The Judiciary and Sotomayor

     The appointment of Sonia Sotomayor (awaiting confirmation) is a tricky subject when looked at from the right. Sotomayor clearly goes against everything in America that we work against- using race as a mitigating factor, seeking diversity through quota fulfillments, and the works. Yet this is not the issue that ERDIC (Everything Republicans Do Is Correct) believers such as Rush, Newt, Tancredo and others have chosen to fight.

      The first step in rebuilding a party is acknowledging where we have misstepped and using that as a ladder to gain ground on the leading party, the Democrats. Sotomayor is VERY experienced judge- why deny that when she has sat on a bench nearly her entire life, been taught and versed in law at two Ivy League Schools, and clearly KNOWS her craft.

    The issue Republicans should be fighting, and what scares me about Sotomayor is her UNDERSTANDING of the nature of a judge, and the REASON why she was picked in the first place! Did Obama even consider ONE male for this position? No he didn't- the short list was notably compromised of strictly women. Was that because NO males were qualified? If that's the case, so be it. But if a male was qualified would Obama have even CONSIDERED him? The imposition I grasped from the process was that Obama was actively seeking a woman, or a minority, or in best circumstances both, REGARDLESS if there were just as qualified males. Were there males just as qualified as Sotomayor? Were they not considered BECAUSE THEY WERE MALE? And that, my friends, is the scary deduction that conservatives should be flooding the airwaves with, not tired rhetoric arguing against her education, which is spectacular, or her affiliations with La Raza and other groups that really have no bearing on her judgeship. And this is why Republicans continue to get low rating. EVERYONE should be considered for a job such as  a Supreme Court appellate judge...there should be NO automatic disqualifier such as RACE or SEX. That is simply wrong.

     To keep it succinct, the final point I'll make is the unique disadvantage conservatives face on this issue. Fight Sotomayor's confirmation vehemently, and we risk alienating a large portion of the Hispanic population who are understandably elated with having one of their own finally ascending to the highest court. On the other hand, if Republicans roll over on blatant issues such as these, whose to say we won't do it more in the future. However, seeing as she should be confirmed with more than 60 votes in her favor, it is more politically expedient for the right to grudgingly ACCEPT her confirmation and continue to point out the sexist and "reverse" racist implications that the President's choice of Sotomayor highlights.

21st Century Conservative Take on North Korea

BEFORE READING READ THIS...http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090618/D98T1AR00.html...SCARY STUFF

   The situation in North Korea has undoubtedly taken a turn for the worst. The imprisonment of two American journalists to 12 years of hard labor is a circumstance under which we seem to have sacrificed the women for some sort of "greater good." The Obama administration's response to this issue has been insignificant and half hearted, to say the least. Anytime Americans are imprisoned under a ruthless Juche styled dictatorship, the President must have his actions speak louder than words, a sentiment our President fails to adhere to. 

  The confound the already frightening situation is the advent of nuclear technology that manifested itself when the North Koreans successfully deployed a short range nuclear missile, and the rumor mill has it that they are preparing to test a Taepondong missile that has long range capabilities, warning sailors around the region to depart the area. I wonder why????

  This situation is clearly a fragile one- and fragile situations are ones that require more proactive response and less casual ones- STICKS AND STONES MAY BREAK MY BONES BUT WORDS CAN NEVER HARM ME. Obama needs to heed this timeless phrase! Economic punishments MUST be in store for North Korea, Obama needs to pressure the Chinese more so than Bush or Clinton did in getting them to halt or slow trade activity with the North Koreans, as China is vital to North Korea's weakening economic vitality. North Korea needs to be put back on the list of state sponsored terrorist nations, and not only for the dampening reputation but because states on that list ARE SUBJECT TO SEVERE ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES. We need to grapple through months of legal paperwork to "legally" prove that they should be put back on the list? To hell with that. Put them on the list, put them on now, and start cutting down on their trade drastically. The only way to spur change in these type of crazy dictatorial types is by eliminating their purse- they are obviously immune to threats as Bush learned, and immune to cries of peace and diplomacy as Obama has learned. They are not immune to military and economic sanctions- no nation on Earth is- and its time that the North Koreans be reprimanded for possessing a bomb that, given their leaders desires, might very well be deployed. Enough of diplomacy and playing nice, already. When North Korea continues to posess nuclear capabilities, they are a danger to EVERYONE on this planet.

What Rush Limbaugh Is Missing

    Rush Limbaugh is a fantastic personality. There's absolutely no denying that, he's loud, authoritative and speaks his mind freely on more issues than most people give him credit for. Yet there is something inherently wrong about labeling Rush Limbaugh the "leader" (as 13% of Republican voted in a recent Gallup poll) of our party. A man of ideas is nothing more than a blogger like myself, or the millions of us, he just has a venue to express them that reaches millions of people daily. He being branded as a leader of the Republican Party is foolhardy and dangerous- politicians are leaders, not talk show jockeys. I appreciate Rush, but the line must be drawn and the Republican party needs to distinct that line as well.

     Rush is also much too static to ever garner recognition of any sort as a leader, or voice, of a political party. What Rush practices is a technique that I call "ERDIC"- Everything Republicans Do Is Correct." The main reason why our party failed in the first place is because we failed to adhere to our values and instead went to bat for every Republican issue- or issues that Rush and others thought were Republican issues. 

The first and most recent example of Rush's blatant ERDIC is his handling of the David Letterman/Sarah Palin fiasco. What David Letterman said was distasteful and I'm not defending what he said. But as Republicans- as defenders of the Constitution of the United States of America- we must uphold (however tough at times) the right to freedom of speech, except in extreme cases of libel and slander. The moment that Republicans crack on the issue of freedom- the fundamental building block our party champions- is the moment that the crumbling begins. Letterman is a comedian- a drowning one at that, with ratings plummeting- and it is this kinda of pseudo-comedic speech that Republicans should back off from bashing. Republicans need to fight the freedom of speech when it comes to NATIONAL SECURITY such as the Pentagon Papers or recent "torture memos." Republicans need to fight laws against the freedom of speech and press, such as the Equal Time and Fairness Doctrine which illegally seeks to cripple conservative talk show hosts like Rush. THAT IS where our energy on the freedom of speech should be directed- in cases where the freedom ENDANGERS our national security, or turly infringes on the right of an invididual to speak his mind - the Fairness Doctrine and CAMPAIGN FINANCE are two fallacies that immediately come to mind. But going completely insane over a couple sleezy jokes from the already worn down David Letterman? That's both a waste and wrong, we should uphold freedom of speech except in the places mentioned above, when our national interests are at stake or liberals are trying to wrestle freedom of speech into their own Big Brother like paws.

Such is my first of many ERDIC example. Just because this happened to Sarah Palin doesn't mean that we have to come after Letterman like Kennedy went after Bork. Palin has a right to be offended as a mother, but if the name "Hillary Clinton" were to be instead of Sarah Palin, I assume the conservative backlash against Letterman would be nonexistant.

Our party needs to show consistency. Letterman told an off color joke, and Sarah Palin responded like a mom should. But just because Sarah Palin went after Letterman doesn't mean we all have to follow suit and throw our freedom of speech mantras to the side. Consistency is the key to breeding a winning political philosophy. 

Traditional American Conservatism

    T.A.C.- Traditional American Conservatism. For now I'm going to keep that my pen name, seeing as status, names and titles only lead to corruption in society. What counts first and foremost are the ideas, not the name, so for now all my posts will be signed T.A.C. because they attempt to annunciate traditional american conservative ideas.

     

    RepulicaNation serves to bring back those on the right- libertarians, conservatives, republicans, theocrats, and others- into a unified, cohesive strain of thought instead of the varied, nonsensical, partisan driven babble that the "RNC" and other RINO entities attempt to shove down our throats. There is a reason why in 2008, Republicans are in more of a dire strait than ever, and it is because of the establishment, the Conservative power grip that has driven the party nearly into the ground on not only political issues, but cultural and international ones as well.

    While the country tends to a makeover from the liberal agenda that is Nancy Pelosi and President Obama, Republicans must fight back, but not with moderates addressing their own beliefs, and hard-liners focusing on other values. The strongest offense is a defense, and the strongest defense is a unified front with a clear objective. The clear objective here is simple; reopen the American public to the virtues of conservatism through theoretical and logical approaches, to cut out the Rush Limbaugh vs. Colin Powell nonsense and instead take a look at those to the left, not those within our own party.

     RepulicaNation will focus on every inch, every facet and every aspect in the political arena, keeping a keen eye on the left and with a mind towards reinventing ideas on the right. I look forward to spurring a new motor and sense of will on the right, a motor that Reagan, Rand, Kissinger, Burke, Buckley, and Lincoln could all be proud of, that is an attempt to consolidate Republican ideas into one venue and save our party from the pitfalls of past history by having us be the leaders of tomorrow's history.