Letter to the Tennessean 2009-06-13

Regarding President Obama’s recent outreach efforts to Muslims, there are many on both sides of the political spectrum that are reading too much into it. It’s pure politics. It has nothing to do with what anyone thinks overseas. All this president does is essentially say, “Look, America. I’m different, I’m not Bush.”

And his liberal supporters lap it up like dogs. However, he has to be careful because for the first time his strongly disapprove rating is equal to his strongly approve rating.
The honeymoon will not last.

Letter to the Tennessean 2009-05-03

I wonder if any of the armchair homeland security experts who moralize over the so-called "torture memos" have actually read them. If they did they would find that there are no instances of actual torture in them.

If putting a caterpillar in the cell of an insect-phobic terror suspect constitutes torture, then we might as well raise the white flag now. As far as waterboarding, it turns out that this relatively mild tactic was practiced only a few times on one of the most heinous terror masterminds.

This is all about hating Bush, which is a tired act among the hand-wringing class. One has to admit that in 8 years the former president must have done a few things right. One of them was preventing unthinkably horrible sequels to 9-11.

Would-be First Daughter Goes Off on Conservatives

In the spacious apartment of the newly minted media celebrity Meghan McCain, everthing has the look of middle-of-the-road decor along with a bit of unique style, from the baby rhinocerous figurine collection in the hutch to the portrait of former President Gerald Ford front-and-center in the foyer. The atmosphere, however, resembles more of a political campaign. An aide scurries by and a scheduling secretary busily works on a laptop and haggles with would-be interviewers as we sit down for a very brief interview.

"I can't imagine I would have been any busier had Daddy won!", she laughs. Just then her blackberry rings; she glances at it. "It's Katie Couric again," she sighs. "I told her I'm absolutely booked this week. I've got Matt Lauer tomorrow morning, the View later in the day, Jon Stewart, then Larry King. I barely have time to sleep!" She declines to take the CBS anchor's call, as she reflects on the last few months. "It's been a lot of fun, I've never felt so popular in my life. I think the question right now is where do Republicans go from here, and I've been in so much demand from those wanting the answer to that question."

Asked what went wrong with her father's campaign, she is philosophical. "Daddy would have been a great president, don't get me wrong, but we have to give the new president a chance. Daddy would have been like Gerald Ford," she says as she looks up at the man she considers the model republican president. "He was the ideal republican, so well liked by Washington insiders on both sides of the aisle. I wish I were alive in that time, such an exciting decade to be a republican, except for the Nixon thing, he was kind of creepy." She glances at her blackberry. "Speaking of creepy, ooh Newt Gingrich is following me on Twitter, yuck! But Ford, now there was a president, kind of stiff but really warm inside like John Kerry who I proudly voted for. I like the whole 'Whip Inflation Now' thing, it's kind of sexy when you think about it."

I wondered aloud if there was any conservative alive in this country whom she hasn't offended. "Hey, I'm like Daddy, a real maverick. I know I've pretty much offended conservatives everywhere, but I know there are a few that I haven't offended yet. Pro-life groups, gun owners, I'll get to everyone eventually. Let me just say that all conservatives are yucky, there I said it!"

Asked whether there is anything Republicans can hang there hat on if they move any further to the center than they already have. "Hey it's like, they won, we have to let them govern. As Daddy said, we have nothing to fear from an Obama presidency. But we have a say too, and I plan to speak up when I disagree with the democrats...I can't really think of anything off the top of my head, but when I do, I'll be sure to mention it to Barbara Walters or someone..."

This begs the question, which I asked as tactfully as I could, why not then just switch parties? "The Republican party can be an important player as a minority party in this country. I mean I'm proud to be a republican, but we need to be more like the democrats, except maybe drive nicer cars. But I look at my friends in the Democratic party...well that's pretty much all my friends come to think of it," she giggles, "and how many shows have they been on? I would lose all my media leverage if I were a Democrat."

Our ten minute interview is about over, but Ms McCain's fifteen minutes of fame seems to go on forever. Just then her blackberry rings again. She motions that she needs to take it this time. "Hi Katie! Well aren't you the persistent one!"

The Tennessean reported that there were nearly 3000 protesters at the tax day tea party downtown ("Riled Tea Partiers rip government spending").

Really? Only 3000? Did you ask the Capitol Police? They said it was three times that number. It's no wonder that newspapers are struggling. They can't even get the basic facts straight.

But don't worry, if this administration's march toward socialism continues, the throngs that show up will dwarf yesterday's gathering. The outrage at the government's power grab is palpable, even if the liberal media chooses to downplay it.

Letter to the Tennessean 2009-04-11

Part and parcel to President Obama's remaking of the war on terror (oops, I mean overseas contingency operation), is the closing of the Guantanamo Bay prison.

According to critics of the president who kept us safe after 9-11, keeping terror suspects there amounts to torture. They get 3 square meals a day, prepared any way they choose, plus they get to exercise, read, or just lounge around all day in the tropical sun.

I have just one question: How do I sign up for that kind of torture?

Letter to the Tennessean 2009-04-04

Is anyone surprised by the foreign policy incompetence shown by this administration? Our forefathers risked everything 230 years ago so that we could be a free country that wouldn't bow to any king. Did some teleprompter tell the president to bow to Saudi King Abdullah?

All I know is that we were well and fairly warned that the presidency does not lend itself to on-the-job training. I'm trying to think of who warned us of that. Oh that's right: Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton.

Letter to the Tennessean 2009-03-22

Regarding your editorial "Don't undermine stimulus recovery efforts for political gain", please re-read the First Amendment, without which the Tennessean would be out of busineess.
I don't remember any such editorial excoriating anti-war protesters for questioning Bush's policies. Now we have a president who is tripling the deficit, and we're supposed to "give it a chance to work"?
I have news for the Tennessean: these policies have been given a chance, and we have seen them fail before our eyes throughout the democratic socialist world. Those of us who oppose this radical administration still pay our taxes and love our country, just like our fellow Americans who are peeling off their "Impeach Bush" bumper stickers.