Presidential Repudiation

Senator Mike Lee (R-UT)

The results of today's election continue to trickle in at this writing.  My favorite candidate, Mike Lee (R-UT), easily won election as Utah's next Senator.  At 38, he becomes the youngest member of the United States Senate.  Congratulations to Mike.  I backed him from the moment I was first introduced to his candidacy back in January.

I was also delighted to see Gary Herbert retain the Utah governorship in this special election.  The Philpot race was a narrow loss to incumbent Jim Matheson.  Would have liked to see Morgan Philpot, but it was not to be.

Nationally, the big news tonight is the nationwide repudiation of President Barack Obama's liberal agenda.  This swing in House seats into the Republican column will prove to be HISTORIC!  Since World War II, in 1946, when the Republicans picked up 56 seats, and then in 1994, when they won 52 seats, tonight looks like the biggest gain ever.  They will pick up an estimated 65 seats. 

That's a tsunami.  Independents once again swung the election -- this time they swung to the Republicans.  This is a center-right country.  Obama would have had to hit it out of the ballpark with his socialistic agenda in order to avoid this punishment, and he couldn't pull it off.  He got whacked.  The turnout was stunning for a midterm election. 

It appears they will also pick up six or seven Senate seats, maybe as many as nine governorships, putting the number of governorships somewhere in the range of 32 nationwide.  That's a stunning victory by any measurement. 

One would have to say that the angst among voters has most to do with the sour economy.  Voters are impatient these days.  It would be foolish to claim victory if you're a Republican, because from my vantage point it seems this was mostly anger directed at Democrats for the direction the country has been taken.  I don't believe for one moment the electorate is as much impressed with Republicans as they are opposed to Democrats.

There is a little reported reality emerging.  The Democratic caucus will be more, much more, liberal than it was because the so-called "blue dog Democrats" were demolished nationwide.  Conversely, the Republicans are going to be more conservative than ever before.  Don't hold your breath waiting for bipartisanship to emerge suddenly in the aftermath.

Mid-term Election Map, 2010

This was a lot of anger and anxiety, resulting in a repudiation of incumbents across the board, and this is only the beginning.  Republicans are more conservative, more vocal, and the electorate will not wait long before they demand results.  Angry that no one is listening, today they are making Washington listen.  They were ignored over Obamacare, TARP and stimulus spending.  Today they were screaming.  The Republicans had better listen up or they will be gone.  The greatest rejection was of the president's policy failure.  The same fate awaits the Republicans in 2012 if they don't get something done quickly. 

There is one race that stands out among all the rest demonstrating just how deeply the anger has run against this president.  Obama made twelve trips to Ohio to campaign for Ted Stickland, and Vice-President Joe Biden was there eight times.  It was John Kasich (R-OH), however,  who pulled it out by a comfortable margin.

We're not thrilled to vote for Republican candidates, but the alternative was unacceptable.  The message is loud and clear:  Get the deficit down, reduce spending, reduce national debt, get the economy going, and reject Obamacare.

The question is whether President Obama will continue to govern as a liberal idealogue, or will he move to the middle where the moderate voters reside and determine elections. 

Obama said last week, "The people are acting out of fear without knowledge about what I've done for them."  That's an amazingly dense analysis for someone who is known to be an effective speech giver.  Is it that he can't communicate effectively, or are the American voters so smart that they know EXACTLY what they don't want?

I say it's complete, absolute and unequivocal presidential repudiation.

Utah Ranked Best for Business

To the surprise of no one who lives here, Utah has once again been named "best" in something meaningful.  This week Forbes named Utah as "Best for Business and Careers."  That is no small achievement for five successive years of consecutive growth at a rate of 3.5%, faster than any state other than North Dakota.  We either ignored or never received the memo that this is the "worst recession since the Great Depression."  We've just been truckin' along despite it all.

At our weekly networking meeting, I remind the folks who come that if you're unemployed this is the best place in America to be unemployed.  The rate here is 7.8% in the latest data.  It's cold comfort, I know, if you're still unemployed, but Forbes is not wrong in their assessment.  The entrepreneurial spirit here is thriving and communicable.  Catch it!  I just spoke with an older couple today at a small business technology expo who decided to start their own social media marketing business because they figured they could do better on their own!

The article confirms the number one issue on voters' minds in this upcoming election is the economy and jobs.  We've seen what bloated government stimulus spending has failed to accomplish, paired with overbearing regulatory "reform" that has done little if nothing to reform but instead retard economic growth. 

Utah is leading the way in the parade of states, doing what it needs to do to attract new business and jobs to the state.  Utah lowered its corporate tax rate from 7% to 5% in 2008. The rate is now one of the lowest in the country. The regulatory climate is also pro-business, with the Pacific Research Institute rating Utah second-best in the regulatory component of its U.S. Economic Freedom Index.

Forbes quotes the Governor:  "We want to make sure we don't have any nonsensical regulations that inhibit the private sector from expanding and having a profitable bottom line," says Governor Gary Hebert.  That's my kind of candidate!  If the federal government can't get it right, you may rest assured the government in the State of Utah is in good hands and we will get it right.

The article cites several notable companies that are expanding into Utah, with more arriving every day.  Included in the Forbes list are Goldman Sachs, Adobe that bought Utah startup Omniture for $1.8 billion last year, Oracle and eBay.

The ranking looks at six analytics to come up with the winner:  costs, labor supply, regulatory environment, current economic climate, growth prospects and quality of life.

There is little doubt Utah must be doing something right, and we are.  This is a place where businesses can be born, grow and thrive.  Increasingly, other states struggling to survive in this economy would do well to take a page from Utah's book of firsts in recent years.

To those who are still unemployed, take heart and keep on trying. 

Remember, "The number of times that I succeed is in direct proportion to the number of times I fail and keep trying."

The job market here in Utah is better, unemployment rates are lower, and companies are hiring.  We are committed at the Employment Resource Center and the Monday morning Professional Placement Program to continue matching employment candidates with the employers who are offering jobs.  The numbers who used to attend our meeting a year ago averaged 170 to 180.  This year in recent months those numbers have dropped consistently and now average 90 to 100.  I tell folks each week that our program is the only place on earth where we can succeed when nobody shows up for a meeting!

I am always heartened by success stories from our candidates who find work.  I get e-mails each week documenting their successful searches for jobs.  I take no credit personally for what is happening.  Our staff provides the authenticity for their experience, since all are themselves job seekers who volunteer their time and talents to assist and teach others.  Each is a living example of someone who is living the law of consecration in reaching out to lift up the hands that hang down and to strengthen the feeble knees, when they themselves are in need.  It's a miracle for me to be able to observe how it works!  And we need more volunteer couples.  Talk to your bishops.

Here's another recent example from someone in my LinkedIn network:


Dear Elder Goates,


My wife found a job listing the other day for a Service Advisor at *** GMC in Ogden. This was not a job I had ever considered but we emailed my resume to the Service Manager and then I immediately drove up to introduce myself to him.

We had a short interview in which I used my "Me in 30." The Service Manager explained to me that he had two other potential candidates who had previous car dealership. It turned out that one candidate had lost his driver's license and the other had some prior criminal background. There is something to be said about living the gospel. I knew that I could pass a drug test and that there was nothing questionable in my past.

I followed up with the Service Manager on Wednesday and he explained that they were waiting for the background check to come back for them.

I got a call today from the Service Manager to inform me that the other guy could not pass the background check and he asked if I could start tomorrow. I explained that we had a truck coming from Las Vegas in the morning with all of our belongings.

He agreed to let me start first thing Monday. I drove up to Ogden today and signed their job offer and then took my drug test.

Elder Goates, thank you so much for your encouragement and the encouragement I have receieved from the LDS Job Placement program. This has been a great blessing in my life.

We are in the process of moving into a house this week and I have been praying and asking what to do and how are we going to be able to afford this house. The answer I kept getting was that everything was going to be okay and that we would be blessed. This job came just at the right time.

I wish I could get up on Monday and share with the group but I know you will understand.

Please share this with the group. There were times I got very discouraged and it was very hard. I kept trying and didn't give up. I volunteered to help others, and attended the temple. I know that I am very blessed for this.

I know that this is an inspired program but you have to have faith and keep trying.

Thank you again,

Service Advisor
*** GMC

* * *

Here's another:

Brother Goates, Brother *** here, one of your father's missionaries if you remember. Good news I found a job, worked at this company eight years ago, not a perfect job, so I am still looking, but two things, good I did not burn any bridges and networking works. I do have a brother in the ward that needs help with a resume. I would like to send him down and work with the brother with the balding head. Sorry, I have forgotten his name. If you could let me know I will pass it along to him. Thanks for all of your help, it really did help.


Brother ***

* * *

And another:

I found a job and started working 9/28/10. I would like to thank you for offering a wonderful program that really does help those of us looking for employment. I particularly found the 2 day workshop that helped with resumes and mock interviews to be very beneficial. It is also nice that you include those of us that are not LDS to participate.


Thank you, ***

* * *

As you can tell, there is ample evidence the employment situation in Utah is improving.  People are finding work.  Employers are hiring.  Not everyone is hanging their head in hopelessness.  I encourage all who are looking for employment to come and partake freely of the offering at the Employment Resource Center at Welfare Square and particularly professionals who may be tempted to think they can do it all by themselves because they've always been self-sustaining in the past.  This is a different economic world, and you need new tools to assist you in your search.  We have our finger on the pulse of what's happening.  Help is available.  Half the people who were placed along the Wasatch Front in 2009 were not members of the Church.  Those who do the work we suggest find the jobs, while the rest of the job seekers are still relying upon sending resumes into cyberspace for job postings that are quickly filled up with hundreds of competitors' resumes.

The two-day professional career workshop is indispensible to job seekers.  We teach it alternatively each week at night and during the day to accommodate job seekers who are unemployed and those who are underemployed.  The Spirit of the Holy Ghost attends each workshop.  It is a revelatory experience designed to pinpoint strengths, skills and weaknesses, and to hone and refine the ways in which the job candidates present themselves to prospective employers.  As the examples above illustrate, it works!

I am happy to assist with pointing anyone to all the available resources, if you e-mail me directly at "d goates at yahoo dot com" (you know what it really is and how to spell it, right?).

10 Questions about the Utah mid-term election

Herewith, a mid-term test.  How much do you know about the issues in the upcoming November 2nd mid-term election?  Consider these questions:

1.  Why is it called the "mid-term" election?

2.  Who's running for Governor of the State of Utah?

3.  Who's running for Senate in the State of Utah?

4.  Who's running in the Utah 2nd Congressional District, and why does it matter?

5.  Who controls the education budget in the State of Utah?

6.  Why does my vote this year matter?

7.  Is it too late to register to vote?

8.  When does early voting begin?

9.  Why should I vote, when there's so much voter apathy?

10.  What's the best way to become informed on the issues?

Now scroll down and view my answers:

President Barack Obama

1.  The reason it's called the "mid-term election" is we are halfway through the first term of the President of the United States.  Barack Obama was elected in 2008 with "hope and change" as his mantra and campaign slogan.  He was swept into office with the help of the "independent" voters in this country who often determine elections.  Midway through his first term he has managed to offend and disenfranchise nearly everyone -- I know that sounds a little too overstated, but in this case it's probably true.  The extreme left wing of the Democrat Party doesn't seem to think he's liberal enough, along with some other members of Congress who have been running for the hills instead of proudly boasting of their legislative victories.  I find it almost impossible to believe, but there are some who thought Bob Bennett (R-UT) wasn't conservative enough either, so go figure.  Those folks on both ends are extremists.  I noted with interest today even Rocky Anderson, former mayor of Salt Lake City, is signaling he's thinking of voting Republican this year to try to unseat Jim Matheson in the 2nd Congressional District, since Rocky thinks Jim is too much of a fence sitter and isn't a reliable Democratic vote in Congress.  He might be shocked to learn that in the last two years, Jim Matheson has voted exactly the same way Nancy Pelosi did 93% of the time!  That's pretty reliable liberal thinking where I come from.  But I digress.  The independent voter, once wooed by candidate Obama has been largely turned off by the policies and the profligate spending in Washington.  They're worried that we've amassed too much debt.  Ditto the Republicans, who have criticized Obama from day one, and now it's become a tidal wave of discontent.  They're licking their chops as they count noses, expecting a huge sweep of historic proportions.

Governor Gary Herbert

2.  Gary Herbert is the sitting governor in Utah, assuming his seat when Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. was tapped as Ambassador to China by President Obama.  This election cycle is the end of the four-year term Huntsman was serving when Gary Herbert as Lieutenant Governor stepped up to the Governor's office.  He named Greg Bell as his Lieutenant Governor.  They are facing opposition from Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, who named Republican Sheryl Allen as his running mate, hoping to attract some Republican voters.  However, Peter Corroon has run a negative mud-slinging campaign, while Herbert has chosen to withhold the negative ads his ad agency produced.  Herbert has been criticized in virtually every way possible, as Corroon has made it appear as though Herbert is corrupt and is taking illegal campaign donations from contractors with whom the state has awarded contracts and settled lawsuits that might have cost the state even more time and delays.  Little of it, of course, has stuck.  Even though pollsters will tell you negative campaigning can move the approval rating short-term, Utahns have mostly rejected negative ads.  Herbert has run on the issues, and his biggest issue is education funding.  Sixty-five percent of the state budget is devoted to education in Utah.  Herbert took a $400 million shortfall in education and trimmed it to $10 million in his 2010 budget, pulling off a minor miracle in the process.  Other departments suffered deep cuts to preserve education funding.  And what does he get from Corroon?  A misleading ad that says Herbert doesn't care about education because he slashed education spending by $10 million.  It's true, but what about the other $390 million that could have been lost?  Herbert will continue to grow the Utah economy as his solution to provide funding by attracting out of state businesses looking to find refuge from high taxation and a diminishing workforce of qualified employees (read California).

Utah's Next Senator, Mike Lee

3.  Mike Lee came from nowhere in January to defeat the aging three-term incumbent, Senator Bob Bennett (R-UT), in a state nominating convention race, then Tim Bridgewater in a narrowly-won primary election victory.  His mettle has been tested and his resolve has not waned.  I endorsed Mike Lee early and often as the race leading up to the state convention heated up.  I believed then, and I still believe he's the right man in the right place at the right time for Utah.  He's opposed on the Democrat side by Sam Granato, a businessman who, some say, brings more maturity and a business background to the race.  Jim Bennett, son of Bob Bennett, who managed the Senator's campaign unsuccessfully and couldn't even get elected himself as a state delegate from his own precinct, jumped ship after the primary and now serves as Granato's communications director.  But none dares to call that sour grapes and being a sore and sour loser -- certainly not I.  It's a statewide election for Senator.  One-third of all U.S. Senate seats are up for election each two years.  In 2012, it will be Senator Orrin Hatch's turn to face the music, and he's already running (if you hadn't noticed), no doubt fearing the same fate suffered by Senator Bennett.  In both cases, the unspoken reality was their age.  Senator Bennett is 77 years old.  On election day, 2012, Orrin Hatch will be 78 years old.  The era of career politicians, I believe, is coming to a swift and abrupt halt in 2010.  Happily, there are many qualified replacements nationwide and here in Utah.


Utah's Next Congressman, Morgan Philpot

 4.  In the 2nd Congressional District in Utah, the candidates could not be more different this year.  Congressman Jim Matheson (D-UT) is opposed by Morgan Philpot.  The perception among voters in Utah is that Matheson is a moderate Democrat.  I used to believe it until I checked his voting record.  He's as liberal as anyone in Washington.  I eschew party labels, and I hate to even use the terms because they are such generalizations, but the only vote of magnitude where Matheson didn't back House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was Obamacare, knowing in Utah it would have assured the end of his political career.  I've voted for Matheson five times, and I'm like a lot of Utahns in the 2nd District who have kept sending him there because of token opposition along the way.  However, this year, Morgan Philpot is my candidate.  He's got the reliable conservative credentials to represent Utah, I believe, and I urge everyone to check him out.  I was walking a precinct last Saturday over in Heber City, persuading everyone with whom I spoke to consider seriously what his election will mean to Utah and to America.  If 41 seats in Congress can be switched from the Democrat majority, there will be an immediate halt to out-of-control spending, bailouts, entitlements and foreign debt accumulation our children and grandchildren are already compelled to pay back.  Each two years, all 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are up for re-election.  It's the "People's House," and this year the people will have a chance to take back their destiny.  That's why this race matters -- it's one of 41 seats needed to reverse course and assure a cessation of what we have seen these past two years.  America now knows firsthand the damage one party in power in two of the three branches of government can conjure up.  Truth be told, it happens historically in every mid-term election.  Voters are given the privilege of "buyer's remorse" when they feel abandoned and abused.  That's the genius of the United States Constitution.  It's self-correcting if the electorate is aroused.  It's exactly what the founders designed for self-governing free people, and it's a gift of inestimable worth we can never discount.

5.  I spoke with a woman who had four registered children living at home on Saturday.  All five voters in that home were registered as Democrats.  She's a single mom and a school teacher.  When I introduced her to Morgan Philpot as a possible replacement for Jim Matheson, the first question she asked me was, "Where does Philpot stand on education funding?"  I had to educate the educator that education funding has nothing to do with the candidates in the 2nd Congressional District.  Education funding is part of the Governor's budget each year that he proposes to the State House of Representatives for approval, and then eventually to the State Senate.  Property taxes assessed and collected by the 29 Utah counties each year is what primarily pays for school expenses, in addition to taxes from the general fund.  She obviously was unaware of how things work in the government (she wasn't a Social Studies teacher), and I suspect she might be only one of many who likewise do not understand how it all works.  She thanked me for my brief doorstep tutorial, overheard by all her adult children, and then uttered these golden words, "If someone like you (meaning an old guy like you) cares enough to get out and knock on doors on a Saturday morning, then you must really believe in what you're doing."  She was right!  I'm hoping she cares enough to cross over this year and vote for Morgan Philpot and Gary Herbert.

Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi

6.  I am one of those reformed members of the "silent majority" that coasted along for many years.  I voted routinely year after year, but I have concluded (incorrectly for too many years) that living in Utah where there is a vast Republican majority -- the "reddest state" in the Union -- that my vote didn't really matter much.  I've changed course this year.  I don't know when I've been so involved as I am this year.  At the end of this Congress, a vote to adjourn was proposed without bringing up the expiring Bush-era tax cuts for debate and vote before the election.  It was a tie vote in the House of Representatives over the adjournment motion.  Pelosi cast the deciding vote to adjorn.  Had Jim Matheson voted to stay in session and oppose Nancy Pelosi, they would still be there doing what they were elected to do -- the people's business.  Instead, ONE VOTE sent the House members scattering back to their districts to raise money for their re-election campaigns.  Does one vote matter?  You bet it does!  Make your vote count on November 2nd this year!

7.  It's too late to register online or by mail or to get an absentee ballot, but you can still go to your county clerk's office in person and register to vote.  Don't let this election slip past without getting registered.  If you don't register, you can't vote.

8.  Early voting begins on October 19th.  Polling places will be open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. each day until election day.  You can call your county clerk's office to get the details on polling locations.

Women voters in Iraq

9.  You can disagree with the Bush-era decision to go to war in Iraq, and the subsequent fallout and contention spilling over into Afghanistan -- war is never popular forever -- but this much cannot be denied: The people liberated from the sadistic rule of Saddam Hussein have demonstrated just how much they value their right to vote and have a voice in democracy.  They have showed up at the polling booths in impressive percentages -- exceeding 80 percent in almost every election since they were freed from the dictator's despotic iron fist.  They vote under threat of death sometimes, as the competing factions continue to contend with one another internally for control of the country.  The marginalization of women is slowly giving way to full participation and their right and freedom to vote is prized.  Sadly, a majority of Americans now believe it wasn't worth the price we paid to liberate Iraq from Saddam Hussein's regime.  Try to tell that to the people of Iraq, who remain grateful and value their new-found freedoms perhaps more than we who have inherited ours.  Why should we vote in this upcoming election?  Because the blood of our forefathers assured us that privilege.  Can we do less?

10.  I determined I would get off the sidelines this year, and I did.  I made it a point to become acquainted with the candidates, made my picks, then ran for election as a state delegate from my precinct to the nominating convention.  I believe there has never been a time in my life when the choices were more distinct and straightforward.  I have diligently ignored the screaming rhetoric from the polar opposite ends of the political spectrum this year.  I advise all to do the same.  Learn your truth from within the mainstream moderate voices of reason.  Seek out the candidates' websites and learn their positions for yourselves.  Don't rely on what others say about them.  Make up your own mind.  While it is obvious I am conservative and think of myself as moderate (there are those meaningless labels again), I try to keep an open mind.  I'm looking for leaders who are independent thinkers regardless of their political party affiliation.  There is a reason.  If the Republicans don't get it right this time (and they have two years to do it, assuming the electorate gives them the reins in Congress again), then Americans will become even more enraged with what comes out of Washington, and we will surely see the beginning of the end of the two-party system.  "Something else" will come in its place, and rightly so.  I have no idea what that might look like, but I hope the trend continues into 2012.  Americans will have every right to change it up again in two years if they can't get what they seek.  That's because, "It's always morning in America."  I am not discouraged, disheartened and disgusted enough to think it can't be turned around with true leadership that can be rekindled based upon the Constitution.  I believe we will see a renewal beginning November 2nd.

Beware the doomsdayers.  It may well prove the case that the best is yet to come in America.  She still has a glorious destiny to inherit as the shining city on the hill.  We're not there yet.  You have to vote for it.  It won't just happen because you hope it will.

And remember, it's all preparation for the righteous reign of the King of kings and the Lord of Lords yet to come.  That's real hope and change everyone will come to believe in someday.

The President Who Cried "Wolf!"

As a boy, I first heard the tale of the little boy who cried "Wolf!" one too many times.  It's a familiar story, but it bears repeating in the current political climate in which we find ourselves.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf, illustrated by Milo Winter in a 1919 Aesop anthology

"The Boy Who Cried Wolf," is also known as "The Shepherd Boy and the Wolf."  It's a fable, of course, and it is usually attributed to Aesop.  It's a little story about a bored shepherd boy who entertained himself by tricking nearby villagers into thinking a wolf was attacking his flock of sheep. 

When they came running instantly to his rescue, they found the alarms were false and they had wasted their time.  Finally, the day came when the little boy was actually confronted by a wolf, and the villagers did not believe his cries for help.  The wolf ate the flock (and in some versions the boy too). 

The moral is stated at the end of the fable as:  Even when liars tell the truth, they are never believed.  The liar will lie once, twice, and then perish when he tells the truth.

To "cry wolf" has long been a common idiom in English.  The phrase "boy who cried wolf" has also become somewhat of a figure of speech, meaning that one is calling for help when he or she does not really need it. Also in common English there goes the saying: "Never cry wolf" to say that one never should lie, as in the above phrases.

So how alike is this old fable to today's headlines over the last nineteen months?  No analogy is perfect, but this one seems to me to strike close to the mark.

The White House Talker in Chief

Again and again we have heard the desperate cry from this President, "If we don't (fill in the blank with yet another big spending bill), the world as we know it will come to an end."  So with all the votes tucked neatly in his tailored suit pocket, this President has passed a prodigious package of legislative verbage the experts are still trying to unravel.  Nobody yet knows what it all means.  The uncertainty is palpable.  The economy is frozen in its tracks.

We have all observed what a good talker our President is.  The man is a gifted talker, maybe in the top tier of all-time talkers.  He once told Harry Reid, "Harry, I have a gift." 

Let's review the "Wolf!" cries we've heard, and see if you don't agree.

1.  We got a near-trillion dollar "stimulus" bill that was passed over the objections of a majority of the American public.  When polled, they said, "We don't believe it will help, and we don't want it."  But the President talked and talked and convinced his Democrat majority it was the only way to hold unemployment at 8 percent.  Now his economic team, one by one, is leaving, their credibility in shambles.  And it isn't just the economic team -- even his chief advisor and his chief of staff are heading for the exit doors.  Everyone knows the economy is still suffering despite all the passionate talking, and funny thing -- President Obama, in perma-campaign mode keeps talking and talking and talking about his failed policies to convince us we're on the right path.  He's all alone in a bad echo chamber right now.

2.  We got a health care bill with another trillion dollar price tag, and President Obama talked and talked and talked about how it would revolutionize health care, cut medical costs, bend the cost curve into the future without damaging Medicare by saving waste in the program and wouldn't add "one dime" to the federal deficit.  Remember that line from his State of the Union address?  Since the Congressional Budget Office has now had a chance to actually analyze it, not one of those statements has proven correct.  The American public, once again, when polled rebelled against getting something they didn't want, and the Tea Party (however you define it) was born.  By the way, here's a story from today's Wall Street Journal that defines the Tea Party very well.  But what does the President do?  He ignores those stupid common folk who don't really know what's best for them.  He talks and talks and talks about how marvelous it's going to be for all of us -- no pre-existing conditions will be denied, children will be insured on their parents' plan until age 26, and the talk, talk, talk continues.  None of it's true, but he loves to hear the sound of his own voice saying it, apparently.

3.  Under this President the Congress, when faced with extending the Bush-era tax cuts, has failed to act.  We're in a staggering economy that's stalled and stagnant.  Raising taxes in this environment is wrong-headed and idiodic, but what does this President and Congress do?  They adjourn to fan out across the country in over 400 campaign fund raisers to get re-elected without taking action on behalf of the American people, and the President continues to talk, talk, talk about the class warfare issues that are so passe they defy reason.  "We're going to tax the wealthy, rebuild the middle class and eradicate racial discrimination."  Blah, blah, blah.  It's all part of what Obama really believes -- that hiring decisions should and must be in the hands of the government, not private businesses and the high-income people who own them and actually create jobs.  Ask any American, "Do you want higher taxes right now?"  I'm no political genius -- I only play one on this page -- but even I can hear them screaming in my ears.  Their answer is a resounding "NO," but what does this President do?  He continues to talk, talk, talk about how wonderful his economic policies are.  He should have checked in with his crack economic team, who are dropping out of his administration one by one, apparently embarrassed by the havoc that has been wrought on the American free enterprise system.

And what does President Obama do?  He keeps talking and talking and talking, as though anyone is left who is listening to what he's saying.  He's lost all credibility in my view.  His policies are NOT working.  The American electorate is aroused as I've never seen it in my lifetime, and the Chief Talker in the White House has managed to turn an overwhelming approval rating nineteen months ago into dust. 

The Democrats are now disavowing any and all knowledge of how all those bills got passed, almost as if some phantoms did the deeds of which they are accused.  They, too, have lost all credibility in the eyes of their constitutents.  The political pendulum has swung wildly back to the right.  Generic Republicans are leading in virtually every poll in every Congressional contest.

Whenever Obama opens his mouth now, it seems, the American public is hearing, "I believe in deficit spending, I want bigger government, I want to spend money we borrow from the Chinese to stimulate our small businesses in America, and I want the government to make all the decisions."  It doesn't really matter anymore what he actually says when he talks and talks and talks, because that's all the American people are hearing at this point.

He's cried "Wolf!" one too many times.  Our ears are stopped up with political "weary wax."  Words, simple words like "Wolf!" have lost all meaning.  Up is down, down is up, white is black, black is white, right is wrong, wrong is right.

Believe me, when Russ Feingold (D-WI) skips out on the chance to appear with President Obama for fear of losing votes, you know Feingold is in full retreat and battling against all odds to retain his Senate seat.

In the latest Rasmussen Reports poll, 41% of respondents strongly disapprove of the job Obama is doing. Only 29% strongly approve.

Races all over America are tightening -- governorships, Senate races, and Congressional seats.  Despite the polling data, I hear people openly asking if Americans will care enough to even show up to the polls.  Historically, mid-term elections are ho-hum yawners.  This year, however, I predict a record turnout on November 2nd for a mid-term election. 

People are demanding "CHANGE" -- and not what they asked for and hoped for in 2008.  This time around they've got plenty of fire in the belly to get what they want -- repeal Obamacare for openers.

I actually heard a news report in which he said in Wisconsin, seeking to re-energize the demoralized Democrat faithful, "We can't let this country fall backwards because the rest of us didn't care enough to fight."

Uh, excuse me?  Fall backwards?  That's exactly what we've done for the last nineteen months, Mr. President.  The political atmosphere in which we now live is toxic beyond imagination.  He's adopted policies in direct opposition to the will of the majority of Americans, as I pointed out above.  His policies have not worked, we are not on the right course, and we have fallen backwards from where we were before he took office, hard as that is to admit.  The financial pit is deeper, wider and now more unfathomable than ever before. 

When we once recoiled at the mention of Billions in deficit spending we have now become numbed to Trillions. 

Okay, enough's enough, rant over.  Now I feel better for having unloaded.  Time to go to work and elect Mike Lee, Morgan Philpot and Gary Herbert, my top three 2010 picks for great first-time candidates in the great state of Utah!