Election 2008

I am a Mitt Romney fan. I voted for him during the Republican primary and was disappointed when he stepped down. I still firmly believe that he may have won the nomination had he a) stayed in the race longer and b) emphasized his position in the race as the true Conservative. I think his strong suits (executive experience and economic acumen) are exactly what this country needs at this time. I fully expect to see Mr. Romney play a large part in the future of the RNC. I also believe he would have been an excellent choice for McCain's VP pick. Imagine McCain's strong national defense with Romney's economic policy. The two most important issues of voters, according to a recent USA Today/Gallup poll.

All that being said, I cannot be happier for John McCain's announcement today. I believe Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska is one of the best choices for VP he could have made. I first heard about Sarah Palin a few months ago as people started floating names for John McCain's running mate. I didn't know much about her, but what little I did know was very enticing. She originally got into public life in the PTA for her kids' school. From there, she moved to other public positions and each time, she took on the "establishment" from a reformer perspective. She has battled against special interests, turning down earmarks from federal pork spending. She brings youthfulness, ambition, and a no-nonsense attitude to the GOP ticket. She is the mother of 5 children, one with Down Syndrome. She has stayed true to her convictions during some of the most difficult times in her life. One of my favorite attributes she has is that she has not been "tainted" by the cynicism of politics. She's a "regular person".

There are those who will say that she doesn't have any foreign policy experience. That's true. She doesn't. But she is the 2nd name on the ticket, John McCain is the first. And there is no doubt about John McCain's foreign policy experience. On the other hand, Barak Obama has zero foreign policy experience and he is the presidential nominee. Sure, she probably has some skeletons in her closet, one of which is the ex-brother-in-law trooper firing. But I can't imagine anything as devastating as Obama's issues, including his stance on abortion, his flip-flopping on almost all campaign issues (either that, or he's guilty of pandering to the crowds. I'm not sure which is worse), and his associations with confessed domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, anti-American preacher Jeremiah Wright, and convicted fraudster Tony Resko.

I'll try to keep up with this thing for awhile now and they won't all be political posts. But I'll leave by relaying a quote I read the other day. When I read it, I immediately thought of Sens. Obama and Biden and their propensity for bloviating.

The great enemy of clear language is insincerity. When there is a gap between one's real and one's declared aims, one turns as it were instinctively to long words and exhausted idioms, like a cuttlefish spurting out ink.

George Orwell, "Politics and the English Language", 1946
English essayist, novelist, & satirist (1903 - 1950)

I'm not saying. I'm just saying.