Courtesy of Degree of Madness:

The Candidate Who Can See the Enemy, Can Defeat It.  Dr. Phares makes a compelling case for Mitt Romney:

Probably I am among the few who see the clouds gathering around theglobe and thus have been urging leaders to act fast, decisively andearly on to avoid the future Jihad –that has began already. Had what Isee wasn’t there I would be fully excited -- like any citizen -- toargue forcefully about the crucial matters of our existence: health,environment, nutrition, scientific discoveries, animal protection, andwhy not space exploration. Had I not realized that all that debate washinging on what Bin laden and Ahmedinijad were preparing, I would havebeen looking at a whole different roaster of Presidential candidates.But that is not the world I see ahead of us, in the immediate future.

Hence,I’ll leave the debate about the best economic and technologicaldirections to their experts and I would postpone the social andphilosophical dreams to better times. Right now and right here I aminterested in who among the candidates can simply understand the tragicequation we’re in and may be able to use the resources of this nationto cross the bridge ahead of us. President Bush was elected before 9/11neither on the grounds of avoiding the Jihadi wars nor winning them.Very few even knew that we were already at war. He was reelected on theground of being a better choice than the defeatist politicalalternative. This year I suggest that Americans deserve a more daringchoice. They need to see and certify that the next occupant of theWhite House lives on this Planet, at this age, knows that we are at warand above all knows which war we are fighting. The margin of error istoo slim to allow hesitations.

By 2012 the Jihadists may recruit one million suicide bombers and couldalign two nuclear powers. By 2016 they would deploy 10 million suicidebombers and seize five regimes equipped with the final weapon. In thenext eight years NATO’s European membership could be battling urbanintifadas and US task forces lacking shelters worldwide. To avoid theseprospects of apocalypse the offices on Pennsylvania Avenue must catchup with the lost opportunities as of next winter.

Thus, andunlike traditional commentators in classical US politics I am notlooking at who said what and who flipped flopped when. Frankly, itdoesn’t matter at this stage if it is a he or a she, of this or otherrace, of this or other church, and if the President is single, has alarge family or has divorced twice. The stakes are much higher than thesweet but irrelevant American usual personality debate. I want to knowif the candidates are strong willed, smart, educated about the world,informed about the threat, can define it, can identify it, can fightit, are not duped by their bureaucracy, cannot be influenced by foreignregimes, have the right advisors, can run an economy while commanding awar and still see the threats as they handle daily crisis and takedrastic measures as the hard times are approaching. I want to know ifthe candidates are very specific when they inform their public aboutthe menace. Yes, it is indeed a vital function of national securitythat we need to insure for the next few years, so that all other issuescan be addressed thoroughly. In short I don’t want to see the fall ofConstantinople being repeated on these shores in the next decade ortwo. Humanity will not recover from such a disaster.

Dr. Phares discusses the qualifications of the four remaining contenders for President, two Democrats, two Republicans.  "I am looking at the scariest item on any Presidential agenda and check out if they are conscious about it: national security."  Here is his conclusion:

This is why I have come to the conclusion that -based on what wasprovided to the public by the four leading candidates- Governor Romneyhas the capacity of managing the counter strategies against theJihadists, only because he stated to the public that he sees the enemyas to who they are. And if a President can see them, he can defeatthem. His Republican contender, now leading the polls, can sense thembut haven’t shown them. The leading candidates on the other side aremaking progress in the opposite direction: One wants to end the Warunilaterally and the other wants to make Peace with the oppressors. Inshort, if elected, Romney will try to destroy the mother ship, McCainwill supply the trenches, Clinton will pull the troops back to thebarracks and Obama will visit the foes’ bunkers.

Hence, asis, I have recommended Governor Romney for the Republican Primaries asfirst among equals while considering Senator McCain as a genuineleader. If Romney is selected I believe America may have a chance totry new strategies. If his contender is selected, we will have four oreight more years of the past seven years. On the other side, I havesuggested to counter-Terrorism experts to help Democratic candidatesrestructure their agendas on national security in line with the realityof the enemy: For I would like to see both Parties presenting a unitedvision of the threat while differing on how to confront it. That wouldbe the ideal situation America can be in and a response to the deepestwill of the American public.

I would add that considering John McCain's position on illegal immigration he is not serious about national security.  He gets A+ on the war in Iraq but national security goes way beyond that.  He has a blind spot when it comes to our borders. 

McCain has also said he would close Guantanamo Bay on his first day in office.  His reasoning for closing Gitmo is reason enough to derail his "Straight Talk" Express: because "there's a lot of anti-Americanism" around the world.  According to John McCain we should bring a bunch of terrorists to the United States (Ft. Leavenworth to be exact.  Are Kansas voters listening?) so everybody will like us again.  Call it the Mealy-Mouth Express:

John Weaver, Sen McCain's chief strategist, confirmed his plans for amarkedly more conciliatory foreign policy. "The next president willhave to work extra hard to unite our friends and divide our foes. Sadlythe opposite has occurred in recent years," he said, as Sen McCainaddressed a crowded hall in the farming community of Cedar Falls.

"John believes that you can accomplish a lot more in this world bysticking to your principles, while adopting a much more humble tonewith your partners."

Humble with your partners?  I guess John McCain doesn't consider U.S. citizens his partners. 

The endorsement by Dr. Phares is significant:

Inshort, if elected, Romney will try to destroy the mother ship, McCainwill supply the trenches, Clinton will pull the troops back to thebarracks and Obama will visit the foes’ bunkers.

Yes, John McCain is a war hero.  That does not automatically make him the best choice for President and Commander-in-Chief of the United States.

Labels: Endorsement, mitt romney

Governor Romney:

"Today, the people of Maine joined those from across the nation in casting their vote for conservative change in Washington. All across the state, men and women gathered to help chart the future course of our country. Tonight, they have made their voice known and have endorsed our conservative vision for a stronger America. Like many Americans, the people of Maine are tired of Washington promises made but broken."

"The need for change in Washington is even more apparent today. With our economy facing uncertain times, we need a leader who actually understands how the economy works and how jobs are created. We also need a leader from outside of Washington who is ready to meet the long-term challenges facing our country. With a career spent working in the economy, creating jobs, turning around faltering institutions and imposing fiscal discipline, I am ready to bring conservative change to Washington. In this campaign, I am proud to have the support of the people of Maine."

Yesterday and today, my extended family has been getting Romney recorded phone calls. Today, the message was from Rick Santorum, telling my Mother-in-Law that if she supports conservative values, or something to that effect, she needs to vote for Mitt Romney.

Anyone else getting phone calls? Tell me about it in the comments.

Also, remember that if you want to volunteer from your home by participating in the Call at Home program into Super Tuesday states they are still making calls tomorrow and Monday.

"Never give in -- never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy."

-- Winston Churchill, 29 October 1941

As I was searching through the blogosphere today, in hopes of finding some inspiration and comfort in this troubling time for conservatives, I found the following comment in response to an article in Human Events. You can read the entire article here:

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=24799

I will post the comment in its entirety because it so perfectly mirrored the feelings I have had in the last week or two. This comment is by Bill from California and was posted on Feb 01, 2008 @ 03:52 PM.

"I will not vote for John McCain who will permanently destroy the Republican party. He has spent the last 8 year betraying and undermining the Republican party while pandering to the liberal left. I would rather have a Democrat win and finally take the blame for this mess that we're sinking into. After 4 years, when the economy has tanked, when the dollar is worth nothing, when socialism has completely overtaken our economy and ground it to a halt, when social security has gone completely bankrupt, when the economic strain has undermined our military to the point where we are weak, when liberals have eroded the conservative values to the point of complete moral decay, only then will we realize the socialistic danger that we have been slipping into. At that point, we will go crawling on our hands and knees to Mitt Romney. And we will beg him to save us from disaster (the way that he saved the Olympics). Only then (when we are desperate for change) will we be willing to "get past" the "religion issue" (honestly, isn't this the REAL issue that has been holding some people back) and accept this intelligent, principled, patriotic, great man. It took Jimmy Carter and the disaster that he brought in order for us to see and accept the greatness of Ronald Reagan. It will probably take a Hillary Clinton or John McCain in office to open the door for recovery (by tearing down this country to the point where people are willing to truly stand behind the values that have made this nation great). But if John McCain destroys our country, Republicans will be blamed.

Romney is correct. Washington is broken. Spending is out of control, liberal judges are writing law, our laws (immigration) are broken without consequence, the deficit is growing while the dollar is falling, gas prices are rising while we become more dependent on foreign oil (even though we have reserves available that we don't tap because of the environmental lobby), etc. The longer we delay fixing these problems, the worse they become. How much pain will it take before we wake up?

Romney will eventually turn the country around at that point. But it will be even harder then than it is now. But this is a man who has accepted and conquered these types of challenges in the past. And he will do it (as he did in Massachusetts) without taking a salary. He'll do it (as he did for the Olympics) because of his personal commitment to public service, and his patriotic zeal for America. And he will do it (as he did in his courageous stand in defending traditional marriage in Massachusetts) while defending the important foundation of the family, and the religious Christian values that founded this great nation, which is the foundation and soul of our society. He will do it because he is a compassionate and patriotic man, and because he is one of the smartest people this world has known."

Fellow conservatives and Romney supporters, we still have time to battle the enemy (the liberal MSM and liberal politicians) who are trying to decide FOR us who are nominee is going to be.

Get on your phones and "Call From Home" for Mitt, talk to everyone you know who is going to be voting on Tuesday and pray!

I'm going to start calling here in California as soon as I post this. Remember, if you are on the East Coast or live in the Midwest, we are three hours behind you so there's till time - it's 4:30 p.m. here.

There is still PLENTY of hope for a Mitt Romney nomination and victory for Conservative Republicans everywhere!

Never give in!

Never!

Labels: david brody mitt romney, election

With all of the doom and gloom, many people may be surprised that following Florida, Romney is in no worse position than he was before in national polling. Romney is still tied with McCain. Unfortunately, there is still a large group of people supporting Mike Huckabee for Vice President.

Romney was on the John and Ken show in Los Angeles yesterday. Lots of discussion of illegal immigration, tax cuts, home foreclosures, the deficit, carbon emissions, and more! My favorite quote:

"How are you going to stop the McCain train?"

"Frankly, Talk radio is coming to my aid, I think there are a lot of people, from Laura Ingraham, to Sean Hannity, and Rush Limbaugh, that are looking down the barrell of a McCain nomination and saying this would not be good for the Republican party and thats given me the kind of boost that I need."

Listen here. (Note: The interview begins a few minutes into the podcast.)

"Mitt Romney is holding on to his lead in presidential preference voting among Maine Republicans as returns from caucuses are being counted."

"The former Massachusetts governor has 53 percent of the vote with 12 percent of the towns holding caucuses reporting."

Guess who is trailing Ron Paul?

Story Here. Thanks to NY for Mitt for a great post on the Maine contest.

I'm getting a sense of way too much "resignation" among some online Mitt supporters. In the last few days Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, and Rick Santorum have all endorsed Romney and said that they would be voting for him. Although I wish these endorsements came earlier, it's clear that Romney is the conservative alternative to McCain (despite McCain's ads recently that call him "The True Conservative" . . . I spit out my milk when I heard that line).

I will also go on the record (again) that, should he become the nominee, I will not vote for McCain and will not encourage anyone else to vote for him either (probably not even if Romney is his VP). There are several reasons for this:

1) McCain lied about Romney's record on Iraq saying that Romney favored a "timetable for withdrawl like the Democrats." I've detailed the more-than-copious evidence that this is an outright and blatant lie here. I don't want, and we don't need, a liar as our nominee.

2) McCain has made quite a practice of "poking his finger in the eye" of conservatives. I'm guessing that he's man enough to realize and understand that many/most of us feel like returning the favor.

3) If McCain is the nominee, it's clear that, regardless which party wins, our country will have a President to the left of Bush. I don't want the GOP (and, by extension, conservatism) blamed for the ensuing mess of taking our country more to the left. Let the Democrats take the full blame of getting what they're asking for. That could be the best thing in the long run for the GOP and for conservatism.

Granted, I still am fighting and working to make sure that Romney is our nominee and not McCain. I would LOVE to be able to vote for the GOP nominee. We must all Rally to Romney!! He'll be the best President of anyone still in the game. His competence and leadership are unrivaled. People just need to wake up and realize it.

Jeff Fuller

Alaskan Romney supporter, Jeremy, lets us know the altest in the largest state in the Union:

I just wanted to update you on the progress of a forgotten piece of the U.S. Last night, we had Josh Romney visit Alaska and he rallied the troops. It was very inspirational. The message was simple. This was not just a fight for an election. This is the battle for the heart and soul of the Republican Part. Mitt Romney is the only person that can save the party. I was quite moved by the message.

Alaska is friendly to Mitt Romney. With ANWR being voted against four times by John McCain, Alaskans really don't like him to much (I mean really don't like him). On top of this, I have been doing much of local calling in the Anchorage Area (where the majority of the votes come from) and it has been overwhelmingly for Mitt. In addition, there are radio ads now playing for Mitt up here specifically talking about Mitt Supporting ANWR.

Alaska will choose Mitt!

Labels: Alaska