William F. Buckley, Jr. (1925 - 2008)

William F. Buckley, Jr. led a 50 year movement to champion conservatism that began in a New Deal America where liberalism reigned. Buckley made conservatism cool with his coalition of anti-communists, constitutionalists, and free-market enthusiasts.

There will be much written about America's modern conservative leader in the coming days and I will post links to the best of it here. I'll start with words from Ronald Reagan that appeared in today's NY Times.

"In remarks at National Review’s 30th anniversary in 1985, President Reagan joked that he picked up his first issue of the magazine in a plain brown wrapper and still anxiously awaited his biweekly edition — “without the wrapper.”

“You didn’t just part the Red Sea — you rolled it back, dried it up and left exposed, for all the world to see, the naked desert that is statism,” Mr. Reagan said.

“And then, as if that weren’t enough,” the president continued, “you gave the world something different, something in its weariness it desperately needed, the sound of laughter and the sight of the rich, green uplands of freedom.”"

Bill Kristol said, "For people of my generation, Bill Buckley was pretty much the first intelligent, witty, well-educated conservative one saw on television. He legitimized conservatism as an intellectual movement and therefore as a political movement."

The Real Reason Obama Will Defeat HRC

Democrats, for all my historical differences in the past and present, are smart enough to back a winner. Kraushaar writes for Politico, "After witnessing the enthusiasm generated by Barack Obama’s historic candidacy, Democrats in some of the unlikeliest places are looking forward to running on a ticket with his name on the top line."

Self-seeking politicians are determining that Obama is the better chance to get them elected. Expect more super-delegates to rush to his side this week as he opens a lead in Texas and closes the gap in Ohio. And watch for Bill Richardson to deliver the knock out punch in Texas by endorsing Barack.

Good news is the wicked witch is almost dead.

An issue!

Mrs. Clinton's weekend explosion was instructive as it highlighted perhaps the first policy difference between the two identical candidacies. With all the Dem rhetoric focused on gender, race, style, hope, change, personality, and not really being proud of the place they propose to run, I was thrilled to see an actual issue come to the forefront of selecting a president.

I learned from this spat that Sens. HRC/BHO propose to fix the problem of unbridled inflation in the health care sector not by creating incentives to improve quality at lower costs (see technology sector of US economy), but to completely remove the cost of treatment from the equation (see Canada and UK health care).

McCain's Dream Scenario

It now looks likely that the Clinton camp, only last week seeming to send signs to some that they might exit with grace, are intent on destroying Barack Obama, the hope he spreads and the Democratic Party along the way. Clinton staffers emailed a picture of Obama wearing Middle Eastern garb while on a diplomatic trip, a similar process engaged in by many members of US envoys including the Clinton's at different times. The photo plays into the chain email suggesting the Obama is secretly Muslim and unpatriotic (allow me a moment to rant - I received that email twice from seemingly intelligent Christian people who obviously missed the "don't slander a brother" portion of the Bible. It is one of the products of the modern Christian establishment programming people's thoughts instead of teaching people how to think and challenging them to do so, but I digress)

Add to the leaked picture Hillary's mocking Obama as a Christ figure ascending from the sky and her "Shame on you, Barack Obama" for sending a mailer to Ohio voters rightly attaching her to NAFTA and we see Clinton has decided to drudge the depths of the barrel for whatever might stick.

All of this at the same time John McCain is backing down the NY Times and Ralph Nader has resumed the role of spoiler. Conservatives who backed Romney must now really be kicking themselves as it seems the Democrats may not be as invincible as it appeared now that Hillary has decided to eat her young to win the nomination.

And this is the best America has to offer? Wonder how long Michelle will be proud.

Ivy League Populism

Bill, Hillary, Barack, and Michelle. None came from wealth. All four demonstrated America's one-of-a kind upward mobility as they each earned an Ivy League law degree. Yet they would have us believe the American dream has gone sour unless government gets busy.

In Ivy League Populism, Victor Davis Hanson writes, "As Sens. Obama and Clinton try to outdo each other in blaming government for our lack of individual responsibility and promising solutions by raising taxes to give us more government, they offer little change and less hope."

Michelle's America

Today Jonathan Last points out that Barack and Michelle Obama represent everything that is great about America. Their life experience would show that America is a place where hard work and determination can put even the most unlikely onto a path for greatness. Yet their campaign rhetoric leads us to believe that their ascension is more likely the result of some fluke, like somehow they've beaten a system that was rigged against them.

"Instead of seeing America as a place which afforded her the opportunity to create a blessed life, Mrs. Obama seems to view it as a place where some "people" are always trying to hold her back. Whoever these "people" are, we should be glad they haven't been successful. Michelle Obama's progress is--despite her telling of it--an inspirational story that should make us proud of America, not frustrated by, and scornful of, it. It says something about her view of this nation, and of her husband and herself, that she seems to find it so difficult--their own experience notwithstanding--to feel gratitude for and pride in her country."

Ground Game Ahead Once Again

On January 30, 2008, Ground Game readers read Jonathan Lee's "White Men Will Make the Difference"

"It sets up the irony that white men, the only group that Edwards has marked consistent success, must now choose to support a women or an African-American man."

Today, Jonathan Kaufman, of the Wall Street Journal writes "White Men Hold Key for Democrats"

"In a Democratic presidential nomination race that pits a black man against a woman, the victor may well be determined by white men."

With all the ranting and raving about plagiarism, I want to submit that someone at the WSJ must be reading Ground Game as a source for some of its political thought and commentary.