For what it’s worth, if you want a glimpse of the public mindset concerning 16 major institutions in American society, you should check out the new Gallup survey (H/T Mike Antonucci). The following are some salient observations on how favorably Americans view the 16 major institutions: (more…)
Next weekend is the annual Right Online conference, sponsored by the Americans for Prosperity Foundation. Specifically, it will be held Friday and Saturday, July 23-24, in Las Vegas. This is a great opportunity for conservatives who want to learn how they can help neutralize the advantage the Left has accrued in new media and online tools.
A lineup of great speakers is on tap — including members of Congress Mike Pence and Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, John Fund, Judge Andrew Napolitano, and more. Registration is still open.
I’m not able to make the trip (family reasons), which depending on your perspective might be all the more reason to go. But definitely give it a close look and find a great excuse to make a summertime visit to Vegas and learn how to make a difference at the same time.
Joshua has a great rundown of this past weekend’s Western Conservative Summit. I was there for most of the day on Saturday, but unfortunately not able to catch the festivities of Friday evening or Sunday morning. Judging especially by the descriptions of the Michelle Bachmann and Arthur Brooks presentations, I regret missing them most of all.
The personal highlight for the lovely Mrs. Virtus and I was the opportunity to hear Dennis Prager’s enlightening and insightful address. He brings a lot of well-stated wisdom to the table, along with a genuine self-deprecating humor that endears him to the crowd. Even having heard his American Trinity discussed before, the speech never lost my attention. It was an excellent evening.
A very special thank-you goes out to John Andrews of the Centennial Institute for including the Rocky Mountain Alliance as an event co-sponsor and for inviting our participation. I didn’t expect to be summoned onto the stage before the Prager speech — along with the new media crew of Joshua, El Presidente, Kelly Maher (her site recently had a makeover) and Amanda Teresi — but the additional blog exposure is always appreciated. And it added to the evening’s enjoyment. (more…)
The Rocky Mountain Alliance of Blogs (of which I am a member) and People’s Press Collective (to which I am a contributor) — not to mention the Independence Institute where I work — are all among many co-sponsors of the upcoming First Annual Western Conservative Summit on July 9 to 11 in the south metro Denver area.
Put this one on your calendars. There is a fantastic and diverse collection of speakers slated to come, including: (more…)
In one of Colorado’s most head-scratching political moves of the year, former GOP Congressman and wildly unsuccessful 2006 gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez announced his endorsement of 7th Congressional candidate and Republican newcomer Lang Sias. The first reaction I and many of my politically aware friends had pretty much boiled down to: Huh???
When Tom Tancredo and Jimmy Lakey threw their support behind Sias, they carefully avoided trying to draw distinctions among the Republican field. Not so Beauprez: (more…)
Just how politically correct are today’s colleges? Are the faculties at American universities really as ideologically imbalanced as you have heard? What are the effects of that imbalance on students and their futures? Are there any promising and politically achievable reforms for academia?
If these questions pique your interest, then you should look at obtaining a copy of the new book The Politically Correct University, a collection of insightful essays on a range of topics under the theme. Even better, if you live in the Denver metro area, you can meet one of the volume’s editors — Robert Maranto from the University of Arkansas’ Department of Education Reform — this evening at Liberty on the Rocks Red Rocks: (more…)
Update: Scanned copy of the March 5 Taxpayers for Liberty letter posted below.
Yesterday I received a strange mailing from a group called Taxpayers for Liberty. (Many of my fellow conservative, politically-active Colorado friends likely received the same.) It’s a self-described 501c4 organization with a Denver P.O. Box and an executive director named Andrew O’Neill — I’m almost positive it’s not this Andrew O’Neill.
I will take time later today to scan and post the four-page letter, along with the attached questionnaire and reply form, so you can see the mailing for yourself. It looks a lot like your standard political fundraising letter, with short paragraphs and heavy on underlined text and bullet points. Suffice it to say, the group Taxpayers for Liberty is very fond of Ken Buck, while railing on Jane Norton for not returning the questionnaire and Tom Wiens for filling out the questionnaire identically but having a voting record, or something like that. (more…)
One day after a refreshing U.S. Supreme Court victory for free speech, today we mark the 37th anniversary of Roe v Wade — a somber occasion for our nation. I recommend to you a well-written “In Memoriam” by Red State’s Erick Erickson. A couple key passages:
The truth that these children are biologically human and biologically distinct from their mothers is beyond question to anyone who believes in the most basic tenets of science. Why, then, are they declared so totally bereft of rights in our society? The fact that a woman can, with the protection of the law, kill her child on the day of its planned full-term delivery, indicates clearly that the only answer to this question is “physical location within their mother’s womb.” If a child is in this place, it may be killed with impunity; if it is in another, to kill it is murder….
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Just in case you missed it, an interesting and provocative series by the Telegraph of London. Following up their 2007 lists, this week they have released new lists of America’s 100 Top Liberals and 100 Top Conservatives. It’s sure to spark some debate from across the Pond (over-rating Matt Drudge jumps to the top of my mind) … anyway, check it out.
In his latest offering, former state legislative leader Mark Hillman praises the “freedom nationally, virtue locally” National Freedom Initiative of Colorado’s own Kevin Miller — not the first time it has crossed my path. It was last year about this time I wrestled a lot with the role social conservatism should play, and something that never strays too far from my mind.
Therefore, I’m very intrigued by this initiative — which, of course, is not altogether new, but rather a very sensible clarification and reformulation for our current political context. The opportunity definitely is there:
- To educate many social conservatives on the vital and wholly compatible value of liberty and limited government
- To build a strong bridge between the Right-leaning faith-based community and the Tea Party & 9/12 movements (where I’m sure a lot of overlap already exists)
- (At the least) To have ongoing, important debates that can help hone views and broader strategies heading into the 2010 election and beyond
Just maybe, Miller is vying to be the Frank Meyer for a new generation of the conservative movement. For more, watch Miller and state senator Ted Harvey hash out the issues on a recent episode of Independent Thinking with host Jon Caldara (parts 1 through 3): (more…)
After a busy weekend, all I have to offer are a few worthwhile reads for a Monday:
No politics today, nothing that juicy or intriguing to break the fast on the eve of Thanksgiving. If you’re bored over the holiday and looking for some amusing reading — especially if you’re looking to stage a new play or produce a new movie — then check out the two-act script I completed earlier this year titled Al Gansee: The Shot Heard ‘Round Cambria.
The synopsis will give you the flavor:
In the early 1960s, a tiny Midwestern farm community has been transformed into a Marxist workers’ paradise upon the return of a charismatic native son and his Russian KGB companion. Now leading a Socialist Union that bears his name, Chief Comrade Al Gansee confronts the desire for territorial expansion and transmission of his ideals. Gansee, his wife Mary Beth, his KGB “left-hand man”, a 10-year-old Amish pyromaniac girl and the rest of the eccentric band of modern-day utopians march off to the Battle of Cambria and an infamous gunshot that promises to transform the lives of its participants and the once sleepy community for years to come.
So without further ado, here is Al Gansee: The Shot Heard ‘Round Cambria in its entirety (as always, for easy reading, click “Fullscreen” to begin): (more…)
So some Colorado GOP leaders have crafted a Prosperity Platform and rallied behind Scott McInnis as the gubernatorial candidate.
Meanwhile, some in the grassroots remain thoroughly unconvinced and stand behind hard-working longshot Dan Maes. The issue is not the rhetoric or the substance of the 20 governing principles that has earned skepticism or even ire. It’s some of the cast of characters involved that many understandably still have a hard time trusting. I’m not all the way there yet myself.
What might help make the Prosperity Platform more palatable is an escape clause — and by that I mean not for McInnis, but for us. So the issue is an agreement to fulfill the 20 principles. What happens if he is elected and then reneges, works actively against one of the 20, or simply delays any serious effort to implement one or more particular actions? What then? Where does that leave the grassroots who are expected to work hard on his behalf? (more…)
The exciting opportunity for a Republican pickup in Senate District 16 with a departing incumbent Democrat Dan Gibbs has taken some interesting turns in the past week. State senate minority leader Josh Penry’s most highly touted replacement was Cheri Gerou. But the HD 25 representative told me today her current seat is “where I plan to stay.” So count out Gerou.
Then there’s Ali Hasan who, while refuting my initial speculations that he might contend, had suggested Jeffco GOP chair Don Ytterberg as a great candidate. However, Ytterberg says he has no desire to take another shot at SD 16 and is dedicated to his current work. “I made the commitment to work for the success of our party and I will do that to the best of my ability,” he said.
But as of today the Republican Party finally has an Evergreen businessman willing to jump in and battle for the open SD 16 seat. No, not that Evergreen businessman, the one who has expressed a firm commitment to the governor’s race and was left out of the crafting of the unity “Prosperity Platform.” (more…)
Word has leaked to the Grand Junction Sentinel that state senate minority leader Josh Penry will formally announce his endorsement of former rival Scott McInnis for Colorado governor. The endorsement was contingent on the McInnis formally agreeing to 20 conservative governing principles.
“These are the principles that swept the GOP to victory in New Jersey in Virginia,” Penry said. “And they can re-unite our Party too, and pave the way for a successful campaign and, more important, a successful governing party when the election’s over and done with.”
Without further ado, here’s the list of unified governing principles that was forwarded to Mount Virtus, a list that contains a fair amount of specificity: (more…)
As Don at Business Word notes, the Ryan Frazier campaign yesterday touted a list of endorsements from “nearly one hundred influential Coloradans” in his bid to be the next Congressman from the 7th District. Yes, the list contains the names of some heavy-hitters — including Phil Anschutz, Pete Coors, Attorney General John Suthers, and former Governor Bill Owens.
But at least as telling to me is that Ryan Frazier has earned the support from both my friends Jessica Corry and Libby Szabo, the last two Republican candidates for state senate District 19. Why so significant? Jessica is a young up-and-comer from the more libertarian wing of the party. Libby is more of a traditional conservative and a longtime activist well known in Jefferson County Republican — especially Arvada (House District 27) — circles.
The fact they both (along with many other Republicans of prominence at different levels) have thrown in with Ryan Frazier is an important sign that he has picked up necessary traction after switching from the U.S. Senate race five weeks ago.
Sealing the deal with the grassroots should be a major focus for Frazier in the few months leading up to the caucuses — especially with primary opponent Brian Campbell (among others) and potential primary opponent Jimmy Lakey lurking out there.
If you live in the Denver metro area, Ryan Frazier, a Republican candidate for Colorado’s 7th Congressional District, is advertising a volunteer opportunity for you that does not involve stuffing envelopes, knocking on doors or waving signs. Rather, it’s a way to help those in the community who are struggling during these difficult economic times:
Please join us on Monday, November 23 from 9:30am – noon as we volunteer our time at the JeffCo Action Center. We will be helping to sort and box food in their warehouse 8035 W. Colfax Avenue in Lakewood. The JeffCo Action Center needs to know how many of us to expect, so please RSVP by clicking here or emailing Marc Massey at marc@frazierforcolorado.com by noon on November 20.
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(H/T Gene Kinsey) It appears President Obama could have used some world leader greeting etiquette refreshers before giving a deep, subservient bow to the emperor of Japan: (more…)
Our current survey of Colorado’s political temperature has inspired more than just a series of click-in-the-box responses.
Having read one of our test issue statements — It is important for Republicans to employ a “big tent” policy when considering candidates for office. — Karen Kataline decided to deconstruct the term “big tent” in a thoughtful new essay for Backbone America:
Our party is and has always been united not by our ethnicity but by our ideas. As members of minority Republican groups, our role is to welcome others into the party rather than to seek special favors or victim status as the parade of minority groups on the Left have consistently done.
Go ahead. Read the whole thing. Then go ahead and take our latest survey. Maybe you’ll be inspired, too.
I was planning to post a notice today about the need to take action against the Pelosi version of Obama Care. And today is the time to do it! But being busy, I got permission to paste this email (with a couple slight tweaks) from a friend:
Hello to all!
If you want tax dollars funding abortions and for medical coverage to become less available, now is the time to do nothing! The house version of the health care “reform” bill will come up for a vote tomorrow (Saturday). (more…)
