"Be Prepared"

In Retsopect, She Did Exceedingly Well

Looking back on the period before the Republican Convention in 2008, one does well to remember that Joe Lieberman was the guy for Vice-President. That is, of course if you believed the conventional wisdom that Republicans needed to become more like Democrats to win elections -- a myth gleefully propagated by the 'mainstream' media.

Here's the problem though; give Colin Powell his 'ideal' Republican candidate and he still bolts from the ranks and endorses Obama. Face it, the Democrats will always be better at being Democrats than Republicans will. Forgotten in all this was the unique message that the party offers voters.

There were voices in the wilderness, however, that saw the value of returning to the party's life-affirming and government restraining roots. Nat Hentoff [click to read] was one such voice.

In a last ditch effort to save the floundering McCain campaign the party actually listened to the voices of people like Hentoff and brought Governor Palin into the fray as the upcoming convention rapidly filled the windshield. Palin was a popular governor who voted her conscience [and, hear this Washington, still HAD one]! She was rushed to the front and did very well. Without the economic meltdown that the Democrats so effectively tied to Bush, her energy very likely would have pulled out a win. The base was back in the game. A lot of independent voters were still signing up for 'change,' whatever 'change' was... the rest is history

When people I know start bashing Governor Palin for her inexperience, unreadiness, or whatever, I like to point out her Opinion Pieces [click to read] in such publications as the Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post [click to read]. The issues that counted when she was a governor rated her serious scholarship. Pronouncing Joe Biden's name right probably didn't get all that much thought. Looks Like She'll Get Plenty of Opportunity to Get it Right [click to read] in the very near future as a regular contributor to The Fox Network [click to read]. ht/SWAC Girl

Update: More on Governor Palin:

Larry Elder on Palin [click to read].

The Book of Sarah [click to read].

Texas for Palin [click to read].



THYME Magazine's 'Woman of the Year' [click to read].

Team Sarah [click to read].

Conservatives for Palin [click to read]. ht/Mike, SWAC Girl

Nominations for the Demmy Awards

Time to Remember Those Spineless Senators...


My next project is modelled after Joe Klein's Teddy award for courage... only it's for LACK of spine that this award is given.

Yes, it is time to remember those spineless public servants in the US Senate. The 2009 Demmys are open for nominations. There are some so obvious that I've already created the... er... award.

Others may come to mind so please nominate as many as you wish [limit60]. I want to publish before New Year's Eve. Write a brief reason whythe Senator is deserving... example: "Joe Lieberman, predictably unpredictable... look at his voting record and forget what he says."

I'll have some more from the 'official' Joe Lieberman criticizer, Binyamin Jolkovsky, but please go for the creative gold here.

First Up: Senator Jim Webb, D, VA

Nominated by SWAC Girl

Jim Webb came into office as the "R2D2" of the 2006 U.S. Senate campaign, an indecisive candidate who had been a Republican, then a Democrat, back to a Republican, and finally a Democrat again ... who had not followed through in previously held offices ... who was "elected" by the Washington Post and liberal bloggers over a made-up controversy ... who said he would represent the citizens of Virginia.

When push came to shove over Obama's socialist policies, Webb caved and went along lock-step with his fellow Democrats. When Virginians wanted to meet with him during the summer of 2009 to discuss health care, he scurried away overseas for his summer break and never held a townhall meeting to hear their concerns.

When Virginians overwhelmingly voted Republican in November to oppose ObamaCare, Webb pretended it didn't happen. And when the Senate was called on to continue to jam its fist down the throats of the majority of American citizens opposed to socialized health care, Jim Webb didn't care. He voted for cloture, voted for cloture again, and then voted for nationalized health care on Christmas Eve 2009. For acting like a donkey's hindquarters, he definitely deserves a Demmy Award.

Second Up: Senator Joe Lieberman, D, CT

Nominated by Bob K

It's no secret that Joe Lieberman caved on health care. Michelle Malkin [1.] points out how Binyamin Jolkovsky of Jewish World Review has documented a track record of similar behavior: "When Connecticut senator and former Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Lieberman mischaracterized orthodox Jewish doctrine on the Don Imus show and later courted anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan, Jolkovsky bluntly exposed Lieberman's sellout of his core religious beliefs in pursuit of higher public office."

He's not exactly the person I want to hear saying: "Got your back," if you know what I mean.

Stay tuned for more nominations...