Around the World in 80 Lines - Or Less

Gadhafi’s Speech Fails to Set Record

Looking like a refugee from a Star Wars’ bar scene, waning Libyan strong-man Moammar Gadhafi broadcast his confused harangue to an audience of captive Libyans for a mere two hours. He again failed to set a Guinness World Record for speech length by a dysfunctional, megalomaniacal, delusional tyrant. 

The current record is in dispute, but Fidel Castro, Nikita Kruschev and Hugo Chavez all have much longer, documented diatribes. Kim Jung Il’s speeches were disqualified because they are actually delivered by a Disney-manufactured Animatronic “Doc” dwarf with a bad dye job.

Gadhafi is blaming the US for his domestic problems and is vowing to make himself “a martyr” in response. As Oscar Wilde said, “A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it,” but if Gadhafi wants to inhale an RPG then I might be willing to think about it.

The self-proclaimed “Mad Dog of the Middle East” decides upon martyrdom just as a former Libyan Justice Minister states that Gadhafi was much more involved in downing the Lockerbie, Scotland, downing of Pan Am Flight 103 than previously believed. I’m sure there are Americans - especially those related to the 259 innocents killed, as well as Libyans, who would gladly help Gadhafi toward his stated goal of assuming room temperature.

Remember the Federal Debt

With the focus of Americans split between the Middle East and the Wisconsin teachers’ drama, the federal debt has slipped from the view of many. Republicans are in a position to use an agreement to a continuing resolution to wring spending cuts from Democrats. The questions will be: 1) Will the Democrats believe they can bluff Republicans into approving a series of continuing resolutions that fail to cut spending; and, 2) If, as is almost certain, they do believe so, will Republicans then fold?

Washington’s addiction to spending taxpayers’ money is obvious – as is the fact that Congress is in denial. Is there a 12-step program for governments?

Democrat State Legislators Continue Hide-n-Seek Marathon

Rumor is that the missing Democrat Wisconsin state senators are hiding on loony leftist Keith Olbermann’s TV show. This will likely come to light as soon as Olbermann has a viewer. 

Correction and Amplification: It turns out Olbermann's scheduled show on Current (aka Albert Gore, Jr.) TV has not yet aired. Who knew?

Democrat state legislators from Indiana are also in hiding rather than vote on legislation which they do not have the votes to stop. At this rate Democrats may want to change the name of their party to reflect something they actually believe in; and it’s obviously not representative Democracy. I’m accepting nominations for a new, more appropriate name and symbol. One nomination is the “Denial Party” and their mascot would be an ostrich.

Harry Reid and Prostitution

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is working on a way to continue to fund the federal government rather than work on ways to cut federal spending. Reid is also calling for an end to legal prostitution in Nevada. Having just run a political campaign there, isn’t Reid a hypocrite?

Beautiful, Sleepy, Deadly Mexico

Recent tragic events have brought home the point that Americans are no longer safe in Mexico. It appears that warring drug cartels are a large part of this, but this is a departure from their previous strategies that avoided violence toward Americans. It begs the question, “What happens when those drug cartels change their strategies to include distribution in the United States?”

For Mexican drug cartels, it’s a business decision. There are those who argue this will never happen, but for the drug lords, it’s simply “vertical integration”. Like all business decisions, it’s a matter of risk and reward and the only way to halt it is to either increase risk or reduce reward so that it’s not a profitable project.

Part of that strategy to increase drug cartel costs might be to do a much better job of halting illegal border crossings. So obviously the Obama Administration will . . . file another lawsuit against Arizona! Yes, the Arizona legislature has proposed new anti-illegal immigration legislation, which will inevitably be challenged by the Obama Administration as soon as it is passed. Good luck on that, Arizona.

The Strategy to Begin Balancing the Budget

Entitlements are the 800-pound, beer-chugging, Angel Dust-snorting, psychotic gorilla in the room. It may be too late, but people are beginning to get a little nervous. Because of their size, we all know that entitlement programs, such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid must be addressed if we are to balance the budget. The question is: Will Congress do so?

Even minor changes in Social Security, though, have met with surprising resistance from politicians on the left and from recipients. Some sensible suggestions phase in minor changes and don’t affect anyone within 10 years of retirement and affects no current recipients. The overblown reaction to such suggestions are emotional rather than logical, and this must be taken into account.

I am convinced that Americans will accept changes to entitlement programs if – and only if – they are convinced that all other measures have been undertaken. So while entitlement benefit payouts must be reduced, but only after other programs have taken their hits.

Before taking on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid; Republicans in Congress should work to eliminate the Department of Energy, the Department of Education, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and that’s just a beginning. Funding can be eliminated or reduced, for Obamacare, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Defense and others.

If the GOP-led House fails to accomplish this, then the burden shifts to the Democrats. Republicans can even, somewhat believably, claim that transfer payments might have taken a lighter hit if the other cuts had not be stone-walled by Democrat legislators in the US Senate.

If these cuts or eliminations are made, then the recipients of transfer payments will know that the task of balancing the budget won’t be completely on their backs. They will also understand that the current fiscal problems are, indeed, serious. For that reason, these other programs must go first, even if they are a lesser part of the deficit.

Interestingly, it has mostly been the Democrats that have accused Republicans of making “meaningless cuts” – small cuts that the Democrats could have made when they controlled both bodies of the legislative branch and the executive branch. Democrats are challenging Republicans to take on transfer payments by minimizing other GOP-suggested cuts. These accusations also go along with a strategy that some have openly accused the Democrats of undertaking.

President Obama’s suggested budget was described in newspapers as everything from “not serious” to “a joke” partly because it failed to address entitlement spending at all. Obama has been accused of playing political games with the deficit; almost daring Republicans to address transfer payments. The theory is that whatever changes the Republicans suggest, Democrats will accuse Republicans of “putting Grandma on a 9 Lives diet”.

My belief is that if Republicans follow my suggestion and eliminate money-pit federal programs first, the Democrats' high-level hypocrisy on the budget will stand starkly highlighted against a background of self-serving demagoguery. If that happens then the corrections to entitlement spending has a chance to be made law.

The 800-pound gorilla won’t go away until he is dealt with properly, but the political game of “Economic Chicken” needs to be made meaningless first. The only way to do that is to address other spending cuts first and to do so brutally.

The Jim Marshall Farewell Tour, Robo-Calls and Other Political Mysteries

The Jim Marshall Farewell Tour

Welcome back, my friends,
To the show that never ends
We’re so glad you could attend
Come inside, come inside. – Karn Evil 9 First Impression by Emerson, Lake and Palmer

The third month of the Jim Marshall Farewell Tour is now well underway with no end in sight. Marshall’s eight years of Congressional service weren’t exactly the stuff of legends, so why the big fuss? After all Democrat Marshall just lost a popular election to Republican Austin Scott.

At this rate, the celebration of Marshall’s relatively short Congressional career may continue into 2012. Then the question will become, “Ummm, isn’t this campaigning?” Redistricting may take care of that question, but apparently many residents of Macon, especially the editorial board of the Macon Telegraph, are jonesing for a resident US Representative. I’m willing to lay odds that wish won’t be granted within this decade.

On the bright side, Marshall is receiving praise for his professional and helpful attitude in the transition of the GA-8 Congressional offices and constituent services. This is a good thing.

On the other hand, In a single story, The Macon Telegraph flubbed both the Warner Robins physical address of GA-8’s new congressman, Austin Scott, and the telephone number for Scott’s Tifton office. The correct Warner Robins address is 230 Margie Drive, and the correct Tifton phone number is 229 396-5175. Everyone makes mistakes, but combined with their editorials and the flubbed election coverage (to Scott’s detriment), the continued errors are beginning to look like a pattern. Only liberals can manage to use incompetence as a weapon.

Mystery Robo-Calls

Last week many Georgians received robo-calls reminding them that “most Georgia counties” were conducting their mass precinct meetings on Saturday, February 12th and that all Georgia voters should attend. Most people receiving the automated calls assumed that the calls were paid for by the Georgia GOP. They weren’t.

This explains a couple of obvious mistakes. For example, less than 20 Georgia counties had their mass precinct meetings in February. The remainder – counties with a population under 80,000 as of the 2000 census - will have their meetings on March 12th. In addition, the call encouraged all registered voters to attend the meetings, not as the GOP Georgia Call to Convention states: “. . . residents who are legally registered to vote and believe in the principles of the Republican Party are urged to participate in this process.” No word yet on who paid for the robo-calls. Honest mistakes or something a little more sinister? Either way, it’s Georgia politics as usual.

High-Speed Rail in Georgia?

While I love the idea of high-speed rail in Georgia, unless the state government indulges in widespread mass-discount lobotomies, it shouldn’t happen. We don’t have the population density to support mass transit rail and we don’t have the need for high-speed rail. If the needs were there, then private companies would provide it.

We don’t need to spend money to build a public service that will cost us more money every year. The mystery here is why anyone would seriously consider the state building a rail system. When the rail enthusiasts call, “All aboard!” just remember that the trestle down the track is out and the state can’t afford to fix it.

James Clapper: Director of National Intelligence or Human Oxymoron?

From the “Never trust a man named after an ‘As Seen on TV’ product” department comes Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. Clapper proclaimed, "The term Muslim Brotherhood is an umbrella term for a variety of movements. In the case of Egypt, a very heterogeneous group, largely secular, which has eschewed violence and has decried al-Qaeda as a perversion of Islam.”

If I were to buy this claim, then I would expect to see large numbers of Christians and Jews as members. I’m betting there is not a Southern Baptist wing of the Muslim Brotherhood or an Orthodox Jewish wing or a Hindu wing. I’m betting they are pretty much all Muslim and pretty much all anti-Israel and pretty much all fans of Iran, and to quote the Eagles from Victim of Love, “I could be wrong, but I’m not.”

A spokesman for Clapper – they weren’t going to let Clapper near a microphone twice that day – later said that Clapper meant that the Muslim Brotherhood was willing to work through secular political system. look out Michael Phelps, because in Clapper’s little world everything that swims is a fish.

The truth is that for a Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper is certainly lacking intelligence. You can take that either way and be right.

Congress: Act or Fail

Let’s be clear about one thing. The phrase “reduce the deficit” is a nice way to say “raise the debt more slowly.” Many voters don’t understand the difference between the “debt” and the “deficit” and quite a few think they mean the same thing. It is in everyone’s best interests that people understand the meaning of the terms and why they are so important.

The federal debt is the accumulation of every budget deficit this nation has ever had minus the extremely rare budget surpluses. If we “reduce the deficit” it just means that we added less debt than we added the previous year. Does that really sound like a good thing?

The only way to reduce the federal debt is to have annual budget surpluses. We’re not even close to having a surplus and a surplus has not been proposed by anyone in a position to make it happen.

If annual budget surpluses were a kind of animal, then they would be on the endangered species list and believed extinct. Seeing a federal budget surplus would be like sighting a flock of Passenger Pigeons being chased by Saber-Toothed Tigers as Wooly Mammoths watched. To see a federal budget surplus with the Democrats controlling the US Senate and occupying the White House would be like sighting a flock of Passenger Pigeons wearing I-Pods being chased by unicycle-riding Saber-Toothed Tigers as Wooly Mammoths watched while doing the Hula.

In normal situations, to produce a budget surplus, the federal government must do some combination of three things: increase its income, decrease its spending or sell its assets. In this instance, there is another thing that can and must be done first: we must reduce the risk to American businesses from government.

There is always risk in conducting business, and there will always be risk. Risk can be mitigated, to a degree, depending upon the amount of control the business has over the threat. A farmer can’t control the weather, but he can invest in an irrigation system and buy insurance in case of natural disasters.

What a farmer, or other businessman, cannot do is control a rogue federal government that stubbornly refuses to understand the reality of commerce. President Obama says he wants business growth but his actions are anti-growth. Of course business is concerned and reluctant to spend money in a bad economy with a clueless administration whose identity is wrapped in anti-business policies such as Cap and Trade, Obamacare, increased taxes and increased restrictions on energy production.

If the Obama Administration really wants to encourage business growth, which is a much more efficient way to increase revenues, then it would simply halt its actions that increase risks to business. That course of action would not only increase production, it would reduce costs to business and government.

Another threat to business is the looming federal debt and this is where we must rely on Congress. That debt, and the federal government’s failure to take it seriously, discourage investments. A reduction in spending would allow the private sector access to resources which it could use for productive means.

There are predictions of economic doom if the federal government reduces spending too quickly. It would make sense if economic shocks were to happen, and there is a strong argument that reducing entitlements too quickly would almost certainly be chaotic.

On the other hand, as we rack up more debt daily, we are reducing our available options to control our own future. I mentioned earlier that there are various combinations of things that can be done to begin reducing the debt. The final option is to default on our debt and every day that passes without actions to reduce spending and the debt we are a day closer to complete failure.

Taking bold action in the face of an oncoming crisis is risky. Failure to take bold action in the face of an oncoming crisis is not risky because the outcome is known; it is a guarantee of total failure.

Congress, the time has come: Act or Fail.

The Tyrants Have You Either Way: The Death Tax

Most recently there was the “Breath Tax”: a governmental punishment of the living, a health care bill to make you ill, a taxation on your inhalation. First, though, was the “Death Tax”: a governmental punishment of the dead, a terminal take before the wake, a last confiscation before the final destination. For now, let's look at the latter also called the inheritance tax.

If a person works hard enough to “shuffle off this mortal coil” with a certain amount of assets, some believe it is that person’s duty to leave a portion to those not of his choosing. How natural that a man leave behind something for those things he loves: his family, his church, his civic organization, or his favorite charity. How unnatural that he should leave something behind to his government which, through taxation and regulation, made the accumulation of his wealth so difficult.

A cynical man, such as myself, is not beyond pointing out that the liberals’ concept of the death tax takes power from individuals and gives it to the favorite tool of the left, the federal government. It is no surprise that the idea rests – actually, it lounges arrogantly – upon the thoughts of communist hero Karl Marx. “From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs.” Does that sound familiar? It should; Marx made it popular after stealing the phrase from Louis Blanc.

Blanc’s statement is based on the class-warfare concept that there can be no win-win agreements. One side must always take advantage of the other and individuals can never mutually profit from a business deal. Based on this, if you die wealthy then you have cheated others significantly and so the taking of your assets should be legal and is even just.

As he has stated on talk shows repeatedly, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) thinks that because a person is dead his wishes while alive no longer have merit, and neither do the current wishes of his heirs. However; if that’s true, then why doesn’t Schumer encourage the government simply take all of the money from all estates of all sizes? His logic dictates this should be the case. And if the government has use for half of your money, then surely it has a use for the other half.

Why don’t liberals advocate that Washington take it all? Why not take 100% of even the smallest inheritance? They don’t yet dare commandeer an entire estate, because they are afraid voters will look at their rationale and reject every bit of it. It is our willingness to concede the incorrect Marxist principles that emboldens them to pilfer at all from the dead.

Senator Schumer, and his other liberal allies, attempt to make the point that the dead person made the money, not his family and therefore the family has no right to that money. Yet, the family was deprived of the use of that money during the deceased’s lifetime, because they could not consume what he was investing. In real life, unlike the Congressional Budget Office’s analysis of Obama’s health care package, money cannot simultaneously be “invested” by a government program while being spent elsewhere.

Schumer’s thoughts beg another question: Why should the government get the money? I have yet to see anyone in the media ask Schumer this simple question. If the individual, not the family, earned the money, then the government certainly did not earn the money, so why should it get a penny? And if the government does get it, why not the local government? Why should the federal government be able to confiscate the result of a man’s life work? Perhaps someone will ask Schumer this question, because the family is the smallest and oldest political unit.

It was the sacrifice of the family, as well as the individual, that made the accumulation of wealth possible. The government in no way suffered because the investment of the deceased created jobs, funded research, developed technology and created additional wealth. This is apart from the taxes and fees the man and his family paid. The government benefitted from the family’s sacrifices and Senator Schumer wants them to be deprived again.

Schumer might further argue that if it were not for the government the deceased would not have had the opportunity to make money. This may be true, but the individual paid taxes during his lifetime for that opportunity and was not rewarded by the government for creating jobs that created additional taxpayers. In fact, the successful person is offered no more government services than anyone else, but pays more money for them while alive, because of the “progressive” federal income tax also based on Marxist class warfare.

If Schumer’s arguments are the best arguments the liberals have, then they have none. Audacity alone is not reason enough to allow the continued theft of the hard-earned wealth of individuals. The left have become so hungry for money that they have turned our federal government into licensed grave robbers.

It appears that the inheritance tax is a device to prevent capital accumulation. In fact, it destroys capital which lessens investment, which harms the economy. The wanton destruction of capital is an attack on our society and our ideals, not the wealthy.

The truly wealthy will always find legal ways to avoid high taxation, but those attempting to become wealthy, especially small farmers and small businessmen, will receive the punishment of the government’s mistaken actions. The American ideal of leaving each generation of a family more financially able than the last through hard work and judicious living is being trampled in the rush to redistribute the wealth of the middle class. It is past time to end the inheritance tax.

Congratulations!

There are a couple of places where democracy simply doesn’t work well. One is among the lemmings, where the citizenry regularly vote for the entire community to leap off a cliff into the sea. The other is the Democrat Caucus in the US House of Representatives where the members also just voted to go over the edge themselves.

On Wednesday, US House Democrats voted to keep Nancy Pelosi as their leader; and congratulations are in order – to the GOP. You probably saw that coming, but it’s true. There are problems with electing a political leader from a district so secure that she has no need to understand the American public.

From San Francisco, the destruction of the House Democrat majority is fading smoke on a distant horizon. In Heath Shuler’s district, in Sanford Bishop’s district and in the districts of many other Democrat Representatives, it’s an angry, blazing forest fire so powerful that it sucks the oxygen from the air. In over 60 other formerly Democrat-held districts, it’s a smoldering mass of blackened cinders and ruined political careers. Unfortunately in the politically catastrophic aftermath, the defeated Democrat representatives had no opportunity to vote on Ms. Pelosi’s leadership skills.

Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Reid failed to anticipate the public’s strong reaction to their heavy-handed manipulation, broken promises and backroom deals granting special privileges to a few groups. Equally short-sighted were the arrogant and cavalier responses to voters’ concerns.

The worst mistakes made by Ms. Pelosi were inexplicable, amateur errors with large consequences. Never underestimate your political opponents and certainly don’t goad them into taking action against your own party and candidates. Ms. Pelosi did those things and reveled in her actions, thus becoming the poster child for “Washington Arrogance”.

Pelosi called TEA Partiers “Astroturf” and “Un-American” before accusing them of bearing swastikas at rallies. She refused to take them seriously and mocked people with legitimate concerns about the scope of government, America’s rising debt and the lack of Congressional responsibility. Finally in desperation, Pelosi and her allies even called the protesters racists. Americans did not buy it.

Because voters could not get Pelosi, and often their own elected officials, to acknowledge their concerns other ways, they sent a message via the ballot. The Representatives and Senators voted out in primaries and the general election were the price of postage on the voters’ letter to Washington. Some of the politicians got the message, but Pelosi needs a translator.

Speaker Pelosi’s attempt to encourage the remaining Democrats to maintain their path of defiance by celebrating their “accomplishments” will rub many voters the wrong way, as will her defiant rhetoric. There are those who will see Pelosi’s antagonistic and abrasive stances as courageous, but these people think George Armstrong Custer was brave.

The reaction of Speaker, soon to be Minority Leader, Pelosi does not appear to be appropriate under the circumstances. We are left with several possible explanations, but they all involve either some form of mental illness – mostly, but not limited to, forms of reality denial – or a total misreading of the political landscape. Take your pick, but either alternative is not a good one for a political leader.

Late in Georgia’s 8th Congressional District campaign, Democrat incumbent Jim Marshall said he would not support Nancy Pelosi for Speaker. It was too little, too late and too unconvincing to help Marshall who had supported Pelosi’s bids for Speaker four times. Pelosi was already the focus of many yard signs tying Marshall to the House Speaker:

Marshall=Pelosi
‘Nuff Said

and,

Fire Nancy Pelosi
Defeat Jim Marshall

In two years, look for variations on these signs in districts across the country. If Pelosi’s approval ratings improve, it will be because of the faded memories of voters. Don’t count on that happening. Astroturf lasts a long time and it doesn’t need to be covered in reeking piles of fresh fertilizer.

Congratulations, GOP. Just remember to be properly grateful for this gift.

Lessons From November Second, Something for the Democrats

Last week I cautioned the newly elected Republicans to learn the right lesson from their gains on November 2nd. So, I thought I would also offer some advice to Democrats.

Did the Democrats really not learn anything from the election results last Tuesday, November 2nd? I find that difficult to believe, but I see that Nancy Pelosi is running for House Minority Leader. I envision reasonable Democrats bashing their heads against concrete columns to temporarily ease the anguish.

With last Tuesday’s slaughter of the mythical “Blue Dogs”, Pelosi’s short-sighted leadership was actually rewarded. The opposition within her own party was crushed by the voters, leaving a Democrat House Caucus that is probably farther left than at any time in US History. And that means a Democrat Caucus much more likely to reward Pelosi with the top Democrat position in the US House of Representatives. If Pelosi destroyed the Blue Dogs on purpose, then that would be worthy of Machiavelli.

So, if Democrats learned a lesson, did they learn the right one? Mark Twain used to relate a story about a cat that sat on a hot stove lid. Never again did the cat sit on a hot stove lid – but it never sat on another cold one, either. The cat learned a lesson, but not the right lesson.

From interviews so far, it appears that President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid believe the Democrats just need to make a quick trip to Madison Avenue and then everything can be fixed with a good ad campaign. It’s simple: find the right branding, the right marketing and – if Democrats are very fortunate – a meme that resonates with independent American voters.

The second easiest way for a business to fail is to have a great product and terrible marketing. The easiest, and fastest, way for a business to fail is to have a terrible product and great marketing. These are the two ways to view the reasons that the American people soundly rejected the Obama Administration’s policies.

The Obama Administration and other Democrats claim they have a great product but poor marketing and public relations. Republicans and others favoring small government are convinced that the Obama Administration has a poisonous product and that the American people understand it. They are also convinced that the more people become acquainted with Democrat policies the faster they will fail.

The question is the obvious one: Who is right?

I’ll leave the minutiae of enormous, nearly impenetrable bills to policy wonks of both parties. First, let’s look instead at the actions of the two groups. They are very different and; therefore, very instructive.

From the Democrats we have Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sibelius threatening health insurance companies who complain about the dangers and costs of Obamacare. On March 9th of this year, we have Nancy Pelosi pushing through bills without debate and even stating, “But we have to pass the bill so that you can find out what’s in it - away from the fog of the controversy.” Translation: “Just pass the bill and don’t pay any attention to those who oppose it.”

Honest debate alone could not get Obamacare passed in the US Senate either. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and his allies cut the myriad of deals that were the only way to get Obamacare passed in the Senate. The phrases “Louisiana Purchase”, “Cornhusker Kickback” and “Gator Aid” should be shameful ones, as should the House embarrassment, the “Slaughter Solution”.

There are many other examples, but the rush to pass bills before the public could review the bills and express an opinion lets us know that even the Democrats themselves know their own product is bad. Remember the artificial deadlines? Remember the broken promises about transparency and on-line access to bills under consideration?

Second, let’s look at some empirical data. Granted, there’s not much at this time, but there are a few things to consider.

On the stimulus, President Obama promised that if the stimulus bill were passed that unemployment would not go above eight percent. We now know that was wrong, as unemployment rates went as high as ten percent and continue to hover well above nine percent.

On healthcare, there are several matters that have already been either disproven or Democrats have admitted were incorrect, but the main point is on cost and deficit neutrality.

President Obama rejected all GOP ideas on healthcare because they were not “deficit neutral”. Yet, Obama knew his own bill was not revenue neutral because it used ten years of taxes to cover five years of benefits. The CBO now shows Obamacare will cost more than originally estimated and is no longer deficit neutral.

Draw your own conclusions, but it appears that this time, it’s the Republicans who want the public informed and the Democrats who are seeking smoke-filled back rooms to do damage to the republic.
________________________________________________
As a completely unworthy and unrelated side-note:

As a Republican, I’d like to start a new political movement in support of Nancy Pelosi. After all, the former Speaker has done a tremendous service for the Grand Old Party. I believe widespread support could easily be found for a group called “Pelosi for Permanent House Minority Leader.”

Some Thoughts for the 2011 US Congress

Newspaper headlines on Wednesday morning will scream of a nationwide Republican victory – and every one of those newspapers will be wrong. I do expect Republicans to gain close to 60 seats in the US House of Representatives and gain nine seats in the US Senate, but it will be due to Democrat incompetence. Democrats may not have put a bow on this election and handed it to the GOP, but that was all they missed.

There is a history here that must be remembered. Republicans were fired in 2006 because, quite frankly, they had acted like liberal Democrats: increased government spending, government expansion, corruption and a disregard for the good, common sense of the American people. There was a massive epidemic of Potomac Fever and the GOP was, apparently, not inoculated.

The first half of Barack Obama’s presidential term, it was the Democrats’ turn to act stupidly. In 2010, Democrats will be fired because they have acted as Democrats do when unrestrained. The amount of arrogance, disregard for the American public and poor decision-making is so massive in its scope that it dwarfs whatever few good ideas Democrats ever had. When American voters are confronted with a Democrat Congressman, they see a purveyor of class warfare; an arrogant, healthcare-destroying elitist; a politically correct, naïve buffoon regarding foreign policy; and, a complete ignoramus on economic matters who believes reality is optional. That reputation is why the GOP will be given another chance.

The GOP will win control of the US House of Representative and possibly of the US Senate on Tuesday despite their recent history, not because of it. GOP challengers who defeat Democrat incumbents or win open seats should party all night with a clear conscience while memorizing the reasons voters chose them. I also suggest a midnight visit to the local tattoo parlor to have those reasons inked onto an easily visible portion of skin. Note: If inked on forehead, please remember to reverse the letters.

On the other hand, Republican incumbents have something to prove to grassroot Republicans, independents and self-identified TEA Party supporters. Those incumbents are under a microscope and if they mistakenly believe they are dealing with the old memory-challenged, easy going American public then they have until their next – and probably last – election to correct that mistake.

At first glance, it might appear that Republicans do not have a mandate, but they do. Republicans have a very strong mandate to do a few things such as repeal Obamacare and enact a less invasive, more workable solution. They have a mandate to reduce government spending and to protect our border. The Pledge to America can be safely enacted. Republicans have one other to-do item that must be accomplished: block Obama's expansion of the government. Beyond these things, it gets a little sketchy.

With all this in mind, here are some suggestions for all of the Washington-bound officials.

1. Implement the Pledge with America as quickly as possible. If you fail or hesitate then start looking for honest employment in 2012. US Senators need to develop similar changes.
2. You are on a short leash with the American people for a good reason. Don’t resent it; simply acknowledge the fact and go about proving you are worthy to represent your constituents.
3. The taint of corruption or anything that resembles corruption will destroy Republican chances of keeping a House majority, gaining a Senate majority or winning the Presidency in 2012. That is “destroy”, not “hurt” Republican opportunities. Corruption is the most under-rated issue in terms of its effect on the voting patterns of the American people.
4. Earmarks should be banned. The first person to attempt to attach an earmark to anything should be horsewhipped in the chamber. The second person should be horsewhipped and then beheaded. Seriously, you must understand that the American people view earmarks as corruption. I think they are absolutely right.
5. Defund Obamacare. Attempt to repeal it, but understand the press will spin this as a victory for Obama if his veto stands. It also gives Democrats a chance to vote to repeal Obamacare knowing their vote means nothing but that the vote might help them in marginal districts in 2012.
6. Offer alternatives to Obamacare or pass related bills such as well-designed tort reform, portable health insurance and/or facilitating the purchase of health insurance across state lines.
7. Spending bills should contain spending and nothing else.
8. In addition, each bill should deal with only one area. If a bill is about energy policy then it should be solely about energy policy.
9. If a bill is not a matter of national security, then it should be as transparent as a Honeymoon nightie.
10. Secure our borders. A physical barrier along the US-Mexican border is one area where the American people will welcome a shovel-ready job stimulus project. If the Mexican government does not like this then they are perfectly welcome to build their own fence with their own labor.
11. Enforce laws punishing companies who knowingly hire illegal aliens.
12. What is Eric Holder doing in the US Department of Justice? Is he selectively enforcing laws? Has ICE been ordered to not perform its Constitutional duty? A low-key, non-dramatic investigation is needed.
13. Talk to local, especially rural, law enforcement officials and ICE officials to find better ways of coordinating deportation of illegal aliens. Then fix the problem.
14. Immediately decide what will and will not be done with regulations concerning business. Let business know immediately and unemployment will tumble and investment will grow dramatically. Be bold and announce that this will happen beforehand. The one drawback is that there may be some inflation because of cheap money.
15. Find out what happened with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Just get the facts and don’t grandstand. Insist the guilty be prosecuted.
16. If anyone will buy them, sell Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
17. You get paid a full-time salary. Work full-time. Schedule the US House to work Monday through Friday and even if you take off one week per month to go home to visit your constituents, you will still be more effective and efficient than working four days per week.
18. Auction off Nancy Pelosi’s plane. It’s a symbol of what the people hate about Washington politics and arrogance. Consider using eBay.
19. Come up with a list of federal programs that can be shut down completely. Do not be afraid to add GOP-favored federal programs to the list.
20. Re-focus and reduce – or de-fund completely – the US Department of Education and the US Department of Energy. Both are abject failures. In fact, get the federal government out of education.
21. Every dime taken from the US public that is not needed is theft. Period. We really don’t care how much good an unnecessary program will do. That money is needed to feed our families, send our kids to college and have a retirement that doesn’t feature a menu dominated by Iams, Purina and Ken-L-Ration.
22. Do anything and everything to reign in the federal courts’ twisting of the Interstate Commerce Clause to destroy the rights of individuals and states. I fear a Constitutional Amendment will be required.
23. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting should be de-funded. It will survive and actually thrive because every guilty liberal in the country will smother it in money. Just don’t complain too much if Bert and Ernie start sounding like George Soros and Michael Moore.
24. People who buy and or sell votes in a federal election should be found guilty of felony voter fraud and not have their right to vote restored for at least a dozen years from the time of their conviction. People who abuse the sacred right to vote do not deserve it.
25. Repeal any federal laws that require usage of union wage rates or “prevailing wage rates.” We’re broke and cannot afford the luxury of paying artificially high wages.
26. Write a common sense energy policy. Open up Anwar for petroleum and gas exploration and drilling. Look again at off-shore drilling regulations. Repeal current laws on nuclear power plants and oil refinery construction and replace them with thorough but pragmatic laws. Better yet, allow the federal government to provide guidance for each state to write its own laws regarding all power plant and refinery construction.
27. Make measureable and easily understandable goals to reduce federal regulation of states, individuals and businesses. The number of pages of regulation may be one way to measure progress.
28. Do we still need to have sugar subsidies and tariffs? I don’t think we do.
29. Doesn’t anyone realize that sugar cane produces more ethanol per acre than corn? So why does federal money go to subsidize corn-produced ethanol instead? I don’t think Archer-Daniels-Midland has a lot to do with sugar cane, do they?
30. We have been told that agriculture subsidies are to protect family farms. So let’s end all agricultural subsidies to “C” type corporations. This means that “S” type corporations, partnerships and sole ownership farms could still receive subsidies, but companies like Dole and Archer-Daniels-Midland would have to make a profit like everyone else.
31. In exchange for reducing/eliminating subsidies we eliminate the death tax for everyone.
32. Make the Bush tax rate cuts permanent.
33. Make it clear that there is no company on the planet “too big to fail” and if they are counting on government intervention to survive then advise them to sell short.
34. We are in an economic war with China. Our debt hands them a huge strategic and military advantage. We cannot afford to fight a two theater war. Once China completes expanding its blue-water navy then it may be able to do so.
35. Regarding China, we no longer have the fastest super-computer in the world. China does; and it is much faster. This is a serious security danger because of encryption/decryption speeds and war time usage. Historical note: After seeing the potential and the fast-growing power of Carthage in person, Cato the Elder ended each of his speeches in the Roman Senate with the statement, “Carthage must be destroyed.” That is too harsh for these days, but I suggest you update and modify that thought as needed; just not in speeches. Consider this: If we continue to refuse to be fiscally responsible and have a conflict with China in 25 to 50 years, whom do you believe will win? If you had to hesitate before answering then the outcome is too uncertain. Don’t forget we have a defense pact with Taiwan and that is already a source of contention.
36. Stand by Israel.
37. Never, ever say or imply that any government creates jobs. It does not. It merely takes resources from the private sector and consumes them. Sometimes it consumes them by employing government workers. Government workers are great, but how many private sector jobs does it take to supply the tax revenue to employ a single government worker? Now you know why public sector jobs are less valuable to the economy than private sector jobs.
38. Thomas Jefferson said, “In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.” Apply that when dealing with the Democrats and the President. Quoting Jefferson to Democrats is fun; it makes their eyeballs bulge.
39. There’s no reason not to audit the Federal Reserve System. Audit it.
40. Find an effective way to protect the intellectual property rights of Americans overseas.
41. Ask the Fed Chairman about the negative consequences of artificially low interest rates. The obvious answer is that it discourages saving by Americans. The effect on business cycles is less certain but also worth investigating.
42. Read the bills. Make sure the bill summary and the bill name is accurate so the American people understand what’s in the law.
43. Do not allow items to be added to bills during reconciliation with the Senate unless the item was in either the Senate or the House version of the bill.
44. We need to allow individuals to invest a portion of their social security funds in Exchange-Traded Funds or mutual funds. There can even be a sliding scale so that by the time a person is within five years of retirement all of the investments must be in bonds or bond-related funds. As a welcome side-effect, the stock market will climb – a lot.
45. Your first loyalty is not to Congress, to your fellow legislators or to your future election chances. Your first loyalty is to the American people. The US House is called “the People’s House” for a reason. Please don’t forget.
46. The debt clock is ticking away. Remember that every time you vote.
47. Every day the US House is in session, some Republican should go to the well of the House and give the total debt and how much higher it is than the day before.
48. Make sure your staff knows what project(s) you are working on. If people ask, don’t be afraid to share the information. Also, give great constituent services and follow up after the service is rendered. For services that take an extended time period keep constituents updated.
49. Put your interactions with people in a searchable database that can be searched by name, date, issue, result, zip code and status. Use that database to look for patterns to make changes in systems and processes to prevent future problems (Apply Six Sigma process).
50. Your staff doesn’t have to agree 100% with your political philosophy, but every staffer should know your political philosophy 100%. If you don’t have a political philosophy, please don’t even show up in Washington. Honestly.
51. Gridlock is not all bad and may be good for business.
52. Carefully prioritize your agenda. Don’t over reach, but our country has real problems that must be solved soon. Compounding interest on the national debt says time is short.