Trust Will Lead Us Out of the Wilderness

November 25, 2008 by 2 Comments

We are exactly three weeks out from the election and the amount of discussion going on about the future of the Republican party is unbelievable.  I don’t know about anyone else, but I am all Doug Grossed out.  Krusty Konservative and Battleground Iowa have done their various reportings on Gross and his shenanigans, and then his feet were held to the fire by Steve Deace.  From all of these different avenues I can probably sum up Doug Gross’ advice to the Republican party in four words:  DO ANYTHING TO WIN.  In other words, throw any stance that you have out the window if that’s what it takes to beat the Democrats.  Silly Doug, doesn’t he know that the GOP has been trying that and it is the reason why we are losing?

The reason this strategy does not work comes down to one word:  trust.  What is more scary…….politicians that you disagree with but you know exactly where they stand, or politicians that you are supposed to agree with but really don’t know where they stand on the issues?  The former politicians will never disappoint you and may even end up agreeing with you on a few things, and the latter politicians will only disappoint you as they take the issues that you agree with them on and throw them out the window.  I can only imagine that is how the people in the middle feel when they run to our side because of the promises of small government, lower taxes, individual responsibility, and traditional values only to have those issues eroded away and become blended with the other side of the aisle.

When our side loses our convictions on the values of the Republican party we lose peoples’ trust and we lose their vote.  If we can’t stick to our guns on conservative issues, it doesn’t matter if people agree with us on those issues or not because what matters is that they know we cannot be trusted to do what we say.  Trust is one of the most important reasons to vote for candidates.  Why?  Because we never know what the future holds once the candidates take office.  When we elected our officials in 2000 we had no idea that less than a year later we would have terrorists hijack four US planes and use them as living bombs.  When we elected our officials in 2004 and 2006 we had no clue that we would now be in the midst of a financial meltdown.  The candidates who were elected this year won not only because of how they would deal with the current situations but also on how much voters trusted them to handle future events.  Republicans must not waiver from their core principles and show that we can be trusted once again.

Bob Vander Plaats wrote an insightful guest commentary for the Des Moines Register awhile back that I think did a great job of summing up where the GOP needs to go from here, and the focus is on trust.

A Matter of Trust

I have had a front row seat to the Republican Party over the past several years. I’ve been a volunteer, a grassroots candidate for governor, a Lt. Governor Nominee, chaired Governor Mike Huckabee’s presidential campaign in Iowa, and was an elected delegate to this year’s National Convention. This seat has provided me a unique perspective of the status of the Republican Party. In the words of Jerry McGuire, “I’ve been to the puppet show and I’ve seen the strings.”

There are many fingers being pointed and many excuses being offered in the Republican locker room after the staggering 2008 losses. As a result, we are searching for leaders in the Iowa Senate, the Iowa House, and for Iowa’s Republican Party. In addition, non-elected leaders are taking to a vast array of media outlets giving explanation for the party’s demise and offering prescriptions for the future. So, please permit me to offer my opinion…

Jesus Christ, whom many Republicans claim to follow, summoned his followers to be either hot or cold towards Him because a “lukewarm” commitment makes Him want to vomit. I believe this accurately reflects the mood of the voters in the past several elections where Republicans have witnessed consecutive defeats.

We have followed the misguided advice of ‘experts’ to abandon our principles and move to the middle so we can supposedly win. In essence we have become ‘lukewarm’ on life, on marriage, on the 2nd amendment, on limited government, on balanced budgets, on lower taxes, on parental rights in educating and raising children, on Faith, on Family, and on Freedom. The net result is that voters have spit us out of their mouths.

In my opinion, Republicans are losing because the voters don’t trust them. The first key to any leadership position is trust. No one cares how competent someone is if they can’t be trusted. The last thing any state or entity needs is a competent liar.

The party’s platform is clearly pro-life but we fill out surveys and use focus-tested words to validate our overriding interest in winning versus a sincere commitment to core principles. Republicans rev up their base by declaring marriage to be between one man and one woman only to walk away from the issue when it poses a threat to personal ambition. The result is no trust…no vote.

Republicans promise to balance budgets but citizens are strapped with the largest deficit in history. Republicans passionately discuss limited government but deliver Medicare D, No Child Left Behind, Stimulus Plans, and state granted Value Funds. The result is no trust…no vote.

Some in the GOP are bold enough to refer to their party as “God’s Own Party,” indicating unswerving commitment to Faith, Family, and Freedom. Even so, voters witness disgusting text messages to young pages, solicitation of prostitutes, adulterous affairs, improper advances in airport restrooms, and acceptance of money in exchange for power. The result is no trust…no vote.

The ‘elite’ politicos and Iowa’s dwindling Republican establishment are now convening committees and strategy sessions to advise their ‘flock’ to abandon the party’s principles and move even further to the middle if they hope to win again. The voter sees and tastes the “lukewarm” and compromising attempts to gain positions and power. The result is no trust and the voter, like Christ, wants to throw up.

If Republicans are to win again, they must authentically embrace their core principles and effectively communicate a compelling message of bold color conservatism that inspires Faith, Family, and Freedom.

Each year, we hear more and more praise for President Ronald Reagan. So, let’s embrace the unyielding words of our party’s icon when he said, “Let us raise our bold colors high.” And, for those who are willing to exchange their values for shallow victories…”let them go their way!”

Author: Bob Vander Plaats is president of MVP Leadership, INC. and author of “Light from Lucas” published by Focus on the Family.

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Muslim Charity Found Guilty of Supporting Terrorsim

November 24, 2008 by Leave a comment

Today the United States fight against terrorism was handed a significant victory as the Holy Land Foundation, a Muslim Charity, and five of its former leaders were convicted of funneling money to terrorists in the Middle East. Specifically they were charged with funneling money to the Palestinian terror group Hamas.

The seven day jury trial ended with the defendants being found guilty of all 108 counts levied against them. Here is a list of some of the charges that this group faced:

Supporting a specially designated terrorist
Money laundering
Tax fraud
Conspiracy
Conspiracy to support a terrorist organization

I will spare you the details of this case. You can read the ABC article for yourself. I will just add a few of my thoughts here.

After the guilty verdict was handed down, the daughter of former Holy Land Chairman Ghassan Elashi made the claim that the jury “fell for the prosecutions fear-mongering theory.” I understand that this woman was distraught that her father had been convicted of a multitude of crimes, so I would have been willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. But she decided to keep running her mouth. She went on to say that she was proud of her father and at that he was being persecuted for his political beliefs. No Mrs. Noor, your father was prosecuted for breaking the laws of the United States of America. If you have a problem with that, then I think that you should take a few civics lessons.

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Vilsack Out

November 23, 2008 by 7 Comments

In the weeks following the election some people were making the claim that former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack was in the running for the US Ag Secretary position for the Obama administration. The Des Moines Register is now reporting that this is not the case. According to Phillip Brasher, a reporter for the Des Moines Register, Vilsack stated in an email that he was not in consideration for this position and that he had never been contacted in regards to it either.

One thing that I have had a hard time figuring out was why his name was even floated for Ag Secretary in the first place. The only claim to any agricultural fame that he had was his governorship of Iowa. Not exactly the kind of agricultural expertise needed to guide farm related policy.

From what I read in the DMR article, Vilsack was not in the running for the position to begin with. This causes me to wonder who floated his name in the first place. He may have been legitimately considered, but evidently it wasn’t very serious otherwise the Obama team would have let him know. Either way you look at it Iowans are stuck with Tom and his overinflated ego for the foreseeable future.

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What is Conservatism?

November 23, 2008 by 4 Comments

What is conservatism? This particular question has been bouncing around in my head for more than a year now. Ever since the idea that some of the presidential candidates weren’t conservative enough. Then I wondered who decides what conservatism is and what it stands for? Of course I have my own idea of conservatism is. And I would guess that a large portion of the population has their own idea of what conservatism is. In the end the question comes down to who decides what conservatism is? I will provide my answer in a few moments; in the meantime I am going to share my idea of conservatism with you.

Conservatism to me is the ideal political philosophy that I believe the United States thrives under. Unfortunately not too many of our politicians practice this ideal philosophy even though they are more than willing to proclaim themselves conservatives. To me conservatism is a way of life in which the individual is the one that holds the key to their own destiny, not the government. It is this philosophy that drives everything that I do in an attempt to make my way through life without the intrusion of well meaning, but ultimately failed government policies. This leads me to my first point, personal responsibility.

I abhor government programs and bailouts that interfere with the natural order of things. There are many individuals that continue to make poor decisions because they know that when they ultimately fail the government will be there to save them. This has got to stop. We must hold individuals to a certain level of responsibility. For instance, when the recent housing crisis struck there were many that publically advocated for bailing out homeowners that could no longer make their mortgage payments. Sure owning a home is a part of the American dream, which is fine, I understand that. But where is the lesson to be learned here if the government saves their bacon. These same people will most likely go back and make the same mistake in the future because there was no consequence for the wrong action. In a similar fashion, the banking institutions that made bad loans to people that they knew couldn’t pay for them should be allowed to fail. Once again bailing the banks out when they use poor judgment rewards poor judgment. This was a manmade disaster that could have been avoided if people had only used common sense. In both these cases the consequence is a direct reaction to the decisions that they made. Personal responsibility is a must.

The subject of eminent domain has also been a hot topic in our fair state in recent years. There are locations around the state that eminent domain has been used to plow under good fertile farm ground in the name of public progress. Land owners have been lied to and forced to take less than fair market value for their land. One such case is in the Fort Madison area where the DOT decided that they needed to put new highway in. One of my friends had some of her families land taken for this unneeded project. From what I could see there was no threat to public safety that required that this highway be built. Likewise there was a drive in Southern Iowa to build a new lake for economic development purposes. One of the primary reasons that this lake had been proposed was for the erection of a new ethanol plant. They said that there was not sufficient groundwater for the plant, and the only recourse was the creation of a manmade lake. I don’t think that I need to tell anyone out there that the creation of a lake for the sole purpose of economic development is nothing more than an infringement of the rights of property owners. This type of infringement has a direct tie in to personal freedoms. It is forcibly taking a piece of property for the benefit of others. If this isn’t a case of infringement of personal liberty, I don’t know what is. And this is something that I will oppose until I draw my last breath.

This next point has a direct tie in with the previous two points, limited government. Over the last several years we have seen the Iowa government and US government grow at an alarmingly fast rate. One of the bedrock foundations of conservatism is the concept of limited government. We have seen government intervention grow at a startling rate resulting in oppressive taxes, but also social engineering programs that stifle our children’s education. We need to get back to the basic principles of the constitution in the form of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We need to proceed away from an activist judiciary where a few judicial appointees overturn the will of the people. We need to dismantle the ability for justices to legislate from the bench, as was the case in Roe v. Wade. We need to get away from the government handouts that make people dependent on the government in order to survive. The only role the government should have is to enable individuals to be able to succeed on their own.

This is just a few of the things that I believe that conservatism stand for. I have noted with great consternation that most people have a differing opinion on what conservatism means. This self examination was brought on by a discussion on one of the forums that I frequent. You can check it out for yourself here. I am not trying to change anyone’s mind with this post, quite the contrary. I am asking you to reevaluate your beliefs in order for others to understand more fully what it is we believe. I know that I have left out many other facets of conservatism like the social issues and national security. Please understand that it is not because I do not think that they belong in conservatism, it was simply because this post was getting rather lengthy.

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Iowa’s Budget Woes

November 23, 2008 by 2 Comments

Last week our lovely Governor, Chet Culver, has announced that he wants the state government to cut $40 million in spending from next year’s budget. When I read that last week I remarked to myself that it was about time the guy started learning some fiscal restraint. Unfortunately I do not believe that it goes far enough. Now it would seem that I am not the only one to feel that way. In today’s Des Moines Register Ed Failor, president of Iowans for Tax Relief, unleashed a verbal broadside on Culver’s plan.

In today’s article Failor calls Culver’s plan to cut $40 million from the budget “putting a Band-Aid on a gunshot wound.” Not mincing his words is he. While Culver and the Democrats believe that cutting $40 million dollars from the budget will cover any shortfalls that the state may run into, Failor and many others like him believe that the budget shortfall is going to be much, much larger than that. Part of the reasoning behind Failor’s complaints is the fact that our State spending has increased by $840 million in just two years. Add this to the rapidly deteriorating economy and you have a recipe for disaster. Of course Culver and his buddies in the statehouse are either gleefully ignorant of the impending disaster or they are being deliberately negligent.

Kevin McCarthy, House Majority Leader and the states most prolific political prostitute, states that he and the other Democrats in Des Moines are determined to pay for the items that Iowan’s want. Uh oh, this doesn’t sound good does it? I would surmise that McCarthy and the Democrats have their eyes on raising a few taxes to pay for the social engineering programs that they want. They haven’t come out and said that they were going to raise taxes, but this line from McCarthy leads me to believe that while it may be unspoken, the idea is bouncing around that head of his.

“It is always better to have more revenue coming in and the economy growing than to have a slower economy and less revenue, but I do know that we have the determination to roll up our sleeves and pay for priorities that Iowans want.”

I don’t know about you, but the priority that I want is a government that is fiscally responsible. You know a government that spends the tax payer’s money wisely. Unfortunately as long as we have this bunch of big spenders in Des Moines that is unlikely to happen.

Fortunately a few of our leaders in the Iowa Legislature understand that the amount of spending that Culver and his groupies have been spending is outrageous. According to Senate Minority Leader Paul McKinley the State of Iowa is spending at an unsustainable level and is calling for more fiscal common sense. Unfortunately I think that his plea is going to fall on deaf ears as the majority of our current government does not even understand the need for basic common sense let alone fiscal common sense.

Either way you look at it, the State of Iowa is in trouble. Our state spending has reached a level that many would have thought unlikely just a few short years ago, and yet Iowa’s Democratic leaders want to spend even more money to pay for their pet projects.

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The Insider Administration

November 21, 2008 by 10 Comments

As I sit here contemplating the coming Barack Obama administration I have come to the realization that the President-elect may be sewing the seeds of his own defeat. With each new announcement that comes out of his transition team we find another Washington insider. All through his campaign we heard the rhetoric of change and hope. However his current actions contradict this.
As I look at the names that have come out so far I see people of politics. I see people that have been in Washington for so long that I find it hard to believe that they even know what the average citizen goes through on a daily basis. His future Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, has been in Washington for close to twenty years. The future Director of Health and Human Services has been there for close to thirty years with a few years as a board member at the Mayo Clinic. Or how about his future chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, he has been in Washington for close to twenty years as well.

Don’t get me wrong; I know that any new administrations are going to need a few Washington insiders, but the overload that I see happening makes me question how well Obama’s team is going to relate to the average American. Utilizing insiders can be a good thing for new administration as long as they are used in moderation. This would allow the administration the ability to promote fresh new ideas coming from the outsiders while being able to work the system and get things done with the knowledge of how Washington works. The danger of overloading with too many insiders is that the administration will lose touch with the people that put it there in the first place.

For some reason though, I can’t help but feel that he is orchestrating his own defeat. I can’t help but feel that Obama’s choice of these Washington insiders is going to backfire on him as his administration fails to keep in touch with the voters that put him there.

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Enough Blame to go Around for Auto Industry

November 21, 2008 by 2 Comments

It seems like everywhere you look these days someone is pointing a finger at someone else. The problems among the auto industry are no different. There are some that place the blame solely on the general workforce. There are some that lay the blame at the feet of management. But rarely do we hear what needs to be said, that both sides share the blame for Detroit’s fall.

As a former UAW member myself, I can see where there is a need for unions. However, sometimes when a union succeeds its leadership can turn from looking out for the well being of the employees that it represents to the enlargement of its own bank account. For those of you that do not know much about the UAW I must inform you that the membership dues that an employee pays are directly proportional to the wages that the employee earns. The membership dues for the UAW are exactly two hours of pay per month. So if an employee earns $25 per hour, that employee’s membership dues are $50 for the month. As a result of this practice, in order for the UAW to earn more money through membership dues it must increase the wages for employees. I would contend that this is what happened in Detroit. As has been stated by James Sherk at the Heritage Foundation UAW members employed at the Big Three earned at least $70 per hour after benefits had been figured in. Now compare that with the highest paying Japanese nameplate Toyota. At Toyota after benefits have been figured in their employees have earned $47.60 per hour. Quite the difference in wages wouldn’t you agree.
Because their labor costs are much much higher than any of the Japanese automakers the Big Three have a hard time remaining competitive. In order for Ford, GM, or Chrysler to sell a car at a price comparable to Toyota, Honda, and Nissan they must build the car for much less than the Japanese automakers can. A victim of this cost cutting is most commonly quality. Of course features are another item that quite often is removed from Detroit’s cars in order to be competitive with the Japanese makers.

It would be easy to simply lay the blame for Detroit’s current predicament at the feet of the UAW. That would not do the problem justice. As one looks at the recent offerings from Detroit it becomes quite evident that there are also problems within management. Let’s take for example the Pontiac Aztec. The Aztec was hailed as one of the ugliest automobiles to come out of Detroit since Ford Motor Company’s Edsel. Of course the Aztec, like the Edsel before it, failed miserably. This is an example of the domestic auto industries failure to develop and produce vehicles that the public wants. There have been a few bright spots in recent years as is evidenced by the current Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Malibu, and the Ford Escape. But alas these are just anomalies in Detroit’s slow crawl into failure.

Auto industry executive need to look to the past in order to secure the Big Three’s future. For those of you that do not remember or are too young to remember the US Government had to save Chrysler from collapse in the early 80s. This was during the leadership of Lee Iacocca, a man that led by example. In order to save his beleaguered company, Iacocca reduced his own salary to just one dollar. As he looked to others within the company to make sacrifices, he himself made a sacrifice. It is this type of leadership that the Big Three need now, they need individuals that can prove that they are committed to saving the corporation. The Big Three needs leadership that will be willing to make sacrifices as they ask others to sacrifice.

As I stated, I believe that there are most definitely some bright spots to be seen in all three domestic automakers. I do believe that they are still worth saving. The question remains, how do we go about saving these bloated businesses? If the UAW is unwilling to make any concessions to save the company, then I see bankruptcy as the only way to save Detroit. Without drastic cuts in overhead pouring more money into the Big Three is simply a waste of time.  A simple bailout will not work as long as Detroit pays $2,000 more per vehicle than Japan. If the UAW really cares about the employees that they represent then they absolutely must make concessions in order to secure employment for their membership.

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Holy Cow! The Huck-a-Bus Has Come and Gone

November 21, 2008 by 4 Comments

What would bring so many Iowans out of their warm houses on a freezing November night?  The same thing that inspired them to drag their butts off of their couches on the sub-zero night of January 3rd:  their support of Mike Huckabee and conservative values.  One would think that after a roller coaster election season that has lasted more than fifteen months for Iowans and ended in bitter Republican defeats plagued with party in-fighting most people would not find having a political book signed by a former presidential candidate high on their priority list.  But someone forgot to tell the base of the party that they have been left for dead while mods in the GOP continue to argue that it must move to the center to win elections.  Really, win elections without these people and these issues?

At the Cedar Rapids event at Barnes and Noble it has been reported that between 600-800 showed up for the Do the Right Thing book signing over the noon hour yesterday.  And at the Des Moines event that same night at Sam’s Club that number of people were already there one half hour into the event.  What is easy to see is that Huckabee still has the base support, but now he is also shaking hands with liberals on his FOX tv show and will be reaching out to millions of other Americans on his radio show The Huckabee Report.  I have paid attention to the media and the blogoshpere and I am fully aware of the ridicule and hatred that a few have directed towards Huckabee and those who believe that focusing on the social issues is what can make the government fiscally conservative.  All I can say is “bring it on” because that means we must be above the target.  Don’t kid yourself for one minute that the Republican party does not need candidates like Mike Huckabee or voters like these to get our conservative message out.

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Mitt Romney on the Detroit Disaster

November 20, 2008 by 14 Comments

As each moment passes us three pillars of the American economy are perched on the brink of an economic abyss. If the cards are played right, then the American auto industry has a shot at weathering the economic storm that we are in. If the government plays the wrong cards then those pillars just might topple into the abyss with very little real hope to rebound. Yesterday the New York Times published a guest commentary authored by Mitt Romney. As I read it I was surprised to find that I agreed with a lot of what he had to say. Someone tell me has San Francisco been coated in a thick sheet of ice yet?
There has been a lot of finger pointing on both sides of the issue. There are some people that claim executive greed or incompetence is the culprits behind Detroit’s financial crisis. I have no doubt that greed has played a very minor part of the equation. Likewise incompetence is also going to be found to be a very small factor. And then there are those that want to point the finger at the UAW. Once again the UAW is most certainly a factor, but it is one among many. Instead of pointing fingers at each other, why don’t we point fingers at the real problems infesting the Big Three?  Rather than playing the blame game, why don’t we point Detroit in the right direction so that they can once again return to profitability.
I don’t agree with Mitt Romney on much, but I must admit that this time I do. I encourage you to read his NY Times op-ed. He lays out an effective plan to return Detroit to its glory days. He pulls no punches and yet he is fair in this piece. And most importantly it makes sense.

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Republican hearts still beat for traditions and values

November 19, 2008 by 2 Comments

Richard Doak had a long history lesson published in the Des Moines Sunday Register.

Doak: Democrats painting a look of dominance

But the “real America” continues to decline in numbers, while urban America grows. The biggest growth areas nationally and in Iowa are suburbs, which have been regarded as Republican territory. But there are signs that suburbs are trending Democratic, too, as are young people.

If Democrats lock up the suburbs and the youth vote, if urban Iowa continues to grow and if people continue to leave the farms and small towns, there can’t be much hope for Republicans to regain statewide dominance anytime soon.

Perhaps they don’t deserve to, unless they can again become the party of Lincoln and the other great Republicans who once upon a time brought out the best in America.

I was reading a long and thinking that I was learning something until I came to the last two paragraphs. I must disagree with yet another expert.

There are families who once lived in the parts of Iowa described in Doak’s article. Mine is one of them. While we no longer can say that we are southern Iowans we are all still Republicans, just transplanted to other parts of the state. We continue to make connections with other voters and care about the Republican Party.

To say that there “can’t be much hope for Republicans to regain statewide dominance anytime soon” seems to me to be more wishful thinking. And, I happen to think that southern and western Iowa are filled with delightful people who are well-grounded and know what they want and know what they do not want. They are not easily swayed and given to cast “feel good” votes for flowery speeches and candidates who pretend to be Republican.

Republicans have hit a few speed bumps. We have a message. We perhaps need new messengers and ways to reach out to voters. I have every hope that Republicans will regain momentum. The rest of Iowa could also learn from their rural, southern, western counterparts. And, while Richard Doak has a lot of experience with history, he could stand to learn from Iowans who understand values and are not afraid to vote them! Take it from a former farm girl, now city dweller- just because one moves to an urban area, it does not mean that rural values get traded in for the latest bunch of smooth talking politicians. It certainly does not mean that we cave in to media who wish to push their liberal ideals on to the rest of us.

I do agree with Doak that there is a “tradition” of Republicanism that “remains strong.”  I’m all about seeing that ‘tradition’ thrives all over Iowa. There are those of us who still have a Republican heart and a strong will to make a difference no matter where we live in Iowa.

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