President Obama spoke as a citizen as well as our President because it is his duty to defend the Constitution. He spoke because he must speak against anyone who would twist the Constitution to one’s own political purpose. He spoke because we must stand for religious tolerance or nothing at all.

Some on the left believe his remarks amounted to a “gift to the Republican Party.” I disagree. You and I have an obligation to make sure his remarks do not have legs in a political sense. Sure, the Becks and Limburgers will have fun with his remarks in the short run. But they are wrong on this issue…and it is up to real patriots to tell them so.

Admittedly, the emotional scar in lower Manhattan is still quite visible, and deep. The wisest decision would have been to wait, delay the announcement of a decision on the mosque until cooler heads everywhere could prevail. I don't like the idea of the mosque so close to the WTC but I also recognize the principle of religious freedom upon which this country was founded.

The President is right. Very right. He could not state this sacred principle of our heritage more clearly; nor could I.

Flying High and Doing his Job

A Republican friend called to complain that President Obama seems to be flying here, there and everywhere as if on a continuing campaign. He wishes President Obama would stay home and save the taxpayers the cost of operating that very large airplane.

I told him that as far as I am concerned, the President can stay in the air all the time as long as he keeps addressing or attempting to address our nation's very real problems. The economy has had three consecutive months of real growth (3.2% for the last quarter). Unemployment is down (only stayed above 10% for two months unlike Reagan who had 10 consecutive months of 10% unemployment or higher). New Home sales are up. The stimulus package is working. Most importantly, the regulatory arms of the US Government are working again. The FDA is working, the SEC is working, FEMA is working, NHTSA is working. No one is trying to dismantle government these days. Bobby Jindal of LA is asking for more help from the FED not less. Speaking of the Gulf, this morning there was a news report that federal regulators did nothing in 2004 when they were told by BP that the safeguards built in to their deep water wells might not work. Nobody from the Bush administration asked, “why?”

The saddest thing continues to be the Republican insistence on bringing Obama down by sticking to their strategy of denying him any success whatsoever. They were opposed to Wall Street reform until their own polls said "you have got to be kidding," and then they couldn't turn around fast enough. Government is supposed to work when elected officials do what is best for the country, not what the fickle weathervane of public opinion tells them is the "safe" thing to do. Governing is hard. If an elected official doesn't understand that and is not willing to ignore the polls and exert the necessary intellectual and personal energy to do the job, they should get out.

When no one's happy

After President Obama’s speech at West Point, it seemed certain that most of the pundits would find some parts to applaud and even more to criticize. And no one, absolutely no one was completely happy with the entirety of his proposal. That may be exactly where we need to be to move forward with this complex problem.

Are we so polarized in this nation that everything must be black or white to be acceptable to us? Can’t we just acknowledge that this man has an enormous challenge before him? Maybe he has it wrong, maybe he has it right. One thing is certain: we can be sure he has given it more thought than nearly anyone on the planet. And with his considerable intellect, I choose to give him the benefit of the doubt. That is one very heavy weight he carries around all day.

Not long ago, I listened to Bill Moyers on PBS as he played the tapes of telephone conversations between LBJ and his friends, allies in Congress, and officials within his own administration. You could hear the angst in his voice over and over again as he tried to divine the answer to the thickest thicket he had ever been in. It is clear President Obama is not going to let Afghanistan do to America what Vietnam did. We will do the job he outlined last night and we will come home.

This is not 1945 so there will be no peace treaty signed on the deck of some battleship. But, mind you, coming home in 2011 does not mean we will cease to participate in the strategic security of that entire region. The rest of the free world looks to us to make sure we keep an eye on every untoward movement there.

Friday Potpourri

That 10.8 percent unemployment rate from……..Ronald Reagan.

You’re going to hear a lot of Obama critics today saying, “Where are the jobs, Mr. Obama?” They know the unemployment rate is a “lagging indicator,” as the economists say. But they have forgotten how our system works (if they ever knew). So, here is the unemployment rate for one of the recessions presided over by their saint and savior, Ronald Reagan.

For the 12 months of July 1982 to June 1983, the unemployment rate was 9.8 percent or above. For 10 of those 12 months, the unemployment rate was above 10 percent, reaching a high of 10.8 percent in November and December of 1982. Give it a rest, my dear Republican friends.

Memo to GOP

Yesterday, John Boehner, minority leader of the House of Representatives stood before a rally of raging opponents of the health care reform proposed and he railed on about the difficulty of governing when we forget the sacred principles of the U.S. Constitution. He said “I’m going to read to you the first paragraph of that great document,” and then he proceeded to read the first paragraph of the ….Declaration of Independence.

PS to GOP: why not ask your members to read the Constitution before they actually run for office?

GOP angst over Obama’s ability to address more than one issue at a time.

One Republican friend asked me this week why President Obama doesn’t stay in the Oval Office and work on one major issue at a time instead of spending tax money flying all over the nation in Air Force One talking to constituents?

I explained this President has 322 million citizens looking to him to keep the lights on for them, clear the air for them, provide adequate and affordable health care for them, assist with the education of their children, and oh yes, protect them from all enemies, foreign and domestic. I don't begrudge him a ride on a big plane to Wisconsin to talk with his constituents about education and other important issues.

The reason this President continues his high approval rating with most Americans is because they perceive in him a President, finally, who actually CAN keep more than one ball in the air at the same time.

Reagan or Obama?

Was the nation's unemployment rate higher under Reagan or Obama?

If you picked Obama, you lose....by a long shot.

This past week almost all of the news anchors reported the latest unemployment stats this way: “Unemployment numbers rose to 9.8 percent in September, the highest since 1983.”

For several days now, the line has been repeated, and each time I want to shout, “Why don’t you say, ‘Unemployment is at 9.8 percent, the highest since 1983 WHEN RONALD REAGAN, GOP SAINT AND SAVIOR was President; yes, REAGAN, THE PRESIDENT WHO ALSO TRIPLED THE NATIONAL DEBT DURING HIS TIME IN OFFICE, the guy whose policies Republican leaders in Congress today praise ad nauseam.’ Why don’t you add that to your report?”

The recession of the early 1980s was severe but nothing like the recession of the late 2000’s brought on in large part by profligate spending and lack of regulatory oversight by federal agencies during the Bush/Cheney administration.

In all fairness to Ronald Reagan, his recession was due primarily to external forces -- the aftermath of the Iranian Revolution which took place in 1979. The new Iranian regime lowered export volume of its oil, thus forcing the price of oil up and precipitating an economic crisis for most of the developed nations. The US adopted a tight monetary policy to control inflation and this led to a recession...and unemployment spiked. (It seems tame when compared to 2007-2008 near collapse of the entire economy.)

Reagan’s unemployment numbers hit 9.8 percent in July 1982 and kept rising. The percentage did not drop below 10 percent for a full year – 12 CONSECUTIVE MONTHS!

The late 2000s recession was started by the collapse of the housing market.Many real estate companies were put in jeopardy, some even collapsed. Many banks did collapse causing a measure of public panic. Available credit spiraled downward, making it almost impossible for anybody to get a loan. Consumer confidence fell like a rock. And that was just the beginning. Many have called the current recession the worst since World War II.

So, to my Republican friends: Obama policies have been in effect for less than six months. Come back to see me IF unemployment remains above 9.8 percent for MORE than a full year.

To my Democratic friends: You have no one to blame but yourselves if you let the R’s get away with claiming Obama’s policies don’t work, won’t work, and that they somehow prove R’s should be back in power.

When they complain about Obama, just say three words to them: "12 consecutive months." Those among the GOP who know better are not likely to ask you to explain what you mean.

Throw a Shoe!

First it was the right-wingers who got so upset when they heard President Obama was about to deliver a speech to their children on the first day of school. They warned of a brainwashing experience…and they wouldn’t let it go.

Then it was the left-wingers who really got riled when that crazy Congressman Joe Wilson of South Carolina shouted, “You lie!,” at President Obama during his speech to the joint session of Congress…and they wouldn’t let it go.

What’s the matter with people? Can’t we cool it just a little bit. We’re about to get this thing completely off the rails. Are there any grown-ups in the room?

I like the idea of throwing shoes at the person we disagree with and letting it go at that. It’s far more civil and certainly makes the point clearly and unambiguously.

Who of us didn’t smile as we watched the Iraqi reporter throw both of his shoes at GW Bush last year in disgust. That said it all, didn’t it?

How much better would it be – and how quickly the issue resolved – if we all just threw a shoe – two shoes if we felt strongly – at the person making the statement we didn’t like.

For example, teachers could throw worn out shoes with a big hole in each sole at TV’s Glenn Beck for trying to convince us President Obama was trying to brainwash our kids. Most of his opinions have holes clean through them, don't they?

South Carolina reporters could throw a high heeled shoe at Governor Sanford the next time he brings up his Argentina mistress.

When former VP Dick Cheney brings up how great everything was during the Bush/Cheney administration, reporters could throw a pair of rubber galoshes at him.

Even Congressman Joe Wilson could have thrown one of his Gucci loafers at Obama if he really thought the President was misleading America on health care reform. Wilson wouldn’t have hit him because Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia would have jumped up, caught them, and walked out with them so he could compare expensive loafers with the health insurance industry lobbyists waiting in the hall.

Don’t you think we should cool off this altogether too hot attempt at public discourse today?

Just throw a shoe!

Ronald Reagan Statue Unveiled in Capitol Rotunda

I don’t know about you but I watched in great surprise the other day as they unveiled a statue of Ronald Reagan in the Rotunda of the Capitol. The occasion was the fifth anniversary of his death. I was surprised because there used to be a rule in the Congress that no member of Congress could be considered for such an honor until the 25^th anniversary of his death had come and gone and his reputation stood the test of time. This rule apparently does not apply to Presidents or was waived when the Republicans approved the statue idea a few years ago when they had majority control of Congress. No doubt it was seen by Republican leaders as a way to guarantee their political “saint” would have a place of honor no matter what history may say about him.

And so there it stands – a statue to honor the man who testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947 on the extent of the Communist Party’s penetration in Hollywood, a statue to honor the memory of the fiscal “conservative” who tripled the national debt during his 1981-1988 Presidency, the governing “conservative” who grew the federal government exponentially during his eight years of service, a economic “conservative” who presided over two recessions; indeed, a statue to honor the man who spent countless hours in the Oval Office regaling visitors with tales of the more than 50 B-grade movies he made during his 20 years in Hollywood.

Look, he was a wonderfully affable man who made us feel good about him and about the America he saw, shining like a “city on a hill.” He was a great confidence builder. And no one could read a Peggy Noonan speech any better than our 40^th President. But shouldn’t more be required before one gets a statue in the Rotunda? I think so.

Of course, neither party is in a hurry to erect a statue to Bill Clinton. If not for his amoral ways, they might have considered one, but no, his actions of moral turpitude besmirched his reputation, eroded his credibility with the American people and weakened the President’s moral authority on the world stage…so much so that one member of Congress wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post suggesting that his actions may actually require his resignation. But didn’t he give us a strong economy, creating millions of new jobs, putting more people at every economic level on the road to prosperity? But that darn blue dress! So much for the Clinton statue.

Neither man was perfect. The only perfect man we have had in recent memory was George W. Bush. We know that because, in answer to a reporter’s question at that now famous news conference, Bush said he could not think of even one mistake he had made. “Oh, some of the people I have appointed have disappointed me,” he said but no, he could not think of a single mistake he personally had made. Well, the least said about that one, the better. Suffice it to say, there will be no statue to Bush 43 in the Rotunda anytime soon. History will make sure of that and it won’t need 25 years to make a determination.

If you wonder why President Obama is taking on so much, tackling so many issues, launching so many initiatives, and seems to be busy on literally all fronts, maybe it’s because many of his predecessors squandered their time in office, preferring the road of political expediency, enjoying the perks of office, spending countless days on vacations, doing little to address some of the nation’s most vexing problems, and thus disappointed the American people. I have the sense President Obama wants to give the American people something more substantial upon which to judge his service – and I suspect he is willing to give them a full 25 years to evaluate his time in office.

If Only Peter Could Pay Paul...

The Obama Administration has proposed a budget of $3.6 trillion for FY 2010 which starts October 1, 2009. It is $1.84 trillion more than the government will take in from all sources.

The numbers are so large it is difficult for ordinary citizens to comprehend them, but almost every citizen worries about where the numbers might take us. Most of us see the deficit numbers piling up and worry that inflation will likely be used to pay for most of the spending we are doing today.

$3.6 trillion.

It is enough to take your breath away no matter your political leanings. Democrats will tell you it is a lot of money and it is necessary to (1) meet the demand for government programs and services from the people (everything from defending the shores to making sure beef is safe to eat), (2) restore some semblance of normalcy to the economy (stabilize the banks, secure the insuring entities), and (3) invest in our future in ways only government can. I repeat: …in ways only government can.

In short, there is a role for government in our lives. Dismiss any who say we need less government because it is too late. What we need, what we ask for, what we demand cannot be done with less government. If you know someone who believes otherwise, tell them to “get real.”

$3.6 trillion.

That IS a lot of money. Surely, we don’t need all of it. Surely, there is waste we can cut out and balance our federal budget. Why can’t we just cut those crazy programs at universities that do useless research like the one studying the sex lives of Australian slimy toads? When someone comes up and starts talking about such, I hope you will tell them, as politely as you can, to “please stop.” Such conversations, while they may feel good to the one complaining, do not reflect even a basic understanding of where we are….or, more importantly, where we are going.

Here’s where we are: Fully 65 percent of the federal budget is COMMITTED to Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, Interest on the National Debt, and Defense of the nation. That’s two of every three dollars – gone. Can’t be touched. You wouldn’t want to cut a dollar from any if you had the responsibility. Obama does have the responsibility and he was able to cut only $17 billion from the Pentagon’s budget for next year. He cut the entire F-22 Raptor program and other major line items but only cut $17 billion from the DOD budget.

OK, OK… so, two of three dollars are committed; what about the remaining dollar?

That last dollar supports every agency and department in the Executive and Judicial branches of government as well as a tiny amount for the Legislative branch. That last dollar goes to Agriculture, Commerce, Education, Justice, Labor, State, Energy, Transportation, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, NASA, Veterans, Treasury, and Congress.

The deficit for the coming year will be around $1.84 trillion, according to a new projection released by the White House today, and that’s more than half of the $3.6 trillion budget proposed.

So, what’s a responsible government to do? It can slow down the rate of growth in entitlement programs, for one thing. It only takes political will. That means you and I have to give our elected officials the freedom to address these issues responsibly without threatening them with dismissal at the next election. It also means we have to give government the freedom to do some risk taking on our behalf, as the Obama Administration is attempting to do by investing in health care reform (control the rate of growth in health costs while improving health care), investing in new energy sources (lead us to energy independence), investing in environmental innovations (slow climate change and improve the quality of air we breathe), invest in infrastructure (improve roads, bridges, transportation, and communication, to name a few).

In other words, we can pay for the deficits of today with inflation if we do nothing or we can pay for the deficits by growing the economy in real terms through investing in the full potential that exists in the human mind. I don’t know about you, but I prefer the latter.

Rescuing the Economy, Reinventing the Automobile

If you wonder why President Obama is focused on saving the American automobile industry, if you wonder why he is trying to upgrade and expand the electric grid, if you wonder why he wants government to invest in cutting edge technology in every field, look no further than the test facilities of dozens of auto manufacturers – here and abroad.

I count no less than 9 strictly electric cars heading to market right now, e.g., Aptera 2e, with 8 Plug-In Hybrids, e.g., Chevy Volt, right behind, and another 8 “normal” Hybrids, e.g., Toyota Prius, being improved and prepared for market today.

Big companies like BMW, Mitsubishi and Toyota are getting ready to roll out a slew of electrics. There’s a Mini Cooper available this month, all electric. Other electrics are lining up for introduction over the next four years.

Plug-In Hybrids will be led by the Volt that will do the bulk of its moving on electric power. It’s scheduled for November 2010. Ford, Chrysler and Toyota as well as new companies in China, Europe and here at home all have next generation hybrids in development. There’s a hybrid sports car known as Fisker Karma, and that airplane look alike, the Aptera 2h, set for 2010. Made in California, the only state where it is available right now, the Aptera gets about 300 mpg!! It’s a three-wheeler so technically not classified as a car, but who cares. Bring on that 300 mpg!

Look, it is not only the “green jeans” who will be buying these cars. It is ordinary people like you and me who want to help clean up the environment even as they drive a spiffy car their children won’t make fun of.

I love cars, always have, and that’s why I see an exciting future for America and a strong economy to support that future.

But, boy, have we lost a lot of time! I will not digress into a discussion of what the misadventure in Iraq cost us except to say it cost us something none can retrieve: time. Those who criticize President Obama’s haste on so many fronts should understand he is a man seeking to make up lost time. He is getting a lot of help from inventors in the auto industry who obviously have not been sleeping these past 8 years. President Obama and those in pursuit of scientific discovery are demonstrating a laser-like focus on the great potential remaining to be tapped in a nation of 315 million citizens. His focus is on health care, energy, and transportation.

Obama knows we have a unique opportunity to chart a new path in the way we get around. The answer, when it comes, is likely to have a positive impact on global warming by reducing our contribution to greenhouse gases. But most importantly, increased productivity, resulting from anticipated innovations, will feed real growth that, in turn, will diminish the role of inflation. And that is, unquestionably, our most worthy goal.

If you like the status quo, if you like cars that roar along antiquated roadways, burning a depleting carbon based resource, belching an ever increasing amount of noxious fumes, then you probably can’t see a future that has anything but higher taxes and bigger government in store for you. There are some, however, who see an America whose best days are ahead….and those days are unlike anything we have seen in our entire history.

Don’t you have a feeling the 21^st century began on January 20, 2009?

Can GOP Keep Up?

Republicans are acting like a drowning man, flailing about, wildly attempting to grab on to anything that will lift them up and keep them from sinking into total irrelevance, as a large rock must surely feel as it falls to the bottom of an ocean. It was sad to see Rep. John Boehner, Senator Jon Kyl and others gathered around a microphone yesterday complaining about President Obama’s trip to the west coast where he held two town hall meetings and appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. President Obama’s effective use of all media to communicate with the people and most importantly, listen to the people, has the GOP spinning like a top. They act like they have never met a President who could handle more than one issue at a time.

Wait, and there’s more.

Today, President Obama has sent some of the biggest names in U.S. foreign policy to meet with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and President Dmitry Medvedev in an effort to improve frosty relations. Included in the group are former Secretaries of State, Henry Kissinger, George Shultz, James Baker and former US Senator Sam Nunn. No doubt, the results of that meeting will help set the stage for a private meeting of the current heads of state next month (G-20 meeting in London).

All Americans need to give President Obama some room to lead. Be slow to judge, slower still to anger, and resolute in our support of the only President we have. But I recognize that is probably too much to ask of what’s left of GOP leadership, and I am under no illusion that the right wing media voices will give him anything short of hell every day he is in office. So be it. They will soon find there are few ears for their partisan side show.

Newt, Rush -- and Obama: A Tuesday Potpourri

When Gingrich says as he did on one of the Sunday talk shows, “No one wants Obama to fail, we just want his policies to…uh, we just want him to change policies,” make no mistake about it, he wants Obama to fail. This comment is so sad…so clearly transparent and unworthy of the former leader of the OS.

I have almost concluded Gingrich should run for President in 2012 as he has suggested he might. Maybe that would be the best way for us to dismiss permanently this less than helpful individual from the body politic. I wonder if that teaching position is still open at West Georgia College at Carrollton from whence he came.

--

President Obama has more on his plate…right now…than any human…ought to face…ever. I know there must be loyal opposition – everyone is entitled to a different opinion, if they have one – but all of us, those who voted for him and those who did not, should give Obama time to lead. He hits a couple of objections to his bold attempts to stabilize the economy and the media – all of them – collectively pounce and pronounce “The honeymoon’s over.” And that was just 10 days after the swearing-in. Today, he has been in office 50 days and TV business analysts are calling the market decline “Obama’s bear market.” Give me a break. If you expect to enjoy any measure of credibility with the American people, your comments must be found somewhere within the realm of reason, please. The American people deserve more thoughtful analysis.

--

Every time the TV networks replay a tape of Rush Limbaugh pontificating on the major issues of the day, as he was recently at a meeting of right-wing conservatives in Washington, I think of a day many years ago when a lady called his radio show to challenge him on a couple of issues. She had her facts ready and in a few minutes it was obvious he had been wrong and she was right. He stopped her finally, chuckled his famous, “Hehehehe,” and added, “Madam, remember, this is just entertainment.”

And so we all should remember, “…this is just entertainment.” Got that, dittoheads? No, I guess not.

Rush, your dittoheads don’t get it, that what you do is just an act. To them, what you are telling them is nothing short of gospel. That you are willing to lead these followers into a land of perpetual ignorance where they are not encouraged to challenge all that they hear, including what they hear from you, is shameful. If you would start and end each show with “Remember, what you are about to hear during the next three hours is just entertainment,” that would be an appropriate way to bring your followers back into the land of reason, knowledge and understanding.

The View from the OS (Other Side) is Bleak -- and they like it that way.

“On Jan. 21, after the inauguration, Jim Cramer, the mad-cap analyst of financial markets, created the "Obama Accountability Index," a group of six stocks designed to gauge how well the new president was handling the tough economic problems. That index, which started at 100, has now fallen 35% to just 65.”

That’s the report we all saw the other day. My question is this: How can Cramer rationally hold Obama accountable for the fall of stocks since January 21, barely ONE month ago?????????

Come back in six months and let's talk.

Why won't the OS (Other Side) give his stimulus plan a chance to have some impact before they throw Obama overboard? There is a lot in the bill that most of them do not know about and/or do not understand. They prefer to sit on the sidelines, firing potshots at will, hoping they can damage Obama in the process.

Look, this government has committed $7.8 to $8.8 trillion (by my rough count) in loans, investments and guarantees since the beginning of 2008 (when Bush was still in power, by the way).

Your government has been shoring up money market funds, lending to the mortgage markets, lending to the credit markets, and making loans to financial firms. And we have more to do. The FDIC is working hard to prevent bank failures from all but the most insolvent banks. The Treasury is working to prevent the auto industry from a total free fall, putting cash in AIG, lending to credit markets and overseeing the rest of the TARP funds. There are also programs to guarantee the assets of Bank of America and Citigroup. And there is another $1.57 trillion in tax breaks, HOPE for homeowners, state jobs programs, infrastructure programs. I'm sure I've left something out.

I guess there is no way to prevent the OS from complaining (it seems to be what they do best). If they don’t want to help this President – and the rest of their fellow Americans – they should get out of the way and let responsible people bring the economy back.

So far, I believe the WH is handling its critics well. White House Press Secretary Bob Gibbs jumped all over reporter Rick Santelli of CNBC last week when he criticized the WH for setting up a program to bail out homebuyers who applied for home loans when they knew they could not afford them. Gibbs said "Santelli doesn't know what he is talking about." Santelli said the program was designed to reward "bad behavior" and "to bail out losers' mortgages." And that is not true. The plan, Gibbs explained, is to put about $275 billion to work helping about 9 million taxpayers who are NOT behind on their mortgages.

But this is the fight the Obama Administration is in every day. So far, they are countering the misinformation out there pretty well, and I hope they can keep it up. The conservative talk shows on radio and the loud mouths on the financial news TV networks are trying to blow holes in Obama’s program when they ought to be helping to build confidence and explaining the provisions of the program in terms the people can understand and more importantly, put to good use. Misinformation has no place in the national conversation.

Lincoln and Obama: Steady Hands at the Nation's Helm

“It was a period of gloom….when no man could foretell the happening of the morrow, when strong men trembled at the possibility of the destruction of our Government.”

So begins the 1909 tribute to Abraham Lincoln by the elderly Adlai E. Stevenson, Sr. on the occasion of the 100^th anniversary of the birth of our 16^th President.

While I doubt there are many who believe our Government is at risk of destruction today, hardly anyone doubts we are in a “period of gloom” as we celebrate the 200th anniversary of Lincoln's birth (tomorrow).

Let's go back to Stevenson's speech of 100 years ago. Stevenson, an Illinois native, who became a congressman, and still later, Vice President, knew Lincoln, and thus, was well suited to the task of paying tribute to the beloved President.

“He came from the common walks of life,” recalled Stevenson. “His early home was one of the humblest, where he was a stranger to the luxuries and to many of the ordinary comforts of life…How inspiring to the youth of high aims every incident of the pathway from the frontier cabin to the Executive Mansion…In no other country than ours could such attainment have been possible for the boy….whose only heritage was brain, integrity, lofty ambition, and indomitable purpose."

Are there any parallels to be drawn with the lanky young lawyer from Illinois now sitting in the Oval Office?

For Barack Obama, born in 1961 to a struggling bi-racial couple, his beginnings were humble indeed. Certainly, it can be said his only heritage was “brain, integrity, lofty ambition, and indomitable purpose.”

As the 1909 tribute continued, Stevenson praised Lincoln’s judgment in handling the question of slavery, an issue, he acknowledged, that “had been the subject of repeated compromise by patriotic statesmen.” This “apple of discord,” as Stevenson described it, had “darkened our national pathway from the beginning. It was well that in such an hour, with such tremendous issues in the balance, a steady hand was at the helm.”

Stevenson concluded his centennial tribute by selecting one particular paragraph from the inaugural address to share with his audience. It was the closing paragraph:

“We are not enemies, but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot’s grave to every heart and hearthstone of the broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union when touched as they will be by the better angels of our nature.”

In America’s most recent history, passion and stridency have divided us – on a distant war and on a broad range of social issues at home. Such divisions weaken the Union. In Barack Obama, Americans have discerned a leader who – like Lincoln – believes our Union is stronger when we subscribe to “the better angels of our nature.”

In his memorable Philadelphia speech of March 18, 2008, Obama sounded a lot like Lincoln:

“I believe deeply that we cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together – unless we perfect our union by understanding that we may have different stories, but we hold common hopes; that we may not look the same and we may not have come from the same place, but we all want to move in the same direction – towards a better future for our children and grandchildren.”

President-elect Obama is demonstrating already that he meant it—he really meant it – when he said he would reach across partisan lines, across ideology, across any social issue that would divide us, in order to keep us united and our collective eye steady on the goal of strengthening the republic before we hand it to the next generation.

President Lincoln is surely smiling today as President Barack Obama puts his steady hand at the helm.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Lincoln!

Go Ahead, Make His Day

There are some Republicans who can’t stand to call the President by name. “President Obama” are two words they cannot utter. They have not accepted him as their President. So, to show the degree of disrespect they have for him, they call him simply “44.” I guess some are still stinging from the Democrats referral to the Bushes as “Bush 41” and “Bush 43.” (Good grief, that's what they called themselves -- face to face.) I confess that is exactly the way I referred to them many times, but it was because both numbers are odd numbers…and weren’t their presidencies a little “odd,” too. The numbers just seemed to fit them.

So what about this “44” designation for President Obama? Well, he is certainly number 44 in the succession of Presidents we have had. But far from being offended by the Rs calling President Barack Obama, “44,” I like it. It is a powerful number, one that conjures up images of law enforcement officers brought in to clean up the city and restore peace to the neighborhoods.

I think it was a .44 Magnum that Clint Eastwood’s character, “Dirty” Harry Callahan described in the movie as “the most powerful handgun in the world.” You remember it; it’s the one Dirty Harry brandished in the face of the hoodlum and said, “Go ahead, punk, make my day.”

Now, I don’t own a handgun – never will. Enough said there. So I am not condoning the use of guns by ordinary citizens. There is a place for them with law enforcement, however, and with those who provide for the common defense.

I’m truly sorry for members of the loyal opposition who prefer to call him “44” instead of his given name or simply the title of his office, but if it conjures up images of a someone with a strong will, determination, and commitment to defend this nation, so be it. If it brings to mind those who will not tolerate troublemakers, foreign or domestic, so be it. If it reminds one of tough-minded leaders who are willing to “bite the bullet,” “tell it like it is,” and “do the right thing” for America, so be it.

I say to my Republican friends, go ahead and oppose the President if you want to, disrespect him by calling him “44” if that makes you feel better. Go ahead and make his day!

"Not your run-of-the-mill recession"

The President performed last night as well as any American citizen had a right to expect. He was informed, articulate and candid with the American people…something we have not heard from recent Presidents. He was just what the country needed: someone in command of the issues and the office. In short, he did a GREAT job last night.

I thought the questions were disappointingly lame...and reflected a lack of understanding of the nation's economic condition....AND what is needed to get us out of it. And then there was that reporter from the Washington Post who, in the midst of the nation's worst economic crisis since the Depression, asked about the President's reaction to New York Yankees’ A-Rod steroid case. Good grief.

Obama’s performance was impressive and may prove to be the tipping point for achieving his first major legislative victory.

Most interesting to me today is steadfast Republican recalcitrance on the stimulus bill.

They are betting the President will fail, they expect the country to fail, and that they alone will be around to pick up the pieces in 2010 and again in 2012. Think about it. The GOP clings tightly to the belief that tax cuts and smaller government are the only answer. That’s their story and they’re sticking to it. Is there no room for anyone with rational thought on their side of the aisle?

To put it another way: The Rs are betting on a total collapse of the economy. By opposing en mass, they are saying they don’t believe the stimulus bill will work. In other words, the “NO” party has no confidence in America.

"Everything. Depends. On. Electricity."

I like what I hear from President Obama about the need to upgrade and expand our national electric transmission grid, and make it “smarter.”

And you should, too.

Because – ready or not – dramatic change is coming to America. And it starts with our electric grid.

In the USA, there are over 500,000 miles of high voltage transmission lines carrying generated electricity from power plants to substations where local distribution companies take over and deliver the electricity to customers. President Obama wants to add 3,000 miles of new lines, mostly to carry power from renewable energy sources in rural areas to urban areas where it is most needed.

This is a start. Three thousand miles of new lines sounds like a drop in the bucket to me. Nevertheless, we should join President Obama in supporting efforts to bring those lines to reality.

Why? Well, Peggy Noonan hit the nail on the head when she wrote in her recent book, Patriotic Grace:

“Every thing in America runs on electricity. Communications – the phone, the TV, the radio, the Internet. The lights, the heat, the ATM, the bank, the pump, the refrigerator. The machines in the operating room, the lights on the runway. As I type I listen to music that is plugged in, on a machine that is plugged in, under lights that are plugged in. I receive word from people I care about through two machines that are, at the moment, plugged in and being recharged.

“If something bad happens we will get information, instructions, inspiration, and help from things that are plugged in. And we will be largely without information, instruction, data, assistance, and inspiration if the grid goes down.

“Everything. Depends. On. Electricity.”

Peggy Noonan gets it. Barack Obama gets it. He put about $11 billion in the current stimulus bill dedicated to the national electric grid. Now it is time for the rest of us to get on board.

Some electricity utilities get it, they understand increased demand for their product will not abate, but they are afraid of the risk involved. After all, we are talking about a lot of financial unknowns here. I understand their trepidation and their fear of the risk involved. But we have no choice. Change is not just on the way, it’s here!

Consider this one fact: Google, Inc., the Internet’s most widely accepted search engine, is investing a minimum of $10 million in the development of the Plug In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV). That’s $10 million from a company that is only 11 years old, by the way. Ya’ think they know something?

Well, Google certainly knows something about change, and Google sees significant change in the air for those who use electricity in multiple ways. Imagine the impact on the grid if consumers switch en mass to PHEVs. If 10 million cars are plugged in all night, what impact will it have on the national grid?

And I have not even mentioned the impact of nanotechnology on electricity generation, transmission and distribution. Or its impact on the electronic products we use.

I don’t know about you, but I hope the utilities start using some of those stimulus funds to string wire…and right now.

But don’t take just my word for it. You’ve heard T. Boone Pickens say, “We are in a deep hole…we don’t have a 21^st century grid in the United States.” David Ratcliffe, CEO of Southern Company, says up to $3 trillion needs to be invested in energy by 2030” and I’m sure he includes the national electric grid in that sum.

As you listen to the debate this week and next, think of all the many ways the funds may be used to help us stabilize the economy, perhaps even grow it a bit, but also keep in mind that America desperately needs the dedicated best effort of all our resources to upgrade and expand one essential component in our “national infrastructure” – the national electric grid.

One Great Mulligan

In this new century, let’s just say we got off to a bad start and start over.

George Bush made mistakes. He made so many that surely we are owed a barrel of mulligans, but maybe we could lump the entire eight years into a single bag, titled, “One Great Mulligan,” and start over.

To sum up the mulligan we seek: Bush weakened the American presidency with his ineptness, he weakened our economy with his profligate spending and his laissez-faire attitude toward financial markets, he undermined our Constitution with each step he took to trample our rights protected so carefully in the Constitution’s hallowed pages, and he threatened our future by creating new enemies abroad with his reckless and ill conceived foreign policies.

But I don’t want to talk about Bush 43 anymore.

I just want a mulligan.

I just want to start over.

Can’t we acknowledge that a new era does not always begin chronologically but sometimes begins metaphorically – at least as humans track time? If we are allowed “One Great Mulligan,” let’s gratefully take it, tell the world “Our long national nightmare is over,” and begin anew.

As our new President said yesterday, "The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted -- for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things -- some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom."

Ahhhhh… thank you for the mulligan. Let the new century begin.