People who confidently presume to know the mind of God in major world events have always unsettled me. Often I think they must not be reading the same inspired Scriptures that I do. About 10 days ago I took Rev. Pat Robertson to task for his remarks about Ariel Sharon: both presumptuous and inappropriate. Yesterday, New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin got in on the act, with his claims that the hurricane that struck his city and the Gulf Coast region was some kind of retribution for the Iraq war. At least Robertson's claim had some loose connection to actual Old Testament prophecy. Nagin went even farther out on a limb, appropriating Divine purposes to suit his views on American foreign policy. Yet I can guarantee the outcry and response from … [Read more...]
Archives for January 2006
Beauprez On Board with Blunt
Yesterday I wrote an open letter urging Rep. Bob Beauprez to support Rep. John Shadegg in the upcoming House leadership elections. An astute commenter pointed out that I was "too late" - linking to a site I had not seen that says Beauprez has already committed to supporting current House Majority Whip Roy Blunt. Assuming the complete accuracy of this list, it is important to note the following: As he burns up cell phone minutes this weekend, Shadegg is likely to secure endorsements from previously uncommitted members of the group. And today his spokesperson went even further, issuing a statement asserting that they "already have defections from the Blunt list." Lastly, as Richard Cohen sagely noted in this week's issue of National … [Read more...]
An Open Letter to Bob Beauprez
This morning I sent the following letter to my Congressman, U.S. Representative Bob Beauprez of Colorado's 7th Congressional District, regarding the important upcoming decisions for new leadership in the House: As an active Jefferson County Republican and supporter of your candidacy in the past two elections, I have a concern shared by many within the party that I would like to share. Regarding the upcoming elections of GOP House leadership, I believe it is of the utmost importance for the sake of the party and the country to select leaders a) who are completely untainted by any dealings with Jack Abramoff, b) who are proven and committed fiscal conservatives (opponents of pork & earmarks), and c) who understand that lobbying and … [Read more...]
Petition on House Leadership Elections for Center-Right Bloggers
As a principled and purposeful conservative Republican partisan activist who believes in the power of ruling majorities to shift debates and move agendas, and as an American dedicated to the highest ideals in the stewardship of our government, I gladly contribute my humble and wholehearted support to the following petition at NZ Bear (and encourage other center-right bloggers to join the growing list): An Appeal from Center-Right Bloggers We are bloggers with boatloads of opinions, and none of us come close to agreeing with any other one of us all of the time. But we do agree on this: The new leadership in the House of Representatives needs to be thoroughly and transparently free of the taint of the Jack Abramoff scandals, and beyond … [Read more...]
Owens: Preserving a Legacy, Defending the Barricades
Yesterday, as promised some members of the Rocky Mountain Alliance sat down for 30 minutes with Gov. Bill Owens. The Kestrel has already posted his thoughts, while Joshua was in attendance, too. While we talked about a range of issues, mostly stemming from his State of the State Address earlier in the day, the Governor gave the sense of a leader committed to defending and extending his legacy in his final year in office. … [Read more...]
ProgressNow Swings and Misses on Education Statistics
Colorado's madcap Lefties over at ProgressNow have taken their disingenuous use of statistics to a new level today, with a press release "responding" to Governor Owens' State of the State speech, sent out within minutes of its conclusion. I have yet to find a copy of the release on their Web site but have pasted the email message below, followed by a response to their egregious selectiveness and gross mishandling of K-12 education statistics (that's my area of expertise - I'll let others dismantle their other assertions): … [Read more...]
“The Goldwater Myth”
Recently I highlighted a quote (among several) from "moderate" Republican State Representative Mark Larson about his disgust with the party's social conservatives, claiming for himself the mantel of a "Goldwater Republican." Today there's an excellent Opinion Journal article by Andrew Busch, professor of government at Claremont McKenna College, documenting "The Goldwater Myth" that the Arizona Senator's 1964 Presidential campaign was more about libertarian small government principles than moral and cultural conservatism. It seems to be not an uncommon mistake to make this false characterization and therefore a must-read for those who otherwise conveniently and passively might have let recent American political history be rewritten for … [Read more...]
Holtzman Camp Out Front on Voter Registrations
The Holtzman for Governor campaign once again shows it's working hard, announcing its status as the first campaign to be certified to conduct voter registration drives. “Our campaign is on track for victory in August and November," said GOP gubernatorial candidate Marc Holtzman. "And one of our key goals is to increase voter participation so more Coloradans will help select not only the Republican nominee in August, but also the state's governor next fall." Back in Holtzman's November meeting with members of the RMA, he stressed his plans to rebuild the party structure. The campaign is about much more than just the candidate's leadership, personality, and qualifications, though those are significant considerations, too. The … [Read more...]
John Stossel Takes on Education
It's not often I advise readers to tune into a television program. Here's an exception: this Friday night at 10 PM Eastern (9 PM Denver local time) on ABC, John Stossel brings his free market instincts and no-nonsense approach to tackle the issue of education. I encourage you to watch "Stupid in America: How We Cheat Our Kids" (or set the VCR or TiVo if you've got big plans on Friday). … [Read more...]
Outrage & Moral Indignation: An Alito Roundup
Re the Judge Alito confirmation hearings, I can't say it much better than Paul Zummo at ConfirmThem: … [Read more...]