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Where do we go from here? How do we find direction? How do we alter the course of this Country to a more sane path? What do we have to do in order to jump-start our economy, put our unemployed back to work and promote lasting prosperity? What will it take to make our Government responsive and responsible, treating our citizens as partners in democracy rather than children in a sandbox?
How do we find that direction, the guideposts back to a decent, spiritual America where people take care of themselves and each other, where home and family are key to happiness and success, where free enterprise and free markets fire the engine of our economy and where freedom, equality and dignity are God given rights of all Americans, not apportioned by some governmental program for the benefit of the few? Conservatives suffered a stunning defeat in the 2008 elections, losing not only the Presidency, but also allowing a nearly filibuster proof, wildly liberal congressional majority. State and local races fared no better with seven of eleven gubernatorial positions going Democrat and fourteen of twenty-five legislative chambers now controlled by Democrats. The pollsters tell us that conservatives out number liberals in this country. The problem is, we can’t figure out where they all are on election day. Or perhaps the real problem is that they are turning out but not finding a conservative candidate that they can comfortably vote for. If anything, conservatives lost this election not because they were hard line Right, but rather because they allowed the lines to blur between themselves and their opponents, leaving no clear choice for their traditional voter base. We, as conservatives must return to our core beliefs of family, faith and freedom. We must stop “reaching across the aisle” in cooperation. Liberals don’t appreciate the effort or respond in kind, and conservatives just feel betrayed. That’s a classic lose, lose. We’ve got to be vigilant against the onslaught of Liberal ideals and ideology that permeates government, education and media. Those ideals can be intoxicating emotionally, but fall flat when examined under the daylight of reality. We’ve got to procure bright, energetic, eloquent candidates to run for office, and support them with all the grassroots and organized party effort we can bring to the table. We must demand fiscal responsibility from our state and federal governments, and only elect candidates who promise to pursue that goal. As a group, conservatives have to get a backbone and stand up to the emotional ad hominem rhetoric so beloved by the Liberal side. We’ve got to be prepared to call a lie what it is, and back up our arguments with facts in a compelling way. And finally, we must stop allowing those in power to treat the Constitution as a loose general guideline, the intent of which may be changed to allow their current whims. So what is the way? Where does the compass point and how do we follow that path? We do so through hard work, education, integrity, unflagging faith in what we believe, and an unyielding love of America.
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