To Chairman Howard Dean & Superdelegates,

As an "04" National Delegate for Sen. Kerry, Henniker Democratic Chair,
a dedicated Woman for Obama, and Co-Chair of NH Educators for Obama,
I believe that Super Delegates such as Sen. Kerry, Sen. Kennedy and Gov. Patrick
should not have to vote along with the Primary results of MA.
They have all ENDORSED Sen. Obama and should be able to vote for Sen. Obama.
I also feel that votes of FL & MI are not valid, first due to the fact that Hillary was the only name on the MI ballot...
come on...how bias is that?
Second, with the fact that Candidates were not aloud to campaign or even step foot in FL...
You need to re-think this situation out!
Do the elections again, the right way maybe.
Make it "Fair and Balanced" in everyones favor, or don't count it at all.
No way will this be a fair Victory for Hillary,
if she is allowed to keep the delegates from FL & MI
due to the way she won them.
It is up to you to do the right thing!
You are in control and need to make the right decisions for the American people.
"Don't Let Me Down"
Peace, Beatles and Barack,
Brenda MacLellan

Last night I stood outside a restaurant with group of smokers talking politics. What else? I had voted for Guiliani in the morning and was interested in what the group thought about who they voted for and why. This group consisted of about eight men ranging in age from 40+ to 72. We were all pretty happy that it looked as if Hillary was not going to win. Congratulations to those who proved us wrong. None of the men had voted for Obama and they gave several reasons why. One spoke about his being sworn in as Senator and putting his hand on the Koran. (I went on line today and found out this is untrue). They didn't like his comment about people who wear American flag pins. The strongest reasons were that he is Muslim and they believe that he is a member of a Protestant church only for convenience, and he is black.

There were several Independants in the group who voted Republican for McCain. One Republican voted for Romney. One Republican voted for Thompson. Three Democrats voted for Biden even though they were aware that he had dropped out of the race. They said that they would have to pick a real candidate before November.

One thing that really impressed me was the number of people who voted. Over half a million people took the time to vote. That is great!!!!!!!!!!!

I just rode the wave back from Concord. I know now at 48 yrs. old tomorrow, that I will never to listen to the polls again. I congratulate now, all the Hillary supporters and wish that Chris Mathews never ever had a voice. If there seems to be a probblem it's not the voters, it's the media. How do you loose a state that you are ahead in the polls by 10+ percent. But not to sound lame, New Hampshire is an interesting place. It was a weird night for me, but I will go to bed thinking about Thomas Dewey. Once again, congrats to all the Hillary supporters.

It has been fun to be part of the New Hampshire Primary experience. Obama is not a god, but he is someone who captured the spirit of America at it's best. People in Iowa listened to him and voted for him. People in New Hampshire asked him questions and voted for him. Obama won the last Democratic election because of the principles of democracy. I hear the line outside of Nashua is already a mile long to see Senator Obama and I am glad others have become part of this proud New Hampshire tradition. I am heading to Concord to meet with the young and the old Obama campaign workers. Larry the next beer is on me. I hope along with Barack Obama that people continue to use their voice to fight for the change, that many people in this country deserve. It is good for this country that people continue to participate and that their voice will be heard in the halls of Congress.“Obama in 08”. It's fun to get to ride a wave.

Larry, We pray you have peace and rest in Heaven.
We have never met a sweeter, more gentle man.
Our prayers with you Edie.
Brenda and Bob

OH YEH, OH YEH !
Imagine Barack as President,
It's easy, if you try...
I've imagined Barack as President,
Many, Many, Many times before...
It's not like me, to pretend,
But we'll get him,
we'll get him in the end...
Yes we will,
we'll get Obama in the end...
OH YEH, OH YEH !

We work hard for him night & day,
We need Obama, it's true,
When we work hard for him everyday,
We'll help him change the country too,

So I'm telling you my friends,
That we'll get him,
we'll get him in the end...
Yes we will,
we'll get Obama in the end...
OH YEH, OH YEH

Well this primary is the time...
That Barack's gona change your mind...
So you might as well resign yourself to him,
OH YEH

Imagine Barack as President,
it's easy, cause I know...
I've imagined Barack as President,
Many, Many, Many times before...
So I'm telling you my friends,
That we'll get him,
we'll get him in the end...
Yes we will,
we'll get Obama in the end...
OH YEH, OH YEH
OH YEH

Peace, Beatles & Barack,
Brenda MacLellan

"Two Things" First, the next time the young supporters of Obama go to a 100 Club Dinner, I will read them the rulebook. Second, Hillary may have experience, but that does not mean the Republicans appreciate her experience. She will have a harder time convincing moderate Republicans to vote with her. Some people just do not like her and her husband Bill. They are not as perfect as some people try to make them look. I was teaching 7th grade when the President embarrassed himself, and for a few months I could not even mention his name in class without a snicker. Hillary and Bill are two hard workers, but they also have cut the throats of few people over the years and not everyone is happy with them. Where was Bill when Rwanda needed him? What about his dealings with the Chinese? What about her votes on Iraq and Iran? This other thing on the blogs, about Obama being like George Bush because he is a likeable guy. That is crazy talk. They are from two different worlds with two different visions. Obama is practical person who obviously enjoys hard work. Obama's ideas in many ways encompass the Democratic party. With Obama you get an intelligent, practical, hard worker who does not carry the baggage. The Clinton's carry baggage and in Iowa and in New Hampshire their baggage missed the train.

The Democratic turnout in Iowa was fantastic. Obama has inspired a ton of young people to become active in the political arena and that in itself will help make America a stronger and better balanced country. I was at the Hundred Club Dinner last night and once again the young passion of Obama supporters was everywhere. I know other candidates can claim their support from the young, but the Obama campaing has really rekindled a torch. There are some who are complaing about the crowd surging to the front last night and they have their reasons. If you decide not to vote for a candidate because young people showed their enthusiasm, then the Obama campaign does not need your vote. I could list 100's of reasons why I decided not to vote for Hillary, but one of them is not because of the politics she plays. Political tricks and showmanship have been part of the Clinton playbook for decades. We will remain active over the next few days helping to get the vote out. On Monday my son and I are going up to Dixville Notch to film the historic voting at midnight. We are making a DVD for the History Channel and the NH Political Library. It should be interesting. Try to go see a candidate in the next few days and become part of the New Hampshire first in the Nation Primary.

Each one of my fellow bloggers on both sides have looked at the issues, compared candidates, checked candidate views and have either made a decision or are still investigating. I may not agree with your choice, as some of you have not agreed with mine, but I know that you are all thinking.
I was amused by the Manchester Union Leader's editorial on the front page of today's paper titled, "NH, not TV, should decide." The paper makes some good points, but it did not stop the paper from endorsing a particular candidate. To be fair, the paper has done a good job of covering each candidate in a separate article. The Union Leader is correct. New Hampshire will decide.
I'm looking forward to watching the Iowa caucuses tonight. It is exciting to watch the strategy of the candidates and to have such close races on each side.

I have been away for 10 days over the Christmas period, but I am happy to be home to see what is going on in this primary race. My choice for President is John McCain. I stand in good company apparently. How about those endorsements sports fans! The Union Leader and the Boston Globe. There's some diversity. The Boston Herald, The Nashua Telegraph, The Keene Sentinel, The Portsmouth Herald and The Desmoine Register have all endorsed McCain. The Concord Monitor did not endorse John McCain, but they were very clear that Mitt Romney should not be President. Nearly a clean sweep for McCain. The beat goes on! Henry Kissinger and three other former Secretaries of State have endorsed Senator McCain. We need Senator McCain, who understands foreign affairs, to begin to mend fences with our traditional allies and begin to make new allies.

Sam Brownback, Lindsey Graham and many others from the US Congress have endorsed McCain. Even sports figure Kurt Schilling has endorsed John McCain. There are many others. I personally love Joe Lieberman even if his own party base doesn't. Joe Lieberman works for the people, apparently not for his party. How novel. Maybe that is why the Republican base is seaching for someone to beat John McCain. Think about it. Maybe when the party faithful are happy, apparently the country is not, ie W. Did you notice that the two Boston papers who know Mitt Romney's record the best, have endorsed McCain.

Idealogues on the extremes of the parties have been facing off for several years to the detriment of our country. Isn't it time to elect a pragmatist?

When the nation is asked who can best challenge the top three Democrats in the general election, John McCain runs best against each one of them. Can you picture a Democrat President with a majority Democrat House and Senate. I've been there and don't care to go there again.

The momentum is building and New Hampshire Independents can make this happen just as they did in 2000. I encourage them to take a Republican ballot and support John McCain.

PS. if you have not seen the film of Mitt Romney's debate with Ted Kennedy in 1994 that is circulating, search it out, it is a must see.

One year down and one year closer to GW getting out of the White House. It is important to remember how the Bush administration has been a disaster for millions of people. It is important to remember in the year coming up that we need to elect a democrat that will pass health care initiatives, make efforts to improve our environment, be committed to making education a top priority and turn our foreign policy in the right direction. The world needs a break from Cheney and Bush. They have made their millions and will make millions more while they are still alive. They have robbed the bank of human kindness and should be shown the door. The bottom line for every democrat is to pick someone who whose policies are good but whose ability to get elected is better. If we can get a democrat into the White House, I feel the American people can push that President to accomplish many positive goals. There are really only two choices Edwards or Obama. Obama is not a superstar. Obama's ideas are not new. But he has proven over this campaign and in his choices in life that he picks the right avenues to travel. He has excellent skills in judgment and he we be able to work both sides of the isles. John Edwards is a good man, but he did not help win one state in the last general election and I do not want to take that chance this time. OBAMA IN O'EIGHT. Happy New Years.

I like Rudy Guiliani for President. The qualities I admire in him are his ability to get things done. We were in NYC in August of 2001 and I noticed that there were empty police cars parked here and there in the Times Square area. A man collapsed in front of us and I went into a store near an empty police car to get some help, but there were no police in the store. The store manager called for help and told me that the empty police cars were a big deterrant to crime in the area. The bad guys didn't know where the police really were. I don't know whose idea it was, but it was a good one. A month later when the Trade Towers were hit, he did not panic and he seemed to help the city keep from panicking. Things went as well as they could given the horror of the day. We may never be attacked again, but if it happens I would like a cool head in charge.
Nobody that I have heard has disputed his fiscal record in New York City. He sounds competent in that area and we do need some fiscal restraint.
I have long been a right-to-life person for myself only. I don't want to tell someone else what to do with their personal life. So, I agree with Rudy there.
He has said he made some bad choices and did things he regretted. That is all I have to hear about his personal life. I am more interested in how he will be as President. I think he will be a good one.

One of the consistant themes raised in the last Democratic debate was that taxes should be raised on big corporations.
Big corporations have stockholders who expect that their shares will rise in value. Most people in the country are invested in large corporations through their IRA's and retirement plans whether they realize it or not.
If corporations are taxed at a higher rate, share value may drop and dividends, from those companies that pay dividends, will be smaller.
Another effect of raising corporate taxes is that these corporations will send more jobs overseas and U.S. citizens will lose more jobs.
Corporations are not evil. They employ people. They provide health insurance and other benefits. Most are quite generous to their local communities.
When you attack business, you attack the country!

On the vote for the Iraq war we do know one thing. Senator Hillary Clinton voted for it, and gave missle pounding speeches on the floor of the Senate. That is a fact! We do know as Dennis Kalob has pointed out, that 23 Democratic Senators voted against the war. I have been saying that one fact for years. It was not a slam dunk by our Democratic Senators. An interesting fact is, only Democratic Senators who voted for the Iraq war have run for Preseident. Those 23 who voted against the war, well they have not run for President. It seems if you were going to run for President in 2004 or 2008 on the Democratic ticket you had to look powerful and patriotic.
Obama has recorded interviews during the Senate vote on the war in Iraq, stating he was against it and it would be a mistake. If Obama had been a Democratic Senator, maybe there would have been 24 that voted against the war in Iraq. That is what we know. We also know that Senator Clinton gave President Bush another green light to do his vodoo on Iran. We do know that Obama missed that vote on the campaign trail, but in a Concord Monitor editorial he said he was against it. The real question is with all Senator Clinton's experience, why she voted for these two acts of war in the first that place? I was against the war in Iraq from the start, and I have only been to Washington a few times, so how important is Washington experience? That is what I want to know.

I have been following the sub-prime mortgage developments for a few years since I noticed that our local newspaper was publishing more and more foreclosure notices. The present administration has come up with a plan that will save some of these peoples' homes.

The Democrats have criticized the plan saying that it doesn't go far enough. The harshest criticism has come from Senator Clinton and Senator Obama. It seems to me that these Senators have had ample opportunity to propose legislation dealing with this problem for several years, but they have not done so. Why?

It is going to get interesting in the next few weeks. Hold onto to your holiday hats!!

I really don't like Governor Romney, but I feel sorry for the owner of the company that lost his landscaping job at the Romney's mansion. There are a number of folks in the Bush administration that are casuing more harm to this country then a few landscapers. There was a time when I did alot of landscaping and getting a job like the Romney's mansion was your bread and butter. I wonder how many people were hurt by this person losing his contract. Does Rudy really care? So what is important in Politics? Is it a resume, is it experience, is it connections, is it money, is it a family name, is it character or is it a good sense of judgement? I hope it does not come down to who is raking your leaves.

The media continues to make it confusing for lots of people. The best thing to do is to read, to study votes, and to look at issues. Vote for someone you feel comfortable with, who you would consider following into the a new era that is rapidly approaching. Because in the end we are voting for a leader. Don't listen that much to the media and do your own research. The bottom line is that in this country many people don't even vote, so your vote really is important to all of us. I wish those folks who lost their job before the holidays good luck. Like I said, I really do not like Governor Romney's political agenda. He did not lose my vote because of who he hired to do his lawn.

I am curious about the celebrities who have thrown their support and time into the campaign of the candidate they favor. First of all, they have already reached star status, something each candidate wants for themself. I find the pairing off of a star and a candidate distracting. I see it as a distortion of both the sought after power and the importance of the race itself.

I can recall a Manchester Airport incident a few summers ago when I was sitting at a gate waiting for my plane to arrive. A stranger kindly asked me what I was reading. I flashed the cover of Tolstoy's" Anna Karenina" and proudly announced that it was Oprah Winfrey's summer reading. The woman turned from friendly to abrupt and said, "Do you do everything Oprah says?" I was speechless.

I have repeated that story many times in an attempt to show how a situation can change in an instant. Unprepared for that remark, I found myself wondering how obsurd I looked in that person's eyes to be buying books because a star recommended that I do so. Is that what some folks are now thinking about stars stumping around the state of New Hampshire. Will people come out to see the star and suffer through a few hours of politics? Funny, I now find myself aligned with the stranger in the airport. I find it curious that anyone would be swayed to vote for someone because a star "told them to."

Candidates say they are just hoping to draw bigger crowds, made up of people who would might not have come out otherwise. If in the end, endorsements cause people like me to revisit Tolstoy, or voters to revisit politics, then I guess it could be a good practice afterall.

Watched the debate and was surprised by some of the questions. I think the Republican candidates did a pretty good job in answering them. I did not like the Romney/Guiliani spat. I think both candidates lost a little on that. It was amusing to see that CNN had not checked on the people asking the questions and that there may have been a bit of a setup going on. I found it interesting, but was disappointed that the "undecided" (Democrats) didn't ask more questions about the economy and taxes.
The gay general must have forgotten that the "don't ask, don't tell" policy was instituted during the Clinton administration. Personally, if a gay man or woman can do all the required training to be in the military, then let them serve.

I read John Kjellman's piece and want him to know that some Republican men think that Republican women will vote for Romney because of his looks. He is a nice looking man, but I won't be voting for him whether he has nice hair or not. I am looking for someone who can handle an emergency and remain calm. I want a fiscal conservative. I do not want someone telling me how to live my life. I had a big problem with Romney leaving MA. for almost 200 days in his last year of office. He visited Iowa and South Carolina a lot and was always non-commital as to whether he would run for president. He wants it too much. Review his debate with Sen. Ted Kennedy in 1994. What a change!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow

After watching the Republican Debate, all I could think of was "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition." Before I went to bed that night I took my bible and propped it against the door to help keep the immigrants out. A sense of humor is key. I thought Huckabee was good. I met him once and he made me laugh a few times. But to be serious, there are many times the Democratic party scares me, but last night the Republican candidates frightened me.

Bob

For this vote, I am looking for a candidate who represents America and not him or herself.
The debate last night, was just one more instance of the infighting that candidates do. I was disgusted to see Romney and Guiliani go at it over things that have little impact on the bigger picture of where America is going. What about us out here who see real issues and can't get anyone to address them?

How do we get them to really talk about illegal immigration and the impact it is having on American citizens and American values? When will they talk about the mess in the House and Senate in Washington and its elite group of self seekers who have no interest in preserving this country? What will prompt them to address the domestic issues like the infrastructure of this country and fix it without fraud and mismanagement? This year, it will be a last minute selection of a candidate for me.

Happy Thanksgiving and many more to enjoy.
It seems in some new polls that the Barack Obama campaign has taken a small lead in Iowa. Good news for their campaign, but the question they need to ask is why are they ahead? Obama has spent over sixty days in Iowa and only 25 in New Hampshire! That may be the reason, but I sense something stronger. In a recent poll that is not about issues, but about voter’s beliefs or possibly their values, voters have found Obama very appealing. In a poll about who is more honest and trustworthy Obama came in first. In fact, Hillary Clinton came in fourth behind Edwards and Richardson. She received some of the worst scores on whether she is honest and straightforward. It is something I have a difficult time with. This is an issue that is connected to Bill and I hear it more often when I have discussions with people about politics. I teach at a Middle School outnumbered by women, and it seems to be the number one issue among women who are not aboard the Clinton crusade. They do not trust Hillary. That will become a huge factor in the General Election.

What this country seems to be searching for is a President we can trust. We are looking for a leader who is honest and straightforward and who does not carry baggage that is filled with bricks of distrust. That type of baggage will slow down our next President in Washington, to accomplish some major goals. Obviously under the Bush administration the Neocons have steered the ship of State, especially in foreign policy, to a land of make believe and distrust. Nobody really believes anything they say. The list of what the Bush Administration has lied about has already filled a few books, but they are not the first Administration to do so. I have been involved with politics on many different levels and one of the things I have always thirsted for in a Candidate is the honesty factor. To tell it like it is and project a future that will not be tarred and feathered by distrust. The constant lying in politics is one of the reasons why I hate politics.

In this General Election, the Democrats will need a candidate with broad appeal across the Nation. Democrats cannot run a campaign based on winning Ohio in 2008. We need a candidate who can run and win in as many States as possible. Yes, there are issues that divide the candidates, but if a voter in Arizona or South Carolina walks into a booth and already feels the candidate is not honest, straightforward or trustworthy well forget it. It's not going to work in the voting booth and it will not work in Washington DC.
It looks like Obama is doing better in the polls because people actually feel they can trust him. Good for him

I don't like the idea of universal health care because of the expense to the average citizen and the lack of competition which drives up costs and lowers efficiency. Many Canadian citizens have come here for operations that they could not afford to wait for under their system. The waiting list can be long there. Taxes in the countries that have universal health care range from 40% of personal income and up. Another drawback is that people tend to use a service more often if it doesn't cost them much.

I grew up in the era of lead soldiers, toy cars etc. We also would break thermometers and play with the mercury in them. I ate a worm once on a 50 cent bet, smoked a cigar for $50., and jumped into the waters of Beverly Harbor for another $50. I'm still here.

Now to oil...There are companies now recovering oil from the oil sands of Colorado and we have enormous quantities of oil there. The Canadians are doing the same in Alberta. There has been a lot of contraversy over the oil in Anwar. From what I have learned, if we explore for oil in Anwar, the area affected will be the size of a postage stamp on a football field. Years ago when the Alaska pipeline was built, there was much talk about the harm to wildlife. After the pipeline was built, many pictures of it were shown. Caribou and elk enjoyed walking along that route in search of browse and the herds actually grew. In our own yard, where we have recently developed two house lots, our six deer walk down the new gravel driveway and enjoy all the plants that had started sprouting. Before, they had stayed on a rough woods road. We hope that our small herd will grow.

Like fellow bloggers, I am concerned about a poll that finds more than 25 percent of its pollsters undecided. What about the 75 percent of the remaining responses being so widely divided? People don't seem to know the candidates well enough yet. What some of those numbers may be revealing is that the candidates have been busy telling us what they don't respect about one another, and perhaps they could spend a little more time convincing us of their own strengths and who they really are. Is it too late to clear up the confusion?

Have we reached a point in politics when it is too risky to answer questions directly and be straightforward? I know the answer is yes, and it has been for a long time, but I pose the question just to be sure that we take the matter into account when pondering which candidate to support.

The poll question, "Who would you support today?" has Romney and Clinton very close. When reading most press, Clinton can only be beaten by Giuliani. Aren't the New Hampshire voters always right?

Cardinal O'Malley chided Catholics yesterday for supporting candidates who are pro-abortion. He said," I think the Democratic Party, which has been in many parts of the country traditionally the party which Catholics have supported, has been extremely insensitive to the Church's position, on the gospel of life in particular, and on other moral issues." It will be interesting to see how much influence the Catholic Church has on its Democratic members.

Boston.com published a non-scientific survey of people who were responding to the Cardinal's remarks. These 1,476 people rated issues in their order of importance. The Iraq War was first in importance with 48.8 percent, second was the economy at 23.7 percent, third was abortion at 18.7 percent, fourth was immigration policy at 4.5 percent, and fifth was capital punishment at 4.3 percent.

Have a nice Thanksgiving, everybody!!

My view on the priorities of this campaign seem divergent from most. First and foremost, I feel that we need a strong wartime leader and I am prepared to say that Sen. John McCain is the most prepared candidate to lead the future efforts against extremist Islam. He has the ability to re-connect with the rest of the world and build a coalition of democracies to combat this threat over the long term. He really understands what needs to be done to get Iraq up on its feet; so we can reduce our troop levels. He has been highly critical of the Bush strategy since 2003. He has not, until this year, approved of the way the war was being waged. He has advocated the surge for more than three years. Most people think of 30,000 more troops when they think of the new strategy in Iraq, but the surge is only a small part of the new stategy. Working with some of our former enemies to divide and conquer has proven to be a great stategy. Sen. McCain has been screaming for this change for almost four years. It is now working. Fewer IEDS, fewer casualties, and more secure areas is the result. The Sunnis are now joining our coalition in Iraq to fight the terrorist insurgency. Some of the Shiites are standing down to see how things go in the future. Sen. McCain had this vision years ago and spoke out about it when it was very risky to do so. The overwhelming sentiment in the country was to get out and fast. He knew what was right and he spoke out. That is leadership. Time is proving him right. Lots of work remains. McCain is my guy.

I looked at the survey and wasn't too surprised by any of the answers. There was one place where the Republicans and the Democrats were asked different questions. The Republicans were asked how important a candidate's position was on illegal immigration. The Democrats were asked how important the candidate's initial position on Iraq was. It would have been more interesting if they had asked both questions of each person. Most people I talk to about the primary are leaning toward a candidate, but are waiting to see if something happens to destroy their favorite's chances. I'm sure that by primary day, we will have made up our minds.

I have long thought that the success or failure of a presidency is quite often tied to the people who advise the President. I would like to know who each candidate would choose to be in his/her cabinet and why.

With all the candidates seeking the nonimation why does no one stand above
the rest? Has it become so undesirable to run for office that many qualified individuals shy away? There must be many more capable people that would make a good
President.

Watched a bit of this show and he was rating the way he thought the candidates were doing as of this week. From top to bottom he listed Clinton, Obama, Guiliani, Edwards, Romney, McCain, Thompson, Huckabee, Richardson, and Biden and Dodd (tied for last). He didn't say what he was using to rate them, but he plans to rate the candidates each week.

I have a really hard time understanding how Republicans especially, can place the blame on our new Democratic majority in Washington, for not bringing our troops home with comments like this, "The Democrat Party pretty much swept the last election with promises to bring home the troops, but they are not home yet. How effective were all these politicians?" Democrats can only be as effective as, President Bush's veto pen will allow them to be. I wish Republicans would accept the truth and the blame for this horrific tragedy of a un-winable civil war in Iraq!
A real mess was handed to the "new Democratic majority" when they were put into office.
We should have never gone into Iraq for many proven reasons... especially because it's apparent, there is no way to get all our troops home safely at the same time. Giving President Bush the authority and a blank check to send our men and women to Iraq without a clear exit plan was the wrong way to vote! We were told we were un-patriotic if we didn't support the Iraq war. What a lie. I am tired of lies and politicians voting for political gain. People should realize that Senator Obama spoke out against this vote, when it was un-popular to do so. Barack showed principal and judgement knowing it was wrong to go into Iraq, and that it would be even worse to get out. So much for "Washington Experience"!
I will vote for the candidate who has the guts to stand up and make a hard decison with sound judgement.

Brenda MacLellan

Most people on the news shows this morning found this pretty amazing since the two men have many philisophical differences. I believe that the endorsement came because of the kind comments Rudy Guiliani made about Mike Huckabee a few days ago when he was asked if he thought Huckabee would make a good vice president. I have met Mike Huckabee and heard him speak several times and was impressed each time, but I didn't think that he could win the nomination, mainly due to lack of name recognition. Guiliani has the name recognition. Both are fiscal conservatives which is one of the qualities I look for. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

At this time we need to focus on a Republican candidate who can win the presidential election. We need a candidate who has the courage to tell the truth and say what needs to be done, even if it’s unpopular, not someone who will say what you want to hear to get elected. We need a candidate who has a specific plan and doesn’t speak in generalities.

Select a candidate 2008 is a short, interesting test that matches your answers to each candidate's positions and will show you who thinks the most like you. The results can be quite surprising. I was surprised to see who I agreed with the most, but I will not vote for him because his positions were totally different 10 or 12 years ago.

http://www.wqad.com/Global/link.asp?L=259460

Our new President will be inaugurated in January 2009. I'm willing to bet that we will still have troops on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan. Whether we supported getting into this war or not, we are there and have spent lives and money on this effort. Our choice for the presidency will have lots to do with many domestic programs, but I think the most important job will be Commander in Chief of our armed forces from day one. The minute this President is sworn in he or (God forbid) she will have important decisions to make. No OJT here, just get it done. You might like someone's position on Internet taxes, but give it a rest. Who is best prepared to serve as a war time President? Stay tuned for the answer. By the way-- The I-Man is coming back!

Hillary now supports Spitzer's driver's license plan for trying to deal with the "failure of the Bush administration to get comprehensive immigration passed." She has been a Senator for a few years. As far as I know, each senator is able to sponsor legislation. Where was her's?

She also wants to withdraw the "vast majority" of US troops from Iraq, but leave a small force there to fight Al Qaeda, and she plans to withdraw them within 60 days of taking office, if not less. When she appeared on one of the Sunday news shows a few weeks ago, she said she would withdraw the troops as soon as she took office, but then went on to say that the withdrawal would depend on the conditions in Iraq when she took office.

From what I have read and heard from people who have been in Iraq, Al Qaeda is spread all over the place, and I don't believe a small force will be able to cope. Also, there is the threat of what will happen with Iran. I fear that if we withdraw our troops, they will feel free to continue on with their plans.

The Democrat Party pretty much swept the last election with promises to bring home the troops, but they are not home yet. How effective were all these politicians?