As the politicians mire us ever deeper in debt, as each day brings more bad news from Washington, we prepare ourselves for the 2012 presidential election. So much hinges on each election, we all know that. Choices made, actions taken by incumbents affect not only us, but our children and grandchildren. So now we prepare for the nominations by educating ourselves on the candidates who have thrown their hat into the ring, and on those we hope will make that toss soon. Each candidate has a history, each candidate brings strengths and weaknesses to the table. Each of us will choose from among those willing to serve his or her country based on our own set of values, beliefs, experiences, and perceptions. Some have already made the choice of the candidate they will support for the Republican nomination for President of the United States of America. Some are waiting for more information, or hoping for another candidate to enter the race.
It matters little what part of the country we live in, what jobs we hold, what religious faith we practice. I do not care whether we are single or married, white or black or brown or yellow,  we have a common goal. We share the desire to see our country return to a path of fiscal sanity, respect for the constitution, a smaller government operating within the constitutional limits put in place by the founders of our country after fighting a bloody war for freedoms we take for granted each and every day. Freedoms that we carelessly may loose if we do not stay vigilant and active. Freedoms that are only a vague concept to some of our society, freedoms that are an offense to many of the liberals who believe in life according to governmental whim. They seek to restrict our speech, put undue restraints on our right to bear arms, and viciously twist the tenth amendment until the simple, powerful statement contained in it can be used to justify any and all actions they wish to take. If they cannot muster the support in congress because people have risen up in outrage against their usurpation of power, well they will just legislate by judicial decree, or government agency, or by the president simply declaring that he is not bound to do what the constitution says he must, and congress allows it, and the press revels in it.
It is obvious as we move closer to election time that we have our work cut out for us. We must have a strong and principled leader, a person of good and strong character, grounded in our constitutional values to step forward and lead. Pause here. I mean lead. The polar opposite of what Obama does. The polar opposite of what we are seeing from Republican leadership in the debt ceiling debates. We must have someone who can restore confidence in the American people so that we can make the hard choices we have to make, and then stay the course to see them through. We Americans can be a fickle people. We set out on a course, don’t see immediate relief, and backtrack too soon.
All these things are just as evident as the rising sun. You all know this, it is why you are here each day, gifting us who have gathered here in the tree with your knowledge, motivation, wisdom, and opinions. Opinions, that would be the point of this post. We are all gifted with a multitude of them, and I personally have little patience with anyone who doesn’t believe in their convictions, and have strong opinions. There is a difference between a conviction and an opinion, but both should be respected.
We will be discussing our beliefs, putting forth our candidates, examining voting records, questioning decisions. We should do it with respect, remembering first that each of us has a precious right, a duty, to vote for the person we believe to be best able to carry out the duties of the office they aspire to, to stay true to the vow of office they will make should they be elected. It is absolutely impossible to expect that every person, every valued person here in the treehouse will agree with your choice of nominee. This is a Rag Tag Bunch of Conservative Misfits. We all have a voice, we all have a choice, and it is one of those freedoms we hold most dear. So this I ask as we work our way toward defeating Obama in 2012. Be respectful of your fellow treeper and their choices. We discuss, we debate, we question, we clearly and forcefully state our beliefs and our choices. Each candidate will be stronger for the examination we give them – or they will rightly fall by the wayside. But in the end we must recognize and respect that we will all get to the Republican nominee for president by our own path. Our ultimate goal will be to defeat Obama. Yes, I know, we must wisely select a candidate capable of that. It does not change the fact that we will not all agree who that candidate is.
We have work to do between now and 2012. The media will tear apart piece by piece each serious threat to Obama. The Democrats will pull out every dirty trick in the book, as they have so very often in the past. Acorn, Soros, there are many who will use every opportunity to divide us, to work behind the scenes to move their agenda forward. We tear each other apart at our own peril. Am I saying no debates, no questions, no opportunities to argue our case? Again I say absolutely not. Just remember that we have a common cause – defeat Obama. This is a site for conservatives, it is not a candidate specific site. Rag Tag. It’s who we are, and that is a good thing.