Emotional Government

How will the issue of Iraq play out now that there seems to be some real progress in the nation building process? The Presidential elections are now seven months away and the apparent nominees are John McCain and Barak Obama. At this moment most people feel that Obama is the inevitable victor; but so was Hillary Clinton just a few months ago. What factors that must be addressed to gain the White House?

Traditionally the most important things to voters is the economic situation at the time of the election. This year an artificial concern, the Iraq War, has propelled Obama to prominence;but will it continue? On the face of it John McCain has no real chance of winning the general election. He is old, he is white, he is a he; he's the wrong man at the wrong time. After all now is the chance for the US to move into the 21st century politically.

The trouble with the last statement is that the Democrat Party is only offering 19th century solutions: Marxism, Socialism, and Communism. Their Big Idea is that the people cannot be trusted to manage their lives and the Illuminati of the Democrat Party are the only group smart enough to do so. Slogans, while pithy and sometimes interesting, are not necessarily true. American citizens are so trained for instant gratification that composing a simple thought has become an agonising ordeal for most.

The extreme left wing of the Democrat Party owns the primary process , the Party leadership, and the candidates. Contrast this with the Republican Party. During the Bush Administration the Party lost its way and became a pale reflection of the Democrat Party; spending out of control, members going to prison, and an absolute failure to stand up their opponents.

The driving factor in the primary has been the Iraq War this will not continue. Its economic impact is only now being felt along with misguided government policies. The sub prime mortgage problems, started by the congressional mandate that everyone should be a homeowner and that the only thing preventing is was racism. Well that turns out to be wrong. The problem turns out to be the inability to pay back the loans, crooked mortgage companies, an ill-educated consumer public, and the failure of the US to compete world wide.

As Global Warming becomes Global Cooling the initiatives already planned to alleviate phony environmental concerns will cause further economic deterioration. Whoever is elected to the presidency is going to have a hand full of difficulties beyond the norm. Increased taxation will further stifle development as liquidity is taken out of private hands and placed in the care of government bureaucrats; proven time and again to be unworthy of such trust.

It's impossible to predict November from February but some indicators are on the horizon.
Iraq is becoming a policy success by sheer dint of effort; it was a project mismanaged and underestimated from the start. The economy will be the main problem and one that will not be honestly attacked. The recent congressional proposal to impose further taxes on oil companies is an example of populism run amok. This act will only drive gasoline prices higher; but its cathartic effect makes it worthwhile.

Government by emotion has never worked and won't now.

Barack Hussein Obama

The United States once was a place where political debate took no prisoners. Today it seems that false decorum is the order of the day. Yesterday a controversy, rather a tempest in a teapot, broke out over Bill Cunningham using Obama's middle name during a speech boosting John McCain's candidacy. Oh the outrage! McCain, a person who is obviously courageous, disavowed the use of Obama's Hussein middle name as be pejorative. The wonder is how do his mother and father feel about that description of their name choices?

Political correctness has already robbed everyday life of much of its richness and now political campaign speech is to be impeded. In the case of McCain this is no surprise given the McCain-Feingold Act restricting Free Speech in political campaigns. The Democrats are constantly berating the Bush Administration for restrictions of freedoms and personal rights (without examples of course) yet they are the very party of government intrusion in everyday life.

Of course the Obama campaign does not want even an oblique reference to his Muslim heritage or even his past involvement and expressed gratitude for McCain's disavowal of Cunningham. Anyone who wants to lead the US must be able to take the gloves off when facing opponents or as Teddy Roosevelt pointed out "Speak softly, but carry a big stick." All the candidates promise to run a campaign based on issues, whatever that means, yet Obama's main issue seems to be the hope for change; again a rather nebulous statement.

The United States and its citizens are in for more of the same with less to enjoy. The only difference between John McCain, Barak Obama, and Hillary Clinton is their degree of Liberal tendencies; in which case McCain is the lesser of the three evils. McCain will perform the job of president best, which is to defend the nation and the constitution. The other two will move the US towards the European model at best and the Cuban model at worst. The only saving grace is that a term is four years and the do nothing congress is in place.