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Some questions have arisen as to my absence from the blogging world, especially on Lonestartimes.com.

I have hesitated saying anything till I knew more, well I know more.

Folks, I have run into some health problems that have knocked me out of the ball game for awhile. I have discovered that I have heart problems and have suffered a "mild" stroke. To say that I am just a bit distracted is an under statement. My heart, so to speak, just is not into the constant discussion and debates.

There are many questions that I just do not have answers to right now. I can tell you that at this moment I am in no immediate danger of passing away and I am OK. I am being cared for by merciful God, my cardiologist and BSue. I ask nothing for myself, but I do ask that you, if so inclined, pray for peace for my wife and family.

I sincerely apologize for my silence. I do not talk about my private life nor do I care to be the center of attention but I have learned that one does not treat friends and family this way. You are my friends and family too and that I must not forget.

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On another note. If you are interested in being a front page blogger here let me know and we can discuss the few rules that I have.

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Elder Bush to Endorse McCain By Michael D. Shear

Former president George H. W. Bush, the father of the current president, plans to endorse Sen. John McCain in Houston on Monday, according to Republican sources familiar with the decision.
Elder Bush to Endorse McCain | The Trail | washingtonpost.com

I have a better idea.

Technorati Tags: Election 08, Ex Presidents, John McCain, Politics, Republicans, George H Bush

Political Promises

Technorati Tags: Barack Obama, Democrats, Election 08, Featured, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Politics, Republicans

The Ruler: Plan 9? Ah, yes. Plan 9 deals with the resurrection of the dead. Long distance electrodes shot into the pineal and pituitary gland of the recently dead.
Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959) - Memorable quotes (via Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959))

Resurrection of the dead, as in resurrecting the excitement of the conservative base to throw their votes behind the "Maverick John McCain"? Big John wants us to forget amongst other things that he seriously considered leaving the Republican Party to join with John Kerry’s presidential run. Yet, President Bush says John McCain is a conservative.

President Bush on Sunday called Sen. John McCain a "true conservative" though analysts believe he’ll have to work hard to convince other conservatives of his credentials.
Bush: McCain is a ’True Conservative’

I have to give McCain credit. He made one hell of a speech at CPAC last week. His rhetoric was good. Hell if I did not know better I would swear McCain had never engaged in

• McCain/Feingold Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act which is a direct attack on the freedom of speech
• McCain/Kennedy The Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act would have provided amnesty to 12+ million illegal aliens
• McCain/Lieberman Climate Stewardship Act bowing down at the alter of global warming.
• Gang of Fourteen a McCain led "bipartisan" usurpation of the Presidents power to appoint Supreme court justices.
• Keating 5 Savings and Loan scandal that McCain was involved in that eventually led to McCain/Feingold

Oh I know John McCain has his conservative side too. What cannot be ignored is that McCain is more than willing to join the Democrats under the guise of reaching out. If he is reaching out, then what has the "conservative movement" gained from the Democrats. Nothing. The democrat agenda has been furthered by the willing Senator McCain (R). It is things like this above that the Republicans would conservatives like myself just forget. Well Senator McCain, you have nine months to become the leader. (Barring some miracle comeback from Mike Huckabee). Words alone are not going to convince me and many more like me to not "skip the box" or just stay home.

McCain has a long road ahead to convince "THE" Conservative Base to vote for him. After Mitt Romney suspended his campaign there was not a surge of voters to the McCain camp. Fact of the matter is Huckabee won a few more states and several more delegates. Newt Gingrich mad this observation about the "enthusiasm" difference between McCain and, oh I don’t know, how bout Barrack Obama.

Gigot: One of the striking things about this primary season is how turnout’s been so much greater on the Democratic side, almost 2 to 1. That’s a real enthusiasm gap. Should Republicans be worried?

Gingrich: Yes. I think Republicans need to take very seriously the fact that there is a huge difference between the energy and the enthusiasm and the money in the Democratic race and the lack of all three in the Republican race. And I think Sen. McCain has to design his campaign for the fall breaking out of all of the normal Republican patterns and finding a way to communicate to the country that arouses a level of enthusiasm comparable to Sen. Obama. I think it’s a very real, very difficult challenge.
The Enthusiasm Gap - WSJ.com

If McCain is smart he will start yesterday taking the suggestions form Mike Pence’s CPAC speech.

But you know your conservative base is divided. Reluctant support for the sake of the party is not enough. In order to win, you need from the Republican base more than a half-hearted agreement to trudge to the polls and hold their noses.

You need enthusiasm. Foot stomping, flag-waving, crawl-over-broken-glass-to-vote enthusiasm.

The kind we had for Reagan.

Senator McCain, as much as it would please you to have that kind of enthusiasm from conservatives, it would please conservatives even more to have reason to give it. We long to once again feel that authentic spirit of hope and optimism for our county.

And I have to say, when you spoke yesterday, there were times that I sensed it was possible.

Your commitment to our troops and winning the war on terror was, of course, never at issue, but your unequivocal pledges on other conservative points are what hearten us most.

You promised a clear conservative approach to government:

· To make the tax cuts permanent
· To fight big government spending
· To veto any bill with earmarks and roll back entitlement programs
· To secure our borders first
· To appoint judges who will interpret the law and not make it
· To stand without apology for the sanctity of life

And you told us that you are not in the habit of making promises you don’t intend to keep.

These are the specifics that conservatives need to hear and keep hearing.

But now it’s time for deeds. You can begin keeping those promises today.

Whether this party comes together to support you as the nominee depends on your actions. So I offer you this challenge:

If you will continue to run on conservative issues and continue to build a solid conservative team and ticket, we can and will support you and work our hearts out to elect you as the 44th President of the United States.

You’ve claimed the Reagan mantle. Show us you know how to use it.

Senator McCain, if you continue to embrace the right, the right will embrace you.

Mike Pence - Our Congressman - Home Page

Here is my final dig in this rant. In 2004 and 2006 I held my nose and voted the lesser of two evils. No longer. I will skip the box. I figure it this way, no matter the party that person in office comes form he/she is still my president. I will give them praise or criticism as is required. I will survive no matter what. So John, ya want my vote? You better shut up, start doing and get in my line. Quickly

Technorati Tags: Election 08, Featured, John McCain, Politics, US News, Mike Pence, President Bush

This Going to be Fun to Watch

Unless Mike Huckabee can pull out a miracle it is looking like John McCain will be the Republican nominee as the Presidential Candidate. There is a small chance that Huckabee can pull out a miracle… but I don’t think so.

Now the Democrats on the other hand. There are two stories that I find interesting. It looks as if Hillary is going to challenge to have the delegates of Florida and Michigan reinstated. Remember that the two states broke party rules and at this time they have no part in the delegate count.

WASHINGTON - The battle for the Democratic presidential nomination may hinge on whether party leaders reverse themselves and decide to seat 366 convention delegates chosen by Michigan and Florida in primaries that violated party rules.

Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., who won the popular vote in both contests, wants those delegates seated at the Denver nominating convention in August.

Sen. Barack Obama, D-DillDill., opposes including the disputed delegates.

Dispute over delegates may determine nominee

Next is the question of "super delegates". There is a thought that Obama could win the number of delegates to put him over the top, yet the "super delegates" could be "swayed" to vote for Hillary. Holy hanging chad Batman. Does that sound like 2000 or what? Al Gore won the popular vote but lost the election because of the Electoral College.

Democratic race may come down to super delegates

By Larry Eichel The Philadelphia Inquirer

Neither Hillary Rodham Clinton nor Barack Obama is going to win the Democratic presidential nomination based on the primaries alone.

At this point, it’s just about mathematically impossible. That’s the central reality of the race now that Super Tuesday has come and gone.

The contests yet to come — including Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia on Tuesday; Texas and Ohio on March 4; and Pennsylvania on April 22 — remain tremendously important.

But the object of the game has changed: Now the idea behind winning primaries is to gain momentum and thereby impress the 796 super delegates, most of them party and elected officials.

Those are the individuals whose votes at the convention will carry one candidate to the magic number and the nomination.

But their influence, depending on how it’s exerted, could leave millions of Democratic voters feeling cheated — and less enthusiastic about their party heading into November.

Clinton aides say they’ll play by the rules they’ve been handed. But Obama has been sounding the alarm, saying he should be the nominee if he wins more pledged delegates.

“It would be problematic,” Obama said Friday, “for the political insiders to overturn the judgment of the voters.”

Those insiders, the super delegates, aren’t bound by the results in their states, and many of them have been choosing sides already. But they’re also free to change their minds.

What confronts the Democrats now is a classic case of the law of unintended consequences. “They’re being bitten by a process they created to solve a problem they don’t have,” said Donald Kettl, director of the Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania.

The super delegates, who make up 20 percent of the 4,049 delegates, exist to prevent the party from nominating an unelectable outsider — not to stop it from choosing between two mainstream candidates.

Heh, the dirty tricks are just about to reach new heights. Bill and Hillary want back into the White House so bad they will burn down their house to get there. This oughta be real fun to watch.

Technorati Tags: Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Democrats, Election 08, Featured, Hillary Clinton

Remember George Bush’s immigration reform that was geared around

There are some jobs in America that Americans won’t do and others are willing to do.

Howcomezittis that the new Taco Bell commercial features white guys playing the Mexican Mariachis? Did we find a job the illegals won’t do?

Update:

One of my compadres got wind of this post and emailed his explanation.

Not only are you illiterate, you’re blind, too. Those are Syrians and Jordanians who snuck in here on Guatemalan passports. They took mariachi lessons on the internet, bought ’em on Craigslist. Homeland Security completely dropped the ball on that one. Next thing you know, they’ll be taking flying lessons on Ebay.

Oh that explainzit.

Technorati Tags: Featured, Illegal Immigration, Television, Commercials

Sigh, getting McCain as the Republican nominee is like going to the prom with your cousin.

With Romney stepping down from the race, it seems to me that we are now stuck with John McCain as the presumptive Republican nominee for president. I just listened to McCain’s address to Conservative Political Action Committee and he spoke as if the nomination was in the bag. Ron Paul does not have a snowballs chance in hell, and unless Huckabee just cannot get over himself this dance in the dark is over.

Now I know it is "just politics" and deals are made, it seems to me that Huckabee and McCain combined in West Virginia to deny Romney a state that he was counting on. What I would find really funny is if Romney and Huckabee now combined to defeat McCain. Wishful thinking on my part I know, but one can hope. I so wanted a chance to vote in a primary that my vote actually had a chance to make a difference.

Wait!!! I know!!!! I can vote Hillary!!!! Yeah that’s the ticket. I have made no bones about it, that I believe that Republicans cannot win unless Hillary is the Democrat Nominee. I think that just as in 2006 the "Conservative base" is going to stay home. However the anti-Hillary vote might take the day.

Technorati Tags: Election 08, Featured, John McCain, Politics, Republicans, US News, Huckabee, Ron Paul, Romney

McCain, Romney, Huckabee, Ron Paul

Wulp it is Super Tuesday time for Republicans. Oh yeah and the Democrats. Guess it is time for my fearless predictions. First the Democrats.

Hillary and Obama will split the delegates and declare that they are going to press on till the end. Whew glad that is done.

Now for the Rhinublicans.

McCain and Romney will split the lions share of the delegates, Huckabee will continue to support McCain under the guise of running for the Rhinublican Presidential nomination and Ron Paul will continue his sweep of the online and text message polls. All will insist that they are the real "Conservative" (well maybe not Ron Paul) and promise to press on till the end.

Yup that about covers it.

Now for my fearful prediction.

Obama locks down a lead large enough that he can sit back and watch Hillary flail about and Bill loose his cookies once again in the media.

McCain and Romney will have what amounts to a split decision. Huckabee will continue to be a spoiler for Romney. And yes they will all stay in the race.

I cannot see anyone dropping out of the race after this round.

Quote or Question of the day that showed up in my email:

Ron Paul likes to brag that he has not taken any Congressional Junkets because that is an unnecessary expenditure of tax payor’s money.. (Note: He has not taken any junkets? TRUE) Ron Paul has not gained any appreciable amount of delegates to be considered as a serious contender or be a serious power broker. Why then is he spending his supporters money running around the United States like he is doing something?

My answer: I don’t know?

Technorati Tags: Election 08, Politics, Republicans, McCain, Romney, Huckabee, Ron Paul

There is a reason that I left this photoshop so obnoxiously large. I want to get my point across that I am sick and tired of being told that I have to suspend my own principled beliefs and vote McCain because the party needs to move to the center to win. SCREW THAT. I have already been down this road. The Republicans lost in 2006 because the Corporate Republican Party decided that the "Party of Reagan" was not a winning proposition. And ya know what? The Republicans are getting ready to do it again.

Don’t Let Huckabee and the Media Silence the Conservative Voice By Douglas MacKinnon

Are you a conservative? Have you been paying attention during this primary season? Are you aware that after this Tuesday, your voice, if not totally silenced, may be willingly, and even gleefully, disregarded in a calculated strategy to appeal to liberal, Democrat, independent, and Hispanic voters?

Do you care? If so, you have until Tuesday evening to make your principled and patriotic voice heard. For after Tuesday, if Mike Huckabee succeeds in his self-serving quest to deny Mitt Romney the nomination, then it will be conservatives who will be placed at the back of the line…for years to come. (READ THE STORY HERE)

UPDATE:

Fed Barnes of the Weekly Standard is a prime example of the "Sell Out" movement.

"Let’s Grow Up, Conservatives"
And defeat the Democrats in November.
by Fred Barnes

Sweet, thanks Fred.

Technorati Tags: Election 08, Politics, Republicans, McCain, Romney, Huckabee, Ron Paul

No I am not voting for Ron Paul

1. Creates earmarks then votes against the budget knowing full well that the earmarks will get funded. Has yet to return the earmarked money.
2. Spends four hours talking to Alex Jones basically agrees with the truther movement only to disavow them later
3. Started out a Ron Paul (L) knew he could never get elected to the National Congressional seat so now he is Ron Paul (R).
4. There is a strong indication that a close friend and confidant wrote the infamous racist stories in his publication. Refuses to denounce even what was said. He just denies that he knew who said it.
5. Insists that his isolationist policies are "non-interventionist".
6. Votes against abortion. Now that is a good thing, but insists that the decision if abortion is legal should be left to the states. Yet he brags about his career as an OBGYN. No stance on pure principle against abortion.
7. Does not reprimand his supporters for acting like total asses in public. You know like spamming online polls, threatening election officials for honest mistakes, spray painting walls in Austin and there is oh so much more.

These are just small things that go to what I consider the political opportunism that Ron Paul engages in. Not mention that he is amassing a considerable amount of campaign funds that will eventually go unspent on his "presidential bid". Nope I will not vote for a man that accuses his own government publicly of setting up a Gulf Of Tonkin scenario just to continue a war. Nor will I vote for a man that suggest that the government that he works for had a hand in or is covering up information concerning the events of 911.

Feel free to flame away.

Technorati Tags: Election 08, Politics, Republicans, Ron Paul

You want what?

BE SURE TO SEE UPDATE BELOW:

More rats are jumping ship. So much for "republican" leadership.

Five more Republicans join exodus from House of Representatives

Five more long-serving Republican congressmen have confirmed they will not run for reelection this year, in a week of retirements capped by the announcement Wednesday by Representative Tom Davis, a former top leader in the House of Representatives when it was under Republican control. The retirements bring the number of Republican incumbents who will not be on the ballot in November to 28 out of the 200 elected only 14 months ago. This compares to only six Democrats who will not be seeking reelection, greatly increasing the number of open seats that are more vulnerable to takeover by the other party.

Hope ya got time for the pain. Cause folks it is coming. What a bunch of cowards. This is for some of you. You know who you are.

UPDATE:

LOL I just noticed that this story came from the World Socialist Web Site. That does not remove from the truth of the story. For those that do not want to get their eyes dirty going to there, maybe the links below are more palatable.

Tom Davis and the ’Dying Breed’ of Moderates

What’s behind the exodus of centrists? Part of it can be explained by the pressures of constant campaigning. Most moderate Republicans reside in swing districts, so they have to raise money constantly and fight to stay alive every two years. The decennial redistricting process often results in the dismemberment of these kinds of districts, so some centrists could find themselves running in unfamiliar territory in 2012. And they regularly encounter primary challenges from conservatives, sometimes backed by well-funded groups like the Club for Growth.

But disillusionment in the moderate GOP ranks goes beyond their re-election worries. Since the party took power in 1994, the House Republican Conference has been dominated by conservatives. Many centrists believe there is a glass ceiling for them within the party, and that their leaders too often push them into taking tough votes.

GOP Retirements Make Dems Giddy - And Donors Angry

(The Politico) Williamsburg, Va. - A spate of Republican retirements in the last week has bouyed House Democrats who are gearing up for the first defense of their majority since bouncing Republicans from power in 2006.

Maryland Rep. Chris Van Hollen, who chairs the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, told members Wednesday night that the field of competitive races has expanded to almost 70 seats, the overwhelming majority of which are currently occupied by Republicans.

In the last week alone, five senior Republicans announced their decision not to seek reelection. Those departures mean 28 GOP lawmakers in the House have either resigned, announced their intent to seek a higher office or decided to retire - the highest number of Republicans to call it quits during a single two-year election cycle in 78 years, Van Hollen said.

Many of the retirement decisions were so abrupt that the lawmakers were still accepting campaign checks from corporations, colleagues and private citizens as late as the last week in December, according to Federal Election Commission data.

House Republicans Face Late Exodus

A wave of late-breaking retirement announcements have left beleaguered House Republicans swamped in recent days as five members have told House leaders they will not seek re-election this Fall. The announcements bring to 27 the number of open seats Republicans will have to defend throughout the year, and some believe the end is not yet in sight.

In the past week alone, Reps. Jim Walsh, Ron Lewis, Dave Weldon and Tom Davis have all announced they will not seek another term next year. Missouri Republican Kenny Hulshof, who represents a district just north of St. Louis, said he will run for governor, a seat that came open when incumbent Republican Matt Blunt surprised political observers by withdrawing after just one term.

The point is that these retirements come when the Republican party needs some cohesiveness. But like cowards, these Congressmen find themselves in the minority and decide to take an early leave. Having not read all the reasons why, but I am sure that it is too pursue options in civilian life and spend more time with the family, Yeah right.

Technorati Tags: Election 08, Featured, Politics, Republicans