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Political Hay
Catch a Falling Flag
In the Watergate election of 1974, the Republicans lost 49 House seats to fall behind the Democrats by 291-144, more than 2 to 1. In the Senate, the Democrats won an edge of 61 to 37. In 1976, the Democrats held on to their 61 Senate seats, and added another one in the House to make 292. Yet, by 1980 Reagan won in a landslide, and the Republicans took control of the Senate 53-46, while gaining 33 seats in the House.
Even in 1982, the early Reagan years, the Democrats won 269 House seats, a 103-seat margin over the Republicans. Along with Clinton's victory in 1992, the Democrats won 57 Senate seats and a 258-176 margin in the House. Yet, just two years later, the Republicans gained control of the House with a 54-seat gain, winning the Senate as well.
So any political majority can soon fall in the face of the onslaught of better ideas.
The Democrats' Turn
The September financial crisis destroyed any chance John McCain
had of winning this election. The fundamentals were bad enough
for Republicans as it was. They had won 5 of the last 7 national
elections. The 2 Democrat victories were won by a moderate who
went along with the agenda of the 1990s Newt Gingrich
Congressional majorities. There hasn't been a truly liberal
President since Jimmy Carter was elected 32 years ago in 1976.
Before that was another 8 years of Republicans. Voters were ripe
for a change.
Moreover, voters had forgotten how crazy liberals can be, not to mention the left-wing extremism represented by Obama. When we tried to tell them, they thought we were lying. Nobody could be that nuts, they seemed to be thinking. I was writing a column a few weeks ago when it suddenly dawned on me, nobody even remembers any more how badly Jimmy Carter and his liberals had trashed America by 1980. Nor do they remember anymore how Reagan so drastically turned everything around, both foreign and domestic. That is all now a history lesson that has to be painstakingly taught over and over.
Another huge drag was the deep unpopularity of the incumbent Republican President. Let us not deal in cheap shots. George Bush is a good man who did a lot of good things. But he never seemed to understand that an essential role of leadership is communicating to the country and persuading it as to where we need to go and why.
Bush's popular downfall was rooted in Donald Rumsfeld's failure to commit enough troops early on to nail down the victory in Iraq quickly. The American people are not going to support a foreign war that drags on for years and years ultimately costing hundreds of billions of dollars and thousands of lives, all the more so when the President is not articulating on a regular basis what we are doing, where we are headed and why. Rumsfeld also failed the President in not committing enough troops to the early attack on Afghanistan to capture Bin Laden and the Taliban leadership. Just think how different the Bush Presidency would have been if Rumsfeld and Bush had handled these issues correctly.
Adding even more to the problem was the 2006 failure of the Republican Congressional majorities, which were thrown out because they stopped advancing still badly needed positive reforms that would further promote American prosperity, freedom, and strength. Instead they had given in to acting like liberal Democrats in trying to buy votes with government spending and maintain their incumbency with simple minded, low road buyoffs. Very difficult for the Republican Party to inspire followers with this record.
On top of all this, the McCain campaign then had to deal with what seemed to be a reenactment of the October 1929 stock market crash leading to the Great Depression. Everyone has been taught in grade school how to respond to that, however wrongly, which is to vote in liberal Democrat majorities for a generation. Note to the public: FDR and his New Deal did not solve the Great Depression. Rather, they trashed the economy over and over, burying it unnecessarily in a decade of deep suffering for the American people.
Bush tried to be responsive and responsible. But he and his transparently confused and panicked economic team of Bernanke and Paulson only served to inspire what has become an unnecessary global economic panic. The oversold $700 billion bailout package added greatly to the political disaster, while failing to stem the economic downturn. Read what economist Robert Higgs wrote for the Independent Institute on September 23 about the supposed credit freeze justifying the bailout which did so much to spread panic:
"In democratic societies, every great surge of the government's
size, scope, and power rests on a foundation of fear….The
president, the secretary of the treasury, congressional leaders,
and the vultures now swarming Washington to pick the remaining
flesh from the taxpayers' bones would have us believe that unless
the colossal ripoff now being formulated in Congress is enacted,
the future will be too horrible to contemplate. Reports
characterize the bailout as ‘a bid to unlock the flow of credit'
and make reference to ‘the frozen credit markets.' It's
hyperbole, don't believe it."
Higgs shows that at the time Congress was voting on the bailout,
commercial and industrial loans from all commercial banks had
soared by 15.5% over the prior year, and by 30.8% over the prior
two years, to an all-time high of $1,514 billion (or $1.5
trillion). Consumer loans at all commercial banks had grown 9.2%
over the prior year and 16.2% over the prior two years to an all
time high of $845 billion. Even real estate loans at all
commercial banks, while not soaring, had grown 4.1% over the
prior year, and 15.5% over the prior two years, to $3,642 billion
($3.6 trillion), just slightly below its all time high. What
frozen credit were they talking about?
Yes, there was real economic trouble, which is now only going to get worse. But to sell the splashy, spooky, $700 billion bailout, Paulson and Bernanke had to sell the country on the idea that we were on the verge of the Great Depression otherwise. That effectively trashed the McCain campaign and the rest of the GOP. Congress could have been asked only to replenish and slightly extend existing powers at the FDIC, the Fed, and the Treasury. The Bush team should then have interred with measured reserve those firms however large that had overexposed themselves to the risk of declining housing values, and called for pro-growth economic policies to revive the economy. But Paulson seemed focused like a laser beam on bailing out his buddies on Wall Street, heedless of the economic as well as political chaos he was causing.
McCain was not my ideal candidate and he did not run the best campaign. But with everything he had going against him, it is a wonder he kept it as close as he did.
Comments
Leave a Comment
James| 11.5.08 @ 8:06AM
Sour grapes. Take the loss with good grace and work to fix all the wrongs facing this country instead of trying to perpetuate the fear-mongering. I bet, like the vast majority of Americans, you did quite fine in the 90's under Clinton and the Democratic congress. The Republicans had a 6 year shot to get it right, and instead used their power to squander international goodwill after 9/11 and further their own greed-based agenda. Today you are getting what you deserve, and the Democrats are left with the responsibility of putting the pieces back together. Like a hampster the Republicans crapped in their own nest and made it vile for all.
Howard| 11.5.08 @ 8:07AM
While I am impressed by the cultural changes brought by Obama's victory, I am quite melancholy about the future of this country. On the Republican side, we have a president who is genetically challenged to be articulate. I say genetically because his father was also an anti wordsmith. And we have/had a congress led by pigs who loved the K Street trough. But as bad as they are, and they are, the new team is town is a disaster. Dirty Harry Reid & Nancy Armani Pelosi are both weak and arrogant. A bad combination. Years ago Sean Connery stared in a movie called "wrong is right". Sort of a reverse universe. The combination of high taxes, regulatory overkill, and weakness sold as strength will be dangerous, and hopefully not fatal.
Ayn Rand said it best: "Who is John Galt" We must be vigilant.
Greylion| 11.5.08 @ 8:29AM
Look Ferrara, lets not get stuck on stupid here.
The republicans lost because they are not conservative and they are not interested in the country other than their precious pocket book.
If you want to pick the bones of the republican carcass munch on that for a while and then suggest what ever changes come to mind.
Never again will I vote a straight republican ticket.
My only hope now is that the maestro will govern minimally. Some hope huh?
3Case| 11.5.08 @ 8:47AM
Time for you folks to shut up and put up, James.
If you wish to ignore our concerns, that is your prerogative. Personally, I do not believe you can do either of the 1st two (1. Shut up; 2. Put up.); your comment demonstrates that you have started the 3d, ignore.
Timothy| 11.5.08 @ 9:21AM
When one combines uniform media idolatry with a shady warchest of $700 million, the fix was indeed in. Alas, that will not alter the reality of a naiive pacifist fool facing potential wars in the Mideast, Indian sub-continent, the former Soviet empire or the Korean peninsula. My childhood adage still holds: the easist way to win a tug-of-war is let go of the rope. Welcome to the Democrat Pottery Barn.
Brian| 11.5.08 @ 9:32AM
The American people were continually lied to by the media and Democrats counted millions of fraudulent votes in their favor last night.
Water over the bridge. What's next is to take back Congress in 2010, then impeach/remove Obama/Biden for their crimes (they are Democrats, remember).
This was but one battle, the war is not over.
Bob Miller| 11.5.08 @ 9:40AM
Conservative ranks have dwindled and will not increase until conservative parents are able to send their kids to conservative or at least neutral schools all the way up the line.
larry l| 11.5.08 @ 10:20AM
Note: Recall elections cannot affect US Representatitves and Senators--only state legislators, etc.
mnotaro| 11.5.08 @ 10:48AM
This is just one battle in the midst of a war...we will get our country back hopefully from the liberal illuminati...hopefully they won't have totally ruined it by then
Doctor Right| 11.5.08 @ 11:09AM
"Obama Rules"...You are stuck on stupid.
Obama won last night because he successfully ran (in public) as a centrist Democrat. In private, we were privy to many glimpses of how he really feels, and it has a deeply "socialist" smell.
To win elected office, Democrats ALWAYS have to hide who they really are, and what their true intentions are.
For example, Obama kept talking about "tax cuts". Traditionally, Democrats are opposed to tax cuts of any kind - it's just not in their DNA. But starting with Clinton, they realized they had to at least "talk the talk". Clinton, too, promised a tax cut - then promptly renegged. Obama will do the same. In fact, he will raise your taxes...Well, maybe not yours, since you don't have a job...But he will puish the middle class with "the Rich"...He has no choice, he needs th $$ to pay for his many, many proposals.
It would be interesting to see how successful a Democrat would be if he/she were actually honest about what they believed. It would sound something like this:
"Hi! My name is 'Obama Rules'! I'm running for Congress, and I want your money! I want it to run, and after I win, I want more of it! In fact, I'll be voting to raise your taxes every chance I get! Income tax, property tax, capital gains tax, whatever...It doesn't matter! I want your money, my Party wants your money, and darnit', we're gonna' have your money! 'What are we going to do with it?', you're asking...Well, that's simple! First of all, we're going to give it to the non-productive members of society as a pay-out to ensure that they ALWAYS vote for us! Handing out 'goodies' has always bought us votes in the past, and we plan on doing more of that in the future! Secondly, we need that money to stamp out injustice! Yes, we'll be giving more of that money to race-baiting organizations like 'The Rainbow Coalition' to make sure that charlatans like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton keep delivering the 'black vote'! And you know...It's kind of funny, but those African-Americans just keep voting for us year after year after year! We keep making more and more promises, nver deliver on them, and they NEVER seem to notice! But don't you EVER mention it, 'cuz if you do, we'll call you a racist!!! Finally, as your Democrat Congressman, I'll do whatever I can to weaken and huniliate our great nation! I hate America! Heck, our entire Party does! America is a backwards, imperialist nation of bitter, backwoods hicks who cling to guns, religion, and racism because they have nothing else to believe in. We're going to change that all that, for your own good! Why??? Because we love America - and that's why it MUST be destroyed!
I hope I can count on your vote this November!"
Yeah, it would be interesting to see how successful the Dems would be if they ran on their real platform, instead of masquearading as asocial conservatives every election cycle so they can continue to pull the wool over the eyes of their voters...
Watch out for the Conservative Tsunami of 2010-2012! It's coming for you! When it happens, will you be able to "get over it"??
BWAH-HAH-HAH!!!!
bruce| 11.5.08 @ 11:42AM
Hey, James The Dimwit, do you believe your own lies like half the other militantly ignorant kool aide drinkers who just elected the most liberal, socialist President in U.S. history? Case in point: you say, "I bet, like the vast majority of Americans, you did quite fine in the 90's under Clinton and the Democratic congress. " But you conveniently overlook the fact that during the final six of those eight Clinton years the Congress was controlled by conservative Rebublicans, not Democrats. Yes, most of us did quite well in the 90's, but it was largely due to the pro-business, pro-growth policies of capitalism passed in Congress by conservative leaders like Newt Gingrich. And President Clinton had the good sense to go along, realizing that he and Hillary's socialist overreaching had awakened the American electorate to their mistake, causing Americans to throw a bunch of Clinton's liberal bums out of Congress in the '94 elections. So you see, James, this isn't sour grapes by Mr. Ferrara, it's just lessons learned from history. That your history seems to come from an alternate reality only proves that Orwell's novel "1984" has come to life.
David| 11.5.08 @ 11:47AM
I would like to think Doctor Right is right about the coming Conservative Tsunami, but my instincts say no. The Spirit of '76 is long dead. There will be no modern-day Boston Tea Party because we lack the will to rise up and fight.
Just as FDR's New Deal and LBJ's Great Society are still with us and growing, Obama's victory has solidified the social welfare cause in the US for generations to come. The best the Republicans can hope for is caretaker government.
Doctor Right| 11.5.08 @ 12:15PM
David:
My advice...And I hope it's not too harsh...Is to gird your loins, and buck-up. There's a HUGE fight coming for the heart and soul of this nation, and we Conservatives must be willing to lead the charge. In fact, we must, in a manner of speaking, re-create the 1960's, but with a Conserative twist.
We've been down and out before. Remember the Carter years?? Remember 1992?? Bush 41 had a 90% approval rating in 1991, and he lost!!! The Dems were feeling pretty good about themselves between '92 and '94, that is, until we destroyed them in the '94 mid-term elections and seized control of the Congress and the Senate.
If you remember, the Dems-Libs were feeling pretty low back then...And dispirited. Those feelings intensified with Bush's victory in 2000, the Republican mid-term gains in 2002, and Bush's re-election in 2004. It wasn't until 2006 that they started to regain some serious traction, and even then, they needed to run stealth, Conservative-Democrat candidates to fool the voters.
So we may be down, but we are NOT out. Obama hasn't even taken office yet. The Dems DID NOT achieve their fillibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Count on Obama and the Dems to instantly over-reach in 2009, like the Clintons did in '93. It's inevitable, they're feeling way too cocky...The screw-ups will come. And the Republicans MUST position themselves to capitalize on each and every screw-up that the Democrats make.
Step one is to purge the Party of all of the weak-kneed Conservatives and Liberal repube-ikans. Step 2 is to organzie at the grass roots level and make sure that the American people understand what's happening, and what the Dem-Libs are trying to do.
But above all, don't despair!!!
This is a center-Right nation. The Dems know this, which is why they have to lie to the voters about their true intentions at each election cycle.
Robert| 11.5.08 @ 12:28PM
I guess one could say the Dem's have left their Marx on things.
Tom Paine| 11.5.08 @ 12:42PM
I don't know if you're trying to imply that Obama's victory was a defeat or "fall" of the flag.
If so, your argument is hopelessly lost.
A majority of Americans voted for Obama yesterday. We are the first western democracy to elect a black man chief executive. We sent a powerful signal to the world yesterday that American democracy is still the beacon of freedom in this world.
I think you should listen to John McCain's speech last night, which I think one of the most important speeches to be given during this election season.
Despite the peurile and absolutely contemptible idiots who booed when he mentioned Obama's name, McCain perservered and gave a speech that told the truth about the meaning of yesterday's election.
Tom Paine| 11.5.08 @ 12:48PM
Doctor Right --
When people say this is a "center right" nation, they usually fail to adequately emphasize the "center" part of that phrase.
It's true. The American people are by temperament conservative. However, they do not support all conservative policies, and the majority certainly do not support the entire Republican agenda.
For example, social security and medicare continue to be probably the most popular social programs in the history of this country. The vast majority of people absolutely rejected President Bush's attempt to do away with social security.
The vast majority of people also believe that the government should play some role in medical insurance, although there is great play between those who see a large and those who see a small role for government. Still, it's not as though the silent majority are a bunch of Milton Friedman types.
The vast majority of the American people also believe in the progressive income tax, which the Republicans now seem to be arguing is a form of socialism.
And, of course, the majority of voters yesterday voted for an unapologetically liberal candidate.
I would argue the reason for Obama's win is that like Americans in general he has a conservative, cautious, pragmatic, non-ideological temperament. It remains to be seen if people will support his policies. But that's what second term elections are all about.
Barry Schumann| 11.5.08 @ 1:12PM
We are now a communist nation. The press is controlled by the government, as are the banks, education, the military and soon energy. The great republic is lost and pontificating will not absolve this whatsoever.
Peter R McGrath| 11.5.08 @ 1:54PM
For most conservatives, McCain was a lesser of two evils and, had he won, he surely would have tacked to the center-left to accommodate his lib pals in the Senate. The consolation is that, with Obama, we'll get to watch a hard left meltdown which will leave our economy on life support and our foreign policy in shambles. Maybe, then, American will learn its lesson (all over again). Ferrara is right - it has been thirty years since the Carter debacle and most voters are too young to, or can't, remember what liberal governance can do to a listing republic. My hope and prayer, though, is that this latest "lesson" isn't learned from a capsized ship, with the passengers trapped inside the hull.
Tom Paine| 11.5.08 @ 2:23PM
Mr Schumann,
You should read the comments of some of your more temperate and philosophical brethren.
You write: "We are now a communist nation. The press is controlled by the government, as are the banks, education, the military and soon energy. The great republic is lost and pontificating will not absolve this whatsoever."
Much to be debated here. I'll point out just the following:
1. The military is controlled by the government even in countries that aren't communist.
2. Public school systems (controlled by the government) are crucial to democracies, as Jefferson was the first to point out.
3. If the press is controlled by the government, I'm an archbishop.
4. Energy has always been a major concern of the government. (We don't have 140,000 troops in Iraq because they grow artichokes there.) Oil, nuclear, coal energies have all been massively subsidized by the government for as long as they've existed. Remember, oil and coal are resources owned by sovereign nations, not persons -- government must be involved in their exploitation.
5. If the great Republic is lost, you sure could've fooled me. More people voted yesterday than in any election in the past. Republicans held on to most of their power. Democrats took back some of theirs. The ship of state is afloat. There are no tanks in the streets of DC. All is well with the world.
You should thank God you live in a stable, orderly, robust democracy --- and remember the people who actually do live in communist countries like the one you describe in your rather deluded post.
The Big E| 11.5.08 @ 2:29PM
To 'Obama Rules;' if you think last night showed this country to be a center-left country then you seriously need to upgrade your education (actual, not the crap passed off as education these days). Obama won because people hate Bush, pure and simple. They did not vote against conservatism; they couldn't. There was no conservative running. Furthermore, if the country is center-left, how do you explain what happened in California (hardly a bastion of conservatism by anyone's measure)? Obama won big there, and yet the same voters that overwhelmingly supported him passed a proposition banning gay marriage? Was that the action of a center-left populace? I doubt it. If the Republican Party will stop acting like a bunch spineless wimps and put real conservatives on ballots in 2010 and 2012, and then campaign for them like they mean it, Obama and his loony crew will be quickly dumped on the ash heap of history.
Bruce W Griffin| 11.5.08 @ 3:05PM
Mr Ferrara:
A genuinely excellent column--thoughtful, balanced, and fair-minded. A good basis for conservative rethinking as we try to rebuild for the years ahead. Once again, excellent work.
Erica Brigid| 11.5.08 @ 3:20PM
Welcome to the Acorn Revolution. Just like the Orange Revolution in Ukraine, Saakashvili's Rose Revolution in Georgia, America got the Acorn Revolution by the same rules: Discredit a competent President, sponsor massive rallies for vague causes like "change," ram a pro-Soros president down the country's throat by fraud and intimidation (Saakashvili won his "democratic" election by a castroite 97.7 percent of the vote. He has warrants out for the arrest of all his opponents; opposition candidate Badri Patarkatzishvili died in England of a heart ailment he didn't have when he was alive.) But just a few months after the 08/08/08 war Saakashvili's popularity is around 7.9 percent and his parliament is calling for a recall election (a post-soviet invention Thomas Jefferson would have greatly appreciated). Ukraine's "orange revolutionary" Viktor Yushchenko is losing support of even the people who backed him into power. "Sic semper tyrranis," including America's newest.
Tom Paine| 11.5.08 @ 3:38PM
Erica --
Demonizing ACORN isn't going to help your cause.
You either get candidates who can articulate dynamic, persuasive arguments about the direction the country ought to take, or you lose -- eventually.
W's two wins gave you guys the wrong idea about the criteria for being president. The American people are back to looking for competence, intelligence, and the ability to speak clearly and with conviction.
Thom| 11.5.08 @ 4:04PM
“W's two wins gave you guys the wrong idea about the criteria for being president. The American people are back to looking for competence, intelligence, and the ability to speak clearly and with conviction.”
Tom Paine, Hitler was quiet competent, intelligent and had the ability to speak clearly and with convictions. Other equally infamous dictators were just as good with some notable bad results. Note I’m not calling Obama Hitler but simply making the point that symbolism over substance is not the measure of a good leader. The same electorate that voted for W twice would by your reasoning got it wrong then but has now got it right? History kind of does not support such irrational swings in the voting patterns of Democracies as being a good thing in and of itself. To make the point a little more clearly, W wasn’t running for reelection, could not serve even if he had wanted to and John McCain is no more W than his father was Reagan’s third term. There is a bit more at work here and it is not good for the near term and probably longer.
Tom Paine| 11.5.08 @ 4:28PM
Thom --
Your reasoning is woefully inadequate.
Note: Hitler attacked a nation before that nation attacked Germany. So did Bush. Does that mean Bush is a Nazi? No.
Hitler blamed the economic and cultural anxieties of the majority on a minority. Republicans tell middle class families they will be safer and more stable in they prevent gay people from getting married. Does this mean Republicans are Nazis? No.
I point out that Obama is articulate. You say, "So is Hitler." I mean, listen to yourself, man. Get a grip. Have a little dignity.
I also pointed out that Obama has a conservative demeanor and temperament. He is thoughtful and rational. Hitler was none of these things.
So. Your analogy is false, foolish, shallow, and offensive. It clarifies nothing and simply creates confusion.
Take my advice. Retrench. Hole up for a while with some books and come up with some new ideas. If you're going to be a conservative, be a smart conservative. Learn to think, reason, write, and advocate in an intelligent and effective way.
Live into your actual potential. Calling Obama a Nazi or a socialist or a communist or a traitor or a marxist or a sexist or terrorist is more than out of the ordinary stupidity and it is beneath you, so grow up and get with it.
trebort49| 11.5.08 @ 4:57PM
1. Within the last two weeks, Iran called for using nuclear weapons - which it avidly is trying to develop - on Israel.
2. Russia is making overtures to Hugo Chavez' totalitarian Venezuela. That's Hugo Chavez, who is not exactly one of the USA's friends and who sounds more like Fidel in 1960.
3. Russia has just announced that it is siting missiles just east of Poland. Why? It surely isn't for defense, no matter what Medvedev says.
And the President-Elect will not take office for another 76 days. Is he going to respond like Teddy Roosevelt - or Neville Chamberlain?
The Big E| 11.5.08 @ 5:15PM
Tom Paine:
Actually, comparing Obama's campaign with the one that brought Hitler to power is not such a stretch.
As you pointed out, Hitler blamed the problems of the majority on a minority. Obama did basically the same thing, but instead of pointing the finger at a particular racial group he pointed it at a particular economic group. For years, Democrats have obtained and maintained power by pitting American against American. The go to working class neighborhoods and point the finger at management. They go to black neighborhoods and point the finger at whites. They talk to women and point the finger at men. Their entire strategy for years has been to divide our house against itself and then claim to be fighting for "the little guy."
Another similarity to Hitler's campaign - Hitler promised to "change" the fabric of Germany and "restore" it's position in the world. Obama has promised to fundamentally change the country and restore our good name in the world.
Like Hitler, Obama is a charismatic and gifted orator who keenly understands the power of symbolism.
Like Hitler, Obama connected with many of his followers in an emotional, rather than intellectual, way that made his positions irrelevant to them (in other words, he developed a cult of personality around himself).
Like Hitler, some of Obama's followers have tried to stifle dissenting opinions during the election (not in the hideously violent way employed by Hitler's thugs, though not without the occasional threat)
Like Hitler, Obama has associated with some pretty radical characters, yet tried to present himself during the campaign as a centrist.
Finally, like Hitler, many people who supported Obama apparently don't think he'll actually do all that radical stuff he has previously said should be done.
Quite frankly, the similarities are pretty stark.
Now, I'm NOT saying that Obama is Hitler (though his comments about a National Civilian Security force are more then a little unnerving - what need is there for such a thing in a free society?) But to deny the similarities between the two is disingenuous (or else it is demonstrative of an ignorance of history).
jr| 11.5.08 @ 5:42PM
BHO will be in the WH for 8 years during which he and the Demos will start the biggest welfare and wealth distribution type programs than that of FDR and LBJ. What is "left?" You ain't seen nothing yet. He will start his brown shirt program with AKORN people. He will bring most of the US troops home and get them in as brown shirts or part of his CCC or WPA programs. He pledged to rebuild the infrastructure and that is where the new CCC/WPA programs will go. Big Bro will be helping us to just get along, as long as we do not tilt his boat. Those who fawned, swooned, and feinted in his presence will be shocked, shocked before his 2 terms are completed. A pundit said in his/her today's article that Obama will not be as left as Pelosi and Reid -- wrong.
Tom Paine| 11.5.08 @ 6:06PM
Big E --
Your reasoning is fallacious and absurd.
Follow me, now:
Like George W Bush, Hitler had two arms, two legs, and a nose.
Like Bush, Hitler often ate potatoes.
Like Bush, Hitler was sometimes angry, sometimes sad, and other time, just plain bored.
You are making pointless analogies that make no sense.
Before you can make historical analogies, you need a powerful, detailed, and extremely erudite grasp of the historical times you are comparing.
I don't think you really understand much of what you've heard or been told about Obama, his policy proposals, or the facts of his life.
I know for certain that you have only a superficial understanding of Hitler and Nazi Germany. I could recommend several books you might read on this topic, if you wish. It certainly is important to learn about. But don't broadcast your ignorance by comparing Obama to Hitler. It's silly and utterly foolish.
Jerry| 11.5.08 @ 9:02PM
Chancellor Obama will only get 4 years before he's out. I am confident. He is not main stream. With a $600 Million dollar budget (with quite a bit from questionable sources) ,the poor economy (degraded by Frank's, Dodd's, Raines', and Schumer's irresponsibility), the spin of Axelrod/Burton keeping their lies/hypocrisy in line, free mainstream media support, and a really great speaking voice, this First term Senator will fail to wow anyone after the first year. Except for George Soros... I'm sure he's as proud as a father giving birth to a new sun... I see Hamas celebrated today by launching 35 rockets to Israel... and Medvedev is having Russia make some interesting moves...
George Bush was not a true conservative. His spending was outrageous... and I am yet to find where Democrats denied him his reckless nature.
Once the Bush tax cuts expire, the liberals show their aclu cards, and political correctness is made law, Americans will soon be frustrated and embarrassed at their choice. They will be as ashamed of their choice as I am today.
Make no mistake, Chancellor Obama is no Hitler.
Nor is he the saint to heal America's wounds.
His administration will be mediocre at best.
He lack of bipartisanship will shine brightest.
His inexperience will be manifest by having to hold Joe Biden's hand at every international conflict.
His campaign to end "politics as usual" ended today when choosing Rahm Emanuel as his chief of staff.
His $1 Trillion dollar expanded budget will be remembered as a bigger waste than the money spent while he was on the Woods Fund project... zero educational effect.
I am confident another conservative will rise to the occasion to correct the mistakes made by this group of liberals. Conservatives who place a high value on individual effort. People who respect the American constitution, entreprenuerial spirit, and the value of human life.
Notice that I never used the word Democrat, there are conservative Democrats I trust. But the liberals like Chancellor Obama will not be trusted as they build big government failures onto bigger government failures.
Liberals, take notice. Have your day of gloating, have your day of laughing, have your day of worshipping your ideals embodied in a mere man. We are watching, we are waiting, and we will once again restore American pride.
Tom Paine| 11.5.08 @ 10:46PM
Jerry --
I'm just curious why you use "Chancellor."
Tens of millions of people elected Obama president yesterday.
You don't have to agree with Obama, but have a little respect for the country in which you live.
You should thank God you live in a stable, robust democracy like ours. We just went through a massive transformation of government, and yet the Republic is fundamentally the same today as it was yesterday.
You need to learn something about the genius of the American system of government.
President Bush articulated the point very well today when he talked about the great change we're going through but that great stability and enduring principles that guide that change.
I'm not one to quote this president too often, and he drives me completely crazy sometimes. But he has his moments, and his speech today was one of them.
Chin up, man. You get to vote again in four years. No Chancellor is come to take away your freedoms. We had a Republican president. Now we have a Democratic president. It's a pretty big deal, but the planet will revolve around the sun tomorrow the same as it did today.
ruth| 11.5.08 @ 11:07PM
Hey, TP, maybe in four years we'll also get to vote 20 times each like you democrats did yesterday. That should even things up a bit.
Sadistic Cow| 11.6.08 @ 1:41AM
Ruth.... don't forget about ALL the dead people that voted this year too. Especially in Ohio where voter fraud is at it's best!!!
the-gunslsinger| 11.6.08 @ 1:49AM
"I'm just curious why you use "Chancellor."
Tens of millions of people elected Obama president yesterday. "
Millions of free people elected the "Chancellor" too.
Nathan| 11.6.08 @ 2:32AM
I'll give you Bush as a good man, but with 2 recession's, an over 50% increase in unemployment, a doubling of the national debt and the trashing of a trillion dolar surplus into a trillion dollar deficit will garner him the title as America's most incompetent President. Nixon was a bit shifty, Cater was a one-termer, and Buchanan was so long ago. Bush has been history's Grand Dufus.
Tom Paine| 11.6.08 @ 1:33PM
Ruth and Sadistic Cow --
You are fooling yourselves if you believe that Obama won because of people voting multiple times.
Dozens of nationwide polls confirm the vote to within astonishingly close predictions. All of the major national polls were just about right, although they predicted a slightly LARGER (not smaller) turn out for Obama.
In addition, 5 years of investigations by the Bush justice department on so-called voter "fraud" turned up just over 100 cases, 86 of which resulted in conviction, out of hundreds of millions of ballots cast.
I know I'm coming from the "reality based" world and not the "Limbaugh based" or "faith based" world.
But those are the facts. Get used to them. It's a new day in America.
ruth| 11.6.08 @ 2:21PM
You're riding high right now, TP. Let's see how your party does this next year--because we'll be watching.
Thom| 11.6.08 @ 3:30PM
Tom Paine, Do you ever read what others write before you hit the submit button on your boiler plate talking points?
"Note I’m not calling Obama Hitler but simply making the point that symbolism over substance is not the measure of a good leader."
Supra Shoes| 11.18.09 @ 4:56AM
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