Attn Senator McCain: I want to support you, but I cant...yet

Call it conservative angst, or call it standing on principals. I will obviously vote for John McCain in November as the Democrats offer nothing but socialism and retreat. The question now is can I give anything more than my vote to John McCain.

In the last two presidential elections and in the important Senate races here in PA, I was a contributor and a volunteer. I donated meager amounts of money, but more importantly over 75 volunteer hours making phone calls and knocking on doors. For me to reach into my checkbook or fit campaigning into my schedule I need to believe in someone. Right now, I still fear John McCain.
People talk about reaching out. Well reaching out means more than endorsements and speeches invoking the name of Ronald Reagan. It means a platform we will fight for. To get conservatives John McCain has to answer just these simple questions...

• You say you will secure the borders first. Great. I believe you so I am willing to give you a chance. Then what?
• Why did you use class warfare rhetoric when opposing the Bush tax cuts?
  
• How can you achieve energy independence without expanding the use of domestic fossil fuels? And how can you do that while drinking global warming kool-aid?
• In hindsight, what would you change about McCain-Feingold to make 527s more accountable while not infringing anymore on freedom of speech.
  

I think if you answer these couple questions, I will be with you 100%. Right now, I am a wishy-washy luke warm supporter.



...what do you think?

Republican Platform for Immigration Reform

The immigration debate should be structured on these Principles, then we can have an open and honest debate in the next few years.

1) Immigration reform begins with border security. Without operational control of the border, no law can be enforced. As a party we must win back the trust of the American people by proving we can secure the border.

2) An illegal alien is an illegal alien or illegal immigrant. A naturalized American citizen is a person who should be praised for achieving the beginning of the American dream. And a legal immigrant is a help to our economy and part of the future of our country. We must use the right terms and not allow the debate to be framed as "undocumented workers", "migrant workers", or any other P.C. term.

3) Employers are 100% responsible for who they choose to hire. We have wage laws, benefit laws, and laws against hiring non-citizens without visas. These must be enforced and if costs rise a bit, then they rise. Hotels, landscapers, construction companies and mega-farms should not benefit by under-paying and overworking illegal aliens

4) We owe nothing to anyone who broke our laws. Illegal immigrants have benefited from US jobs, health care, infrastructure, opportunity and more. How we deal with the millions of people here illegally will have to be decided. We cannot deport everyone that we have allowed to break our laws. But debating this solution before the borders are secure is irresponsible and causes more immigration.

5) A legal temporary worker program benefits the US and Mexico. It could really help the Mexican economy and family structure. Once the border is secure, a robust temporary worker program that is strictly enforced is the common ground we need.

If we can stick to these goals, we can begin to have a realistic discussion about our illegal immigration problem.




This post is one element of the Grassroots Conservative Republican Platform 2008. To contribute to this effort, please comment on this post and help shape this platform. Send the link to your friends and lets take our party back to the conservative principals that lead President Reagan and that were the key to President Bush's victory in the election of 2000.

Border Security Now

Not ten years from now, not as part of immigration reform, now. National security begins and ends with operational control of all four borders. (East, West, North, & South). The southern fence must be built and companies that hire illegals must be prosecuted. Once the borders are as secure as they can be, then the government can adjust policies to deal with the millions of illegals that are here already.

If you allow any Amnesty or "Path" to illegal immigrants before the border is secure, this would lead to a flood of people trying to get in immediately to take advantage of the bill. Simply talking about these programs has probably already increased the flow.

The idea that every supporter of tough border security and enforcing immigration laws is a bigot is quite insulting. As a party we cannot allow the media or the left to resort to name calling and insults. We are not dictated to by talk radio and we don't hate Hispanics. We simply want to protect our jobs, our culture, and our families. Not to mention we simply don't believe the government will secure the border, so we take a "show me" attitude.

So build the fence that was part of last year's legislation. Continue the crack down on all businesses that hire illegals especially the hospitality and construction industries and work on improving the efficiency of the current immigration department.

Remember, wages are set by the law of supply and demand. If you add supply to the workforce, you decrease the demand for workers. So employers are able to buy labor at a cheaper price. If anything such as the Kennedy-McCain bill were to pass nationwide wages would decrease overnight. Who is willing to support legislation that would reduce wages?

Securing the borders has tons of benefits including national security, drug enforcement, international tax revenues, safety of illegals trying to cross the border, etc. So just do it. It really isn't that complicated for the most technologically advanced nation the world has ever seen.

(Part of this platform is that "undocumented workers" do not exist, there is no such thing. They are illegal immigrants)

This post is one element of the Grassroots Conservative Republican Platform 2008. To contribute to this effort, please comment on this post and help shape this platform. Send the link to your friends and lets take our party back to the conservative principals that lead President Reagan and that were the key to President Bush's victory in the election of 2000.

Grassroots Conservative Republican Platform 2008: Version 1.0

Since I am the 1st contributor to this effort, this initial list is mine and mine only. Over the next four-five months I will update this site based on the news, debates, and most importantly the feedback I receive here at this blog. I am going to keep the list at ten items, however what ten items remain in the platform and their priority will most likely change. So without further delay..

Suggested GOP Platform for the 2008 Presidential Election

1. Victory in IRAQ - By any means necessary, the United States must win an unequivocal victory in the Middle East. This war moves to its next stage through a victory in the IRAQ campaign. Anything short of this will embolden Jihad-ists and increase the length of the overall war on terror. To achieve victory we must be willing to consider; eight more years, martial law in IRAQ, 100,000 additional troops or any other advantage that we can give to our troops. This war has taken too long because we fight wars today with padded gloves instead of brass knuckles.
   


2. Border Security Now - Not ten years from now, not as part of immigration reform, now. National security begins and ends with operational control of all four borders. (East, West, North, & South). The southern fence must be built and companies that hire illegals must be prosecuted. (Part of this platform is that "undocumented workers" do not exist, there is no such thing. They are illegal immigrates)


3. Winning the War On Terror - The culture of Islam has been on the March since its founding. The borders of the global Islamic nation are either expanding or contracting through murder and violence. This murderous sect of the Muslim religion is expanding and must be stopped. This means staying on the offensive in Iraq, Iran, Israel and the Palestinian territories.
   


4. Earmarks / Pork Barrel Spending - The GOP candidate needs to be clear on this issue. The era of congressional spending to get re-elected or hand out favors is over. If a bill contains any pork, it should be vetoed and the pork exposed to the papers. Also the most offensive pork in the previous four years should be re-examined and cut wherever and whenever possible. Finally the new President must pledge to never use pork spending to gain the votes needed on any bill. Bills are to be debated, not auctioned on eBay.
   


5. Education Change - Our nations schools are failing from coast to coast. They are indoctrinating young people with stories of eminent global destruction and not teaching them the Bill of Rights. The federal department of education should be eliminated and 85% of the funds distributed to the 50 states based on population size. Then the other 15% should produce 1 study per year ranking the fifty state education systems. Let the people decide where to live and how their kids are educated. The states will compete, try new ideas like vouchers, and less tax dollars will be wasted on bureaucratic nonsense.
   


6. Abortion - There is no right to abortion in the Constitution of the United States. There is also no absolute right of privacy that establishes a "law free zone" in a doctors office. This is why Euthanasia is still illegal and many other acts that a doctor could perform. Therefore Row vs Wade should be overturned as bad law and the states free to regulate abortion as they see fit. Again, let the people decide where to live and which state most closely resembles their beliefs.
   


7. Immigration Reform - Once we achieve operational border security, then and only then does it make sense to fix the immigration system. The reform should be based on faster paperwork and response to legitimate applications and simultaneously eliminating lengthy appeals and 2nd chances. Hard working immigrates are the foundation of our country, we should give many people chances to achieve the American Dream. Not the same people over and over again or unlimited people from any one nation.
   


8. Gay Marriage - Firstly, it is a valid and reasonable position for an individual to consider homosexuality immoral and a choice rather than a people group. This does not make them a homo-phobe or bigot. As a result, a society has every right to encourage certain types of relationships and discourage others. America was founded on the traditional family and should continue to honor and cherish the benefits of having both a father and mother. So there should be no gay marriage and no civil union recognition. There is no right to marry whatever you wish, the marriage laws are exclusively written for the the union of one man to one woman.
   


9. Political Speech - For years some religious groups and churches are permitted to support candidates, have them speak at services and to offer blatant endorsements. Meanwhile conservative churches and organizations have their tax exempt status threatened to keep them from informing their members of where they stand as an organization. At the same time Campaign Finance Reform has enabled more soft money and a decrease in accountability as to whom is funding what. McCain-Feingold should be repealed in its entirety and new Campaign Finance Reform should be debated based on the goal of 100% accountability and open and free speech.
   


10. Tax Rates - Lower taxes fuel the economy. Less taxes means more public sector spending which increases GDP and more importantly wealth. Wealth creates jobs and new businesses which feed back into the local, state, and federal tax systems. So the Bush tax cuts should be made permanent. Small business tax should be reduced to encourage job creation and competition. Finally, the estate tax should be abolished forever. No family should pay tax twice on their earnings nor have to be concerned with tax payments and loopholes when passing their life's work onto their children or other family.
    

Please give me your feedback on what should be in this platform and what should be removed. If you convince me or if enough valid opinions override my own, then I will update the platform and improve it. All comments will be used to form the consensus of this effort, but if you want your comment posted please read the rules.