Sunday, March 15, 2009

An Open Letter to Chairman Steele and the RNC

Dear Mr. Steele,

Your organization has been inundating me with fundraising phone calls, letters and emails for quite some time now, to no avail. I applaud them for their diligence in excuting their responsibilites, but please, tell them to stop wasting their breath on those of us who value our principles and our country over party affiliation. You might be wondering why, in this perilous Age of Obama, previously dutiful RNC donors like me are repeatedly refusing to refill the coffers. Let me give you some insight into this perplexing development.

When you were named RNC Chair, I'll admit, I had a few nagging reservations, though I quickly recovered and threw my support behind you, hoping against hope (uh, yeah that dreaded word) that you would lead this wayward, Maverick Republican Party out of its current Democrat-Lite wilderness and into a post-modern (to borrow a revered phrase from the self-proclaimed "champions of the little guy") dawn of pure, unadulaterated and unapologetic conservatism. Not "compassionate conservatism" (one of the most blatant oxymorons I've ever come across), not a new spirit of "bipartisanship" and definitely not a wishy-washy promise to "reach across the aisle," i.e. cave into Democrat demands, because allegedly, "that's what the American people want." Hint: No, we don't!

Just to make it clear once again, since the dramatic spike in grass-roots vounteerism immediately following the announcement of Governor Sarah Palin as the Republican VP candidate failed to register a cause-and-effect phenomenon with the bright bulbs at the RNC -- If it hadn't been for Palin, I would not have lifted a finger for Senator McCain's campaign, though I would've grudgingly held my nose and voted for him on Election Day, keeping a firm image of the US Military in my mind as I filled in a broken arrow on a ballot pointing to his name (I suppose it beats hanging chads, though I never had a problem with them either).

So what was it about Palin that transformed me from reluctant voter to enthusiastic volunteer? Aside from her obvious warmth, small-town charm and steel magnolia persona, Sarah championed unabashed Reagan conservatism. Much like my favorite President, she took on entrenched interests within her own party, achieved success through her own initiative and hard-work, and possessed a similar spirit of optimism and genuine love for America. Above all, Palin, like Reagan, in policy and principle represented "three-legged-stool" conservatism: fiscal, social and national security -- which, come to think of it, is exactly the "platform" articulated by our Founding Fathers in a watershed document known as The Constitution of the United States of America.

Mr. Steele, as someone who once held you in high-esteem (even though you were my third choice, behind Ken Blackwell and Saul Anuzis) it is my patriotic duty to implore you to please recover quickly from your rather inauspicious debut, using the talking points outlined below.

I know, I know, who am I, just one of countless bloggers in cyberspace, praying for the Republican Party to get a clue! Quite honestly, I scratch my head in frustration wondering how we even got here in the first place, considering the fact that our 40th President left a remarkably solid record of achievement, along with a straightforward, easy-to-emulate blueprint.

And though I am certain with today's technology you could rediscover Reaganism with the click of a mouse (Does You Tube sound familiar to you?), here's some unsolicited advice from a little-known writer who's growing more fearful for her country with every passing day:

1. If you must appear on forums with ignorant hosts on hostile liberal networks like CNN (though I strongly advise against it), respond forcefully when said ignoramus lambastes your party as the "Party of Nazis." Rather than sit there in meek silence, you might try pointing out that the misconception of Nazis as far-right zealots is just that -- a misconception, and that Nazi actually stands for the National Socialist German Workers' Party. This would not only be effective and factual, but timely, given the Obama administration's hyper-speed in imposing a failed and flawed ideology, i.e. Socialism, on the Republic.

2. When the ill-informed interviewer claims there are no "people of color" in the party and accuses Republicans of being "racist," you might want to enlighten him that the GOP began as an Abolitionist Party, formed for the sole purpose of ending slavery in the United States. You could also point out that Republican President Abraham Lincoln presided over one hell of a bloody war that pitted brother-against-brother in an ultimately successful (thank God!) attempt to banish the chains and keep the Union together. More recently, you might mention that if not for Republicans crossing over to vote with Lyndon Johnson, the civil rights legislation of the 60's would not have been enacted. Lastly, you might want to turn the tables and wonder aloud why so many black Americans continue to vote Democrat, given that party's deplorable track record in cities like Detroit, Philadelphia and Washington D.C. (on that last one, you could even throw in the school voucher issue and paraphrase Dems by asking "Why does President Obama hate black students so much?").

3. Building on number two, you could also mention a few prominent modern-day Republicans like Alan Keyes, JC Watts, Ken Blackwell, and Colonel Allen West, as well as a smattering of conservative thinkers like Star Parker, Reverend Jesse Lee Peterson, Walter Williams, Thomas Sowell, Chris Gardner and Ward Connerly.

4. On a proactive note, follow the cue of Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity and Ann Coulter: articulate conservative principles with pride and clarity. Such principles are rooted in time-tested, color-blind values, such as faith in a Higher Power; the God-given right of every American citizen to pursue life, liberty and happiness; personal responsibility; accountability for one's actions; hard work and thrift.

5. Dare I go out a limb and ask you to question why it's racist to hold home-buyers to objective standards like debt-to-income ratio, two-year employment history and a decent credit score when applying for a loan? You could even tie it in with the Fannie-Freddie debacle and turn the tables on your next interviewer by asking them why a government-solution is being foisted onto the backs of taxpaying producers for a government-created problem! As an added bonus, it also creates an easy segue into a dialogue about the sheer lunacy of keeping people like Chris Dodd and Barney Frank in Congress, when they really belong in jail. Would it be racist of me to suggest that Franklin Raines be thrown in the slammer, too?

6. Finally sir, on the issue of life, please avoid liberal double-speak. If you believe abortion is murder, say so. And if you perceive it to be murder, how the hell can you essentially claim in a print interview (presumably with a straight face) that while you're against murder personally, it's just fine and dandy with you if others commit it? Mr. Steele, the Republican Party has got to stop dancing around this issue! And the best way to do that, in my humble opinion, is to invoke federalism, and explain to a largely uneducated electorate why Roe v. Wade is bad law. Acknowledge that while you stand with the Americans who believe life begins at conception, we live in a federalist society. If for some reason, Roe was overturned by the Supreme Court, the issue would simply revert back to the states, where it rightfully belongs, thus giving every American citizen the opportunity to vote on their resident state's abortion laws. It's not a perfect solution as many of us hold all human life sacred, whatever its stage; but it at least adheres to Constitutional principles and puts power back into the hands of the people, not unelected, activist judges.

In closing, if you and the Republican Party want my money, you all had better rediscover conservatism asap. I may despise Obama, Pelosi, Reid and their policies, but I'll be damned if I'll fund a party that in its current state is nothing more than a watered-down version of D.C.'s own Axis of Evil, either. And no telemarketer's script, compelling as it may be, is going to change my mind.



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