A Boston Tea Party ...(Expect Excellence)

Most wars are fought on more than one front. During WWII the Germans battled Russia on the eastern front while simultaneously fighting the Americans and British in the west. Like war, politics is often staged on many fronts. Today, Veterans Day, the President gave a magnificent speech on the war on terror. His speech was a speech on two fronts.

The President finally spoke out to his critics. He confronted publicly and with great clarity the contention that the United States entered this war under false pretense. Did he do so in as stern a manner as I would have liked? No, but at least it was a beginning. Republican leaders need to follow this speech by having the President’s back. The distortions the left is barraging this President with need to be shot down. This front cannot be forgotten. Today must be the start of an attack on the credibility of the left and support for this President’s character. A failure to do so will cause difficulty in next year’s elections.

The other front of today’s speech reminded America why this war is so important. The President was forceful in his choice of words condemning Islamic radicalism. He used words of a leader and spoke openly and honestly. He acted as the leader he needs to be. The front of leadership has been lacking in recent months from this President and his party. If one considers the State of the Union speech from last January, it is hard for the average American to say what from that speech was accomplished. Leadership and direction need to be done by both the Republican Congress and its Republican President. They need to remain firm in their agenda and act in the manner for which they were elected.

This lack of focus is reason for deteriorating expectations from this administration. I blame Congressional leadership as much as the President. Republicans need to get back to governing as Republicans. Although the judicial nominations are extremely important so are many other issues. They need to govern with fiscal responsibility, with reforming taxes, and demonstrating the ability to get things done. There is no excuse for the lack of results we are seeing. The party that controls both legislative branches of government must stay on point or blame no one else when next year’s election results are not very positive.

I believe the American public would respond to the governance of conservatism. Republicans must regain their focus and move forward. Grass roots conservatives and those conservatives with the power of the microphone can keep their focus sharp. The Miers nomination was an example of reestablishing such focus. This type of reminder needs to be done more regularly. Most of the time the Republicans now in charge are treated as one’s child who is misbehaving. As the parent we know they have done something wrong but because they are one of our own the punishment is not as severe as if it were someone else’s child. I expect more from my party than I do from the other. I expect them to be able to handle a war on both fronts. I expect excellence and perfection. One could say I even demand it. I expect this party to lead and reform while simultaneously defending adamantly their reasons for doing so. It is only when one expects excellence that you actually get it. I hope today was the beginning of this administration and the Republican Party acting as if they are actually leading this country. If they don’t, I for one will remind them of their failure. Any negative 2008 election results will be due to the many who allowed this opportunity to be wasted.