Ronald Reagan: 1980 Republican National Convention

EVERYONE should listen to this speech by Ronald Reagan. It is so relevant today.

Here is a link to the text of the speech: http://www.nationalcenter.org/ReaganConvention1980.html

we need more guys like this!

Newly elected Congressman from Utah, Jason Chaffetz, showed up in DC with a cot to sleep on and dreams of fiscal responsibility in the land of spending. This guy ran his campaign withut doing any polls, had no campaign office, was outspent by $600,000 and he still won by 20 points. When you hear his message, it's not hard to figure out why Chaffetz is a voice that needs to be heard in the Republican Party.

 

http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/18581/

 

“Well, I think the Republicans blew it. They had the House, the Senate and the presidency and I argued that, hey, if we want different results, we're going to have to elect different people. And until the Republican party returns to those core conservative principles of fiscal discipline, limited government, accountability and a strong national defense, we will continue to suffer as a party and as a country.”   --Jason Chaffetz

 

no softballs here

<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/jxT0ELP7az0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/jxT0ELP7az0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

Yahoo! News Story - Palin breaks with McCain on gay marriage amendment - Yahoo! News

Kaly Shippen (kalyship@yahoo.com) has sent you a news article.
(Email address has not been verified.)
------------------------------------------------------------
Personal message:

Palin breaks with McCain on gay marriage amendment - Yahoo! News

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081021/ap_on_el_pr/palin_gay_marriage

============================================================
Yahoo! News
http://news.yahoo.com/

A REAL Running Mate

I just read in Runner’s World that Sarah Palin ran a 3:59:36 marathon in the Humpy’s Marathon in 2005.  That’s just a little over 9 minute mile pace for 26.2 miles!  I hope I can do that when I’m over 40!  She was only 9 and a half minutes from having a Boston Marathon qualifying time.

 

(Humpy’s, the sponsor of the marathon, is a cool pub in downtown Anchorage.  My coworkers from Central Middle School threw me a baby shower there in 2001.)

Abraham Lincoln's "folksiness"

Some have said today that Palin was a bit "folksy" last night.
In Lincoln A Photobiography by Russell Freedman, it says: "... Lincoln had little formal 'eddication,' as he would have pronounced it. Almost everything he "larned" he taught himself. All his life he said "thar" for there, "git" for get, "kin" for can. Even so, he became an eloquent public speaker who could hold a vast audience spellbound, and a great writer whose whose finest phrases still ring in our ears. " (pg. 4)

Palin's resume vs. Obama's

Last night a reporter said to Newt Gingrich on NSNBC: "..her resume is not somehting we've seen with presidential candidates" Newt said to the effect: "She has a stronger resume than Obama so why do you guys say this baloney? She has been a REAL governor, a REAL mayor, in charge of a REAL national gaurd. Obama hasn't done any of those things.. She defeated an incumbant mayor; he has never had the courage to be a whistle blower and turn in a member of his own party and then fined 12k for it. Never seen Obama do anything like that. He can only talk and write. Show me a single thing Obama has done." He directed this comment to the reporter who could only thank him and tell him he didn't have anything futher! Nice, Newt!

What a Night!

Amanda mentioned that we "went on the record" tonight. A reporter from Channel 6 news wanted a local response to the debate and was given Amanda's name from a local Republican because of our Palin's Pitbulls group. So Amanda came over and we had a little interview session with the reporter during the debate. It really gave us some perspective of how tough it is to be on the hot seat. Of course, they only ended up pulling one soundbyte for the clip, and thankfully it was from Amanda! I thought it was a good clip of her though. I thought it was funny is how they introduced us as a GROUP who got together, when it was just me and Amanda and Raleigh and Jaden (and Ty). Ha! I guess we should have had a party, but we only had about 30 minutes notice that the news wanted to interview Amanda before the debate started. Amanda and I weren't even planning to watch it together. But back to the actual DEBATE...

For the record, I think Palin was herself tonight, and when she is herself, she is GREAT. Overall she did a great job of communicating her conservative values and responding to the questions and Biden's comments. I will be interested to see the ratings of the debate, as well as the commentary on her performance. From what I've seen so far from the media, she is getting significant praise, which indicates to me that she did a lot more than just hold her own.

One thing that came through very strongly was just how genuine Sarah Palin is. I believe she truly cares about this country and she has a servant's heart. Regardless of how you feel about her political views, I don't think anyone can make the case that Sarah Palin is a person that shouldn't be trusted. I have confidence that she will be true to her values and do her best to do the right things for our country. I think she's got great instincts and a great foundation of life experiences to draw upon. The lady has street smarts, plain and simple.

Palin had a lot of funny lines, but my favorite part of the debate was when she talked about her stance on drilling in ANWR and that she would continue to work to try to get McCain to come around on that one, because he oppposes drilling there. Having lived in Alaska, I am very much in favor of drilling in ANWR and I'm glad Palin talked about it on the national stage.

I felt that Gwen Ifill did an excellent job of moderating the debate.

As for Biden, although I disagree with him on most issues, I think he communicated clearly and probably won on points, but he did not win the popularity contest tonight. When you look at how big of an underdog Palin was, and how much more experience Biden has in debate settings, she gave a tremendous performance, and I think Biden knew it.

I did REALLY like one comment from Biden about working with those of opposing views in the Senate over the years. He said something to the effect of, "I don't question their motives--I question their judgment." That's truly how I feel about many of my liberal friends and family members. They are just trying to find solutions to the problems we face in this country. I just don't feel that individuals in the country ought to be looking to government to solve all their problems. FAIRNESS, as Biden defines it, involves a significant redistribution of wealth. I think that his views on taxes and healthcare aren't just on the slippery slope towards socialism, they are fundamentally socialist.

Obviously a lot of people in this country think socialism ain't too bad.

Just a sidenote, I got a kick out of Dennis Miller on Jay Leno tonight. He was talking about reading Nancy Pelosi's book and said something to the effect of, "I had the 'Shrill to English' version." Zing!

Palin's Debate Debut

YES! She did it! I think collectively conservatives are all breathing a sigh of relief... After all of the negative sound bites from interviews with Palin, I was holding my breathe for this debate. She did better than I had hoped. On one occasion I felt like she dropped the ball, but she recovered and did a knock out job.

This week was awesome. Mitt Romney visited IF and I was able to shake his hand. He is a great man and I am glad he is doing all he can to help out the party in general. Please check out his site: freestrongamerica.com.

Kaly and I were able to go "On the record"! Talking on camera is harder than it looks! I hope I was able to do the party and the recent movement Palin has evoked, some justice.

United States Voting Stats

Though the U.S. prides itself on being the world's greates democracy, that claim is not reflected in the country's voting patterns.

In 26 elections since 1945, an average of 48.3% of American voters actually cast a ballot, placing the U. S. at No. 139 in the world. This ties America with Mexico, according to the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance.

Italy, with a 925% turn out, rates No. 1. Iceland (90%), New Zealand (86%), Israel (80%) Great Britain (75%), Canada (68%), and France (67%) all far surpass the U.S. electorate in turnout.

Bases Loaded...

I think that once again, the bases are loaded for Sarah Palin. It's not quite the bottom of the ninth, maybe more like the top of the 7th, but if she strikes out in the debate against Joe Biden it could be game over for the ticket.

Personally, I believe she is a clutch player. I'm not sure if she's going to "hit it out of the ballpark" like she did in her convention speech, but I have faith that she can hold her own.

I think that it's likely she'll get grilled by the media no matter how she performs. We've already seen that happen as she gets hammered on every little thing wheras Biden seems to get a free pass for stupid comments like he made about Roosevelt and the Great Depression:



Regardless of the media coverage, I am interested in evaluating Palin's ability to think on her feet and effectively communicate key conservative values in the debate tomorrow night. We shall see!

Romney Visits Idaho Falls

October 1, 2008

Following a noon fundraiser in Boise, Mitt Romney will speak at a free public rally in Idaho Falls at Riverbend Ranch, located at 2880 N. 55th West. The rally is scheduled to beging at 5:45 p.m.

Romney is stumping for United States Senate candidate Jim Risch along with local Republican candidates.

For more info, click here.

This Nation Shall Endure

I read this book a few years back. It was printed in 1977. I guess I needed an uplift and reminder in light of what has taken place as of late. I opened to this page. Thought it was worthy of sharing.   "We should not be astonished when other nations view the US as a "faltering democracy." How long would a basketball team that was ranked number one in the polls remain in that position if the student body, the school newspaper, and supporting faculty constanlty pointed out its weaknesses? Soon the team would begin to lack confidence and fail. This is what we have been doing out our blessed country. Our heroes and institutions have been tarnished. We are constatnly being reminded, via the press and other media, of what is wrong in our country. .... It is the job of the historian and educator and church leader to help us as a nation to pull ourselves together, to help us regain perspective and vision and the respect of all nations. This will not be done by showing that this is merely a phase through which we are passing. No, it will be done by men who posses a love of country, a vision of our country's future, and the ASSURANCE of her divinely guided destiny."   This Nation Shall Endure Ezra Taft Benson

 

Monthly Meeting for Bonneville County Republican Women

 

ANOTHER REMINDER!

 

Mark your calendar!

 

Bonneville County Republican Women

Thursday, September 25, 2008

12 NOON

BONNEVILLE COUNTY REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGN HEADQUARTERS

Located at Snake River Landing

901 Pier View Drive, Suite 204

(Eagle Cap Executive Suites) 

• Have lunch on the pier
• Tour the headquarters
• Find out where and how to volunteer
• LET'S GET REPUBLICANS ELECTED THIS NOVEMBER!

WHAT A GREAT TIME TO BE A REPUBLICAN WOMAN!!!!

 

A Box lunch and drink will be provided for $7.50.

Please respond by email or phone to order a lunch.

 

We are encouraging our members to bring a friend/spouse/relative/neighbor/family member! 

Palin and the 'Experience' Canard by Bret Stephens

This Wall Street Journal writer had some interesting things to say.. "..when it comes to historical ignorance and political amnesia, our cultural panjandrums are in a class by themselves. ".. When Calvin Coolidge was named to Warren Harding's ticket in 1920, he had been governor of Mass. for less then two years. Aside from a largely powerless stinit as lieutenant governor and other smaller legislative posts, his chief previous govt. experience was as mayor of Northampton, to which he was elected in 1910 by a Wasilla-like margin of 1,597 to 1,409.
"Another year and a half for the governor to be nominated for the VPy: Teddy Roosevelt. It's true that TR as a former asst secretary of the Navy had more foreign policy experience than Mrs. Palin, though one wonders what today we would make of a candidate whose proud boast was that he had killed an enemy soldier "like a jackrabbit."
"Then there is Harry Truman to whom Mrs. Palin compared herself at the Republican convention. 'He had only to open his mouth and his origins were known.' wrote David McCullough in his biography of the 33rd president, in lines that might also have been written about Mrs. Palin. 'It wasn't just that he came from a particular part of the country, geographicall y, but from a specific part of the American Experience, an authentic pioneer background, and a specific place in the American imagination.
"The Truman comparison seems esp to rankle Mrs. Palin's critics, perhaps because in many respects it rings true. Take vetting. John McCain may have met Palin only once before he offered her the job, but FDR admitted: 'I hardly know Truman'. in July 1944, the same month the "Senator from Pedergast" was put on the Democratic ticket.
Or take foreign policy experience. It's fair to say that Palin has none, and the McCain campaign should drop the transparten tpretense that Alaska's proximity to Russia, or her nominal reponsibility for the state's Nat'l Gaurd, gives her some.
Then again, what did Truman know? 'Truman had no experience in relations with Britain or Russia, no firsthand knowledge of Churchill or Stalin,' write Mr. McCullough. " He didn't know his own Secretary of State, more than to say hello.. Roosevel, Truman would tell [ daughter ] Margaret privately, 'never did talk to me confidentially about the war, or about foreign affairs or what he had in mind for peace after war.' He was unprepared, bewildered"
"Truman it's true, served bravely as an army captain in WWI; he knew the nature of war. But his chief recommendation as a U.S. senator was as a good-govt. type who bucked his home state's machine politics (though not so frontally as Mrs. Palin bucked hers) and fought waste, fraud and corruption in the military spending. "

History seems to be on Palin's every side!

Finally on here.. Elan Frank is an Israeli film maker that made a video this last year on 'Extroadinary Women' and Palin is included in it. With Greta Van Sustren the other day he mentioned that one reason she was awesome was because she was a successful woman in a man's country. Referring to Alaska.
I have a question.. do you really think one party can be blamed for the economic crisis on Wall Street? My feeling is that we all are accountable for our choices. And we can't expect the government to bail us out. The banking companies are finding they can't do the same and they are starting to panic. I feel the best thing to do is ride it out. If congress gets in there and makes all kinds of laws it will just frustrate it further. Obviously the companies that were dishonest to need to also answer for it. So government requiring justice be shelled out is appropriate. I would like to see Sara address these issues and steer clear from talking about Obama etc. If she and McCain can be up front on what they plan to do or not do, that would be best. We have a pretty good understanding of the charachter of the candidates at this point. I am anxious to see what play out within the next few weeks on Wall Street.

Who is Prepared to Be President?

I found this poll from Rasmussen Reports to be very interesting:

63% of voters believe that John McCain is prepared to be President of the United States.

44% believe that Barack Obama is prepared to be President of the United States.

50% believe Biden is prepared to be President of the United States.

33% believe Palin is prepared to be President of the United States.

The number that jumps out at me is Obama's, not Palins. He's the TOP of the ticket, yet not even half of voters believe he's ready for the job. Don't forget, voters have had plenty of time to get to know Obama and to get comfortable with him...and overwhelmingly, they are not comfortable with him.

Say what you want about Alaska, but there is no question that Palin has significant executive experience as a business owner, mayor, and governor.

Can we afford to have on the job training for the President of the United States? Seriously, how can we elect someone with ZERO real executive experience? Or does running a presidential campaign count? When that's the highlight of Obama's resume', there is a problem.

Palin and Clinton SNL Parody by Tiny Fey and Amy Poehler

This is the best impersonation I've ever seen on Saturday Night Live. Not only does Tina Fey look like Sarah Palin, but she absolutely nailed her voice and mannerisms.



I agree with my friend Jackie who said that this was hilarious, no matter what side you're on. But the Weekend Update was LAME. Not one mention of Obama or Biden. How can you not make a crack about Biden after his two major gaffe's this week? And the bit with "Alaska Pete"? That's seriously the best they can do? Did ANYONE think that was funny? If you haven't seen it, don't try to find it. Complete waste of time. I think SNL needs Tina Fey back to help them with their writing, not just to play Sarah Palin.

Elitism, Arrogance, and Attacks

The Obama campaign and the liberal bloggers never cease to amaze me with their elitism, their arrogance, and their attacks...they think conservatives are a bunch of idiots. Not just that, we are "f-ing idiots", as I was dubbed by an enlightened blogger the other day. I wonder if any of these people have read the constitution or researched the writings of the founders of this country. Of course, they might believe there is no point--those are "old arguments". Check out this transcript from last night's service forum:

STENGEL: Now the role of government is something we talked a little bit about with Senator McCain. Republicans have traditionally said...the problem with big government is it gets in this way of private initiative. And as government grew over generations, that in fact, it repressed public service and it repressed national service because there was no room for it anymore. Some Republicans worry, well, he’s going to make such a big government, that won’t even leave room for private initiative.

OBAMA: I think those are old arguments. Let’s look to the future.

Barack is right. The problem of big government getting in the way of private initiative is an old argument. And I happen to think old arguments are often the BEST arguments. That's why I'm a conservative and believe in the principles that Abraham Lincoln stood for. Those are old arguments. Good arguments. TRUE arguments.

Here is a sample attack on conservatives and Palin from the Washington Post online:

"Face it Palin is the Great White Hope... and that is a fact that no one is talking about. Disgusting, racist, bigoted, close minded voters who will pound our country into the dark ages. And smile and laugh at how they have found someone just like them. God didn't you get enough of that the past 8 years?"

I am sick and tired of these elitists who can't bear that fact that the conservative base is extremely informed. They have to make excuses for the popularity of Sarah Palin, attacking not only her credentials but the intelligence of those who support her. Talk about pounding our country into the dark ages! Rather than engage in debate, they attack us as racist, dumb, and close-minded. PLEASE! I would love to see a black president. But not an arrogant, elitist, liberal black president who can't answer a question succinctly, who doesn't have any foreign policy experience, who hasn't ever worked in the private sector, who doesn't have any executive experience, who believes that BIG government is the answer. Not someone who associates regularly with the likes of Jeremiah Wright and Bill Ayers. Not Barack Obama!

This CNN piece is just a phenomenal reminder of Obama's elitist attitude, and what better person to drive the point home than Hillary Clinton:

Beck's CNN Commentary: The Sarah Palin Smearfest

By Glenn Beck

Editor's note: Glenn Beck is on CNN Headline News nightly at 7 and 9 ET and also is host of a conservative national radio talk show.

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Campaigns are ugly. Watching the way politicians act makes you long for the respect and self-control of the Sopranos. Throughout, there are legitimate attacks and outright lies.

Every once in a while, I get a call on my radio show from someone telling me that Barack Obama is secretly a Muslim, who admitted it in an interview with George Stephanopoulos, and has a fake birth certificate. No, no, and no. As I tell them, there are legitimate reasons not to vote for Barack Obama, no need to make them up.

Read Full Article Here...

Biggest Celebutard?

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"I need to know if [Sarah Palin] really thinks dinosaurs were here 4000 years ago. I want to know that, I really do, because she's going to have the nuclear codes."

--Matt Damon

I've got to come clean--I used to be a big Matt Damon fan. Then I heard him open his mouth about politics awhile back. I shouldn't have been surprised considering who he calls his BFF...but today he really outdid himself.

Damon compares Sarah Palin's rise to a 'really bad Disney movie'. At the risk of lowering your own IQ, watch his rant on YouTube.



Seriously Matt?

You are right about one thing. You don't know ANYTHING about Sarah Palin. And you obviously haven't taken the time to try to find out anything about her, except for the false rumors and half-truths that you've taken at face value and used to create your idiotic narrative.

Just shut up and act. And I'll make sure I don't watch.

Palin's Interview Schedule with Charles Gibson

Thursday, Sept 11, 6:30 pm Eastern time - World News Tonight
Thursday, Sept 11, 11:30 pm Eastern time - Nightline
Friday, Sept 12, 7:00 am Eastern time - Good Morning America
Friday, Sept 12, 6:30 pm Eastern time - World News Tonight
Friday, Sept 12, 10:00 pm Eastern time - 20/20

Does this woman flinch? I continue to be impressed. As you can see from the schedule, ABC is getting some serious mileage out of this.

More commentary will be forthcoming.

Oops...

I seriously feel bad for Biden on this one...but not bad enough to keep my mouth shut about it. He inadvertently asked a state Senator named Chuck Graham to stand up, but there is a problem. Senator Graham is confined to a wheelchair. That is right up there with asking a woman how far along she is and then finding out she's not pregnant. Just something you NEVER want to do. I don't envy these politicians because everything they say and do is scrutinized so heavily. This type of gaffe has nothing to do with Biden's politics, it's just an infortunate mistake that the media will run with. YouTube makes it so much worse because any misstep will be played over and over, and emailed and posted everywhere, and made even bigger than it was in the first place...but at the same time, it's so entertaining! So at Biden's expense, I'm posting the video here as well. You know Leno and Letterman will have fun with this one:

NEWS FLASH: Most Voters Think Big Government is Not the Solution...REALLY?

Gotta love this article on Rasmussen Reports:

Most Voters Say Encouraging Economic Growth is Key, but Big Government is Not the Solution

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Sixty-two percent (62%) of voters say encouraging economic growth in America is more important than closing the gap between the rich and poor, and the best way to do that is for the government to move out of the way...

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE.

Fact Check Ad from McCain

More Fact Checking from Stu

This is from Stu B.'s blog on Glennbeck.com:

The media is trying REALLY hard to paint Sarah Palin into an evil religious zealot. The AP is willing to break the typically utilized laws of printing the English language to do it.

According to the AP, Sarah Palin said this about the troops while at church: “Our national leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God,"

According to real life, Sarah Palin said this about the troops while at church (with the AP’s selective quoting underlined):

“Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending them out on a task that is from God,”

The AP quote means “Iraq is a mission from God.”

The actual quote means “We pray Iraq is a mission from God.”

The headline is even more misleading. Palin: Iraq war 'a task that is from God'

The AP not only doesn't mention the previous sentence, or the first part of the sentence they quote, they also essentially ignore the meaning of the very next sentence as well. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan."

This is a statement of humble reflection from Palin. To translate into terms the media might understand, its "I hope we're doing the right thing."

This story is bad enough that the AP really should issue a correction on it, if not a full retraction. There's no story unless you butcher the quote. It's based on half (or a quarter) of a quote, mentally ignoring the previous and following sentences, and even presenting the trimmed quote as the start of a sentence --forcing them to capitalize a word that actually appeared in the middle of the sentence.

Really bad.

Thanks Stu! I remember hearing those quotes from the A.P., and I should have known they were bogus.

Check the Facts--from FactCheck.Org

False Internet claims and rumors fly about McCain's running mate.

Summary

We’ve been flooded for the past few days with queries about dubious Internet postings and mass e-mail messages making claims about McCain’s running mate, Gov. Palin. We find that many are completely false, or misleading.

Palin did not cut funding for special needs education in Alaska by 62 percent. She didn’t cut it at all. In fact, she tripled per-pupil funding over just three years.

She did not demand that books be banned from the Wasilla library. Some of the books on a widely circulated list were not even in print at the time. The librarian has said Palin asked a "What if?" question, but the librarian continued in her job through most of Palin's first term.

She was never a member of the Alaskan Independence Party, a group that wants Alaskans to vote on whether they wish to secede from the United States. She’s been registered as a Republican since May 1982.

Palin never endorsed or supported Pat Buchanan for president. She once wore a Buchanan button as a "courtesy" when he visited Wasilla, but shortly afterward she was appointed to co-chair of the campaign of Steve Forbes in the state.

Palin has not pushed for teaching creationism in Alaska's schools. She has said that students should be allowed to "debate both sides" of the evolution question, but she also said creationism "doesn't have to be part of the curriculum." We'll be looking into other charges in an e-mail by a woman named Anne Kilkenny for a future story. For more explanation of the bullet points above, please read the Analysis.

Read more at: http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/sliming_palin.html

This article includes the sources.

In Abraham Lincoln's Words

YOU

You cannot bring about prosperity
by discouraging thrift.
You cannot strengthen the weak
by weakening the strong.
You cannot help the wage earner
by pulling down the wage payer.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man
by encouraging class hatred.
You cannot help the poor
by discouraging the rich.
You cannot establish sound security
by spending more than you earn.
You cannot build character and courage
by taking away man's initiative and independence.
You cannot help men permanently by doing for them
what they could and should do for themselves.

--Abraham Lincoln

Glenn Beck: Ambien Maverick CR

Glenn Beck talked about the part of McCain's speech that bothered me last night. My initial reaction when McCain became the presumptive nominee was that it might be better to lose the election to Obama than have a liberal dressed in Republican clothes in the oval office. Sarah Palin has definitely changed my outlook on the ticket, and I have gained respect for McCain, but I think he is dead wrong on the job training ideas he threw out last night:

GLENN: I think John McCain actually talked me back out of voting for him last night. All he needed to do is after the little film about him is just to say, good night, everybody, here's Sarah Palin again. That's all he needed to do. I first of all I just, it was the most rambling, boring. Was I the only one that was drifting? I was like, whew, honey, is there a poopy diaper I can change? Is there anything I can do? I mean, I was really it took everything in me to be able to concentrate.

....No, seriously was I the only one that felt about halfway through, what the hell is he even talking about! What is that play the clip here of where he was talking about, "Hey, and by the way, we're going to make up for lost wages for you." This is a clip from last night.
SENATOR McCAIN: Workers who have lost a job that won't come back find a new one that won't go away. GLENN: Stop for a second, please. I just would like to know what kind of program is that? How is the I would like somebody to explain this program to me. It sounds great. Can somebody explain this program to me? What, are we going to the federal government is it's called monstersjob.com. Monsterjob.com. There it is. It's called the Internet. Al Gore invented it. Get on the Internet and find a job that pays better. What are you even talking about? Now, he's talking about an industry, job where the factories have shut down and everything else. Well, okay. So you're going to trust the government to retrain you and tell you the future? "Oh, this is where our future jobs are going." Really? "Yeah, and we'll retrain you." Oh, thanks again. Why don't you just punch me in the face.

Tell me what that job training system is. Is that another government agency? Is that something that we already have? Stu, can you help me? Do we already have that in place? STU: We should if we done. GLENN: I wish we did, darn it. You know what, this isn't even the thing that really pissed me off last night.

Read more about what pissed Glenn off by clicking here:

In Cindy's Words

"So how about Gov. Sarah Palin!"

"John has picked a reform-minded ... hockey-mommin' ... basketball shootin' ... moose huntin' ... fly-fishin' ... pistol-packing ... mother of five for vice president. And as a fellow hockey mom myself and a Western conservative mother, I couldn't be prouder that John has shaken things up, as he usually does!"

--Cindy McCain

McCain's Speech

One word to summarize my reaction to John McCain's speech:

Respect.

I definitely have respect for John McCain.

I don't agree with all of his positions, but I feel as a leader he will take our country in the right direction.

I feel that he will take the country in the opposite direction of Obama-Biden. I wasn't so confident in the McCain ticket before this Convention. But I have learned a lot of things that I didn't know about McCain. Rush Limbaugh today said from now on he's going to call McCain "McBrilliant" for his wise pick for V.P.

John McCain is humble. He is a true patriot. He is doing this for the right reasons.

John McCain isn't about John McCain.

And you know, I think Cindy McCain is a doll. It's evident she adores her husband. It's evident she is focused on serving others. She will make this country proud, along with her husband and his fabulous running mate.

Post Register Update

I had an interesting conversation with Dean Miller on my field trip to the Post Register this afternoon. Mr. Miller explained that they chose the A.P. article yesterday afternoon, prior to Palin's speech. He acknowledged that they missed an opportunity to publish an article that resonated with most of the audience of the speech last night. The Post Register receives criticism no matter what they do, and they have been trying to be "fair" in their coverage of convention speeches, even down to the inches they allocate to stories on the respective candidates' speeches. They hadn't even planned to put anything on the front page on Palin's speech because they didn't put anything on the front page on Biden's speech on the front page. But obviously the attention on Palin's speech was much greater than Biden's, so Miller decided to put a story on the strategy behind Palin's speech on the front page, albeit the bottom of the page.

It was interesting to learn where Dean Miller is coming from. I learned he is not a registered Democrat or a registered Republican--he definitely considers himself an independent. I learned that his parents are both die-hard Republicans.

I learned that he thought Sarah Palin did a great job in her speech last night, and that he thinks Biden will be in trouble in the debate against her. He thinks Sarah Palin will come off as one of us and Biden will come off as an arrogant Senator. (And I think she will shine because of her conviction and principles more than anything!)

I still think it was a lame choice for an article, but Dean pointed out the Post Register has at least stayed away from trashy articles about Bristol Palin. Kudos to them for that.

I was glad I had the opportunity to express my opinion in person. I appreciated that. There is always "more to the story."

I hope that the Post Register will run a story on how energized the Republican base is over this ticket, thanks to this Maverick Governor from Alaska. Regardless of how one felt about the speech, there is no doubt that conservatives are more energized than they have been in a LONG time, and I think that is newsworthy in itself.

The Post Register Does it Again

My husband just called to tell me to look at the front page of the Post Register, the local newspaper for Idaho Falls and the surrounding area, to read the headline on Sarah Palin’s historic speech at the RNC last night. The headline reads:

"McCain camp plays the Sexism card"

And the subtext: "It appears the strategy is to entice the female vote and bash on the media for questioning Sarah Palin's past."

Am I living in a parallel universe?

Is that really the headline that Post Register editors thought was best to put on the front page of their paper, which is published in conservative, small town America? And in reality that shouldn’t make a difference—they should have enough journalistic integrity to report the real headline of last night. Even CNN’s Wolf Blitzer said, “She hit it out of the ballpark”, and called the speech a “Grand Slam”.

What is everybody talking about today? SARAH PALIN and what a fantastic job she did in her speech, and how fired up the conservative base is, and the Post Register editors pull a negative headline from an AP article that doesn't speak to 90% of the people that heard her speech last night. They are completely out of touch. Who do they think their audience is? Not only do they miss the point of her speech last night, but they clearly illustrate that they are truly a leftist, liberal publication. Sarah Palin obviously doesn't have the "good opinion" of the media elites at the Post Register.

I am headed to the paper to talk to someone face to face. Unbelievable.

Megyn Kelly Grills Dishonest US Weekly Editor

Unbelievable. This guy is a hack, not a journalist. I hope US Weekly advertisers think twice about supporting that trashy publication.

Megyn Kelly does a great job putting him to task. Watch this:

Commentary on Palin's Speech

I watched Sarah Palin's speech twice tonight. Once with my kids still awake, so maybe I should say I watched it 1.5 times. I stood the entire time, and actually the kids played as nice together as they have in a long time. They must have sensed mom was into something historic.

Here it is in its entirely on YouTube:



The second time I watched it with my husband, I probably drove him nuts with my annoying "oh, just wait" and "the next part is awesome" comments.

Then I had a chance to hear the post-speech commentary on CNN. Not our network of choice, but we like to hear what the other side has to say...thus the Wolf Blitzer quotes. (He also said Palin's speech was a "grand slam", by the way, and that "a star was born".)

I think Campbell Brown and the rest of the pundits don't know what to do with themselves. Palin is a strong, well-spoken, accomplished woman in the national spotlight who is the MOST POPULAR governor in the entire country, with 80% plus approval. Unfortunately for them she doesn't fit the template they were hoping for in a female leader. She is NOT pro-choice, she is NOT progressive, and she is NOT a member of the Washington elite. She has a LIFE outside of Washington--outside of politics for that matter. She has five kids--"how dare she have that many kids!" I can hear them now.

Campbell Brown has been one of the most vocal and unfair critics of Palin in the past few days, but I think that even Campbell is a little torn after hearing Palin's speech because she is genuinely likeable and she really does appeal to women. Feeling a little bit guilty for trying to tear this woman and her family to shreds, Campbell?

It was hilarious to see how quickly the pundits began attempting to draw positive attention away from Palin, talking about how well written her speech was, even mentioning the supposed main speech writer by name, as if Palin had nothing to do with it. Bless Anderson Cooper's little heart...a few minutes later he actually said, "I don't remember anyone mentioning the speech writers of other candidates."

True that, Anderson.

Not surprisingly, the others quickly shifted attention to a different topic after Anderson spoke up. None of the pundits commented on Anderson's observation, and I'm sure they were all thinking, "SHUT UP ANDERSON!"

I admire Anderson for having the guys to actually say something about it. He also said something about how mainstream America doesn't necessarily watch or give a rip about what the talking heads say on Sundays on Meet the Press. Well he didn't use those exact words, but his point was that Sarah Palin may have more of an impact on voters than anyone realizes, even though she's not at the top of the ticket.

I will repeat myself, I don't think the liberal media knows what to do with themselves.

I also don’t think they know what they are in for.

All I can say is that Biden better polish up for his debate with Sarah Palin, not the other way around.

GAME ON!

More Favorite Quotes from the Republican National Convention

"Change is not a destination, just as hope is not a strategy."


Rudy Giuliani



"I’m not a Republican because I grew up rich, but because I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life poor, waiting for the government to rescue me.”


Mike Huckabee



" I spent 25 years in the private sector. I've done business in many foreign countries. I know why jobs come and why they go away. And I know that liberals don't have a clue. They think we have the biggest and strongest economy in the world because of our government. They're wrong. America is strong because of the ingenuity and entrepreneurship and hard work of the American people. The American people have always been the source of our nation's strength and they always will be!"


Mitt Romney

"She Hit it Out of the Ballpark!"

Sarah Palin's speech was awesome. It's not surprising at all to me that "she hit it out of the ballpark". It is surprising that I can attribute that quote to CNN Analyst Wolf Blitzer.

I am an energized conservative voter who is not only excited about Sarah Palin, but I am actually excited about John McCain after being very negative about him earlier.

Here is one of my favorite sections of her speech:

"Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska, I was mayor of my hometown.

And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves.

I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a "community organizer," except that you have actual responsibilities. I might add that in small towns, we don't quite know what to make of a candidate who lavishes praise on working people when they are listening, and then talks about how bitterly they cling to their religion and guns when those people aren't listening.

We tend to prefer candidates who don't talk about us one way in Scranton and another way in San Francisco.

As for my running mate, you can be certain that wherever he goes, and whoever is listening, John McCain is the same man. I'm not a member of the permanent political establishment. And I've learned quickly, these past few days, that if you're not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason alone.

But here's a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators: I'm not going to Washington to seek their good opinion - I'm going to Washington to serve the people of this country. Americans expect us to go to Washington for the right reasons, and not just to mingle with the right people.

Politics isn't just a game of clashing parties and competing interests.

The right reason is to challenge the status quo, to serve the common good, and to leave this nation better than we found it."

And the quote that just made me cheer for this lady who is tougher than nails...

"What’s the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull?

Lipstick."

Here is what one Global Warming blogger had to say about Palin on her blog:

"I want to know more about these issues - but I do appreciate a smart, talented, well-spoken, feisty woman who chooses to charge through public service which can’t be easy to say the least. I was undecided until tonight, but I’ve edged closer to McCain/Palin as a result of this woman’s speech. I’m not there yet, but closer. You still have to prove some environmental concerns to me, and we have to know more about Iraq and what we plan to do there - but I’m anxious to learn more. Thanks, Gov. Palin, GOP VP Candidate for adding some tangible excitement to this race. Last night’s convention coverage was a bore - but tonight - wow - you packed it in - and all I can say to that, is “Go Get ‘Em Girl!”

If she was inspired, imagine how conservatives feel right now!

Can't Wait!

I can't wait to hear Governor Palin's speech tonight at the RNC. My gut feeling is that she's going to hit it out of the ballpark. Other headliners tonight include Mitt Romney and Rudy Guiliani.

Who am I?

I am a mother of three kids who is married to a high school Counselor and basketball coach. I'm a former social studies teacher with a Master's Degree in Instructional Technology. I played college basketball at Ricks College, San Diego State University, and BYU. I was a high school valedictorian and graduated from college with a 3.9 GPA. I am a hunter, a waterskiier, a golfer...and now a recreational triathlete. I enjoy coaching basketball at the local health club, and I currently work part-time as the marketing director for NAI Commerce One Realty, an independently owned commercial real estate firm that is part of NAI Global's network of over 325 commercial real estate offices in 55 countries. I have a real estate license and I'm pursuing my CCIM designation.

I was raised on a farm in Southeast Idaho, the daughter of a potato farmer and physical education teacher. I'm the granddaughter of a WWII fighter pilot on my mom's side, and a POW who escaped from the German army on my dad's side.

I grew up listening to Rush Limbaugh and other talk radio programs, including sports talk stations like San Fran's KNBR, instead of watching MTV and listening to mindless FM stations.

Go Governor Palin!

Sarah Palin is a well-spoken conservative who is a real American with real values. She is a Washington outsider who isn't afraid to make waves, which is exactly what we need to shake things up and bring real change to our national government.

I think the liberal media is scared to death of her. They didn't see her nomination coming and they are pissed off. It's truly been a hypocritical "dogpile" on her, but hopefully people will see through it.

Go Governor Palin!

Why Am I a Conservative?

I have a lot of deeply held conservative beliefs but I'm not always the best at communicating them.

This blog is an opportunity for me to put my thoughts in writing...and hopefully in the process influence others to think about their views.

I think there are so many people out there who don't pay attention to what's going on. They hear soundbytes from the media and that's the extent of their analysis of political issues. The problem is the media is hugely biased and more often than not these soundbytes are not indicative of reality. I think if more people paid attention, then more people would be conservative.

Why am I a conservative? Here are a few reasons:

1) I believe in personal responsibility.

2) I believe in strong national defense and policies that protect our interests worldwide and our sovereignty at home.

3) I believe that marriage should only be between a man and a woman, and that strong families are the critical building block of thriving communities and our strength as a nation.

4) I believe in school choice.

5) As a former middle school teacher, I believe that teacher's unions are impediments to positive change in our education system. School administrators need to be able to run their districts and schools like a business with the ability to hire good teachers and fire bad ones. The unions protect ineffective teachers and administrators.

6) I believe in the sanctity of life. I believe that women have the right to choose--the right to choose whether or not to have sex. If that choice results in pregnancy, then they must take responsibility for their choice. Abortion on demand is not only wrong, it is detrimental to society.

7) I believe in taking care of those who can't take care of themselves...those who are handicapped or disabled, those who have psychological problems. Offerings handouts to those who are capable only results in laziness and dependence rather than empowerment.

8) I believe that excellent medical care is a privilege, not a right, and that limiting liability for physicians who face frivolous lawsuits is an important step towards reducing healthcare costs.

9) I believe that government is inherently inefficient and should be limited.

10) I believe in a tax code that doesn't de-incentivize achievers.

11) I believe it's important to maximize our natural resources and pursue alternative energy in a responsible manner. We should be tapping our own oil reserves and reducing our dependence on foreign oil.

12) I believe that nuclear energy is important for our country.

13) I believe that businesses shouldn't face unreasonable red tape and government interference.

14) When it comes to the United Nations, I believe that we must always protect our autonomy to act in the best interest of the citizens of the United States.

15) I believe that the anti-war movement of the 60's that continues today is fueled by Marxist philosophies that are a serious threat to the individual freedoms we enjoy in this country.

To name a few...