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When I was born, President Harry Truman had a sign on his desk that declared: The Buck Stops Here! I have been observing United States elections since Dwight Eisenhower won re-election by defeating Adlai Stevenson again. That is a fascinating journey through the American political landscape that we’ll save for another time.
Fast forward to 2016. Businessman and celebrity Donald Trump has joined a politically and ethnically diverse field of GOP Presidential candidates. I spent that year and most of the previous one campaigning here in Hawaii for Ted Cruz.
I was frankly put off by the condescending demeanor of the candidate who eventually prevailed in that contest. The debates and the overall campaign trail did not really reveal a person of substance who was prepared to be both President and Commander-in-Chief.
After personal attacks on his wife and father by the GOP nominee, I was extremely disappointed when Ted Cruz eventually endorsed his former opponent in the general election. Since Senator Cruz supports a two-term limit and is now in his own second term, I anticipate he may try again for the Oval Office in 2024. But, he will have to explain how they got to him in 2016.
Before looking ahead to next year’s election campaign, let’s briefly consider how Candidate Trump morphed into President Trump. I will use the example of his choice of National Security Advisor as a reflection of his own evolving policies. Michael Flynn was an extremely conservative choice who was very strong on the war against Islamic terrorism. H.R. McMaster was an unmitigated disaster. Now the pendulum has swung back and John Bolton is right on in assessing national security issues and I really hope he has the President’s ear at all times.
One more example is Secretary of State Rex Tillerson who did mostly a lot of nothing. Mike Pompeo is much more astute but his values are questionable. His support of a worldwide LGBT agenda makes one wonder whether he is still following the pathway established by former President Barack Obama.
Many of President Trump’s policies are truly commendable. He moved the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem where it should have been all along. He recognizes Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu as one of America’s best friends in the world and not as a rival as his predecessor did.
But, the incumbent in the White House still has an admiration for strong personalities without due consideration of their underlying ideologies, nor of the threat posed by their respective hostilities towards our own country.
- Vladimir Putin of Russia
- Xi Jinping of China
- Kim Jong-Un of North Korea
- Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan of Turkey
President Trump also does not understand the inherent symbolism in holding this current summit in Hanoi. At least he didn’t choose, or his Vietnamese hosts didn’t choose for him, Ho Chi Minh City which was formerly Saigon.
As a Vietnam-Era veteran who served tours in both the Philippines and Okinawa, I was at Clark Air Base during Operation Homecoming in 1973 when the former American P.O.W.’s were repatriated after years that for many included torture in the Hanoi Hilton. None of us of that vintage can fail to remember the treasonous actions of Hanoi Jane Fonda. Unless one was on a deferment and not really paying attention.
So now we have reached the occasion to engage in America’s national sport.
Not football.
Not baseball.
Not basketball.
Politics!
The marathon two-year political campaign is now upon us. Unlike last time in which there was no incumbent and both political parties were vying equally for the prize, at this early juncture only the out-of-power-but-unwilling-to-admit-it Democrats are fielding myriad contenders. I will save my evaluation of them for later. I especially want to address the flip-flopping young Congresswoman from Hawaii Tulsi Gabbard, but not right now.
As of now, I can envision President Trump being re-elected convincingly on November 3, 2020. That is mostly a good thing because it means we will not be forfeiting our future and the future of our children and of our children’s children to the off-the-wall and off-the-scale leftist binge of the Democrat Party.
Perpetuating or regaining power is what drives the denizens of our nation’s capitol. The world inside the DC Beltway is far removed from the America most of us know and love and cherish.
That’s why this is a watershed election.
The majority of conservatives, including those of us disenfranchised by the 2016 Convention in Cleveland, will vote for Donald Trump if he is once again our GOP nominee. But there are vague indications appearing on the horizon of a potential Primary Challenge. I don’t mean by someone like Jeff Flake with the most appropriate surname.
Allen West?
Nikki Haley?
Another courageous patriot?
The important thing is for the substantive issues to be addressed. The notorious GOP debates in the last campaign failed miserably in that category. They were all just personality clashes made for prime time television.
1st Amendment.
2nd Amendment.
Preventing infanticide.
Family values.
National sovereignty.
Securing our borders.
Stopping illegal immigration.
Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness!
There is no candidate with a [D] after his or her name who can fulfill all of these basic needs of our society. Elected officials with an [R] after their name have been unreliable guardians of our values. But no viable 3rd party is going to emerge in the next year-and-a-half. So, we need to ensure that the Republican Party represents the values upon which we base our votes. This means at the national level, at the state level, and at the county and municipal levels.
It is startling to see how totally unhinged today’s Democrats have become. Some reject the United States Constitution outright. Some actually propose the establishment of Islamic sharia law over our own system of secular and impartial jurisprudence.
They wish to take away parental rights to raise our offspring according to our own faith and belief system. Their public schools attempt to socially re-engineer our culture. They teach vulnerable children hogwash such as that they are gender-fluid. They misuse science when talking about climate change, but they ignore science when it comes to gender immutability. They deny medical proof that human life begins at conception.
Some members of the United States Congress are too young to remember the harsh lessons of the Cold War and the failures of socialism. Others are old enough but limit a lavish lifestyle to themselves while seeking the Presidency standing on a socialist platform.
This is the dismal future America faces if we elect a Democrat as our next President. I’ll save discussions of foreign policy for another time. We must continue on the path of reversing all of the fundamental changes that Barack Obama succeeded in imposing upon our beloved land.
If re-elected, Donald Trump will keep us on the right path as long as he surrounds himself with the right advisors. He has a tendency to act upon whatever was last spoken into his ear. He should avoid one-on-one meetings with foreign tyrants.
It will enliven this campaign and engender the discussion of substantive issues if true conservatives will mount a Primary Challenge for the GOP nomination. For those who adore Donald Trump, you should be happy and welcome this because it will give him a bigger stage leading up to the general election against whichever Democrat.
If we hear only Democrats challenging Trump and we do not hear positive conservative visions of our country’s future, the election could be stolen. Watch out for shenanigans like the way multiple districts in Orange County, California were flipped from red to blue in 2018.
So I will just leave you to consider juxtaposing the positions and accomplishments of our incumbent Republican President with other potential conservative leaders. We absolutely must avoid being caught up in the glamour and appearance and style of the person.
How much does he or she know about domestic and foreign policy? How committed is he or she to maintaining a positive work ethic? How well will all our values be represented by our Head of State?
Yes, plus the practical consideration that underlies our ultimate decision: who is the best conservative alternative who can and will prevail against the Democrat opponent?
If you choose Donald Trump, I will join you. But, I would also most assuredly vote for either Allen West or Nikki Haley!
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