GayPatriot

The Internet home for American gay conservatives.

Why I am now SO voting for Romney

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Well, this could be it.

Today, the 225th anniversary of the Constitution may go down as the day Romney lost the election. Mother Jones comes forth now with a surrepticiously recorded video in which Mitt Romney tells the truth that no president—indeed, no politician at all, it seems—is willing to tell: That there is a constituency in this Nation that is so dependent on government that it is lost to those who would dare stand on the principles of self-determination and individualism. From the governor:

There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what…who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what…These are people who pay no income tax. Forty-seven percent of Americans pay no income tax…And so my job is not to worry about those people. I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.

The most damning part of this quote? It’s true. We can all parse whether or not this was felicitously delivered, but the bottom line is that it’s absolutely accurate.

Want proof? Fewer people are working than when the president took office. More people are claiming disability than are finding new jobs. The entire workforce itself has shrunk to a degree that would otherwise yield an 11+% unemployment rate. There is no way in Hell an incumbent should have even a snowball’s chance of re-election. Yet here we sit with the polls basically tied (and likely, thanks to this recording, to head south for Romney). Just check out the president’s approval rating and his standing in any of the recent polls.

The only explanation can be that Mitt Romney is correct. But just as has been the case recently, I fear, this will be yet another example of the governor coming out timidly in the shadow of having spoken the truth that nobody is willing to hear, let alone speak.

God, I pray I’m wrong. Imagine what it would say about a Nation to elect a man who sees so clearly the cultural problems that are plaguing our Nation and taking their toll on our economy.

I had been saying all along that re-electing Obama would speak volumes about our Nation: That it would mean we’ve become Greece-like in our rapture over state-sourced validity. That the man who so incredibly symbolizes—nay, personifies—the Leviathan State actually won election after the scales had fallen from the eyes of his HopeAndChange worshipers and they actually knew what he was all about…

But I never really saw his election as having the same gravity in a supposed contrapositive as I do now: If Mitt Romney, despite the inevitable upcoming onslaught of character assassination for having been bold enough to tell the truth, can be elected in the Nation he correctly described, then there truly is hope for this great Idea of America.

I have supported Romney all the way through the primaries because I have believed that he was the man who had the turn-around mentality and the clear vision based on his business experience to help this Nation at this time. Inasmuch, my support was mostly mechanical.

But I will vote for Mitt Romney now with a renewed hope and faith in America. His comments, as clumsily as they were delivered, ring so incredibly true. If American voters can see that, then there really is hope. And the real kind this time.

-Nick (ColoradoPatriot, from HHQ)

On the HHS Mandate

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There’s so much to celebrate today: My beautiful home state turns 136 today, Michael Phelps has made history with his 19th medal on behalf of America, and Ted Cruz not only won, but schwacked establishment candidate Lt. Governor David Dewhurst by a margin of over 13 percentage points in yesterday’s Texas GOP runoff, sending a clear message that the Constitution is back in business (or will be, come January) in the US Senate.

However, I have to admit, today is a sad dark day for America.

While Youcef Nadarkhani spends his 1024th day in an Iranian prison for the crime of having become a Christian, our Nation took another chip out of the rock of religious liberties as well. Surely we cannot compare the offense to religious freedoms that President Obama’s and Kathleen Sebelius’ mandate that employers abdicate their First Amendment rights (which goes in effect today) to those of Pastor Nadarkhani. But while mayors across the country attempt to deny a business owner his Due Process and First Amendment rights, today calls attention to just how far we’ve come in our Nation.

I actually woke this morning to a fraternity brother’s post on his Facebook page that read:

Btw american women everywhere, congratulations!

Today your insurance plans MUST ‘cover specific preventive health services for women without cost-sharing, such as deductibles, copayments and coinsurance. These services include well-woman visits, breastfeeding support, domestic violence screening, STD screening and contraceptives.’

…

I caution those who would vote for romney (especially women who would vote for romney) to recognize the implications of a repeal. We would eliminate the gains that have been made today, and will continue to be made by the landmark legislation for the next 5 years.

As offensive as it is to someone like me who’s pro-life to see someone write in literally congratulatory tones about the growth and spread of abortion, this is also symbolic of just how far we’ve come. [Read more…]

The Reason For The Season: Happy Independence Day!

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Thanks to Dan for marking July Fourth earlier today. Here is my contribution, with a hat tip for the idea to Moe Lane from RedState.

The Schoolhouse Rock series taught history and grammar to Americans of a certain age. They are unforgettable parts of 1970s pop culture and I this was one of my favorites.

It seems there’s a lot of similarity to this story as the times we are living in today.

No More Kings, indeed!

-Bruce (GayPatriot)

Non-Lawyer, Non-Judge Reflections on Obamacare Ruling

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You know, I think I may have set a land-speed record moving through the five stages of grief on this Obamacare thing.

As I understand it, Chief Justice Roberts held that the mandate was in fact constitutional because it’s a TAX, not a PENALTY. When it comes down to it, I have to agree 100% that Congress surely has the power to levy a tax on the American people, and as such was clearly within their rights to do so in this case.

Also, given that they have the right to absolve people of a tax burden, they’re entitled to do so in this case when someone has purchased health insurance. After all, if I donate money to a charity, I get a tax break. If I pay taxes and interest on my home mortgage, I get a tax break. If I have a kid, I get a tax break. So this is really just like that: EVERYBODY in the country gets a higher tax. If you have health insurance, you get a tax break. QED.

Although I disagree with the first step in the process (it is in my opinion, a penalty which is beyond Congress’ authority), I can’t argue with that logic at least.

That said, I do have a problem with how we got here:
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Does Obama Lose Either Way?

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You know, when I think of these things, I really should just go ahead and post them right away…it’ll make me look more prescient and brilliant than simply linking:

This is something that’s been on my mind for quite a while, and Chris Wallace put great words to exactly what I’ve been thinking lately with regard to the Supreme Court’s ultimate decision on ObamaCare:

(sorry for the commercial, the discussion with Brit Hume starts at about 3:50)

The gist is that win or lose with SCOTUS, it’s a lose situation for Obama:

Either he loses his signature legislative victory because it’s unconstitutional, or the well-over 50% of Americans who hate it have no other recourse than to elect Republicans to both houses of Congress and the White House and Obama loses obviously in that case.

This, I think, lends itself to the point I was making earlier today that this is an opportunity for those of us who love Liberty and Independence to make crystal clear the choice we have before us this year: Do we continue down the path of governmental intrusion into and management of our lives, or do we assert ourselves and tell the dictators in Washington that, No thanks, we’ll take care of our own lives?

(Interestingly, Brit makes an excellent point that I’d not thought of: Basically, with our fiscal house in such disarray, ObamaCare cannot stand on its own failures anyway. That our debt and unfunded social liabilities are so massive that it doesn’t matter what happens with the Supreme Court or—it seems he’s suggesting—with repeal even through legislative remedies…that it will collapse simply because it cannot be afforded. Scary stuff, especially considering the likelihood that he’s wrong, and that the unaffordability of any mandate dating all the way back to the New Deal has never kept this country from burying itself in debt in order to continue to feed its appetite for mother’s milk from the teat of the government trough…if you’ll excuse my abusively mixed metaphors.)

-Nick (ColoradoPatriot, from HQ)

Why the SCOTUS Decision on ObamaCare Shouldn’t Matter

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Tomorrow, the Supreme Court will begin hearing debates on four issues with respect to the law:

First, the breathtaking and unprecedented matter of Congress’s suggestion that it can force private citizens to purchase goods from private companies lest they face a fine. This has been the main focus over the past several months since they agreed to hear the case. This is quite symbolic, I think, of the mammoth gorge that exists between the views of the government espoused by the Left and the Right in America today: While Conservatives see the government expansion since the New Deal as being a break on innovation, liberty, and our Founding principles, statists on the Left insist that an expansive and ever-powerful central government is necessary in order to enforce the ‘general welfare’ of the Nation. How we as a People determine the degree to which our government can dictate our individual choices will surely inform what we become as a Country as the future unfolds.

Second is the question as to whether Congress’s expansion of Medicaid is unduly coercive. (a good primer on that here from CATO.)

Third is the question of severability, basically whether knocking down, say, the individual mandate, would render the entire law invalid, or if it would just ‘sever’ those parts that are objectionable and invalidate just that. (A bit on that, here.)

Finally is the Anti-Injunction Act, that some are arguing means the whole case is moot until someone is actually affected by the law, which hasn’t fully gone into effect yet. (Tell that to the would-be employees of small businesses who are not hiring because of the uncertainty this monstrosity has created. But anyway…)

Like many who read this blog, I’m cautiously hopeful the Supreme Court will agree with me that ObamaCare is patently unconstitutional and should be annulled post haste. But like many (much smarter than I) observers, I’m not convinced this will happen.

Either way, however, our remedy should not be the Supreme Court.

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Giving Thanks for the United States of America

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I’m glad I stumbled upon this item in the Wall Street Journal today.

Any one whose labors take him into the far reaches of the country, as ours lately have done, is bound to mark how the years have made the land grow fruitful.

This is indeed a big country, a rich country, in a way no array of figures can measure and so in a way past belief of those who have not seen it. Even those who journey through its Northeastern complex, into the Southern lands, across the central plains and to its Western slopes can only glimpse a measure of the bounty of America.

And a traveler cannot but be struck on his journey by the thought that this country, one day, can be even greater. America, though many know it not, is one of the great underdeveloped countries of the world; what it reaches for exceeds by far what it has grasped.

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We can remind ourselves that for all our social discord we yet remain the longest enduring society of free men governing themselves without benefit of kings or dictators. Being so, we are the marvel and the mystery of the world, for that enduring liberty is no less a blessing than the abundance of the earth.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

-Bruce (GayPatriot)

HERMAN CAIN FOR PRESIDENT

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I am proud this morning to announce my support for Herman Cain for President.

This is a personal decision by me and does not reflect the views of my co-bloggers nor should be construed as an official endorsement by GOPROUD of which I am a board member.

Now that I’m done with that disclaimer….let me shout this from sea to shining sea — AMERICA NEEDS HERMAN CAIN!!!! I have been flirting with the Cain candidacy for over a year now. I had the pleasure to meet him at CPAC and I have been closely following his campaign long before most people knew his name.

I felt it was important to declare my preference publicly today as I have decided to become actively involved in Team Cain to assist in the South Carolina primary and beyond. I owe my readers the transparency of knowing why I am writing about certain things and not to be confused by my intent.

Why Herman Cain? Well, haven’t been this excited about a Presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan in 1984 (the first year I was old enough to truly know anything and make a difference).

Some will now say, “now Bruce….there will never be another Ronald Reagan!” And that is true. And I am NOT equating Mr. Cain to Mr. Reagan. What I am saying is that Mr. Cain excites me with his common sense ideas, love of country, and ability to connect to the American psyche. Choosing a President has always been a “gut feeling” thing for America. I have a great feeling about Herman Cain.

Herman Cain has been plucked by destiny to arrive at America’s electoral doorstep at just the right time. He has a solid business background, is an inspirational leader of people, and understands the complexities of the world economy. He wasn’t a community organizer, he is a jobs and growth creator. He wasn’t a concocted creation of America’s radical left and academic centers of power, he is a true child of the American Experience. He has never scoffed at American values, he embraces our nation’s special place in the history of mankind and knows we are teetering on the edge.

Mr. Cain is familiar with rescuing failing enterprises, which to me is his most important qualification. In a sheer coincidence to the timing of my announcement, Daniel Henninger wrote this yesterday in the Wall Street Journal:

Does a résumé like Herman Cain’s add up to an American presidency? I used to think not. But after watching the American Idol system we’ve fallen into for discovering a president—with opinion polls, tongue slips and media caprice deciding front-runners and even presidents—I’m rewriting my presidential-selection software. [Emphasis added.]

Conventional wisdom holds that this week’s Chris Christie boomlet means the GOP is desperate for a savior. The reality is that, at some point, Republicans will have to start drilling deeper on their own into the candidates they’ve got.

Put it this way: The GOP nominee is running against the incumbent president. Unlike the incumbent, Herman Cain has at least twice identified the causes of a large failing enterprise, designed goals, achieved them, and by all accounts inspired the people he was supposed to lead. Not least, Mr. Cain’s life experience suggests that, unlike the incumbent, he will adjust his ideas to reality.

No other GOP candidate can bring the fight to Obama over the sorry state of the American economy than Herman Cain. Our other choices are, I’m sad to say, more of the same old thing — career professional politicians. Yes, even Ron Paul, folks.

So there you have it. My big announcement. Herman Cain is the first Presidential candidate I will actively and ENTHUSIASTICALLY campaign for through blood, sweat, money & tears since Ronald Reagan in 1984. That’s a long time of being unmoved by GOP nominees, don’t you think?

There will be more to say about Herman Cain and the issues. But I wanted to stand up today and proudly declare my support for the 45th President of the United States of America and the next true heir of the American Experience — Mr. Herman Cain.

-Bruce (GayPatriot)

GAY PATRIOT’S AMERICA BROADCAST:
ANDREW BREITBART INTERVIEW

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UPDATE:  Here’s the podcast!

Listen to internet radio with GayPatriot on Blog Talk Radio

Tonight on the Gay Patriot’s America BlogTalkRadio show, I’ll be joined by conservative news guru AndrewBreitbart.

The show will air live tonight at 9PM Eastern Time.

Join the show online at this link —>
GayPatriot’s America

I’m looking forward to the show!

DADT Repeal May Usher In A Colorblind Society

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One of the best arguments I’ve heard against the repeal of DADT (which, as we say in the business is now OBE) is that it will lead to a new level of mamby-pambyness vis-a-vis gay troops demanding they be treated “fairly”. Often as we’ve noticed, when any “rights” group is looking for “fairness” it’s often simply code for “special rights”.

For the majority (based on my experience) of gay troops, our lives will likely not change much on a day-to-day basis. I, for one, am not planning to “come out” to anybody save a few close friends where I work. I’m expecting, in fact, that they likely know about me anyway. (After all, such a devilishly handsome man with so much going for him my age not married? He must be gay! Har har, but anyway…) Inasmuch, I don’t expect most gay troops will be demanding anything much more than simply not getting kicked out if we forget to use the gender-neutral pronouns when speaking of our dates.

This is not to say there won’t be a few (which will likely seem like much more than a few) flamboyantly unprofessional troops whose conduct will surely be seen as unbecoming and hopefully will be counseled right away. That will be a touchy subject I’ll save for another post.

For now let’s talk about “special rights”.

Many have argued this is a stepping-stone to a larger “gay rights” agenda. I’ve never seen it as such, and I regret that there will definitely be many gay “rights” champions who will misuse this to further their own agenda (much as those opposed to gay “rights” will also use it to further their agenda). They have no concern necessarily about the defense of the Nation nor about the military. We are a tool for them to use and they should be ashamed, if they knew any such thing as shame in the first place.

There’s another thing that I think might come of this which would be a good sign. Check out this quote from the DoD’s report on the repeal of DADT:

We do not recommend that sexual orientation be placed alongside race, color, religion, sex, and national origin, as a class eligible for various diversity programs, tracking initiatives, and complaint resolution processes under the Military Equal Opportunity Program. We believe that doing so could produce a sense, rightly or wrongly, that gay men and lesbians are being elevated to a special status as a “protected class” and will receive special treatment. In a new environment in which gay and lesbian Service members can be open about their sexual orientation, we believe they will be accepted more readily if the military community understands that they are simply being permitted equal footing with everyone else.

(emphasis added)

This is a sentiment I (as most libertarian conservatives) have long espoused: Equal treatment, not special treatment. Which leads to the next logical question: Why should “race, color, religion, sex, and national origin” be the basis for special treatment either? If gays and lesbians “will be accepted more readily” if not treated differently, wouldn’t that also be the same for members of these other groups? What an interesting outcome of this whole episode if the entire concept of “special” categories of troops went by the way-side?

For all the talk (and legitimate, I might add) of “unintended consequences” surrounding the repeal of DADT, what a happy accident it would be if, by virtue of this new policy change, we had to rethink how we treated everybody. Because if there’s no good reason to treat gays and lesbians as “diversity programs” (and there isn’t), then why do we need them in the first place? This could be a whole new chapter in respecting each other as individuals and as part of a larger team rather than the social balkanization the Left so often loves to use to drive us apart.

-Nick (ColoradoPatriot, from TML)