It is Time for a Senate Filibuster

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan (stimulus package) passed in the House of Representatives yesterday with only Democrat support.  Not a single Republican Senator voted for the stimulus package.  The bill will now make its way to the Senate next week.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan will not recover the current economic crisis (big government spending is not stimulative).  The plan will be a massive reinvestment in big government which has got to be the last thing we need at this time.  So how do we prevent the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan from being approved?  The answer is simple:  utilize the filibuster.

If Senate Republicans and fiscally conservative Democrats are truly concerned that the stimulus package will do nothing to stimulate the economy, then they must exercise their right to filibuster.  Here is a little history of the filibuster:

In the early years of Congress, representatives as well as senators could filibuster. As the House of Representatives grew in numbers, however, revisions to the House rules limited debate. In the smaller Senate, unlimited debate continued on the grounds that any senator should have the right to speak as long as necessary on any issue.

There have been few better times in the U.S. Senate for a blow hard Senator to use his or her gift of gab for a more common good.  If I were a U.S. Senator, I would literally speak non-stop accept when out of session for the next month on how bad this bill is.  I would provide an alternate plan that doesn’t rape the American People.  People would be so sick of listening to me by the time I was done, they would pass any alternative (tax cut incentive) stimulus package I put in front of them.

I have called on my Senator Jon Kyl to exercise his right to filibuster.  Although Senator Kyl has made a stand on many issues,  I fear he and his fellow Republicans will not make use of their filibuster powers.  During the recent election, the Republican Party was so concerned that they would not have enough Senators elected and would find themselves in a filibuster proof Senate, but that didn’t happen.  The Republicans garnered enough Senate seats to guarantee their right to filibuster.  Since they secured the filibuster right, they really ought to make use of it.  I fear they won’t.

Utter Stupidity – House of Representatives Passes Stimulus Bill

Is it too much to ask that our Congress members have some idea of how an economy works and some recollection of accurate historical reference?  The answer is, YES, that is too much to ask.  Today, the House of Representatives passed the stimulus package also known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan (or as I like to refer to it, liberal spending bullshit and socialism plan) by a vote of 244-188.

According to MyWay.com, Nancy Pelosi had this to say:

A mere eight days after Inauguration Day, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the events heralded a new era. “The ship of state is difficult to turn,” said the California Democrat. “But that is what we must do. That is what President Obama called us to do in his inaugural address.”

Nancy, the ship of state is not hard to turn when you hold a measurable majority in Congress and you put in rules to thwart the voices of the minority party.  In the long run Nancy your behemoth of a ship will sink straight to the bottom of the Potomac and the nation will hold you and all of your Democratic colleagues responsible.

In the same article, Pelosi’s colleague, David Obey had this to say:

“Another week that we delay is another 100,000 or more people unemployed. I don’t think we want that on our consciences,” said Rep. David Obey, D-Wis., chairman of the House Appropriations Committee and one of the leading architects of the legislation.

OK Representative Obey, when the private sector shows job losses exceeding 100,000 next week and next month will you be conceding that this is the result of your utterly ridiculous legislation?  I doubt it, but you like Pelosi and Obama will go down with the sinking ship.

On the rational side of the house, John Boehner had this to say:

The party’s leader, Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, said the measure “won’t create many jobs, but it will create plenty of programs and projects through slow-moving government spending.” A GOP alternative, comprised almost entirely of tax cuts, was defeated, 266-170.

So just remember that America, you could have had a thoughtful tax cut incentives stimulus package for this economy, but instead you got a pork filled, lard infested, piece of donkey dung that will spiral this nation further downward.

Aren’t you stupid suckers glad you voted for hope and change.  Now grow up, learn something about politics, vet your candidates before you vote for their dumb asses and Think America Think!  All we have now is the Republicans and a few smart Democrats in the Senate to save us.

For those interested in some particulars of the vote see the following:

There was not a single Republican in the House of Representatives voting yes on the stimulus bill.  There was one Republican Representative, Ginny Brown-Waite who did not vote.

The following are Democrats in the House who should be commended for voting no on the stimulus bill:

Allen Boyd, Bobby Bright, Jim Cooper, Brad Ellsworth, Parker Griffith, Paul Kanjorski, Frank, Kratovil, Walt Minnick, Collin Peterson, Heath Shuler, Gene Taylor.

Voting specifics obtained from The Washington Post.

Stop the Lies from Congress

While watching the beginning of the debate this morning in the House of Representatives for the stimulus package which was broadcast on CSPAN, I was dumbfounded by a procedural issue that passed by the House with almost unequivocal House Democrat support.  The issue that arose had to do with some amendments to the stimulus package. 

In the Energy and Commerce committee 6 amendments to the bill were passed by both the Democrats and Republicans; however, these 6 amendments did not make it into the stimulus package that the House of Representatives is voting on today.  Republicans brought up this issue before the Congress and also pointed out that Nancy Pelosi had released a statement that the stimulus had bipartisan support, yet those Republicans who were supporting the stimulus package or portions thereof were doing so with their amendments included.  When those amendments did not make it into the bill, of course, the Republican support for those portions of the bill were no longer valid.  The House then took a vote on this procedural issue and passed overwhelmingly by Congress Democrats to proceed with the discussion of the stimulus package and vote on the stimulus package without these pre-approved amendments included in it.

How can the House of Representatives in good faith vote on a stimulus package today when they can’t even get approved in committee amendments accurately included in the bill?  The more you watch our Country’s Representatives in the House in action, you ask yourself would the majority of these dolts keep their jobs if they worked in the private sector.  No, they’d be fired.  It’s time to get yourself involved in politics and fire these idiots.  Our country can’t afford their mistakes any longer.

Update 2/13/2009

Today, the House of Representatives and the Senate will be voting on the final version of the “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.”  The final version of the bill was not made final until yesterday.  Nancy Pelosi and other Democrat leadership stated that they would allow 48 hours to review the final version of the bill, yet another promise they will now not be keeping.

How long are you going to let Nancy Pelosi and her colleagues lie to you before you have had enough?

Geithner Confirmation Despicable

I find it absolutely despicable that the Senate voted to confirm Timothy Geithner’s appointment as Treasury Secretary today.  Is there absolutely no ethics left in this country?  As a student of ethics in college, I honestly do not see how anyone can make the argument that a person who apparently (and I only use the word apparently because I do not have indisputable proof) defrauded and knowingly cheated on his 2001–2004 tax returns should lead the Treasury Department which is also in charge of the IRS.  I don’t buy the argument that he is the only person qualified to take the position during this economic crisis.  Call me crazy, but just a shred of propriety, just an ounce of decency, just an inkling of ethics from our government would be greatly appreciated by its constituents.  When will we begin holding our elected officials accountable for their actions?

I think the only thing that bothers me more about this appointment is the media’s reporting of it.  The media knows that this confirmation even on the liberal side is not popular with the American people, so how does the media report it?  The Associated Press claims the following:

The 60-34 vote, in which handfuls of Republicans and Democrats voted against their party leaders, put Geithner at the helm of Obama’s economic team as it races to halt the worst financial slide in generations.

The final vote for Timothy Geithner’s confirmation was 60 to 34 with 4 Senators not voting.  And the Associated Press claims handfuls of Democrats and Republicans opposed the confirmation.  It appears the Associated Press does math as well as Geithner.  The truth is only 3 democrats voted nay against the confirmation that’s roughly 5% of Democrats voting nay.  On the other hand, 27 republicans voted nay against the confirmation which is roughly 60% of Republicans voting against the confirmation.  I would venture a guess that the Republican Senators came much closer to reflecting the people’s sentiments in this confirmation.  Why can’t the media get simple statistics correct?  It is such a mischaracterization of the votes to say handfuls of  Republicans and Democrats voted against the confirmation.  An accurate report by the Associated Press would have stated that a couple of Democrats and a majority of Republican Senators voted against the confirmation.  The Associated Press researched the actual votes as they reference further accurate statistics in their article, but they chose not to use language that accurately reflected those votes at the beginning of their article.  Not only was this a despicable confirmation but the reporting of it was despicable as well.

Here is a list of how each Senator voted as provided by the U.S. Senate’s website:

U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 111^th Congress – 1^st Session  as compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate

 Vote Summary 

Question: On the Nomination(Confirmation Timothy F. Geithner, of New York, to be Secretary of the Treasury )
Vote Number:	15	Vote Date:	January 26, 2009, 06:00 PM
Required For Majority:	1/2	Vote Result:	Nomination Confirmed
Nomination Number:	PN64-6
Nomination Description:	Timothy F. Geithner, of New York, to be Secretary of the Treasury

Vote Counts:	YEAs	60
	NAYs	34
	Not Voting	4

Alphabetical by Senator Name

Akaka (D-HI), Yea Alexander (R-TN), Nay Barrasso (R-WY), Nay Baucus (D-MT), Yea Bayh (D-IN), Yea Begich (D-AK), Yea Bennet (D-CO), Yea Bennett (R-UT), Nay Bingaman (D-NM), Yea Bond (R-MO), Not Voting Boxer (D-CA), Yea Brown (D-OH), Not Voting Brownback (R-KS), Nay Bunning (R-KY), Nay Burr (R-NC), Nay Burris (D-IL), Yea Byrd (D-WV), Nay Cantwell (D-WA), Yea Cardin (D-MD), Yea Carper (D-DE), Yea Casey (D-PA), Yea Chambliss (R-GA), Nay Coburn (R-OK), Nay Cochran (R-MS), Nay Collins (R-ME), Nay Conrad (D-ND), Yea Corker (R-TN), Yea Cornyn (R-TX), Yea Crapo (R-ID), Yea DeMint (R-SC), Nay Dodd (D-CT), Yea Dorgan (D-ND), Yea Durbin (D-IL), Yea

Ensign (R-NV), Yea Enzi (R-WY), Nay Feingold (D-WI), Nay Feinstein (D-CA), Yea Graham (R-SC), Yea Grassley (R-IA), Nay Gregg (R-NH), Yea Hagan (D-NC), Yea Harkin (D-IA), Nay Hatch (R-UT), Yea Hutchison (R-TX), Nay Inhofe (R-OK), Nay Inouye (D-HI), Yea Isakson (R-GA), Nay Johanns (R-NE), Nay Johnson (D-SD), Yea Kaufman (D-DE), Yea Kennedy (D-MA), Not Voting Kerry (D-MA), Yea Klobuchar (D-MN), Yea Kohl (D-WI), Yea Kyl (R-AZ), Nay Landrieu (D-LA), Yea Lautenberg (D-NJ), Yea Leahy (D-VT), Yea Levin (D-MI), Yea Lieberman (ID-CT), Yea Lincoln (D-AR), Yea Lugar (R-IN), Nay Martinez (R-FL), Nay McCain (R-AZ), Nay McCaskill (D-MO), Yea McConnell (R-KY), Nay

Menendez (D-NJ), Yea Merkley (D-OR), Yea Mikulski (D-MD), Yea Murkowski (R-AK), Nay Murray (D-WA), Yea Nelson (D-FL), Yea Nelson (D-NE), Yea Pryor (D-AR), Yea Reed (D-RI), Yea Reid (D-NV), Yea Risch (R-ID), Nay Roberts (R-KS), Nay Rockefeller (D-WV), Yea Sanders (I-VT), Nay Schumer (D-NY), Yea Sessions (R-AL), Nay Shaheen (D-NH), Yea Shelby (R-AL), Yea Snowe (R-ME), Yea Specter (R-PA), Nay Stabenow (D-MI), Yea Tester (D-MT), Yea Thune (R-SD), Nay Udall (D-CO), Yea Udall (D-NM), Yea Vitter (R-LA), Nay Voinovich (R-OH), Yea Warner (D-VA), Yea Webb (D-VA), Yea Whitehouse (D-RI), Yea Wicker (R-MS), Nay Wyden (D-OR), Not Voting

The Hypocrisy of Hope

Dictionary.com defines hypocrisy, in part, as:

a pretense of having some desirably or publicly approved attitude.

I am afraid that is what many voters went to the polls on November 4th with hypocrisy in their hearts, i.e., that Barack Obamaheld the same desirable and publicly approved attitudes that they did.  So let me ask you a few simple yes or no questions to find out how in-line your beliefs and attitudes are with President Obama’s.

1. Global warming (man-made or otherwise) is unequivocally true.
2. Late-term abortions are fine and should be allowed without any restrictions.
3. Federal Government spending is the only way to end the recession/economic crisis we are currently experiencing.
4. It is OK to force wealthier Americans to pay more in taxes and impoverished Americans to pay no federal tax and receive “tax credits” even though they didn’t pay any federal taxes to begin with.  In other words, impoverished Americans can receive a check from the IRS even though they didn’t pay any federal taxes.
5. Terrorists have the same legal rights and in particular habeas corpus rights as U.S. Citizens.
6. Nationalized health care also known as socialized medicine must be implemented in America.
7. Continuing policies that ensure America does not produce more of its own oil resources or expand its nuclear energy production.

If you answered YES to all 7 questions above and voted for Obama, then you did the right thing because you obviously are in “lock step” with our new President.  However, if you answered NO to several of the questions above, or a majority  the questions above, and you voted for Barack Obama, then you might just be a victim of the hypocrisy of hope.

Personally, I answered NO to all 7 questions above, and if  I had to venture a guess, I would imagine that a vast majority of Americans would answer NO to a minimum of 4 of the 7 above questions, so how in the heck did 62 million Americans vote for the hypocrisy of hope, Barack H. Obama? 

The answer is quite simple, when the media doesn’t vet a candidate, and you in turn do not do your own vetting of that same candidate, then you get the result that we got in this election.  Unfortunately, elections have consequences, so when hopey, dopey, change is preferred over serious analysis of the issues at hand the outcome may not be the intended result.

Over the next four years, those of you whom voted for the hypocrisy of hope will be living in your own disillusionment, and I’m afraid it won’t find you in a happy place.  For the rest of us who went into this with our blinders fully removed we’ll do our best utilizing all of our political means at our disposal to attempt to mitigate the hypocrisy of hope to the best of our abilities.  You might now hope that we are successful.

Loyalties

 

As Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44^th President of the United States of America, there are still those who believe he is not eligible due to Article 2, Section 1 of the United States Constitution that he just pledged to uphold.  The relevant passage states in part:

No person, except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President…

There are those who believe that President Barack Obama is not a natural born citizen and therefore is not eligible to be President of the United States of America.

What really is at question here is not the definition of what it is to be a natural born citizen but loyalty to the United States of America for the crux of the issue that surrounded the inclusion of the Natural Born Citizen mandate for the Office of President in our Constitution was in fact an assurance of loyalty to this new Nation.  It was imperative to the success of our Nation that its citizenry be loyal and that the highest office of the land be held by one of unquestionable loyalty.  This is truly the issue before us today.

To simply state that Barack Obama is not loyal to this country without a preponderance of evidence is to potentially lack loyalty yourself.  It is a question that cannot be answered in a few words, a few sentences or a few paragraphs, but rather a long discourse with arguments from all sides surrounding issue.

First the question must be asked, what does it mean to be loyal to the United States of America?  This in itself is a profound asking but can probably be most effectively summed up as freedom, freedom to pursue life, liberty and happiness, freedom to prosper as an individual and as a collective, freedom to ensure that these self-evident truths remain intact for all our citizenry and future generations.

To outrightly dismiss Barack Obama’s loyalty to the United States of America is naïve at best, dangerous at its worst but remains an intellectually prudent exercise.  To not look upon the Inauguration of America’s first African-American President, to deny the struggles of this Nation in its quest for equality is a cynical exercise on a historical day.  So with the breadth and the depth of the history made today, and with the struggles and triumphs of a Nation of people, all people, we will exercise our prudence and at least look if only for a moment at the important question of loyalty, specifically, loyalty to the United States of America.

Barack Obama was born to Barack Obama Sr., a Kenyan native and British Subject and Stanley Ann Dunham, a Kansas native and resident at the time of his birth of the 50^th state of the Union, Hawaii.  Barack Obama’s father left his mother when President Obama was 2 years old and was never a physical presence in President Obama’s life.  Stanley Ann Dunham seemed to have a persuasion to foreigners as she later married Lolo Soetoro an Indonesian citizen and moved the family to Indonesia.  President Obama lived in Indonesia for several years returning to Hawaii to live with his grandparents.

I provide this brief parentage synopsis to point out that President Obama did not have your standard issue American life and was subject to a more global world at an early age than many of his fellow citizens.  Like those before him with a world view and who have lived outside of the United States, you either grow a deeper appreciation for our country or recognize and learn from the world outside of ours or you do both.

There are many questionable characters in President Obama’s life including but not limited to:  Frank Marshall Davis, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Rashid Khalidi, William Ayers, Samantha Power, and the list can go on.  Many of these characters we would not categorize with the American loyalty crowd; however, it may yet to be seen how their influence will affect Mr. Obama’s Presidency.

On this day, at this time, I do not possess the energy nor the inclination to tackle the question of President Barack Hussein Obama’s loyalty to this country.  The occasion is too great, the stakes too high to make misstatements or contort the record. 

What I believe we saw today is the representation of who we are as Americans.  We cast aside our racial bias to elect the first African American President.  We see represented in our 44^th President a diversity of background.  We find ourselves with yet another lawyer as President of the United States.  And we see the common man elevated to our country’s highest position.  For that we are grateful.

If you feel this day does not warrant the above reverence, if you are still concerned about holding the highest office of the land requirements be met, if you fear the liberal left will lead this country to damnation, then you should start today to change the ideological views of its populace from as our President states “the bottom up” rather than the “top down.”  For no one man can entirely change this country in just one term or two.  No one man, no matter his power, can thwart the will of the people in a free and just nation.  No man is the bastion for what is right or what is wrong, what is good or evil.  The citizenry of this country are free; we will remain free, and will fight for that freedom regardless our leadership.  That is the promise of our Constitutional Republic, and our promise to ourselves.

Hope not in a Man but Believe in a Nation

Yesterday, when I saw the desecration of the flag with Barack Obama, I thought wow have we really come this far, are we now simply like our third world brethren?  The first problem with the Obama flag is that it is in direct violation with the United State Flag code which states in one part that:

The flag should never have placed upon it, nor on any part of it, nor attached to it any mark, insignia, letter, word, figure, design, picture, or drawing of any nature.

Does the following flag seem to conform with that code?  No it does not.

The second problem with the Obama flag is that it is another arm of the propaganda machine.  If you do not think or are not aware that the entire Obama campaign and successive appointment (not election) is just pure unadulterated propoganda, then you are hopelessly lost and probably won’t find much on this Weblog of use to you; however, if you are concerned about America joining its 3rd world brethren in propagand for a man instead of belief in the principles of a nation, then read on and provide your comments.

Evidence of propaganda and there is much of it, so I’ll attempt to confine the list to pictures and captions:

 

 Religions use symbols; men typically don’t create symbols for themselves.

Petty Dictators and despots love to see their own image.

The Obama airplane was the first indication that there wasn’t much respect for the American flag.

Obama makes his own presidential seal.

Propaganda image to make you see strength and fitness.

Obama creates an office that has never before existed

If all of that isn’t propaganda folks I don’t know what is? 

The beauty of this country is that it was founded in the belief in the individual citizenry and not belief in a man.  People have flocked to this country specifically to run away from what you see you above.  If you are busy hoping your life will change because of a man namely Barack Obama, you are so lost, you may never find yourself.  Until you have belief in yourself, you will experience no hope in your own future.

 

Tomorrow during the Inauguration, we will probably see folks chanting O-BA-MA, O-BA-MA, O-BA-MA.  Folks, that is what they do in 3rd world nations, nations run by Dictators, nations where the folks don’t have rights.  If you want America back, chant your own name, put your hope in yourself, a belief in the principles and ideologies this country once stood for, and success will find you and return our nation to prosperity.

The Gravy Train Rolls On

 

Today, Barack Obama kicked off the Inauguration ceremonies by hopping a train (ala Lincoln) from Philadelphia, PA with stops in (Joe Bieden’s) Wilmington, DE, Baltimore, MD finally arriving at its destination in Washington, DC.  A historic journey no doubt, but one tempered by the economic woes of our country, and I couldn’t help but think while watching the coverage on TV, the gravy train rolls on.

Do you remember those commercials for Gravy Train dog food where you buy some normal dog food with a powdered substance on it, add warm water and voila, your dog has a tasty gravy dog food treat.  But then you ask yourself, does my dog really need gravy on his dog food, and more importantly is it even good for him to have gravy on his dog food?  And then I start thinking about the bailout package (TARP) where the second 350B was just released with approval from the Senate this week, and I think about the, at least, 850B stimulus package President-elect Obama has Congress drawing up, and I think do we really need this, and more importantly, is it even good for us?  Of course, as a fiscal conservative, I come up with the emphatic answer NO!

Then I find myself wondering has America really gotten to this point where it thinks it needs handouts and a government so hell bent on spending that it can’t see the forest for the trees, but then I think, well it’s a good thing we can see the trees because we’ll need to be chopping them down for the paper we will need to print for all of the money the government will need.  Or, I think the government can save the trees by borrowing the money from China, and then I guess we all just learn Mandarine.  What I’m trying to say here is the gravy train of government is certainly off the tracks and does not represent the government I remember the United States of America operating under.

I don’t think that Gravy Train dog food sells so well anymore, and I’m guessing government bailouts and stimuli packages bankrupting this country aren’t going to sell so well for very long either.  In fact, I remember a time before there was Gravy Train dog food, where our dogs ate normal dog food and where we humans took pride in personal responsibility, personal sacrifice, and actually making our own way which was the foundation on which our country was built.  I think it is now time to stop buying Gravy Train dog food, and bring the government big spending gravy train to an immediate stop before it leaves our nation’s capital and bankrupts us all.

A Senator’s Dream — Authored by Booklady

While perusing the Internet today, I saw a blog post entitled “A Senator’s Dream” written by a woman who goes by the pseudonym Booklady.  I found it moving, and hope that you will be so moved as well.  You can find the original post of the piece here, but I have copied it in its entirety in this post. 

A Senator’s Dream

Dear Senator,

Once, many years ago when a young country had a dream, a man said, “Gentlemen, if we do not hang together, we will most assuredly hang separately.” Mr. Franklin knew of what he spoke, still he and other men and women of vision and integrity went forward at the risk of their own lives to forge a new nation based on personal liberty and limited government.

 Something has gone wrong. The document these men constructed in order to form a more perfect union was bought with blood, sweat and tears and now it has been shredded by greed, power hunger and dishonesty.

Who has allowed this to happen? We all have. We have become complacent, giving over our right to self-determination to self-serving elected officials and the propaganda of the media. In 1913, our government gave us away to the National Reserve Bank and since that time, we have seen the erosion of everything we as Americans purport to hold dear.

We the People can no longer stand aside and watch while we’re sold to the highest bidder, while our troops fight wars of nefarious design, while free-enterprise morphs into greedy corporatism, while the government we have entrusted with our very survival and safety enable irresponsibility and while our Constitution is dissembled into a worthless piece of paper. Shame on us all.

What will we tell our children? Our grandchildren? What will you, Senator, tell your son or daughter about your contributions to maintaining their freedom or your complacency that aided in the destruction of their future?

Tonight when you lie in bed, and in your dreams, you’re greeted by the men who risked being hanged to give you the privilege to sit in Congress, and the privilege to ensure the liberty of your children and their children’s children, what will you tell your forefathers? Will you tell them you stand proudly against the shadowy manipulators who are destroying their hard work, or will you tell them you fear being hanged by the press and those who disregard the Constitution in favor of self-interest? Will you tell them you are comfortable and that their vision is outdated and irrelevant to today’s world? What, Senator, will you say to them?

Will you see me and millions of patriots standing in the crowd gathered on the Potomac watching as General Washington rallies his army of poorly-shod, cold and hungry men to free a nation? I’ll be there, Senator, standing between the soldier in a tattered jerkin who fought at King’s Mountain and the young soldier who charged up Bunker Hill. I’ll be just behind the men who planted Old Glory on Iwo Jima and the firemen who raised the flag over the smoldering rubble of the World Trade Center.

I’ll be the one who steps into the boat, bearing the only title of note at that moment: “I’m an American.”

General Washington, his mouth set firm against the odds, will search my face as if he knows he should recognize me by name, but little will such matter at this time when the name American is enough. “Yes, child?”

Against the gunmetal sky, he looms like a tall scarecrow whose straw has been too little of late. Still, his countenance is unmistakable: a commanding presence of grave calm wrapped in a blue cloak. He is flesh and blood, as real as any man who has ever lived. “I would join you, sir,” I say.

I cannot tell if his knitted brow is born of his respect for my sincerity or if he is amused by this woman who dares to stand upon the front line against the enemy. “Are you not frightened?” he asks.

My whole body quivers with fear, but the fear comes not from worry about possible physical harm or from worry about my unlikely talents as a soldier, but it wells from deep within where I know the inevitable consequences if the rebellion suffers loss. I cannot abide that thought. “Yes,” I tell him. “I am afraid, but my love of this land and her people far exceeds all other concerns.”

A tall man with a receding hairline steps to the general’s side. With his fist clinched over his heart, he fills his chest with a great measure of the frigid air. “Give me liberty or give me death!” His words, filled with conviction, stab my heart with admiration for the men who willing to go forward despite the poor odds of success and the certain fierceness of battles to come.

Another man, tall and lanky, sweeps from his head a stove-top hat. “Are you willing to give so much, ma’am?”

“What of you, sir?” I ask. “What did you give to preserve this union? Do you regret it?”

His shoulders straighten and his chin lifts. “I do not. Should I have known in advance of a deranged man and an abruptly interrupted theater performance, I would not have ventured any other course. At all costs, a united states must be maintained.” His long coat flaps in the cold wind and the river roils beneath the boat, yet he stands steady upon the rough planks. “The sacrifices tear at my heart; the men who died, were bloodied and maimed, remain into eternity upon my soul. Still, I would walk the same path and take the same seat at the theater in their honor and in honor of this land. My price was no more than theirs. Is this country worth as much to you, ma’am?”

Before I can answer, a chill shakes me to the bone. I pray it is not lurking cowardice but winter’s wrath that shatters me.

Suddenly, I am warmed by an arm that goes about my shoulders. “Dear Mr. President,” the man says while with his free hand he adjusts the wire-rimmed glasses perched on his nose. “You are frightening the lady with your stern manner.”

“It is not he who frightens me, sir,” I tell the portly soul propping me against the ill winds blowing over the Potomac. “It is the fear that none will defend your vision, that none will stand with us to safeguard the Constitution and bear laurels upon the honorable names of those who may only be remembered by their grieving families, but are victorious heroes nonetheless. I fear a people who call themselves American, yet no longer recall what sacrifices have been made and still need to be offered in order to keep watch over liberty. I fear the light in New York Harbor will go out and the Lady’s life drained forever from her. I fear darkness; the end of our republic.”

“How can that be?” asks a man in a brown cloak fastened about his neck with a pin cast as an eagle in flight. Arrows jut from its clutched talons. “The Continental Congress made certain a guiding light would always shine to show the way. Years we spent constructing a document that would be held above all others in order to preserve life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. By my own good name and hand did I witness this done.”

“Yet,” I say, “many now feel it only a piece of paper and our trust has been betrayed by those who swore to uphold the Constitution. Obscene wealth is the new law of this land.”

A fire sweeps across his face and his weathered hands clinch the folds of his cloak as if he would strangle the cloth. His voice echoes across the valley. “They ignore the Constitution? What right? What manner of fool would set aside the very lifeblood of their own liberty?”

“We have become complacent,” I say. “We have taken education and replaced it with political correctness. We have given away our freedoms willingly in the name of security.” Displeasure is evident in the ire that rumbles deep within his chest. I continue. “I’m sorry, but it’s true. Many of our people no longer know or even recognize what rights our Constitution grants us, nor do they care. The free press you so diligently fashioned is now populated by media personalities and owners who care only for ratings and revenue. Truth no longer has a place in the news. Information is manipulated, disseminated to sway public opinion. We have replaced opportunity with dependency and opened the door with poor legislation, excessive taxing and unreasonable demands, for our industry to take jobs overseas. We have allowed racial and economic issues to fester by remaining silent while people are indoctrinated with victim-hood. The government has made them wards by promising the American Dream without it being earned and by promising to lift them up to a higher self-esteem without it ever being planted within them by personal accomplishment. People have become infected with misdirected hate while others simmer with resentment for having worked hard. We have remained silent while corporate greed spiraled out of control, then when Wall Street tumbled and we raised our voices in dissent of the government propping up business that failed by its own mismanagement, we were ignored. Our borders are flooded daily by illegal aliens who stress health care and industry and the government refuses to make safe our land. We have become so accustomed to lies we no longer recognize truth. We no longer have a voice, sir. In vain, We the People have appealed to our representatives. The answer has been clear: We the People serve the government now.”

The man with the stove-top hat steps out from our huddled group for a better view of the swelling crowd. “And where is your representative, ma’am; this man who swore to heed the voice of his fellows and defend with his very life the foundation of this republic?”

It takes only a second for my eyes to spy the deep blue flag emblazoned with a palmetto tree and crescent moon. I point. “There, sir.”

Mr. President wastes no time. “Sir,” he calls. “The time is late and we must leave. Will you come with us?” He pauses long enough to be certain he has my senator’s attention. “Before you answer,” he says, “you must need be aware of the import of your decision. If you choose to stay behind, let it be known that you also will be without liberty, that your loved ones will be in servitude, and that you, Son of the Republic, have been complicit in freedom’s demise. You, sir, should consider that once The People are no longer the voice of this country, that your voice no longer will be needed or welcomed. You, sir, and your position shall be obsolete. You must choose. Will you come with us?”

My heart pounds as if attempting to break free its bony cell while I wait and pray for this man I entrusted with my vote and support to respond. In the waning light, I can not see his face well enough to guess what resolve drives him. He stands quietly under the flapping Palmetto Flag as he, I imagine, wrestles the demon that fights to cast its vote.

With flourish, Mr. President places his hat upon his head. “South Carolina,” he says with a sigh. His head nearly touches mine as he folds at the waist to speak privately with me. “I know this state’s people well,” he says. “They have been known to be rather rash at times, but one attribute upon which you may always rest assured is that they are not afraid.” Save me, I want to say, but my appreciation for his confidence in us stays my comment.

The crowd swells forward and I lose sight of my senator. My heart now aches as if its natural work has become too burdensome to endure.

General Washington rests his hand upon my shoulder. “Come, child. Everyone must make their own decision.” For an instant, his gaze travels back to the surging patriots. With sadness, he adds, “While they still may.”

In the wind-burnt crags of his face, I see a lifetime of experience and resolve; I see a man I will follow without reservation.

I am surrounded by legends, by men and women of textbooks and historical memory. They are imperfect people, people of all colors and creeds, but in all I see strength and commitment, and in all I see the bond forged by the dream for a more perfect union. “The free and the brave,” I whisper on a breath that wisps like a fragile cloud in the afternoon air.

Suddenly, I realize I am no longer cold.

Wake not, Son of the Republic, from this dream that shaped America. Our Founders beckon to you and all America’s people to return liberty to this country and allow God, who guided them, to guide us now. Gather your people, for they are not afraid.

A believer in this dream,
A child of the Republic

State: SC

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