For many in ‘public’ service, the goal of attaining office quickly morphs into keeping office.  The power, the fame, the attention tend to overwhelm the idea of serving in the public interest and stepping aside when the voters and/or the law tells you to step aside.

Witness the latest example of such a phenomena in Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City:

Mayor Bloomberg requested that the city council remove the limit of two terms on the Office of the Mayor so that he could run for a third term.  His rationale was that he is uniquely qualified to lead the City through the economic downturn ( through increased spending and higher taxes, not exactly a unique idea ).

If you remember back to the days after September 11, 2001, when Mayor Giuliani was shepherding the city through the recovery, there was talk of extending his term in order to give needed stability.  That idea was put to rest, as it should have been.

We are a nation that is ripe with talent and not contingent upon one man or woman for our success.  New York City, the financial hub of our country, certainly must have a wealth of qualified candidates from which to choose.  Staking our success, or that of one of our greatest cities, on the singular abilities of one politician is an insult to this country and its people.

Instead of nurturing fellow leaders and assisting in a successful transition ( no easy task ), Mayor Bloomberg is forwarding his own agenda for his own benefit.

Not a model for leaders.

Will the endorsement today from Jeb Bush, Jr. signal a potential endorsement from his father?

If Jeb Bush, Sr. gets behind the Rubio campaign in Florida, we will quickly have a tight race for the primary.

NEWS STORY

As I don’t know the author of this creative piece of video, I can not give credit where credit is due:

One of the many reasons that centralized government control of industry won’t work—-meaning, the controlled industry will not grow, will not prosper and will not create wealth and jobs—-is the lack of competence inherent in government.

We see it everyday, whether at the DMV, as we attempt to get someone on the phone at city hall prior to 9 a.m. and after 3:30 p.m. ( Hours that do not exist in Corporate America ), watching the latest overrun on public works projects,  witnessing the bankruptcy of Medicare and Social Security;  the list goes on and on and on.

This type of performance, when translated into the private sector, will spell doom for any company that is under the government’s control.  Witness the lack of competence on display at this public hearing:

The market place can and will sort out the winners and the losers.  But, rest assured, any company being run by the ‘wizards of smart’ on this video is in deep doo doo.

Memorial Day, May, 25, 2009

Hundreds of thousands of Americans have given their lives in defense of our freedom, our Republic and our way of life.  These men and women have created and preserved the Last Best Hope on Earth and we owe them, at the very least, a remembrance.  The eloquence of Abraham Lincoln begins to touch on the sacrifice given and the subsequent need to persist in the defense of liberty:

“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate - we can not consecrate - we can not hallow - this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us - that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion - that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain - that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom - and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

President Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address ( a portion )
November 1863″

Much has been made and said about the speeches delivered yesterday by former Vice President Cheney and President Obama.  Stylistically, they are different, but effective communicators.

The content of the speeches, however, was were the true differences lie.

Vice President Cheney spoke cooly, confidently and charted the historical basis for the decisions that were made.  At every turn, he defended the country, the means that were employed to defend Americans, and heralded the work done by the CIA and the military.  The emotion, while not overt, came through in the serious and respectful manner in which the speech was delivered.  No excuses, no blaming, no crying, and no attempts at constructing a false narrative.  The results, over the past eight years, speak for themselves.  Cheney looked, sounded and was taken as a leader, a serious man in serious times.

President Obama’s speech began with all of the lofty rhetoric of a campaign stop.  During the course of the speech, he used the word “I” 118 times.  He referenced the Bush administration several dozen times and attempted to sidestep any responsibility.  The speech was ripe with excuses, constantly blamed someone else, whined about the fact that Whitehouse lawyers have to work and constantly constructed false narratives of the past.  It was akin to listening to a child attempt to blame someone else for the missing cookies.

Prior to his election, Barack Obama was a back-bench state legislator who, through participation in the corrupt Chicago political machine, was elected United States Senator.  One of the many pieces of his legilsative ‘record’, if you can call it that, was voting ‘present’ hundreds of times during his brief career.

He was also a part time lecturer at the University of Chicago Law School.  A tenure that lasted some twelve years and has given rise to describing our young president as a ‘constitutional scholar’.  Despite having not one piece of legal scholarship to his credit, not one legal paper, not one legal opinion——no ’scholarly’ stances were ever taken or defended by this scholar.

Do you notice a trend?

President Obama has never held, prior to his election to the Whitehouse, a leadership position.  Never made the tough choices, never paid the high price for those choices, and consequently, never grown more competent through that maturation process.

There is something known as The Peter Principle in busines circles.  It essentially describes a ‘weeding out’ process that occurs in organizations as certain individuals are promoted.  The theory holds that there remains a point, for most people, where they get promoted above their abilities, and subsequently stagnate and eventually fail.  This is not necessarily a bad thing in large and robust organizations.  It allows a leader to grow and prove himself.  The organization has a good idea that past will be prologue if the individual leader continues to succeed.  There is always the chance that the next promotion will be his undoing, however, a track record of successful leadership is the best way to judge future performance.

The United States is now faced with the prospect of an individual who has been promoted several levels above their competence.  The cracks are beginning to show and they will grow larger with every coming test.

As we reflect on the history of our nation, the concept of liberty is intertwined in every fabric of The American Story.  Liberty—a simple term that defines so much of who we are as a nation and what drives our vision of tomorrow.  When liberty is attacked, whether through violence or legislation, the United States has turned back the tide of tyranny.

It is not overly dramatic to say that liberty is once again under attack.  We have federal and state governments, headed by a ruling ‘class’, who expand their power and reach through confiscatory taxes and overarching regulation.  With every expansion of government, liberty is lost.  When the federal government begins to confiscate entire industries, controlling their means of production and distribution, the slow road to socialism has been embraced.  Make no mistake about it,  the United States has started down that road.

The changes come slowly, but once they are embedded in our daily lives, the ability of our great country to pull itself away comes into question.  It is in these early stages of socialism when it is the most vulnerable.  Before the massive bureaucracies are formed, before the tax code is strengthened, before a majority of our fellow Americans begin to rely solely on the federal government for their sustenance, that is the time to act.

The opposition to these changes must do a multitude of things, do them well and do them continually.

A constant and consistent drumbeat of warning must be sounded.  It should come in terms of alternative plans, it should include easily identifiable themes and it should revolve around the concept of individual liberty and freedom.  The vast majority of Americans have that thirst for more freedom, more liberty, and increased opportunity.  We inherently know that large government institutions do not work well and rob us of our valuable time, money and freedom.  However, the opposition must constantly beat this drum to remind Americans that there is an alternative, that is has driven our success as a nation for over 230 years and it must be followed if we are to continue our greatness.  It never gets old to defend freedom and liberty—but you must start defending it.

There are many Americans, in my opinion—a majority, who do not agree with the concept or practice of social democracies.  They must be brought into the opposition through a display of strength.  Seeing no strong advocate for alternatives, many will manage their daily lives, take care of their children and hope for the best.  Liberty and freedom as a rallying cry will help to strengthen the wind behind the opposition to socialist change.

This great nation has not arrived at our current point in history by laying down in the face of a challenge.  We are slow to recognize the challenges to freedom that rise up from within our ranks, but they are real and if they achieve their objectives, we will be a weakened Republic.  The heart of this great country lies within the spirit and will of its people.  We control the means by which we can change our government and change the outcome that today looks somewhat inevitable.  We are descendents of liberty and now is the time for us to live up to the sacrifices that were made by our forefathers and secure our nations freedom for the next generation—-and beyond.

Yesterday, the State of California voted overwhelmingly to reject tax and spend. The current line has the budget shortfalls being met with cuts, massive cuts in state spending.  That will not happen.

Governor Schwarzenegger will be approached by the White House for an unprecedented bailout.  He will have to sacrifice state control and oversight as well as many of the targeted budget cuts that specifically took out union jobs.

California is a test case for socialism.  They have state employees retiring with 100% pensions.  They are spending state money to massively subsidize health care.  They pay billions of dollars every year for targeted education of illegal immigrants.  They impose draconian energy restrictions on new power plants that have effectively shut down plant construction for nearly thirty years.  In short, everything that the new federal administration is trying to impose on America has been tried in California—–and it has failed on a biblical scale.

President Obama must shut down this continuing story line.  Schwarzenegger and the state legislature will not be able to cut enough money out of the budget—they lack the political will.  Some cursory attempts will be made and then President Obama will come in on a white horse and bridge the gap.

It is not a matter of if, but simply when and how much.

There would be a time for a national fiscal conservative to start hammering these points home on a daily basis,  that time is now.

There is a show on Fox which highlights the work of the fictional Dr. Lightman ( creative name.)  Dr. Lightman and his team analyze witness testimony, public speeches and other human characteristics in order to determine if someone is lying about a certain subject.  From Fox’s website:

“From writer Samuel Baum (”The Evidence”) and the executive producers of 24 and “Arrested Development” comes LIE TO ME, a compelling new drama series inspired by the scientific discoveries of Dr. Paul Ekman, a real-life specialist who can read clues embedded in the human face, body and voice to expose both the truth and lies in criminal investigations. “

So, as you can see, there is an actual basis for the storylines of the show which centers on the work of a behavorial scientist.  Dr. Ekman has a slick website that educates its readers on the many and varied usages and limitations of this discipline.  I wonder if Dr. Ekman has had the opportunity to analyze the series of public appearances that Speaker Pelosi has made over the last two weeks.  In case you haven’t seen it the RNC has done some research:

See any indications of lying?  ( Hat Tip to Michelle Malkin )

Victor Davis Hanson does a tremendous job over at National Review Online.  I recommend that you read the whole thing, but here is an example:

LET THEM EAT MOOSE
“Ted Stevens may have gotten off,” wrote Bob Herbert in the New York Times, “but he taught our Sarah something first — like using $100-a-pound beef for her state dinners. And what’s this $50 mil for her inauguration gala? Since when do you fly in your favorite pizza-maker from across the country on our dime? Or send the presidential 747 for a spin over the Big Apple for a third-of-a-million-dollar joyride? Does Palin think she’s still in Alaska and has to have everything flown in from the South 48 by jumbo jet?”