Breaking reports today suggest that Barack Obama will select Joseph R. BidenJr. as his Vice President tomorrow. I happen to know a little about Senator Biden having had to endure his candidacy as a resident of Delaware for the last 28+ years. Senator Biden is possibly the most bigoted, angry and arrogant individual in the US Senate. He consistently believes he is the smartest person in the room and could not have an intelligent and thoughtful debate with anyone. Democrats often talk about Republicans being warmongers and yet they have one in their own ranks. Biden has voted to go to war in both Afghanistan and Iraq. He has then claimed that the war in Iraq was a mistake. He has also favored sending troops into Sudan. Yet, on the issues of Iran and North Korea, Biden has favored a lackadaisical stand of direct diplomacy. Biden has also been a top foreign policy critic of Obama. Biden has consistently voted in favor of abortion including not mandating parental notification of abortions for children and not banning abortions from taking place at military hospitals which are funded by tax payer dollars. Biden is against providing vouchers to parents allowing them to exercise complete choice in the education of their children and has consistently stood behind the teachers union in direct opposition to bettering the U.S. education system. Joe Biden has been in favor of big government programs and raising taxes. As a U.S. Senator and Presidential candidate, Biden has consistently raised opposition to the Bush tax cuts for working class Americans. Senator Biden has been a vocal and often disrespectful critic of judges whose positions differ from his own. He has been an outspoken leader in the Global Warming hoax and has consistently voted to pass bio fuel promoting bills that would favor using our food supply to create energy. Such bills have driven up fuel prices and have actually caused more damage to the environment than would non ethanol blended fuels. He has in fact referred to those who want to expand oil exploration in the Gulf of Mexico as wanting to “rape the continental shelf”. Biden has also been a large promoter through his votes of pork barrel spending bills especially in terms of Agricultural bills that would benefit farmers in the state of Delaware which he represents. Joe Biden has also fought against the Constitutional rights of Americans to own guns. Biden has rejected the 2nd Amendment on numerous occasions and has voted against a prohibition of lawsuits against gun manufacturers. Biden believes that the citizens of the United States are unable to think for themselves and that elitists like himself are uniquely qualified to decide what rights we are permitted to enjoy. Biden also supports a path to citizenship and allowing illegal immigrants access to social security and healthcare options. He also supports nationalizing healthcare and not privatizing the bankrupted Social Security system that the government has created. Instead of allowing people to invest their social security dollars how they see fit, he instead thinks that the same government, who has in effect destroyed the current Social Security system, is best prepared to fix it. He is opposed to issuing vouchers or tax credits to Americans to allow them to choose their own healthcare plans and instead believes that the same government who has spent the country into trillions of dollars of debt and bankrupted the sole source of retirement funds for millions of Americans should manage the healthcare in the United States. It is clear that Biden feels that Americans who are not part of his elite status quo are ill equipped to answer the questions presented to them in their daily lives.

John McCain participated in the civil forum with Rick Warren at Saddleback Church this weekend in Lake Forest, California.  McCain was setup to participate in the second half of the forum after Barack Obama.  During the forum, Pastor Rick Warren asked each candidate identical questions about concerns from the faith based world.  While Obama was busy flipping and flopping and generally further tarnishing his leadership and decision making abilities, McCain stepped to the plate and smacked one out of the park.  McCain gave sharp, clear and concise answers to the initial questions from Pastor Warren and was able to work in antecdotes and stories from his own life that brought the American people a little closer to who John McCain really is.  While Obama's party line rhetoric twittered as he attempted to encompass views from all sides of the issues, McCain's answers seemed genuine and sincere.  As Obama appeared to force himself through the forum without the use of a teleprompter, McCain thrived while thinking on his feet.  It didn't even appear that McCain had to think very much.  He was able to respond firmly and quickly while Obama couldn't quite decide if some of the issues were even on his level.  While Obama refused to take a position on abortion and when life begins, McCain consisely stated human rights begin at conception.  While Obama stated he would not have nominated Justice Clarence Thomas becuase he disagreed with his interpretations of the constitution and because Justice Thomas apparently did not have the qualifications to be a Justice when he was nominated, McCain rattled off the names of the most liberal justices who legislate from the bench much more than they interpret the constitution.  In fact, the only cause for concern during the forum came after McCain's pro-life comment when he stated that he supported stem cell research.   Let's examine Senator McCain's stance on stem cell reasearch and abortion.  Senator McCain believes that life begins at conception, when the sperm fertilizes the egg, however, he also believes that the embryos created for invitro fertilization that will be destroyed if unused, should be used for research.  For those who are against stem cell research, and who believe human life begins at conception, the question is, how can you justify simply destroying the embryo?  As a pro-life supporter myself, I would much rather the cells from the embryo be put into research to help others, than simply destroyed (murdered).  If we can condemn stem cell research performed in this fashion, how can we then condone organ donation?  I think it's extremely difficult to not merge these issues and I think that John McCain actually has a pretty good stance on this issue.  With that said, all in all, John McCain completely outperformed Obama during this forum.  As we transition from the Obama media controlled summer months to the fall debates, McCain has the chance to catcha dn pass Obama in the polls.  With Obama's terrible showings away from the teleprompter and McCain's ability to think on his feet,  McCain's chance at winning the election is coming.

This weekend, Pastor Rick Warren from the Saddleback Church held a Civil Forum with presumptive presidential nominees John McCain and Barack Obama.  The foum was setup with Obama going first and McCain unable to hear Obama's answers.  During the forum, Pastor Warren asked a number of identical questions of each of the candidates.  Most of the questions asked by Pastor Warren were faith based concerns as submitted by friends of the Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California.  While the candidates no doubt had time to research and formulate answers to the general categories, they were not totally prepared for the specific questions.  No where was this more apparent than during Obama's half of the forum.  Time and time again Obama stumbled over his words, paused, seemed unsure of his answers or flat out skated around the entire question itself.  Pastor Warren never challenged him, not that anyone expected a minister to press either candidate for an answer, but it turns out Obama should have begged him to do so.  Obama was able to make himself look completely foolish in front of millions simply by being himself.  This time Obama has no one to blame for his failure but himself.  I mean, McCain wasn't even in the room so Obama can't claim that the old, racist war monger scared him by glaring across the stage.  He can't claim that Pastor Warren was too tough on him, I mean, Pastor Warren couldn't have been more kind if Obama was his own child.  He can't blame Fox News or Talk Radio for distorting his answers because, well there weren't any.  On the question posed by Warren of when human life truly begins, Obama stuttered and finally blurted out, " That's a bit above my paygrade...".  Meanwhile McCain was firm when asked the same question stating that human life begins at conception.  The silver lining for Obama?  He has an EXTREMELY talented and numerous press corps who was able to go out and spin his failure to place the blame on McCain.  The media was able to attack the credibility of Pastor Warren by not only insinuating but flat out calling him a liar (see NYT headline, "Despite Assurances, McCain wasn't in a 'Cone of Silence'").  The Obama media is shameful in its worship of the "Messiah" (Thanks Rush!).  They have stooped again to the level of not only bashing John McCain simply for not being Barack Obama, but also the non-partisan moderator of the civil forum for simply asking the same questions of both candidates.  Since the media can't seem to get it right, call it as it was or even not slant the coverage to Obama's advantage no matter how badly he performs, I supposed we'll have to leave it to Fox News and talk radio AGAIN!

Anyone in attendance at the Middletown Peach Festival on August 16th could not help but notice a lot of white, green and blue floating throughout the crowds. Hundreds of balloons and stickers with the unmistakable colors of Republican Senator and candidate for Lt. Governor Charlie Copeland made their way through the throngs who gathered and walked among the streets of Middletown. More than a dozen Copeland Cadets were on hand to help spread the word about the Charlie’s campaign for Lt. Governor of Delaware. As the crowds gathered, Copeland Cadets dispersed into the crowds to disseminate stickers and balloons to the parade goers. During the parade, Charlie walked, shaking hands with many along the route. He even took time to introduce people to his faithful canine companion Spotty, who seems to accompany Charlie on many of his adventures throughout the state. During the parade, Copeland Cadets handed out more balloons and stickers and tossed candy all along the parade route. Afterwards, most of the cadets moved to the Copeland booth while Charlie walked out among the crowds stopping for photos and to speak with the festival goers. One of the highlights was when Charlie received a visit by an enthusiastic independent voter who initially mistook Charlie for a Democrat because of his colors. The man promptly asked why Barack Obama had removed the flag from his airplane to which Charlie responded, “I don’t have a good answer for that.” The man then commented that at all of the Democrat booths he had stopped asked quickly shooed him away when he asked the same question and refused to answer it. All in all Senator Copeland’s campaign was able to make a big impression at the festival. Even in the absence of the large groups of supporters that were in attendance for other candidates, Charlie was able to succeed in getting his name out among the people and in a big and positive way.

After the 2004 summer Olympics when China finished third in the overall medal count behind the US and Russia and second to America’s 36 gold medals with a total of 32 gold’s, the ruling party devised a project aimed at defeating America. Project 119 is named for the number of gold medals earned in 2004 in the sports it focuses on, such as track and field, swimming, rowing, sailing and more.    So what’s wrong with China wanting to improve their medal count? There are two reasons that Americans ought to be closely watching the Chinese this year. 

First, the project was created not only because China wants to be the best in the world but specifically because China wants to be better than America. On the surface this appears to be only an athletic competition between countries, but digging deeper into the problems that exist between the US and China one finds that China is expanding its interests into every area that the U.S. currently excels in. Energy, technology and service based industries are just some of the other more “important” areas where the U.S. has been a world leader until recently. Recent Chinese projects focused on surpassing the U.S. as a provider in these areas such as the agreement with Cuba to begin drilling for oil off the coast of Florida display the progress that China is making into areas of influence that were previous U.S. strongholds. Diplomatically, China has taken on an increasingly more powerful role within Asian affairs and has become one of the strongest negotiators with countries like North Korea and Iran. One look at the landscape in Beijing can tell you that in the run up to the 2008 Olympics, China’s ruling party wanted to make a clear and decisive statement that they have arrived on the world scene. In the eight years since China was awarded the 2008 games the Beijing landscape has been drastically altered. Extreme feats of technological and architectural design were erected in almost less time than most would even dream possible. Venues like the water cube, surrounded by water and wrapped in ETFE (Ethylene tetrafluoroethylene) with a capacity of 17,000 and covering 7.9 acres of space, have revolutionized the technology used in building the structures that host Olympic events. China has upped the ante on global architecture in general with the construction of the Water Cube, The Birds Nest and the CCTV building. There are only two areas where China has failed to deliver their promises. China promised early on that air quality would not be a factor and yet it has so far clearly been just that. Watching the games on TV gives the worldwide audience a glimpse of the thick smog and soot that clouds the Beijing air and samples have shown contaminants ranging from carbon emissions to particulate metals and other pollutants. China also claimed to be able to not only affect the weather but to control it. Rain dampened the spirits of riders during the 150 mile long distance bike race on the 2^nd day of the games. They were fortunate to escape the rain during the opening ceremonies but so far, all the Tai Chi and rockets in the world have been unable to brighten the sky and disperse the thick smog that settles over Beijing every morning. 

Second, the Olympics aren’t simply a sport like Baseball or Soccer. The Olympics are the largest collection of sporting contests in the world. The Olympic audience is bigger than the audiences for the Super Bowl, World Series, Stanley Cup, NBA Championship and World Cup combined. In fact, the U.S. vs. China Preliminary Round Basketball game on Sunday drew an estimated audience of hundreds of millions of viewers worldwide and may have reached into the billions. Not only are the Olympics a widely followed contest, they were originally designed to showcase military talents. Anyone who knows the story of the Olympics, (if you are unsure yourself, ask the sports nut on the edge of the couch during the track and field or swimming events) can tell you that the Ancient Greeks developed the games as a way to not only display their athletic talents but to find and recruit new warriors for their army. Events like the 100 meter dash and hurdles were developed to display speed and agility. The hammer throw, shot put and discus were designed to show off strength. Marathons displayed their endurance while sports like wrestling and boxing were designed to show fighting prowess. As times progressed the games changed, some were removed and some were added but looking at nearly every event, one can find some form of military or tactical skill displayed. Sports like Archery and shooting are obvious displays of military prowess whereas the unit cohesion element of team sports like soccer or baseball is less exposed. Even events like swimming and gymnastics are designed to show speed, strength, endurance and agility. These days the motives of the Olympics are obfuscated by the names and stories of the athletes, by the individual records, goals and accomplishments and by the rivalries such as that of the French and American 4x100 Freestyle swim teams at this year’s games. Worldwide the results of the games are still viewed much as they were in the early days of the games centuries ago. Need further proof? Let’s look at Russia in the 60’s and 70’s, especially with regards to the Winter Olympics (although before the soviet breakup the Russians did well at the summer games, the winter games had been their stronghold). In a singular sport we can see a change in the world. The Soviet machine dominated the world of Olympic hockey. Year in and year out the red rockets would dispatch team after team, they were bigger, stronger, and faster and had more skill and they showed it. Time and time again the Soviets rode their big victories to greatness even to the extent of a world power. The Soviet team won all but two Olympic ice hockey gold medals between 1956 and 1988. The Americans defeated the Soviets in 1960 and again in 1980. During the 1980’s the Soviet dominance diminished and won a final time in 1992 shortly after the dissolve of the country. 

I’m not suggesting that so goes the Olympics goes the world, but history itself has shown that the Olympic Games are anything but “games”. The worldwide stage has prompted protests and demonstrations, even displays of human rights abuses and terrorism. No one who knows the Olympics or who is over the age of 45 can lay claim to not remember the 1972 Munich massacre in which 11 Jewish hostages were murdered by Arab terrorists. While the Olympic Games have become the largest stage to showcase individual talents, it has also remained a major factor in world politics and those countries that perform well are widely considered to be world powers. Keep your eyes on China during this year’s Olympic events.

President Bush held a press conference on Saturday in Beijing and called for an end to the Russian invasion of neighbor and former Soviet territory Georgia.

 "Georgia is a sovereign nation and its territorial integrity must be respected," Bush told reporters in Beijing where he is attending the Olympic Games.

"We have urged an immediate halt to the violence and a standdown by all troops," he said.

"We call for an end to the Russian bombings and a return by the parties to the status quo of August 6."

Last night, Bob Costas, a sports analyst who has recently been named as a possible successor to Tim Russert on Meet the Press,  took time to ask President Bush about the recently initiated conflict in Georgia. 

Costas – “Moving away from China for just a second, during the opening ceremonies we saw you conferring with Vladimir Putin. We now know you were talking about the conflict that had erupted that day with Georgia. Now Georgia is a former Soviet Republic, that is sympathetic to the west and that is attempting to embody many western values. but just as you need China, you need Russia strategically around the globe, You've gotta walk a fine line. What did you say to Putin?”

Bush – “I said that the violence is unacceptable. I not only said it to Vladimir Putin, I said it to the President of the country, Dmitri Medvedev. And my administration has been engaged with both, both sides in this, trying to get a cease fire and saying that the status quo ante for all troops should be August 6th. And uh, look, I expressed my grave concerns about the disproportionate response of Russia. And that uhm, we strongly condemn uh, bombing outside of South Ossetia. It was just interesting to me that he we are trying to promote peace and harmony and we're witnessing a conflict take place.”

Costas –“Right, No Olympic truce in this case.”

Bush – “No, and I was very firm with Vladimir Purtin, Putin and he and i have got a good relationship. uh. Just like i was firm with the Russian president and uh hopefully this will get resolved peacefully there needs to be a uh, international mediation there for South Ossetia issue.”

Reaction after the fact to the President’s remarks has been surprisingly positive. In fact, some people with whom I have spoken, who had previously called Bush “a bumbling idiot” have said, “I have a whole new level of respect for Bush, in fact, after that interview alone, I have to say, I even like him now.” Some liberal commentators and propagandists have continued to degrade Bush and talk about how he stumbled over his words during the interview but on the whole I think American reaction has to be considered positive. Realistically, what did Bush say? He spoke firmly to Putin and Medvedev and condemned the violence. He wants a peaceful resolution, even as an invasion is taking place. The administration and president Bush hasn’t pledged assistance to Georgia, instead they’ve called for the UN to step in. Democrats have and will continue to characterize Bush’s statements as weak but, he is simply following the protocols set forth by the left. So the question arises, which one is it? Should we be unilateral in our support of a nation such as we were in Iraq, or should we hang on the coattails of the UN? By the way, any UN resolution would need to be voted on by the UN Security Council and Russia sits on that council with veto power. Also, Russia has control of most of the oil market in Europe including nearly every single energy resource in Eastern Europe. They’ve already cut off energy to Georgia and threatened to cut off or drastically increase energy prices to European countries who oppose them. Russia is actively engaged in buying up as many energy resources worldwide as it can along with China. Some of us have seen this sort of thing before, in fact, most of us where on the opposite side of this in the 1980’s when President Reagan positioned the US to be an energy leader in the world.   During this same period, Reagan initiated the Star Wars program and instigated conflicts that forced Russia to spend, spend, spend and stretch themselves into oblivion. Once the Russians were stretched and spending wildly, the US then collapsed the price of oil causing the Russians to lose billions of dollars in revenue on the world stage. In fact, the Russians lost so much money that the entire country weakened and eventually collapsed under the pressure. Today, Russia has turned the tables on the western world. Russia has upped the ante, using China, North Korea, Iran, Venezuela and other Socialist nations with interests in the energy market to advance their agenda they have caught the free western nations in a vice and they are squeezing. Russia knows that the US is stretched militarily, fighting in both Afghanistan and Iraq and that we are no threat to their military advances into Georgia. They also know that the UN is inept at best and that even if the UN had some control, their veto power on the Security Council renders the UN useless to counter Russian policy. Russia has also timed its rise to coincide with a political upheaval in the US, where they know that for them, at best the liberals who control congress and who may control the White House at year’s end are socialists at worst inept politicians and likely Russian sympathizers. The Russians know that America and the rest of the free west are in an economic crisis, due largely to concerns over the price of energy that Russia and her allies control. How can we question that Russia has planned this over time and has carefully chosen this time to tighten their vice? The time for America to thwart this plan is now. President Bush’s hands are tied. There’s little more he can do on his own. He, indeed America needs her people to come together, to rise up and to meet this challenge. We must reestablish control of our own destiny and step into the role we have carved out in this world. We must get back to leading the way to peace and prosperity by becoming a role model for other countries. We must show that the US can survive economic, military and energy crises and pull ourselves up by the bootstraps. We can do it.

Let me initiate this column by stating, I have nothing against Latin Americans, Hispanics or whatever tag line we are using this week to represent the segment of our population made up of Immigrants from Latin countries.  I myself am Portuguese and would be self deprecating if I expressed hatred for a people with whom I share an origin. Last week 3 of our Delaware Gubernatorial candidates took part in a debate in Dover on behalf of Hispanics in Delaware. Mike Protack, Lt. Gov. Carney and Treasurer Jack Markell sat down and debated their ideas for how to help the Hispanic Community in Delaware. Among the ideas presented by all three candidates was public school funding for the children of illegal immigrants. In fact, the entire debate featured three candidates pandering to the Hispanic population in Delaware. Combine that with Bill Lee’s brilliant idea to give illegal immigrants’ drivers’ licenses and what you see in Delaware is a lack of the backbone to express conservative values in a way that doesn’t appear mean spirited and racist. It may seem that my frustrations here are born of hatred for an entire race of people; this could not be further from the truth. Instead my frustrations are born of two distinctly different aspects of reality. First is my sense of patriotism and love of America. I love this country so much, and specifically I love Delaware enough to consider this influx of illegal immigrants an affront to everything I hold dear. Second, and not a distant second either, is a desire to see people come to this country and achieve their dreams, especially those who come from the same backgrounds and have a similar heritage to my own. 

In our current scenario, human beings are packed into the sweltering trailers of semi trucks along with the cargo or in SUV’s (such as the 19 that died today in AZ) like sardines in a can and driven thousands of miles to be dropped off in whatever hole in the wall town the driver stops at, of course, as we saw in AZ, some never even make it to the hole in the wall town. They are then forced to work beneath the law on farms, or doing jobs that are almost subhuman for below minimum wage. For those of us who stand up, myself included, and scream about no to the idea of reparations for the atrocities of slavery committed 150 years ago, touting the fact that we don’t have the same views as those slave owners, nor were we even born anywhere close to that time frame and had no opportunity to choose for ourselves which side to be on, we are on the verge of becoming hypocritical if we allow illegal immigrants to continue to be enslaved. How can they be slaves if they are being compensated? Five dollars an hour buys next to nothing in an economy where gasoline is near $4 per gallon. At three times that hourly rate it is difficult to make any kind of life for a family of three. Often illegal immigrant families are much larger than 3 persons and can any of us imagine supporting a family of 5 or 6 or more on $5 or even $15 per hour? Then there is the fact that estimates of the origins of current gang members done as recently as 2006 show that about 49% of all gang members in America are Hispanic. Many of those gang members are illegal immigrants and some of the most notorious gangs in America are comprised almost entirely of illegal immigrants. The 18^th Street Gang is one whose illegal immigrant makeup is estimated at over 60%. If for no other reason than a love for human kind, we must consider that compassion may be best served with these illegal immigrants, who risked their lives trying to get to a country where they can feel accepted, by returning them to their countries of origin and asking them to return to our country legally just as fast as they can. This way they can live above the radar not below it, and become productive members of a great society. 

It’s the disproportionate population of illegal immigrants who commit crimes, join gangs and subvert the government combined with 911 that forces us to consider illegal immigration a severe threat to our national security. Illegal immigration is not just a threat to our national security; it is also a threat to our economy, our society and our way of life. Too many candidates in all political spectrums pander to a Hispanic population who in my opinion, given the facts, would all but physically send their illegal breather back to their homelands themselves. Political strategists, candidates and staffers give so little credit to the Hispanic population of our country that they come up with schemes like drivers’ licenses and tolerance for illegal immigrants that appear to make them compassionate. The fact is that these ridiculous schemes actually make our politicians look like, well, politicians. Compassion doesn’t mean that we sit back and ignore atrocities being committed against undocumented aliens or that we advocate for these criminals to be allowed to participate in social programs which should be reserved for legal US citizens. Instead, compassion for Hispanic Americans should come in the following form.

Too often Hispanic Americans are labeled distastefully due to the vast majority of illegal immigrants being Hispanic in origin, especially in the Delaware area where many of these immigrants work on farms, manufacturing plants or in southern PA mushroom houses. Stereotypes, as distasteful as they may be, are applied to many immigrants regardless of their immigration status. Many in the Hispanic population are legal, hard working citizens who pay their taxes, and are productive citizens. It’s unfair that they be labeled within the same category as illegal immigrants who subvert the law and live below the radar often turning to crime as a way to make a living, and subjecting themselves and their families to living conditions akin to those of the slaves in the early days of our country. Legitimizing illegal immigrants by granting drivers licenses or public funding for social programs only serves to blur the lines and create more damaging stereotypes for the Hispanic community. The best way to combat these stereotypes is to work within the Hispanic American community to weed out those who have broken the law to get into the country and continue to break the law by not paying taxes, joining gangs, committing crimes against citizens, and provide false identities. The best way to be compassionate is to show Hispanic American citizens that we value their hard work and dedication to the American way of life. We should be working with Hispanic Americans to show them that we do want to offer them the same advantages that all Americans are given the rights to enjoy by our Constitution. We need to show Hispanic Americans that we are concerned about the stereotypes unfairly applied to far too many of our nation’s hardest workers and work to ensure that those stereotypes are struck down by ending illegal immigration. Through community outreach by local law enforcement and increasing communications with ICE we can help to restore a positive look to the Hispanic American community and ensure that everyone is given the same chance to succeed free from the burdens of immigration status concerns. 

By ending illegal immigration in Delaware we will not only restore the good name of our Hispanic American brothers and sisters, but we will help our economy, reduce crime and reduce stress on our public school system and social programs.   Unfortunately our mainstream candidates seem to be stuck on offering platitudes and slogans to our Hispanic American community and not really addressing the issues that they face. When are Delaware’s citizens, specifically the Hispanic Americans going to wake up and realize that what the Democrats and even our left leaning Republican candidates are offering is nothing short of a bait and switch to get votes? There’s no substance, there’s no answer here and there is no real solution being offered by any of these candidates. It’s time for new, fresh, young ideas for Delaware. 

I am so energized by todays events.  Before noon today Nancy Pelosi led Senate Democrats in a runaway motion to adjourn Congress until September.  Republicans and even some Democrats opposed the motion (some reports are that the motion passed 213-212).  Republicans were so upset by the vote that they continued to press Pelosi to take up a vote on an energy bill being offered by Reps. John Peterson (R-PA) and Neil Abercrombie (D-HI).  As Pelosi refused to take up the bill, House Republicans protested the partisan move and called for Congress to come back and hammer out an agreement.  Pelosi had the CSPAN cameras shut down and the lights and microphones turned off.  She even made sure to call the police to remove reporters wanting answers about the chaos.   "This is the people's House," Rep, Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.) said. "This is not Pelosi's politiburo."  Democrat aides, furious at being held up on running from the Capitol for their "vacation" snapped at reporters saying,  "You're not covering this, are you?"  and even calling the Republicans seeking an end to America's energy woes "morons".  It looks like Republicans are going to rotate in the House and continue to put public pressure on the left to come back and work a deal.  Chances are that House Democrats will take their vacation as planned, ignoring the public sentiment and allowing the country to go through yet another congressional break without an energy deal.  It's about time that the Republicans stood up and fought for Americans.  Until this event it seemed like Republicans were content to sit back and spout rhetoric.  It's refreshing to see GOP congressional members not just talking but doing something about it.  GO GOP!!!!!

Delaware the First State

Delaware is in the unique position being the First State to ratify the Constitution. I believe that Delawareans are a special breed. I also believe that too many Delawareans have been lulled into a sense of false security by politicians who have been in office far too long. Our state has not held up to its greatness as defined by Richard Basset, Gunning Bedford Jr., Jacob Broom, John Dickinson, and George Read. It’s time our state got back to its First State roots.

Article I.           Delaware should be the First State in Energy Independence

Delaware’s nickname is “The First State” but we are not taking that role to heart. Delaware has been content to sit back and become the forgotten First State.

Section 1.01 Delaware should be first in Nuclear Power production

While Delaware has not been first in building Nuclear Power plants we can be first in utilizing Nuclear power to make our state energy independent. We can begin permitting and advances construction on a new AP1000 Nuclear Power facility. There are numerous areas along the Delaware River that would be good candidates for a nuclear plant. The addition of a nuclear power plant could potential replace fossil fuel fired plants. Not only would this strengthen our state’s energy grid, it would push us into possible net energy exporters to surrounding states. It would also create thousands of new high tech jobs in industries from construction to engineering.

Section 1.02 Delaware should be first in building new refineries

There has not been a new major refinery built in the United States in over 30 years. Delaware can be the First State to begin construction a new oil refinery in the US. A good site in my opinion for this refinery would be the long derelict US Steel location in Claymont. A new oil refinery would increase production of oil based fuels and contribute to the nation becoming energy independent. It would also help to stimulate Delaware’s economy by providing hundreds of jobs.

Section 1.03 Delaware should be first in offshore wind power production

Recent developments on a new offshore wind generation plant have all but assured that Delaware will finally be first in off shore wind power. We should embrace this technology and expand on it. It will create hundreds of high paying; high tech jobs and adds valuable clean energy to the Delaware power grid. We should encourage local wind power manufacturing business to locate themselves in Delaware by providing tax incentives.

Section 1.04 Delaware should be first in Solar Power

Delaware should harness the latest solar power technology by encouraging that the tallest buildings in our cities be built with, or have the newest solar panel technology installed. The state should give tax incentives and energy credits to those building owners who choose to place solar panels on their roofs.  Solar power provides valuable clean energy to our power grid and creates high tech; high paying jobs. We should also do encourage local solar panel manufacturing businesses to locate themselves in Delaware by providing tax incentives.

Section 1.05 Delaware should be first in new alternative energy sources

Delaware should work with leading energy researchers to pioneer alternative energy sources that can be uniquely harnessed in Delaware such as tidal power which is more predictable than wind and solar power and has the potential to provide much more power per installation. We should also encourage local tidal power generator manufacturers to locate themselves in Delaware by providing tax incentives.

Article II.        Delaware should be first in illegal immigration reform

As a matter of public safety, Delaware should declare to the country and the world that while we support and admire legal immigrants from all countries, that we will no longer tolerate illegal immigrants souring the idea of the American dream and destroying the reputations of their legal counterparts.

Section 2.01 State legislature should ensure that local law enforcement is able to work with federal agencies to locate and deport illegal immigrants.

Delaware legislators must pass laws that protect local law enforcement and allow them the freedom to contact federal agencies when an illegal immigrant is arrested. This protects our citizens from the violent crimes some illegal immigrants who enter gangs. State legislators should allow law enforcement to inquire about an immigrants citizenship status during any questioning including traffic stops, witness accounts and criminal investigations.

Section 2.02 State legislators should require employers to verify the citizenship of their employees.

Delaware legislators must make it a punishable offense for employers to hire illegal immigrants. Illegal immigrants are too often exploited by employers looking for cheap labor. Illegal immigrants are also often hired ahead of legal US citizens because they will work for much less pay.

Section 2.03 State legislators should remove state funding for illegal immigrants with regard to social programs

Delaware legislators must remove government funding for illegal immigrants who attempt to access social programs intended for low income legal citizens. Immigrants who have violated the law in order to gain entry to our country should not be permitted to take advantage of social programs funded by and intended to help our citizens. Our state should require proof of legal citizenship when a person applies for any social program including but not limited to welfare, state funded healthcare, food stamps or unemployment benefits. State officials must also be required to contact federal and local authorities in the event that they witness and illegal immigrant applying for any social program.

Section 2.04 State legislators should require that immigrants learn English in order to obtain citizenship.

It is imperative that we establish a common language to be used in transactions throughout the state. Requiring immigrants to learn English helps state officials, law enforcement and the immigrants by assimilating them into society. It also helps to break down a barrier that currently exists between mainstream citizens and immigrants. While our nation was founded on the concept of allowing immigrants to find freedom within our borders, it was also always the immigrant’s job to communicate in the common language of the country. 

Article III.    Delaware should be first in education.

Section 3.01 State legislators should develop an education voucher system.

Delaware should be the first state to allow parents to choose to send their children to charter, private or home schools without being unfairly taxed for the public school system. The easiest and fairest way to accomplish this is to allow parents to choose to receive a voucher that can be used to pay for education expenses. Currently private schools are only attended by children whose parents can afford to be taxed for public school dollars and still pay for the cost of private school tuition. 

Section 3.02 State legislators should take control of education standards within our state.

Delaware must control its own destiny when it comes to our children. The children and teachers in our public school must be held accountable to education standards that stand above federal standard. Education is the right and responsibility of each state and we must create standards to effectively manage the performance of our students, teachers and administrators and ensure that all of our children are given the best chance to succeed. 

Section 3.03 State legislators should work with local school districts to develop a pay structure for public school teachers that encourage positive results.

Delaware already has one of the highest average salaries for public school teachers but we can do more. We can work with our school districts to develop merit based incentives to drive better results from our educational system. We owe it to our children to provide them with the best possible chance to succeed and we need high quality educators performing at their best in order to do that.

Article IV.     Delaware should be first in budget reform.   

Section 4.01 State legislators should work together to turn our current budget deficit into a surplus.

As the first state Delaware should be a role model to other states in fiscal responsibility. State legislators must work together to ensure that our budget is balanced to pay off our current debt and begin to build a state surplus. Through increased revenues by encouraging new high tech business to locate here, as well new tax revenue from employment with these companies and new residents’, legislators will get a head start on this task. It will also require legislators to reduce spending in non critical areas. 

Article V.         Delaware should be first in law enforcement.

Section 5.01 State legislators should ensure that law enforcement officers are well compensated.

Delaware’s law enforcement officers from the State Police to corrections officers to probation and parole officers have not received a sufficient raise in over 3 years. Our corrections and probation/parole officers have been unfairly prejudiced against and have not received adequate compensation. Legislators must ensure that our law enforcement is given the tools to succeed including compensation.

Section 5.02 State legislators should ensure that law enforcement is protected against frivolous lawsuits/complaints. 

Delaware legislators must enact laws that protect our law enforcement officials from lawsuits/complaints from criminals looking for a loophole. While legitimate accusations and complaints must be dealt with to ensure our law enforcement officers are held to the highest standard, they should be shielded from unfounded baseless accusations that only delay verdicts and serve to tarnish the reputations of otherwise commendable officers.

Section 5.03 State legislators should enact immigration laws.

Delaware legislators must enact immigration laws that allow local law enforcement to adequately police our states immigrant population. They must be allowed to inquire about a person’s immigration status or citizenship at anytime. They also must be allowed to communicate the immigration status and citizenship of any person to federal immigration agencies.

Article VI.     Delaware should be first in political reform.

Section 6.01 State legislators should enact term limits.

There are many state and local legislators who have had their positions for decades. Delaware legislators must act to limit themselves to two consecutive terms in any single office. Our state cannot grow and cannot move forward if the same politics is played.

Section 6.02 State legislators should enact spending reform.

Delaware legislators must enact reform to eliminate pork barrel spending and earmarks. Legislators create fundamental conflicts of interest when they attach earmarks and special interest tabs to bills. Delaware has been undergoing budget shortfall after budget shortfall and yet our current legislative branch has continued to approve budget after budget. We have to get back to fiscal responsibility and spend our tax revenue wisely. 

Article VII. Delaware should be first in the Constitution.

Section 7.01 State legislators should enact laws that protect the Constitution of the United States of America.

Delaware was the first state to ratify the constitution in 1788. Delaware must stand up and ratify our Constitution again. I urge our lawmakers to obtain a copy of the Constitution and add their signatures to the document, then post it outside of the door to Legislative Hall in Dover to symbolize their agreement with the constitution. 

Section 7.02 State legislators should embrace the ideals and values of our founding fathers.

Delaware legislators must show their support for the ideals and values of the men and women who risked everything to build a great nation, arguably the greatest on Earth. Among those founding fathers were Delawareans who fought, toiled and ultimately died building a nation founded on “We the People”. As citizens of the great state of Delaware it is our duty to continue those traditions and to create a state that our founders would be proud of.

Section 7.03 State legislators should ensure that all American citizens are allowed to live the American dream.

Delaware legislators have a duty to their constituents to provide them with all the freedoms and rights given to them by our founders.   The Constitutional rights granted in our nation’s founding document must be upheld by our laws today. Delaware legislators must reaffirm their commitment to uphold these rights and ensure that all Delawareans are allowed to succeed if they work hard and harness the talents that they possess.

If you are within the 26th State House District or the 11th Senate District in Delaware, please take the time to visit the following website and indicate your support for my campaign to unseat decades long political representatives in the state government.

http://gopetition.com/online/20899.html

The Supreme Court has out done itself over the past month.  Landmark cases have been heard and the lands highest court has taken a major swipe at America.  A group of nine has decided on more than one occasion that America is not capable of governing itself.  Rulings on GITMO prisoners "rights" and Louisiana's right to execute child rapists have once again trampled on the true meaning of the constitution.  In fact, in the only case the Supreme Court got right, it was only by the slimmest of margins and with the greatest reluctance that “The 9” upheld the constitutional rights of Americans to own firearms. We’ve long since passed the age of judicial activism and have progressed into the era of Judicial rule. With a few pen strokes the fate of our entire country can rest in the hands on 9 judges. Justices Alito and Roberts are most often on the right side of the issues, and all too often left hanging out to dry by the other 7 rulers on the high court. What’s worse is that their decisions aren’t even masked in good intentions like those of the liberal politicians who seem just not able to get it “quite right”. They are so bold as to not even hide their intentions with acts of kindness. They’ve handed the same rights afforded to American citizens over to enemy combatants, terrorists whose only desire is to watch our buildings crumble and our population expire. They’ve allowed them the access to citizen rights never afforded to terrorists before. They’ve weakened our country with their decree and opened a loophole through which hundreds of murderers can now scramble through and away to the safety of their hate filled homelands. In the Louisiana case “The 9” completely ignored the states’ rights and superseded them based on public opinion. I thought that the role of the Supreme Court was to interpret the constitution the way it was written and decide if a law violated it, not strike down legitimate state laws based on the pollster’s data. Besides the glaring deviation from the entire purpose of the high court, since when was it in the description for them to rule based on public opinion? And whose opinion where they getting? I don’t know very many people, even in my liberal state of Delaware, that would oppose the death penalty for adults who rape children. In fact, I’ve done my own little informal polling in my hometown and while traveling on business throughout the Northeast and 45 out of the 50 people I asked about their opinion supported executing child rapists. If my very small and very limited poll is any indication, it looks like the high court should have said “Screw public opinion, we just don’t want you to execute anyone regardless of the rights given your state by the constitution. And what we say goes!” The bottom line is that GWB may have had his faults, but he got us Roberts and Alito and that has been enough to save at least our guns. Let’s hope that McCain can help us save the rest of our rights before “The 9” take them all away.

The World Nuclear association has determined that, in over “12,700 cumulative reactor years in 32 countries” there have only been 2 major incidents. One of those incidents was contained with no harm to anyone, and one was one of the largest manmade disasters ever.    They found that “detailed analyses and large-scale testing, followed by the 1979 meltdown of the Three Mile Island reactor, began to make clear that even the worst possible accident in a conventional western nuclear power plant or its fuel could not cause dramatic public harm.”  They also have determined that “it is now clear that no-one need fear a potential public health catastrophe.” The IAEA issued a press release in 2007 stating that France receives 78 percent of its power from nuclear reactors and Belgium receives 54 percent. In fact, there were 435 Nuclear Reactors around the world at the time of the IAEA press release. Much of the nuclear waste is recycled in modern plants which cuts back further on the so called dangers of nuclear waste. Given the fact that the technology continues to evolve and the facts about the safety of nuclear power I can’t see where anyone could argue against its use.

In recent months as the price of oil on the world market has risen there has been an increasing debate on how to reduce these costs. Everything from conservation to drilling to alternative energy to criminalizing speculation has been proposed. Most Republicans agree that we should do everything that we can to become energy independent while most liberals want to turn away from oil all together in favor of wind and solar power. We have to have a comprehensive plan that includes utilizing the natural resources of our country (coal, oil, shale, and natural gas), nuclear power, solar, wind, geothermal and other new energy technology. Focusing on oil speculators and gas tax holidays are weak gestures from soft politicians. The fact is that by just announcing intentions to make our country energy independent we will drive down the cost of oil. Speculators focus on future prices and by removing most or all of our demand from the world market, we can drive down the price at the pump immediately. It’s time to stand up and shout that we want to control our own destiny, not place it in the hands of the worlds dictators. 

It's time that we as Americans stood up for ourselves and for those who came before us.  It's time that we as Americans remember our founders for who they were and not what our history books tell us they were.  It's time that we as Americans started teaching our children about the reality of the founding of our nation. History books will tell our children about Paul Revere's ride through  the Massachusetts countryside. They will tell our children about him yelling “THE BRITISH ARE COMING, THE BRITISH ARE COMING!” They will tell our children that people dressed like Indians and threw English Tea overboard in Boston Harbor, that the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4^th (it was actually signed on July 2^nd), and that George Washington was our first president. These are wonderful things for our children to know, even if some of them are partly incorrect. It’s the stories that the history curriculums “just don’t have time to tell” that we as Americans need to be telling our children. It’s the story of HOW and WHY the British came to Boston Harbor, and on to Concord and Lexington that REALLY shows the brilliance, courage and sacrifice of Paul Revere, Dr. Warren, John Hancock, Samuel Adams, etc. 

The colonial uprising had already begun. The Massachusetts Provincial Congress had been established and at the head of it was John Hancock who resided in Concord, Ma. At 9PM on the night of April 18^th 1775 Dr. Joseph Warren was, as many colonials were, lying in bed drifting off to sleep. Dr. Warren was a well known, well liked man who was active in colonial politics. In fact, his drafting of the Suffolk Resolves caused the King of England to put a price on his head. He knew that at any moment the Redcoats may knock at his door. It was late, and well passed the time when the British had cleared the streets.  As he lay drifting to sleep, there came a knock at his door.   He knew this could be it. The British Redcoats had come to take him; he would never put it past the British to come at night, when all were asleep. Instead of redcoats, there stood a young man that Dr. Warren new well. Dr. Warren quickly ushered the young man inside his home. “What are you doing here? It’s well past curfew and you know if the British catch you..” he said softly.   The young man stopped him before he could finish, speaking in hurried but hushed tones, “Dr. Warren, the scene unfolding at the harbor warrants any such dangers. The Redcoats are massing, they’re dressed in full battle dress with muskets and assembling.” Warren considered this. It was not unexpected, in fact, he and others had planned for such an occurrence. He knew that the British had learned of the cache of weapons and ammunition the colonials had stored in Lexington and Concord. Warren knew that the British would march on those towns and that the revolution would be stopped before it could begin. He knew he had to act now.  He said to the young man, “I want you to go and get two men for me, Paul Revere and William Dawes, do you know them?” The young man replied that he did and he hurried off. 15 minutes later Dawes and Revere knocked softly at Dr. Warren’s door. Dr. Warren hurried them inside and explained his plan. Revere was to go into town and cross the Charlestown River. On the other side he would meet up with John Larkin who had a horse named Beauty. She was touted as the fastest horse in Boston. Dawes was to ride south out of Boston, taking the longer land route to Lexington and Concord. It was safer and fewer Redcoats patrolled south out of town and fewer still through the farmlands south and west of Boston. In the event that Revere and Dawes were captured, Dr. Warren had arranged for lanterns to be hung in the Old North Church, viewable from across the Charles River. One lantern would be lit if the British marched by land, and two if they were to cross the river by boat.  Both men departed with strict instructions to carry their messages directly to Lexington and Concord. They were not to go home, not to tell anyone what they were doing. Paul Revere gathered two men to help him cross the river. As they ducked in and out of bushes, avoiding the many British patrols, they noticed on this warm night that the moon was full. Another light was shining that night; in fact, many of them were shining from the deck of a huge Man-O-War docked on the river. Revere and his companions saw that they had no choice but to cross the river here, and that they would cross directly beneath the bow of the huge British ship. “We’ll never make it!” hushed one of the young men. “We MUST make it.” uttered Revere. As they climbed into the boat they made a pact that if they were seen, they would tip the boat over and swim as fast as they could for the opposite shore. They knew they would be caught or worse killed by the British. Before they set out, they became aware that the ore locks were so loud that the British would surely detect them. One of Revere’s companions ran off, he grabbed three pebbles and went to a nearby home. It was the home of a girl he knew and he tossed those pebbles one at a time at her window. “Who is it?” the girl whispered after opening her window. “It’s Tom, our ore locks are noisy and we need something to quiet them.” The girl turned and when she came back she tossed down pairs of her underwear. Tom stuffed them into the ore locks and quieted them. The three companions began to row their boat out into the river. As they got closer, less than 100 yards away, the full moon shining down on them, their doubts only increased. Paul Revere whispered, “Keep your heads down, do not let them see your white faces, only the hair on your head.”   They were 50 yards from the huge warship when they noticed something. It appeared they were being assisted by someone else. A single cloud had appeared in the otherwise empty sky. As the men rowed closer to the warship, the cloud also began to pass in front of the full moon. The men were able to quietly slip unnoticed beneath the hull of the huge ship and pass safely to the opposite shore. Here, Paul Revere met with John Larkin and learned that the lanterns within Old North church had been lit. There was to be a river crossing of Redcoats. Quietly, Revere was led out to the stable where Beauty was kept. He mounted her and set off for Lexington and Concord. He did not make it far out of eyeshot and still within earshot of Larkin and Revere’s companions when the listeners heard the British guards shouting, “Stop,  ye rider or we will shoot you.” Revere rode harder, his head down as Larkin and the others heard the muskets fire. Then they heard the first of Revere’s cries, “THE BRITISH ARE COMING, THE BRITISH ARE COMING.” Paul Revere road hard through the Massachusetts night and he stopped at every town crying out to the local patriots with those same four words. He rode all night, stopping only to alert the townspeople along his route, of the advancing Redcoats.  He arrived in Lexington around midnight and met up with his counterpart Dawes. He also found John Hancock, Samuel Adams and Jonas Clark. He delivered his message to the three leaders of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress and resumed his ride, this time accompanied by Dawes and a third rider, Dr. Samuel Prescott. Before the trio could ride the five miles between Lexington and Concord, they encountered a roadblock manned by British soldiers. Responding to the urgency of the moment, they proceeded to break through. Prescott used his intimate knowledge of the countryside to his advantage and successfully eluded capture - he was the only one of the three to complete the journey and deliver the alarm to Concord.  Dawes initially appeared to have escaped his pursuers, but was thrown from his horse and captured. Revere was taken prisoner and during his interrogation deliberately provided greatly inflated numbers of militiamen awaiting the British at Concord. During the ride back to Lexington, Revere and his captors heard shots fire and church bells ring throughout the area — events that gave some credence to Revere’s report of colonial preparations. Fearing for their safety, the Redcoats released Revere, but Revere’s horse had been used to replace the tired mare of a British officer. Revere was given the officer’s older horse.

Revere later joined Hancock and Adams as they retreated into the countryside, but made a frantic return to a Lexington tavern where Hancock had inadvertently left some valuable papers. As dawn broke, Revere departed from the town with the valuable documents in hand and rode past militiamen in the process of assembling. A short time later he could hear shots and see smoke in the distance, the opening rounds in the struggle for independence.

I'm going to take a step back from the political and public opinion realms and just write something about Father's Day. It's always been the most special day for me. From a young age I felt a bond with my father that many boys do not. I understood his anger at me when I did something wrong. Although I didn't like the reprucussions, I always knew that it was meant to help teach me about the ways of the world and the differences between right and wrong. My father worked alot and his work was hard. He was often tired when he came home and it showed. My brother and I always got attention from him despite the bags under his eyes and aches in his muscles. He helped with homework, he coached our baseball teams, he took us to other sporting events and he did it all without complaint. On weekends he would spend much of his time building something, landscaping or playing Mr. Fix it around the house at my mothers request. In reality my father has performed manual labor 7 days a week for as long as I've been alive (that's almost 28 years to this date). My father was never a drinker, the occaisonal party imbiber but never an alcoholic or drunk. He didn't partake in drugs (at least after the 60's/70's that I was ever aware of but he did swear like a sailor and was known to have a temper. Our family enjoyed a couple weeks of vacation every year thanks entirely to my dads hard work and sacrifices. There's no way he enjoyed working outside on roofs or digging in dirt pits in the 90+ degree heat of the summers, sweating and aching and burning, or outside in the cold windwhipped skeleton of a building not yet with standing walls in below freezing conditions. He gave us all he had to give and more and I'm not sure we really ever appreciated it. Not only did we have our 2 weeks of vacation at the beaches anywhere from Rehobeth to Cape Hatteras, but on weekends he would take us to historical battlefields. It was these times that I saw a father in his completeness. His time became our time. Most of the year he would sacrifice for my brother and I but during those times when he asked without asking that we sacrifice for him we saw the things that made him tick. We saw a father who valued history. One who valued ideals and values over "things". My father was more interested in seeing, smelling, hearing and learning about the past than he was about souveneirs or collecting. He was content to walk the fields of history, reading the plaques and imaging the scenes of our past. It was in THESE moments that my brother and I saw a man at peace with all. Even with my brother and I antsy and bouncing off walls, my mother whining and dragging along my father was able to have his moments of peace. I lost sight of this respect and turned my back on the man who gave me more than he thought he could or did. I've taken him for granted as a young adult and only now, looking back, and being a father myself, can I understand that. People who only hear my jaded versions of stories, or who were not present to look objectively at my life from birth cannot appreciate the father I had. They can't understand why my father is held in such great esteem based on the current threads of our strained relationship. The truth is, they don't need to understand any of it. They don't need to understand why I hope that I can be even half the father he has been and still is to me. Happy Father's Day Pop.

Ever has our party been the keepers of liberty and the defenders of freedom. Always have we put our country ahead of ourselves. From Abraham Lincoln’s struggle to free oppressed people within our borders to Ronald Reagan’s fight against worldwide communism, we have tried to empower the American people. We have stood for the rights of all Americans to be free, prosperous and safe from attack. We have been the party that stood up against Imperialist Japan’s mighty Navy and Air Force, the German’s elite Armor and Infantry and the Ballistic Missiles of socialist Russia. We have torn down walls and fought back invaders. We have fostered peace and respect across the globe. Our party has always embraced Capitalism, free enterprise and the right of all Americans to achieve wealth through hard work and determination. We are the party that aspires to be good stewards of the planet while still remaining a free and independent nation. It is with these values in mind that we Republicans, Conservatives, Libertarians and moderates reaffirm our commitment to the people of the United States of America. It is in the footsteps of the founding fathers that we follow and the people for whom we govern. These 10 Commitments are our solemn vow to the American people to continue in the course of our nation’s greatest leaders.

I. Our commitment to winning victory in Iraq
We commit to continuing to assist the Iraqi people in their struggle to defend themselves against insurgent terrorists. We commit to helping the people of Iraq build a strong and prosperous Democratic nation free from tyranny, oppression and terrorism.

II. Our commitment to securing our borders
We commit to securing the borders of the United States of America. We will end illegal immigration starting with border security. We will employ all available methods to ensure the safety of our citizens, our economy and our liberty. From border guards to Aerial surveillance and high tech laser fences we will ensure our nations safety and security.

III. Our commitment to winning the war on terror
On September 11th 2001 our country faced something that had not happened to us in nearly 60 years. We were attacked on our own soil by an outside entity. Not since Pearl Harbor had an outside force attacked us on our own ground. We believe that all Americans have the right to live without fear of another terrorist attack. We commit to stopping global terrorists by all means necessary.

IV. Our Commitment to energy independence
We commit to creating an America that does not depend on foreign oil. We can achieve this by using a two stage strategy. Stage one consists of a short term plan which utilizes the latest, cleanest, safest and most environmentally friendly drilling and refining methods to produce our own oil from our country’s natural resources. We will tap into the great energy supplies within our own borders and build new refineries to efficiently produce our own oil and gasoline supplies. We will begin constructing safe, clean and reliable nuclear power stations. We will stop exploiting our own food supply to create energy. As new technologies evolve and become safer and more efficient we will embrace them. We commit to being good stewards of our planet and leaving little to no footprint.

V. Our commitment to cut excess government spending
We commit to ending wasteful and excessive government spending which costs the American people billions of dollars every year. We commit to being smart about whom we do business with and being accountable for every dollar spent. We must limit the size and scope of our national government. We must turn the balance of power back to the people of the United States and not the government.

VI. Our commitment to cut taxes for all Americans
As Republicans, we have always looked to lower the taxes and fees paid by the American people. As we lower our spending we can continue to reduce the tax burden on America. The people of America must be allowed to build their own wealth and not the wealth of their government.

VII. Our commitment to eliminating earmarks
As we cut spending we commit to eliminating earmarks from out legislation. Tax dollars must be spent wisely, all programs must be carefully researched and funds should be distributed by Federal agencies not arbitrarily handed out by elected officials. This is especially true in relation to pork barrel spending. We cannot allow elected officials to steal public tax money and give it to their political contributors.

VIII. Our commitment to promote Capitalism and Democracy
Our founders blessed us with a free nation for the people and by the people. We must continue to embrace the ideas of freedom, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We must not look to our government for our happiness. We must allow the people of America to create their own happiness. We must govern our country by the laws of its people. We must place the ideas of people above political ambitions. We will foster the ideas of capitalism, free enterprise and the freedoms granted by democracy around the globe.

IX. Our commitment to a strong foreign policy
In modern times it has become more important than ever to foster a constructive relationship with countries across the globe. From our neighbors in Mexico and Canada to faraway lands like Iraq and China, it is imperative that we work together to keep peace and Democracy available to all. We will follow in the footsteps of those who came before by stressing peace through strength. Strong ties with allies and a proven record of rewarding regimes who embrace human rights while standing in the face of those who would seek to enslave their people and create chaos across the globe is our objective.

X. Our commitment to continuing the traditions of our founders
The founders of our great nation envisioned a land where all men and women were created equal. While they knew that there were things they could not hope to change in their lifetimes, they put in place a constitution that allowed future generations to change them and right great injustices. Through the prism of history we have seen wrongs righted. We have seen the Civil Rights Movement, the Women’s Rights Act and the Anti-Slavery Movement change our nation for the better. We seek to continue these traditions and ensure that we correct the injustices we can, while leaving future generations with the power to do the same for those we cannot. We will appoint judges who seek to preserve and rule by the Constitution of the United States of American, not those who would legislate from the bench.