Wednesday, November 12, 2008

12 Nov. ‘08 @ 1305
We need to find and encourage local as well as national
talent to re-energize the conservative movement.
Conservatism is NOT a “hard sell”, the basic principles
of self-reliance, smaller government & lower taxation are
fairly universally desirable. The problem, though, is that
most of these principles have been compromised in recent
years. I don’t think the conservative movement has been
hi-jacked by charlatans like the Democratic Party has, but
it has simply lost it’s way. It almost seems that in many
cases conservative leaders have just lost the will to fight.
Here are some leaders at the national level who I think
will/should play a prominent role in the resurgence of
conservatism in our great nation. You may not agree with
some of these and you may feel more strongly about others.
If so, please post your thoughts via the “comments” link at
the bottom of the page.



1. Sarah Palin: http://www.teamsarah.org/
We’re all familiar with images of Gov. Palin
from the recent campaign. She energized the
conservative base of the Republican Party in
ways that John McCain could not possibly have
done.
I would not have a problem with a 2012 run by
Sarah for the Presidency, providing, of course, she continues
to perform well as Gov. of Alaska and becomes more “seasoned
in her world view.
I believe, though, that her greatest service would be as a
US Senator. This because the Senate is a deliberative body
and hers is a voice of reason. She could very quickly rise to
a leadership position of considerable importance in a Republican
led Senate. She could possibly make a run very soon
depending on Ted Stevens' political life. Probably would
be better to wait until 2010 and run against Murkowski.
The important thing, of course, is to keep that Senate seat
in Republican control to prevent Obama having a fillibuster
proof Senate.






2. Piyush “Bobby” Jindal


Currently Governor of Louisiana, Bobby Jindal
is one of the really dynamic rising stars in
Republican Politics.
At age 24, Jindal was placed in charge of Louisiana’s
Health System and in less than 2 years led it from a
$400 million deficit to a $200 million surplus. This
without sacrificing services and quality.
Bobby Jindal was elected to the US House of Representatives
in 2004 after losing the gubernatorial election in ’03
to Democrat Kathleen Blanco, who proved to be a
disaster during the Hurrican Katrina debacle. Jindal
was re-elected to his House seat with 88% of the votes
cast. He ran for Governor again when Blanco declined
to stand for re-election and won with 54% of the vote
in a field of 3 other major and some minor candidates.
Jindal is the son of immigrants from India, converted
from Hinduism to Catholicism in high school and has
given testimonies to many evangelical congregations.




3. Paul Ryan, 1st Congressional District of
Wisconsin.

Little known outside of Wisconsin at this time,
but surely destined for a major role in any
resurgence of conservatism.
Ryan was considered as a possible running
mate for John McCain in the recent campaign.
Ryan is the Ranking Member of the House Budget
Committee the highest ranking Republican on that committee
and is a clear voice for economic conservatism.
Watch Ryan, he’s destined for a major role sometime in the
future, probably first as a VP nominee in a near future
Presidential campaign, almost certainly a candidate for a
Senate seat.
These are but a few of my selection of candidates. I’ll post
some more later, probably tomorrow , such as
Tim Pawlenty, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee. In the meanwhile,
let me know, via the “comments” button, if you have other
suggestions.


Tom

3 comments:

none said...

These are definitely rising stars in the Republican Party. I suggest that Newt Gingrich could really affect the direction of the party as chairman of the RNC.

Tom W, said...

Agreed, Pete. We'll talk about Newt tomorrow, maybe the next day. I consider Newt to be THE one most qualified individual in the country for that seat in the Oval Office.

none said...

Looks like Michael Steele is throwing his hat in the ring too. I think he also would be a great chairman for the RNC.