We're Just Two Weeks Away...

...from one of the most critical elections in modern history!  I truly believe that.  I'll have some more commentary on that in the coming days, but let's first look at what the next election has in store at the moment.

In anticipation of the upcoming election, the GOP has rolled out their official new plan, called the Pledge To America.  It's basically a promise to get back to conservative governance, focusing on smaller government, less spending, lower taxes, and traditional values.  The reaction was pretty mixed on the Right, everything from anger to ridicule to pretty strong support.  If there is any kind of consensus that I've seen, it seems that the new pledge is at least a starting point.  The key is to re-connect with the Republican base while emphasizing the differences between the two parties.

Overall, the election itself is shaping up to be pretty horrendous for the Democrats, with Tea Party candidates winning primaries all over the country and Dem fundraising suffering.  Big name pollsters and pundits are predicting huge gains for the GOP -- anywhere from 55 to 116 seats in the House -- and Barack Obama is wailing about how the 'Empire' is striking back.  Nice.  It's no wonder he's got angst, though, because even Obama himself can't sell out a moderately sized venue at cut rate prices anymore.  Personally, I would not be a bit surprised if the GOP made an historic (i.e. 75+) gain in the House and possibly re-take the Senate (maybe even with a huge majority).  But the reporting has, up until the last few days, been other-worldly in neglecting this tsunami of disapproval from American voters-to-be.  In fact, the rhetoric coming out of the media is eerily similar to that of 1994, right down to the narrative that we've been hearing for several weeks - it really won't be that bad for the Dems.  I'm a big fan of looking at actions rather than words, though, so here are the dots that need connecting:

- Obama's approval is scraping its lowest levels yet, and the number of people who would like to see him re-elected is well below 40%

- 71% of GOP voters now support the Tea Party
- Dems are resorting to tactics like buying votes with food...
- ...and having Michelle Obama break election law by campaigning inside a polling place

- Hispanics are drifting back to the GOP

- so are working class folks

- and, actually, so is everyone else...including the health care industry (more on that later)

It's not going to be pretty.  In the past few days, the media -- which is essentially a voluntarily state-controlled organism of the liberal Left -- has grudgingly started running stories on how badly the situation really is for the Democrat party.  I suspect it's in part an effort to depress turnout on the Right (if it's a sure win, then maybe some people will stay home), but I think enough people are angry enough right now that the effort will fail.

All in all, this is what happens when you actively govern against the will of the American people.  Make no mistake, that's exactly what has happened.  Look at any of the 'signature' items that Obama and the Dems have passed in the past two years -- Obamacare, TARP, bailout after bailout, the GM takeover, the financial industry takeover, etc. -- and you'll see that those pieces of legislation were phenomenally expensive behemoths that no one read and that had solid majorities of the American people AGAINST them.  The Dems passed them anyway.

 

The result?  The country has now seen the Obama-Pelosi-Reid agenda -- a European style socialist model of nanny state government that results in government control over all aspects of life -- and doesn't want it.  For many reasons, the Dems are almost certainly going to suffer massive losses in this election, and there is a real possibility that they will lose control of both houses of Congress.  The preemptive spin is already beginning, and you can bet that voting tallies will be twisted and bludgeoned into as crooked a shape as the Left can possibly make them to try to save their own bacon, so it is critically important to make sure you get to the polls and vote.  There are many more of us than there are radical Leftists in this country, so it all comes down to how many of us get out and vote.  Let's guarantee a monumental shift in the political landscape!

Two last points worth examining.  I think it's also interesting to note that the vast majority of Americans -- a whopping 81% -- think that politicians are lying sacks of garbage.  I think that's something we all know anecdotally, but to see that high of a number through professional polling...well, wow.

Finally, while I may rant and rail on Democrats, I honestly don't view most elected Republicans as being much better.  If you're a conservative, you probably know exactly what I mean.  Ever hear of the term RINO?  Republican In Name Only.  Basically, these are the people who run in their home areas as right-wingers because that's what gets them elected but *ahem* migrate to the Left once they're in office.  Notice there's not such thing as a DINO; this is a one-way street.  It's easier because the vast majority of the media complex is Left-wing, and they treat politicians according to their perceived amount of Lefty-ness.  It's human nature to want to be liked, and it is also much more difficult to stand firm on your principles against constant heckling from the media, so many Reps slide to the Left once they're in office.  So, not only do we as conservatives have to fight the Left, but we also have to fight these establishment/career/Washington Republicans, too.  Here's a great example - rather than celebrating noted conservative Senator Jim DeMint's astounding success in getting true grass roots conservative Republicans lined up for major victories all over the country, establishment Reps are instead plotting how to marginalize DeMint.  Why?  Because these grass roots candidates are like you and me - normal people who are sick and tired of government failure, incompetence, and corruption, and are determined to cut it back to where it should be.  That threatens all career politicians, Dems and Reps alike.  When I see this stuff, it's obvious how the Dems have gotten so good at the divide-and-conquer strategy, because career Washington Reps are, quite simply, idiots, and hand it to them on a silver platter.

If you feel compelled to donate money to support candidates who want to make government smaller, reduce spending, and restore an environment where we can see a genuine economic recovery but don't know how to do that, DeMint's Senate Conservatives Fund is absolutely the place to start.

So, there's the current update on the election landscape.  Mark your calendars for November 2nd.  For the past two years, we've been living under the most Leftist government in American history, and we've seen government intrusion and takeovers of vast swaths of the American capitalist society.  This next election is a referendum on just how much government American citizens like you and me want in our lives.  If you're not terribly excited about copying Europe's failed socialist policies, plan on voting out your incumbent.  I'd say a rule of thumb is that if you can cite three policies your current guy/gal has supported that you really like, keep 'em...otherwise, vote 'em into retirement.  Yes, that goes for both parties.

More later...