"I resolve to speak ill of no man whatever, not even in a matter of truth; but rather by some means excuse the faults I hear charged upon others, and upon proper occasions speak all the good I know of everybody." ~Benjamin Franklin
“Truth is generally the best vindication against slander” ~Abraham Lincoln
As we make our way through this warm, fun-filled summer of 2010, enjoying backyard barbeques, week-long family vacations, and cheering our local professional baseball team, another longstanding American sport is underway: Vicious Political Slander.
While I can cite no candidate for public office who has ever declared himself/herself to be a sinless saint, I have generally found the men and women who undertake this great political journey to campaign for elected office to be individuals of noble character who truly revere the United States, its Constitution and the respective state constitutions. My observations have encompassed the large majority of members of both major political parties and independents, lest we devolve into myopic slander of our own.
When we strip away the caricatures of the few infamous politicians whose stunts make for mainstream media fodder, we find family-oriented men and women from all walks of life who have consulted their spouses (and often their children) to discuss the personal/family sacrifices necessary to undertake a campaign on behalf of their citizens. Achieving electoral victory often means added responsibility at reduced income amidst a 24/7/365 glare of anyone with access to a camera, video recorder, and a computer.
So, while vicious political slander has been the favored "hail mary pass" of cowardly, vacuous single-issue opponents since the dawn of time, I have been particularly startled by the personal nature of the baseless attacks against two fine gubernatorial candidates this summer. Nikki Haley (http://www.nikkihaley.com/) of South Carolina and Mike Cox (http://mikecox2010.com/) of Michigan have both been subjected to publicly-disseminated prurient slander certainly launched by unscrupulous consultants funded by their flailing (and failing) opponents.
These two fine Christians have spouses and children--Nikki's husband, Michael, a dedicated father and patriotic Army National Guard Officer; Mike's wife, Laura, a loving mother and selfless public official working on behalf of Wayne County residents--innocent spouses and children who have been crudely disregarded by paid political hacks attempting to score points for an opposition Titanic campaign.
Nikki (helping from a young age in a proud family-owned business) and Mike (a Marine Corp veteran of ) have brought bold, transformative ideas to their respective constituents. Both candidates have involved diverse groups of residents, and will work on behalf of ALL regardless of political party. Yet, within a week of critical elections, slush-funded and well-publicized slander emerged. A LITTLE TOO CONVENIENT if you ask anyone. Informed citizens will not be distracted by this insulting use of slimy, dime-arcade innuendo, but will instead recognize the opponent's cowardice that contrived and funded it. It happened during their candidacies...fortunately to no avail...but it could happen to YOUR CANDIDACY at that cricitial moment. PREPARE!
TODAY'S QUESTION: Have you consulted with your family and with your campaign team to plan in advance to assess, address, and dismiss your desperate opponent(s)' potential, and almost certain, use of vicious political slander against YOU?
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Saturday, July 3, 2010
LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." -Thomas Jefferson, The Declaration of Independence
"But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does." JAMES 1:25, New King James Version
As we enjoy and participate in the active celebration of our great Nation's 234th birthday, I find it instructive to return to the Document itself and the scriptural precursor, The Bible, to remind ourselves that The United States of America was born and remains a blessed nation. Our Founders, beginning with the 17th century settlers who sought refuge from British religious persecution and leading to the brave men and women who courageously signed and defended The Declaration of Independence against 18th century British tyranny, derived their Faith and Grace directly from the Creator, God Almighty.
I find it equally instructive that "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" are "among" our "unalienable rights"...we are not simply limited to those ennumerated rights. God has provided his People throughout history with much opportunity for freedom, and when exercised faithfully, fairly, and fruitfully, our Nation has grown and prospered, enjoying the fruits of our combined labors. George Washington avoided political party affiliation, recognizing the tendency for partisanship to undermine the productive collaboration necessary to forge enabling legislation vital to the efficient functioning of a national government. Thomas Jefferson trusted the power of the individual citizen to direct the Nation's affairs by electing his/her representatives to travel to the seat of government, draft sensible legislation, and cast well-informed votes.
Both men, Washington and Jefferson, together with many others recognized--and continue to recognize--that our unalienable rights must be defended, respected, and exercised.
TODAY'S QUESTION: When evaluating prospective candidates for 2010 elections, have YOU measured their commitment to preserving, defending and respecting YOUR God-given, unalienable rights?
"But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does." JAMES 1:25, New King James Version
As we enjoy and participate in the active celebration of our great Nation's 234th birthday, I find it instructive to return to the Document itself and the scriptural precursor, The Bible, to remind ourselves that The United States of America was born and remains a blessed nation. Our Founders, beginning with the 17th century settlers who sought refuge from British religious persecution and leading to the brave men and women who courageously signed and defended The Declaration of Independence against 18th century British tyranny, derived their Faith and Grace directly from the Creator, God Almighty.
I find it equally instructive that "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" are "among" our "unalienable rights"...we are not simply limited to those ennumerated rights. God has provided his People throughout history with much opportunity for freedom, and when exercised faithfully, fairly, and fruitfully, our Nation has grown and prospered, enjoying the fruits of our combined labors. George Washington avoided political party affiliation, recognizing the tendency for partisanship to undermine the productive collaboration necessary to forge enabling legislation vital to the efficient functioning of a national government. Thomas Jefferson trusted the power of the individual citizen to direct the Nation's affairs by electing his/her representatives to travel to the seat of government, draft sensible legislation, and cast well-informed votes.
Both men, Washington and Jefferson, together with many others recognized--and continue to recognize--that our unalienable rights must be defended, respected, and exercised.
- Sometimes defended upon the battlefield, domestic or internationally, and for that WE MUST PRAY FOR AND THANK OUR BRAVE AND SELFLESS ACTIVE AND VETERAN SERVICE MEMBERS.
- Sometimes defended in the courtrooms, legislatures, and executive offices of our cities & towns, states, and federal government, and for that we must pray for continued fidelity for our elected leaders and appointed officials.
- Respecting and exercising our unalienable rights remains incumbent upon each of us as citizens. We each have an obligation to lead this nation, one citizen at a time, daily. When we cease to respect and exercise our rights, those rights will erode and eventually be eliminated or forgotten.
TODAY'S QUESTION: When evaluating prospective candidates for 2010 elections, have YOU measured their commitment to preserving, defending and respecting YOUR God-given, unalienable rights?
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
THE 3 C'S OF AMERICAN ECONOMIC RESURGENCE
"The history of free men is never written by chance, but by choice - their choice." --Dwight D. Eisenhower
"Forget about the consequences of failure. Failure is only a temporary change in direction to set you straight for your next success." -- Denis Waitley
I had the pleasure to engage in a discussion centered around faith, family and leadership with one Mr. Hughes recently. Mr. Hughes was recounting various significant events in his life, which had led him courageously to escape the restraints of segregation and to proudly serve our nation militarily before becoming a public school educator/administrator. He imparted to me the importance to every leader of embracing "the three C's: Choices, Challenges and Consequences."
Our Great Nation is currently gripped by the lingering effects of economic deterioration, which has led to an erosion of employment, family financial security, and confidence in government and corporate leadership. Whether we like it or not, our Nation's economic viability relies upon the efficient interdependent workings of (1) a sound, ethical, well-financed free market economy; and (2) the local, state and national governments that regulate interstate commerce, fair competition, consumer protection and safety.
The free market economy depends upon the efficient flow of plentiful intellectual, human and financial capital. Excessive government regulation, taxation, and marketplace interference merely decrease the incentives for responsible entrepreneurs and corporate leaders to invest and develop (or possibly delay) new products and services. Burdensome, unresponsive and unilateral governmental regulatory choices may create insurmountable challenges to businesses, whereupon the direct consequences may include middle- and working class job losses, and interstate/international facility relocations.
Clearly, government has a limited and necessary role to play in economic affairs as provided for my the Constitution's Articles. Interstate highways and waterways that facilitate the motorized conveyance of goods must be built and maintained. Border inspection of imported foreign produce, children's toys, and vehicles must be undertaken to protect American lives. Illegal acts, excessive pollution, and unsafe workplaces must be addressed. But, if America is to remain the dominant world economic power whose intellectual property, manufacturing productivity, and service excellence exceed all international competitors, then elected officials and agency appointees must choose to partner with business leaders to face those challenges together, lest we mortgage our future to those self-serving nations currently acquiring our Treasury Bills.
In the November elections, and in the various state and federal primaries leading up to those November elections, We The People are going to register our votes in a referendum upon the imbalance between lobbyist-loving incumbents and the resurgence of freedom-loving, free market leaders who challenge those entrenched politicians. Neither Party's cronies will be spared as Independent voters makes choices grounded in fact, not swayed by mere opinion or slick 30-second advertisements. Independent voters will be focused upon unfulfilled candidate promises, upon the return of economic prosperity for the American family, upon the values underscored by faith in God. And the consequences for those foolish, fattened incumbents who choose poorly will be a one-way ticket back to the hometown...
TODAY'S QUESTION: What definitive economic plan have you --whether incumbent or challenger--developed and published to restore the appropriate balance between free market job creation and government regulation and taxation? [Remember: If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail.]
"Forget about the consequences of failure. Failure is only a temporary change in direction to set you straight for your next success." -- Denis Waitley
I had the pleasure to engage in a discussion centered around faith, family and leadership with one Mr. Hughes recently. Mr. Hughes was recounting various significant events in his life, which had led him courageously to escape the restraints of segregation and to proudly serve our nation militarily before becoming a public school educator/administrator. He imparted to me the importance to every leader of embracing "the three C's: Choices, Challenges and Consequences."
Our Great Nation is currently gripped by the lingering effects of economic deterioration, which has led to an erosion of employment, family financial security, and confidence in government and corporate leadership. Whether we like it or not, our Nation's economic viability relies upon the efficient interdependent workings of (1) a sound, ethical, well-financed free market economy; and (2) the local, state and national governments that regulate interstate commerce, fair competition, consumer protection and safety.
The free market economy depends upon the efficient flow of plentiful intellectual, human and financial capital. Excessive government regulation, taxation, and marketplace interference merely decrease the incentives for responsible entrepreneurs and corporate leaders to invest and develop (or possibly delay) new products and services. Burdensome, unresponsive and unilateral governmental regulatory choices may create insurmountable challenges to businesses, whereupon the direct consequences may include middle- and working class job losses, and interstate/international facility relocations.
Clearly, government has a limited and necessary role to play in economic affairs as provided for my the Constitution's Articles. Interstate highways and waterways that facilitate the motorized conveyance of goods must be built and maintained. Border inspection of imported foreign produce, children's toys, and vehicles must be undertaken to protect American lives. Illegal acts, excessive pollution, and unsafe workplaces must be addressed. But, if America is to remain the dominant world economic power whose intellectual property, manufacturing productivity, and service excellence exceed all international competitors, then elected officials and agency appointees must choose to partner with business leaders to face those challenges together, lest we mortgage our future to those self-serving nations currently acquiring our Treasury Bills.
In the November elections, and in the various state and federal primaries leading up to those November elections, We The People are going to register our votes in a referendum upon the imbalance between lobbyist-loving incumbents and the resurgence of freedom-loving, free market leaders who challenge those entrenched politicians. Neither Party's cronies will be spared as Independent voters makes choices grounded in fact, not swayed by mere opinion or slick 30-second advertisements. Independent voters will be focused upon unfulfilled candidate promises, upon the return of economic prosperity for the American family, upon the values underscored by faith in God. And the consequences for those foolish, fattened incumbents who choose poorly will be a one-way ticket back to the hometown...
TODAY'S QUESTION: What definitive economic plan have you --whether incumbent or challenger--developed and published to restore the appropriate balance between free market job creation and government regulation and taxation? [Remember: If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail.]
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
CONSISTENCY, NOT HYPOCRISY
"Honest discussions - even and perhaps especially on topics about which we disagree - can help us resist hypocrisy and arrogance. They can also help us live up to the basic ideals, such as liberty and justice for all, on which our country was founded." -David E. Price
"The world is full of fools and faint hearts; and yet everyone has courage enough to bear the misfortunes, and wisdom enough to manage the affairs, of his neighbor." -Benjamin Franklin
I can hardly be labeled "Liberal" in my steadfast defense of the clearly Constitutional Right to Life, the First Amendment Right to Free Speech and Peaceful Assembly, the Second Amendment Right to Bear Arms, Tenth Amendment States' Rights, etc. But, as Dr. Seuss writes in Oh, the Places You'll Go!, "[w]ith your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet, you're too smart to go down any not-so-good street."
The base of any political party may generally accept with little question the perspective placed upon any event in a particular era. But the Independent Voter--that individual who will cast that marginal majority vote that catapults one candidate over another in a particular local, state, or federal election--will not soon forget the shifting opinions from one year to the next, from one administration to the next, from one decade to the next.
Is it right in one era to caricature and curse one American President, and to condemn those who do likewise to an American President of the opposite party in another era? Why don't we all rise above it regardless of the President's party and move on to SUBSTANTIVE bi-partisan conservative Constitutional SOLUTIONS.
When one group engages in mass demonstration and speeches condemning government abuse and decrying the usurpation of power (immigration reform; healthcare; deficits & taxation), this self-proclaimed mob is called patriotic, a Tea Party; when another group engages in mass demonstration and speeches condemning government inaction (immigration reform; healthcare; deficits & taxation) and decrying their lack of opportunity, this second group is labeled unpatriotic, unAmerican.
When the federal government, through legislation or enabling regulation, sets standards, protocols and reporting requirements for private sector entities (i.e. oil companies), that federal government action is labeled as interfering with the free markets or overstepping states' rights to regulate the business climate of its own state. When the federal government complies with regulations that direct the private entity (i.e. oil companies) to pay for and remedy its own fatal environmental disaster, that same federal government is accused of not doing enough to engage itself directly in the private entity's affairs.
Can that same state government Chief Executive who publicly rejected federal stimulus dollars destined for infrastructure improvement projects and working class financial stability justify now requesting that federal dollars and manpower be directed to correct a private corporation's infrastructure failure that imperils Gulf Coast working class financial stability?
In this 24/7/365 media circus that our elected officials operate in, one can understand the political pressure that they are under to communicate decisions that appear to effectively address the concerns of the moment, the crisis, or the era. But, I caution incumbents of both parties that this is a year where Independent Voter memories are long, discernment is deep, and inconsistency is fatal career-wise.
TODAY'S QUESTION: Will a thorough review of your public record (votes, statements, positions, alliances, contributors, appearances) reveal solution-oriented consistency...or will it betray self-interested hypocrisy to the inquisitive Independent Voter.
"The world is full of fools and faint hearts; and yet everyone has courage enough to bear the misfortunes, and wisdom enough to manage the affairs, of his neighbor." -Benjamin Franklin
I can hardly be labeled "Liberal" in my steadfast defense of the clearly Constitutional Right to Life, the First Amendment Right to Free Speech and Peaceful Assembly, the Second Amendment Right to Bear Arms, Tenth Amendment States' Rights, etc. But, as Dr. Seuss writes in Oh, the Places You'll Go!, "[w]ith your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet, you're too smart to go down any not-so-good street."
The base of any political party may generally accept with little question the perspective placed upon any event in a particular era. But the Independent Voter--that individual who will cast that marginal majority vote that catapults one candidate over another in a particular local, state, or federal election--will not soon forget the shifting opinions from one year to the next, from one administration to the next, from one decade to the next.
Is it right in one era to caricature and curse one American President, and to condemn those who do likewise to an American President of the opposite party in another era? Why don't we all rise above it regardless of the President's party and move on to SUBSTANTIVE bi-partisan conservative Constitutional SOLUTIONS.
When one group engages in mass demonstration and speeches condemning government abuse and decrying the usurpation of power (immigration reform; healthcare; deficits & taxation), this self-proclaimed mob is called patriotic, a Tea Party; when another group engages in mass demonstration and speeches condemning government inaction (immigration reform; healthcare; deficits & taxation) and decrying their lack of opportunity, this second group is labeled unpatriotic, unAmerican.
When the federal government, through legislation or enabling regulation, sets standards, protocols and reporting requirements for private sector entities (i.e. oil companies), that federal government action is labeled as interfering with the free markets or overstepping states' rights to regulate the business climate of its own state. When the federal government complies with regulations that direct the private entity (i.e. oil companies) to pay for and remedy its own fatal environmental disaster, that same federal government is accused of not doing enough to engage itself directly in the private entity's affairs.
Can that same state government Chief Executive who publicly rejected federal stimulus dollars destined for infrastructure improvement projects and working class financial stability justify now requesting that federal dollars and manpower be directed to correct a private corporation's infrastructure failure that imperils Gulf Coast working class financial stability?
In this 24/7/365 media circus that our elected officials operate in, one can understand the political pressure that they are under to communicate decisions that appear to effectively address the concerns of the moment, the crisis, or the era. But, I caution incumbents of both parties that this is a year where Independent Voter memories are long, discernment is deep, and inconsistency is fatal career-wise.
TODAY'S QUESTION: Will a thorough review of your public record (votes, statements, positions, alliances, contributors, appearances) reveal solution-oriented consistency...or will it betray self-interested hypocrisy to the inquisitive Independent Voter.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
LEADERSHIP TRUMPS LONGEVITY
"In the history of mankind many republics have risen, have flourished for a lesser or greater time, and then have fallen because their citizens lost the power of governing themselves and thereby of governing their state; and in no way has this loss of power been so often and so clearly shown as in the tendency to turn the government into a government primarily for the benefit of one class, a ruling class, instead of a government for the benefit of the people as a whole." -Theodore Roosevelt
“Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.” -Frederick Douglass
Nothing cries out for Change and Leadership like the defeat of incumbents. Lame ducks all: Utah Senator Bob Bennett, Florida Governor Charlie Crist, and West Virginia Congressman Alan Mollohan. Their bipartisan outbound migration will be joined by many more local, state, and national figures between now and January 2011.
As I've noted to my clients for some time, the collective electoral will of the Independent American voter prizes Principles over party affiliation, favors Faith and Family Values over favoritism, and loves Life for All more than lazy government-sanctioned preferences. The Constitution is a non-partisan living document drafted and ratified by a diverse body of farmers, business leaders, and lawyers --statesman all-- who early recognized the tendency for one ruling class to displace less powerful interests of the common citizen. The Constitution remains safeguarded by their descendants --you and I--- today and every day.
Our nation and its citizens have always fared best when elected officials embraced the will of those who elected them and honored the sacred entrustment placed upon them to carry out the limited role of government in town/city halls, state houses, and the nation's capital. This is NOT a Political Party's nation, but it IS the People's nation! The individual who blindly calls all of one Party saints and all of the opposing Party sinners lazily casts aside the insight to discern the individual Leader's strengths and weaknesses. History is replete with principled, Faithful, family-committed, prolife leaders of all Party affiliations, so we must not devolve into petty soundbite statements purporting to label all one way and all the other way.
2010 has already begun to demonstrate that Americans love America and its Freedom, love their God, love their Families and Life, love their Neighbors, and value Economic Opportunity MORE than they are willing to defer to the failed leadership of the past. The forced migration of incumbency has begun.
TODAY'S QUESTION: Does your candidacy demonstrate Leadership experience supported by a foundation of Faith, Family, Life, Liberty, and Economic Opportunity that the Independent Voter will reward with that sacred trust of electoral victory?
“Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.” -Frederick Douglass
Nothing cries out for Change and Leadership like the defeat of incumbents. Lame ducks all: Utah Senator Bob Bennett, Florida Governor Charlie Crist, and West Virginia Congressman Alan Mollohan. Their bipartisan outbound migration will be joined by many more local, state, and national figures between now and January 2011.
As I've noted to my clients for some time, the collective electoral will of the Independent American voter prizes Principles over party affiliation, favors Faith and Family Values over favoritism, and loves Life for All more than lazy government-sanctioned preferences. The Constitution is a non-partisan living document drafted and ratified by a diverse body of farmers, business leaders, and lawyers --statesman all-- who early recognized the tendency for one ruling class to displace less powerful interests of the common citizen. The Constitution remains safeguarded by their descendants --you and I--- today and every day.
Our nation and its citizens have always fared best when elected officials embraced the will of those who elected them and honored the sacred entrustment placed upon them to carry out the limited role of government in town/city halls, state houses, and the nation's capital. This is NOT a Political Party's nation, but it IS the People's nation! The individual who blindly calls all of one Party saints and all of the opposing Party sinners lazily casts aside the insight to discern the individual Leader's strengths and weaknesses. History is replete with principled, Faithful, family-committed, prolife leaders of all Party affiliations, so we must not devolve into petty soundbite statements purporting to label all one way and all the other way.
2010 has already begun to demonstrate that Americans love America and its Freedom, love their God, love their Families and Life, love their Neighbors, and value Economic Opportunity MORE than they are willing to defer to the failed leadership of the past. The forced migration of incumbency has begun.
TODAY'S QUESTION: Does your candidacy demonstrate Leadership experience supported by a foundation of Faith, Family, Life, Liberty, and Economic Opportunity that the Independent Voter will reward with that sacred trust of electoral victory?
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
FIRST STRIKE: ANTICIPATE, ADVANCE AND ACT
"To sit back hoping that someday, some way, someone will make things right is to go on feeding the crocodile, hoping he will eat you last - but eat you he will." -Ronald Reagan
"What you always do before you make a decision is consult. The best public policy is made when you are listening to people who are going to be impacted. Then, once policy is determined, you call on them to help you sell it." -Elizabeth Dole
I'm not a big fan of the filibuster, regardless of which polictical party is employing it. The filibuster is the adult equivalent of the sore loser taking his baseball and bat and going home because he wasn't allowed to bat cleanup. One Party cannot rail against the use of the filibuster by its opposing Party, and then within a few years trot it out every time bipartisan negotiations fail to produce the perfect compromise. Independent voters recognize hypocrisy.
I said it before and I'll say it again: The current legislative and administrative policy agenda isn't a hidden secret. The bills traveling through Committee and the regulations being put forth by the Administration were broadcast long before the present, hearkening back to campaign promises and candidate platforms well before November 2008.
Some of those themes resonated well enough with voters, including critical Independent voters, that incumbents fell and power shifted. Within some of these ideas there has been much common ground, even if final votes have not always reflected the bipartisan undercurrent incorporated via amendments.
I believe that a Party loses its way when it fails to (1) anticipate the pending agenda; (2) develop and advance well-researched and superior policy initiatives; and (3) act to publicize, negotiate, and incorporate those competing and superior policy initiatives into final legislation. A Party, especially one holding the minority legislative caucus, cannot only occasionally anticipate and participate in the nation's legislative agenda.
As legislation begins to bubble up in Committee, the Minority Party must marshal its resources and send forth its throng of legislative aides to poll real Americans, research rational alternatives, and draft comprehensive competitive legislative solutions--and then publish them and broadcast them to the widest possible audience so that Independent voters can weigh legitimate alternative policy initiatives that may extend beyond the mainstream media soundbites.
Informed voters, Independent voters, and disaffected citizens don't like whiners, wimps or stall tactics. Put away the crutch of the filibuster and bring forth well-researched, well-written, well-publicized policy alternatives well in advance of final Congressional action and Reconciliation Procedures. Anticipate--don't equivocate!
TODAY'S QUESTION: As a candidate in the ever-important 2010 election cycle, what are YOU doing to ensure that you're ahead of YOUR opponent's policy agenda?
"What you always do before you make a decision is consult. The best public policy is made when you are listening to people who are going to be impacted. Then, once policy is determined, you call on them to help you sell it." -Elizabeth Dole
I'm not a big fan of the filibuster, regardless of which polictical party is employing it. The filibuster is the adult equivalent of the sore loser taking his baseball and bat and going home because he wasn't allowed to bat cleanup. One Party cannot rail against the use of the filibuster by its opposing Party, and then within a few years trot it out every time bipartisan negotiations fail to produce the perfect compromise. Independent voters recognize hypocrisy.
I said it before and I'll say it again: The current legislative and administrative policy agenda isn't a hidden secret. The bills traveling through Committee and the regulations being put forth by the Administration were broadcast long before the present, hearkening back to campaign promises and candidate platforms well before November 2008.
Some of those themes resonated well enough with voters, including critical Independent voters, that incumbents fell and power shifted. Within some of these ideas there has been much common ground, even if final votes have not always reflected the bipartisan undercurrent incorporated via amendments.
I believe that a Party loses its way when it fails to (1) anticipate the pending agenda; (2) develop and advance well-researched and superior policy initiatives; and (3) act to publicize, negotiate, and incorporate those competing and superior policy initiatives into final legislation. A Party, especially one holding the minority legislative caucus, cannot only occasionally anticipate and participate in the nation's legislative agenda.
As legislation begins to bubble up in Committee, the Minority Party must marshal its resources and send forth its throng of legislative aides to poll real Americans, research rational alternatives, and draft comprehensive competitive legislative solutions--and then publish them and broadcast them to the widest possible audience so that Independent voters can weigh legitimate alternative policy initiatives that may extend beyond the mainstream media soundbites.
Informed voters, Independent voters, and disaffected citizens don't like whiners, wimps or stall tactics. Put away the crutch of the filibuster and bring forth well-researched, well-written, well-publicized policy alternatives well in advance of final Congressional action and Reconciliation Procedures. Anticipate--don't equivocate!
TODAY'S QUESTION: As a candidate in the ever-important 2010 election cycle, what are YOU doing to ensure that you're ahead of YOUR opponent's policy agenda?
Saturday, February 27, 2010
GREAT COMMUNICATOR...OR YESTERDAY'S GOAT?
"Take advantage of every opportunity to practice your communication skills so that when important occasions arise, you will have the gift, the style, the sharpness, the clarity, and the emotions to affect other people." -Jim Rohn
The short track skating events in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics provided physical proof of the importance of anticipating a future opportunity before the start of the race. The difference between the gold medal and wiping out along the boards was often the critical timing and quality of the planned inside/outside pass of the unwary opponent.
Building upon our previous installment, we will begin addressing how you may best capitalize upon (4) Issues of anticipated future importance for which you have not previously developed a well-defined position. While we will address the other three topics of issues formation in coming installments, I believe we must first look to communicating the policy item(s) that will provide fuel for your long-term electoral victory and solidify your legacy. Put aside partisan rancor for a moment, and simply recognize prior patterns of success, because YOUR winning message MUST attract and embrace more than just your base to achieve 51% in November. If all YOU can address is YOUR base, join yesterday's goats.
Long before the November 1980 Presidential Election, Ronald Reagan had accurately identified several issues that would eventually boil over in the minds of Americans. Reagan did not hesitate to develop responses and solutions to those issues [among them (a) the malaise of international communism; (b) the hunger for patriotism; (c) the burden of excessive taxation; and (d) the breakdown of the family]. Not only did Ronald Reagan approach these--and other--topics with genuine optimism, compassion and practical solutions, but he faced an opponent ill-prepared to even enter the dialogue, as evidenced in the sharp contrast of televised debates and other public appearances. President Carter yielded the lead of incumbency for a lack of anticipating, preparing for, and developing superior solutions to the issues that would define the 1980s.
Again in 1994 we observed Speaker Newt Gingrich and his colleagues execute upon their accurate assessment, planning, and solutions to speed past the old, tired Congressional pack. As no group is immune to their own stagnation, 2006 & 2008 ushered in yet another era when future concerns [social, economic, demographic, international] were addressed with fresh faces and fresh solutions. This is not a partisan comment. Regardless of which party or philosophy you favor, you cannot escape the statistics noted in our prior installment that made the 111th Congressional majority look like a negative of the 104th Congressional majority.
Party is not the prime determinent. Each of these victorious years required bipartisan appeal to secure ballot box majorities. The pendelum always swings...YOU can be viewed as the People's Leader with a legacy to follow--or Yesterday's News devoid of new ideas and forgotten forever.
TODAY'S QUESTION: What are YOU as a candidate (whether incumbent or challenger) doing TODAY to identify, develop, communicate and execute the solutions to the issues/problems/concerns that will plague YOUR electorate beyond November into the years to come?
The short track skating events in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics provided physical proof of the importance of anticipating a future opportunity before the start of the race. The difference between the gold medal and wiping out along the boards was often the critical timing and quality of the planned inside/outside pass of the unwary opponent.
Building upon our previous installment, we will begin addressing how you may best capitalize upon (4) Issues of anticipated future importance for which you have not previously developed a well-defined position. While we will address the other three topics of issues formation in coming installments, I believe we must first look to communicating the policy item(s) that will provide fuel for your long-term electoral victory and solidify your legacy. Put aside partisan rancor for a moment, and simply recognize prior patterns of success, because YOUR winning message MUST attract and embrace more than just your base to achieve 51% in November. If all YOU can address is YOUR base, join yesterday's goats.
Long before the November 1980 Presidential Election, Ronald Reagan had accurately identified several issues that would eventually boil over in the minds of Americans. Reagan did not hesitate to develop responses and solutions to those issues [among them (a) the malaise of international communism; (b) the hunger for patriotism; (c) the burden of excessive taxation; and (d) the breakdown of the family]. Not only did Ronald Reagan approach these--and other--topics with genuine optimism, compassion and practical solutions, but he faced an opponent ill-prepared to even enter the dialogue, as evidenced in the sharp contrast of televised debates and other public appearances. President Carter yielded the lead of incumbency for a lack of anticipating, preparing for, and developing superior solutions to the issues that would define the 1980s.
Again in 1994 we observed Speaker Newt Gingrich and his colleagues execute upon their accurate assessment, planning, and solutions to speed past the old, tired Congressional pack. As no group is immune to their own stagnation, 2006 & 2008 ushered in yet another era when future concerns [social, economic, demographic, international] were addressed with fresh faces and fresh solutions. This is not a partisan comment. Regardless of which party or philosophy you favor, you cannot escape the statistics noted in our prior installment that made the 111th Congressional majority look like a negative of the 104th Congressional majority.
Party is not the prime determinent. Each of these victorious years required bipartisan appeal to secure ballot box majorities. The pendelum always swings...YOU can be viewed as the People's Leader with a legacy to follow--or Yesterday's News devoid of new ideas and forgotten forever.
TODAY'S QUESTION: What are YOU as a candidate (whether incumbent or challenger) doing TODAY to identify, develop, communicate and execute the solutions to the issues/problems/concerns that will plague YOUR electorate beyond November into the years to come?
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