NASSAU COUNTY CIVIC ASSOCIATION, INC. "The government is us, we are the government, you and I." Teddy Roosevelt

America on the precipice

A course correction

The dramatic and expansive win by the GOP this past Tuesday was a sharp rebuke of the President's polices. Yet the President seemed to have missed the message. During a Wednesday news conference, he stated that his party's loss was due to the economy,  " People are frustrated with the pace of the economic recovery...". Further expanding on his opinion during a 60 Minutes interview scheduled to air this Sunday, the President cited his failure to communicate, “I think that, over the course of two years we were so busy and so focused on getting a bunch of stuff done that, we stopped paying attention to the fact that leadership isn’t just legislation. That it’s a matter of persuading people." He then seemed to imply that the voters just didn't get it by saying, "Making an argument that people can understand...I think that we haven’t always been successful at that." While the economy was an important issue for voters, it was the type of "change" he delivered.

 During the Presidential election, the electorate viewed then candidate Barack Obama as a "moderate" bringing a new kind of politics to Washington and the oval office. When be became President, his words never matched how he governed. He went on to radically change America by expanding the role of government and moving the country from its capitalistic roots to a more European socialist model. In the social arena, he went against the grain on almost every issue from illegal immigration to traditional marriage. His style of governance validates who is really is, an elitist who is blinded by an ideology of fiscal and social extremism which rejects the principles our founding.

The dye for his political rejection was set with the passage of the stimulus bill, a massive consumption spending bill which wasted billions and drove up the national debt. The take over of the car companies and the numerous bailouts made Americans queasy. The President's approach to the war on terror reverted back to a legalistic approach even though several acts of home grown terrorism occurred on U.S. soil. Americans wanted leadership not apologies. Yet on social issues, the president defied reality. Going after his fellow Americans in Arizona for defending the border when his administration refused to do the job, refusing to apply the nation's civil rights laws equally when prosecuting voter intimidation, and by bringing back quotas with the passage of the financial reform bill, the President caused many to question which side he was on. By using the bully pulpit of the presidency to promote a contrary position on marriage, pushing to allow open homosexuality in the ranks of our armed forces and rejecting America's Judeo-Christian heritage, the President electrified socially conservative voters. The last straw that solidified the opposition was passage of Obama care. The latter not only involved the takeover of healthcare and its economic impact, it also injected the issue of abortion into the mix by allowing taxpayer funding of abortion. 

Yes the tip of the spear against the president's policies were economic but by opposing the will of the American people on issue after issue,  the ranks of the opposition increased. The TEA party became the voice and the vehicle that united the electorate on economic, national security and social issues. It eventually became an unstoppable tidal wave of opposition that splashed through out the country on November 2nd. While it was a rejection of the President's policies, the outcome was not an endorsement of the GOP. While the Republican party said, "NO" loud and clear to the Obama agenda, being the party of NO is not a winning strategy for governance. They have an obligation to lead and keep their word. 

The President needs to understand that his policies were on the ballot and were soundly rejected by the American People. His promise of change was misleading as his definition was contrary to the values of liberty and freedom,  his promise to unify was broken as he only divided, and instead of delivering hope, he brought anger. America is on a precipice. Its time for leadership and for our elected leaders to  understand that the people are in control of their government not government controlling the People. Hopefully the President will get the message. If not, 2012 may prove to be another lesson.