Based upon the ongoing conversation in Washington, the focus is now on securing votes.  While the discussion still revolves around addressing our nation’s problems, it quickly becomes clear that saving America will have to take a backseat to getting re-elected.  The behavior which average Americans most despise has taken center stage:  devisive politics.  The President spoke in El Paso, Texas about immigration policy but quickly devolved into a discussion of division, racism, and ridicule.  Does the President not know that alligators won’t survive in the Rio Grande because the Texans will make them into boots?  The sudden resurection of the Dream Act in the Senate further illustrates the renewed focus of our leadershipto secure the vote of a select group.  Meanwhile, Senate Democrats are berating a select group of oil executives for having the audacity to generate a profit for their stockholders, again to appeal to a select group.  It is interesting that days after an election, the victors will call for unity within our nation.  We will be asked to come together as Americans to “win the future”.  While that may make for a nice fuzzy moment, it is but a precursor to the divide and conquer strategy which will precede the next election.  How many ways can you split America to get a vote?  We are about to find out.

Those desiring a new era in Washington where solutions super-ceded politics are either disappointed or shaking their heads; I told you so.  As fuel prices continue to hover near $4.00, Republicans want to increase production and Democrats want to tax oil companies.  Unfortunately, neither position results in any short-term benefit to the American consumer.  The only real contention is who will receive the political benefit (i.e. votes) from any action.  It seems that it has only been the common American citizen who saw this day coming.  Ample opportunity has been available to develop an energy policy for this nation.  The support of the American people has been there.  Politics has been the only obstacle, which should serve as a reminder to each of us that politics thrives on contention not solution.  Until we the people remedy the problem, we will continue to pay the price.

All politics aside, I commend President Obama for seeing through our nation’s mission to bring Osama Bin Laden to justice.  That mission, begun by President Bush, proves that the interests of our nation can overcome the politics of party.  May God Bless those soldiers involved, those families now seeking closure, and our nation which still believes in justice and freedom.  While the conflict may not yet be over, the resolve of America is steadfast.

Shell Oil Company has been forced to abandon some 27 million barrels of oil due to obstruction by the EPA.  In but one of numerous examples the EPA has again roadblocked what the majority of Americans desire;  energy independence.  Despite our President’s claim that America can pursue “safe and responsible production of oil at home”, it is clear that this Administration has no intentions of seriously pursuing energy independence unless it can be achieved by tremendous investment of taxpayer dollars.  Most Americans support alternative energy, Mr. President.  Will there still be an America left by the time it can be implemented?  What about America’s needs today, Mr. President?

Most of us want to cut government spending and to live within our means.  The recent budget battles have centered upon this very critical issue.  However, at some point in this debate, we must address the core issue which is how much government do we really need and what should they be doing.  Individually, not as groups, we must decide exactly how much “help” we must have from Washington.  They still do not believe that there actually are American citizens who simply want our Constitutional freedoms.  This election will determine whether we are actually serious about smaller government or if we are also addicted to Washington goodies.  It will be up to average, individual citizens to determine the future of America.

In the immortal words of Howard Dean, it is the economy which is at the forefront.  It has been and it will be as long as the future of America is in jeopardy, and our future is in jeopardy.  While Congress is hammering out a compromise on yet another continuing resolution, we the people are exactly where we have been;  looking for work, watching fuel prices climb, worrying about our future.  While Washington debates  what can or can’t be done, it is time that we the people stand up and say we will secure our future, with or without you.

At the core of the progressive playbook is regulation.  It is necessary to regulate every aspect of American life to keep us safe from ourselves.  Watch your diet, wear your seat-belt, keep those teens in their car seat, and by all means make sure you always go green.  From banking and business regulation to regulation of our personal lives, it is fair to say that America is only a relatively free nation.  It is time for our government to be reminded that liberty is a comprehensive package.  You cannot pick and choose.  Partial freedom is not free.  Relative freedom is not America.

Do you remember protests on Capital Hill, anti-Bush signs, and blood for oil slogans?  How times change when a Democrat is in the White House.  Libya is, after all, a moral mission with humanitarian aims.  I wonder what made Iraq different?  Oh yes, it was politics.  Despite our feelings of outrage and disgust, Qadhafi presents no vital threat to the United States.  Are we prepared to engage every example of brutal tyranny?  How about Syria, Yemen, the Ivory Coast, or the Sudan?  The American people are interested in taking care of our vital interests first.  They lie right here at home.  We cannot afford such foolish endeavors and I seem to remember they are part of the reason we are in this position.

USA Today reported last week $4.8 billion worth of earmarks within the continuing resolution to keep the government funded in the short term.  Just when we thought earmarks had been ended we find business as usual in Washington.  At least Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) has attempted to put a stop to the spending which includes $18.6 million in unemployment for those with a reported income of $1 million or more and $20 million for the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate in Massachusetts.  Thus far, Harry Reid (D-NV) has obstructed any effort to stop these earmarks.  What happened to the promise to stop earmarks?  Career politicians are still in charge.

Long touted as the defenders of minority groups, the Democrats are in fact placing undue strain upon these very groups.   Put the pieces together with a certain degree of logic and a picture which has been largely ignored soon appears.  Rising housing prices are driving minorities out of many areas in which they were well established.  The reason: building restrictions and bans have become the norm in the name of environmental concerns.  The insistence of an ever increasing minimum wage assures a high rate of unemployment among minority youth.  Obamacare is dependant upon forcing the young to buy into the program.  When the median age of Hispanics is 27 and that group is expected to comprise 30% of the population in the future, where will the greatest burden of Obamacare fall?  It makes for good politics to talk about helping certain groups, but it matters little when the net effect of the Democratic platform is negative toward those same groups of Americans.  It is time that we stopped thinking in groups and began to focus on America.