If Obama gets relected.....

[Purplehood]

As I understand it, the document is a War-preparedness plan similar to that of previous Presidents. In fact, every President has probably had a similar document. I am not sure why we think it is some sort of power-grab.
I admit to not liking Obama in the slightest, but I do find it amusing that when he does something that past President's have done, it always seems to come out as some nefarious and evil plan.

[OldCannon]

I admit to not liking Obama in the slightest, but I do find it amusing that when he does something that past President's have done, it always seems to come out as some nefarious and evil plan.

I think the "scandal," as it were, was the president's presumption of re-election, not the war preparedness plans.

[Purplehood]

I admit to not liking Obama in the slightest, but I do find it amusing that when he does something that past President's have done, it always seems to come out as some nefarious and evil plan.

I think the "scandal," as it were, was the president's presumption of re-election, not the war preparedness plans.

I agree with you in general. I normally don't find much to be amused about in regards to our sitting-Potentate.

[Glenn61]

Of course he has flexibility--he'll become a lameduck President who won't care what happens. Unfortunately, he will have already cemented in legacy as a two-term President with the ability to undo everything that has made America strong. We were in trouble the moment he bowed to the Saudi President--showing in my opinion--our government's submissiveness to everyone around the world . I don't think we've seen anything yet.

[The Annoyed Man]

Let us all hope and pray that our congress actually acts like a real congress, should he win re-election.

Then again, if the GOP can't win reelection in this election year, I'd say it's high time to declare the GOP completely irrelevant. Seriously. Massive unemployment, massive debt, massive scandals, and one of the most arrogant (and inept) president in history. If this can't be won, then the system is rigged to never let the GOP win the presidency again.

If the GOP can't win an election with those conditions, it may well be because the GOP has lost the confidence of its own base. If that's the case, then it isn't the system that is rigged so much as it is a failure of the GOP to A) provide the clear alternative vision, and B) actually ACT like the clear alternative once elected. Increasingly, the DNC requires ideological lockstep for members to prosper politically within its ranks. The GOP has never had any such constraints, instead pushing a "Big Tent" philosophy.

Trying to be all things to all people works when the opposition has a no clearly defined vision, and the big tent worked when the demos were in political disarray with no single clear unifying vision. That is no longer true of the dems and hasn't been true for at least the previous decade. They have a very unified and clear vision of wealth and income distribution, race pandering, big intrusive government, and a small view of the dignity of the individual citizen and his/her individual rights in the face of a monolithic federal bureaucracy. The Obama administration is merely the penultimate expression of this, and the wraps have been removed because the dems no longer feel like they have to hide what they are really about. By contrast, the GOP has tried to include everyone from Olympia Snow, one of the most liberal republicans ever who votes with democrats most of the time, to Ron Paul, one of the most libertarian republicans of all time, to Eric Cantor, one of the most conservative republicans in a very long time.

Anyone who understands marketing can see what is happening. The GOP has a diluted brand, while the DNC has a laser-focused brand. The results are predictable. People will refuse to be part of something which has no clear purpose, and that is the quandary in which the GOP now finds itself. Of course the catch 22 is that if the GOP tries to remediate that situation by focusing its message, it will "alienate" people who it thinks are included under its big tent.

Let's review who those "alienated" members might be:

• ideological libertarians who should have left the party a long time ago, but who didn't leave because they know that the Libertarian party is politically irrelevant at the national level
• country club "conservatives" who believe that the 2nd Amendment exists to protect their right to own a $40,000 shotgun, but who are not comfortable with "evil cop-killer pistols" in the hands of plumbers and truck drivers and female college students
• ideological liberals who shop at LL bean and fancy themselves to be fiscally responsible, as long as that includes government subsidized abortion
• alleged conservatives who value their beltway contacts and lifestyle more than they do the hopes and dreams of the voters who sent them there
• people who call themselves conservative but who feeeeeeel that it might be mean spirited and they stop thinking their way through the issues

Did I forget anyone? Liberalism requires ideological rigor and feeeeeelings. Conservatism requires intellectual rigor and thinking. Thanks to our educators, we've been taught for years now that (liberal) ideology and feelings are more valid than intellectual rigor and thinking. Is it then any surprise that the republican brand has become so diluted?

Since the republican party will never grow the stones to "evict" non-conservatives and focus its brand, this may a propitious time in history for the formation of a viable Conservatve Party. Maybe it is the time for coalition politics which require a coalition of the republican, libertarian, and a conservative party which collectively can defeat a monolithic democrat party at the national level, but will provide voters with greater choice at the local level? I don't know for sure. What I DO know is that there is literally no ideological separation between the democrat party, and the American Communist Party. If there is, I'd dearly like someone to point it out to me. I don't think it can be demonstrated in any significant detail.

Personally, I think we are witnessing the end of the American "experiment" in our lifetimes, and the 2nd Amendment may become the bulwark it was originally intended to be in the restoration of liberty.

Or maybe I'm just one of those conservative cranks clinging bitterly to my guns and my religion. Frankly, I don't care what anybody thinks about my politics. I'm done with "cooperation" and "bipartisanship," the two great evils which have led us to where we now find ourselves. I am in favor of whatever it takes to change things and push the reset button.

[RoyGBiv]

I don't think we've seen anything yet.

This is truer that any of us can conceive.

[Purplehood]

Of course he has flexibility--he'll become a lameduck President who won't care what happens. Unfortunately, he will have already cemented in legacy as a two-term President with the ability to undo everything that has made America strong. We were in trouble the moment he bowed to the Saudi President--showing in my opinion--our government's submissiveness to everyone around the world . I don't think we've seen anything yet.

Saudi President?

[VMI77]

As I understand it, the document is a War-preparedness plan similar to that of previous Presidents. In fact, every President has probably had a similar document. I am not sure why we think it is some sort of power-grab.
I admit to not liking Obama in the slightest, but I do find it amusing that when he does something that past President's have done, it always seems to come out as some nefarious and evil plan.

The issue isn't the war plan, to me that's irrelevant, but his statement that he will have have more flexibility --fewer constraints on his actions-- once he's re-elected. Look at his actions now....when he feels he doesn't have flexibility....then imagine what flexibility might look like.

[VMI77]

Personally, I think we are witnessing the end of the American "experiment" in our lifetimes, and the 2nd Amendment may become the bulwark it was originally intended to be in the restoration of liberty.

Or maybe I'm just one of those conservative cranks clinging bitterly to my guns and my religion. Frankly, I don't care what anybody thinks about my politics. I'm done with "cooperation" and "bipartisanship," the two great evils which have led us to where we now find ourselves. I am in favor of whatever it takes to change things and push the reset button.

I agree, and never believed in bipartisanship from the get go.

[RiverCity.45]

If Obama gets reelected, we can thank the two co-chairs of the Reelect Obama Committee, Romney and Santorum.

[RoyGBiv]

• people who call themselves conservative but who feeeeeeel that it might be mean spirited and they stop thinking their way through the issues

This, the largest bloc, is why BHO was elected in 2008. IMO this block convinced themselves it would show the world how great we are to have a Black President. Unfortunately, they failed to consider the blank page that was his curriculum vitae or the ideology that he lived under during his formative years. We are our own worst enemy.

Personally, I think we are witnessing the end of the American "experiment" in our lifetimes, and the 2nd Amendment may become the bulwark it was originally intended to be in the restoration of liberty.

Shiver.

[74novaman]

Since the republican party will never grow the stones to "evict" non-conservatives and focus its brand, this may a propitious time in history for the formation of a viable Conservatve Party. Maybe it is the time for coalition politics which require a coalition of the republican, libertarian, and a conservative party which collectively can defeat a monolithic democrat party at the national level, but will provide voters with greater choice at the local level? I don't know for sure. What I DO know is that there is literally no ideological separation between the democrat party, and the American Communist Party. If there is, I'd dearly like someone to point it out to me. I don't think it can be demonstrated in any significant detail.

Personally, I think we are witnessing the end of the American "experiment" in our lifetimes, and the 2nd Amendment may become the bulwark it was originally intended to be in the restoration of liberty.

Or maybe I'm just one of those conservative cranks clinging bitterly to my guns and my religion. Frankly, I don't care what anybody thinks about my politics. I'm done with "cooperation" and "bipartisanship," the two great evils which have led us to where we now find ourselves. I am in favor of whatever it takes to change things and push the reset button.

TAM, I think Breitbart had it right. The big 3 areas that NEED conservatives badly:

1)Media
2)Universities
3)Entertainment

Currently, we are awash in leftist "ideas" (using the word incredibly loosely) in all 3 of those sectors. If we can stop the radicalization of the college students, the drumbeat of "stupid evil conservatives" from the media, and start producing entertainment poking fun at leftist hypocrisies and lies, I think we have a chance at turning things around.

The sad fact is that the majority of people aren't interested in researching policy positions, keeping track of what our congress critters are doing, or following how massive and corrupt our national govt as gotten over the last 20 years.

I still think there is a chance we can turn this around with education. If not, the best hope we have is to team up with Arizona, annex New Mexico and tell the fed govt that we're not interested in their snake oil anymore. Maybe the libs will flee to california, the libertarians can come to Texazona, and they can let their failed ideas drag California into the ocean faster than plate tectonics can.

In the meantime, Texazona can enjoy a little actual freedom.

[Glenn61]

Of course he has flexibility--he'll become a lameduck President who won't care what happens. Unfortunately, he will have already cemented in legacy as a two-term President with the ability to undo everything that has made America strong. We were in trouble the moment he bowed to the Saudi President--showing in my opinion--our government's submissiveness to everyone around the world . I don't think we've seen anything yet.

Saudi President?

I guess I should have said Saudi King.

[RoyGBiv]

If we can stop the radicalization of the college students,

Idealism in youth is impossible to stop... it's a right of passage...
It's parents laying the good foundation for critical thinking, self reliance and understanding of actions/consequences that brings kids back to ground as they mature. This foundation, our foundation, is cracked and leaking badly.

the drumbeat of "stupid evil conservatives" from the media, and start producing entertainment poking fun at leftist hypocrisies and lies, I think we have a chance at turning things around.

I think you have an interesting idea there... I think we can get Caroll O'Conner to play the lead role.

Sorry about that...
I DO think it's a good idea... but this immediately came to mind when I read it and I couldn't pass it up...

[74novaman]

RovGBiv, the problem as I see it is there is a difference between being idealistic and naive about the world, and being indoctrinated by Marxists.

I was a history major/sports management minor. Not all of my classes were this way, but I had several history classes run by out and out marxists with one HECK of a slant on how things are....not to mention my required sociology of sport type classes.

The real problem wasn't at the 300 and 400 level history classes, which were taught by actual historians, but the 100 and 200 level classes that many majors are required to take. My "American History" class covering reconstruction to the modern era was an outright laugh riot of left wing rhetoric.

Considering that's the only history exposure some kids get...that's a problem.