Conservative-Democrat

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This is a short blog centering around republican speeches and unfulfilled expectation.  I will be using the Scott Brown speech as the back drop.  (Transcript: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/us/politics/20text-brown.html)

This speech is very good back drop to our current problem in the political arena.  The independent voters of Massachusetts did have something to say to Washington.  Sen. Brown successfully made this a national election on Healthcare and the corruption that is inherent with a filibuster proof senate.  The closed-door meetings, backroom deals, and general tyrannical rule of this congress is not to be unexpected.  WE put them in office; WE allowed them to have free rain; and fortunately enough people in MA saw these abuses and decided to hold them accountable.

I have noticed a movement amongst the independents (of which there are more than ever) that is tired of the two parties.  I myself would join them except that I would actually like to accomplish something and you can’t do that as an independent.  However I have a warning to the Democrat leadership: the independents have a lot of disenfranchised conservative in their ranks and if our party does not bring the left-wing radicals in our party to bay, there is no hope of winning this group.  That is not to say we will not win elections when we have a candidate with more appeal (e.g. Obama v. that old guy) but close elections will be lost and with the current sentiment, many elections are becoming close.

As for Massachusetts I hope the Republicans are reading into it that they have a chance next time around.  The only way I see that happening is if they actually do what they say.  I for one am tired of republican promises.  I’d elect a conservative (often the republican) every time if they would actually govern conservatively.  Let’s take some examples from the speech.

“One thing is clear, voters do not want the trillion-dollar health care bill that is being forced on the American people.”  As I stated earlier this is why he won this election.  Period.  He is a nice looking man who makes clear statements and doesn’t look like he is a political-machine tool.  Essentially he had little negatives, therefore he was able to run against healthcare and I support his stance.  We all recognize that our heathcare system has some problem, but on the whole it isn’t that bad.  <sarcasm> Perhaps there is a solution that does not require the tripling of the size of government </sarcasm>  We can do better than this current plan.  I also am not a proponent of putting something in and we can fix it later.  How about we get closer to the mark and then tinker?

“No more closed-door meetings or back room deals”  Amen, brother.  Where is the transparency?  Where is the review?  Where is the accountability?  Where is the common sense.  There are several points of this massive bill needs to be examined and there has been very little time to examine even a single aspect.  Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi are saying, “Trust us”.  Really?  I trust them to do a power grab.  I trust them to build a bureaucracy.  I trust them to spend money we don’t have.  These things they have done well.  Do what I think is best for the long-term health of the country; from my conservative point of view I do not trust them.

“President John F. Kennedy taught us, that starts with an across the board tax cut for individuals and businesses that will create jobs and stimulate the economy. It’s that simple! “  It really is that simple.  It has been suggested that we cannot judge President Obama’s job performance when he has only been in office for 12 months.  It is difficult to stall the economy of the United States, however this congress and administration has effectively done just that.  If President Obama is really receptive to other suggestions, please take this one.  Promise to “do nothing” and the economy will rebound and you can take all of the credit.

The problem here is that the other party is bad at this as well.  Where is the fiscal conservatism that the GOP is so famous?  While it is true that the democrat lead congress under Bush is responsible for much of the over-spending (a fact that is all to often glossed over from people on my side of the aisle) he did very little to stop it.  He is the president for goodness sakes.  Lead!!! 

The only place where I saw leadership in the former and current administration has been the policies on dealing with terrorist threats.  We are still at was in Afghanistan even though Iraq is wrapping up.  Whether it is Somali pirates, suicide bombers, hijackings, kidnappings, or worse I am glad to see that Obama is taking things serious.  I do caution against trying to make this a policing action.  Foreigners who are trying to kill Americans do not deserve our rights under our Constitution.  Scott Brown was correct when he said, “In dealing with terrorists, our tax dollars should pay for weapons to stop them, not lawyers to defend them.”

Senator Brown ended his acceptance speech with some one-liners, “Raising taxes, taking over our health care, and giving new rights to terrorists is the wrong agenda for our country.” and “basic convictions that need only to be clearly stated to win a majority.”  Here is where the other party leaves the track.  They talk a good game, but they raise taxes, vote for new and expanded government programs, and essentially govern just like a liberal democrat.  Stop it and show me you mean what you say.

I welcome you comments here or email me at conserv-democrat@gmail.com

Michael Abramson

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So much to consider talking about this weekend; Harry Reid and Racism in America (is it a game changer?), the election of a new Massachusetts Senator (is it about MA or BO?), and there is the ever looming Healthcare Bill debate.  In the end I chose something that is much closer to my heart and represents several core conservative values: disaster relief in Haiti.  I will use the transcript from CBS Face the Nation where Bob Schieffer questions President Bush and President Clinton.  It was the one that generated the most controversy and provides the most material  for me to articulates the values I want to emphasize.

(Transcript: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2010/01/17/transcript_bush_clinton_keen_shah_face_the_nation_99936.html)

I love seeing politician in a different setting than the campaign mode.  I particularly like seeing opponents like Bush 43 and Clinton being unified on something.  We get way too much of the clash and it distorts the truth that we all agree on 95% of our values. 

My first point is about the presidents themselves and how they approached the Haiti tragedy.  They have a celebrity factor being ex-presidents.  And they are using their popularity for something other than personal gain.  I celebrate this and try to encourage others to do the same.  I emphasize this in the youth ministries by suggesting to the popular kids that they should leverage that to help bring the fringe and “follow-the-crowd” groups to events.  I like seeing a bigger example of it with the presidents doing more for Haiti by leveraging their celebrity than they could individually.

The next point that struck a conservative chord was Clinton referring to a very proper role of government (e.g. law enforcement) and by contrast laying out a very proper role for “faith-based” organizations.  Churches and people are far better at giving mercy and humanitarian aid than governments.  It is the motivation of the organization.  Governments wish to control, it is their nature.  Faith-based groups wish to commune and display the love beyond understanding, it is their nature.  Again, by way of contract, private peace-keepers are inherently problematic (Somalia) even with the best of intentions and faith-based roots.

The third interesting point I took from the dialog was the commitment to short-term AND long-term help.  This appeals to my conservative roots and the Toa philosophy of “give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”  (While this is often credited to the Bible, I am pretty sure I have never seen this passage.)  Providing food, housing, and medical assistance is necessary; but equally as necessary is proving infrastructure (wells, sewage, roads, schools, and the like).  I have noticed a trend toward this type of charity in the past few years.  It is probably from a combination of factor including the continued poverty and the feed-a-child “Band-Aid” solutions that never seem to show long term results.

It is time for a brief detour into what governments do well and what they do not do well.  Good faith-based organizations, particularly local ones are really good at humanitarian aid.  I was witness to many such examples after the Katrina event in New Orleans.  New Orleans was a problem, for many reasons, however the governments pointing fingers and blaming each other brought about many unnecessary delays and needless suffering.  While not too far away in Waveland, MS (where the storm actually hit) there were amazing examples of charity and goodwill.  Waveland did not attract government/mass media attention, so all they had were the faith-based organization to rely.  And they came through.  There are a lot of good stories to look up sometime.

Final point that struck my conservative core was the note of personal responsibility.  These men were leading the charge that the citizens of the United States need to own the responsibility to help a neighbor in need.  We (the people), not the government, can do what is needed.  With that we need to support charitable organizations that are familiar.  www.whitehouse.gov is NOT my first choice and it should not be yours.  Research the organizations and demand accountability.  I am frustrated with how many people will simply give to a telephone solicitor without knowing anything about the organizations.  I refuse to do this; if they persist I ask them to supply me with documentation about the organization and I will review and consider adding them to my list of supported charities.  Be active in the world and don’t use the lame excuse “well, that is what my taxes are for” – it is very lame.

So go out there and leverage your popularity for good, not for gain; understand there is a proper role for government AND faith-based organization during a humanitarian event –try not to confuse the two;  look for long term investments in worthy humanitarian cause while never losing site of addressing the short-term needs; and take personal responsibility in giving to your local church and humanitarian organizations.  Do the research and give regularly.

I am not sure what I will take on next.   SO MANY GOOD TOPICS.

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Jobs and Economic Growth Forum
(Transcript: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-and-vice-president-opening-session-jobs-and-economic-growth-forum)

Healthcare, Afghanistan, and recession: The big three for 2009. The Obama administration has been in charge for almost 12 months and we appear to be in the same place as when the hapless Bush administration left. There has been some cosmetic changes and some major policy shifts, however I am a results oriented-guy. What are the results?

Let’s take a look at the current positions on Jobs & economic growth as it is discussed in the speeches by Biden and Obama on December 3rd before a dog & pony media event which featured the administration discussing issues with business leaders.

The event was a publicity stunt and I certainly do not hold that against anyone. Part of politics is creating photo ops and showing people you are in charge and doing something. Despite the backdrop, the speeches were illustrative of how my conservative values clash with the current leadership of my party.

An initial irritation is the cavalier attitudes toward job grow, in particular growth in relation to the Obama stimulus package. Let’s be real for a moment. The economy has not come back and the stimulus (both Bush and Obama) packages were simply reactionary measures and did nothing more than get us farther into debt. Whether it is 600K, 1.6M, or whatever number, unemployment is still 10% and underemployment has grown considerably. That means we are still bad off. Could be worse, but it is still bad. Anyone in the job market understands this. I know Biden has to say what he says (what choice does he have?), but I can’t help but roll my eyes and see the national debt grow and grow. I will take some time in a later blog to discuss my 2009 unemployment thoughts.

Let’s stick with philosophical points. Biden ranted that he wants “no more bubbles” The only way to have no more bubbles is with a command economy (i.e. Marxism). Is Biden tipping his hand? Free markets have expansions and contractions… bubbles and corrections. As powerful as the government is it is still not powerful enough to eliminate corrections in the US economy. When it tried to sustain expansions (i.e. create a bigger bubble) with policies it simply makes for a bigger correction (note: the sub-prime fiasco with Freddie Mac?). The only way for the government to eliminate the normal business cycles is to try to mess with it through policies (sub-prime insurance) or take it over (healthcare). I’d prefer politician to stay out of the normal business cycles and simply work on creating a healthy business climate. A discussion on corporate taxes is not on the list for future blogs.

Another philosophical point is the swipe the President Obama took at business profits. I believe he suffers from a misunderstanding that businesses are in the business of providing jobs. Businesses are in the business of making profits. That is what they do in their basest form. He asked, “How do we get businesses to start hiring again?” This is simple. Businesses need to believe that hiring will make that more profit than not hiring. The tone set by this administration AND congress is that achievement will rewarded with more taxes. Perhaps the President does not understand this; or more likely he has an underlying moral objection to this simple truth about a free market economy.

A third philosophical point is related. The simple fact is that the Capital Markets are paralyzed. Really. There are many reasons for this; however I think they can be boiled down to two: toxic assets and uncertain landscape. The first has to do with the current holdings of private and institutional investors. A new investment needs to not only show promise of profit, it has to show enough promise to make up for the “bath” the investor is going to take to liquidate his toxic asset. Obama can do little to help this (other than some capital loss policy changes) it will work itself out as the economy recovers.

The other factor is the uncertain landscape. Investors need to be able to predict the future in order to evaluate risk and reward. This area President Obama has a lot of influence. His policies have played a key negative role. Whenever he floats another trial balloon or threatens another tax or moves to take over an industry it makes the landscape uncertain. The best thing the President can do is the one thing that no politician can do…do nothing. Really, give the markets time to evaluate the landscape and understand the risks/rewards then they will make their investments.

Accept that bubbles happen in a free-market economy, understand that profits are “good” and “helpful” in creating jobs, and promoting a stable capital market environment by doing (and just as important “saying”) nothing. These three fundamental conservative values are missing from the current national leadership and they are key factors behind our economic recovery (or lack there of). Food for thought.

Next week (or soon there after) Obama-isms and Guantanamo Bay War Prison.
I welcome your thoughts here or at conserv.democrat@gmail.com.
Michael

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I thought I would give a crack at what the core principles of a conservative democrat woult be.  This may be a work in progress.

1. Limited Government.  A conservative Democrat believes there is a significant role for the local, country and state governments; beyond the role of road repair and zoning.  A conservative Democrat also understands the waste and inherent dangers of an expansive federal bureaucracy.

2. Strong Defense.  A conservative democrat understands the need for a strong national defense.  We see the world as it is and we recognize our role in it, not as a police force, but rather as a deterrent to radicals and totalitarians.  We also realize that a military bureaucracy can pose a great threat to individual freedoms, is self-perpetuating, and needs to be put on a budget that is reasonable and appropriate for their mission.

3. Strong Middle and Working class.  A conservative democrat sees the success of our country being dependent on the strength of our blue AND white collar families.  The government should develop policies that grows and empowers this group.  If it make a few people wealthy, then so be it.

4. Responsibility for the poor.  A conservative democrat believes that it is our personal responsibility to care for the less fortunate.  This demands personal involvement to extend time and resources to those in our communities who need help with the short term addressing of their immediate needs and the long term intension of lifting them up to join the ranks of the self-reliant.  We see the value of the personal involvement and the inherit disconnection and sanitation when we surrender our responsibilities for the poor to government.

5. Passion for Education.  A conservative democrat desires that they and their fellow citizens reach their full potential and that includes the acquisition of knowledge and understanding.  Through the study of science, crafts, arts, morality, and history we believe that people can become independent thinking and feeling beings and not become the pawns of leaders and institutions that would use them.  We also believe that the education institutions need to be focused on the highest standards in order to challenge, not the lowest standards in order to be all inclusive.  To expect and encourage someone to be less what their God-given abilities allow is the ultimate form of prejudice and bigotry.

6. Embraces Free Market Capitalism to the point where is strengthens the core principles of our culture; life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness.  We believe that the economics a capitalism is the best way to empower people to reach their potential.  We also recognize that capitalism needs to be actively monitored by the government (not replaced by the government).

7. Embodies the Wisdom of our Founding Fathers.  A conservative democrat believes Constitution and Bill of Rights was not simply a “good idea” at the time, but is a core part of our nations continued success.  No part of the core ideas should be legislated into irrelevance.  However, the Constitution is NOT a suicide pact and the founders put in measures to adjust to major cultural changes.

8. Politics is a mix of thoughts AND feelings.  To make decisions based upon feelings is a recipe for disaster (the road to hell is paved with good intensions).  However, to ignore the human element and the strength and depth of feelings is to de-humanize and sacrifice fellow citizens on the alter of ideology and principle.

Let me know what you think.  I expect to break down each one of these in future blogs.

Michael A

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It seems that this is a good place to start to define what this site is all about.

I like my Democrat Party. However, I feel less and less connected with the leadership on the national stage which is bending more and more to the liberals and progressives. Here are some examples;

• When did the Democrats give up the moral high ground on abortion in order to ensure women’s right over their bodies? Why is it an either or issue?
• Why do the Democrats appear to hate the wealthy? hate the military? hate the business owner?
• Why does it appear that for every problem we face the Democrats have a government program and a new tax to solve it?
• Why is the party which champion’s the rights of free speech so quick to try and shut someone up?
• When did the Democrats become the party that appears to hate police and love criminals?
• When did the Democrat party become the party that likes to pick and choose sections of the Constitution that they like and toss out the rest?

My hope is to give Democrats an alternative to the rancor and radicalism that comes from our current leadership in Washington. I would like my party to return to some of its founding principles and aspire to a higher level of political discourse and what I perceive to be true leadership (something sorely lacking for the last couple of decades). Here is a forum that I hope facilitates that dream.

Ground rules: (Violate and your posts will be removed)
1. Keep the discourse civil and respectful to other members. Essentially stay away from personal attacks and stick to the subjects.
2. Don’t bother putting up a lot of propoganda that can be found on other sites. Go to the other sites for that.
I am sure I will think up more later.

Michael Abramson

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