Nov
22
Doing My Part
Filed Under Blogging and Computers | Leave a Comment
As part of my effort to protect freedom for the next generation, I’ve become the tech specialist for the Republican Young Professionals of Pasco County. I used blogger to put up the website here. Take a look!
It’s also important to point out that zoominac.com is my personal blog, and the opinions expressed here are mine alone and do not necessarily represent those of the RYPPC. ‘Ya mean?
Nov
19
But This Time Around….
Filed Under Healthcare | 1 Comment
On an episode of Democracy Now! last week, host Amy Goodman spoke with Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) about the recently passed House healthcare bill. Kucinich was lamenting the fact that the legislation was not sufficiently socialist for his standards, as it did not include a public option:
And we’re being told all the time, Amy, that our options keep getting limited. We were told last year the only way people could get unemployment benefits is if Congress votes for war, the only way we can pass a hate crime is if Congress votes for war, the only way we can get housing is to give Wall Street a bailout. And that didn’t put people back in—most people back in their homes who lost them. You know, we’re going to get jobs by giving Wall Street a bailout; that didn’t work. Businesses are going to be helped by giving Wall Street a bailout; that didn’t work.
Obviously, Kucinich and I are on completely different ends of the political spectrum. However, I share his disappointment with the results of government action as opposed to what was promised by legislators when bills were passed.
What I don’t share is Kucinich’s continued faith in government to solve our problems. Many on the left and far left complain that Washington and the politicians who run it are “controlled” or “bought and paid for” by “corporate interests” and the like. Such influence shapes bills that come out of congress to the benefit of these special interests. My solution would be to greatly reduce the bills coming out of congress period. If the government is so corrupt and tainted by whatever boogeyman the Democrats are pointing out today, then wouldn’t the most prudent course of action be to let the government have as little control over our live as possible?
Kucinich and the liberals disagree. They believe that the problem is not the system of government itself, but just the specific individuals that are currently in power. Just give ME a chance, and I’ll fix it, they say.
This time it will be different!
Faith in “reform” that amounts to nothing more than expanded government relies on your trust in politicians. The video below pretty much sums up my feeling here:
Trust me.
Nov
5
From AP, via Tom Jackson on TBO:
TALLAHASSEE - Gov. Charlie Crist is saying he did not endorse the $787 billion federal stimulus bill, a statement that might confuse some voters. [Confuse is putting it mildly; irritate, astonish, infuriate, flabbergast, now those are more appropriate terms—Ed.]
Crist appeared with President Barack Obama in February to support the bill, asked Florida members of Congress to vote for it and previously told The Associated Press that he would have voted for it if he had been in the Senate.
But when the Republican governor talked about the bill Wednesday on CNN, he said he didn’t endorse it. Crist told CNN he understood that the bill was going to pass and wanted to use it for the benefit of Florida.
Crist has tried to distance himself from Obama and the stimulus bill since entering the 2010 Senate race in the spring.
Crist is a complete joke. He hugs the Spender in Chief at rallies and works to hamstring Florida’s economy in the name of the “environment” when it’s politically convenient. Then he runs deceptive radio ads to make him look like Mr. Conservative:
Florida’s airwaves are alive with the sound of Governor Charlie Crist’s radio advertisement trumpeting his grade of “A” on Cato’s “Fiscal Policy Report Card on America’s Governors.”
I am pleased that Gov. Crist values Cato’s ratings because we work hard to make them accurate and nonpartisan. But the radio ad is making many fiscally conservative Floridians scratch their heads because of the governor’s recent policy actions.
The governor earned his Cato grade in last year’s report mainly because of his large property tax cuts and moderate spending approach. The grade was based purely on quantitative data on revenues, general fund spending, and tax rate changes.
However, since I wrote the report in mid-2008, the governor seems to have fallen off the fiscal responsibility horse.
In particular, Crist approved a huge $2.2 billion tax increase for the fiscal 2010 budget, even though he had promised that $12 billion in federal “stimulus” money showered on Florida over three years would obviate the need for tax increases.
Crist is a spender, a central planner, and a nanny-statist. Marco Rubio better pull this thing out.
Nov
4
Moving Forward
Filed Under Conservatism | Leave a Comment
Last night’s elections were good news for recovering conservatives: Christie in NJ, McDonnell in VA, and Hoffman barely loses on a third party ticket to the Democrat endorsed by the party-money-taking RINO Scozzafava. The races, especially in the case of NY-23, have brought about a lot of chatter about how the GOP should move forward, how it can remain viable and principled, and what level of moderation we should be willing to accept in places where conservatives are typically not found.
AOSHQ had some thoughts on the future of the Republican party and the supposed conflict between conservatives and moderates:
I do not think these two camps are as far apart as their proponents seem to think. It is often the case that maximalists accuse, or suggest, that pragmatists aren’t interested in electing more conservative candidates, or of supporting more conservative primary challengers to confirmed RINOs. And it often the case that pragmatists (including myself) seem to talk as if the maximalists are unaware that a Tom Coburn type candidate wouldn’t fare so well in liberal New Jersey or arch-Democratic Maryland.
For what it’s worth, I agree with Mike Flynn at Big Government that fiscal, and not social conservatism will be the real divining rod in the politics of the future (emphasis mine):
This year, the Washington Post—the most effective arm of the Virginia Democrat Party—thought it found the silver bullet to kill the gubernatorial campaign of republican Bob McDonnell. They unearthed a 20-year old thesis McDonnell wrote in college that contained some pretty embarrassing statements–at least by today’s standards—about whether, for example, families are better off if the wife doesn’t work outside the home. The Democrats based almost their entire campaign, and the Post based most of its coverage, on McDonnell’s thesis. It must chill them to the bone that McDonnell is set to win by one of the larger margins in state history. It isn’t that the public, or even McDonnell today, agrees with what’s in the thesis; they just don’t care.
Conservatives, independents, and libertarian-leaning Republicans like myself will often be determining their support on fiscal issues, and I think that fiscal conservatism is something that can win nearly everywhere. I will not, however, join the chorus of bashing the “religious right” and looking to cast out a very important segment of the party. Nor will I, as Ace warned in his post, push my unorthodox positions (pro drug legalization and pro gay rights) as electoral winners. They are my positions, and I can try to persuade others to agree with me to the full extent of my ability, but I will not claim that they are viable political tools. As the Maine results showed, support for traditional marriage is still popular, even in liberal leaning states. And many who take an individualist or libertarian view on the issues are pro-life, which is where I stand.
I understand that there will need to be varying degrees of political positions for Republicans throughout the country. However, there must be a brand that voters can identify and count on in our party. We must stand for something, but we cannot stand for anything. Arlen Specterand Dede Scozzafava have no place on our side.
So where do we draw the line? We needn’t be open to everything, essentially political whores who see our next John in every voting block. Nor must we be the extremist caricature that the media paints conservatives to be. I think there are certain principles that every Republican in the country can and should support, which give voters a clear and consistent choice in contrast with the socialist Democrats, while still inclusive enough to win elections and, ya know, actually do something. Every Republican candidate in the country should believe that:
- The size of government should not be increased - We may disagree with what the ideal size of government should be. Some believe it is a hedge that needs trimming. I think it is a pit viper that should be strangled. However, we can agree that the whole thing is too damn big as it is, and no more should be added. That means no to Obamacare and the stimulus. Republicans can disagree to a lot of things while still holding to this maxim.
- All things being equal, the people who earn the money should be the ones to spend it and will do so better than the government can.
- Whatever path society follows in the future, government should be neutral. Government should be reffing the game, not calling the plays.
- The three branches of government should stick to their roles prescribed by the founders, especially in regards to the judiciary.
- The United States should have the most powerful military in the world, as deterrence through strength is the surest path to peace. Liberal democracies have a natural bond that should not be shunned in international relations. The United States is not perfect, but overall has played a positive and liberating role in history. The United States was a victim on September 11, 2001, not a perpetrator. There is NO excuse for terrorism, nor any apology necessary for our self defense. The 9/11 attacks were not meant to be a solitary event - they were not the beginning of Al-Quaeda’s war on the United States, and they were not the end (can you hear me Ron Paul?).
In addition, with Obama’s clowns in office, this period will present a great oppurtunity to the GOP to pick off the low hanging fruit - things like transparency, honesty, ethics, and competence. All around winners.
To borrow from our Dear Leader, let me be clear. The stakes of losing elections, even for the sake of purity, are very high. However, we can not elect RINO candidates whose only accomplishment is to put GOP fingerprints on legislative clusterfucks like Medicare Part D, NCLB, TARP and Obamacare, allowing us to be indicted when these things inevitably blow up in America’s face. There can be room for dissent on issues, but we must offer a choice, not an echo.
